"Death Vs Death"

When we talk of death, we normally mean death of the physical body. As we are all aware, our body consists of a Sthula Sharir, or the physical body made of matter. In addition we have an Astral body also known as the Sukshma Sharir made up of “Prana” and the mind (manas). The third part is the Karan Sharir, or the Causal Body (as it is the cause of the other two), comprising of Intellect or Budhi and the Soul. When physical death takes place, it is the physical body and the prana which are affected, the other parts remain as they are. Thus our mind, intelligence and the Atma remain and we come back again in a new form based on our karmas and desires. (i shall refrain from elaborating about it in this blog as a lot has been written about it). There is another type of death…. true death as described by our sages. What is It? Perhaps the following story might explain it. There was a caged parrot which was very dear to its owner, who was a trader. The parrot was well trained and could talk quite a bit. The trader was going to another city for some work and, being kind hearted, he asked everyone if they wanted him to get anything for them…he asked his parrot too. The parrot just said, if you meet anyone of my kind, please give them my regards. The trader left and when he reached his destination, he found many parrots sitting on a tree. He called out to them and conveyed the message as requested by his parrot. Hearing the message, all the parrots flew off except an old one, who screamed …and dropped dead! The trader felt very sad as he thought, perhaps his parrot may have been related to this old one and he blamed himself for the old parrot’s death. When he came back, he told his parrot about what had happened. When the caged parrot heard the news, he asked the trader incredulously …”did he die”? The trader said ‘yes’. Hearing this…. he too died! The trader felt doubly sad and blamed himself again and cursed himself for having divulged the news of the demise of the old parrot. With a heavy heart he opened the door of the cage and took the parrot out. The parrot woke up and went and sat on a tree! The trader felt cheated and asked him why did you do this? The parrot replied that when the old parrot had died he had given a very strong message…that if you want to be free from your cage, you must “die”. Bulle Shah has said that this is a symbolic story…. a hint to all those who want to be “free”…go inside see the beautiful sights(part of spiritual evolution) and fly towards freedom. He has also said that one should ‘die while living”. Here the parrot symbolizes the atma which is trapped in the cage….like our atma is trapped inside our physical bodies. Let us explore this a little more. Those saints who can open their third eye, situated at the centre of the forehead, between the two eyes…..connect with themselves at will , leading to the merger of their consciousness with the Universal Conciousness. This is true death. “Saint Paul said, “I protest by our rejoicing which I have in Christ…..I die daily”. He could withdraw his life force and consciousness from the body into bliss (rejoicing) of Christ Consciousness. He could daily experience the state of conscious death when the soul does away with body consciousness and its physical and mental restlessness and activity, and the breath and heartbeat slow down to almost nothing or cease altogether. After mastering the breathless superconscious state , the soul can ascend and make contact with the Christ Consciousness and return again to the body….switching the life force on and off at will from external bodily senses and activity’ (Sri Paramhans Yogananda) Real Death, therefore, means not only extinction of the physical body, but also the dissolution of the two other bodies, namely the astral as well as the causal bodies. Hence death is applicable to these three bodies. Let us remember “Die before you die so that you don’t need to die again”!(Bulle Shah) ....mystical but so true! The best way to “Die while living’ is to internally connect with the Shabd/Aum, gifted to us by a Realized Guru…..and bask in the glory of the soothing divine music and the ever so beautiful and breathtaking vistas of the beyond….nay the inner self! Sources: My Guruji and “The Second Coming of Christ” by Sri Paramhans Yogananda.

"Ego Too Has A Purpose"

Volumes have been written about this so common but abstract word…but do we actually know what it is? We have been made to believe that it is something which is very bad…but is that really so? What is it after all? All of us have an ego but do not know that we have it. It is difficult to define it but this small story may be able to explain it. There was a king who prided himself on being very knowledgeable. He had read a lot about the Ego but had not understood what it was. He , therefore ordered that a learned man be produced before him to explain to him as to what it was. Unfortunately no one could be found despite a wide spread search till someone mentioned the name of a very wise old man, who was produced in the king’s court. The king asked him to explain what Ego meant…the old man roared with laughter and made fun of the king for not knowing what it was! The king got angry at being laughed at but asked him the same question again. The old man laughed even louder and said that he had never heard such a foolish question in his life before. This so enraged the king that he ordered the wise old man to be beheaded. The old man laughed again and told the king that he had given a practical example of ego by behaving the way he had. My Guruji puts it so beautifully…if there are three things, my ego, myself and God…..what happens when the ego is removed? Then only God remains! This is because ego is the biggest barrier between me and Him….when the ego disappears then my Self merges into Him. The above relate to the body identified ego…which affects most of us. If Ego is really so bad, then why has God created it? The genesis of Ego. According to the Sankhya Philosophy of Creation, Purusha, which is the male but passive counterpart, and Prakriti, which is the female active principle,( Mother Nature/Holy Ghost) together, lead to the development of Mahad or Mahat or Intelligence/Awareness or Buddhi. This gives rise to Ahamkar or Ego. This Ego is responsible for the genesis of the three Gunas of Prakriti, namely Sattva , Rajas and Tamas. Sattva is responsible for the Mind, the five sense faculties, namely ears, skin, eyes, tongue, nose, and the five motor organs, which are mouth, hands, feet, reproductive organs and the excretory organs, while Tamas is responsible for the Five elements or Tattvas…Earth, Water, Fire, Air and Space. Ego, therefore, is our sense of self identity and the seat of our consciousness. This is the Universal Ego, which is supposed to be identified with the Self. What does Ego do? For any action to take place, first and foremost a body is needed and the second requirement is the presence of the ego, or the pseudo soul, which enthrones itself in the body, senses, mind and intelligence. For any activities to be directed or executed, this “I-ness’ is essential. What is then, the real purpose of the Ego? Ego is actually a divine manifestation