Philosophy

On Beyond Pantheism

By Eric Platt / May 9, 2024 /

Pantheism is a mistake. Here’s a definition – one is as good as another: it’s the idea behind it that counts. And for “divinity or a supreme entity” or “God” you can substitute “consciousness” or universal consciousness, or awareness, or universal intelligence, and so forth, as those terms are used in Advaita, non-duality, spiritual wisdom traditions…

Read More

Non-Duality Is Not Spiritual

By meestereric / August 3, 2022 /

Although what we call spirituality may have something to do with nonduality, it is obvious that nonduality has nothing to do with spirituality. It’s not even an experience, and cannot be an experience, nor item of experience. Nothing can be known about it. And yet, people go to spiritual teachers, as if something can be…

Read More
Cloud vewi sunset

On Beyond UG Krishnamurti

By meestereric / November 4, 2019 /

“Pathological” – Francis Lucille, quoting his teacher Jean Klein, regarding U. G. Krishnamurti “The teaching mainly concerns the dying of the “I”, the “me”; then you are free from the psychological memory. Can this shift happen without crisis, or is crisis an element of it? In principle, there are no crises. But practically speaking there…

Read More

Kissing a Sweet Goodbye to The Three Principles

By meestereric / October 21, 2018 /

  From a recording: “If you’re listening to this in your car and you find yourself in a beautiful feeling, roll down your window, pop the tape out of the tape player, and throw it out the window. Stay with the feeling, and it will teach you everything you need to know.” ~ Sydney Banks…

Read More

There Is No Such Thing as Enlightenment

By meestereric / October 3, 2018 /

I once heard the spiritual teacher (of Advaita, Non-duality) tell his students (who he would rather refer to as “friends”): “Would you rather be enlightened, or happy? Would you rather be enlightened and unhappy, or unenlightened and happy?”. While I laughed and thought this very insightful, part of me also was taken aback: it sounded…

Read More

The Reality of Universal Consciousness

By meestereric / September 19, 2018 /

Jesus said, “I shall give you what no eye has seen and what no ear has heard and what no hand has touched and what has never occurred to the human mind.” – The Gospel of Thomas The hard thing to grasp about Universal Consciousness is that it is not something that can be sensed by…

Read More

Intuitive Intelligence

By meestereric / August 16, 2018 /

“Ordinary intelligence is a cerebral function. It appears as the faculty of adaptation and organization. It allows complex problems to be handled by bringing into play a large quantity of givens. Linked to heredity and to acquired conditioning of the brain, it operates sequentially, in time. This kind of intelligence is responsible for performing math…

Read More

The Four Seals of Buddhism and The Meaning of Ott’s Jack’s Cheese and Bread Snack Lyrics

By meestereric / July 22, 2018 /

I first heard this song about ten years ago, and loved it, and was intrigued by the lyrics. Ott – Jack’s Cheese and Bread Snack   One: All composite phenomena are impermanent. Two: All contaminated things and events are unsatisfactory. Three: All phenomena are empty and selfless. And four: Nirvana is true peace.   The…

Read More
Cloudspiration Photo © Eric Platt 2017

What is Spirituality?

By meestereric / March 29, 2018 /

  “It is not easy to find happiness in ourselves, and it is not possible to find it elsewhere”  – Agnes Repplier It’s interesting to see how much misunderstanding of the word “spirituality” there is in our culture. And, I believe the same reason that people are not truly happy is the same reason there…

Read More

Nonduality and the Three Principles Psychology as Teaching Models

By meestereric / December 27, 2017 /

An acquaintance from an online forum sent a message to me recently, with a good question about Sydney Banks, who had a large awakening experience and, eventually, inspired what became the Three Principles Psychology movement. His question was in regards to its relation to nonduality teachings (I’d sent him some articles about nonduality student’s experiences):…

Read More