Shanmugam

You are welcome . Thank you for the wishes.

Thank you for mentioning about the movie 'The man who knew infinity'... I would love to watch that movie .. It sounds interesting

@vizual No need to be so serious about words. There is a chapter in my book "Problem with words" which addresses exactly that. The title for my book means just that. No need to over complicate it. . I chose that title because I have worked on separating facts from myths (in the light of my own experience) and put together in a book.

Once you have read the book, consider leaving a honest review about the book in Amazon. I will appreciate it very much. It will help me to reach more people. My main intention is to raise the awareness in bridging science and spirituality and in separating facts from myths.. One of the forum users messaged me saying that he couldn't download it. If anyone has any problem, let me know. Also, you don't have to have a kindle device to read the book. Amazon has kindle apps for iphone and android. If you have android for example, just download the kindle app from playstore and search for the book title in the kindle app. You will need to create a free account in Amazon if you don't have one. Then you can download it for free until 28th November..

Just yesterday I was reading about makyo. It needs to be talked about here since a lot of people take it very seriously.. Makyō refers to the hallucinations and perceptual distortions that can arise during the course of meditation and can be mistaken by the practitioner as "seeing the true nature" or kenshō. Zen masters warn their meditating students to ignore sensory distortions. -wiki That is exactly what some people here in this forum seem to experience.

@Hsinav https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scientific_journal https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_scientific_journals https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Academic_publishing

@blazed Thank you Actually, I haven't talked about him except in a couple of paragraphs from a chapter which narrates my own story.

Thank you "This inspires me to step-up my own writing too." - Go for it! I wish you all the best...

There are two questions that are raised here: 1) Does water have memory? 2) Is there a scientific evidence for water memory? First, let us recognize both these as two different questions. I am not going to talk about the first question because it has been already discussed here. But I know the definite answer to the second question. There is no scientific evidence for water memory. I actually answered a question in Quora regarding Sadhguru's talk on water memory: https://www.quora.com/What-are-scientists’-opinions-on-Sadhguru-Jaggi-Vasudevs-IIT-Madras-talk-about-water-having-memory-and-his-abilities-to-manipulate-its-taste-via-telekinesis/answer/Shanmugam-P-12?srid=hJCJi In that answer, I have explained how science works and have talked about almost all the popular studies done on water memory.

The promotion is live now..

Four noble truths of Buddhism: 1) Life is suffering (a mundane human life is prone to suffering) or dissatisfaction 2)Craving is the cause of suffering (wishing things to be different from the way they are, for example) 3)Cessation of suffering is possible 4)Noble eight fold path is a way to end suffering Thats it! This is the essence of what Buddha taught! @egoless Buddha didn't ask anyone to believe in anything; At the same time he said that you should trust that spiritual path will work. Trust is the right word here, rather than belief. Buddha listed 'doubt in eight fold path' as one of the fetters or obstacles for enlightenment: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fetter_(Buddhism) The same concept is also there is Vedanta. Shraddha (faith in the path) is one of the prerequisites to spiritual practice. So yes, even though you don't have to believe in anything, you still need to trust that the path will work.. There is no other way. When there is doubt, you can't engage in spiritual practice with full involvement or dedication... People search for cessation of suffering as soon as they realize the underlying dissatisfaction in life. This is what happened to Buddha. Buddha's dad provided him with all the pleasures of life and made sure that he never hears about anyone falling sick or dying. Because, some astrologers told Buddha's dad that he may become a monk in the future. So, his dad made sure that the thought of becoming a monk never enters his mind. Buddha obviously got enough of pleasures in life. One day he witnessed a dead body, sick man and and ill man which he had never seen before. Once he saw all that, he understood that suffering is completely unavoidable. He renounced everything for enlightenment and left his palace. Let me tell you something; there is nothing called truth of universe or secret of reality that you will discover just because you are enlightened. The word 'truth' in the context of enlightenment has been completely misunderstood and distorted, which makes a lot of people to fool themselves. No matter how much you try, 99% of secrets of universe cannot be known. That is existence. universe is so vast, so huge. Even our planet earth looks like a small dot when you see it from pluto, Imagine about all the galaxies of the universe! Existence is a mystery. As Osho said 'life is not a problem to be solved but a mystery to be lived'.. Buddha didn't give a damn about the secrets of universe or origin of universe. check https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Noble_Silence . Looks like a lot of people in the forum are more enlightened that Buddha. If people are in the pursuit of knowing the so called truth of reality, then good luck. . When Vedanta says absolute truth, it is not talking about some secret, a mystical knowledge, seeing visions, UFOs, aliens f**king each other etc... It is talking about something self-evident, something so close right now, this very minute.. It is talking about the witness, which remains constant. That is the definition of reality, that which doesn't change. This word 'truth' has been misunderstood and distorted by fake gurus who just wanted to gain money, power and followers. Every human being has a little bit of fantasy prone personality. Some people have that trait more than others. I am also one of the people who had such a fantasy prone personality. There was a time when i honestly believed i had psychic powers. By the way, whether psychic powers are real or not is not the point; it is irrelevant to enlightenment. If you are curious about the secrets behind the universe or interested in psychic powers, that's fine.. but that is not the search for enlightenment. That is just a curiosity of a typical human mind. There is nothing wrong in it. It is fun, interesting but it is not related to spiritual path. Enlightenment is the longing for fulfillment. after enlightenment, you actually feel boundless. It is experiential. You don't feel like you are shrunk or diminished in anyway. you don't feel like there is something that is lacking. There is absolute acceptance, peace and it is seriously, honestly indescribable.There is absolutely NO way to imagine how it feels, if you are still living in the duality. It is very simple, natural, authentic, conflict-less, guilt free and innocent way of experiencing the reality. You become a kid again!

