Tag: love

Featured

The Only Barrier to Your Happiness is the Quality of Your Thoughts…

You are a Point of Light

“Free Yourself from Mental Slavery”is my favorite “Bob Marlyism.

The Highest on High Spiritual Father blesses us with: “Become a Bestower of Liberation and be free from the limitation of your own mind, free from the bondage of negative thoughts.”

The only barrier to your happiness

is the quality of your own thoughts

and the habit of seeing other’s faults and weaknesses.

Be free-Experience the Lightness and Brightness of You, the Soul. This body is oh, so temporary.

To become attached to anything temporary will bring a temporary happiness, with a wake of sorrow, close behind. Retreat into the timeless nature of you, the soul and our original Home far beyond this earth, which will soon be swept completely clean for our New Beginnings.

Your soul has become tired from playing these mortal games and for all the costume changes, lifetime after lifetime. Retreat to your original Purity, your original Happiness, your original Peace.

Remain so full of your original melody of happiness that no tones of sorrow will drown it out!

You are a Being of Light

No longer, out of ego, continually think of the faults of others. Each soul has their own part to play in this eternal drama and is playing it perfectly!

Do not be bound by jealousy, carelessness, or laziness-for this finishes your power of realization. Become free of those subtle bondages and become a liberator of souls who are drowning in despair and weakness.

At this time, the world is governed by a cruel kingdom based on human desires and vices. Everyone has become colored by those vices. They are easy to spot for they are called: anger, greed, lust, ego, and attachment.

The Benevolent One, the Purifier, has come at our darkest hour to establish our original kingdom of True Happiness and True Love. His main direction is to Remember Me, for I will purify you.

Remember your True Self, the self governed by Love and Light. Remember the time when our kingdom was in its full glory. Establish the kingdom within first…feel it in your heart and soul now. Be of faith that it is soon to come, as it once was. Have faith that you are a soul and break the bondages of your body. No longer be a slave of the senses. Become Free, through the pure and positive thoughts of your mind. It is possible-it is the only possibility to return Home in Peace.

WIth thoughts of the Father , the boatman, in your mind, He will take your boat across from this side to the other. Wrapped in Her Light and Love, you will be refreshed, restored, and made new once again.

You no longer belong to this dirty world.

Follow the Light of the Eternal Sun~ Leave the Old World Behind and Create the New One

“Imbibe this very well and share with others. Wherever you came from, you were pure.” At present no one is pure. With that said, what are the most important questions to ask yourself in life?

Why am I doing this…Am I doing this with love…If not, why?

If we ask ourselves these questions, we are able to check our own blind spots. Best to check the self now when there is the great opportunity to change, rather than at the end of your life when you have run out of time!!!

So fall in love with your own efforts to be the highest version of yourself. You can not be alert to transforming without love…or else your movements become mechanical.

Results are important to note; you must not just be treading uphill. However, some results are very subtle.

How to cultivate this landscape of love which is the essence of every soul? How will I know that I am fully worthy of God’s Love? Let me accept this great challenge to accept my own worthiness and to know and feel love from the Supreme, who truly affirms again and again ~ you are my child, I am yours, and You Are Loved.

Keep yourself open to allow God to love you and allow your heart to feel it. Accepting this Divine love, I receive an enormous lift that gives me power to transform. Along with love from God is the importance of self love and respect.

Be in Love with the Self. Remember you are a unique and special soul. Deeply consider yourself to be a soul (not the body). Dive deep into the qualities of the soul and the treasures that lie within, especially your treasures of peace and love.

The more I’m connected with my Self and experience the truth that I am a soul, the less I want, need or take from anyone else, especially in the form of their praise and acknowledgement or their rejection or defamation. For this, I the soul, need a lot of silence to see the game of the ego and to discern what I am not, from what I truly am. It takes a lot of courage to own our own greatness.

Stop processing and start practicing the kind of awareness which leads to self-realization.

See your journey as a wonderful and interesting game. The game of emerging your original and eternal nature of love will take you beyond the unsustainable emotionality that has come from adopting the norms and standards of a world off kilter.

Play the game of love to create win-win scenes. Create a new standard that understands what is temporary, limited, and illusory from that which is real, eternal and unlimited.

Life, itself, will give you a lot of signals. For example~ any form of discomfort means something needs to be put right. Discomfort shows you what is calling out to be transformed (loved) in any moment.

Ask yourself, what methods do I have to keep me aware that I am a soul who is eternally and originally a being of peace and love?

For many of us, affirmations, times of silent meditation, and journaling are the practices which help me catch myself in order to keep me in touch with truth.

