Contemplation: Give & Take

Contemplation: Give & Take

Give & Take

Whatever you give comes back to you. Whatever you take will not stay with you.

Co-operation

When each one is working towards a common task, cooperation becomes easy. 

To get others' cooperation you need to share the task and the information regarding the task with others. When you communicate your motives using easy and simple language, everyone can understand and feel a part of the whole and they would naturally contribute their best. Any new task that you take up make sure you inform all the details to everyone related to the task. Even the minutest details when communicated to others, helps in creating a priority in them to give their best to the task.

Universal Concepts About The Supreme Being or God (cont.)

Just as a candle flame emerges from a point source and assumes an oval form, mystics and saints throughout the passage of time have had visions of God as a point of self-luminous light with an oval aura.

Most religions have images, idols or memorials, having one name or the other to represent God as light or as an oval shape.

Throughout India there are statues of an oval-shaped image. They are called Shivalingas, and are thought to represent the Creator Himself. The names of the temples of Shiva confirm this: Somnath, the Lord of Nectar; Vishwanath, The Lord of the Universe; Mukteshwara, the Lord of Liberation, etc..

In the Old Testament of the Bible, it is mentioned that Moses had a vision of light as a "burning" bush in the desert. Jesus also referred to God as light. In some Christian ceremonies, during the ceremonies, an ostensorio is held up. The ostensorio is a golden ball with many rays radiating from it. Perhaps this is a symbolic representation of God.

Guru Nanak, the founder of Sikhism called Him Ek Omkar, Nirakar, the one non-physical (bodiless) being or soul.

According to Islamic legend, when Adam left paradise he came to a low hill upon which he saw a shining white oval stone. Around this stone he circled seven times praising God. He then built the Kaaba. By the time of Abraham it needed to be rebuilt as a temple to honour the one God. The town of Mecca grew around this spot. This oval stone, later called Sang-e-aswad and now blackened by the kisses of millions of sinners, so they say, is the only object of worship in the whole of Islam.

(To be continued tomorrow ...)

Soul Sustenance

The Significance Of The Power Of Thought In Meditation

Meditation is not a process of emptying the mind of thought. In meditation I use the natural power of the soul – the power to create thoughts, as a take-off point (or as a spring-board) to finally experience the consciousness of the true self. In meditation, I climb a ladder of well-prepared, positive and spiritual thoughts and eventually climb beyond the ladder into the pure experience of what I really am. Pondering over these pure and real thoughts can occupy the soul for long periods of time.

In the most basic stage of Rajyoga meditation, first comes the realization: I am a soul, the energy of consciousness made up of a mind, an intellect and a collection of sanskars. My eyes, ears, nose, mouth are just the organs, which when used correctly, help me, the soul, enjoy life. I now possess the knowledge that will free me from my cage. I have the key, spiritual knowledge is the key - I am a soul, a being of light, ‘a bird’ which has the power to fly freely. Knowing this, I am not bound by physical laws. I can detach and fly at the speed of a thought, to the soul world, where I can easily experience my original state. I must realize that it is impossible to have ‘peace of mind’ if I cannot detach from the body. I must look upon all my family members, friends, colleagues, also as souls which have come from the soul world. We are all fellow souls.

Message for the day


To have hope means to have a chance for success.

Projection: When we encounter failures, we sometimes get so disheartened that we lose hope in both the situations and in ourselves. Instead of seeing the obstacle that comes our way as a turn, we see it as an end and give up trying. So we lose out on our chance for success.

Solution: Even when things don't seem to be working out right, we must never leave hope. To leave hope means to rule out our chance for success. When we have hope we will keep thinking of new ways for success. We will then surely get cooperation from somewhere or the other and we will be successful.

Contemplation: Respect

Contemplation:  Respect

Respect
Respect is received when it is given.

Creativity

There are times when our crowded lives and minds don't allow space for creativity to emerge.
For creativity to flow naturally, regularly make quiet time for yourself, to clear and refresh your mind.
Do nothing other than sit back, relax and let your mind: float freely on a hot-air balloon, swim through a deep blue ocean or soar into the sunset.

