Sacred Texts Study Group

Is this a declaration of Self-Reliance?

“The true being of the real must be seen by one’s own eyes illumined by clear wisdom; it is not enough that thy Teacher should see. The true form of the moon must be known through one’s own eyes; how can it be understood through the eyes of others?

“How could another than oneself untie the cords that bind through unwisdom, through desire and the…[Read more]

“What indeed is bondage? How does it come about? What is its support? How is one set free? What is that which is not the true Self? What is discernment between the false and the true? Let this be declared.”

“Happy art thou who hast attained thy goal; through thee thy family is blessed, because through liberation from unwisdom thou seekest to be…[Read more]

“There is a way of power, which destroys the terror of this life beset by death; by it crossing the wide sea of this world, thou shalt attain to the supreme joy;

“Through right understanding of the essence of the teaching of wisdom, the most excellent illumination is brought to birth, through which comes the destruction of the illimitable pai…[Read more]

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“Pour out upon me thy words of immortal life, which bring the happiness of the sacred teaching, as they issue from the vessel of thy voice, clear, restoring, purifying, inspired by thine own experience of the essence of the joy of the Eternal; Master, I am consumed by the fiery flames, the scorching heat of this passional life! H…[Read more]

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Drawing near to the Teacher in reverent devotion, with the loving service of one who seeks the Eternal, and thus winning his good will, let him ask what he seeks to know concerning the true Self:

“Master, obeisance to thee, friend of the world bowed down, ocean of compassion, save me, sunk in the sea of life, bending on me thy s…[Read more]

Where self-indulgence is unconquered, and the desire for liberation is weak, quietude and the other virtues are an illusion, like the mirage in the desert.

Among all means of liberation, devotion, verily, is the most potent. The fixing of the heart on the true being of the Divine Self is declared to be devotion.

Others say that devotion is the…[Read more]

Next Section Translated by Charles Johnston

Freedom from self-indulgence (virâga) is a surrender of the allurement of the eyes, the ears, and all the senses; a surrender of the allurement of all non-eternal things from the body up to the Formative Power, continually made through a realization of the faultiness of all objective things.

Quietude…[Read more]

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He who is full of intelligence, illuminated, skilled in knowledge and wisdom, is fitted to teach the wisdom of the Divine Self; he wears the immemorial hall-mark.

And he is fitted to seek the Eternal, who has discernment, freedom from self-indulgence, quietude and the other virtues, and who ardently desires liberation.

Here four…[Read more]

Works make for the cleansing of the heart, but not for the attaining of the Real; the gaining of the Real comes through discernment—not even by myriads of works is it gained.

Through discernment of the Real it is perceived that the imagined serpent is only a rope; and thus the painful fear of the great serpent, conjured up by illusion, is f…[Read more]

Hi Jon,

In my view, I don’t think the point is that the other aspects, like study, service, and character building, are not necessary. They are different limbs of a whole. However, it is Jnana that has the key to open the door to Wisdom. Without purity of character, it is impossible to obtain this key.

A good person may not necessarily be…[Read more]

I tend to think that this advaita approach, while going straight to the heart of the matter, can often be interpreted in such a way that the individual ends up stationary and not taking the steps necessary to reach the point at which jnana can overcome ignorance, if they hold too strongly to the idea that nothing other than jnana is necessary.…[Read more]

Hi Gerry,

Your question – what are some ways students can loosen the hold of a lesser sense of self – is the essence of transformation. As you mentioned, our identity is very fluid. When we are reading a book, we are lost in its contents. When we engage in a conversation, we are lost in the ideas. When we study a worksheet, we are lost in…[Read more]

Hello Peter,

This is a very nice description of the Advaita philosophy! It would seem that even though we are essentially Brahmin according to the non-dual teaching, we still need to recognize and start with our present state of illusory reality. This is the first step to Truth. It is of little use to inform one who is deep asleep that s/he is…[Read more]

It is a great challenge to change or evolve one’s sense of self. The more we study the more it becomes apparent that the self we ordinarily identify with is so very ephemeral. The teachings invite us to draw inwards and perhaps by so doing we “draw a larger circle”. People inherently seek to become part of something larger than themselves.…[Read more]

Hi Gerry – that’s an interesing question. One of the recurring themes we find in Advaita and in Shankaracharya’s commentaries is that karma (action) does not bring about Liberation or Moksha. The fundamental tenet of Advaita is that the supreme Brahman (Parabrahm) or One Reality is non-dual, hence the term advaita (‘not two’). Separ…[Read more]

Hi Gerry – that’s an interesing question. One of the recurring themes we find in Advaita and in Shankaracharya’s commentaries is that karma (action) does not bring about Liberation or Moksha. The fundamental tenet of Advaita is that the supreme Brahman (Parabrahm) or One Reality is non-dual, hence the term advaita (‘not two’). Separ…[Read more]

In many ways people are like children. We play the game of pretend and we invent methods to avoid confronting the truth. Priestly rituals give rise to vanity and are an escape from direct confrontation of the truth. Furthermore they lead to a decrease in self-reliance, and a desire to seek praise and reward.

The Crest Jewel of Wisdom in…[Read more]

Shankaracharya says: Even though they recite the scriptures, and sacrifice to the gods, and fulfill all works, and worship the divinities—without awakening to the unity of the Divine Self, liberation is not attained even in a hundred æons.

Would it be fair to say that one way to take this is : Until we begin to incrementally transform our se…[Read more]

Sri Sankaracharya

Translation by Swami Madhavananda

1. I bow to Govinda, whose nature is Bliss Supreme, who is the Sadguru, who can be known only from the import of all Vedanta, and who is beyond the reach of speech and mind.

2. For all beings a human birth is difficult to obtain, more so is a male body; rarer than that is Brahmanahood; rarer…[Read more]