When to commit to a spiritual path? —Swami Mahayogananda

[alexmedina]

So excellently expressed! Thank you, Swami.

[Stewz]

The Parable of the Well is a wonderful example and resonated with me. Thank you.

[SilverCottage]

Good short message! Very nice. This is so true, in many respects. Of course, Ramakrishna says this. In practical terms, however, it can be very difficult for westerners who choose Vedanta because there are so few centers of support for this path, relatively speaking - especially if you are monastically oriented. Also, the Hindu Gods and Goddesses are culturally unfamiliar, though charming. I have my favorites, including Kali, which is why my guru named me Kaliprana. There is another point, however, and that is that Swami Vivekananda said that one could practice the Vedanta AND any other path and that Vedanta would simply make one a better Christian, a better Buddhist, etc., and I have found this to be true, on the deeper levels, though NOT in the superficial levels of parish life in the Catholic Church, for instance - because of the general prejudice and hostility of the typical parishioner toward anyone with a different lens through which they view the faith. Bede Griffiths, who merged Catholicism and Advaita Vedanta didn't have as much of a problem with this as many others would, because he adopted aspects of Vedanta while he was living in India. Dressing in gerua was understood in that arena, etc. Of course, all these externals fall away in Samadhi and one experiences the oneness, which Griffiths also discusses, but yes, you have to GET there before you see that it is all one. ~Kaliprana