The true Self - Sri Ramana Maharshi

”The Self is the one Reality that always exists, and it is by the light of the Self that all other things are seen.

We forget it and concentrate on the appearance.

The light in the hall burns both when persons are present and when they are absent, both when persons are enacting something, as in a theatre, and when nothing is being enacted. It is the light which enables us to see the hall, the persons and the acting.

We are so engrossed with the objects or appearances revealed by the light, that we pay no attention to the light. In the waking or dream state in which things appear, and in the sleep state in which we see nothing, there is always the light of Consciousness or Self, like the hall lamp which is always burning.

The thing to do is to concentrate on the seer and not on the seen, not on the objects, but on the Light which reveals them.”

Ramana Maharshi

EMPATHY

The Good Empathy and The Wrong Empathy

We learned to join those in distress, hoping to alleviate their suffering, but we have to observe ourselves carefully, because there are two kinds of empathy.



When we join in someone´s suffering and we become sad ourselves, we only amplify their sadness and depression.
It´s like we certify their distress to be worthy of staying upset. This solidarity in sadness is the wrong kind of empathy.


There is a better alternative that will really help them.

We understand their suffering, but we do not copy their sadness and distress.
We maintain our good emotional state.
We bring them peace and joy.
They will join us in our peace and joy, and they will feel better.

This is the right kind of empathy, the good empathy.
This is empathy with a purpose and with a good result.
This is real empathy.

Awakened

 

“Not seeing Self, the world is materialized. Seeing Self, the world is vanished.” Ashtavakra Gita 

 

 

 

 

“In the limitless ocean of Myself the winds of the mind roil the myriad waves of the world.”

But when the wind subsides in the limitless ocean, the ark of personhood is swallowed up, along with the universe it carries.”  Ashtavakra Gita

The next short video is full of symbolism that will give us an intuitive understanding of what Awakening is :

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=16&v=84vMdZCOKX4

It starts with the sinking of the mind in the “water” of Consciousness.

Why is the girl shown swimming under the water , wrapped in plastic foil ?

The plastic wrap suggests the placenta, the Unborn Consciousness, without duality, the One.

This is the infinite, the eternal Ocean of Consciousness, the substratum of our perceived world.

Notice how our perceived reality is shown to be superimposed on the Absolute reality.

She is swimming continuously under the water, in absolute bliss, and her stressful life is superimposed on this, like reflections flashing on the surface of the water.

“If you were a wave on the ocean and you started thinking of yourself as a separate individual, you would live on the surface and be whipped about this way and that, and you would lose touch with your reality, which is the water that you are made from.”  Nisargadatta Maharaj

The surface of the infinite ocean of Consciousness is our passing, changing, troubled world of duality.

The couple is shown fighting in front of a window , the reflective surface of the water is also shown outside of the window, and the swimming under the water is also shown.

Both states of reality occur simultaneously, one is transient, the other is eternal.  

She exists in both layers of reality, but she does not know this, and she considers herself to be just a person.

“Mind always takes you out of the reality.” Nisargadatta Maharaj

The Absolute can not be known as a concept by the mind or as an object by sense perceptions.

We are the Absolute , we are looking for It and we can not find It outside of ourselves.

“Don’t look for me in human form.

  I am inside your looking.”    Rumi

The Awakening is the realization of our true Being, possible only by being It.

Suddenly, she raised her head over the water and opened her eyes  - she realized what she Is – she Awakened.

“In me, the shoreless ocean,

let the waves of the universe rise and fall as they will.

I am neither enchanced nor diminished.”

                                      Ashtavakra Gita

 

                                                                                                                                                                                            

Bad relationships - See the real cause !

Some of us keep repeating a pattern of bad relationships and blaming it on others.

We forget that we can’t change others, we can only change ourselves.

We lost touch with ourselves, so, is it to wonder why relationships won’t work ?

We covered our Beingness with a mental image about who we are.

A real connection between human beings is more than a match of mental opinions.

The real connection exists already , between us all.

To be able to see this, we must, first, reconnect with our own real Self, our Beingness.

The lack of connection with our own Self is the Cause.

The disappointing relationships are only the Effect.

Only when we'll identify with the real, only then our relationships will be real.

Stay Happy!

We forgot how full of life and joy we were,as children,just happy to be.

For many of us,our waking state dreams turned into tragic and absurd nightmares.

We discovered suffering,and we learned suffering.

We were conditioned to assume that it is appropriate to be stuck in the “sadness mode”.

To remain happy and at peace,seemed somehow...  not decent.

We became too good at suffering,we became professional sufferers.

We imagined that we will be happy,sometime in the future, but only after our problems will be solved.

Who is the one that suffers?

Is it truly me?

Who am I?

I have been playing many roles in my life and I fully identified with them, and all those roles had their share of suffering.

They should have teached us,from an early,age that we are not what we appear to be.
 We should have been told not to identify with body,mind,emotions,feelings,past experiences,social roles,personality.

We should have been made aware that we are the eternal,infinite Consciousness that temporarily took all these forms.

We limited ourselves,we identified with the form,with the person.

And the one who suffers is the person.

“We are not really experiencing suffering,but rather we are suffering our experience.” Mooji

We suffer as persons, from the limited perspective of our life roles.

By understanding this,we can detach ourselves from our individuality and from our suffering.

It is a necessary first step,but running away from suffering is not enough.

