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Silent Meditation
Meditation is a deliberate attempt to pierce into the higher states of consciousness and finally go beyond it. The art of meditation is the art of shifting the focus of attention to even subtler levels, without losing one's grip on the levels left behind.
The final stage of meditation is reached when the sense of identity goes beyond the 'I-am-so-and-so', beyond 'so-I-am', beyond 'I-am-the-witness-only', beyond 'there-is', beyond all ideas into the impersonally personal pure being. But you must be energetic when you take to meditation. It is definitely not a part-time occupation.
Limit your interests and activities to what is needed for you and your dependents' barest needs. Save all your energies and time for breaking the wall your mind had built around you. Believe me, you will not regret.
Meditation is a deliberate attempt to pierce into the higher states of consciousness and finally go beyond it. The art of meditation is the art of shifting the focus of attention to even subtler levels, without losing one's grip on the levels left behind.
The final stage of meditation is reached when the sense of identity goes beyond the 'I-am-so-and-so', beyond 'so-I-am', beyond 'I-am-the-witness-only', beyond 'there-is', beyond all ideas into the impersonally personal pure being. But you must be energetic when you take to meditation. It is definitely not a part-time occupation.
Limit your interests and activities to what is needed for you and your dependents' barest needs. Save all your energies and time for breaking the wall your mind had built around you. Believe me, you will not regret.
Some people think that there are different stages in jnana. The Self is nitya aparoksha, i.e., ever-realized, knowingly or unknowingly.
"We were talking not long ago about one man whose wife was caring for homeless people, so to speak. And he was talking to one of these ‘homeless’ persons and he was saying, ‘my wife has done so much work for the homeless’ and so on.
And the homeless man says, ‘everybody is homeless.’
Everybody is homeless until you find God. Until you find Truth.
You could live in a palace with a hundred rooms, but you’re not home until you’re home here.
When you are at home inside your own Being, you are at home. Otherwise not.
Satsang is to reintroduce you to your home.
Your home and yourself are one, not two."
- Moojibaba
“Satsang of the Week” for 8 December 2019
And the homeless man says, ‘everybody is homeless.’
Everybody is homeless until you find God. Until you find Truth.
You could live in a palace with a hundred rooms, but you’re not home until you’re home here.
When you are at home inside your own Being, you are at home. Otherwise not.
Satsang is to reintroduce you to your home.
Your home and yourself are one, not two."
- Moojibaba
“Satsang of the Week” for 8 December 2019
Abandon the drama of the world and seek the Self within.
Without the intrusiveness of the personal mind, life is observed to be unfolding in a natural and harmonious way. Do not waste time merely wishing for things to get better. The whole world is doing this and so no one is really happy. We miss the true life. In fact, happiness arises when you stop chasing for something other than your own pure nature. And this happiness remains with you.
The universal tendency in human beings is to seek lasting happiness in the field of names and forms, a transient field. This is really a form of avoidance and a distraction from what is timelessly present and ever perfect within us, our divine nature and Self. Ignorance of the Truth is the main cause of misery.
Avoid expectations and especially be aware of the tendency to wait for 'next' as a promise to happiness, the next good feeling, the next adventure or invitation from the mind, in short, the next experience that, in fact, does quite the contrary: it pulls your attention away from pure presence, the seat of joy.
No one has ever experienced 'the future'. Reflect. It is all imagination. How to transform these tendencies Simply, begin by paying attention to the natural thought-free state, the pure sense of existence, the feeling ‘I Am’ that is naturally present in you. Shift the attention away from the mind-traffic and let it rest in impersonal awareness.
Keep doing this each time the attention goes out towards sense objects or obsessive self-interest. Self-attention is the beginning of real Self-discovery. It returns the attention time and again to its source, the one Self. Get used to staying in your natural and neutral state of being. It is a state of emptiness.
Do not be afraid of this. In fact, get increasingly used to being empty. This emptiness and joy are synonymous. They are one. This is really what is meant by the saying, ‘to enjoy one’s Self. It is a state of unfading contentment, wisdom, love and happiness.
The universal tendency in human beings is to seek lasting happiness in the field of names and forms, a transient field. This is really a form of avoidance and a distraction from what is timelessly present and ever perfect within us, our divine nature and Self. Ignorance of the Truth is the main cause of misery.
Avoid expectations and especially be aware of the tendency to wait for 'next' as a promise to happiness, the next good feeling, the next adventure or invitation from the mind, in short, the next experience that, in fact, does quite the contrary: it pulls your attention away from pure presence, the seat of joy.
No one has ever experienced 'the future'. Reflect. It is all imagination. How to transform these tendencies Simply, begin by paying attention to the natural thought-free state, the pure sense of existence, the feeling ‘I Am’ that is naturally present in you. Shift the attention away from the mind-traffic and let it rest in impersonal awareness.
