Know What?

A short time ago I asked a precious pal of mine whether he thought Self-Realized souls in human bodies know they’re perfected. He chewed on that question from 17:43 until his response came at 18.59, after which time his answer was, “Yes.” He went on to explain that he thinks they “just know” even if they don’t fully understand it or recognize it from birth. He brought up that some are simply wise beyond their years and than many, after they realize this, would perhaps still not think they are “perfected.”

I think I can agree to all that, although I might have originally been going in a different direction.

A long time ago I read somewhere that, “The eye itself cannot see itself. Brahman cannot see Brahman.” I’m sure if that were googled, the source might be found, but I’m not doing that right now. At any rate, it makes sense, right? When was the last time your eyeball was able to see itself (without the use of some kind of reflective surface)? Pointing out that Brahman cannot see Itself, to me, ties back into the Impersonality of It and even of how I’ve written about God being love, but not being loving.

In the book I’m reading currently, “The Call of Spirituality,” the question of whether a Master can know he is a Master is asked. The conclusion reached is that when a Master reaches his Master’s state, he knows his Master – but doesn’t know his own state – which happens to be pretty well one and the same (yoga). I think in this situation the loss of traits like ego and samskaras are part of the reason why one can achieve elevated states and not be filled with the knowledge of that achievement. So what, then?

Part of the answer to the aforementioned question is that the Master can look “downward” to his own disciples to gain perspective on his own state (which is like that of his own Master). Chariji indicates, “By seeing our Master we come to know what he is and what he looks like. He can know his own condition when one of his disciples reaches that stage. Therefore, after understanding his own Master, the Master understands himself.” Surely this phenomenon accounts, at least in part, for why we often reference our gurus as mirrors. To help put this into an understandable perspective, a girl understands the qualities of a mother (who and what a mother is) by watching her own mother (or even another mother). But to know about motherhood, she has to give birth, become a mother, and experience it.

I think this kind of implies a hierarchy of sorts where to know your Goal and to progress you must look onward and upward toward That which you’re reaching and progressing. But to actually know and maybe even measure your progress, you have to look downward – so to speak. Perhaps you can’t know the heights you’ve reached without looking to see how far from the ground you are.

Aum Shri Mahaganeshaya Namaha
Aum Shanti

Namo Namaha, Guruji-Guruji

I think a lot of people don’t know really what to look for in a guru. I think a lot of people aren’t looking for a guru, but of those who are there’s often confusion on which Master should be followed. Surely this factors into what Krishna meant when he told Arjuna that so few people seek Truth and of those few even fewer quickly reach elevated states.

I think it can be challenging, for sure, because everyone’s path is different and every Master brings a different approach to Reality. This also, I think, ties back into some of what Krishna was speaking of in a very round-about way. Certainly part of the reason so few people make any progress on a personal / spiritual level is because so few people are invested enough in their own development to even know which direction to head off in. If you don’t ever force yourself to crawl, then it’s unlikely you’re going to walk anytime soon and obviously without moving yourself you won’t go anywhere. And I think it’s not even until after all that is underway that someone is really going to benefit from having a guru. After all, it’s a rare person indeed who skips high school and goes instead from elementary to university. (Although it’s not unheard of.)

I have learned from a number of Masters in my life so far, and will continue to take learning and inspiration wherever and however it presents itself. My own sources of growth have been as varied as Mata Amrtanandamayi Ma (Amma, the Hugging Saint), Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, Eckhart Tolle, and even a Hindu drag nun as well as many others. All of these sources of light have benefitted me in wonderful ways, but none in a way that I felt so strongly pulled toward that I couldn’t resist on some level or another. Some felt too distant. Some felt too worldly. Some felt too otherworldly.

My path, regardless of its direction, has virtually always been about balance. At times this has manifested better than at others, but balance has always been the underlying foundational goal. Through all my seeking, something that always gnawed at me within my heart is the question of, “How to accept another human being as a great person?” Mind you, the implication meant for the word “great” isn’t merely good or nice. It’s meant to imply more of what “guru” encompasses. A week or two ago while doing some reading, I found a passage that does well at starting to answer this question for me and I think it explains a little of why I’m drawn to the gurus of the Sahaj Marg – teachers who many do not feel pulled to. I planned to share some of what I read on this, but I think I’ll abstain from quoting so extensively for now.

The reading I mentioned pointed out that many people face the issue of how to accept a teacher when the teacher doesn’t seem much (if any) better than the student. Some might see this issue as pride, but in Sahaj Marg this is seen more of an issue of doubt. Pride dissolves relatively easily, but doubt is significantly dense. It basically comes down to me being a human and knowing my own weaknesses and assuming the same of a guru, who is also human.

