Karma, Grace, and Free Will - Perspectives for Integral Transformation Vaisnava Christian Dialogue
Deepavali - The Festival of Lights
~ by Sadhana
Deepavali signifies the victory of good over evil and is the most celebrated festival in India and in countries with an Indian populous. The name may be spelled in various ways such as Diwali or Deepavali. In all these spelling variations, the key translation is “the festival of lights”. Light is understood to be the shining lamp of knowledge that illuminates our beings with higher knowledge of the self. Sometimes the term used is “from darkness unto light” —the light empowers us to commit ourselves to good deeds and brings us closer to divinity. So, during Deepavali, lights illuminate every corner of India, rangolis are laid in front of doors and the spirit of joy and friendship to all is the mood of the heart.The most epic and all-time immortal tale of good overcoming evil is told in the Vedic text- The Ramayana, written originally by the ancient sage Valmiki. The event marks the glorious victory of Lord Ram over the demon Ravana. It’s a story of love, separation, greed, lust, heroes, and more, but most of all the righteous actions that help navigate through life’s turmoil.Who has not weathered the storms of life and wondered what was the right thing to do? The epic story is inspiring in this regard and has been retold in dance, song, and various languages including Balinese and Thai. It has been told for centuries and is an everlasting tale.The story begins with a beloved King Dasarath who rules the prosperous city of Ayodhya. He has three wives of which Kaikayi was his favorite. She was granted two favors by the King after she saved his life during a war.He also had four sons, the eldest, and everyone’s favorite was Rama. Rama was married to Sita, a beautiful and very devoted wife. Soon the time came for the King to pass on the throne to his heir Rama. Just before the coronation. Kaikayi reminds King Dasarath of her two favors and demands that her son Bharat be crowned as King, and Ram be banished to the jungle for fourteen years. The King agrees due to righteousness and becomes very weak and heartbroken. Ram is agreeable as he wants to maintain the honor, and he sets forth with Sita and his younger brother Laksman who wished to accompany him. Thus, the story of Ram with his wife Sita and Laksman takes place as they traverse the challenges through the fourteen years. The main plot is the abduction of Sita by Ravana who was filled with greed, envy, and lust. The Bhagavad Gita says that these three vices are often the cause of much suffering. Also, that we, as conditioned beings in this world, have these propensities and must guard against them to be “righteous” in our actions so that we may be liberated from its clutches.The story highlights the roles of some heroic figures such as Hanuman, who show how these righteous behaviors and devotion to a higher Divine source will empower us to always win over evil within us.The story ends with the destruction of Ravana during a very epic battle filled with courage and grace. Eventually, after fourteen years, Sita, Ram, and Lakshman return to the city of Ayodhya, and this marks the day on which Deepavali is celebrated. The context of Deepavali is a powerful story and the underlying message for embodied souls who must guard against greed, lust, and envy.Rama is Lord Ramacandra is an incarnation of Lord Sri Krsna, who is considered to be the “avatari”, or the source of all incarnations, according to Srimad Bhagavatam, or the Bhagavat Purana.A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami has given us very insightful understanding through a verse found in the Srimad Bhagavatam:
ŚB 9.10.50
अग्रहीदासनं भ्रात्रा प्रणिपत्य प्रसादित: ।प्रजा: स्वधर्मनिरता वर्णाश्रमगुणान्विता: ।जुगोप पितृवद् रामो मेनिरे पितरं च तम् ॥ ५० ॥
agrahīd āsanaṁ bhrātrāpraṇipatya prasāditaḥprajāḥ sva-dharma-niratāvarṇāśrama-guṇānvitāḥjugopa pitṛvad rāmomenire pitaraṁ ca tam
Translation: Being pleased by the full surrender and submission of Lord Bharata, Lord Rāmacandra then accepted the throne of the state. He cared for the citizens exactly like a father, and the citizens, being fully engaged in their occupational duties of varṇa and āśrama, accepted Him as their father.A summary from A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami’s purport of this verse reads ‘It is sometimes said that people want the kingdom of God without God. Such an aspiration, however, is never to be fulfilled. Good government can exist when the relationship between the citizens and the government is like that exemplified by Lord Rāmacandra and His citizens. Lord Rāmacandra ruled His kingdom exactly as a father takes care of his children, and the citizens, being obliged to the good government of Lord Rāmacandra, accepted the Lord as their father. Thus, the relationship between the citizens and the government should be exactly like that between father and son.’To inspire the devotional mood, here are my favorite recordings of an old bhajan, Kirtan, worshiping Lord Ram and Srimati Sita Devi by Gaura Vani. It can be found at AyodhyaVasiRam or AtHomeVersionThe lyrics are as follows and are the different names of Lord Name, Srimati Sita Devi which are simply worshiped with love and devotion in this song. It is in a call-and-response, so sing along!
