Friday, August 18, 2023

Buddhism

Buddhism is a religion and philosophy that originated in India around the 6th century BCE, founded by Siddhartha Gautama, who is commonly known as the Buddha (the "Awakened One"). Buddhism has hundreds of millions of followers, making it one of the world's largest religions.

The fundamental teachings of Buddhism are encapsulated in the Four Noble Truths and the Eightfold Path.

The Four Noble Truths are:

1. The Truth of Suffering (Dukkha): Life is suffering. This includes physical and mental suffering, impermanence, and the concept of self.

2. The Truth of the Origin of Suffering (Samudāya): Suffering is caused by desires and attachments.

3. The Truth of the Cessation of Suffering (Nirodha): Suffering can be ended by attaining dispassion, thus achieving Nirvana (liberation).

4. The Truth of the Path to the Cessation of Suffering (Magga): The path to end suffering is the Eightfold Path.

The Noble Eightfold Path consists of:

1. Right Understanding

2. Right Thought

3. Right Speech

4. Right Action

5. Right Livelihood

6. Right Effort

7. Right Mindfulness

8. Right Concentration

These eight aspects are divided into three categories: wisdom (understanding and thought), ethical conduct (speech, action, livelihood), and concentration (effort, mindfulness, concentration).

Buddhism has evolved into various schools and traditions over time, including Theravada, Mahayana, and Vajrayana, each with its own interpretations and practices.

Theravada Buddhism, prevalent in Southeast Asia, is often considered closer to the original form of Buddhism, focusing on the use of meditation and mindfulness to achieve self-enlightenment.

Mahayana Buddhism, found in East Asia, includes a variety of subsets such as Zen, Pure Land, and Nichiren, among others. It emphasizes the Bodhisattva ideal, the individual who seeks enlightenment to help all sentient beings.

Vajrayana Buddhism, also known as Tantric Buddhism or Esoteric Buddhism, primarily found in Tibet and Mongolia, includes practices and doctrines that are believed to allow individuals to achieve enlightenment in a single lifetime.

Despite the variations, all forms of Buddhism share a focus on personal spiritual development and the quest for enlightenment.

THE "REALIST" THEORY OF REALITY

Preamble

Asamskrita

Samsara

Kamavakara

Satvari Aryan Satyani

Nirvana

Preamble

"There is, brothers, a sphere of life where there is neither earth, nor water, nor fire, nor air, nor the sphere of endless space, nor even the sphere of consciousness. Where I tell you there is not really even this world, nor the other world, nor the sphere of infinite space, nor the sphere of infinite consciousness, nor the sphere of the non-existence of anything, nor the sphere where there is neither perception nor non-perception. Such a state, brothers, I will I described it like this: neither coming, nor going, nor standing, nor turning back, nor descending, nor ascending. It is something like unborn, unmade, uncreated, uncomposed: it is the end of suffering". Udana, VIII, I, 1st century B.C.).

Asamskrita

The Ultimate Reality in the Buddhist Teaching ("Asamskrita") can neither be realized as an individual experience, nor determined, nor perceived, felt, or touched. Ultimate Reality can only be perceived by "he" who has "reached" Nirvana (from the negative particle "nir" and the root "va" - to breathe), in the extinguishing of becoming (the processes of evolution). Thus, Ultimate Reality Is Identical with Nirvana. Anyone who has not reached Nirvana experiences a relative reality, a continuous becoming...

So, the Buddhist Teaching accepts that there is One Reality which is the Background of everything. But since it is impossible to determine by someone who does not experience it, he systematically avoids talking about This Reality. What we can talk about is becoming. Nirvana, the extinguishing of becoming, leads to Reality, beyond becoming... Thus, the Supreme Reality must be "perceived" as the Absolute and not as non-existence.

Samsara

For the Buddhist Teaching the only "real" thing is the evolutionary process. What appears, what is perceived, the phenomenon, is an evolutionary process. "Existence" is an evolutionary process, but so are worlds and individual phenomena, all, are evolutionary processes. "All this" is Samsara.

The evolutionary process is broken down into successive, momentary, states, called " dharma " (from the root "dri", to support, to hold). So, dharmas are the ultimate realities that we can perceive, the first composite of phenomena. So, becoming, the evolutionary process, appears as a flow of these dharmas.

Dharmas are dependent realities, they are the result of previous dharmas and are what predetermine future dharma. All this flow obeys strict laws which can ultimately be reduced to the Law of Universal Causation, "Karma" (from the root " kri ", act). Karma denotes the action but also the result of the action, thus it denotes the responsibility from the action itself and the behavior that is transmitted through time.

Dharmas are momentary and last only a short time. Thus, the only real thing is the flow, the evolutionary process, the becoming. "All that exists is momentary," everything is transitory.

The evolutionary process appears in various forms. As vijnana , conscious process, succession of conscious states, as samskara , mental process, succession of momentary mental states, as samjna , perceptual process, succession of perceptual states, as vedana , sensuous process, succession of sensuous states, as rupa , material, organic process, succession organic structures. It is actually a single process that appears in various forms. There is no essential difference between consciousness and material form, it is the same process at a different frequency. The process appears sometimes as consciousness, sometimes as intellect, sometimes as perception, sometimes as sensation, sometimes as form. But it is always the same process. Thus, becoming constitutes a continuum (through space-times and through local time). "Being" is but a combination of evolutionary processes, streams of dharmas ("skandhas") working harmoniously together.

The Regions of Samsara

Samsara (becoming) is divided into three Regions, "Vakkara" (state of becoming and not an objective, fixed region). The Regions, states, of becoming are: a) The Arupavakara (formless region), the state of the supermental process, the succession of momentary supermental processes. b) The Rupavakara (region with form), the state of the perceptual process, the succession of momentary perceptual states. c) The Kamavakara (region of desire and sense pleasure), the state of material form, the succession of momentary material states.

What we call "being" is actually a becoming, a stream of dharma. In Arupavakara this being is a stream of " formless dharma", Vijnana, consciousness, self-awareness, Samskara, volition, mental imprints that incite desires, Samjna , perception, mental perception. The difference of these dharma categories is very subtle. Being constitutes a presence, an existence, without concrete form, a mental existence.

Arupavakara is divided into Four Heavens, states which are (listed from highest to lowest, the infinity of neither, the infinity of nonbeing, the infinity of thought and the infinity of space): 1) Naivasamjna Samgnyayatana (region where there is neither perception nor non-perception and which actually transcends Arupavakara and extends into the Absolute). 2) Akinchaniyatana (region where consciousness exists within the non-existence of anything). 3) Vigyanananthyatana (region where consciousness exists in the infinite state of consciousness). 4) Akasanandyatana (region where consciousness exists in infinite space).

It is evident that there is a complete correspondence between the states experienced by the being, the level at which the being functions (Vijnana, Samskara, Samjna) and the "heavens".

In Rupavakara, being is mentality (flow of formless dharma) expressed in the realm of 'sense'. A new category of dharma is thus created, ("Vedana", sensibility), a stream of dharma in form, a succession of momentary sensory states. Here the formless dharmas (mindfulness) do not have the same function as in Arupavakara. Their function is adapted to Rupavakara, degraded. Formed dharmas rule. Being here is a mentality which has an inner dimension originating from Arupavakara and an outer activity which brings the 'being' into contact with the world of forms. "Being" is expressed through a subtle body (which is a stream of sensory states structured in such a way that they appear as a form). It is an ethereal being that occupies a certain space, etc.

Rupavakara is divided into Sixteen Heavens arranged in four levels.

It is evident that there is a complete correspondence between the states experienced by the being, the level at which the being functions (Vijnana, Samskara, Samjna adapted to Rupavakara) and the "four levels".

In Kamavakara, being is an ethereal existence that expresses itself in the realm of 'matter'. There is thus created a new category of dharma ("Rupa", body, a becoming of matter structured in such a way as to appear as a solid form), a stream of dharma of material form (a succession of momentary states of matter structured so as to appear as the material body that we know. Here the formless dharmas (intelligence) and the dharmas with form (sensibility) do not have the same function as in the higher realms, their function is adapted to Kamavakara, degraded. The dharmas of material form predominate. Thus the mental functions of "being" in Kamavakara have a higher dimension originating from Arupavakara, an inner dimension originating from Rupavakara, and an external activity which brings "being" into contact with the world of forms.

It also has "sensibility" which has an internal dimension originating from Rupavakara -intuition- and an external activity that assists the intellect in the perception of Kamavakara -sensibility-. In Kamavakara being is ethereal existence expressed through a material, gross body.

Kamavakara is divided into Three Regions, Heaven, earth and the underworld. Heaven is the world of devas. Earth is the world of humans, asuras (demons), pretas (ghosts) and animals. The underworld is the world of hell.

