Nondualism implies that things appear distinct while not being separate. The word's origin is the Latin duo meaning "two" and is used as the English translation of the Sanskrit term advaita. Latin ( lingua Latīna, laˈtiːna is an Italic language, historically spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. Sanskrit (sa संस्कृता वाक् saṃskṛtā vāk, for short sa संस्कृतम् saṃskṛtam) is a historical Advaita Vedanta ( IAST Advaita Vedānta; Sanskrit अद्वैत वेदान्त əd̪vait̪ə veːd̪ɑːnt̪ə is a sub-school of the The term can refer to a belief, condition, theory, practice, or quality. Belief is the psychological state in which an individual holds a Proposition or Premise to be true The word theory has many distinct meanings in different fields of Knowledge, depending on their methodologies and the context of discussion. In the vernacular quality can mean a high degree of excellence (“a quality product” a degree of excellence or the lack of it (“work of average quality” or a property of

Contents 1 Various usages 2 Nondualism versus monism 3 Nondualism versus solipsism 4 Nondual realization 5 Nondual religious and spiritual traditions 5.1 Advaita 5.2 Buddhism 5.3 Christianity 5.4 Gnosticism 5.5 Sufism 5.6 Taoism 6 Notable Individuals and Nondualism 6.1 Ancient and Medieval Western philosophers 6.2 Modern Western philosophers 6.3 Asian Philosophers and Teachers 6.4 Authors and musicians 6.5 Contemporary Teachers 7 Notes 8 References (Literature) 9 External links

Various usages

Nondualism may be viewed as the understanding or belief that dualism or dichotomy are illusory phenomena. Dualism denotes a state of two parts The word's origin is the Latin duo, "two". A dichotomy is any splitting of a whole into exactly two non-overlapping parts A phenomenon (from Greek φαινόμενoν, pl φαινόμενα - phenomena) is any observable occurrence Examples of dualisms include self/other, mind/body, male/female, good/evil, active/passive, dualism/nondualism and many others. Self is broadly defined as the essential qualities that make a person distinct from all others The Other or constitutive other (also referred to as othering) is a key concept in Continental philosophy, opposed to the Same MIND ( Moving In New Directions) (est 1975 is an alternative education high school in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. With regard to living things, a body is the integral physical material of an individual Male (♂ refers to the sex of an organism or part of an organism which produces small mobile Gametes called spermatozoa. Female (♀ is the Sex of an Organism, or a part of an organism which produces ova (egg cells In Religion, Ethics, and Philosophy, the phrase good and evil refers to the location of objects desires and Behaviors on a two-way Dualism denotes a state of two parts The word's origin is the Latin duo, "two". It is accessible as a belief, theory, condition, as part of a tradition, as a practice, or as the quality of union with reality.

A nondual philosophical or religious perspective or theory maintains that there is no fundamental distinction between mind and matter, or that the entire phenomenological world is an illusion (with reality being described variously as the Void, the Is, Emptiness, the mind of God, Atman or Brahman). Philosophy is the study of general problems concerning matters such as existence knowledge truth beauty justice validity mind and language A religion is a set of Tenets and practices often centered upon specific Supernatural and moral claims about Reality, the Cosmos Matter is commonly defined as being anything that has mass and that takes up space. An illusion is a distortion of the senses revealing how the Brain normally organizes and interprets sensory stimulation Reality, in everyday usage means "the state of things as they actually exist" God is the principal or sole Deity in Religions and other belief systems that worship one deity. Nontheism provides related conceptual and philosophical information. Nontheism is a term that covers a range of both religious and nonreligious attitudes characterized by the absence of&mdashor the rejection of&mdash Theism or any belief in a

Many traditions (generally originating in Asia) state that the true condition or nature of reality is nondualistic, and that these dichotomies are either unreal or (at best) inaccurate conveniences. While attitudes towards the experience of duality and self may vary, nondual traditions converge on the view that the ego, or sense of personal being, doer-ship and control, is ultimately said to be an illusion. In Spirituality, and especially nondual, mystical and eastern meditative traditions the human being is often conceived as being in the illusion of An illusion is a distortion of the senses revealing how the Brain normally organizes and interprets sensory stimulation As such many nondual traditions have significant overlap with mysticism. Mysticism (from the Greek grc μυστικός mystikos, an initiate of a Mystery religion) is the pursuit of communion with identity

