@Frank Apisa,
Quote:But if one of you non-dualists makes a statement about your dogma, you seem to resent any questions of that sort.
I can't speak for the others, but to me, questions of that sort are indications that the one asking them hasn't understood my statements.
If I make a statement about "my dogma", I am making an assertion that is based on the structure of my ideas. I am making an assertion about the model I seek to explain reality with. The basis of my assertions is the background on which I understand the issue. Yours is different, and that is why you may disagree. If understanding my assertion requires you to modify your notion of "matter", for instance, and you feel that making the modification is unwarranted, we will never agree, because we are not talking about the same thing.
We assume that 'my reality' and 'your reality' are varieties of 'the reality', and we argue about who is closest to 'the reality', thinking that the one who is closest to this mythical ideal is the wisest/most knowledgable etc..
But all that doesn't matter. I don't believe in 'the reality'.
What I believe in is the experience I am having, and an important question is if it's enjoyable or not. If my understanding of reality is such that it gives me a lot of negative experiences, I will probably benefit from examining the basis I have for making my assertions.
When I make claims like "reality is awareness", I am just taking a "what if" and working my way from there. My basis for making that assertion can be debated from many angles, but in the end it comes down to whether or not you are willing to believe in the assertion, if only temporary, for the sake of the experiment.
It's like with food. You cannot really know if you like something or not until you've tried it. But how much should you eat before you make up your mind?