by Gnyana Sangha | Jun 16, 2022 | Bhakti, Bondage, Bondage, Courage, Devotion, Ego, Faith, Guru/Disciple, I, Independent Spirituality, Liberation, Moksha, Non-Doership, Prayer, Surrender, Surrender, Vairagya, Vairagya, Wisdom, Wisdom, Wisdom
Mind retaliates to your answer on craving for Guru! Question: Ektaji, My bhakti kicked in and did a little revolt against the answer – https://ektabathija.com/craving-for-guru/ Divine craving (for the physical guru or the tattva) is in my faith a blessing..does Mukti...
by Gnyana Sangha | Feb 20, 2022 | Advaita, Bhakti, Body, Brahman, Consciousness, Consciousness, Consciousness, Direct Path, Ego, Ego, God, Guru, Illusion, Upanishad
Guru Ashtakam helps one look inwards toward the Inner Guru! Question: Ektaji, sometimes, I listen to Guru Astakam as it helps my mind/EGO to dissolve into Turiya or Amness. On further self-inquiry, Turiya merges back to void or Brahman. Am I going in the right...
by Gnyana Sangha | Jan 6, 2022 | Ashtavakra Gita, Birth, Death, Death, Death, Karma, Vedic
Drop the body before the body drops you! Question : In Asthavakra 8, you said, at death, the body gets tired of you and drops you. Is it not the other way around? When karma is exhausted the Purusha drops the Prakriti. Isn’t it true? Please help to clarify. ...
by Gnyana Sangha | Jan 2, 2022 | Buddha, Buddha, Buddha, Buddha, Buddha, Buddha, Buddha, Buddha, Buddha, Buddha, Buddha, Buddha, Buddha, Buddha, Buddha, Commitment, Gossip, New year, Sankalpa/Intention
New Years vows for the sake of spiritual progress! Happy New Year Angels! In the new year, let’s take Buddha’s vows to make it the year where your spiritual wisdom grows at rocket speed. Remember, your own experience is your teacher. If in your own experience, you...
by Gnyana Sangha | Jul 5, 2021 | Atma Nirvriti, Atmananda, Death, Direct Path, Dreams, Emptiness, Food, Illusion, Nisargadatta Maharaj, Ramana Maharshi, Sensations, Sensations
Do thoughts cease at least at Self-realization? Question: Didi, you said in your previous post that “Nothing is going to change by following the spiritual path not even your mind’s noise”. But Ramana Maharshi session you read out the quote where he...
by Gnyana Sangha | May 25, 2021 | Awareness, Awareness, Awareness, Awareness, Awareness, Sakshi Bhav/Witness, Suffering, Surrender
Will my medical condition disappear during meditation? Question: I have a common chronic medical condition. Like my awareness, it is always there. But, when my mind is full of activity I do not notice it. I meditate for an hour a day and have moments of complete peace...
by Gnyana Sangha | May 20, 2021 | Consciousness, Dhyana, Patanjali Yogs Sutra
Is it possible to go into a complete thoughtless state while meditating? Question: When meditating, I sometime get down to a very relaxed clear state, where I feel only peace (there really isn’t any word for it though) but there are usually one or two thoughts...
by Gnyana Sangha | Nov 10, 2020 | General Spiritual, General Spiritual, Impressions, Maaya, Silence, Silence, Silence, Silence, Silence, Silence, Silence, Silence
YogaMaaya can be a hurdle on the spiritual path Question:I have a strange experience to share. Today in my meditation I felt like I was distanced from myself when I got carried away in my thoughts and the moment I came back to the breath I felt like that distance was...
by Gnyana Sangha | Oct 15, 2020 | Body, Body, Body, Body, Body, Body, Energy, Meditation, Meditation, Meditation, Meditation, Meditation, Meditation, Meditation, Samsara, Samsara, Self- Realization, Self- Realization, Self- Realization, Self- Realization, Self- Realization, Self- Realization, Self- Realization, Self- Realization, Self- Realization, Senses, Wisdom
Meditating during periods! Question: Is it ok to do meditation during periods? My doubt arose because I can feel the energy flow upwards in meditation, while the energy is said to flow downwards during periods. This is a huge topic of controversy in Kerala, India....