Ayodhya Vasi Ram, Ram Ram Dasharatha Nandana RamPateetha Pavana Janaki Jeevana Seeta Mohana RamAyodhya Vasi Ram, Ram Ram Dasharatha Nandana RamPateetha Pavana Janaki Jeevana Seeta Mohana Ram
--------------By Sadhana
The Formation of our Spiritual Identity
~by Sacinandana Swami
How does one form an identity? Our social self is formed in contact with society – our friends, people with whom we interact, news which we hear, etc. Our spiritual self is formed in contact with the spiritual world, the society of Krsna devotees in the spiritual world, but also the association with devotees in this world.I suggest that we all find good devotee sanga where we can ask confidential questions and where we can listen to their realized answers. Where we can also do what is so necessary in our lives in order to grow: reveal our inner heart, our desires and reflect and explore them a little further. Jiva Goswami wrote a verse in this connection which speaks very much to me: “Oh Krsna, my stone-like heart could not become transformed by You, nor could it be transformed by hearing about Your devotees. However, when I heard about the exchange of love between the devotees and You, even my stone-like heart became transformed.” There is no force in the universe which works better in transforming a materially bound heart into a free heart which seeks the shelter of Krsna out of taste for Krsna. Nothing works better than hearing about the love which goes on in spiritual society, in the spiritual world. That will help you to form your spiritual self.From Kartik Inspirations 2018 by Sacinandana Swami, #8
Chaos and Crisis in Washington DC
on Jan. 7, 2021
------
Anuttama Dasa is the ISKCON Communications Director for ISKCON News. He is also the husband of Rukmini Walker.
Living in the Season: Fall
Here in Damariscotta Mills, there have been a few big blows that have shaken down the deadwood, and the lawn is now strewn with kindling. I see muted colors melding all around me, creating a warm-toned blanket on the landscape of Fall. I admire the poise of this season as it goes about the task of letting go, squarely facing the inevitable, secure in the appropriateness of surrender.Sunlight angles more sharply and with great articulation. The architecture of trees is increasingly evident. In this season the fundamentals are revealed. What warmth remains is appreciated, in part because this could be the last gentle day before Winter sets in. We receive these final offerings with a degree of reverence distinct to this time of year.
The harvest is in. Has there been one for you; real or metaphoric? Is the garden put to bed? Is the wood in? Are you ready?The season is patient but precise. Our intellect may wish to negotiate, to extend, but the Fall is not really negotiable. If it were there would be no renewal.It is easy to become rigid in this season, focusing on what’s been left undone, the many ways we are unprepared, and how the impending season is not secure. We may feel we have not put our house in order, and it is hard to let go. We may ache for the health of the planet and insist on remaining ever vigilant.Yet the wisdom of the in-flight attendant rings true; ‘Place the mask over your own face and then help place the mask over the face of your loved one’. We must care for ourselves if we are to care for those we love. The unattended tasks will not be resolved over the weekend. This is, after all, a marathon and not a sprint. Conserve for the work ahead. Prepare by taking into account the need for rest and renewal. The season’s message is to let go, and to trust that letting go is not giving up. We are part of the cycle of the seasons, and that includes the great shake down of Fall. And decline and stillness are the mothers of Spring.Think seasons, not news cycles. The brittle, anxious, fearful, ungrounded quality of the time can leave us vulnerable to manipulation. This cacophony lives alongside the steady flow of our rivers, the breathing of the tides, and the supple swaying of trees. The natural world is a prayer and we belong to it. Our drama can obscure the reality of how the planet functions with a unitary wisdom.We are not exempt from natures logic or consequences. We are no different than the leaves that settle in a halo of warm-tones on the ground. The challenge for us is to follow the lead of the tree, noting how it’s leaves let go at the right time, effortlessly. Can we struggle less with what is inevitable, and accept there is a time to release and let ourselves fall, trusting, into the arms of the unknown.
Susan Weiser Mason and Traditional Acupuncture are located in Damariscotta Mills / Nobleboro. She has been practicing since 1986.George Mason is an artist and acupuncturist. www.georgemasonart.com
COVID-19: The Bigger Picture
By Nirsimhananda Das
There is so much fear, and perhaps rightfully so, about COVID-19 virus.If we subscribe to the philosophy that Krishna’s plan is always for our welfare, then the COVID-19 virus is here to help us.To reset. To remember. What is truly important. What is the purpose of life. By reconnecting with family, community, and, God. Reducing travel so that the environment, the air, lungs all get a break.Huge regions of China are seeing blue skies and clouds for the first time in decades because the ugra karmic factories have been shut down.People who can must work from home rather than commute in polluting cars; they get more personal time, to communicate, to contemplate.The existence of this universal enemy is an invitation to turn inwards, retract the senses from the object of the senses, to find the true self.[perfectpullquote align="full" cite="" link="" color="" class="" size=""]“While contemplating the objects of the senses, a person develops attachment for them, and from such attachment lust develops, and from lust anger arises.” BG 2.62[/perfectpullquote]The slamming of the breaks on artha is an circumstance to reset economically, to re-evaluate the systems – especially for the working poor, the elderly, the mentally challenged, etc.The practices of healthcare systems worldwide are being highlighted. Nutrition in maintaining healthy immunity is being emphasized. And, washing our hands — how did that become a “new” thing that we needed to be remembered. Cleanliness has always been next to Godliness..How hard does one need to work to be able to live, to have a life outside of work? Maybe people will be more open to the “hard” questions – the ones that are truly meaningful. A devotee sees the existence of COVID-19 as Krishna’s mercy – a preaching moment. Krishna has once again appeared: [perfectpullquote align="full" cite="" link="" color="" class="" size=""]“Oh, Arjuna, I give heat, and I withheld and send forth the rain. I am immortality, and I am also death personified. Both spirit and matter are in Me.” BG 9.19[/perfectpullquote] We are being forced to feel what it means to be connected, humane, less impactful and more kind to each other and our environment. The panic buying for me and mine to exclusion of the welfare of others is a wake-up call to the inherent insanity of the bodily concept of life.This is the point in time when the Hare Krishna devotee shines a torchlight of knowledge into the darkness. Krishna has arranged the stage and the spotlight. The vicious virus is yet another 9/11, a pause, of silence in which the conditioned soul can hear the chanting of the holy names, the transcendental sounds of the Gita and Bhagavatam, come into contact with the pure devotee. Let us use our intelligences to take advantage of this Golden opportunity. Maybe our message can go viral.
