Contemplation: Quiet and Simple

Contemplation: Quiet and Simple

Peaceful Netherlands

Quiet and Simple

We tend to see things not as they are but as we are. Becoming quiet and simple inside is a first step to seeing things truly.

Secret of Newness

It is easy to create new things, change places or do something
different. To sustain that sense of newness that creates enthusiasm is
more difficult. The secret of newness in life is not to do new things
constantly, but to see everything you do with new eyes, new insights
and a new perspective.

Understanding What Is An Angel

When I have the consciousness that I am a soul, a non-physical being of light, acting through the physical body, even others begin to notice. This is what the angelic stage is. By remaining in this angelic, soul-conscious stage, others will also feel a sense of lightness and upliftment in my company.

Angels are thought to be mythical creatures who have a human form with wings, who are always in the company of God and help Him in guarding and protecting other souls. Actually, angels are human beings with divine qualities.

Angels are always shown with wings. One of the wings of the angel is symbolic of spiritual knowledge, which it has received from God; the other is symbolic of spiritual qualities and powers, which it has inculcated, through the power of meditation or a spiritual connection with God.

The wings of an angel also symbolize the lightness and freedom of such souls. With such wings the angel flies constantly in the company of God. Its lightness and freedom is because it has no bondages or attachments in the physical world; all the chains have been broken. Because angels has the absolute and constant support of the Supreme Being they can be the support and protectors of many others, by sharing with them, spiritual knowledge, qualities and powers, which they possesses.

An angel is the 'right hand' of God in the task of world transformation (change). The language which it uses to bring about this transformation is spiritual silence; positive, powerful and pure thoughts along with sweet words full of spiritual knowledge, all of which have the effect of uplifting others.

(To be continued tomorrow...)

Soul Sustenance

We need to make sure that we have a gift for everyone we meet; it could even be a smile or a kind word. When our focus is on what we have to give, we will be free from expectations from others. This will make us truly special.

A good meditator is one who has a mental link or union with the internal self and the Supreme Soul or God who is the source of all goodness. This, along with an understanding of the laws of action or the laws of karma, which govern the behavior of souls, means that one does not have to renounce or leave society in order to achieve enlightenment. Rather, the soul filled with spiritual illumination faces society directly with understanding and the generosity to serve it and to elevate (improve) it.

The soul becomes elevated not by the renunciation of responsibilities or worldly duties but by a renunciation of the negativity that exists within the role being played by it in society. A good meditator does not try to escape social obligations (duties) but rather purifies those duties by becoming filled with light, love, peace and happiness. The stage of self-awareness and God-communication injects a subtle richness into one's life-patterns.

There are those who believe that the elevated state is beyond society and its duties. They find a quiet spot in the jungle or an ashram and contemplate (think about) deeper things. There are others who are stuck in the quicksand of their problems, and believe that those who leave society and take up a spiritual lifestyle are saints. However, holiness and virtue are qualities attained in one's life situations , not in running away from them. The elevated state is not merely a matter of elevated thoughts (which can be experienced in a sanyas), but elevated actions also, for the benefit of the self and the world. We are what we do and not so much what we imagine ourselves to be.

Message for the day

Honesty brings progress.

Projection: Honesty is usually associated with telling the truth or being open with others. Even when we have such honesty, we sometimes don't experience progress because we are always honest with ourselves.

Solution: More than anything else we need to be honest with ourselves. That means we need to introspect and check within and change ourselves. Such internal checking without cheating ourselves, i.e., without giving excuses to ourselves helps us to experience progress.

Contemplation: Appreciation

Contemplation:  Appreciation

Artist - John William Waterhouse

Appreciation

If I cannot appreciate what I have at the moment, how can I value what the future has in store?

The Secret of Fullness

There is an immaculate eternal and constant space within you hidden
under different appearances. In that space there is only peace, love
and wisdom. Let go and free yourself from the layers that cover that
space and you will uncover the secret of life of fullness.

Revising My Purpose In The Professional Sphere

A young entrepreneur once thought that, in the corporate world, if you earn this much amount of money successfully in a short span of time, you are considered better than the remaining entrepreneurs and you reach the peak of fame. A time arrived when he said to himself "This is stressful. Is this what I want? Working so hard to reach the top, so that you become famous in the entire country and are known amongst the fastest growing businessmen. No, I want to excel in my career, but in another way, without stress, without fighting to reach and maintain fame and power." He then revised his purpose: "What do I want? Why do I do what I do? For what and for who do I do it? What is the price that I have to pay for this dependence on fame?"

