771 – Love, hope and joy are the true gifts for Christmas

Do we recall the gift God gave us in Jesus? What comes in our minds when we think of Christmas? We worry about our gifts exchange. We think that if our gift is not right, it will be misunderstood. Have we forgotten that we are loved, are never alone and can hope for the future? Continue reading

461 – Apply the colors of Christmas in your life

Red, green, gold, purple, white, and blue have very potent associations. The attributes of the colors are very powerful. Red is associated with love, green with regeneration, gold with energy, purple with spirituality, blue with the heart, and white with purity. Continue reading

459 – Celebrate your inner Christmas

Swami Satyananda Saraswati said in December 25,1983 during his stay in Australia:

“The divine baby is the Christ, who came onto this mortal plane of consciousness in order to save and to redeem us, and to destroy the tamasic and demonic forces in and around us.

When Christ came, he destroyed avidya (ignorance). He denounced the so-called institutionalized forces which were surviving and thriving in the name of religion. Is the situation any different today? Will he accept what is going in, in the name of religion?

I know one thing that is higher consciousness which is called Christ Consciousness, Buddha Consciousness, or Krishna Consciousness, is awakened in you at any time in your life, it is not going to bring disaster. It will be the beginning of knowledge, experience, bliss, and the feeling of unity with every living person. That is why Yoga is taught. Knowledge is not enough; you need the experience which is like a flash of lightning.

Understand, who is Christ? Which Christ do you know? Is he the Christ born of a worldly father? Is he the Christ, who is the indwelling entity in every heart? Is he the Christ who creates a vision of the whole universe within and without? Is he the Christ, who transcends everything? He is all four and he came down in a physical body. He was not a myth. He was a man in flesh and blood. He lives in our hearts.

Wherever you can awaken yourself, he is there in your heart.”

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452 – God is with us

Do we need to be reminded that God is with us, in our midst? Do we need these adjectives to describe Christmas: colorful, sparkly, merry, bright, precious etc.? Lights, candles, trees which are evergreen, stars, bells, holly, peppermint canes etc. What are these symbols representing? Continue reading

289 – Who was Swami Sivananda’s Guru?

Thursday is the day of the Guru? I asked myself this question, as must so many of you, “Who was Swami Sivananda’s Guru?” Swami Sivananda received mantra diksha from Parmahamsa Viswananda Saraswati, on the banks of the Ganga on 1st June 1924. Swami Sivananda was in quest of a Guru. Continue reading

189 – Who was Swami Sivananda’s Guru

Thursday is the day of the Guru. I asked myself this question, as must so many of you, “Who was Swami Sivananda’s Guru?” Swami Sivananda received mantra diksha from Paramahamsa Viswanananda Saraswati, on the banks of the Ganga on 1st June,1924. Swami Sivananda was in quest of a Guru. Continue reading

118 – A tribute to fathers

I have always read about maternal love, not so much is mentioned about the paternal love. Many fairy tales have an evil father. After the death of the mother the step mother is unkind to the children and the father does not interfere. In our spiritual literature we have numerous instances of fathers who abandon their wives, in order to have a male child. Growing up my judgement was coloured by these stories. Continue reading