when it identifies itself with the soul. It uses the various instruments of the body and mind to interact with the manifestations of creation. On the other hand when it identifies itself with the senses it becomes the body destroying ego. According to Sri Yoganandji ‘When identified with the subtle instruments of perception and knowledge in the astral body, the “I-ness” becomes a clearer sense of being…when it expresses through the pure intuitive wisdom, the instrument of the causal body, it becomes the pure discriminating ego(divine ego), or its highest expression the soul, the individualized expression of Spirit. The soul, the purest individualized sense of being knows its Spirit-identity of omniscience and omnipresence, and merely uses the instruments of the body and mind as a means of communication and interaction with objectified creation” In other words, Ego has two parts, one identifies with the body while the purer form is identified with the astral and causal parts of our bodies. If the Astral ego identifies with the sense organs it becomes the “pseudo soul”and rules us, and actually gives us a false personality, but if it remains in its pure form it remains in conformity with the wisdom consciousness of the causal body. The pseudo soul gives us a false personality. A classic example is Bhishma Pitamah in the Mahabharat... Sri Yoganandji has called Bhishma Pitamah as Universal ego… here he has been symbolized as the astral or inner seeing ego (which is the consciousness identified with manas, buddhi and chitta). But this astral ego, in Bhishma’s case, has been strongly affected and identified with the outward pull of the sense mind and sided with the Kauravs, but when Bhishma was in samadhi this astral ego became more transcendant and ultimately became part of the pure being. His was the divine ego originally which identified with the senses and he sided with the Kauravs, later, however, he went into samadhi when he achieved union with the pure being. This also goes to prove that ego is very difficult to annihilate. The purpose of the ego, therefore, is to hold together, along with the soul, the body, life force and consciousness, which are three different rates of vibration. Ego, therefore, has been given to us for ident ifying ourselves with the Self or soul….but we misuse it and convert this divine form into the pseudo soul which takes us away from Divinity. Body identified ego is very difficult to kill…our Hindu Scriptures have said “When this ‘I’ will die, then will I know who am I”. In other words, ego is that bubble that separates the drop from the ocean, when the bubble bursts the drop becomes the Ocean…and for that to happen one needs to transgress the Conscious and Subconscious minds and go into the Individual or Universal Superconsciousness through meditation. We, therefore, need to identify with the divine ego and rise above the physical ego. Sources: “God Talks to Arjun The Bhagwat Gita” and “The Second Coming Of Christ” by Sri Paramhans Yoganand and “The Complete Book of Ayurvedic Remedies’ by Vasant Lad.

'Balance...The Essence of a True Life"

Human life as we are told is invaluable and has been achieved through His immense kindness. It has been bestowed upon us for us to learn, experience and progress to ultimately merge with Him. Life is a continuum and the human body is multidimensional….. with myriads of factors coming into play for it to run smoothly…but smoothly it runs only when delicately balanced. How is this delicate balance achieved? To understand this we need to start from the beginning…. Creation. As we are aware, the human body as well as the entire Universe came into being through a vibration comprising of sound and light, called ‘Aum”, ‘Shabd”, “Amen”,” Ameen” or “Hum”. The human body formed through what is called “Pranashakti’ also known as “Chi” or “Ki’.This pranashakti, after giving birth to us lies dormant at the base of the spine, at the Muladhar chakra from where it controls the functioning of the human body through a network of nadis. As pranashakti descends down it divides into a number of energy centres called chakras, which are “wheels” and are spiritual and energy processors, each related to an endocrine gland and concerned with the regulation of the functioning of the various systems of the body. They are also related to the five elements or ‘tattvas” and store specific types of emotional memories. These chakras, therefore keep the energy flow of the body in balance…the flow of which is normally positive, but whenever it becomes negative or blocked imbalance of the chakra results leading to the development of various diseases in the body. We are also aware that this entire creation has been formed by five elements…Earth (Prithvi), Water, (Jal) Fire,(Tejas), Air (Vayu) and Ether (Akash).The human body is also derived from the same elements. Every cell of the human body is represented by all the five elements….the cell wall is formed from the Earth element, the vacuoles in the cell from Space, the cytoplasm from the Water element, Nucleic acids from Fire and cell movement is due to the Air element. Human beings and Nature are thus interconnected….our bodies are holograms of the Universe (each part of a hologram contains the whole). To quote Kahlil Gibran “In one drop of water are found all the secrets of the ocean”. Our sages tell us “As is the atom, so is the Universe; As is the microcosm so is the macrocosm; As is the Human body , so is the Cosmic Body; As is the Human mind so is the Cosmic Mind;” Elsewhere, the same thing has been expressed as “As above, so below” We, human beings as well as everything else in Nature bear an integral relationship. The five elements or Tattvas combine into three basic energies or functional principles, present in all of us in varying degrees. In other words they are responsible for Vata, Pitta and Kapha. Space or Ether (Anahat and Vishudhi Chakras) form Vata, Fire (Manipur chakra) forms Pitta. Kapha is constituted by Water and Earth elements (Muladhar and Svadisthan chakras). These have been called “Doshas” in Ayurveda. Vata, Pitta and Kapha are present in each and every cell…when in balance, they create health but when imbalanced they cause disease. These doshas are responsible for the variety of our individual differences, preferences, our eating habits as well as the various biological and psychological processes of our mind, body and consciousness. Very briefly, Vata is the principle of Air and is the energy of movement, while Pitta is the principle of fire which is responsible for the energy of digestion and metabolism. Kapha, being the principle of water is the energy of lubrication and structure. Each of these have quite specific characteristics, for example, a person who has a predominance of Kapha is generally heavy or obese with a fine skin , beautiful eyes, is stable (grounded), happy and has a graceful walk. A Pitta, on the other hand has a sharp intellect, ambitious, an overachiever, has a pronounced hunger and can see “ahead”. A person with a Vata personality is generally thin, very intelligent, creative, has a good grasp of things but forgets easily. The whole of life’s journey is also divided into three major milestones. From