The Steps to Self-Inquiry
Many blessings to bought of you. How are you doing?
Sundari, I have just read a satsang with you: Chasing relationships and the Hopeless Quest for Love. First of all thank you for it, reading between the lines it applies to everything in this “reality”. At the end of it you mention that you had attached a sat sang on the requirements for self-inquiry, will you please be that kind to send the link to me as well?
Om shanti
Sundari: I am glad the satsang on relationships I posted yesterday helped you. It does apply to most things in the world as no object will ultimately make us happy. I address this in the satsang on the steps to self-inquiry you requested and have added it in below.
The Steps to Self-Inquiry
Before considering self-inquiry, ask yourself: “What are my true values and motivations? Am I genuinely interested in improving the quality of my life? If you are, then it is reasonable to assume that if you could improve it, you would already have done so by now. In which case, put aside what you think you know, refrain from reading through the filters of your existing beliefs and opinions, and keep a willingness to be ignorant, wrong, or misinformed. You can always take your opinions back if you like them so much better. But if in cherry-picking ideas you discard what you don’t like or agree with, confirmation bias will be operating (among other biases) and you will be wasting your time.
To succeed at self-inquiry, you must commit yourself to follow the logic and methodology of the steps as they are presented in the scripture. If you try to fit the teachings into your own ideas or try to tailor them to fit in with your beliefs, self-inquiry will not work to remove ignorance. The teachings are extremely methodical. Vedanta is a progressive teaching which is designed to answer every doubt. Sign on to the logic and don’t skip ahead until you know you have understood and assimilated each step. If you rush through the steps because you think you know better, you are defeating the purpose and you are clearly more invested in your own ideas.
Apply the steps to your thinking and see how this affects your life. Self-inquiry is about applied knowledge, so if it does not translate into your life and you see no benefit, it is never that the teaching at fault. There are two main reasons the teachings do not assimilate, and self-inquiry may thus fail for you. The first is that your lifestyle is not in accordance with dharma and must be cleaned up. The second reason is a lack of qualifications and unaltered thinking or lack of motivation in putting the teachings into practice.
Furthermore, you must be properly taught because the mind is conditioned to think a certain way. Non-duality is counter-intuitive – it is a provocative teaching designed to give rise to doubts, which it also answers. Unguided the mind will interpret what it hears or reads according to its conditioning, and Self-knowledge will not obtain. You may ‘get it’ for a while and then ‘unget it’ for reasons mentioned above, basically because the mind has not been sufficiently purified. Also, there are apparent contradictions within the teachings that are not real contradictions and need to be resolved by a qualified teacher. And there is one more factor to consider, grace. It is only by the grace of God that anything happens—and grace is earned.
Qualifications Required
We need qualifications to succeed at anything in the world. So, it stands to reason that there should be qualifications for self-inquiry as well. Although not all the qualifications need to be present, to begin with, they must be understood and developed.
The Most Important Qualifications Are:
1. The burning desire for liberation from bondage to objects: meaning one has understood that there is nothing to gain through objects, that there is no joy inherent in them. I desire above all to understand my true nature and have stopped chasing objects.
2. Faith in the teachings – not blind faith, faith pending the outcome of your investigation. If you cannot check your beliefs ‘at the door’, self-inquiry will not work for you. You must be prepared to forego your attachment to other teachings, at least temporarily.
3. Dispassion: in brief non-attachment to outcome, i.e. karma yoga, surrendering the results of actions to Isvara or the Field of Existence with an attitude of gratitude.
4. Discrimination: the ability to discriminate what is changeless or real (Consciousness) from that which is changing or only seemingly real (all objects – which include the mind and body, thoughts and emotions, in other words, anything other than Consciousness, the real you).
5. Control of the senses and of the organs of action. This includes thought/emption-management, speaking, all activities especially sensory ones like eating and sex.
Self-Inquiry
Self-inquiry involves an analysis of what makes up and governs the Field of Existence, which includes the individual, with the aim of negating our dependence on objects for happiness. It is to discriminate between non-duality and duality, i.e., between experience (the object/effect) and Consciousness, the subject/cause. There is a world of a difference between these two perspectives because it reveals that an object is anything other than me, the knower of objects, i.e. Consciousness, the Self. The objects I know include my little self, whom I have thus far taken to be ‘me’. But it is not the ‘real’ me.
Self-inquiry conducted correctly produces non-dual vision. Non-dual vision is permanent freedom from limitation because it is not only about understanding our conditioning and story; it is freeing ourselves of both. If we have non-conforming lifestyles, we will not succeed at self-inquiry. Self-inquiry is not seeking, it is about finding that you are what you seek. Vedanta is the knowledge that ends the quest for knowledge. It is a common sense and logical set of proven principles that invariably simplify the complexities of the mind and prepares it to assimilate the knowledge that sets us free of suffering. For a simple and peaceful life healthy lifestyle habits in eating, sleeping, working, relationships, sex, money, recreating habits etc., must be cultivated in accordance with the scripture, not the other way around. Everything that is not in line with the teachings must be renounced.