No!!! (Pun intended ) Here is a list of sages: Amanda Sage, American born painter based in Vienna Andrew P. Sage, American systems engineer Anna Sage, alias of Ana Cumpănaş, brothel owner in Chicago Angie Sage, English author Bill Sage (born 1962), American actor Chauncey S. Sage (1816–1890), New York assemblyman George Sage (disambiguation), several people Greg Sage, American rock musician Harry Sage, American Major League Baseball catcher ........................................... All you have to do is marry someone whose last name is 'sage'. Both men and women can change their last name after marriage. Then you will be known as Mr.sage or Mrs.Sage Ok. now on a serious note.. Sage is a title given by others. You can earn that title without losing yourself, without going through a death of you as a person. You can even earn that title using deception. You can appear like a sage on the outside and earn the title too! But enlightenment is not given by others.. it is something that you have to die for... Even then, you don't get enlightened, you simply disappear!

They want to do something with the rest of their lives.. Among everything that can be done to spend the rest of their living, the subject of enlightenment sticks out like a sore thumb. One day they start to think, 'If I don't tell them, who would tell them? so let me give a try'... This is how the whole thing starts. They are not really very serious. They just play with their lives, like anybody else who is enlightened.

@iTommy The journey to enlightenment or spiritual seeking can't be forced. You can't convince him in anyway. When I first talked about enlightenment in 2002 to a friend, the only question that he asked me was 'What is the use of enlightenment?'... I read a few passages from Osho's books everyday to him and he was impressed with Osho. He also started to accept that enlightenment is true. But he himself never got interest to seek. That doesn't mean your friend is ignorant, foolish or close minded. He is enjoying his dreams. It is his right. Existence doesn't need any missionary for enlightenment. Once a person comes to a point where he is totally frustrated about the everyday life, the repeated thought patterns and tendencies of the mind, he will start searching on his own. Such a person will always find help in someway. To my knowledge, existence has never forsaken anybody who is ready; it always provides him with some help. If you still want to try, then give him a book instead of trying to explain it on your own. Try 'The Power of Now' , or Osho's 'Meditation - The first and last freedom' which you can download for free here: https://www.oshorajneesh.com/download/osho-books/Meditation/Meditation_The_First_And_Last_Freedom.pdf If he is very skeptical about the whole thing, then give him Sam Harris's 'Waking up: Spirituality without religion"

Read this: https://www.quora.com/How-many-enlightened-persons-has-Isha-Foundation-produced-through-its-methods/answer/Shanmugam-P-12

I don't want to be certain about anyone's enlightenment, including whatever hell that happened to me because the word 'enlightenment' doesn't really have a single definition. "The fact that Sadhguru's way of expressing does not resonate means nothing." - Actually, it resonated with me before I went through a transformation .. I didn't resonate with me after that. Because, I could see him in a totally different way after the transformation. This time there was nothing to lose. Let me repeat what I said in one of my posts: One thing that always makes me smile whenever someone objects to any criticism I have about him is this: The response would be exactly similar to how I myself would have responded a few years ago.. Read this first: https://www.quora.com/What-do-you-think-of-Sadhguru-Jaggi-Vasudev/answer/Shanmugam-P-12 You said 'Plus we don't know what happens in deepest levels of realization and understanding'... First, you don't know what is going to happen to you, what kind of mindset you have and what you will think about Sadhguru after 13 years.. I didn't know that either, 13 years before... And trust me, I would have said the same thing that you just said in your reply.. Anyway, I appreciate that you consider all the possibilities, as you said "There could be several reasons. One - He is in more deeper understanding than you. Two - yes you are right. Three - you are wrong about your " Enlightenment".. Some people dont even do that, they just cling to one possibility. Anyway, I know it is very hard to convince someone who thinks Sadhguru is speaking the truth... People couldn't convince me either, 5 years before...