Aspiring to be famous causes continuous stress and anxiety. You participate in a race in which you compete and are comparing yourself constantly. You stop taking care of yourself and nourishing your inner self. You take care of your image but not your inner being. This brings about an inner emptiness and loneliness that, sometimes, is unbearable for us. Reaching fame, financial wealth, the power of a visible position, and reaching it with a broken soul, a broken apart family and a sick body, causes anxiety and depression. We need to look inwards and ask ourselves - does our life's purpose revolve around the search for fame and power? If yes, then we need to revise our purpose suitably by realizing the negative effects that this search can have on our lives.

Soul Sustenance

Analyzing Success And Failure (cont.)

For many, society has conditioned us to look for success through the path of our career, achievements, profits, praise, financial wealth etc. That way, we have learned a narrow view of success. Running in search of this kind of success and pursuing it, we come to exhaust ourselves, get burnt out and depressed.

In order to achieve these successes we have stopped caring for the inner being (the soul) and relationships. That has meant and means stress, pain, anxiety, family break ups, personal and relational disintegrations, the destruction of the environment and planetary and climatic imbalances. As a consequence, we feel empty. Although we achieve the applause, the income and other successes, the soul is malnourished and has the sensation that it is lacking something. Reaching fame, financial wealth, the power of a visible position, and reaching it with a broken soul, broken up family and a sick body, causes depression which explains why, in our recent history, famous people have ended up committing suicide.

If we want to redirect our personal and collective lives toward true wellbeing and wholeness, we have to re-evaluate and redefine our beliefs and factors that lead to success and failure. Before asking yourself what success and failure mean for you, it is important to be clear what context you want success in. Depending on the context, the dimension and the meaning of success and failure will be different. For example, in the work context, a failure will be different to that in the family context. In the personal context or in life in general, the way of perceiving success or failure varies.

Message for the day

To be special means to have a gift for everyone we meet.

Projection: Usually we are ready to give physical gifts to people but when it comes to being a giver in the form of understanding or love, we cannot always be a giver. We usually begin to expect from others.

Solution: We need to make sure that we have a gift for everyone we meet; it could even be a smile or a kind word. When our focus is on what we have to give, we will be free from expectations from others. This will make us truly special.

Contemplation: Thinking

Contemplation:  Thinking

Thinking

Everything depends on our thinking. If I think in the right way I will be light. If I think in a wasteful way I'll be heavy. Waste thoughts are dangerous. They waste my time. They allow the past to come alive, and then I may forget the present and question the future.

Fulfilling Desires By Changing Your Belief System (cont.)

We have been holding a lot of incorrect beliefs as to what can lead us to back to our eternal and original state (these states were discussed in yesterday's message) and many of our actions are based on these beliefs. We have mentioned a few examples of incorrect beliefs below. There are many more, which you could reflect on.

Lust and attachment increases love in a relationship.

Anger is necessary for success in relationships and is important for getting work done and gaining respect. It provides a mental upsurge of energy.

Greed attracts physical prosperity and brings happiness.

Ego is power; a person with no ego is generally timid or submissive.

Worry prepares us for the worst, worrying for someone close is expressing our love for them.

Being emotional and crying for our loved ones in bad times, is expressing love for them. Being emotional and crying in good times is expressing and experiencing joy.

Gossiping increases social bonding and gives one an experience of joy.

Jealousy inspires us to do better and achieve more.

The Supreme Teacher changes our belief system and not only makes us aware of these incorrect beliefs but reconditions us by incorporating correct beliefs inside us so that we start performing karmas or actions based on them and start progressing towards our eternal and original state.

Independence

In order to live in peace, try not to depend on anyone and at the same
time try to help others not to depend on you. Help them become
independent, free and responsible for their lives. Ensure you do not
cause anyone sorrow, and do not allow others to be a source of hurt for
you.