Nondualism may also be viewed as a practice, namely the practice of self-inquiry into one's own being as set forth by Ramana Maharshi, which is intended to lead a person to realize the nondual nature of existence. Sri Ramana Maharshi ( December 30, 1879 – April 14, 1950) born Venkataraman Iyer, was an Indian sage

Nondualism can refer to one of two types of quality. One is the quality of union with reality, God, the Absolute. This quality is knowable and can be gained spontaneously and via practice of inquiry. A second quality is absolute by nature, or to put it in words, "conceptual absence of 'neither Yes nor No'," as Wei Wu Wei wrote. Terence James Stannus Gray ( 14 September 1895 – 5 January 1986) better known by the Pen name Wei Wu Wei This latter quality is beyond the quality of union. It may be viewed as unknowable.

Accessibility is not relevant to the second quality mentioned in the paragraph above, since, according to that quality, an essential part of its gaining includes the realisation that the entire apparent existence of the individual who would gain access to understanding nondualism is in fact merely illusional. Achieving the second of these qualities therefore implies the extinguishing of the ego-sense that was seeking it:

"What is the significance of the statement 'No one can get enlightenment"? . . . Enlightenment is the annihilation of the 'one' who 'wants' enlightenment. If there is enlightenment . . . it means that the 'one' [ie individual ego] who had earlier wanted enlightenment has been annihilated. So no 'one' can achieve enlightenment, and therefore no 'one' can enjoy enlightenment. [. . . ] if you get [a] million dollars then there will be someone [an ego-sense] to enjoy that million dollars. But if you go after enlightenment and enlightenment happens, there will be no 'one' [ie, no individual ego-sense] to enjoy enlightenment. " ^[1]

Nondualism versus monism

The Western philosophical concept monism is similar to nondualism. Monism is the metaphysical and Theological view that all is one that all reality is subsumed under the most fundamental category of being or existence Some forms of monism hold that all phenomena are actually of the same substance. Monism is the metaphysical and Theological view that all is one that all reality is subsumed under the most fundamental category of being or existence A phenomenon (from Greek φαινόμενoν, pl φαινόμενα - phenomena) is any observable occurrence Other forms of monism including attributive monism and idealism are similar concepts to nondualism. Monism is the metaphysical and Theological view that all is one that all reality is subsumed under the most fundamental category of being or existence Nondualism proper holds that different phenomena are inseparable or that there is no hard line between them, but that they are not the same. The distinction between these two types of views is considered critical in Zen, Madhyamika, and Dzogchen, all of which are nondualisms proper. Zen is a school of Mahāyāna Buddhism, referred to in Chinese as Chan. Madhyamaka ( Sanskrit: मध्यमक Madhyamaka,, Pinyin: Zhōngguānzōng; also known as Śunyavada) is a Buddhist According to some schools of Tibetan Buddhism and Bön, Dzogchen is the natural primordial state or natural condition of every sentient Being Some later philosophical approaches also attempt to undermine traditional dichotomies, with the view they are fundamentally invalid or inaccurate. For example, one typical form of deconstruction is the critique of binary oppositions within a text while problematization questions the context or situation in which concepts such as dualisms occur. Deconstruction is a term used in Philosophy, Literary criticism, and the Social sciences, popularised through its usage by Jacques Derrida in To problematize (or problematise) is to propose problems Problematizing (or problematising) a term, Writing, Opinion