*This article was reprinted from Dandavats, an online independently managed web site dedicated to the pursuit of knowledge and information related to Krishna conscious vision, activities and developments worldwide.
Emergence Magazine
|
|
|
|
Looking for Essence
by Sacinandana Swami
An Internal Meditation During the Season of Advent and Christmas
My husband and I have spent the last several days in Chennai, India hosting our fifth annual Vaisnava Christian Dialogue. Amidst so much religiously and politically motivated strife in other parts of India (and the world), we were blessed to share this time together with dear kindred friends who are Protestants, Catholics, Sri Vaisnavas and Caitanya or Gaudiyas Vaisnavas.
Our topic was Loving Surrender and Social Engagement. Dr. Ravi Gupta led us in Vaisnava worship and Father Vincent Shekar led our Christian worship. He then spoke to us about the significance of this Advent season, which ends on Christmas day.Allegra Wiprud here so beautifully explains the internal meditation of Christians during this Advent time. Please read her words and be inspired to also long for the Divine in your own way and in your own words!I wish a most joyous Advent and Christmas season to all of our Christian friends! All the best, Rukmini Walker
I wait for the Lord, my soul waits,
and in the Lord alone I hope.
My soul waits for the Lord
more than watchmen for the morning,
More than watchmen for the morning.
– Adapted from Psalm 130
This time, like so many other times, is a time of waiting. Waiting for light; waiting for spring; waiting for political change; waiting for God’s presence. Many spiritual cultures have calendars that go beyond worldly time to recognize deep time. These periods of recognition of the Divine, present in time beyond all our worldly ways of knowing, are times of yearning to connect at that profound level with our source and the Source of Life.In this time – December, 2019 – many of us in Western countries are in the time of waiting traditionally known as Advent. In traditional Christian culture, Lent and Advent are both times of waiting. These sacred months of waiting, yearning, and prayer lead up to holy days of celebration for God’s presence in our lives and in our world. While contemporary culture often celebrates just the holiday, without a whole month of prayer – a month! – there is great richness in reconnecting with the practice of waiting.In Vaisnava tradition, waiting and yearning is central to our spiritual orientation. Vaisnava practice is often all about longing and separation and crying out for the Divine. The longing and waiting and crying out of the holy Advaita Acharya led to the Divine incarnation of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. The parents of Sri Krishna prayed for not only years, but many lifetimes, to be His parents. The long suffering of Prahlad led to the incarnation of Nrsimhadev. The birth of Lord Rama came after long prayers by his parents to conceive children, as did the arrival of Sita Devi. When Vaisnavas celebrate holidays like Gaura Purnima, Sri Krishna Janmastami, Nrsimha Chaturdasi, and Rama Navami, we, too, remember the deep longing and prayers from the depths of the heart that preceded these Divine incarnations. In our chanting, our austerities, and our celebrations, we long for and cry out for God’s presence – Krishna’s presence – in our hearts, in our lives, and in our world.I think that we might all find that we have something to wait for; to long for. Something in which we really need God. Whether we are longing for transformation of a personal conflict; resolution of an untenable situation; for forgiveness; for political change; for a deeply long-awaited end to racial oppression; for world peace; or for God’s presence in our lives, in our hearts, there is something in which we need God.Whether inspired by Advent, the Solstice, the approaching New Year, or by any non-temporal inspiration, I deeply encourage and beg everyone to admit what you long for, and call out to God to be present in it. Whether you say Veni, sanctus spiritus or Krishna, Krishna, Maha-Baho! or Adonai, Adonai, there is always something to wait for; always something for which to call out.
Allegra Lovejoy WiprudYale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies and Yale Divinity School, Masters StudentCofounder, Sacred Ecology ForumNew Haven, CT / New York, NY
Never Leave this Path....
Taken from Sacinandana Swami's "Saranagati ~ Teachings, Realizations and Inspirations"
When Fame Falls Flat on its Face
From the Sanskrit translations of Hari Sauri
Krishna says that he is the ability in all humans (Bhagavad-gītā 7.8). For this reason, we find many gifted individuals in the material world. These individuals often strive hard to reach the pinnacle of excellence in their respective fields of interest in their lives. However, once they do reach the top there is often only one way left to go, and that is the way down. Those who are at the top have a great responsibility upon them. That responsibility is to lift others to the same heights that they have achieved. If instead of lifting others up they start looking down upon others, then such an attitude marks the beginning of their downward journey. In our devotional lives too this can happen very easily. Some of us wish to achieve Krishna and become recognized as an empowered devotee. However, in the process we often end up neglecting Krishna's devotees, and this leads to a downfall. This happened with a personality named Tṛṇāvarta, whose downfall is described by a devotee poet Mahākavi Ḍhuṇḍhirāja Śāstrī as follows:
. धृताजितोऽप्यधिहृदयं तदाश्रिता- वहेलनादुपरिगतोऽप्यधः पतेत् । इति ब्रुवन्निव रजसार्दितव्रज- स्तृणभ्रमः सहरिरिहापतद्दिवः ॥ [रुचिरा] .