There are many creative self-triggers that can be used to keep your awareness high and your vibration loving, happy, and peaceful. For starters, pay attention not to be influenced by negative vibrations and atmospheres of the outer world. For this, some use doors as triggers…any door that you go through can be a signal to stay alert to carry across that threshold a strong sense of who you are as a loving, peaceful soul, immune to the vibrations that are causing others to be immersed in forms of negativity and sorrow. Instead carry your light of awareness with you, as you walk, consciously, through each door.

Remember this is a game of consciousness, stay light, play to win and help others win too. The new world we are creating is full of happy, loving souls who are currently trapped in this old world and often do not even realize it; they, too, can only thrive in the light of love!

Another method for remaining self-aware or soul-conscious, is to check and see what are the EXTRAS I’m carrying around in my head? Extras = baggage that weighs me down and takes me away from the awareness of my loving, peaceful self. Extras = reacting rather than responding, saying too much, thinking too much, being opinionated, being influenced by past experiences, associations, and memories.

Remember when you clear the past, you create the future! Again, think “game”~ this is a game of retraining the mind. Stay loving, be peaceful.

Many of us, try to create an external comfort zone and surround ourselves with only things we can manage easily. This is very limiting and actually a form of laziness. When we try to live out of our own comforts, we are living according to the games that the ego likes to play-our spiritual love is then comprised; we become careless and lose our alignment with truth.

What to do? This is a game of expanding our consciousness of true love and true peace. So we go deeper into our own spirituality, our inner sanctuary of peace. This is called living from the inside out, rather than the outside in. When I’m truly comfortable on the inside, I make peace with everything. Situations become more co-operative and true love and contentment can arise.

For this to become my stable state of consciousness, I must develop great familiarity with my inner world, my inner spirituality, my inner resources of peace and love. For this, I must turn to the Source when my own resources seem to be running low.

The Benevolent One is always available. Many souls have found that through a simple and profound practice of meditation called Raja Yoga or Remembrance, they can fill up with Universal Love and Light and Peace and be a powerful influencer in their own families, workplaces, and communities. As one remembers this Light and follows it constantly, one becomes not only a transformer of the self, but a transformer of the world.

This is a practice freely shared with all. It is truly user-friendly. To learn more, checkout:

www.bkwsu.org

From A Very High Source: On the Power To Tolerate ~”There Will Be a Sparkle on the Faces of Those Who Are Tolerant”~

the soul speaks to you in quiet moments   My take on what follows is that in essence, ‘to tolerate’ means to have more love to embrace a situation, a person, or even something within your self that you would like to change.  To not be affected negatively by a challenging situation or person, or even your own shortcomings is using the power to tolerate.

“To the extent that you have the power (which comes from the soul) to tolerate, accordingly you receive all the powers from the Almighty Authority.  With the power to tolerate you automatically have the attainment of all virtues.  Those who have the power to tolerate will automatically have…the power to discriminate and the power of depth and maturity.

The power to tolerate is essential.  For the mind there is churning power(contemplation of right thinking) and for the words and actions there is the power to tolerate.  If you have the power to tolerate, whatever words you speak will not be ordinary.  Whatever actions you perform will also be accordingly (not ordinary).

Those who have the power to tolerate are able to stabilize themselves in the stage of light and in the embodiment of pure thought.  There will be a sparkle on the faces of those who are tolerant.  

No matter what type of  negative traits or characteristics others may have, through your own power to tolerate, you will be able to suppress those negative tendencies for a temporary period. 

In your effort on yourself, you need the power to tolerate in order to create positive thoughts in your mind.  This is called ‘controlling power’.  For if you have the power to tolerate, you are able to also control waste thoughts.

At the present time, our aim is to become angels, for which light and might are essential, for these are clearly visible in the life of an angel.  To become the form of light and might, one needs the light of knowledge, which requires churning power and the the power to tolerate.

Being detached is more about being alturistic and able to uplift others and constantly experience yourself to be overflowing.  It also means you do not have any selfish motives, you are doing everything for the sake of service.  This is being a detached observer. 

By being one who has renounced everything, you will develop the virtues of easiness and tolerance.

From a Murli spoken on 12/12/94 by the Highest on High through Brahma 

 

 

Spinning the Right Thoughts

 

 

I want Peace

Who are you?  What vision do you have of yourself?  What recurring thoughts do you generate?  Are the feelings you create the sum total of who you are?

Using the power of imagination and creative thought to visualize and bring into being the unmanifest world of potential within yourself  is to work on the main thing you have control over~~~yourself!

The dialogue you have with yourself is the most important thing you have on this journey.  It ultimately determines your happiness and satisfaction levels as you interact in this world.