Nondualism versus solipsism

Nondualism superficially resembles solipsism, but from a nondual perspective solipsism mistakenly fails to consider subjectivity itself. Solipsism ( Latin: solus, alone + ipse, self is the philosophical idea that "My mind is the only thing that I know exists Subjectivity refers to a subject's perspective particularly feelings beliefs and desires Upon careful examination of the referent of "I," i. Philosophy of language is the reasoned inquiry into the nature origins and usage of Language. I (aɪ is the first-person, singular Personal pronoun ( subject case) in Modern English. e. one's status as a separate observer of the perceptual field, one finds that one must be in as much doubt about it, too, as solipsists are about the existence of other minds and the rest of "the external world. The problem of other minds has traditionally been regarded as an Epistemological challenge raised by the Skeptic. " (One way to see this is to consider that, due to the conundrum posed by one's own subjectivity becoming a perceptual object to itself, there is no way to validate one's "self-existence" except through the eyes of others -- the independent existence of which is already solipsistically suspect!) Nondualism ultimately suggests that the referent of "I" is in fact an artificial construct (merely the border separating "inner" from "outer," in a sense), the transcendence of which constitutes enlightenment. Self-concept or self identity refers to the global understanding a sentient being has of him or herself Philosophy of language is the reasoned inquiry into the nature origins and usage of Language. I (aɪ is the first-person, singular Personal pronoun ( subject case) in Modern English. In Indian religions, Moksha ( Sanskrit: sa मोक्ष mokṣa) or Mukti ( Sanskrit: sa मुक्ति literally "release" In sramanic philosophy Nirvana (निर्वाण| Nirvāṇa; निब्बान Nibbāna; Prakrit: णिव्वाण

Nondual realization

To the Nondualist, reality is ultimately neither physical nor mental. Instead, it is an ineffable state or realization. To say that something is " ineffable " means that it cannot or should not be expressed in spoken words (as with the concept of true love or some Taboo) This ultimate reality can be called "Spirit" (Sri Aurobindo), "Brahman" (Shankara), "God", "Shunyata" (Emptiness), "The One" (Plotinus), "The Self" (Ramana Maharshi), "The Dao" (Lao Zi), "The Absolute" (Schelling) or simply "The Nondual" (F. H. Bradley). The English word " spirit " comes from the Latin " spiritus " (breath Sri Aurobindo (শ্রী অরবিন্দ Sri Ôrobindo) ( August 15, 1872 – December 5, 1950) was an Indian Brahman ( bráhman-, Nominative bráhma sa ब्रह्म is a concept of Hinduism. God is the principal or sole Deity in Religions and other belief systems that worship one deity. Plotinus ( Greek:) (ca AD 204–270 was a major philosopher of the ancient world who is widely considered the founder of Neoplatonism (along with his Sri Ramana Maharshi ( December 30, 1879 – April 14, 1950) born Venkataraman Iyer, was an Indian sage Tao ( 道, Pinyin Dào) is a metaphysical concept found in Taoism, Confucianism, and more generally in ancient Chinese philosophy Laozi ( also Lao Tse, Lao-Tzu, Laotze, Lao Zi, Laocius, and other variations was a philosopher of ancient Francis Herbert Bradley ( 30 January, 1846 &ndash 18 September, 1924) was a British idealist Philosopher. Ram Dass calls it the "third plane"—any phrase will be insufficient, he maintains, so any phrase will do. The theory of Sri Aurobindo has been described as Integral advaita. Sri Aurobindo (শ্রী অরবিন্দ Sri Ôrobindo) ( August 15, 1872 – December 5, 1950) was an Indian

It should be pointed out that technically, there can be no such thing as a nondual perspective or theory or experience, only a realization of Oneness or nonduality. Perspective in theory of Cognition is the choice of a context or a Reference (or the result of this choice from which to Sense, Categorize The word theory has many distinct meanings in different fields of Knowledge, depending on their methodologies and the context of discussion. Experience as a general concept comprises Knowledge of or skill in or Observation of some thing or some event gained through involvement in or One cannot accurately claim to experience nonduality, because the concept of experience depends on the subject-object distinction, which is a duality. The subject-object problem is a longstanding philosophical issue In Philosophy of mind, dualism is a set of views about the relationship between mind and matter which begins with the claim that mental phenomena are in some In Philosophy of mind, dualism is a set of views about the relationship between mind and matter which begins with the claim that mental phenomena are in some The subject experiences an object, which is something separate from the subject. This is incompatible with a truly nondual realization. Thus, technically, there cannot truly be an accurate verbal account of this union, only words that insufficiently point to the realization.

