The Book of Enlightenment (Anadi)
Deep but Deficient
[My 3-star Amazon review of “Book of Enlightenment†(December 2, 2013) by Anadi.]
I first encountered Anadi about a week ago in a video at Youtube.com. The two- hour video, an interview with Rick Archer of Buddha at the Gas Pump, informed me that Anadi was a deep and interesting spiritual teacher, so I procured a copy of “Book of Enlightenment†to further investigate his teachings.
Anadi has an extensive background in Advaita Vedanta and Zen, but his teachings can best be classified as an apophatic version of Divine Yoga combined with depth psychology. His approach is an integral, evolutionary one that accounts for individual development within the context of enlightenment. Although his teachings are a unique formulation, they bear some resemblance to those of Adyashanti, David R. Hawkins, and A.H. Almaas. If you have an affinity for these teachers, you will probably appreciate Anadi.
Anadi is no friend of of the neo-Advaita crowd. He writes, “Perhaps the most misguided of all are those who suggest that everyone is already enlightened.†And he properly informs us, “Awakening is a long and arduous process.†The goal of Anadi’s Yoga is “unity of the soul with Absolute Reality… union with the unborn, uncreated state.†And this union enables one to “become whole [which] is to become a divine being.†But Anadi, in contradistinction to most gurus, maintains that the spiritual journey does not end with enlightenment. He writes, “Liberation is not the end of the soul’s evolution, but it does end the human journey of the soul… Our enlightenment is only a point of entry into universal evolution and awakening.â€
Anadi summarizes the six steps of his teaching of the “journey towards realization†thus:
“Our first step is to recognize the state of presence, to become aware of consciousness. Our second step is to remember the state of presence, which is awareness of consciousness. Our third step is to abide in the state of presence, which is awareness in consciousness. Our fourth step is to become the state of presence, which is consciousness of awareness. Our fifth step is to surrender the state of presence, and our sixth and final step is to merge presence with absence, which is consciousness of awareness immersed in consciousness absorbed in the absolute.â€
I don’t find Anadi’s description of the six steps to be clear. I’m spiritual writer who specializes in mysticism, and in my opinion, his description of the path to enlightenment is unimpressive. Apart from the fact that I don’t second his steps to the Absolute, I could restate what he says in a much clearer and more descriptive way.
Although Anadi teaches what I teach – union with the Absolute – our visions of this union differ. Anadi defines the Absolute as the “original void,†primordial absence,†“primordial emptiness,†and I consider the Absolute to be Being-Consciousness-Energy, or Siva-Shakti. Anadi, in my opinion, perverts “positive†Divine Yoga by combining it with “negative†Madhyamika metaphysics.There is no such “Thing†as a primordial absence or emptiness. The Absolute is potent primordial Presence (Consciousness-Energy), and though this potent Presence is timeless, spaceless, and formless, it is not emptiness, a non-existent with no ontological status. Like so many mystics, Anadi is guilty of the “reification of zero,†identifying a non-existent as an existent and attributing qualities to it.
Anadi is a sloppy thinker and unclear writer, and I found myself continually shaking my head at his prose. For example, he writes: “Being is the connective space between consciousness and the now.†First off, Being (or Sat) is Siva-Shakti or Chit-Ananda (Consciousness-Bliss-Energy), not a “connective space.†Secondly, it’s difficult to know what he means by the “now†when he uses the term (which he often does), because he has multiple definitions of it. The book’s glossary includes the following definitions for “nowâ€: “the vertical reality of being; the timeless ground of reality; the meeting-point between time and the beyond; the source of the present moment; real time.†The least he could do would be to capitalize “now†when the term refers to the “vertical reality,†or “timeless ground,†so as to differentiate it from the “meeting point between time and the beyond†and “real time.†But in goose step with other contemporary Buddha Dharma writers, he mindlessly refuses to capitalize any terms, which further muddies his already murky prose.