Watch your thoughts as you perform small tasks today.  Since we are all originally pure, elevated, happy, and spiritually powerful beings,  check to see if what you are thinking,on a regular basis is taking you into alignment with your original state.   Or do your thoughts bring you down into an uncomfortable, but familiar state? If so, develop the inner power to stop, reflect for a moment, and change the conversation in your head.

Refocus and have the determination to not feed yourself thoughts which bring you down, which compare yourself as better or worse than someone else or which create inner feelings of unworthiness or dislike towards the self or others.

To win this inner battle requires “letting go”.

Letting go is a beautiful state of mind to nurture and can bring you into freedom.

As you choose to look at yourself with self-respect, your cage door which was never really locked, will magically swing open.   This process does not have to be laborious!  As a matter of fact, it can be one in which you continue to become lighter and lighter, the more you are willing to let go of!

The more you are willing to open to change the better things will get for you!

This is a transistional time and in many ways, a fast-moving one.  Everyday in the scenes of life, change is swiftly appearing.  You have the opportunity to choose to play your part by creating beauty in your inner world and by making your home a place of peace.  Yes, that’s where it all begins.

Create a home that has a pure vibration.  In order to do this, begin at the level of thought.  Check the thoughts you are having and sending into the atmosphere of your home environment, into your food as you prepare it, and into those who share the space with you.

Begin by talking to yourself sweetly.  Talk to you, the soul, not you, the ego. This isn’t about creating a stronger sense of ego.  Drop the ego, just as you drop your shoes at the door of your dwelling.

Ask yourself…who am I?  (I am a soul, a guest in this world.)  Where did I come from?  (true answer: I came from a world of light, the home of all souls).  Why have I incarnated?  (I have entered this body in order to…) One answer, if you are willing to accept it, is that I have entered this body in order to bring light back to this world and to establish a heavenly world of happiness for all.

Your “sweet talk” will depend on your values.  What do you value?   What 2 values if lived by everyone on the planet right now, would bring about the most beneficial and significant changes?

Write your responses down; for here is a key to what is truly important to you.

At the end of the day, take account of the moments when you were really living from these two cherished values.  How did you feel?  What transpired around you?  How did others respond?  Now note the times that you slacked off and forgive yourself with the determination to be more aware of being in alignment with your truth tomorrow.

Of utmost importance is the willingness to see yourself and others clearly, in your original and pure state.  See the innocent two year old in all who you meet. Can you really see others as unlimited souls, not as limited bodies of flesh and bone?  This is the high bar you can set for yourself for it will change the quality of your life immensely!

Seeing and understanding the great loss you’ve caused to yourself and others by not keeping your vision clear might help you gather up the determination to begin seeing with “new eyes”. Don’t compromise yourself, don’t be slack when it comes to this!

Begin to identify the mistakes you’ve been making which have taken you away from your own divinity!

To make this value firm and to keep yourself accountable to it, you may even be willing to create a system to give up something that you really enjoy doing/eating/having when your focus slips.   This is especially effective when due to seeing a person as a body, you have given them some grief or difficulty or have taken grief or difficulty from them.  Either way doesn’t work in this stage of your development.   This is the moment to decide that in order to uproot this old, deep pattern of relating to souls as bodies, today I will forego enjoying …? or that relaxing cup of tea.  Use whatever leverage will help you think twice about doing the same thing tomorrow. Accountability is a great tool.  Having an accountability partner is also very useful.

Decide how to wean yourself from the old way of “seeing” to the new way of seeing.  You may make the agreement with yourself that if I can stay clear 80% of the time, tomorrow, I will allow myself to enjoy that cup of tea or that second piece of chocolate.  Work with yourself.  Set yourself doable goals.

Be sure to reward yourself when you’ve had a stretch of many hours or days of seeing others and yourself as you truly are, no matter what.  Some souls give you happiness, for the others you can choose to be merciful.  See them as under ‘an influence’ that is preventing their true nature from coming through.

When you have the strong spiritual aim to only give happiness and receive happiness, you will become willing to do whatever it takes to achieve this.

You will then become a blessing to everyone and yourself through your every thought, word, and deed.  You will become an elevated soul, a master almighty authority, and be amply rewarded by enjoying the coming age of peace and happiness upon the earth.  By staying in soul consciousness, you will receive great help, without asking,  from the Benevolent One.  The more you remember that, the more you will receive this Divine Energy that guides you along the path to your own divinity with grace and ease.

When obstacles arise, in the form of a negative thought or feeling about yourself or someone else, gently and firmly remind yourself:  I am a peaceful, loveful soul; this is my true nature.  They too are originally a peaceful,loveful soul.  Trust that they really are doing the best they can, right now.  By maintaining this vision, you are creating an opening for yourself and the other to move forward in a new way.

Look at your own conditioned responses honestly;  then remember your goal -keep it simple- don’t give sorrow to others and don’t take sorrow either.

