Guest guest Posted August 30, 2006 Report Share Posted August 30, 2006 Dear Family, Namaste! Thank you for your participation in the online class and discussions! We have question for the group: If you set a goal but encounter obstacles. Does that mean God does not will it? Looking forward to your thoughts and insights! with love srini Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 30, 2006 Report Share Posted August 30, 2006 Interesting question! IMHO, it means that Goddess is testing your resolve to achieve your goal. Jai Maa! Surya - srini_sadhu Tuesday, August 29, 2006 5:43 PM [www.ShreeMaa.org] Question #1 about goal setting Dear Family, Namaste! Thank you for your participation in the online class and discussions! We have question for the group: If you set a goal but encounter obstacles. Does that mean God does not will it? Looking forward to your thoughts and insights! with love srini Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 30, 2006 Report Share Posted August 30, 2006 Everything that exists is due to God's will, so we can't possibly go against God's will. (Not that we can't go against our best self-interest, or against superior principles like Ahimsa, etc.) It is God's will that a soul rises, and even that it falls. Without obstacles, we would instantaneously achieve our objective. The existence of an obstacle confirms the presence of what we call duality. When the devotee is more or less fused in God, then there is no sense of an obstacle [regardless of appearances, being an interpretation of circumstances] ... then we can say, the supreme goal, of uniting with God, or God Realization, has been reached. Even that will be the interpretation of an outsider. Words will completely fail to express the experience. For a spiritual being, a goal expresses a superior will, or intent. It is an expression of the desire to transcend our confusion, fear, lack of focus, lack of heart, lack of realization, etc. This may or may not yield a resolution towards some specific physical or devotional action outwardly expressed. Obstacles there will be -- all of this -- the sense of limitation, the desire to defeat limitation, and the tools and capacity to make the attempt -- is as God wills. , "srini_sadhu" <srini_sadhu wrote: > > Dear Family, > > Namaste! > > Thank you for your participation in the online class and discussions! > > We have question for the group: > > If you set a goal but encounter obstacles. Does that mean God does not will it? > > Looking forward to your thoughts and insights! > > with love > srini > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 30, 2006 Report Share Posted August 30, 2006 , "srini_sadhu" <srini_sadhu wrote: > > Dear Family, > > Namaste! > > Thank you for your participation in the online class and discussions! > > We have question for the group: > > If you set a goal but encounter obstacles. Does that mean God does not will it? > > Looking forward to your thoughts and insights! > > with love > srini >Namaste: The idea that every goal everytime be achieved without obstacles is not realistic. If you get to the goal with no obstacles, you take it as God's grace and keep on. When obstacles arise as they will always do, it is a test of one's sankalpa or commitment to see it through. The ability to set a goal, the ability to take action, the abiltiy to see obstacles, the ability to work around/with/through obstacles is all the grace of God. If one points only to the obstacle, and resigns from further attempts at getting to the goal and claims that is God's will, it's more from indolence and laziness rather than God's will. Even when obstacles are apparently insurmountable, the effort one has put in is never wasted! Raghu Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 30, 2006 Report Share Posted August 30, 2006 Raghu wrote that " The ability to set a goal, the ability to take action, the abiltiy to see obstacles, the ability to work around/with/through obstacles is all the grace of God. " Are obstacles karma? Is it possible to make friends with obstacles? Thank you, Karen [] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 30, 2006 Report Share Posted August 30, 2006 Dear Karen, i would say yes to your question which brings to mind the following poem. (Many thanks to the unknown author) - "I asked for Strength And God gave me Difficulties to make me strong. I asked for Wisdom And God gave me Problems to solve. I asked for Prosperity And God gave me Brains and Brawn to work. I asked for Courage And God gave me Danger to overcome. I asked for Love And God gave me Troubled people to help. I asked for Favors And God gave me Opportunities. I received nothing I wanted.....I received everything I needed." I believe that evey "obstacle" placed in our way is a blessing in disguise. This is Mother's way of testing our faith and commitment, our love for Her; ... these obstacles always turn our attention directly to God. Jai Maa Kalia , "forall10q" <forall10q wrote: > > Raghu wrote that " The ability to set a goal, the ability to take > action, the abiltiy to see obstacles, the ability to work > around/with/through obstacles is all the grace of God. " Are obstacles > karma? Is it possible to make friends with obstacles? > > Thank you, > Karen [] > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 30, 2006 Report Share Posted August 30, 2006 Dear Srini, Thanks for the question. I agree with Surya's comments that obstacles are Mother's way of testing our resolve. This is like the story "The test at the fire" found in Sahib Sadhu pg 17. The trembling hands and the blisters could be viewed as obstacles, but Swamiji's goal to light the fire was achieved through his one-pointed focus on the goal and unstoppable will to succeed in the assignment his beloved Guru had given him. Jai Maa Kalia , "srini_sadhu" <srini_sadhu wrote: > > Dear Family, > > Namaste! > > Thank you for your participation in the online class and discussions! > > We have question for the group: > > If you set a goal but encounter obstacles. Does that mean God does not will it? > > Looking forward to your thoughts and