"we don't know what happens in deepest levels of realization " We? How did you assume that I don' know what happens in deepest levels of realization? If you don't know, just say you don't know...Don't say we don't know. You would never know who the other person you are talking to is, especially when we are miles away... One thing that always makes me smile whenever someone objects to any criticism I have about him is this: The response would be exactly similar to how I myself would have responded a few years ago.. As I said in the previous post, I know one thing about Sadhguru for sure..He doesn't hesitate to lie as much as he wants and almost 90% of what he says about him are lies.. Do you know what is begging the question? Here is an example: "Person A: Bible is infallible. Person B: Where is the proof for that? Person A: Bible says so" This is exactly what is happening with people who are listening to Sadhguru. First they conclude he is enlightened. Then they will analyse whatever he says with the premise that he is already enlightened.They never question the premise.. It is very difficult, because I know that I didn't question the premise either, for about 12 years. In the other thread you asked how is it possible for a person to be so insightful if he is not enlightened.. Yes, it is possible. You can get a certain clarity by just walking few miles on the path. Just go through a few deep spiritual experiences and get some insight about your mind, you will sound brilliant. But, you will mislead people if you talk about enlightenment. Sadhguru is an imitation of Osho. There is an organization called Osho Sannidhi right at the bottom of Chamundi hills. It sells Osho's books. I have heard from people that he used to buy Osho's books there and go to the top of Chamundi hill for reading. I am not sure if you read the other link I gave you. If not then read it word by word, till the bottom. Here is the link again: https://www.quora.com/What-do-you-think-of-Sadhguru-Jaggi-Vasudev/answer/Shanmugam-P-12

I don't have the link to the full video, but I came across this video which includes the clip where he said he could do it: a

I haven't heard him saying that could levitate or walk through walls .. But I have heard him saying many things similar.. 1) In his biography, it is mentioned that he could see through people's clothes. 2) He once said that he held a cup of water for two minutes and the water tasted sweet: https://www.quora.com/What-are-scientists’-opinions-on-Sadhguru-Jaggi-Vasudevs-IIT-Madras-talk-about-water-having-memory-and-his-abilities-to-manipulate-its-taste-via-telekinesis/answer/Shanmugam-P-12 3) He said in a video that he has the ability to predict future.. 4) He has claimed many other things like ability to control disembodied beings, ability to see auras, even making choices for other people regarding their next birth etc.. I know him for the past 13 years.. And I doubt that anyone else here in this forum had such a close opportunity to know him this much. I am totally open minded and skeptical at the same time.. For the first 12 years I had enormous trust on him and thought he is speaking the truth. But now I know that he is lying 90% of the time.. Read this first: https://www.quora.com/What-do-you-think-of-Sadhguru-Jaggi-Vasudev/answer/Shanmugam-P-12 Then I will probably continue..

@egoless People have added millions of interpretations, opinions, views etc to the topic of spirituality in the last 3000 years. The word 'Shiva' is an adjective, which literally means 'auspicious'.. People started using the word 'Shiva' for vedic deity Rudra and this evolved into a separate Hindu sect.. For a lot of people in India, Shiva is a personal God.. Then people who are into spiritual path started calling the absolute reality as 'Shiva'.. They also called Shiva as the first yogi, out of reverence. The story told by Sadhguru regarding Adiyogi is a fiction... He talks about Shiva as if there was a single historical man called Shiva who was actually the first yogi. And then he attributes everything that is said about Shiva in the last 3000 years to this one character. I would recommend everyone who is seriously interested in liberation to stop listening to Sadhguru. Many things he says about enlightenment are completely misleading. Read this for more info: https://archive.org/details/IsSadhguruJaggiVasudevAConman

Check out this one: https://boldanddetermined.com/when-science-gets-it-wrong/ from the same website.. He starts explaining why science doesn't work and says 'Science is the lazy man’s search for truth' You can't really convince him.. For him, nothing works I think we should change the title of this thread as 'The most funny and weird articles ever!'...

