%%USERNAME%%    %%ACCWORDS%% %%ONOFF%% |
 |   As the first blog entry got exhausted. My second book |
| Evolution of Love Part 2 |
| President Obama, you could not be any more missed than you are at this moment in our country. That we have the beautiful memory of a president whose words always made us calm, who gave respect to everyone, friend or foe, who always called in and listened to the best advisors he could find, and most of all who tried to bring us together for the health and security of our country, keeps us going now. We remember you as always tending the garden of humanity, urging us to grow in compassion and in further knowledge. You lifted us up in our humanity. You brought us dignity of spirit. Your memory gives us an immense contrast between nurturing and nihilism. To have such a memory is to know we are capable of so much more as a country that the utter chaos we see today. "Truth crushed to earth" said Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., "will rise again". We can already feel the heart of truth opening again here. And we thank you for your example that has kept us going forward in spirit. "We shall overcome." |
| *WHY YOU OUGHT TO LEAVE A COIN IN THE FREEZER WHEN YOU GO OUT-STATION!* When on holidays or when out of the house for some days, there is no way to know if there was a power outage in your absence or for how long there was no electricity, right? There is a possibility that the power outage was for several days, leading to defrosting of food and its deterioration. Once the electricity comes back, foods freeze again and you almost do not notice that they were thawed. *Thawed food can be really dangerous as certain types of foods are at risk of spreading salmonella and other bacteria!* Below is a way to find out if and how long your freezer was without electricity ! And more importantly you can find out if you can consume the food in the freezer. For this you need: a cup a coin water First pour water into a cup and place it in the freezer. When the water in the cup is frozen, put a coin on top of the frozen water in the cup and then return it to the freezer. After returning home, before taking out the food from the freezer, look at where the coin is ! If the coin is still at the top or in the middle of the cup, there was no power failure or power outage was for a short time, so the water was only partly melted. If the coin is at the bottom of a cup, it means that electricity failure was for a long time, so the water completely dissolved, and the coin sinks all the way to the bottom of the cup. At that point, it is advisable not to consume the foods from the freezer. Do adopt this simple but effective means to check if your refrigerated foods are safe to consume. Happy & safe eating ! 😁🍴🍗🍤🍕🌭🍴😁 |
There is a samadhi of one European devotee of Bhagavan near Vadippatti village, which is about 25 km from Madurai. His name is Ramana Giri. There is a Shiva Lingam installed over his samadhi and a small temple built around it. I used to visit this place on my way to Madurai, which is located in a quiet spot, at the foot of a small mountain range. The manager of the place gave the following information about Sri Ramana Giri: His original name was Per Westin. He belonged to the royal family in his native Sweden. He came to India to study Sanskrit at Banaras Hindu University. He met Bhagavan and did not return to his native place. Bhagavan gave him a small begging bowl made by himself, out of coconut shell. In the following days, he could not get sufficient quantity of food as bhiksha, and complained to Bhagavan about it. Bhagavan told him that thereafter he need not go in search of food as it would come to him. From that time he did not have to bother about his food. He then moved to different places and settled at this place, which is near a jungle stream. The coconut shell begging bowl, made by Bhagavan, is kept safely in a jewel box, along with other belongings of Sri Ramana Giri. They gave it to me to see it. It has been made by cutting the coconut vertically. Though small in size, it is in a perfect oval shape, and nicely polished. Holding it in my hands, I was overwhelmed by emotion. As a souvenir, I was given an old visiting card of Sri Ramana Giri with his original name. The card has his old name and address as ‘Djursholm’. Swami Ramanagiri was born into an aristocratic Swedish family in June 1921. Though he was related to the king of Sweden, it was the ‘royal’ yoga of Patanjali that finally claimed him. In his youth, he came across Swami Vivekananda’s Raja Yoga and found he had an immediate affinity with the subject matter, so much so that he began to develop yogic siddhis soon after beginning the practices. He came to India in 1945 on a two-year scholarship to study philosophy at Banaras Hindu University, but the principal aim of his journey was to find a competent teacher who could help him to make progress with his yogic practices. The Danish devotee Sunyata recalls meeting him soon after his