From ‘Awakening into Oneness. The power of blessing I the evolution of consciousness’ by Arjuna Ardagh

Anandagiri …….. says

For a relationship to improve, you must be free of hurt, and you must be free of guilt. Either you have been deeply hurt yourself, or you have hurt someone and you feel bad about it. If you are hurt, the best way to become free of it is to experience the pain completely. And if you have caused pain to someone else, you did so because you could not feel. You did not know what it was to feel that psychological or physical pain. Everything changes when you feel what that person is going through, when you can become that person.


………. Karmically the relationship is only complete when you feel love and gratitude ……… When you feel gratitude, you are free – you can move on …….. The only way to come to gratitude is to feel the hurt completely so you can forgive and be forgiven. Then the relationship is set right, and you are unburdened. Your whole life changes.




Years ago, Albert Einstein reflected that you cannot solve any problem in the same state of consciousness in which it was created.

From ‘Walking the Path’ by Frederique Lebelley

In Sanskrit, ‘initiation’ is called diksha. Di meaning ‘intellect’ and ksha, ‘the horizon of the end’. Diksha means: to go to the end of the intellect, to transcend the intellect.

Education is called shiksha, ‘the horizon of discipline’ – total discipline.

A teacher brings shiksha, ‘education’. A spiritual master – a guru – brings diksha …….. it is a journey from head to heart.



“Drop the past; don’t even try to analyse it. It is as if you knocked over the dustbin and sorted through the contents: this is from yesterday, and that is from the day before yesterday ….”



In the realm of science, first you acquire the knowledge, then comes the faith. In the realm of spirituality, faith comes first and knowledge follows.



Suffering is created by our own mind. Pain is inevitable; suffering is optional. A smile that cannot be removed by any event is a real smile. Suffering is remembering the events, chewing them again and again.



….. when this feeling of helplessness overcomes you, prayer can really be authentic. This authentic prayer can bring a power in us capable of transforming life.

Why this Kolaveri Di?

The song thats the rage in india currently ....

Terrific tune, nice voice, quirkly and slightly nonsensical lyrics, the mixture of Tamil and English (who speaks in pure tongue nowadays), nice video, wow .......

Enjoy ...........



Lyrics taken from http://aahsome.com/blog/why-this-kolaveri-lyrics-english-translation/

Yo boys, I am singing song…

Soup song, flop song.

Why this killer rage, killer rage, killer rage, girl?
Why this killer rage, killer rage, killer rage, girl?

Rhythm correct.

Why this killer rage, killer rage, killer rage, girl?
Why this killer rage, killer rage, killer rage, girl?

Maintain please.

Why this killer rage, …, …, girl?
The moon is in the distance, the moon.
Moon’s colour is white.
Night’s background is white, the night,
Night’s colour is black.

Why this killer rage, killer rage, killer rage, girl?
Why this killer rage, killer rage, killer rage, girl?

She’s a fair-skinned girl, girl,
Girl’s heart is black,
Her eyes and my eyes met,
My future is now dark.

Why this killer rage, killer rage, killer rage, girl?
Why this killer rage, killer rage, killer rage, girl?

Buddy, take notes,
and take the saxophone in your hand.
Our new friend Puppy Manohar thinks that the “snacks” in the original subtitles is a typo which should be “sax”. The saxophone solo that immediately follows these lines is proof enough of his hypothesis.
“pa pa paan pa pa paan pa pa paa pa pa paan”
Play it right.

Super, buddy! Ready?
Ready? 1… 2… 3… 4…

Whoa, what a difference buddy!
Alright buddy, now tune changes…
“Kaila” glass…
Only English, eh!

Glass in hand,
Scotch in glass,
Tears in eyes,
Life’s empty,
Girl shows up,
Life’s going downhill.

Love, love, oh my love,
You stood me up.
Cow, cow, holy cow,
I want you here now!
God, I’m dying now,
But she’s happy, how?

This song is for the soup boys,
We don’t have a choice.

Why this killer rage, killer rage, killer rage, girl?
Why this killer rage, killer rage, killer rage, girl?
Why this killer rage, killer rage, killer rage, girl?
Why this killer rage, killer rage, killer rage, girl?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Why_This_Kolaveri_Di

From ‘Remember. Be Here Now’ by Dr. Richard Alpert, Ph.d into Baba Ram Dass

If your vibrations are paranoid
That’s what’s being received
And when you’re around pets
(birds or cats particularly)
Or very young children
Or very flipped out psychotics
They will know you immediately.

You can come and say
“Hello dear, how are you?”
And the dog will growl …

You cant come on because they’re listening
To the vibrations that hand is reaching
Out and sending.
And you realize that every moment you are
A full statement of your being.
And you’re sending out vibrations that are
Affecting everything around you,
Which in turn is affecting
Everything that comes back
and
when you meet somebody who is
caught in the world of
We and Them and you are Him
To that person
And you get caught in his mind net
You are both
just
intensifying
one another’s
paranoia.



Had ye but faith, you could
Move mountains, said Jesus
And that is literally true
The bible is not a metaphor

The way Bhakti works

You just love

Until

You

And the

beloved

become

one

“The journey of a thousand miles begins with one step.” – Lao Tzu



“WARNING: if you don’t have room in your livingroom for an elephant – don’t make friends with the elephant trainer ….” – Sufi mystic



“To everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven.” – Ecclesiastes



“Dislodging a green nut from a shell is almost impossible, but let it dry and the lightest tap will do it.” – Ramakrishna



“I found that the chief difficulty for most people was to realize that they had really heard ‘new things’: that is, things that they had never heard before. They kept translating what they heard into their habitual language. They had ceased to hope and believe there might be anything new.” – Ouspensky



“I wish I could join the Solitaires instead of being Superior and having to write books. But I don’t wish to have what I wish, of course.” – Abbott John Chapman



“It can be said that there is one general rule for everybody. In order to approach this system seriously, people must be disappointed, first of al in themselves, that is to say, in their powers, and secondly in all the old ways …….. A man ……. If he is a scientist should be disappointed in his science. If he is a religious man, should be disappointed in his religion …….. And so on.” – Gurdjieff, by Ouspensky



“Except ye be converted and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven.” – Jesus



“But I had seen myself, that is, I had seen things in myself that I had never seen before. There could be no doubt about it and although I afterwards became the same as I had been before, I could not help knowing that this had been and I could forget nothing.” – Ouspensky



“Ask, and it shall be given to you; seek, and ye shall find; knock and it shall be opened unto you: For everyone that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.” – Jesus



“The influence of the Guru is obstructed by mental activity, by reliance on one’s own exertions and by every kind of self-consciousness and self-exertion.” – Sathya Sai Baba



“Rain water falling upon the roof of a house flows down to the ground through spouts shaped grotesquely like a tiger’s head. One gets the impression that the water comes from the tiger’s mouth, but in reality it descends from the sky. In the same way the holy teachings that come from the mouths of godly men seem to be uttered by those men themselves, while in reality they proceed from God.” – Ramakrishna



A sadhak (someone doing sadhana) sees clearly that his craving is creating his own veil of illusion. At this point desires start to fall away of themselves. This process is called the onset of vairag (the falling away of worldly desires). As each one falls away, more subtle forms of desire arise. These too must be given up. Eventually the only desire is for bliss. Then that one must be thrown away ………… you cant do away with desire or give it up or try to get rid of it. However, with increased wisdom and preoccupation with your sadhana, desires will just fall away.

“You can’t rip the skin from the snake. It will shed it's skin when it is ready.” – Hari Dass Baba

And as you extricate yourself from your attachments and become quiet, you will be able to know more and more clearly how it all is … The Way. And the more clearly you hear, the more your actions will be in harmony with the Way … with His Will. Then you will truly understand.

Not my but Thy will, O Lord.



“If a pickpocked meets a Holy Man, he will only see His pockets.” – Hari Dass Baba



“On the hat of poverty three renouncements are inscribed: Quit this world, quit the next world, quit quitting.” – Sufi poet



“The essence of civilization consists not in the multiplication of wants but in their deliberate and voluntary renunciation.” - Gandhi



Buddha and other high beings have noted that the best time of day to work on oneself is between 4 and 7.



“ ….. STOP TALKING. STOP THINKING, AND THERE IS NOTHING YOU WILL NOT UNDERSTAND.” – Seng-ts’an



“Those who know do not talk
And talkers do not know.” – Tao Te Ching



As you get further on the path you will need less and less sleep. ……. Go to bed early and get up early ……… It is good to sleep on your back or upon your side (The left side is often recommended for reasons concerning which nostril it is most useful to breathe through during the night.)



Don’t eat too much. The traditional way of saying this is that at the conclusion of a meal, a yogi’s stomach should be half full of food, one-quarter full of water and one-quarter full of air.