Universal Concepts About The Supreme Being or God

There are some universally accepted characteristics of God:

* He is the creator and the one who sustains and takes care of the entire world population.
* He is the Highest of Highest.   
* He is the Supreme Father.
* He is non-physical.
* He is omnipotent (one with unlimited power).
* He is a living being.
* He is all-loving and possesses complete knowledge.
* He is unchangeable.
* He is one and He is light.
* He is perfect in values and morals.
* He is absolutely just.
* He is the Supreme Benefactor (the one who brings benefit to everyone).
* He is the savior of souls.
* He is the purifier.
* He is mysterious in His ways.

Even in those religions that believe in and worship many Gods, there is one God who stands above the others. Then there are other faiths who believe God to be one single Supreme Being. Traditions, sacred texts, monuments, sayings and rituals all over the world, point to the existence of and belief in one knowledgeful, all-powerful and merciful being or soul. That being is universally called out to and recognized as the remover of sorrow, the giver of happiness and the savior of the 'sinful'.

(To be continued tomorrow ..)

Soul Sustenance

Connecting To The Qualities Of Others

Meditation adds immense value and depth to my relationships. It also brings closeness in them. Many obstacles and barriers, both on a physical as well as a subtle level, come between me and others when my consciousness and as a result, my perception are struck primarily in the physical dimension. If I hardly know five to ten per cent of myself, and that too mostly on the surface, my relationships are going to be similarly superficial. With my self-respect built on very weak foundations, it will tend to be delicate and I'll be prone to trying to maintain it by thinking about and focusing my energies on others' weaknesses, sometimes real and sometimes even imagined. I'll also find it hard to realize and appreciate their qualities. Such is the state of so many human relationships today.

In meditation, I go into the depths of myself, and deep within my inner being, I find the beauty of peace, love and happiness that is there inside me. I also realize that this same beauty lies inside each soul. Then naturally and very easily, without any effort, I get connected to the same qualities in others. I also find the strength to do the same. I am no longer judgmental seeing others’ temporary sanskaras of negativity. I find qualities that are basically there inside every soul: the original qualities or sanskaras of each spiritual being. It’s like a basic prototype for the whole of humanity, which I deeply see and realize.

Message for the day

Determination enables elevated thoughts to become practical.

Projection: When we have an aim in our life and are working for it, we sometimes are not able to bring into practice all that we plan to do. We then tend to become disheartened and give up after trying for some time. Thus we lose out on the benefit that our thoughts can bring in our life.

Solution: In order to put into practice the good thoughts that we get i.e., in order to make our thoughts practical we need to stamp it with determination. Our words should never be 'I'll try', but must always be 'I will do it'. Where there is determination there is victory.

Contemplation: Excellence

Contemplation:  Excellence

Excellence

With the aim of excellence, I bring beauty and quality into each word and action.

Change

Never believe anyone who says you cannot change, or that you should not tamper with your personality. The truth is, you are already changing numerous times every day. And it is never too late to contemplate a change in personality, which simply means changing the way you see and respond to people and the world around you. It is up to you. You can either live with the pain that is known as stress - it's what most people do because it seems the easiest way to live - or you set off on the adventure of self-discovery. This is not some New Age fashion. Every time you change one of your old habits, of creating pain as a response to life, it will be one more step towards enjoying a riper old age. If you want to live a long and healthy life, kill your stress and your pain with truth, before it kills you!

The Concept Of Letting Go (cont.)

An example of how the pleasure turns into desire, the desire into need, the need into habit, habit into dependence and finally the dependence into an addiction - process (explained yesterday) takes place can be seen in some smokers. The smoker, little by little, liked smoking, then desired to smoke, then needed to smoke; he/she created the habit of smoking, it turned into a dependence and finally into an addiction. It began because he liked it but it ended up generating that addiction.

We live disconnected from ourselves, with a lot of unnecessary dependencies and needs. When you think that you need to smoke, you believe something that is not true. What does it mean that you need to smoke? Negative effects of smoking on the body are well known; we already breathe in enough pollution from cars and we do not need to breath in more unnecessary smoke. However, the person who smokes believes that it is a need and, while they believe it, they don't realize, or if they do realize, they don't want to accept that it is an unnecessary dependence.