birth to age 16 is the Kapha period, from 16 to 50 years is the age of Pitta while from 50 to 100 is the age of Vata. Seasons have also been classified according to the doshas. The windy, cool, dry weather of autumn is predominantly vata, followed by the dark, heavy, damp, cloudy qualities are Kaphic in nature. Early spring is still mainly Kaphic but late spring and summer are Pittic, characterized by increased warmth, light and brightness…and heat. Similarly, the various times of the day and their effect on the human body have been described in detail in Ayurveda…. Kapha predominates from 6 am to 10 morning and evening, Pitta is dominant between 10 to 2, afternoon and night while Vata is at its peak at dawn and dusk. Living in accordance with these principles and moulding ourselves accordingly brings a proper balance to our lives. There is a lot of truth in the saying “early to bed and early to rise makes Jack healthy, wealthy and wise”! The Cycles of Nature are responsible for our Biorhythms which create the basic vibratory backbone of our existence…namely the beating of the heart, pulsation of the cerebro spinal fluid, the menstrual cycle etc. There are many such examples…the two hour shift between right and left hemispheric dominance (of the brain)…our breath regulates this and there is a distinct shift of our mindset from linear to intuitive depending on the shift of our breath from one side to the other(the nasal cycle) It is well known that when we are born, we are born with a particular “prakriti”, which is a unique and specific combination of the three doshas at conception, which is one’s psychobiological temperament and does not change during one’s life time. It is decided by the person’s combination and proportion of Vata, Pitta and Kapha and is determined according to the genetics, diet, life style and current emotions of the parents. Incidentally, the five “Mahabhutas” as these elements are called form part of practically all Complementary Systems of Medicine, be it, Ayurveda, Chinese, Tibetan, Thai or Unani Medicine, Yoga etc, though the names are somewhat different. As life progresses, a lot of changes take place in the balance of the doshas in our body due to weather, dietary choices, fatigue, stress, emotional state, exercise etc . All these factors alter the state of our doshas and reflect the state of health …this is called Vikriti. Prakriti has certain ‘gunas’ called the ‘gunas of Prakriti’ which are Sattva, Rajas and Tamas. It is these gunas which decide how we behave since each has certain typical characteristics. Sattva is characterized by purity and virtue, and related to the Spiritual Eye or the Agya chakra, Rajas is concerned with passion and worldly activities and related to the Heart centre or the Anahat Chakra. Tamas is characterized by inertia, pride, arrogance and evil tendencies and related to the lower three chakras, namely, Manipur, Svadisthan and the Muladhar chakras. All of us have a mixture of all three but one or the other predominates. As per Yoga, our body has five parts, or sheaths or “koshas” which are known as the Annamaya Kosha or the “Sthula Sharir’, (the Physical body), the Energy body or the Pranamaya Kosha, (the Physiological Body), the Manomaya Kosha (the Psychological Body)…these two together constitute what is called the “Sukshma Sharir”/Astral Body. This is followed by the Vijnanmaya Kosha (the Intellectual Body) and finally the Anandmaya Kosha, or Bliss Sheath (Space). The last two are together called the ‘Karan Sharir’ or the Causal Body. In a nutshell, the human body thus has a Mind, a Body and Spirit…all being ENERGY, which must remain in balance. Generally there is a tug-o-war between our mind, body and spirit….the mind is forever pulling us towards sense pleasures while the spirit tries to take us towards Him…the resulting pull is detrimental to our healths. Ayurveda states that the purpose of our lives is achieved by balancing four fundamental aspects of life, namely, Dharma, Artha, Kama and Moksha. ‘Dharma’ broadly means duty or right action, “Artha” is material success or wealth, “Kama” is positive desire while “Moksha’ is spiritual liberation. For all these to be possible, sound health is essential. From the above, it becomes clear that to maintain a balance in life there has to be a balance between our Mind, Body and Spirit, which is the Inner and the Outer, between the Self and the Environment, between the three Doshas…Vatta, Pitta and Kapha, between our Energy flow and our chakras, between our Prakriti and Vikriti, and last but not the least a balance of Dharma, Artha, Kama and Moksha. How is this to be achieved? All of the above are possible by connecting to the Self…through Yoga (as in “Union’). This union is best achieved through meditation as learned from a Realized guru. Ashtanga Yoga too plays a very important role….all the eight “petals’ slowly but surely lead one to the yoga of union. Yoga asanas and Pranayam bring about a balancing of the chakras leading to balancing of our energy system. This combined with Meditation gradually leads us through our spiritual evolution…we transgress the negative aspects of the chakras which occur when they are imbalanced…namely transgressing the Muladhar Chakra gives us freedom from fear and brings about grounding, balancing of the Svadisthan Chakra makes us rise above our five major negative qualities…Kama, Krodha, Lobh, Moh, Madha and Matsya, ie we rise above our Tamasic temperament by transgressing the two lower chakras. Transgression of the Manipur chakra makes us rise above our Rajasic temperament. As we ascend to the Anahat or the Heart Chakra, positive emotions of Bliss, peace, love, harmony, understanding, clarity, purity, compassion, empathy, forgiveness and unity come to the fore. This combined with ascension to the Vishudhi Chakra brings us closer to the truth and one becomes sattvic in temperament. Similarly meditation helps us gradually transgress the various koshas…. When we meditate, the first thing that happens is improvement in physical well being, followed by harmonization of the breath (the pranamaya kosha). The two together lead the development of a strong body and strong will power. As meditation becomes deeper and deeper, our breathing becomes slower and slower, and tranquility of the mind starts, which is conducive to focusing on the Self leading to beautiful experiences.With still deeper meditation, we reach the level of the Vijnamaya Kosha or the Intelligence sheath, resulting in greater development of wisdom….finally with still deeper meditation, we reach the level of the Bliss sheath which is supposed to be the ultimate…..merger with Him. Yoga and Meditation increase our awareness, which helps us in our eating habits, our life style, our mental processes, and brings us closer to the Divine all of which are conducive to balancing our mind, body and spirit….and enable us to live in conformity with Nature. Therefore, in order to truly ‘live’ one needs to be in balance……just ‘Be” Sources: “The Complete Book of Ayurvedic Remedies’ by Vasant Lad, ‘Radical Healing” by Rudolph Ballentyne, “The Spiritual Approach to life” written by Sri Bimal Mohanty

The Gang Rape and its Spiritual implication....

