Tuesday, May 31, 2011
Monday, May 30, 2011
Sunday, May 29, 2011
Saturday, May 28, 2011
If you sit in a Pitch-Dark Space - Friending Darkness - Sadhguru
From the Archives of Isha Blog, July 2010
Sunday was Amavasya, or the day when the moon disappears from our sight. On the no moon day, if you are willing not to disturb the darkness and keep it absolutely dark, if your mind is not in a primate condition where it jumps around and imagines ghosts, goblins and other nonsense coming from the darkness, darkness will be the most wonderful thing.
If you sit in a pitch-dark space, after some time you will not know the boundaries of your own body. You will not know where you are and where you are not. If your mind is stable and meditative, sitting in a dark space will be a fantastic blessing. But for those whose minds are in a certain level of disruption, darkness is a serious problem. Most people are terrified in darkness, though darkness has never bitten anyone, anywhere, anytime. But because the mind takes so much visual content through the eyes, the moment the eyes become helpless in the darkness, the mind becomes terrified because it is so deeply enslaved to the five senses.
You have five friends who are all nitwits; they are half-brained. Whatever you see, whatever you experience, the senses only give you one part of the experience, they will never give you the whole. Because you start trusting and believing them, because you are deeply attached to them, your whole perception of existence is completely twisted.
So darkness is only a problem for those who have unstable minds. If you have a stable mind, darkness is a very beautiful thing. It is the coolest thing because nobody can disturb it. And it is the strongest thing because nobody can throw it out. It is the only thing which is eternal; it is the only thing which is all-pervading. The only thing that pervades the existence through-and-through is darkness. The dark nothingness that is all-pervading is the very lap of creation. May you have the needed stability of mind to know the utter stillness and the eternal nature of darkness.
If you sit in a pitch-dark space, after some time you will not know the boundaries of your own body. You will not know where you are and where you are not. If your mind is stable and meditative, sitting in a dark space will be a fantastic blessing. But for those whose minds are in a certain level of disruption, darkness is a serious problem. Most people are terrified in darkness, though darkness has never bitten anyone, anywhere, anytime. But because the mind takes so much visual content through the eyes, the moment the eyes become helpless in the darkness, the mind becomes terrified because it is so deeply enslaved to the five senses.
You have five friends who are all nitwits; they are half-brained. Whatever you see, whatever you experience, the senses only give you one part of the experience, they will never give you the whole. Because you start trusting and believing them, because you are deeply attached to them, your whole perception of existence is completely twisted.
Love and Blessings.,
Devotion has found so many forms of expression - Sadhguru on Akka Mahadevi
Devotion has found so many forms of expression – from subtle and gentle, to fierce and extreme. Devotion essentially means you are making an effort not to have a will of your own, so that you arrive at the doorstep of the Creator absolutely willingly. You are making an effort to allow the dimension of energy that is the basis of your making within you to find its ultimate possibility.
Here at iii, we are in the final weeks of Anaadhi. The devotion and focus that the participants have displayed in all that they do is remarkable, and for some participants, their devotion has found expression in poetry.
Devotion is that which is devoid of you.
The Flies of Mahima
The flies of Mahima love to play
On my toes and my nose they frolic all day
I used to try to swat them away
Now I bow down and hope they will stay
On my toes and my nose they frolic all day
I used to try to swat them away
Now I bow down and hope they will stay
– Anonymous
Still
He came this morning –
silently in
silently out
silently in
silently out
You could have missed him
if you were not aware
if you were not aware
But when he left
he was still there
he was still there
- Pat M.
Mystic Slumber
Like a midnight cowboy
he works tirelessly through the night
so that I awake from my slumber
all shiny and new
he works tirelessly through the night
so that I awake from my slumber
all shiny and new
He’s my lullaby in the evening
and my alarm bell at dawn
and my alarm bell at dawn
He’s a demolition crew of one
that blows my creation strewn
and for that I greet each day
with a whole lot of gratitude
that blows my creation strewn
and for that I greet each day
with a whole lot of gratitude
- Christy
In Devotion.,
Sadhguru tells the story of Velliangiri – The Kailash of the South
So Shiva turned back, despondent and frustrated with himself for not having made it in time. He started walking back and he needed a place to sit and work out his despondency. So he climbed up this Mountain and at the peak, he sat. It is a very strange kind of place because he was not sitting here in blissfulness, he was not sitting in meditation, he sat here in a certain kind of despondence and anger about himself. He stayed there for a considerable amount of time, and wherever Shiva stepped and spent a little bit of time, people called that place Kailash. So they called this the ‘Kailash of the South.’ It is a fortune that we are sitting here at the foothills of this Mountain.
“It’s not just mountains. This is a temple for us.”
So many beings, the kind of men that Gods would be envious of because they lived with such grace and dignity, have walked this Mountain. These great beings let the whole Mountain imbibe what they knew, and it can never be lost. This is also a Mountain where my Guru walked and the place he chose to shed his body. So for me and everybody here, it’s not just mountains, this is a temple for us. There is a tremendous amount of information here and for me, everything about how to consecrate the Dhyanalinga, was from here.”