Soul Sustenance

Analyzing Success and Failure

You feel positive and joyful when you realize that you are successful. However, when failure comes to you, you feel defeated. The definition of success and failure varies from one person to another and according to the stage of life that you are in. It is important to have success and failure well defined for yourself, because, based on your definition, you feel greater or lesser inner wellbeing, happiness and wholeness.

There are also different levels of success and of failure. For example, for some the greatest success is to be happy and radiant, whatever happens inside or outside. If one manages to keep happy in the face of failure, for them it is a success. Because to be happy means that I am connected with my essential worth or inner self, my being is awake and alive. Failure does not reduce my vitality, my contentment levels. The greater or fewer external achievements do not reduce the quality of the inner being or of being happy. The important thing is that you believe your own definition of success and failure.

Some ideas can be shared that can act as guidelines, but, in the end, each person has to create their own guidelines, definitions and factors leading to success and failure. Basing ourselves on these guidelines and beliefs, we evaluate our successes and failures. You can reflect on what true success and failure mean for you and, according to those meanings, centre your attention on the values and efforts that lead you to achieve your objectives.

(To be continued tomorrow …) 

Message for the day

The one who is free from carelessness is the one who is constantly enthusiastic.

Projection: Sometimes we do find ourselves in situations where we have no enthusiasm to continue with what we had started with a lot of enthusiasm. We do continue with what we are doing but not with the interest that we had started with-to the extent that we sometimes even give it up.

Solution: We need to check the real reason for our lack of enthusiasm, which could be our own carelessness. When we make sure that we pay special attention to what we are doing and don't let carelessness set in, we will be constantly enthusiastic till we complete the task.

Contemplation: Love is the Key

Contemplation: Love is the Key

 

  

Full moon rising over Mt. Hood

Love is the Key

Love is a powerful force. It can take us to great heights and leave us feeling light and airy. Yet it has been the most abused and misused force. Many degraded things pass for love. True love is based on understanding, mutual trust and respect and not simply on transient emotions. Love is being in balance, that is, in harmony with the self, God and each other. Love dwells in the soul. We must allow this love to flow out and around us. Without love, all of life's treasures are locked away from our vision and experiences, for indeed 'love is the key.'

Fulfilling Desires By Changing Your Belief System

One most important characteristic that differentiates the Supreme Soul from human souls is that the Supreme Soul is the only entity that exists in this World Drama that is completely desire-less and remains that way eternally. If we were to make a list of desires that human beings have, we would name a lot many and various different types of desires.

Whatever karma or action any soul performs at different points in the World Drama, whether positive or even negative, pure or even impure, they are all performed to fulfill these different types of desires. But when seen from a spiritual perspective, whatever the external form of the desire may be, the internal desire is always very simple - to go back to its eternal (or inert) state of peace or original state of peace, love, joy and power. The eternal or inert state of each soul is the state in which it exists before it begins its journey of birth and rebirth, when it resides in the soul world and the original state of each soul is the state in which it exists when it has just begun its journey of birth and rebirth i.e. at the beginning of the birth-rebirth cycle.

Even negative karmas based on the personality traits of anger, greed, ego, lust, etc. may externally seem to be filled with violence or impurity, but internally, each time any soul performs such karmas, all it desires is a return to its eternal and original state (we shall explain this in tomorrow's message). But it does not realize how these karmas take the soul away and not close to these states.

This is where the role of the Supreme Soul comes in. The Supreme Soul is completely desire-less and possesses the capability, knowledge and power to fulfill these desires of the soul. Being the Supreme Teacher, He guides and teaches us what are the right karmas or actions that can help us fulfill our desires and take us closer to our eternal and original state and which actions, take us away from it. Also He is the only one who can teach us how to connect with Him so that these desires are fulfilled, because he is the Ocean of all the qualities that exist inside us in our eternal and original state and connecting with Him fills us with these qualities. The connection and the right actions, both, are vital for our progress.
(To be continued tomorrow...)

Values

Values are related to each other as if they were members of a great
family. From peace and happiness emerges inner joy. From this state of
wholeness love awakens and with it the desire to share and give. Two of
its relatives are tolerance and respect. All values have a shared
origin which unites them - the peace of spirituality. When you lose
peace you begin to lose everything.

