The Eastern idea of "no-self" is confusing to Westerners, but I think the same concept can be found in our Western traditions, just known by different terms.
Tag: Hinduism
The Mystical “Messiah” in the World’s Traditions
Many traditions have a messiah who is thought will come to redeem them and the world. There is perhaps a mystical interpretation of this messianism.
Ego Sacrifice & Transcendence a Common Theme in World Religions and Science
We see this theme repeated over and over again throughout religious history into the present day, from Judaism through Christianity, in Hinduism and Buddhism, in Islam, in Confucianism and Taoism, and even into modern day scientific studies, that the overcoming of "self" or ego is central to our flourishing in an abundance of Life and Love in the world, and in realizing higher Truths that go far beyond our typical everyday minds and consciousness.
The Falling Away of Ego Consciousness in Hinduism and Buddhism
In this post I'll discuss how the falling away of ego-self consciousness is present in the traditions of Hinduism and Buddhism.
Original Sin and Nonduality
I had a conversation on Facebook the other day about original sin and its relationship to non-duality. I thought it was a great discussion, and I thought I'd share it again here.
“If Evolution is True, The Church is False”?
President Joseph Fielding Smith, as President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles who later became the tenth President and "Prophet, Seer, and Revelator" of the LDS Church, wrote the following that was published in 1954: "IF EVOLUTION IS TRUE, THE CHURCH IS FALSE."
Muktabai's "First Vision" Account
Though he has no form my eyes saw him, his glory is fire in my mind that knows
Shankara's "First Vision" Account
It pervades the entire universe but nothing pervades it. It is effulgent by nature, and its splendor illumines everything...
Oceanic Light "First Vision" Account
Meditation begins as most do. I feel as if I am a small stone sinking into an ocean of filtered light. The light seems to be coming from all directions. I slow, almost pause, at certain levels before my specific gravity increases again, and I sink deeper into this ocean of consciousness—no real experience of having entered this ocean—just being there and going deeper and deeper. It is beyond peaceful, beyond serene.
The Inner Light of Crystalline Clarity
The Kena Upanishad says that the Self 'shines through the mind and senses,' which is a poetic way of saying that it is the power of the Self which allows the mind and senses to function. So the eternally conscious Self is what makes us conscious. Essentially, it is light.