It is evident that there is a complete correspondence between the states experienced by the being, the level at which the being functions (Vijnana, Samskara, Samjna adapted to Kamavakara) and the "three regions".

Life in Samsara

Becoming is a flow, a succession of momentary states and constitutes a continuum... Essentially there is no difference between mentality, sensibility, or biological becoming. These are different states of becoming, becoming is a continuum. Being is a becoming, a stream of momentary states. It is within the space of becoming, in one of three states of becoming. When the being, in a certain Region, closes the circle of its evolution (life) dissolution of the synthesis occurs (death). As long as the being, during his "life" reached a transcendence of becoming, an erasure of the dharma of the Region of becoming in which he was evolving, then the being is liberated and after death passes to a higher state of existence. But since the being during life remained within becoming (absorbed in the continuous succession of dharmas of the Region of becoming in which it was evolving) then the being after death is not freed to pass to a higher state of existence but under the pressure of attachments remains a "core of becoming" that leads sooner or later to a new synthesis of dharma within the Precinct of becoming that was evolving in the being's previous life, into a new incarnation. Thus, the being moves within becoming, in the Regions of becoming. It is a continuous current that passes from existence to existence, without stopping.

We must note that the previous development (life) within a state of becoming and the subsequent development (life) within the same state of becoming although they are a continuum yet seem to be different. It is actually a new dharma synthesis but its structure is entirely dependent on the existence that preceded it. This is precisely where the operation of Karma, the Law of Causation, can be seen. Being is a continuous stream that passes from life to life without stopping. This is the cycle of reincarnation. The being disappears here, appears there, all the time. This evolution strictly obeys the Law of Karma. Whatever is the action, that is the result. Thus, the being by evolution creates itself. Each being bears full responsibility for its evolution. Beings act according to the Law of Karma. No being can escape the wheel of evolution. The only way out is liberation.

Thus, beings are trapped within becoming, in the three Realms of becoming. Therefore, a being, on his way, has to overcome three stages (corresponding to the three Regions of becoming) until final liberation. The Nirvana attained by the total extinction of all becoming is the True Nirvana.

Kamavakara

The moment a being begins its existence within Kamavakara it is already the result of a previous becoming. The fact that this being tends to manifest in Kamavakara means that there is already a tendency, an impulse, within him which leads him to manifest in Kamavakara. It is mentality (in the Rupavakara Region) oriented towards the material world (an accumulation of mental impressions entered by perception and related to the material world), with sense memories, which feels the need to manifest again through material dharma texture, through a body.

The being that manifests in Kamavakara is a new, complete, synthesis of all these dharmas , a flow of these dharmas : Vijnana, Samskara, Samjna (these three constitute the mentality that has a higher dimension originating from Arupavakara, an inner dimension which originates from Rupavakara and an external activity which brings the “being” into contact with the world of forms), Vedana (sensibility which has an inner dimension which originates from Rupavakara and an external activity which brings the 'being' into contact with the world of forms), Rupa (body, biological becoming). The relationship between these categories of dharma is clearly defined. Mindfulness is self-awareness that uses sensibility and the body as a vehicle within Kamavakara.

Thus the “being” in Kamavakara can (and does) experience the following activities, states.

1) Nirvana

2) Four higher states, Naivasamjna-Samjnyayatana, Akinchanyayatana, Vijnananandiyatana and Akasanandiyatana.

3) Three mental states, vijnana, samskara, samjna, which have an internal function and an external activity.

4) The activity of the senses, ventana, which has an internal function and an external activity.

5) An external material activity, rupa.

The being as a whole act, evolves, moves through life. Nirvana (in Kamavakara) means the transcendence of becoming in Kamavakara. Transcending biological becoming means transcending attachment to the body and material things. The transcendence of sensuous -motor becoming means the transcendence of passions, obsessive desires, etc. The transcendence of mental becoming has three stages with three degrees each. The external mentality connected with sensibility (three levels) must first be overcome. Then the inner processes must be overcome (three stages of dyana and a fourth stage which has the character of harvest and demarcates the passage to a higher state). Finally, there is still a more inner process (three higher states and a fourth which is Nirvana). Nirvana (in Kamavakara) means the passage beyond all becoming. It is not the realization of some state. There is no perception that a state has been realized because as long as there is any perception of a realization the being is still in becoming and has not passed beyond.

When the being reaches Nirvana, beyond all becoming, then it is freed from the life in Kamavakara and when death occurs (when the causes that created this life are exhausted) then the being is freed and does not return to Kamavakara, it goes to a higher state of existence, in Rypavakara.

We must note that Nirvana in Kamavakara is not itself the Absolute. What has been eliminated is the becoming in Kamavakara, the causes that would lead to a new incarnation within Kamavakara have been eliminated. Nirvana in Kamavakara although it is the Absolute in relation to becoming in Kamavakara and cannot be defined in mental terms yet is a state of being (in Rupavakara), a becoming in a higher dimension. There is intelligence of another kind and sensibility as a carrier in this new state of being. Thus Nirvana in Kamavakara is common existence in a higher state of existence (in Rupavakara).

When the being does not achieve Nirvana, it remains in becoming and is condemned (according to the Law of Karma) after death to return to Kamavakara.

All this course of being into becoming (in the Kamavakara) is described in Buddhist grammar in the "theory of the dependent arising of phenomena (" Pratiya Samutpada”) or “chain of the Twelve Causes” (“Nidana”) as follows:

(Previous life)

1) Avidya (ignorance, non-liberation, abiding in becoming) creates samskaras (mental impressions, remnants of previous becoming).

2) Samskaras create vijnana (consciousness, initial mental core that will form the basis of new becoming)

(Present Life)

3) Vijnana creates namarupa (name and form, composition of the various categories of dharma – vijnana, samskara, samjn , vedana, rupa ).

4) Namarupa creates the santayatanas (sense organs, through which the being comes into contact with the world).

5) Sandayatanas create sparsa (contact, between the being and the world).

6) The sparsa ventana (sensation, the concrete fact of sensation) is created.

7) Ventana creates trisna (thirst for life, in Kamavakara).

8) Trisna creates upadhana (attachment to life, intense thirst, conquest of the sense world, compared to flame consuming fuel).

9) Upadhana creates the bhava (future, the karma produced during the lifetime in Kamavakara, the samskaras that will cause a new life in Kamavakara ).

10) Bhava creates jati (birth, a new becoming within Kamavakara).

(Future Life)

11) Jati creates sbamarana (old age, a new existence accompanied by all the characteristics of existence in Kamavakara, decay, pain, etc.).

12) Sambarana is a new link in the chain of Samsara.

Satwari Aryan Satyani

The Four Noble Truths

Being is a becoming, passing from life to life within Kamavakara without stopping. There is nothing fixed, nothing eternal, everything is transitory, an incessant flow of states. And it is precisely this Transience that causes suffering (dukkha). " Sarvam dukham, sarvam anityam » (all is suffering, all is transitory). Thus, the whole of existence, the very becoming in every moment of it is suffering. Staying in becoming, obsessing over becoming, is called " trisna " (thirst for life in Kamavakara). As long as this thirst exists, becoming is fed and the journey continues. Therefore it is the thirst for life in Kamavakara that keeps the being bound in becoming, in constant rebirth within Kamavakara.

Buddha himself formulating the Four Noble Truths (Satvari Aryan Satyani ) identified:

1) With the First Truth is becoming and the suffering of becoming.

2) With the Second Truth the cause of becoming which is the obsession with becoming (the thirst for life in Kamavakara).

3) With the Third Truth the elimination of becoming

4) With the Fourth Truth the Atrapos for Nirvana which is exactly:

a) the perception of becoming, suffering,

b) the awareness of the cause of becoming,

c) the elimination of becoming

d) Nirvana

The road leading to Nirvana is known as “Arya Ashtanga Marga” (Noble Eightfold Atrapos) and includes:

Samyak dristi (right perception),

Samyak sankalpa (right decision),

Samyak wak (proper speech),

Samyak karmanda (right conduct),

Samyak ajiva (right living),

Samyak vinyama (right effort),

Samyak smriti (right thinking),

Samyak Samadhi (right meditation, perfect concentration of consciousness).

In particular the Path that leads to Nirvana, to Reality, has Three Stages.

The First Stage is called Prajna (Knowledge) and includes Right Perception and Right Disposition. By entering the Sangha (Buddhist Brotherhood) man has already taken a step beyond the world: he renounces all material things to march towards Nirvana. This renunciation is not a formal, external, abstinence: it is an internal detachment, an erasure of all interest in material things. This is the Stage of destruction of material dharmas (rupa): what is implied here is the destruction of attachment to material dharmas , their neutralization (material dharmas will continue to exist until the causes that caused them disappear, i.e. until the death of the material body ). This is a Preliminary Stage and is not yet the Main Exercise.