Keep doing this each time the attention goes out towards sense objects or obsessive self-interest. Self-attention is the beginning of real Self-discovery. It returns the attention time and again to its source, the one Self. Get used to staying in your natural and neutral state of being. It is a state of emptiness.
Do not be afraid of this. In fact, get increasingly used to being empty. This emptiness and joy are synonymous. They are one. This is really what is meant by the saying, ‘to enjoy one’s Self. It is a state of unfading contentment, wisdom, love and happiness.
There are no others to help. A rich man, when he hands over his entire fortune to his family, has not a coin left to give a beggar. So is the wise man (Jnani) stripped of all his powers and possessions? Nothing, literally nothing can be said about him. He cannot help anybody, for he is everybody. He is the poor and also his poverty, the thief and also his thievery. How can he be said to help when he is not apart? Who thinks of himself as separate from the world, let him help the world. The only thing that can help is to wake up from the dream.
Once the private secretary to the Governor of Pondicherry came to the Ashram with a long list of questions written in an elaborate, complex style of French. Handing over the paper to Bhagavan, he sat on the window sill opposite the couch. Finding the questions in French, Bhagavan asked me to translate them.
As I was struggling with word-by-word translation and was finding the French difficult to translate, Bhagavan said, “That’s not necessary, just tell me the gist.” I scanned the questions and told Bhagavan that he really didn’t want oral answers but rather in the form of an experience.
Bhagavan paused for a moment, and then slowly turned his face in the direction of the questioner and rested eyes on him. After about 30 seconds, I noticed the man’s body trembling and shaking all over.
Then he blurted out, “Oh no, Bhagavan, not now! Please, Bhagavan, not now!” I was standing at the side of Bhagavan, watching this extraordinary scene and wondering what a being this Bhagavan was. He was a storehouse of power, yet so kind, gentle and compassionate.
- N. Balarama Reddy, My Reminiscences
As I was struggling with word-by-word translation and was finding the French difficult to translate, Bhagavan said, “That’s not necessary, just tell me the gist.” I scanned the questions and told Bhagavan that he really didn’t want oral answers but rather in the form of an experience.
Bhagavan paused for a moment, and then slowly turned his face in the direction of the questioner and rested eyes on him. After about 30 seconds, I noticed the man’s body trembling and shaking all over.
Then he blurted out, “Oh no, Bhagavan, not now! Please, Bhagavan, not now!” I was standing at the side of Bhagavan, watching this extraordinary scene and wondering what a being this Bhagavan was. He was a storehouse of power, yet so kind, gentle and compassionate.
- N. Balarama Reddy, My Reminiscences
If you go by the way of your thoughts you will be carried away by them and you will find yourself in an endless maze.
A group of people came on a visit to Sri Bhagavan. One of them asked: “How can I keep my mind aright?”
M.: A refractory bull is lured to the stall by means of grass. Similarly the mind must be lured by good thoughts.
D.: But it does not remain steady.
M.: The bull accustomed to stray takes delight in going astray. However he must be lured with luscious grass to the stall. Even so he will continue to trespass into the neighbour’s fields. He must gradually be made to realise that the same kind of good grass can be had in his own place. After a time he will remain in the stall without straying. Later a time will come when, even if driven out of the stall, he will return to the stall without going into the neighbouring fields. So also the mind must be trained to take to right ways. It will gradually grow accustomed to good ways and will not return to wrong ways.
D.: What are the good ways to be shown to the mind?
M.: Thought of God.
M.: A refractory bull is lured to the stall by means of grass. Similarly the mind must be lured by good thoughts.
D.: But it does not remain steady.
M.: The bull accustomed to stray takes delight in going astray. However he must be lured with luscious grass to the stall. Even so he will continue to trespass into the neighbour’s fields. He must gradually be made to realise that the same kind of good grass can be had in his own place. After a time he will remain in the stall without straying. Later a time will come when, even if driven out of the stall, he will return to the stall without going into the neighbouring fields. So also the mind must be trained to take to right ways. It will gradually grow accustomed to good ways and will not return to wrong ways.
D.: What are the good ways to be shown to the mind?
M.: Thought of God.
Love is the bridge between you and everything.
"Remember that when you leave this earth, you can take with you nothing that you have received but only what you have given: a full heart, enriched by honest service, love, sacrifice and courage."
– St. Francis of Assisi.
– St. Francis of Assisi.
God is because you are, you are because God is. The two are one.
I have no need of any experience, therefore I have no need to quarrel with anybody. The body and mind will go on doing whatever they like during their natural course of duration.