As you affirm that you truly are a peaceful soul again and again and take action in your life not to let old patterns have their way; those conditioned patterns of response will melt away, for they do not belong to the true self.

You will become one who understands your own value and you will radiate a unique sparkle into the world!  Your presence will inspire others to be free from the constraints of ego.

Consistency is important.  Inconsistency breeds doubt in the self.  As you move along with the aim to restore your divinity, you will feel the pull of your original nature.  You will enjoy becoming a bestower of happiness.  This will become your anchor.

Know that efforts now, bring reward in the present and in your future world.   As you spread happiness and good wishes to others now, you are serving as an instrument to bring about a world of peace and love.

As you become the master of yourself today, this mastery becomes yours eternally.   As you attain self-sovereignty, you become worthy of a high status in your future lives.

It all comes down to spinning the right thoughts…I am a pure soul… my divine birthright is to be peaceful, happy, and powerful…   I value myself… I can respect others easily…Keep telling yourself these sweet truths and you will remain stable in your true self, a being of love and bliss.

on-giving-happiness

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Living in the Awareness of Peace

light is hereWhat is a soul?  Many talk about ‘soul’, but few have truly understood what a soul is, what powers it contains, where it comes from, or how to live in a soul conscious way, rather than in a body conscious way.

George Washington Carver, a deeply spiritual man, was quoted as saying in The Man Who Talks With the Flowers,  that:

“The eye is the window to the soul.  The soul cannot be measured out.  The soul is infinite.  I am not trying to describe the soul, but the soul is all we have that is worth living for–all that we are.  You take that away and we become worse than the beasts in the field.”  

Who remembers the true divine nature of the soul? What teacher can introduce humans to themselves as eternal beings of light? Who holds the key for us to our freedom from limited body consciousness that keeps humans bound by in the limited? Truly the one teacher that has all the wisdom and knowledge of the perfection and original nature of the human soul is the Divine Director of Life~ called by many names in many cultures. I’ve come to know so much about my own nature through the Divine Beloved by studying with the Brahma Kumaris World Spiritual University in Rajasthan, India.  These teachings of the soul have now spread far and wide in India and abroad. And yet, still they have not reached and awakened each and every child of the Supreme Soul~which is that One’s True Mission.

Here is a taste of how that One speaks of the true nature of the soul to His/Her Children:

“The soul is a very subtle aspect that has to be understood.  Souls are extremely subtle and imperishable. Neither a soul nor his part can be destroyed.  It is very difficult for those with gross (purely material) intellects to understand these things. This is why the Supreme Soul, the One who belongs to all Souls, comes at this time and makes you realize this”. {Murli, 5/29/2015}

This is a small section of a “Murli” which is the precious guidance and basis of the teachings of the Brahma Kumaris as spoken through Prajapita Brahma from the mind and heart of the Incorporeal Supreme Soul, our Mother Father God.  The treasure of the “Murli”  translated from Hindi means the Flute of God. This treasure, the direct words of the One God, through the channel of Prajapita Brahma  was first heard in India  in the early 1930’s, in Karachi, now a part of Pakistan, and continues to this day on Mt. Abu in Rajasthan, India.

The Murli tunes one into the wavelength of the Creator’s Mind.  As one thinks about the Murli and remembers the Almighty, one’s subconscious is cleared, day by day, moment by moment, drop by drop and the soul comes into awareness of the Self and its most dearly Beloved Mother Father.

 The subconscious (sanskaras) is full of old patterns, our deepest images and impressions, ingrained habits, belief systems, and conditionings from many lives. What you may not know is that all of this is recorded within your soul. Also within your soul is the faculty of  the intellect or conscience~ the part of you that can discern right from wrong.  The intellect can  give direction to your mind and subconscious and absorb truth, power, and values from the greatest of all souls, the Supreme Soul, through a method of remembrance practiced and taught by Raja Yogis.  The intellect becomes divine through the practice of this method of connecting with the Highest on High. The mind is also a faculty of the soul and is contained within the soul. The mind’s main function is to generate thoughts but decision making and judgement and discernment are the tasks of the intellect.  During the course of your incarnations, your intellect has grown weaker and weaker and has taken a “back seat” to your mind.

This has resulted in the state of the mind today: overwhelmed, burdened, and often out of control.  Your mind was not designed to make decisions: it is a thought-generator.  That’s what it does best; however, it must be guided to focus on worthwhile things and trained from its present “monkey-like state” back into partnership with your intellect. For the role of discernment belongs to your intellect. 

It is your intellect which has the capacity to discern which thoughts are valuable, worthy, and to be acted upon and which are not.  Your intellect can be awakened through this wonderful form of meditation/remembrance which the Brahma Kumaris teach and practice~ called Raja Yoga Meditation. 

