Contents

Cover page. 1

Who is Wholenous! 3

BUDDHA BEING.. 5

THE TWELVE PRINCIPLES OF BUDDHA BEING.. 7

EIGHT SAMADHI. 9

What is a Buddha?. 13

God and you. 15

BUDDHA’S BOOKS SERIES. 19

Title. 21

I.  ESOTERIC TRADITIONS. 27

Interfaith Truth in Traditions. 29

The Depth Consciousness. 33

Awareness of Being. 39

The Final Conclusion in Traditions. 45

Objective Reality. 60

The "Emergence" of Higher Awareness. 69

The Transcendence of the Ego. 77

Cosmic Consciousness. 83

Objective Consciousness. 89

Cosmic Unity. 99

Beyond the Subject 106

Pure Awareness. 112

Awareness and brain. 117

Spirit and Matter. 122

II. MYSTICAL EXPERIENCE.. 127

What is higher states of consciousness. 129

Higher states of consciousness. 130

Mystical experience is outside the realm of our normal consciousness  131

What is Conscious experiences beyond the ego. 133

Conscious experiences beyond the ego. 134

Beyond the ego. 136

Meditation. 138

Beyond the limitations. 139

Higher dimensions of being-ness. 140

The essence of our being. 141

The ultimate realization. 142

The non-conceptual contents of mysticism.. 143

Are there "non-conceptual" contents of experience?. 145

Unmediated experience of reality. 146

Types of Samadhi 147

Samadhi without support 150

What is True Samadhi 152

True Samadhi 154

Dharmamegha Samadhi 156

Introverted Mysticism.. 157

Exploring the nature of consciousness. 159

The "Essence of our Presence". 161

Real mystical experience. 163

The possibility of "pure consciousness events" (PCEs). 165

Pure consciousness is our spiritual essence. 167

Pure Consciousness is consciousness without ego. 169

Pure consciousness. - Consciousness beyond mind. 170

Pure Consciousness. 171

Direct perception of Reality. 173

Enlightenment 175

III. MYSTICAL EXPERIENCE IN RELIGIONS. 177

The concept of Ultimate Reality. 181

Direct apprehension of the Ultimate Reality. 183

Definition of the Ultimate Reality. 184

Explanation of direct apprehension to Ultimate Reality. 185

Importance of direct apprehension to Ultimate Reality in various philosophical and religious traditions  186

Historical examples of direct apprehension of the Ultimate Reality  188

Evolution of the concept of direct apprehension of the Ultimate Reality in different traditions  190

Mystical experiences. 192

Mystical experiences in non-dualistic traditions. 193

Mystical experiences in Advaita Vedanta. 194

Jnana Yoga in Advaita Vedanta. 195

Samadhi in Advaita Vedanta. 197

Moksha in Advaita Vedanta. 198

Mystical experiences in Samkya Yoga. 200

Kaivalya in Samkya. 202

Mystical experiences in Ashtanga Yoga. 203

"Eight Angas" of Patanjali Yoga. 204

Samapatti in Yoga. 206

Asamprajnata Samadhi in Yoga. 207

Mystical experiences in Buddhism.. 208

Meditative state "Jhana". 209

Meditative state "Samapatti" in Buddhism.. 210

"Eight Jhanas" in Buddhism.. 211

Mystical experiences in Taoism.. 213

Wu Wei - The experience of effortless action. 215

The Supreme Attainment in . 216

Mystical experiences in Zen Buddhism.. 217

The practice of zazen. 218

Satori 219

Mystical experiences in Christianism.. 220

Mystical experiences in Meister Eckhart 222

"Mystic Union" in Christianism.. 224

"Nepsis" in Eastern Orthodox Christianity. 225

"Theosis" in Christianism.. 226

Mystical experiences in Sufism.. 228

Haqq al-yaqin in Sufism.. 230

Fana in Sufism.. 231

IV. LEXICON.. 233

Basic Hellenic-Latin-English Philosophical Terms. 235

I.  ESOTERIC TRADITIONS

Interfaith Truth in Traditions

The Internal Contemplation

The reality:

Consciousness Is One, Perception Is Continuous and Contains All Phenomena.

Consciousness as the One Reality is Always the Background of every Activity and every Perceptual State, every Phenomenon.

When Consciousness Activates Transient Creation Emerges. One Reality Always Remains the Single Background of Creation while at the same time Two Areas of the Phenomenon of Creation are Distinguished:

The Region of the Upper Heavens.

The Underworld Region (the Mental World, the Dynamic World and the Material World).

The Religious Approach

Obviously... dear friends... One can know more (and have experience of what one knows...)… than one says... And one can simply speak to the extent of the understanding of those to whom one is addressing ...

It is necessary and proper to speak in terms that are understandable, in the context of a spiritual culture and a language...

Religions and teachings are "mental maps" that really lead to the Truth... As long as we don't confuse the true path with the "map"...

But when we refer to the teachings we should adequately explain what we say... bearing in mind that some may not have the knowledge of a teaching...

It is also good to compare different teachings... because that is how Truth is confirmed and people of one teaching or worldview understand people of another teaching or worldview...

We can thus arrive at an inter-religious, inter-philosophical, inter-teaching, "Interpretation of Reality", comprehensible both by the Christian, and by the Buddhist, and by the Vedantist, and by the Sufi, and by the follower of Kabbala, and from the follower of ancient Hellenic Philosophy, and from the follower of modern esotericism...

