Saturday, August 19, 2017

The tendencies in human nature, which stand as bar to illumination ~ Swami Chidananda

What are these tendencies in human nature, which stand as bar to illumination?  

One is spiritual ignorance,
second is egoism,
third and forth, attachment and aversion,
and fifth, clinging to life.

What is ignorance?

Ignorance is characterized by non-discrimination, failing to discriminate between the Eternal and the non-eternal, between the Real and the unreal, between appearances and Reality, between the passing, the perishable and the Permanent, the Imperishable.

It is the failure to distinguish between the two and taking the unreal for the Real. Taking the non-eternal for the Eternal—this is ignorance. And regarding the non-self to be the Self, failing to distinguish between the Atman and Anatman, (Self and non-self), failing to distinguish between your Self and the body you dwell in and thinking I am this body—this is ignorance, this is spiritual ignorance.