Ponder this very well. Your sadhana, your spiritual practice does not begin when you've gone to many teachers, and you've read many books. It actually begins when you give up everything. That's when real sadhana begins, when you have surrendered everything, when you've emptied yourself of all knowledge, all desires for liberation. When you have become an empty shell, then your spiritual life begins. Until that time you're only playing games with yourself.
The mind always seeks
external knowledge,
leaving aside knowledge about itself.
external knowledge,
leaving aside knowledge about itself.
Pure love transcend the body. It is between hearts. It has nothing to do with bodies.
I prefer to be true to myself, even at the hazard of incurring the ridicule of others, rather than to be false, and to incur my own abhorrence.
The vastness which is seen by the mind is not the true vastness! The vastness in which the mind is seen that is the true vastness.
Rare is he who knows himself as One with no other— the Lord of the Universe. He acts as he knows and is never afraid.
Run from what’s comfortable. Forget safety. Live where you fear to live. Destroy your reputation. Be notorious. I have tried prudent planning long enough. From now on I’ll be mad.
You seem to want instant insight, forgetting that the instant is always preceded by a long preparation. The fruit falls suddenly, but the ripening takes time.
You are under Grace, so insights will spontaneously come,
revelations will come, recognition will come.
For many people when a powerful insight comes,
a powerful realisation or recognition comes—what happens?
It gets mixed with some ego, but this is not immediately seen.
You don’t recognise the poisoned cocktail
and you say, ‘Ah yes, I’ve got it.’
You swallow some ego, and the two will stay together.
The two will stay together unnoticed for a time.
You may feel that you are doing well,
you are speaking very well with people, but it won't go any further
because the weeds have grown up together with the flowers
and they start to choke the flower.
When an insight comes, be very careful.
Just be grateful inside your heart and say,
‘Thank you. Thank you.’
Don’t become anything or think you are special now,
and the true knowledge will blossom inside you.
If you mix ego with the realisation,
it will gradually siphon off your energy
and you don’t grow in power and wisdom
because arrogance claims it all.
In the beginning ego is very easy to slip in unnoticed.
This is due to your naivety and perhaps some arrogance.
These makes you blind. Once you are aware of it,
you begin to see the ego's work much more easily.
Once he gets exposed he cannot hide anymore.
Then you can easily see him coming,
‘Ah here comes ego again. He wants to take credit again.’
Where do we go with all this? Don’t turn it into a theatre!
Stay in the neutral state as Awareness itself.
That is all! Keep doing this and that spell will be broken.
revelations will come, recognition will come.
For many people when a powerful insight comes,
a powerful realisation or recognition comes—what happens?
It gets mixed with some ego, but this is not immediately seen.
You don’t recognise the poisoned cocktail
and you say, ‘Ah yes, I’ve got it.’
You swallow some ego, and the two will stay together.
The two will stay together unnoticed for a time.
You may feel that you are doing well,
you are speaking very well with people, but it won't go any further
because the weeds have grown up together with the flowers
and they start to choke the flower.
When an insight comes, be very careful.
Just be grateful inside your heart and say,
‘Thank you. Thank you.’
Don’t become anything or think you are special now,
and the true knowledge will blossom inside you.
If you mix ego with the realisation,
it will gradually siphon off your energy
and you don’t grow in power and wisdom
because arrogance claims it all.
In the beginning ego is very easy to slip in unnoticed.
This is due to your naivety and perhaps some arrogance.
These makes you blind. Once you are aware of it,
you begin to see the ego's work much more easily.
Once he gets exposed he cannot hide anymore.
Then you can easily see him coming,
‘Ah here comes ego again. He wants to take credit again.’
Where do we go with all this? Don’t turn it into a theatre!
Stay in the neutral state as Awareness itself.
That is all! Keep doing this and that spell will be broken.
The falling away of delusion
Sometimes people say they can smell freedom. They say they fall more and more into the embrace of That which is unspeakable. And I have to acknowledge that this is not merely an intellectual thought or conviction.
It is a deep inner thing; a felt experience in the Heart beyond words and thoughts, and yet I have to tell you that what you are falling into Is and was already here—unchangingly.
It is what you already are and no distance is involved. Has anyone ever heard of a falling where there was no distance? This is the fall where there is no distance. It's the greatest fall; the falling away of delusion.
Sometimes people say they can smell freedom. They say they fall more and more into the embrace of That which is unspeakable. And I have to acknowledge that this is not merely an intellectual thought or conviction.
It is a deep inner thing; a felt experience in the Heart beyond words and thoughts, and yet I have to tell you that what you are falling into Is and was already here—unchangingly.
It is what you already are and no distance is involved. Has anyone ever heard of a falling where there was no distance? This is the fall where there is no distance. It's the greatest fall; the falling away of delusion.