by Gnyana Sangha | Sep 20, 2020 | Buddha, Buddha, Buddha, Buddha, Buddha, Buddha, Craving, Doership, Elements, Feverishness, Gunas, Impressions, Karma, Karma, Karma, Non-Doership, Pleasure/Pain, Raaga/Dvesha, Raaga/Dvesha, Raaga/Dvesha, Reaction, Satvik/Rajasic/Tamasic, Sensations, Sex/Passion/Celibacy, Truth, Vasana
Dealing with Sexual desires on the spiritual path! Question: What should be the effort from our side to get over sexual desire on the spiritual path, if we should not suppress it? If we express it aren’t we making those impressions stronger? What should be our...
by Gnyana Sangha | Sep 13, 2020 | Faith, Scriptures, Scriptures, Scriptures, Scriptures
Buddha became globally popular because… Question: Why is Buddha globally popular even though he was criticized by Vedic sages? Answer: Buddha, born as Prince Siddhartha Gautama had everything – money, name, fame, position, power, wife, everything one could wish for....
by Gnyana Sangha | Sep 3, 2020 | Dukkha, Enlightenment, Equanimous, Equanimous, Equanimous, Matter, Satipathana, Senses, Senses, Sukkha, Thoughts
Yardstick to measure spiritual progress Question:What is the yardstick to measure my spiritual progress? How do I know if I am progressing spiritually?Answer:The yardstick to measure your spiritual progress is: ‘Equanimity + Awareness’.*Equanimity = [Internal...
by Gnyana Sangha | Aug 30, 2020 | Dhyana, Gnyana, Gnyani, Guru, Guru, Guru, Knowledge, Meditation, No-Mind, No-Mind, No-Mind, No-Mind, No-Mind, Present Moment, Purushartha, Purushartha, Scriptures, Seeking, Self-Effort, Self-Effort
How to experience the spiritual knowledge? Question:I am starting to get to a point of reading/listening/understanding this spiritual knowledge where I am “making it a concept” as Guruji puts it. How do I “experience” the knowledge rather than “learn” it? Just wait...
by Gnyana Sangha | Aug 25, 2020 | Attachment, Bondage, Concepts, Desire, Equanimous, Freedom, Freedom, Ignorance, Knowledge, Knowledge, Knowledge, Knowledge, Let go, Meditation, Misery, Pleasure/Pain, Sakshi Bhav/Witness, Sakshi Bhav/Witness, Sakshi Bhav/Witness, Sakshi Bhav/Witness, Sakshi Bhav/Witness, Sakshi Bhav/Witness, Seeking, Silence, Suffering, Temporary, Thoughts, Thoughts, Thoughts, Thoughts
What is taught in a Buddha retreat? Question: Please would you explain what is taught in the Buddha retreats? I have statues of Buddha at home but am totally unaware of his teachings. Please enlighten me about what is Vipassana, Samatha, Jhanas, etc. Answer: Here is a...
by Gnyana Sangha | Aug 2, 2020 | Buddha, Compassion, Gossip, Jealousy, Kabir, Love/Hate, Problem/Struggle/Calamity
Gossipmongers on the spiritual path are wrong numbers! Question: I just figured that one of my spiritual world colleagues is jealous because I am meditating longer hours and have become quieter than her. She herself acknowledges that she is a loose cannon. She gossips...
by Gnyana Sangha | Jul 27, 2020 | Buddha, Commitment, Commitment, Purushartha, Purushartha
Why some people cannot meditate? Question: Why some people cannot meditate?Answer: Many people asked the Buddha why they couldn’t meditate? Here’s what Buddha said…Many spiritual practitioners during Buddha’s time were following the Vedic techniques of meditation and...
by Gnyana Sangha | Jul 14, 2020 | Advaita, Advaita, Advaita, Advaita, Emptiness, I, Paths, Paths, Ramana Maharshi
Difference between ‘I am THIS’ & ‘I am’ per Buddha’s path Question: Dear Ekta di: It would be of great benefit if you could please help with the following: Book: Samyutta Nikaya sutta number 22.89 (7) Khemaka- Pg 944 (middle...