Yes Each one of us has a very special ability or capability….. Osho has said “Each person comes into the world with a specific destiny. He has something to fulfil, some message to deliver, some work to complete. You are not here accidentally ; you are here meaningfully. There is a purpose behind you….” Spiritually speaking, when we take this earthly birth, we do so based on our karmas and to fulfil some of our desires, based on the “contract” we make with the Creator and certain other beings before coming…we come to experience something, often to achieve what we had wanted to do earlier but could not…and very often earlier unpleasant or bad experiences of a previous birth egg us on to set ‘right’ the “wrongs” this time. Our subconscious mind knows it all and keeps giving us small little messages in the form of whispers which make us do what we do…..it plants thoughts in our minds which bring about certain events (even without us knowing about it). Certain events get “created” in this way by bringing the “players’ for a particular “act” together in order to fulfil that desire. Nature is always trying to help us achieve what we wish to since our thoughts attract similar ones from around us in a very subtle manner. Often good souls take birth to convey very specific messages for mankind, which they do through their actions even by getting hurt in the process. The hurt turns into major sacrifices sometimes…the good soul subjects itself to hardship just to help mankind. Such souls need to be worshipped! What has “Nirbhaya” (as TOI calls this courageous girl) come to do? To me, it appears that Nirbhaya has a wonderful soul which has been crying for justice. She has stood her ground for her self- respect and fought the perpetrators at every step, fighting the heinous crime which was being committed on her. Her indomitable spirit as well as her ‘never say die” attitude should be a very strong message to us. Nirbhaya has started a nationwide ‘campaign” against injustice, as seen by the spontaneous and unprecedented response to her plight. Never before have we witnessed such tremendous outpouring of emotion…she has brought together people from diverse situations together, in fact, she has brought the nation together to fight and to correct the ‘wrong’ by attempting to change the present scenario of lawlessness against women. Without consciously knowing about it she has been following the dictates of her subconscious mind to bring about sweeping changes in society. Souls like ‘Nirbhaya’s’ are very “old” souls , who have a lot of experience behind them…..as such they convey very strong messages as they know what exactly they have come to achieve through their exemplary actions for the benefit of humanity….their love for a human being is deeply spiritual and divine.

Kundalini Revisited...What is the best method for raising it?

The “mystical”word, Kundalini, has always remained an enigma even though so much has been written about it! One gets the impression that if one knows about it then one is already enlightened! On the other hand, being ingnorant about it is tantamount to being unintelligent, so to speak. What is Kundalini? Yogis believe that the Kundalini is our individual manifestation of the larger Shakti which is the creative force of the Universe. This larger shakti has also been called Mahakundalini by some (Mary Scott, “Kundalini in the physical world”). It is regarded as a stabilizing agency, whether at the physical or Cosmic level. It is part of the Universal Spirit present inside us, but about which we are not normally aware. It is tremendously powerful, borne out of the fact that it has given birth to us. The role of the kundalini is to see that all the multiple energy based processes occurring inside our bodies are held firmly together in accordance with the patterns commensurate with our destiny and life’s purpose, while Mahakundalini appears to be similar to Tao, as described by the Chinese, who have conceived it “as a vast all-embracing terrestrial energy not subject to gravity or electromagnetism but modifying them as they operate within the Earth’s field”(Mary Scott) To understand what kundalini is, one needs first to delve into the process of Creation. Our ancient rishis have understood that, for this entire universe to be created the One has to manifest into many. Based on the tantric philosophy, Shiva brings about consciousness which blends with shakti in order to create human life. This creation occurs through the blending of the Five Elements or Tattvas. Akash or Ether first appeared out of nothingness or the void and is the first of the Five Elements and is considered the medium through which sound is transmitted and it was this sound which initiated creation (Shabd, Aum, Hum, Holy Ghost….). Since this shabd has brought about our creation, it has the power to take us back to the One also. It is this shabd which continues to create and is manifested everywhere. From Akash, arises the second element, Vayu or Air as swirling masses of gaseous matter, which then combust forming heat and light, whereby giving birth to the third Element, Tejas or Fire. The residues then pool, and moisture appears forming the liquid Element, called Apas or Water. Finally, crystallization and solidification occurs and we have the Earth or Prithvi. (Dr Rudolph Ballentine, “Radical Healing’). This is so very similar to the “Big Bang” theory of evolution as proposed by Science. Yogic teaching has been that we take birth through what is known as pranashakti or life force which, descends down the medulla and the cerebro spinal axis to finally come and rest at the base of the spine or the muladhar (Coccygeal) chakra where it lies dormant. As this creative force descends down it gets transformed into energy centres or “chakras” which are responsible for the physiological functioning of the organs they are in proximity with as well as the endocrine functions of those physiological structures and our various emotions or feelings. They also represent the Elements or Tattvas as mentioned above. Pranashakti enters through the Sahasrar Chakra at the very top of the head, travels down to the Agya Chakra, in between the two eyes at the forehead (which is actually a command centre for the entire human structure). This is followed by the Vishudhi Chakra in the throat and representative of the akash tattva, below which is the heart chakra associated with the Air or Vayu element. The Lumbar chakra is associated with the Fire Element while the Svadisthan (Sacral) chakra represents Water and the Muladhar, Earth. We, therefore, see that even though the kundalini is lying dormant, it is not inert, however, since it is controlling so many functions in the body through thousands of nadis. (Kindly access