[Meter: rucirā] dhṛtājito'py adhi-hṛdayaṁ tadāśritāv- ahelanād upari-gato'py adhaḥ patet iti bruvann iva rajasārdita-vrajas tṛṇa-bhramaḥ sa-harir ihāpatad divaḥ .
Translation: Even though one may attain great heights in life and even though one may hold the Lord very close to one's heart, one will certainly fall if one disregards and hurts the devotees who are surrendered to the Lord. As if demonstrating this fact through his personal example, the demon Tṛṇāvarta who had (literally) risen to great heights in the sky and who was carrying the Lord very close to his heart fell down and died after he gave immense pain to the devotee residents of Gokula. — Bhāgavata-vyañjanam (1.44) of Mahākavi Ḍhuṇḍhirāja Śāstrī.
Translation by Hari Parshad Das
Move Over, Therapy Dogs. Hello, Therapy Cows
Here is an article in the New York Times that recommends what we practice when we visit Govardhan Eco Village (gev.org) outside of Mumbai each January during our Bhakti Immersion, as part of our India Kirtan Adventure. Please join us!Or maybe there's a cow or little calf near you who is open for some cuddling?~All the best, RukminiClick here to read the complete New York Times article ~ https://www-nytimes-com.cdn.ampproject.org/c/s/www.nytimes.com/2019/07/12/style/self-care/cow-cuddling-therapy.amp.html?fbclid=IwAR04fImAr_jC8n6mw1GQeh1ogR1pOoA5ZSjvCHXkpsRbAwEjGO4ErTl_nME
The First Prerequisite to Remembering Krishna
— Article and Translations by Hari Parshad Das
The modern world with all its information overload and never ending deadlines can easily drive a person nuts. In such a crazy atmosphere, it is virtually impossible to think about Krishna. Srila Rupa Goswami has therefore correctly quoted a verse in the Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhuḥ (1.2.115) as follows:[perfectpullquote align="full" cite="" link="" color="" class="" size=""]"śokāmarṣādibhir bhāvair ākrāntaṁ yasya mānasam kathaṁ tatra mukundasya sphūrtti-sambhāvanā bhavet." Translation: How can there be even a slight possibility of a spontaneous remembrance of Lord Mukunda for a person whose mind is overtaken by feelings of lamentation, anger etc.? [/perfectpullquote]For this purpose, it is essential that anyone interested in serious remembrance of Krishna make a plan for cutting down the disturbances in their lives. The more we increase the temperature of material enjoyment, the greater is the resulting side--effect of disturbance in our lives. As soon as we start reducing the disturbance of material life, it becomes easier to sit down peacefully and remember Krishna. At a certain point of time in our lives, we all have to decide — either to cultivate some serious remembrance of Krishna, or to spend our entire lives serving various causes of material disturbances. If we end up selecting the latter, the possibility of remembering Krishna at the time of death reduces to a negligible value. Srila Vishwanath Chakravarti Thakura quotes a verse in his Mādhurya-kādambinī:[perfectpullquote align="full" cite="" link="" color="" class="" size=""] "viṣayāviṣṭa-cittānāṁ viṣṇv-āveśaḥ sudūrataḥ vāruṇī-dig-gataṁ vastu vrajann aindrīṁ kim āpnuyāt ." Translation: For those individuals whose minds are overtaken by material subject matters, the spontaneous remembrance of the Lord stays far away. [/perfectpullquote]How can an object lost in the west be found by searching for it in the east?