Ken Wilber comments^[2] that nondual traditions:

". Kenneth Earl "Ken" Wilber Jr (b January 31, 1949, Oklahoma City, U . . are more interested in pointing out the Nondual state of Suchness, which is not a discreet state of awareness but the ground or empty condition of all states. . . [They] have an enormous number of these 'pointing out instructions', where they simply point out what is already happening in your awareness, anyway. Every experience you have is already nondual, whether you realize it or not. So it is not necessary for you to change your state of consciousness in order to discover this nonduality. Any state of consciousness you have will do just fine, because nonduality is fully present in each state. . . recognition is the point. Recognition of what always already is the case. Change of state is useless, a distraction. . . subject and object are actually one and you simply need to recognize this. . . you already have everything in consciousness that is required. You are looking right at the answer. . . but you don't recognize [it]. Someone comes along and points [it] out, and you slap your head and say, Yes I was looking right at it. . . "

Nisargadatta Maharaj, when asked how to tell when someone is approaching this understanding, commented:^[3]

"Even then it is a concept again. Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj (birth name Maruti Shivrampant Kambli ( April 17, 1897 – September 8, 1981) was an Indian But I give you a criterion by which one can sort of judge something. When a stage is reached that one feels deeply that whatever is being done is happening and one has not got anything to do with it, then it becomes such a deep conviction that whatever is happening is not happening really. And that whatever seems to be happening is also an illusion. That may be final. In other words, totally apart from whatever seems to be happening, when one stops thinking that one is living, and gets the feeling that one is being lived, that whatever one is doing one is not doing but one is made to do, then that is a sort of criterion. "

Further comprehensive definitions of the nondual world view are given in the articles on Ramesh Balsekar and Nisargadatta Maharaj. Ramesh S Balsekar (born May 29 1917 is a disciple of the late Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj, a renowned Advaita master Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj (birth name Maruti Shivrampant Kambli ( April 17, 1897 – September 8, 1981) was an Indian

Nondual religious and spiritual traditions

Advaita

Advaita (Sanskrit a, not; dvaita, dual) is a nondual tradition from India, with Advaita Vedanta, a branch of Hinduism, as its philosophical arm. Advaita Vedanta ( IAST Advaita Vedānta; Sanskrit अद्वैत वेदान्त əd̪vait̪ə veːd̪ɑːnt̪ə is a sub-school of the India, officially the Republic of India (भारत गणराज्य inc-Latn Bhārat Gaṇarājya; see also other Indian languages) is a country Advaita Vedanta ( IAST Advaita Vedānta; Sanskrit अद्वैत वेदान्त əd̪vait̪ə veːd̪ɑːnt̪ə is a sub-school of the Hinduism is a religious tradition that originated in the Indian subcontinent. The theory was first consolidated by Sri Adi Shankaracharya in the 8th century AD. Adi Shankara ( Malayalam: ആദി ശങ്കരന്‍ Devanāgarī: आदि शङ्कर Ādi Śaṅkara, aːd̪i ɕaŋkərə (see below Most smarthas are adherents to this theory of the nature of the soul (Brahman). Smartism (or Smarta Sampradaya, Smarta Tradition, as termed in Sanskrit) is a denomination of the Hindu Brahman ( bráhman-, Nominative bráhma sa ब्रह्म is a concept of Hinduism.

According to Ramana Maharshi, the jnani (one who has realised the Self) sees no individual ego, and does not regard himself (or anyone else) as a "doer" of actions. Sri Ramana Maharshi ( December 30, 1879 – April 14, 1950) born Venkataraman Iyer, was an Indian sage The state of recognition is called jnana which means "knowledge" or "wisdom" referring to the idea that in this state of being, one is constantly aware of the Self. Jñāna (also spelled Gñāna; Devanagari ज्ञान is the Sanskrit term for Knowledge or Philosophy. Bob Adamson (Melbourne, Australia), once a student of Nisargadatta Maharaj, who belonged to the Navanath Sampradaya lineage, says that a 'Jnani' is the 'knowing presence' which abides with all (of us) yet this knowing is seemingly covered over by identification with the 'minds content'. Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj (birth name Maruti Shivrampant Kambli ( April 17, 1897 – September 8, 1981) was an Indian Ramesh Balsekar comments that it is in order for phenomenae to occur, that the illusion of personal existence and doer-ship (ego) is present:

"Consciousness-at-rest is not aware of Itself. Ramesh S Balsekar (born May 29 1917 is a disciple of the late Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj, a renowned Advaita master It becomes aware of Itself only when this sudden feeling, I-am, arises, the impersonal sense of being aware. And that is when Consciousness-at-rest becomes Consciousness-in-movement, Potential energy becomes actual energy. They are not two. Nothing separate comes out of Potential energy. . . That moment that science calls the Big Bang, the mystic calls the sudden arising of awareness. . . "

However, teachers like Adamson point to the fact that the content of the mind is known, recognized by a presence or awareness that is independent of the mind's content. Adamson teaches that we form an identity based on the content of the mind (feelings, sensations, hopes, dreams, thoughts), however our true identity or nature is that which observes all of these things - the seer, the witness or the Self.

