Meditative Monday

Hari OM

Gurudev was a shining example of the meditative personality and the dynamism that can arise from its application. Here are his words on the matter of 'reason for meditation.'

The Lord sends you disturbance so that you can discriminate between
consciousness and thoughts, even in that experience of disturbance. With every disturbance, the Lord is sending you a reason for meditation. The art of practicing harmony is to be applied in the din of the marketplace while we are sweating with exertion upon the narrow path of adversities.

 

 

Sunday Statements

Hari OM

Saturday Satsang

Hari OM

In the Bhagavad Geeta, the word ʻyogaʼ has been forever tamed and domesticated to be with all of us, serving us faithfully at all times in our life. To the Eastern sages, inspired living is the real godly destiny of man, when he lives in perfect unison with the Self within.

A balanced life – wherein we live as an unaffected witness of even our own mind and intellect – is the realm of self-forgetfulness, where instead of becoming inefficient, our profession gathers a scintillating glow of a new dawn. This extra aura in any achievement is that which raises an ordinary success to an inspired achievement.

The yogis of the ancient Hindu lore discovered a technique whereby the mind and the intellect could be consciously brought to steadiness and poise. This technique is called ʻyogaʼ. The Hindus of the Vaidika period knew, practised and lived it.

Thursday Thoughts

 Hari OM

I was struck by a post from blogpal Tomichan Matheikal earlier this week. My philosopher self dug in with a lengthy comment... and I realised the response meant enough to me to warrant being recycled here as my own post. 

As a small background, let me tell you that in some respects, TM and I come from opposite ends of the philosophical spectrum - and yet also have much common thought. Having read a book** I had recommended, which is admittedly on the slightly dippy end of optimism, TM maintains a pessimistic view. Do read the post linked - the arguments are correct for all their darkness. However, this is what arose by way of response.

There will always be a battle between our altruistic and selfish instincts, our openness and our protectiveness. It is a matter of the basic survival instinct to protect what one has. There could be some debate as to a few of the assumptions made by Bregman, bearing in mind he is a historian and not a philosopher, as such. But overall, his point (as is the case with pretty much every philosophy) is that the state of a society reflects the collective reality of the individuals within it. Therefore, to bring about change, there must be a sufficient number of individuals on the 'same page' about the aims for that society for change to be effected. 

John Stuart Mill  wrote: 

“To think [...] it is of no use to attempt to influence the constitution of the government by acting on opinion is to forget that opinion is itself one of the greatest active social forces. One person with a belief is a social power equal to ninety-nine who have only interests.” (One wonders if this is what prompted RB's 1% to 99% observation?) 

It is also from Mill that the following is quoted (and contains the basis of a much more widely used quote that is misattributed):

"Let not any one pacify his conscience by the delusion that he can do no harm if he takes no part and forms no opinion. Bad men need nothing more to compass their ends than that good men should look on and do nothing. He is not a good man who, without a protest, allows wrong to be committed in his name, and with the means which he helps to supply, because he will not trouble himself to use his mind on the subject." (In that last sentence is contained that which TM alluded to in an earlier post, and with which I agree - not enough folk are willing to put the work into thinking for themselves.)

It is an unfortunate thing that throughout history, the waves of negative nature have been tapped into by those few who would use the fact that most want to be led like sheep. What history reveals, however, is that such regimes cannot last. The good will prevail again. What is important is that as many individuals as possible educate themselves to their higher possibilities, improve themselves to match the theories and ensure that enough positive opinion is spread to counterbalance the negative.

Do not for one moment think that there is no empathy or that this absolves one from caring for those under any form of victimhood - but that is exactly part of the process of determining what is right and what is wrong. The difference comes when we stop complaining and start acting... if we cannot physically act ourselves, we must do our best to educate those who can rise above their negative and work towards their positive. We do not do this by constantly pointing out the faults. We do this by highlighting the ideals and demonstrating them through our own conduct.

What is happening now - in India, but also in other countries, including the UK (albeit more subtly) - must generate, eventually, the revolution to overturn it. The scale of time is what is in question - how long will it take for "good men to associate to oppose the cabals of bad men." That is the line from Edmund Burke that is conflated with JSM and gives us that quote which needs now to be shouted from the rooftops...

“The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil 

is that good men should do nothing.”

