A Song For Buddha | Isha Foundation - Sounds Of Isha

Golden Gems, from the teachings of Nisaragadatta Maharaj

Devoting oneself towards one form of God. - Sadhu Om.

The mind which is nothing but the reflection of
the Self, is a very great wondrous power in its pure
state. It is so powerful that it can create and see
anything which it thinks of intensely, in gross form.
The mind which is nothing but the reflection of

The main point of Yoga is to collect the scattered
thoughts into one and fix the mind on that one
thought only. The worship of God is a means to focus
the mind on one point, setting aside the other
innumerable thoughts concerning one’s daily activities
rising (in one) during the waking state. In the Path of
Love (Bhakti Marga) when such confidence in God:
“God will look after everything in my life; why should
I think and worry about it” increases, thousands of
unnecessary thoughts will depart.

But this alone is not
sufficient. The important point in Bhakti Yoga is to fix
the mind on one name and form of God, and not
change the worship from one name and form of God
to another and thereby allowing the mind to branch
out into so many thoughts and waver.

The right sign that one has understood that
God is one only, is one’s clinging to one God only.
Spelling and singing so many different names of
God, only betrays the lack of faith and understanding
of the oneness of God!

Devotion has the eyes to see the things of the Beyond. Incident from Bhagavan Ramana's life.

Very often, I would go to TPR‟s room outside the ashram and wait for him. One day, as he came out of the room, he was murmuring, “The grandfather sowed; the grandson is reaping.” He kept muttering it repeatedly.

                          I asked him, “What are you saying?” He then gave me a beautiful explanation, “One day, a devotee offered a huge bhiksha - a traditional feast given in honour of a saint - to Bhagavan in the ashram. While I was expressing joy to my friend over the feast, Bhagavan walked in. He had heard our exchange. He smiled and then turned in my direction and said, „Thinking about bhiksha? Your grandfather‟s house was the only one I entered to eat after coming to Arunachala. Every day, your grandfather would regularly visit the temple. He was a staunch devotee of Lord Arunachaleswara. A tall and heavy built man, he adorned himself with a rudraksha garland and other beads. In those days, around 1896, I used to stay inside the big temple near the Gopuram Subramanya shrine at the entrance of the Arunachaleswara temple. Every day, your grandfather would sit in front of me for a while without saying anything. I was a young boy of sixteen. He was an elderly person, but he too kept silent when he was with me. He was a well known person in the town and a lot of important people used to be his guests. One day, a very important person came home and arrangements were made for a feast. Even on that day, after your grandfather came to the temple to have the darshan of the Lord, he came to me and sat down. After a while, he got up and then, abandoning his usual silence, said to me, „Get up! We will go to my house, have bhiksha and come back.‟ I was not used to talking in those days. I made signs to indicate my unwillingness. He did not heed me. He was big and strong, while I was thin and weak. He repeated his request. I persisted in signalling „no‟. Since I didn‟t budge even a little, he bent down, linked my arms to his, forced me to get up and follow him. I was thus forced to enter his house. He made me occupy the most important place and spread in front of me a leaf much larger than the other ones. He himself served me. After I finished my meal, he ate. In those days, I never had a bath.

My body would smell, and so nobody would come close to me. Yet, your grandfather used to come unfailingly and sit close in front of me. Many people in town came to see me and then went away. Your grandfather alone realized that though young, what was in this was fullness.‟

” TPR had tears in his eyes when he narrated this. He concluded, “Ganesan, it is solely my grandfather‟s devotion to Bhagavan that is now enabling me to enjoy his holy presence and experience the inner felicity which Bhagavan is showering on me every day.”

Ramana Periya Puranam

Feeling pity for others is illusion. To know this, there is no other way, than to turn inwards. Incident from Bhagavan Ramana's life.

THERE ARE NO OTHERS

In the 1940s, a staunch devotee of Bhagavan, who was also a hard working ashramite had to leave the ashram. Before leaving the ashram he felt so abashed and embarrassed, that he did not have the courage to meet Bhagavan. The other ashramites were helpless in persuading him to stay as he had left unnoticed the previous night.

TPR was accompanying Bhagavan during his usual morning walk on the hill. Assuming that Bhagavan did not know what had happened the previous evening, TPR told him that this ashramite had left under undesirable circumstances. TPR did so with a sincere, heavy heart for he loved this person very deeply. Bhagavan stopped walking and turned towards TPR and said, in a harsh and uncompromising tone, “Just because some one has slipped down one foot, remember sir, you have not moved even an inch up. Beware! Beware!”

Though Bhagavan‟s voice had a tinge of pain and anguish, these words were spoken with such sternness and authority that TPR got a shock and was almost knocked down to the ground. Seeing his pitiable condition, Bhagavan became mellow, turned back and continued walking with his usual, calm and measured strides.
Realizing that TPR had not yet got back his composure, Bhagavan told him with great love and affection, “There are no others. One takes the body to be oneself. Hence, one treats others also as bodies. These is only „I AM‟. When attention is turned inward to „I AM‟, these so called bodies, minds, worlds, good and bad actions, are found to be not there. Attention turned inwards, there prevails only the Truth. Turned outward, there is nothing but untruth. “I AM‟ is the head of the coin. „No others‟ is the tail of the same coin. You are thus, ever the Truth. Plunge within and be the Truth, always.”

After a pause Bhagavan continued, “How does one see a fault in the other? The appearance of the other is taken to be true, which itself is an error. Added to that, one sees a fault in him. That is, one already knows what a fault is, which means the mistake is born only in the one who cognizes. One then shifts it to the other on the back of spurious proofs based on one‟s valid or invalid reasoning. Who is corrupt now? Who is at fault now? Who is the culprit now? So, turn every outward movement inwards.

Be the silence, your true Self, every moment. Now, where is the room for any division?”

DROPS from the OCEAN

Sri Janaki Matha - An ardent devotee of Bhagavan Ramana

Sri Janaky Matha

(The following article, which describes the life of a unique devotee of Bhagavan Ramana, was written by Darlene Delisi Karamanos, using Dr. G. Swaminathan's Biography of Guru Devi Sri Janaky Matha for source material.)

Sri Janaky Matha was a wife, mother of seven children, community volunteer, devotee of Bhagavan Ramana Maharshi and an enlightened soul. Her amazing life of inner visions, spiritual yearning, surrender and bhakti inspires all to pursue the spiritual ideal, delve into the Supreme Self and not waste even a minute in the process.