Man is fond of counting his troubles, but he does not count his joys. If he counted them up as he ought to, he would see that every lot has enough happiness provided for it.
Only he is a Jnani whose mind does not get agitated, who does not identify with and desire objects before him, and whose state of purity never shakes whether he lives on alms in poverty or enjoys the illusory state of being Brahma (demi God)
- Sorupa Saram, verse 89
- Sorupa Saram, verse 89
ПРИТЧА ПРО ЯД
Одна девушка, после свадьбы была не в состоянии выносить постоянные упреки своей свекрови. Она решила избавиться от нее. Девушка пошла к торговцу травами, который был другом ее отца.
Она сказала ему: - Я не могу больше жить со своей свекровью. Она сводит меня с ума. Не могли бы вы мне помочь? Я хорошо заплачу.
- Что я могу для тебя сделать? - Спросил травник.
- Я хочу, чтобы вы продали мне яд. Я отравлю свекровь и избавлюсь от всех бед - ответила она.
После долгих размышлений, травник сказал: - Хорошо, я помогу тебе. Но ты должна понимать две вещи.
Во-первых, ты не можешь отравить свекровь сразу, потому что люди догадаются о том, что произошло. Я дам тебе травы, которые будут постепенно убивать ее, и никому не придет в голову мысль, что ее отравили.
Во-вторых, чтобы окончательно избежать любых подозрений, ты должна укротить свой гнев, научиться уважать ее, любить, слушать и быть терпеливой. Тогда никто не будет подозревать тебя, когда она умрет.
Девушка согласилась на все, взяла травы и стала добавлять их в еду свекрови. Кроме того, она научилась контролировать себя, прислушиваться к свекрови и уважать ее. Когда та увидела, как изменилась к ней отношение невестки, она всем сердцем полюбила девушку. Она рассказывала всем, что ее невестка самая лучшая, такая, о которой можно только мечтать. Через полгода, отношения между ними стали близкими, как между кровными матерью и ее дочкой.
И вот однажды девушка пришла к травнику и взмолилась: - Ради Бога, пожалуйста, спасите мою свекровь от яда, который я ей давала. Я не хочу убивать ее. Она стала самой прекрасной свекровью, и я люблю ее.
Травник улыбнулся и ответил: - Не волнуйся, я не давал тебе никакой отравы. То, что я тебе дал, это просто специи. Яд был только в твоей голове, и ты сама от него избавилась.
То же самое касается большинства наших проблем. Они - яд, который отравляет нашу жизнь. Но яд, который находится только в нашем сознании.
Задумайтесь, действительно ли ваша проблема такая уж серьезная?
Одна девушка, после свадьбы была не в состоянии выносить постоянные упреки своей свекрови. Она решила избавиться от нее. Девушка пошла к торговцу травами, который был другом ее отца.
Она сказала ему: - Я не могу больше жить со своей свекровью. Она сводит меня с ума. Не могли бы вы мне помочь? Я хорошо заплачу.
- Что я могу для тебя сделать? - Спросил травник.
- Я хочу, чтобы вы продали мне яд. Я отравлю свекровь и избавлюсь от всех бед - ответила она.
После долгих размышлений, травник сказал: - Хорошо, я помогу тебе. Но ты должна понимать две вещи.
Во-первых, ты не можешь отравить свекровь сразу, потому что люди догадаются о том, что произошло. Я дам тебе травы, которые будут постепенно убивать ее, и никому не придет в голову мысль, что ее отравили.
Во-вторых, чтобы окончательно избежать любых подозрений, ты должна укротить свой гнев, научиться уважать ее, любить, слушать и быть терпеливой. Тогда никто не будет подозревать тебя, когда она умрет.
Девушка согласилась на все, взяла травы и стала добавлять их в еду свекрови. Кроме того, она научилась контролировать себя, прислушиваться к свекрови и уважать ее. Когда та увидела, как изменилась к ней отношение невестки, она всем сердцем полюбила девушку. Она рассказывала всем, что ее невестка самая лучшая, такая, о которой можно только мечтать. Через полгода, отношения между ними стали близкими, как между кровными матерью и ее дочкой.
И вот однажды девушка пришла к травнику и взмолилась: - Ради Бога, пожалуйста, спасите мою свекровь от яда, который я ей давала. Я не хочу убивать ее. Она стала самой прекрасной свекровью, и я люблю ее.
Травник улыбнулся и ответил: - Не волнуйся, я не давал тебе никакой отравы. То, что я тебе дал, это просто специи. Яд был только в твоей голове, и ты сама от него избавилась.
То же самое касается большинства наших проблем. Они - яд, который отравляет нашу жизнь. Но яд, который находится только в нашем сознании.
Задумайтесь, действительно ли ваша проблема такая уж серьезная?
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