Becoming and Progressive Paths

“Dogmas, doctrines and progressive paths which promise eventual enlightenment, or Nirvana, or the Kingdom of Heaven, through sacrifice, discipline, refinement and purification of the self, appeal tremendously to that within the seeker which feels unworthy. Hence, the power of classic religion and teachings of becoming. Traditional Advaita is just another one of these.”

Tony Parsons

Full article can be read here: http://www.theopensecret.com/traditionalnottwo.html

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About Sitara

Sitara was born in 1954, she became a disciple of Osho in 1979. In 2002, she met Dolano and from then on,discovered Western-style Advaita teachings, especially those of Gangaji. After reading Back to the Truth by Dennis Waite in 2007, Sitara started to study traditional Advaita Vedanta (main influences being Swami Paramarthananda, Swami Dayananda and Swami Chinmayananda). She teaches several students on a one-to-one basis or in small groups (Western-style teaching inspired by Advaita Vedanta). Sitara is highly appreciative of Advaita Vedanta while at the same time approving of several Western Advaita teachers. She loves Indian culture and spent many years in India.

4 thoughts on “Becoming and Progressive Paths

  1. With excuses being asked to Tony Parsons, looking for an understanding of the mystery of life and of one’s place in it; looking for whatever truth one may be able to access even ‘through a glass darkly’; searching for the very definition of truth, if there is one, is not necessarily motivated by feelings of unworthiness; rather, by their opposite. As Plato is reputed as saying, ‘an unexamined life is not worth living’.

    As F. Schuon wrote, “All down the ages to philosophize was to think; it has been reserved to the twentieth centutry not to think and to make a philosophy of it.”

  2. Yes indeed Martin. The unexamined life is not worth living. Though I do suspect that one may come out of the other side without thought. But that can only be out of the intensity of examination rather than the dullness of mind.

    From The Vision and the Way of Vasistha:

    1617: The state consisting of imagination (or desire) of the Supreme Self is called the MInd. On account of the absence of imagination (or desire), there arises the state of no-mind (or absence of thought). Liberation arises from that.

    1926: As the mind is extinguished through arresting (its movement) by the effort of one’s own intellect, so it is not (quelled) through series of religious rites, sacrifices, learning, holy places and penance.

    • Is quoting others a way of motivating your search for the unknown? All that reading and studying over the years has not yielded any achievement, yet you continue. How can you continue to believe yourself? Or, believe others?

      You don’t need to be a good philosopher to finally give up philosophy. This is some kind of fairy tale that you tell yourself. You give it up because it doesn’t lead anywhere, not because you achieve something. This is a great trick we play on ourselves. You keep the sense of continuity going. What else can you do. Cheers.

  3. Good ripost! On this line, one has to be a good philosopher to finally give up philosophy, have a good mind in order to go beyond the mind. And that usually takes time – and dedication..

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