insights! > > with love > srini > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 30, 2006 Report Share Posted August 30, 2006 Namaste' Perhaps obstacles are the ways in which God helps us to refine and more clearly define our goals. So that rather than keeping us from our goals, obstacles are simply part of the path to the realization of our goal. Sometimes I think that if a goal is the correct thing for me to be doing than its manifestation should be easy, and to a cerain extent this seems true. But those times when I face more challenges on my path are not necessarily God telling me to go back, She may be saying that there are other tasks I still need to do, or that I need to overcome something or other before I am able to step into the fullness of reaching whatever goal I have set. OM Shanti Morningsong , "srini_sadhu" <srini_sadhu wrote: > > Dear Family, > > Namaste! > > Thank you for your participation in the online class and discussions! > > We have question for the group: > > If you set a goal but encounter obstacles. Does that mean God does not will it? > > Looking forward to your thoughts and insights! > > with love > srini > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 30, 2006 Report Share Posted August 30, 2006 In a message dated 8/29/2006 7:31:54 P.M. Mountain Daylight Time, srini_sadhu writes: If you set a goal but encounter obstacles. Does that mean God does not will it? Looking forward to your thoughts and insights! with love srini Om srini Lord Ganesha opens doors and creates obstacles. Goal setting requires a path and will. Looking at paths, some have rocks, weeds, and other obstacles and test the individual will to pursue the path. Looking at personal experience and the lack of knowledge in certain areas of the path could be an obstacle for the individual, prayer to Ganesha opens intuitive access to the path and nature of the obstacles and how to proceed with the help of ganas and devas working with Ganesha. Goal setting becomes prayer to Ganesha, defining the goal and seeing the end. Om Ganesha, Om Siva love Kanda Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 30, 2006 Report Share Posted August 30, 2006 The ant, however huge the obstacles, achieves it's goal. It doesn't say to itself that God does not will it for it to achieve it's goal. We can learn a lot from the ant, especially me. , "amritagita" <amritagita wrote: > > , "srini_sadhu" <srini_sadhu@> > wrote: > > > > Dear Family, > > > > Namaste! > > > > Thank you for your participation in the online class and > discussions! > > > > We have question for the group: > > > > If you set a goal but encounter obstacles. Does that mean God does > not will it? > > > > Looking forward to your thoughts and insights! > > > > with love > > srini > >Namaste: > > The idea that every goal everytime be achieved without obstacles is > not realistic. If you get to the goal with no obstacles, you take it > as God's grace and keep on. When obstacles arise as they will always > do, it is a test of one's sankalpa or commitment to see it through. > > The ability to set a goal, the ability to take action, the abiltiy > to see obstacles, the ability to work around/with/through obstacles > is all the grace of God. If one points only to the obstacle, and > resigns from further attempts at getting to the goal and claims that > is God's will, it's more from indolence and laziness rather than > God's will. Even when obstacles are apparently insurmountable, the > effort one has put in is never wasted! > > Raghu > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 31, 2006 Report Share Posted August 31, 2006 I think the answer could go either way, Srini. The important thing is not whether you encounter obstacles, but how congruent your goal is with your dharma. Will Divine Mother allow the presence of obstacles in the way of a goal that is not in harmony with your karma? I think so. Will Divine Mother remove the obstacles (or most of them) from Her devotee's path for a goal in line with the highest dharma? I think so. It is not a simple thing to know. The closer to maya your goal is, I think, the more important grace is in determining if it is a worthy endeavor. Jai Maa! Chris , "srini_sadhu" <srini_sadhu wrote: > > Dear Family, > > Namaste! > > Thank you for your participation in the online class and discussions! > > We have question for the group: > > If you set a goal but encounter obstacles. Does that mean God does not will it? > > Looking forward to your thoughts and insights! > > with love > srini > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 31, 2006 Report Share Posted August 31, 2006 Dear Srini Thanks for this good question because in fact sometimes we have this doubt! But I think in this world we encounter many obstacles in our goals but this does not mean that this is not the will of God. Love Kalachandra _sadhu <srini_sadhu > escreveu: Dear Family, Namaste! Thank you for your participation in the online class and discussions! We have question for the group: If you set a goal but encounter obstacles. Does that mean God does not will it? Looking forward to your thoughts and insights! with love srini Search Música para ver e ouvir: You're Beautiful, do James Blunt Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 31, 2006 Report Share Posted August 31, 2006 Interesting post Steve! You said: Everything that exists is due to God's will, so we can't possibly go > against God's will. (Not that we can't go against our best > self-interest, or against superior principles like Ahimsa, etc.) It is God's will that a soul rises, and even that it falls. I would say that God wants every being to rise to the highest expression of dharma. Interestingly, I think both positions are true. Jai Maa! Chris , "Steve Connor" <sconnor wrote: > > Everything that exists is due to God's will, so we can't possibly go > against God's will. (Not that we can't go against our best > self-interest, or against superior principles like Ahimsa, etc.) It is > God's will that a soul rises, and even that it falls. > > Without obstacles, we would instantaneously achieve our objective. > > The