Bagawan : He who gives himself up to the Self that is God is the most excellent devotee.
Giving one’s self up to God means remaining constantly in the Self without giving room for the rise of any thoughts other than that of the Self.
Whatever burdens are thrown on God, He bears them.
Since the supreme power of God makes all things move, why should we, without submitting ourselves to it, constantly worry ourselves with thoughts as to what should be done and how, and what should not be done and how not?
We know that the train carries all loads, so after getting on it why should we carry our small luggage on our head to our discomfort, instead of putting it down in the train and feeling at ease?
. From: Sri Ramana Maharshi: Who Am I ?.
In Yoga Darshan it was said very simply Pranidham iti However it takes decades or longer to get there The mind from habit will keep thinking or worrying
It takes only a fraction of a second for all the accumulated information to evaporate during difficulty. For example your driving. The cop turns the flashers on. You did nothing wrong and for a second your heart skips a beat or two. Maybe longer. Or someone calls you terrible names. Easily a day or two is lost in anger.
And it does not even have to concern you. Take the politicians who lie. And make fortunes with kick back from other companies ( the family of the politicians get high paying jobs from those companies) or they get 180,000 a year for the rest of their life ( and they ran the country to a 22 trillion dollar debt ). They all create anger in one way or the other. We know those things are wrong. But it does not concern us. Yet we are upset
So staying calm and surrendered is not easy
Those who can are the people who can understand volumes of awareness just by one word of a Guru
Buddhism and yoga talk about mindlessness – a state where the mind is no longer active.
Mindfulness is a way of increasing mind activity in a specific direction. Generally it focuses on the body.
I prefer less focus on body. Mindfulness – Anyone can do that ! It will not give you God or love for god or reality of consciousness.
Stop reading blogs – meditate the right way ! Find a guru who can deliver you.
Even with a perfect guru – 99% of the disciples will not be able to hold on to the guru. Why? The disciples ego, past karma, and lack of surrender.
There are other reason from the guru side why a disciple cannot hold on to the guru. This is not for discussion in public. However, it is the greatness of the guru !
Millions will follow a fake guru. Hardly one will follow a great one !
There is a huge difference between knowledge or gyana and information
I like the traditional Indian words and don’t like the translation
The word is gyana ( a lose English translation is knowledge)
That gives your liberation
What is the difference between gyana and information
You are the divine consciousness. That is information
Having the experience of being divine consciousnesses and forgetting the body completely without being in deep slumber is Gyana
So Gyana is the experience. Now do you see why the translation is faulty?
Now those who are true yogi know a deeper meaning to gyana. But that is a matter of discussion for another day
I have given the calendars according to the Gujarati names
According to Yogananda – the months represent the 6 chakras. Since each chakra can be positive or negative, it becomes 12.
One of the most auspicious month is Shravana. It represents Shiv or Shankar Month. All yoga and all shakti awakening starts from Shiv or Shankar. There are many stories about why Shravan including that is the month Gauri did penance to reach Shiv or that is the month they did “Samudra Manthan”. After Samudra manthan, the first thing that came out of the ocean was poison and Lord Shankar just swallowed it and held it in his throat and turned green/blue and he then became known as Nilkanth after that. Kanth meaning throat and neel is the color
Whatever the reason, it is the post pious month and perfect for meditation. Many people meditate that month and eat only once a day. The best day for reaching Shankar or Shiv is Monday and if the new moon falls on Monday it is considered most auspicious for meditaiton. Tuesday of Shravan month signify Parvati and also auspicious
This year Shravan started on Monday, yesterday
Now back to Yoga.
