A New Year’s Revolution

May we light the sacred fire that burns out the ego and enables us to pass from fearful fragmentation to fearless fullness in the changeless whole.
~ Katha Upanishad 

Although there was no singular cataclysmic event on the Winter Solstice of 2012, it still marks the transition point from one age to the next.  It marks the end of a time when we believed that the world was something outside of us and an awakening to the world as our collective creative effort.  Our world is as we dream it. 

The remnants of the old dream are crumbling fast around us.  The idea that we could control nature through technology is coming apart as we encounter super storms, glacial melting and epidemic diseases which defy medical intervention.  Global capitalism is becoming increasingly nonviable.  Large areas of our cities look like disaster areas, and that’s in the “first” world. 

Neither technology nor capitalism is really at issue though.  Technology can be wonderful as any new ipad owner knows (never mind that they are built in horribly inhuman factories.)  Capitalism can be fun.  As somewhat of an entrepreneur, I have enjoyed the challenges of trying to make self-employment work.  The real issue though is deeper and more fundamental.  It is “interior.”  It is the belief that we are each inviolably separate from each other, from our world and universe. 

Ego is a belief system which cuts of us off from the whole.  As A Course in Miracles tells us it is based in fear and the antithesis of love.  Yoga tells us that it is based in ignorance of our true being.  It is based in the disconnection between our rational/rationalizing brain and the deeper wisdom of the heart.  “Intellect a head-based operation incorporating ever more complex variations and applications, each needing further explications and qualifications,” writes Joseph Chilton Pearce, “has become separated from intelligence— the automatic and natural state of the heart that brings coherence.” (2012, Heart-Mind Matrix: How the Heart Can Teach the Mind New Ways to Think)

Simply put, our hearts generate an electromagnetic field that connects us with everyone and everything.  Our consciousness belongs to that field rather than the physical structure of the body.  We are an aspect of that field before and after we leave the body.  We are immortal beings of Love.  That field gives birth to all things, contains all things and eventually all things dissolve back into that field. 

The way to move beyond ego and to enter into that greater wholeness is through meditation, i.e. inner stillness.  We have to be willing to let go of the constructs of intellect to understand the coherence of intelligence.  It is deeper intuitive knowing, light-years away from symbolic manipulation.  It might seem like a scary place to go at first but it is the entrance way to peace.

Let’s make it our New Year’s revolution to ignite a sacred inner fire that burns away ignorance and ego and allows us to see beyond imaginary boundaries, to release fear-based thinking and to embrace humanity and the planet as a whole.  Let’s promise to practice self-reflection, inner silence, forgiveness and compassion.  It might sound crazy but it is the only way forward.  We can’t stay in the past.

Making Sense of Suffering

 

After many births the wise seek refuge in me.

-    Bhagavad Gita

 

In order to understand the suffering in this world we have to go beyond it.  We have to see beyond the limitations of bodily existence and come to know ourselves on a deeper level.  On the level of form we have to accept that life is temporary and we are prone to pain, disappointment, grief and loss.  There seems to be no way of getting around it.  When we awaken to our true nature, however we see beyond the illusory limitations of temporal forms.  We recognize ourselves as beings of boundless consciousness, infinite light.  It is our attachment to impermanent objects that creates our suffering. 

“Our bodies and our minds,” writes Brian L. Weiss, MD, “are the masks our real self— the soul— wears in the physical world. When we die, we remove our masks and we rest in our natural state. There is no disappearance, no oblivion. We simply take off our masks, our clothes, and other outer coverings, and we return home to the spiritual realms.”  (Miracles Happen, 2012)  His words echo the teachings of Krishna in the Bhagavad Gita, “As a man abandons worn-out clothes and acquires new ones, so when the body is worn out a new one is acquired by the Self, who lives within.”  This ancient knowledge although disregarded and despised in the modern age continues to resurface in dreams, meditation, past-life regression and psychedelic experiences.  As we collectively awaken from the dark age this knowledge is becoming more common place.  For example “According to data released last year by the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life, a quarter of Americans now believe in reincarnation.” (http://personalityspirituality.net/2010/09/05/western-belief-in-reincarnation-on-the-increase/)

Of course you might say belief is purely subjective and doesn’t prove anything.  However, many people report having meaningful past-life memories.  These memories can have a healing effect on both physical and psychological levels, as Dr. Weiss points out. 

Reincarnation enables us to make sense of life, to put suffering into perspective.  Instead of seeing our lives as meaningless, chance events, this spiritual perspective allows us to understand them as stages in the evolution of our souls.  A religious perspective that excludes reincarnation doesn’t give us room to grow.  As “The Healer,” a character in Bill Douglas’s novel “2012 the Awakening” says, “The denial of reincarnation is anti-evolutionary. The essence of evolution, which is required of us now more than at any other time in our history, is fluidity of spirit.  The rejection of reincarnation rigidifies people, causing them to grit their teeth and resist who they really are, in order to follow dogmatic and arbitrary rules so they can avoid eternal damnation when they die. They stop evolving and live in obedient fear of a wrathful, vengeful God – who will either give them a not guilty sentence for their self-denial, or will damn them to eternal suffering for stepping outside the rigid lines.”  Reincarnation gives us an opportunity to learn from our mistakes.

