Q. One of the videos was on adhikaritvam, preparedness
- being a prepared student for Advaita Vedanta. Regarding samadhanam as a
qualification for studying Vedanta, why is the highest state of mind, savikalpa
samadi required?
A. One of the six qualifications for becoming a
prepared student is to have samadhanam. Samadhanam means a meditative
concentration. Samadhi is a state of meditative absorption Let me rephrase the
question. Is samadhi, any kind of samadhi, Is the experience of samadhi
necessary for enlightenment?
No. Enlightenment does not depend on any kind of experience
including any kind of special spiritual experience. Then you might ask well
if gaining enlightenment doesn't depend
on the experience of samadhi, then why is samadhanam included as a requirement
for being an Adhikari, a prepared student?
It is required in the sense that meditation is required. Meditation
is certainly not optional. You may or may not gain samadhi through your
practice of meditation, but without that practice of meditation definitely you
will never get enlightened. Meditation prepares the mind in a way that no other
practice can.
So meditation is an irreplaceable step or practice to get
prepared for enlightenment. Whether or not it brings samadhi or not is another thing. You may achieve samadhi. Honestly
for a long for a dedicated practitioner of meditation gaining samadhi is not
such a big deal. Takes time, takes dedication. But even when you gain samadhi,
then you discover that it's just a an experience. It's a wonderful experience.
But like any experience, even the experience of samadhi comes and goes. It's
not the goal of spiritual life.