Gratefulness Embraces Parkinson’s
What would it mean to live daily in gratitude for a chronic debilitating disease? This heart-opened man, Tim Roberts, shares his raw and real insights... ~Rukmini
Gratefulness Embraces Parkinson’s
by Tim Roberts
[perfectpullquote align="full" cite="" link="" color="" class="" size=""]Gratefulness helps us return to ourselves, restoring our equilibrium and helping us to see beyond what’s broken to the beauty and wholeness of life.[/perfectpullquote]I was diagnosed with Parkinson’s just over three years ago when I was 50. Receiving the diagnosis from a matter-of-fact doctor was a traumatizing experience, and I felt that my life and my family’s identity had collapsed. Life was difficult and still is difficult, yet something amazing is beginning to happen. I have slowly started to shift my attitude from the anger, fear, and loneliness brought on by the Parkinson’s and the grim predictions of a Parkinson’s future to a more body-based feeling of gratefulness for the wholeness of life as I experience it second by second.I have discovered not only profound wonder and indebtedness for the gift of my life and relationships but also a physical softening in the area of my heart and a growing ability to feel with my body joy, awe, and the interconnectedness that is hidden in plain sight all around us. I feel in a very real and physical way that, as Chögyam Trungpa said, there is no such thing as an underdeveloped moment. Each moment is actually a continually flowing river of love and creativity pouring through all of existence and through us because we are not set apart from this river of life, no matter our circumstance or diagnosis. I continue to learn that gratefulness is a personal, physical, and soulful opening to the life that surges all around us and to the life that is beating our heart and living us. The more I allow gratefulness to wash through me, the clearer I become and the more ease expands within me.[perfectpullquote align="full" cite="" link="" color="" class="" size=""] Gratefulness is a portal through which life gazes at itself. [/perfectpullquote]
Photo by Tim Roberts
Although living in gratefulness is still something I need to practice, fleeting experiences of a richer fabric of existence have begun to reveal themselves. One beautiful evening, in the honeyed glow just before twilight, I was gazing into a rose. For a fraction of a second something relaxed within me, and I got the distinct impression that it was actually the universe looking through my eyes at the rose and the universe looking back as the rose at me. Gratefulness is a portal through which life gazes at itself.This moment with the rose stopped me in my tracks — and then it was gone, probably because mental tension reasserted itself. I don’t know how to describe the depth of the experience, though — it was as if the same deep response was taking place in the rose that was taking place in me, and together we were responding to the ancient echo of creation that still resonates – provided we are not too cluttered by the hectic and highly intellectualized lives that so many of us lead.Gratefulness is a transparency of the heart. But it is one thing to be grateful for a rose or a sunset or something else beautiful and non-threatening, and it is quite another thing to be grateful for challenging life events, for example Parkinson’s. I am working at it. Gratefulness offers me the energetic space to do this because it allows me to notice hostile thoughts arising before they lock into place and trigger restrictive habits; gratefulness is also able to hold tenderly life’s paradoxes without prematurely trying to shut them down to immature solutions that are misleading.[perfectpullquote align="full" cite="" link="" color="" class="" size=""]I relate to Parkinson’s …as an alienated aspect of my stifled creativity that needs gentle integration so that it can ignite my soul’s creative fire.[/perfectpullquote]Supported by my gratefulness practice I have started to build a relationship with Parkinson’s. I relate to Parkinson’s in four ways: as an initiation into love, humility and courage; as a much-needed teacher offering learning and wisdom; as a manifestation of distress in need of compassion and love; and as an alienated aspect of my stifled creativity that needs gentle integration so that it can ignite my soul’s creative fire. I don’t manage to sustain this all the time. But I intend to love completely, so this must include loving what seems unlovable. I refuse to divide myself by making Parkinson’s my enemy. As Mahatma Gandhi said, “No man could look upon another as his enemy, unless he first became his own enemy.” Gratefulness is a simple and profound way of building such a relationship with life, and it is a powerful healing force that is always available if we are willing to risk redefining ourselves and just slow down and open up.In chronic disease, when so much is wrong, people can lose sight of what they actually need. Gratefulness helps us return to ourselves, restoring our equilibrium and helping us to see beyond what’s broken to the beauty and wholeness of life. Gratefulness even helps us recognize a new story of our life with fresh purpose and sustaining motivations that nourish us and in so doing nourish others. The more we are steeped in gratefulness, the more it absorbs us until we start to radiate it from within.Through gratefulness I had a surprise. I thought the greatest crisis of my life was Parkinson’s, and in many ways it is. But I have been shocked to realize that I had been living with an invisible crisis equal to the Parkinson’s: the contemporary epidemic of isolation and separation fueled by materialism, consumerism, urgency, and stress. I was living this shallow and clichéd way, disconnected from the present moment and dissociated from my body.[perfectpullquote align="full" cite="" link="" color="" class="" size=""]Gratefulness seems to relax the psyche and loosen those tight defensive patterns that many of us have grown up with and don’t even notice but through which we are constantly evaluating and interpreting life and judging ourselves.[/perfectpullquote]In the space of isolation and disconnection, no one can be authentic and no one can really love magnificently because we are too self-protected. Thanks to gratefulness, I feel different — more a part of life, less a spectator, and capable of increased intimacy with living. Gratefulness seems to relax the psyche and loosen those tight defensive patterns that many of us have grown up with and don’t even notice but through which we are constantly evaluating and interpreting life and judging ourselves. It is these defensive patterns that alienate us from our True Self, and gratefulness can slowly dissolve these tendencies and relax us back to wholeness.This very relaxation opens us to life’s infinite creativity, and this is transformation of the highest order. Gratefulness to me is a gateway to an embodied and conscious life. Like many people these days, I was so compressed by stress that I had lost touch with my heart and mistrusted my enoughness. This meant I couldn’t expand into life, and more than anything else life seems to want to expand itself through us so that we become ever more transparent to its unity.I am delighted that now I wake up eager to bathe in gratefulness and radiate what love I have to the world. I feel very lucky to be part of life, and I’m confident that, as Zen master Dogen said, we are all connected, and so I pray that my gratefulness will somehow help you.The true person isnot anyone in particular,but, like the deep blue colourof the limitless sky,it is everyone, everywhere in the world.-Zen master Dogen, (1200-1253)
