JNANA...INCOMPARABLE part 1

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Jnana Yoga is the intellectual path to spiritual

awareness. “Jnana” means “wisdom”, especially the wisdom of

the Vedas. The Jnana Yogi loves Truth and Ultimate

Wisdom. A Jnana Yogi believes that anything that changes

is not real. The universe changes therefore it is

not ultimate reality. Only God, the Absolute, is real

and unchanging, all else is illusion. The individual

soul is part of that Absolute. The only way to know

the Absolute, according to the Jnana Yogi, is to

renounce and abandon all worldly attachments, to remove

all limiting ideas about oneself and the world. This

process continues until all worldly attachments have been

eliminated and the Jnani is ready to face the eternal. Here,

logic can no longer be used and intuitive, direct

experience takes its place. The mind cannot ultimately give

you the highest spiritual knowledge that you seek. It

can only provide barriers to that ultimate knowledge.

You gradually move beyond the field of the mind and

probe the depths of consciousness.<br><br>This process

of negation, discarding the unreal is until only the

real is left is called “Neti. Neti” or “Not this. Not

this”. The Jnana Yoga says, “This is not my essential

nature. This is not the essential nature of that thing or

event. This is not unchanging reality. This is not The

First Cause.” The Jnani goes beyond all names and forms

to the eternal that underlies all. As this logical

process is unfolding, the mind is being reconstructed,

consciousness is being changed so that when the point is

reached where the Jnani has negated or stopped

identifying with all the senses provide and must now use

intuitive faculties to move into direct contact and

identification with the Absolute, he has the ability to do

that.<br><br>Jnana Yoga is meditation by thinking rather than

stilling the thought waves. The path of Jnana Yoga

systematically leads the practitioner through the process of

overcoming the tendencies and limitations of the mind by the

use of four main ideas:<br><br>1.Prajnanam Brahma -

Consciousness is Brahman. The nature of Brahman is existence,

absolute knowledge, or cosmic consciousness<br><br>2. Aham

Brahman Asmi - I am Brahman. The meditator identifies

with Brahman not with any limiting adjuncts.<br><br>3.

Tat Twam Asi - That Thou Art. It is through this

mantra that the teacher instructs the spiritual

aspirant.<br><br>4. Ayam Atma Brahman - This Self is Brahman. This

expresses the inner intuitive experience of the

meditator.<br><br><br>to be continued...