Is Supreme Truth an Experience or Knowledge? – Part 30
In part 29 we addressed two concerns. Role of the guru. And if absolute Truth, as revealed in Upanishads, is just another point of view. Let’s revise them before…
Is the Individual Helpless? Where Is Our Freewill? – Part 28
In previous part 27, it attempted to show that the world which you experience everyday, consists of an endless combination of forms and color, sounds, tastes, smells and feelings….
What is Ontological Status of Maya – Part 23
In previous part 22, we heard how maya’s veiling and projecting power works. They work in tandem. Veiling power (āvaraṇa-śakti) causes partial knowledge. For example, if we see the…
What is Origin or Cause of Ignorance (Avidya)? – Part 14
Previous part 13, discerned difference between Consciousness (Brahman), and world of matter (jagat) which either has status of sentience (creatures) or insentience (rock). Follow conversation attempts to resolve where…
The Knower, a Self-Conscious Being – Part 5
Students were introduced orders of reality in Part 4 – which has now sparked doubts. So one of students asks… “Do you mean to say we have no independent…
Reconciling Orders of Reality and Oneness – Part 4
In last sentence of Part 3, teacher briefly introduced two new terms ” subjective” and “empirical” orders of reality. This begins to explain how we can have “orders of…
Subjective Perception and Orders of Reality – Part 3
In last sentence of Part 2, the teacher concluded with an important concept in Vedanta “orders of reality“. But didn’t explain… Now the inquiring Vedantic student asks, “What do…
What is Real and Not-Real? – Part 2
Part 1 needs to be understood for this part to make sense. Student posed a question “What is real and what is not real? How do you decide their…
Why a Wise Person Won’t Argue Against an Ignorant Person
What a wise person (jnani) knows directly – can be summarized in below Adi Shankaracharya’s words. Which is why there is NO GAIN for a jnani to argue or…
Real vs. Unreal: How to Get Out of Maya’s Crocodile Jaws
Advaita Vedanta declares, “Brahma satyam, jagat mithyā, jīvaḥ brahma eva na aparaḥ” — Brahman (the limitless Consciousness) alone is real, the world (as we perceive it) is mithyā (not…