“When the mind perceives an object it is transformed into the shape of that object. So the mind which thinks of the Divinity which it worships (Ista-devata) is at length, through continued devotion, transformed into the likeness of that Devata. By allowing the Devata thus to occupy the mind for long it becomes as pure as the Devata. This is the fundamental principle of Tantric Sadhana or religious practice.” – Woodroffe



“By passion for the ‘pairs of opposites.’
By those twin snares of Like and Dislike, Prince,
All creatures live bewildered, save some few
Who, quit of sins, holy in act, informed,
Freed from the ‘opposites’ and fixed in faith
Cleave unto Me.” – Bhagavad Gita



“If you can serve a cup of tea right, you can do anything.” – Gurdjieff



The simplest instructions for mediation are given by Tilopa in the Song of Mahamudra:
“Do nought with the body but relax
Shut firm the mouth and silent remain
Empty your mind and think of nought
Like a hollow bamboo
Rest at ease your body
Giving not nor taking
Put your mind at rest
The great way is a mind that clings to nought
Thus practicing, in time you will reach Buddhahood.”



“A Zen student must learn to waste time conscientiously.” – Suzuki Roshi.



For some well advanced upon the path, the cave – the traditional haunt of yogis – is sought, for here the rock is insulation against many of the subtle vibrations which are distracting for those who have become sensitive.

“Where there is fire, or in water or on ground which is strewn with dry leaves, where there are many ant-hills, where there are wild animals, or danger, where four streets meet, where there is too much noise, where there are many wicked persons, Yoga must not be practiced.” – Vivekananda



Printed cakes do not satisfy hunger.

From ‘Listening to the Silence. True stories of a healing love from the spiritual realms’ by Nan Umrigar

“When the tongue is silent, the mind speaks;
When the mind is silent, the heart sings;
When the heart stops singing,
The Soul begins to experience it's original Self.”



Some say that we all choose our challenges before birth.



“There are more things in heaven and earth,
Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophy.”
- William Shakespeare



On the 31st of January 1969 at 12.15 pm, in His room at Meherabad, Baba breathed His last to ‘live eternally in the hearts of those who love Him’, As per His wish, a record of His favourite song ‘Begin the Beguine’ was played seven times near His body.

[video from youtube]


[lyrics from http://www.stlyrics.com/songs/c/coleporter5950/beginthebeguine235309.html]

Cole Porter - Begin The Beguine Lyrics

Album: Great American Composer Series

When they begin

the beguine

it brings back the sound

of music so tender

it brings back a night

of tropical splendor

it brings back a memory of green

I'm with you once more

under the stars

and down by the shore

an orchestras playing

and even the palms

seem to be swaying

when they begin

the beguine

to live it again

is past all endeavor
except when that tune

clutches my heart

and there we are swearing to love forever

and promising never

never to part

a moments divine

what rapture serene

to clouds came along

to disperse the joys we had tasted

and now when I hear people curse the chance that was wasted

I know but too well what they mean

so dont let them begin the beguine

let the love that was once a fire

remain an ember

let it sleep like the dead desire I only remember

when they begin the beguine

oh yes let them begin the beguine

make them play

til the stars that were there before

return above you

till you whisper to me

once more darling I love you

and we suddenly know what heaven we're in

when they begin

the beguine

Baba had indicated that of all the places on earth, Asia, more particularly India, is closest to the ‘creation point’.



Life would be infinitely more complicated if one who is not spiritually advanced were burdened by the conscious memory of numberless past lives …



It is said that prayer is when we talk to God, and meditation is when we listen.

From ‘Bhagawan Nityananda of Ganeshpuri’ by Swami Muktananda Paramahamsa

Bhagawan uttered three phrases that continue to have profound meaning for me. He said, “Nirmala mana; nischala mana; vishala mana.” (Purified mind; unwavering mind; immutable mind that is vast, that is eternal.)



The sages have spoken about three types of siddhis. There are impure powers acquired through unclean vows and incantations. After the practitioner bathes and becomes clean, he can no longer perform them. This kind of power has only evil effects …….

Then there are mantra siddhis, acquired by saying a mantra to a particular deity under certain circumstances. This kind of power allows you to manifest a piece of fruit or an ornament in your hand, or move an object from one place to another. Such miracles impress and attract people for a time, but this kind of magic does not last long.

Then there are true siddhis, those described in the scriptures. These powers are acquired by practicing with rigorous discipline the eight steps of ashtanga yoga. These steps require virtuous behavior, physical discipline, the ability to restrain the senses from their outward pull, concentration, and deep meditation that reaches the state of unity-consciousness.

Far beyond these three siddhis, however, is a supreme power, the mahasiddhi. This is not acquired by one’s own efforts. It is a gift from God, and it always brings His presence.



According to the scriptures, there are four kinds of beings one should never approach empty-handed: gods, Gurus, kings and children.



…. describes the shambhavi mudra as “Attention turned inward, gaze outward, without any blinking of the eyes.” Gurudev was often in this state.



The deity worshipped through the image does not reside in the wood or stone or clay of which the image is made, but in the feeling of the worshipper. For this reason the feeling of devotion must never be given up.



When Kundalini is awakened, a new vitality spreads through every pore of the body and a process of inner purification begins. In the beginning there may be overwhelming drowsiness, tremors, perspiration, sensations like electric shocks, tremendous heat, feelings of intense joy, spontaneous physical postures, and then a state of deep meditation like Samadhi. The seeker may have the inner Darshan of gods and goddesses, or of Siddhas. He may experience heaven or the realm of ancestors. He may see lights and hear inner music during meditation, or even during the waking state.

……. the purification of these chakras begins. All the fluids of the body are rejuvenated. The incoming and outgoing breaths are equalized ……… the power of one’s karmas weakens and disappears, and liberation in this very life is attained.



The Bhagavad Gita says
shraddhavanl labhate jnanam [4.39]
One who possesses faith attains knowledge.



He had a big belly because of long, inner retention of the breath, called kumbhaka.



The great saint Brahmananda said, “Become ashes at the Guru’s feet and then you will meet God.” We have to allow the Guru to work on us, we have to dissolve our ego and pride at his feet.



In India, there were many yogis who were able to manifest the power of levitation. They had to spend a lifetime learning how to do it, but it's not so extraordinary. They awaken the Kundalini energy through pranayama, and then they practice three yogic locks or bandhas. They stay in these positions for a very long time. The fire of yoga eventually burns up the water and the earth elements in the body. These are the two elements that make the body heavy, so when they are burned up, the person can levitate instantly. It's a strenuous practice. My Babaji was able to do it.



…… he called me ….. and said, “……. Whats that you’re carrying …..”

“It's an Upanishad,” I said.

“Dust!” he said ……. He went on, “Do you know how this book was written? Books are created by someone’s mind. ….. Instead of reading someone else’s mind, meditate and then read your own mind …… Meditate a lot. When you meditate a lot, true knowledge will spring forth from you. You won't have to read books. Inner knowledge is far superior. Write your own book with your own mind……”



A little health, wealth, learning and power seem to make a person so bold that he begins to advise and teach even God Himself.



A seeker once asked a sage, “Who is God? Who is the supreme Principle? Who is Consciousness?”

The sage answered, “The witness of your mind is God.”



If a person cannot sit still, it is very difficult for the mind to become still. ……To move the mind inward, a still posture is necessary. …… Just by remaining still in this posture that I am sitting in now, all the seventy-two million nadis of the body are purified.



He would say, “Just as abusive terms pierce you, in the same way, my speech should enter you, it should pierce you. Then you’ll attain That immediately.”



My Baba never liked to criticize any religion, sect, or person. If anyone found fault with someone else, he would say, “Hey! You have faulty vision. Ram is in all.” This is the sign of a supreme Siddha.

Once a devotee of my Baba came to him and complained about another devotee. “That man drinks liquor and eats fish,” he told Baba.

“So what?” Baba said. “No matter what he eats or drinks, he shits it out the next day. He doesn’t hang on to it, so why should you?” No matter what you may have done in the past, you should let go of it. If the thought “I am a sinner” arises, then have another thought: “I am not a sinner. I am meritorious.”

……. a faultfinder can never become a good seeker ……



My Baba always said it is not the Guru’s grace toward the disciple that matters; it is the disciple’s grace toward the Guru that is of much greater importance. The moment a disciple surrenders himself completely to the Guru, the Guru’s grace will be bestowed automatically and in full measure.



The inner Shakti flows particularly through the feet. In our culture when a saint arrives in someone’s house, the host offers to wash the saint’s feet.



A photograph has great power. What kind of power depends upon whose picture it is. ……… I fully believe in the power of my Baba’s photographs.

If you want to establish a connection with Nityananda Baba, just look at his eyes in the photograph and repeat your mantra. In this way the Shakti will enter you. Then automatically the relationship will be established.



