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When we wake up to who we are, something happens. We stop identifying with our egoic selves because we realize they are impermanent and only that which is permanent can be who we are.
We aren’t our bodies, we aren’t our memories, we aren’t our thoughts, we aren’t our feelings… We aren’t any ... Views: 1538
It is a frequent occurrence. Someone takes up the spiritual path and tries to follow the dictates set forth in that path, down to the smallest detail. They treat goals and aspiration as a type of ‘rule-book’ that needs to be followed. If, as is to be expected, they do not succeed in each such ... Views: 120
In The Life Divine, Sri Aurobindo describes at some length what he calls ‘the refusal of the ascetic’. This refusal is caused by the focus on the attainment of the Supreme by disregarding or even eliminating the relationship of the seeker to the life of the external world and society. He eschews ... Views: 419
The Path To The Gazebo
Have total trust in yourself with a strong, courageous faith. After all, we must all live life just one day at a time. Sure we can reminisce and plan as we like, yet its still all about today! Keeping it simply will help you enjoy the process.
Our life takes shape ... Views: 1557
All of the action that takes place in the world, in the galaxy, in the universe, occurs within a vast, unmoving, wide space. The ancient Vedic Rishis termed this basis of reality, Satyam, Ritam, Brihat, the Truth, the Right, the Vast. Incalculable energies of galaxies with innumerable stars, and ... Views: 58
Ascent and integration. Relentless effort. What many do not appreciate is that any attempt to achieve individual perfection or transformation is limited by the readiness of the world and the rest of humanity in particular, to accept those changes that are needed for this to occur. Thus, progress ... Views: 238
We are ingrained with the notion that we own both the positive and negative qualities we can identify within ourselves. We work to enhance those we consider positive, and we struggle to overcome those that we view as negative. Through the practice of separating out the witness consciousness from ... Views: 308
Through long habit, spiritual seekers tend to look at the question of how to attain spiritual liberation involving abandonment of the external life in the world. Not only spiritual seekers raise this question in some form or another. Anyone involved in aesthetic, mental, artistic, or emotional ... Views: 356
The physical mind, which responds to the external objects of the senses and the impact of those external objects, has strict limits within which it can either perceive or understand what it is perceiving. The reality of our existence, however, reaches far beyond the boundaries of response that ... Views: 353
We do not generally recognise that it is virtually impossible to hold one thought, one idea, one form of concentration, one energetic status for long periods of time. As time goes on, the balance of the Gunas changes and we lose the intensity, shift our focus to something else, and we find that ... Views: 393
The Bhagavad Gita places considerable emphasis on the need to understand the play of the Gunas, Sattwa, Rajas and Tamas, in all things. Yogic practice is not exempted from this play. Each of the Gunas has a specific set of characteristics, and they are not stable. The Gunas are always in motion. ... Views: 511
As long as we recognise the body-life-mind complex and identify with it through the development of and focus on a specific ego-standpoint, we are able to function in the world, and carry out the basics of existence. Yet, as we easily can appreciate, we do not know the meaning or purpose of our ... Views: 274
When we begin to recognise the inherent power of the mind, independent of any reliance on the physical senses and the nerve pathways that link them to the mind, the question then arises as to how to become aware of, bring forward and train the use of these powers that are currently subliminal ... Views: 164
We can look at the idea of a transformation of the body from several viewpoints. One viewpoint accepts the basic current structure and function of the body and simply enhances, protects, extends the life and capacity, or removes limitations and failures to which the body is currently prone. Many ... Views: 183
Thought has power. Power, however, has its conditions of action. A ‘passing’ thought running through the mind, disappearing as quickly as it enters, does not have the same impact as a concentrated and persistent focus coupled with the gathering of emotional or vital force to accentuate its ... Views: 796
An experiment some years ago showed that stones that came from a temple where ongoing worship had been taking place, held and radiated an energy not found in stones that had not been subjected to the influence of constant prayer. Just as stones absorb heat vibrations and then radiate them back ... Views: 182
If we observe our mental space for some time, such as when we sit for meditation, the first thing to be noticed is that the mind tends to jump around from one thought, idea or perception to another, seemingly randomly and impacted by sensory data coming to us through our sense organs. Some call ... Views: 535