@electroBeam I know what you are saying. This is said out of misunderstanding, by many people who only have theoretical knowledge of Vedanta. But I can clarify this.. You may have heard some Vedantins saying that the most qualified people for Advaita is the ones who can get the truth the moment they hear it. When someone points out the truth of who you are so skillfully, if you are a qualified person for Vedanta, you will get it and you will be instantly awakened. Listening to the truth that is skillfully pointed out by a Guru is called 'Sravana' which literally means listening. But what makes one such a qualified person? What kind of qualifications are they talking about? They are called Sadhana Chatustaya - fourfold qualifications with 6 virtues: https://www.swami-krishnananda.org/spiritual.aspiration/aspiration_6.html So, if someone has completely and perfectly developed these qualifications, he/she will be actually be able to awaken, once they hear the truth pointed out. Such people are called 'Uththama adhikaris'. After they listen to the truth, if they still don't awaken, that only indicates that they have not developed these fourfold qualifications. So, they go through two more stages to compensate the incomplete development of fourfold qualifications, which are known as manana and nidhidhyasana. Manana is more commonly understood as reflecting over the truth repeatedly and niddhidhyasana is a type of meditation that is explained here: http://www.adhyatmaprakasha.org/Volumes/PDF/english/043/index.pdf So what does this tell you? If someone is not awakened in the Sravana stage, he has obviously not done the prior step of developing fourfold qualifications correctly. If he has done it correctly, then he doesn't need anymore practice but he just needs to hear from a Guru as he points out the truth. Such a disciple who didn't complete the previous step properly is similar to a student who has arrears in a college semester. In other words, going through the stages of manana and nidhidhyasana is not normal even though it is more common. If you ask a vedanta student why many people have to go through manana and nidhidhyasana and why they didn't awaken once they heard the truth, they may probably tell you this : "that only happens very rarely to a few people, such a people are rare to find'... They will say as if it is an exception, but it is supposed to be the rule. Because, obviously, if they had worked harder on the fourfold qualifications, it would have happened. Where did they go wrong then? They went wrong because of the instructions like 'bhakti yoga, karma yoga and kriya yoga are limited' that you mentioned... Because, after hearing such instructions they tend to think "if they are limited, then why go through them? Let me directly listen to my guru, study scriptures and practice manana and nidhidhyasana... I think I have developed the fourfold qualifications". Most of the students of Vedanta do this mistake. But, if you ask any qualified guru how to develop these fourfold qualifications in the first place, he will tell you this: "You should practice Bhakti yoga, karma yoga or kriya yoga"... Because these practices help developing the fourfold qualifications by purifying the mind. Let me put it in a different way. You may heard many people say that you cannot do anything to get spirituality awakened. They will say that there is no action possible, nothing you can do can get you spiritual enlightenment. They are right, but this teaching is not complete. The truth is, you cannot do anything to get enlightened; but you can do many things to purify your mind, to develop these fourfold qualifications. That is why they say that enlightenment doesn't happen because of your doing but it happens because of grace. But what happens because of your doing is this purification of your mind, which gets you ready to receive that grace, which makes you to awaken as soon as the truth is pointed out. In some cases, the self knowledge (atma jnana) dawns automatically once the mind is completely purified. That means, developing these fourfold qualifications is the actual spiritual path. In other words, bhakti yoga, karma yoga or kriya yoga is the actual spiritual practice which occupies the longest time in a person's spiritual journey. That is why in Gita, Krishna says that there are only two paths: Action and knowledge. A person does some action to purify his mind, then the knowledge of the absolute reality dawns; finally he lives the rest of his life with the strength of his self-knowledge. This is the whole gist of Gita, as explained in the commentary of Adhi Shankara. You can download the free ebook of Shankara's Gita commentary here: https://archive.org/download/Bhagavad-Gita.with.the.Commentary.of.Sri.Shankaracharya/Bhagavad-Gita.with.the.Commentary.of.Sri.Shankaracharya.pdf All these three, bhakti yoga, karma yoga or kriya yoga come under the path of action (karma nistha); and the rest comes under path of knowledge (jnana nistha) . Karma nishtha leads to jnana nishtha... If self-realization can be compared to the top floor and if you compare spiritual practice as 18 steps leading to the top floor, then bhakti yoga, karma yoga or kriya yoga are spanned in the first 17 floors whereas the path of knowledge is the last step. How can anyone reach the last step without crossing the first 17 steps?

@onacloudynight Don't worry about giving it a name.. Your mind may be trying to pull you into the identification game.. If someone tells you 'yes, it is samadhi', then you will categorize it that way and put it in your spiritual resume and you may tend to identify with it. It is natural to pass through many beautiful moments in the spiritual path. But it is important to keep moving on.

He is talking much about the mindfulness practice done for clinical usage and for some kind of utility. Also, all the studies done on mindfulness are based on just a 15 day or 30 day mindfulness practice, which is not really sufficient to test its effectiveness and the results it can produce on a long term basis. He seems to be more interested in criticizing how mindfulness is over hyped in media and how it is offered as a solution for everything. But he doesn't sound like a seeker. He is not talking about the effectiveness of mindfulness towards a spiritual awakening either. Mindfulness, when practiced for some kind of utility or gain may not produce the same results as mindfulness practiced for the sole reason of spiritual awakening. If you are interested in spiritual awakening, if you are really seeking to merge with the absolute reality and to transcend the limitations of feeling like a separate individual, then mindfulness is the best. I can say this by my own experience and also based on the reports of countless people. So, you don't have to worry about what that article says. He is just talking about the over hyped clinical mindfulness practiced to gain a particular benefit which is not at all related to what everyone in this forum are seeking.