Buddhism

All schools of Buddhism teach No-Self (Pali anatta, Sanskrit anatman). Pali ( ISO 15919 / ALA-LC: Pāḷi is a Middle Indo-Aryan language or Prakrit of India. In Buddhist philosophy, anatta ( Pāli) or anātman ( Sanskrit) refers to the notion of "not-self" Sanskrit (sa संस्कृता वाक् saṃskṛtā vāk, for short sa संस्कृतम् saṃskṛtam) is a historical No-Self in Buddhism is the Non-Duality of Subject and Object, which is very explicitly stated by the Buddha in verses such as “In seeing, there is just seeing. No seer and nothing seen. In hearing, there is just hearing. No hearer and nothing heard. ”. Non-Duality in Buddhism does not constitute merging with a supreme Brahman, but realising that the duality of a self/subject/agent/watcher/doer in relation to the object/world is an illusion.

In the Mahayana Buddhist canon, the Diamond Sutra presents an accessible nondual view of "self" and "beings", while the Heart Sutra asserts shunyata — the "emptiness" of all "things" and simultaneously the "thingness" of all "emptiness". Mahayana ( Sanskrit: mahāyāna, Devanagari: महायान 'Great Vehicle' is one of the two main existing schools of Buddhism and a term for Buddhism is a family of beliefs and practices The Diamond Sutra is a short Mahayana Sutra of the Perfection of Wisdom genre which teaches the practice of the avoidance of abiding in extremes The Heart of Perfect Wisdom Sutra or Heart Sutra or Essence of Wisdom Sutra ( Sanskrit: प्रज्ञापारमिताहृदयसूत्र The Lotus Sutra's parable of the Burning House implies that all talk of Duality or Non-Duality by Buddhas and Bodhisattvas is merely Skillful Means (Sanskrit upaya kausala) meant to lead the deluded to a much higher truth. The Lotus Sutra or Sutra on the White Lotus of the Sublime Dharma (Sanskrit sa सद्धर्मपुण्डरीकसूत्र Saddharma Upaya ( Sanskrit: उपाय "Expedient Means" is a term in Mahayana Buddhism which comes from the word upa√i and refers to something The fullest philosophical exposition is the Madhyamaka; by contrast many laconic pronouncements are delivered as koans. Madhyamaka ( Sanskrit: मध्यमक Madhyamaka,, Pinyin: Zhōngguānzōng; also known as Śunyavada) is a Buddhist Advanced views and practices are found in the Mahamudra and Maha Ati, which emphasize the vividness and spaciousness of nondual awareness. Mahamudra (Sanskrit Mahāmudrā, Tibetan Chagchen, Wylie phyag chen, contraction of Chagya Chenpo, Wylie phyag rgya chen po) literally means Maha Ati is one sub-division of the nine yanas taught by the Nyingma school of Tibetan Buddhism.

Mahayana Buddhism, in particular, tempers the view of nonduality (wisdom) with respect for the experience of duality (compassion) — ordinary dualistic experience, populated with selves and others (sentient beings), is tended with care, always "now". This approach is itself regarded as a means to disperse the confusions of duality (i. e. as a path). In Theravada, that respect is expressed cautiously as non-harming, while in the Vajrayana, it is expressed boldly as enjoyment (especially in tantra). History Origin of the school The Theravāda school is ultimately derived from the Vibhajjavāda (or 'doctrine of analysis' grouping which was a continuation Vajrayana Buddhism is also known as Tantric Buddhism, Tantrayāna, Mantrayana, Mantranaya, Secret Mantra, Esoteric Buddhism and Tantra ( Sanskrit: तन्त्र; " Weave " denoting continuity) tantricism or tantrism is any of several esoteric