We worship the Guru in a personal form so that we may receive Shakti and meditate effectively …… The image of the Guru is not form; it is pure Consciousness …… The mind and the senses have their pressing demands, they must have their corresponding objects. The eyes must see. That is why it is good to worship the statue or the personal form of the Guru. When the mind rises to a high state it converts the form into the formless.

From ‘The New Path. My life with Paramahansa Yogananda’ by Swami Kriyananda

Years later, on learning that the cow, in India, commands special affection, an amusing comparison occurred to me. The Indian is, himself, in some ways cow-like: slowly ruminative, reflectively chewing the cud of his ideas. By contrast, Americans, who love dogs, seem actually to have a certain affinity with them, as they dash about in mad pursuit of endless and quite unnecessary goals, eagerly wagging their tails in an effort to be liked.



Civilized man prides himself on how far advanced his present state is from that of the primitive savage. We look condescendingly on his tribal way of endowing trees, wind, rain, and heavenly bodies with human personalities. Now that science has explained everything in prosaic terms, modern man considers himself wiser for having lost his sense of awe. But I’m not so sure that he deserves congratulations ……. Too pragmatic, now, to worship, he has forgotten how to commune. Instead of relating sensitively to Nature around him, he shuts it out of his life with concrete “jungles,” air conditioning, and “muzak”; with self-promotion and noisy entertainments. He is obsessed with problems that are real to him only because he gives them reality. ……

Modern technology alienates us from the universe and from one another. Worst of all, it alienates us from ourselves. It directs all our energies toward the mere manipulation of things, until we ourselves assume qualities that are almost thing-like. ….. We are taught to behave in this world like uncivilized guests, rudely consuming our host’s plenty without offering him a single word of thanks in return. Such is our approach to nature, to God, to life itself. We make ourselves petty, then imagine that the universe is petty also. ….. And when, in “civilized” smugness, we approach the question of religion, we address God Himself as though He had better watch His manners if He wants a place in our hearts.



The Hindu scriptures state ….. that what is otherwise a duty ceases to be such when it conflicts with a higher duty. Man’s highest duty is to seek God. It is understood in India that one’s spouse can and should be supportive in one’s search. Only if the desire for God is intense, and one’s spouse poses an obstacle to that search by his or her worldliness, is it permissible to break the marital bond without mutual consent.



…. a guest ….. asked him, “Which do you consider the most spiritual place in America?” “I have always considered Los Angeles the Benaras of America,” the Master replied.



He taught me an ancient yoga technique of concentration, and added some general counsel.

“When you aren’t practicing this concentration technique, try to keep your mind focused at the point between the eyebrows. This is called the Christ center, because when Christ consciousness is attained one’s awareness becomes centered here.”

“Would it help,” I asked, “to keep my mind focused there all day long as well?”

“Very much! …….”

“And another thing,” Bernard added, “this is also the seat of the spiritual eye. The more deeply you concentrate your gaze at this point, the more you’ll become aware of a round light forming there: a blue field with a bright, golden ring around it and a silvery white five-pointed star in the center.”



“Never say that you are a sinner,” he went on to advise us. “You are a child of God! Gold, though covered for centuries with mud, remains gold. Even so, the pure gold of the soul, though covered for eons of time with the mud of delusion, remains pure ‘gold’ forever. To call yourself a sinner is to identify yourself with your sins instead of trying to rid yourself of them. It is to affirm sinfulness. To call yourself a sinner is the greatest sin before God!”



“Visualize the Guru,” he said, “at the point between the eyebrows, the Christ center. This is the ‘broadcasting station’ in the body. Call to him deeply at this point. Then try to feel his response in your heart, which is the body’s ‘receiving set.’ When that response comes, it will be here that you feel it intuitively. When it comes, pray deeply, ‘Introduce me to God.’”



As buildings and place develop vibrations according to the consciousness of the people who frequent them, so music also develops vibrations beyond those of the actual sound.



Renunciation is no abject self-deprivation, but a glorious affirmation of the universe of joy that is our birthright.

As St.John of the Cross put it:
In order to arrive at having pleasure in everything,
Desire pleasure in nothing.
In order to arrive at possessing everything,
Desire to possess nothing.
In order to arrive at being everything,
Desire to be nothing.
In order to arrive at the knowledge of everything,
Desire to know nothing.



“When this ‘I’ shall die,” Master once wrote…… “then shall I know who am I.”



Sometimes he intrigued us with references, always casual, to the past lives of certain well-known public figures. “Winston Churchill,” he told us, “was Napoleon. Napoleon wanted to conquer England. Churchill, as England’s Prime Minister, has fulfilled that ambition. Napoleon wanted to destroy England. As Churchill he has had to preside over the disintegration of the British Empire. …….” “Hitler …… was Alexander the Great.”……… Mussolini, Master said, was Mark Antony. Kaiser Wilhelm was Julius Caeser. Stalin was Genghis Khan…….Abraham Lincoln…… had been a yogi in the Himalayas ……. He [Abraham Lincoln] has come again in this century …… as Charles Lindbergh …….. Therese Neumann, the Catholic stigmatist …… was Mary Magdalene ……… Lahiri Mahasaya …. in a previous life was King Janaka …….. According to another disciple, Master told someone that Lahiri Mahasaya had also been the great medieval mystic Kabir. …. “Babaji…… is an incarnation of India’s greatest prophet, Krishna.”

Master then revealed to us that he himself had been Krishna’s closest friend and disciple, Arjuna.



And as Paramahansa Yogananda often said - …….. “A saint is a sinner who never gave up.”



I was intrigued to learn ….. that advanced yogis sometimes incarnate in several bodies at once, in order the more quickly to work out their past karmas.



…… The body is immobile in this trance state; one’s absorption in God, at this point, is called sabikalpa samadhi, or qualified absorption, a condition still subject to change, for on one’s return from this lower samadhi one assumes once again the limitations of ego. …… the supreme state: nirbikalpa samadhi, or unqualified absorption – a condition changeless and eternal. If from this state one returns to body-consciousness, he does so no longer with the consciousness of being separate or different from the ocean of Spirit. John Smith no longer exists. It is the eternal Spirit, now, which animates his body …….. This outward direction of energy on the part of one who has attained nirbikalpa samadhi is sometimes known also as sahaja, or effortless, samadhi.

Divine freedom comes only with the attainment of nirbikalpa samadhi. Until that stage, the ego can still – and alas, sometimes does – draw the mind back down into delusion again. Only with nirbikalpa samadhi does one become what is known as a jivan mukta, free even though living in a physical body.

A jivan mukta, however, unimaginably high though his sate is, is not yet fully emancipated. The thought, “I am John Smith,” has been destroyed. He can acquire no new karma, since the post of ego to which his karma was tied has been destroyed forever. There remains even no, however, the memory of all those prior existences …… All those old selves must be made over, their karma spiritualized and released into the Infinite.

“Very few saints on earth have achieved final liberation, becoming siddhas, or perfected beings,” Master told me one day.



“It is only the thought that we are not free that keeps us from actually being free. Merely to break that thought would suffice to put us into samadhi! Samadhi is not something we have to acquire. We have it already!”



When the soul attains final liberation, it becomes a siddha (“perfected being”), or param mukta (“supremely free soul”). Even in this state, individuality is not lost, but is retained in the memory of omniscience. The karma of John Smith’s many incarnations has been released into the Infinite, but the memory of all those lifetimes, now spiritualized, remains an eternal reality in divine memory. The soul, however, once it attains this state of supreme liberation, rarely reactivates it's remembered individuality, and never does so except at the command of the Divine Will.’ When such a supremely free soul returns to this world it comes only for the sake of humanity. Such an incarnation is called an avatar, or “divine incarnation.”

Such, Master told us, was Babaji, the first of our direct line of gurus. Such also were Lahiri Mahasaya …….. and Swami Sri Yukteswar ……..

“Sir,” I asked Master one day …… “are you an avatar?”

With quiet simplicity he replied, “A work of this importance would have to have been started by such a one.”

An avatar, he told us, descends to worldly birth with a divine mission, often for the general upliftment of mankind as well as the particular salvation of a few disciples. ……. To avatars He gives the power to bring vast numbers of souls to freedom in God. Siddhas as given power only to liberate themselves and a few others.



“If you want God,” Master used to say, “go after Him. It takes great determination and steadfast, deep effort. And remember, the minutes are more important than the years.”

A great aid on the path, however, is the constant thought, “I am free already!”



Oliver Wendell Holmes said, “To have doubted one’s own first principles is the mark of a civilized man.”



Jesus’ own words, “Whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it”



We need not so much destroy our desires as rechannel their energies Godward.



Until a desire has been either fulfilled in action or dissipated by wisdom, it may remain dormant in the subconscious, like a seed, for incarnations.