http://www.speakingtree.in/public/spiritual-blogs/seekers/wellness/mantra-meditation-on-the-chakras-and-their-health-benefits for more details about the chakras) Each of these chakras also has a presiding deity. For example, Lord Ganesha is the guardian of the coccygeal chakra, Lord Vishnu of the Sacral, Lord Shiva of the Manipur or lumbar chakra….. Each of these chakras also have their own mantras which “energise” the chakra. Opposing forms of energy must unite in order for the whole to form. So also, the kundalini, being part of the Spirit must move up the spine to unite with Consciousness to become One again. Unfortunately, the kundalini, after giving birth to us, lies dormant at the base of the spine, the muladhar chakra. It remains asleep because so much of our energy is expended and drained out owing to our preoccupation with our deep seated habits based on fear and insecurity. The kundalini shakti is actually a manifestation of the feminine force in the universe and is not just the nurturing and receptive aspect of the feminine. This has been so very beautifully brought forward by Sri Yoganand Paramhans in “God speaks to Arjun”. The five energy centres in man are also symbolised by the five Pandavas. The Muladhar, the Earth element is represented by Nakul, the Swadisthan or Water element by Sahadeva, the Fire element or Manipur by Arjun, Anahat or Air Element by Bhima, while Yudhisthir represents the Akash Element or Vishudhi chakra. Draupadi represents the kundalini. Draupadi is the daughter of Drupada, symbolic of extreme dispassion and represents the spiritual power or feeling of kundalini. When the kundalini is lifted upward it becomes “wedded “to the five pandavas and gives rise to five sons which are the five manifestations of the opened spinal centres, the various lights and sounds characteristic of each centre. “ Kundalini Awakening: According to yogis Kundalini awakening is, therefore, the first and most important step towards spiritual progress. In other words, this is the first step towards self realization. Only when one has been able to draw one’s attention away from one’s material surroundings and desires that attention will turn inwards. Kundalini awakening has often been confused with the feeling of so called “bliss” during the union of the male and female but this is momentary and the true purpose is to get this energy chanelled up through the spinal centres. Sri Aurobindo, has introduced the concept that the awakening kundalini power is both a descending as well as an ascending one. “The descending current is the energy from above coming down to touch the sleeping power in the lowest nerve centre at the bottom of the spine; the ascending current is the release of the energy going up from the awakened kundalini”. He feels that the chakras cannot be “willed” to open but open by themselves by the descent of the force. He agrees that they do open from below upwards in accordance with the tantric discipline but his concept is that they open from up downwards. “The ascension and descent of the force in this yoga accomplishes itself in its own way without any necessary reproduction of the details laid down in the tantric books”. What does kundalini awakening mean? The kundalini is said to be sleeping when one has wordly aspirations or desires, but when the same energy is going God ward or towards kutastha or the third eye, when we have an intense yearning or longing for God, then the kundalini is said to be rising or being awake. This does not mean that at one moment it is asleep and at another moment, awake. As the individual governs himself with more and more wisdom, the energy starts flowing upwards with greater and greater intensity and as he intensifies his sadhana he redirects his energy more and more God-ward and starts having divine experiences in meditation which further help in his sadhana. Slowly greater energy is freed from the mayic hold and ascends God-ward. It is, therefore more important to understand that mere awakening the kundalini is not important since the energy will fall back again due to the gravitational pull of one’s desires…..what is important is an intense yearning for God which will keep the energy sustained and prevent it from falling down again. There are so many methods which have been described to “awaken” the kundalini…we keep hearing of new yogic techniques for the same, but merely raising the kundalini is of less importance…the kundalini which has risen and its remaining in that state is of the greatest importance. There is an erroneous impression among most people that they can awaken their kundalinis themselves by various methods which have been described and are being practiced. Trying to awaken our kundalinis by ourselves should never be practiced! By doing so, one may generate tremendous energy…..resulting in serious medical problems since the body has not been conditioned to withstand this massive flow of energy. It should only be done under guidance from someone who has the experience. Many yoga teachers also have stressed that one should not attempt to raise the kundalini by meditating on individual chakras as it could be dangerous, perhaps not even correct to do so. Sant Kabir, Guru Nanak, my Guruji and some other God realized Gurus, etc consider the “hearing” of the Shabd being of paramount importance for the opening of the “third eye” rather than having to do anything with the kundalini since they feel that a proper union can only take place after one has been able to bring one’s consciousness to the area between the two eyebrows, after which the atma then can travel up after some more stages. This can happen only through guidance from a god realized guru. They feel that anything to do with the chakras and the kundalini is basically concerned with the human body and its physiological functioning. This is because when you are meditating on any of the chakras(the five lower ones) you are actually meditating on the deity controlling that particular chakra and you would probably hear the sound related to that chakra and perhaps gain some powers(ridhis and sidhis) because of the deity. These powers are actually “by products” which are not of much consequence to a real Sadhak, seeking union. Spiritual advancement actually means going beyond all this so that one can attain union with the Parmatama beyond Creation and this advancement occurs only when one has an open third eye so that one can journey beyond. The purpose of human life is to finally go back to our true abode which is with the Supreme Being. In other words, reaching a stage of ‘turia avastha’ or enlightenment, is the real thing. Intuitively, I feel that connecting to shabda,(Aum, Amen, Ameen, the Word…) through meditation as taught by a fully realized guru is by far the best route, perhaps the only route to enlightenment and that whatever