The Second Stage is called Sila (Morality) and includes Right Speech, Right Conduct, Right Living. Before the Buddhist can actually enter Atrapo he needs to go through a Stage of Inner Perfection, ridding himself of the various passions that are obstacles to Atrapo. He must listen to what is called the Panka Sila (Fivefold Discipline) which consists of five prohibitions: not to kill, not to steal, not to have intercourse with another person, not to lie, not to drink alcohol. These are the main prohibitions but it is implied that all passions must be eliminated. This purification from the passions should not be a simple, external, abstinence but an internal attitude. This is the Stage of destruction of form dharmas ( vedana): implied here is the destruction of attachment to form dharmas , their neutralization (the Buddhist feels everything but is no longer attached).

The Third Stage is called Samadhi (Theory) and includes Right Effort, Right Thought, Right Concentration (Samadhi). The Real Journey to Nirvana begins with Entering the Third Stage. This is the Stage of destruction of formless dharmas (samjna, samskara, vijnana ): the destruction of attachment to these dharmas , their neutralization, is implied here. Realization here is not to be understood as a spiritual evolution but as a progressive destruction of becoming.

Right Endeavor corresponds to the Experiencing of the First Noble Truth (perception of becoming, suffering), to the destruction of the external activity of mentality and has four levels, three levels corresponding to the destruction of the external activity of samjna, samskara, vijnana and a fourth level which is the harvest of all effort and marks the passage to the higher state.

Right Thought corresponds to the Experiencing the Second Noble Truth (awareness of the cause of being), to the destruction of the inner activity of mentality and has four stages corresponding to the destruction of the inner activity of samjna, samskara, vijnana and the harvest of all effort which signifies the passage to the higher state. The technical term used in Buddhist Teaching for Practice at this stage is “Rupa Dhyana”. The term is translated as Meditation, but the word is not exactly the same and needs clarification. Rupa Dhyana therefore means for the Buddhists the destruction of the inner activity of the mind. There are Three Stages of Rupa Dhyana and together with the Stage of Realization they form the Four Stages of Realization at this stage.

The four Dhyana Rupas in detail:

1) Elimination of samjna, the perception of the external world.

2) Elimination of samskara, the intellect whose object is external phenomena.

3) Elimination of vijnana, consciousness, individual existence, ego that is limited in space, in the body.

4) When vijnana is eliminated, we reach a state where consciousness transcends the limits of space (the body) and expands to infinity, throughout space.

Right Concentration corresponds to the Experiencing of the Third Noble Truth (elimination of becoming), the destruction of the higher activity of the mind and has four stages corresponding to the destruction of the higher activity of samjna, samskara, vijnana and the harvesting of all effort which marks the passage in the superior state. The technical term used in Buddhist Teaching for Practice at this stage is " Arupa Dhyana » or Samapatti (achievements) - formless meditations. Arupa Dhyana or Samapatti it means the destruction of the higher activity of the mind. There are Three Ranks of Arupa Dhyana or Samapatti and together with the Stage of Realization constitute the Four Stages of Realization at this stage.

The four Arupas in detail Dhyana or Samapatti:

1) Akasa-nadi-ayatana (Region of infinite space, region where consciousness exists in infinite space). Consciousness (though it locates itself, as a center, in a space) extends throughout space, is a wider, higher ego. (There is a distinction between consciousness and environment, between subject and object). This conception of a center related to the inner workings of samjna must be overcome.

2) Vijnana-nadi-ayatana (Region of infinite consciousness, region where consciousness exists in the infinite state of consciousness). Consciousness rejects the perception of a center, it can be anywhere, throughout space - thus creating the perception that consciousness is infinite. (There is no longer a distinction between consciousness and environment, between subject and object). This achievement is related to overcoming the inner workings of samskara.

3) Akinchani-ayatana (Region of non-existence, region where consciousness exists within the non-existence of anything). Consciousness cannot attribute to its existence any idiom. Consciousness realizes that its existence is empty. Existence is “non-existence”, on the relative side. This achievement is related to overcoming the inner workings of vijnana.

4) Naivasamjna-Samjni-ayatana (Region of neither perception nor non-perception, region where there is neither perception nor non-perception). By overcoming the inner workings of vijnana, we reach a state where any process of existence is absent. This is Nirvana

Actually, the attainment of the fourth samapatti corresponds to a State beyond relative existence, it is Asamskrita.

Of course, in Buddhist Dhyana, Asana, Meditation Posture and other external elements are used, but the Essence of Dhyana consists of "internal transformation" and that is what is of interest here. Besides, Diana is not something that can enter time. When we enter Atrapos, we practice Dhyana all the time, whatever we do and not just the hours we sit in Asana: Dhyana is continuous. In this sense it must be understood. Because as we have already said, the Essence of Dhyana is the Experiencing Noble Truths and when we experience something we experience it continuously and not at certain times: Thus, all time is Dhyana and we cannot divide time into hours of Dhyana and hours when we do not practice Dhyana.

Harvesting the fruit of all effort is Nirvana. We must note that when we speak of Realization of the Three Truths, we do not mean the mental conception of these Truths at all but the Realization of what the words imply, in essence the "transcendence of becoming": it is an experience).

The transcendental evolution of being

The man who performed the First Samapatti is in the First Rank of the Atrapu of the Nobles (Arya Marga): on the Stage of Srotopana (one who has "entered the stream" to cross over to the other bank, to Nirvana).

The man who has Performed the Second Samapatti is in the Second Stage of the Atrapu of the Noble Ones: the Stage of Sakritagamin (one who will return only once more to Kamavakara).

The man who has Realized the Third Samapatti is in the Third Stage of the Atrapu of the Noble Ones: the Stage of the Anagamin (the one who does not return, who lives his last incarnation in Kamavakara and is not bound to return to Kamavakara).

He who has succeeded in realizing the Fourth Samapatti, Nirvana ( Bodhi ), attaining the Stage of Arhat , is completely free from the cycle of birth and death within the Kamavakara .. To such a person (a Buddha) opens the prospect of a of higher development in the invisible worlds. But he can renounce this higher evolution and willingly continue to incarnate within the Kamavakara, completely free. This second path is the path of the Bodhisattva, one who refuses higher evolution and remains within Kamavakara to help Kamavakara 's creatures. We must note that what moves such a free being is not mere desire or compassion. Such a being has realized freedom, and it is through this new perception of Reality that he has realized that he moves in all that he does. It cannot therefore be judged by the standards of the common man.

He who continues his evolution in higher worlds passes to Rupavakara. Rupavakara beings (ethereal beings) evolve in a manner analogous to that of Kamavakara. He who evolves in Atrapo passes here also Four Stages of Realization and is also freed from Rupavakara. Goes to Arupavakara.

Here too the beings (mental entities) evolve in a manner analogous to that of the two lower worlds. He who evolves into Way passes here also Four Stages of Realization and is also freed from Arupavakara and sinks into the "Ultimate Nirvana". "He" who has realized Ultimate Nirvana is no longer an entity but the Absolute Himself who assimilates into Bodhi the Self the Absolute and Self-Deception, completely Free, Unbound.

But talking about higher worlds is already meaningless: We must realize the Truth in Kamavakara. That's what matters. The higher perspective is beyond the powers of the common man. That is why any reference to higher worlds is usually avoided since they are outside the perspective of evolution of the common man.

Nirvana

According to the "Teaching of Buddhism" There is One Underlying Fundamental Reality which is "revealed" when "becoming" is exhausted. It manifests as Supreme Reality, as Supreme Truth, more real than the immediately existing which although real is transitory and painful.

The Real Nature of This Reality Is Emptiness. The Void is not defined (and thus "seems" as if it does not exist). What appears (definable, existent, objective) when analyzed in its determinations cannot finally "hold" the perception, it is nothing more than a phenomenon.

Ultimately there is only One Reality. This Reality Eternal, Unchangeable in Its Nature, Indeterminate in Its Essence, Emptiness, is the Only Reality. What appears are actions, processes, phenomena that arise spontaneously from nothingness and again disappear into nothingness.

The One and Only Reality is Pure Bodhi It is not born, it is not lost, it is not realized. It is the Nature of everything and everything. Bodhi is the One and Only Reality. There is no difference between rest and activity. All activities, phenomena that arise and disappear completely naturally do not alter the Bodhi Nature.

...

Ελληνικά:

Βουδισμός

https://www.wholeness.gr/2022/04/blog-post_17.html

Monday, 1 December, 2025

17. The Unveiling: A Journey to the Shores of Transcendence

Introduction: The Eternal Voice Speaking Through Time

In the vast cathedral of human history, where epochs rise and fall like tides upon an endless shore, there echoes a singular Voice—not heard with ears, but felt in the trembling depths of consciousness itself. This Voice speaks not in the tongue of nations, nor in the dialects of competing creeds, but in the wordless language of pure Being. Those who have stood in its presence, across millennia and continents, beneath different stars and within different temples, all bear witness to the same ineffable Truth: that which was, is, and ever shall be.