Here is another example of his writing: “When presence passes through the portal of absence, it is transformed into an ineffable unity of both the presence of absence and the absence of presence.†This is mystical poppycock. I say when an initiated yogi is unobstructedly present, the pressure of his presence generates conscious force, or pressure. When he utterly yields in the face of this pressure, becoming self-empty, or absent, then Spirit-Energy, or Shakti, begins to pour through him, en-Light-ening him with its Blessing Power, or Grace.
Anadi purports to teach integral Yoga, but because his Dharma does not account for Shakti, it is hardly integral. True Divine Union is not the union of Presence (Siva, or Consciousness) and absence (or emptiness); it is the union of Presence (Siva, or Consciousness) and Power (Shakti, or Light-energy). Unbeknownst to Anadi, the two “vines†of the Di-vine are Consciousness and Energy, not Consciousness and emptiness.
Even though I have major problems with Anadi’s Dharma and his inability to clearly articulate it, this book provides many useful insights for spiritual seekers. For example, Anadi elaborates on the differences among awareness, attention, and consciousness, explains that negative emotions are necessary for functional safeguard puposes, and properly describes surrender not as “a singular event, but a multi-dimensional process that absorbs various aspects of our existence, one at a time.â€
According to this book’s description,â€The Book of Enlightenment is the complete exposition of the teaching of Anadi, the most complete revelation of the truth of self-realization present on the planet. It is a revolutionary compendium of spiritual knowledge addressed to those commencing their inner journey, as well as those who have already reached higher levels of spiritual realization.†I laugh when I read this. This book , while deep, is replete with deficiencies and devoid of important details pertaining to en-Light-enment. I could write an entire book deconstructing Anadi’s statements and arguments, but because this is just a review, I am only able to critique a limited portion of his Dharma.
Anadi is a serious spiritual teacher, who overrates himself, and if he wants to upgrade his Dharma presentation, he should read books on Kashmir Shaivism, Dzogchen, Adi Da’s Daism, and Ayn Rand’s Objectivist epistemology. He’s been “infected†by the Madhyamika bug, and these texts will enable him to “disinfect†his Dharma.
In sum, this is a provocative work by a profound though philosophically challenged spiritual teacher. If the writing were good, I’d give the book four stars; but given that it’s not, three stars for “The Book of Enlightenment.â€
[My 3-star Amazon review of “Book of Enlightenment†(December 2, 2013) by Anadi.]
I first encountered Anadi about a week ago in a video at Youtube.com. The two- hour video, an interview with Rick Archer of Buddha at the Gas Pump, informed me that Anadi was a deep and interesting spiritual teacher, so I procured a copy of “Book of Enlightenment†to further investigate his teachings.
Anadi has an extensive background in Advaita Vedanta and Zen, but his teachings can best be classified as an apophatic version of Divine Yoga combined with depth psychology. His approach is an integral, evolutionary one that accounts for individual development within the context of enlightenment. Although his teachings are a unique formulation, they bear some resemblance to those of Adyashanti, David R. Hawkins, and A.H. Almaas. If you have an affinity for these teachers, you will probably appreciate Anadi.
Anadi is no friend of of the neo-Advaita crowd. He writes, “Perhaps the most misguided of all are those who suggest that everyone is already enlightened.†And he properly informs us, “Awakening is a long and arduous process.†The goal of Anadi’s Yoga is “unity of the soul with Absolute Reality… union with the unborn, uncreated state.†And this union enables one to “become whole [which] is to become a divine being.†But Anadi, in contradistinction to most gurus, maintains that the spiritual journey does not end with enlightenment. He writes, “Liberation is not the end of the soul’s evolution, but it does end the human journey of the soul… Our enlightenment is only a point of entry into universal evolution and awakening.â€
Anadi summarizes the six steps of his teaching of the “journey towards realization†thus:
“Our first step is to recognize the state of presence, to become aware of consciousness. Our second step is to remember the state of presence, which is awareness of consciousness. Our third step is to abide in the state of presence, which is awareness in consciousness. Our fourth step is to become the state of presence, which is consciousness of awareness. Our fifth step is to surrender the state of presence, and our sixth and final step is to merge presence with absence, which is consciousness of awareness immersed in consciousness absorbed in the absolute.â€
I don’t find Anadi’s description of the six steps to be clear. I’m spiritual writer who specializes in mysticism, and in my opinion, his description of the path to enlightenment is unimpressive. Apart from the fact that I don’t second his steps to the Absolute, I could restate what he says in a much clearer and more descriptive way.
