I found this excellent article in an old issue of Ode Magazine while I was waiting to see my doctor today. I am seriously considering subscribing, given the quality of this article and those I have had the pleasure of reading in the past.
It’s probably not something I would normally consider doing, but writing a spiritual journal sounds like a good idea to me. What better time to start than now?
Namaste.
You are not the same, nor are you another.
– The Buddha
The Buddha is saying that we change from moment to moment. Personality is not cast in a rigid mold; the whole secret of personality is that it is a process. The nature of a process is that it can be changed. For a time, it is true, the changes you are trying to make will not seem natural. When someone is rude to you, you will still feel a wave of resentment inside. It does not matter; at the outset, it is enough to act kind, to pretend to be kind, to stage a sort of kindness performance.
Gradually, if you put your whole effort behind this transformation, using the tool of meditation, the seething will subside. Then it will not just be a flawless performance, you will actually transform anger into compassion. You will feel sorry for the person who has offended you. You will not be the same angry person you used to be; and yet you will not be someone else, either. To be patient, kind, and secure is our real nature; anything else is being false to ourselves.
Eknath Easwaran’s Thought for the Day, October 12th
I found some wonderfully informative information on the Hindu God Ganesha on the About.com site. Thought it was worth sharing. Please click the link below to load the PDF file created via the Print Friendly service.
Hope you find this useful.
Namaste.
I visited a Hindu temple for the first time ever yesterday. I have a strong interest in Hinduism and have studied it for a while, but I honestly wasn’t sure what to expect when I decided to visit the temple. I arrived at the Sri Ganesha Temple of Anchorage sometime around 11:00am and immediately noticed the large statues of Ganesha, Rama and Sita, and another goddess whom I later found out is called Durga. The few people who were there then welcomed me warmly, but I wasn’t surprised at all to feel totally out of my element. So, I took a seat and maintained a respectful silence while those folks prepared for their service. I expected most of those attending to be Indian of course, but not everyone was. The one man there who wasn’t quickly realized that I was new to this whole experience, and he took the time to walk me through what was going on. He didn’t give me a choice about participating, but he did briefly explain what we were doing and what the meaning of it was.
After the puja (worship) was over, we enjoyed a vegetarian meal. My new friend and I talked for a while and I discovered that he has had some involvement with the Hare Krishna movement. Since I have heard the bad press about them from (Christian and therefore obviously very biased) anti-cult groups, I felt a bit cautious but my friend put at least some of my fears to rest. I look forward to seeing him again next Sunday and continuing our conversation.
The priest who led the puja to Ganesha and Durga is a devotee of the Divine Mother, which I think I understood is not uncommon.
It would be hard for me to describe in words what I participated in yesterday as far as the worship ceremonies go since I barely understood it all, but I found a video that should at least give you an idea of what occurs in a Hindu temple:
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ta8ylRCSbVQ
This video is helpful too, if you want to have a puja at home:
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pbxlh8oRNWU
This video I have posted before, but it is a beautiful hymn to the Divine Mother.
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MZ0h1sb1IFI&hd=1
Namaste.
| — | Krishna in The Bhagavad Gita 16:21 (via peaceloveandtea) |
Lord, make me an instrument of your peace, Where there is hatred, let me sow love; where there is injury, pardon; where there is doubt, faith; where there is despair, hope; where there is darkness, light; where there is sadness, joy;
O Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console; to be understood as to understand; to be loved as to love.
For it is in giving that we receive; it is in pardoning that we are pardoned; and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.
