One way of experiencing non-dualism is through avatars - or times in the world in which the divine ‘descends’ into materiality in order to help us in our ascent or spiritual growth. The tradition holds that there are literally countless avatars - there is divinity in all humans. This is the root or base teaching of “I see the divine light in you” or the practice of trying to do so, all the self-checking of our assumptions and exclusions and othering. to say nothing of the radical and difficult work of coming-to-know the divine light inside ourselves and the pandora’s box of questions that opens up. But most of us are a deeply complicated mixture of divine and misused divine, the ‘demons’ of greed, fear, self-interest, me-and-mine thinking, avoidance, etc.
Bhagavad Gita conversation begins next Monday!
The Gita is a scripture without an outgroup—that is, even though it takes place on a literal battlefield, there is no rant against the opposing side; nor are there rants against unbelievers or heathen or infidels or whatnot. So anyone can approach the Gita without feeling their particular religious background or faith affiliation is under attack. Amit Mujmudar
Faith?
Let’s throw out ‘faith’. It would be better to understand śraddhā as conviction or dedication. The word in and of itself breaks down to a unity of truth (śhrat) and hold (dhā to hold, to support, specifically support the mind and functions of mind, an attentional stability). Thus śraddhā means “holder of truth” or '“adherence to truth” or “in the pursuit of truth”. Which is lovely.