It’s understood in Sahaj Marg that this is nothing new. Since the beginning of… well, everything, people have doubted that another human is really fit to be a Master. Krishna was asked this by Duryodhana and in a different manner was asked this by Arjuna. This kind of questioning happens because we’re judging the potential teacher on the basis of our own qualities. Naturally, we see the world according to our own outlook. (In Sahaj Marg, we keep this in mind and do our best not to find fault with anyone because each sees according to his own growth. Whether you think there’s God or Guru – or not – is fine because it’s simply a reflection of your own stage of progress.)

People unconscious of their own internal landscape might ask questions like, “How it is that that person gets angry even after reaching a high spiritual stage?” “Master has FIVE children?” And someone unable to give up smoking might also be found saying, “Even Master smokes hookah.” We magnify our shortcomings and then view the world and our teachers.

But a truly divine personality would have everything – good and so-called bad qualities. Everything. Are gurus only responsible for nourishing and uplifting you? What about the duty to reprimand, too? Chariji points out, “If we keep thinking that the Master should always love us, be compassionate always, should always keep giving but should never ask, we divide Reality and ask for only one half and we end up not getting anything. This is like asking for shade alone and not for sunshine. The greater the sunshine the more beautiful the shade. If there is no sunshine there is no shade either.”

With this in mind, it seems clear how important it is to find and recognize a guru that is realistic and practical for whatever stage you’re at, while also taking care that that same teacher is capable of helping you to progress beyond where you are. If you’re a warrior, find a perfected warrior teacher. If you’re a monk, find a guru appropriate for monks. And if you’re a householder, only a guru who has experienced and completely fulfilled that specific dharma will suffice.

Aum Shri Mahaganeshaya Namaha
Aum Shanti

Falling Off the Ground

Last night I took myself outside after two failed attempts to nap. (I’ve been battling a head cold for about three days already. It’s been quite the roller coaster and I’ve been craving rest.) It was around dusk and I decided to untangle some of my Morning Glory vines and encourage them in new, specific directions. After that was done, with my laptop at our sun table I decided to do anything online except school work. This made me feel lonely, so I texted The Best and reminded him that he hadn’t left his room since coming home and that his nicotine levels were surely running low. (“Don’t you have to come outside for a breath of fresh air soon?”) Sure enough, he had joined me outside within 5 minutes. A short while later I found myself out at our sidewalk, sitting and staring at the dark sky. I watched the stars while suspended in Navasana (boat pose). This led to sprawling out on the sidewalk – which actually is a much better way to watch the stars.

While I was still really young my father taught me how to see the stars move. It’s one of my all-time favorite things to have learned in this life so far and having been given that wisdom from him makes it even more precious to me. After he’s gone I’ll continue watching stars move with him. The best and I also saw UFOs, no joke.

Resting later in Shavasana (still on the sidewalk), I experienced something cool. I suddenly felt like I was on a ceiling and was looking at a celestial floor. Of course, humans aren’t meant to relax on ceilings, so the celestial floor felt like the better, more natural place to be. I sensed within me a very subtle yearning leave the ceiling for the floor. I found myself practically craving a launch from the pavement I relaxed on and expand into the speckled indigo Everything I saw before me. Usually closing my eyes helps encourage these kinds of expansive experiences, but this time it proved only to limit it – so I kept them open, without blinking, for as long as I was able. In his own way, I think The Best (who joined me on the sidewalk after his nicotine dose) was probably also having a similar experience because he started a conversation about gravity and being thrown out into space.

I’ve said before that when this life is finished and I’m done with this body, I will refuse additional bodily cycles and instead adopt the myriad forms of this planet’s weather system(s). I now suspect that this will not suffice. Even being a part of Earth’s weather is likely to feel too much like still being stuck to the ceiling. Rejoining the aforementioned floor will be far better and I will do it.

Aum Shri Mahaganeshaya Namaha
Aum Shanti

Three Green Balloons

Yesterday (I think) was the birthday of a little boy who left far too early in life. His mother, Betsy Baker, is someone I went to high school with and have stayed in touch with through Facebook. A short time ago she invited myself and others to partake in an event she called, “Dexter’s Celebration.” She said we could take this entire weekend to celebrate wherever we are and she encouraged us to release balloons in his memory and to celebrate his life and his one year birthday.