For the past couple of months or so, I have been meditating on the Prayer of St. Francis as suggested by Eknath Easwaran as a part of his Eight Point Program. To say that meditating on the prayer is life-transforming would be putting it mildly. And, of course, I have had a desire to make this wonderful, beautiful prayer an integral part of my life. As I was meditating this morning I asked myself, “What if I actually did it?” “What if, instead of just giving mental assent to this prayer as a wonderful ideal, I actually put it into practice in my daily life?” “What if we all actually did so?” I have, of course, been inspired to live a more compassionate life and to consciously show more love toward others since I began meditating. But how much more life-transforming would it be to really put this prayer into practice in my daily life?Lord, make me an instrument of your peace, Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
On a daily basis, at least on an intellectual level, I deeply appreciate the fact that God — who is the Lord of Love — is enshrined not just in my own heart but in the hearts of all. But I would love for that knowledge to move deeper into my heart and to become more real to me in my daily life. I would love for the knowledge that God is all and is in all to be so deeply ingrained in my being that it informs every thought that I have and every action that I take. I would love to be an instrument of God’s peace in the world. And where there is hatred, I would love to sow love. There are so many places in our world where hatred abounds and love is desperately needed — for example, in our political and religious discourse. There is so much hatred and vitriol present on both sides of the fence and on each topic. I am ashamed to say that I have been a part of participating in and spreading that hatred and vitriol. But I am only human and have just been blindly going with the flow of what is sadly normal now in our political and religious discussions and debates, allowing my emotions to run free and for the moment ignoring the fact that my opponent on the other side of the fence or on the other end of the religious or political spectrum is a living, thinking, feeling human being who in all likelihood loves God and country just as much as I do.O Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console; to be understood as to understand; to be loved as to love.
What if all of us made a conscious effort to put aside the emotions that can inflict so much damage and chose instead to listen to and hear the other group’s point of view with an attitude of love and did our best to understand instead of criticize? To those who would say in response, “Well, that would be nice, but it’s not the real world” I would ask, “Why can’t it be? Why shouldn’t it be? What, besides a cynical, jaded attitude toward the idea and a lack of willingness to make a positive change is keeping you, me, or anyone else from it?” Every one of us has the freedom to choose how we will respond at any moment to any given situation. We can respond to those whom we disagree with either with anger and vitriol or with an attitude of understanding and love. The choice is ours to make. It really is just that simple! As Eknath Easwaran relates in his powerful book entitled Passage Meditation: Bringing the Deep Wisdom of the Heart into Daily Life (Essential Easwaran Library): It may seem old-fashioned, but I would recommend standing guard over the gate of the mouth to ensure that only the right kind of words come out. It is another form of sense training. Vulgar speech, sarcasm, gossip, even pointless chatter, should all be denied exit visas. The Sufis capture this idea in a splendid metaphor. They advise us to speak only after our words have managed to issue through three gates. At the first gate we ask ourselves, “Are these words true?” If so, let them pass on; if not, back they go. At the second gate we ask, “Are they kind?” If we still feel we must speak out, we need to choose words that will be support- ive and loving, not words that embarrass or wound another person. At the final gate, we ask, “Are they necessary?” They may be true, even kind, but it doesn’t follow that they have to be uttered; they must serve some meaningful purpose. Do they clarify the situation or help someone? Or do they strike a discordant or irrelevant note? All of us understand what blows can do to someone, but we do not realize that words can create a more painful injury, one that can last for many years. Nor do we understand the terribly destructive impact words can have on the consciousness of the person who uses them. What a change there would be in our political and religious discourse — and in our discussions on many other topics as well of course — if all of us took the advice of the Sufis to heart concerning our words!where there is injury, pardon;
When we are injured, our natural conditioned response is to react with anger. When someone does something bad to us or says something bad about us, our natural response is a desire to retaliate. But the much better way to respond — the way that promotes peace and that helps bring love into the world — is to choose to pardon those who have offended us. As the famous Twin Verses of the Dhammapada say: Our life is shaped by our mind; we become what we think. Suffering follows an evil thought as the wheels of a cart follow the oxen that draw it. Our life is shaped by our mind; we become what we think. Joy follows a pure thought like a shadow that never leaves. “He was angry with me, he attacked me, he defeated me, he robbed me” – those who dwell on such thoughts will never be free from hatred. “He was angry with me, he attacked me, he defeated me, he robbed me” –those who do not dwell on such thoughts will surely become free from hatred. For hatred can never put an end to hatred; love alone can. This is an unalterable