Modern civilization puts a premium on the mental process. We educate our children with a focus on the mind. We want them to learn verbal skills, reading skills, logical skills and measure them on their abilities in these areas with various forms of standardized tests by which we then classify ... Views: 108
The general concept of ‘immobility’ in the face of external pressures is actually not a new discovery. Stoicism encouraged people to develop ways to withstand the pressures of the external world and accept those pressures without wilting or breaking under them. For the most part, however, the ... Views: 189
Auto-suggestion is constantly active, although we generally do this more or less unconsciously. For example, when we anticipate a meal at a favorite restaurant, our mind sends signals to the body that generates feelings of hunger, begins to develop saliva, and prepares the body for enjoyment of ... Views: 226
I’ve been around the block a couple of times and I’ve heard all the talk about empathy and compassion. The Buddhists preach about how great it is to have compassion. Priests in Yoruba talk about sensitivity, and Christians talk about forgiveness. What does all this mean? It means absolutely ... Views: 1031
Every major accomplishment in human life involves some form of concentration. We live in a modern world that systematically distracts and disperses the mind, thus making it more difficult to achieve a state of concentration. Cell phones, internet surfing, music, flashing lights, entertainment, ... Views: 439
There is a vast difference between a mental acknowledgement of a concept or idea, and the actual realisation that underlies that concept. It is not an infrequent occurrence for a spiritual aspirant to hold a mental belief that is, nevertheless, not a full realisation. Spiritual realisation is ... Views: 496
The Rishis of the Rig Veda focused, first and foremost, on kindling the mystic fire as the key to the reception and utilization of higher powers of consciousness. The altar for this flame is in the secret heart of the being, deep within, behind the physical organ, where the psychic being is ... Views: 278
The power of visualisation has been recognised as an aid in healing from illness, in excelling in sports, and in helping an individual achieve results in the external world. The spiritual seeker also can put this power to work to achieve results in the inner world. Practitioners of Tibetan ... Views: 217
The Bhagavad Gita has an interesting verse that provides a clue to the secret of action and inaction, between ‘static’ and ‘dynamic’ power, if you will: “He who in action can see inaction and can see action still continuing in cessation from works, is the man of true reason and discernment among ... Views: 176
Every day is a new opportunity, a new beginning, an opportunity to live the life you truly want to live. Spirituality uplifts the human spirit. It is governed by love, lovingkindness, compassion, and awareness.
When the mind and body and spirit are aligned, there is a flow from that infinite ... Views: 468
We operate on multiple levels at the same time. There is the external level comprised of actual physical, vital and mental actions we undertake. We speak, we express ourselves through gestures and body language. We undertake physical activities. At the same time however, there is the unspoken ... Views: 188
There is a long tradition and history of individuals who have utilized a variety of methods for the purpose of obtaining ‘visions’ of events, past, present or future. The action generally takes place through creation of a state of trance that allows the surface mental consciousness to recede and ... Views: 168
As human beings, we are enamored of dynamic power. We want “action” and the powers of the body, the life energy and the mind are prized when they can accomplish visible results. We have proverbs such as “might makes right” which make it seem like strength in action is the most positive ... Views: 499
Whether or not phonics play a crucial role in teaching to young minds or not has remained a matter much debated on for several years. However, recent studies and research have revealed that the cognitive powers of the brain of children remain directly related to the sounds they listen to. Hence, ... Views: 857
Operant conditioning is a phenomenon identified in Western psychology by B.F. Skinner. His experiments showed that by the results of carrying out specific actions, they can either be encouraged, through positive reinforcement, or discouraged through negative reinforcement. One of the principles ... Views: 66
We are habituated, particularly in the modern world, to the mind constantly interacting with its environment, with sensations, with media and with ideas. We are also addicted to the activity, the energy, of the mind’s engagement and when the mind is not engaged somehow, we either sleep, or seek ... Views: 183