arrival: “It was on a sunny, winter day in holy Benares, in the 1940s, that I met Peer A. Wertin. He came gliding along by the shore where the washermen were busy splashing the dirty linen of respectable egojis [Sunyata’s affectionate name for all embodied jivas]. I was sharing my leftover food with donkey friends, as human friends would always give me too much to eat. Peer seemed touched by my donkey friendship. Birds of a feather and kindred asses flock together! Peer was in a body of some twenty-five summers – tall, dark and slim. He was studious looking, civilized, respectable and balanced. His upper lip had been slightly damaged by some explosion [he had received] during military duty. I detected a slight stoop… We went together to see some sadhus, gurus and learned pandits in the holy Benares. …” The two soon became friends. When summer came Sunyata invited Peer to stay with him in Almora: “Peer came to my Himalayan retreat in the spring when the heat came upon the plains. He stayed in my upper Sunya cave on the hill’s crest. It had vast scenic views and a vaster expanse of silence. He imbibed the gracious solitude in the pure, Krishna-blue azure realm, while Paramahamsa wings grew and unfurled. He had the psychological urge towards stark openness and nudeness. It was the need of being natural, without the rags of ego deceit, artificial respectability or artistic hiding. In this purity, the mental fig leaves become positively indecent or a kind of vulgar prudery. Peer Wertin had been awarded a two-year scholarship in India to study religious and philosophical lore, but he renounced it all when he took to yoga and intensive self-enquiry. I later introduced him to Maharshi Ramana in Tiruvannamalai. In and through Maharshi, he eventually came to full ‘awakening’, conscious ‘Self-awareness’, or ‘advaita experiencing’. Hanuman, the name given to him in Varanasi dropped off and ‘Ramanagiri’, conferred on him by Ramana Maharshi, emerged. Comparisons are odious, yet Maharshi Ramana is Himalayan to many current molehills and tinpot, claptrap gurus. Peer was blessed in Maharshi’s grace and sahaja recognition. When I met him first I asserted nothing. Himalaya and Sunyata have no need to assert. I could sense in him a certain Swedish occultism and an intense longing to realise the truth. Ramanagiri later came through an ancient road, a homeward way, frequented by the wholly awakened ones. Here all mental concepts and ideals vanish. Only awareness remains, bereft of all theories and ideal abstractions. It is the serene state of exalted calm in absolute Silence. It has been called nirvana, or turiya or sunya. Ramanagiri was in this state of ‘advaita experiencing’. I did pranam to Ramanagiri in glad homage, in karuna love and in Himalayan ananda gratitude. Upon leaving my place he went on a pilgrimage. His Jiva Yatra [soul’s pilgrimage] was lived mostly in South India, by seashores, in jungles and at the grail-glowing holy mountain, Arunachala.“ In early 1949 he came to Tiruvannamalai to meet Bhagavan for the first time. Though he had a natural inclination for raja yoga, having practised it for years, Swami Ramanagiri felt an immediate attraction to atma vichara, the path of Sri Ramana. Since this was a departure from the practical teachings he had been taught by his diksha guru, Swami Ramanagiri felt that he should consult him about this change of direction. The diksha guru let him know that Bhagavan was his true Guru, and he encouraged him to follow the teachings he was being given at Ramanasramam. Swami Ramanagiri did self-enquiry intensively for forty days in Bhagavan’s presence and was rewarded, on Sivaratri day 1949, with a direct experience of the Self. When asked later about what had happened on that momentous day, he would usually say, ‘On that day I became a fool’. For the rest of his life he referred to himself in the third person as ‘this fool’. Speaking of the effect this experience had had on him, he wrote in one of his notebooks: I don’t know anything, and that ‘I’ which knows is nothing but an ignorant fool. I think, when I don’t think, that I have no end and no beginning. That which thinks has to take thousands of births. When there is ‘I’ He is not; when He is, I am not. How did he practice atma vichara? Certainly not in the way prescribed by Bhagavan. It was his own idiosyncratic method, combining classical vichara, pranayama, a little neti-neti, and some imaginative visualisations. "In the course of sadhana, maya first comes to the sincere soul in the form of worldly troubles; second in the form of desires, and third in the form of dear friends who keep him away from the quest. He had had his own experiences of ‘dear friends’ who kept him away from the quest. In one of his notebooks he wrote: ‘Three years ago I found that letters from my previous family became an obstacle on the spiritual quest, so whenever any letter came, I never opened it or read it. I experienced that the divine was on my side in spite of my improper action.’ He continued with his spiritual advice with the following words: “Our own mind is the greatest cheater in the world. It will make thousands of different reasons to go its own way. There are three ways of handling this cheat, who is nothing but a bundle of thoughts creeping into the conscious mind. First, to treat him as a friend and give him full satisfaction. This is a very long and tiresome way because he is never satisfied. Second, to treat him as an enemy and with all force try to get rid of him. This is only possible by the grace of the divine because the mind has got two very powerful weapons – the discriminating intellect and the imaginative faculty. These two fellows can convince even God himself that black is white. The third way is the way taught by Sri Ramana in the days of silence at the foot of sacred Arunachala. This way, which has been adopted by this fool, is to treat the mind as a patient, or rather several patients who are coming to a doctor to complain about their various ailments. Just as a doctor sits in his room receiving different kinds of patients, this fool imagines himself sitting in the sacred cave of the Heart and receiving the different thought-patients. You know that a sick person likes to babble for hours about his complaint. In the same way a thought likes to multiply itself, but the doctor always cuts it short, saying, ‘Very good. Take this medicine. Thank you very much.’ And then he calls for another patient. This is how this fool decided to meditate. First, the fool slows down his breath as much as possible, but only to the point where there is no discomfort. To this fool, two breaths per minute is the proper speed, but that may not be possible for you because this fool has practised for a long time. You may be able to decrease your breathing to 8-10 per minute in the beginning. Don’t get to a level where you are uncomfortable, because that discomfort will give rise to thoughts.“ After the Mahasamadhi of Bhagavan he [Swami Ramanagiri] wanted to go back to the Himalayas. En route, he was persuaded by a friend to spend a few days at Madras with him. One day, as he was walking along the beach, he had a vision of Bhagavan who, signalling with his hand, directed him to proceed further south and stay there. This led him to Tiruvanmiyur, then a fishing village, but nowadays [this was written in 1977] a part of the fast-growing city of Madras. Here he sat on the beach immersed in samadhi. His host, not knowing where his revered guest had gone, grew anxious. A search was organised and Swamiji was at last located sitting on the beach under the scorching sun, deep in samadhi. When he came back to the physical plane, he was requested to return to his host’s residence. However, Swamiji said that Bhagavan had directed him to stay there at the seaside, and so stay there he would. So, his host decided to put up a hut of coconut palm leaves for him on the beach. Arrangements were made by his host for food to be sent to him daily. Often, when the fishermen would swarm around Swamiji, he would give the food meant for himself to them. On other occasions he would be in samadhi, totally unaware of the needs of his body. It was this continued neglect which brought on the tuberculosis which ultimately consumed his body. At first, he refused treatment but was persuaded by his host, whom he treated as his father, to go back to the city for treatment. At the beginning of his account A. Chela described how Bhagavan had somehow commanded Swami Ramanagiri to stay on the beach. This ‘command’ followed a major experience that took place in the Theosophical Society in southern Madras. Swami Ramanagiri described the experience and its aftermath in a letter he wrote to Sunyata: Dearest Sunya, In this letter I must tell you that I have sailed away. I have sailed to a far-off place, a place which cannot be described by words. To describe it is to pollute it. The steamer on which I sailed is a very powerful one, but it rolls hard in the sea if the weather is stormy. The place is called by many names, but still no name can cover its reality. Some used to call the place nirvikalpa, others satchitananda or nirguna Brahman – some call it God or Self, others call it pure consciousness or the egoless state. To describe it, I have to put up a big wall before it. The name of the steamer is ‘mind’. With the help of prana one reaches the place that for the jiva seems so far away; but really speaking, is nearer than one’s own breath. If the sense-weather is stormy, the steamer will roll badly on the samsaric ocean. By now, you must understand the art of my sailing, and why I have been so silent. Let me tell you what happened and why I have been so silent. The same day as I was going back to North India I visited the Theosophical Library at Adyar. And while walking in the garden, Sri Bhagavan Ramana Maharshi appeared before me. He asked me to follow him. I went along the seacoast to a little place where I sat down for meditation. There Sri Bhagavan’s