The seeker who approaches the study of humanity's sacred traditions with eyes unclouded by partisan fervor discovers something extraordinary. Like a traveler ascending a mountain by different paths, each pilgrim describes the same summit, the same crystalline air, the same infinite vista spreading before them. Whether they call it enlightenment or salvation, union or awakening, the mystics of every age point toward an identical horizon—the Realization of the Transcendent State, that moment when the finite dissolves into the Infinite, when the dewdrop slips into the shining sea.

This is the religious phenomenon in its essence: not the accumulation of dogmas, not the architecture of ritual, not even the poetry of scripture, but the direct encounter between human consciousness and that which stands beyond all names. It is the sudden flowering of the soul into dimensions it never knew existed, yet which feel more ancient than memory itself.

The Natural Religion: Where the Divine and Human Meet

When we speak of a Universal Natural Religion, we speak not of constructing yet another edifice of belief upon the already crowded landscape of faith. We speak instead of that pristine moment before all religions were born—the moment of contact, of revelation, of seeing. It is natural not because it springs from human imagination alone, like water from a well we have dug ourselves, but because it emerges from the very ground of human nature, like a spring bursting forth from depths we did not create and cannot control.

Consider the lotus that grows in muddy water, its roots deep in darkness, yet pushing upward toward light until it breaks the surface and blooms in radiant purity. So too does this potential lie coiled within every human heart—the capacity to transcend the mud and murk of ordinary consciousness and open to that Light which illuminates all things. This is not a gift bestowed from without, though neither is it achieved by will alone. It is, rather, the recognition of what has always been present, waiting like a treasure buried in the field of one's own being.

The mystic does not manufacture the Divine; the Divine reveals itself. Yet neither does the seeker remain passive, for the revelation requires a prepared vessel, a consciousness refined and made receptive through practice, through yearning, through the gradual dissolution of those veils that separate the knower from the Known. It is like the meeting of fire and wood—neither can claim sole responsibility for the flame that dances between them, consuming and illuminating simultaneously.

In this lies the great paradox that confounds the merely intellectual mind: Is humanity saved by grace, or do we redeem ourselves through effort? The question itself betrays a consciousness still trapped in duality, still seeing subject and object as separate entities negotiating across an unbridgeable divide. But at the level of direct experience, such distinctions dissolve like ice under the spring sun. There is only the event itself—the breakthrough, the opening, the sudden expansion of being into dimensions previously unimagined.

Those who argue endlessly about salvation versus self-realization are like people standing outside a garden, debating whether roses grow through the power of sunlight or the fertility of soil, while inside, the roses simply bloom, unconcerned with theological categories. The Realization of Transcendence is a fact that precedes all interpretations, a living experience that needs no justification beyond its own self-evident reality.

The Common Ground: Essential Truths Beneath All Forms

Though religions dress themselves in different garments, speak in different tongues, and point with different gestures, they all point toward the same Moon. Beneath the diversity of expression lies a unity of essence, certain fundamental truths that recur with remarkable consistency wherever humans have touched the hem of the Absolute.

The Mystery of Consciousness

First among these is the revelation of Consciousness itself—not as a mere function of the brain, not as an accidental byproduct of neural complexity, but as the very Substance of existence. Like a river that appears separate from its source, consciousness in its everyday operations seems local, limited, bound to the individual organism. Yet trace it back to its origin, and one discovers that all streams flow from a single Ocean, vast and bottomless.

This Consciousness—call it Awareness, Being, the Ground of All—is both the stage upon which the drama of existence unfolds and the light by which it is seen. It is simultaneously the most intimate and immediate aspect of our experience (for we are never not conscious) and the most transcendent and absolute (for it precedes and encompasses all particular experiences). To realize this directly, not as a concept but as lived reality, is to understand oneself not as a isolated wave but as the entire Ocean temporarily expressing itself in wave-form.

Yet this same Consciousness, infinite and undivided in its essence, refracts through the prism of manifestation into countless shades and variations. It appears now as thought, now as sensation, now as emotion; it operates on material, energetic, mental, and spiritual planes. Like white light passing through a crystal, pure Consciousness disperses into a spectrum of experiences, each with its own quality and character, yet all arising from the same source.

The Eternal Dance of Creation

From this understanding flows a second truth: the distinction between the Transcendent and the mundane, between that which stands beyond all limitation and that which exists within the realms of time, space, and causality. The mystics speak of this as the descent of the One into the Many, the eternal movement whereby the Absolute manifests itself in relative forms.

Imagine a vast ocean stretching to every horizon, its surface stirred by winds into waves, currents, and foam. Each wave rises for a moment, catching the light, bearing its unique shape and character, then falls back into the whole. The wave is not other than the ocean, yet neither is it the totality of the ocean. So too does creation emerge from the Transcendent—distinct yet not separate, temporary yet expressing something eternal.

The manifested world arranges itself in concentric circles, like ripples spreading from where a stone has struck water. There is the material realm, most dense and defined, where rocks endure and bodies decay. Beyond this lies the energetic dimension, where forces flow and interact, visible only by their effects. Further still extends the mental plane, where thoughts coalesce and dissolve like clouds in an endless sky. And most subtle of all, the spiritual realm, where forms thin to transparency and being itself becomes luminous with awareness.

Through all these realms, the Transcendent shines, as the sun shines through windows of different colors, appearing red in one, blue in another, yet remaining always the same light.

The Human Paradox

Within this vast architecture of being, humanity occupies a unique and poignant position. The human being is revealed as Consciousness itself taking material form, eternity gazing out through temporal eyes, the Infinite experiencing itself through finite limitations. Each person is simultaneously a creature of the world—bound by physical laws, subject to birth and death, shaped by circumstance—and a child of the Absolute, carrying within themselves the seed of limitless awareness.

This dual nature is the source of humanity's existential predicament and its transcendent possibility. Identified exclusively with the body, the senses, the thinking mind, one experiences oneself as separate, vulnerable, ultimately mortal. One lives as a fragment, always seeking completion in external things—pleasure, possessions, relationships, achievements—none of which can satisfy the infinite hunger within.

Yet this same consciousness that identifies with limitation can, through grace and effort combined, awaken to its true nature. The prison is made of gossamer, the chains of mist. What binds us is not external force but ignorance—not moral failing but mistaken identity. We have forgotten who we are, and in that forgetting, have condemned ourselves to suffer the anxiety of separation.

The Path of Completion

The fourth essential truth speaks to the possibility and process of transformation, the journey from ignorance to realization, from bondage to freedom. This is not a journey through space, for the destination is nowhere other than here. It is not a journey through time, for the truth exists now as fully as it ever will. It is, rather, a journey through the layers of one's own being, a peeling away of false identifications, a progressive transparency to one's own essential nature.

The mystics describe this journey in stages, each representing a transcendence of a particular limitation. First comes the transcendence of pure physicality—the recognition that one is not merely this body, this collection of flesh and bone. The body is seen as an instrument, a temple, a temporary vehicle, but not the Self.

Next unfolds the transcendence of the sensory-intellectual apparatus. One learns to witness thoughts rather than be carried away by them, to observe perceptions rather than take them as absolute reality. The ego, that constructed sense of separate selfhood, is seen through as a functional fiction, useful perhaps for navigating the world but not to be mistaken for one's deepest identity.

More subtle still is the transcendence of the individual spirit, that sense of being a unique soul on a personal journey. Here the process moves through three profound transitions: from the personal to the transpersonal, from the individual to the universal, from the defined to the infinite. Like a drop of water approaching the ocean, the boundaries begin to thin, the membrane between inside and outside growing permeable.

The medium of this transformation is awareness itself—not the content of consciousness but the witnessing presence that observes all content. By turning attention upon attention itself, by becoming aware of awareness, consciousness begins to recognize its own nature. It is like the eye learning to see itself, not in a mirror but directly, by becoming conscious of seeing itself seeing.

What results from this complete journey is nothing less than the Realization of Transcendent Consciousness—awareness freed from all limitations, knowing itself as it truly is. This is not unconsciousness; it is super-consciousness. It is not emptiness but fullness beyond measure. It is not the annihilation of the self but its expansion to encompass all selves, all experiences, all manifestations, while simultaneously resting in the unmanifest source of all.

The Promise and the Paradox

This Universal Natural Religion, this direct path to transcendent realization, exists as a perpetual possibility, written into the very structure of human consciousness. Yet as a historical reality, as a widespread social movement, it faces profound limitations. Like a delicate flower that blooms only under precise conditions, the full realization of transcendence requires not only teaching but readiness, not only method but grace, not only knowledge but transformation.