This process can happen in many other cases: emotional, mental and physical dependencies and addictions towards people, objects and ideas. When we are hooked we lose emotional, mental and intellectual control over our inner selves and in our awareness. The solution is in knowing how to let go.

Soul Sustenance

What Is ‘Clean Communication’?

With the self covered by the clouds of so many external influences and many of its own negative beliefs and past experiences, the self is normally unclear about its own self. The light of spiritual knowledge brings clarity to the self, about the self. This helps me to communicate with others much more clearly than when I am not sure or clear about what is going on inside me. There is a direct connection between the quality of subtle activities in the form of thoughts and feelings going on inside me and the quality of my interaction and communication with others.

Very importantly, relationships are also connected with attitude and vision. Sometimes, I may feel I have said and done the right things to someone, yet still someone is not behaving towards me as I would wish. At such times I need to check my attitude towards that person and the vision with which I am seeing them. I may find inside a slight feeling of disapproval towards that person, a feeling of discomfort, a resistance to something in their personality. Neither of us may be conscious of it, but my negative feeling casts a shadow on the other person. They are not receiving the acceptance or respect from me, that they should (on a subtle level), although externally I may be showing them a lot of respect. This subtle lack of acceptance and respect from my end influences their ability to hear me clearly (on a subtle level), and the way they behave towards me. The practice of meditation enables me to clean out my thoughts, feelings, attitudes and vision, ensuring that what I share with others on a physical and on a subtle level is positive. Then it is much easier for me to connect with others and for others to connect with me in a positive way. This is called ‘Clean Communication’. 


Message for the day
Real positivity is being positive even in negative situations.

Projection: It seems very difficult, if not impossible, to maintain positive thoughts when we are faced with a negative situation. Even with a strong intention to be positive, challenges come in the form of relationships, physical illness, difficult circumstances etc and we find ourselves weakening.

Solution: A long time of practice of maintaining inner self-respect is what will help us in a difficult situation. To maintain self-respect means to understand and appreciate our own uniqueness. With this practice of self-respect we will not be dependent on the external situation but will find the strength within.

Contemplation: Introversion

Contemplation: Introversion

Introversion

The ability to enjoy one's own company is one of the greatest gifts life has to offer. Learning to turn my thoughts away from all my responsibilities at the day's end and take my mind into a state of peace and benevolence enables me to carry greater and greater loads without feeling the burden. When my inner landscape is full of beautiful thoughts, everything I do is a pleasure. Gently, I calm down chaotic situations and offer solace to troubled minds.

Encourage Yourself

Notice how many times you put yourself down during the day. Include what you think and say, even words spoken in jest.
Pay particular attention to how you react to your mistakes and poor choices.

Instead of putting yourself down, affirm positive messages about yourself. Treat yourself gently and with respect. You deserve it.
Think of yourself as a child who is learning to walk; you need encouragement - not criticism.

The Concept Of Letting Go (cont.)

Another example (we had explained one yesterday) of how dependencies trap us, is that of the monkey; you can trap a monkey by giving it a jar with peanuts in it. The monkey puts its hand in the jar to get the peanuts. On having its hand full of peanuts it can't get it out of the jar, so it has got trapped. To free itself the only thing it has to do is let go of the peanuts and that way it will be able to take its hand out. That is how we are at times; we don't let go and we stay trapped in situations, in people, in the past.

Along the way, we will find a lot of jars with peanuts in and branches to settle down on - many scenes that will attract us and please us. The dependency begins, almost without our realizing, when we begin to feel the desire to be in these situations. The pleasure turns into desire, the desire turns into need and the need turns into habit, then to dependence and finally into an addiction. It is fine to enjoy the branches, but let us keep awake and alert - conscious of our freedom - in order not to fall into dependence; enjoying the branch or jar without it trapping us.

(To be continued tomorrow ...)

