What Is Non-Duality?

That is a good question. Simply put, non-duality is the idea that we and everything around us are all one, universal being. But to be more specific, the answer isn't so simple as non-duality is very difficult to define. The idea that you and I or you and your dog are exactly the same can be non-sensical to the mind, but those who have realized their true, non-dual nature say that is exactly so.

There is a famous quote by Ram Dass, also known as Richard Alpert, the American spiritual teacher and former Harvard academic and clinical psychologist. “Religions are founded by what mystics say when they come back; but what the mystics say is not the same as what happened to them.” In other words, the true reality of what's going on is so bizarre and foreign to our typical mode of human thinking that there’s no possible way to convey a clear understanding of it through words. However that hasn’t stopped people from trying, and inevitably those who have listened form their own interpretations which are invariably incorrect.

Below are some of the better attempts to explain non-duality through words, but please do not forget that an intellectual understanding will never come close to the actual experience of non-dual awareness. The links will take you to other websites and videos.