Tim Roberts writes: I live with my wife in New Zealand and we have three wonderful daughters and one special granddaughter. I enjoy nature, the peculiar quality of the sunlight here, the native birds, the wild beaches and the older wood lands and I love taking our dog out for walks whenever I can.DedicationI am especially grateful to Brother David Steindl-Rast who models this way of living so elegantly.ReferencesRyokan, Dewdrops on a lotus leaf: Zen poems of Ryokan. Translated by John StevensDogen, (1200-1253) Zen poems of Dogen. Translated by Steven HeineRobert J.Miller, ed, Gospel of Thomas (67): The Complete Gospels: Annotated Scholars Version, Polebridge Press 1994
On Pessimism and Optimism from “The Shadow”
by BR. DAVID STEINDL-RAST, OSB
[perfectpullquote align="full" cite="" link="" color="" class="" size=""]A healthy personality does not suppress the dark side, the shadow, but embraces it, redeems it, and so becomes whole.[/perfectpullquote]If many people today are wallowing in pessimism, this may simply be the flip side of a culture in which everybody is expected to keep smiling and “have a nice day.” Someone says, “How are you?” and you respond, “Fine.” Have you ever said anything else in reply to “How are you?” Maybe, but it takes some daring, because no one expects any other answer but “Fine.” “How are you?” is not really a question, but a greeting. And “Fine” is not really an answer, but an acknowledgement of the greeting. “How are you?” “Fine.” The two are inseparable.Because you so often mindlessly repeat that you are “fine,” you suppress any other answer to the question, “How are you?” What you suppress begins to lead its own life. It gets you from behind, because you are not facing it head on. If you suppress it, the shadow turns into a monster; it becomes life-denying. When this happens, you are confronted with things that are difficult to deal with, difficult to integrate. The shadow – now not seen together with the light, but separated from the light – is prone to perversions and distortions and all sorts of unhealthy developments.That is why a healthy personality does not suppress the dark side, the shadow, but embraces it, redeems it, and so becomes whole.Neither optimism nor pessimism is desirable, because neither is realistic, and we know it. When we are in an optimistic mood, we are not interested in reality. “Don’t confuse me with facts, I’m an optimist.” And when we are in a pessimistic mood, we are not concerned with reality either. The attitude that really deals with reality is what religious language calls hope.[perfectpullquote align="full" cite="" link="" color="" class="" size=""]To remain open for surprise when everything turns out worse than we could ever imagine – that is hope.[/perfectpullquote]Hope is miles removed from both pessimism and optimism. Hope deals with reality. And reality is surprising. If it’s surprising, it’s real. If it isn’t surprising, it isn’t real. Hope is openness for that surprise. In the full, religious sense, hope is not the conviction that everything will turn out fine. That’s optimism. Hope thrives in the midst of hopelessness. Hopelessness is not the opposite of hope. Despair is the opposite of hope. In the midst of hopelessness, hope thrives because it will not give in to despair. Although the situation is hopeless, there is always room for surprise. Hope says, “Let’s stay open for surprise.” Not the surprise of a happy ending, Hollywood style. That’s mere optimism and it is proved unrealistic at every turn. But to remain open for surprise when everything turns out worse than we could ever imagine – that is hope. Despair assigns reality a deadline. Hope knows that there are no deadlines for reality. That is why hope thrives in the midst of hopelessness.Today we have cheapened hope to optimism, and so we get the backlash, which is this wallowing in pessimism and despair. Despair doesn’t allow reality to surprise us. But hope expects reality to surprise itself.If we have hope, we create a hopeful reality. Our openness for surprise challenges reality. It’s like a mother who looks at the child and says, “Surprise me.” And the child surprises her. Children surprise themselves in the process. We surprise ourselves if we live up to the expectations of somebody who looks at us with eyes of hope and thereby creates the space into which we can grow. This motherly attitude is the one we ought to have toward people who are caught up in pessimism, darkness, or despair, rather than to write them off or contradict them. That’s what they want, to be contradicted. But rather look at them with eyes that say, ”Surprise me,” and they will surprise you.
Reprinted from Gratefulness.org
Do it from your heart
|
 Denise Mihalik is a Certified Sound Healing Practitioner, Voice Teacher, Yoga and YogaVoice Instructor, Classical Singer, Kirtaniya, and Bhakti Yogi. Denise has been immersed in sound exploration since early childhood. The sounds of nature and the world of music have greatly influenced her life. She has been practicing yoga for the past 16 years and is a certified yoga and YogaVoice Instructor. You can connect with her at her website https://www.soundawakenings.biz/ |
Deepening Our Comfort with Uncertainty
--By Kristi Nelson
"You do not need to know precisely what is happening, or exactly where it is all going. What you need is to recognize the possibilities and challenges offered by the present moment, and to embrace them with courage, faith, and hope." ~ Thomas Merton