The concept of karma goes along with reincarnation.  It simply implies that there are antecedents to our current life experiences.  We come into this life with certain tendencies, abilities, needs and desires.  We come to learn from this experience.  Karma is both personal and collective.  Sometimes it seems to represent a callous attitude towards other – after all it seems to imply that we all get what we deserve.  Instead we might better understand this world of our experience as a collective creation.  It is an opportunity to develop love, compassion and generosity, and to evolve beyond the narrow limits of our self-serving ego consciousness.  Perhaps the innocent child who is killed so tragically is actually an aspect of God telling us to wake up.  Marianne Williamson writes, “Starving children in Africa are not poor because their consciousness is unaligned with love; they’re poor because ours is. A billion people on earth live in “deep poverty”— that is, on less than a dollar and twenty-five cents a day. A billion more live on less than two dollars a day. Yet this is not an “exception” to the rule that love casts out fear. Quite the opposite, it is a collective lovelessness on the part of the advanced nations of the world that allows us to accept the reality of deep poverty, thus deflecting a miraculous solution.” (Williamson, Marianne (2012-11-27). The Law of Divine Compensation: On Work, Money, and Miracles . HarperOne. Kindle Edition.)

Beyond belief in reincarnation or even past-life memories however is our real task of awakening to our true nature as beings of consciousness.  We are responsible for the reality we create out of self-centered desire, hatred, fear, greed, etc.  We are here to overcome these and to awaken to the Loving Presence of Who We Are.  We must awaken beyond the dream, beyond the nightmare, beyond ego.  Ultimately we are here to awaken from all attachment to outward form and to recognize our inner unity and perfection. 

Meditation is the time proven method for spiritual evolution.  Research indicates that if meditation became the central activity of humanity then violence would be eliminated.  Is this possible?  It starts with each of us.  Practice meditation regularly,” taught Swami Sivananda. “Meditation leads to eternal bliss. Therefore meditate, meditate.” 

OM

 

Meditation, Work and Unconditional Love

Bhakti is like making love to everything continuously, from humans to birds, flowers everything; you have no choice, for you realise their real nature and the nature of yourself and with this '"impossible" relationship, how is it possible not to feel love for everything?  - Paramhamsa Swami Satyananda Saraswati

Human life, our daily life is about balance; balancing our responsibilities, needs, desires, fears, aspirations and losses.  We do this best when we are connected to our inner central being, our Divine Essence. 

When we are caught up in the world, which takes place on the surface of things, we can get quickly thrown off balance.  We can get overwhelmed by emotions: anxiety, anger, jealousy, resentment, guilt, joy and grief.  Emotions are not to be avoided, but when we become lost in them we forget that everything in this world is temporary.  Permanence is an illusion.  Just like separation.

The spiritual path of Yoga is a balance between immanence, this shared world of mutual illusion, and transcendence.  Too much immanence and we are caught up in anger and anxiety.  Too much transcendence and we are spaced out.  Psychological and spiritual growth requires us to stay present with one foot in both worlds. 

In a sense there are two selves; one in each world.  The ego-self is bound by illusion and desire.  The Greater Self is free and is unconditional love.  The bound self is limited to five senses and mind.  The Greater Self is intimately connected with our omniscient, omnipresent and omnipotent source. 

The Bhagavad Gita has an interesting verse in this regard.  In it Krishna says:

The self is the friend of the self for him who has conquered himself by the Self, but to the unconquered self, this self stands in the position of an enemy like the (external) foe.  (6:6 as translated by Swami Sivananda)

 

As ego-selves bound by illusion we have the responsibility of making a decision whether to become more bound or to move towards freedom; the choice to awaken from the nightmare of self-centered desire to the bliss of unconditional love.  When in doubt, I say, go for the bliss.  The ego becomes our enemy when we are caught up in fear and anger. 

Meditation means becoming inwardly still and silent.  It is a means of connecting with that greater Self within.  As St. Teresa counseled, “Settle yourself in solitude, and you will come upon Him in yourself.”  The regular practice of meditation helps us to break open the cage of ego, to release anxiety and to open to love.  Karma Yoga is meditation in action, love in action.

When we perform work as service, with spiritual dedication we are much less vulnerable to the stress and anxiety inherent in the world.  When we are simply working for a paycheck then we are subject to the ups and downs of increases, decreases, job loss, office politics, difficult co-workers and unreasonable supervisors, etc.  When we practice Karma Yoga we are learning to observe our limited ego-self in action and to operate from a deeper place of unconditional love. 

What if the job you had right now was given to you by God both as a means for your own spiritual growth and also as a way for you to serve others in his name?  We are socially conditioned to think of our work much differently.  We are taught to look for a job, study for a career with which we can make a living and possibly finance the “good life.”  Generally we are not encouraged to discover and develop our talents and abilities as a gift to all.  The experience of work can change dramatically with this change of attitude.