Each soul contains all this and more!  Along with the volumes of  recorded impressions, stored over lifetimes of experiences, you, the soul, also contain knowledge. Nonetheless, you, the soul, do not take up an iota of space.  You, the soul are bodiless.  Therefore you must take a body on loan in order to play your various roles/parts upon the earth.  Sadly, today, most of us have come to identify more with our temporary ‘costume’ than with the eternal, unlimited  true nature of the self.

Because you, the soul are subtle and invisible, you and the rest of us have literally lost “sight” of it and have come to consider our identity as limited, material beings of flesh, blood, and bone.

Raja Yoga Meditation is the divine art of giving power back to the intellect, so it may responsibly and lovingly guide the wildness of the mind into peacefully churning true, powerful thoughts about the soul, the universe, and the Supreme Soul.

For example: what is the simplest, truest statement that can be churned about the nature of you, the soul?  What quality, most lacking in the mind, is, in fact, the core quality of you and every soul?

The answer, may come as a surprise!  PEACE.   Peace is our true, natural and original state.  Peace lives deep within each and every soul.

Raja Yoga is the method of turning your attention inward to the center of your forehead, where YOU, the living soul sits, as the driver of your vehicle, the body.

Feel into this space, to know your true nature. Turn away from all other thoughts for just a minute.  What are you feeling?  Do you recognise your self as Peaceful? Loving? Powerful? Blissful?

All of these states are aspects of you, the invisible, eternal being.  This is where you’ll find the peace and love and power and bliss that you have been seeking outside in the world of change!  It’s all within you.  No wonder you wish to experience it again.

Peace and serenity are often the first states we experience, when we go within.  Experiment with this thought:  Om Shanti which means”I am a peaceful soul”.

Repeat it again, quietly, confidently. OM SHANTI.  Say it  from the depth of your being.  Feel the unchanging reality behind it.

Feel that you are a peaceful soul.

As your awareness of your Original State of Peace increases, it begins to color the atmosphere around you. Everything becomes touched by your peace.

This peace leads us deeper into a place of silence.  Within this silence, so much exists!  The answers you seek can be found within this silence.

The question of “who am I?” is realized as we sit with it each day.

“Since the soul can not be seen with the physical eyes, it must be realized.”                                                                          (Murli)

This practice will change the way you see yourself.  As you meditate deeply on the thought that you are a peaceful soul, your consciousness opens the channel allowing peace to flow into your thoughts, words, and deeds.   You will begin to see yourself as a spiritual being interacting with the physical world.

Your state of peace will begin to affect the world around you, rather than the other way around!  Peace is contagious. As you emanate the quality of peace, many around you will also be inspired to experience peace within.

There is a “time for everything” and “everything has its time”.  Both in the physical realm as well as in our spiritual endeavors, “timing is everything”.

Are there times when meditation and self- inquiry are most fruitful?

Yes, it is well known and  understood by yogis and avid mediators that the early morning hours from 2 to 5 a.m. are the sweetest for revealing the Self and its connection with the Divine.

This is the best (but not only) time for receiving nourishment and power from the Ocean of Peace.  Sunset from 6:30pm to 7:30pm is another potent time.  Spending time right before sleep connecting with your peaceful core is also very valuable to insure deep, peaceful rest.

 You may enjoy the guided meditations on the websites listed below, at Raja Yoga Centers across the world, and even right here on Kauai,  in Kilauea.

If you live on Kauai or are visiting and would like to experience meditating in a deeply peaceful atmosphere, please call ahead for directions and times.

Thank You ~ 808-639-9436

Blessings of Peace,

Shivalaya

You will find very sweet, powerfully guided meditations at

http://www.just-a-minute.org

Youtube://AnthonyStrano linkoflife.com

http://www.ariellehecht.com/spiritualnourishment

About

7 Spiritual Questions to Turn Your Life Around!

Featured Image -- 6103What are your 7 big questions?  Have you made a list?  I have…here they are? Do you resonate? Would you add something?

1.  How do you know when you have recognized God as She/He really is?

2.  What does every soul long for?

3.  How can unshakeable peace be attained?

4.  How does being influenced by others hamper your personal journey and how can you protect your Self from this  influence?

5.  Do you know God as the Bestower of Happiness, the Remover of Sorrow, the Ocean of Love, and the Friend? Do you know yourself as the beloved child of the Supreme Divine Parent?

6.  Or has your life become such a hustle and bustle that there is no time left for you to develop this relationship?

7. What type of experiences do most people gravitate towards?

These are the deep questions which many people never consciously think to ask, yet on a subconscious level they may be alive and kicking.   You deserve a big congratulations for choosing to read this far and for your willingness to take a look at the possibility of  going beyond the hustle and bustle of life, beyond our deep societal programing and conditioning, and beyond the loss of our innocence at a young age, which has lead to the the  inevitable “rule of the ego” which has distracted  most of us from a quest such as this.

