September 2005
SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENTS
Wayne Liquorman will be giving Advaita Talks in Lisbon, Southern France (sorry retreat full) and Amsterdam in the coming weeks. (Details below)
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MESSAGE FROM WAYNE
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Hello my loves, Ramesh's latest book landed on my desk a few days ago and I was delighted to see that he is still in top form. Ramesh's Teaching is a living one and thus is constantly in flux. After many years of esoterically emphasizing the illusory nature of the individual his approach has become increasingly down-to-earth and practical. He meets the spiritual seekers at their point of identification and then deftly leads them to deeper understanding. One of the tools Ramesh uses is to challenge the seeker into examining what it is he imagines Enlightenment to be...what are the imagined benefits? So the question ultimately boils down to the new books title: Seeking Enlightenment ---Why? I hope this newsletter finds you well and at peace, abiding in the deepest possible conviction that with all of the joys and agonies of the day, the Universe is in perfect order.
With much love,
Wayne
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UPCOMING EVENTS
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WITH RAMESH BALSEKAR Daily Talks in His Home: 9AM Sindhula, N. Gamadia Rd. #10, Bombay, India (Helpful info for people planning to visit Ramesh can be found in the Ramesh Balsekar section of the advaita.org website) _____________________________________________________
EVENTS WITH WAYNE LIQUORMAN
Lisbon, Portugal September 23-25 Portuguese enquiries to Tarik Praca tarikyoga@yahoo.com English enquiries to Grant Bardsley bardsley1@sapo.pt
Southern France Residential Retreat Sept. 30 - Oct. 2 Contact: Philippe de Henning Email: phde_h@yahoo.fr or phdeh@tele2.fr Note: Retreat is fully booked. Please contact Philippe if you wish to be on the waiting list.
Amsterdam Talks October 7-9 Contact Ronald 31-020-646-2160 Email: ronald.valk@wanadoo.nl
New York City Talks November 11-13 Contact: Daniel djhnd@nyc.rr.com or Jim # 718-543-4189
Further details are available on the advaita.org website, http://advaita.org/aftalks.html
Talks in Wayne's Home 927B Sixth St., Hermosa Beach, CA (check website for times or call 310-376-9636 for a recorded announcement) These talks are broadcast LIVE over the Internet. Live broadcasts can be accessed free from the advaita.org website thanks to the continuing support of the members.
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THE ADVAITA PRESS STORE
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NEW BOOKS BY RAMESH!
Seeking Enlightenment - WHY? by Ramesh S. Balsekar
This elegant little book examines a fundamental spiritual question: What do you expect to get out of Enlightenment? To address the many misconceptions seekers have about this matter, Ramesh draws from his own Teaching, as well as the works of Mark Twain, Buddha, Andrew Newberg and several others. The book concludes with a very interesting interview Ramesh conducted of a long-time seeker after Enlightenment. Softcover, 131 pages $10
Nuggets of Wisdom by Ramesh S. Balsekar
This coat-pocket size volume picks up where Ramesh's previous book, The One In The Mirror, leaves off. It contains close to 200 brief "nuggets" written by Ramesh on a wide variety of topics: ego, enlightenment, seeking, mind, concepts, virtue, the nature of the sage, to name but a few. Softcover, 186 pages $11
To order click here http://advaita.org/store/index.htm and then Latest Releases
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I AM THAT I AM - The Teachings of Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj
This DVD is loaded with some fantastic footage of Nisargadatta Maharaj (see if you can pick out the young Ramesh S. Balsekar in some of the scenes). The narrator, Dr. Stephen Wolinsky, offers an excellent overview of the essence of Maharaj's Teaching. Viewers familiar with Advaita may find Dr. Wolinsky's "experiential meditations" to be a bit basic but these may prove useful to those new to the subject. Running time: 2.5 hours Available in NTSC (North American Format) ONLY! $30
To order click http://advaita.org/store/index.htm, or go to the www.advaita.org website, click on Advaita Press Store and then Latest Releases and you will find this item as well as videos about Ramana Maharshi, books and a video about Nisargadatta Maharaj as well as DVD's of both Wayne and Ramesh.
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BECOME A MEMBER AND SUPPORT THE TEACHING
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If you have not yet joined the Advaita Fellowship but would like to become a member... click on the link http://216.86.195.102/members/register.asp or visit the advaita.org website and click on BECOME A MEMBER Members, via their TAX DEDUCTIBLE monthly donations, help to make the Fellowship financially viable and ensure the continued free presentations of the Teaching via the web site, webcasts, newsletters and free Talks in Wayne's home. In thanks to the members for their support they receive unlimited access to the Fellowships online archives. These archives contain hundreds of streaming videos of Ramesh and Wayne as well as transcripts of many of Wayne's Talks. New ones are being added constantly.
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A LIVING GEM FROM RAMESH
(previously unpublished)
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Any curiosity about the fact of enlightenment is really based on its effect on the supposed individual and ignores the fundamental fact that what are generally described as experiences of divine love, ecstasy, universal compassion etc. are all affective phenomenal manifestations. The root of all such experiences is the presence of the phenomenal "me," the ego which is itself the cause of all the conceptual bondage.
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SOMETIMES I WONDER IF IT'S ALL A DREAM
IF NOTHING REALLY IS OR WHAT I SEEM
TO BE IS ONLY THOUGHTS GOING THROUGH MY MIND
AND ALL THE THINGS I THINK ARE BUT A KIND
OF MOTION PICTURE THAT I WATCH AND FEEL
THINKING THE THINGS THAT HAPPEN ARE REALLY REAL
AND IF IT'S ALL A DREAM. I WONDER TOO
IF I'M ALONE FOREVER AND IF YOU
ARE ONLY FIGMENTS OF THIS DREAMY THOUGHT
AND ONLY I EXIST IN EMPTY NAUGHT
MAYBE I'M ALL ALONE ASLEEP AND STILL
DREAMING FOREVER ENDLESSLY: GODS WILL
Eynind Earle