Free Adyashanti Video – Being Alone

Adyashanti – Being Alone full movie from Adyashanti Videos on Vimeo.
Adyashanti’s nondual teachings have been compared to those of the early Zen masters and Advaita Vedanta sages. Expressing both the infinite possibilities and the ordinary simplicity of a spiritually realized life, Adyashanti’s teachings are directed to those who are sincerely called to awaken to their true nature and embody this life-changing realization.

I just stumbled upon this site – they have over 500 free PDF books for download. Enjoy! Here is the url: www.holybooks.com

Whichaway?

Right Now

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Can you do something for me? Can you do something for you? Right now, please close your eyes. Get comfortable, relax – but stay alert. Notice your breathing; hard or soft, long or short…just stay with your breath for a few minutes, observe it going in and out, touching your upper lip or perhaps notice the rise and fall of your abdomen. It doesn’t matter, just let your mind go empty and focus on the breath.

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Now, move your attention to your body. Observe your face – are the muscles in your face relaxed? Relax them. Release any tension, muscle by muscle; just let it go, let it relax. Now check your neck and shoulders. If there is any tension, just relax it, let it go.

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You do not have control over many things in your life. But you do have control over this. You can become aware of any tension in your body, any tension in your breath and any tension in your mind and you can release it. Not later, not tomorrow, but right this moment. If you are still reading, then stop for a few minutes – try it – observe the tension and release it – observe the breath – relax and then relax some more.

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Happiness is not in the future. That is the big lie we all tend to believe. Happiness is only right here and right now. No matter what you are doing, what situation you are in, you can take a moment and you can observe your breathing and the tension in the breath and the body and in the mind and you can release it, relax it and relinquish it. Whatever is happening out there may be out of your control – but what is happening in here is entirely under your control, if you observe it, accept it and release it. You can even become friends with it or love it. All that tension is yours to love and let go!

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Thisaway

My friend was telling the monk about how angry she was at her ex husband, who left her some months before. The monk interrupted her and offered her a piece of chocolate. She stopped complaining and enjoyed the chocolate; then she smiled and accepted the teaching. There is no reason to not be happy, content, fulfilled and comfortable right now.

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And so, right now, you too can stop what you are doing, check in with your breath and your body and your mind and release all that tension by letting this moment be exactly how it is. The tension is nothing more than resistance, acceptance is the cure.

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Learn to do this and your life will transform itself.

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We spend most of our time thinking about what is lacking, what we need to be happy – what we will eat next, where we will go, what we will do. We keep looking for the next thing, the thing we need to make us happy – and that is exactly what prevents us from being happy!

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Thataway

All you need to do is stop. Stop looking – just for a moment – just for 5 minutes – just stop and instead check in again with your breathing, with your body, with the tension and make yourself comfortable right now by releasing or letting go whatever is making you uncomfortable – all that tension, the anger, the resentment, the tension in the face, the jaw, the shoulders. Just relax it; release it. This is one thing you DO have control over!

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Nowhere to go, nothing to do, nothing is lacking. Everything you need is right here, right now… so go back to the breath, and relax and smile a little and be friendly and just let it be.

Nowhere to go

OBSESSIVE COMPULSIVE SPIRITUALITY
Don’t speak. Act. Don’t Announce. Realize.
THE MOTHER

Among the visitors to spiritual organizations like Sri Aurobindo Ashram are some dead serious, sincere and intense young people who claim to be on the spiritual path but seem to be on the verge of losing their mental balance, if they have not lost it already. The question naturally arises what makes something as laudable as the spiritual path a risky road to walk on. The risk lies in a faulty approach to spirituality. Young people who become miserable as a result of their engagement with spirituality invariably treat spirituality as yet another worldly achievement. They go about searching for techniques that would take them to the peak by the easiest, shortest and fastest route. They treat spirituality like mountaineering. They want to climb nothing less than the Everest, and feel entitled to do so because they are ready to spend all their energy looking for and learning the best techniques. They may try several techniques simultaneously, or in quick succession, with great vigour. They may go straightaway to the advanced pranayamas, or meditate for hours or days at a stretch under the mistaken impression that if something is good, more of it should be better. Then they start looking for signs of progress. So obsessed are they with getting there as quickly as possible that they attach great importance to their ‘visions’, ‘dreams’ and ‘experiences’. They try to hold on to these real or imagined events, try to repeat them, improve upon them, and talk about them, either to seek approval and confirmation, or to impress people. But instead of getting the peace that may be expected on the spiritual path, they get only more and more disturbed. Unless they correct the fatal flaw in their approach to spirituality, they end up on the psychiatrist’s couch.