In order to answer these questions and turn one’s life around, it is a valuable practice to set aside the limiting perceptions and pre-conceptions of our own ego-dominated worlds, for longer and longer periods of time everyday.

Surrender the known in order to know the vast unknown and come into  your own, subtle, inner world.

One of the best ways to do this is through meditation.

Your ego and mine, have been doing their very best to keep us alive,  yet, at the same time it is our ego which  has also sadly separated us from the Truth about our Selves.  Our egos have masked our true Selves and the real questions of life which could reveal real answers.

While being held captive by our egos, we have become preoccupied with temporary, perishable, and limited pleasures, powers, and attainments.  The “true north” of our deepest longings, our truest contentment, and our lasting love and happiness has gone unnoticed and undiscovered.

Many souls look to the “after-life” for the type of fulfillment the answers to these questions can brings.

Without a doubt, I have been blessed and beset by difficulties and battles entrenched so deeply within myself that they wouldn’t budge, no matter what tools I used or how much service I thought I was doing.  Fortunately, very fortunately, these difficulties were also accompanied by an intense desire to be happy, loving, and kind.  The quandary of these two extremes created a subtle openness within,  far below the “ego’s watch”.

When I began to ask these valuable questions, I found some satisfying answers.   One of the answers came through the daily practice of Raja Yoga Meditation.   The other “godsend” has been the daily study of divine principles which has given me a deeper understanding of the soul’s battle between illusion and reality!

I’ve come to understand how important it is to pass blessings along to others, rather than compete and compare myself to others.   It is in the spirit of a blessing that I introduce you to one of our great present-day wisdom-keepers, who has blessed me in so many ways :  Dadi Janki, the 103-year-old head of the Brahma Kumariis World Spiritual University.

Dadi, as she is affectionately called, has been tested and found to have the most stable mind on the planet, at this time.  She has traveled all across the globe to share the truths and wisdom she has lived by.

One of her widely read books, Companion of God, is a simple guide to living life as a happy, fulfilled soul.  It is from this book that I share:

“As an actor on the stage of life, you need to detach yourself from the roles you are playing and get in touch with the part of you that is not an act.”

What Dadi is saying is to get in touch with you, the soul, the eternal you, the part of you that is not an act.

Meditation is your tool of discovery to discover the untapped treasures of the soul.

The part of us that is perishable and mostly running the show is kept unhappy by looking outside for true love, respect, and peace.   The present state of our world is one of  thirsting for deep relationship with the Divine, while fearing loss, annihilation, war, illness, and death.  Have you noticed that most people,today, seem to be sadly lacking in what truly makes one whole and sane.

This state of affairs is largely the result of allowing the Self to be influenced by thinking and believing that our true contentment could be found externally.

As Dadi Janki gently warns us:  “The world is a supermarket of sorrow. Don’t buy any! A good spiritual education teaches you how to be discerning in your shopping.”

How will having a spiritual education help make meaning out of your “movie”?  How will reflecting on the bigger picture turn  your personal journey around?

I invite you to take in deeply the following wisdom which identify  a condition, too often considered completely “normal”, which underpin the cause of so much unnecessary suffering.

In Dadi’s words: “Our ability to cope is hampered by thinking too much about other people…This causes problems in  the mental digestive system.  The best mental ‘antacid’ is in-depth spiritual study…( which leads to healthy introspection).  This, plus a  regular practice of self-awareness, penetrates the mind very deeply, dislodging emotional pain.”

You may be wondering how does one’s consciousness change by focusing on the spiritual aspects of the self instead of being caught up in thinking about others?  To quote Dadi again:

“An enlightened person understands that there is nothing to be gained by thinking about others.”

She suggest that a  better use of one’s time is to concentrate on the Source of Love.  Turning to the Source and to fill the Self with Divine Love is a deep aspect of Raja Yoga meditation.  This form of meditation directs one’s attention inward to the Self in order to connect again and again to the Ocean of Love.

This change of direction in our attention comforts the heart, reduces tension and restores clarity,   I invite you to carve out some time in your day to meditate on the Source of Love, and note what happens.

Dadi also encourages us to send  good wishes and pure feelings to others.  Creating this habit (in ourselves) will alleviate the need to think confused and negative thoughts any further about a person or a situation.   This one change can ultimately resolve the situations we find ourselves in and relieve us from the vicious cycle of negative, unproductive thoughts about “why”, “when”, and “how”.  Whenever you are in internal/external conflict with someone…begin to remind yourself that deep within, they too are a pure soul.