voice told me that my only duty (dharma) from now onwards was the Self. Further, he gave me some upadesa which I followed for some days. One night, between 12 and 2, kundalini was aroused to sahasrara and the jiva merged into the Self. On account on the sound Om from the waves of the sea, I was brought back to body awareness; otherwise I would have left my body because in that state there is no one to come back, and no one to make any effort. After having regained body-consciousness, I discovered that I had lost all my memory. All events before the time of Sri Bhagavan’s appearance in the garden had gone out of my mind. Friends who had been very close to me looked like strangers. People whom I thought I had never met before came and told me that we had met in Madras only a few days before. Everyone and everything looked so new and strange and unreal. Now I am getting back my memory, but mostly recollections connected with spiritual experiences and deep love. That is why I am writing to you, because those who are near my heart turn up again in this mind, which is so different from the previous one. The village people have built a little hut for me, but there is no post office in this little fishing village, the name of which I do not even know, so I cannot give you any address yet. I don’t think any postman will take the trouble to come down to the sandy beach, but I shall let you know later. With all my love Ramanagiri in Him He frequently became absorbed in ecstatic or blissful states, so much so that he had little awareness of his body or its needs. Of one experience he wrote: "The whole night nothing but fire, light, bliss and pranava. O Father! O Father! What happiness! No thought, only the enjoyment and the enjoyer. O Father! How near I was to losing myself completely in your embrace. O Father, why do you turn me back to the state of the mind where I suffer from thoughts and where I am tormented by an ego? In a more sober and reflective mood he made the following assessment of the blissful states he was experiencing through his pranayama and atma vichara: "Bliss is not a product of fantasy, but the most convincing experience we are capable of. If this experience would be a product of the imagination, the hair would not stand on end, nor would tears of happiness come in streams from the eyes, nor would the nose start flowing, nor would there be any shivering of the body, the skin would not turn red-hot, and there would be no levitation of the body. How many times have I found the body at another place in the room after having enjoyed Mother’s bliss. In padmasana the body is not capable of moving." Swami Ramanagiri eventually contracted tuberculosis, a disease which claimed him at the young age of thirty-four, in 1955. He spent his final days in the Perunderai Sanitorium. Though his body was lean and emaciated, his spirits were high. ‘It is the body which suffers,’ he told his visitors. ‘I am all right. Sakti is now stronger than ever before, and it is here [indicating a spot between the eyebrows]. It was summer and mangoes were just beginning to appear. Accepting some as an offering, he alluded to his forthcoming death by saying, ‘I will eat a nice mango now, but it will become garbage tomorrow morning’. For more than an hour before his death, he was completely withdrawn in a deep meditative state, with his hair standing on end. At his last moment he whispered ‘Let us go,’ and he left his body in true yogic fashion, through the fontanelle in the top of his head. Blood was seen to ooze out of a hole there. His body was interred at the foot of the Sirumulai Hills, at a place he had named ‘Ramana Padam’, and a Siva lingam was installed over his samadhi. Twice a year there are gatherings at the shrine to commemorate the day of his great experience with Bhagavan, and the date of his final passing away. A poor feeding is conducted and crowds of over 2,000 assemble to pay homage to this foreign son of India. His Name, taken once with wholehearted love and a one-pointed mind, is worth more than the knowledge collected from every book all over the world. Learning is learned ignorance. Unlearning is learning. What you speak about others doesn’t reveal anything about them, but about you. The power of listening attracts more than the power of speaking. Swami Ramanagiri Jnana and bhakti are not separate from each other. One cannot know Him without loving Him, and one cannot love Him without knowing Him. Non-attachment does not mean indifference; love does not mean attachment; attachment is that which takes; love is that which gives. Shut the doors and the door will be opened. Religion is experience. It should be practised, not studied or discussed, and at the very least not preached. Those who preach don’t know; those who know don’t preach. About your worldly troubles: you must do as you think best yourself, but it is good policy to keep away from other’s plates, however sweet and inviting they look. Both sugar and arsenic are white. |
