[Iamit]

Originally Posted by iamthat

This is perhaps over-simplistic. Buddhists may teach that there is no doer, yet Buddhism is all about practice. And over the centuries they have developed a wide variety of practices.

And does traditional Advaita really teach that there is someone who can become enlightened? Yes, there is a moment of realisation where the individual realises that they are the Self, but that realisation includes the recognition that there is no separate personal "I".

Neo-Advaita makes many claims, but all the Neo-Advaita teachers seem to have had a moment of realisation, which is why they then began teaching. Followers of Neo-Advaita may say that there is nothing to do, but where is their moment of realisation?

Stephan Bodian addresses this in Wake Up Now, in a section where he looks at common misunderstandings of enlightenment:

Myth 7: You're already enlightened so why bother seeking?

As the flip side to this addiction to struggle and attainment, this laissez-faire approach to awakening places you outside the gateless gate ... Yes, you're already enlightened, but until this enlightenment dawns in the particular body-mind it's just an abstract concept with little power to relieve your suffering and transform your experience of reality, which is the whole point of the awakening process. Paradoxically, the separate self can never become enlightened, yet genuine enlightenment must take root and blossom there.

Peace

Yes the argument against nothing required is always that for this to be seen there needs to be realization. But what is always over looked is that it is already Oneness not realizing so no increase in connection to Oneness is achieved by realizing.