I edited your excellent letter for publication on the website and made a few comments.  Here it is:

It feels a bit like writing to a friend after listening to your voice all these hours. I am studying Vedanta based on the teachings on your Full Set hard drive now for roughly 3 years (heard everything at least 3 times).  Probably you do not remember me.  I sat in the back row at one of your satsangs and was ready to receive Shaktipāt in deep meditation :☺.  That started my way with Vedanta. Thanks a lot on clearing me up about all these enlightenment myths!!!

James:  You’re welcome.

I am listening to your teachings on a daily basis, often 2-4 hours a day and attend the Vedamurti Vedanta group for a year now.  So I build up a quite strong Vedanta Vasana to confront some nasty vasanas.  Most everything cleared up listening to your teachings. So sorry for writing without having a real question. Vedanta transformed my search.  I still did not attain Moksha, but I am well aware that what I am searching is always here.  It is myself which is existence itself.  I see the world as mithya, which is satya apparently shattered, viewed through an  ignorance filter.  All I can seemingly do is to remove this to “find” myself in the “place” where I have always seemingly been. Or to discover there are no places at all. There is no place, no time, no space, no here and there…Vedanta ended the “Hardcore Sadhana Game” which destroyed my ability to sleep.  I stopped it all!   I have doubts about my guru because of the ideal he promoted which caused so many people to torture themselves to achieve some kind of holy personality.  He presented the spiritual path as a painful climb up a mountain path full of obstacles to find something that I am already!  He did a lot of good too because it led me to Vedanta. 

James:  Life is a spiritual path and sometimes it is difficult, but teachers shouldn’t make it out as either too easy or too difficult.  They should talk about the qualifications.  It is very easy if you are qualified and very difficult if you aren’t.
 
Some weeks ago it struck me that the world is “empty”. Meaning I am the joy. I was kind of shocked that I was searching joy…me…”out there” all my life. For some days all came to rest. I became much calmer, nothing to get in the world. You refer to the world being flat, it being just some kind of “screen”. And things only seemingly stick out when we identify with our reality.  Meaning only projection makes the world 3D? I can see that the moon is not real. I am still more struggling with my central heating or bed not being real,- although I realise it is all just sense perception in my mind. None the less, if I would try to sleep outside in winter…:)  But no complaints here, I go happily on listening and reflecting to your teachings/Vedanta.

James:  Yes, the 3D effect is only created because we identify with the senses. When you identify as Awareness all the hills and valleys disappear.  Unreal central heating takes care of unreal cold by God’s grace so you don’t have to worry about it.:)
 
I like your art.  One day maybe you can animate one of my charts, make the cosmic wheel spin!  I always see it moving and changing.  Thanks for sending it.  Thanks for writing.  I wish you all the best in every way.
 
Love,
James

I wonder if you’d be so kind as to give me some perspective.

Going through a divorce with 4 kids. Think ultimately we had difference’s, specifically my wife is caught up in the world of objects, with pride in owing all her doing and enjoying, maybe Narcissistic and constantly trying to get one up on me and full of spite – that I feel, maybe as an Empath?

James:  I’m sorry to hear that Edward.  It doesn’t take a lot of empathy to suss out the nature of spiteful narcissistic extroverted doer.  It does sometimes take a lot of empathy to sympathize them, however.  What’s her complaint about your character?  What objects are you caught up in?  Wife, kids and inlaws, perhaps? 

I’m try to be more relaxed and not in the habit for taking immense credit for my success’s and let them go and also responsibilities and attachment to my kids and hand them over to Ishwara?

James:  That’s good.  When you understand Isvara properly, relaxation comes naturally.  That understanding entails knowing that they aren’t “your” kids and serving them as Isvara’s kids, which means that all credit goes to Isvara.  A karma yogi is someone who is happy knowing that he or she is serving Isvara.  Your successes are actually due to Isvara, the factor that gave you your talents and abilities and the motivation to act out your ambitions.  There isn’t one thing that we value that didn’t come from Isvara, meaning your environment. 

I am trying to manage gunas to help me focus and deal with all the business of it. If I meditate then sometimes I get into a state of bliss, but if feels like I am in denial or there is a background anxiety to my security and life moving forward.

James:  Well, meditation is good in so far as it produces momentary bliss but Vedanta’s  idea of meditation is applying the knowledge of satya and mithya to daily life.  The fact that you use the words “trying to” suggests that you are only partially successful at your spiritual practice. 

The losses i.e., the relationship with my kids, the disappointment of how things turned out, and the irritation of my In-laws interfering seem very real and impactful – and have anger and resentment that they don’t see me and judge me.

