String theory is currently the hottest candidate for the grand unified theory of physics. Such a theory would be extremely interesting from the view point of Advaita since currently, it is a bit hard to swallow the foundational tenet of Advaita - that this whole phenomenal world of multiplicity along with all the rules of interaction that we observe is actually a misapprehended manifestation of a single spiritual monad - Brahman.

Here is a gentle introduction to string theory.

"... Thus, despite 26 dimensions and the unphysical "tachyon" particle, string theory was found to contain a promising solution to the problem of gravity... "

Only 26 dimensions?? A particle with an imaginary mass (the tachyon)??

Meanwhile I have been thinking a bit on just what does a unified theory predict. Should it predict the exact values of various physical constants that we observe like the mass of an electron, the value of G etc? More interestingly, will it predict the values of the mathematical constants like pi and e? Maybe I will write a blurb on this soon.

Also, here is an article about a proposal to make superstrings in the laboratory. This may eventually lead to the first experimental verification (or falsification) of the theory.

Here is a nice article arguing for an advaita like principle - that consciousness should not be considered as a derivative of matter but rather as an independant monad in itself.

I recently read Maneesha Panchakam - an extempore composition by Adi Sankara (who else? :> ) and the last verse of this composition cleared a lot of things for me about Advaita. Here is the last verse - the context is Adi Sankara praying to Lord Siva :

"From the standpoint of the body, I am your humble servant, from the standpoint of the soul, I am a part of you and from the standpoint of the Absolute truth, I am you"

As is seen, within the structured world of names and forms, there is no question of any identity with the Lord. The identity is only when we go beyond this realm into the realm of the unstructured, nameless, formless reality of Brahman. Many times, in western/neo vedanta circles, this rather fundamental position of advaita is ignored and IMHO if this happens, you are basically on an ego trip - you want to avoid humility, devotion and service and just want to jump into the more intellectually appealing portions..

This is simply remarkable.

A series of scientific experiments since the 1970's seems to indicate that though the society we live in makes us behave as individuals, we all seem to be intimately connected to each other. We have a global consciousness.

The Global Consciousness Project at Princeton

Experiments that seem to have sensed Princess Diana's death, the 9/11 attacks and the 26th December Asian Tsunami

I have been gathering some information on classical nondualist texts, highly esteemed and studied by people from nondualist traditions. The focus is on experential traditions as opposed to those who are engaged in it as a scholastic pursuit. Here is a list of the more common texts which figure in the must-read literature of many serious traditions :

• The Brahmasutra's of Badarayana and Shankaracharya's Bhasya on them. Needs no introduction. The defining Shankara. A timeless classic.
• Mandukya Upanishad. This is the tersest of all the upanishads. It analyses the four states of consciousness and in its brief 14 verses, contains lifetimes of profoundness.
  
• Mandukya Karika of Gaudapada. Gaudapada was the guru of Shankaracharya's guru.
  
• Shankaracharya's commentary on Gaudapada's Mandukya Karika.
  
• Tripura Rahasya. An old text of unknown origin. Ramana Maharshi highly recommended this text. The text has conversations between different people at different states of awareness and is a great mix of profound philosophy and practical concerns.
  
• Ashtavakra Gita. This is actually a part of the 16th chapter of the Tripura Rahasya. It is a conversation between the sage Ashtavakra and King Janaka. Ramesh Balsekar regards this conversation as the most unique conversation that ever occurred on this planet. He has also written a book on it titled "A duet of one"
  
• Vivekchoodamani by Shankaracharya. Considered by some to be Shankaracharya's masterpiece.
  
• Amritanubhav of Jnaneshwar. Ramesh Balsekar has authored an English translation titled "An experience of immortality". Jnaneshwar had a distinctive approach to Advaita which regarded Bhakti as no different from Advaita. In his view, dualism in Bhakti arises only because of a confusion in language - his views on language being thus a precursor to Wittgenstein.
• Changadev Pasasti by Jnaneshwar. This is a conversation between Jnaneshwar and Changadev which is famous for the many beautiful similies that Jnaneshwar employs.
  