Other recipients:

There is an immaculate eternal and constant space within you hidden under different appearances. In that space there is only peace, love and wisdom. Let go and free yourself from the layers that cover that space and you will uncover the secret of lif

Other recipients:

It is easy to create new things, change places or do something different. To sustain that sense of newness that creates enthusiasm is more difficult. The secret of newness in life is not to do new things constantly, but to see everything you do with

Other recipients:

Self-control is not about suppressing emotions or tolerating the pressure of circumstances. Self-control is to be the creator of your thoughts and feelings, to be creative and find new answers. This helps you to remain calm and cool.

Other recipients:

When you do not upset yourself thinking about how others must change and instead you concentrate on your own change, good things start to happen. You will feel better about yourself. And you will start to have positive feelings towards others and sta

Soul Sustenance

Self Realization (cont.)

People affected by anger lose their temper and become excited at the slightest provocation. Yet, when the event is over they find peace in going back to their normal nature. The same applies to all the other vices (greed, ego, lust and attachment), which are at the root of all emotional disturbances, strains, tensions and imbalances. This indicates that the vices are not the original nature of the soul.

If the soul thinks about its original nature and does everything with the realization "I am a soul, not a body," its original qualities reappear naturally. They are its basic values. It is worthless seeking them externally. It is like the musk deer running after the sweet smell of musk, unaware that it is coming from its own navel. Peace of mind is the soul’s property. It automatically flows from within it once it is soul-conscious.

The soul only has to let its original sanskaras become thoughts and keep them flowing. Whatever thoughts are in its mind that is the state it experiences. Soul-conscious thoughts bring peace of mind. Body-conscious thoughts disturb the soul. It is the soul who decides what state of mind to experience. It can either be peaceful, or in peacelessness. It is the soul who has the power of decision. The situation should not dictate to the soul.

Message for the day

True service is to be free and make others free from obstacles.

Projection: When we are involved in a task, we totally think about ourselves irrespective of what effect it has on others. Such an attitude sometimes takes on the form of selfishness to the extent that we become an obstacle for others.

Solution: We need to check ourselves whenever we are involved in a task if what we are doing is affecting others positively or negatively. Whatever we do, only if there is benefit for us as well as for others, can we call it truly successful.

Contemplation: Letting Go

Contemplation:  Letting Go

Letting Go

Whatever has happened is the past. Do not think about the past. Learn from whatever has happened in the past and be cautious in the future. The past belongs to the past. Let me let go of it, because it does not belong to me.

Weak Spot

At times there is a weak spot, something you do not want to see about
your character. The way to discover it is through others. They are the
mirrors that reflect your personality. If something bothers you about
someone, you are recognizing an attitude that is actually within you.
When you feel it does not affect you and you can respond calmly, it
means that this weakness is no longer in you.

Creating Positive Habits

Some habits do not upset us, but others can cause irritation, frustration and desperation. We want to rid ourselves of them: but how? When we look at the creation and fulfillment of thoughts, it looks like a closed system: the thoughts lead to actions, the actions create a series of impressions (sanskars), and these impressions are responsible for similar thoughts, which lead us to similar actions, this is a vicious cycle. If we want to change a habit, then where do we start? In other words, where do we change the system or how do we get out of the cycle? First of all, we can try changing our negative actions: for example, stop a mental negative habit like anger or a physical one like drinking. In many cases, although we change our behaviour, but because we have not understood deeply why we wanted to do it, is quite possible that one day we will go back to this old habit.

We can try changing this system in our subconscious. By analysing what is recorded in our subconscious, through different therapies, the results are not altogether satisfactory. There is always some traumatic event, or painful experience behind a fear which causes us to cling on to a negative habit. And although we can see and recognise our fears and anxieties, if we do not replace them with something better, with a more beneficial and healthier alternative, very often we will feel tempted to cling on to these old systems, even though they do not work and they make us unhappy. To eliminate certain things we have recorded in our subconscious, meditation and silence are the most effect non-violent methods. Another method is to try and change our beliefs with positive affirmations (thoughts) that strengthen our willpower, and thus introduce a new habit to replace the old one. It is vital not to repeat this affirmation mechanically, but to introduce it into the system of beliefs we hold, and act as if we already were what we express in this affirmation.

