Guest guest Posted June 17, 2003 Report Share Posted June 17, 2003 QUOTE OF THE WEEK: "The supreme truth is established by total silence, not logical discussion and argument. He alone sees the truth who sees the universe without the intervention of the mind, and therefore without the notion of a universe." ~ Maharamayana *********************************************************************** CHANGE OF EMAIL ADDRESS: Please note our new email address as follows and update your records: radhaktr - Please visit our website on Vedanta: http://www.geocities.com/radhakutir ********************************************************************** Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 19, 2003 Report Share Posted June 19, 2003 Radhakutirji - Namaste! It's interesting that you bring up this quote today. Just this week a co-sadhak said to me that they don't feel the need to discuss or participate in any group/satsangh, because of this reason. My response was that it is the absolute truth that personal growth can be achieved in silence alone, through personal experiential sadhna, whatever path that may be. However dialogue and discusion remains an important tool to be used in the external world, to assist in understanding, triggering ones own thinking, and receiving confidence and energy from fellow sadhaks as one recognizes that the path may be arduous but can be followed. Without such emotional support in my experince (in my world of sadhaks) at least, I have found many sadhaks fall of the routine of practice, as they hit difficulties, or they find themselves stuck in cognitive ideas collected from their socialzation process (or karmic baggage of samskaras) that keeps holding them back. Yes, yogis and gurus tell me that when the time is right the block will be opened up. However I have seen that satsangh and participation certainly plays and important role in the rate of ones progress. Of course each sadhak needs assistance at their own level. A sadhu who has chosen his vocation to be silence in the mountains, a sanyasi whose vocation is similar with some sansaric activites and a sansaric who lives in a household, each need different kinds of assistance. The problem as I see it, is when the focus is ONLY gyana - logical discourse and discussion or book centered learning. When a sadhak gathers a lot of knowledge but has little experience, and AVOIDS any direct involvement (it is harder to face ones self) through their ego- centerd outlook of feeling superior because of how much they know and how many books they can quote, analyse or recite. As a community too, we tend to honor those with a lot of book knowledge, or those who perform miracles, which certainly fans the fire of pride and arrogance. We tend to honor goals, not the process of achieving them. Having seen both extremes in the samsaric world in action, I have learnt that one needs BOTH dialogue and participation in open conversations, AND practice of ones chosen spiritual practice to make any progress. Otherwise one is spinning wheels at the same place - the little self "i". Again, this is a perception at my limited level of consciousness. _/\_ tat twam asi Uma , SRI RADHA KUTIR <radhaktr@v...> wrote: > QUOTE OF THE WEEK: "The supreme truth is established by total silence, not logical discussion and argument. He alone sees the truth who sees the universe without the intervention of the mind, and therefore without the notion of a universe." ~ Maharamayana > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 20, 2003 Report Share Posted June 20, 2003 The philosopher is a slave of intellectual pretensions; the pure saint rides the Intellect of intellects like a prince. The Intellect of intellect is your kernel; the intellect is only a husk. The belly of animals keeps seeking husks. The intellect blackens books with writing; the Intellect of intellect fills the universe with light from the moon of reality. It is free from blackness or whiteness: the light of its moon rises and shines upon the heart and the soul. ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ Band-e ma`qulât âmad falsafi shahsavâr-e `Aql-e `aql âmad safi `Aql-e `aqlet maghz va `aql-e tost pust me`deh-ye hayavân hamisheh pust just `Aql daftar-hâ konad yeksar siyâh `Aql-e `aql âfâq dârad por ze mâh Az siyâhi vaz sapidi fâreghast nur-e mâhesh bar del o jân bâzeghast -- Mathnawi III: 2527-2528; 2530-2532 Version by Camille and Kabir Helminski "Rumi: Jewels of Remembrance" Threshold Books, 1996 (Persian transliteration courtesy of Yahyá Monastra) , "Tatwamasi" <tatwamasi> wrote: > Radhakutirji - Namaste! > > It's interesting that you bring up this quote today. Just this week a > , SRI RADHA KUTIR <radhaktr@v...> > wrote: > > QUOTE OF THE WEEK: "The supreme truth is established by total > silence, not logical discussion and argument. He alone sees the truth > who sees the universe without the intervention of the mind, and > therefore without the notion of a universe." ~ Maharamayana > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 20, 2003 Report Share Posted June 20, 2003 Dear Umaji, Hari Om, You are perfectly correct. Spiritual Sadhana is a gradual step by step approach. It is like climbing to the top on a ladder rung by rung. You need all the supports to make progress on your up ward journey, depending on your position on the ladder. If one is not attentive and watchful on this journey the falls are very likely and real. The silence talked about is almost the ultimate stage when one can afford to throw away books and knowledge and revel in the Self. It is like the feeling of sleepiness, when one actually drops down, that feeling of sleepiness is no more. In the Mahavakya, "Aham Brahmasmi", initially there is a Vriti like the feeling of sleepiness, I and Brahm are two. Ultimately that Vriti disappears and one is established in the Self or one's own Swaroopa. That is seeing the universe without the notion of the universe, i.e. One Pure homogeneous Conscious. It is not Sadhana but the ultimate goal to be reached through the practice of various spiritual disciplines called Sadhana. Fortunately in Hinduism there are many different paths available to suit the needs and temperament of different individuals. Hari Om, radhakutir - "Tatwamasi" <tatwamasi <> 19 June, 2003 10:43 PM Re: Quote of the week from Hinduism > Radhakutirji - Namaste! > > It's interesting that you bring up this quote today. Just this week a > co-sadhak said to me that they don't feel the need to discuss or > participate in any group/satsangh, because of this reason. > ------- . ------ . ---------- . ----------- . --------- . ----------------- > _/\_ tat twam asi > > Uma > > > , SRI RADHA KUTIR <radhaktr@v...> > wrote: > > QUOTE OF THE WEEK: "The supreme truth is established by total > silence, not logical discussion and argument. He alone sees the truth > who sees the universe without the intervention of the mind, and > therefore without the notion of a universe." ~ Maharamayana > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 26, 2003 Report Share Posted June 26, 2003 >>The silence talked about is almost the ultimate stage when one can afford to throw away books and knowledge and revel in the Self.<< Thank you Radha kutir ji for your wonderful explanation. Here are my 2 cents. Silence talked about is internal silence and not the external silence which most people confuse with. It is a means and not the goal to be achieved. As you pointed out silence is in the higher stages when one can afford to throw away books and revel in the Self. It however may not be the right thing to choose before that stage. A simple analogy would be that of a child being refrained from doing certain things. A child is NOT allowed to stay up late at nights, or to eat too many chocolates, or to see certain movies or read books, as this may hamper the child's proper growth. When the child grows up and can differentiate between reality and fiction and knows to distinguish the right from the wrong, the child (now young adult) has no more restrictions. Watching actions movies is therefore neither right nor wrong. The maturity of the person determines whether one can watch it or not. Similarly taking to silence depends on the level of sadhna the person is in. Doing it earlier will only render harm rather than confer benefits. Hari Aum !!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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