James:  It’s good to admit disappointments, irritations and unwanted outcomes.  Yes, if you love Isvara you can let Isvara deal with “your” wife, kids and in-laws, but only if you understand that you didn’t do your due diligence when you fell in love and had children and are clear that you are going to be a tad more discriminating when the desire for love comes calling next time. Letting Isvara deal with it means backing off trying to get a particular outcome and observing what happens.  You may realize that you never had them to lose in the first place, which is a great gain. 

Thoughts and feelings regarding the divorce are very painful, subtle, and I’m uncertain about how my life will now unfold. I push thoughts away, but some are there maybe to teach a lesson? Or not?

James:  Well, Edward, nobody knows how their life will unfold.  But if you are clear about Isvara’s nature, you will be happy with the way it does unfold.  There’s always an upside to every downside and this situation may lead you to the conclusion that your life should be centered around your spiritual tendencies, not the other way around.  Mostly people look to God when the going gets rough and forget God when things are lining up with  likes and dislikes. 

However, yes every thought is a lesson from Isvara that needs attention.  Your self esteem will grow quickly if you examine each and every thought in light of the teaching and let go of those that lead away from who you are and go with those that take you to yourself.  You will like yourself a lot when you trust Isvara.  Taking responsibility without considering Isvara’s role guarantees suffering.  If you do right by Isvara you will love yourself to the degree that you won’t be snookered by the desire for love.  We all mess up on that score at least once so no blame. Your wife, who is not your wife, may discover the person she fell in love with years ago if you are working on yourself properly. 

If it’s all mithya then none of it’s real, and If I take that understanding, then I end up avoiding stuff, maybe too blaze’ and/or stuck in sattva and seem to have a bite’ when it comes to dealing with stuff, that I get judged for.

James:  Mithya means that life is zero-sum.  If that’s true, then engaging in life is just as valid as avoiding it.  Mithya also means unreal so if people judge you, the judgments are also unreal and not worth taking seriously.  You engage by constantly committing yourself to self inquiry and following the steps.       

Go to the home page, click on the New to Vedanta link with the Start here arrow and carefully read each succeeding page.  Once you have a good idea of what’s involved, read the recommended literature starting the Tattva Bodh, Essence of Enlightenment, Etc. Make sure you have a clear understanding of Karma Yoga.  Read the satsang section two or three times a week.  You need to build your Vedanta vasana. 

Yes, I hear you, think my ignorance previously thought I could ‘throw away’ the teaching as I knew myself…but went back to Samsara instead!

Question:  I get that Maya is part of Satyam (of course it is, everything is!) and mithya is the result of maya acting on behalf of Satyam. Why make a separation between satyam and maya?

Reply:  Because Knowing the Difference Between them is Freedom

Most people don’t separate their material selves, the Maya or Mithya portion, from their spiritual selves, the Consciousness/Satya portion.  Knowing the difference between them frees us from depending on our material selves for fulfillment.  The Satya/Mithya teaching is a higher level of understanding reality, an expansion from a more rudimentary understanding.

Take the example of water.  In primary school, we learn water is a liquid to be careful with. In secondary school, we learn water is made up of two gases. At university, we learn the atomic structure of water. At post-grad level, we study the quantum aspect of water. Each level is an expansion which supersedes the previous level, which is acknowledged and dropped. Similarly, with the understanding of reality. As our ignorance is reduced through knowledge, the understanding of reality and the distinction between reality and non-reality expands and our mistaken notions are dropped.

For spiritual maturation, to satisfy one’s spiritual thirst, one needs to know that Consciousness is satyam while matter is mithya, and know what those words mean and recognise Consciousness, not matter, as one’s inherent and primary nature.

The Sanskrit word for universal, all-pervading capital C Consciousness is Brahman, while the same Consciousness within an individual form is called Atma.  Vedanta teaches that Brahman and Atma are identical, just two words for the same Reality seen from different angles.  It is not obvious, because the bodies associated with the two are different.   The whole universe is the body of Brahman, whereas only the human body is associated with Atma. The word for universal matter, both subtle and dense, is prapanca, while the word for an individual subtle body or an individual dense body is shariram. The word for consciousness (small c) in a living form is cidabhasa. To gain spiritual maturity, one must know the meaning of these words.

The Spirit/Matter (Consciousness/Maya) Conundrum 

How do we get matter from non-matter?  Consciousness is not matter, it is immaterial. But we observe, describe and experience matter, both dense and subtle (in the form of energy), and we give names for the various forms of matter. How does matter arise from formless, non-material Consciousness?