I used to put myself to sleep by repeatedly reciting a little mantra that helped me transition from active days to hopes for a calm mind at night: “There is nothing to do, nowhere to go, nothing to know.” Guiding myself into greater comfort with not knowing was always helpful in reassuring my mind that it could truly rest and take a break from trying to plan and figure everything out. It seemed that where my mind could lead, my body would follow, and so I could slip into the sweet embrace of sleep.[perfectpullquote align="full" cite="" link="" color="" class="" size=""]There is much to discover that can surprise us, so much to which we can gratefully yield, so much permission to let go of our need to know or control what will happen.[/perfectpullquote]In our daily lives, there are endless forms of uncertainty — far more things we cannot know than know. Objectively, this could be cause for great delight, wonder, and surrender. We could be relieved and appreciative that we do not have to perpetually hold onto the steering wheel, captain the ship, drive our lives. There is much to discover that can surprise us, so much to which we can gratefully yield, so much permission to let go of our need to know or control what will happen. And yet when we experience the presence of true uncertainty in our lives, it can be rattling. It goes against the conditioning most of us have internalized that not knowing is threatening — that it must be hidden or overridden, solved or resolved, as quickly as possible.For everyone alive now, and for everyone who has ever lived, we are united in the fact that life invites us to show up again and again into mystery. There are no guarantees — only exquisite unknowns. We do not know exactly how or when we will die, and there is no single formula for how best to live. We do not know how life is going to unfold — in the grand scheme and also in its minutiae — and we cannot be in charge of most all of it. This freedom from control can either shrink our perspective to the size of a clinging fist or deliver us readily into the gaze of the cosmos, depending on how we approach life in the moment. Much of our freedom depends on cultivating greater perspective about being with uncertainty, however and whenever we can.[perfectpullquote align="full" cite="" link="" color="" class="" size=""]As we meet the uncertain world with grateful and wholehearted presence, our inner life and spiritual life are unfathomably enriched.[/perfectpullquote]When we practice grateful living, we create a welcoming space for the surprise of uncertainty, knowing that it arrives naturally in each of those moments when we truly take nothing for granted. Without expectations, life is one surprising unfolding after another. The exact nature of the surprises that arrive in our lives is not up to us, but the nature of our response to surprise is ours and ours alone. Each time we let go and welcome life instead of holding onto our ideas about it, we receive reinforcement for our willingness to surrender to vastness rather than trying to resist it. The rewards of this shift are ever-available to us and make the risks ever-worthwhile, as they deliver the gifts of greater ease, resilience, and joy. As we meet the uncertain world with a more grateful, trusting presence, our inner life and spiritual life are unfathomably enriched. As Br. David Steindl-Rast says, “Deep trust in life is not a feeling but a stance that you deliberately take. It is the attitude we call courage.”It seems we could benefit from learning to bring more of the intentions and prayers we use to guide ourselves to sleep at night to help guide us in how to be truly awake to our days. At night, we soften into the impending unknown of sleep by encouraging our minds to be fully in the moment, to let go, to trust, to surrender. Perhaps if we allowed ourselves to remember this practice of release — that there truly, often is nothing to know — in the fullness of how we live out our days, we might find ourselves more available to life, and life infinitely more available to us.
Kristi Nelson is the Executive Director of A Network for Grateful Living. To read more about her visit this page.
Gratitude
-by Barbara Crooker
This week, the news of the world is bleak, another wargrinding on, and all these friends down with cancer,or worse, a little something long term that they won’t die offor twenty or thirty miserable years—And here I live in a house of weathered brick, where a manwith silver hair still thinks I’m beautiful. How many timeshave I forgotten to give thanks? The late day sun shinesthrough the pink wisteria with its green and white leavesas if it were stained glass, there’s an old cherry treethat one lucky Sunday bloomed with a rainbow:cardinals, orioles, goldfinches, blue jays, indigo buntings,and my garden has tiny lettuces just coming up,so perfect they could make you cry: Green Towers,Red Sails, Oak Leaf. For this is May, and the whole worldsings, gleams, as if it were basted in butter, and the air’ssweet enough to send a diabetic into shock—And at least today, all the parts of my body are working,the sky’s clear as a china bowl, leaves murmur their leafy chatter,finches percolate along. I’m doodling around this page,know sorrow’s somewhere beyond the horizon, but still, I’m riffingon the warm air, the wingbeats of my lungs that can take this all in,flush the heart’s red peony, then send it back without effort or thought.And the trees breathe in what we exhale, clap their green handsin gratitude, bend to the sky.
Posted by kind permission of the poet. First published in Poetry East; Line Dance (Word Press, 2008); and recently in Gratefulness.org May 2018.
Living In The Season: Spring
Here in Damariscotta Mills, the alewives have returned, the star magnolias are in full bloom, and a delicate halo of yellowish green is emerging in the hardwood canopy. The arrival of Spring brings a welcome and magnificent surge of energy that speaks confidently of renewal. And not a moment too soon! So now that we are here, what is the invitation of this season?
My hope for this periodic letter to encourage observation of the seasons throughout this coming year. Using the lens and practice of Five Element Acupuncture, I will be following this seamless flow of change, and I hope you will follow along with me. By drawing attention to how every season does, in fact, have an energetic texture that presents opportunities and tasks, we may come to know once again how to live in harmony with this, our very own Spring, unfolding right here, right now.
This is a really good time to initiate. What do you want to clear out, internally and externally? What would you like to see happen this year? Spring invites a new start. We make a plan and we begin to implement. There is, for instance, the decision to plant, and then we put the seed into the ground. Literally or metaphorically, this is what Spring is asking of us. Be assured, the energy of this season will support you in your push to begin, your desire to engage, whether it is trying new things or making changes.
Some of us may feel we just don’t have the get up and go to meet this dramatic shift after Winter, but waking up to Spring is really worth the effort! Not planting the real or metaphoric seed now has a ripple effect throughout the entire year. There may not be time for the germinated seed to mature in the full expansion of summer, or for it to ripen and be ready by Fall. So then there may not be a harvest. Without having secured a harvest, it is difficult to let go into the winter, as we are called to do. Lack of reserves undermines our ability to embrace the opportunity that Winter offers; rest and rejuvenation. So when Spring finally does come around again, is it any wonder that many feel depleted, and are challenged to marshal reserves of our own?
