The seeker must do his homework, and verify the validity of all the claims, rather than blindly believe, what others expound as knowledge, till; the un-contradicted truth is obtained.
The seeker must have the courage of Bhagavan Buddha to accept the truth and reject the untruth. Since Bhagavan Buddha rejected religion, the idea of God and scriptures, therefore, it is evident that he has gone through every aspect and verified and found them to be inadequate and useless for the pursuit of truth.
The seeker should not carry forward the error committed by the 'I-centric’ and ‘you-centric’ Gurus. The ‘I-centric’ or ‘you-centric’ teaching is not Self-knowledge or Brahma Gnana or Atma Gnana. The ‘I-centric’ or ‘you-centric’ teachings becomes a hindrance to transcend the dualistic illusion into non-dualistic reality.
Bhagavan Buddha:~ "It is better to conquer yourself than to win a thousand battles. Then the victory is yours. It cannot be taken from you, not by angels or by demons, heaven, or hell."
Bhagavan Buddha: - There are only two mistakes one can make along the road to truth: not going all the way... and not starting.
Swami Vivekananda:~ worship your Guru as God, but do not obey him blindly; love him all you will, but think for yourself. No blind belief can save you, work out your own salvation. Have only one idea of God - that God is an eternal help.
There is no need to condemn and Gurus and their teaching. If you are seriously seeking truth then you must be aware of how these Gurus and their teaching becomes an obstacle for your information. Unless you drop all the ‘i-centric teaching and your emotional attachment to these Gurus your quest for truth is incomplete.
Swami Vivekananda said:~ “You have to grow from the inside out. None can teach you, none can make you spiritual. There is no other teacher, but your Soul.”
Swami Vivekananda aptly described Sage Sri, Sankara’s Advaita as the fairest flower of philosophy that any country in any age has produced.
Swami Vivekananda:~ "Teach yourself, teach everyone his real nature, call upon the sleeping Soul, and see how it awakes. Power will come, glory will come, goodness will come, purity will come, and everything excellent will come when this sleeping Soul is roused to Self-conscious activity.
Swami Vivekananda:~ You have gratitude for books and teachers without bondage to them and worship your Guru as God, but do not obey him blindly; love him all you will, but think for yourself. No blind belief can save you, work out your own salvation. Have only one idea of God - that He is an eternal help.
Swami Vivekananda:~ Oneness is the Secret of Everything.
You will not find the Self without realizing what this ‘I’ supposed to be in actuality. Just by saying the Self is prior to the ‘I’, the ignorance will not vanish. Without getting rid of the ignorance you will never be able to unfold the mystery hidden by the ‘I’.
The Soul the Self is not you. The Soul the Self is not ‘I’. The Soul, the Self is the witness of the ‘I’, which appears and disappears.
You will get stuck to ignorance if you stick to the ‘I’ because the ‘I’ itself is the cause of ignorance. Ignorance is the cause of experiencing the dualistic illusion as a reality.
By sticking to the ‘I-centric or you-centric gurus and their teachings becomes a great hindrance to realizing the truth which is hidden by the ‘I’. the ‘I-centric teaching is meant for the intellectual children who started their quest.
‘I-centric Gurus describes to perfection is the awakening to Reality—the realization that pure Consciousness alone is, that the perpetually fluctuating and evanescent contents of the mind derive from it.
This awakening effectively happens in an instant. But for the lightning flash to take place, resulting in a firm and unshakable certitude, long labor is necessary, which they seem to underestimate. ‘I AM THAT is their answer.
Their teaching seems essentially negative, potent but bitter medicine for those imprisoned by institutional cults. They break the seekers’ bonds but then lead him to a vast desert where he abandons him. The ultimate state of consciousness they describe is that of the traditional sage or fully enlightened being, but they do not show us the process leading to the realization of this state. These Gurus describe marvelously the goal, but do not indicate the steps to be taken: their recurring phrases Be silent, keep quiet, do nothing are not a road-map.
Such Guru's approach was more practical, and they stuck with the reality of the time and space and holding only the form as an illusion, Thus, these Gurus knew only half-truth because that is the fallacy of the ego (form) they never realized the fallacy of the time and space.
That is why Bhagavan Buddha said: ~ “Believe nothing because a wise man said it, Believe nothing because it is generally held. Believe nothing because it is written. Believe nothing because it is said to be divine. Believe nothing because someone else said it. But believe only what you, yourself judge to be true
That is Why Sage Sankara says: ~ “What is accepted without a proper inquiry will not lead a person to the final goal. On the contrary, such acceptance will result only in evil, in something detrimental to our spiritual progress. (Commentary in Vedanta-sutra)
Seekers of truth should not believe blindly in traditional orthodox nonduality without verifying all the facts from every angle. One has to reflect through reasoning over and over again without getting tired of the process. :~Santthosh Kumaar