Preparation for Self-Inquiry
Many inquirers do not understand what self-inquiry entails and that if you commit to it, you need to relinquish control because you are locked into a predetermined sadhana. You are no longer the boss. You must follow the steps for self-inquiry to bear fruit. The whole point is to bring that wilful self-centered ego into line with scripture, which is Isvara’s words. If the vasana tail is still wagging the dog, it is important to accept that fact and follow the program of self-inquiry to the letter. In addition, you need to be prepared even to begin self-inquiry.
There are two important aspects to preparation for self-inquiry:
1. Karma yoga: Simply put, karma yoga meansdedicating every thought word, and deed to God/Isvara, the Field of Existence, in an attitude of gratitude and consecration, taking whatever results that come as a gift. There are two stages to karma yoga and the first applies as preparation for self-inquiry, called secular karma yoga.
Secular Karma Yoga
Secular karma yoga is karma yoga with desire which can also work for worldly people not qualified for self-inquiry and not going for moksha. A secular karma yogi applies karma yoga to accomplish things in the world and get what they want or avoid what they don’t want. But assuming you have realized the futility of chasing objects in the world and are serious about self-inquiry, secular karma yoga is the preparation for entry-level inquirers to minimize the pressure of likes and dislikes.
But the desire for objects/results (though they may be more elevated) is still present. The second stage of karma yoga, sacred Karma yoga without desire, is for more advanced inquirers—people who have realized that there is nothing to gain by action and are ready for or already engaged in self-inquiry. See more below.
2. Meditation or Upsana yoga: Entails reflecting on your values, conducting a fearless moral inventory, understanding the qualifications required for self-inquiry and starting to develop the ones that are lacking. It requires sattvic practices such as meditation to purify and prepare the mind for self-inquiry.
The Three Stages of Self-Inquiry:
First and most important, self-inquiry should be the most important part of your day, not incidental to it if you truly want freedom from existential suffering. If self-inquiry does not translate into your life it has no benefit to you. For the mind to assimilate Self-knowledge, all stages of inquiry must be completed, methodically and thoroughly, not necessarily in a linear fashion. Most inquirers will weave in and out of the stages as their doubts arise and get dispelled by the teachings. Vedanta is taught in a very specific way for a very good reason – the mind is very conservative, and ignorance is hard wired and tenacious.
1. Sravanna – Listening and Hearing the Scriptures.
The first stage of self-inquiry requires that you start at the beginning with the teachings, sign on to the logic and stick with it, along with diligently applying karma yoga. As stated above, Vedanta is taught in a progressive and methodical way to answer all doubts that arise at each level of understanding. It is very important not to rush seeking instant answers (which is often what spiritual types are after) because that will not work. Ignorance is highly tenacious and resistant to removal, so patience and dedication are vital requirements, along with a realistic view that rejects the need for instant solutions to problems.
If you are too attached to your desires, your ideas, beliefs, and opinions acquired and developed from your exposure to multiple teachings, self-inquiry will not work. It requires that you admit to yourself that you are the problem and what you think you know has not worked thus far, so there must be something you don’t know the knowledge of which could make all the difference. If you are still chasing objects (such as a relationship), trying to get the world to give you what you think you lack, or even chasing a life-changing spiritual experience, Vedanta is not for you. In that case, it is best that you immerse yourself in worldly pursuits until you are thoroughly convinced the world cannot satisfy your desires and give you what you are seeking.
Very importantly, this stage requires that you have established the qualifications required for self-inquiry, check if they are in place, strengthen the ones that are not, track yourself on them on a moment to moment basis. Make and implement necessary lifestyle changes that you stick to. There is no fine print to this, self-inquiry is very simply not compatible with a mind that is not purified and prepared for it, in addition to practicing karma yoga.
2. Manana. Reasoning, Contemplation.
The second stage of self-inquiry requires thinking about what the scripture is saying, examining the unexamined logic of your own experience, and starting to apply the teachings to your life. At this point, you look at your beliefs and opinions in the light of what the scripture says, not the other way around. If you are not dedicated to self-inquiry, have not developed the qualifications for self-inquiry, are not practicing karma yoga, or find yourself making excuses for the way you live because you are in denial about binding vasanas, you will not make progress. Even if Self-realization does occur, it will not stick. You will not actualize Self-knowledge unless you surrender to the teachings and address every aspect of your life.
