Even though Western Advaita seekers do not follow a certain methodology to prepare themselves, those who find themselves unable to realize Truth, will readily admit something like „I don’t think that I am advanced enough“. So they do acknowledge that a certain maturity is needed in order to be able to recognize ones true nature.[1] Yet, no-one seems to know what this maturity may consist of, let alone a definite way to obtain it.

 What is a mere notion in Westerners, is taken for granted in traditional Advaita Vedanta: of course the seeker needs to be prepared for knowledge to dawn! As preparation is taken to be indispensable, Advaita Vedanta provides a whole lot of clues and tools to further it.

 This is in stark contrast to Western Advaitins who kind of wait for the right moment to miraculously arrive one day. Not that they are idle – no, they will try meditation, affirmation, chanting, reading inspiring books, psychotherapy, mental coaching, to name but a few methods. Many of those can be useful, the problem is not so much with the method as such but with the lack of methodology. Most Westerners are seeking on their own. They visit the Satsangs of their preferred Satsang teacher or teachers, read their books as well as a lot of others and follow the various recommendations of other seekers. They do not commit to one teacher and most Satsang teachers do not encourage them to commit.

 It is beautiful that there are Advaita seekers, Traditional as well as Western, who do wake up to what they really are. But as most of them know: this is not the end. For Westerners, though, the only way to proceed from here is “wait and see”. While this may work out sometimes, traditional Advaita Vedanta provides an answer, which is more definite and more practical. Someone who has truly recognized his nature and still states: “No, there must be more, I have not arrived” often lacks, as Swami Paramarthanandaji put it, a solid foundation described in Chatushtaya Sampatti.

 Traditionally the nine virtues of Chatushtaya Sampatti should already be part of the seekers make up before he even introduces himself to a Guru. Yet, even amongst traditional seekers this is merely an ideal and in most cases the work on developing those qualities will last till the search is complete.

 Sadhana Chatushtaya Sampatti comprises:

 Viveka – ability to discriminate the world of objects from the one subject that cannot be objectified (see last blog)

Vairagya – equanimity, dispassion, ability to not overvalue enjoyments of pleasures

Shama – ability to master the mind

Dama – ability to master the senses

Uparati – ability to leave behind any activity that does not contribute to the path of knowledge

Titiksha – ability to accept the dualities of practical life with equanimity

Shraddha – ability to trust that it is possible to discover what is searched for – with the help of Guru, Scriptures and through the grace of the natural law and order (Ishvara)

Samadhana – active concentration on what contributes to the path of knowledge alone

Mumukshutvam – longing for Truth as the highest priority in life

Each of these virtues needs to be further elucidated, something I have to omit for now. Also I will not explain how these virtues are to be developed. What I would like to point to is the difference between Western and traditional Advaita seekers: Traditionalists are equipped with a clearly defined catalogue of traits to serve as a reference point on their search. Westerners are missing such an instrument. They have no way to estimate where they may be stuck and what may need further development.[2]

 The value of Sadhana Chatushtaya sampatti lies in its conciseness. Yes, there are hundreds of valuable traits that the seeker should possess - reducing them to those nine essential ones turns it into a very practical and handleable tool.

 When I was a young Western seeker I (and all of my fellow-travellers) would have vehemently rebelled against (yet another!) way of telling me what to do. We needed to break free from an unsympathetic set of Christian-Jewish rules that had suffocated the culture we grew up in for centuries. But whenever I have mentioned Sadhana Chatushtaya sampatti to Western seekers over the last few years, I never met with resistance. Instead the response was sighs of relief at getting some kind of orientation. So in the sixties, seventies and eighties of the last century Westerners may have needed different answers but now their minds seem to open up again to appreciating structure and methodology as helpful.

 Why is it helpful? First of all, every seeker wants to know what he can trust to help him on his journey. The next question is: Why does the seeker need to have a solid character structure to realize his true nature?

 The mind of the seeker needs to be reasonably calm to be able to understand the Truth of Advaita. The above mentioned nine virtues will  - each in its own way - still the mind, so it does not get excited about all and everything that comes about, distracting the seeker from realizing what he has set out to realize: the true Self.

 Also the true Self is beyond everything that he has considered as himself for lifetimes. In order to back up his wrong definition he has developed ways of feeling/thinking/acting, which have become habitual. These habits can also be called identifications or vasanas.

