Around the nonduality scene there seems to be an aversion to scripture. That goes for traditional Advaita Vedanta scripture all the way to nondual interpretations of the Christian Bible. I see this as an ungrounded discrimination and a loss to all “nondualists”.
Scripture is the wellspring of the wisdom that has brought us to the precipice where we have discovered the nondual ground of reality. It seems that many of us have heard the ‘good word’ the ancient sages gifted to us and then done away with them. There is a point were we transcend the written word and must leave those concepts and beliefs behind but that does not mean we must abrogate that wisdom to myth and fairy tale.
It is not ultimately necessary that each person arrive at a recognition of nonduality via scripture but for many it is a viable path that leads to that recognition. For many people, including myself, there would never have been an arising of the possibility that there was more to reality than what appears to the gross eye. For those that never felt a need to turn to scripture that’s all well and good but works such as the Bhagavad Gita, Astavakra Gita, and Christian scriptures open up a range of possibility and opportunities to transcend ordinary experience and delve into a deeper, fuller enjoyment of reality.
Scripture is akin to the traditional mandala which I’m sure most are familiar with. The mandala is a visual representation of a path to the source of it all. It is usually a square diagram with increasing complexity which draws the viewer deeper into its center. There are gates on each side which push you further in. At the center is a single point where may lie a particular symbol or simply a point to focus on.
Scripture is very similar in that it is a symbolism that begins where the reader is at. It first addresses normal gross reality with topics such as morality and life in general. As the reader explores the depths of scripture he or she is ushered into gates that open up entirely new realms of possibility. Scriptures goal is to bring you out of the box of consensus reality that keeps you trapped in the experience of suffering and deliver you into a space where there is only pure consciousness. This is true for Advaita Vedantic scripture and I would argue even for the Gospel of John for instance.
Anything in life can be a path to the center of existence, to the ground of reality where we are all one. It can be a relationship where love is kindled, child rearing, religion, spirituality, work, knowledge, or even simply investing oneself in the experience of life. Scripture is a time tested method of coming to a pure recognition of nonduality. Often people will get caught up in the dual nature of the method of delivery and this is a danger of course. Yet it is not one that should scare you away from the wisdom scripture offers.
The point of this post is simply to encourage you to give scripture a chance if you feel that it can offer you some insight into your path. I shunned scripture for a time while focusing on a direct experience of consciousness. But at some point I returned to both Advaitic scripture and my lifelong faith in Christianity. What I found was that my direct experience of the true nature of reality was echoed in scripture and I found valuable help by returning to those writings.