The spiritual path of Yoga requires renunciation and non-attachment: letting go of personal desires and fears.  We do this not out of some perverse need for self-denial but to raise our level of consciousness.  As the Krishna teaches:

The Supreme Reality stands revealed in the

         consciousness of those who have conquered
         themselves. They live in peace, alike in cold
    and heat, pleasure and pain, praise and blame.

(Bhagavad Gita, 6:7)

 

This really does not mean that we cannot enjoy the pleasures of life.  Instead we are simply conscious of a greater reality; our own greater Self.  When we simply pursue the satisfaction of our personal needs and desires we are choosing to live in a narrow world.  We are choosing to live in desire and anxiety.  To release ourselves from our ego-cage however requires letting go of some of our most cherished assumed values:

They are completely fulfilled by spiritual wisdom

     and Self-realization. Having conquered
     their senses, they have climbed to the summit
     of human consciousness. To such people a
     clod of dirt, a stone and gold are the same.
         They are equally disposed to family, enemies,
     and friends, to those who support them and
     those who are hostile, to the good and the evil
     alike. Because they are impartial, they rise to
     great heights.

(Bhagavad Gita 6:8 – 9, Easwaren, 1985.)

It might seem that Yoga in this sense is all about self-suppression.  After all isn’t it natural for us to love our families?  Of course it is.  It is not about turning your back on friends and family but loving them and expanding that circle of love to include all beings.  It’s not about being an imbecile who can’t distinguish between dirt and gold, but developing an awareness which discerns deeper spiritual values.  It is about connecting with the all-pervading loving awareness present behind the scenes and bringing into expression in this world.  As Amma states, “Understand that God dwells as pure consciousness in all beings, including you. As this experience becomes stronger and stronger, the love in you also grows. This love is the best cure for all emotional blocks.”

Through meditation we release the fearful and judgmental ideation that has been planted in our minds.  We open to the transcendent love and wisdom which doesn’t come from “above,” but is residing quietly within us.  Through our service in the world we share this love and wisdom with others.  We are all awakening to our spiritual unity, our connection in consciousness.  As Krishna confides,

With the mind harmonised by Yoga he sees the Self abiding in all beings and all beings in the Self; he sees the same everywhere. (Bhagavad Gita 6:29, Swami Sivananda)

We have to approach this Yoga step by step.  It is a developmental process whereby we go from ego-centric awareness, to ethno-centric and then world-centric.  Don’t get discouraged when you run up against your attachments, love yourself anyway instead.  Research has shown that meditation “restarts and catalyzes” psycho-spiritual development.  (Roger Walsh, MD)

Mastery of life is the opposite of control. You become aligned with the greater consciousness. It acts, speaks, does the works. ~ Eckhart Tolle

But Seriously Folks . . .

When we are fully conscious of our perception, we realize how full of crap we really are. -  Tom Von Deck, “Oceanic Mind”

"After meditating for some years, I began to see the patterns of my own behavior. As you quiet your mind, you begin to see the nature of your own resistance more clearly, struggles, inner dialogues, the way in which you procrastinate and develop passive resistance against life. As you cultivate the witness, things change. You don't have to change them. Things just change." - Ram Dass

Sometimes I catch myself taking things too seriously, especially this “thing” called me.  Somehow, despite years of practice, I forget to observe and simply become absorbed in my thought constructs.  It’s kind of like building a cage around my consciousness and then getting pissed off because I’m stuck.  A lot of things can seemingly entrap me: attachments, assumed responsibilities, guilt, fear, unconscious habits, feelings of obligation, etc.  And I suspect I’m not the only one.

The cage that we unconsciously create around ourselves becomes the object of our stress, anxiety, anger, frustration and discouragement.  It blocks the flow of life-energy in and through us and leads to illness, perhaps even death.  (Yes, you can literally die from taking things too seriously – especially sickness and death.)  It affects our relationships, careers and core spirituality.

Successful people build a highly functional structure around themselves.  It serves them in positive ways.  The rest of us include self-sabotage as part of our structure.  We believe negative things about ourselves and we take them very seriously.  Even those successful ones need to become conscious of their inner construct to remain successful; to continue to evolve. 

Fortunately my daily meditation practice will clue me in to when and how I am getting caught.  Through meditation I can become aware of the stress reflected in my body, the fixations within my mind and the fact that I have disconnected from my soul, my deeper essence.  Sometimes it takes awhile to disconnect from “the world,” i.e. my construct of the world, and to reconnect with inner peace and joy.  It is not so much an effort as just lightening up and letting go; surrender.  Often times I feel like I am being helped by my Guru on the subtle level.  Such is the gift of spiritual relationship!

Ultimately all of the elements of our ego construct are relative.  Our world is as we dream it.  Sure, there seem to be hard realities we have to face, but it is not the situations that we encounter but our interpretation of them that is crucial.  The world we encounter is our interpreted experience of that world.  “Man’s mind,” writes Joseph Chilton Pearce, “is a mirror of a universe that mirrors Man’s mind.”  Our world is a shared interpretation, a mutual hallucination or a work of art in which we each participate.  Separation, or “duality,” is the greatest illusion of all. 