In order to understand how the approach of these sincere but misguided young people to spirituality is flawed, let us digress to an ordinary young person. He wants wealth, power, and prestige. In the pursuit of what he wants, he becomes completely absorbed in himself. Our young man on the spiritual path wants to reach spiritual heights. In the pursuit of what he wants, he also becomes completely absorbed in himself. Hence there is no fundamental difference between these two young men. They both want something badly. They are both afflicted with acute self-absorption. The desire in both cases is intense, and the impatience of the seeker is palpable. The difference lies only in what they want. In a sense, our spiritual enthusiast is the worse of the two. The seeker of wealth, name and fame may at least temper his pursuit because of ethical considerations and out of decency. But the one wanting spiritual victory may be blatantly egoistic because he does not feel any scruples are necessary in pursuing the noblest of goals. The result is that spiritual enthusiasts frequently find themselves entangled in one or more of the following deadly traps.

The transactional trap

The seeker is quite conscious of having given up the usual goals of wealth, position and power. “I have sacrificed so much”, he argues, “therefore I should be rewarded with spiritual achievements”. In short, he looks upon spirituality as a transaction which involves giving up devalued currency and getting gold in return. The right approach is to simply give up everything that is no longer interesting. Gradually, there is more and more that appears uninteresting, unnecessary and superfluous. Giving up everything physically is, however, incompatible with life. But what can be done is to give up the attachment to everything – to things that one gives up physically, as well as to things that one has not been able to. This is what Sri Aurobindo calls inner renunciation. The key is giving up, not for the sake of getting something, but because one has realized that what is being given up cannot bring lasting happiness, and has no place in a meaningful and fulfilling life. Thus the dictum in spirituality is to give up everything, and to expect nothing.

The scholastic trap

The person reads a lot of spiritual literature. He finds so much of it that eventually devouring spiritual books becomes his major occupation, 24 X 7. Because of his passionate involvement in the subject, his reading speed is phenomenal, memory incredible, and even his comprehension may be admirable. Because of his vast theoretical knowledge, he assumes that now he has become deeply spiritual.

Spirituality is not the same as filling the head with spiritual facts. Spirituality may or may not be associated with mental knowledge; what is indispensable to spirituality is practice and experience. Knowledge may sometimes act as a trigger for spiritual progress by arousing the curiosity of the seeker. But if the focus remains on acquiring more and more knowledge at the mental level, knowledge may become a barrier on the path of spiritual growth in at least two ways. First, the person may start treating knowledge as a substitute for experience. Secondly, knowledge at the level of the intellect might make a person critical, less open, and distract him from genuine spiritual inquiry by directing the attention to too many irrelevant questions. As the Mother has said, “the mind is incapable of judging spiritual things… … in order to proceed on the path, it is absolutely indispensable to abstain from all mental opinion and reaction” (1).

The signboard trap

Soon after embarking on the path, the person gets trapped in the superficial and visible signs associated with spiritual life. For example, he may start observing regular ritualistic fasts, adopt fad diets, observe long periods of silence, dress up in saffron or white, and chant incessantly, keeping count of the chants using a rosary. He may impose on himself a rigid routine and a punishing schedule, filling up every hour of the day and night with something that he considers clearly and visibly spiritual. The result is that he stands out in a crowd, and has time for little else except doing things which are necessary for him, because he is ‘spiritual’. Although he is very busy doing one thing after another, and lives like a machine, he lives only for himself.

This type of engagement with spirituality only boosts the pride of the seeker without leading to any real progress. Spirituality is primarily about an inner change, which may get reflected in a few outer signs, but which must get reflected in outer life. Unless the outer life is filled with greater love, compassion, giving, caring and sharing, merely displaying the signs and symbols of ‘spirituality’ does not make a person spiritual.