The development of modern theology and modern philosophical thought... leads precisely to this end...

In all religions and teachings, they speak of a state of "enlightenment of man", of a "higher awareness"...

Christians call it pure mind (simple mind)... which can lead (gradually) to Union with God (in the physical world)...

Buddhists speak of "inner states of consciousness"... which can lead to Asamskrita, (or nirvana in the physical world)...

Vedantists refer to the inner states of the Atman... which can lead to the Existence of Brahman, in the physical world...

Samkya-Yoga, speaks of the "cosmic intellect" (Mahat)... which reflects in various degrees the Super-cosmic Purusha (Spirit)... and of the transcendence of the cosmic intellect... so as to reach Liberation (Kaivalya, in the natural world)...

The Sufis speak of transcending the inner mind that experiences Being in various degrees... so that we reach extinction in God, in the physical world...

The followers of Kabbalah speak of the true self of man (which is both Tiphereth of Yetzirah and Kether of Ashiya), the Gadlut state of consciousness, a higher awareness, realized in the physical world, and leading to the awareness of God, in the physical world... and where the inner journey to the higher worlds and the Infinite (Ein) begins..

Platonism speaks of the awareness of the "universal being"... which can lead to the experience of the "perfect being", the Utterly Being, the Agathon...

All these references would be meaningless... if they did not lead to some very important conclusions...

1) All teachings speak of the same Reality...

2) All teachings claim that man can here, in the physical world, reach a "higher awareness"...

3) People of all teachings can get along because there is correspondence even in the terms they use to describe Reality... and there are even similarities in their description...

4) All teachings tell the same Truth, so they cannot lie or mislead, at the same time...

5) Everything the teachings say about realizing a "higher awareness" is verifiable...

6) While True Knowledge is Free and verifiable...some who want to manipulate humanity, for their own benefit, either question things long proven (even within universities...), to keep people ignorant. .. whether they want to commercialize metaphysical knowledge and sell it in courses...

On the way to "Ithaca", you will meet many monsters... don't be afraid friends... they draw strength from your fear... they are only soap bubbles, like the ones children play...

The "higher awareness", of which the teachings speak, although it brings us into contact with higher worlds, does not cut us off from everyday life and everyday obligations...

But this "higher awareness " also prepares us for a higher life...

Actually, "higher awareness" transcends the limits of earthly existence and builds a more subtle existence that can survive in a higher world (Our other perspective is to return here, in the physical world)... There are people who already have a such an experience (in all ages there have been...)... and they have consciously moved to the upper world... which is certainly not the end...

But who should these people talk to? To me? To you? to the other?.. They just smile at our childishness and keep silent... waiting for time to mature.

The Depth Consciousness

The Internal Contemplation

There is One Unique Essence (Consciousness) which is DEPTH. There is One Activity-Energy-Perception (Vision), the "Objective Consciousness", the Objective Perception which is the FOUNDATION. Upon "Objective Consciousness" (Perception) are woven "Subjective "Organizations", which function as "Perception Systems": Universal Consciousness (with Three "Varieties"), Non-Dual Consciousness, Mind-Consciousness, Energy-Sensation, Form-Body .

All this does not operate on the Objective Level of the Plinth, but on a Secondary Level of "Organization" (on the SURFACE). Thus, while Reality Is One (in DEPTH), it is One (in BASE), It “Seems” to “Differentiate” (in SURFACE) into Levels of Existence.

At the Higher Levels Subject-Object (Sight-Seeing) are not Separated. Subject-Object are "separated" in the lower "worlds".

Therefore, because everything is woven into the One Common Objective Basis, of the "Objective Consciousness” (Perception) for this all This (Creation, the All) has a Holographic Character. In other words, the "Objective Consciousness" (Perception) is woven, supported and is in the Depths of All and "everything", even if it seems like something separate on the "Surface". In other words, the "everything" Is the "Objective Consciousness" (like a BASE) and a Particular projection-"organization"-"system" (on the SURFACE) at the same time.

The Only Path to Reality is to "Realize", to "Understand", to "Experience" the FOUNDATION of Existence, the "Objective Consciousness" (Perception), Within us. In other words, we must "Emerge" from the world of form, sensation, intellect (the lower worlds of multiplicity) into Non-Dual Consciousness, into the Heavens of the Oneness of Universal Consciousness, into the Objective Consciousness of the BASE, into the Innermost Essence of Everywhere, in the DEPTH of the Absolute.

We actually need to change the Level of Understanding. To Expand our Awareness, to Deepen our Consciousness, to Go Beyond the Surface (of Surface Actions and Activities), into the Still Depth of Objective Consciousness.

So, it becomes clear that here we are not talking about action, effort, control, discipline, on the surface level of external activity, but about a "shift" of Attention, Perception, the Center of Gravity of Existence from the Surface to the Substantial Depth. In other words, the Inner Journey has nothing to do with external activities. The opposite.

To the dualistic, external, superficial mind, it appears as Stillness, as Emptiness, as Nothingness. In reality it is the Whole, Living Essence that runs through the Eternal Present, Ever Renewing without Changing, it is Life in Full Awakening, it is the Circle of Completion that Encloses All and Rests in the Attribute-less Absolute.

