{"id":6414,"date":"2013-05-15T00:00:01","date_gmt":"2013-05-15T04:00:01","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.gornahoor.net\/?p=6414"},"modified":"2021-05-16T23:39:21","modified_gmt":"2021-05-17T03:39:21","slug":"crest-jewel","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gornahoor.net\/?p=6414","title":{"rendered":"Crest Jewel"},"content":{"rendered":"

Once you know exactly what you want, there is no choice. ~ Swami Dayananda Saraswati<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Clarification<\/h2>\n

I need to clarify an earlier post in which I quoted Paul Sedir<\/strong>. I remarked how similar the thoughts were to Rene Guenon\u2019s. In checking the original source, I see that Sedir was in fact referring to Guenon\u2019s position, not his own. Now both Sedir and Rene Guenon<\/strong> used to move in the same Martinist circles, but abandoned that path \u2013 Sedir for Christian mysticism and Guenon for the Sufi version. Curiously, Sedir regarded his path as the one of action, in opposition to Guenon\u2019s path of contemplation, very much as did Julius Evola. But this will have to wait until after Evola\u2019s complete essay is made available.<\/p>\n

Guenon said the same of Sedir that he did of Evola: viz., they simply did not understand. For Guenon, the traditions are ultimately the same, hence Christian esoterism could be no different from the Vedanta. So this is the third installment on the \u201cI\u201d, this time from the point of view of Shankara, the foremost spokesman for the Vedanta.<\/p>\n

Vivekacudamani<\/h2>\n

The Vivekacudamani<\/cite>, or Crest Jewel of Discrimination<\/cite>, attributed to Shankara<\/strong>, is a collection of cryptic verses. Here I am relying on the commentary of Swami Dayananda Saraswati, who has a presence in the West, including a study group in South Florida. This particular teaching is very much knowledge based, i.e., as opposed to some special experience, e.g., of enlightenment.<\/p>\n

Yet this is not knowledge in the scientific sense, or knowledge of particular things. Rather it is knowledge of the Self. The Self is never an object, words cannot point to it, eyes or the mind are not necessary to know it. An object is self-revealing, i.e., it makes itself known through the senses. The self, however, is known because it is self-evident. An object may come and go; the self is always present, eternal, self-existent. Because man is born ignorant, he does not know his true Self.<\/p>\n

So what are the conditions required to overcome ignorance? They are three:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. The status of a human being<\/li>\n
  2. The disposition of one who longs for freedom<\/li>\n
  3. Being under the tutelage of a teacher<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Knowledge is possible to man since he has free will. Even then, it is rare to desire liberation; most men desire security and pleasure. Therefore, heaven is more suitable to them, since there are no obstructions such as exist in the corporeal human state. Yet the disposition is insufficient without the proper guidance and true teachings. These conditions, says Shankara, are due to the Grace of the Lord.<\/p>\n

    The desire for liberation requires a conversion, specifically a \u201ccognitive change\u201d, or an \u201cintellectual conversion\u201d as Guenon puts it. Simply put, it is a matter of obtaining the right knowledge. The teacher keeps the student on track, discouraging useless pursuits and idle curiosity. Gradually, the student seeks nothing but liberation, and that in the form of knowledge of oneself. Only then can one pursue the inquiry, such as that described by Mouni Sadhu<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

    There is the problem of recognizing a teacher: \u201cto find out a teacher is to find exactly the teaching. \u2026 it is known by whether that person makes you see that you are free.\u201d First of all, the teacher needs to know the teachings; that is at least objectively verifiable. Ultimately it depends on the grace of Ishwara (personal God), which Dayananda says must be earned.<\/p>\n

    So that leads to the next verse. To earn grace requires manly qualities and mastery of the Vedas. The ranks are thinning out. Dayananda includes courage, sacrifice, and renunciation among those qualities. Here he makes the odd claim that women, too, can have these \u201cmanly\u201d qualities. Thus, in practice, he does allow women to lead his study groups. I have my opinion on that and you can have yours.<\/p>\n

    Freedom is always freedom from what you consider bondage, or better said, from what bothers you. Death and pain bother you, so they keep you in bondage. A lack of self-confidence bothers you, as does any feeling that separates a person from everything else; the sense of separation is a delusion. There are two ways of living:<\/p>\n