Hello Sundari, thanks for your reply to my last email, your insights on dharma, social media, and the conspiracy phenomenon are extremely helpful. I see you have posted a few emails online on the subject and the loss of discrimination that has become the issue of our day. I am still intrigued by the process, and like many people, am astounded by the resilience of this new paradigm mindset that seems totally rooted in the global mind, to use a term you used. There are so many views on it online, from historians to big picture thinkers, as you said, but how it relates to dharma is for me the most relevant issue, certainly in terms of Vedanta. For instance, the email you posted about the Vedanta teacher you recently unsubscribed when you realized his thinking has gone down the Alice in Wonderland conspiracy route, that really fascinates me. Especially as he is now spreading false stories about you and Ram when he was once a close friend. I think I know who he must be, and it really surprises me. Clearly, you are gracious enough not to mention his name.
Sundari: We have not exposed the name of the teacher whom we recently unendorsed as it is not relevant, and to do so would be following the same adharmic route he took, which is not who we are. We have compassion for his state of mind as it must be so painful. It is doubly surprising that a person who is supposedly Self-realized could fall down that black hole, but that is Maya for you! He is absolutely convinced he is right, there is no way to converse in a sane way about the issue because he inhabits an alternate ‘factual’ reality. James keeps trying to get through to him because he cares, but I tell him he is wasting his time. Not only has this person lost all discrimination if ever he had it, which is unlikely, but he also has clearly never developed the capacity to evaluate and fact check information and sources, i.e., he has no critical thinking skills. His thinking is purely subjective, based on what he ‘feels’.
We can argue that the psychological and social unrest we are experiencing in the worldwide social and psychological mindset has many causes, though ultimately there is only one cause, and that is ignorance of the Self. But it is undeniable that the lack of critical thinking faculties amplified by social media contributes a great deal to the problem. Sadly, our society does not educate people to develop independently verifiable, evidence-based research and analytical skills, to practice exercising judgment, and to use language with accuracy. This person and those in the conspiracy mindset do not understand that the conclusions they are brandishing can’t be reached from the data they’ve glommed on to. They cannot see that their information is corrupt or simply wrong because it is totally biased by their tamasic thinking. They believe what is ideologically convenient and fits the framework of their fear-based worldview, shaped by unconscious samskaras, and they are totally convinced that everyone else is wrong. It is not their fault. It’s just ignorance at work. The real danger this poses to global social coherence and stability, not to mention physical safety (as in the COVID-19 deniers) is great. The conspiracy theorists cannot see this. They actually believe that they are on ‘the right side of history’, whatever that means. That they are out to save the world! God help us.
The interesting thing to note is that there is a difference between a conspiracy theory and conspiracy theorists. It is undeniably true that there have been many instances current and historical where we have been duped by politicians, big pharma, big business etc. After all, this is mithya, and the biggest conspiracy of all is ignorance itself. But conspiracy theorists are a whole other creature. Some conspiracy theories can be verified by factual evidence-based truth. But to conspiracy theorists, it matters not if what they believe has any basis whatsoever in facts or anything that even resembles ‘truth’. They only receive their information from sources within their framework or ‘bubble’ and will not even remotely consider any other point of view.
It is a deep and thorough kind of brainwashing. Their deeply fearful ideas range from the belief that they are preventing world communist domination, to the ridiculous notion that lizard people are infiltrating and taking over the human race! Or that Biden is a pedophile, among many others. It’s all a big yawn, actually, if this mindset did not cause so much agitation. But fundamentally, perhaps the people drawn into conspiracy ideas are just bored and need someone to validate their existence. Nothing is quite so alluring to samsaris as belonging to a radical tribe! One that makes them feel important and safe. I wrote about this in a previous email.
Kate: Could you please expound on the topic of dharma for me. I have been following James’ zoom teaching on it and I heard him mention several times the teacher you unendorsed in reference to dharma.
Sundari: The teacher we unendorsed is a good person basically, and pretty harmless. He is a good person who tries to live a good life. Conspiracy theorists’ ideas may all seem ridiculous and harmless in the long run, I mean, who cares about the crazy ideas some people hold as truth, or what universe they access their ‘information’ from? It’s a free world, haha. We really don’t care what nonsense people believe in. But if you are a serious inquirer then you must have the ability to discriminate between satya and mithya, AND also, between mithya and mithya, with reference to satya. You cannot claim to be a Vedanta teacher and support adharmic values and ideas. It may all be mithya, but this world runs on natural laws or dharmas that must be followed to the letter, not according to your interpretation of them. When the conspiracy ideas gain traction the way they have these days, they have a big impact on dharma. It has serious consequences both individually and globally. In the case of this person, we had to take a stand because we had endorsed him as a teacher on Shiningworld.