The Real Essence is the Pedestal of the Objective. On the basis of the Objective, the Subjective is "organized": Universal Consciousness, Non-Dual Consciousness, mind, sensation, form.

Real Awakening is Completed in the Circle of Objective Consciousness.

For the dualistic surface mind, there are two cosmic limits to the "evolution" of Consciousness. The Non-Dual Consciousness experienced as "objective" in relation to the ego and the dual mind. The Limit of Objective Consciousness that "separates us from the DEPTH, from the SOURCE.

What, after all, is Individuality (which manifests itself in the lower worlds as a Man)? The Individual Soul is "organized" on the Basis of the Objective, in the image and likeness of the Universal. Around the "center" (“I”) accumulate, perceptions, prejudices, habits, behaviors. Perception (self) and perceived (things) separate. Consciousness experiences duality.

In reality the individual soul is a "guise" of the Universal, it is the Objective Universal, which emanates from the Source.

The Subjective, the "organization" (of the ego) operates not in the Basic Objective Field of Oneness, but in a secondary field, of duality.

The Subjective is "organization", system, can be reorganized, changes "content" but qualitatively remains in the same field of duality.

If people understood "how" the Subjective is "organized" in the Basic Objective Field, how this organization is structured and how it works and drags beings into the lower worlds (that is, if they understood the mechanism of their mental constitution), they could be freed.

To change field (from the field of duality to the Field of Oneness) the "organization" must be dissolved. Abandoning the "content", eliminating the "center". This Is How We Emerge into Non-Dual Consciousness and Open the Way to the Higher Heavens of Oneness and Return to Source.

The Religious Approach

There is a "higher awareness," a direct, supramental, extra-intellectual, perception of Reality... It is an expanded awareness, which transcends but includes the lower perceptual functions of the mind, but which are under control, regulated, and operate only to let the higher awareness perceive the lower levels of perception.

This higher awareness functions as an awareness center of Universal Being: It perceives Being (which transcends and includes the physical world). It is a perception of Unity of Reality (where subject-object have been transcended). It is a Universal Consciousness, a Cosmic Consciousness.

Higher awareness as it exists and functions beyond mentality, cannot be experienced by a subject, cannot be described by thought, cannot be perceived by physical means.

So, when the higher awareness has to be expressed in the limited intellect with speech, it uses speech conventionally: Only to give some indication of the higher state, only to indicate the experience of that state. It is necessarily delivered as a monologue and is material for personal reflection and application of what is said that can lead to Realization...

When speech is perceived by the mind, at its level and becomes the object of commentary and processing, it loses its essence, it becomes only empty words.

Since Reality, the awareness of Reality, the higher awareness, exists and operates beyond the mind, all thought, all that man has thought (and recorded), and all that can be thought, is all worthless, mental garbage.

Man must give up all external activity, mentality, in order to have awareness, true awareness of Reality... All other perceptions belong to the limited, the subjective, the imaginary...

True Meditation is the higher awareness that emerges when all external activities of the mind cease (or more properly, when they "settle" to let awareness become free, expand, function fully, and perceive Reality, Being).

True Meditation, higher awareness, cannot exist as long as there is meditator perception, effort, activity... all must be given up. Then the Light of Higher Awareness, the Light of Reality, rises , then we pass from becoming, to Being, to the Eternal, to the Timeless, to the Infinite, to the Transcendent.

Higher awareness reveals a world in which everyone participates in one common consciousness, a world of silence of the mind, which transcends the world of human thought, chatter and nonsense...all of which is perceived as “noise”...

Higher awareness operates outside the time of becoming, of thought, of imagination, of memory...in an eternal now that flows continuously, without “changing”.

Higher awareness is a world of immortality. We experience Being, and This Being, Is forever, outside of time and becoming.

Higher awareness, as a center of awareness of the Universal, is a participation of the individual, in the Universal, is a new individuality, unrelated to the subject of thought... As the new individuality (the real self) "evolves", breaking all limiting factors, "merges" with the Universal... (And this is the Outer Aspect of the Infinite Divine... extending beyond...)...

Awareness of Being

The Internal Contemplation

Reality – literally speaking, understanding, experiencing, the full meaning of the term – can only be One. Anything else is another perception of Reality, another “reality”, a vision, a construct of perception. There are Objective Fields where Perception manifests and Subjective Levels where the perception of reality operates. But anything beyond the One Reality is not Reality, it is a vision of Reality.

All these perceptions, visions of Reality, operate in a Secondary Field of Perception, of "Organization," of "construction."

Actually only the Ultimate Perception of Reality is True. All other Visions of Reality, Creation, Worlds, Universal Consciousness, Individual Non-Dual Consciousness, Dualistic Consciousness, Mind, Sense and Form, all, are but Activities, Transient Phenomena, which slowly or they quickly "dissolve". The whole of Creation with its Worlds and States is but a Movement in the Transforming Present, until its dissolution.

The Realization that only the One Reality of Pure Being is True and that all Visions are Transitory Phenomena leads to the Dissolution of Visions. Just as the Light of Day dispels the fog of night.

That Which Is, is an Immensity Without Attributes, an Immutable Presence that renews itself without changing. A Homogeneous State where all Visions have dissolved, an Omnipresence without differentiation. Perception Experiences its True Objective Basis, Experiences Reality and not Phenomena. This State of Perception is essentially beyond “content” it is the Essence of Emptiness, it is the True Content of Existence which is beyond Creation.

