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Feb. 10, 2025
Embracing Simplicity in Spiritual Practices
Confusion in non-duality stems from jumping between various spiritual teachings, making clarity essential for personal growth. The episode highlights the importance of committing to one path, emphasizing that real-world challenges refine our spiritual understanding and reveal the depth of our realizations.
• Confusion arises from mixing different spiritual teachings
• Sticking to one path enhances understanding and clarity
• The simplicity of Advaita Vedanta helps avoid over-complication
• Daily life serves as a practical ground for spiritual growth
• Emotions act as markers for spiritual refinement
• True realization is tested against real-world challenges
• Engaging with triggers reveals areas needing work
• A committed practice cultivates deeper understanding across traditions
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Transcript
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Hello and welcome to another episode of the Bearded Mystic Podcast, and I am your host, rahul N Singh.
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So today I wanted to talk about something that has been kind of I've been seeing on my Discord server and just generally, I think in spirituality.
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Well, more so, non-duality is confusion.
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Now it's very easy for us to get stuck on words, especially when we have non-duality in Buddhism and we have non-duality in buddhism and we have non-duality in advaita, and then there's neo-advaita, then there's new age non-duality.
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There's quite a few things going on.
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So it's very easy for and I think, a lot of people on the journey.
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They tend to mix and match different kind of philosophies or teachings that they think that can help them.
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The problem with that is that they do not have the nuance to deal with an actual tradition.
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So, for example, if someone is Advaita Vedanta, they're not going to.
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If they keep dabbling into Buddhism, they're just going to get confused on terms like, for example, are they going to go through the jhanas and and go through that process, whilst with Advaita Vedanta, I think it's very simple, there's no complications in it.
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You know, you literally have to just simply be the witness, and I feel like that's where Osho was very successful with kind of synthesizing both Hinduism and Buddhism was his central teaching was just be the witness, and essentially with what I've understood of Advaita Vedanta, and the simple realization is this that there's only Brahman, there's only Nirguna Brahman, and that's pure consciousness and that's it.
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There's nothing else.
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Everything else is just an appearance, and with that appearance comes the language of paradox.
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So, as we've established earlier, that's what happens now, because I've been studying Advaita Vedanta for many years now, I can't see anything beyond that and I refuse to in a way, because not saying that other paths to realization is not true.
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No, no, if you're down that path of buddhism and you find that non-dual reality, even if you call it the no self or you call it emptiness or whatever, I can relate to what you're saying.
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I can understand what you're saying.
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Uh, there may be a lot of technicalities to it, and that's one thing that I don't like is when it becomes too heady it.
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It becomes too like in the head and you can see, and you can just sense it, that it's really in the head and less to do with the heart and actual to do with realization.
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So there is this fine balance.
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I think that needs to happen.
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But one thing is by sticking with Advaita Vedanta.
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And yes, you know, it's not that like I don't listen to Buddhist views or anything like that, that's not what I'm saying.
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But what I am finding is that if you are on that path of Buddhism, you should really follow it to the T, you know, really go down that path and you know Buddhism has really evolved over the times, which has been a positive thing, I think.
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In my opinion, like, not everyone is following what the Buddha originally taught.
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You know, there's been additions to it now, because essentially one's buddha nature never dies, so it's always going to be as part of the world, it's going to be evolving at all times.
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Now, uh, so what I have found is that there's confusion.
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Then then you know, when we have that confusion sorry confusion when we're confused, we struggle to actually get into the practice.
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So, as much as it's important to know the theory, essentially you want to get down to the practice of being aware, of being aware.
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But how are you going to do that if you're just stuck in the head of conceptualizing what you're going through?
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There's, there has to be an inquiry, yes, but to uh, and this is what I've been finding is when people say well, you know, then you get to this stage, you get to this stage and you get to this stage in that stage, that stage, all that is well and truly fine, there's nothing wrong with that.
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But essentially, are you just going to keep going through the stages or is there a way that you can bypass that?
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And when I say bypass that, what I mean is is there a way to get to that realization?
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And then the refinement happens?
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And I believe it's most likely the latter, that you get to enlightenment and then there's a refinement.
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So the mind then starts purifying.
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Naturally You're already doing that before the practice.
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Once you get that realization that I am Brahman, that I am the Tvamasi you are, that there's nothing more beyond that realization.
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So once you get to that, that realization, everything else will be a refinement.
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Your body will be in refinement, your mind will be in refinement.
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You'll be noticing a more, more gap between thoughts.
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You'll be noticing even like I don't know what it's like to be in incessant thinking anymore, like I haven't felt incessant thinking for a good number of years, so that space starts being present between thoughts.
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You're able to go more into being the observer in life instead of you know straight away acting or reacting.
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You know those little things, even with emotions.
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You know when to use the emotions and when not to use the emotions.
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When is the emotions going to get you to the next level and when is it not going to get you to the next level and when is it not going to get you to the next level?
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Are people really, are the people in your life, really worth reacting to all the time, or can you hold space for them?
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So these little things come about, you know, especially in the practical life.
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So these little things come about, you know, especially in the practical life, I believe, because I come from a path of householders in terms of practice.
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I'm not suited for monastic life, I'm not suited for the traditional notions of like celibacy and all that, like celibacy and and all that.
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That.
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That for me, um, or abstinence, shall I say, that stuff I kind of feel takes away.
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It takes someone away from the juices of life, where you're not able to integrate your understanding into the world.
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So it's okay that if you're by yourself and you're meditating and you're, and you get to a realization, that realization is only there because there's there's nothing that's going to challenge it.
