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Originally Posted by Shivani Devi
Apart from Moojis wardrobe, any thoughts?
Due to my recent forays in the Non-Duality Forum and elsewhere...discussing Neo Advaita among other things...everybody saying "you don't need to do anything because you are already that"...I sit and wonder...just how many people are totally complacent with the knowledge "okay, so I am that...fair enough...is that all this spirituality thing IS? no big deal...I am that, you are that, everything is that...cool beans...and now, I can say and do what I want, even get angry, criticise others, not care about anything because I am that...and all that I am doing and saying is just a part of the 'that' which 'I am"...and how many of them have actually felt it deep inside? actually experienced this Oneness with the universe first-hand?...felt the awesome bliss?...the peace? the outpouring and inpouring of love?...danced around in ecstatic rapture?...had their brains and hearts expanded?...experienced a greater clarity of mind?...had their whole consciousness blown and ripped apart by this realisation?...never the same again? etc etc and how many just say "I am that" as they would say "I am *insert name*?"
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Hi Shivani Devi, in the hope that you are still reading, I offer you this:
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I used to believe people like .. Tony Parsons who said that after awakening .. the personality won't change, and there won't necessarily be any more joy, intimacy or compassion in life. In fact, after awakening, you could still be suicidally depressed, or violent, or even a serial killer, they said!
At first, it felt like such a relief to hear this radical and shocking message - it made awakening sound so simple, so down to earth, so accessible, so... ordinary. "Before awakening I'm a jerk, after awakening I'm a jerk. And I'm allowed to be a jerk now because I'm liberated and nobody can touch me. Oh and by the way, there is no me and no choice. Jerkness just happens. So what. Who cares. Get over it, sad seeker." The ego celebrated - it now had carte blanche. No responsibility! No punishment! Free reign! Nobody here! Yippee! The search was over!
I've come to see that this "neo-Advaita" message, as it's now known, is very one-sided. It's partially true, exquisitely simple, but it's not by any means the full picture (nothing is!) and can be so damaging if mis-spoken or mis-heard or mis-used.
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- Jeff Foster
https://en-gb.facebook.com/LifeWitho...36682189762728
It seems to speak to what you mention, and is also affirmed by another poster on these Boards who noted that he was tired of people telling him that he was not enough and hence he vigorously defends Neo-Advaita (as it is his lifeline).
As to spiritual experiences, I trust many have had them, but not all talk of them. For those that haven't, it is probably normal to be skeptical, suspicious, or uninterested. It doesn't really matter (to me) as I do believe that those whom sincerely and accurately (relatively speaking) apply themselves to spiritual practice, they will receive the appropriate spiritual feedback. What matters more, in my opinion, is that practice is furthered.
BT