Pure Being is actually the Image of All, the One Who Holds All, the Source of Things, the Divine Ontological Principle. It differs only in that it has a Cognitive Character. All the "Content" of Being is a Becoming, a Transient Phenomenon.

In reality, Pure Being is the Objective Basis of every Activity, every Phenomenon, every Vision, every State, every experience. Does not take place, it is not realized, it is simply Revealed when the Secondary Activities, the Visions of Becoming, the becoming, dissolve. This State is the Full Life, the Full True Action of Existence, not the Immobility of Death as perceived by the relative consciousness.

When you are in motion and want to experience Stillness you simply stop moving. In other words, you operate on the purely objective real practical level. If in movement you seek Immobility you are still in motion and what you are realizing is a false immobility. You are not operating at the objective real practical level, you are operating at the level of movement, organized activity, intellect, sensation, external experience.

After all, it's a question of where you see from, (so, how  you see)... When you are in the movement there is the outside, the transcendent. When you are in Stillness there is also the in-motion. In Ultimate Understanding you simply See the Real and the Visionary without being “bothered”. Thus, the Sense of the Whole is restored. Everything, the All, things "are what they are", nothing more, nothing else. This is the true meaning of the Buddhist “Tathata”.

Ultimately only the Real exists. There is no such thing as the Real and the “Made Up”, as the dualistic  mind says. There is only the Real. And This, the Real is the Reality of the Phenomenon. It is the Fixed Base where everything appears. So, there are no two realities, as the  dualistic mind claims. The "difference" between the all-encompassing Perception of the Real and the dualistic perception that distinguishes Real from "constructed" is an epistemological one. The dualistic language that describes the world dualistic is based on this misconception.

But how (wonders the dual mind) can we go beyond the illusory perception, of duality, to the Perception of the Real? We must not assume that there is another reality beyond the dualistic perception. The Real already includes the dualistic mind, the dualistic perception, as an activity, as a structural function, of the constructed. We simply stop weaving the veil of delusion. The Real Reveals. Not as another reality but as the reality of deceptive.

Let's explain it in other words. Understand the Relationship and "difference" of Unlimited Space and defined and limited (by boundaries) place. That which is locally limited (the dualistic mind) necessarily separates its limits from the Unlimited (Non-dualistic). In reality only the Unlimited (Real) exists which includes any local limitation. The Infinite is the reality of the local. There are not two realities, the Infinite and the local. There is only the Infinite which is at the same time the reality of every local. How do we go from local to Unlimited? The question is only linguistic. The answer is located in the objective real practical field. Unlimited already includes local. It is enough to dissolve the boundaries that limit the local and behold, the Infinite Reveals itself as the reality of the local. After all, Space is always Unlimited. Local restrictions are always relative and temporary. As long as we don't get "trapped" in their limits and their "logic".

The Understanding of the True Nature of All, where all exists, unhindered and without creating "problems" lies beyond the Horizon of the Circle of Consummation, in the Depths, in the Original Source.

The Religious Approach

Whether we want it, dear friends, or not, we are cast without our present will into Being. All of us, even the uneducated shepherd on Olympus, are aware of Being. We are aware that we exist, that we live and that we act in any environment...

All those who have wanted, for millennia now, to philosophize, have simply tried to enlighten this awareness of Being... This is a completely natural course (necessity) and there is no "must" anywhere...

If Plato established the "Theory of Being" (of "Utterly Being"), or if the Buddha spoke of Asamskrita (realized by nirvana), and others spoke otherwise of Reality, they simply tried to enlighten this awareness of Being, which exists within all men...

So, we are not talking about theories, we are talking about how we, personally, can understand this Being... The awareness of Being, within each of us, is the gate, the way, and the completion, to the Full Perception of Being , not of personal, individual being, but of Being as Pure Being...

From here begins true philosophy, true religion, true life...

Being (as Pure, Objective Being) was not created by us, it is not a product of personal perception. We are thrown into Being from the beginning, We are, we exist, we perceive an objective fact (even if we can only perceive it through personal perspectives and cannot "interpret" it at present). We perceive an objective fact... unless we are creatures of our imagination, in which case we are non-existent...

Now: How do we perceive this objective primordial Being? Through some personal functions (ego, intellect, perception, etc.), which have their physical counterpart in our brain... When awareness is channeled and works through these personal mechanisms (which have their physical counterpart in our brain ), we are simply aware of the states of Being... Necessarily this leads to a personal perception of reality (and everyone lives in his own world)... This is the simple way, of the natural, simple, man. In this way, however, Being as Being is not enlightened, but some states of Being are simply experienced, in the present life...

Apparently the path taught by all the great sages of the planet was different... They spoke of an awareness that would be freed from all personal mechanisms that "distort" reality:

Whether this is possible is debatable.

Where drives this is also debated.

What exactly this means is under investigation.

Dear friends, all those who spoke of a higher awareness of Reality, spoke of an Awareness of Being (as Pure Being)... they did not speak of some state of Being... To understand it one must experience it...

Then this awareness has no subjective elements, no distortions, that is why it is the basis of the objective perception of Reality.

Then, in this higher awareness, the perception of individuality is completely transformed.