Soul Sustenance 

Self Realization

The soul, originally a star-like living energy point of perfect peace and purity, twinkling in the soul world is fully charged with spiritual energy, which it naturally displays as love, joy, peace and purity in its actions when it first comes into this physical world. Gradually by taking many births, it becomes attached to the sense organs and the various physical objects and it forgets its original values. Then it becomes a slave to five basic negative forces; anger, greed, ego, lust and attachment. These forces have their roots in body-consciousness, or the false belief that existence is entirely physical. Any time it suffers disappointment, worry or anxiety, it is due to the effect of anyone of these negative influences.

The soul forgets the heights of spiritual attainment and the delights of super-sensuous joy (joy which is not experienced through the sense organs) thinking itself to be a body and it searches for peace and happiness through the sense organs. It mistakenly pursues worldly pleasures in an effort to regain its former state. It forgets its true identity, nature, home and Supreme Father.

While controlled by these negative forces, the soul cannot come back to its normal state of peace, happiness and bliss.

These vices are unwelcome intruders (entrants) into the soul’s original texture of purity. Until the vices have control over the soul, it will never restore its original qualities of peace, bliss, love, purity and knowledge.

(To be continued tomorrow ….)

Message for the day

Where everything is done according to the right method there is success.

Projection: When we don't achieve success we sometimes do get tempted to opt for a short cut method, which might bring us temporary success, too. But in the long run we find that it isn't be so beneficial after all.

Solution: Whenever we are involved in a task specially if it is a difficult one we need to make sure that we are following the right method. Whatever is done according to the right system will surely be successful.

Contemplation: Take Care

Contemplation: Take Care   

Artist- Autumn Skye Morrison

Take Care

Take care of yourself with understanding and love, and make sure that you never compromise your own spiritual growth.

Silence

In the ocean of silence you may discover your eternal treasures of
peace, love and happiness. In silence, you can let bad feelings and
past sorrows dissolve. Silence calms your heart. It is a balm that
heals the wounds of the soul. It strengthens the spirit and takes you
to a world without sound where peace reigns.

Discovering Inner Compassion - cont.

When we try to describe compassion, it is worth looking at the words sympathy, empathy and interpathy.

Showing sympathy towards another person's suffering is acknowledging their suffering, for example, 'I am sorry that you have hurt yourself'. We recognize that they are injured or ill without really engaging at a feeling level.

Empathy is when we literally share a feeling with someone, we walk in their shoes, for example, 'I feel really upset that you are so depressed about losing your job'. This can bring great comfort to the person we are empathizing with, but the comfort to them can be at our expense and leave us feeling emotionally drained or sad. If we identify too closely with them, it can also make it difficult for us to help them.

An expansion of empathy is a word called interpathy where we relate to another's suffering although we may not understand why they are suffering. This may be because they are from a different culture or because their feelings may seem inappropriate given the situation, but we are curious, we try to understand.

Compassion is all these words -- sympathy, empathy, interpathy - yet it is more and it is less. We acknowledge someone's sorrow, we sense how they feel, we try to understand how it affects them, yet with compassion we do not become emotionally involved. We are engaged yet detached. We are standing back and looking on with kindness. By showing compassion in this way, it allows us to be compassionate without suffering from compassion fatigue or emotional burnout.

Soul Sustenance

Anger Management

Creating Your Inner Peace Room (Visualization)

To overcome anger, visualize a house and in that house there is a peace room. See the room as an empty space. Then, step by step decorate and finish the room with the colours and objects, which symbolize peace to you. See the sun streaming into the room, filling the room with light. Then see yourself sitting in the room and filling the room with your vibrations of peace.

This is now your inner peace room. Whenever you see yourself experiencing emotions like anger, irritation, frustration etc. - you can go visit this room using the power of your mind and intellect (visualization) - it takes only a second - and peace awaits you. To keep it fresh in your mind write a description of your peace room.

Message for the day

To contribute selflessly is to move forward with the blessings of all.

Projection: Many times weI find ourselves in situations where there is a problem, where we seem to be part of the problem too. We try defending ourselves but people do not always understand. At such times there is no solution to be found, and we find ourselves talking again and again about the problem.

Solution: We need to become part of the solution instead of just being part of the problem and talking about it. To be part of the solution means to make some contribution in order to better the situation. When we do whatever little we can, we continue to receive blessings from those around us.