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Of course, if you're secluded, how is the ego gonna get anything to identify with?
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It's about putting the ego to the test.
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So if you're going to go into the world, and and, um, and, and then you um see what triggers you, what gets you emotionally, emotionally vulnerable, how do you deal with, uh, sickness?
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How do you deal with good health?
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How do you deal with sickness?
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How do you deal with good health?
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How do you deal with different situations?
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How do you deal with hunger?
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How do you deal with the overstimulation of the senses?
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That's all the things you can do while you're in this world, when you're living a householder's life.
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But you know, obviously things have changed now.
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Monks tend to live in the world as well and have more or less of a worldly life, just without maybe getting married or having a partner and stuff or having kids, or having a partner and stuff or having kids.
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But I find, like, if you don't have your mind challenged, how are you meant to transcend it?
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There has to then be some latent of asana that will be present and that will have to be dealt with.
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And some people deal with that, regardless if they go back into the world or not.
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So, you know, there's exceptions to everything.
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But uh, you know, I remember, um a story that I read many years ago by osho, and he said that there was once, you know, a family.
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There was a mother, father and a son and they were having dinner and the father, you know, always used to get angry at the son's grades and if the wife like made, you know, burnt chapatis or the dal or the food was like extra salty, you know, you just get irritated.
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So he read a book and realized that, you know, he read a book and said that if you, you know, go and meditate in the jungle, become an ascetic, you will, you know, get rid of your anger.
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So, you know, he obviously knew he had an anger issue.
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You know, get rid of your anger.
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So, you know, he obviously knew he had an anger issue.
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So he then went to the jungle for many years, for a few, few years, uh, meditated and, uh, he felt that he got rid of his ego, got rid of his anger.
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Nothing angered him.
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Now, you know, the the ground that used to irritate him doesn't irritate him anymore.
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The sounds of the creatures in the night Didn't disturb him anymore.
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Yeah, things like that.
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So he then says you know, I'm now enlightened, anger doesn't happen to me, I'm no longer irritated, I'm going to go back home.
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So he goes back home and, you know, the food is extra salty.
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Nothing happens.
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The chapati is burnt, nothing happens.
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Then the son comes home.
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And the son comes home and he gives his and he's happy to see his dad and he says you know, dad, I got my results.
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Can you open it up and check what I got?
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His dad sees that his son failed an exam.
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Suddenly the anger rose and he got back into his temper and started shouting.
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The moral of the story is that it's life's challenges that brings out the best in you, that shows you where you need more work.
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By going off in solitude, you can fool yourself and you can hide what's there in the background.
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So that's why you know, I find being a household is important.
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So the main thing that obviously there's two messages in today's video and podcast, but the main one to take home is that if you're on a path you know, stick with that path, don't deviate.
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Deviate there's and then, when you've achieved what you needed from that path.
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So if you achieve the highest in the Dvaita Vedanta, you should be able to understand the language of realization in other traditions, the language of enlightenment in other traditions, the language of enlightenment in other traditions.
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You know there'll be differences, but you'll see the similarities and that's the one thing to go for, and so that's important.
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Two, if you're going to keep on hopping onto one philosophy after another, one philosophy as another, just for the the sake of not addressing actually what you need to do, you're only delaying your journey, it's only going to create more suffering, more pain, and you won't be dealing with what needs to be dealt with.
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So that's really important.
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And three, you know living in the world is the best way to understand whether you've gone further on the journey or you haven't.
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You know I was watching a video earlier and I've heard it many times I think it was Eckhart Tolle that said this that if you want to check how realized you are, how enlightened you are, spend a month, spend a week with your family and that's true, you know with your parents, with your spouses, your partner, your kids, your nieces, your nephews, all of those, see, if they trigger you, and if they trigger you, that means there's something that needs to be more refined, especially if you're enlightened, and if you're not enlightened.
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Enlightened, there's something that you need to improve and you need to check.
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You need to inquire into where that's arisen from.
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Because once you're, once you're able to check where that trigger has come from, where that irritation has arisen from, you know.
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Then you ask that, well, who is it that's getting irritated here?
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What is causing the irritation?
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What is causing that triggering event?
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What is causing me to go back into body-mind identification by going down this path of inquiry?
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Eventually we go into awareness.
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I am aware that I'm now irritated.
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I am aware that I'm that irritated.
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I'm aware that I'm getting triggered.
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Does this awareness get triggered?
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No, and then you just simply have to rest in being aware of being aware, resting into that formless awareness, and that's simply.
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That's how simple it can get, but the journey there is challenging.
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So I would say to stick with it.
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But those are my few lessons and I will see you tomorrow.
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Tomorrow I'm going to talk about so my friend Liam did.
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He's Yamsocks on Yamsocks Lives.
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He's been on my podcast a few times, quite a few times.
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A dear friend, a dear brother and he is.
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He did a reaction on my reaction to a video that my mutual friend, sky Guardian he's his username on youtube uh, kind of wanted us to look at.
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So there was some insights.
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It is good looking back at yourself and realizing realizing what you missed and or what you've kind of you could have practiced a bit more, or you should practice right now, because this is the right time to practice it.
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So I will speak about that tomorrow.
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But yeah, take care, everyone, join my discord server if you haven't already.
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Subscribe to this YouTube channel.
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Subscribe to the podcast.
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Leave a comment Like this video, do whatever you need to do to get it up into people's attention, and we will see you very soon.
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Take care, namaste.
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