-042_Sri Aurobindo^s First Major Experience.htm Appendix III Sri Aurobindo's First Major Experience Now ".reach Nirvana was the first radical result of my own Yoga. It threw me suddenly into a condition above and without thought, unstained by any mental or vital movement; there was no ego, no real world—only when one looked through the immobile senses, something received or bore upon its sheer silence a world of empty forms, materialized shadows without true substance. There was no One or many even, only just absolutely That, featureless, relationless, sheer, indescribable, unthinkable, absolute, yet supremely real and solely real. This was not mental realization nor something glimpse

Acknowledgments I am grateful to Eckhart Tolle for granting me an interview that helped me towards a better understanding of his teachings. I am also grateful to him for suggesting that I make a comparison between his teaching and that of Sri Aurobindo. I would like to thank Mohan Nair, Publisher, Editions India. Without his persevering efforts and help, this book might have never seen the light of day. I am very grateful to Galadriel Nair for her invaluable help in transcribing the interview with Eckhart—a task that demanded much patience and endurance due to unexpected problems in recording the interview. I thank also Thomas Lilly who painstakingly transcribed long extract

-007_Resistance—Complaining.htm Resistance—Complaining Because of its feeling of constant threat, the ego sees life as an enemy and tends to meet events and circumstances with some form of negative reactivity and resistance, such as anger, complaint, criticism, or judgment. Thus, one tends to fight constantly with what is and continually to say "no" to the present moment, as if one has a perpetual issue with reality. In other words, one lives continuously at discord with the friendly universe and with the benevolent wisdom operating in the universe. Very few human beings are conscious of the fact that, in our normal or egoic consciousness, we are constantly at war with reality. Thus, for instance, v

-033_The Outer (Ordinary) Mind and the Inner (Subliminal) Mind.htm The Outer (Ordinary) Mind and the Inner (Subliminal) Mind The inner mind has also been previously alluded to (Chapter 5, pp. 91, 92) in connection with mind and the witness consciousness.

The Aim of Spiritual Practice One view found both in Eckhart's teaching and Sri Aurobindo's yoga—a view that is a radical departure from that of Hinduism and Buddhism—pertains to the aim of life and the object of spiritual practice. All the various schools of Hinduism aim at liberation (Mukti or Moksha) from the bondage of the ego and the cycle of incarnation by the realization of the true Self. Cessation of birth in the world is thus viewed in Hinduism as the ultimate culmination of yoga. In Buddhism, too, the aim of spiritual practice is to bring about an extinction (Nirvana) of the illusory self in order to get oneself free from suffering (Dukha). Thus, i

6 Postscript: Emerging Insights In the opening chapter of this book I have stated that I have yet to understand fully the intent of the Wisdom of the universe in bringing me into contact with Eckhart at the present stage of my inner journey. During the months that have elapsed since beginning of writing this book, that intent has become gradually more and more discernible. This postscript is an attempt to formulate some of the insights gained during this slow process, which is still continuing. In the first chapter I have mentioned some of the chief characteristics of the ordinary consciousness described by Eckhart, which have made a par

Personal Effort and Surrender Enlightenment, says Eckhart, is not something that you can make happen; it is something that is almost the opposite—something you allow to happen. Therefore he regards the term "practice" as not quite right because practice implies effort to bring about something. The practice that Eckhart teaches may be summed up in these words: Stay always present. Remain alert. Pay attention only to the present moment. Observe all that happens inside you as a detached witness of your thoughts and feelings. Become aware also of the consciousness that observes. Cultivate thoughtless awareness which does not label or analyze whatever you per

-006_Fear—Insecurity.htm The Egoic Self Fear—Insecurity One of the psychological insights of Eckhart's teachings pertains to the nature of ego, which he describes as identification with the mind. To be identified with the mind, says Eckhart, is to be disconnected with one's deeper self and one's true power. Therefore, the mind-identified ego always feels vulnerable and insecure; it experiences constant threat and lives in perpetual fear. Thus, practically everyone lives in a state of fear that varies in degree from being ill at ease to experiencing acute anxiety. It is after coming across Eckhart's teaching about the ubiquitous nature of fear that I have come to realize more adequate

Self-Seeking Another characteristic of the egoic consciousness, which spiritual aspirants are often unaware of, is a seeking for what is basically personal satisfaction or fulfillment. In ordinary life this takes the form of desire for different things. However, Eckhart points our that seeking is part of the egoic consciousness, and so one must cease to be a seeker if one is to live a truly spiritual life. As the Mother said to an aspirant who asked her about yoga: 15 The Mother. Question; and Answers '57- '58. CWM. Vol.9pp.22.23 What do you want the Yoga for? To get power? To attain to peace and calm? To serve humanity? None of these motives is sufficie

5 The Teachings of Eckhart Tolle and Sri Aurobindo1—Some Comparisons Ego, Self, and Being Eckhart Tolle alludes to a Zen Master who, when asked about Buddhism, summed up its essence in four words: "No self, no problems." The self, Buddhism teaches, is an illusion and the cause of all suffering. Eckhart, too, regards the illusion of self as the "core error" of the ordinary consciousness and begins the majority of his talks with themes dealing with the nature of the ordinary consciousness and the problematic self. The Buddhist view of Reality as Non-Being or Void (Shunya), devoid of self, also is foun