Dzogchen is a relatively esoteric (to date) tradition concerned with the "natural state", and emphasizing direct experience. According to some schools of Tibetan Buddhism and Bön, Dzogchen is the natural primordial state or natural condition of every sentient Being This tradition is found in the Nyingma tradition of Tibetan Buddhism, where it is classified as the highest of this lineage's nine yanas, or vehicles of practice. The Nyingma tradition is the oldest of the four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism (the other three being the Kagyu, Sakya and Gelug) Tibetan Buddhism is the body of Buddhist religious doctrine and institutions characteristic of Tibet and certain regions of the Himalayas, including Similar teachings are also found in the non-Buddhist Bön tradition. Bön ( is the oldest spiritual tradition of Tibet. Tenzin Gyatso, the fourteenth Dalai Lama, has recognized the Bön tradition as the fifth principal spiritual In Dzogchen, the primordial state, the state of nondual awareness, is called rigpa. Rigpa (Tibetan Sanskrit Vidya) is the primordial nondual awareness advocated by the Dzogchen and Mahamudra teachings

The Dzogchen practitioner realizes that appearance and emptiness are inseparable. According to some schools of Tibetan Buddhism and Bön, Dzogchen is the natural primordial state or natural condition of every sentient Being One must transcend dualistic thoughts to perceive the true nature of one's pure mind. This primordial nature is clear light, unproduced and unchanging, free from all defilements. One's ordinary mind is caught up in dualistic conceptions, but the pure mind is unafflicted by delusions. Through meditation, the Dzogchen practitioner experiences that thoughts have no substance. According to some schools of Tibetan Buddhism and Bön, Dzogchen is the natural primordial state or natural condition of every sentient Being Mental phenomena arise and fall in the mind, but fundamentally they are empty. The practitioner then considers where the mind itself resides. The mind can not exist in the ever-changing external phenomena and through careful examination one realizes that the mind is emptiness. All dualistic conceptions disappear with this understanding. ^[4]

Zen is a non-dual tradition. Zen is a school of Mahāyāna Buddhism, referred to in Chinese as Chan. It can be considered a religion, a philosophy, or simply a practice depending on one's perspective. It has also been described as a way of life, work, and an art form. Zen practitioners deny the usefulness of such labels, calling them, "The finger pointing at the moon. " Tozan, one of the founders of Soto Zen in China, had a teaching known as the Five Ranks of the Real and the Ideal, which points out the necessity of not getting caught in a dualism between duality and non-duality, and describes the stages of further transcendence. Tung-shan Liang-chieh ( Japanese Tōzan Ryōkai) ( 806 - 869) was an ancient Chinese Ch'an ( Zen, Jap Sōtō-shū ( Japanese: 曹洞宗 Cáodòngzōng is one of the two major Sino - Japanese Zen sects (the other being Rinzai) Naturally, many in the Zen schools became bogged down in this text, so that later masters, notably Dogen Zenji ^[5], were quite scathing about such errors.

Christianity

The God of traditional Christianity is absolute and infinite. Christianity ( Greek Χριστιανισμός from the word Xριστός ( Christ)is a monotheistic Religion centered on the life and teachings The devil or adversary is an opposing character, but is subordinate to God. The Devil is the The Christian faith thus does not consider the duality of good and evil to be two equal and opposing forces. Mystical Christianity can be entirely non-dual, as in the teachings of Meister Eckhart or St. John of the Cross, among others. Meister Eckhart OP (c 1260–c 1328 is the most common formula used to refer to Eckhart von Hochheim, a German theologian For another saint who lived around the same time and area see John of Avila.

A Course in Miracles or ACIM is a modern day Christian non-dualistic teaching. A Course in Miracles (also referred to as ACIM or the Course) written by Dr This tradition states, "Nothing real can be threatened. Nothing unreal exists. Herein lies the peace of God. "^[6]

Christian Science might also qualify as non-dualistic. Christian Science is believed by its supporters to be a system of spiritually scientific truths which are summed up in the two commandments having one God one Mind one Life Truth In a glossary of terms written by the founder, Mary Baker Eddy, matter is defined as illusion and when defining individual identity she writes "There is but one I, or Us, but one divine Principle, or Mind, governing all existence". ^[7]