The explanation from scientists is that consciousness arises from matter. Being material scientists, they start from and analyse matter and have many hypotheses about consciousness, including those based on quantum physics. But none have been proven nor accepted. There is still much debate among neuro-scientists. In a past issue of Time magazine, there was an article from some scientists who stated that consciousness maybe an illusion arising from matter!

Something Can’t Come From Nothing. 

On the other hand, all spiritual traditions take the opposite view, that matter arises or manifests from Consciousness. Each tradition has its own teaching on cosmology. Vedanta, quite distinctly, states and explains how matter arises from Consciousness; it is through a power in Consciousness called Maya.

Maya is Consciousness Plus Matter  (Bhagavad Gita, Chapter 7)

Maya acts like a catalyst. A catalyst drives a chemical reaction and is discarded after the reaction is completed. In biological systems, the catalyst is called an enzyme. The other example is the 18^th horse, which is used to solve an insoluble problem and then removed.

Maya is a potential power or force, present in with Consciousness.  Maya is different from Consciousness, yet is not separate from Consciousness. For example, fire and its power to burn, or fire and its ability to light up, are different but not separate. The sun and sunlight are different, yet not separate. It is sunlight which triggers photosynthesis, not the sun per se. If the sun moved any closer, the Earth would be scorched. Similarly, Consciousness and Maya are different but not separate.

The words satyam and mithya refer to ‘status’, the ‘status’ of Consciousness and the ‘status’ of matter respectively. The word ‘status’ means order, position, standing, rank, and in this case, applied to reality, the status of reality and the status of non-reality or apparent reality.  Matter is seemingly, not actually real.  

A status is different from the ‘thing’ present in that status. For example, the status of President is different from the person who is President. The status has a certain position and function. The person has individuality and personal qualities. When the person is President, the status and the personal qualities, while different are not separate. The person brings his/her personal qualities to the status of President. That is why there is the danger of superimposing one on the other. Some Presidents think the status is theirs for life, as part of their persona. Others are realistic enough to know that they occupy the status of President only for some time.

The Satya Status

The word satyam refers to status … the status of being always present, self-existent, causeless, eternal, never changing, real, absolutely still, only one, a seamless whole, no parts, undivided, indivisible like space, present everywhere, all-pervading, omnipresent, absolute. The status of satyam is a “higher order” of reality.  Only Consciousness, your true Self, has this status. That is why the word satyam, indicating status, is applied only to Consciousness. Most importantly, this Consciousness is what I am, here and now.  As Consciousness, I enjoy the status of satyam.

In its status as satyam, the nature of Consciousness (comparable to ‘personal qualities’ of the President) is pure Presence of Be-ing, unconditioned Awareness, complete Fulness, permanent Stillness, absolute Happiness. (In Sanskrit, sat cit ananda). That is its nature, which is the nature of all sentient entities and material objects.

The Mithya Status

The word mithya indicates the status of being temporary, not always present, changing, showing movement, evolving or deteriorating, disintegrating, undergoing entropy, a seeming reality, a relative presence, a transient appearance, a semblance, simulation, ‘pretence’, relative, of being inert, dependent for its existence, inherently lifeless, intrinsically dead. The status of mithya is a “lower” order of reality and is diametrically opposite to the status of Consciousness. Matter has this status. This is why the word mithya, indicating status, is applied to matter (in Sanskrit, prapanca).  The body-mind-sense complex is the material portion of human beings.

In its status as mithya, the nature of matter (like personal qualities) consists of the three gunas and five elements. From matter, both subtle as energy like stardust, we get all the different forms in the macrocosm and the microcosm.

Is There a Connection between Satya and Mithya?

Matter is permeated, pervaded and enlivened by Consciousness. A living form looks conscious, looks alive, looks sentient, looks functioning, even doing action as thought, word, deed. It is like the sun lending light to the moon making the moon look bright and attractive. But it only looks so, seems so, appears so; the moon remains inert, dead and has no light nor brightness of its own. Similarly, in its status as mithya, matter remains inert, lifeless, dead. If a form looks conscious and alive, it is because of the presence of Consciousness giving that form consciousness and movement, the sign and symptom of life.

To sum up, the associations must be clear: Consciousness with its status of satyam, and matter with its status of mithya. Status and nature are different. The nature of Consciousness is Presence, Awareness, Fulfilled, Peace, Happiness. The nature of matter consists of the three gunas and five elements.