When I get stuck in my ego-centric perspective my world can seem like a pretty messed up place.  Other people seem greedy and self-centered.  The economy, environment, crime, drugs, disease, corporate interests, etc. all seem like they are out to get me.  I get defensive and passive-aggressive.  I don’t trust nobody.  I feel alienated and alone.  Nobody understands me.  When I surrender I know that I am held in an interconnected web of being, Oneness of heart, mind and spirit which is beyond ordinary thought.  This doesn’t mean that I don’t address all those things in the world but that I know to address them within myself first and foremost.  I can’t see clearly to help the world when I am deluded by my own fear and aggression. 

We have to come from a place of love.  Love is not something we have to work on, something we have to do.  It is the core of who we are.  It is Sat-Chit-Ananda, the Being-Consciousness-Bliss of the Universal Self residing within each of us.  The world is immediately a better place when we awaken to the Love within.  We can start by not taking ourselves too seriously.

Jesus, God and Yoga

 

There is nothing wrong with stretching, exercising, or regulating one’s stress through breathing. But when the tenets of yoga are included, it’s by definition a worship act to spirit beings other than the God of the Bible. By way of analogy, there is nothing inherently wrong with intimacy, sex, and pleasure. But when the tenets of adultery are included, it’s a sinfully idolatrous worship act. A faithful Christian can no more say they are practicing yoga for Jesus than they can say they are committing adultery for Jesus.  – Pastor Mark Driscoll (http://pastormark.tv/2011/11/02/christian-yoga-its-a-stretch)

Jesus was a teacher of the ancient organization called The Way. The Way goes back many thousands of years; some believe it goes back to Mithra (the earlier date of c. 2000BC). We have archaeological evidence of The Way from Mohenjo-daro and Harappa and in some of the older Great Flood legends. Remnants of The Way’s understanding of Mother Nature and God the Mother linger in some ancient religious ideas. We have parallel symbols in the birth of Jesus, Gautama Buddha, Zoroaster and Mithra. To name a few . . .    

- The Yoga of Jesus (http://churchoftheeast.ca/yoga_of_jesus_(1).htm)

These are just some thoughts. 

Suppose that there is no “correct” religion and that in fact every possible religion is an attempt to reunite us with the timeless primordial source of ourselves, our world and our universe.  In such case it would be clear that all of our attachment to this or that religious symbol, dogma, ritual, etc. is actually in itself an act of idolatry.  The symbols are like language itself: attempts at encoding actual experience.  The experience itself is what is truly and ultimately sacred.  And because it is something that we experience it is not at all separate from who we are.  It is our innermost and central identity.

The historical Jesus Christ is said to have lived two thousand or so years ago in the Middle East.  As far as I can determine the actual historical evidence of him is questionable.  In fact some might argue that he was simply a mythological figure himself.  This is presented in the popular internet video Zeitgeist produced in 2007 (http://vimeo.com/13726978).  On the other hand some scholars have focused on “the missing years” to discover whether or not his teachings may have been influenced by a journey to the East.  It is clear that the religion referred to as “Christianity” has been filtered, edited and used for political power over the centuries since his time.  Most notable is the Council of Constantinople and the Nicene Creed of 325 AD.  The Nicene Council effectively edited all of the writings about Jesus (he never published himself) in order to arrive at a dogma consistent with the first “Christian” Emperor’s rule.  (Could this be the origin of the tale of “The Emperor’s Clothes?)  In any case it seems that any direct references to reincarnation were expunged and the teachings were directed to the worship of Jesus as God (consubstantial) and the idea that the rest of us are definitely not. 

Mystical spirituality seems to be somewhat consistent between religions.  For instance Meister Eckhart, a 13^th century Christian philosopher, mystic and theologian often made statements that are fundamentally in sync with Vedantic and Buddhist teachings.  For instance a favorite quote for me is, “The eye with which I see God is the same eye with which God sees me.”  It is recognition of oneness, non-duality which is the basis of all of us.  As Jesus also said, “The lamp of the body is the eye: if therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light.” (Matt 6:22)  The Gospel of Thomas which was edited out of the Nicene Canon but later rediscovered in 1945 gives this additional emphasis, "If those who lead you say, 'See, the kingdom is in the sky,' then the birds of the sky will precede you. If they say to you, 'It is in the sea,' then the fish will precede you. Rather, the kingdom is inside of you, and it is outside of you. When you come to know yourselves, then you will become known, and you will realize that it is you who are the sons of the living Father. But if you will not know yourselves, you dwell in poverty and it is you who are that poverty."

Our ego-self is that poverty.  It is that mistaken identity that lives in fear.  In Yogic terms this is called “avidya,” ignorance or delusion.  It seems to me that Jesus tried to teach us a universal truth, not something to be confined to one religious tradition.  It is the truth of the divinity that appears to be hidden within us.  In fact it is not really hidden, we have just been hypnotized into believing otherwise.  Traditional religion is often implicit in this cultural control system.  Culture, religion, education and politics all conspire to keep us from realizing our true nature, and our true potential.  As Jesus said, "Has it not been written in your Law, 'I SAID, YOU ARE GODS?” (John 10:34) 

Karma Yoga, Non-attachment and Liberation

Unless The Lord builds the house, its builder labors in vain. Unless The Lord watches over the city, the watchmen stand guard in vain. - Psalm 127:1

 

The word ‘yoga’ comes from the ancient Sanskrit language and is etymologically related to our English “to yoke.”  It refers to any means by which we can reconnect our individual beings with Being.  “God” as Being is never really separate from who and what we are, instead this sense of separateness exists within our minds and is the foundation of the ego or false self.  Yoga techniques work primarily with the mind.  Not in the sense of intellectual education but more in the sense of helping us to differentiate our conscious essence from the mind.  As Rishi Patanjali explains, “Yoga means bringing the patterns of mind into a state of stillness, wherein one can recognize one’s true self-nature.” 

