Common Mistakes to Avoid

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Here are some errors in understanding I come across routinely, so addressing a few of them briefly.

1) The Self Cannot be Experienced: The human mind is designed to go outwards (or even inwards) to gain experience. That is good, it allows us to innovate and progress in our worldly lives. However, when it comes to

gaining AtmA gyAnam, the mind again looks for experience of an object called AtmA. This will fail miserable. AtmA is the very Self, the Subject. Only an object endowed with attributes can be experienced. The consciousness, which is the Self, cannot be known as an object of experience. The Self can only be understood through the process of acquiring gyAnam through the timeless veda vAkyas. Tat tvam asi is the teaching of the Guru, aham brahman asmi is the understanding of the student :)

2) Internet knowledge- Swami Google-Ananda and Brahmacharini Wikipedia are not reliable teachers of Vedic knowledge. Please do not use search engines to learn scriptures, they will only add to the confusion.

3) Finding a Guru- There is no substitute for a living teacher. If a person was not your Guru WHILE he was alive, after his passing away you cannot consider him your teacher. A guru is supposed to remove your ignorance in an interactive way. Those who are no longer with us simply cannot help us with our doubts.

Also be careful, too many cooks spoil the broth. This is to be avoided at all costs, please stick to one parampara if it is clarity that you wish to have :) having a teacher from all possible faiths is not going to help better understand shAstra.

4) Mala Japa is NOT a Substitute for Knowledge to Gain Moksha- Many falsely believe only chanting a particular mantra is the fastest way to moksha. This is as far from the truth as it can get. Bhakti (devotion) leads to gyanam (knowledge), and self knowledge alone is liberation. Krishna Bhagwan is crystal clear about this, it is unfortunate that people misinterpret his teachings. Gita Ch 4, verse 38 says 'there is nothing more purifying than knowledge'. Gaining AtmA gyAnam (self knowledge) from a qualified teacher who can handle shAstra (scripture) as a pramAnam(means of knowledge) is the only way to go

5) Shraddha Makes Life Easy... Very Easy- Swamiji says debate only generates heat, and no light. Either we argue or we learn. Humility is the key to opening the doors to knowledge, if one approaches the scriptures with a challenging attitude, the Vedas will always elude such a person. Sincere seeker-ship is always rewarded. shraddhA is faith in one's dev-guru-shAstra (god, guru, scripture).

6) Tradition - Respect your Vedic culture. Culture is the medium through which knowledge is propagated. You cannot separate knowledge from traditional practices. If one dies, the other will not last very long. Vedic culture and religion go hand in hand and are inseparable. Both need your support.

7) Purpose of Meditation- Entering into meditation will *NOT* enlighten a person.

Meditation can be divided into four types.

a) Relaxation b) Concentration c) Expansion d) Value assimilation.

Relaxation does just what it says. Concentration hones your ability to focus on a vastu (thing) for longer uninterrupted periods. Expansion is where your cognition reaches out to incorporate a viswa rUpa of this jagat/ishvara, wherein you try to visualize yourself from the smallest particle, to the farthest reaches of space and time, where nothing in the universe is separate from you. Value based meditation is where you bring about a transformation in thoughts.

Meditation before gaining knowledge is a good conditioning program to prepare your mind for knowledge, also called upAsana yoga. Meditation after studying scriptures is a program to help assimilate knowledge, also known as nidhidhyAsanan, Of course to gain jeevan-mukti/moksha, shAstric gyAnam is indispensable.

8) There Aren't *MANY* Gods- So many needless Vishnu vs Shiva fights. They are manifestations of the same ishvara, presented to you in whichever form you prefer :) Same goes with other representations such as Ganesha, Matajis etc.The whole purpose of this diversity is to appreciate ishvara's creation, not create divisions within ishvara..Every form is a form of ishvara alone. This is the beauty of advaitam which so few understand and

appreciate. To be clear, there is only one ishvara.

9) Vedanta is a Means of Knowledge- Upanishads stand as a consistent part of the Vedas, there are no contradictions. The former half of the Vedas treat you as a doer, prescribing necessary actions/karmas that you

can perform in the form of rituals, prayers, duties etc, the latter half reveals the nature of the very inquirer.

10) Different Religions do *NOT* Lead to The Same Goal- All religions are not the same. Often I read posts like. Church = Temple = Mosque = 6 letters. Bible = Quran = Geeta = 5 letters, so all religions teach the same

thing. While I can appreciate the intention, it is just a dishonest pseudo secular way to look at things.

The goal of most other religions is a temporary heaven. Logic says that a limited action cannot earn a permanent result. Limited actions on earth can only buy you limited stay in heaven, the concept of eternal heaven and hell are logically faulty.

The goal of a Vaidika is moksha, and that is absolute freedom from all limitations- bodily or otherwise. As Swamiji says, when you are in heaven, you still may have to struggle to get a "front seat" to see your favorite

God! So let us accept that all religions are different, and let us accommodate the differences without badmouthing them, and focus on our own :)

11) Different Yogas do *NOT* Give the Same Result- Karma yoga, Gyan Yoga, Bhakti Yoga and Dhyana Yoga are not different ways to achieve the same end. Karma yoga and dhyana yoga (or more precisely, Upasana yoga)

are preparatory steps to achieve Gyanam. Bhakti is the attitude with which we conduct all our activities, ultimately it boils down to moksha through jnAna yoga alone. jnAnam is equivalent to moksha.

12) AtmA is *NOT* a Part/Product/Property of Brahman- AtmA is brahman, that's all :)

13) AtmA Does *NOT* Take Rebirth - AtmA is often mistaken to be the sukshma sharira (subtle body- the mind). It is the subtle body that goes from birth to birth, inhabiting one physical body after another.

14) There is Only ONE AtmA- The AtmA is an all pervading entity, and there is only one AtmA. Rather, there is ONLY AtmA/brahman, and this world of names and forms is a manifestation. When one dreams, a single individual creates an entire universe of forms within his own mind, and then enters that very dream to experience it, and now the dream that was within the individual suddenly appears to be a real world outside of the individual.