Maya is present with Consciousness, is not Consciousness, yet is not separate from Consciousness whose status is satyam. The activity or movement of Maya leads to the appearance of matter with its status as mithya. An effect shares the same nature as its cause. Since matter, as effect, is mithya, Maya, as cause, is also mithya.

Ultimately, there is only Consciousness.

There is only I, Consciousness …

… pure Presence … unconditioned Awareness … complete Fulfilment.

I abide as Myself, Consciousness …

… I, by Myself … I, alone am … I, ever am.

Then, what is everything else?

Name them … it is I … only I.

OM

Playing the role of source, substrate, matrix …

… I seem to appear … seem to take the form of whatever is named.

I seem to appear as them … I seem to un-appear as them.

It is My play … My magic show … My lila.

In reality … ultimately … in finality …

… there is only I, Consciousness … nothing else.

I abide as Myself, Consciousness …

… I, by Myself … I, alone am … I, always am …

… forever and ever

I hope you’re physically well and enjoying life. I recently read Sundari’s satsang about the deep childhood samskara’s which are or have prevented the full assimilation and effect of perfect freedom from and for the jiva for her.  I must say l find her honesty very refreshing as teachers of freedom seldom share what is happening (mithya as it may be) in their sadhana. To have the courage as a jiva to let her students know that she is still dealing with those pesky vasanas is actually commendable and shows that she has great character. Anything less than 100% tripti just isn’t freedom.

On the other hand, knowing that one is the Self – if it is completely firm knowledge – goes a hell of a long way to make a Vedanta student’s life beautiful even if there is some ignorance tucked away somewhere deep in the bowels of the causal body waiting to reveal itself to the light. And l guess it takes as long as it takes.

My question is subtle territory at least from my jiva’s perspective but if anyone can tell me the answer it’s you Ramji.  In my own sadhana l have noticed that, although l am looking at life from a vantage point which obviates the need to interfere with anything that’s apparently going on in mithya, still sometimes I’ll begin to become aware of an uncomfortable feeling and as l watch it fades and soon after l will feel like l’ve reached a new level of clarity speaking as the mind.

These days the Satya/mithya vasana is internalised to the extent that l no longer consciously need to discriminate because mithya is seen as Satya anyway, seeing everything as myself, however these very subtle changes for the jiva often occur and l was wondering whether this is bits of unseen ignorance being neutralized? Of course what else could it be.  At the same time l understand that there is no ignorance from my perspective, speaking as awareness. This is quite difficult to put into words actually.

So l hope you’re able to understand where I’m coming from here? Any pointers would be very much appreciated. This is in no way a problem and ordinarily I wouldn’t have bothered you with it but because of Sundari’s satsang l thought it ties in with it and would therefore be worth the email and I hope you’re not too busy?  If so I can wait as long as it takes because all vasanas are ultimately resolved in the fullness of time anyway and they cannot touch me anyway. Thank you for your time Ramji. God bless.

Ramji:  Isvara blessed me with a glimmer of sattva and I’m emerging from jetlag as we speak.   Yes, I was surprised and delighted that Sundari chose to share her stuff.  People need to know that it’s quite fine to be a people. 

Anyway, your question brings up a subtle point.  I wouldn’t say that what’s happening is due to a loss of ignorance but to the loss of the effects of ignorance, which are thoughts, etc. that survive hard and fast Self knowledge.  For want of ignorance the thoughts, emotions, etc. that were generated by ignorance, fall away.  There is a verse in the Bhakti Sutras that says for a Self-realized person with non-dual bhakti love grows and grows. 

Of course love doesn’t grow or shrink, but when a (formerly) binding vasana, due to lack of support from the jiva, merges back into awareness it produces a feeling of lightness, expansiveness, satisfaction, etc. which is more or less continuous, so it feels like everything is getting easier, better, etc.   It’s a both/and as usual.  You think  you can’t feel better than you’re feeling now and you can’t but tomorrow you feel even more satisfied and grateful.  You find yourself appreciating the smallest things with great tenderness.  It is a great wonder.      

For the longest time, I’ve wondered why Isvara has been necessary. You could go from the location of objects teaching to the thoughts are not real and existence/awareness is real.

Isvara is very necessary because so long as Maya is seemingly real, the thoughts are seen as real, they need some place to be “parked” conceptually so it is possible to infer what the Self is through discrimination.

It is like the tweezer that takes out the thorn, but once the thorn is out, the tweezer and thorn have no value.