Likes, dislikes, and their resultant attractions and aversions, all of which induce desires and repulsions, are the root cause of our bondage. The progressive stages of involvement with maya may be traced through the progressive functions of human consciousness: mon, buddhi, ahankara, and chitta: mind, intellect, ego, and feeling

Paramahansa Yogananda illustrated these basic functions by a horse, seen in a mirror. The mirror is the mind (mon), which shows us the image as it appears to us through the senses; the mind alone, however, cannot qualify or define that image.

Buddhi (intellect) then defines what is seen, informing our consciousness, “That is a horse.”

Ahankara (ego) then appears, declaring, “This is my horse.” Up to this point we are not necessarily yet bound by the thought of ownership, the identification, though personal, may still remain more or less abstract.

If, then, chitta (feeling) comes onto the scene, saying, “How happy I am to see my horse!” true ego-bondage begins. Chitta is our emotional reaction, including likes and dislikes, desires and aversions. It is the true source of ego-bondage, and the essence of all delusion.

Thus, the ancient classical exponent of the yoga science, Patanjali, defined yoga itself as “the neutralization of the vortices (vrittis) of chitta.” ……. Yogas chitta vritti nirodh. ….. “Vritti,” moreover, doesn’t mean “fluctuation,” or “waves,” as is often translated, but “whirlpool,” which more graphically describes drawing feelings inward to a center in the ego.



When travelling ……. Generally he [Yogananda] ate in the car, to avoid what he termed the “heterogeneous vibrations” of restaurants.



“I know every thought you think,” he once assured me calmly.



He [Yogananda] told us more than once that in a former life he had been William the Conqueror ……… Master said he had also been a leader in Spain, whose mission had been to drive the Moors out of that country ……. He didn’t tell us who that person was, however.



“Will power,” Master told us, “is more important to success than knowledge, training, or even native ability.”



Master was talking to us ……. “One evening I had just returned to Mt. Washington when a sudden, violent wind struck the main building. It was an effect from the evil karma of the World War II. People little realize how greatly the very elements are affected by mass consciousness.”



“Do souls that have been born on this earth keep reincarnating here?” Master’s reply, ……. was, “No, there are innumerable planets to go to.”



His next life on earth, Master told us, would be spent in the Himalayas. Having devoted so much of his present life to public service, he planned to remain for many years of that incarnation in deep seclusion. …… Two hundred years would elapse, he told us, before his next incarnation.



“Don’t sleep a great deal. Sleep is the unconscious way of contacting God. Meditation is a state beyond sleep – superconsciousness, as opposed to subconsciousness. ….



“ ……If you read one hour, then write two hours, think three hours, and meditate all the time.’

From ‘Ramana Smrti. A Birth centenary offering - 1980’ - Sri Ramanasramam, Tiruvannamalai

The method is simply this: you ask yourself, “Who am I?” and try to keep your whole mind concentrated on getting an answer to that question. True, various thoughts will arise unbidden within you and assault you and try to divert your attention. For all these thoughts, however, the ‘I’ thought is the source and sustenance. So, as each thought arises, without allowing it to go on developing itself, ask who gets this thought. The answer will be ‘I’. Then ask yourself: “Who is this ‘I’ and whence?” The Maharshi says, “….. Follow the above method with faith and hope and you will surely succeed.” …… A keen effort of the mind, complete introversion of all the faculties, total absorption in the quest wherefrom the ‘I’ springs – all this is needed for success.



The Bible (Verse 2 of Chapter 10, Ecclesiastics) says, “A wise man’s heart is at his right hand, but a fool’s heart is at his left.” The Maharshi also quotes the Yoga Vasishta which says that the heart on the right side is the one to take note of, that this heart is……… the basis and source of all.



…… his main teaching, “Either know who you are or surrender.”



…… in the Gita: The knowers of the Self look with an equal eye on a Brahmana endowed with learning and humility, a cow, an elephant, a dog and an outcast.



….his words…… “All religions and spiritual practices have no other purpose than getting the mind under control…. In devotion, your mind is merged in the God you love and ceases to exist as separate from Him. He guides your mind step by step and no control is needed ……. Meditate on God or on some mental or material image of Him. This will slow down your mind and it will get controlled on it's own accord”



He also believed that fine grinding and careful cooking would make any food easily digestible. So we used to spend hours on grinding and stewing.



…….. Bhagavan told me that the deer had died. I said: “Some great soul came to you as a deer to gain liberation from your hands.” Bhagavan said: “Yes, it must be so. When I was on the hill, a crow used to keep me company. He was a rishi in a crow’s body…… ” Once a garuda, a white breasted eagle, which is considered holy in India, flew into the hall and sat on the top of a cupboard near Bhagavan. ……. “He is a siddha (a saint endowed with supernatural powers) who came to pay me a visit,” said Bhagavan most seriously.

The respect he showed to animals and birds was most striking. He really treated them as equals. They were served food first like some respected visitors, and if they happened to die in the Ashram, they would be given a decent burial and a memorial stone.



“…… You need not torture the body. ……just keep the body going so that it does not become a hindrance. For this, pure and fresh food, simply prepared and taken in moderation, is a great help.



…….Arunachala. Bhagavan declared it to be the spiritual axis of the earth and requested that it's other pole be sought on a map. This appeared to be in the sea off Peru, the west coast of South America. However, modern plate tectonics suggest that India was originally much further south, in the presumed location of Lemuria, which would place the opposite pole in California, a recognized spiritual center.



“It is not by action but by renunciation of action that one attains Liberation.”



Sri Bhagavan showed reverence for life …… “You may call a tree a standing man, and a man a walking tree.”

From ‘Sri Ramana Reminiscences’ by G. V. Subbaramayya

Sri Bhagavan explained how we have a glimpse of the real Self every day. Between sleep and waking there is a momentary twilight. The waking-consciousness begins with the I-thought. Just before the upsurge of the I-thought, there is a split second of undifferentiated, pure consciousness, then the I-thought with which the world-consciousness floods in, this is the order. The middle state is Self-awareness. We can sense it if we are sufficiently alert and watchful.



Sri Bhagavan ……. Said, “Ten times’ attentive reading is writing. Hundred times’ writing is translating.”



“Bhagavan, people scoff at me, calling me a ‘superstitious idolator.’” Sri Bhagavan told him, “Why don’t you retort by calling them worse idolators? For do they not wash, dress, embellish, feed and thus ‘worship’ their body so many times every day. Is not the body the biggest idol? Then who is not an idol worshipper?”



Sri Bhagavan quoted ….. : “Where psychology ends, philosophy begins” and added His own remark, “Where philosophy ends spirituality begins.”



Sri Bhagavan …….. His replies ……… Even with the limited knowledge of our present life, we are so much oppressed as to be unable to shake off the ego. If we should get to know of our past lives also, the difficulty would be all the greater because the ego would then be much more strengthened. So it is better not to worry about knowing the past, the future or even the present.



Sri Bhagavan also remarked that there might be exceptional cases of even animals and plants attaining Self-Realization



Referring to Mouna (Silence), Sri Bhagavan said, “Silence is of four kids: Silence of speech, Silence of the eye, Silence of the ear, and Silence of the mind. Only the last is pure Silence and is the most important.”



Sri Bhagavan remarked: ‘That which is not real (the body) you take as real and anguish is the only result.’



Sri Bhagavan …… explaining a verse in Upadesa Saram said:

“Breath-control can only produce Manolayam, i.e. temporary suspension of the mind. One-pointed meditation and concentration alone can lead to Manonasam, i.e. destruction of the mind.”



Sri Bhagavan cited a sloka ……. “In indigestion water acts as medicine; when there is no indigestion, water serves as tonic. Water at the end of the meal serves as Nectar; but water at the beginning of a meal acts as poison.” ……. Sri Bhagavan recollected a sloka ……. “Buttermilk mixed with cardamom, ginger, lemon-juice and a little salt is of rare relish …..” Sri Bhagavan Himself liked thin buttermilk prepared in the above way.

From ‘the humble administrator's garden’ by Vikram Seth

From the Babur-Nama: Memoirs of Babur, First Moghul Emperor of India

………
Hindustan is a land of meager pleasures.
The people are not handsome, nor have they
The least conception of the charms of friendship.
They have not spirit, no comprehension, kindness
Or fellow-feeling – no inventiveness
In handicraft or skill in design – no method,
Order, principle, rule in work or thought;
No good flesh or bread in their bazaars,
No ice, cold water, musk-melons, grapes; no horses;
No aqueducts or canals in palace or garden,
Not a single bath or college in the whole land,
No candles, no torches; not even a candlestick.



Love and Work

The fact is, this work is as dreary as shit.
I do not like it a bit.
While at it I wander off into a dream
When I return, I scream.