 Soul Sustenance

Positive Consciousness

The habitual way in which you use the house you live in and its contents are all affected if you use them in a positive consciousness (mental state). The result is purification while interacting with the physical object, so that when the object is in use, it fulfills its function accurately, and it has also undergone a permanent change. This can happen when you are cleaning the house, cleaning any object in the house or preparing objects for a particular purpose. If such actions are done in a positive consciousness then the physical object will have such a vibration of peace and purity that no harm can be done with it and whatever action it is used to perform will be successful. Any other soul who comes into interaction with those objects will also feel the affect of their pure vibrations.

If we perform each action with the physical body in a positive consciousness, then the physical body gets purified and we can become free of illnesses.

In our relationships it is the same principle. First there needs to be that detachment in relations. Secondly, when there is a positive consciousness, I will find that my interactions have a purifying affect on all that I relate to and I can bring benefit to everyone I meet.

In this way a positive mental state enables all actions to be successful, whether at work or at home.

Message for the day

The method to finish negative is to transform it and make it positive.

Projection: When someone says something that we find negative we normally tend to speak about it to others. Having recognised that it is negative, instead of finishing it we usually talk about it. Without realising that we are only increasing negativity by talking about it we spread it to others. Naturally instead of finishing, it only increases all the more.

Solution: When we find someone with negativity, we need to make effort to look at something positive in that person. We need to recognize the fact that each one is special and has some or the other positive quality. When we make effort to look at the positive in the other person we will be able to finish the negativity in our mind first and will be able to inspire the others to finish it too.

Contemplation:Create Silence

Contemplation:Create Silence

Lake Geneva, Switzerland

Create Silence
Learn to create silence in your mind and peace will flourish in your soul. You will see life with other eyes. You will discover God's language. To be internally silent, do not think too much. Trust yourself. Trust others. Trust life. You will find it is easier than it seems.

Efficiency

Plan ways to save money, time and energy.
Look at your priorities and see if you can drop the least important items to free up your resources. The stronger your reasons for saving, the more ways you will find to save.
Go on, make yourself more efficient. You can afford it.

The Concept Of Letting Go

We have to dare to be free. Why? Because fear prevents us from taking the decisions that lead us to live and feel our full freedom. We should dare to let go because dependencies trap us. Let us look at a story that shows us what happens.

It is the story of a bird that, after having flown for a long time, leans on the branch of a tree to rest. While resting, it finds the wellbeing of staying there until, little by little, it gets the idea that its life is on the branch. When a day arrives on which it asks itself why it doesn't carry on flying, it says "Oh, this branch is stuck to me and I can't fly!" The bird blames the branch. In reality, the bird has got stuck to the branch. It has the capacity and the wings to fly but its perception is clouded. It no longer sees its purpose with clarity or its potential to reach it. The freedom of the bird is in its wings but it has got stuck onto the branch. That is the reality that it has created for itself.

The freedom of a human being is in his or her awareness. But when their awareness has got stuck onto the branch (the object of their attachment) and they begin to blame the branch for their impossibility to free themselves, then they are trapped. When our awareness is clouded and we are clinging on, we do not see with clarity and neither do we exercise our freedom and let go.

(To be continued tomorrow ...)

Soul Sustenance

Becoming Responsible For My Destiny (cont.)

Factors like any particular person, a group of people, the government, nature, even God, etc. cannot be held responsible for what has happened t0 me in my life, up to this moment. It is my and my responsibility alone. Equally, what my future holds depends on me to a very large extent. Rather, whatever I choose to do at this moment is already creating my destiny for tomorrow. I shouldn't forget that the only real time I have for creating my future is the present, now.

Karma teaches me that at every step, I am the creator of my own little world, the creator of my future circumstances. I also am the creator of the environment immediately around me. On a bigger level I am a co-creator or partner, together with God, of a positive future of the world, of the world of tomorrow, of the world of peace, love and happiness. So my responsibility and my ability to influence the future is not restricted to my life alone.

That I can create the future of my choice - of love, peace and happiness, for myself and others, can appear as unreasonable optimism. It's just being realistic. What I create is what is going to happen. If I choose to transmit love and peace in my interactions with others today, I create relationships, in the present and for the future, based on those qualities.

Message for the day

The one who is free from desire is the one who is able to maintain positivity.