In any age, only a limited circle of individuals will have access to the necessary information, the capable teachers, the conducive circumstances. Even among these, fewer still will possess the combination of aspiration, dedication, and ripeness required to pursue the path to completion. This is not elitism but simple recognition of the rarity of conditions required for such an undertaking.

The transformation of consciousness is perhaps the most demanding journey a human being can undertake. It requires nothing less than the death of everything one has taken oneself to be, the surrender of every cherished certainty, the willingness to venture into unknown territories with no guarantee of safe return. Small wonder that most, even when glimpsing the possibility, choose the familiar suffering of separation over the terrifying freedom of transcendence.

Perhaps, across the centuries to come, as humanity slowly matures and as the accumulated wisdom of mystical traditions becomes more widely available, more souls will turn toward this inward journey. Perhaps the Universal Natural Religion will, in time, cease to be the province of scattered individuals and small communities and become a more widespread recognition of our common spiritual ground.

Yet whether this comes to pass matters less than the eternal truth itself: that the possibility exists now, has always existed, will always exist. In every moment, Consciousness stands ready to reveal itself to itself, the Transcendent ready to manifest within the immanent, the Absolute available to be realized by those with eyes to see.

Conclusion: An Invitation to the Infinite

The words written here are but fingers pointing at the moon, shadows cast by an invisible light, echoes of a music too subtle for ordinary hearing. They can inform and inspire, clarify and illuminate, but they cannot substitute for the direct experience they attempt to describe. The map is not the territory, the menu is not the meal, and no description of fire, however eloquent, can warm the soul as a single spark of actual realization.

Those who feel a resonance with these truths, who sense within themselves a yearning for that which transcends all yearning, are invited not to belief but to investigation. Not to adopt a new set of ideas but to venture into the laboratory of consciousness itself, there to discover directly what words can only approximate.

The path has been walked before; the territory has been mapped. Saints and sages, mystics and contemplatives across all traditions have left their testimonies, their methods, their encouragements. Yet each seeker must ultimately make the journey alone, must cross the threshold that divides knowing about from knowing directly, must surrender into that Mystery which can never be contained in concepts but only lived, breathed, become.

In the silence between these words, in the space between one thought and the next, the Transcendent awaits—not as something foreign to be achieved but as the very ground of being, closer than breathing, nearer than hands and feet. It has never been absent; we have only been looking elsewhere. It has never been hidden; we have only refused to see.

May these reflections serve as a small beacon for those navigating the vast ocean of existence, a reminder that beyond the storm and stress of ordinary life lies a peace that passes understanding, a joy that needs no cause, a freedom that knows no bounds. The shore of Transcendence is not distant—it is here, now, always.

One need only stop running, turn inward, and allow the waves of surface consciousness to settle into stillness. There, in the clear depths, Reality reveals itself as it always has been: infinite, eternal, unchanging—and identical with one's own most intimate nature.

The journey home is the recognition that we have never left. The arrival is the understanding that we have always been here. And the Transcendent, revealed at last, is seen to have been the one seeking itself through all our seeking, the one knowing itself through all our knowing, the one Being expressing itself through all our becoming.

This is the essence of the religious phenomenon, beyond all religions yet the heart of them all: Consciousness awakening to its own nature, the Absolute recognizing itself in the mirror of manifestation, the One celebrating its own infinite nature through the joy of self-discovery.

Here the journey ends and begins again, forever and always, in the eternal now where all seeking ceases and only Being remains—luminous, infinite, free.

…

Η Αποκάλυψη: Ένα Ταξίδι στις Ακτές της Υπέρβασης

Εισαγωγή: Η Αιώνια Φωνή που Μιλά Μέσα από τον Χρόνο

Στον απέραντο καθεδρικό ναό της ανθρώπινης ιστορίας, όπου οι εποχές ανεβαίνουν και πέφτουν σαν κύματα σε μια ατέρμονη ακτή, αντηχεί μια μοναδική Φωνή – όχι ακουσμένη με τα αυτιά, αλλά αισθητή στα τρεμάμενα βάθη της ίδιας της συνείδησης. Αυτή η Φωνή δεν μιλά στη γλώσσα των εθνών ούτε στις διαλέκτους των ανταγωνιστικών δογμάτων, αλλά στη χωρίς λέξεις γλώσσα της καθαρής Ύπαρξης. Όσοι στάθηκαν στην παρουσία της, ανά τους αιώνες και τις ηπείρους, κάτω από διαφορετικά αστέρια και μέσα σε διαφορετικούς ναούς, όλοι μαρτυρούν την ίδια ανέκφραστη Αλήθεια: αυτό που ήταν, είναι και θα είναι για πάντα.

Ο αναζητητής που προσεγγίζει τη μελέτη των ιερών παραδόσεων της ανθρωπότητας με μάτια απαλλαγμένα από κομματικό φανατισμό ανακαλύπτει κάτι το εξαιρετικό. Σαν ταξιδιώτης που ανεβαίνει ένα βουνό από διαφορετικά μονοπάτια, κάθε προσκυνητής περιγράφει την ίδια κορυφή, τον ίδιο κρυστάλλινο αέρα, την ίδια άπειρη θέα που απλώνεται μπροστά του. Είτε το ονομάζουν φώτιση είτε σωτηρία, ένωση ή αφύπνιση, οι μύστες κάθε εποχής δείχνουν προς τον ίδιο ορίζοντα – την Πραγμάτωση της Υπερβατικής Κατάστασης, εκείνη τη στιγμή που το πεπερασμένο διαλύεται στο Άπειρο, όταν η σταγόνα γλιστράει στη λάμπουσα θάλασσα.

Αυτό είναι το θρησκευτικό φαινόμενο στην ουσία του: όχι η συσσώρευση δογμάτων, όχι η αρχιτεκτονική της τελετουργίας, ούτε καν η ποίηση της γραφής, αλλά η άμεση συνάντηση ανάμεσα στην ανθρώπινη συνείδηση και σε αυτό που βρίσκεται πέρα από κάθε όνομα. Είναι η ξαφνική άνθιση της ψυχής σε διαστάσεις που ποτέ δεν γνώριζε ότι υπήρχαν, αλλά που αισθάνονται πιο αρχαίες από την ίδια τη μνήμη.

Η Φυσική Θρησκεία: Εκεί όπου το Θείο και το Ανθρώπινο Συναντώνται

Όταν μιλάμε για μια Παγκόσμια Φυσική Θρησκεία, δεν μιλάμε για την κατασκευή ακόμα ενός οικοδομήματος πίστης πάνω στο ήδη γεμάτο τοπίο της πίστης. Μιλάμε για εκείνη την παρθένα στιγμή πριν γεννηθούν όλες οι θρησκείες – τη στιγμή της επαφής, της αποκάλυψης, του βλέμματος. Είναι φυσική όχι επειδή πηγάζει αποκλειστικά από την ανθρώπινη φαντασία, σαν νερό από πηγάδι που σκάψαμε μόνοι μας, αλλά επειδή αναβλύζει από το ίδιο το έδαφος της ανθρώπινης φύσης, σαν πηγή που ξεπηδά από βάθη που δεν δημιουργήσαμε και δεν μπορούμε να ελέγξουμε.

Σκεφτείτε τον λωτό που φυτρώνει σε λασπωμένα νερά, με τις ρίζες του βαθιά στο σκοτάδι, αλλά σπρώχνει προς τα πάνω προς το φως μέχρι να σπάσει την επιφάνεια και να ανθίσει σε ακτινοβόλα καθαρότητα. Έτσι ακριβώς κείτεται κουλουριασμένη μέσα σε κάθε ανθρώπινη καρδιά αυτή η δυνατότητα – η ικανότητα να υπερβεί τη λάσπη και τη θολούρα της συνηθισμένης συνείδησης και να ανοιχτεί σε εκείνο το Φως που φωτίζει τα πάντα. Αυτό δεν είναι δώρο που δίνεται από έξω, αν και ούτε επιτυγχάνεται με τη θέληση μόνο. Είναι, μάλλον, η αναγνώριση αυτού που πάντα υπήρχε, περιμένοντας σαν θησαυρός θαμμένος στο χωράφι της ίδιας της ύπαρξής μας.

Ο μύστης δεν κατασκευάζει το Θείο· το Θείο αποκαλύπτεται μόνο του. Ωστόσο, ο αναζητητής δεν παραμένει παθητικός, γιατί η αποκάλυψη απαιτεί ένα προετοιμασμένο δοχείο, μια συνείδηση εξευγενισμένη και δεκτική μέσω της άσκησης, της λαχτάρας, της σταδιακής διάλυσης εκείνων των πέπλων που χωρίζουν τον γνώστη από το Γνωστό. Είναι σαν τη συνάντηση φωτιάς και ξύλου – κανένας από τους δύο δεν μπορεί να διεκδικήσει αποκλειστική ευθύνη για τη φλόγα που χορεύει ανάμεσά τους, καταναλώνοντας και φωτίζοντας ταυτόχρονα.