The school-leaving certificate (SLC) trap

The person might have seen a beam of light, or heard an encouraging voice during meditation. Or, he might have experienced a rush of energy as a result of some practices calculated to open up the chakras or awaken the kundalini. The person is ecstatic about what has happened to him. He starts imagining how much of bliss lies untapped at the summit. He gets greedy, and wants more and more, as fast as possible. He behaves like a child who has just received a school-leaving certificate, and is now in a hurry to get a Ph.D. as soon as possible. The spiritual enthusiast now engages in a sort of spiritual engineering to repeat his experiences, to hold on to experiences, and to climb towards the peak experience.

The right approach is to take the experiences as an indicator of the immense love of the Divine. It is through Divine Grace rather than personal effort that the seeker has received some encouragement in the form of these experiences. To negotiate the long way to the summit also Divine Grace will be much more important than personal effort. The seeker may continue his efforts, and trust that the Divine will take care of his progress in Its way and Its time. Therefore, the dictum is to continue walking the path, and to continue seeking the guidance and grace of the Divine. The walk itself is blissful; why then be in a hurry to scale the summit?

The misplaced curiosity trap

Drifting into spirituality with the relatively simple aims of pursuing something of lasting value, something useful to others, or something better than joining the rat race, some young people get distracted by the futile search for answers to irrelevant questions. They want to know more and more about life after death, rebirth, past life regression, or forecasting the future. They start resolving the apparent discrepancies in the karma theory. They want to know whether an evil man can be reborn as an animal. They want to know whether it is possible to communicate with the dead. They want to know whether some yogis can really do without food, air or sleep, and if so, why and how. They want to know whether yoga can help in conquering death. The result is that they are lost in a maze. These are not good points to begin forays into spirituality. From the spiritual point of view, these explorations are fruitless at best; sometimes they can even be dangerous. Life on earth is for growing in consciousness, not for forcing the Divine to reveal what It has chosen to conceal from us for our own good. Growing in consciousness means a change in our picture of reality from one based on multiplicity and division towards that based on oneness and unity. This inner change should get reflected in our outer life. That is the essence of spirituality.

The grandiose trap

Some seekers pass through a confusing and risky stage that Sri Aurobindo has described as the intermediate zone.* This is a stage between the physical and spiritual realms, and lacks the firm foothold of both. The seeker thinks that he has realized much more than he actually has. At this stage the person is vulnerable to exploitation by negative forces in the occult worlds. By unwittingly giving his consent to such exploitation, the person exposes himself to great risks. The person may go totally astray, or may stay permanently in the intermediate zone without any aspiration to progress further. Sri Aurobindo asserts that safety lies in attending to psychic and spiritual development before entry into the occult regions.

The intermediate zone is not an inevitable stage on the spiritual path. The risk of passing through this stage is increased by excessive hurry and eagerness, letting the emotional and mental parts of the being lead the sadhana, and an exaggerated confidence in one’s ability to do it either on one’s own or with the help of the ‘Divine’, as erroneously visualized by the seeker. While passing through the intermediate zone, it is important not to get attached to the lesser truths of this stage. The risks of the intermediate zone can be avoided by sincerity, humility, being calm and patient, letting the psychic being lead the sadhana, and by seeking the guidance of a guru. As Sri Aurobindo has said, “It is idle for anyone to expect that he can follow this road far, – much less go to the end by his own inner strength and knowledge without the true aid or influence…. All work here must be done in a spirit of acceptance, discipline and surrender, not with personal demands and conditions, but with a vigilant conscious submission to control and guidance” (2).

