Wednesday, June 3, 2015
Understanding Godwin by understanding Krishnamurti.
Godwin was teaching, how to practice 'Awareness', when I went to Nilambe Meditation Center for the first time. He also taught Loving Kindness of Buddhism. Sometime he used to Discuss how to practice the Awareness on Breathing as well. (though Godwin used the word Awareness here, it was wrong. The correct usage should be Attention on Breathing, which Godwin did not know.) But his main focus was on the Awareness, just Awareness. Aware of what? Aware of whatever happening in the Mind, and without. This he called as 'Vipassana Bhavana', hence in many instances the center was known as a Vipassana Meditation Center as well.
But the Center was labeled as a non-sectarian one, as he allowed anyone to practice, whatever they know and practice. Why did Godwin allow as such? Because he wanted every practitioner to come and practice, and he also tried to teach, many techniques though he did not practice them, but taught from book knowledge.
This Practice of Awareness is of essentially of Krishnamurti's Teaching, which was the Godwin's main source of instructions. Nilambe Library was complete almost with all of the Krishnamurti's book as well as that of E.W. Adikaram's books, who is the great Sri Lankan follower of Krishnamurti, who had established a Krishnamurti Foundation in Sri Lanka.
I have already practiced pure Buddhist practice of 'Aanapana Sati' to have all the stages of Samadi. And continued to Practice Vipassana Bhavana, and had insights, when I came to Nilambe for the first time.
At this time I was not well versed in Pali or equivalent Buddhist terms in English. Also I found later many of them here at the center were not well versed with the same either. This led to a great deal of confusion in discussions, and even many were not able to acknowledge the reason for the confusion, as being these terminology.
The most important confusion was centered around the word 'Awareness', which no one seem to be aware.
Hence, I assumed that it to be 'Sati' or Attention (Manasikaraya), which these Krishnamurti follower of Godwin was using, as well as so many others who were following the same as Godwin. But Adikaram translated this word of 'Awareness' into Sinhala as 'Sihiya' or 'Awadiya' or 'Awadimathbava' (simple wakeful state), which are more correct. But here in the meditation center, Godwin and others also have taken the meaning of Awareness to be that of 'Sati', without experiencing the 'Sati', as they have never experienced Samadi or practiced for it, thus adding to the confusion.
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