Higher awareness relates to the Greater Being. This Greater Being, revealed here, is Objective and certainly transcends the limits of our awareness (which has its physical counterpart in our brain). The Objective Being does not depend on physical entities... And it is the External Aspect of What people call God...

In other words, we are thus led to perceive the Underlying Reality behind the physical world... Here is the Principle of Transcendence...

Anyone can try it.

The Final Conclusion in Traditions

After all, all that we are saying has been known in the Esoteric Tradition (in the various Traditions) for thousands of years

For example what does Patanjali say about Yoga? In four words it summarizes everything, as long as one knows how to "read" (unfortunately most people are philosophically illiterate).

Yogas chitta vritti nirodha (yoga is the stilling or controlling of the modifications or fluctuations of the mind) is Patanjali's definition of yoga. It means that yoga is the removal of the fluctuations of the mind.

Yoga is the stilling of the mind until it rests in a state of total and utter tranquility, so that one experiences life as it is: as Reality.

One experiences life through the clearest of lenses - lenses not colored by thoughts of good or bad, or mine or yours. When the fluctuations of the mind are totally removed, we are at one with everything and all that is.

The Internal Contemplation

There is in the Esoteric Tradition an Objective Perception of Reality that comes from the total and unconditional Experiencing of Reality (a Direct Unadulterated and Complete View of Reality as it is) and not from any conditioned perception or mental conception. It is the truth. This Transcendent Experience is approached in the various Traditions within the particular conditions and in specific philosophical and linguistic contexts with the respective epistemological terms. This means quite simply that no matter what Tradition we "go deep into" we will eventually arrive at the One General Objective Truth. This Truth constitutes the "Heart" of all Traditions and all serious (and not superficial) religious approaches to Reality.

We can see this in the simple apposition (and in fact comparative consideration) of the most important Esoteric Traditions, Buddhism, Vedanta, Yoga, Christian Mysticism (where we will refer to three important personalities of Mysticism, the  Dionysius Areopagite of 6 th century, Meister Eckhart of the (13 th ) 14 th century and Jacob Behme of the (16 th ) 17 th century).

What we are interested in (and what we want to call attention to) is, in all these Traditions the Definition of a Unique Reality, which is the Reality (the Foundation, Support and Ultimate Essence) of Phenomenal Reality. We are not interested in a simple or detailed presentation of the Traditions. After all, we keep referring to these Teachings.

Buddhism

Buddhism is, both Esoterically and religiously, the most important Tradition-Philosophical Teaching-Religion for many reasons. This does not detract from the value of the other Traditions. Buddhism, in its "historical" epistemological evolution, was "recast" at all levels of human intelligence, from the most external-realistic to the most "abstract": Buddhism (intelligence directed to the "external"), Madhyamaka (Dialectical Intelligence), Yogachara (Objective Intelligence), Chan-Zen (Real Intelligence). This shows not only the full development of this Teaching, but also the comprehensive approach to Reality, from various points of view. This was necessary because Buddhism appealed to all "categories" of people, no matter what level they belonged to. All of this is still true today and will always be true. And this proves the "Timelessness" of the Buddhist Teaching.

In all the "Schools" of Buddhist Philosophy (Epistemology) Reality is One, Non-dual.

In Buddhism there is only One Reality, Asamskrita (the Kingdom of Asamskrita, Udana, VIII , I , 1st century BC) which "includes" all phenomena-samskrita. The Truth of phenomena is completed in Nirvana, in the complete dissolution of ignorance, of delusion. Thus, it is essentially proved that Nirvana and Samsara are ultimately One Reality, the Reality. For the Enlightened "mind" phenomena are neither another reality, nor an "obstacle", they are simply activities, real and dreamy at the same time.

In Madhyamaka there is only One Reality, Sunyata (Emptiness, Void), the Attribute-less but Full of Life Background, which leaves the "emergence" of phenomena unaltered. Dialectical Analysis reveals the real "essence" of phenomena which is Emptiness.

In the Yοgachara there is nothing but Only-Consciousness (Only-Mind). Phenomena "emerge" and "dissolve" in the Immensity of Consciousness, just as condensation-clouds form in the Sky, which dissolve again in the Open Sky.

In Chan-Zen There Is Only the Enlightened Buddha Nature, the Open Consciousness, the Inconceivable Primordial Mind that Flows Eternally Unimpeded by anything. "Stopping" at some perception creates ignorance, a distorted perception of reality. "Restoration" sets Life free.

Ultimately, in Buddhism, it doesn't matter where we are (what the "given consciousness" is). Whatever Path ("School") we take we Emerge into the One Reality, whether we call it Nirvana, Emptiness, Self-Consciousness, or Buddha Nature.

In fact, when we stand “still” (what this really means needs an explanation) and see, we understand the One Reality because it is in our “Nature” to understand, naturally, spontaneously and unhindered.

"Discipline", "Exercise", "practices" and all that has been analyzed for centuries now are needed only to "disengage" the dualistic mind from wrong perception. Ultimately what is "realized" is already our "Nature" from the beginning and forever. "Ignorance" is always a transient phenomenon.