The greatness trap

The seeker is not sure whether he has reached the summit, but he has convinced himself that at least he is one notch above the rest of humanity. This is a very subtle trap, to which even experienced and sober seekers are not immune. It is a trap that people around the seeker strengthen by admiring him to the point of worshipping him. Experienced seekers may be a victim of this trap, but often manage to hide their vanity behind superficial humility. But young and volatile seekers who fall for this trap flaunt their arrogance with abandon. They miss no occasion to talk about how immune they are to heat and cold, hunger and thirst, pain and suffering. They look upon ordinary suffering humanity with a mixture of pity and disdain. On one hand, they are angry at the world for not doing what they have done. On the other hand, they are quite convinced that stupid humanity (with rare exceptions like themselves) is incapable of following their example. They are also proud to talk about their personal acquaintance with many renowned persons on the spirituality circuit, and enjoy comparing one with the other, and in the process end up talking about not only the strengths but also the flaws and weaknesses (as perceived by them) of these luminaries whom other people might have seen only on the TV. If they have read a lot, and are also a victim of the scholastic trap, so much the worse. Then they have a tendency to analyse spiritual books in hair-splitting detail. If they attend a discourse, they ask questions, either to show off their knowledge or to find faults with the speaker. They itch for discussions on spiritual topics, and if they do get (or create) such an opportunity, they are quick to argue in order to prove the other person wrong.

The right approach is to be grateful for whatever progress has been made, and to realize how much more remains to be done as compared to what has been done. Comparisons are also unfair because we are all fellow travelers on the same spiritual journey, and are manifestations of the same Divine. The following celebrated quote from James Adams applies as much to spiritual seekers as to the rest: “There is so much good in the worst of us, and so much bad in the best of us, that it ill behaves any of us to find fault with the rest of us.”

Closing thoughts

The greatest difficulty for the spiritual enthusiast probably originates in the glimpses of suprasensory reality that he might experience. Spiritual experiences are not an achievement to discuss, share or boast about. Spiritual experiences widen, deepen and raise the consciousness, and this change should be reflected in outer life, making the person more considerate, compassionate and contented. Further, one should not talk about these experiences. As the Mother has said, “It is a very well-known fact that one has never to speak of one’s spiritual experiences, if one were not to see vanishing in a moment the energy accumulated in an experience which is meant to hasten one’s progress” (3). Another common wasteful distraction is searching for miracles. Ordinary life is itself a miracle – no other miracles are necessary for inspiring faith in the omnipotence of the Divine. Sri Aurobindo and the Mother have repeatedly emphasized that the aspiration for spiritual growth should be sincere and constant; it may even be intense, but it should not be impatient. The distinction that Sri Aurobindo has made between straining and concentration is also relevant here. He wrote in a letter, “Straining implies an over-eagerness and violence of effort, while concentration is in its nature quiet and steady. If there is restlessness or over-eagerness, then that is not concentration” (4). Obviously, concentration helps, but straining hinders spiritual growth. Anxiety and restlessness are an expression of the ego. Ego is a product of the dividing consciousness. It divides the individual from the rest of the creation. In contrast, spirituality breaks the dividing barrier. Spirituality unites the individual with the rest of the creation. Hence the acute self-absorption that afflicts misguided spiritual enthusiasts cannot take them towards the spiritual consciousness that they seek. Instead of getting obsessed with spiritual growth, it is much better to follow one of the simplest pieces of advice that the Mother has given: “Be simple, Be happy, Remain quiet, Do your work as well as you can, Keep yourself always open towards me – This is all that is asked from you” (5).

REFERENCES
1. Sri Aurobindo and the Mother On Education. Pondicherry: Sri Aurobindo Ashram, 1956, p. 125.
2. Sri Aurobindo. The Riddle of this World. Pondicherry: Sri Aurobindo Ashram, 6th Edition, 1973, p. 44.
3. Sri Aurobindo and the Mother On Education. Pondicherry: Sri Aurobindo Ashram, 1956, p. 150.
4. The Integral Yoga: Sri Aurobindo’s Teaching and Method of Practice. Pondicherry: Sri Aurobindo Ashram, 1993, p. 156.
5. The Science of Living: A Simple Programme. Words of Sri Aurobindo and the Mother. Pondicherry: Sri Aurobindo Ashram, 2006, p. 1.
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*For more on the Intermediate Zone, see Reference 2, pp. 35-47, and Reference 4, pp. 187-189

Commentary by Zen Cohen

The paradox of spiritual practice as “Not-Doing”

As Gangaji points out in this short video: “The desire for real fulfillment which arises in your lifetime, paradoxically can only be realized if you don’t do anything for its realization…What you are given to do [as a spiritual / meditation practice] is designed to wear down your desire for doing.”