Shivapadam – Take a residence at the Velliangiri Foothills, at Shiva’s feet
Isha Foundation is offering individual residential accommodation for Isha meditators who wish to reside at the foothills of these sacred Mountains and imbibe the tremendous possibilities that they represent. This residential facility will provide a comfortable and personal space for seekers while creating a rare opportunity to focus on sadhana in a space graced by the Presence of the Dhyanalinga and an Enlightened Master.Being at the foothills of Velliangiri is not very different from being at the feet of Shiva. The cascade of energy that this mountain bears is a privilege beyond compare.
- Sadhguru
Thenkailaya Yatra
To provide people with the opportunity to experience the life-transforming power and energy of these Mountains, the Thenkailaya Bhakthi Peravai – a non-profitable charitable trust created by devotees of the Velliangiri Mountains, organises the day-long Thenkailaya Yatra to the Seventh Hill. The yatra through the dense forests of these hills, makes one available to the mystical essence that pervades every rock and crevice of these sacred hills.Friday, May 27, 2011
Thursday, May 26, 2011
Annadhi - A 90 day retreat program
This is quite a stretch both physically and mentally. Above all, it demands extreme discipline. This type of sadhana and exploration probably has never happened in this part of the world till now – at least not to my knowledge. It is great to see American meditators gearing up to go through this; each one of them I am sure had to sacrifice something they value to be here. The hope is to build spiritually profound people with great strength, character, commitment and above all clarity. As a part of this, we are also having a 10-day Samyama program for 400 participants – served by a little over 25 volunteers. It is very touching to see how things are being done.
It is their fortune that the Buddha Pournima happens to be during Samyama – that full moon day when Gautama attained became the basis of a spiritual wave that has left an indelible mark upon humanity.
Love and Grace,
Sadhguru.
The very idea behind a pilgrimage is fundamentally to subdue the sense of who you are. It is to become nothing in the process of just walking and climbing and subjecting yourself to various arduous processes of nature. Today things have been made much comfortable. We are flying up and then driving down and just walking a little bit.
Physically we are much weaker human beings than what they used to be a thousand years ago because somewhere we do not know how to make use of the comforts and conveniences for our wellbeing. We have used it to make ourselves weaker, more difficult with ourselves and with our surroundings in which we exist. So all the more, the fundamental idea of pilgrimage becomes much more relevant to modern societies than it was to the ancient ones. In terms of the destination, Kailash and Manasarovar is probably the greatest that one can make.
I am not in an inner state where I need to do any pilgrimage, but still this pilgrimage to Manasarovar and Kailash has been absolutely astounding for me in terms of experience. I never expected it to be this way. I have seen enough. A few lifetimes of memories still being with me, I am not the kind who is easily surprised or excited by anything; but these last 15 days, have been, not really a surprise, but quite mind boggling in my experience.
For thousands of years realized beings always traveled to Kailash and deposited their knowledge in a certain way, in a certain energy form. Hindus say Shiva lives there, and South Indian mysticism always says their greatest yogi, one of the seven direct disciples of Shiva who are known as the Sapta Rishis, Agasthiya Muni, who is the basis of South Indian mysticism, lives there in the southern face of Kailash. What it means is not that they are actually living there, but they deposited all their work there because they could not transmit it into the people. So it is a treasure house of knowledge.
Whatever temples and places and whatever else may be there in the world – and I have been to many truly sacred and powerful places, I have seen many powerful beings – when I bow down to them I am genuine, but I bow down to them a little less than I would bow down to my Guru, always. But when I bow down to Kailash, I bow down to it the same way I would bow down to my Guru. Never before I have done that to anything or anybody in my whole life, I always kept a little bit extra; but with this, once when I bowed down, I really bowed down as I do to Him.
Visit IshaKailash.com
Breaking the mental chains - Sadhguru
Question: How does a person become free of their bondages when they are in a family where so many people are dependent on them and there are certain chains around you?
Sadhguru: Maybe you cannot release your body from the chains but you can definitely release your mind from the chains. That is in your hands, isn’t it? Right now, maybe you cannot take Sanyas and live in an ashram – your husband, wife or your children will not allow you, but you becoming mentally free, can anybody stop you? No. The bondages have come only because of yourself and nobody else. Freedom does not mean we have to change all our situations. We do not have to turn our life or situations upside down to become free because one situation is not better than some other situation; don’t ever believe that. It is just a choice. Somebody chooses to live in this situation and somebody else chooses to live in another situation; everything has its pluses and minuses. The important thing is how you are within yourself, isn’t it? So, you may not be able to change your external situation immediately, maybe there is nothing wrong with it and there is no need to change it. But you should change your inner situation because it is bothering you.