Vedanta

According to the Teaching of Advaita Vedanta There is One and Only Reality, Brahman, which encompasses All, and Phenomena. It is the Primordial Reality that Creates, Sustains and Withdraws the universe into itself. It is the Divine Ground of existence, of all existence ( Divine Ground of all beings ). There is One Reality, not two (Brahman and Phenomena). Phenomena are but Activity, Movement of Reality through Space and Time. They exist only as Momentary Phenomena that leave no traces but "bequeath" properties to subsequent phenomena (thus, there is consistency and continuity in Creation). Phenomena are not only dependent on Reality but do not even have an essence of their own, they are not separate existences. The Universe (all the worlds) does not simply come from Brahman, it is Brahman, Activities of Brahman. Only the dualistic (confused) mind sees phenomena as something separate from Reality, as another reality. Obviously this "optical" is wrong. The Truth of Phenomena is not in the Phenomena but in the Reality behind them. Otherwise, Reality is the Eternal, behind and beyond the phenomenal.

When Consciousness Emerges into Reality it sees that there is only One and Unique Reality. This means that only experientially we can Approach Reality. We cannot "perceive" it, nor understand it (form some concept of it). Much less can we find it in outer experience, in the lower worlds.

If There Is Only One Reality, and if We Are Already That Reality, there is no need to become something, to realize something. If this means withdrawing completely from the external world of phenomena, "dissolving" all activities that "produce" phenomena, then yes, we need do nothing. Reality Emerges By Itself. But when we are not Pure Consciousness but are already involved in the phenomena, we believe that we are something (different from Reality) and that we must experience Reality, etc. This is how the  dualistic mind works which gives faith (and verisimilitude) to the phenomena.

Actually, Jnana (or Jnana Yoga) has nothing to do with exercise, discipline, effort, attainment, anything. True Samadhi Realizes when all wrong ideas are abandoned. And all ideas are wrong. This Path leads to complete emptiness (from the point of view of the dualistic mind) or to Complete Liberation, True Freedom (from the point of view of the awakened mind).

Consciousness in Samadhi is Completely Still (Still, Motionless, Quiet, Calm) but Fully Alert, Fully Contacted and Fully "Responsive" to Phenomena. The Reality We Experience is Complete, It Includes All (and Phenomena) but it Sees with the Right Eye, it is no longer "deluded". This is the true meaning of Non-Dual Experience.

Sarvam khalvidam brahma , "All these are Brahman" (Chandogya Upanishads 3.14.1). It has been said centuries ago. But there are people who still don't understand.

Yoga

Patanjali begins the "Yoga-Sutra" with four words that say it all (if you can understand). "Yoga Citta Vritti Nirodha", "Yoga is the elimination of the fluctuations of the mind", (YS I,2). Here is contained a Whole Philosophy, a Whole Spiritual Practice and an Inner Experience of Reality.

What is "Citta" about Patanjali? What is "Vrittis"? What exactly does "nirodha" mean?

"Chitta" is the Principle of Consciousness, Absolute Consciousness. It has the same inner meaning as “Chittamatra” (One-Mind) has in Buddhist Yogachara. It is Pure Consciousness. There is only Pure Consciousness. Human Consciousness is Pure Consciousness, Without Attributes, Beyond Space, Beyond Time.

So, what is it that "differentiates" existences? What is it that "differentiates" the "given consciousness" that man experiences from Pure Consciousness? They are the “vrittis”, the “content” of Consciousness, the “fluctuations”. "Variations" create objective states and subjective experiences, all this variety of worlds and life.

The Only Reality is Pure Consciousness, What Pure Consciousness Sees, which includes all the activities, the vrittis, the variety of phenomena.

So, when we talk about Man we are talking about the Pure Consciousness that has and works through a specific content (the vrittis). Operating man, not as Pure Consciousness but through the "content" obviously sees an altered reality.

For man to experience Reality, to See Clearly, he should be Still, Calm, Quiet, Silent (in thought), Ego-less. This describes the Path, the Stages, the Steps, leading to the elimination of the vrittis related to the body, the senses, the mind, the sense of existence.

In fact, since Pure Consciousness is the Only Stable Background of Existence and "fluctuations" (which "differentiate" existence) are temporary formations, there should be no difficulty in abandoning all illusory phenomena. What actually binds people is not the world (which follows its course anyway), but personal identifications with situations and behaviors. The problem is not in our relationship with the world, it is in the subjective illusions that must be rejected. When all these are exhausted Reality Appears as It Is, Whole, including phenomena.

Christian Mysticism

Dionysius Areopagite

The only objective term (for the mystical thought of Dionysius) that can "approach" the Unique Reality, God, is "Divine Knowledge". Reality is Transcendent, beyond all Perception and Intellect and any concept of existence. Everything That Exists ("God", Creation, Worlds, Entities, Man...) is "Theophany", "Indications of God", Actions or Activities, Traces of God's Phenomena. Thus, the True Knowledge of Reality (of God) cannot but be Decisive, we must Transcend all perceptual or apparent reality, Experientially Enter the "Divine Knowledge". Through "Non-knowledge" we know, we experience the Inconceivable Mystery of Divine Reality. Here we are talking about Direct Experience, Direct Viewing of Reality and not about any perceptual content. Reality cannot be perceived as an object. On the Path of Affirmative Knowledge we know nothing but phenomena. Obviously this is not the True Way.

