Being Quiet

Paramhansa Yogananda was once asked why his most advanced disciple, Rajarsi Janakananda, made such rapid spiritual progress. Yogananda replied, “He knows how to listen.”

Our minds are like short-wave radios: when the switch is set to “broadcast,” all we can hear is our own voice talking. A busy, chattering mind is always in “sending mode,” which prevents us from experiencing anything new. We only begin to hear when the switch is turned to “receive.” Similarly, true inspiration comes when the mind is calm and listening. Talking less is a marvelous practice for deepening one’s receptivity in meditation.

Paramhansa Yogananda said that most people use only one-tenth of their ability to concentrate. When you restrain your speech and practice silence, the mind becomes less impulsive. It is not always possible, or appropriate, to be completely silent, but we can practice being quiet. It is estimated that only a tiny part of our speech—some say 1%—is due to the demands of our outer environment. The rest of the time the urge to talk comes from the desire to relate to others. The admonishment given in monasteries, "Do not speak unless you can improve on the silence," is a helpful guideline for appropriate speech and staying inwardly receptive.

How to practice the art of being quiet:
1. Concentrate more on listening to life. Avoid the sense that you have to direct it.
2. Remain centered in yourself.
3.When you feel the urge to talk, restrain your first impulse to do so. Ask yourself, “Will my words contribute to the situation? Improve on the silence? Bless others?”
4.When you break your silence, speak as long as you feel inspiration but no longer; then return to the silence.

5. Enjoy the tranquility. Express a sense of inner calmness in everything you do.

Practice regularly the technique of being quiet. The more you do, the more you will experience its benefits: increased energy, deep concentration in meditation and outward activity, and inner serenity.

Bharat Cornell

Fact of present awareness

Drop all conceptualizing and recognize the undeniable fact of present awareness. There is nothing speculative or future-based about this. The being, consciousness and profound peace of this non-conceptual presence is completely evident, not theoretical. Recognizing this, you understand that all thoughts, concepts, doubts, worries and concerns are momentary, ephemeral appearances in the consciousness that you are. This is ABSOLUTELY not a process that takes time. Your being already is the case. You are not practicing or paying attention in order to be what you are. This is simply clarifying your present identity, not attaining anything.

John Wheeler from the website http://www.thenaturalstate.org/

The Reality behind the Veil

Life is a mystery until you touch the reality beyond the veil. When the mind is still and the search is intense, we have the vision to see reality all around us. Every person you meet is in a world you could know. Nature waits for our entrance, whether it is a forest or a rose. All around us is the Spirit Presence waiting for a quiet mind and an open heart. Walking through the markets and riding in the subway, we can be close to the reality. We are moving through various states of reality during the day.

~ Herman Rednick

Karma

We learn in time to accept everything that happens to us as the will of the Supreme Father, and hence never grumble or complain about misfortunes. The karma made in past births is like a shot from a gun; we cannot recall it and must endure the consequences. But once we have surrendered ourself to the Spiritual Preceptor, he guides our hands and prevents us from shooting out further bad karma.

Paul Brunton

Inaction

The follower of knowledge learns as much as he can every day;
The follower of the Way (Tao) forgets as much as he can every day.
By attrition he reaches a state of inaction
Wherein he does nothing, but nothing remains undone.
To conquer the world, accomplish nothing;
If you must accomplish something,
The world remains beyond conquest

Charles Muller

Religious and Yogic practices

Religious and yogic exercises have long been used as a personal and cosmic preparation, purifying personal motives and expanding cosmic views, in order to prepare for an eventual enquiry into impartial truth. In the end, that enquiry must leave behind all personal development and the entire cosmos that is seen through body and through mind.

Swami Atmananda Krishna Menon

Desire the good of all and the Universe will work with you

Your aims are small and low. They do not call for more. Only God's energy is infinite -- because He wants nothing for Himself. Be like Him and all your desires will be fulfilled. The higher your aims and vaster your desires, the more energy you will have for their fulfilment. Desire the good of all and the universe will work with you. But if you want your own pleasure, you must earn it the hard way. Before desiring, deserve.

Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj.