Εδώ βρίσκεται το μεγάλο παράδοξο που μπερδεύει τον απλώς διανοητικό νου: Σώζεται η ανθρωπότητα με τη χάρη ή εξαγνιζόμαστε μόνοι μας με την προσπάθεια; Το ίδιο το ερώτημα προδίδει μια συνείδηση ακόμα παγιδευμένη στη δυαδικότητα, που βλέπει ακόμα υποκείμενο και αντικείμενο ως ξεχωριστές οντότητες που διαπραγματεύονται πάνω από ένα αγεφύρωτο χάσμα. Αλλά στο επίπεδο της άμεσης εμπειρίας, τέτοιες διακρίσεις διαλύονται σαν πάγος κάτω από τον ανοιξιάτικο ήλιο. Υπάρχει μόνο το γεγονός αυτό καθεαυτό – η διάρρηξη, το άνοιγμα, η ξαφνική επέκταση της ύπαρξης σε διαστάσεις προηγουμένως αδιανόητες.

Όσοι διαφωνούν ατέλειωτα για σωτηρία έναντι αυτο-πραγμάτωσης μοιάζουν με ανθρώπους που στέκονται έξω από έναν κήπο, συζητώντας αν τα τριαντάφυλλα φυτρώνουν με τη δύναμη του ηλιακού φωτός ή με τη γονιμότητα του εδάφους, ενώ μέσα στον κήπο τα τριαντάφυλλα απλώς ανθίζουν, αδιάφορα για θεολογικές κατηγορίες. Η Πραγμάτωση της Υπέρβασης είναι ένα γεγονός που προηγείται όλων των ερμηνειών, μια ζωντανή εμπειρία που δεν χρειάζεται δικαίωση πέρα από την ίδια της την αυταπόδεικτη πραγματικότητα.

Το Κοινό Έδαφος: Ουσιώδεις Αλήθειες Κάτω από Όλες τις Μορφές

Αν και οι θρησκείες ντύνονται με διαφορετικά ενδύματα, μιλούν σε διαφορετικές γλώσσες και δείχνουν με διαφορετικές χειρονομίες, όλες δείχνουν προς το ίδιο Φεγγάρι. Κάτω από την ποικιλία της έκφρασης βρίσκεται μια ενότητα ουσίας, ορισμένες θεμελιώδεις αλήθειες που επαναλαμβάνονται με αξιοσημείωτη συνέπεια όπου οι άνθρωποι έχουν αγγίξει το άκρο του Απόλυτου.

Το Μυστήριο της Συνείδησης

Πρώτη ανάμεσα σε αυτές είναι η αποκάλυψη της ίδιας της Συνείδησης – όχι ως απλή λειτουργία του εγκεφάλου, όχι ως τυχαίο υποπροϊόν της νευρωνικής πολυπλοκότητας, αλλά ως η ίδια η Ουσία της ύπαρξης. Σαν ποτάμι που φαίνεται ξεχωριστό από την πηγή του, η συνείδηση στις καθημερινές της λειτουργίες φαίνεται τοπική, περιορισμένη, δεμένη με τον μεμονωμένο οργανισμό. Όμως αν την εντοπίσεις πίσω στην αρχή της, ανακαλύπτεις ότι όλα τα ρυάκια ρέουν από έναν ενιαίο Ωκεανό, απέραντο και αμέτρητο.

Αυτή η Συνείδηση – ονομάστε την Επίγνωση, Ύπαρξη, το Έδαφος των Πάντων – είναι ταυτόχρονα η σκηνή πάνω στην οποία εκτυλίσσεται το δράμα της ύπαρξης και το φως με το οποίο φωτίζεται. Είναι συγχρόνως το πιο οικείο και άμεσο στοιχείο της εμπειρίας μας (γιατί ποτέ δεν είμαστε όχι-συνειδητοί) και το πιο υπερβατικό και απόλυτο (γιατί προηγείται και περιλαμβάνει όλες τις επιμέρους εμπειρίες). Το να το συνειδητοποιήσει κανείς άμεσα, όχι ως έννοια αλλά ως βιωμένη πραγματικότητα, σημαίνει να καταλάβει τον εαυτό του όχι ως απομονωμένο κύμα αλλά ως ολόκληρο τον Ωκεανό που εκφράζεται προσωρινά σε μορφή κύματος.

Κι όμως αυτή η ίδια Συνείδηση, άπειρη και αδιαίρετη στην ουσία της, διαθλάται μέσα από το πρίσμα της εκδήλωσης σε αμέτρητες αποχρώσεις και παραλλαγές. Εμφανίζεται τώρα ως σκέψη, τώρα ως αίσθηση, τώρα ως συναίσθημα· λειτουργεί σε υλικά, ενεργειακά, νοητικά και πνευματικά επίπεδα. Σαν λευκό φως που περνά μέσα από κρύσταλλο, η καθαρή Συνείδηση διασκορπίζεται σε ένα φάσμα εμπειριών, η καθεμιά με τη δική της ποιότητα και χαρακτήρα, αλλά όλες προερχόμενες από την ίδια πηγή.

Ο Αιώνιος Χορός της Δημιουργίας

Από αυτή την κατανόηση πηγάζει μια δεύτερη αλήθεια: η διάκριση ανάμεσα στο Υπερβατικό και το κοσμικό, ανάμεσα σε αυτό που στέκεται πέρα από κάθε περιορισμό και σε αυτό που υπάρχει μέσα στα βασίλεια του χρόνου, του χώρου και της αιτιότητας. Οι μύστες μιλούν γι’ αυτό ως την κάθοδο του Ενός στα Πολλά, την αιώνια κίνηση με την οποία το Απόλυτο εκδηλώνεται σε σχετικές μορφές.

Φανταστείτε έναν απέραντο ωκεανό που εκτείνεται σε κάθε ορίζοντα, με την επιφάνειά του να αναταράσσεται από ανέμους σε κύματα, ρεύματα και αφρούς. Κάθε κύμα σηκώνεται για μια στιγμή, πιάνει το φως, φέρει το μοναδικό του σχήμα και χαρακτήρα, και μετά πέφτει πίσω στο όλο. Το κύμα δεν είναι άλλο από τον ωκεανό, αλλά ούτε και η ολότητα του ωκεανού. Έτσι ακριβώς αναδύεται η δημιουργία από το Υπερβατικό – διακριτή αλλά όχι ξεχωριστή, προσωρινή αλλά εκφράζοντας κάτι αιώνιο.

Ο εκδηλωμένος κόσμος διατάσσεται σε ομόκεντρους κύκλους, σαν κυματισμούς που απλώνονται από το σημείο που έπεσε μια πέτρα στο νερό. Υπάρχει το υλικό βασίλειο, το πιο πυκνό και καθορισμένο, όπου οι πέτρες αντέχουν και τα σώματα αποσυντίθενται. Πέρα από αυτό βρίσκεται η ενεργειακή διάσταση, όπου οι δυνάμεις ρέουν και αλληλεπιδρούν, ορατές μόνο από τα αποτελέσματά τους. Πιο πέρα εκτείνεται το νοητικό επίπεδο, όπου οι σκέψεις πήζουν και διαλύονται σαν σύννεφα σε ατέλειωτο ουρανό. Και το πιο λεπτό από όλα, το πνευματικό βασίλειο, όπου οι μορφές αραιώνουν σε διαφάνεια και η ίδια η ύπαρξη γίνεται φωτεινή από επίγνωση.

Μέσα από όλα αυτά τα βασίλεια, το Υπερβατικό λάμπει, όπως ο ήλιος λάμπει μέσα από παράθυρα διαφορετικών χρωμάτων, φαίνοντας κόκκινος σε ένα, μπλε σε άλλο, αλλά μένοντας πάντα το ίδιο φως.

Το Ανθρώπινο Παράδοξο

Μέσα σε αυτή την απέραντη αρχιτεκτονική της ύπαρξης, η ανθρωπότητα κατέχει μια μοναδική και συγκινητική θέση. Ο άνθρωπος αποκαλύπτεται ως η ίδια η Συνείδηση που παίρνει υλική μορφή, η αιωνιότητα που κοιτάζει μέσα από προσωρινούς οφθαλμούς, το Άπειρο που βιώνει τον εαυτό του μέσα από πεπερασμένους περιορισμούς. Κάθε άτομο είναι ταυτόχρονα πλάσμα του κόσμου – δεμένο με φυσικούς νόμους, υποκείμενο σε γέννηση και θάνατο, διαμορφωμένο από τις συνθήκες – και παιδί του Απόλυτου, φέροντας μέσα του τον σπόρο της απεριόριστης επίγνωσης.