Just left PartyCity with 3 Green Balloons for Dexter’s Celebration!

The weather cleared up a bit just for Dexter!

3 Green Balloons: Wholeness, Love, Release, Renunciation, Anahata Chakra, & Completion.

Up, Up, & Away!

The video in this post is my very amateur attempt at communicating some of my thoughts and feelings regarding parenting and how important I think it is to be a parent whenever you’re presented with the opportunity.

For some of you this will be the first time you’ve heard my voice. As an aside, there was just a chat on Facebook about whether I sound feminine enough to be mistakenly called ma’am, or not. I’ll allow you to be the judge. The critical nature of my mind is telling me to tell you that you’ll notice that I do strange things with my lips/face and say “Umm” something like 60 times throughout the video. Neither are super typical of me, however both are occasionally symptomatic of me struggling to find the right words – something I could have spared you had I written out what I intended to say. I didn’t do that because I didn’t want it all to feel scripted. And now you’ll just have to do your best to not be distracted by these things. Sorry.

So here you have it: In honor of parent/child relationships everywhere and in all their forms, and in Dexter’s sweet memory.

Twameva mata cha pita twameva, (You are truly my mother and truly my father)
Twameva bandhush-cha sakha twameva, (you are truly my relative and truly my friend)
Twameva vidya dravinam twameva, (You are truly my knowledge and truly my wealth)
Twameva sarvam mama deva deva! (You are truly my all, my God of gods)

Aum Shri Mahaganeshaya Namaha
Aum Shanti

Manic Spirituality

Image taken from Google Image search

I’ve been reading through “Call of Spirituality, Vol I & II” for a few weeks and am getting into some really good stuff lately. One thing that struck me while reading last night is something Chariji said in regard to direct and powerful experiences of what humans call God.

He had earlier mentioned the power of God and gurus and how one person might have an experience that another does not, and usually the one who didn’t share the experience will say that the experience of the one who did is somehow less or invalid because it wasn’t confirmed by anyone other than the one who had it. Chariji explains that this kind of “judgement” is really useless and tells us that everyone has different experiences. He goes on….

“Now it is impossible for everyone to get the opportunity to experience him in a dream saying he is the Master. For that, one has to be either an atheist like the mythological figure Hiranyakashipu or Ravana, or else be a perfect devotee like Arjuna. It is not available to anyone in the interim stage. God reveals himself as God only to a perfect atheist or a perfect devotee. Those who are in between these extremes need to try to get it by enterinig the path of spirituality, exploring by means of questions and answers by practice. Arjuna asks Krishna, “How can I reach you?” and Krishna answers, “Through practice.” There is no way except that of spiritual practice.

I love this.

For one, I think I can absolutely agree with guruji when he says that God only shows Itself to those who have perfected their spirituality or to those who have zero spirituality. It just makes sense. When you’ve yet to consciously start the journey, you might need a jolting experience to help things be kick-started. And if you’re someone who’s been traveling the path in such a way that your spirituality is mature, then this kind of experience is not only a natural part of that maturation, but could also perhaps be considered a reward of sorts (although, as the path is traveled the so-called reward becomes less and less the focus.) For those of us who are in the “interim” stage(s), there remains work to be done. We’re apparently awake enough not to need being jolted into greater awareness, yet not awake enough to maintain prolongation of the direct experience we seek – Union.

Secondly, it’s great that guruji is able to so succinctly express a major element of Sahaj Marg which is 1) The absolute necessity of personal responsibility for one’s own development as a human and as a spiritual being, and 2) The absolute necessity and truth found in what we here in the west are talking about when we say, “Shit or get off the pot.” Krishna confirms and affirms as much in his discussion with Arjuna throughout the Bhagavad Gita.

I personally have no quams with atheism. Similarly, I take no issue with sainthood. There are cetainly days when either or both may apply to myself. The lesson here for me is to do. Always do. Either be what I am, or strive tirelessly for what I will become. Hangin’ around won’t get you far.

Aum Shri Mahaganeshaya Namaha
Aum Shanti

Heavy as Clay

You never know what experience meditation might bring in Sahaj Marg. Many times I come out of meditation or leave a sitting thinking, “Holy cow!” We’re encouraged to journal, and I often log these experiences in my journal – as best I am able, given that the right words often escape me. Still, occassionally I am able to express these experiences in words that seem at least mostly adequate. This is rare, though.

Recently, and more than once, I have experienced something that may well be called a vision, although that term doesn’t seem to fit as neatly as it should because I’m not seeing anything in my mind’s eye so much as “seeing”” through a type of feeling.