The practice of yoga does not require a withdrawal from life.  Karma yoga is the yoga of action, of heartfelt service in this world.  At the same time it is joined with an attitude of non-attachment.  With yoga practice we are always balancing between two extremes.  We are learning not to be conditioned by the world as it appears to be, nor to escape into some artificial transcendence.  In meditation we can connect with a tremendous sense of bliss, this is our self-essence: being-consciousness-bliss.  It is very, very nice, however as long as we are in this life we cannot just stay there.  Instead we have to bring this bliss, this love and joy into actuality in this world.  Be mindful of all the darkness in the world but, turn up your own light.  “Be the change . . .”

In the Bhagavad Gita this whole dilemma is addressed brilliantly.  Arjuna, a warrior General feels despondent on the eve of an epic civil war.  He ponders the possibility of withdrawing from battle.  He questions the meaning of life and existence.  And he wonders about the nature of the soul.  His mentor, Krishna, just happens to be a Divine Avatar.  He helps Arjuna to understand the spiritual path of non-attached action, Karma Yoga.  It simply means committing to the action that is right for the time without worrying about the outcome.  Leave the outcome up to God.  Things may not turn out the way we think they should be, but they always turn out for the best.  “Fulfill all of your duties;” says Krishna. “Action is better than inaction.  Even to maintain your body, Arjuna, you are obliged to act.  Selfish action imprisons the world.  Act selflessly, without any thought of personal profit.” 

Is this even possible?  It takes practice.  Meditation is essential.  Practice yoga and meditation regularly to help stabilize your consciousness in Self-essence.  Use the rest of your time to practice karma yoga.  Of course, be sure to get enough nourishment and sleep.  Take care of your physical vehicle.  Practice prayer and devotional song.  Read and contemplate spiritual literature.  These are all important aspects of yoga.  Non-attachment grows naturally out of on-going meditation practice.  We learn that the objects of the world have little or nothing to do with our inner state of total well-being.  We might not be able to fix the world, but we might be able to communicate this deeper awareness to others. 

Then again, action without attachment is very powerful.  Who knows what is possible?

What's Really Gonna Happen on 12/21/2012

We're living the end of time. Not the end of the world, but the end of a world age-a 5,125-year cycle of time-and the way we've known the world throughout that time. The present world age began in 3,114 B.C. and will end in 2012 A.D. Because the end of anything also marks the beginning of what comes next, we're also living the start of what follows the end of time: the next world age, which ancient traditions called the great cycle.  – Gregg Braden

I first heard about the 2012 thing in the writings and ravings of Terrence McKenna, went on to read a lot of the literature surrounding it.  John Major Jenkins’ Maya Cosmogenesis 2012 (Bear & Company, Santa Fe, NM: 1998) was the most daunting, detailed and perhaps compelling.  Daniel Pinchbeck’s 2012: The Return of Quetzalcoatl, (Tarcher, 2006) was probably the most entertaining. 

I remember a time in 2008 when I was going through the breakup of yet another “serious” relationship when this particular meme really hit home.  McKenna’s prophecies started to gel in my mind and I started to recalculate my life meaning.  Unfortunately while I wallowed in depression things went on around me.  It is important to pay attention to what is happening Now.  Maybe the biggest impact of this looming date is that a large majority of us will be Present! 

Out of everything I’ve read, the videos I’ve watched and the expensive multimedia events I’ve attended, there seems to be three alternative takes:  1) It’s the end of the world, 2) It is an energetic step into a new age of consciousness, or 3) It’s nothing, bullshit and fogetaboutit.  Leaning on the four-dimensional logic suggested by Nagarjuna, I might say that we have to give all possibilities equal value and we have raise our consciousness above even those thought processes.  It is what it is.

Swami Niranjan has addressed these questions in a video satsang.  I recommend you watch it.  Please . . .  It is the essence of wisdom and simplicity.

http://youtu.be/jc9WQY2SOIg

Releasing Our Thought Karma

You are not a helpless victim of your own thoughts, but rather a master of your mind. What do you need to let go of? Take a deep breath, relax, and say to yourself, "I am willing to let go. I release. I let go. I release all tension. I release all fear. I release all anger. I release all guilt. I release all sadness. I let go of all old limitations. I let go, and I am at peace. I am at peace with myself. I am at peace with the process of life. I am safe."  - Louise L. Hay

 

It seems many of us think of “karma” strictly in terms of outward physical actions.  If you hurt another; you will be hurt back.  This is actually just the surface of events that spring forth from the unseen realms of mind and consciousness.  Once we have entered into the domain of physical happening, it is already over.  The deed has been done and there is no turning back.  We might try to “take back” words spoken in anger.  We might wonder if certain negative thoughts contributed to our current situation.  Our experience of reality is the outcome of our inner processes vis-à-vis the processes of nature.