The three Kilesas or defilements (roots of suffering) in Buddhism are: greed, hatred and delusion. When viewed from the micro context of meditation, greed and hatred can be seen as movements of the mind towards an object (greed, desire, clinging, wanting) or away from an object (hatred, not wanting, wanting to get away from or push away the object). An object is anything that arises in the mind.

Delusion (or ignorance) is simply not being aware that this is happening in the mind and more importantly, that these movements, towards and away from objects (“reacting”, “reactivity”), are the root cause of our suffering.

If it is true (and you need to look for yourself) that the mind moving towards and away from objects is the root cause of suffering, then what is the solution?

The solution is to “stop” this movement. To observe; to look but don’t touch; to remain equanamous; to accept everything that comes into the mind, or to do nothing. But even “doing nothing” is doing – and when you try to “do nothing” you might notice that you tense up – as if doing nothing requires some doing – which it doesn’t. And so you hear the words over and over from the teachers to “let it be”, “relax, relinquish and release”, “detach”, remain balanced and embrace everything, “renounce the world” -  “be still” – all of which are “verbs” and imply doing – when what we want is “not-doing!”

It is like being in a cramped shop surrounded by fine china – any move you make will surely knock something over – so remain still – stillness – keep the mind still – don’t touch anything – don’t let fear make you pull away, don’t let desire suck you in, just sit back in awareness and observe. This is what meditation becomes as concentration improves and the mind becomes more still. Like watching a video game and objects are flying towards your face – but you can’t flinch – and you need to relax rather than be tense.

The breath makes it easier to observe – ask yourself who is breathing in this moment? You don’t have to do anything to breathe, it happens when you are not paying attention – but just try to intentionally let go control of breathing and you run into the paradox of not doing. As long as you are trying to breath naturally you won’t breathe naturally – you almost have to forget about it. To just breathe without thinking about it or controlling it is “being spontaneous.”  On the other hand, you may notice that when you are controlling your breathing, you become uncomfortable, the mind and body contract a bit and there is tension – this is suffering.

Why does Gangaji say: “What you are given to do [as a spiritual / meditation practice] is designed to wear down your desire for doing?” She says this because as you sit in meditation, the difference between suffering and peace will become clear to the mind. What will also become clear is that the suffering comes up whenever you “do” something and it goes away whenever you “let things be.”

When you feel a pain arising in your knee and you react to that pain (you move the mind away from it, try to reject it or push it away) you will notice that the pain gets worse. When you “accept” the pain, and do not react to it one way or another, but keep the mind balanced, you will see that the pain goes away. This is how you “wear down your desire for doing” – you show the mind over and over again (in meditation if not in life) that suffering happens when the mind rejects an object or goes after it and peace happens when you let the objects be – in the same way that one sinks in quicksand when one struggles but doesn’t when one remains still. You see this lesson over and over again in meditation until the mind pulls back from objects – it stops moving towards them or away from them – rather, it remains equanamous and balanced. It stops fighting the world.

What did the Buddha teach? Suffering and the end of suffering. When the mind sees suffering over and over again and then clearly sees the cause of suffering, it gets worn down – in the same way you would get tired of touching and burning yourself on a hot stove over and over again. In the absence of ignorance, in other words when you are paying attention and being mindful, you begin to clearly see that it is you that is touching the hot stove over and over again, it is you who are causing yourself all your suffering, and you get worn down, and you stop.

May you remain mindful in every moment of every day, may you see the cause of suffering for yourself, and may you discover the end of it.

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About Gangaji

Gangaji shares a simple message-This is an invitation to shift your allegiance from the activities of your mind to the eternal presence of your being.

Born in Texas in 1942, Gangaji grew up in Mississippi. After graduating from the University of Mississippi in 1964, she married and had a daughter. In 1972, she moved to San Francisco where she began exploring deeper levels of her being. She took Bodhisattva vows, practiced Zen and Vipassana meditation, helped run a Tibetan Buddhist Meditation Center, and had a career as an acupuncturist in the San Francisco Bay area.