I am not sure I can accurately assign the months to the chakra. Having said that, this is how I believe the months and chakras are assigned
Kartaka (neg of Sahastrar , apex) and Magshar is positive of Sahastrar. Yogananda describes Magshar is Marg – meaning road, and shir meaning road to apex of the brain. In general it refers to Brahmanadi. However there is a special path between agna and Sahatrar and I believe it refers to it. A rare yogi knows this path
Posh is negative of Agna and Maha or Magha is positive aspect of Agna chakra in the center of forehead. Magha or maha refers to Aum, the son of God in the bible or the holy ghost
Fagana is the negative of Vishudha and Chaitra is the positive of Vishudha. Chaitra or Chitra means colorful design, refers to the place where body consciousness arises and we a very picturesque world. It also means that the sense of ugliness of the world is lost and it becomes very vivid and enjoyable
Visakha is the negative of Anahata and Jyestha or Jetha is the positive. Jyestha means elder. It refers to Vishnu granthi – a place where the prana rests but is elevated above the lower body
Ashadha is the negative of Manipur chakra and Shravana is the positive of Manipur (umbilical). This is where the real journey starts within. The road to this is kept a secret
Bhadarwa is the negative of the lower 2 chakras ( Swadisthan and Muladhar) and Ashwin or Aaso is the positive of (Swadisthan and Muladhar). The two royal Dr for the devas or Gods are called Ashini kumari – they work in pairs. These two physicians see both aspects and bring balance. Thus the lower two chakras, that belong to Apara shakti are as a pair.
This subject is very complex and truly to understand why months and chakras are correlate you need to go way beyond Einsteins undertstanding of time.
Just thought I would shed a little light on this. Should I end by saying have a nice year?
Years ago, anthropologist Margaret Mead was asked by a student what she considered to be the first sign of civilization in a culture. The student expected Mead to talk about fishhooks or clay pots or grinding stones.
But no. Mead said that the first sign of civilization in an ancient culture was a femur (thighbone) that had been broken and then healed. Mead explained that in the animal kingdom, if you break your leg, you die. You cannot run from danger, get to the river for a drink or hunt for food. You are meat for prowling beasts. No animal survives a broken leg long enough for the bone to heal.
A broken femur that has healed is evidence that someone has taken time to stay with the one who fell, has bound up the wound, has carried the person to safety and has tended the person through recovery. Helping someone else through difficulty is where civilization starts, Mead said.”
We are at our best when we serve others. Be civilized.
Ira Byock
My take. Humanity has a long way to go
So we have this kind of support at level in family. Maybe neighbor or friends. But soon we get tired And unable to render further services. This may happen occasionally. But usually our services to strangers are only if it does not involve major sacrifices on our part. To the point for a stranger, we could say sorry I can’t visit the hospital it is my wife’s birthday!
That absolute sacrifice would be a pinnacle. It may happen sporadically and very rarely at society level
Many individuals can find this sacrifice as stupid and incomprehensible. However to an alien race we could be thought of as primitive and stupid and not able to understand greater benefit to all humans
In the Era of Covid this is a crucial moment and display of such a sacrifices is heart warming.
On the other hand running out of tissue paper, cleaning substances shows ultimate greed and selfishness
My daughter asked me a question if the book of Job was accurate.
Let me relate the story of Job briefly. Job was an extremely pious and pure person. He had a wife and 7 sons and 3 daughters. Job constantly asked Gods forgiveness for the transgressions of his children. Satan then goes to destroy his family and possessions. Job continues to remain loyal to God and constantly reaffirms his innocence and purity. His friends wanted Job to confess his sins. Job insisted on his innocence.
Later 3 of his friends came over to comfort him. But they were in fact misguided and misleading him. Finally, Elihu appears (literal meaning God am I) and after a long interchange between ELihu and Job, finally the ice between Job and God is broken and God appears before Job and grants him back his lost prosperity and has more children and lives for another 140 years.
There is a deeper spiritual meaning to the whole story. This can be given at an intellectual and at a Yogic level.
First the intellectual interpretation. What did Job do wrong?
1) Job was very “good”. Being pious is being very Sattvic. Just like Yudhisthir was very pious and Sattvic. The cardinal mistake we make is in thinking that being Sattvic is getting very close to God. God wants our love – first and foremost. Doing the right things are very subjective and right karma confounds even the great Saints. The truth is God is above all duality of Good and Evil. All Good and all evil ultimately arises from God. Without Gods permission, Satan cannot exist.
2) His three friends tried to convince him to confess his sins and he maintained he had comitted no sins. Moreover, he constantly prayed and pleaded his innocence. This shows that he had not fully surrendered to Gods will. A person fully surrendered to God, does not fight for right or wrong, merely surrenders to Gods will and only wants God. Like Ramkrishna Paramhansa said, “Mother, I dont care for your rights or wrongs, I only want thee” Or like Shankaracharya said, “Mother, There is no other sinner like me and there is no other person like you who forgives sins. Knowing this, Mother, do whatever you please. I only want you” This is also what Elihu tried to tell Job. Do not please your case for God and do not try to convince God of your superior moral concepts. After all morality is cultual.
