Nectar #18

Book excerpt: Oneness — not of a numerical content, but of a homogenous, all-pervasive nature — is the theme of this journal’s present issue. And whether that Oneness be encountered individually by putting forth intense inner effort while sitting in quiet retreat, or approached from the standpoint of encouraging entire cultures to realize their deeper nature, or revealed by openly marking the distinctions between the diverse worlds of manifestation and That which is beyond all expression, the result is the same. Encouragement, inspiration, positivity — these things are rare today, what to speak of the Goal which they infer. And, though Oneness may be less of a goal and more of a natural abiding condition, it is still the subtlest of all eternal principles, the teachings of which represent the most enigmatic pieces of information one can ever hope to ponder. Therefore, the more that teachings on nonduality can be proliferated, the more chance do struggling beings have of coming in contact with it, purifying their intelligence, and gaining freedom. As the great Advaitan, Ashtavakra, states, “A man of pure intellect realizes the Self swiftly even by instruction casually imparted. A man of impure intellect gets bewildered trying to realize the Self even after inquiring over a lifetime.”