law. Like most people have, I have encountered some bad people in life who have hurt and used me. One person named Rebecca stands out in particular. It’s a long and very embarrassing story and some of the details I prefer to keep private, but suffice it to say that this woman – whom I met over the Internet — lied to me about who and what she was and she used me for the Web skills I possessed that she had need of and when my usefulness was over, she got rid of me in a very cruel way. It made things all the worse that she knew that I had developed romantic feelings for her and she used that knowledge to full advantage. Needless to say, it made the hurt of being used as I was much deeper. I have bipolar disorder that is very well controlled now, but back in those days I was very ill and very angry. Although violence does not normally come naturally to me at all, I was so enraged by the way Rebecca had treated me that I thought I could probably kill her if the opportunity ever arose. Haven’t we all experienced angry thoughts that we would never actually act upon? It’s just an unfortunate part of the human condition. But now, if I was to encounter Rebecca again, I would give her a big hug and let her know that I forgive her. How she would choose to respond to that would be entirely up to her. The important thing for me is to do the forgiving. Continuing to hate Rebecca and continuing to feel anger toward her serves no purpose except to make me miserable. Responding with love and forgiveness brings healing not just to me, but to the whole situation.where there is doubt, faith;
Who hasn’t doubted their abilities, their worth, or their faith in God at some point in time? The highest and most wonderful service we can render to anyone who is experiencing those painful times of doubting is to lift them up, give them encouragement, love them, and remind them that even in our times of questioning and doubting God is always present and that He will never leave them or forsake them. When we are responding with love and compassion, there is no room for judgment or criticism.where there is despair, hope; where there is darkness, light;
Before my bipolar illness was diagnosed and successfully brought under control, I spent years experiencing a great deal of despair and depression, and I went through some really dark and miserable times. I feel a tremendous amount of gratefulness toward my loving and supportive family, my knowledgeable and compassionate physicians, and everyone else who helped me regain my health. There are many people in this world who are suffering for any number of reasons. We live in a troubled world, and problems such as hunger, poverty, disease, crime, alcoholism, drug addiction, violence, racism, physical and mental abuse and many other serious issues afflict far too many of us, causing tremendous suffering. There are no easy fixes to these problems, but again the highest service we can render those who are suffering is to love them, to assure them that there is hope and when we have the power to do so, to offer them a way out of their suffering. Love brings healing, and when we are busy loving others and serving them, it is impossible to criticize them and judge them at the same time.where there is sadness, joy;
There are many reasons for sadness in this life, too. Who of us hasn’t experienced the pain of the loss of a loved one or the loss of a job, for example? When we encounter someone who is experiencing sadness in their life, the highest and greatest service we can render to them is to comfort and console them and do what we can to bring joy back into their life.O Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console; to be understood as to understand; to be loved as to love.
For it is in giving that we receive; it is in pardoning that we are pardoned; and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.
The whole thrust of this wonderful prayer is to inspire us to live life in such a way that it brings transformation not just to our own lives, but also to the lives of others. When we put our own needs aside and choose to live a life of service toward others we unleash the incredible power of love, and the joy of seeing the lives of others positively transformed because of our efforts in their behalf is ours to enjoy. What better way and more joyful way of life can there possibly be than to dedicate ourselves to the task of transforming hatred into love, injury into pardon, doubt into faith, despair into hope, darkness into light, and sadness into joy? As St. Francis so truthfully has said, when we give to others we receive, when we pardon others we too are pardoned, and when we die to ourselves we are born to eternal life — a life of peace, love, and joy that will never fade away. As Jesus said: 25 For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it. (Matthew 16:25, New King James Version) This is the prayer that guides my life and if you haven’t already done so, I hope you will consider making it yours too. St. Francis gave us the formula for a happy, joyful, fulfilled, and deeply meaningful life centuries ago. It’s up to us now to put it into practice in our lives and then watch as the love and compassion we share with others ripples out from us and our entire world is transformed. Namaste.I have located a Hindu temple (Sri Ganesha) very close to where I live. Planning to check it out very soon! I understand that they are open on Sundays.
If you make time to brush your teeth & drink coffee everyday, you can make time to meditate everyday.
A discussion of what Christian Universalism is and is not by the author of “The Beautiful Heresy” blog.
| — | Surah Al-Ra’d 13:28 (via poeticislam) |
| — | Rob Nairn (via buddhistboer) |
| — | Thich Nhat Hahn (via yogachocolatelove) |
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Rumi Translated by Andrew Harvey from A Year of Rumi. (via shaktilover) |