** Humankind; A Hopeful History by Rutger Bregman

Whispering Wednesday

Hari OM

अहं किं करोमि? So often, it is heard, usually accompanied by a shoulder shrug or wrinkling of the brow. "Aham kim karomi?.. What can I do?"

Okay, this may be asked if we seek direction from a supervisor or workmate in a work or volunteer situation. Let that pass. What is being referred to in the thought processes here today is asking this question when we see something happening in the world and are feeling a bit helpless - or are not willing to put effort into discovering ourselves exactly what we can do.

Sometimes events are overwhelming. No doubt about that. Does this absolve us from making some attempt at helping out, at resolving or alleviating, if we can?

KAROMI - the Sanskrit for 'I do' (action). We can take responsibility even for our thinking around events. Let us take, for example, extreme weather events. These are becoming common. They appear on the news with a regularity that has them becoming no more a 'shock' item, but an 'oh dear not again' item. Even a 'sigh - switch channels' item... The further away, geographically, any of these events are, the less we feel we even have to give them any thought. Even when they are within our own countries, somehow it seems that we shrug our shoulders. 

Imagine for a moment, though, where you gave a little more thought to your neighbours, be they near or very distant (we are all neighbours, remember!) You have the empathy of feeling how it might be in their place, with loss of goods, property, pets, family... the shock not of the observer but the afflicted. 

Now ask yourself, "aham kim karomi?" as if you were present on the ground awaiting instruction from a supervisor in the rescue teams. What skills could you offer? It might be you are fit and able and can clamber rubble or swim in strong currents to aid the rescue. It might be you are less physical but have good nurturing and counselling skills. It may simply be that you are a good cook and can brew a ripping cup of tea... and if you were on the ground, would you come forward and offer those skills? It matters not how little you may be able to offer, but that you do actually make the offer in the first place. 

Thus the difference of emphasis of the question can inform our response, is it not? Asking the right question at the right time - and asking that question rightly - can make the difference between playing our part socially or shrugging off our responsibilities.

How do you respond when the question arises as to what can be done?

Textual Tuesday

Hari OM

Having awoken and said a prayer, risen and said a prayer, before proceeding with any other task, it is useful to recite the prayer that is also used at the end of any task, or before going to sleep also. Why place it at the start of the day? For we do not know what our mind has been up to in our sleep! Even if we recall our dreams, the fact is we have no control over our thoughts during this time and they may have been of the sort - or we have dreamed of things which - might be considered 'paapa' (erroneous) so we must seek 'punya' (merits). No chhandas has been hinted here, although there are tunes, for it is sufficient to recite in regular spoken rhythm.

कायेन वाचा मनसेन्द्रियैर्वा बुद्ध्यात्मना वा प्रकृते: स्वभावात्।

करोमि यद्यत् सकलं परस्मै नारायणायेति समर्पयामि॥

Kaayena vaachaa manasendriyairva

Buddhyaatmanaa va prakrite swaabhaavat

Karomi yadyat sakalam parasmai

Naaraayanaa-yeti samarpayaami

Whatever I do with my mind, body, speech or with other senses of my body,

Or with my intellect or with my innate natural tendencies,

I offer everything to the Lord.

to the Lord!

Meditative Monday

Hari OM

For the month of August, let us explore aspects of meditation inspired by quotes from Gurudev.

When beginning meditation, the majority of us attempt it alone - or in a casual group, perhaps. Not so many take up philosophy to go with it. The Mindfulness movement, generated by the Buddhistic approach to meditative activity, has been responsible for increasing understanding of the purpose and practice of medication although now rather commercialised (as the west so often tends to do with eastern culture - the original appropriation). 

Prior to Mindfulness, there was a strong following for the Transcendentalism generated by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi; he had developed further the meditative form used by the Rsis and handed down through the centuries from sadhu to sadhu.

Both these systems hold much validity - and they do have philosophy behind them if the seekers search it out. 

What is pointed out by Gurudev's statement here, though, is that to truly gain value from one's meditative practice, it helps a great deal to investigate the whys and wherefores of our mental makeup and the best way to do this is to engage in the study of the philosophy and culture that brought forth the practice in the first place. I know that, after twenty years of hit and miss meditative practice, it was the discovery of Advaita which made all the difference for yours truly!