If I had a lover
I’d bear it all, because when day is over
I could go home and find peace in bed.
Instead

The boredom pulps my brain
And there is nothing at day’s end to help assuage the pain.
I am alone, as I have usually been.
The lawn is green.

The robin hops into the sprinkler’s spray.
Day after day
I fill the feeder with bird-seed,
My one good deed.

Night after night
I turn off the porch light, the kitchen light.
The weight lodged in my spirit will not go
For years, I know.

There is so much to do
There isn’t any time for feeling blue.
There isn’t any point in feeling sad.
Things could be worse. Right now they’re only bad.

From ‘As It Is. Dialogues on the open Secret’ by Tony Parsons

Consciousness simply is. It is energy manifesting without any interest in any of the concepts that our minds have about good or bad, purpose or meaning. It is absolutely impersonal and has no particular direction. It is playing the game of creation and destruction.



But if there’s nowhere to go, there is no purpose, it seems, in anything?

And this realization is the beginning of liberation. We are so locked into the belief that our lives have some sort of purpose we have to fulfil. We go on struggling to fulfil some idea we have of something we need to do, or somewhere that we need to get to, in order to be worthy.



The ego tends to diminish in effect as the gaze of presence evaporates it's illusory identity. Usually the ego demands full attention, like a child, and when it's simply gazed upon without any interest, it tends to dry up and die.



Simply give up your attachment and fascination with the story and let life happen. Something else of immense significance will take the place of all your worries and you will be overrun by a new sense of wonder. Everything will reflect a quality of benevolence. This is the natural way for life to be.



Begin to allow the watcher to emerge. See that the mind is always trying to run the show, to strut the stage. Just see this without judgement, and that seeing emanates from silence.



……My first really deep understanding, which came from reading, was an interpretation of Christ’s words in the book ‘The New Man’ by Maurice Nicholl. He explained that the word “repent” did not mean “to show sorrow for your sins and vow never to sin again”. The word in Christ’s native local tongue meant “to turn 180 degrees and see anew”. This was for me a revelation that went deeper than just intellectual understanding.



Give up the search for something to happen and fall in love, fall intimately in love with the gift of presence in what is. Here, right here, is the seat of all that you will ever long for. It is simple and ordinary, and magnificent. You see, you are already home.

From ‘Moments Remembered. Reminiscences of Bhagavan Ramana’ by V. Ganesan

In the course of tracing ourselves back to our source, when all thoughts have vanished, there arises a throb from the Hridaya on the right, manifesting as ‘Aham’ ‘Aham’ ‘I-I’. This is the sign that Pure Consciousness is beginning to reveal itself. But that is not the end in itself. Watch wherefrom this sphurana (throbbing) arises and wait attentively and continually for the revelation of the Self. Then comes the awareness, oneness of existence.
When we steady our breath we feel the steadying of our thoughts. Then the thoughts turn inward and melt away at a point. Watching this point, where the thoughts vanish, will also help us to merge ourselves in the Hridaya.



Bhagavan on Arunachala …… “…… Is it just a hill of rocks? ….. Arunachala is the Self Itself ….. Of al the saints who adored Arunachala in many hymns, the child-saint Jnanasambandar’s songs are remarkable ……. He saw the Holy Hill as …… the ‘manifestation of Knowledge (Jnana) inundation’. It is the best and exact description of this Wisdom Mountain!”



Bhagavan observed a small child eating lots of sugar …… “Give a few teaspoons of ghee to the child. Ghee is the antidote for too much sugar!”



Professor Aiyar said: ………. “ …….. One noticed in Bhagavan’s daily life, personal cleanliness, tidiness of dress, habitual wearing of vibhuti and kumkum on the forehead; equal sharing of all enjoyments with those around one; strict adherence to a time schedule; doing useful work however ‘low’ it be; never leaving a work unfinished; the pursuit of perfection in every action; incessant activity except while sleeping or resting after a spell of hard work; never considering oneself superior to others; speaking the truth always, or strict silence if the expression of a truth would hurt or lower the reputation of others; perfect self-help, never asking another to do a piece of work which can be done by oneself; taking full responsibility for failure; if any, without shifting the blame on others; accepting success and failure with equanimity; never disturbing the peace of another; leaving the leaf or plate clean after eating; complete non-interference in the affairs of others; never worrying about the future.



….. some bee-wax ……. mixed it with cotton and made ear-plug …… totally sound-proof …….such ear-plugs …… a boon for undisturbed meditation.



Some of Bhagavan’s personal instructions to me:

(i) If you observe the breathing one-pointedly such attention will lead you spontaneously into kumbhaka (retention) – this is jnana pranayama.

(ii) The more you humble yourself, the better it is for you, in all ways. ………..

(vii) Both likes and dislikes should be equally discarded and eschewed.

(viii) With attention focused on the first person and on the heart within, one should relentlessly practice Who am I? When this is done one-pointedly, one’s breathing will subside of itself. During such controlled practice, the mind might suddenly spring up; so you have to vigilantly pursue the vichara, Who am I?

From ‘The Guiding Presence of Sri Ramana’ by K. K. Nambiar

This knowledge of the Truth makes an eloquent wise and active person mute, inert, and inactive. Therefore, it is shunned by those who want to enjoy the world.

- Ashtavakra Gita, XV.6


Sri Bhagavan said, “There is nothing better than giripradakshina. That alone is enough. If you do japa or meditation sitting in one place, the mind may wander. But during giripradakshina, the limbs move but the mind will be still. Doing japa or meditation without any thought while walking is called samadhi in movement. That is why in those days walking was considered so important. Giripradakshina is particularly important. As there are several medicinal herbs on the hill, their breeze will be good for health. There are several siddhas and sages on the hill even now, though we cannot see them. They also go round the hill unseen by us. When we go round the hill, we should walk on the left side of the road, otherwise we shall be obstructing their movement. …….”



Sri Bhagavan has said in Atma Vidya:
When you haven’t understood yourself,
What’s the point of understanding other things?
When you have understood yourself,
What else is there to understand?

From ‘Living with the Master. Reminiscences’ by Kunjuswami

Sri Bhagavan said there were three kinds of japa. Uccha japa, Upamsa japa and Manasika japa. Uccha japa is that which you do by moving your lips. Upamsa japa is japa that is done without movement of lips. The best is Manasika japa which is mental japa

From ‘Sri Ramana Maharshi. The Supreme Guru’ by Alan Jacobs

“Arunachala is the place, that which of all places deserves to be called the holy place! Of all places it is the greatest! Know that it is the Heart Centre of the Earth. It is Shiva Himself. It is a secret place representing the Spiritual Heart. Lord Shiva always abides there as a glorious hill called Arunachala”
- V, 1, Sri Arunachala Mahatmya


Sri Bhagavan recommended that his devotees should practice Giripradakshina (take a slow walk around the Hill), like a pregnant woman, with reverence and attention. This practice would be of spiritual and physical benefit as the natural herbs growing in the vicinity filled the air with a healing fragrance.

From ‘Devotions. Wisdom from the Cradle of Civilization’ collected by Danielle and Olivier Follmi

Be melting snow
Wash yourself or yourself

- Rumi (13th Century)



If we become aware that each one of us is an aspect of the face of
God – like the facet of a diamond -
then we can adore God in brotherhood and mutual love.

- Khaled Bentounès (20th – 21st Century)



Talk of tomorrow is not one of the conditions of the path.

- Rumi (13th Century)



That which sings and contemplates in you is still dwelling within the
bounds of that first moment which scattered the stars into space

- Kahlil Gibran (20th Century)



Set your eyes on life’s ephemera and you will see eternity

- Faouzi Skali (20th – 21st Century)



There are many ways to search but the object of the search is always
the same. Don’t you see that the roads to Mecca are all different, one
coming from Byzantium, the other from Syria, others running through
land or sea? The roads are diverse, the goal, one …

- Rumi (13th Century)



My friend, you lost yourself along this path because it is not your own.
You followed the alleyways and avenues that others travelled because
they were bustling and you thought you knew them

- Faouzi Skali (20th – 21st Century)



Elevate yourself above time and space:
leave the world and be a world unto yourself

- Mahmud Shabistari (13th – 14th Century)



My heart can take on any form:
a meadow for gazelles, a cloister for monks,
A temple for idols, the Ka’ba for pilgrims,
the tablets of the Torah, the leaves of the Qur’an.
I believe in the religion of love whichever way it's caravan turns;
love is my religion and my faith.

- Ibn ‘Arabi (12th – 13th Century)



Never ask directions from someone who knows the way,
or you will never be able to get lost.

- Rabbi Nachman of Breslov (18th – 19th Century)



Set your eyes on your death and
you will receive each breath of life as a gift.

- Faouzi Skali (20th – 21st Century)



Look for the answer in the same place that you found the question.