Continually repeat within that: ‘So and So is a pure soul’, each time your mind spirals into negativity about them.  This is guaranteed to resolve the situation which is more than likely a karmic account created in the past by your own actions.

Instead of sending worried, angry, resentful, critical, and /or doubtful thoughts to another, send love and pure wishes.  The truth of this can be felt at the end of the day, as one feels light, free, and peaceful.  To the one who recognizes it, putting this one jewel into practice is like receiving a key to changing the course of your life.  This type of wisdom is life-giving, universal, non-denominational, and very practical.  Best of all, it gets positive results.

 May the truth of this jewel,  allow you to understand the nature of these times and the nature of you, the soul,  in a new way.

More wisdom from the heart of Dadi Janki:   “Right now, what the soul really needs most is power.  Having been through birth after birth, accumulating rubbish along the way, the soul is burdened and depleted and therefore unable to perform to its greatest potential.  When we use our inner resources in the right way, power is gained, enabling us to stay with God and to reach our destination. Wasting the mind on ordinary, mundane, and conditioned thinking is a waste of time and energy.  Souls leave the path; they leave God, because they have wasted their thoughts, words, and breath in this way. Blaming others and complaining are just making excuses.

This is a big mistake which wastes more energy and causes more loss of power. There isn’t time to behave in this way any more.

Understand that we need power and start cultivating it.  As power develops, so will love.” You may be pondering how can I restore the original power of my soul?  Once again, I invite you to turn inward to your existence as a precious, peaceful soul, then turn to the Beloved who knows you fully and sees you in your perfection.

A simple 3 step method for this can be used:

1.  Find a time that works best for you every day.   Start out with a moment or two, and gradually build up to ten to twenty minutes each day, to stop and become still and silent within, connecting with the energy of you, as a peaceful soul.   Many souls find that a clear time of day that supports this inner movement is early in the morning.  Others may choose the beautiful moments created by the setting sun or the winding down time, right before sleep.

Take the thought, “I am a peaceful soul” and hold it, firmly and confidently, in your mind. As you focus on this one thought it will gradually release its essence into your consciousness; you will truly feel the peace that lies within.  Day by day, this thought will bring you into deeper and deeper peace, into the inner ocean of unshakeable peace which exists, intact, within you.

2.  As you hold this thought, wasteful thoughts may try to distract you.  Surrender each thought to the Beloved or the Higher Power.  Give the distracting thoughts and energy no attention, no matter how great the attraction or force with which they throw themselves at you may be.

Release, release, release, all wasteful thoughts, feelings, and opinions.  Surrender, surrender, surrender. Melt into Peace.  Surrender your mind to the Beloved who awaits you with the tenderest of love and peace.

3.  Whenever you feel distracted, return to the empowering thought about your true essence: “I am a peaceful soul. Peace is my true nature.”  As you continue this practice, you will find that when you return to the everyday world, you will be able to carry the awareness of your essence of peace with you.  This awareness will become more stable and unshakeable as you give yourself permission to stop often during the day, if only for a few moments and go within. You will accumulate the power to stop the hectic spinning of the world and return to your true nature.  This is one of the most important powers of the soul, the ability “to stop” in midstream, pack up your thoughts, and come back to peace.

Take this opportunity to fill completely from the Fountain of all Goodness and Virtue, the Fountain of Love and Divine Power.  Visualize yourself being showered upon from this fountain or immersed and floating in the Ocean of Love.

Below are suggested sites to find guided meditations that I’ve found to be personally conducive to opening my awareness to peace and love.

http://www.ariellehecht.com/spiritual nourishment

Anthony Strano’s Link of Life (4 part meditation can be found on YouTube).

Also websites: http://www.meditateinhawaii.com

http://www.awakenedacademy.com

justaminute.org

Here’s a Peaceful Affirmation which you may write out by hand and place in various spots in your home and workplace, to reinforce the remembrance of who you truly are:

I remember to be still and to bask in my inner ocean of silence and peace.

I find a time and place in which I am there for my Self, every day. 

I am true to this commitment to my Self and this practice of peace.

My spiritual energy is being charged and renewed every day

I enjoy these precious moments of time in which I stop and dip into the ocean of peace within.

I find I can go deeper and deeper into  peace each day.

OM SHANTI*  (from Hindi) = “I am a Peaceful Soul”

May you be continually blessed and bless others with your awareness of peace and may your feelings be filled with equal amounts of love and detachment.

                                                    You are a Being of Peace!

                                                           Your Sister in Peace,

                                                                   Shivalaya

One of my favorite pictures of Dadi Janki~a living treasure!  Dadi is one of the first female spiritual leaders.  She is a “Wisdom Keeper” and one of an eminent group of spiritual leaders who advise the UN at world summits and in times of trouble.