Αυτή η διπλή φύση είναι η πηγή του υπαρξιακού αδιεξόδου της ανθρωπότητας και της υπερβατικής της δυνατότητας. Ταυτιζόμενος αποκλειστικά με το σώμα, τις αισθήσεις, το νοητικό νου, βιώνει τον εαυτό του ως ξεχωριστό, ευάλωτο, τελικά θνητό. Ζει ως θραύσμα, πάντα αναζητώντας ολοκλήρωση σε εξωτερικά πράγματα – ηδονή, κτήσεις, σχέσεις, επιτεύγματα – κανένα από τα οποία δεν μπορεί να ικανοποιήσει την άπειρη πείνα μέσα του.

Κι όμως αυτή η ίδια συνείδηση που ταυτίζεται με τον περιορισμό μπορεί, μέσω χάρης και προσπάθειας μαζί, να αφυπνιστεί στη πραγματική της φύση. Η φυλακή είναι φτιαγμένη από ιστό αράχνης, οι αλυσίδες από ομίχλη. Αυτό που μας δένει δεν είναι εξωτερική δύναμη αλλά άγνοια – όχι ηθική αποτυχία αλλά λανθασμένη ταυτότητα. Ξεχάσαμε ποιοι είμαστε, και σε αυτή την λήθη καταδικάσαμε τους εαυτούς μας να υποφέρουμε το άγχος του χωρισμού.

Η Διαδρομή της Ολοκλήρωσης

Η τέταρτη ουσιώδης αλήθεια μιλά για τη δυνατότητα και τη διαδικασία της μεταμόρφωσης, το ταξίδι από την άγνοια στην πραγματοποίηση, από τη δουλεία στην ελευθερία. Αυτό δεν είναι ταξίδι μέσα στον χώρο, γιατί ο προορισμός δεν είναι πουθενά αλλού παρά εδώ. Δεν είναι ταξίδι μέσα στον χρόνο, γιατί η αλήθεια υπάρχει τώρα τόσο πλήρως όσο θα υπάρχει ποτέ. Είναι, μάλλον, ταξίδι μέσα από τα στρώματα της ίδιας της ύπαρξής μας, ένα ξεφλούδισμα των ψευδών ταυτίσεων, μια προοδευτική διαφάνεια προς την ουσιαστική μας φύση.

Οι μύστες περιγράφουν αυτό το ταξίδι σε στάδια, το καθένα αντιπροσωπεύοντας υπέρβαση ενός συγκεκριμένου περιορισμού. Πρώτα έρχεται η υπέρβαση της καθαρής φυσικότητας – η αναγνώριση ότι δεν είμαστε απλώς αυτό το σώμα, αυτή η συλλογή από σάρκα και οστά. Το σώμα βλέπεται ως όργανο, ναός, προσωρινό όχημα, αλλά όχι ο Εαυτός.

Μετά ξεδιπλώνεται η υπέρβαση του αισθητηριακού-διανοητικού μηχανισμού. Μαθαίνουμε να παρατηρούμε τις σκέψεις αντί να παρασυρόμαστε από αυτές, να παρατηρούμε τις αντιλήψεις αντί να τις παίρνουμε ως απόλυτη πραγματικότητα. Το εγώ, αυτή η κατασκευασμένη αίσθηση ξεχωριστής αυτοσύνης, διαπερνάται ως λειτουργική φαντασία, χρήσιμη ίσως για την πλοήγηση στον κόσμο αλλά όχι για να εκληφθεί ως η βαθύτερη ταυτότητά μας.

Ακόμα πιο λεπτή είναι η υπέρβαση του ατομικού πνεύματος, εκείνη η αίσθηση ότι είμαστε μια μοναδική ψυχή σε προσωπικό ταξίδι. Εδώ η διαδικασία περνά μέσα από τρεις βαθιές μεταβάσεις: από το προσωπικό στο υπερ-προσωπικό, από το ατομικό στο παγκόσμιο, από το καθορισμένο στο άπειρο. Σαν σταγόνα νερού που πλησιάζει τον ωκεανό, τα όρια αρχίζουν να αραιώνουν, η μεμβράνη ανάμεσα στο μέσα και το έξω γίνεται διαπερατή.

Το μέσο αυτής της μεταμόρφωσης είναι η ίδια η επίγνωση – όχι το περιεχόμενο της συνείδησης αλλά η μαρτυρούσα παρουσία που παρατηρεί κάθε περιεχόμενο. Γυρνώντας την προσοχή πάνω στην ίδια την προσοχή, γινόμενοι ενσυνείδητοι της επίγνωσης, η συνείδηση αρχίζει να αναγνωρίζει τη δική της φύση. Είναι σαν το μάτι να μαθαίνει να βλέπει τον εαυτό του, όχι σε καθρέφτη αλλά άμεσα, γινόμενο συνειδητό του ότι βλέπει τον εαυτό του να βλέπει.

Αυτό που προκύπτει από αυτό το ολοκληρωμένο ταξίδι δεν είναι τίποτα λιγότερο από την Πραγμάτωση της Υπερβατικής Συνείδησης – επίγνωση απελευθερωμένη από όλους τους περιορισμούς, γνωρίζοντας τον εαυτό της όπως πραγματικά είναι. Αυτό δεν είναι ασυνειδησία· είναι υπερ-συνειδητότητα. Δεν είναι κενότητα αλλά πληρότητα πέρα από κάθε μέτρο. Δεν είναι η εξόντωση του εαυτού αλλά η επέκτασή του ώστε να περιλάβει όλους τους εαυτούς, όλες τις εμπειρίες, όλες τις εκδηλώσεις, ενώ ταυτόχρονα αναπαύεται στην αδήλωτη πηγή των πάντων.

Η Υπόσχεση και το Παράδοξο

Αυτή η Παγκόσμια Φυσική Θρησκεία, αυτή η άμεση οδός προς την υπερβατική πραγματοποίηση, υπάρχει ως αέναη δυνατότητα, εγγεγραμμένη στην ίδια τη δομή της ανθρώπινης συνείδησης. Ωστόσο ως ιστορική πραγματικότητα, ως ευρύ κοινωνικό κίνημα, αντιμετωπίζει βαθιούς περιορισμούς. Σαν λεπτό λουλούδι που ανθίζει μόνο κάτω από ακριβείς συνθήκες, η πλήρης πραγματοποίηση της υπέρβασης απαιτεί όχι μόνο διδασκαλία αλλά και ετοιμότητα, όχι μόνο μέθοδο αλλά και χάρη, όχι μόνο γνώση αλλά και μεταμόρφωση.

Σε κάθε εποχή, μόνο ένας περιορισμένος κύκλος ανθρώπων θα έχει πρόσβαση στις απαραίτητες πληροφορίες, στους ικανούς δασκάλους, στις κατάλληλες συνθήκες. Ακόμα και ανάμεσα σε αυτούς, ελάχιστοι θα διαθέτουν τον συνδυασμό φιλοδοξίας, αφοσίωσης και ωριμότητας που απαιτούνται για να ακολουθήσουν την πορεία μέχρι το τέλος. Αυτό δεν είναι ελιτισμός αλλά απλή αναγνώριση της σπανιότητας των συνθηκών που χρειάζονται για μια τέτοια προσπάθεια.

Η μεταμόρφωση της συνείδησης είναι ίσως το πιο απαιτητικό ταξίδι που μπορεί να αναλάβει ένας άνθρωπος. Απαιτεί τίποτα λιγότερο από τον θάνατο όλων όσων έχει θεωρήσει τον εαυτό του, την παράδοση κάθε αγαπημένης βεβαιότητας, την προθυμία να εισέλθει σε άγνωστες περιοχές χωρίς εγγύηση ασφαλούς επιστροφής. Μικρό θαύμα που οι περισσότεροι, ακόμα και όταν αντικρίζουν τη δυνατότητα, επιλέγουν το οικείο βάσανο του χωρισμού αντί την τρομακτική ελευθερία της υπέρβασης.

Ίσως, μέσα στους αιώνες που έρχονται, καθώς η ανθρωπότητα ωριμάζει αργά και καθώς η συσσωρευμένη σοφία των μυστικών παραδόσεων γίνεται πιο ευρέως διαθέσιμη, περισσότερες ψυχές στραφούν προς αυτό το εσωτερικό ταξίδι. Ίσως η Παγκόσμια Φυσική Θρησκεία πάψει με τον καιρό να είναι προνόμιο διασκορπισμένων ατόμων και μικρών κοινοτήτων και γίνει μια πιο διαδεδομένη αναγνώριση του κοινού μας πνευματικού εδάφους.