Gnosticism

Since its beginning, Gnosticism has been characterized by many dualisms and dualities, including the doctrine of a separate God and Manichaean (good/evil) dualism. Gnosticism (γνώσις gnōsis, Knowledge) refers to a diverse Syncretistic Religious movement consisting of various Belief systems Doctrine (Latin doctrina) is a codification of beliefs or "a body of teachings quot or "instructions" taught principles or positions as the Manichaeism (in Modern Persian fa-Arab آیین مانی Āyin e Māni; Chinese zh 摩尼教 was one of the major Gnostic Religions originating The discovery in 1945 of the Gospel of Thomas, however, has led some scholars to believe that Jesus' original teaching may have been one accurately characterized as nondualism. The Gospel According to Thomas ( Coptic: ⲡⲉ̅ⲩ̅ⲁ̅ⲅⲅ̅ⲉⲗ̅ⲓⲟⲛ̅ ⲡⲕ̅ⲁ̅ⲧⲁ ⲑ̅ⲱ̅ⲙⲁⲥ also known as The Gospel ^[8]

The Gospel of Philip, another of the Apocryphal books, also conveys nondualism:

"Light and Darkness, life and death, right and left, are brothers of one another. The Gospel of Philip is one of the Gnostic Gospels, a text of New Testament Apocrypha, dating back to around the third century but lost to modern researchers They are inseparable. Because of this neither are the good good, nor evil evil, nor is life life, nor death death. For this reason each one will dissolve into its earliest origin. But those who are exalted above the world are indissoluble, eternal. " ^[9]

Sufism

Sufism (Arabic تصوف taṣawwuf, meaning "Mysticism") is often considered a mystical tradition of Islam. Sufism ( تصوّف - taṣawwuf, Persian: صوفی‌گری sufigari, Turkish: tasavvuf, Urdu: تصوف For other meanings including people named 'Islam' see Islam (disambiguation. There are a number of different Sufi orders that follow the teachings of particular spiritual masters, but the bond that unites all Sufis is the concept of ego annihilation (removal of the subject/object dichotomy between humankind and the divine) through various spiritual exercises and a persistent, ever-increasing longing for union with the divine. "The goal," as Reza Aslan writes, "is to create an inseparable union between the individual and the Divine. Dr Reza Aslan ( born 1972 in Tehran, Iran), is an Iranian-American Muslim writer and scholar of religions "

The central doctrine of Sufism, sometimes called Wahdat-ul-Wujood or Wahdat al-Wujud or Unity of Being, is the Sufi understanding of Tawhid (the oneness of God; absolute monotheism). Sufism ( تصوّف - taṣawwuf, Persian: صوفی‌گری sufigari, Turkish: tasavvuf, Urdu: تصوف Major ideas in Sufi metaphysics have surrounded the concept of Wahdat or "Unity" Put very simply, for Sufis, Tawhid implies that all phenomena are manifestations of a single reality, or Wujud (being), which is indeed al-Haq (Truth, God). The essence of Being/Truth/God is devoid of every form and quality, and hence unmanifest, yet it is inseparable from every form and phenomenon, either material or spiritual. It is often understood to imply that every phenomenon is an aspect of Truth and at the same time attribution of existence to it is false. The chief aim of all Sufis then is to let go of all notions of duality (and therefore of the individual self also), and realize the divine unity which is considered to be the truth.

Jalal ad-Din Muhammad Rumi, (1207-1273), one of the most famous Sufi masters and poets, has written that what humans perceive as duality is in fact a veil, masking the reality of the Oneness of existence. "All desires, preferences, affections, and loves people have for all sorts of things," he writes, are veils. He continues: "When one passes beyond this world and sees that Sovereign (God) without these 'veils,' then one will realize that all those things were 'veils' and 'coverings' and that what they were seeking was in reality that One. " The veils, or rather, duality, exists for a purpose, however, Rumi contends. If God as the divine, singular essence of all existence were to be made fully manifest to us, he counsels, we would not be able to bear it and would immediately cease to exist as individuals.

Taoism

Taoism's wu wei (Chinese wu, not; wei, doing) is a term with various translations (e. Taoism (pronounced /ˈdaʊɪzəm/ or /ˈtaʊɪzəm/ also spelled '''Daoism''') refers to a variety of related Philosophical and Religious traditions g. inaction, non-action, nothing doing, without ado) and interpretations designed to distinguish it from passivity. From a nondual perspective, it refers to activity that does not imply an "I". The concept of Yin and Yang, often mistakenly conceived of as a symbol of dualism, is actually meant to convey the notion that all apparent opposites are complementary parts of a non-dual whole. In Chinese philosophy, the concept of yin and yang ( is used to describe how seemingly opposing forces are bound together intertwined and interdependent in the

Notable Individuals and Nondualism

The following is a list of individual thinkers, philosophers, writers, artists and so on who's works express a notable degree of nondualism. Not all individuals in this list self identify as presenting nonduality. They come from different religious, political and cultural traditions.