Karma is composed of a three dimensions of activity: thought, emotion and action.  If we don’t pay attention to thought and desire, we have little control over our actions.  If we are not aware of our thoughts then we are controlled by our emotions.  It is at the level of thought that we might possibly have some leverage in this cosmic deal.  The problem is that most of our thought processes happen on a subconscious level.  Unfortunately, whether we are aware or not, these thoughts affect our health, our careers, relationships and the shared world that we deem “reality.”  Underneath it all is a deeper level of reality referred to in Yogic terminology as Atman, “the Self.”  When we are aware at this level we are free from the compulsions of thought, emotion and habitual activities.  As Nisargadatta Maharaj explains, “When you are free of the world, you can do something about it. As long as you are a prisoner of it, you are helpless to change it. On the contrary, whatever you do will aggravate the situation.” 

Meditation helps us step into the Atman level of perception.  It helps us to step outside of our personal dramas and experience the presence of the timeless infinite being within.  Because we are temporarily experiencing ourselves as human beings, we are continually pulled back into thought, desire and action.  It’s alright that is what we are here to experience.  Meditation however gives us access to that deeper, more expansive way of knowing.  Instead of just living the drama, we are at least able to edit the script.

With a deep cleansing breath we are able to let go of inner storms of confused thoughts and emotions, rest briefly in all-pervading peace and then reengage with the “real world.”  The first step is to formulate positive, loving and compassionate thoughts.  Let these turn into positive, loving and compassionate feelings and deeds.  In this way your thoughts can change the world.

The Heart & Soul of Spiritual Relationship

Love is the only reality and it is not a mere sentiment. It is the ultimate truth that lies at the heart of creation.
- Rabindranath Tagore

In most of our human relationships, we spend much of our time reassuring one another that our costumes of identity are on straight. 

– Ram Dass

 

Why do we enter into relationships?  What are we looking for?  Too often we are seeking someone else to convince us to love ourselves.  We wander around at a masquerade party of soul’s hoping to find someone who feels safe enough for us to let down our facade.  At the same time we are completely invested in that mask and are afraid to look behind it.  We feel separate and estranged and can only accept the “safety” of someone who can be a comfortable masquerade partner.  Thus ego-centric “love” can never be anything other than a counterfeit. 

We are all wounded and vulnerable.  We all suffer.  We feel unworthy of love and thus cut ourselves off from our essence.  Then we look for it in someone else: Mom, Dad, husband, wife, child, lover, whoever.  And do we get righteously pissed-off when they can’t or won’t give it to us!  This seems to be the nature of our human existence.  We feel our individuality so strongly that we live in fear, no absolute terror of crossing our imaginary ego-boundaries.  Then we blame it on someone else.  True love cannot be limited to a particular relationship, is not based in need and desire and is non-attached.  As Marianne Williamson writes,

The love in one of us is the love in all of us.

‘There’s actually no place where God stops and you start,’

and no place where you stop and I start.

Love is energy and infinite continuum.

Your mind extends into mine and everyone else’s.

It doesn’t stay enclosed within your body.

(A Return to Love)

This, of course, is not just “mysticism” it is verified by modern physics. 

As a relationship therapist I get to see over and over again how we project our shadows, our wounds and fears, onto another and then call it “love.”  And it is in this sense that our relationships can possibly lead to the healing of our souls; however it can do so only when we are able to look at ourselves in the mirror of self-reflection.  Open, honest and non-judgmental self-reflection is the awakening of true love within us.  It opens the pathway to conscious consciousness evolution, or enlightenment. 

Buddha referred to this kind of self-reflection as “maitri,” or “loving-awareness.”  It is a common cliché that we need to love ourselves first before we can love another.  The problem is that like with most clichés we pay no attention.  Your loving acceptance of yourself, paradoxically opens the door for growth and change.  When we are able accept and allow ourselves to be who we are, we discover that we are beings of evolving conscious, unfolding love.  There is no actual effort involved.  All effort is simply resistance.  “Resistance to the disturbance,” writes Vernon Howard, “is the disturbance.” 

Relationships are an interesting kind of mirroring process.  We see ourselves reflected in each other and the things that we seek to change in the other are aspects of ourselves.  When we seek to change the world, it is often like cleaning the mirror to get rid of a blemish on our own faces.  To truly love another one has to be at peace within oneself.  One has to be free and non-attached.  It is the recognition of both of us as sacred and autonomous beings, individual expressions of Divine Unity.  We are beings of love.  Any need to change ourselves or the other is really an impulse of violence.  “The ultimate state of Love is freedom,” writes Osho, “absolute freedom and any relationship that destroys freedom is not worthwhile. Love is a sacred art. To be in Love is to be in a holy relationship.” 