This mind can become a ladder to divinity, it can make you ecstatic. Many times this mind made you happy, isn’t it? And many times it made you very unhappy, fearful, tense and frustrated. So the same mind is doing both. It is doing whatever it wants because this little instrument of a mind is not in your hands, it has gone out of control. You can take your car and reach the next city or you can ram it straight into a tree. It is left to you. So, it is just about what you do with it. You can reach very far if you keep the controls in your hands.
Wednesday, May 25, 2011
Tuesday, May 24, 2011
Monday, May 23, 2011
Saturday, May 21, 2011
Sadhguru Sannidhi Pada Yantra
Sadhguru Sannidhi is a live temple, a certain atmosphere that throbs in one space. The establishment of Sannidhi creates a powerful energy space within one’s home. Particularly for those who have established spirituality as the priority in their lives, creating Sannidhi has a profound influence on one’s inner evolution.
Friday, May 20, 2011
Wednesday, May 18, 2011
Tuesday, May 17, 2011
Monday, May 16, 2011
Buddha Pournima - This year it falls on May 17th 2011. Tune into Sadhguru’s live darshan from iii, US at 6pm US Central Time & 4.30am IST.
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| The emaciated Siddhartha Gautama becomes Gautama the Buddha. This stone sculpture now at the Lahore Museum, dates to the 2nd century AD. |
Buddha Pournami, is seen as Buddha’s day of enlightenment. After almost eight years of very body-destroying efforts, Gautama had become very weak. For four years he had been a Samana. The main sadhana for a Samana was to walk and never seek food – just walking and fasting. This destroyed his body almost to a point of death. At this time, he came to the river Niranjana, which as many other rivers in India today, has dried up and disappeared. This river was actually just a large stream with knee-high water flowing swiftly. He tried to cross the river but half-way across, his body was so physically weak that he could not take one more step. But he is not the kind to give up so he just held on to a dead branch that was there and just stood.
It is said that he stood like that for many hours. We do not know whether he actually stood for many hours, or for a few moments which seemed like hours in that state of weakness. But at that moment, he realized that what he is seeking is after all within himself, so why all this struggle? “All that is needed is absolute willingness and it is right here. Why am I searching around the world?” When he realized this, he had that little extra ounce of energy to take that step, walk across the river and sit down under the now famous Bodhi tree. He sat down with the determination that, “Unless the Ultimate happens to me, I will not move. Either I will get up as an Enlightened Being or I will die in this posture.” And in a moment he was there because that is all it takes.
All it takes is that it should become the only priority. Then it is just one moment. The sadhana, the effort is just for this. Because people are so scattered all over the place, it takes such a long time just to gather them and make them into one organic whole. People are identified with so many things. So the first thing is to gather yourself. Only if this human being is fully gathered as one whole, we can do something with him.
So there have been many, but this incredible human being, in many ways has changed the face of this planet and still continues to do so. 2500 years is not a small amount of time.
- Sadhguru
Isha Yoga Center celebrates Buddha Pournami with a day of sacred Buddhist chants and special offerings at the Dhyanalinga, as well as a evening and full moon meditations. The energies of this night are considered to be very conducive for one’s inner evolution. The sathsang and meditation with Sadhguru, wherever he happens to be at that time, is a much looked forward to event.
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| Meditators during the Buddha Pournami celebrations at the Isha Yoga Center, last year. |
This year Buddha Pournami falls on May 17. Tune into Sadhguru’s live darshan from iii, US at 6pm US Central Time & 4.30am IST.
Sunday, May 15, 2011
Saturday, May 14, 2011
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| Sadhguru's daughter Radhe, bowing to her Mother Vijji |
Sadhguru : Of the many things that have happened in the last week – from signing important business deals to opening the Ishana store in the New Delhi airport to launching Linga Bhairavi temple projects in two centers to finalizing Adi Yogi Alayam plans and other various construction projects – one event stands out for me. The 23rd of Feb 2011 , Wednesday, will remain etched in my memory for always. I can share this unabashed as our lives have always been so public during the last two decades. My daughter Radhe grew up in this challenging atmosphere where there is hardly any line between what is private and public. Living a near nomadic existence from her infancy, she learnt to enjoy unfamiliar situations and people.
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| Sadhguru embracing Radhe |
Over 23 years ago, Vijji and I visited KALAKSHETRA in Chennai and imbibed the exuberant atmosphere of music and dance. Vijji wished that if we ever had a girl, she should come here. I said ‘let it be so’ as I had no intention of having a child and such a need did not exist in me. But over 20 years later, Radhe passed out of Kalakshetra and here, in the electrifying ambiance of the Bhairavi temple, she hit the stage. As she was rendering her last piece, the sky opened up and poured but she continued to dance – an enchanting moment it was.
Since then, every evening has been a scintillating performance as a part of the Yaksha festival. Guests are beginning to arrive for Mahashivarathri, a night-long fest. Over a million people are expected. The air is electric with expectation and joy.
Too much happening for one life.
Bliss and Bliss.
Friday, May 13, 2011
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