- Rumi (13th Century)



Live every day as if you were
going to live one hundred years.
Live as if you were living the
last day of your life.

- Proverb attributed to Ibn ‘Arabi (12th – 13th Century)



Verily all things move within your being in constant half embrace
the desired and the dreaded, the repugnant and the cherished,
the pursued and that which you would escape.

- Kahlil Gibran (20th Century)



Wisdom is a view from on high, from the narrow path
between two precipices, two extreme ideas.

- Amin Maalouf (20th – 21st Century)



Lack of sincerity, my friend, turns you into a shadow. You
live only for the image of yourself. What a strange spectacle to
see a man driven by his shadow! Come, life your eyes to the
sun of Being and understand the source of truth and illusion.
Do not remain a prisoner of the eyes of this world

- Faouzi Skali (20th – 21st Century)



The deeper that sorrow carves into your being,
the more joy you can contain

- Kahlil Gibran (20th Century)



Where is God? Any place you let him in.

- Rabbi Menachem Mendel of Kotsk (19th Century)



Should you sit upon a cloud you would not see the boundary lines
between one country and another,
not the boundary stone between a farm and a farm.
It is a pity you cannot sit upon a cloud.

- Kahlil Gibran (20th Century)



When you are joyous, look deep into your heart, and you shall find it is
only that which has given you sorrow that is giving you joy.

- Kahlil Gibran (20th Century)



The chains of the world exist nowhere but within you.
Protect yourself from your own tricks, and the demon itself will give up
the battle for lack of allies

- Faouzi Skali (20th – 21st Century)



You often say, “I would give, but only to the deserving.”
The trees in your orchard say not so, nor the flocks in your pasture.
They give that they may live, for to withhold is to perish.

- Kahlil Gibran (20th Century)



One good word is enough warmth for a whole winter

- Arab proverb



He who wears his morality as his best garment were better naked

- Kahlil Gibran (20th Century)



A being capable of a destiny other than his own is a fertile soul.

- Rabbi Elisha ben Abuyah (1st Century C.E.)



If you feel more important than many human beings, think of only one
thing your entire life: releasing your soul from this malady

- Faouzi Skali (20th – 21st Century)



Close
the language-door and open the love-window.
The moon won't use the door,
only the window.

- Rumi (13th Century)



For thought is a bird of space, that in a cage of words may indeed
unfold it's wings but cannot fly.

- Kahlil Gibran (20th Century)



To know yourself is to live one hundred lives.

- Attar (12th – 13th Century)



If you respect someone and respect his history
it's because you believe he belongs to the same human race as you do,
not to some inferior version

- Amin Maalouf (20th – 21st Century)



The Truth you are seeking, my friend, is always beyond yourself.

- Faouzi Skali (20th – 21st Century)



You are the way and the wayfarers.
And when one of you falls down he falls for those behind him,
a caution against the stumbling stone.
Ay, and he falls for those ahead of him,
who though faster and surer of foot,
yet removed not the stumbling stone.

- Kahlil Gibran (20th Century)



That which is hateful to you, do not do to your neighbor.
This is the entire Torah; the rest is commentary. Go and learn

- Hillel the Elder (1st Century B.C.E – 1st Century C.E)



Neither on a world scale nor within any society
should anybody feel so scorned, depreciated, mocked, or demonized
that in order to be able to live among his fellow-citizens
he is forced to conceal or be ashamed of his religion, color, language,
name, or any other ingredient of his identity

- Amin Maalouf (20th – 21st Century)



As a single leaf turns yellow
but with the knowledge of the whole tree,
So the wrong-doer cannot do wrong without the hidden will of you all.

- Kahlil Gibran (20th Century)



Come, come, whoever you are,
Wanderer, idolater, worshipper of fire, come
Even though you have broken your vows a thousand times,
come, and come yet again,
Ours is not a caravan of despair

- Rumi (13th Century)



My friend, stop searching
For the why and the how
Stop spinning the wheel of you soul.
Right where you stand
At this moment
Everything is given you
In the utmost perfection.
Accept this gift
Squeeze the juice of the passing moment.

- Faouzi Skali (20th – 21st Century)



Listen to the words of the passing moment:
“At this very moment of this long journey, where are you?”

- Faouzi Skali (20th – 21st Century)



A society that neglects its youth looks like an old-age home. When it
abandons it's elderly, it looks like an orphanage. Blessed are the young
who are inspired by the wisdom of the ancients! Blessed are the old
who take heart in the enthusiasm of the young!

- Jewish saying



Truth is a mirror that fell
from the hand of God and was
broken. Everybody picked up a
fragment and announced that
he had found the whole truth

- Arab proverb



Sometimes you have to keep quiet to be heard

- Stanislas Jerzy Lec (20th Century)



Set your eyes on your limits and you will perceive the Unlimited.

- Faouzi Skali (20th – 21st Century)



Thanks to the repentance of a single person,
the entire world is forgiven.

- Rabbi Meir (2nd Century C.E.)



When you pray you rise to meet in the air those who are praying at
that very hour, and whom, save in prayer, you may not meet.

- Kahlil Gibran (20th Century)



It would be disastrous if the current globalization were to be a
one-way process, with “universal transmitters” on one side and
“receivers” on the other, with the “norm” set against the “exceptions”;
with on the one hand those who think they have nothing to learn
from the rest of the world, and on the other those who believe that
the rest of the world will never listen to them.

- Amin Maalouf (20th – 21st Century)



The vision of his essence does not take place except when what has
never been disappears, and what has never ceased to be remains.

- Ibn ‘Arabi (12th – 13th Century)



When I want to understand what is happening today or try to decide
what will happen tomorrow, I look back.

- Omar Khayyam (11th – 12th Century)



Love calls:
Everything, at every moment.
We are leaving for the heavens.
Will you accompany us?

- Rumi (13th Century)

From ‘The Four Seasons. Japanese Haiku Second Series’ Translation by Peter Beilenson

Spring
A CHILDLESS HOUSEWIFE …
HOW TENDERLY
SHE TOUCHES
LITTLE DOLLS FOR SALE

- RANSETSU



OH YOU BAWDY BREEZE …
THATCHER BENDING
ON THE ROOF
I SEE THE BOTTOM

- ISSA



SPRING MORNING MARVEL …
LOVELY NAMELESS
LITTLE HILL
ON A SEA OF MIST

- BASHO



PAPER-WEIGHTS PROTECT
GAY PICTURE-BOOKS
IN THE SHOP …
INQUISITIVE BREEZE

- KITO



GOOD MORNING, SPARROW …
WRITING ON MY
CLEAN VERANDA
WITH YOUR DEWY FEET

- SHIKI


Summer
HANDS UPON THE GROUND
OLD ARISTOCRATIC FROG
RECITES HIS POEM

- SOKAN



SOFTLY FOLDED FAWN
SHIVERS, SHAKING OFF
THE BUTTERFLY …
AND SLEEPS AGAIN

- ISSA



RAINY AFTERNOON …
LITTLE DAUGHTER
YOU WILL NEVER
TEACH THAT CAT TO DANCE

- ISSA



EXPERIMENTING …
I HUNG THE MOON
ON VARIOUS
BRANCHES OF THE PINE

- HOKUSHI



THE DEVOTED CLERK …
NOT TO WASTE
A JOT OF BREEZE
NAPS ON A LEDGER PILLOW

- ISSA



I SCOOPED UP THE MOON
IN MY WATER
BUCKET … AND
SPILLED IT ON THE GRASS

- RYUHO


Autumn

NIGHTS ARE GETTING COLD …
NOT A SINGLE INSECT
NOW
ATTACKS THE CANDLE

- SHIKI


Winter

THE OLDDOG LIES INTENT
LISTENING …
DOES HE OVERHEAR
THE BURROWING MOLES?

- ISSA

From ‘Cherry Blossoms. Japanese Haiku Series III’ Published by the Peter Pauper Press

Spring

IT IS SPRING AGAIN …
GAY IN THE GARDEN
GATHER
SUN-BATHING SPARROWS

- ONITSURA


Summer


A BABY SPARROW …
HOPPING
WITH CURIOSITY
TO WATCH MY BRUSHWORK

- SHOHA



ON THE GIDDY SWING …
TINY GIRL-CHILD
CLUTCHING TIGHT
HER SPRAY OF BLOSSOMS

- ISSA



THAT FAT OLD BULL-FROG
SAT THERE STARING
BACK AT ME
WITH A SOUR FACE

- ISSA



BOUNCING THE BALL …
SHE BENDS TO MAKE
A FACE AT HER
MEOWING KITTEN

- ISSA


Autumn


MY SACRED SWALLOW …
TWITTERING OUT
FROM YOUR NEST IN
GREAT BUDDHA’S NOSTRIL

- ISSA


Winter
FEEBLE FEEBLE SUN …
IT CAN SCARCELY
STRETCH ACROSS
WINTER-WASTED FIELDS

- BAKUSUI

From ‘Japanese Haiku’ Translated by Peter Beilenson.