We have to unveil our true happiness from under the superimposed person.

Pure Consciousness is the infinite,eternal substratum of all reality.

It is our substratum too,and we couldn’t be without it.

The Pure Consciousness is formless , it is not a thing, this is why it is described as “No-thing”.

It is not affected by anything,so we are free and happy too, not affected by anything.

To be truly happy, you must recognize who you are with nothing."  Gangaji

Now and then, we seem to be happy for some reason.That “happiness” passes away.

Happiness is our true eternal nature,it should not pass away.

If we stop identifying with something,if we can accept the idea that we are “No-thing”,we are on the right path.

Our words and our minds can’t go further than this.

The infinite,eternal,pure Consciousness,our own true Self will guide us to itself,to happiness.

Until then, in times of despair,treachery,disaster,loss,war,injustice,hate,sickness,death,separation or other adversities, remember to stay as your true Self, remember to stay happy!

Stay Happy!

Love and the Limitless Love

         “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” Jesus

This does not sound quite right for the Ego ,and even many of those who agree with this statement ,may not really see it’s profound existential revelation.

The reason why we should love everybody like ourselves is found in the makeup of the reality itself.

We are all ,beyond the illusory individuality,the same Self.

When we love others,we love our true Self,because there are no others.

“The Self is one,though it appears to be many.”    Chandogya Upanishad

“The Self is that which is limitless,imperishable and unchanging.It is that which gives all beings existence and resides within them as their innermost essence.”    Bhagavad Gita

“I am the other person,the other person is myself; in name and shape we are different,but there is no separation.At the root of our being we are one.”    Nisargadatta Maharaj

“There is no “my self” and “his self”.There is the Self,the only Self of all.Misled by the diversity of names and shapes,minds and bodies,you imagine multiple selves.We both are the Self.”    Nisargadatta Maharaj

This seems to be the story told in the music video “Reflektor’ by Arcade Fire   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7E0fVfectDo&feature=share                             

“Love is not selective,just as the light of the sun is not selective.It does not make one person special.It is not exclusive.Exclusivity is not the love of God but the “love” of ego.”   Eckhart Tolle

And the question that will fit this part of the existential puzzle is:

“When a man sees God in all beings and all beings in God,and also God dwelling in his own soul,how can he hate any living being?”      Isha Upanishad

Am I here? Am I there? Am I,maybe,everywhere?

              "I know the nature of the one supreme Being;
               Like space, It extends everywhere.
               And all the forms that appear within It
               Are like the  water of a desert mirage."

                                                          The Avadhuta Gita

                                                        

" Looking for consciousness in the brain is like looking in the radio for the announcer."
                                                                                                            Nasseim Haramein

                                 

                                                        
I thought about this after reading about some unusual body swapping experiments, where a person can be made to feel :

                                              
                                                             - in a mannequin’s body

                                                             -in another person’s body

                                                             -invisible

                                                             -out of the body

The illusions are created with the help of the tactile and visual sensations.

 "By manipulating sensory impressions, it's possible to fool the self not only out of its body, but into other bodies too.”   Henrik Ehrsson, Karolinska Institute

You can read more about these experiments : https://www.livescience.com/14337-brain-tricks-body-swapping-illusion.html

Simillar experiments to create the illusions of being in a mannequin’s body or in another person’s body :

: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/12/081202115148.htm?fbclid=IwAR3zMXaTvGd_MnZaT4hhYSNsJPqRt43eh_lSmIA5Zvrh-T6j-8mR2J864vg

Experiments that give the illusion of being invisible : https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/speaking-of-science/wp/2015/04/23/scientists-trick-subjects-into-feeling-invisible/?noredirect=on&utm_term=.2d54e7fe11ec

And finally , the out- of- body simulations : http://www.nbcnews.com/id/20411858/ns/technology_and_science-science/t/scientists-simulate-out-of-body-experiences/?fbclid=IwAR1WwHhJUee-VO97uMKi-avuBv7pddht77d_eDAGh4ReH9s4h58tT94hcI8#.XBMiFmlOkkK

http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/notrocketscience/2009/07/28/virtual-reality-illusions-produce-out-of-body-experiences-in-the-lab/#.XBPboWlOkkI

Looking at these experiments from a spiritual perspective,we might change our view of reality :

"Understand that it is not the individual that has consciousness; it is the consciousness which assumes innumerable forms."
                                                                                                       Nisargadatta Maharaj
 

The true impersonal Self identifies with different bodies.
This means that I may not even be in my own body, even if the illusion is so convincing!

A few quotes of Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj from “I Am That”( http://www.nonduality.com/asmi1.htm)  will fit the puzzle nicely:

                                                            “As body, you are in space.

                                                             As mind, you are in time.

                                                             But are you a mere body with a mind in it?

                                                             Have you ever investigated?”

”You observe the heart feeling, the mind thinking, the body acting; the very act of perceiving shows that you are not what you perceive.”

“The body-mind is like a room. It is there, but I need not live in it all the time.”

"As it is my presence,which is always here and now, that gives the quality of actual to any event,I must be beyond time and space,I was never born,nor will ever die."

So,I am asking myself : Am I here? Am I there? Maybe I am Everywhere!

“I am other than name, form and action.

 My nature is ever free!
 I am Self, the supreme unconditioned  Brahman.
 I am pure Awareness, always non-dual. “

Adi Shankara, Upadesasahasri