Learn to live without self concern

"Learn to live without self concern. For this you must know your own true being as indomitable, fearless, ever victorious. Once you know with absolute certainty that nothing can trouble you but your own imagination, you come to disregard your desires and fears, concepts and ideas, and live by truth alone".

Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj

Interesting quotes on the Present Moment or Now

If Past to Future is on a horizontal line, the present moment is not in time - it is an vertical movement - transcending time. Osho

As you embrace the here and now, don't be surprised if you suddenly feel lucky - lucky to be blessed with a good mind, lucky to have friends who love you for who you are, lucky to be living in such an interesting time. ~ From The Art of the Moment by Veronigue Vienne

The Secret of health for both mind and body is not to mourn for the past, not to worry about the future, nor to anticipate troubles, but to live the present moment wisely and earnestly.- Buddha

Freedom or Bondage

There is only one decision you need to make; either you are working at your Freedom or you are accepting your Bondage.

Robert Adams

A video clipping of Sri Lakshmanaswamy

I was thrilled to hear from Meenakshi Ammal, Tiruvannamalai that there is a small video clipping of Sri Lakshmanaswamy on Youtube. This video seems to have been taken on his birthday on December 25, 2004.

Sri Lakshmanaswamy gives darshan to devotees three or four times a year and his darshans are videographed but the recordings are not made available to the public.

The link is http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h-BeVGCINic

The essence of all spiritual discipline

Mind it is that binds man, and the same mind it is that liberates him. Mind is constituted of sankalpa and vikalpa — desire and disposition. Desire shapes and governs disposition. Desire is of two kinds — the noble and the base. The base desires are lust and greed. Noble desire is directed towards enlightenment and emancipation. Base desire contaminates and clouds the understanding. Sadhana is easy for the aspirant who is endowed with noble desires. Calmness is the criterion of spiritual progress. Plunge the purified mind into the Heart. Then the work is over. This is the essence of all spiritual discipline!

Bhagavan Ramana

True wealth is the radiant joy of Being

Those who have not found their true wealth, which is the radiant joy of Being and the deep, unshakable peace that comes with it, are beggars, even if they have great material wealth. They are looking outside for scraps of pleasure or fulfillment, for validation, security, or love, while they have a treasure within that not only includes all those things but is infinitely greater than anything the world can offer.

-Eckhart Tolle-

Direct Path - Atma Vichara

The 'direct' path is so called because it looks directly for underlying truth. However bad or good the world is seen to be, however badly or how well it is seen through personally, there is in the direct path no concern to improve that cosmic view. The only concern is to reflect directly back into underlying truth, from the superficial and misleading show of all outward viewing.

The direct path is thus no recent development. It was there from the start, before traditions and civilizations developed. And it has continued through the growth of tradition, along with the personal and environmental improvements that traditions have prescribed. For these improvements are inevitably partial and compromised; so that there are always people who aren't satisfied with such improvement, but just long for plain truth that is not compromised with any falsity.

To find that truth, no cosmological improvement can itself be enough. At some stage, sooner or later, there has to be a jump entirely away from all improvement, into a truth where worse or better don't apply. The only difference between the cosmological and direct paths is when the jump is made. In the direct path, the jump is soon or even now. In the cosmological approach, the jump is put off till later on, in order to give time for improving preparations to be made for it.

There are pros and cons on both sides, so that different paths suit different personalities. An early jump is harder to make, and it means that the sadhaka's character is still impure; so even having jumped into the truth, she or he keeps falling back unsteadily, overwhelmed by egotistical samskaras. Then work remains to keep returning back to truth, until the samskaras are eradicated and there is a final establishment in the sahaja state.

A later jump can be easier, with a character so purified that little or no work remains to achieve establishment. But there are pitfalls of preparing personality for a late jump, because a sadhaka may get enamoured of the relative advances that have been achieved, like a prisoner who falls in love with golden chains and thus remains imprisoned.

So what's needed is to find the particular path that suits each particular sadhaka, instead of arguing for any path as best for everyone.