by Gnyana Sangha | Jun 18, 2020 | Advaita, Awareness, Breath, Chanting, Doership, Doership, Meditation, Meditation, Meditation, Meditation, Meditation, Meditation, Meditation, Meditation, Paths, Pranayama, Satipathana, Satipathana, Satipathana
Buddhadvaita could be your way! Question: Ektaji, in Anapana meditation, when I observe my breath after few minutes of unknown thoughts appear then I am gone (unaware about anything) then again I realize I have to be aware of the breath then again the same thing...
by Gnyana Sangha | Jun 2, 2020 | Aversion, Awareness, Craving, Craving, Just Be, Just Be, Just Be, Just Be, Mind, Mind, Mind, Mind, Mind, Mind, Mind, Mind, Mind, Mind, Mind, Mind, Moksha, Present Moment, Present Moment, Present Moment, Present Moment, Present Moment, Present Moment, Present Moment, Self, Space-Time, Time-past/present/Future
Time does not exist! Question:As you said, we will be born again and again until we attain moksha from the cycle of birth and death. How to understand the paradigm of time here i.e. after this life, can I be born back in time? Does time exist really? If no, then there...
by Gnyana Sangha | May 19, 2020 | General Spiritual, Self, Space-Time, Time-past/present/Future
Mind creates the illusion of Time! Time does not really exist! Question:Time in addition to raaga/ dvesha or thoughts creates a barrier in meditation. Mind and Time seem undetachable unless consciousness goes in the silent core. Do you have tips to get over this...
by Gnyana Sangha | Apr 23, 2020 | Liberation, Liberation, Mindfulness, Samadhi, Samadhi, Samadhi, Samadhi, Samadhi, Samadhi, Samadhi, Samadhi, Samadhi, Samadhi, Samadhi, Samadhi, Samadhi, Samadhi, Samadhi, Samadhi, Samadhi, Samadhi, Samadhi, Samadhi, Samadhi, Samadhi, Samadhi, Samadhi, Samadhi, Self, Self, Self, Vedic, Vedic, Vedic, Vedic
Be a witness to all that is happening Question:Jai guru dev Ektaji – Di, we are not the body. Though this body will finish one day but we are not destroyed as we are the energy which is making this body work. Di, I want to know that whatever karma we do, we do it...
by Gnyana Sangha | Dec 14, 2019 | Dispassion, Dispassion, Dispassion, Freedom, Guru, Samsara, Self-Effort, Self-Effort, Self-Effort, Truth, Truth, Truth, Truth, Truth, Vairagya
Longer retreats for advanced meditators! Question: Please would you provide some insight into the need for longer retreats and how they help a spiritual seeker? Answer: In the longer retreats, a sincere spiritual seeker receives individual meditation instructions....
by Gnyana Sangha | Mar 11, 2019 | Aversion, Birth, Birth, Choicelessness, Desire, Desire, Dispassion, Enlightenment, Enlightenment, Enlightenment, Enlightenment, Just Be, Raaga/Dvesha, Raaga/Dvesha, Raaga/Dvesha, Raaga/Dvesha, Raaga/Dvesha, Self- Realization
How to make sure not to be born again? Question:How to make sure not to be born again? How to stop the cyclical nonsense of birth and death?Answer:That’s an invaluable question, dear. But, It does not have a straight answer. There is NO way to ensure not to be born...
by Gnyana Sangha | Mar 6, 2019 | Awareness, Awareness, Awareness, Awareness, Awareness, Awareness, Awareness, Flow with Life, Independent Spirituality, Independent Spirituality, Independent Spirituality, Knowledge, Let go, Let go, Patanjali Yogs Sutra, Prarabdha, Self-Effort, Self-Effort, Viveka
Be like a crystal! ‘Question: In Patanjali Yogasutras, a reference is made to ‘being a crystal’. Is ‘being a crystal’ different from Sampragnyata samadhi? Answer: ‘Being a crystal’ means living as if you don’t exist....
by Gnyana Sangha | Feb 28, 2019 | Energy, Form, Formless, Mind, No-Mind
Thought waves are recorded in Space! Question:Are thoughts recorded in Space? They say that whatever the Rishis and Yogis have said is recorded in Space and the most aware mind can download this in the deepest of the meditation. Please explain how this...
