I Am Not I
Among the great questions of the human heart, none is more central than the question, “Who am I?” And among the great answers of the human spirit, none is more central than the experience of …
Enlightened Duality
The closing of the book Halfway up the Mountain by Mariana Caplan is a chapter on how enlightenment is only the beginning. She correctly notes there is no “top end” or final state. From the …
The Mature State
I’ve talked some of how enlightenment is not a goal in itself but rather a platform for living. Here this is put another way. The unitive state is not an end in itself; rather its …
The Matrix
Awakening can be said to happen through the non-Self being “devoured” by Brahman or through the descent of the divine. It is not something we control or manage. Rather it comes as grace. We can …
Vidyas
“There is a difference between jnana and vidya. Jnana means “wisdom,” but vidya means “body of knowledge.” The vidyas are living bodies of knowledge. They are all goddesses. They are shaktis. A person who does …
True Victory
Recently, a friend sent me a quote from Swami Brahmananda Sarawati, a famous Shankaracharya from the Shankara lineage. He was the teacher of Maharishi Mahesh Yogi and some other well-known teachers. I was not able …
The Divine and The Astral
In February, I wrote an article on Astral vs Divine. The divine I’m referring to here is the expressed divine rather than pure divinity, a much deeper layer beyond polarity. I’m raising the topic again …
Rasasvada
The word roots of Rasasvada mean taste of appreciation or pleasure. In this context, the term means the taste of bliss, where bliss is experienced right in the sense of taste. This is related to …
The Mahavakya – Updated
When I previously wrote an article on the Mahavakya (great sayings), I used an old understanding, informed by a 70’s talk by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi (before he was differentiating the Brahman stage) and common English …
The Three Jewels
In the west, individuality is king. Forging our own path, beating the competition, and success. However, this approach does not serve us as well on a spiritual path. There, we surrender individuality to discover our …
Spiritual Corruption
The personal ego is a self-serving mechanism by its very nature, designed to protect our perceived individuality. Curiously, it will even place protecting itself above protecting the organism when convinced to do so. Soldiers on the …
Using Awareness
I recommend an effortless meditation for that key experience of samadhi or pure consciousness. By taking you beyond the mind (which not all meditations do), you get tastes of your deeper nature and culture the …