Now for the Yogic definition.
Job here refers to the ego of being pure. The ten children represents the 5 indriyas (5 gyanendriyas and 5 karmendriyas). Slaying of the 10 children means taking the prana away from the body and centralizing them in the Sushumna. The 3 friends are the 3 gunas – sattwa, rajas and tamas. They constantly mislead and take us on the wrong route. Elihu refers to the holy Ghost. (hun is part of or very similar to hun of the sohum technique or Hungso technique) Elihu means God is he (very similar to the words Tatvamasi or sohum) It is only through the holy Ghost, can the silence with God be broken and finally one is able to communicate with God directly. “Elihu” does not fully appear till the 5 motor and sensory system is “slayed” and till we learn to stop listening or being guided by the chatter of the intellect drived by the 3 gunas.
The final conclusion is as follows
1) God is above the dualities of good and evil. Cling to neither and do not insist on your “righteousness” otherwise you will be put through trials till we learn to Surrender to God and only want God. God has the right to judge. We do not. Judge not lest you be judged. When we say we are right or good, we are judging ourselves.
2) The holy Ghost or Elihu is the way. Focus more and more deeply on the Sohum technique till the ice with God is broken.
Becoming keenly aware that worldly life is full of misery, because it is infested with desire and fear, one should approach a Guru, a sage who is free from those bad forces, and after doing reverence to his holy feet should question him about how to become free.
V.3
The sage will give out in reply the supreme secret, confirmed by the [uniform] experience of all sages: ‘If you know yourself, there is no suffering for you. If you suffer [it only means that] you do not know yourself.’
V.4
‘Since you have no suffering in deep sleep, this suffering is only falsely ascribed to your Self. Realise the truth of yourself by the resolve to know it, and thereafter remain in your own true nature, which is bliss.’
V.5
The sage who has attained the supreme state is free, even though his body survives, [because] he does not look upon it as himself nor as belonging to himself. Therefore, that sage is really bodiless.
V.20
The aspirant to deliverance must resort to a sage as his Guru, that is, one who has awakened from the sleep of ignorance of the Self and is therefore free from delusion. How can one who has not awakened from that sleep awaken others who are in the same state?
V.24
Only that devotion to the Guru is good which is rendered to a sage-Guru, and which regards him as identical with God. Only by such devotion does one attain freedom from delusion. Truly the sage is not other than God.
V.25
Sri Ramana Paravidyopanishad, (The Supreme Science of the Self as Taught by Bhagwan Sri Ramana)
Only a yogi – whose shanti is fully awakened and pierced many chakra can know sanskrit and the shloka
Every verse in Gita has a very different meaning. A few of them were exposed by Yogananda and Gyaneshwara maharaj
This is what is called dichotomy of sanskrit per Yogananda. I see it as a skill level of the great saints where they revealed ultimate secrets which only a Guru knows – never to be published. Rest of the world can pursue its ignorant way
Why not reveal it? Would you give a dynamite to a monkey? Causes more damage. If you think you are ready to receive it, demand that you receive the information, get angry at the Guru not revealing it, you are not ready to get that level of shakti awakening
I was reading a translation from laxman joo – gopachara and the end of the shloka said liberation from 7 births. This is when I realized the essence is not understood at all by the scholars
A guru reveals his skills by beautiful exposition of these shloka
Before the true self is known, you are a public place, not a being. There are so many clashing forces working in you; hence, if you wish to make real progress, know your own being which is in constant union with the Divine. Then alone will transformation be possible. All the other parts of your nature are ignorant: the mind, for instance, often commits the mistake of thinking that every brilliant idea is also a luminous idea. It can with equal vigour trump up arguments for and against God: it has no infallible sense of the truth. The vital is generally impressed by any show of power and is willing to see in it the Godlike. It is only the psychic which has a just discrimination: it is directly aware of the supreme Presence, it infallibly distinguishes between the divine and the undivine. If you have even for a moment contacted it, you will carry with you a conviction about the Divine which nothing will shake.
The Mother, Questions and Answers 1921 – 1931 with commentaries on the Dhammapada, CWM volume 3, page 124.
What did she mean by you are a public place? It means that many external forces work upon us. Things we are not aware of us For example
Other people thoughts and behavior These thoughts and hidden forces come to us more easily when they touch you, through food, talk etc. that’s why eating simple food, avoiding restaurants, sex, good company is important.