I recall from my early years while I was a Christian stories about the first human being created from clay. Anyone who’s worked with clay before can attest to the general heaviness of the material. Until a few meditative experiences recently, I’d never before felt so very…. made of clay.

In Sahaj Marg, one will find much emphasis on subtlety and subtleness. Our practices and texts are filled with subtlety and emphasis on it. During our meditative efforts, it’s not unusual to experience increased subtleness from within where the inner landscapes are being tended. Despite knowing this, in something like 3 or 4 years of following the Sahaj Marg (mostly on, with a little off) these recent experiences are relatively new to me. I’ve almost always known and understood the physical body to be gross and dense (mind you, in a purely physical sense the body is actually mostly a grouping of water and empty space, but the perspective shifts when we consider the nature of physical forms in relation to the non-physical world and its experiences), but lately coming out of meditation has been fairly…. bothersome and a time or two, almost painful. I “return” and sometimes think to myself, “Damn. I’m heavy!”

It’s not entirely unlike going to the gym or doing a workout at home and later feeling a little sore in the areas you worked out. All possible injury aside, that kind of pain is good and understood to be a sign of progress. I’m not sure what, if anything, this kind of meditative experience says about my progress spiritually and as a human person, but it feels encouraging. Surely one of the best aspects of this path is, in addition to these kinds of proofs, the encouragement Shri Guru offers motivates us to re-enter the world as the grihastas we are and to perform this dharma to the best grihasta ability.

As we’re now encased in the perfect weather of our Spring season, a season I find to be filled with balance (hot AND cold temps, rainy AND sunny days, etc…), it’s my wish for you that you should similarly find the balance perfect for you, both in this world and the Brighter World.

Aum Shri Mahaganeshaya Namaha
Aum Shanti

मेरे काम से काम रखो

For a while I wrote a lot (quoted a lot) of a book, “Love and Death” written by my current guru. I’m finished with that now and have moved on to the next book in my pile, “Call of Spirituality, Vol. I & II.” This post will be the first of probably many times I’ll reference this new book, although you may be relieved to know that I’m already nearly 1/5th through the book, so it’s possible you wont have to suffer much before I finish it.

I’m going to share with you bits from the second chapter, which I think are timely for me. In my last post I critiqued a couple practices belonging to other paths. And distantly related to this thread is a Facebook status of mine which brought about interesting wisdom from a good friend regarding how one is perceived and how other’s egos factor into that and often try to flavor reality. (In fact, egos will invariably try to flavor reality. Believe it.) As a person with strong yet evolving opinions and sometimes goofy bravery (it’s from my mother’s side), I’m known for being honest and direct about how I feel and what I know to be true. Lots of people adore me for this and I find others building their own self-esteem and courage from the example I’m able to set, but it’s also landed me in the frying pan a time or two (which is natural and nothing to be terribly worried about) and has also highlighted some otherwise obscured distance between myself and others. To go back to my Facebook post, I think it’s important to successfully distinguish between someone who thinks he is right all the time and someone who merely sees through perhaps more egoic bullcrap than your average bear.

If you take the spirit of my Facebook status, place it within the context of the example critiques I reference in my last post, and then remember that everyone is growing and evolving, you might understand why the following bits from chapter two of “Call of Spirituality…” feel timely and resonate with me.

“People talk of brotherhood. Do they treat at least their own brothers as brothers? Brotherhood should start with one’s own family. How many amongst us treat our brothers as brothers? They consider him as a person who has a share in the property. Jealousy starts now onwards. What will he ask tomorrow? Did father write a will? Is my share correct in that? Will we get the property we desire? Or has he written the property in his name?

“We start this even at the age of fifteen. When there is no brotherhood in the family itself, how will it come from outside? So you see, all of us in Sahaj Marg have a great responsibility. Our words, our behavior, the way we see, the way we listen; everything will be judged. In all this, we will get a bad name, but the Master’s name can be spoiled. They will ask, ‘What sir, is this your Sahaj Marg? Is this the work your Master does? Is this the way he shapes you? I don’t want your Master.’

“They will not reject you; they will only reject the Master. Each time we act wrongly, behave without respect, be greedy, act with uncontrollable desire, what we do becomes a betrayal of the Master. Somehow because of his compassion, he does not punish us. But we certainly deserve to get punished.