If the mind does not have critical thinking skills and the ability to discriminate between fact and fiction, self-inquiry is not possible. Moreover, and more importantly, people whose minds have been radicalized in this way justify breaking dharma, under the guise of ‘truth’ as we saw in the US recently. As Vedantins we know that none of it is real, so we don’t get upset about it, we are the fortunate ones. But following dharma is a big deal if we want happy peaceful lives. Lucky for humans, dharma is built into the system, or humanity would have destroyed itself a long time ago. Ultimately, universal dharma always self-corrects, but not without great suffering on the individual level. Dharma trumps moksa, as the teachings hold, but moksa cannot obtain without dharma. You may even know you are the Self, but if you are not clear about dharma, moksa will not obtain, or just not stick.
Nonetheless, dharma is a very difficult topic and impossible for one person to tell another what their personal dharma is, which is where the confusion comes in, especially with conspiracy theorists, like the ex-Vedanta teacher. He feels he is following dharma and doing what is right! On a personal level, there may be truth in that, we all must do what is right for our own nature and value system. BUT when it comes to the universal values that underpin truth there is no ambiguity or personal interpretation possible. Values, such as honesty, integrity, justice, equality, non-injury, etc., are set in stone. The scripture is unequivocal about them. They apply to everyone at all times in all situations. The highest dharma is to commit to self-inquiry using the scripture as your means of knowledge and guide on all things mithya. The person we unendorsed as a teacher has interpreted these values and the teaching to suit his ideas, and he believes his guru, is wrong.
One of my favorite quotes on dharma is from Immanuel Kant, who begins his “Groundwork of the Metaphysics of Morals” by declaring that the only thing that can be called “good” without qualification is a good will. By a good will, he meant, roughly, the desire to do what the moral law requires just because the moral law requires it.” Yet even this can be twisted to suit your ideas of what is right, which conspiracy theorists do. There is no winning an argument with them.
Kate: Could you unfold in more detail what the three dharmas are please?
Sundari: The universal laws or dharmas are built into the nature of the Field of Existence and cannot be avoided or contravened without consequence. The results of all actions, whether through appropriate action (dharma) or inappropriate action (adharma), are called karmas. It is our experience that “as you sow, so you shall reap.”
Although dharma is one, because reality is non-dual, it can be understood in three ways.
1: Samanya Dharma orUniversal values are 1) moral laws governing the Field of Existence that apply to everyone personally, like non-injury, honesty, fairness, equality, etc and 2) the macrocosmic laws of physics, like gravity and thermodynamics etc.
2: Visesa Dharma is situational ethics, or how the individual interprets the universal rules and applies them to their lives with regards to everything: lifestyle, diet, money, work, family, sex, marriage, how one relates to people and the environment one lives in etc. There is some wiggle room here which the conspiracy theorists conveniently make use of. But there is no getting away from the fact that if situational dharma contravenes universal dharma and values, it is adharma.
3: Svadharma with a small “s” is an individual’s conditioning. This is the nature and the predisposition with which each person is born. To be happy the individual needs to act in accordance with his or her inborn nature (svabhava) or he or she will not be following dharma. For instance, if it is an individual’s nature to be a business person and live in a city, it will not work for him or her to take up farming and live in the country.
All dharmas are based on common sense and logic. Our personal svadharma of course also includes our conditioning: our vasana load, which will be governing how we see and act on all levels. The binding vasanas must be seen and dissolved for peace of mind to be experienced. Still, we will have a particular kind of nature that we need to be in harmony with, so unless we understand what our svabhava is, we can make decisions that cause great agitation, suffering and discomfort to the mind and body, making peace of mind impossible.
It is possible that on a personal level in order to be true to our svadharma, we must sometimes take actions that cause agitation and distress to ourselves or “others”. There is no hard and fast rule here. But again, we cannot use svadharma as an excuse to break universal dharma. If we are bound and cannot change our circumstances or situation, then we have to accept that this is prarabdha karma (momentum of past actions) playing out and we attend to it as best we can with the karma yoga attitude. You know the beautiful prayer: “Lord give me the courage to change what needs to be changed, the strength to accept what cannot be changed and the wisdom to know the difference between the two.”
Much love
Sundari