Cosmic influences – many people say why is everyone behaving so erratic. Is it the full moon ? ( scientific studies have shown that full moon etc is a myth but my observation contradicts the scientific data)
Maya – she often sends thoughts and it influences everyone instantly. That’s why epidemic occurs. Covid could be seen as a thought that gave power to the virus
Environmental forces – we all know that going to nature – forests, oceans often have a calming effect. Here the forces of nature, the majestic calmness of trees, the sound of oceans work on us
Now a yogi is someone who slowly gets stronger and died not let the outside forces worked on him as much. An accomplished yogi can change the outside forces and can protect others. A higher yogi can prevent Covid occurring etc. but such people are rare. They do exist and have helped in the past
We all have problems in life. Our life could be on a smooth sail and then out of the blue something unexpected happens. We could be best friends with someone and madly in love with spouse.
And then something happens and it starts to break. We normally blame the other person, right? What happened?
Well, based on our past karma and the way we shaped our mind, we slowly begin to brew resentment within us. For absolutely no reason. This can happen at work too. We start off a new job with high expectations and then we just drift apart. This brewing of resentment and also related to past karma, the dream castle which we created in the relation, or work just crumbles. Once that happens, it is difficult to rebuild it.
So if we want to be happy, we should stop building up resentment and anger and frustration. Dont be angry. People behave based on their past tendencies. They cant help it. Forgive them. Move on. Moreover, if you owe someone from the past, you will have to repay and the person may behave poorly with ill will towards you as part of karmic debt. Dont build up new karma with anger or hatred and try, try not to wish the other person bad. It is difficult. This is why, we Santana religion or hinduism talks about endurance. But this endurance was not understood well and people thought it was ok to be a door mat. No, no, that is not endurance that is stupidity.
Someone may hurt you, you should not hold ill will or anger or resentment, but you must do the right thing – protect your assets, be polite but firm, seek legal counsel if needed, whatever is needed as part of proper action.
So that was one thing. Now often times, things can become unbearable. This is true even if you have a Guru. What do you do? Well, talk with those on the spiritual path. But during those times, we seek to know when or will this ever end? In hinduism, there are 4 vedas – Sama, Rig, Yajir and Atharva vedas. A part of one of the Vedas is Astrology or Jyotish Vidya. This science slowly evolved over times. So use it. Enact your horoscope. Look up your horoscope. There are some very good softwares that can give you good general advice – like Goravani. (Goravani.com). Now knowing the software can give you a general idea of what one may anticipate.
But there are other things you can use to help you during difficult times. There are Mantras that can be effective. But the mantras have to be used properly. One must only eat fruits and milk and nuts. Not eat outside the home during Mantra. The mantras must be chanted, sitting in one specific area and the specified mantras must be finished in a certain time frame.
For Panoti – the famous or infamous Shani – Hanuman chalisa is helpful. Perhaps if you have a Guru he may give you a specific mantra to overcome issues. These are just general things. Some people use special gem stones. They may work only if properly charged with Mantras
Remember doing these things wont just solve the problem, you have to work on it and the mantra can aid you in the process.
Finally, there is God. Some people believe in a specific form of God. Some believe in something else. We all migrate towards what captured our attention – this does not mean what captured our attention is the final answer though. However, Astrology or Jyotish comes from the word Jyoti which means light. Not the light of the sun or the light bulb, but the light of God. This would be the best way to deal with it!. If only, we could see that inner light of God and learn to surrender to it, it would be the most effective and efficient way of dealing with problems. This does not mean problems wont arise but it gives us a way to move forward
So how is this done?
Yogananda has described the spiritual eye. It is a yellow or red color ring, with a blue light and a white star in the center.
The yellow light, as per Yogananda refers to the cosmic vibration.
The blue light is Kutastha or Krishna or Christ consciousness as he calls it
The white star is the cosmic consciousness with the 5 eminations.
I have described this in greater detail elsewhere.
Back to the problems – So when one is established in Kutastha – like Lahiri Mahasay described – then in time we learn to get rid of the problems. That was what he repeatedly described. All the translations and interpretations from the Upanishads, he described them as part of Kutastha !