Born on July 27, 1906, the child Janaky exhibited unusual detachment. She accepted all things with a joyous heart. Janaky was full of devotion to the local deities, Sri Viswanatha and Visalakshi, and as she grew in years, Janaky desired to be like Sita, the ever-faithful, pure and holy wife of Sri Ram.

In her thirteenth year her uncle discussed with Janaky her willingness to marry a doctor who was then thirty-two years of age. When told that the widower had two daughters, aged two and six, Sri Janaky replied, "What of that? That doesn't make much of a difference and, after all, I like children." Even though her parents were not too keen on this matrimonial arrangement because of the extreme age difference, Janaky intuitively felt that the doctor would be helpful in the attainment of her goal of Liberation. So in 1919, Sri Janaky married Dr. C. S. Ganapathy (known hereafter as 'Doctor'), in a quiet ceremony performed before Lord Venkataramana of Tirupathi. The Doctor was often heard to remark: "Wherever you (Janaky) go, I shall follow you." And where else could she go, but to God? Living in Tirupathi, Sri Matha's devotion to Sri Venkataramana grew steadily.

In 1921, she gave birth to a daughter and named her Padmavathy, after the consort of Lord Venkataramana. Then a son, Srinivasa Subrahmanya, was born, and several years later another daughter, Sarada.
There came a point in her life when she realized: "To none but Him (God) should true love be directed. To turn to the Divine is the only truth in life." From that day on she continued to take care of her family and responsibilities but shifted her life's ideal to that of total devotion to God.

At the age of twenty her daily routine was as follows: She read the Gita and other Scriptures until about 1 a.m. every night. Janaky would get up at 5 a.m., finish her ablutions and meditate until 7 a.m. Then she would take a bath, recite hymns while attending to household work for about three hours, and after sending the children to school and the Doctor to work, she would engage herself heart and soul in worship until 1 p.m. From 1 to 4 p.m. she was busy looking after the needs of her husband and children. At 4:30 p.m. she would go to the Ladies' Club (which did much volunteer community service), attend meetings, play tennis and return home at 7 p.m. Upon returning home she would meditate for an hour before taking her supper of gruel and milk. Though she took very little food, she was healthy and always cheerful.

Although the Doctor was then earning a good salary, owing to various reasons, there was a lack of funds. One day before going to bed she prayed to Sri Subrahmanya to keep her carefree by taking on His shoulders the oppressive burden of the family's welfare. The next day, a sannyasi (ascetic) came to her house. She was all alone when he said to her, "You were calling me yesterday. I have come from Palni. Leave to me all your family worries and worship me with a carefree heart. Whatever is needed for the family - be it money or other needs and necessities of life - will be provided for." He asked her to give him the promise that she would never forget him. After she agreed, he disappeared.

After this she had many wonderful spiritual experiences and visions of deities, often lasting the whole night.
Sri Subrahmanya came twice more in the disguise of a sannyasi. When Janaky revealed this to the Doctor, he replied with scepticism, "I will believe your words only if He comes here when I am in." Janaky responded, "If that be your desire, let it be so."

The Doctor had just returned for lunch when they both felt a presence outside. Seeing a sannyasi, both Janaky and the Doctor came out and offered him a chair. He took some food and said, "You wanted me to come when your husband is in, and here I am." To make the Doctor believe His Divinity, He exhibited some psychic powers. He asked for another chair and requested Janaky to be seated. She felt reluctant to sit on the same level with Him, but he insisted and asked her what more she desired. Janaky requested Him to bless her with a Sadguru in human form.

What the sannyasi next said to her shocked her very much. "I am none none other Subrahmanya. Much pleased by your meritorious actions and depth of devotion, I have a longing to be born as a child to you. I will play with you for two years and then my power will get infused in your heart." Janaky exclaimed, "My Lord! You want me to plunge deep into the ocean of samsara (worldliness) when my desire is to ferry across it." She argued that she would not be a good person to bring up an incarnation since she was on fire with renunciation. What if she forgot His Divinity and scolded and punished him? What if she took pride that she had Subrahmanya at her beck and call; she would be in the depths of delusion. What if she turned to psychic powers and fell short of her goal of realization? Lastly, she begged, "Let me be blessed with a Guru."
With a smile of His face, Subrahmanya said, "Am I not your Guru? Anyhow, if such be your wish, there is a Mahatma by name Sri Ramana Maharshi in Tiruvannamalai. You may go and have His darshan." He showed Janaky a photo of Bhagavan Ramana that he was carrying. It was the first time that she had heard about Bhagavan Sri Ramana. Saying that he would come again to discuss with her His desire to be born as her child, He disappeared from sight.

Her heart then surged with an intense love for Bhagavan Sri Ramana. She continued with her meditations, worship, household chores and volunteer work. Day by day, Janaky could feel a number of changes happening to her nervous system. Her visions continued. A severe pain developed in her spine and she became bedridden. Her nerves seemed to have been shattered and often the heartbeat was faint and hardly audible. In spite of all this, her mind remained peaceful. Friends wanted her to be seen by specialists, but the Doctor was sure it was not a disease to be treated medically and that, by the grace of God, she would be all right. This state continued for forty days and then disappeared as mysteriously as it came.

After a few days, a sadhu appeared before her and again asked about Subrahmanya being born to her. Again she pleaded that she didn't need obstacles, but a helping hand. The sadhu assured her that, "Begetting a son will in no way shackle you in bondage. There will be no hindrances to your spiritual progress."
Janaky and the Doctor went to Sri Ramanasramam on April 20, 1935. Her long cherished yearning was now going to materialize. Bhagavan was sitting in the meditation hall. The moment Janaky entered the hall, the full and gracious look of Bhagavan fell on her. She stood motionless, intoxicated with the nectar flowing through Bhagavan's eyes. Bhagavan asked her to be seated. Her heart swelled with joy. Her mind was ready to absorb the full flow of Bhagavan's Grace. Throughout that night she enjoyed visions of Bhagavan blessing her.

To Janaky, Bhagavan was no different from the formless Arunachaleswara. In the evening hours of their departure day, Janaky knelt before Bhagavan and spoke to Him of her desire for liberation and Sri Subrahmanya's decision to incarnate in her womb. She also revealed her experience of the all-pervasive nature of the Paramatma and awaited instructions from Bhagavan as to what she should do next. He said, "Continue doing it in just the same way."

With the infant Swaminathan, Janaky and the Doctor returned to Sri Ramanasramam for the blessings of Bhagavan in August 1936. For a long time Janaky had been praying for her husband's spiritual awareness to be aroused so that he might not, at any time, stand in the way of her spiritual progress. Bhagavan asked both the Doctor and Janaky to come before him and he read aloud "Upadesa Saram" (Essence of Instruction) and asked them to follow it. Janaky's heart was overflowing with joy.

