Is experience of Maya necessary ?

[sadananda]

As I understand:

>>From what was written above by Shri Sadananda, is realization considered
>a discontinuous step or a gradual evolution ?

Purification is a process and steps can be imagined from the point of the
one who thinks he needs to be purified.

I can not see rope in steps - whether it is rope or it is  a snake nothing
in between.

There is however, in the process of purification, as the vision,
JNanakshashu, becomces clearer and clearer, there are clearer and clearer
visions of the truth.  This does not mean realization is in steps.  But
complete understanding or establishment that I am that occurs only once and
that is final.  As Bhagavan Ramana points out that complete surrenderence
of ego (notion that I am an individual)  occurs only once and from then on
there is no more ego to surrender.  Until then we are only threatening to
surrender - just as we sing the aarati :tanu manu dhanu subkuch teraa hai!
Scriptures say:

yadgatvaa na nivartante tad dhaama parama pada

brahmavit brahmaiva bhavati


etc. implies there is no returning back or no more misunderstanding that I
am this and that once I have realized I am
ekameva advitiiyam brahma

As you know Realization is not something objective - it is ralization that
I am not this and that but I am that Brahman.

>
>We all recognize to some extent or other that we are Brahman, except that
>feeling is not at the top of the mind when we attend to our daily duties.

We intellectually or logically appreciate the concept.  Just as our
understanding that happyness is not out there and it is within yet we go
after objects of desire to get happyness.  The understanding is also
notional not real.

> If not,
>as Shri Sadananda pointed out in that logic, realized souls may be
>very rare: and indeed there may never be.

That is the statement of Krishna too -

bahuunam janmanaamante JNanavaan mam prapadyate
vaasudev sarvamiti ...............

aascharyavat pasyati kaschidena .....
...........................
shrutvaapyenam veda nachaiva kaschit

Hari Om!
Sadananda

K. Sadananda
Code 6323
Naval Research Laboratory
Washington D.C. 20375
Voice (202)767-2117
Fax:(202)767-2623

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What you have is His gift to you and what you do with what you have is your
gift to Him: Swami Chinmayananda
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