- Sri Atmananda Krishna Menon-

Enter the sound of your name and through this sound, all sounds

Bhagavan recommended repeating "I" continuously for people who are unable to take up self enquiry. A similar technique has been recommended in a Tantric text called "Vigyan Bhairava Tantra" and OSHO has given a fine commentary on the same.

Techique no - 47 in Vigyan Bhairava Tantra

ENTER THE SOUND OF YOUR NAME AND, THROUGH THIS SOUND, ALL SOUNDS.

OSHOs commentary

Your own name can be used as a mantra very easily, and it is very helpful because your name has gone very deep into your unconscious. Nothing else has gone so deep. If we are all are sitting here, and we all fall asleep and someone comes and calls "Ram," no one will listen except the person whose name is Ram. He will listen to it; he will be disturbed in his sleep. No one else will listen to the sound "Ram," but why does this man listen? It has gone down deep; it is not conscious now, it has become unconscious.

Your name has gone very deep within you, but there is a very beautiful phenomenon about your name: you never call it, others call it. Others use it; you never use it.

I have heard that in the first world war, for the first time in America rationing was created. Thomas Edison was a very great scientist, but he was very poor so he had to stand in the queue for his ration card. And he was such a great man that no one ever used his name before him. There was no need to use his name for himself, and no one else would use his name because he was so much respected. Everyone would call him Professor, so he had forgotten what was his name.

He was standing in the queue, and when his name was called, when it was asked who Thomas Alva Edison was, he just stared blankly. Again the name was called, then someone who was a neighbor to Edison said to him, "Why are you standing? Your name is being called. It is your name, Professor." Then he became aware and he said, "But how can I recognize it? No one calls me Edison. It has been so long... they just call me Professor."

You never use your own name. Only others use it -- you have heard it used by others. But it has gone deep, very deep. It has penetrated like an arrow into your unconscious. If you yourself use it, then it becomes a mantra. And for two reasons it helps: one, when you use your own name, if your name is "Ram" and you use "Ram, Ram, Ram...", suddenly you feel as if you are using someone else's name - as if it is not yours. Or if you feel that this IS yours, you feel that there is a separate entity within you which is using it. It may belong to the body, it may belong to the mind, but he who is calling "Ram, Ram..." becomes a witness.

You have always called others' names. When you call your own name it looks as if it belongs to someone else, not to you, and it is a very revealing phenomenon. You can become a witness to your own name, and with the name your whole life is involved. Separated from the name, you are separated from your whole life. And this name has penetrated deep within you because everyone has called you this from your very birth, you have always heard this. So use this sound, and with this sound you can go to the very depths to which the name has gone.

In the old days we gave everyone a name of God - everyone. Someone was Ram, someone was Narayan, someone was Krishna, someone was Vishnu, or something like that. They say all the Mohammedan names are the names of God - ALL the Mohammedan names! And all over the world that was the practice, to give a name which is really a name of God.This was for good reasons. One reason was this technique -- because if your name can be used as a mantra it will serve you a double purpose. It will be YOUR name - and you have heard it so much, so many times, and all your life it has penetrated deep. Then also, it is the name of God. So go on repeating it inside, and suddenly you will become aware that "This name is different from me." Then by and by this name will have a sanctity of its own. You will remember any day that "Narayan" or "Ram," this is God's name. Your name has turned into a mantra.

Use it! This is very good! You can try many things with your name. If you want to be awakened at five o'clock in the morning, no alarm is so exact as your own name. Just repeat thrice inside, "Ram, you have to be awake by five o'clock sharp." Repeat it three times, and then just fall asleep. You will be awakened at five o'clock because "Ram," YOUR name, is very deep in the unconscious.Call your name and tell yourself that "At five o'clock in the morning, let me be awakened." Someone WILL awaken you. And if you continue this practice, one day you will suddenly realize that at five o'clock someone calls you and says, "Ram, be awake." That is your unconscious calling you.