Thus, only with Direct Experience, with the Experiential View of Reality (and not through Perception, Intellect, or Sensation) can we Approach the Objective Truth, Surpassing any "Theophany". "Epiphany" (regardless of the "where," " when," "how," or "why" that "occupy" human thought) is Grounded, Supported, and Referred to Reality. They are Divine Energy(s), Activities, Phenomena that have a Horizon of Reality. It is not True or False, it is simply a "Becoming" that Exhausts itself into the Reality that is its Source.

So, what is the "Entity", the "Man" in the secret conception of Dionysius? There is but One Unique Reality and "visions" that originate, exist and end in Reality. Man is the Reality that "appears", like an "epiphany" in Space, Time and special conditions and situations. Man Completes in Reality. There is no other way.

About the Mystical Theology of Dionysius, much has been written both in university corridors and in seekers' offices, sometimes inspired and sometimes stupid. The important thing is for someone to Walk the Decisive Path himself, to have a Direct View of Reality himself. Then he will understand not only Dionysius but everything.

Meister Eckhart

For Eckhart there is a Unique Reality that he calls the Ground ( Grund ) of All and Everything. It is the Deity (Gottheit ) that "Creates" Everything, God ( Gott ), Worlds, beings and entities. It is the "Deep" of Everything. It is simultaneously the "negation of negation" (the complete elimination of perception), the "zero" (of dualistic ordinary perception).

From the Unperceived Profundity of the Godhead, everything flows like "flows". The Depth is the Depth of Everything, of every entity, it is its Reality .

The Ultimate Purpose of all Creation and all beings is the Return to the Abyss, to the Original Oneness of Godhead in Eternal Living Stillness that is Without Attributes, Conditions and Limits.

Man in Eckhart's Mystic Thought is nothing but the Depth, the Divinity, Manifested in "Creation", in the Worlds. This is what the "image and likeness" of the book of Genesis means. This means that Man has within him the Divine Spark, an Uncreated Element, which is beyond Space and Time, beyond all apparent existence.

Eckhart, in his German Sermons addressed to mystics and believers, affirms many times that the Depth of the Soul, of Man ( Grund ) is This very Divine Depth ( Grund ): " In the depth of the soul, there, the depth of god and the depth of the soul is one depth” ( Eckhart, Meister. Die Deutschen Works . I. _ p. 253.5-6).

Actually, Eckhart is talking about a Unique Reality, which is the Reality of all the Phenomena of Creation. He would unfairly be characterized as a "pantheist". And while he talks about something that he experiences as a Depth, something that every person can experience in the Depth of his being, he is not understood by the people who follow the dualistic perception of reality and he is accused of being a heretic. The question, seven centuries later, always remains the same: Is the Truth heretical? Of course we don't expect a response from dualistic people. Even today they do not understand Eckhart. Even academic scholars are far from Eckhart's Truth.

By correctly understanding Eckhart's concept of the One Unique Reality which is the Reality of all the Phenomena of Creation we can perceive the real content of the "secret union (unio mystica). Within Eckhart's Mystical Perception it is possible to Experience the Depth of Existence which is the Unique Depth of Divinity. By withdrawing from the world, by Transcending all the phenomena of Creation, we reach the Supreme Unknown, the Foundation of All. As Eckhart says: "here the depth of god is my depth and my depth is the depth of god" ( Eckhart, Meister. Die Deutschen Works . I. _ p. 90) .

If we follow the dualistic thinking and consider God different from man the "union" with God becomes problematic. Duality cannot be overcome.

Jacob Behme

The Supreme Reality, in Behme's Mystic thought, is the Abyss of Unity (Abyss), the Primordial Nothingness, the Primordial Deity, the Divine Nothingness, a Living Reality, Existing of Itself, Alone, Complete. It is the Ungrund , the Absolute of Apocalyptic Theology, the Godhead (the Grund, the Gottheit of Meister Eckhart). Ungrund means That which rests on Nowhere, the Free, the Infinite, the Potential of All, the Undifferentiated Absolute, which is Without Attributes and description.

Ungrund Begets All, Contains and "Assimilates" All . All that "Appears" is the Grund (Foundation, Basis, Reason). Thus "Born" is God (The Triune God), the Three Worlds (the Celestial World, the Invisible Mental-Astral World, the Outer World of Senses, beings and things.. All these are but Activities, Formations in the Untouchable Background of the Ungrund . Thus we have a Unique Reality, the Ungrund (Uncreated , Unformed , the Formless), which "Accepts" the Grund (Created, Formed, the Formed) Within It. The Formed is Based on, Maintains, and Refers to the Formless. It is but an “Indicator”, a Symbol of the Formless. The “Truth” of the Formed is the Formless. Thus, in This State there is no duality.

If the Ungrund, the Unbuild, the Uncreated,  is the Unique Reality, the Truth of every Existence, Phenomenon, Being and thing, then Man is nothing but It, the Ungrund , which manifests itself in "form". So, how, then, does man "orient himself", where does he walk, where is he headed?

The "Birth" of God Brings Light to Creation, Worlds and beings. But where there is Light there is Shadow. And as we "descend" into the Worlds, the Darkness "thickens".

Man Must Follow the Path of Light. This is the True Religion and this is the Unique Sacred Act, the religion of the heart that becomes experience and action.

Man Must Rise above the Worlds, together with God in the Infinite Deity of Ungrund .