“I have heard some speakers speaking ill of other systems and gurus. It is to be completely avoid in Sahaj Marg. There are two reasons for this. We do not know about all the systems and all the gurus. How can we criticize something that we do not know? I have the right to speak of the greatness of my Master. I have been living with my Master for fourteen years. I feel about him and hence I speak. I have a right to praise my wife as Lakshmi or Saraswati because I am living with her for the past twenty-five years. What right do I have to talk about the lady next door? Similarly, I have absolutely no right to talk about other Masters. We should not speak anything based on the books of other systems and what the Masters of other systems say. Just as we cannot use these to criticize, we cannot use these to praise, too.

“We have two legs and we will rely on them and make use of them. This is Sahaj Marg. I don’t have to go to any other system to talk about this. I do not need any other evidence. We have no necessity to criticize any other system…Since I am strong and capable, I do not need to criticize others.”

Obviously, it’s necessary to understand the difference between calling a spade a spade and using that title against the spade itself. Not everyone who is critical is being critical for the sake of tearing another down, and not everyone tears down for the sake of their own self glory. This is clearly a vast and complex matter and one I’ll be chewing on for a little while yet.

Aum Shri Mahaganeshaya Namaha
Aum Shanti

After You’re Gone

Some time ago, I ranted on Facebook about how offensive I found the Mormon practice of “baptizing the dead.” I feel very strongly that this practice violates some kind of cosmic rule of live and let live. When I ranted, a number of my own family members who became Mormon after my grandfather’s passing, spoke up and said that I was wrong about that ritual and that I shouldn’t speak out about things like this because it makes me some kind of hypocrite. To be clear, it’s my understanding that this kind of baptism merely presents the dearly departed with a chance to accept the Mormon belief structure and gain the Mormon afterlife. Also, the hypocrisy referenced by my disgruntled relatives is apparently in regard to my critical attitude about someone else’s views or practice which my family members – knowing next to nothing about Hinduism – think goes against Hinduism. In this case, they would perhaps not be wrong within certain contexts, but in this context specifically they are still not necessarily right, either.

This weekend I’m spending more time at the computer than is usual because it’s my turn in my department’s on-call rotation. As I was logging on recently, I saw some kind of news headline mentioning that two popes were gaining sainthood “to bridge a divide” or something. It struck me… These two dudes were resting in peace, burning in hellflame, or maybe tossing crowns at Jesus’ feet or something (do only Protestant souls do this or Catholics, too?) and now their own afterlives are about to change entirely when they are sainted and begin interceding on behalf of Catholic believers who want something.

All this afterlife meddling. WTF?

Whatever happened to simply offering food and a little homage to our deceased relatives and letting past lives be past lives? I’ll admit, it’s a little tough for me to understand how devout people can be cool with trying to change the afterlives of their loved ones without their permission. But who am I?

Aum Shri Mahaganeshaya Namaha
Aum Shanti

Energetic Pukery

Image taken from Google Image search

Do you ever do something and then IMMEDIATELY afterwards you’re like, “Get me away from this, kind of right now”? With the exception of a few rambunctious years in my early 20s, I’ve always been pretty self-aware, however, more recently I’m noticing this energetic “thing” that occurs within myself – and I don’t know what to make of it. Allow me to paint you a picture.

So… I’m sitting in my living room doing a whole lot of nothing (usually reading) when I’m rather suddenly struck with this longing – intense desire and craving – for something. Could be anything. It might be Cadbury Eggs. It might be Doritos. It might be water. I usually sit with that craving for a minute or two. During this time a number of things could happen: I assess the effort needed to satisfy that desire, I assess whether that effort is something I care to put forth, I assess where that desire is coming from, etc… And then, often but not always, I take care of that longing. I go and get my fill of Easter Candy. I go eat many Dorito chips. I drink a bottle of water. Fine. Dandy, even.

But then something else happens, almost invariably, and regardless of the degree to which I engage in the aforementioned want. The closest mental-emotional label I think I can assign to what happens after would probably be aversion – but I’ll tell you right now that’s not the best fit. I long for the taste of Cadbury Eggs, so I eat one (or ten, the amount truly is irrelevant) and the desire is fulfilled and then right after that I feel very strongly that I want nothing to do with Cadbury Eggs. I don’t regret having eaten the one (or ten), and I’ll (probably) absolutely do it again if/when that feeling next arises, but no matter how many times it happens this is the pattern – predictable as the seasons. This applies to many things whether we’re talking work, food, sex, books, gardening, … you can just about name it. There are naturally a few exceptions, but all of those aside this is 100% applicable to any desire or want that hits me in this way. I want, perhaps very strongly, and then I do not want – at all. It’s quite like some kind of switch is flipped. Very clearly on, and then very clearly off.

