A guided group practice session of self-inquiry and surrender with feedback.
Akilesh comments on Ramana Maharshi's Guru Vachaka Kovai Day 1/4
Akilesh comments on selected verses from Ramana Maharshi's Guru Vachaka Kovai, one of the most definitive statements of his views on spirituality.
Self-inquiry and surrender meditation practice -- January 9, 2023
A guided group practice session of self-inquiry and surrender with feedback.
Workshop on nondual realization, surrender, and self-inquiry -- January 8, 2023
The workshop gives a brief overview of the spiritual search and goes into detail on surrender and self-inquiry, which are the master tools for the recognition of divine truth.
The importance of psychoanalysis in the spiritual search
In order for the practice to take place effectively, the mind must have the ability to concentrate. This requires that the mind be quiet enough.  The practice itself helps accomplish this, but there are other ways that facilitate this. One of the most important is psychoanalysis, which is not the same as any kind of psychological therapy. There are many other kinds. However, I believe psychoanalysis to generally be the best choice.
Non-doership is not something you choose. It shines spontaneously because of the practice.
While the true Self is characterized by non-doership, and seekers should keep this in mind, seekers cannot and should not "choose non-doership." It is not something that can be chosen that way. It's an insight that arises spontaneously upon *doing* the practice of surrender or self-inquiry with sufficient concentration, when the attachments become weak enough.
Why continuous spiritual practice sometimes seem to interfere with worldly activities
Serious spiritual seekers are advised to do self-inquiry or surrender at all waking moments, but sometimes this seems to interfere with worldly activities. This is an illusion -- but why does it happen? It is because this very idea of interference is rooted in the distorted, thought-based, egoic perspective, and happens when the practice is interrupted.Show less
A hidden barrier to the spiritual search: an attachment to the way important others see you
Are you honest with important others in your life about how important the spiritual search is to you? If not, why not? Often, seekers aren't honest because they are afraid of being judged, and of losing or hurting the image that others have of them. This will act as an obstacle to the spiritual search in the end, however, because the same fear that prevents honesty will also prevent a complete letting go into the practice.
Videos of just-concluded series of workshops on self-inquiry and surrender
On January 30, February 6, and February 13, I had the pleasure of leading three satsangs on self-inquiry and surrender in cooperation with the spiritual organization Awakening Together. The videos of the events are below.
First Session: Self-Inquiry
Second Session: Surrender
Third Session: Both Self-inquiry and Surrender
Am I doing this right? Confusion is natural in the quest for the Self.
Most seekers practicing self-inquiry and surrender inevitably run into confusion and a sense that they're doing the practice wrong. Confusion is natural: these practices only appear to be practices. They are actually pointers to the Self. You are not really doing inquiry or surrender; you ARE inquiry and surrender, in truth. So confusion is natural, because the practice leads you to this conclusion. The practices themselves will be your teacher. Live in the struggle and the uncertainty -- you will be led onward. Also, the real reason for the lack of final clarity in these practices is inevitably because attachment -- caring about the results of things in life, and feeling that you have to engage with them to control them -- is too strong. These attachments are afraid of seeing the truth, so they prevent clarity. Through the practice, attachment weakens, and clarity eventually dawns.