Projection: When we put forth our ideas to others we expect them to listen to us. Our idea changes to desire and when it is not accepted we then tend to become irritated. And along with it comes jealousy or dislike for the others and we find ourselves caught up in negativity.

Solution: We need to make sure that we share our ideas with others but at the same time we need to keep ourselves free from any selfish motive. When we put forth our idea in a detached way, we too will be open to learning and we will be able to accept any criticism or rejection that comes our way. Thus we will be free from negativity.

Contemplation: Believe Nothing

Contemplation:  Believe Nothing

Believe Nothing

It is much easier to believe that it's snowing, than to experience the snow.  If you just believe, you can stay inside, stay warm and avoid the cold.  That's why people are led up the garden path by others beliefs.  It's easier and warmer.  In the context of your spiritual or personal growth, believe nothing, experiment and test everything in the laboratory of your own experience.  Only then will you be able to separate truth from falsehood, reality from illusion, and lead others with integrity.

A Wise Charioteer

The charioteer has been shown on the chariot, holding the reins of the 5 horses. The horses are mischievous and adventurous they will lead the chariot and the charioteer astray if left to their own devices.

They are the greatest companions for the charioteer and allow him to move forward at great speed. However, if these same companions are distracted and influenced by enemy tactics, then the charioteer is at risk of also being deluded into making the wrong move and becoming trapped.

I the soul am the charioteer sitting in this body. The five horses represent the 5 senses: to hear, to see, to taste, to smell and to touch. These are my great companions. They are a part of the body, the chariot; they are separate from the charioteer, the soul.
However the senses can be pulled and influenced in all directions. The job of the charioteer is to direct them and not be influenced himself. To use them but not to become enslaved to them and the information they supply.

With these under full control the charioteer is able to withstand all challenges that come in his path and move with great wisdom.

Be a wise charioteer.

The Mental Kaleidoscope (cont.)

We are so used to controlling people and situations to obtain a particular result that we have forgotten how to use the power of faith.

The Law of Faith says - 'Plant the right seeds, make the right effort, but also let things be.' Faith does not mean to be passive (inactive) but rather to have acted and thought about something and then have the patience and trust that the Drama of Life is also taking care of it; the outcome of any action is not just up to me.

In Raja Yoga meditation taught by the , we often hear the term - a consciousness full of faith is victorious. As the Drama of Life turns, such an intellect works like a kaleidoscope and can perceive and see the often hidden, beautiful patterns in life's situations that, in time, become visible and benevolent.

Success, or victory, depends as much on doing the task with the right intention, as it does on allowing things to take their own course. Wisdom is an awareness of this balance.

Soul Sustenance

Becoming Responsible For My Destiny

These are examples of some of the inner questions that emerge in our minds from time to time:

* Why is she rich and successful and I am not? * Why did he behave in that way with me; I've always behaved well with him. * Why does that one have easy success in life and the other, however hard he tries, fails at every step? * Why is he nice natured but is born blind and the other ill natured but has no health problems at all? * Why does she suffer so much? * She is so sweet, but yet everyone disrespects her. * Why did that child die at such a young age? She was so innocent. * Why did I get married to such a person? * Why am I here? * How is that student in my class so intelligent?

There are lot more questions like these that trouble us. In the case of sorrows, it is seen more than the sorrow, it is the question - why this sorrow exists in my life that troubles us. Why? What? How? When? Even so, they all have only one answer: karma.

I don't need to go into minute details of each situation. If I see that nothing can happen without having had a justified cause in my past or in that of others, life becomes much easier to face, with responsibility and the power of courage.

(To be continued tomorrow …)


Message for the day

Real progress can be experienced when we are faced with obstacles.

Projection: When faced with obstacles in our path, we usually tend to have negative feelings. We either experience fear or irritation and we don't enjoy the work anymore, our total focus being on the result. We only wait for the outcome not really bothered about enjoying the effort that we need to put in.

Solution: When we are encountered with a difficult situation, instead of seeing it as an obstacle, we need to see it as an opportunity to evaluate ourselves and see where we stand. We can then use this understanding to bring improvement in ourselves. When we constantly work on ourselves in this way, we will never stop when faced with obstacles, but will experience constant progress in our life.