To quote from Janaky Matha's biography:

".From the moment she first came to Bhagavan Sri Ramana, He was her all. She reasoned, 'There is only one thing in the world worth achieving: the root cause of the whole universe, the 'One Without a Second'. I must attain it, realize it and experience it with Bhagavan's Grace."

Physically and mentally drained by her spiritual experiences, Janaky sought Bhagavan's help in October 1936. At an opportune moment, she prostrated before Bhagavan and poured out her heart to him. She told of her spiritual experiences and begged for his protection and the removal of obstacles in her quest for Liberation. She also expressed her fear of becoming deranged because she had no Guru to guide her. Bhagavan replied: "Who told you that you have no Guru? Don't get disheartened. I am here as your Guru; nothing will upset your mind." With that assurance, she transferred all her cares and worries to Bhagavan Ramana.

About a year later, Janaky felt something like a forceful explosion at the back of her head and powerful currents throughout her spinal cord. She did not think her physical body could withstand it. She said to herself, 'Let things take their own course. The grace of the Guru will do what is right and good for me.' This state continued for twenty-six days after which she asked the Doctor to take her to Sri Ramanasramam. He was reluctant at first due to her evident weakness, but allowed himself to be persuaded. Sri Bhagavan's full glance of grace poured forth blessings and strength on her. Even before Janaky had informed Bhagavan of her experiences, he spoke to her about a similar experience he had had in his early days: "Look here. Don't get frightened. One day while I was lying in bed I felt as if I had been bombed from inside at the back of my head."

The young Swaminathan, who had just completed his second year, said to Janaky in a sweet, childish voice, "Mother, see here! That Bhagavan we saw there in Tiruvannamalai is always standing near you. He follows you wherever you go." These words were a source of great consolation and joy as Janaky continued to feel the protecting grace of Bhagavan.

It was January of 1938 when Janaky's body became rigid from her toes upward. She thought she was nearing her end. Her mind withdrew into Sri Ramana in the heart. She had many visions and experiences, but the one that crowned all others was the experience of the dynamic force or Sakti ascending and embracing the Supreme Self. The kundalini continued to push upwards and tried to break through the spot in the top of her head. Janaky cried out, "What are you trying to do? Bhagavan Sri Ramana and I are inseparable! Against the downpour of the Guru's Grace, you can do me no harm." With this, the force stopped its attempts and bodily feeling returned. She told the Doctor that she had at last been set free from the rounds of birth and death and had attained her long cherished goal. The purpose of her earthly life was fulfilled. By the grace of Bhagavan Sri Ramana, Janaky became a Jivanmukta (liberated soul) at thirty-two years of age.
Janaky had travelled between Ramanasramam and her home whenever she felt the need to be near Bhagavan, but on January 18, 1938, while visiting Ramanasramam, she did not feel like continuing in family life. Doctor was upset and felt as if he had now lost his second wife. The younger children were grief-stricken. Their appeals and tears did not dissuade her as she was revelling in a glorious spiritual realm. Then, the next morning, she remembered the promise she had made to Bhagavan to remain in the family for five more years. She immediately said she would go back with them to Kakinada. Bhagavan gazed at her and said, "Did I ask you to become a sannyasini? Look at me. I have not taken sannyasa and do not wear the ochre cloth. You have only one family, but I have to shoulder the burden of all these devotees and their families." She knew then that renunciation must be in the heart.

Janaky was wondering why she should be having so many visions and experiences when her only desire was to be free from the cycle of birth and death. Bhagavan gently said, "Can one get this for the mere asking? It seeks the heart where it wants to shine."

As the Doctor and Janaky were preparing to leave, Bhagavan told the Doctor, "You doctors say that the heart is at the left side of the chest. But the whole body is the heart for yogis. Jnanis have their hearts both within and without." He then gazed at Janaky and again assured her: "I am always with you."

Bhagavan was her All. She desired only to contemplate the Holy Feet of Bhagavan. In the months and years that followed, devotees were drawn to Janaky as bees to honey. She began to be addressed as Sri Matha. She took a few of them to Sri Ramanasramam and said to Bhagavan, "All these people seek me as their Guru.I have never wished to be a Guru. I would request Bhagavan, in all humility, to kindly accept these devotees as Bhagavan's disciples."

Bhagavan said, "When you are above likes and dislikes, desires and aversions, let things take their own shape. To the extent they believe in you, they will reap results. I will protect those who, with full faith, trust in you."

Another incident that happened at Ramanasramam occurred when an oil lamp went out and the hall was in darkness for a few minutes. When the light came back, three-year-old Swaminathan exclaimed, "The light failed and Bhagavan was not visible; the light came back and Bhagavan is seen!" Bhagavan turned to the boy and said, "What you say is precisely correct. When there is ajnana (ignorance), God is not realized. With the dawn of jnana (wisdom), He is seen." As it was Bhagavan who gave Sri Matha her light of wisdom, she decided to pay for the electrification of the Ashram.

Even after realization, Sri Matha carried on with her domestic and social activities. She was elected President of the Child Welfare Centre and Vice President of the Ladies' Club. She performed all her actions for God's sake in a supremely detached manner. With equanimity of mind, she saw the Lord in all of the world.
To some people she would advise, "Lead a righteous life and discharge your duties to the family, conduct family worship, practise charity, have an abundant life and learn to gradually still the waves of passion." To others who wanted to know more about Liberation, she taught, "Always nurture Divine thoughts, obliterate likes and passions and surrender to the Guru."

There were times when Sri Matha was lost in samadhi, oblivious to her surroundings. Food had to be forced into her mouth for sustenance and she had to be bathed by others, as she was oblivious of her body. At other times she attended to her routine work and concealed her exalted state.

After the marriage of her daughter, Sarada, Sri Matha was making final arrangements for a permanent stay at Sri Ramanasramam. After bowing before Bhagavan, the ten-year-old Swaminathan poured out his sorrow, weeping bitterly and rolling on the ground. He sobbed, "Pray give us back my mother and order her to come with us to Thanjavur."

Bhagavan, with a voice choked with emotion said to Sri Matha, "What can I do?" Then turning to Swaminathan said affectionately, "Take your mother and go back to Thanjavur." Sri Matha submitted to Bhagavan's request and returned with the Doctor, Swaminathan and the three-year-old Ramachandran.
At Sri Matha's request the southern portion of the family house remain as an ashram and spiritual centre with Sri Bhagavan as the Sadguru. The main objective of the centre is to spread the teachings of Bhagavan Ramana.