Ramji:  Mostly right.  The only possible problem is the statement in the second paragraph “it is possible to infer what the Self is through discrimination.”   It is possible to infer that something caused the world but not necessarily that uncaused existence/consciousness caused the world.  If you’re looking for causes you might assume that the cause was also caused, so you need the teaching that the Self is unborn, i.e;. uncaused.  

Also, the location of objects teaching doesn’t prove that the thoughts are unreal, only that they are located in consciousness.  If the person assumed that reflected consciousness was real then he or she would probably conclude that the thoughts were real too.  So you need the satya/mitnya teaching to point out the difference between the original and the reflection followed by the non-difference of the reflection and the original. 

The third paragraph is correct and very well expressed.  I like the word “parked.” 

And the final sentence is correct too.  Vedanta is a means of knowledge, not the goal.  I just posted a satsang on that topic today.  People think that learing the whole teaching is equivalent to liberation, not realizing that the Vedanta negates the learner too.  When one learns the nature of the “I” one automatically unlearns the reflected knower.  Stated differently, when one learns that the reflected knower is unreal, one discovers that the Self is, was and will always be the only knower.

Love,

Ramlji

X:  I understand why the 5/10/15 year time frame is realistic to fully understand and assimilate what Freedom means. It seems to me that Isvara is testing all the time, and as Swami C. said, “Eternal vigilance is the price of Freedom”. It seems very risky for the jiva to lay claim to being the Self. I understand that ‘shift’ of identity is crucial but doesn’t it happen by itself as we continue to listen and contemplate the teachings?

James: Not necessarily. If your faith in the teaching is middling or piddling, it may never happen.  You have a say in what happens.  If your desire for freedom is all-consuming and the other qualifications are in place, you will force Isvara to do your bidding, which will result in a permanent shift, which isn’t a “shift.”

X:  Once ignorance is removed and peace and satisfaction are attained, it’s tempting to think we’re ‘in the clear’ so to speak.

James:  Attained for whom?  The Self is already accomplished even when you think it isn’t.  Once the knowledge is hard and fast you are in the clear.

X:  I know without a doubt I’m whole and complete and yet I must remain vigilant!

James:  Why?  You only have to remain vigilant if there is the shadow of a doubt. If you are the Self there are no doubts. 

X:  Again, a paradox! My appreciation continues to grow for the value of karma yoga as a safeguard against the arrogance of ‘my’ knowledge and the hubris of thinking I’m all done.

James:  Sure, if it’s “thinking” that you are done.  Knowing is different from thinking.  Knowing destroys “thinking.”   Is the pope Catholic?  There’s nothing to think about.  Anyway, what’s to guard if you’re the Self?   Karma yoga is a preliminary stage for the Self that thinks it is a jiva.   

X:  As you often say, it’s a both/and, not an either/or when it comes to a Satya/Mithya understanding and living a Dharmic life, where we are accountable for our words and deeds.

James:  Yes, up to a point, but satya and mithya are mithya.  They are teaching tools, means to an end. Once the Self is known to be oneself, they are useless because Self knowledge means there is no jiva other than the Self.  You drink a coke and you throw away the can.  If the jiva survives Self knowledge, then it needs to do nididyasana,, which involves getting rid of the teachings that were helpful at one time, but which no longer apply.  “What use is a small pond when the whole land is flooded?”   As long as you are discriminating between satya and mithya you are still a jiva.  Self knowledge is non-discriminating “wisdom.”  “The one who knows, knows.”   That the end of it. 

X:  To say we’re only the Self seems like more of the same drive to be something other than just what we are and opens us up to all manner of pitfalls. Would it be fair to say that it’s the Self that ‘claims’ the jiva instead of the jiva claiming it’s the Self?

James:  Bear with me, this is going to take some time.  The nididyasana stage only becomes relevant once the manana phase is finished.  The manana phase is complete when the jiva is 100% convinced that it is whole and complete existence shining as consciousness, which is a “shift” from the misunderstanding that one is limited, inadequate and incomplete to the knowledge “I am whole and complete, adequate in every way.” 

This shift ends the sadhana if there is a steady natural palpable current of bliss (ananda) and if everything that happens is handed over to Isvara, particularly the thought that I am a jiva doing sadhana and that I ever was a jiva doing sadhana.  The nididyasana phase is nothing but a sometimes long series of “shifts” as you dismiss the idea that you are a doer over and over, which is a remnant of root Ignorance.  These innumerable shifts, which eventually become less frequent, are simply a noticeable change in perspective when you let go of the idea that you are a doer.  To say Isvara is the doer means “I am the Self.”  Isvara can’t be a doer because Isvara isn’t a big jiva with karma.  It is just the beautiful intelligent ignorance that generates the appearance of action in you, actionless awareness. 

