My post introducing the Vedanta Crash course starts straight away with the four Mahavakyas. ‘You are That.’ ‘Tat Tvam Asi!’ Indeed – YOU ARE THAT.
The Upanishads belong to the Gnyaana Kaanda of the Vedas, whereas rites and rituals are matters of the Karma Kaanda, which is an elementary stage of spiritual evolution. People, who call themselves ‘pious’ need to ask themselves whom they are looking for when the truth is that there is no one or nothing outside their minds. When Krishna clearly says in SBG 10:20 that He is the All-pervading Self in all living beings, why do people not look into themselves but waste their whole life looking for Krishna outside themselves?
The path of spiritual evolution explained in the Vedas is so well-graded that anyone who follows it and keeps going ahead, instead of stagnating at any level, is sure to reach the ultimate goal of Self-realisation. Our great sages of the Vedic period were far ahead of us and most of the present-day ‘godmen’ and ‘god women’. Stagnating at the lowest levels in the path of spiritual evolution seems to have become something that is fashionable, that people are simply addicted to. And sadly enough, this is what a lot of confused and poorly informed people call religion, ‘bhakti’, etc.
When you complete my one-hour video which I have made to introduce the Vedas and 10 Upanishads, you will realise how most of us have been wrongly led into believing things that do not even exist, by people who themselves did not have the slightest amount of knowledge of Vedanta.
Bhakti is not the final goal, but it is Vedanta which is the ultimate stage in one’s process of seeking knowledge, and Bhakti is merely a means to overpower the mind and begin to realise one’s Divine Self. But what do people do? They spend their whole lives in Bhakti, pujas, etc. without even realising that there is no one out there and that, in fact, they are doing all that to themselves!
The idea of ‘praying to god’ for what one wants is one of the ridiculous practices that have somehow entered our systems through Abrahamic cults. I have explained this in my Udemy course through Arjuna’s approach. Arjuna had Krishna right next to him and as his driver, but not even once did Arjuna ask Krishna for ‘Divine favours’. He only asked to be taught what he should do to be true to his position as a warrior king. (SBG 7:07).
Have you taken the A.G.E. Course already? It is a little over nine hours in length. Look for ‘A.G.E. on Udemy A.G.E. – A Gita Experience with Tavamithram Sarvada’ on the menu.
Advaita Vedanta simply means NO TWO. When Ramana Maharshi was once asked by someone how he could serve others, the Maharshi simply said, “There are no others.”
It is indeed sad to see that a lot of people at the Ramana Ashram today are doing almost everything that the Maharshi asked people to avoid doing and wasting their time!
In my opinion, anyone who starts a sect or community is one who is dividing society. This is how we became weak and ready to be plundered, abused and murdered by mlecchas, who violated our women and children, destroyed our ancient heritage starting with the Nalanda University and so on.
A lot of self-styled ‘religious people’ of today are nothing but parrots. What is the grand idea of simply repeating Mantras without applying the mind to the chanting? Aren’t they emulating parrots? But that is what many people do, thinking they are ‘pleasing god’ by chanting a Mantra thousands of times or also hiring someone to chant the Mantras for them. How unintelligent and intellectual can that be! Is that what our great sages of the yore taught us? Try asking some so-called religious people out there if they have studied the Srimad Bhagavad Gita or some main Upanishads, and not just read or learned to chant them. Their answer will invariably be in the negative. Are they not like the blind leading the blind?
Being fanatical about deities and arguing over Rama, Krishna and Shiva are like small children fighting over characters from fairy tales. People need to rise above elementary levels of spiritual learning and proceed towards much higher levels of understanding.
In case you haven’t done it yet, please do take the Vedanta crash course. You would only be doing yourselves a favour by doing it, as you would be freeing your mind from all unwanted factors that prevent you from relishing the greatest gift called life.
Stay Blessed.
Jai Shri Krishna
Tavamithram Sarvada 