Despite her successes, Gangaji continued to experience a deep and persistent longing for fulfillment. She pursued many paths to change her life including relationship, motherhood, political activism, career, and spiritual practice, but even the greatest of her successes ultimately came up short. In the wake of her disillusionment, she made a final prayer for true help. In 1990, the answer to her prayer came unexpectedly, taking her to India and to the meeting that would change everything. There on the banks of the river Ganga, she met Sri H.W.L. Poonja, also known as Papaji, who opened the floodgates of self-recognition. In this meeting, Gangaji’s personal story of suffering ended and the promise of a true life began to flower and unfold.

Today, Gangaji travels the world speaking to seekers from all walks of life. A teacher and author, she shares her direct experience of the essential message she received from Papaji and offers it to all who want to discover a true and lasting fulfillment. Through her life and words, she powerfully articulates how it is really possible to discover the truth of who you are and to be true to that discovery.

We invite you to read The End of All Excuses by Gangaji an in-depth article by Gangaji about her spiritual path and essential experiences.

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I found these talks about enlightenment interesting in that they cover some different views of enlightenment as well as different views of the paths taken to attain it (within the Buddhist tradition mostly)

Talk 1:

download: http://www.dharmaseed.org/teacher/86/talk/11620/
Stream: http://dharmaseed.org/talks/audio_player/86/11620.html

Talk 2

download: http://www.dharmaseed.org/teacher/86/talk/11649/
Stream: http://dharmaseed.org/talks/audio_player/86/11649.html

Talk 3

download: http://www.dharmaseed.org/teacher/86/talk/11695/
Stream: http://dharmaseed.org/talks/audio_player/86/11695.html

Talk 4

download: http://www.dharmaseed.org/teacher/86/talk/11762/
Stream: http://dharmaseed.org/talks/audio_player/86/11762.html

About James Baraz

James is co-author with Shoshana Alexander of Awakening Joy, a new book based on the course. In addition, James is on the International Advisory Board of the Buddhist Peace Fellowship. He lives with his wife in the Bay Area, has two sons and three grandchildren.

http://www.jamesbaraz.com/index.html

I Am That – Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj

Sri Nisargadatta Maharj

I Am That – Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj Click here for the PDF version

Biography of Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj

When asked about his biographical details, Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj used to say “I was never born”, for he does not identify himself with his body. He identified himself only with the eternal and pure beingness. However, here is a shory biogrpahy of Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj, the person.

Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj was born in March 1897, on the day the birthday of Lord Hanuman. In honor of Lord Hanuman, he was given the name ‘Maruti’. Nisargadatta’s father, Shivrampant, worked as a domestic servant in Mumbai and later as a petty farmer in Kandalgaon, a small village in the back-woods of Ratnagiri district of Maharashtra. Mariti’s family followed the traditional Hindu culture. At the tender age of 18, in the year 1915, Maruti’s father passed away. After the death of his father, Maruti followed his oldest brother to Bombay.

Mariti started working as a small-time clerk in an office near Bombay, but soon opened a small goods store selling bidis (leaf-rolled cigarettes). He became successful in this venture. In 1924 he married Sumatibai. They had three daughters and a son.

Maruti had a wise friend named Yashwantrao Bagkar. They often would have spiritual discussions. One day Yashwantrao brought Maruti to meet Shri Siddharameshwar Maharaj, his future guru. Sri Siddharameshwar Maharaj, was then the head of the Inchegeri branch of the Navnath Sampradaya. Maruti was given a Mantra, which is totally in keeping with the Navnath tradition, and instructions on how to meditate. His guru told him to concentrate on the feeling “I Am” and to remain in that state. Maruti did not follow any particular course of breathing, or meditation, or study of scriptures. He mearly followed his gurus instruction of concentrating on the feeling “I am”, and within three years, the realization dawned on him and he got Self-awareness.

Sri Siddharameshwar died in 1936 and evoked in Maruti a strong feeling of renunciation which he acted upon. He abandoned his family and bidi businesses and took off for the Himalayas. Srikant Gogte and P.T. Phadol, in the introduction of Sri Nisargadatta’s book “I am That” say of this, “On his way to the Himalayas, where he was planning to spend the rest of his life, he met a brother-disciple, who convinced him about the shortcomings of a totally unworldly life and the greater spiritual fruitfulness of dispassion in action.” When he returned he found that out of six shops only one remained, but that was enough for the sustenance of his family, Maruti adopted the name of Nisargadatta and inherited membership into the Navnath Sampradaya sect. He devoting all his free time to meditation on his guru’s instruction.

