How to Experience Oneness or Advaita

By: Nirmala

Advaita is a Sanskrit word referring to the oneness of everything. Literally it means "not two" or "nondual." Oneness is the basic character of everything. There is one substance that everything is made of. But one can ask, If it is all one then why do I experience so many different things? But Oneness does not necessarily mean sameness. Things can look very different without being at all separate. What about your own hand? While your fingers are quite different from each other, that does not mean they are separate. They are all a part of the same hand.

It also turns out that everything that exists in the world including people, objects animals, and plants are connected at the source, even though they look and act differently. The oneness of Being has an unlimited number of different looking expressions that we then experience as different things.

Looking more closely at your own hand can reveal there are many similarities in the actual substance of your fingers. All of your fingers consist of of very similar skin, bones, muscles and even cells and atoms. When you explore your experience more fully, you may discover that all things are part of one infinite field of Being.

How about this moment? Is this subtle oneness in your ordinary present moment experience? It is, if you ignore any expectation of oneness being a dramatic spiritual experience, and explore the oneness in whatever is here right now. Just as any drop of water is wet, you can find a degree of oneness in everyday experiences. Everything that exists has this quality of oneness, just as every drop of water has the quality of wetness.

As an experiment, just notice your fingers and the palm of your hand. Can you really say where one starts and the other ends, or are they one thing? To take this further, where does your hand stop and your forearm begin? Can you experience the oneness of your hand and your forearm?

If these are not separate, then what about all the other parts of your body? Are your feet and your ears really one even though they are so different? Now notice if there really is a separation between your thoughts and your head. Where does your head stop and something else called thought begin? What about feelings or desires? Are they really separate from you or your body?

Now, notice the simple sensations you are having: the sounds you are hearing, the sensations of touch, and the objects and events you are seeing. If you are seeing something, where does the seeing stop and something else called the eye begin? If you are hearing sounds where does the sound start and the ear stop? Perhaps the hearing and the sound and your ear are all one thing. Yes, the ear is different from the sound, but in the act of hearing they become one thing.

Now let's look at the source of the sound. If some leaves are rustling in the wind, where do the leaves end and the rustling sound begin? Or are they connected also? If leaves and rustling are really one thing, and then the rustling sound and your hearing are also really one thing, then it would seem that you and the leaves are one thing also.

Advaita, or oneness of Being, is actually something quite ordinary and is not actually hidden and difficult to experience. Obviously a dramatic experience of oneness, where you are overwhelmed by the oneness of the whole universe, is a special experience. But why wait when this beautiful and fulfilling sense of oneness is always available right now?

Article Source: http://appliedhealtharticles.com

Nirmala provides free ebooks & online videos at www.endless-satsang.com. He's been a spiritual teacher in the Advaita tradition since 1998, and offers satsang (gathering for truth) and individual spiritual mentoring sessions on the phone.
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