No season is more important than any other. They are all completely interdependent, with each season having its own emphasis, voice, and requirements. Spring’s clarion call is to begin. Coming into balance with this season, is one way to experience what health actually looks like.
Trees are anchored by strong roots that support upward growth. They flower, leaf out, and express themselves in all their glory. This is the emphatic energy of Spring. Winds may blow, rains may pour down, but trees are irrepressible, and determined to grow upward. We too are like a tree reaching towards the sun. What do you need to help you grow right now; to fully express yourself? What has been just waiting and longing to be changed?
On another note, many folks are reporting feeling anxious these days. Part of this may have to do with a political climate that is unsettled, and the confrontational way groups are relating to one another. But whatever the reason may be, this anxiety is affecting our overall communal health. Being attentive and responsive to Nature’s guidance, especially now, is deeply grounding, and can help dispel feelings of resignation.
In closing, a little Spring cleaning is in order. Its time to let go of the heavier diet of winter, and replace it with a lighter one with lots of Spring bitters like dandelion greens, spinach and arugula, scallions and chives. All of these foods help cleanse the body and support Spring renewal. And last but not least, what a wonderful time to rise early and take a walk, being nourished by the promise of this season.
Unlocking the True Self Through Love
by Urmila Devi Dasi
Who are we? Our body grows in the womb and we enter the world with a ready-made identity as someone’s child, of a particular a gender and nationality. The various identities we clothe ourselves in are merely a mixture of social and cultural preferences, which come and go like trendy fashions. Yet, we make them solid as we gradually define our selves through them. But, are any such identities really that solid? Who are we beyond all these external designations of self?The Bhagavad Gita and all eternal wisdom—indeed, our own introspective experience—tells us that each of us are a spiritual being whose "I" has merely a most fleeting connection with all those external identities. And, as we are beyond the mundane, so is all life around us. All the "others" are transcendent entities as well. We are connected as parts of our common source: an all-pervading, Divine Person who is everywhere and in everything.Only when we awaken to our loving relationship with our supreme source, do we truly connect with both ourselves, and others. Additionally, we find the true residence for our various temporary identities—the ones that that create the illusion of worldly duties—and we offer them to that supreme source, Krishna, out of love. For our dealings with ourselves, and others on the illusory platform—this is my mother, my child, my sister, my enemy—are also valuable here.After all, until we are fully free, those identities and relationships are a large part of our story. They provide the framework upon which we paint the canvas of this brief life, and are often the springboard from which we dive into the clear pool of spirituality. In the meantime, delving into how we love others—or attempt to love them, as our sense of our authentic relationship with them unfolds—becomes part of our spiritual paths.The sacred Bhakti texts, the Bhagavatam and the Bhagavad Gita insist that identity and relationships be the foundation for all else—material and spiritual. Relishing and rejoicing in our selves, cultivating neutrality towards friends and enemies, freedom from envy, and kindness toward every living being, are all essential on the spiritual path. As we dive deeper into our individual relationships with others we aspire to empathize with their struggles and heartbreak, and genuinely celebrate their triumphs.It is through lovingly connecting with our selves and others, in the context of serving the supreme divine person, Krishna—through our thoughts, hearts, and actions—that the budding flower and fruit of our soul unfolds and ripens. It is these sweetest of exchanges of love that we aspire to share with each other and Krishna. Spiritual practices are, therefore, all about entering into a personal relationship of love, certainly not arrived at via mechanical formulas.
Love is Not A Formula
Oh my dear Krishna!
To push a button
That opens up, then
The world within us
Awake from chrysalis.
It’s a dance, my king,
Where angels sing
And love perfumes
Hearts’ inner rooms.
How can one make
A way to take
Love, essence of life,
Cut it with a knife
Bottled in a jar
Studied from afar?
Love always resists
An analysis.
Capture is hopeless
And force is useless.
If we want to control,
We remain like a mole
Who desires the sun
While beneath everyone
Digs deep in the ground
Where the sun is not found
I do want to love
And need grace from above
For I’m too poor to know
How real love I can show
Can’t remember the key
That unlocks the real me.
(An earlier version of this article first appeared in Bhakti Blossoms, published via the Vaishnavi Voices Project, dedicated to honoring, celebrating and inspiring the voices of contemporary women in the bhakti tradition.)
Urmila Devi Dasi (Dr. Edith Best) has been practicing bhakti yoga since 1973 and travels the world teaching the science of the Bhagavad Gita and the practical application of bhakti to life. She has a PhD in education and has three decades of experience teaching primary and secondary students, which include 19 years of experience as a school administrator and leader. She has published Vaikuntha Children, a guidebook for devotional education, The Great Mantra for Mystic Meditation, dozens of articles, and Dr. Best Learn to Read, an 83 book complete literacy program with technology enabling the story books to speak in 25 languages at the touch of a special “pen”. Urmila and her husband, Pratyatosa, have three grown married children and many grandchildren. In 1996, Urmila and Pratyatosa entered the renounced order of life, or vanaprastha, in Sanskrit. You may connect with her through her Facebook page.