There is a serious rationale behind the many spiritual paths that counsel the true seeker to abandon his family, his friends, his social life, and live secluded in a cave, in the forest, in the desert, to practice his spiritual discipline. All of these connections and social interactions bring ... Views: 265
We frequently hear people speak about the ‘law of attraction’. In most cases, they treat this as some kind of method or ‘trick’ to attract wealth, fame or other objects of desire to them, through use of a sort of mental focus or vital magnetism effect. The true ‘law of attraction’ however is ... Views: 317
Our physical bodies operate complex functions without active oversight or intervention of the mind. We are essentially in the dark as our organs function, as our immune system automatically responds to pressures, as breathing, brain function and much more go on absent our supervision or control, ... Views: 283
When most people think of ‘power’ , it is within the context of some overt ability to accomplish something in the setting of the external world within which we live and act. This may be political power, economic power, physical power, moral power, the power to persuade, the power of an idea, the ... Views: 310
When we look back on our lives, with the benefit of hindsight, we frequently can identify a change in direction that took an individual from a normal path of societal acceptance, career, marriage, family, social interactions and entertainment, to a life that is dedicated to some cause or purpose ... Views: 135
We are habitually conditioned to try to solve problems with our mental capacity. We are taught to observe, organize, classify, compare and contrast, and examine similar past circumstances in order to determine a solution to whatever we are facing. This is the normal pattern for a mentally ... Views: 204
The development of the human being takes place in several successive stages and as individuals mature they begin to manifest and express the powers of the nature as they successively come to the fore. Not every individual develops and expresses all the powers fully in a particular lifetime. For ... Views: 139
As the mental consciousness awakens, particularly if there is an influence coming from the psychic being or from the spiritual planes pressing down on the mental being, we become aware of virtually endless problems, issues, difficulties, imbalances, disharmonies and outright conflicts in the ... Views: 137
Western psychology has developed with the basis that the subconscious mind is extremely powerful and can determine actions and reactions of individuals that overcome the conscious intentions of those individuals. Events, circumstances, perceptions, and corresponding fears, hopes and excitement, ... Views: 334
When we begin to reflect on the role of thought in the creation of forms in the world, it becomes clear that it is an important part of the process of converting pure conscious awareness into the world of vital action and physical substance. Thought is a tool of consciousness. When properly ... Views: 249
The mental being tends to accept that if it has an intellectual understanding of something, that it has ‘accomplished’ that thing. It does not tend to concern itself with the vital or physical world per se, and thus, if it ‘knows’ that it is one with the rest of the universal creation, or if it ... Views: 422
Looking up a definition of vulnerability, the first one noted is “susceptible to physical or emotional injury.” Aren’t we all, as human beings, susceptible to a blow to our physical and emotional well being? This is part of BEing a human. We can be strong and powerful in one moment, and fragile ... Views: 981
When an individual being is under extreme pressure, whether through illness, emotional or mental distress, stress of living in the society or dealing with events and people, the natural reaction at the physical-vital-mental level is to contract, to curl up, to close off, to withdraw into a ... Views: 532
So many people today are bitter, broken-hearted, or just plain angry because of what happened to them while growing up.
The reasons for their resentment or regret are as countless as are the unconscionable people responsible for the pain they unknowingly created in the lives of those they ... Views: 1344
We value negative states because of the strong sense of self we get from them. This may be very difficult for us to see, but a strong light will show us the freeing facts. No one wants to believe that he or she values things like self-pity, anger, and depression. We would insist we don't, and as ... Views: 801
When an individual undertakes tapasya, the concentration of conscious force, in any manner, it is certain that the results will bring about new powers for that individual, whether an accentuation of powers that the individual already possessed and exercised to some degree, or the development and ... Views: 212
In Savitri: A Legend and a Symbol, Sri Aurobindo poses the question: ‘How shall he cure the ills he never felt’, in reference to the world redeemer’s task. There is a truth here that impacts every disciple and devotee of the integral yoga. Sri Aurobnido has set the objective as the ... Views: 34