other route or routes there are ultimately get connected to shabda somewhere along the line. It is not difficult to see that there are examples of many, who, may perhaps have never practiced yoga but have “united” with the Supreme Spirit! Practicing all the eight limbs of yoga are still very important, though, since in a way one is actually “living” the “ten commandments”(Yam/Niyam), managing to remain physically and mentally healthy(Asanas and Pranayam) and at the same time progressing spiritually by meditation, but the method of meditation should be such that it leads to the opening of the “third eye’, essential for further spiritual ascent and happens through listening or appreciating the shabda. Sri Aurobindo feels that “when the soul is ready we are prompted to meditate” The opening of the “Third Eye’ has two manifestations, one that of being able to hear all the subtle sounds and also seeing various types of visions. This is called “surt’. Hearing subtle sounds is by far the commoner of the two while seeing visions happens due to Divine grace and is a simply wonderful experience which cannot be described! When the third eye opens, one’s atma travels higher to go beyond the Sahasrar dal kamal or the “tenth’ door and it is then that actual “sant mat” commences. This means that one can then venture into other realms at will. When this happens one can travel in the astral and the causal realms depending upon one’s spiritual progress. Yogis and Budhists believe that our connection is through what is called the “Antahkaran’ or the “silver chord” which is attached to our Sahasrar chakra. This chord remains intact as long as the atma inhabits the physical body but gets snapped at the time of physical death. During astral travel, this chord remains connected with the body. During one’s sojourn in the astral, one may have wonderful experiences, of happiness and bliss. The visions of the Divine, other “mukta“ atmas, god realized souls etc become more and more frequent, and ultimately a stage may come when one merges with divinity with the breaking down of one’s physical, astral and causal bodies to unite with Him and become One or Whole! All along this beautiful journey, one’s guru is always there, in front, like a beacon of light, guiding one along, meandering through the indescribable but serene and luminous world inducing feelings of profound happiness and bliss. The guru, the Almighty and the self all merge in that soothing divine light! The final stage of scintillating brilliance is supposed to be so beautiful and blissful that even Sant Kabir has not been able to describe it fully! Labels: Kundalini Naam Shabda Sources:“Kundalini in the Physical World” Mary Scott, ‘Radical Healing” Rodolph Ballentine MD, “God Talks To Arjun, The Bhagwat Gita’ Sri Paramhans Yogananda

How Does the Guru appear and contribute to spiritual evolution?

We are always told that when the student is ready, the guru appears. The importance of the guru has been extolled in our Scriptures since time immemorial, but do we not wonder as to where does he come from and how does he appear? We may also wonder as to how he helps one evolve spiritually. Here the discussion is about a true guru, one who has achieved God realization, and is, therefore, fit to guide his student to Self Realization. To the best of my knowledge, all realized souls, sages, enlightened beings had to have a guru for their spiritual evolution. Even in the case of Jesus Christ…his guru was John the Baptist (they had a similar relationship in an earlier life as well, as Elijah and Elisha). A somewhat similar relationship existed between Sri Ramakrishna and Sri Vivekananda. A guru/disciple relationship does not end in one life but may carry on through repeated births till a complete liberation of the disciple is reached. Arjun too, was a great sage in his previous life and when Krishna incarnated, Arjun did too as his companion (actually as Lord Krishna’s cousin) “Genesis” of a true guru: A true Guru is one who has lived as the atman of the disciple or student, and therefore, knows the student through repeated births. To quote Dr Rick Levy(personal communication) “When the God made you as Atman, the first being of you was the Guru which then branched out into becoming you like the pod of the flower opens into becoming so many individual petals. When you come back you encounter your particular Guru who became you first before you became you. Hence, the one and only guru for each of us….the illumined soul can see these things and whom is meant for whom.” This explains how the Guru appears when the student is “ready”. There are some very interesting situations as to how this happens. A gentleman by the name of Mr Dickinson, while being pushed into a pond, when he was small and playing with his friends, was about to drown when he had a vision of a man “with tranquil eyes and a reassuring smile” and was saved. A few years later, he saw the same man he had seen in vision…he turned out be Swami Vivekananda, (when Swamiji had gone to America). On meeting him he was told “I am not your guru”…”your teacher will come later. He will give you a silver cup”. Many years later, Paramhans Yogananda presented Mr Dickinson with a silver cup as he was Mr Dickinson’s guru! There are many such examples. Very often, one sees a vision of the Guru while sleeping….which is one of the ways the guru beckons you……symbolically asking you to wake up from your “sleep”! Most often, a number of ‘chance” meetings occur with various people, or ‘chance’ situations arise or one reads or hears something which takes one a step further, then another, followed by another similar situation till one finally meets the guru. Who knows, we may be acting as catalysts for others! The guru may make subtle contact with us …and we may not even realize it……as happened in my case…when he came to see me…I did not have the foggiest idea why he had come into my life! It took me about three years before i met him again…..Yes, i am fortunate that i have the blessings of a true guru who came from out of the blue… and changed my life completely. When God sees someone who seeks Him, He causes “chance” contact with, perhaps, a good book or a spiritual teacher. If the seeker is not satisfied with the meager information he gets from books etc, and his eagerness to find Him is really deep, God sends him someone who knows God and is empowered to lead the seeker to enlightenment. Gurus ordained by God can feel the spiritual vibrations of their disciples and can call them mentally….this mental call is heeded and the disciple comes in contact with the guru. This is the reason why when great masters incarnate, they bring with them select disciples from earlier incarnations…..who later congregate. What happens after we have met our Guru? Once