Getting Past the Ego: Modern Advaita and the Cultivation of a Nondual Habitus

Abstract

This chapter is a study of modernized interpretations of the Indian philosophical system Advaita (“nondual”) Vedanta that were popularized in the West from around the nineteenth century. Although being less well-known in comparison with other systems such as yoga, Modern Advaita is a well-established part of the range of Indian-derived spiritual teachings and practices available at the global market. Today, Modern Advaita is being disseminated mainly through satsangs (“meeting in truth”), a kind of question-and-answer sessions where a teacher goes into dialogue with the audience and offers discourses on nonduality. Many teachers post their satsangs online or publish transcripts from them in books, which makes them available to a wider audience. The nondual teachings are seen as accessible to all, regardless of religious or cultural background. The question of how the nondual outlook of Modern Advaita is being lived and cultivated in the everyday life of individuals in a contemporary Western context has remained relatively unexplored. In the chapter Modern Advaita is viewed as a lived religious system by sketching out the characteristics of a nondual habitus among a group of interlocutors predominantly living in northern and western Europe, all engaged in nondual teachings and practices. On the basis of her findings, Thorsén argues that a contributing reason for the popularity may be found in the practices perceived therapeutic qualities. Although negating one’s sense of individual identity may seem like an alien approach in such a context, the promises to get past rather than needing to promote one’s self appear to have made Modern Advaita a viable spiritual option for a middle-class culture seeking alleviation from the pressures of an individualized society.