Moments before her passing away, in April 1969, devotees and relatives chanted Bhagavan's hymn Aksharamanamalai, with the refrain of "Arunachala Shiva, Arunachala Shiva."

Sri Matha's life stands as a shining example of perseverance to the ideal of Liberation and devotion to Bhagavan Ramana. Once, when some of her devotees were having a lengthy discussion of Bhagavan's 'Who am I?' enquiry, she halted them saying, "Enough of this discussion! My head begins to swim with such dry and useless discussions. Amma knows only one thing - to show devotion to Sri Bhagavan." It was through such steadfast devotion that Sri Matha achieved Liberation.

Guru Ashtakam - Dedicated to the Lotus Feet of Sadhguru

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Simply be, and await the descent of Grace upon yourself... and you can't go wrong! - Annamalai Swami.

Q: Yesterday, in my meditation, I found myself in the midst of the most glorious feeling! Waves of bliss washed over me and I expanded -- becoming truly one with the world.

A: Is that feeling there, right now?

Q: Um, no, not really! But the memory is still there... and I feel truly ennobled, merely thinking about it. What does this indicate?

A: That which comes and goes, however "ennobling", is still not the Truth. The glimpse of the Self, as the attribute-less Absolute, is very rare. Every experience is an interpretation of this Reality, exactly as the entire phenomenal world is... albeit arguably closer to Reality, in this case. Exactly as is the case with everything in the mind, this could indicate several things -- some apparently desirable and some, apparently undesirable. In some cases, it could lead to the entity (Jiva) searching for a repeat of the same experience for the rest of the phenomenal existence in that body. In certain others, it could herald the desire for freedom (mumukshutvam), leading to eventual freedom (moksham.)

Simply be, and await the descent of Grace upon yourself... and you can't go wrong!

Realization takes only a moment, but with your whole intensity and being.

Papaji :

I traveled all over India looking for a Guru. I was in the army then and so I had a superiority complex. (giggles) So, I would find a teacher and ask them if they could show me God. Then all the devotees would look at me and show me their king beards which they grew during their fifty year stay with that particular guru. They would say, "We have searched unsuccessfully for years! How do you expect to come in here with your shoes on and see God in a minute?"
Then they would push me out. What to do?
But, if you search for something so intensely that you won't even take food until you find it, then you will get what you want. So, this story ends at the feet of Ramana Maharshi. I asked him, "Can you show me God?"

He said, "No God cannot be seen, he is not an object of senses which can be seen."
"Nee Naan Bhagavan:" You-I-God
You can't see God because you are God!
How can you search for That which you are?
At that moment I had trust that I am God and this trust didn't falter and still it stays....
You have to trust what you are.
~ Papaji

Have you been walking for too long on spiritual path & nothing happened. A laughter a day, keeps the doctor away.

To be successful in spiritual path, you need to be sincere with yourself. Don't show, what you are not. A Zen Story.

THE MONK WITH SWEATY PALMS

Kasan, a Zen teacher and monk, was to officiate at a funeral of a famous nobleman. As he stood there waiting for the governor of the province and other lords and ladies to arrive, he noticed that the palms of his hands were sweaty.

The next day he called his disciples together and confessed he was not yet ready to be a true teacher. He explained to them that he still lacked the sameness of bearing before all human beings, whether beggar or king. He was still unable to look through social roles and conceptual identities and see the sameness of being in every human.

He then left and became the pupil of another master. He returned to his former disciples eight years later, enlightened.

Yoga means leading a disciplined life. - Swami Satchidananda

Yoga means leading a disciplined life. This means that everything in your home should have its proper place and shouldn’t be scattered here and there. Even when you place your yoga mat on the floor, it should be done in a neat way, not in a haphazard way. Even when you put your clothing on a hanger, put it on nicely, carefully and make it look tidy. There should be discipline in all our habits—our eating, sleeping, working, in everything. That is Yoga. 

Nothing is haphazard in nature; there’s an arrangement in everything. Take a flower and analyze the petals; notice how arranged, how organized they are. There, you see tranquility; there is no restlessness. In yoga we’re going back to nature. In our daily lives, we should learn to have this tranquility in all our actions.

OM Shanti, Shanti, Shanti.

A lesson of Humility from Mahavatar Babaji

"The scene was a Kumbha Mela at Allahabad," Lahiri Mahasaya told his disciples. "I had gone there during a short vacation from my office duties. As I wandered amidst the throng of monks and sadhus who had come from great distances to attend the holy festival, I noticed an ash-smeared ascetic who was holding a begging bowl. The thought arose in my mind that the man was hypocritical, wearing the outward symbols of renunciation without a corresponding inward grace.
"No sooner had I passed the ascetic than my astounded eye fell on Babaji. He was kneeling in front of a matted-haired anchorite.

"'Guruji!' I hastened to his side. 'Sir, what are you doing here?'
"'I am washing the feet of this renunciate, and then I shall clean his cooking utensils.' Babaji smiled at me like a little child; I knew he was intimating that he wanted me to criticize no one, but to see the Lord as residing equally in all body-temples, whether of superior or inferior men. The great guru added, 'By serving wise and ignorant sadhus, I am learning the greatest of virtues, pleasing to God above all others—humility.'"
— from Autobiography of a Yogi (p.317)

Because an illumined soul experiences the nondual Brahman, he can never fear anyone. - Ramakrishna.

Vedanta says that a knower of Brahman becomes fearless. Fear originates from duality. Because an illumined soul experiences the nondual Brahman, he can never fear anyone.
Once while in the Himalayan region in Tihiri-Garhwal, Swami Turiyananda was living in a thatched hut that had a broken door. One night he heard the villagers cry, "Tiger! Tiger!" He immediately put some bricks behind the door to protect himself. Just then he remembered a passage from the Taittiriya Upanishad that declares that even at the command of Brahman the god of death does his duty like a slave. His awareness of the Atman awakened, and defeated the body idea. He kicked the piles of brick away from the entrance, and sat for meditation." Fortunately, the tiger did not show up.

Sadhguru on the subtle points in Isha Kriya

If your conciousness travel with the breath,
If your awareness travels with the passage of the breath,
keenly enough,
than you will see,
distinctly see that what is You and what is your body, will stand apart,

What is You and what is your mind, will stand apart

If You and your body-mind combination stand away from each other,
than suddenly you will find,
your ability to use your body and mind goes to a phenomenal scale.

Saintly Moments - Musical.