contact has been established, the guru “initiates’ the student…..This initiation is also called “diksha’ but is the same as ‘baptism” in the West or ‘Naam daan” in some other parts of India. True initiation is baptism by Spirit which is threefold. First, the guru sees the Divine light himself, which is then sent into the initiate…which may not be obvious to the devotee. This light remains with the initiate for a little while with its full vibratory power in order to affect a change in him. The student, or devotee, has to make the effort to retain it. To make the Light his own, the student has to diligently and conscientiously meditate and follow his Guru’s guidance to progress in his sadhana. The path to Him becomes easier now but constant guidance from the Guru needs to continue…..if the student is on the right track he/she may not understand the significance of the beautiful sounds/music/visions which may be heard/ seen, if fortunate. The implications of these and certain other occurrences may not be very clear unless and until the student is guided properly. It is said that spiritual progress requires 25% of the disciple’s own efforts, 25% through the blessings of the Guru and the remaining 50% is the grace of God (Sri Paramhans Yoganand). It is, therefore, clear that both the devotee’s efforts as well as the Guru’s blessings are equally necessary. In the case of a disciple (a disciple is one who accepts the master completely, unlike the student, who may follow the master superficially depending upon his inclination), the very first contact with the guru awakens memories of their everlasting bonding. This feeling of oneness is through an exchange of magnetic vibrations between the two and, as mentioned above, Gurus ordained by God can feel the spiritual vibrations of their disciples. How does a guru become a Guru? There are two ways by which this happens. First, and the more important one, is when the guru is ordained to serve and save others by a real guru. This is what happens most commonly, as in the case of Jesus Christ…..he was baptized by Spirit by John the Baptist. When the Divine Light passes through the initiate, “it cauterizes present bad habits and past karmic seeds lodged in the brain” (Yoganand Paramhans). This is why it is said that if the realized Guru bestows the student by ‘Naam Daan’, the student’s past karmas are washed off…he has a clean slate so to speak. If he or she follows the path as ordained by his/her Guru and acts according to his free will, merger with the Almighty can become a reality. The Guru, and also a Realized soul have the power to take over the karmas of their students or others. Secondly, one must hear the voice of God asking him to redeem others. Jesus, too, heard that voice inside him but just to set an example he sought baptism by John. Unfortunately, Most self appointed gurus often mistake God’s voice to the voice of their imaginative ego in their subconscious mind! How does the Guru take the student forward? Once the student has been initiated, the guru teaches him his method of meditation, which basically consists of trying to visualize the guru’s “swaroop” at the site of the “third eye”(deep to and in the centre of the forehead)…along with mental chanting of a mantra given by the guru……..the disciple/student needs to concentrate on his guru’s ‘swaroop” and just follow him up wherever he may lead. It is important for the initiate to surrender to his guru and have faith in him…he must not lose confidence in him. A true guru leads by example and not by mere rhetoric….he does not encourage “blind’ following but encourages questions from his student as well as discussions. Sycophancy is certainly not what a true guru encourages. This way the initiate gradually progresses on the path. Every word the true guru utters is full of wisdom…..very often the meanings may not really sink in but as the student advances, more and more teachings and words start making sense. Sometimes it so happens that what the guru says, may be completely at variance to what one believes or ‘thinks’ one knows. This is because the guru speaks the truth, based on his intuition which is the “voice of the Spirit”….we know that spirit is part of God…who is perfect therefore intuitive wisdom is always superior to what one’s intellect tells us. It is, therefore, imperative, that the student’s “cup” be empty…..whatever so called “knowledge” he has, has no real meaning…. the guru tries to inculcate wisdom as opposed to mere knowledge, which is essentially just “information’ and has no practical significance on the spiritual path. Since a lot of the things which happen would be so new and very different from what the student would have imagined, he may get confused, the guru, therefore, guides him at every step by clarifying the doubts in the initiate’s mind. It is, indeed, a fact that guidance is required at every step! In advanced stages the “sadhak” may see visions and often the guru’s image merging with his, proving that his guru and he are one! A true guru has only one aim…that of taking the student/disciple onwards toward union with God…this is his purpose in life. He acts as a bridge since he actually has one part of him in God communion and the other firmly planted on earth! He should not be confused with so called self proclaimed “gurus” who have other intentions. One of the surest signs of a true guru is that he can awaken the “aum’ shabd in the devotee (also known as ‘Anhad shabd”, “Amen”, ‘Holy ghost”, Ameen’ etc) which a ”guru’ who himself is not evolved enough, will not be able to. It is this “inner music’ perpetually flowing through the ether, contact with which is responsible for spiritual evolution. We should beware of those “gurus” who preach from the scriptures but not practice what they preach! Apart from having a magnetic personality (which leave any one coming in contact with him full of positivity), a God realized guru is always “giving” but never asking anything from the student except devotion to God. What the guru “gives’ is often not comprehended, since it is not material but in the form of blessings, grace…and divine cosmic light which the guru imbibes from Him and transfers on to the student. An advanced devotee can often feel or “see” this transfer. Realized Masters like Christ, Ramkrishna, Pramahans Yogananda, Vivekananda, Guru Nanak, Sant Kabeer,and many other Prophets are even today sending forth their spiritual vibrations to humanity in the form of this Divine Light but very few can appreciate it. It is not necessary that the sadhak has to be in his guru’s company to receive this…..he could be in any part of the world but spiritually connected to him. It is even possible the guru may not even have a physical form….he may have discarded his physical body earlier but