MY TWO PLUM TREES ARE
SO GRACIOUS …
SEE, THEY FLOWER
ONE NOW, ONE LATER

- BUSON



ONE FALLEN FLOWER
RETURNING TO THE
BRANCH? … OH NO!
A WHITE BUTTERFLY

- MORITAKE



ARISE FROM SLEEP, OLD CAT,
AND WITH GREAT YAWNS
AND STRETCHING …
AMBLE OUT FOR LOVE

- ISSA



DIM THE GREY COW COMES
MOOING MOOING
AND MOOING
OUT OF THE MORNING MIST

- ISSA



ON HER DEAD SON
IN WHAT WINDY LAND
WANDERS NOW
MY LITTLE DEAR
DRAGONFLY HUNTER?

- CHIYO-NI



OLD DARK SLEEPY POOL …
QUICK UNEXPECTED
FROG
GOES PLOP! WATERSPLASH

- BASHO



GOOD FRIEND GRASSHIPPER
WILL YOU PLAY
THE CARETAKER
FOR MY LITTLE GRACE?

- ISSA



NOW BE A GOOD BOY
TAKE GOOD CARE OF
OUR HOUSE …
CRICKET MY CHILD

- ISSA



NOW MY LONELINESS
FOLLOWING
THE FIREWORKS …
LOOK! A FALLING STAR!

- SHIKI



CAN’T IT GET AWAY
FROM THE STICKY
PINE-BRANCHES …
CICADA SINGING?

- GIJOENS



VOICES OF TWO BELLS
THAT SPEAK FROM
TWILIGHT TEMPLES …
AH! COOL DIALOGUE

- BUSON



CAMELLIA-PETAL
FELL IN SILENT DAWN …
SPILLING
A WATER-JEWEL

- BASHO



FRIEND, THAT OPEN MOUTH
REVEALS YOUR
WHOLE INTERIOR …
SILLY HOLLOW FROG!

- ANON.



BUTTERFLY ASLEP
FOLDED SOFT ON
TEMPLE BELL …
THEN BRONZE GONG RANG!

- BUSON



GOD EVENING BREEZE!
CROOKED AND
MEANDERING
YOUR HOMEWARD JOURNEY

- ISSA



SEE THE MORNING BREEZE
RUFFLING HIS SO
SILKY HAIR …
COOL CATERPILLAR

- BUSON



THE TURNIP FARMER ROSE
AND WITH A FRESH-
PULLED TURNIP …
POINTED TO MY ROAD

- ISSA



FLOWER IN THE STREAM
THUS TOO MY LOVELY LIFE
MUST END, ANOTHER
FLOWER …
TO FALL AND FLOAT AWAY

- ONITSURA



I AM GOING OUT …
BE GOOD AND PLAY
TOGETHER
MY CRICKET CHILDREN

- ISSA



ANGRY I STRODE HOME …
BUT STOOPING IN
MY GARDEN
CALM OLD WILLOW-TREE

- RYOTA



OH DO NOT SWAT THEM …
UNHAPPY FLIES
FOREVER
WRINGING THEIR THIN HANDS

- ISSA



SEE … THE HEAVY LEAF
ON THE SILENT
WINDLESS DAY …
FALLS OF ITS OWN WILL

- BONCHO



I MUST TURN OVER …
BEWARE OF LOCAL
EARTHQUAKES
BEDFELLOW CRICKET!

- ISSA



VISITING THE GRAVES …
TROTTING ON TO SHOW
THE WAY …
OLD FAMILY DOG

- ISSA



NO OIL TO READ BY …
I AM OFF TO BED
BUT AH! …
MY MOONLIGHT PILLOW

- BASHO



WINDY WINTER RAIN …
MY SILLY BIG
UMBRELLA
TRIES WALKING BACKWARD

- SHISEI-JO



BUDDHA ON THE HILL …
FROM YOUR HOLY
NOSE INDEED
HANGS AN ICICLE

- ISSA

From ‘Be Love Now. The Path of the heart’ by Ram Dass with Rameshwar Das

Imagine a mountain of solid rock six miles long, six miles wide, and six miles high. Once every hundred years a crow flies by with a silk scarf in it's beak, just barely caressing the top of the mountain with it. The length of time it would take to wear away that mountain is how Buddha described the journey to enlightenment.



A perfected being lives in harmony with the universe with no clinging whatsoever. In Buddhism that state may be called “nothing special,” “crazy wisdom,” or the arahat. Taoists call it wei wu wei. Hindus may refer to such beings as avadhoot, without body consciousness, or siddha purusha, merged in the cosmos, or, again, as sat guru, gurus who bestow ultimate truth.

Perfected beings rest in emptiness, in presence, in nonconceptual, nondiffrentiated awareness of every moment. Out of them comes the optimal response to any life situation.



You have to let go of your self-pity, feelings of unworthiness, feelings of inadequacy, and the desires that increase your separateness and push the universe away.



Although the Guru and disciple appear to be two,
It is the Guru alone who masquerades as both.
When you look in a mirror and see your own face,
You know that both are only yourself.


If one could see his own eye without a mirror,
There would be no need of this sport of the Guru.
Therefore he nourishes this ultimate relationship
Without causing duality or disturbing the Unity.

- Jnaneshwar



As the karma lightens, your faith gets stronger and you become more attuned to the feeling of that presence or guidance, even though you can’t know it through your senses or your thinking mind. That faith allows you to come into a deeper intimacy with your guru.



The guru is constantly showing you where you’re not, your most secret places where you’re holding on to your stash of attachments.



When asked how to get enlightenment, Maharaj-ji sad, “Bring your mind to one point, and wait for grace.” ……. The end of karma is a quiet mind completely concentrated on God, and what take you beyond that is truly grace.



O servant, where dost thou seek Me?
Lo! I am beside thee,
I am neither in temple nor in mosque; I am neither in Kaaba nor
in Kailash;
Neither am I in rites and ceremonies, nor in Yoga and renunciation.
If thou are a true seeker, thou shalt at once see Me: thou shalt meet
Me in a moment of time.
Kabir says, “O Sadhu! God is the breath of all breath.”

- Kabir



………. saint standing in the river who saw a scorpion floating by. He thought to save it's life and picked it up from the water, but it stung him with it's tail, causing immense pain, which he could not bear, so the scorpion fell back in the water as his hand recoiled. Again, the saint picked it up, and the same story repeated itself. Someone asked the saint why he kept doing this, when the creature was causing him so much pain. The saint said, “It is following it's nature. When such a creature does not leave it's nature, why should I leave mine?”



Shirdi Sai Baba …….. His statement, “I give people what they want in the hope that they will begin to want what I want to give them,”



Ramana Maharshi …… He said, “Each one thinks of God according to his own degree of advancement,” and told people to “Worship God with or without form until you know who you are.” ……….
Q: What are the hindrances to the realization of the true Self?
R: Memory chiefly, habits of thoughts, accumulated tendencies.
Q: How does one get rid of these hindrances?
R: Seek for the Self through meditation in this manner, trace every thought back to it's origin which is only the mind. Never allow thought to run on. If you do, it will be unending. Take it back to it's starting place – the mind – again and again, and it and the mind will both die of inaction. The mind exists only by reason of thought. Stop thought and there is no mind. As each doubt and depression arises, ask yourself, “Who is it that doubts? What is it that is depressed?” Go back constantly until there is nothing but the source of all left. And then, live always in the present and only in it. There is no past or future, save in the mind.



Dwell, O mind, within yourself;
Enter no other’s home.
If you but seek there, you will find
All you are searching for.
- Sri Ramakrishna

From ‘Touched by Fire. The Ongoing Journey of a Spiritual Seeker’ by Pandit Rajmani Tigunait PHD

…. he met a great saint ……. who told him, “Your job is to continue walking. When you really get exhausted, then simply stop and wait, and remember that He will pick you up.”



Rituals are a valid path of spirituality, provided they are performed with full purity and precision. Ritual worship, in it's own right, is a complete science, but today much of the science has been replaced by custom, dogma, and superstition.



Swami Sadananda …… “Intense austerity, intense meditation, recitation of mantra, grace of God, selfless service, and living in the company of saints create a powerful, positive karma in a short period of time. …….. purification is what enables you to become a conduit through which grace can flow.”