Even though this stage is about contemplating the scriptures, it overlaps with the last and final stage, nididhysana, so karma yoga and guna management are vital. Karma yoga will eventually destroy the notion of ‘doership’ if properly understood and faithfully adhered to in every thought word and deed. In the manana stage, it is meant to clear the mind of enough likes and dislikes until it becomes composed enough for sustained self-inquiry. The next stage of karma yoga applies in the third stage of self-inquiry, nididhysana. But before we get to that, there is no chance of making progress with self-inquiry without at least a basic understanding of the forces that condition the mind, the gunas. This is called triguna vibhava yoga, or jnana yoga and it is covered in far more depth in James Swartz’ book, the Yoga of the Three Energies, a must-read for serious inquirers.
The Gunas
The forces that govern everything in the Field of Existence and that make up our conditioning are called the three gunas in Sanskrit. They are a term for the psychological principles that run our lives. The word ‘guna’ means ‘rope’ because these three energies bind us to experience. The word also means ‘attributes’ as the energies of which the Field of Existence is made up of play out very predictably. You may never have heard the term ‘guna’ before, but you do know these energies intimately because all three are always present and everyone is dealing with them in some order of influence every moment of every day.
Each guna has calculable and predictable mental and emotional attributes which govern our conditioning – i.e., if we understand what they are, we can manage them. If we don’t, they manage us. Knowledge of these driving forces, and the ability to apply this knowledge, allows us to correct and improve our lives without manhandling the psyche. It is not about changing the world or changing the person. It is about understanding both and learning to love ourselves unconditionally, which involves considering the main psychological and physical factors preventing us from living healthy and happy lives.
The Three Energies in Brief:
1. Sattva, the energy of mind, intelligence, and revelation, qualities: peace, clarity, beauty, wisdom, spiritual arrogance.
2. Tamas, the energy of matter, also of ignorance, qualities: dullness, denial, sloth, gluttony, addiction, endurance, sleep.
3. Rajas the energy of action and projection, qualities: desire, passion, agitation, neurosis.
Guna management is essential for managing thoughts and feelings that dominate the mind. Guna yoga is also understanding the Creator and ordainer of the Field, and the identity between you as an individual and the Field, why they are the same, and what is different. Without this understanding it is impossible to negate the egoic doer and all its fear/desire programs, so you will not progress to the last and final stage of inquiry. Many people do realize the Self at this stage, but that is really where the ‘work’ of self-inquiry begins. To progress to the final stage requires full and complete faith in and compliance with the scripture – it alone is the boss of your life, not the jiva, and it requires the final stage of karma yoga, Self-actualization. In the next stage, Sacred Karma Yoga applies.
3. Self-Actualization
Self-realization is not Self-actualization, which is the final “stage”. Self-actualization is not actually a stage because all stages are objects known to the Self, but to get there comes only after all the previous stages mentioned so far are completed. And the process of Self-actualization, nididhysana, is also, the hardest. It usually takes the longest. The knowledge that you are the Self has obtained, but complete freedom from the personal program has not; there are still some binding mental/emotional patterns to purify. For most people who have realized the Self but not actualized it, this stage in a way is like ‘requalifying’ – re-examining qualifications and strengthening those that are still weak. It requires the final negation of the idea of yourself as an individual, a jiva. Up to now, karma yoga went from relinquishing results of actions to the Field and taking given results as a gift, to the next level, renunciation of the idea of doership, and, of desire.
Sacred Karma Yoga: Karma Yoga without Desire
In the last stage of self-inquiry, karma yoga becomes a different kind of mind management, karma yoga without desire, or Sacred karma yoga. It is for more advanced inquirers. It is the transformation of our remaining binding mental/emotional conditioning into devotion to the Self. At this stage, you have given up needing anything. You are not after ‘God stuff’. You are after God, period. It’s not that you no longer have desires, but all desire is not contrary to dharma and directed to the Self. Self-actualization is managing the mind’s involuntary, habitual thoughts and feeling patterns, which are bedrock duality and often survive Self-realization.
These patterns can still hijack the mind without a moment’s notice, denying it access to the Self in the form of Self-knowledge, so you are still bound to the egoic program. There is nothing inherently wrong with involuntary thoughts, but they tend to immediately morph into actions which are liable to create unwanted karma in the form of obscuring thoughts and emotions. Therefore, guna/mind management continues. Until this stage is complete, Self-actualization has not taken place and discrimination can be lost, if not permanently, at least temporarily. You are not free because limiting thoughts/feelings like fear, smallness, need, shame, confusion, low self-esteem, etc., can still strike, destroying peace of mind.
The Final Renunciation
For Self-actualization to take place, the final and most subtle renunciation must occur. It is renouncing the idea of seeking liberation because you ARE free and always have been. As the Self, you have never been bound. This is the toughest stage because if there are still some binding mental/emotional patterns, it can prevent the inquirer from attaining actualization. It is not a case of what is missing, but what is still there: the idea that the doer still needs to ‘do’ something to perfect the jiva. Or there remains a very subtle thought that there is still some amazing experience that must take place to prove you are the Self.