Often times we turn our relationships into functions.  We put out ads where we want someone who is such and such height, weight, etc.  Or maybe we want a sense of humor, intelligence; someone to share our interests.  In this sense relationships seem to be about fitting a job description rather than opening up unconditionally to another being who essentially, deep down, one’s Self.  We forget sometimes that the tradition of marriage is really based in ownership.  It is a barely disguised form of mutual slavery.  As we awaken however we might be able to create a new kind of relationship based in mutual respect as sacred spirit beings; relationship based in freedom rather than control, love rather than need.

Recycled Suffering: Considering Metempsychosis

Liberation, bondage, what are they to me? What do I care for freedom? For I have known God, the infinite Self, the witness of all things. - The Heart of Awareness

Reincarnation is a controversial subject to put it lightly.  Some people believe in it strongly and even point to evidence of its reality.  Others are highly skeptical of the idea that there is anything or anybody who survives the death of the physical body.  And still others hold religious views which are antithetical to the concept of reincarnation.  Reincarnation is central to Buddhism and Yoga-Vedanta.  It is simply an accepted fact.  As Lord Krishna teaches in the Bhagavad Gita, “There has never been a time when you and I have not existed, nor will there be a time when we will cease to exist. As the same person inhabits the body through childhood, youth, and old age, so too at the time of death he attains another body. The wise are not deluded by these changes.”

From this perspective we are all souls at various stages of spiritual evolution.  We recycle lifetime after lifetime in order to learn lessons and to pay off karmic debts as we make our way back to a state of primordial Unity.  Yoga is primarily a means of reuniting the individual soul with the Universal Consciousness.  It is understood within these systems that cycles of reincarnation are basically cycles of suffering.  True peace, happiness, joy, etc. can only be found when we are able to transcend these cycles and abide in Unity.  Otherwise we continue to experience dualities: pleasure and pain, birth and death, health and sickness, love and hate, success and failure, and so on.  We are bound by duality due to attachment.

Cultivating non-attachment is a central spiritual discipline in Yogic and Buddhist practice.  As Krishna explains attachment is at the root of psychological suffering:

When you keep thinking about sense objects,

attachment comes.  Attachment breeds desire,

the lust of possession that burns to anger.

Anger clouds judgment; you can no longer

learn from past mistakes.  Lost is the power to

choose between what is wise and what is unwise,

and your life is an utter waste.  But when

you move amidst the world of sense, free

from attachment and aversion alike, there

comes the peace in which all sorrows end,

and you live in the wisdom of the Self.

(Bhagavad Gita, 2:62-65)

To be honest, I have been resistant to the idea of reincarnation over the years.  Even after returning from India after having delved deeply into Yoga theory and practice, I was skeptical.  When I returned to study psychology in graduate school an acquaintance asked my opinion on reincarnation.  I replied that I didn’t take it literally but metaphorically.  She said, “You are the only Swami I ever met who didn’t believe in reincarnation!”  I’m still reluctant to think that there is somebody, or something, that “hops” from one body to another.  Instead I suspect that it is a transfer of information and energy.  Yoga teaches that reincarnation is based on latent memories (samskaras) and desires (vasanas.) 

While in graduate school I came across the writings of psychiatrist, Brain Weiss.  Weiss, in Many Lives, Many Masters, writes about his encounters with past-life memories in working with his patients.  http://www.brianweiss.com/   I also was introduced to Ian Stevenson’s book, Twenty Cases Suggestive of Reincarnation.  Rather than looking at memories uncovered through hypnosis, Stevenson investigated cases of children who claimed to remember past lives.  In some cases they remembered verifiable details of where they lived, their previous relations, etc.  In some cases they even remembered how to speak a “foreign” language.  http://reluctant-messenger.com/reincarnation-proof.htm.  Certainly these cases are intriguing if not conclusive for the rational skeptic.

Interestingly some physicists who are investigating the “physics of consciousness” have developed theories to explain reincarnation.  From a Yogic perspective, I think that they are really investigating the point of intersection between the physical domain and consciousness itself, which is truly metaphysical.  Stuart Hammeroff and Roger Penrose have developed a theory of “quantum consciousness” which basically states that consciousness exists and has existed throughout the universe since the beginning.  Hammeroff talks about this theory in a recent episode of Through the Wormhole: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/10/28/soul-after-death-hameroff-penrose_n_2034711.html. The theory proposed by Hammeroff and Penrose is very similar to the ancient philosophy of Vedanta as espoused in the “Gita.”  A similar theory can be found in Amit Goswami’s The Physics of the Soul.

Also interesting is that, if we investigate more deeply into the roots of Christianity and Judaism we find that reincarnation has been part of these religions as well.  Jesus referred to reincarnation in the New Testament when he equates the prophet Elijah with John the Baptist (Matt. 11:13-14 and 17:10-13.)  http://near-death.com/experiences/origen03.html.  It seems that any direct reference to reincarnation as part of Christian doctrine was edited out in 381 AD during the Council of Constantinople and the formulation of the Nicene Creed.  The council and the creed were basically a ploy to turn the Christian teachings into a political entity which was then used throughout the middle ages to control the populace.  Of course, some are still trying to do the same today.  http://youtu.be/QsogswrH6ck 

Ultimately, when we follow the Yoga path, which is not at all antithetical to the true path as taught by Christ, we enter into a blessed state of consciousness wherein we recognize that the cycles of samsara are cycles of illusion.  Our true being is timeless and infinite.  We are eternal Peace, Love and Bliss.  We don’t actually transmigrate at all.  It is a Cosmic Dream.