 To realize the true Self the seeker needs to leave behind all those identifications that make him uphold his wrong ideas about himself. He can only do that if he is equipped with character traits that prevent him from constantly being overwhelmed by old habits. These character traits are listed in chatushtaya sampatti.

As most traditional readers will know, the main obstacle on the path to self-realization is the human minds tendency to objectify. This word “objectify” may need to be explained for Western Advaitins, because Traditionalists and Westerners do not only use a different terminology but have a different use of language altogether. 

 The mind lives in duality, it perceives a dual world and sees itself as the subject in relation to anything around – be it things, life forms, thoughts or the gross body. As Advaitin (of any kind) we know that what we are seeking is our true Self, Traditionalists call it Atman, and all would agree that what we are seeking can not possibly be the mind. 

 Yet, having nothing else at our disposal, we use the mind to find the Self. Nothing wrong in it, in fact the mind is able to find the answer. Why? Because what we seek is what we truly are already, so the mind need not perform an impossible task, it just has to use its ability to discriminate, detect and deduct in order to discover what is already the case.

 Still there is one difficulty: As the mind is used to dealing with objects, it will automatically turn the Self into an object. Now, it cannot be found like this. As the Self is our self, it is the subject and not an object. So what the mind will go on proudly producing as findings, can never be the Subject, the Self. The mind has to be deconditioned of its old habit, which is called the “tendency to objectify” by Traditional Advaitins.

 Even if Traditional and Western Advaitins had nothing in common – they certainly share two things: 1. They want to find their true Self and 2. Their minds tend to objectify even that Self. The difference lies in the way the mind brings this tendency into play. Incidentally, it is not an obstacle per se, only when seeking the Atman, the true Self, it turns into a stumbling block.

As mentioned before, in Advaita Vedanta study of the scriptures is a basic ingredient of the spiritual path, called Shravana. The body of Vedanta scriptures and comments to them is the biggest and best advaitic treasure house of humanity. In the hands of a good teacher the scriptures will reveal non-duality in uncountable ways - ever fresh, ever deep, ever lucid. Yet, my observation is that some of the minds of traditional students will use this wonderful tool and get stuck with it. How? Once the mind gets into the ins and outs of Vedanta philosophy, it tends to objectify it, enthusiastically trying to grasp its logic and its subtleties. True, there is great beauty in how the Rishis and teachers of Vedanta unfolded the teaching, but if you do not apply it to yourself, it won’t get you anywhere.

Application does not mean going back to preparatory measures, i.e. living a life of dharma, meditating, praying etc. All this has its place and can or should be maintained – but in no way it will unveil ones true nature, the Atman. Application means asking myself how what I learn from the scriptures helps me to realize who I am. 

Now, while studying there will be times, when asking questions is inappropriate. You first have to get a bigger picture, only then you can ask and apply. But this point must not be missed, otherwise absorption goes on and on, it becomes an end in itself: The mind has settled with a new object, called Self, and the seeker remains frustrated because as much as it is talked about, the Self seems to remain forever away from himself.

Western Advaitins do not study much, so they do not tend to go into this kind of trap. They have their own traps. Western Advaitins, being Western, usually have a strong sense of feasibility, i.e. if only you try enough and find the right method, you can make it work. So the idea that they are already what they seek is heard but not comprehended. It remains kind of abstract, is ignored and off we go, making enlightenment work! Most Western seekers have tried millions of different ways to try and make it work. There is so much on offer and as the Western seeker usually has no family tradition, he/she will simply try everything that possibly could help. 

A suggestion to get out of the Western trap:

You really are what you seek – all enlightened beings, whether Eastern or Western have told you – take it seriously, stick to this as fact and look at what it implies.Doing that, the frantic search for yet another method that might get you there will stop automatically. The only method needed is one that will use a tool that you already have: the mind. It has to be trained in such a way that it will assist you discovering what you look for. Fortunately such a method exists, and yes, it is called Advaita Vedanta. It’s worth to have a closer look at it!

A suggestion to get out of the Traditional trap:

If you really want to know who you are, if you really want to apply what you learn from the scriptures, you need to do practical inquiry. You will need a teacher who helps you with it and there seem to be traditional teachers who do just that. But if you have no teacher, it may be worth having a look at how some Western Advaita teachers approach their students. Because in Western Satsang teaching this is done all the time: Practical inquiry. Mind you, it will not replace the traditional teaching, but it may well change your perspective on it - enabling you to really take it to heart, instead of having to contend yourself with philosophical talk.

to be continued