This technique says, ENTER THE SOUND OF YOUR NAME AND, THROUGH THIS SOUND, ALL SOUNDS. Your name becomes just a door for all names. But enter the sound. First, when you repeat "Ram, Ram, Ram..." it is just a word. But it means something when you go on repeating "Ram, Ram, Ram..."You must have heard the story of Valmiki. He was given this mantra "Ram," but he was an ignorant man - uneducated, simple, innocent, childlike. He started repeating "Ram, Ram, Ram..." but he was repeating so much that he forgot completely and reversed the whole thing. Instead he was chanting "Mara, Mara..." He was chanting "Ram, Ram, Ram..." so fast that it became "Mara, Mara, Mara..." And he achieved the goal through "Mara, Mara, mara..."

If you go on repeating the name fast inside, soon it will not be a word: it will become a sound, just meaningless. And then there is no difference between Ram and Mara - no difference! Whether you call Ram or Mara, it makes no sense, they are not words. It is just the sound, just the sound that matters. Enter the sound of your name. Forget the meaning of it, just enter the sound. Meaning is with the mind, sound is with the body. Meaning is in the head, sound spreads all over the body. So forget the meaning. Just repeat it as a meaningless sound, and through this sound you will enter all sounds. This sound will become the door to all sounds. And "all sounds" means all that exists.

This is one of the basic tenets of Indian inner search, that the basic unit of the existence is sound and not electricity. Modern science says that the basic unit of the existence is electricity, not sound, but they also say that sound is a form of electricity. Indians, however, have always been saying that electricity is nothing but a form of sound.

You may have heard that through a particular RAGA, a particular sound, fire can be created. It can be created - because this is the Indian idea, that sound is the basis of all electricity. So if you hit sound in a particular frequency, electricity will be created.On long bridges, if a military, is passing, they are not allowed to march because many times it has happened that because of their march the bridge falls. It is because of sound, not because of their weight. They will be passing anyhow, but if they pass marching, then the particular sound of their feet breaks the bridge.

In old Hebrew history, the city of Jericho was very protected by great walls and it was impossible to break those walls by guns. But through a particular sound the walls were broken, and that sound was the secret of the breaking of those walls. If that sound is created before walls, the walls will give way.

You have heard the story of Ali Baba: a particular sound and the rock moves. These are allegories. Whether they are right or not, one thing is certain: if you can create a particular sound so continuously that meaning is lost, mind is lost, the rock at your heart will be removed.

You alone are responsible for your thoughts

Since you alone are responsible for your thoughts, only you can change them. You will want to change them when you realize that each thought creates according to its own nature. Remember that the law works at all times and that you are always demonstrating according to the kind of thoughts you habitually entertain. Therefore, start now to think only those thoughts that will bring you health and happiness.

Paramahansa Yogananda

Truth is a pathless land

'Truth is a pathless land'. Man cannot come to it through any organization, through any creed, through any dogma, priest or ritual, not through any philosophic knowledge or psychological technique. He has to find it through the mirror of relationship, through the understanding of the contents of his own mind, through observation and not through intellectual analysis or introspective dissection. Man has built in himself images as a fence of security - religious, political, personal. These manifest as symbols, ideas, beliefs. The burden of these images dominates man's thinking, his relationships and his daily life. These images are the causes of our problems for they divide man from man. His perception of life is shaped by the concepts already established in his mind. The content of his consciousness is his entire existence. This content is common to all humanity. The individuality is the name, the form and superficial culture he acquires from tradition and environment. The uniqueness of man does not lie in the superficial but in complete freedom from the content of his consciousness, which is common to all mankind. So he is not an individual.

Jiddu Krishnamurti

'Who am I?’ is not a mantra

'Who am I?’ is not a mantra. It means that you must find out where in you the ‘I-thought’ arises, which is the source of all other thoughts. But if you find that vichara marga (path of enquiry) is too hard for you, you go on repeating ‘I-I’ and that will lead you to the same goal. There is no harm in using ‘I’ as a mantra. It is the first name of God.

Gems from Bhagavan by Devaraja Mudaliar

The Power of the name Arunachala

The power of the name Arunachala was once directly confirmed by Sri Bhagavan. In 1948 a certain devotee came to him from Bombay, and with him he brought a notebook in which he had written the name 'Arunachala Siva' many thousands of times. On the last page of this notebook the devotee wrote a prayer to the following effect, 'O Bhagavan, in the life of Sarada Devi [the wife of Sri Ramakrishna] it is written that she has said that if even an animal dies in Kasi it will attain liberation. Therefore, graciously bestow upon be the boon of death in Kasi.' and gave the notebook to Sri Bhagavan.