More Surefire Ways to Avoid Awakening

Ego is the resistance to what is.
~ Adyashanti

In my last post I focused mainly on substance abuse and codependent relationships.  These are excellent ways of avoiding any kind of psychological development or spiritual evolution.  Given that these recent posts respect one’s right to, if not devolve, at least maintain a low level stasis.  After all, growth can be painful and nobody likes pain.  As 2012 reaches its Cosmic Climax it might be a good idea to keep a good supply of oxycodone handy.  In this post, however, I want to assure everyone that it is perfectly possible to remain static while being completely socially acceptable.  No one wants to do jail time and we all want to maintain at least a pretense of having a happy, well-adjusted family.

In fact having a strong sense of superiority when it comes to addicts, homeless people, homosexuals, “nerds,” etc. is a good way of hanging onto your personal status quo.  Just keep reminding yourself that you are better than “those people”.  Duality, division and fragmentation are the heart and soul of non-awakening.  Be as self-righteous as possible.  Never admit that you might be wrong.  Never concede that others might be fellow human beings in suffering.  They just have a “victim mentality.”

Religion can actually be a great tool in this regard.  Now religion can be an evolutionary tool.  It is a vehicle for teaching morality, etc.  Don’t worry it is also a great way of avoiding any true spiritual issues.  I think it was Carl Jung who said that religion is a great way of protecting oneself from God.  Or something like that.  The important point is to maintain a sense of separateness and specialness regarding your personal religious affiliation.  Always remember that your religion is the best.  Or even better, remember that your religion is the only true one. 

I haven’t paid much attention to the Catholic belief system that I was raised in for some time.  But when I was attending Catechism classes in grade school I learned that we had stolen the copyright from the Jews and were now the “chosen people.”  Unfortunately, because I started discussing this with my peers in public school who were of different, but at least Christian orientations, I began to have my doubts.  After all they seemed nice and I liked many of them a lot.  This was the beginning of my downfall (or perhaps, “upfall” depending on one’s perspective.)  Now that I have talked with people of all kinds of different religious perspectives I feel like a spiritual slut.  Please don’t follow my example.

Adhering to a patriarchal, authoritarian and punitive belief system is essential.  Neuroscience, through the new field of “neurotheology” has shown that these kinds of belief have the ability to actually shut down the more evolved areas of the brain.  That’s what we want, right?  Always remind yourself that you are a sinner and basically unworthy.  It is not enough to separate yourself from others and feel superior.  It is also a good idea to regard yourself with disgust and loathing.  That way you are sure to get into heaven.

If you are more inclined towards the rational, scientific view, don’t worry.  Neurotheology indicates that you are just as unlikely to develop those higher cognitive and feeling functions.  Whatever your beliefs are just hold onto them tenaciously.  Your thought-construct of yourself and reality is “reality.”  ‘Nuff said.

How to Avoid Expanding Your Consciousness

Our human problems are emblematic of areas where we are being called to grow, to peck into a new paradigm.  So when we are in the midst of a challenge, if we stop long enough to meditate and remind ourselves of our inner gifts of intelligence, wisdom and peace, we contact that place within us that also knows there are no problems, only human neuroses which can be healed by spiritual discernment. 

-  Michael Bernard Beckwith

As much as I like teachers such as Michael Beckwith, Deepak Chopra, Marianne Williamson, etc. I have come to understand as both a psychological counselor and a spiritual teacher that many of you do not want to awaken.  After all, change can be hard and even painful and I fully respect anyone’s right to refuse to grow.  Sometimes it is just easier to stick with our comfortable misery rather than endure the growth pains of psycho-spiritual awakening. 

So relax, or not, as you prefer.  I’m not out to convince you that your reality is anything other than completely real, completely fucked up and that you are in no way responsible for any of it.  Feel better?  Take some zooloft, crack open a beer, or even better a fifth of Jack.  Don’t like to drink?  You might want to start.  Over the years I have found that heavy drinking can shrink my consciousness into numb and comfortable zones.  Heroin, crack, meth or pornography work very well too.  Dive in.  Don’t forget to be a totally self-centered son of bitch either.  Whatever you do don’t attend to your feelings or those of others.  That would be disastrous. 

On the other hand, you might want to find some other really f’ed up individual and devote yourself to trying to care for his or her needs.  There is nothing like taking care of an alcoholic or addict to distract you from your own inner processes. 

Whatever you do, don’t spend time with yourself.  Avoid introspection at all costs and avoid being around people who do so.  I don’t recommend reading – so once you’re done with this blog just say “no.”  Meditation is becoming popular these days but don’t worry it will pass and nobody will remember that you weren’t “with it.” 

Avoid people who are optimistic and positive.  They are anathema to those of us who are seeking stasis.  Preferably your should hang out in bars, or chat with unavailable sex partners online.  When the impulse to evolve gets really intense just watch TV.