• Self Enquiry by Ramana Maharshi
  
• Panchadasi by Vidyaranya. A very difficult book to read. Swami Anubhavananda has recently written a commentary on it which has become widely famous as the most accessible and accurate inroad to Panchadasi
  

Its been quite some time since I posted here. Meanwhile, here is a great article - A Course in Consciousness

Here is a good article taken from here

It explains the underlying nondualistic connotations of mystical imagery:

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Navratri is a festival dedicated to the Goddess – the feminine personification of the divine. Various forms of Goddess can be seen at the shrines in the centre of Navratri celebrations, such as Durga, Sarasvati and Kali. The image of Kali is seen at virtually all Navratri celebrations and is one of the best known, but poorly understood forms of the Goddess. She is dark destructive and terrible in image. She is allied to the forces of death and destruction. The most common image of Kali shows her dancing on Shiva. This article aims to give an insight into Hinduism’s use of such mystic imagery.

Shiva and Shakti

Within each of the major sects within Hinduism, the divine is not considered solely as masculine or feminine, which is a unique feature compared with other religions of today. The divine is not referred to only as 'He'. In the Shaivite tradition, the supreme divine reality is represented as Shiva-Shakti. Shiva is the masculine force, the power of peace, while Shakti translates to power, and is considered as the feminine force. In the Vaishnava tradition, these realities are portrayed as Vishnu and Laxmi, or Radha and Krishna. These are differences in formulation rather than a fundamental difference in the principles. To render Shakti as power may cause some misconceptions. Shakti is the power of Shiva. It is not a power born of aggression or domination, but a power born from the strength of the silent consciousness, the energy which comes forth from the void, the life and creation that stems forth from the still eternal consciousness. Shakti is not a power which is asserted against something, but a power which enlivens everything from within. Shiva is the still consciousness, the spirit which pervades everything, who accomplishes everything through Shakti alone.

Both Shiva and Shakti have various forms. Shiva has forms like Yogi Raj (the common image of Himself meditating in the Himalayas), Rudra (a wrathful form) and Nataraj (performing the dance of destruction).

About Kali

The Sanskrit word Kali literally means time. Kali is the feminine word for time, for which the masculine is kala. Time as we are forced to understand it, is the foremost power that we experience. Kali is the personification of time. It is not surprising that the deity of time has a terrifying image. After all, time is the slayer of all. Time is the very stuff that our lives are made of. To waste time is to waste life. The reason as to why time is represented in a feminine form is that time is the great womb – the great mother – from which we are all created – therefore it has a feminine quality. Time is also the force which causes all living beings to perish. Therefore Kali is like the mother who destroys the children which she has created – which is one of her frightful features. Yet, through the action of time, Her action, occurs our salvation. Through time, over repeated births, we experience all that we have to and learn all that we must learn in order to merge back into our eternal existence, from which we fell into limited time and space.

Why is She dancing on Shiva?

That’s the million dollar question – I don’t know! Just kidding. Shiva, in the Shaivite tradition, is the all pervading eternal primeval consciousness of the universe and beyond, who is beyond motivation. Hence, He is commonly shown as meditating in tranquil. His action and motivation occur only prior to the final destruction and dissolution of this cycle of creation. Hence, when Shiva dances, it is considered to be the terrible awesome dance of destruction. It is on the passive, ultimate reality of Shiva, that Kali (time) does her dance, causing the constant cycles of creation, life and death of all things in the universe. Shiva is the substratum upon which Kali acts. Hence, in this part of the Hindu spiritual traditions, the entire divine action and existence is represented by the dance of Kali (time) upon the changeless all pervading consciousness, Shiva.

Does Kali actually have a separate consciousness or is she just a representation of time as an unthinking scientific principle?

Hinduism personifies what to us are abstract spiritual truths as Gods and Goddesses. Spiritual ideas are clothed in concrete imagery, and approached as living beings. This does not reflect a lack of reasoned thinking, or attachment to form, but rather an experiential contact with the higher truths, as living forces. Hinduism creates a personal relationship between ourselves and the forces of the cosmos, and eventually leads us to realise that these forces are within us rather than separate. All forces of the universe are pervaded by consciousness, hence the reason as to why they are approached as living beings is because in reality, they are. The purpose of vivid imagery is that whilst meditating upon the image, our mind is shocked into thinking into the depths of the concept we are trying to understand and know, beyond our usual conditioned ideas. In that way we can really experience the truth of time as an awesome conscious force and understand how our existence relates to it. Kali is a particularly important deity, because by understanding Her we stop identifying ourselves as only our body - we come to terms with the utter impermanence of our body and begin to perceive the true existence of ours which lies beyond - which most people believe but wish to experience directly. Hence she is said to kill the ego - the attachment to pettiness, which is represented in Her image by the severed head she hold in Her hand.