[hh_breadcrumb_taxonomy]
Magdi‘s comment, regarding
Don’t mistake understanding for realization:
ChatGPT falls short here.
In terms of understanding, there is a difference between phenomenal and noumenal understanding. Non-duality is not concerned about phenomenal understanding. Rather, the focus is on noumenal understanding, meaning understanding about truth, about reality, about consciousness, the unborn.
There is no such thing as intellectual understanding. The intellect is used as a tool towards understanding, but understanding itself is non-intellectual. At the instant of understanding, there is no mind, no intellect as the mind/intellect has already served its purpose in bringing you to the edge of the cliff. Understanding is the free fall.
Concerning realization and liberation. Various teachers use the terms differently. There is no one-way in which these terms are used in the advaitic teaching. Keep in mind that the teaching is a live teaching, a sort of transmission from teacher to student.
To simplify things, let us consider that there are two stages in the non-dual revelation.
1) The glimpse into the reality of consciousness (sometimes referred to as enlightenment or kensho) whereby truth is revealed to be non-dual and the illusion of the separate me, the separate self is seen to be void and illusory.
2) The establishment of/as this non-dual reality whereby the belief in separation and the feeling of separation no longer arise, or no longer arise 99.99% of the time.
One could use the terms for realization for stage 1 and liberation for stage 2.
But I would suggest not to get so caught up in the terms and how these words are used. In following the teaching of various different teachers, the student who does not have a deep understanding, will get confused by the terms since each teacher uses the terms differently and this will slow down the exploration.
Finally, I would mention that speaking of the non-dual teaching as consisting of two stages is very simplistic and at best pedagogical.
These two stages are not in fact apart. They are concomitant.
ChatGPT is a schematic rendition when it comes to non-duality.
Much love,
Magdi