I don’t really know what to make of it.

I don’t fight the craving or the want. I never really feel any form of regret or guilt because of it. I think what might be happening is that I am increasingly able to fully let go of the want that “attacked” me. I think this process is one where I’ve recognized when it arrives, I have a brief look at it, and then after (usually) engaging it I let it leave fully and cleanly.

It reminds me of what we’re advised in meditation which is not to fight thoughts that arise, just observe them and subsequently release them, or rather allow them to keep moving. My hopeful side says that this advice translates into this scenario regarding wants – I’m seeing it arise, I observe, I engage (which is an exception to the meditation advice), and then I release (I think this translates as realization that the usefulness has passed). Of course the release part is what’s trippy. And if I can continue to speculate, I’ll say that it’s not true aversion, but rather my conscious mind making something out of nothing – literally nothing, meaning the absence of the usual attachment to our wants and desires, and then trying to give that nothing a label.

But let’s suppose that I’m giving myself too much credit. Then what? I mean that question pretty much literally – if not the above, then what’s going on here? Why am I experiencing wants, sometimes quite intensely, and then upon satisfying them feeling no connection thereto? Maybe this is a silly thing to question.

Aum Shri Mahaganeshaya Namaha
Aum Shanti

Hearted

Sufism, Taken from Google Image search

I’m sure by now readers have started assuming that this will be a blog focusing on Sahaj Marg and it’s writings. While I can certainly see why some would begin to think that, it’s not entirely true. In all fairness, I’m taking so very much away from the Sahaj Marg that it makes sense for me to kind of document it and this is where I would do that naturally. I hope you don’t mind, but in all fairness I don’t really care whether you do. 🙂

So, this book I’ve been digging through recently called “Love and Death” has proven to be a gem to me. Obviously, I’ve quoted it extensively here. Today I was working through a few more pages in it during my lunch and came across something else I thought to share.

Chariji is speaking and mentions how we reference people according to what’s in their heart. We say one person is kind-hearted. Another might be cold-hearted. Someone else could be described as hard-hearted, warm-hearted, or soft-hearted. The list could probably go on and on of the various “hearts” people might be found to have.

Naturally, this isn’t in reference to the physical heart inside the rib cage of every human, but rather the heart / soul of the person. And in so many people, this real Heart is severely obscured by garbage. Some of this garbage might be considered natural and may well be mandatory for those experiencing a physical existence. However, by far, most of it is unnecessary and even worse is unnecessarily perpetuated. Chariji likened this kind of “dirtiness” to a house the windows of which have been closed tightly for a very long time. The air within that house is stale. It begins to stink. The same happens within our souls. We start to die slowly – friendless, loveless, and godless. In fact, Chariji has said, “First we lose our friends, we lose our lovers, and God will not stay in a place which stinks.” To be clear, I don’t feel that his words are meant to be taken too literally here – God doesn’t leave a person because their heart has become stale.

As a prescription to prevent this, Chariji advises that we have to understand and know our Self. (A very familiar concept in Hinduism.) To get that understanding we’re to examine our heart. We do that by sitting in meditation. And what do we do in meditation? We focus our attention on the heart and then “see for yourself the enormously beautiful, wonderful mysteries that are there.”

Once we start to realize those mysteries, the world essentially become meaningless – but not in some dismal kind of way, rather in the way of the “karmaphala vairagya” detailed by Krishna in the Gita. As we become familiar with the contents of the human heart (the Self), we continue to live because we have to live, “like a tree lives.” Trees don’t find any charm in their existence – they simply exist because they are there and that’s reason enough. When we begin to live in that way we soon realize that we don’t exist for ourselves. Chariji says, “I exist like a tree which gives fruit to others, like a flower which scents its surroundings.” This is integral for anyone who claims to be a master and for spirituality in general – selfless, unattached, available for all to taste.

In the Sahaj Marg, the Master is like a tree offering its fruit to anyone who cares to pick it. This fruit comes from the Source, through the Master’s heart and has a supremely profound effect on the hearts of any who care to pick that fruit. Chariji says, “This is the call of spirituality, especially this brand which we are practicing called Sahaj Marg, the Natural Path. It is there. Please follow it, accept it, practice is, and see for yourself what it can do.”

Regardless of one’s path this is the call of all spirituality (not all religion, per se) – to get to the heart, one’s real Self and to know It.

Aum Shri Mahaganeshaya Namaha
Aum Shanti