Message-de-Dadi-Janki

How Important is Honesty to You?

Who in this wide world is Dadi Janki?  And why should I know about her?

Dadi-Ja

Dadi Janki is a 103 year old phenomenon who has been certified by many scientific tests to have the most stable mind in the world.  OKAY, you may be muttering.  To what does she attribute this wonderful state of being?  Is this just a rare case of genetics, or is this state achievable through practice?

Dadi makes no bones about it; she attributes her stable mind , hence her unshakeability to her lifelong study and practice of Raja Yoga, the yoga of the mind, the union of the individual soul with the Supreme Soul.

Currently, she is the head of the Brahma Kumaris World Spiritual University in Rajasthan, India where Raja Yoga is taught and practiced.  Essentially this practice is shared freely, i.e. without a price tag. This is truly education for the good of humanity and for the well-being of civilization and the very planet, itself.  For as human beings change and elevate, their influence will transform the sorry conditions that presently exist upon our Mother Earth.

Another proponent of Dadi Janki, and there are many, has this to say about her:

“This woman is as deep , wise, and egoless as it gets.  She adheres to no formal religion, dogma, or sect.  What she teaches is a method to open the heart and detach the mind-which to me is what true spirituality is about”.  Ruby Wax

 

Message-de-Dadi-Janki

Last year on my annual journey to the Brahma Kumaris World Spiritual University, I was incredibly blessed to have Dadi sit and hold my hand for nearly thirty minutes.  On the drive up the mountain to Mt. Abu from Amnehabhad, the Indian women, whom I was sharing a taxi with, announced that we were going to stop and visit with Dadi!  Such a surprise; such fortune!!

As we opened the door to Dadi’s little receiving room, it was packed with souls already.  I looked past everyone, my eyes magnetized to Dadi’s eyes.  She felt my immense attraction and immediately beckoned me with a subtle waving of her hand to come sit next to her.

She held my hand as she greeted all the souls who had come to visit her and receive her drishti, her powerful spiritual vision.  This blessing of holding her hand connected me with a rich, profound silence, in a deeper way, than my own 7 years of practice of Raja Yoga Meditation had produced so far.  She connected me with the unlimitedness of Nirvana, (literally, the place of no sound), the Home of all Souls.  Yes, this is the dimension from which we, as souls, have all come to the earth… and it is the place to which we will all return at the end of our journey.  This is the place to which Dadi Janki is immovably connected and which allows her to be in this world in a very present and loving way and yet to be so detached from it.

Dadi, even at her venerable age, is still a dynamic speaker of truth and shares her gifts continually.  Her words are rich and full of experience and knowing.  My favorite books of hers are:Companion of God and Inside Out.  

Dadi speaks in Hindi.  What follows is a sampling of what I have collected from her many rich classes, translated into English.

The Subject is Love and Honesty.

“Love is connected to virtues.  Virtues create love both within the self and within others.

When virtues reduce, the quality of love also reduces.

When all virtues are present, there is complete and pure love.

Out of all the virtues, the main one is honesty.  If we feel someone is not being honest with us, our love breaks. Whether it’s our mother, father, husband, wife, or friend, if we feel that they are being dishonest,  love breaks.

In terms of our relationship with God, if we are honest with God we will draw His love.  If we are not, that love will break.  Even if we have no other virtues than this one of honesty,  we will be able to draw God’s love.

The first kind of honesty is honesty with myself.  If I am honest with myself, there need be no situation in which I am not honest with others.

If someone does not believe me, if someone distrusts my honesty, perhaps it is a sign that I need to become more honest. Instead of blaming them, I should realise this, and look at how to become more honest.

Honesty does not mean simply speaking our mind. Honesty means to be very clear about everything going on inside us.  Where there is honesty, feelings become pure and clean. Honesty is where there are no other thoughts or feelings inside, other than those that the Most High would have. Such clarity is reflected in our words; they will be filled with the power of truth and spoken with ease and without hesitation.

Genuine honesty cultivated within is what will reach out and touch others.

Being easily influenced by people will diminish our ability to remain honest.

Others will not be able to get that feeling of truth from us, and our interactions will not carry a feeling of love.  They will seem superficial.

Although superficial love is better than no love at all-at least it ensures that we don’t become completely dry-it will nonetheless be obvious that it is not the real thing.”~ Dadi Janki~

Such is the importance of honesty!

rose on hand with light

Wishing you the blessings of honesty and love.                                                        Wishing you the willingness to be honest with yourself.

Wishing you the joy of being filled by the Beloved Ocean of Love.                        Wishing you the experience of love in all your relationships.

In Deep Peace and With Love,

Shivalaya