| 1.Swedish proverb: The pillow is the best advisor. Meaning: Sleep over a problem and see how you feel in the morning. 2. Kenyan proverb: When elephants fight, it is the grass that gets hurt. Meaning: Fights of the powerful hurt only the little guys. 3. Ancient Roman proverb: Hunger is the best sauce. Meaning: Everything tastes better when you are hungry. 4. Japanese proverb: A frog in a well does not know the great sea. Meaning: There is more going on than you know, try and see the big picture. 5. Turkish proverb: If the world flooded, it would not matter to the duck. Meaning: Things that are bad for you, aren’t always bad for everyone. 6. Filipino proverb: Leave it to the batman. Meaning: Some problems require superheroes to solve. 7. Russian proverb: To live with the wolves, you have to howl like a wolf. Meaning: In dangerous situations, try and blend in. 8. French proverb: A hungry stomach has no ears. Meaning: You can’t concentrate without food in your tum tum. 9. Kenyan proverb: Slippery ground does not recognise a king. Meaning: Even the most powerful people are just human deep down. 10. Gaelic proverb: A cat in mittens won’t catch mice. Meaning: Being careful and polite doesn’t always get things done. |
| Steve Gouves dies a billionaire, with a fortune of $7billion, at the age of 56 from pancreatic cancer, & here are some of his last words: "In other eyes, my life is the essence of success, but aside from work, I have little joy, & in the end wealth is just a fact of life to which I am accustomed. At this moment, lying on my bed, sick & remembering all my life, I realize that all my recognition & the wealth that I have is meaningless in the face of imminent death. You can hire someone to drive a car for you, make money for you but – you can not rent someone to carry a disease for you. One can find material things, but there is one thing that cannot be found when its lost – “life”. Treat yourself well, & cherish others. As we get older we get smarter, & we slowly realize that a watch worth $30 or $300 – both display the same time. Whether we carry a purse or a wallet worth $30 or $300 – the amount of money in it remains the same. Whether we drive a car worth $150,000, or $30,000 – the road & distance is the same, we will eventually arrive at the same destination. If one drinks a bottle of wine worth $300 or $10,000 – the “stroller” will be the same. If the house we live in is 300 square meters, or 3000 square meters – the loneliness is the same. Your true inner happiness does not come from material things. Whether you’re flying first class, or economy class – if the plane crashes, you crash with it. So, I hope you understand that when you have friends or someone to talk to – that is true happiness! 5 Undeniable Facts:- 1. Do not educate your children to be rich. Educate them to be happy. – So when they grow up they will know the value of things, not the cost. 2. Eat your food as medicine, otherwise you will need to eat your medicine as food. 3. Whoever loves you will never leave you, even if he or she has 100 reasons to give up. He or she will always find one more reason to hold on. 4. There is a big difference between being human & human being. 5. If you want to go fast – go alone! But if you want to go far – Go together! And in conclusion, The 6 best doctors in the world:- 1. Sunlight 2. Rest 3. Exercise 4. Diet 5. Self-confidence 6. Friends Keep them in all stages of your life & enjoy a healthy life. “Love the people The Almighty sent you, one day He will need them back.” Wishing u all a prosperous 2020. |
| Mother says that the teachings of all lines and of all teachers, provided they are genuine and proceed from the right sources, are correct and should be followed by those for whom they are meant. They may be opposed to one another, but that does not detract from each its peculiar value as a distinct path leading to the goal set before it. If this path is self-consistent and lies unblocked till the end of the journey it will not mislead, though it may carry the pilgrim to a sectional truth and not the whole Truth. But if the pilgrim has within him genuine aspiration for the Supreme Reality, Reality will assert itself and overtake him at any point of the journey. In that case the sectional truth will be either brought into relation with the whole and make a step in its direction or will be converted into a medium through which the Supreme Truth will reveal itself. The Ultimate Truth is one and the Way to it is also one. An earnest Seeker, free from worldly attachments and desires, has no reason for disappointment. What is needed is unfailing patience, grim resolution, persistent endeavour, unflinching faith in Divine Providence and unconditional surrender to the Divine Will, preceded by a life of purity, devotion and self-dedication. Mother has no line of Her own, no particular teaching or doctrine. She recognises that though at bottom the Way is unique, it assumes varied forms as the temperaments and capacities of individuals are