“Human beings have a hard time going beyond the realm of their minds. On one hand, they know the Supreme Being is too big to fit in their small little heads, and yet they wish it would fit. To reconcile fact with wish, they project human characteristics onto God, and thus they create gods in their own image. Then using the power of faith, they breathe life into the gods they have created. Thereafter they pray to these gods to help them overcome their problems. These are lower-grade gods born from our own minds. We empower them to help us overcome our self-created misery. Once empowered, they become our masters. And if we have confused minds, then we definitely become their slaves and live at their mercy.” …….. In order to bring the concept of God closer to our daily experience, we superimpose characteristics onto God that are compatible with our personal tastes, interests, preferences, and choices…….. once these gods and goddesses have seeped into the collective unconscious of a particular group of humanity, they exert their powers regardless of whether or not the members of that group believe in them at a conscious level.

From ‘Haiku Harvest. Series IV’ Translation by Peter Beilenson and Harry Behn

OH THAT SUMMER MOON!
IT MADE ME GO
WANDERING
ROUND THE POND ALL NIGHT

- BASHO



IF I COULD BUNDLE
FUJI’S BREEZES
BACK TO TOWN …
WHAT A SOUVENIR!

- BASHO



SOME POOR VILLAGES
LACK FRESH FISH
OR FLOWERS …
ALL CAN SHARE THIS MOON

- SAIKAKU



POPPY PETALS FALL
SOFTLY QUIETLY
CALMLY
WHEN THEY ARE READY

- ETSUJIN



NEW YEAR DAWNING CLEAR …
CHEERFUL SPARROWS
CHATTER
ALL DAY LIKE PEOPLE

- RANSETSU



PINE TREE SILHOUETTE
PAINTED BY THE
HARVEST MOON
ON A SHINING SKY

- RANSETSU



GAZING AT FALLING
PETALS
A BABY ALMOST
LOOKS LIKE A BUDDHA

- KUBUTSU



HIGH ON A MOUNTAIN
WE HEARD A SKYLARK
SINGING FAINTLY
FAR BELOW …

- BASHO



IT IS NICE TO READ
NEWS THAT OUR
SPRING RAIN ALSO
VISITED YOUR TOWN

- ONITSURA



TIDES OF THE SPRING SEA,
TIDE AFTER INDOLENT TIDE
DRIFTING
ON AND ON …

- BUSON



THE LEAVES NEVER KNOW
WHICH LEAF
WILL BE FIRST TO FALL …
DOES THE WIND KNOW?

- SOSEKI



THE BEST I HAVE
TO OFFER YOU
IS THE SMALL SIZE
OF THE MOSQUITOES

- BASHO



ON THE TEMPLE’S GREAT
BRONZE BELL,
A BUTTERFLY SLEEPS
IN THE NOON SUN

- BUSON



SINCE MY HOUSE
BURNED DOWN, I NOW OWN
A BETTER VIEW
OF THE RISING MOON

- MASAHIDE



BROKEN AND BROKEN
AGAIN ON THE SEA,
THE MOON
SO EASILY MENDS

- CHOSU



O MOON,
WHY MUST YOU INSPIRE
MY NEIGHBOUR TO CHIRP
ALL NIGHT ON A FLUTE!

- KOYO



WHAT A SPLENDID DAY!
NO ONE IN ALL
THE VILLAGE
DOING ANYTHING!

- SHIKI



THE ROOSTER, FIGHTING,
SPREADING
HIS RUFF OF FEATHERS,
THINKS HE’S A LION

- KIKAKU



HE IS UNKNOWN,
THE POET WHO SINGS
THIS GREATEST
OF ALL SONGS – SPRING

- SHIKI

From ‘Travelling Light. Walking the path of letting go. A compilation of columns from Life Positive magazine’ by Suma Varughese

Even a pin cannot drop to the ground, they say, without the whole universe conspiring.

Krishnamurti never managed to clear a single exam in his life. He sat for his matriculation three times but failed. Mary Lutyens, his biographer and childhood friend, whose mother, Emily, was virtually a surrogate mother to him, describes him in his university years as “vague, gentle, fallible, shy, simple-simpled, compliant, affectionate, delighting to laugh at the silliest jokes.” He also, she said, had a terrible memory and could remember nothing of an event after it had passed.

From ‘In Search of the Mahabharata. Notes of travels in India with Peter Brook 1982-1985’ by Jean-Claude Carriere. Translated from the French original by Aruna Vasudev

India …… a place where everything seems to have been foreseen, from one extreme to the other. Anything that one can do with this or with that. Complete. The least boring in the world, that is certain. A meticulous exploration of reality. Continuity of ancient kingdoms, the only one left. A gigantic anomaly: unless all the other countries are shadows of India.



Vyasa, the legendary author of the poem, says that the aim of the Mahabharata is “to inscribe the Dharma in the heart of man”. ……. There is an individual dharma which each one must know and follow, and also a collective, universal, cosmic dharma which one could call the world order. And one depends on the other. If a great number of people respect their individual dharmas, the cosmic dharma will be maintained. ……. Lavastine says that for him the most important sentence of the book is: “The dharma when it is protected, protects. When it is destroyed, it destroys”.



…… Cioran: “Man is a deceitful animal. History is his punishment.”



The African actors who are part of the journey ……….. They all find themselves in India for the first time and their reactions are similar: everything reminds them of Africa. They keep saying: this is like at home, it is like in Africa. Direct and profound links, even with the landscapes. But most of all in the way of thinking, the rituals, the rhythms.



A sentence of Henri Michaux which could be applied to the Mahabharata: “You tell this story to an old stick: it will sprout leaves and take root.”



What has India given us? Impossible to say. A secret dimension that will probably remain forever secret – beyond wonder, charm, irritation, repulsion. The pulsating energy, above all else, and the mixture of things.



As Krishna said to Vyasa, the god to the man: “Which one of us invented the other?”

From ‘Quotes of Jalaluddin Rumi’ by The Wisdom Tree. Compiled by Harish Dhillon

If you could untie your wings

and free your soul of jealousy

you and everyone around you

would fly like doves.

If you love love look for yourself.

How is it with this love?

I see your world but not you.

Lovers don’t finally meet somewhere.

They’re in each other all along.

This being human is a guest house.

Every morning a new arrival.

A polished mirror cannot help reflecting.

What matters is how quickly you do

what your soul directs.

All religions, all this singing one song.

The differences are just illusion and vanity.

Sunlight looks slightly different on this wall

than it does on that wall and a lot different

on this other one, but it is still one light.

Lovers feel a truth inside themselves

that rational people keep denying.

Every object and being in the universe

is a jar overfilled with wisdom and beauty.

Don’t do daily prayers like a bird pecking,

moving it's head up and down,

Prayer is an egg -

hatch out the total helplessness inside.

Watch the man beating the rug.

He is not mad at it.

He wants to loosen the layers of dirt.

Ego accumulations are not

loosened with one swat.

Continued work is necessary.

Do not keep talking about the garden.

Eat the grapes

Not Christian or Jew or Muslim,

not Hindu, Budhist, Sufi, Zen,

not any religion or cultural system,

I belong to the beloved

and know the first, last, outer, inner

only that breath breathing human being.

If it is true that rules rise from love

it is also true that

lovers pay not attention to rules.

No matter how hard

you stare into muddy water,

you will not

see the moon or the sun.

Hold on to your particular pain.

That too can take you to God.

Why should I seek? I am the same as He,

His essence speaks through me

I have been looking for myself.

Open your hands, if you want to be held.

When I was apart from you

this world did not exist,

whatever I was looking for was always you,

Why did I ever learn to count till three?

I used to want buyers for my words.

Now I wish someone would

buy me away from words

Spiritual arrogance is the ugliest of all things,

It's like a day that’s cold and snowy,

and your clothes are wet too.

Let the lover be

Disgraceful crazy absentminded

Someone sober will worry

about things going badly.

Let the lover be.

How long will you complain about money

and our prospect for money?

Don’t worry about transient things.

Think how the animals live.

The dove on the branch giving thanks,

the glorious singing of the nightingale

Every living thing trusts in God

for it's nourishment

The mystery does not get clearer

by repeating the questions,

nor is it bought with going to amazing places,

Until you’ve kept your eyes

and your wanting

still for fifty years,

You don’t begin to cross over

from confusion.

When I am with you, we stay awake all night

when you are not here, I can’t go to sleep.

Praise God for these two insomniacs

and the difference between them.

I honour those who try to rid themselves

of any lying, who empty the self

and have one clear being then.

Your loving doesn’t know it's majesty

until it knows it's helplessness.

A little while alone in your room

will prove more valuable than anything else

that could ever be given to you.

I swear by the one who never says tomorrow

as the circle of the moon refuses to sell

instalments of light.

It gives all it has.

The rose does not care

if someone calls it thorn or jasmine

Ordinary eyes categorize human beings,

that one is Zoroastrian, this one Muslim,

Bow to the essence in a human being.

Curing a hide, the tanner rubs in acid

and all manner of filth.

This makes a beautiful soft leather.

Every hard thing that happens

Works on you like this.

Humble living does not diminish,

It fills.

Going back to a simpler self gives wisdom.