"Our Motivation to Practice is but to seek His Grace." - MICHAEL JAMES:

We are actually misusing Bhagavan's grace by thinking unnecessarily of various thoughts. Why we think these thoughts and feel they are important..because we don't have love for Bhagavan that much.
Hence these thoughts get more importance in our mind than Bhagavan. If we had love for Bhagavan, Bhagavan is ready to do anything for us. He is ready even to think for us.

Sadhu Om used to say..'Bhagavan is the best servant you could imagine. If we could surrender to Bhagavan to the dot, He will take care of everything, even your thinking.'
Why we think about all these various thoughts, problems, what I need to do tomorrow, how to fix the problem, how to change myself, when I can be happy, where will I go tomorrow etc etc ... why we think of all these things? Because we don't trust Bhagavan that much.
If we really trust Bhagavan, you leave everything to Him and just abide in Self. So Grace is always there, always present in whatever form we want. If we are wise, we use the Grace, if we are foolish, as we all are, we use it to go outward. The habit of the mind going out is what we need to break the pattern and it is done by practice atma vichara, by surrender and love for Him.
The motivation we have to practice is not anything but to seek the Grace of Bhagavan.We just need to let the Grace do Sadhana for us.
Michael James
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uLYCjjlldhI

Don't live in hypocrisy

Once, to illustrate the futility of empty, theoretical advaitic knowledge, Papa narrated the following story. He was staying in a small mandir in Jhansi when a man approached him and asked, "Who are you?"

"I am Ramdas," he replied simply.

"No, you speak a lie there," returned his visitor. "You are Ram Himself. When you declare you are Ramdas, you do not know what you say. God is everything and in everything. He is in you and so you are He. Confess it right away.

"True, dear friend," Ramdas replied, "God is everything. But at the same time, it must be noted God is one, and when He is in you and everywhere around you, may I humbly ask to whom you are putting this question?"

After a little reflection, the man could only answer, "Well, I have put the question to myself ".

Papa always stressed the necessity of absolute honesty and sincerity as essential in the great Quest. Better an honest, dualistic bhakti than a hypocritical advaita. Whereas bhakti, however dualistic, will lead ultimately to jnana as jnana mata, the mother of jnana, advaita practiced only with the head leads merely to confusion and hypocrisy.

Swami Satchidananda

"Yoga For Today" Dilip Cherian with Sadhguru | Through the Mystic Eye

The Song of the Avadhut

What prevents you from freedom ? Papaji.

Question and Answer session with Bhagawan.

Talks with Ramana Maharshi (Talk 31)
4th February, 1935

A visitor asked: What to do to get liberation (moksha)?

M.: Learn what liberation is.

D.: Should I do worship (upasana) for it?
M.: Worship is for mind control (chitta nirodha) and concentration.

D.: Should I do idol worship? Is there any harm in it?
M.: So long as you think you are the body there is no harm.

D.: How to get over the cycle of births and deaths?
M.: Learn what it means.

D.: Should I not leave my wife and family?
M.: How do they harm you? First find out who you are.

D.: Should not one give up wife, wealth, home?
M.: Learn first what samsara is. Is all that samsara? Have there not been men living among them and getting realisation?

D.: What are the steps of practical training (sadhana) for it?
M.: It depends on the qualifications and the nature of the seeker.

D.: I am doing idol worship.
M.: Go on with it. It leads to concentration of mind. Get one-pointed. All will come out right. People think that freedom (moksha) is somewhere yonder and should be sought out. They are wrong. Freedom (moksha) is only knowing the Self within yourself. Concentrate and you will get it. Your mind is the cycle of births and deaths (samsara).

D.: My mind is very unsteady. What should I do?
M.: Fix your attention on any single thing and try to hold on to it. All will be right.

D.: I find concentration difficult.
M.: Go on practising. Your concentration will be as easy as breathing. That will be the crown of your achievements.

D.: Are not abstinence and pure food helpful?
M.: Yes, all that is good. (Then Maharshi concentrates and silently gazes at vacancy, and thus sets an example to the questioner).

D.: Do I not require Yoga?
M.: What is it but the means to concentration?

D.: To help concentration, is it not good to have some aids?
M.: Breath-regulation, etc., are such helps.

D.: Is it not possible to get a vision of God?
M.: Yes. You see this and that. Why not see God? Only you must know what God is. All are seeing God always. But they do not know it. You find out what God is. People see, yet see not, because they know not God.

D.: Should I not go on with repetition of sacred syllables, (mantra japa), e.g., Krishna or Rama's name, when I worship images?
M.: Mental japa is very good. That helps meditation. Mind gets identified with the repetition and then you get to know what worship (puja) really is - the losing of one's individuality in that which is worshipped.

D.: Is the Universal Soul (Paramatma) always different from us?
M.: That is the common belief, but it is wrong. Think of Him as not different from you, and then you achieve identity of Self with God.

D.: Is it not the Advaita doctrine to become one with God?
M.: Where is becoming? The thinker is all the while the Real. He ultimately realises the fact. Sometimes we forget our identities, as in sleep and dreams. But God is perpetual consciousness.

D.: Is not the Master's guidance necessary, besides idol worship?
M.: How did you start it without advice?
D.: From sacred books (puranas).
M.: Yes. Someone tells you of God, or Bhagavan Himself tells you.
In the latter case God Himself is your Master. What matters it who the Master is? We really are one with Master or Bhagavan. The Master is God; one discovers it in the end. There is no difference between human-guru and God-guru.

D.: If we have done virtuous action (punya) the achievement will not leave us. I hope.
M.: You will reap your destiny (prarabdha) that way.

D.: Will not a Wise Master be a great help in pointing out the way?
M.: Yes. If you go on working with the light available, you will meet your Master, as he himself will be seeking you.

D.: Is there a difference between prapatti (self-surrender) and the Path of Yoga of the Seers?
M.: Jnana Marga and Bhakti Marga (prapati) are one and the same.
Self-surrender leads to realisation just as enquiry does. Complete self-surrender means that you have no further thought of `I'. Then all your predispositions (samskaras) are washed off and you are free. You should not continue as a separate entity at the end of either course.

D.: Do not we go to Heaven (svarga), etc. as the result of our actions?
M.: That is as true as the present existence. But if we enquire who we are and discover the Self, what need is there to think of heaven, etc.?

D.: Should I not try to escape rebirth?
M.: Yes. Find out who is born and who has the trouble of existence now. When you are asleep do you think of rebirths or even the present existence, etc.? So find out whence the present problem arises and there is the solution also. You will discover that there is no birth, no present trouble or unhappiness, etc. All is That; All is Bliss; we are freed from rebirth in fact. Why fret over the misery of rebirth?

