Kabir said,
Look for bliss within, not elsewhere.
Kabir invented the word ‘Avadhoo’, which means infinite, vast, expansive, boundary-less, unfathomable as ether. Avadhoo is also his name for the guru, when we pray to him. Avdhoota means one who does not wear any garments but in reality, is an individual who has stripped her/him/self-off all the layers of her/his mind—layers of delusions, ignorance, attachment, aversion and therefore one emerges as her/his true self. Continue reading
Today it’s International Women’s Day. #EmbraceEquity
Fearlessness the greatest gift bestowed to all women by Kali. As females we are told from the time of our birth to take care of ourselves and to look after others. However, what we must try to be is to be brave and fear free. Kali empowers us to develop Atma shakti. Continue reading
The umbrella of love is the new kind of self-love. What is the significance of the umbrella? God is the ultimate umbrella of protection over all of us. Protection arises from love.
What is self-love? Self-love is a state of appreciation for oneself from having a high regard for one’s own wellbeing. Self-love is not inclusive and therefore to understand a new kind of self-love, which is an umbrella, let us examine this quote by C. S. Lewis. Continue reading
Bolt your doors, remember the pin (code, key) and you will be safe. We have pins and passwords for all our activities. Without the pin we cannot function. There are hackers, who can hack into our accounts. We are afraid that we can have our password broken and it would wreak havoc in our lives. Continue reading
The practice of Atmabhava (love for humanity) is like being aware of all the gods 24/7. We have seven days in the week and each day is allocated to a God.
Monday is dedicated to Shiva. Devotees fast for the whole day and can have one meal only. Fasting starts after sunrise. After rising from the bed, one should meditate on Shiva. Then have a bath and offer prayers to Shiva and Parvati. If fasting, wear white clothes. White flowers and white food are offered. Benefit is to receive Shiva’s blessings. Continue reading
The keys are there for all of us and they are waiting to be used. Once we have them, they are with us forever. Only our thoughts can steal them. Everything happens in tandem. If we use even one key and are genuine and sincere, we can be on the path of equanimity and harmony. Continue reading
Like a bird I flew, seeing the beauty of the Paradise created by you.
I looked to see if I could find you in the pollen of every flower
In the current of every river and in the waves of the oceans.
I listened to the words of sages saying “The one you seek is within you”, Continue reading
Across the steppingstones of Self-control,
On the banks of the God-intoxicated river,
Where flow the waves of compassion dance,
Strip yourself naked,
And plunge deep into the purifying current!
Only then will the Soul be cleansed
Of the effects of the manifest world.
Swami Niranjanananda Saraswati
Aim Hrim Klim
Photo by David Izquierdo on Unsplash
When one thinks of oneself then one assesses oneself as being either a very good person or that one is a rude person. It is not possible to evaluate one’s personality according to Swami Satyananda Saraswati. One never looks at one face in the mirror objectively. One may think that one is hideous or drop dead beautiful. It is never possible to see oneself as one is. Continue reading
1. Discrimination, as described in the Bhagawad Gita (2:62-63) by Sri Krishna, “When one thinks of objects, attachment for them arises; from attachment desire is born; from desire anger arises; from anger comes delusion; from delusion loss of memory; from loss of memory the destruction of discrimination; from the destruction of discrimination, one perishes.” Continue reading
What is the meaning of compassion? Compassion in the classical teachings of the Buddhist tradition is described as “the heart that trembles in the face of suffering”. What is atmabhava, means feeling for others like you do for yourself. Continue reading
According to my Guru, Swami Satyanananda Saraswati, there comes a stage in our lives, when the desire to succumb to the divine will come naturally. Until this happens we are guided by our ego. Our expectations are motivated by ego, efforts are energized by the ego, until our ego has wrung us dry. We all wish to have a better life. We are lost in a maze of confusion. Our intentions improve ourselves and lead a qualitative life. In order to tread on this path we have to look at our own experiences and then those of others to learn to detect what has been truly fulfilling. Continue reading
Swami Satyananda Saraswati said, “If we hold ourselves responsible for the future, our own and our children, then we will ensure that the evolution of man is along positive lines. Only then will wars cease, only then will man be able to love his fellow man, and only then will adults understand the young and the young understand the old.” Continue reading
“Under the shade of the Banyan tree, the old guru and the young disciple are seated. The Guru is not saying anything, but the questions and doubts of the disciple are getting cleared one by one.” Swami Satyananda said that when he sat with Swami Sivanananda this happened to him. The questions ceased and the intellect eased. A man who is really great does not know he is great. He is humble because he is practicing or acting with humility. Continue reading
We are seekers and how do we experience and understand God. Heaven and hell are within us. We can live with our private hell during our life time or learn to be compassionate, caring and empathetic. If we chose to live in heaven, then we must practice our sadhana, our breath awareness, our mantra and our daily practice. Continue reading