Monday, April 11, 2005

"Thou art That"

The translation of an old sanskrit, Vedic teaching about the essence of Self and how it relates to the Divine. It seems almost blasphemous but demands true understanding. The aphorism attempts to convey that the human self is of divine nature and that the search for the Divine can be turned inwards just as outward (the two are actually the same, for later discussion). That is something that can only be vouched for by experiencing it. The essense of God is the godliness in all. "The kingdom of God is within not without." It is knowledge that is even present in Christian scripture. The problem lay in the incomplete way in which it was understood and preached. The introspection required of this teaching is only possible with the demise of the ego and that is why in many traditions it is said that you have to die in this world before you understand the next. Physical death is not what is being talked about here but only (only!) a egotistic one. The silence or stillness required to experience the "Kingdom of God" only comes when that "death" has happened. The mystics in all traditions talk about this extensively. In St Francis of Assisi's beloved prayer too, this idea is mentioned, "It is in dying that we are born to eternal life." So the more we develop the ego and its varied wants with our materialistic view, the more difficult it is to experience the Presence within ourselves. This confusion is also what drives even more fundamentalistic interpretations of various dogmas in an attempt to connect with something of the Divine or on the flipside with a cavalier, embittered, here and now defensive agnosticism about the meaning of life. The latter is the version more seen in the West. Both are similar in that they strengthen the ego even more and make it almost impossible for there to be silence within to foster a spiritual experience. The dissolution of the ego is a vital yet extremely difficult task that is required of individuals today. This shall have consequences for society and the world we live in.

Saturday, April 09, 2005


Stillness Posted by Hello

Why do we need so much "stuff"??

So little is really so much, if it is the truth. When that little that matters is actually experienced, everything else changes and ones interactions with life and its occupants change irrevocably. The challenge after that experience is to keep oneself disciplined so as not to regress back into the machinations of the mind and its many needs, that keep one chained to all the rest of the "stuff". But experiencing a little bit of the truth is oh so challenging! In that it is so entirely simple, that it becomes truely difficult. Paradoxical but there is no other way to really explain it intellectually. To paraphrase, an experience of the truth is worth a thousand thoughts. What is paradoxical is that you can't have that experience while you are still having those thoughts. To quote and paraphrase an esteemed source: "Be still and know that I am God"......"Be still and know"....."Be still"......"Be"
That put very simply yet elloquently (by a friend) is the essence to experiencing the truth.

Conservation Posted by Hello

What is "secular culture"?

Secular culture...you often hear that phrase in regards to change in society. It has been especially visible these days in light of the media coverage of the Pontiff's death. They talk about how western societies are losing their uniqueness (read religion) by becoming "secularized". This is particularly referred to Western Europe that has seen a dramatic drop in church attendance with people not identifying so much with their erstwhile faith. So what exactly is this? In my opinion, it is really the realization at a deeper level that the current interpretation of the Judeo-Christian theology does not resonate with most reasonably cognisant individuals. The inconsistencies and corruptions have made it a phantom faith that probably does not provide the sustenance that people are looking for. This is also a reflection of the materialistic flavor of these societies (which incidentally the Church was/is (?) a part of for hundreds of years) that in some ways people are trying to come to terms with as they see how it is eroding their culture and way of life. The real spiritual truths that would have helped humans deal with rapid modernization and not lose perspective were not espoused by the fathers of the Church, either because their "message" was lost on them or because they were methodically discouraged as irrelevant to most peoples' lives. The secularization is in a way an attempt by society to find what it is looking for and is not obtaining in its traditional faith-based practices. I personally do not think it is something to fear, only to encourage as it will likely force the western faiths to really dig deep and find true spiritual wisdom that is buried deep in their scripture and bring it to fore. That will have enormous impact on the way society moves ahead in the future.
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