Leave the shyness behind.

Four Gems from Ashtavakra Gita

1. Bondage is when the mind longs for something,grieves about something, rejects something, holds on to something, is pleased about something or displeased about something.

2. Liberation is when the mind does not long for anything, grieve about anything, reject anything, or hold on to anything, and is not pleased about anything or displeased about anything.

3. Bondage is when the mind is tangled in one of the senses, and liberation is when the mind is not tangled in any of the senses. 

4. When there is no "me," that is liberation, and when there is "me" there is bondage. Consider this carefully, and neither hold on to anything nor reject anything.

ASHTAVAKRA GITA

Do we get paranoid, when death is near ?

 

Ram Dass : I sit with a lot of people who are dying these days because I am very interested in seeing whether we can develop a metaphor for dying that isn’t quite as horrendous as the one we have going in the West. Because our metaphor for dying comes out of philosophical materialism where a person that is dying is surrounded by people who are saying “you got to be up and around tomorrow. Don’t talk nonsense about death.” Then they walk out into the corridor and say “she won’t last the night.” I mean, just total hypocrisy.

While you can’t kill anybody you can’t prolong life. You only know whether or not life is to go on or not when you are yourself not afraid of death. Otherwise your fear totally distorts your perception all the time and you just panic when somebody is near death. Recently Wavy Gravy called me up, he is a very beautiful guy. Wavy said there was a boy who was dying here in San Francisco, and asked if I would visit him. And I said sure, so I went over and visited with him. He was about 23 years old and he was dying of Hodgkin’s disease. It was last August. We met at Tom Wolf’s house, and I went over to the kid and I said to him “I hear your going to die soon.” He says “yeah.” I said “you want to talk about it?” He says “ok.” So we started to talk about dying. After a while he went to light a cigarette and I noticed that his hand was shaking, he was very thin and weak. And I suddenly got totally paranoid and I felt like “gee what right have I got to be coming onto to him? After all, he’s the one that’s dying.” So I said “hey if I am coming onto you, you know, just tell me to go away. I don’t have to do this.” And he says “well, being with you is getting me nervous, but the reason is because as death is approaching I’ve been looking for the strength to die and you are the first person I’ve met who doesn’t seem to be afraid of dying. And that’s just what I am looking for.”

And I feel like a child in this scene, and I’m just so excited by it that I am shaking. He was giving me the license – he was giving me the license to be with him. And we went on being together for quite a while and then he died later on. And what I recognize now – there’s a woman that just died in New York last year, her name was Debbie Matheson – she’s a beautiful woman. She was in her forties, she had two children and she was married to an author by the name of Peter Matheson. She was connected with the Zen Center in New York City, and when she was dying she was put in Mount Sinai Hospital to die. So the Zen students all came to her room every night and meditated and they turned the room into a Zen temple. And what happened was the first night they did this the doctors, the three young residents came to visit her room making their rounds, which usually consists of pushing open the door with that kind of hearty hail good fellow well-met type, you know, “how we doing today? Did we eat well today? Let’s look at that chart.” You know, that type of thing. They walked in and they faced all these beings sitting like this with candles and incense and the room was darkened and it freaked them out completely. And the second night they came in a little more gently, and by the third they would open the door very quietly and come in and stand in awe for a little while and then go away.

There, right in the middle of Mount Sinai they redefined a whole new metaphor, a metaphor that can be created through the strength of mind because you can create your universe anywhere you are. Once you recognize that, a hospital is merely a collectivity of minds who share a certain model about what it is all about. And the problem is that this society is one where the medicine men are knowledgeable, but not wise. And with the recognition of that, we are now seeking wisdom not just knowledge in our healers. And wisdom has in it compassion. And compassion understands about life and death.

A doctor is committed by the Hippocratic Oath to save life, but she or he does not have to be attached to that. They merely do that in the same way a bus driver drives a bus. It is the emotional attachment that they have to it that comes out of their own fear of death that is the problem in medicine at this moment in the West. And hopefully within a few years we will have an 800 number telephone number like you do for getting a motel reservation where if you are going to die in the next few months you can call that number and somebody will come and hang out with you and provide help for you in defining a new metaphor for how you’re going to die. And we’ll have some cassette tapes that you can play when you are in pain that will help you figure out what the pain is about, and how to use it to become more conscious. Because it’s obvious that the way to die is to learn how to live, and the answer to dying is to be present at the moment.
Ram Dass
Berkley Comm. Theater
March 7^th 1973

Source Link : http://www.ramdass.org/a-metaphor-for-dying/

Whatever you have in hand now, direct it towards One Source.

Question: Namaskaram Sadhguru, In one of your discourses, you said we need to direct all our energies towards Shiva. You said, “Whether it is love, lust, anger or greed, everything should be directed towards Shiva.” How is it possible to direct one’s anger, lust and greed? Love is understandable, but the others I do not understand.

Whatever you do in your life, you can only do it with what you have. You cannot do something with what you do not have. So whatever you have, use that. It is not about whether Shiva gets something or not; he really needs nothing from you. The important thing is that you learn to direct all your energy – everything that you are – in one direction. If you do not put everything that you are in one direction, you will not go anywhere.

 

If your love is for Shiva, your lust is for someone in the neighborhood and your hatred is for your friends, you will drive yourself in five directions. One who is trying to drive himself in five directions obviously is not serious about making a journey. But if you put everything in one direction right now, you will go somewhere. I want you to understand – you neither have love, hatred, lust or jealousy in you. You just have life in you. What you make out of it is up to you. You can make love out of it, blissfulness, depression or frustration. You can make it pleasant, unpleasant, ugly or beautiful.


There is a wonderful story…On the way to Mysore, there is a place called Nanjangund. Just after Nanjangund, there is a little ashram on the left side called Mallanna Moolai. Over a hundred years ago, there was a man there named Malla. At that time, Mysore City was one of the few cities in South India which was planned and done-up beautifully because the Maharaja had a sense of aesthetics. He created a wonderful palace and gardens.


People would go to Mysore for everything – commerce, livelihood and pleasure. They would either walk or go in a bullock-cart. But when they came to this corner, which was 16 miles from Mysore, Malla would rob them. People came to find out about this and instead asked if they could make a deal with him. He became like a tax collector, and set up a system where every person that passed would pay him one rupee, which was a big amount of money at that time. The people hated this, so they called him Kalla which means “thief”, and that spot became known as Kallana Moolai which means “thief’s corner.”