But there is no proof because you are the proof. No experience can prove that. There comes a time when practicing the knowledge no longer works its magic because it’s time to move beyond it. The inquirer is no longer an inquirer and needs to answer the question: are you doing the knowledge or are you the knowledge? Vedanta is not about accumulating or perfecting Self-knowledge, or any practice as such, because for the Self, knowledge, even Self-knowledge is an object known to you. And freedom is not about perfecting the jiva, it is freedom from and for it. The jiva is what it is, and it is as good as non-existent.
The toughest part of self-inquiry is to give up being an inquirer, which is just another comforting identity, and throw Vedanta away. It has served its intended purpose which is to remove ignorance. So, cut the lifeline and live as the Self, no fine print. Knowledge is meant to remove ignorance, that is all. When you are the knowledge, the knowledge must disappear. If the knowledge remains you have the knowledge, but you also still have ignorance. Freedom is the absence of ignorance not the gaining of knowledge. It is freedom from the knower of knowledge. It is BEING the knowing not knowing the knower. Existence shining as Awareness. No maintenance is required. Hanging on to the knowledge is hanging on to the jiva, keeping the doer, seeker, knower, ignorance alive.
At this point, there are no rules for you or things you should or should not be doing, applying, or inquiring into. There is no nididhysana for the Self. How can there be? You are the knowledge because you are the Self, period. You follow dharma without default, but the jiva is free to be what it is, without censure.
However, and this is important, there is fine print to this. If there are still binding vasanas for an inquirer who prematurely claims they are the Self and there is no nididhysana for them, Self-actualization cannot take place. The result is either the Advaita Shuffle or, enlightenment sickness when the ego co-opts the knowledge.
To be fully Self-actualized means:
(1) That you have fully discriminated the Self (Consciousness/Awareness) from the objects appearing in you (all objects, meaning all gross objects as well as one’s conditioning, thoughts and feelings—all experience), and do so spontaneously, 24/7.
(2) Self-knowledge has (a) rendered the binding desires non-binding and (b) negated your sense of doership, completely. In other words, the ego program is understood and fully negated. The individual still exists with its inborn nature and operates in the world, but its program is like a burnt rope – it no longer has the power to bind. It is as good as non-existent and rests in the fullness of the Self. The world neither attracts nor repels it. There is nothing left to identify with other than your Self.
Therefore, once Self-knowledge is permanent, you never think of yourself as a person again, your primary identity is fully established as the Self. And you are totally fine with the apparent person as they are and their role in the world. All desires from here will be not opposed to dharma, they are preferences, no longer binding. Karma yoga is no longer a practice as such, it is just common-sense knowledge. It can be said that this stage never really ends even when Self-actualization because though desires are no longer binding, the person is still a constantly changing entity due to the gunas and lives in the Field, which is also always constantly changing also because of the gunas. Thus, though the mind may no longer condition to the gunas, mind management continues but Self-knowledge works spontaneously and instantly to nullify any effects.
Though there are no rules for a Self-actualized person because they are free of all limitations, nonetheless, one automatically follows dharma because you still honor the natural laws that run the Field of Existence. Non-injury in thought word and deed is the highest priority. You know there is nothing to gain or lose in the world and, it is all you. Your lifestyle will be fully in accordance with Self-knowledge in every respect.
An Enlightened Lifestyle
It is not necessary to complete all the stages of self-inquiry to create an enlightened lifestyle, but you will not progress with self-inquiry without one. Spiritual growth requires an Enlightened Lifestyle and since a value for this is not available in materialistic societies, you must create a simple peaceful lifestyle yourself. A clear understanding of the Field of Existence brings the individual into a relationship with the whole that creates a satisfied, contented mind. Without this connection, we cannot express our God-given positive qualities. A happy life is a life in harmony with the whole.
I define an unenlightened lifestyle as a neurotic, emotional, dissatisfied, self-indulgent, messy, desire-based, stress-filled life. I define an enlightened lifestyle as a simple, orderly, considerate, content, emotionally balanced, knowledge-based, intelligent, and relatively stress-free life. Everyone wants that, right? Well, very few people have that. Why?
A commitment to self-inquiry as explained above, with the help of a qualified teacher and the necessary qualifications present will answer all questions and remove ignorance, and therefore, end our existential suffering. But there is not a one-size-fits-all formula for a peaceful life. While we are all one in the Self, the way we appear as individuals expresses differently in everyone. Ignorance is universal, but our personal ignorance is unique to us; to remove this involves understanding both what drives us personally (our programming or vasana load) and the impersonal factors behind our life story (Isvara/the gunas/unconscious drives or Causal body), but it is not about our life story. The truth is always impersonal and cannot be adapted to suit us, assuming we want freedom from limitation more than anything else.
Therein lies the ‘work’ of self-inquiry.
Om, Sundari