Bhagavan looked through the notebook and when he came to the last page he read out loud the devotee's prayer: at once he expressed the greatest surprise and exclaimed, 'Smaranat Arunachalam!'

The words 'Smaranat Arunachalam' mean 'by remembering Arunachala', and they occur in the very same Sanskrit verse that says that by dying in Kasi one will attain liberation. Bhagavan then turned to the revolving bookcase by his side and took out a book,probably the Arunachala Mahatmyam. Opening it as if at random, he read out a sentence in Tamil that said, 'One ''Arunachala'' is equal power to one crore ''Om Nama Sivaya'''.

'Om Nama Sivaya' is believed by Saivas all over India to be the most sacred and powerful mantra. After reading out a few other portions of this book that emphasized the unique greatness and power of Arunachala, Sri Bhagavan finally laid it aside and explained to the devotee that not everyone can see Chidambaram, not everyone can be born in Tiruvarur, and not everyone can die in Kasi, but anyone and everyone can think of Arunachala from wherever they may be, and thereby they will surely attain liberation.

From this incident we can understand how unhesitatingly Sri Bhagavan encouraged devotees to have absolute faith in Arunachala. If devotees of a sceptical frame of mind came to him and asked him how mere thought of Arunachala could bestow liberation, he used to explain the allegorical significance of this saying, since that alone would satisfy their mind.(4) But if devotees came to him with simple, child-like faith, he would strengthen their faith and confirm the literal meaning of this saying, since he knew from personal experience the great power of the name and form of Arunachala.

An extract from the article "The Power of Arunachala" by Michael James. Source: David Godman's website http://www.davidgodman.org/

Awakening to the Truth

When you awaken to truth as it really is, you will have no occult vision, you will have no "astral" experience, no ravishing ecstasy. You will awaken to it in a state of utter stillness, and you will realize that truth was always there within you and that reality was always there around you. Truth is not something which has grown and developed through your efforts. It is not something which has been achieved or attained by laboriously adding up those efforts. It is not something which has to be made more and more perfect each year. And once your mental eyes are opened to truth they can never be closed again.

Paul Brunton

An interesting incident from "Moments Remembered" by V.Ganesan

Muruganar entered the Old Hall. Prostrating to Sri Bhagavan he noticed that worship had been offered to some books decoratively heaped, garlanded and placed in front of Sri Bhagavan, near the sofa. He realised it was Saraswathi Puja day. As he glanced at the garlanded books and then at the serenely seated Master, his face broke into an amused smile. Noticing this, Bhagavan gestured enquiringly. Muruganar's relationship with Bhagavan was unique. He knew he was in the presence of the Reality clothed in human form, available to all as the spiritual guide.
Containing his amusement with great effort, he said: "Bhagavan! To have offered puja to the sacred books in your presence amuses me. Imagine that a bunch of the best variety of sugar cane was squeezed, crystal sugar of the purest quality made out of the juice and a human form was made with it. Now, picture the superb human form made of this best sugar on the one hand and the sugar-cane-waste on the other! Bhagavan, you are the essence of Truth. These books, however sacred they may be, are just like the sugar-cane-waste. They have offered puja to the juiceless canes while the most beautiful sugar-form, YOU, are seated just here!" Saying this, Muruganar laughed. Bhagavan too had a hearty laugh.

from Moments Remembered by V. Ganesan

Now there is the strange fact that Ramana Maharshi himself refused to be ‘the Guru’ of his devotees...or to be exact, he never initiated any of them in the traditional way. Some of them are known to have left him, though they loved and worshipped him, because they thought themselves unable to proceed spiritually without an outer guru. How is this strange attitude of his to be understood? Did the sage shun the responsibility which the guru is expected to take over in respect to his devotee? According to tradition, the guru who accepts a disciple also takes over his karma, bad as it may be.