Contemplation: Clean and Tidy

Contemplation: Clean and Tidy

Clean and Tidy

The most important places to keep clean and tidy are my mind and heart. If I allow thoughts to flourish that I wouldn't want to see the light of day, I can never have any real self-respect. By starting each day in quiet reflection and pouring positive, loving thoughts into my mind, I gradually clean out cynicism and unkindness.

Imagination

The power of the imagination is extraordinary. The imagination is one of our greatest resources. It offers us many options and, with the clarity of our intuition and the power of our intention, we can use it to bring about abundance and success in our lives.

It is a matter of using the art of the imagination in a constructive way so that it does not betray us. The imagination should be used for our more healthy and positive intentions.

When the imagination is influenced by our limiting fears and beliefs, our mind begins to imagine the worst; it creates fearful scenes that end up generating phobias and blocking us. Then we turn the imagination into an instrument to create negative fantasies that distance us from what is real. We believe in the fantasies that we have imagined.

The imagination has to used to help us overcome our limitations and not the other way round, which would be when the imagination is influenced by our limiting beliefs and our fears, with which it weakens us and keeps us locked into the cages created by our own mind. From a grain of sand it imagines and creates a great mountain that prevents it from advancing, and this mountain only exists in its own mind.

When the imagination is used in a positive way, it is capable of turning a great mountain, a difficult situation, into a grain of sand. There is nothing too big that the human being cannot overcome.

The Mental Kaleidoscope

A kaleidoscope creates beautiful patterns from chaotic bits and pieces, which are scattered everywhere. When the kaleidoscope is turned, disorder becomes order, chaos becomes beauty and symmetry. The Drama of Life is constantly turning and we are part of its cyclic movement; sometimes this cyclic movement of life is supportive, comprehensible (understandable) and enjoyable and, at other times, it is tense, fearful, stressful and incomprehensible (not understandable). There is confusion and fear because we do not understand what is happening, why it is happening and how it will get better. Things not only appear chaotic but also hopeless. If the intellect is able to go beyond the questions of - Why, What and How and just be still, without judgements, or pressure, for some period of time, then things do work out. To do this requires faith.

The power of faith means that we know that somehow and somewhere right solutions and answers will come in their own time.

(To be continued tomorrow...)

 Soul Sustenance

The Four Pillars Of A Spiritual Lifestyle - Achieving A Balance

A balanced and fulfilling spiritual life is like a table. It stands on four legs and if one leg is shorter than the others then both balance and equilibrium will be difficult. The four legs or pillars of a spiritual life are given below in the form of four subjects. If any of the subjects is not a part of our lives or is a part of our life, but not to as great an extent as the others, then the overall balance of our spiritual life will be affected adversely (negatively).

1. Daily spiritual study (knowledge or gyan)
Daily spiritual study provides the right quality of nourishment for our mind and intellect, the two important energies of the soul.

2. Daily meditation (spiritual yoga)
Daily meditation provides the means to explore, discover and reconnect with oneself and with God.

3. The inculcation and development of virtues (dharna)
Giving some time each day to the conscious development of our character (virtue) helps to eliminate any negative sanskars or personality characteristics (vices) arid improves our ability to build positive and harmonious relationships. The quality of our relationships is a mirror reflection of our dharna.

4. The service of others (seva)
A life purpose based on some kind of service is the foundation of personal growth through the practice of giving. Finding appropriate ways to use our increasing spiritual power and understanding (through the three subjects mentioned above) for the benefit of others is the most satisfying way to use our energy today. It also ensures happiness for the present as well as for the future through accumulation of positive energy in the form of blessings of those who are served.

Message for the day

The right kind of support makes people independent.

Projection: When we provide help and support to others, sometimes we find that they become dependent on us. They continue to expect the same kind of support that They had got from us before, when we are not in a position to give. Then our good gesture becomes a bondage or difficulty for me.

Solution: When we are providing help to someone,we need to check the kind of help that we are providing. True help is to provide assistance in such a way that slowly the person learns to rely on his own resources and becomes independent. Then there will be no expectations from us.