He collected money the whole year and then on Mahashivarathri, he celebrated in a grand way and fed the whole town. He didn’t eat up this money, he just had a little piece of land on which he lived, but he robbed everybody and then conducted a big festival for Shiva. So when two Veera Shaivas – sages who were also great devotees of Shiva – came and saw what he was doing, robbing everyone and then having a big Mahashivarathri, they were both embarrassed and intrigued by this form of devotion. They talked him out of this and said, “There are other ways to conduct this festival.” They set up a little ashram and Malla became a monk along with them, and all three of them attained Mahasamadhi.


There are many wonderful stories about how Shiva is most pleased with his devotees – not because they offer a lump of gold or a diamond, but because they offer what they have. The message is, “You offer what you have” because in the very nature of things, you cannot offer what you do not have.
So the question is not about in what form you offer; you just offer your life. In offering, your life becomes one-pointed. Once it becomes one-pointed, it will begin to move. If it is a five-pointed star, it is not going anywhere. It will just create tension in five different directions. If you make a weapon, you want it to penetrate so you make it one-pointed. It has to be sharp. Sharpness means its point is limited.

Love & Grace,

Sadhguru.

"Hum Loag" - Shankar Tucker sings with Mumbai

Words of wisdom from Mooji.

Be aware of this persistent feeling that there's something more to do in order to attain the Self.
Somehow, you have been brought, so far, to a stage where you are encouraged to leave aside all intentions, projections, fantasies and simply keep quiet inside your being.
Mind is inclined to say this is not enough. It is suggesting you take some action. However, the Master tells you to keep quiet and to focus on the Silence of your Heart rather than the rush of the mind. You are advised to avoid the trap of waiting for something to happen.
There may arise a little tension because of this advice to not go with the movement from mind.
Learn to bear your own Silence by observing the tensions encircling it.
Observe rather than react.
Again, keep quiet.
Stay only as Awareness.

~ Mooji

The chess game that God plays with us. What is your next move ? A Poem from Hafiz.

“TRIPPING OVER JOY
What is the difference
Between your experience of Existence
And that of a saint?

The saint knows
That the spiritual path
Is a sublime chess game with God
And that the Beloved
Has just made such a Fantastic Move
That the saint is now continually
Tripping over Joy
And bursting out in Laughter
And saying, “I Surrender!”
Whereas, my dear,
I am afraid you still think
You have a thousand serious moves.”
― Hafiz, I Heard God Laughing: Poems of Hope and Joy

  

  

  

Total bhaktas cannot work in the world. People who commit totally to jnana become too proud, so half of each is good. - Papaji.

  

Devotee: I feel that I am in the middle of bhakti (devotion) and jnana (knowledge).

Papaji: Total bhaktas cannot work in the world. People who commit totally to jnana become too proud, so half of each is good.

If you want to know the Truth,
you must have one hundred percent love for the Truth.
In this way there is no difference
between the ways of love and knowledge.
You need love to know
and you need to know what your loving.

Different people may appear to take different paths. The intellectual person is interested in the path of knowledge. The one who has love in their heart will want to see God as love itself. God is love and God is truth.

So, if you are intellectual rub your intellect and find where all the intelligence comes from. You will find it comes from the heart, which is Love. When you love you are loving your own heart.

'Become aware that what is seen is the seeing." - Nisaragadatta

Sit quietly. Stop all thoughts [including day dreaming and all imagining]. Be aware of yourself, this is most important. If you are sitting on a chair be aware of your weight on the seat and of the back of the chair. Sense the pressure of your feet on the ground and of the clothing on your skin -- you bring an observer into the picture by doing this. Whilst stopping thoughts, and being aware of yourself, expand your attention. See all that is facing you and on either side, smell and hear, and without turning around be aware of all those around you. Hold this. Watch what you see, feel, taste, smell and hear. Note what happens inside you. All this with no discursive thoughts.

Just Be aware. Observe -- do not interfere. Do not worry about anything.

Consciously experience. Not as an achievement, or a conclusion or a goal. Become aware that what is seen is the "seeing".

'Become aware that what is seen is the seeing." And then experience seer, seen and seeing, merging into Youself. What remains is "I Am", Hold It. Keep holding It as long as one can. Remain fully aware. If swerved, become aware of yourself once again and just be.

Nisaragadatta Maharaj

Sri Sadhu Om on the Path to Self-Realization

  

  

At first one may not be able to maintain unbroken Self-attention even for a few minutes. Due to long habit, it is only natural that the mind will start to think of some second or third person objects. Each time the attention thus turns outwards, the aspirant again tries to turn it back towards the first person. This process of slackening of Self-attention and then trying to regain it, will repeat itself again and again. If the aspirant’s mind is weak due to deficiency in the love to know Self, the slackening of Self-attention will happen frequently, in which case a struggle will ensue and the mind will soon become tired. Instead of thus repeatedly struggling to regain Self-attention, one should relax the mind for a while as soon as the initial attempt to fix the attention on the first person becomes unsteady, and then again make a fresh attempt. If one thus makes intermittent attempts, each attempt will be found to have a fresh force and a more precise clarity of attention.

      If one presses one’s thumb on a pressure scale, the dial may at first indicate a pressure of ten kilograms. But if one tries to maintain that pressure for a long period of time, the dial will show that it is gradually slackening and decreasing. On the other hand, if one releases the pressure and after a brief rest presses again with fresh vigour, the dial will show a little more than ten kilograms. Similar is the case with Self-attention. If one struggles for a long time to maintain Self-attention, the intensity and clarity of one’s attention will gradually slacken and decrease. But if instead one relaxes as soon as one finds that one’s Self-attention is slackening, and if after a brief rest one makes a fresh attempt to fix one’s attention on Self, that fresh attempt will have a greater intensity and clarity. Therefore, what is important is not so much the length of time one spends trying to attend to Self, but the earnestness and intensity with which one makes each fresh attempt.

      During the time of practice (sadhana) our attention, which is now focused on second and third person objects, has to turn back 180 degrees, so to speak to focus itself on the first person. In the beginning, however, one’s attention may be able to turn only 5, 10 or 15 degrees. This is because one’s turning is resisted by a powerful spring  – the spring of one’s tendencies (vasanas) or subtle desires towards worldly objects. Every time one tries to turn towards the first person, this spring of one’s worldly tendencies will tend to pull one’s mind back again towards second and third persons. Therefore the number of degrees one is able to turn will depend upon the firmness of one’s desirelessness (vairagya) towards worldly objects and upon the strength of one’s longing (bhakti) to know Self. Such vairagyaand bhakti  will be increased in one by regularly practising Self-attention, by earnestly praying to Sri Bhagavan and by constantly associating with such persons or books as will repeatedly remind one, “Only by knowing Self can we attain real and enduring happiness; so long as we do not know Self we will be endlessly courting and experiencing misery; therefore our first and foremost duty in life is to know Self; all other efforts will only end in vain.”