varied. The true test of real advance in spiritual life lies in the gradual purification, illumination and transformation of the human soul whereby in the end it may be restored to its lost unity with the Divine. She is at times very eloquent on the deprecation of the so-called spiritual favours, including revelations, visions, locutions etc. and exhibitions of occult powers. Not that they are always bad or inspired by dark forces, but the point to be remembered is that they have generally a tendency to deflect us from the right path, which consists in a single-minded and all-absorbing attention to the great Aim held in view. She does not, however, actually comment, even in an indirect manner, on anybody's personal experiences. She simply wants that we should be guarded against what Sri Aurobindo calls: - "the valley of the false glimmer". Usually these experiences arise from perverted imagination or alien powers, hostile or neutral. Self-deception, She points out, is always possible on the path. In very rare cases these favours e real and welcome and may be helpful on the path. In such cases there is no harm in allowing them to continue, though even then the sadhaka should not actively co-operate with them until he feels strongly fortified against all outer influences. It is very important to bear in mind that the strength of personal will, self-consciousness and power of rational discrimination should not suffer in any way. It is thus intelligible that Mother is tolerant to all. She sees the bright side of every object and every event and asks all to do the same as far as they can. Everything has its own use and importance. People have different points of view. what one says from his own view-point may be as true as what another says from his own view-point. She speaks to people from their own standpoints so that they may understand Her well, showing that She is familiar with all. This is the secret of Her universal sympathy and compassion. She always makes it clear that different people with different temperaments and intellectual backgrounds have to be led in different ways. A great World-Teacher said "there are many mansions in my Father's house". Mother says that there are really infinite mansions and that there are infinite ways leading to each and yet what She insists on is that we should not forget the fact that the House is one. All the creatures live in the same house and are members of one and the same family. They all have descended from One and are parts of One and verily One and the Same. Differences are in appearance only; due to Maya, but even this is in reality the play of the One. When we are ourselves again we are bound to realize this. Though She moves about from place to place She is always aware that She is in the same house - movement and rest, many and one, are always co-existent in Her consciousness; nay, they are aspects of the self-same Reality, indeed the Reality itself is aspectless. For the same reason people of different creeds and persuasions find in Her their strongest support, each for reasons best known to himself. Karma, Jnana, yoga and bhakti, in fact all the ways of spiritual life, find their best exponent in Her. She knows the value of each, the relation of one with the others and the fact that all are simultaneously operative. She recognises the different grades of spiritual advancement and yet She is emphatic - of course to those who can appreciate it - that the universal and integral self-revelation of God is always sudden and the question of a Moment, for it never happens in time. She teaches the law of moral and spiritual causality on the analogy of natural law and yet She stresses the supreme value of Divine Freedom, which stands above all laws and restraints. She attaches great importance to Teachers and yet She holds that even Teachers (in the case of the strong personal will of the student)V.M. are not indispensable. She reconciles all conflicts in Her own inimitable way saying that behind all varieties and diversities one Truth shines in its own glory and adds strength to every position. It is not possible to speak at greater length on Mother's teachings within the brief compass of an Introduction which has already exceeded its scheduled limits.* ( * Readers, anxious to have some clear ideas of these teachings, may consult with profit "Matri Vani" and "Words of Sri Anandamayi Ma', published by the Shree Shree Anandamayee Sangha. The first of these books contains extracts from Mother's letters addressed to people seeking consolation and advice; and the second contains Mother's answers to questions asking for light on great metaphysical problems of a sadhaka’s inner life.) There is a deep meaning in Mother's utterances some of which may seem to he obscure to a casual reader. It should not be thought that Mother is not accustomed to speak in plain language. So far as Her ordinary speeches are concerned, speeches addressed to the people of the world coming to Her in search of blessings or assurance