Sri Nisargadatta continued to live the life of an ordinary Indian working-man but his teaching, which he set out in his master-work “I Am That” and which are rooted in the ancient Upanishadic tradition, made a significant philosophical break from contemporary thought. Devotees traveled from all over the world to hear Nisargadatta’s unique message until his death. Maharaj left his mortal frame in 1981, suffering with throat cancer.

An example of one who was moved by his works is Aziz Kristof, billed as a non-traditional Advaita Zen master, who, upon reading Nisargadatta’s book I Am That, writes most eloquently:

“At that moment, I knew that I found my master. He spoke to my essence, his spirit deeply touched my heart. From him I realised the necessity of stabilising the State Presence to which I was already awakened. He called this the I Am-ness. For the first time, I received clarity regarding the Path and recognised the necessity of the right effort. Maintaining the State of Presence became a new task; it was a new challenge. I went for long walks, attempting not to lose the State, not for a single moment.”

Nisagadatta’s Style of Teaching

He explained that the purpose of advanced spirituality is to simply know who you are. Through his many talks given in his humble flat in the slums of Bombay, he showed a direct way in which one could become aware of one’s original nature. Many of these talks were recorded, and these recordings form the basis of I Am That and his other books. His words are free from cultural and religious trappings, and the knowledge he expounds is stripped bare of all that is unnecessary.

In the words of Advaita scholar Dr. Robert Powell:

“Like the Zen masters of old, Nisargadatta’s style is abrupt, provocative, and immensely profound — cutting to the core and wasting little effort on inessentials. His terse but potent sayings are known for their ability to trigger shifts in consciousness, just by hearing, or even reading them.”

OCT 25 -
How did 11 cement companies begin manufacturing in the Lumbini Protected Zone (LPZ) after UNESCO had already inscribed this sacred place, the Birthplace of the Buddha, as a World Heritage Site? These firms began operations between 2001 and 2007 despite the decision on Dec. 6, 1997 of UNESCO’s World Heritage Committee (WHC) to inscribe Lumbini as a property with outstanding universal value. These industries produce over 2.3 million tonnes of cement products annually and their emissions and effluents have contaminated local ground water, streams and atmosphere in flagrant contravention of Nepal’s Environmental Protection Act. This pollution impacts local agriculture, drinking water, the health of Lumbini residents as well as wildlife and endangered species in surrounding nature preserves. Their cement trucks have caused accidents, traffic snarls and road deterioration on the Bhairahawa-Lumbini highway.

The government’s Department of Commerce (DoC) has tested products manufactured by six cement companies, four of which are in the LPZ (Nepal Ambuja, Reliance, Agni, and Jagadamba) and found several failed to meet its criteria for composition of raw materials and compressive strength. As a result, the DoC has banned production and sale of these products.

But cement production is not the only source of Lumbini’s pollution. There

are 37 brick kilns, two steel mills and a pulp and paper mill adding to LPZ contamination. This pollution will undoubtedly cause deterioration of archaeological sites (e.g. Ashoka’s pillar).

Some LPZ cement industries under Indian ownership capitalise on cheaper Nepali labour, water availability, and proximity to the border. They gain preferential access to existing infrastructure (i.e. electricity supply and paved roads) originally intended to serve pilgrims and tourists, leaving Lumbini in darkness for an average of 11 hours daily. By using their own imported limestone inputs, they shut out competing Nepali limestone enterprises and capture a larger share of the economic value of their cement products. Apart from a boost to local employment, of what economic benefit are these industries to Nepal?

The inescapable conclusion is that this concentration of heavy industries is transforming the character of LPZ from a world-class tourist, archaeological and pilgrim destination nestled in an agrarian community to an increasingly polluted industrial zone. This situation must be turned around before it becomes an environmental, public health and public safety catastrophe.