Ancient and Medieval Western philosophers

• Plotinus
• Parmenides
• Heraclitus
• Hildegard of Bingen
• Mechthild of Magdeburg
• Meister Eckhart
• John of the Cross
• Teresa of Avila

Modern Western philosophers

• Baruch Spinoza
• Friedrich Schelling
• Georg Hegel
• Ralph Waldo Emerson
• Mary Baker Eddy
• Friedrich Nietzsche
• F. H. Bradley
• William James
• A.N. Whitehead
• Buckminster Fuller
• Bertrand Russell

Asian Philosophers and Teachers

• Nagarjuna
• Shankaracharya
• Ramana Maharshi
• Nisargadatta Maharaj
• Ramesh Balsekar
• Jiddu Krishnamurti
• Lao Tzu
• Gaudapada
• Yajnavalkya
• Bhartrhari
• Meher Baba
• Chuang Tzu
• Swami Vivekananda
• Ramakrishna
• Maharishi Mahesh Yogi
• H. W. L. Poonja
• Rajneesh
• Wang Yangming
• Wang Fuzhi
• Yi I
• Kaibara Ekken

Authors and musicians

• Herman Melville
• Richard Bach
• Aldous Huxley
• Stuart Davis
• Kahlil Gibran
• Alan Watts
• Neale Donald Walsch

Contemporary Teachers

• Adi Da
• Adyashanti
• Eckhart Tolle
• Ken Wilber
• Richard Rose^[10]
• Byron Katie^[11]
• Gangaji^[12]

Notes

References (Literature)

• Baleskar, Ramesh (1999). Who cares?
• Castaneda, Carlos (1987). The Power of Silence. New York: Simon and Schuster. ISBN 0-671-50067-8.
• Downing, Jerry N. (2000) Between Conviction and Uncertainty ISBN 0-79144-627-1
• Godman, David (Ed. ) (1985). Be As You Are: The Teachings of Sri Ramana Maharshi. London: Arkana. ISBN 0-14-019062-7.
• Hawkins, David R. (October 2006). Discovery of the Presence of God: Devotional Nonduality. Sedona, Arizona: Veritas Publishing. ISBN 0-9715007-6-2 (Softcover); ISBN 0-9715007-7-0 (Hardcover)
• Jeon, Arthur (2004) City Dharma: Keeping Your Cool in the Chaos ISBN 1-40004-908-3
• Katz, Jerry (Ed. ) (2007). One: Essential Writings on Nonduality. Boulder, CO: Sentient Publications. ISBN 1591810531.
• Kent, John (1990) Richard Rose's Psychology of the Observer: The Path to Reality Through the Self PhD Thesis
• Klein, Anne Carolyn (1995). Meeting the Great Bliss Queen: Buddhists, Feminists, and the Art of the Self. Boston, Beacon Press. ISBN 0-8070-7306-7.
• Kongtrül, Jamgön (1992). Cloudless Sky: The Mahamudra Path of The Tibetan Buddhist Kagyü School. Boston: Shambhala Publications. ISBN 0-87773-694-4.
• Lama, Dalai (2000). Dzogchen: The Heart Essence of the Great Perfection. Ithaca: Snow Lion Publications. ISBN 1-55939-157-X.
• Norbu, Namkhai (1993). The Crystal and the Way of Light: Sutra, Tantra and Dzogchen. London: Arkana. ISBN 0-14-019314-6.
• Schucman, Helen (1992) "A Course In Miracles". Foundation for Inner Peace, pg. 1. ISBN 0-9606388-9-X.
• Trungpa, Chögyam (1987). Cutting Through Spiritual Materialism. Boston: Shambhala Publications. ISBN 0-87773-050-4.
• Watson, Burton (Trans. ) (1968). The Complete Works of Chuang Tzu. New York: Columbia University Press. ISBN 0-231-03147-5.

External links

Nondualism at the Open Directory Project

The Open Directory Project ( ODP) also known as dmoz (from directory

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