The ignorance about one’s identity is gone in the nididyasana phase but the effect of ignorance remains in the form of the claim that I am a jiva, which you establish in the first part of this email.  I don’t know, but I assume that the series of incidents you recount produced a rajasic/tamasic reaction and you failed to offload the belief that something actually happened to “you” onto Isvara, which is usually the result of a lack of faith (shraddha) in the teaching itself. 

So it seems that you haven’t completed the manana phase because you are looking at what happens as relevant to a jiva, when it is only relevant to Isvara.  Failure to complete the manana phase is due to failure to complete the sravana phase, which is due to insufficient karma yoga. 

What is karma yoga?  Karma yoga is a cheerful grateful state of mind.  You wake up in the morning and you think, “I like myself.  I’m really lucky.  I’ve got everything I want and everything I don’t want.  I’m totally cool.”  And you carry that thought as you brush your teeth, fix you coffee and get the day going.  When the IRS bugs you or a dear person dies you see the duality, the upside along with the downside, and you appreciate how unreal that is.  As Krishna says in the Gita “the wise grieve neither for the dead or for the living,” which means that you know that you had nothing to do with the taxes or the death of that person, etc.   People don’t “make” mistakes.  Mistakes happen by Isvara’s grace, meaning as a result of impersonal factors too numerous to calculate. 

It’s not risky to claim “I am the Self” if your primary value in life is knowledge.  If it is, you will accept the irrefutable logic of the teachings, which all result in the same statement, “I am completely adequate.  I can cheerfully handle anything that happens to this body/mind/sense complex because what happens it not real.”   For instance, In my case I have an absolutely fabulous life and I’m absolutely happy to leave this body when Isvara sees fit to remove it.  I’m ceaselessly active but I don’t do anything at all.  “The one who sees action in inaction and inaction in action” is free.”  

Who is aware of the doubt you so carefully expressed in this email?  The doubt doesn’t belong to that entity, which you seem to think is a “real” person named X.  But there aren’t two entities.  You don’t experience yourself as two entities.  If you did you would have two or more of everything: bodies, minds, karma streams, wives etc.  Well, you may have two or more wives if you are a Mormon. 🙂   That one entity is never what it knows.  

If you want to worry, you are free to do so, but it doesn’t help if you take a stand as a jiva.  And you have free will, in this case the power to see yourself differently i.e. as The Only Knower, which you experience as perfect dispassion and discrimination, etc.  The qualities required to get “there” are the qualities of being there.  You are the there there.

X: To say we’re only the Self seems like more of the same drive to be something other than just what we are and opens us up to all manner of pitfalls.

James:  If it is true, then you are just a wanna be. How can you be a wanna be if you already are?  If it is true there are no pitfalls. Karma yoga says there are no pitfalls. “There are no unwanted results for a karma yogi.”

X:  Would it be fair to say that it’s the Self that ‘claims’ the jiva instead of the jiva claiming it’s the Self?

James:  It wouldn’t be fair to say because the Self isn’t a doer.  It is existence shining as consciousness.  It is everything that is.  It doesn’t know there is a doer and if it does it knows that the doer is just a concept cooked up by Isvara aka Ignorance, as good as non-existent.  

You’re distracted and not thinking, X.  If you thought about this sentence you would have realized that it doesn’t make sense and you would have traced back to the point where is all began.  Anyway, I traced it back.  Don’t feel too bad about it.  The group mind is very powerful.  It robs even intelligent, good, committed people of discrimination.  It used to be quite rare for Vedanta people in our sanga to lose their discrimination but it has become more frequent since the pandemic.  Some perfectly reasonable people who professed great love and respect for the apparent me and the apparent teaching for a long time now question both, probably because they exposed their minds to more media than scripture.

The final third of the teaching in the Bhagavad is about character, the value of values.  It takes a lot of character to protect the mind from the hysteria of the crowd.  As Krishna says, “Stand up and fight, O mighty Arjuna.”  He does because he has character.  He accepts the truth even though his emotions don’t.  You need to be strong to stand up to uncertainty.  What to do but summon up the strength and stand fast in truth?  The alternative stinks.  It isn’t helpful.

Much love,

James     

Addendum:

Hi X,I’ve got a doubt now after rereading your email again a couple of times

When you said, “Would it be fair to say that it’s the Self that ‘claims’ the jiva instead of the jiva claiming it’s the Self?” did you mean that there is no difference between the jiva and the Self?  I took it to mean that the jiva and the Self are different.  If you meant that there is no difference, which is true, do you understand it is not the same but it isn’t different,  See you soon,! 