Ωστόσο, το αν αυτό θα συμβεί έχει μικρότερη σημασία από την ίδια την αιώνια αλήθεια: ότι η δυνατότητα υπάρχει τώρα, υπήρχε πάντα, θα υπάρχει πάντα. Σε κάθε στιγμή, η Συνείδηση είναι έτοιμη να αποκαλύψει τον εαυτό της στον εαυτό της, το Υπερβατικό έτοιμο να εκδηλωθεί μέσα στο ενδοκοσμικό, το Απόλυτο διαθέσιμο να πραγματωθεί από όσους έχουν μάτια να δουν.

Συμπέρασμα: Μια Πρόσκληση στο Άπειρο

Τα λόγια που γράφτηκαν εδώ είναι μόνο δάχτυλα που δείχνουν το φεγγάρι, σκιές που ρίχνονται από ένα αόρατο φως, αντηχήσεις μιας μουσικής πολύ λεπτής για τη συνηθισμένη ακοή. Μπορούν να ενημερώσουν και να εμπνεύσουν, να διασαφηνίσουν και να φωτίσουν, αλλά δεν μπορούν να υποκαταστήσουν την άμεση εμπειρία που προσπαθούν να περιγράψουν. Ο χάρτης δεν είναι το έδαφος, το μενού δεν είναι το γεύμα, και καμία περιγραφή της φωτιάς, όσο εύγλωττη κι αν είναι, δεν μπορεί να ζεστάνει την ψυχή όπως μια μοναδική σπίθα πραγματικής πραγματοποίησης.

Όσοι νιώθουν απήχηση με αυτές τις αλήθειες, που αισθάνονται μέσα τους μια λαχτάρα για αυτό που υπερβαίνει κάθε λαχτάρα, προσκαλούνται όχι στην πίστη αλλά στην έρευνα. Όχι να υιοθετήσουν ένα νέο σύνολο ιδεών αλλά να τολμήσουν στο εργαστήριο της ίδιας της συνείδησης, εκεί να ανακαλύψουν άμεσα αυτό που οι λέξεις μόνο προσεγγίζουν.

Η διαδρομή έχει βαδιστεί πριν· η περιοχή έχει χαρτογραφηθεί. Άγιοι και σοφοί, μύστες και στοχαστές από όλες τις παραδόσεις έχουν αφήσει τις μαρτυρίες τους, τις μεθόδους τους, τις ενθαρρύνσεις τους. Ωστόσο κάθε αναζητητής πρέπει τελικά να κάνει το ταξίδι μόνος, να διασχίσει το κατώφλι που χωρίζει το να ξέρει για κάτι από το να ξέρει άμεσα, να παραδοθεί σε εκείνο το Μυστήριο που ποτέ δεν μπορεί να περιληφθεί σε έννοιες αλλά μόνο να βιωθεί, να αναπνευστεί, να γίνει.

Στη σιωπή ανάμεσα σε αυτές τις λέξεις, στο κενό ανάμεσα σε μια σκέψη και την επόμενη, το Υπερβατικό περιμένει – όχι ως κάτι ξένο που πρέπει να επιτευχθεί αλλά ως το ίδιο το έδαφος της ύπαρξης, πιο κοντά από την αναπνοή, πιο κοντά από χέρια και πόδια. Ποτέ δεν έλειπε· εμείς μόνο κοιτάζαμε αλλού. Ποτέ δεν ήταν κρυμμένο· εμείς μόνο αρνούμασταν να δούμε.

Είθε αυτές οι σκέψεις να λειτουργήσουν ως μικρός φάρος για όσους πλέουν στον απέραντο ωκεανό της ύπαρξης, υπενθύμιση ότι πέρα από την τρικυμία και το άγχος της συνηθισμένης ζωής υπάρχει μια ειρήνη που ξεπερνά κάθε κατανόηση, μια χαρά που δεν χρειάζεται αιτία, μια ελευθερία που δεν γνωρίζει όρια. Η ακτή της Υπέρβασης δεν είναι μακριά – είναι εδώ, τώρα, πάντα.

Αρκεί μόνο να σταματήσει κανείς να τρέχει, να στραφεί προς τα μέσα και να αφήσει τα κύματα της επιφανειακής συνείδησης να ηρεμήσουν σε νηνεμία. Εκεί, στα διαυγή βάθη, η Πραγματικότητα αποκαλύπτεται όπως πάντα ήταν: άπειρη, αιώνια, αμετάβλητη – και ταυτόσημη με την πιο οικεία φύση του εαυτού μας.

Το ταξίδι προς το σπίτι είναι η αναγνώριση ότι ποτέ δεν φύγαμε. Η άφιξη είναι η κατανόηση ότι πάντα ήμασταν εδώ. Και το Υπερβατικό, αποκαλυμμένο επιτέλους, φαίνεται ότι ήταν αυτό που αναζητούσε τον εαυτό του μέσα από όλη μας την αναζήτηση, αυτό που γνώριζε τον εαυτό του μέσα από όλη μας τη γνώση, αυτό που Ήταν και εκφραζόταν μέσα από όλο μας το γίγνεσθαι.

Αυτή είναι η ουσία του θρησκευτικού φαινομένου, πέρα από όλες τις θρησκείες αλλά η καρδιά όλων: η Συνείδηση που αφυπνίζεται στη δική της φύση, το Απόλυτο που αναγνωρίζει τον εαυτό του στον καθρέφτη της εκδήλωσης, το Ένα που γιορτάζει τη δική του άπειρη φύση μέσα από τη χαρά της αυτο-ανακάλυψης.

Εδώ το ταξίδι τελειώνει και αρχίζει ξανά, για πάντα και πάντοτε, στο αιώνιο τώρα όπου κάθε αναζήτηση παύει και μένει μόνο η Ύπαρξη – φωτεινή, άπειρη, ελεύθερη.

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Δικαιώματα πνευματικής ιδιοκτησίας

Το σύνολο του περιεχομένου του Δικτυακού μας τόπου, συμπεριλαμβανομένων, ενδεικτικά αλλά όχι περιοριστικά, των κειμένων, ειδήσεων, γραφικών, φωτογραφιών, σχεδιαγραμμάτων, απεικονίσεων, παρεχόμενων υπηρεσιών και γενικά κάθε είδους αρχείων, αποτελεί αντικείμενο πνευματικής ιδιοκτησίας (copyright) και διέπεται από τις εθνικές και διεθνείς διατάξεις περί Πνευματικής Ιδιοκτησίας, με εξαίρεση τα ρητώς αναγνωρισμένα δικαιώματα τρίτων.

Συνεπώς, απαγορεύεται ρητά η αναπαραγωγή, αναδημοσίευση, αντιγραφή, αποθήκευση, πώληση, μετάδοση, διανομή, έκδοση, εκτέλεση, «λήψη» (download), μετάφραση, τροποποίηση με οποιονδήποτε τρόπο, τμηματικά η περιληπτικά χωρίς τη ρητή προηγούμενη έγγραφη συναίνεση του Ιδρύματος. Γίνεται γνωστό ότι σε περίπτωση κατά την οποία το Ίδρυμα συναινέσει, ο αιτών υποχρεούται για την ρητή παραπομπή μέσω συνδέσμων (hyperlinks) στο σχετικό περιεχόμενο του Δικτυακού τόπου του Ιδρύματος. Η υποχρέωση αυτή του αιτούντος υφίσταται ακόμα και αν δεν αναγραφεί ρητά στην έγγραφη συναίνεση του Ιδρύματος.

Κατ’ εξαίρεση, επιτρέπεται η μεμονωμένη αποθήκευση και αντιγραφή τμημάτων του περιεχομένου σε απλό προσωπικό υπολογιστή για αυστηρά προσωπική χρήση (ιδιωτική μελέτη ή έρευνα, εκπαιδευτικούς σκοπούς), χωρίς πρόθεση εμπορικής ή άλλης εκμετάλλευσης και πάντα υπό την προϋπόθεση της αναγραφής της πηγής προέλευσής του, χωρίς αυτό να σημαίνει καθ’ οιονδήποτε τρόπο παραχώρηση δικαιωμάτων πνευματικής ιδιοκτησίας.

Επίσης, επιτρέπεται η αναδημοσίευση υλικού για λόγους προβολής των γεγονότων και δραστηριοτήτων του Ιδρύματος, με την προϋπόθεση ότι θα αναφέρεται η πηγή και δεν θα θίγονται δικαιώματα πνευματικής ιδιοκτησίας, δεν θα τροποποιούνται, αλλοιώνονται ή διαγράφονται εμπορικά σήματα.

Ό,τι άλλο περιλαμβάνεται στις ηλεκτρονικές σελίδες του Δικτυακού μας τόπου και αποτελεί κατοχυρωμένα σήματα και προϊόντα πνευματικής ιδιοκτησίας τρίτων ανάγεται στη δική τους σφαίρα ευθύνης και ουδόλως έχει να κάνει με τον Δικτυακό τόπο του Ιδρύματος.

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