Hope this gives you a brief way to move forward
This spiritual eye is difficult to see and even more challenging to have a constant vision of the same. I have drawn it elsewhere. If I get time, I will draw it again…:)
My best wishes and love to all those who struggle and are eager on the path. The stubborn mind and its habit of worrying, resenting, being anxious is difficult to overcome and hence we cannot remain in Kutastha the blue light of the spiritual eye.
This is the problem. People read a little. Or a lot. From the internet. From blogs. From scriptures. From vedas. From religious books.
But the concept of needing inner purity is not there. Or if it is there, they think they already have it. But this delusion doe not end there. Often times there are misconceptions. Oh, we are human. God will forgive us. We dont need to make efforts to be pure. He will forgive us. Or she will forgive us.
Then comes along yoga. and Kundalini awakening. Many try on their own. Others find a Guru. Not a real Guru. Just a self proclaimed Guru. Of course a self proclaimed Guru will not insist on purity, He will give you convenient answers. He will say it is ok to do what you like, just chant or do the mantra. Or practice pranayama or sit in meditation. Your work is done. You will be free
Thus there is a web of deception.
This of course is not Yoga. Neither is it the way to Liberation or Moksha. Or the way to God.
I know most people find my concepts too much. It is not easy. Let us agree on one thing. A mind at peace is always wonderful. We may not have control over outside situations, but we can have control over the mind. Well, not really. Any attempt to control the mind creates more anger and agitation. The mind revolts. Gets angry, bitter and refuses to cooperate. Drifts to sleep or stupor and prefers alcohol or drugs
So the mind has to be changed, not controlled. This is point one
Point two. The mind will always be restless when it seeks happiness on the outside. The place where the mind runs outside the most is in sensual pleasures. Seeing things, talking and hearing things. Food, Sex. Once stricken by one or many,the mind will never know peace. It will constantly think of it, crave it, and when it does not get it, becomes bewildered, sad, anxious and just unhappy. It will be like rabid dog, going from one point to another, searching for something and biting without cause.
Point three. The only way to get peace of the mind is by getting rid of desire and that requires a fundamental change in the mind. I mean change, not suppression. How is this to be done?
Yoga. I am sure you guessed it. So scriptrures just mention that state of Atman or self – the state that is self sufficient. No longer seeking, the mind abated. It does not tell how to get there. Nor does it say what happens on the way. Lahiri Mahasaya talks about the Kutastha. This is a level, a beginning of sort. It describes the wonders of Kutastha. He describes the effects and mutiple reference to Kutastha in all books including the bible, Hindu religions, Upanishads etc.
However, there is only one book – about 600 plus pages long that describes Kutastha and what happens on the way there and the steps in transformation of the mind. It is the only book that talks about it in minute detail. Sadly that book is not available. Who knows where anyone can find Muktashastra, however, it was my desire to translate it. Such incredible books are always kept out of reach for most people. That I suspect is by design. I have tried in vain to get the book. What can I say or do?
Some day, I hope to be sufficiently pure, to be worthy of one page of that book !
A question – do fakes pay tribute to the truth by imitation or do they give bad name to the truth by their lies?
I suspect it is both.
Recently, the leader of Ra Ma institute Yogi Jagat, died , possibly PE ( pulmonary embolism). However rumors abound – she is still alive, she tried to escape from a gathering etc
She claimed to await kundalini.
So now an average reader, when they read about another Yoga fraud – will being here we go ! Yoga is fraud. In the limited investigation they perform they are quick on the draw to tarnish the reputation of Yoga but not blame the money and power hungry leaders or fake Gurus. And definitely not blame themselves for being a full and believing that kundalini Is easy and common
Right now, I doubt if there are 10 people with awakening – even minor. Those who have it have not advertised. One of them may have followers rest may have a few believers but not followers.
It is miraculous but the journey is definitely long. What can I say? There is a reason why it is not advertised. Having many followers is a certain sign that there is not much there.
You may argue Vivekananda, Ramana Maharishi, Yogananda had many followers. But few of the followers had awakening.
We have the tendency of get worshiping. We think if the person wears certain clothes, speaks Sanskrit, smiles in a certain way, he is a guru.
But a true Guru is now restricted by garments or language
His ability lies in deciphering the codes of the scriptures!! And helping others without even taking credit.
All birds that fly are not swans
There are far more crows than swans.
Swans fly solo. Crows May have groups. Hope you get the picture!
Bhavin
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