X. That’s funny! Damn the words and yet it’s the words that set us free! 
I meant that I have no doubt about what I am but that clarity came about by listening to you and Vedanta. I, as X, didn’t do anything other than sit my ass in front of the videos 
Yes, I do understand that I and the jiva are not the same because I’m the knower of this body/mind, but it’s also clear that they are the same. The wave is not different than the ocean because they are both water but the ocean doesn’t depend on the wave for its existence. Everything depends on me as Awareness. Or, to say it another way, it’s me that makes this apparent world beautiful. The beauty of the sparkling waterfall comes from Me! ️
See you in Trout Lake!. 

Ramji: Great!

There is only NOW in Mithya

There is only ALWAYS in Satya

The souls cosmic dance

Burning

watching thru timeless eyes

trapped on a wheel of fire

Ganesha pulls back the veil and leads the procession

dancing all souls to freedom

Vasanas neutralized

The music ends and we blink off

freedom is at hand

Michele

The term “superimposition” is not easy for me to understand. I understand this verse to mean that the “qualities” of silver (the luster, the value) are transferred to mother-of-pearl. Mother of pearl borrows these qualities. In a corresponding way, the always present I (ME – Awareness) is transferred to the Jiva-I (as the I-sense). If so, then the verse should  have to be: … the “I” is superimposed on the jiva (not on the self)”?

James:  The transference can go either way.  Ignorance transfers Awareness to the subtle body and it transfers the reflection to Awareness.  Superimposition means that one thing is confused with something that is similar but is actually different.  The “I-sense” is like the Self but it isn’t the Self.  When a person sees a piece of a sea shell on the beach it looks like silver but it is actually calcium carbonate, which is called mother of pearl.  It looks valuable from a distance but it is revealed to be just a common chemical when you examine it. 

The “I-sense” or the Subtle Body, which is made of sattvic matter, reflects awareness. it seems to be conscious but it isn’t actually conscious.  The Self, which is consciousness, is the only knower but it gains gets the power of knowledge and life when Maya adds sattva.  It looks like a conscious entity, but it actually isn’t.  It is consciousness appearing as a conscious entity, a human being.  Superimposition happens because the Self is more subtle than its reflection in the Subtle Body.  Vedanta i.e. discrimination between satya and mithya removes superimposition, the confusion. 

Love,

James

Thank you and Sundari again for making these regular online teachings and satsangs possible. They are immensely valuable. I really think that they are helping me to understand better, or at least to reflect more deeply, so I can see where I’m still not clear on certain topics. Not to mention that it’s helping me keep my mind on something other than my occasional annoyances, while showing me how I can better deal with them.

My question is: If everything the (waking state) jiva does is mithya, why is following svadharma so important? Isn’t svadharma mithya too?

James:  Yes, svadharma is mithya, apparently real.  If you think you are the apparently real waking state jiva you won’t be happy unless you take care of your conditioning, svadharma.  But there is another svadharma   If you understand that you are the Awareness of the waking state jiva, then your Svadharma is awareness with a capital S, which is not a doer.  This Svadharma is satya, real.  It doesn’t change, stands on its own and is of the nature of bliss.  The mithya jiva is known to it but isn’t “important” to it. 

It “follows” the actions that present themselves to it as a waking state entity only in the sense that is disinterestedly watches them, as one might watch a movie, which is to say knowing that what is happening on the screen is not real.      

As I’ve been reflecting on your recent teachings on the Mandukya Upanishad and the 3 gunas, I’ve been making notes of key points and there are some questions that have come up related to that.

What I’ve understood so far is that freedom is the ability to discriminate between satya and mithya. We can also describe this as discriminating between the Self / Consciousness (satya or the fourth factor) and the three states of waking, dreaming and deep sleep and their corresponding jivas (mithya).

Reflected consciousness is original unborn Consciousness (satya) plus a reflecting medium (mithya) – subtle, gross and causal bodies. The waking state, dream state and deep sleep state jivas all ‘experience’ reflected consciousness, in different ways according to the available active instruments.

James:  They actually don’t because they are inert.  The three states and the three material entities are material factors.  They seem to experience.  They are reflected consciousness.

So reflected consciousness is also mithya (the apparently real) appearing to be satya (real) when we don’t understand the relation it has to Consciousness. At the same time, reflected consciousness allows us to infer Consciousness and is non-different from Consciousness.