guides, nevertheless, through intuition and vibrations! One may wonder as to whether such Realized gurus exist in this day and age? They most certainly do…..but since they do not believe in promoting themselves they are overshadowed by lesser, self proclaimed ones who believe in the number of followers they have. It is important to realize that the path to God realization is travelled alone….”Ekla Chalo re…” and not in multitudes! It is a path travelled with the guru as a beloved leader, friend or ‘Sakha”, whose love knows no bounds for a true disciple! This is the reason why a Realized guru is very choosy about those he initiates…everyone who comes to him may not be blessed by his diksha….he first ensures that the person deserves the initiation. This is also because there is just one true guru for a sadhak….everyone may not be accepted by the same guru since, as mentioned earlier one’s specific guru has had a connection with one in the past…and the true guru knows with whom he has had an earlier connection. In the end I would like to point out that often many initiates who have been blessed by their guru by diksha, become complacent due to the mistaken belief that they have their Guru’s blessings and, which they feel is enough of an achievement….do not work towards their evolution and go back to their previous bad habits! So often, many seek ‘Naam Daan” in order to show others that they are on the path! This is strongly discouraged…spirituality is not about showing off or falling prey to “spiritual ego”….it is the path to inner realization and union with God where physical ego, pride, “one upmanship“, “superior-inferior’ feelings have no meaning…in His eyes all are equal, bound by an invisible cord of Divine Love! Let us pray to Him to send us a true guru who guides us to the place where we may bask in the warmth of Divine Love….peace….happiness and bliss. Let us also remember that just like Jesus Christ said “I and my Father are one’ …..i and my guru are one too! Source: “The Second Coming of Christ” by Paramhans Yogananda in addition to my own perception.

Is Perception the key to Happiness?

My Guruji once told us a very nice story: There was a man who had a fairly large family and all of them lived in a very small room. He went to a sage who asked him what was making him so unhappy. The man told him that they had just a small room in which his entire family slept and he was finding it difficult to find peace as sleep was never forthcoming….what should he do? The sage smiled and said that his problem would be solved if he would, henceforth, keep his camel also inside the room where slept with the family. The poor man wondered as to how this could help but thought since the sage was an enlightened one, perhaps there was something to it…..he, therefore tied the camel inside his room and tried to sleep, but the night was miserable, since whenever the camel shook or turned its neck, the bell (placed around its neck) would jingle and make it impossible for them to sleep. The following morning he went to the wise one again , who seemed very amused by his predicament and asked him to keep his dog, in addition to the camel, inside when he went to sleep. The poor man was shocked but did not question the wise one and did as he was told. Needless to say, the whole night the entire family kept tossing and turning…what with the dog barking at the camel and the bell around the camel’s neck adding to the din. No one could sleep a wink and the next morning, the man went to the sage again and told him his story. The wise man laughed and told him reassuringly, ‘don’t worry, your problem will be solved” and asked him to simply remove both the camel as well as the dog from the room, to tie them outside and to sleep without them. That night the poor man had a very peaceful sleep and looked ever so happy when he met the sage next morning and thanked him profusely for having solved his problem Most of the times we are unhappy because of our perceptions…can we not try to find a better way of looking at things? Every situation presents us with two sets of perspectives…..one which is its negative aspect (which makes us unhappy if we dwell on it) while the other one can make us forget our predicament if we so desire. To give you an example…we set out to do something but fail in our endeavour. We can look at it from two viewpoints…one that we failed and the other that we have learned something from the incident and are better informed and better prepared for the next time. It is very wisely said “Failure is the stepping stone to success”. We know how many times Thomas Edison had failed before he finally succeeded. Every failure gives us a tremendous learning experience. Our thoughts play a very important role in keeping us happy. It is said that negative thoughts and feelings attract stressful events and troublesome people while positive thoughts and feelings, as well as harmonius ones attract joy, happiness, love and success. The “half full glass” is also a case in point. Like energy attracts like. We also know that matter is made of energy and energy follows thought. It is this energy which makes us do things ….which we do according to what we think. Our thoughts are very powerful indeed as they decide our karma. Our perception of a so called “problem” is important. Stress affects us depending as how we “see” the particular situation… stress itself is not harmful, as it has been created by God to help us progress in life. “Your stress level is determined by what you think (your beliefs and expectations), not by the stressor itself…. (Dr Rick Levy….The Happiness Sutra). Hans Selye was the first researcher to prove this. If a so called problem is perceived as a challenge, it is productive as it helps in one’s progress but if it is not seen as such, it becomes distressful, and , therefore, a source of unhappiness, harm and ultimate dis-ease culminating in an illness. The story as mentioned above brings out another important thing…..it proves that the sage was, indeed, very wise….but what had made him so? He was enlightened so could “see” things which the ordinary unenlightened one could not. An enlightened being is “happy without a reason”, to quote the Dalai Lama. As one ascends on one’s spiritual journey, one gradually becomes happier and happier as one becomes wiser and wiser and more in tune with everything around. At the same time one sees everything in its proper perspective and one’s perception about things also changes. A truly enlightened being, merged in Spirit is completely enveloped in Divine Love and is in complete bliss…in fact he becomes bliss, the ultimate stage of happiness. Is it not, therefore, important to change our perception about things from negative to positive by practicing spirituality, and gain happiness in the process?