      As one’s desirelessness and longing to know Self thus increase by prayer to the Guru, by study (sravana) of and reflection (manana) upon His teachings, and by practice(nididhyasana) of Self-attention, one’s ability to turn one’s attention towards the first person will also increase, until one will be able to turn it 90, 120 or even 150 degrees at each fresh attempt. When one’s ability to turn one’s attention Selfwards thus increases, one will be able to experience a tenuous current of Self-awareness even while engaged in activity; that is, one will be able to experience an awareness of one’s being which will not be disturbed by whatever one’s mind, speech or body may be doing, in other words, one will be able to remember the feeling ‘I am’ which always underlies all one’s activities. However, this tenuous current of Self-awareness should not be taken to be the state of unceasing Self-attention, because one will experience it only when one feels inclined to do so.  [Emphasis mine]

      How then can one experience the state of unceasing Self-attention, the state of unswerving Self-abidance? The Guru’s Grace will more and more help those aspirants who thus repeatedly practise Self-attention with great love (bhakti) to know Self. When a glowing fire and a blowing wind join together, they play wonders. Likewise, when the glowing fire of love for Self-knowledge and the blowing wind of the Guru’s Grace join together, a great wonder takes place. During one of his fresh attempts, the aspirant will be able to turn his attention a complete 180 degrees towards Self (that is, he will be able to achieve a perfect clarity of Self-awareness, completely uncontaminated by even the least awareness of any second or third person), whereupon he will feel a great change taking place spontaneously and without his effort. His power of attention, which he had previously tried so many times to turn towards Self and which had always slipped back towards second and third persons, will now be caught under the grip of a powerful clutch which will not allow it to turn again towards any second or third person. This clutch is the clutch of Grace. Though Grace has always been helping and guiding one, it is only when one is thus caught by its clutch that one becomes totally a prey to it. If one once turns one’s attention a full 180 degrees towards Self, one is sure to be caught by this clutch of Grace, which will then take one as its own and will forever protect one from again turning towards second and third person objects. This state in which the mind is thus caught by the clutch of Grace and is thereby drowned forever in its source, is known as the experience of true knowledge (jnananubhutl), Self-realization(atmasakshatkaram), liberation (moksha) and so on. This alone can be called the state of unceasing Self-attention.

Significant ebooks who needs support on their path to Self-Realization

 Sri Sadhu Om: The Path of Sri Ramana PART ONE: The Jñana aspect of the teaching:
 http://www.happinessofbeing.com/The_Path_of_Sri_Ramana_Part_One.pdf

 Sri Sadhu Om: The Path of Sri Ramana PART TWO: On God, World, Bhakti and Karma:
http://www.happinessofbeing.com/The_Path_of_Sri_Ramana_Part_Two.pdf

Listening to voice of Anandmayi Ma.

Live Fully Now - Alan Watts

How the tribes in Africa brought the newborn child in the world

There is a tribe in Africa called the Himba tribe, where the birth date of a child is counted not from when they were born, nor from when they are conceived but from the day that the child was a thought in its mother’s mind. And when a woman decides that she will have a child, she goes off and sits under a tree, by herself, and she listens until she can hear the song of the child that wants to come. And after she’s heard the song of this child, she comes back to the man who will be the child’s father, and teaches it to him. And then, when they make love to physically conceive the child, some of that time they sing the song of the child, as a way to invite it.

And then, when the mother is pregnant, the mother teaches that child’s song to the midwives and the old women of the village, so that when the child is born, the old women and the people around her sing the child’s song to welcome it. And then, as the child grows up, the other villagers are taught the child’s song. If the child falls, or hurts its knee, someone picks it up and sings its song to it. Or perhaps the child does something wonderful, or goes through the rites of puberty, then as a way of honoring this person, the people of the village sing his or her song.

In the African tribe there is one other occasion upon which the villagers sing to the child. If at any time during his or her life, the person commits a crime or aberrant social act, the individual is called to the center of the village and the people in the community form a circle around them. Then they sing their song to them.

The tribe recognizes that the correction for antisocial behavior is not punishment; it is love and the remembrance of identity. When you recognize your own song, you have no desire or need to do anything that would hurt another.

And it goes this way through their life. In marriage, the songs are sung, together. And finally, when this child is lying in bed, ready to die, all the villagers know his or her song, and they sing—for the last time—the song to that person.

You may not have grown up in an African tribe that sings your song to you at crucial life transitions, but life is always reminding you when you are in tune with yourself and when you are not. When you feel good, what you are doing matches your song, and when you feel awful, it doesn’t. In the end, we shall all recognize our song and sing it well. You may feel a little warbly at the moment, but so have all the great singers. Just keep singing and you’ll find your way home.

The Mind Unleashed
www.themindunleashed.org

Living in the Eternal Now - Amma

To begin to work toward establishing yourself in the eternal now, first limit time and space by not thinking about or discussing events that happened more than four days past or will happen more than four days in the future. This keeps awareness reined in, focused. Be aware. Ask yourself, "Am I fully aware of myself and what I'm doing right now?"

Once you have gained a little control of awareness in this way, try to sit quietly each day and just be. Don't think. Don't plan. Don't remember. Just sit and be in the now. That's not as simple as it sounds, for we are accustomed to novelty and constant activity in the mind and not to the simplicity of being. Just sit and be the energy in your spine and head. Feel the simplicity of this energy in every atom of yourself. Think energy. Don't think body. Don't think about yesterday or tomorrow. They don't exist, except in your ability to reconstruct the yesterdays and to create the tomorrows. Now is the only time. This simple exercise of sitting and being is a wonderful way to wash away the past, but it requires a little discipline. You have to discipline every fiber of your nerve system, work with yourself to keep the power of awareness expanded. Regular practice of meditation will bring you intensely into the eternity of the moment. Practice supersedes philosophy, advice, psychology and all pacifiers of the intellect. We have to practice to keep awareness here and now. If you find yourself disturbed, sit down and consciously quiet the forces in yourself. Don't get up until you have completely quieted your mind and emotions through regulating the breath, through looking out at a peaceful landscape, through seeking and finding understanding of the situation. This is the real work of meditation that is not written much about in books. If you can live in the eternity of now, your life will be one of peace and fulfillment.

Amma.