Is it true that there is no end in spiritual path and spiritual knowledge?

Is it true that there is no end in spiritual path and spiritual knowledge?

[Ms. Bhanu Samykya asked:- Paadanamaskaaram Swami,]

Swami replied:- The Veda says Satyaṃ Jñānam Anantaṃ Brahma. It means that spiritual knowledge is true and infinite. We say that God knows all the spiritual knowledge. In such a case, how can spiritual knowledge be infinite? Spiritual knowledge is finite for God and infinite for souls. There is a tradition to say a very large number of items as very very large number of items. Sahasra patram in Sanskrit means lotus flower. The word ‘Sahasra patram’ means flower with a thousand petals.

But, if you see the lotus flower, there are not a thousand petals. At the maximum, 50-60 petals will be there. Following this tradition, a very large number of items can be told as a very very large number of items. Therefore, infinity also means a very large number of a finite number of concepts. A very large number of items are exaggerated as an infinite number of items. Hence, the word Anantam here means a very large finite quantity exaggerated as infinite number. This is a figure of speech called Utprekashaa. The spiritual path cannot be infinite. If it is infinite, nobody will reach the goal. Then, the spiritual path will be rejected by everybody putting a salutation! It also means that the spiritual path is very long.

[vibrations]

For me I think of it like one big giant quantum crystal brain beyond space, known as god/divine/creator what ever u choose, we spirits come to different planets in her stomach the universe, living and gaining knowledge and we take it back to the crystal, like we are the neurons firing through the system, if anyone reaches the end of all knowledge it would be the divine itself, as for your lotus, if you zoom in on one petal you will see it is not just a petal, we have to look beyond this, but we cannot zoom with the naked eye, but under a microscope you will see it continues the patterns and geometry, then there is the stem, the root, the earth, the connection. The divine will see those who see themselves.

[Miss Hepburn]

Originally Posted by dattaswami

The word ‘Sahasra patram’ means flower with a thousand petals.

But, if you see the lotus flower, there are not a thousand petals. At the maximum, 50-60 petals will be there.

Oh, I can say positively, oh boy, there really are a 1000 or looks like a 1000 anyway.
Shockingly awesome - it truly exists.

[Altair]

Map of lotus distribution:
https://www.researchgate.net/profile...ibution-of.png

I think if you see a ''lotus'' (not physical), it is a reflection of your belief. You have absorbed images of the lotus and they show. So it is a reflection of cultural beliefs. Hindus, and those that have adopted Hindu beliefs, may ''see'' a lotus flower, a tiger, and hornbill birds. But an Inuit or Argentine not or are less likely to. So seeing a ''lotus flower'' in a ''mystical state of consciousness'' is not as much universal or really a ''place'' but one's absorbed cultural images penetrating through.

[Native spirit]

In the spirit world you have Halls of Learning so your teaching goes on .


Namaste

[Miss Hepburn]

Originally Posted by Altair

I think if you see a ''lotus'' (not physical), it is a reflection of your belief.
You have absorbed images of the lotus and they show.

That was not the situation for me...closest I came to any Hindu stuff at the time was
the Hare Krishna's at the airport.
And funny with a Judea-Christian background ...never saw Jesus or Mary when going within (meditating)! Lol.

[Unseeking Seeker]

About experiences, in my view, it’s not that we are manifesting an illusion. If we take it as such, everything can be negated.

A friend of mine, a Hindu, with no background in Christianity, he frequently interacted with Jesus in the ethereal domain, as also with several ascended masters he had never heard of before.

In my view, the totality of the indivisible consciousness of God of which our true Self is cleaved, being in singularity, further projects its essence into duality as a soul to enrich itself and the whole. As such, our soul goes through several reincarnations until its identity (ego) drops off and thus it merges with Self, which is inseparable from God. This is how it is, in my understanding as of now. What the purpose of it all is, is beyond my comprehension.

In my case, I’ve ‘seen’ Lord Shiva a few times ~ so that may be attributable to my Hindu beliefs, ok but then I’ve also encountered Baphomet, of who I knew nothing and have seen Greek like angels, far removed from my earlier beliefs, if any.

Of course, we can attribute visions to past lives whose memory is in our sub-conscious but then we would be going around in circles.

I’ve seen the four petalled root chakra and the multi petalled Sahasrara. Seeing means nothing much of course. Then there is the inner sound current and celestial music … the kundalini energisation felt within vividly, transforming us … what should we accept, what should we negate?

[Altair]

Originally Posted by Miss Hepburn

That was not the situation for me...closest I came to any Hindu stuff at the time was
the Hare Krishna's at the airport.

That's something.

[FallingLeaves]

Originally Posted by Unseeking Seeker

what should we accept, what should we negate?

so my understanding is that it is a matter of personal preference, after all. This idea that I should get agreement, from others, that what I experience is somehow 'valid', being somehow a red herring?

But there are strong forces guiding what I will allow myself to experience, which kinda limits me and makes it so it is very hard to actually find anything but a local maximum in terms of true personal preference. Same way as over the horizon there may be a higher hill than what I find here where I am but I can't find it by continuing upward because I am already at the top of where this hill will allow me to go?

But that kind of idea can be insanity as it could lead to endless chasing of something 'better'... so I suppose a big part of things for me is stopping and learning to accept it where I already am and quit looking beyond 'local maximums' lol... so the personal preference, that one has, here and now, is good enough after all?

[BigJohn]

For years, I used the simple LOTUS as my 'mascot'.

One time I lived on the 9th floor of a 10 floor apartment. During the years I lived there , I used to love going to the roof top and look at the lotuses growing in containers on the roof.

For a time period, I would fly in and out of the city. I noticed as the plane would fly in to the city, it would fly over the canals: very low and off course. I would see the beautiful lotuses in the canal: that is how low we were. This went on for sometime. This 'tactic' came to a stop when a chap was arrested who wanted to use hand held missiles to take out planes coming and going from the airport. The last I knew, that chap was still in Guantanamo Bay.

As for Lotuses with many blossoms: like 3-4000 petals. That is from a Japanese variety. I suspect most people have never seen those.