To its credit, the government has awakened to the dilemma. On Nov. 27, 2009, the Ministry of Industry’s Industrial Promotion Board (IPB) responded positively to a petition signed by attendees of an environmental conference—including representatives of government, local industries and hospitality firms, archaeologists, journalists and monastics—held in Lumbini’s Sacred Gardens on Nov. 7-9, 2009. The petition requested that the government: (1) create an industry-free zone around Lumbini, (2) freeze the establishment of new industries outside the industry-free area, and (3) strictly monitor existing industrial firms.

The IPB made several decisions that will help restrict industrial activities: (1) New carbon emitting industries will be excluded from a designated area around the Lumbini World Heritage Property (LWHP) that extends 15 km north, east and west of the LWHP boundaries, south to the Indian border, and 800 metres on both sides of the road along the Lumbini-Bhairahawa Corridor; (2) Existing LPZ industries can operate only if they respect the Environment Protection Act. Industries not respecting the Act must relocate within two years; and will be denied further increases to their capital, capacity, objectives and present levels of electricity consumption; (3) A Lumbini Development Trust representative will be a member of the Environmental Review Committee overseeing approvals under the Act by non-carbon emitting enterprises to establish operations in the Lumbini area and along the Bhairahawa-Lumbini roads up to the airport, and by existing industries for further increases in their capital, capacity, objectives and electricity consumption; (4) Registered, non-operating LPZ industries must observe the Act and take pollution control measures before operating. Non-performers will be relocated elsewhere promptly.

The IPB’s decision sparked the establishment of the Lumbini Environmental Protection Alliance (LEPA) including the Lumbini Development Trust (LDT), which oversees this World Heritage Site; Lumbini Institutions (the monastic community of Lumbini); and Lumbini stakeholders (local and international people and organisations related to Buddhism and the environment, and district-level government bodies). LEPA has developed an online petition with recommendations that has been signed already by over 6,000 supporters worldwide.

LEPA has used Google Earth’s satellite imagery to define LPZ boundaries using GPS coordinates, pinpoint LPZ industries, and document their footprints (their capital, capacity and objectives where available;

and close up aerial photos of their operations). In addition, LEPA has recommended that the IPB’s Nov. 27, 2009 Decisions and LPZ boundaries should be published through a public notice in a national newspaper. Also that a concise, integrated zoning plan should be developed for the area and presented to the public. This will clarify the allowable new development and industrial activity in the LPZ.

The IPB’s decisions should be expanded to require notification by letter of other interested parties and stakeholders before applications for development or industrial activity are approved. Requests for new development permits or expansion of existing facilities should include GPS coordinates, verified by an independent third party, of the proposed site and the Village Development Committee (VDC). The IPB’s laudable decision to spend Rs. 150,000 on an initial LPZ environmental survey should be expanded to require an ongoing, comprehensive, professional environmental monitoring

programme to meet the Act’s pollution control standards. A long term strategy to monitor and measure the potential and

actual environmental impacts of all LPZ industrial activities and to manage industrial growth should be developed and published. This strategy should include a coordinated plan with zoning guidelines for managing development in the LPZ (including truck traffic on the Lumbini-Bhairahawa road and noise pollution).

An Aug. 25, 2010 report in Gorkhapatra noted a recent IPB decision permitting

non-carbon emitting industries, including small and cottage industries, to locate

in the LPZ. According to Tara Prasad Bhattarai, Cottage and Small Industries Officer for the government, this decision would include small manufacturing and service industries; and exclude 28 types of large carbon emitting industries—among them cement, leather, sugar, paper, distillery, stone and concrete, brick and tiles, tobacco and animal slaughtering.

Despite the IPB’s rulings however, Goenka (Goyanka) Cement Pvt. Ltd. began constructing a new cement plant in

the LPZ in June 2010. This plant’s location violates two provisions of the IPB’s Nov. 2009 ruling, because of its location within both the LPZ and the prohibited 800 metre corridor around the Lumbini-Bhairahawa road. In July 2010, this firm also filed trademark applications.

We call upon the government to act swiftly and diligently to enforce its own

IPB decisions and stop this new heavy industry construction. Lumbini’s friends everywhere ask that the government act now to restore its environmental integrity and the original Nepali and international vision for this World Heritage Site.

(Heller is associate professor at Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto)

james g. heller

Posted on: 2010-10-26 08:02