No. Sri Ramana Maharshi was only being consistent; he lived what he taught...the realisation of the One without a second! When there is only One, Brahman, where is the place for guru and disciple? A guru presupposes a disciple, a disciple a guru; they are invariable ‘two’. Can there be two Selves, the one guiding the other? True guidance is possible only when the Self of the guru and that of the disciple is one and the same Self.

-Hunting the I by Lucy Cornelssen

Kaivalya Navaneeta - An online english translation

I found an online english translation of Kaivalaya Navaneeta, a Tamil Advaitic text that was recommended to spiritual aspirants by Bhagavan Ramana Maharishi.

Please click Kaivalya Navaneeta for the english translation.

The Astonishing Spiritual Powers of Sri Ramana Maharshi

In South India, Alick McInnes, a Scottish scientist, witnessed the strange spectacle of Sri Ramana Maharshi on his evening walk. Within seconds of his leaving his house, cattle tied up in stalls in the village half a mile away would struggle to get out of their ties. When released, they careered along the road to accompany the old man on his walk, followed by all the dogs and children of the village. Before the procession had gone far, wild animals and even snakes joined it from the jungle. Thousands of birds appeared, almost blotting out the sky. There were tiny tits, huge kites, heavy-winged vultures and other birds of prey, all flying in harmony around the Maharshi on his walk. When he returned to his room, said McInnes, all the birds, animals and children would quietly disappear.

From the book "The Secret Life of plants"by Peter Tompkins and Christopher Bird

Take up one idea

“Take up one idea. Make that one idea your life - think of it, dream of it, live on that idea. Let the brain, muscles, nerves, every part of your body, be full of that idea, and just leave every other idea alone. This is the way to success, that is way great spiritual giants are produced.”

Swami Vivekananda

Seriousness is a sickness

"Seriousness is a sickness; your sense of humor makes you more human, more humble. The sense of humor -- accordingto me -- is one of the most essential parts of religiousness."

-OSHO-

Right Attitude Towards Wealth

People shy away from the idea of renunciation, yet they renounce so many things of true value—not the least of which are peace of mind and even sometimes their very lives—for the sake of money, which is perishable. Wealth may be taken away from you, or you may be taken away from it by death; you cannot take it with you. The only value of money is to do good for the well-being and true happiness of self and others. Those who think only of their own security and comforts, forgetful of others in need, are courting poverty; it will be forced upon them sometime. Those who cling selfishly to their wealth instead of doing good with it do not attract prosperity in their next life. They are born poor, but with all the desires of the wealthy. But those who share their good fortune attract wealth and abundance wherever they go. Jesus spoke of this principle when he said, “Sell all that thou hast, and distribute unto the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven.” [Luke 18:22]

If you learn to share with others, you will see that God is ever with you; He will never leave you, and you will never go without. Depend upon Him, and He will look after you. Do not forget that your very life is directly sustained by the power of God. When you remember that your reason, will, and activity are dependent upon Him, you will be guided by God, and you will realize that your life is one with His Infinite Life.

He who is motivated by selfish desires neglects his assigned role in helping the drama of God’s creation. He who lives only for himself, creating webs of desires, becomes entangled in those webs. But he who acts and works for God is free. You do not know why you are here on earth, or why you are a man or a woman, or why you are the way you are. You are not here merely to have your own way. You are here to do God’s will. To work for yourself is to be bound by life. To work for God is to be free.

Learn to be very active in this world, doing constructive work; but when you are through with your duties, turn off your nervous motor. Retire to the center of your being, which is calmness. Mentally affirm to yourself: “I am calm. I am not a mere nervous mechanism; I am Spirit. Though I dwell in this body, I am untouched by it.” If you have a calm nervous system, you will have success in everything you undertake, and, above all, you will succeed with God.

-Paramahansa Yogananda-

Kaupina Panchakam and Bhagavan Ramana Maharishi

Koupina Panchakam, a short composition by Adi Sankara is a beautiful stotram on the glory of a sanyasi established in the Self, wearing only a kaupina (loin cloth) and living on alms. This composition applies so well to Bhagavan Ramana Maharishi.