or directions in a state of trouble or embarrassment, they are simple, straightforward, free from ambiguity and full of wisdom and compassion. From what has been said above one may have a faint idea of what Mother is like and what Her central teachings are, but it would be a futile attempt to try to estimate Mother's position on the strength of what little we know about Her. We must go beyond surmises and grip Reality in its heart. The best thing for us- would be to try to love Her deeply and sincerely as Mother and by loving Her to bring ourselves into closer and closer union with Her true Self. I felt this years ago and feel this even now. I am convinced that as a result of this process Mother will surely reveal Herself to us more and more fully according to the degree of our fitness and receptivity and that we shall then be in a fortunate position to know immediately, and not through our intellect which sees through a veil and perverts what it sees, what Mother truly is. And in so knowing Her we shall be able to know our own selves also. For She is verily one with us. No intellectual approach, however free from pre-dispositions and prejudices, is capable of revealing the heart of truth. So much of disharmony and opposition in the world today, engendering bitterness and strife, is due to our lack of sympathy and sense of oneness. The root cause is the lack of self-knowledge. There is but one Self which is Love and Wisdom eternal and we shall share it if we but know it in a proper way. Discord and hatred are bound to disappear like mists before the light of the sun. It will herald the advent of a New Life in the world when the central principle of Unity and Love will reign and dominate all its thoughts and activities. May Mother hasten that glorious day and shower Her blessings on humanity. |
| What can be taught is an approach for discrimination and insight and that is done well. But to say that this already is the state of freedom itself seems misleading. The best example i know of was Ramana whose radiation of peace was self-speaking and pacifying to animals and children as well. He, as well as all other great teachers, emphasized that this basic understanding must be incorporated and purify the student to his or her depth. The power of awareness is also the power of love and peace and it is growing in intensity to the degree we surrender to IT. The question and the yearning this woman articulated well is also the power of Grace attracting us not to get stuck in a mere understanding but to surrender fully our personal little self. Then the peace will be without doubt. Ramana once said, ' "The nature of thoughts that arise in the mind will be in accordance with the old vasanas (tendencies, inclinations of the mind). Vasanas themselves are the mind. If there are no vasanas there is no mind. That which Is, is sat (Being). The disturbing agitation of mind that occurs when one attempts to get firmly established in sadhana (practice) is a normal occurrence that is prompted by the rising of vasanas. If at that time you hold tightly to the power of the grace of the parasakti that has possessed you (the inner feeling for the ‘I’-am) the vasanas that agitate your mind and distress you will be completely destroyed. Unless the destruction of all vasanas is accomplished, it will not be possible even for Ishwara to bestow the state of liberation." |
| Lakota Value: Wacantognaka (Generosity) Generosity is something that any real Lakota person has and understands. They learn to provide for their family members and relatives, as well as the needy ones in the community. Therefore a person is looked up to not only for their ability to provide food, clothing and shelter, but also for the ability to give generously and not count the cost. It is better to give a lot than to have a lot and keep it for yourself. To be called "stingy" is the worst insult. When an important occasion comes along, people honor one another with a "giveaway" ceremony or otúȟʼaŋpi. During this giveaway, the giver gives much of what he has to other people. Sometimes, all possessions are given away. |
| Sri Ma’s Special Directives for Spiritual Aspirants .🙏🙏 . In order to advance towards Self-Realisation, it is absolutely necessary for an aspirant to yearn constantly for his sublime goal. He should practice sadhana regularly, whether he feels in a mood for it or not. . To criticize people or to feel hostile towards anyone harms oneself and puts obstacles into one’s path to the Supreme. If someone does something bad, you should feel nothing but affection and benevolence towards him or her. Think, ‘Lord ! This is also one of Thy manifestations.’ The more kindly and friendly you can feel and behave towards everybody, the more will the way to the One – who is goodness itself – open out. . Take care not to be contented at any stage. Some aspirants have visions, others realizations. Or, someone experiences bliss, great happiness and thinks he has himself become God. On the spiritual path, before true Realization supervenes, one may get caught in supernatural powers (vibhutis or siddhis). These constitute obstacles. . The positive proof that the aspirant is centered in God is that he ceases to hate any person or object, and that good qualities such as love, forgiveness, patience, forbearance go on increasing in him. When this change takes place in an aspirant, he will come to see that the One Brahman pervades each and every form, all sects, creeds. An aspirant should not indulge in useless conversation or gossip, but speak only when it is really necessary, which means that he must be a man of few words. . Try and try again to reach the goal you have set before yourself. So long as Realization does not come, you must never relax your efforts. Let this be your firm resolve. In the quest of Self-Knowledge, Love is the crucial factor. Whether it pleases you or not, you will have to make the Eternal your constant companion, just like a remedy that has got to be taken. Without loving God, you will not get anywhere. Remember this all the time. . |
| Shree Ma taught that Man was nothing but the Self. In delusion, mankind wrongly identifies itself with its separate bodies and names. Where so many are seen, there is actually ONE. every aatma (soul), a part of the ONE Paramatma (Supreme Soul)! Shree Ma, said whatever be your choice of religion- Hindu, Christian, Sikh, Muslim, Jain, Buddhist. all the paths lead to the same God. The ONE God. Shree Shree Ma’s Teachings - as applied to our lives. “Man is no other than the Self; but he wrongly thinks of himself as a separate individual centered on his body and identified by a particular name. All sorrow is due to the fact that many are seen, where there is only one.Nothing happens to us by chance" “Whatever is to happen to anyone, anywhere, at any time is all fixed by Him; His arrangements are perfect. It is God’s law to end suffering by suffering. Your present condition is His gift of the results of your past actions. This is because God will ultimately take you in to Himself, and that He is purifying and cleansing you.” Fulfilment of your desires "A worldly desire, if unfulfilled, makes you miserable; if fulfilled, it is almost invariably followed by some other desire and the chain of desires disturbs your peace of mind. You will have peace only if you can rise above worldly desires." Where do you search? JOY is already WITHIN you "So long as one believes that true happiness can be had in this world without searching Within oneself, one will remain in bondage. Strive to abandon yourself, without reserve, to HIM. It is only when you leave everything to HIM, that there is hope for Peace and Happiness." The purpose of our lives "Who am I? This realization is the purpose of human life. To know himself, it is man's bounden duty as a human being to find God. Self-realization IS God-realization, and God-realization IS Self-realization. The more your mind remains absorbed in the thought of God, the stronger will your power grow, and this power is your only companion on the path to union with the Supreme." Of all beings, Man is the luckiest "Amongst all creatures on Earth, man alone has been endowed with the capacity to realize God. He alone has the capacity to create an atmosphere, an environment that is conducive to the revelation of Truth. This is a blessing. Do not waste a single moment." Yes, you will encounter obstacles.. "Pilgrims on the road towards God very often encounter obstacles and stumbling blocks which are due to their former actions. In such cases, one should pray 'Lord guide me with patience and the power of endurance that I may be able to continue undaunted my pilgrimage on the path that leads to thee." Praying in our world of Today "Regular prayer purifies the mind and the heart. Set apart at least fifteen minutes for your daily prayer at a fixed hour. You may even go on doing your usual work during this period, but observe silence and meditate on Him in any way you like. See that throughout your life there should be no slackness in regularity and punctuality. Prayer never goes in vain. So long as no response is received, prayer must be continued. Repetition of His Name makes everything possible." Seek Divinity in Domestic Life "Householders should emulate the ancient Rishis (sages), who were married men living with their families and leading a life dedicated to God. Love and serve your consort and children as Divine manifestations. Perform all work as God's service. Since you seek ownership of the garden, you feel unhappy. Be the gardener instead of trying to be the owner, and then you will feel happy." |
View Portfolio
Visit Notebook
Send Gift Points
Awards
Badges
Send Email
Community Newsfeed
General Discussion
Sponsored Items
Book of Trinkets
Static Items
Books
Groups
Interactive Stories
Audio
Campfire Creatives
Community Notes
Crossword Puzzles
Documents
Folders
Images
In & Outs
Madlibs
Photo Albums
Polls
Product Reviews
Quizzes
Survey Forms
Web Pages
Word Searches