Although Anadi teaches what I teach – union with the Absolute – our visions of this union differ. Anadi defines the Absolute as the “original void,†primordial absence,†“primordial emptiness,†and I consider the Absolute to be Being-Consciousness-Energy, or Siva-Shakti. Anadi, in my opinion, perverts “positive†Divine Yoga by combining it with “negative†Madhyamika metaphysics.There is no such “Thing†as a primordial absence or emptiness. The Absolute is potent primordial Presence (Consciousness-Energy), and though this potent Presence is timeless, spaceless, and formless, it is not emptiness, a non-existent with no ontological status. Like so many mystics, Anadi is guilty of the “reification of zero,†identifying a non-existent as an existent and attributing qualities to it.
Anadi is a sloppy thinker and unclear writer, and I found myself continually shaking my head at his prose. For example, he writes: “Being is the connective space between consciousness and the now.†First off, Being (or Sat) is Siva-Shakti or Chit-Ananda (Consciousness-Bliss-Energy), not a “connective space.†Secondly, it’s difficult to know what he means by the “now†when he uses the term (which he often does), because he has multiple definitions of it. The book’s glossary includes the following definitions for “nowâ€: “the vertical reality of being; the timeless ground of reality; the meeting-point between time and the beyond; the source of the present moment; real time.†The least he could do would be to capitalize “now†when the term refers to the “vertical reality,†or “timeless ground,†so as to differentiate it from the “meeting point between time and the beyond†and “real time.†But in goose step with other contemporary Buddha Dharma writers, he mindlessly refuses to capitalize any terms, which further muddies his already murky prose.
Here is another example of his writing: “When presence passes through the portal of absence, it is transformed into an ineffable unity of both the presence of absence and the absence of presence.†This is mystical poppycock. I say when an initiated yogi is unobstructedly present, the pressure of his presence generates conscious force, or pressure. When he utterly yields in the face of this pressure, becoming self-empty, or absent, then Spirit-Energy, or Shakti, begins to pour through him, en-Light-ening him with its Blessing Power, or Grace.
Anadi purports to teach integral Yoga, but because his Dharma does not account for Shakti, it is hardly integral. True Divine Union is not the union of Presence (Siva, or Consciousness) and absence (or emptiness); it is the union of Presence (Siva, or Consciousness) and Power (Shakti, or Light-energy). Unbeknownst to Anadi, the two “vines†of the Di-vine are Consciousness and Energy, not Consciousness and emptiness.
Even though I have major problems with Anadi’s Dharma and his inability to clearly articulate it, this book provides many useful insights for spiritual seekers. For example, Anadi elaborates on the differences among awareness, attention, and consciousness, explains that negative emotions are necessary for functional safeguard puposes, and properly describes surrender not as “a singular event, but a multi-dimensional process that absorbs various aspects of our existence, one at a time.â€
According to this book’s description,â€The Book of Enlightenment is the complete exposition of the teaching of Anadi, the most complete revelation of the truth of self-realization present on the planet. It is a revolutionary compendium of spiritual knowledge addressed to those commencing their inner journey, as well as those who have already reached higher levels of spiritual realization.†I laugh when I read this. This book , while deep, is replete with deficiencies and devoid of important details pertaining to en-Light-enment. I could write an entire book deconstructing Anadi’s statements and arguments, but because this is just a review, I am only able to critique a limited portion of his Dharma.
Anadi is a serious spiritual teacher, who overrates himself, and if he wants to upgrade his Dharma presentation, he should read books on Kashmir Shaivism, Dzogchen, Adi Da’s Daism, and Ayn Rand’s Objectivist epistemology. He’s been “infected†by the Madhyamika bug, and these texts will enable him to “disinfect†his Dharma.
In sum, this is a provocative work by a profound though philosophically challenged spiritual teacher. If the writing were good, I’d give the book four stars; but given that it’s not, three stars for “The Book of Enlightenment.â€