The dispassionate one wearing a piece of loin cloth — who is roaming in the thoughts of Vedanta (Upanishad), who is satisfied by a meagre portion of begged-food, who is meditating in his inner-self without grief — is indeed blessed.1

The dispassionate one wearing a piece of loin cloth — who is sitting at the roots of a tree, who is eating unmeasured (meagre) food with his two hands, and who is disregarding wealth like a patched-cloth — is indeed blessed.2

The dispassionate one wearing a piece of loin cloth — who is elating and satisfying in his own thoughts, who is keeping quiet and curbing his sensual desires, and who is roaming day and night in the thoughts of Brahman — is indeed blessed.3

The dispassionate one wearing a piece of loin cloth — who is witnessing his body changes, who is seeing self as the aatman, and who is not remembering either the end, or the middle, or the outside one — is indeed blessed.4

The dispassionate one wearing a piece of loin cloth — who is reciting the Brahma-syllable, who is is existing with the thought ‘I am Brahman’, and who is wandering in directions for alms — is indeed blessed.5
-Adi Shankaracharya-

Success!

Success or achievement is not the final goal. It is the 'spirit' in which you act that puts the seal of beauty upon your life. The secret of success behind all men of achievement lies in the faculty of applying their intellect in all their activities, without being mislead by any surging emotions or feelings. The secret of success in life lies in keeping the head above the storms of the heart.
A successful man is one who can lay a firm foundation with the bricks that others throw at him.

-Swami Chinmayananda-

The Essence of Sri Sathya Sai Baba's Teachings

Believe in God --for there is only ONE GOD for all mankind, though He may be called by many names.

Follow sincerely their respective religions and live their daily lives in consonance with the teachings of good behavior and morality.

Respect all other religions --for no religion advocates the negative and lower qualities of man.

Perform selfless service to the poor, the sick, and the needy without thought of reward or fame.

Cultivate in their lives the values of truth, divine love, right conduct, peace, and nonviolence and promote these values among all.

Be patriotic and respect the laws of the country in which they live.

Shirdi Live Webcast!

Devotees of Shirdi Sai Baba would be delighted to know that the official website of Shirdi Samasthan has introduced a live webcast of the Samadhi Mandir.

Please click on the Shirdi Live

Is creation true?

(Sadhu Om)

If creation were true, the scriptures would describe it in only one manner, but their diverse theories make it clear that creation is not the truth. To enable ripe aspirants to discover the falsity of the notion of creation, the Vedas purposely teach contradictory theories. However, such contradictions are found only in the descriptions of creation, they never occur when the Vedas attempt to describe the nature of Self, the Supreme. Concerning Self, they all agree and speak in one voice, saying ‘Self is One, Perfect, Whole, Immortal, Unchanging, Self-shining etc., etc.’ From this we should understand that the deep intention behind such conflicting theories of creation is to indirectly show aspirants the necessity of enquiring into Self, which is the Source of all ideas of creation.

-Sadhu Om-

What is Mind!

What is called 'mind' is a wondrous power residing in the Self. It causes all thoughts to arise. Apart from thoughts, there is no such thing as mind. Therefore, thought is the nature of mind. Apart from thoughts, there is no independent entity called the world. In deep sleep there are no thoughts, and there is no world. In the states of waking and dream, there are thoughts, and there is a world also. Just as the spider emits the thread (of the web) out of itself and again withdraws it into itself, likewise the mind projects the world out of itself and again resolves it into itself. When the mind comes out of the Self, the world appears. Therefore, when the world appears (to be real), the Self does not appear; and when the Self appears (shines) the world does not appear. When one persistently inquires into the nature of the mind, the mind will end leaving the Self (as the residue). What is referred to as the Self is the Atman. The mind always exists only in dependence on something gross; it cannot stay alone. It is the mind that is called the subtle body or the soul (jiva).

- Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharishi

Facing life unprepared!

"The beauty of facing life unprepared is tremendous. Then life has a newness, a youth; then life has a flow and freshness. Then life has so many surprises. And when life has so many surprises boredom never settles in you."

-OSHO-

Never do anything that taints your mind. Wrong actions cause negative or evil mental vibrations that are reflected in your whole appearance and personality. Engage in those actions and thoughts that nurture the good qualities you want to have.

- Paramahansa Yogananda-