James:  Yes.  Got it in one.  Go to the head of the class. 

Freedom or moksha is for the waking state jiva. (Freedom for the dream state jiva is simply waking up!) Freedom, you could say, is becoming a ‘lucid’ waker, able to discriminate the real from the apparently real, just as a ‘lucid’ dreamer is aware that he or she is dreaming. In the deep sleep state, there are no ‘problems’! But it’s interesting that our waking state activities may influence the quality of our deep sleep state. Have I understood this correctly?

James:  Very good!  Nicely expressed.  One small point, however.  Waking state activities seemingly influence the quality of deep sleep.  If there is any mental activity, we call it the dream state.  However, for all intents and purposes they compromise the “deepness” of sleep. 

As for my occasional annoyances, I am examining them (when I remember) in the light of the values and am slowly reading and rereading The Value of Values. I can see so clearly where my annoyances are related to some lack in developing a particular value. I don’t expect I’ll be able to follow them all, all the time, but if I can change my reactions to more deliberate responses that will already be a great improvement for my peace of mind.

James: I didn’t reply to your email about one of your annoyances, although I intended to, for two reasons: (1) I have been very busy and (2) it was an  annoyance.  Your apparent jiva seems to be quite well taken care of by Isvara so the jiva’s reason for agitating itself seemed a bit gratuitous to me.  I hope you are not annoyed by this remark. 

Much love,

James

            It has been nearly a year since I have last emailed you and/or spoke to you. We did have a couple of Zoom meetings together last year. I do not expect you to remember those. I do have something to share with you, and I would like to know your thoughts on my reasoning. I know that everything in this creation belongs to Isvara, even thoughts, feelings, senses, and actions – even likes and dislikes (vasanas) and the body. So none of this Is mine because I am the Self. I know this is discriminating between satya and mithya; however, since there is only the Self, there is no satya or mithya (or Isvara) – or ignorance. So there is nothing to discriminate. I guess what I am saying is that discriminating between satya and mithya is a tool, which brings detachment from what seems to be apparently happening, whether that is thought, feeling, action, sensing, aversion, or desiring (or typing this email). That detachment leads to the knowledge that there is nothing happening and nothing to detach from. There is only Self (I did not type the Self because placing “the” in front of Self seems to make Self an object); therefore, there is nothing to discriminate. Discrimination is a tool to prepare the mind for the simple and profound truth that there is nothing to discriminate. There is only Self. That’s it. I can’t discriminate Self because I Am whole and complete. So discrimination falls away. Whole, complete, blissful, ordinary, non-dual, actionless, limitless, unconcerned, pure, awareness/consciousness alone has been, is, and will always be. Self is all there is. However, this is subtle knowledge that can only be grasped by a qualified and prepared mind; hence, dharma yoga, karma yoga, upasana yoga, jnana yoga, and values are prescribed to apparently seeking persons. 

Funny thing, when there was apparent bondage, there was no discrimination. Now that there is apparent freedom, there is no discrimination. After all, there was never any bondage and no need for freedom. 

Just to catch you up on what has apparently transpired over the last year.  I am still pastoring part-time a very conservative fundamentalist church.  So I have to teach/preach devotion to a personal God, Jesus, and Holy Spirit, but the values I teach/preach I make sure are non-dual values, which the teachings of Jesus tend to be anyway when interpreted through a non-dual lens. I am also a Life Coach and I share Vedanta on instagram for fun. That’s about it. My jiva moves in a lot of roles. All is trusted to Isvara. Of course, my jiva and I are both free these days. LOL! 

I love you Ramji. Thank you for being my teacher. 

Hi Ben,

I think of you fondly and often and nothing makes me happier than to hear The Good News from you.  I could not have expressed the essence of the teaching better myself.  Sincere and committed, you’re the best kind of student who isn’t a student.  I think there is a parable in the Bible about a starving lion who couldn’t hunt because a thorn had infected his paw.  Seeing his predicament a man removed the first thorn with another thorn and threw them both away.  Discrimination produces knowledge, which removes ignorance leaving existence shining as consciousness alone.  Nothing to remember, nothing to discriminate.  It is all me.  In so far as there is a world it shines after me as me, reflecting my glory. 

Your approach to life is intelligent and admirable.  The Gita says, “let not the wise unsettle the minds of the ignorant” (with the doctrine)  but embody the non-dual values of Christ.  Jesus was a non-dualist.  How a believer cannot see it and reason from there boggles the mind, but there you are.

Much love,

Ramji