It is certain (and can be proven) that Behme's Secret Thought is authentic, original and entirely "his". In a strange way his Teaching of Ungrund , Grund resembles Buddha's Teaching of Asamskrit-samskrit. Also the Teaching of Primordial Deity and God being "Born" is similar to the Vedantic Teaching of Impersonal Brahman and the Personal Trimurti. We could mention other such "similarities". These "similarities" are not due to influence or borrowing. They are due to the simple fact that all Mystics, in all Traditions, experience the One Unique Reality, the One Inner Truth.

The Religious Approach

Dear friends, the "higher awareness" realized by all (serious) followers of esotericism is completely different from the "common man's awareness"...

Higher, enlightened, awareness is direct, "extra-intellectual" apprehension of Reality.

Awareness freed (from personal distorting mechanisms) first perceives itself as part of a Greater Objective Reality: as a center of awareness of the Universal Objective... (not that it is identified with or absorbed into the All).

This Greater Perception includes, but transcends, the physical world.

Information from the physical world passes through the mental mechanisms unprocessed, (without reference to an ego, without mental analysis, without perceptual distortion): It is perceived from the physical world, simply, for what it is.

Such an awareness experiences only the now (and is not dispersed in the imagination of tomorrow and the memory of yesterday)...

The unenlightened awareness of the ordinary man works quite differently.

In principle awareness does not function as autonomous awareness, but only through the distorting personal mechanisms.

All information refers to the ego and is related to the ego. This is a complex process that requires time (even if minimal): This is how the first distortion manifests itself and everything becomes "subjective".

It manifests, in addition, not only the primary intellectual perception that subjectivizes, but also mental activity, thinking, imagination, memory, and continuous processing of information, to be encoded, categorized, etc...

A continuous selective intake of natural events is also manifested.

An unenlightened awareness tries to transfer all information to the ego and relate it to the ego and thus subjectivizes everything... Even the metaphysical experience of a higher awareness, it tries to refer to the ego, it subjectivizes it, and because it cannot to "conceive" outside the subject, it believes that "no one can"... (But this is not what Aristotle's Logic says...)...

Dear friends, all (serious) followers of esotericism practiced some practices, precisely to overcome personal distortion mechanisms (ego, intellect, selective perception)... Examples:

The Christian hesychasts speak precisely of the control and overcoming of the three kinds of reasoning, the complex-emotional, the human, and the "angelic," (corresponding precisely to the three mechanisms we mentioned, selective perception, mental commentary, and obsession in the ego), to reach the liberated, pure mind: Only the pure mind can perceive the Greater Spiritual Reality, God... God Is A Living Reality In Which We "commune"... With the inner path in it the higher awareness we reach until the final Union with God...

Buddhists, in principle, perform the external dhyanas precisely to neutralize the processes, samjna, samskara, vijnana, (corresponding exactly to the three mechanisms we mentioned, selective perception, mental commentary, and ego-obsession), and to reach a higher awareness of a wider reality... With the inner samappatis they transcend the three states of higher awareness to reach the Asamskrita (Uncreated) State, realizing the final nirvana...

And in all other religions they practice similar practices and reach the same results...

The bottom line, dear friends, is that we are talking about "An Underlying Greater Objective Reality", that to be "revealed" to our own awareness, our awareness must be freed from personal, distorting mechanisms...

What We Realize is "a Transcendental State"... and from here True Life begins...

All the great teachers, such as Buddha, Lao Tzu, Jesus, Plato, Plotinus, and others, showed the way...

Whoever wants follows...

A Note...

Awareness is what we all have: we realize that we exist, that we are here, that we live...

But this awareness in us works in a limited way, through an ego-center, mental commentary, selective perception, etc...

Our enlightenment, our liberation from these mechanisms, shifts our awareness to a center different from the ego (to a higher perception of individuality...)... which, because it is free, is connected to the Greater Universal Awareness.. .

This higher awareness because it is precisely a center of awareness (individuality) of the Universal, participates in Objective Reality (Revealed Here), as far as it can in principle... As awareness expands, also removing the internal limiting mechanisms of our new individuality, so widens the awareness of the Universal, until our complete transformation, until complete deification....

In the present phase awareness is connected to the brain which is a phenomenon of life, which emerged with organization, from inorganic matter... which in the background is not the solid matter that we see with the eyes, but energy... which somewhere else has its source...

When awareness is freed from the personal mechanisms (which have a complete correspondence to brain functions), it participates in something else, outside the brain: It is also here (connected to the brain) and not here, as a center of awareness of the Universal, the Objective. .. (This is why I say that the "topology of God" is a pseudo-problem... since God also reveals himself in our own awareness, which is connected to the brain, and Transcends it...)...

Such awareness can survive separation from the body (death)...

And all cognitions survive within the Underlying Reality, participating in various degrees of awareness, from full awareness, to non-awareness... and this is the real meaning of metaphysical worlds, heaven, hell, etc... they are degrees of awareness... of God...

Finally, "how" and "why" Awareness, which is activity, energy, (a Transcendent Mind, corresponding to our own limited mind) is "transformed" into creation, nature and emerges again from nature back to its Self ... these are far from the present discussion... And Plato and Plotinus and Hegel and other philosophers have tried to talk about them... It remains for the rest of us to verify these "theories" or reject... however, we cannot ignore them...