existence of an obstacle confirms the presence of what we call > duality. When the devotee is more or less fused in God, then there is > no sense of an obstacle [regardless of appearances, being an > interpretation of circumstances] ... then we can say, the supreme > goal, of uniting with God, or God Realization, has been reached. Even > that will be the interpretation of an outsider. Words will completely > fail to express the experience. > > For a spiritual being, a goal expresses a superior will, or intent. It > is an expression of the desire to transcend our confusion, fear, lack > of focus, lack of heart, lack of realization, etc. This may or may not > yield a resolution towards some specific physical or devotional action > outwardly expressed. Obstacles there will be -- all of this -- the > sense of limitation, the desire to defeat limitation, and the tools > and capacity to make the attempt -- is as God wills. > > > , "srini_sadhu" <srini_sadhu@> wrote: > > > > Dear Family, > > > > Namaste! > > > > Thank you for your participation in the online class and discussions! > > > > We have question for the group: > > > > If you set a goal but encounter obstacles. Does that mean God does > not will it? > > > > Looking forward to your thoughts and insights! > > > > with love > > srini > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 31, 2006 Report Share Posted August 31, 2006 Raghu, Your post brought to my mind something I had forgotten. My gurudeva, in stories about him, used to regularly go to his gurudeva to receive his next practice, after which he would leave to begin the practice. Usually this involved a specific discipline, often a specific location, a time limit or minimum number of repititions, and other restrictions. Anyway, as he often described, there came a point in the practices where an obstacle would arise. Sometimes these would be subtle, like an intense emotion, sometimes material, like a beating, which resulted from another's fear and misidentification, during a vow of silence. He would refer to these obstacles as "tests", and the test needed to be passed or the practice would need to be repeated. I think sankalpa shakti is the seat of all the siddhis. Even the evil, I think, obtain their powers through sankalpa shakti. It is hard for a devotee, I think, because the tendency is for a strong will to feed the ego. I wouldn't be surprised if that were part of the reason the use of siddhis is so dangerous. Jai Maa! Chris , "amritagita" <amritagita wrote: > > , "srini_sadhu" <srini_sadhu@> > wrote: > > > > Dear Family, > > > > Namaste! > > > > Thank you for your participation in the online class and > discussions! > > > > We have question for the group: > > > > If you set a goal but encounter obstacles. Does that mean God does > not will it? > > > > Looking forward to your thoughts and insights! > > > > with love > > srini > >Namaste: > > The idea that every goal everytime be achieved without obstacles is > not realistic. If you get to the goal with no obstacles, you take it > as God's grace and keep on. When obstacles arise as they will always > do, it is a test of one's sankalpa or commitment to see it through. > > The ability to set a goal, the ability to take action, the abiltiy > to see obstacles, the ability to work around/with/through obstacles > is all the grace of God. If one points only to the obstacle, and > resigns from further attempts at getting to the goal and claims that > is God's will, it's more from indolence and laziness rather than > God's will. Even when obstacles are apparently insurmountable, the > effort one has put in is never wasted! > > Raghu > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 31, 2006 Report Share Posted August 31, 2006 What do you think, Karen? Jai Maa! Chris , "forall10q" <forall10q wrote: > > Raghu wrote that " The ability to set a goal, the ability to take > action, the abiltiy to see obstacles, the ability to work > around/with/through obstacles is all the grace of God. " Are obstacles > karma? Is it possible to make friends with obstacles? > > Thank you, > Karen [] > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 31, 2006 Report Share Posted August 31, 2006 Dear Kaliananda, Thank you for sharing both your thoughts and this lovely poem. Sometimes obstacles are very big, aren't they? I am reminded of the the Q&A...Q - How do you eat an elephant (not literally)? A - One bite at a time. When I can't swallow the whole thing/problem/obstacle, I remember to bite. Thank you, Karen [] , "kaliananda_saraswati" <kaliananda_saraswati wrote: > > Dear Karen, > > i would say yes to your question which brings to mind the following > poem. > (Many thanks to the unknown author) - > > "I asked for Strength And God gave me > Difficulties to make me strong. > > I asked for Wisdom And God gave me > Problems to solve. > > I asked for Prosperity And God gave me > Brains and Brawn to work. > > I asked for Courage And God gave me > Danger to overcome. > > I asked for Love And God gave me > Troubled people to help. > > I asked for Favors And God gave me > Opportunities. > > I received nothing I wanted.....I received > everything I needed." > > I believe that evey "obstacle" placed in our way is a blessing in > disguise. This is Mother's way of testing our faith and commitment, > our love for Her; ... these obstacles always turn our attention > directly to God. > > Jai Maa > Kalia > , "forall10q" forall10q@ > wrote: > > > > Raghu wrote that " The ability to set a goal, the ability to take > > action, the abiltiy to see obstacles, the ability to work > > around/with/through obstacles is all the grace of God. " Are > obstacles > > karma? Is it possible to make friends with obstacles? > > > > Thank you, > > Karen [] > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 1, 2006 Report Share Posted September 1, 2006 Sriniji, I have contemplated this question myself for many years. Sometimes I seem to see or know where things are to go but far in advance. When I do not understand the timing and attempt to move forward on the goal and it does not manifest...then....I have felt confused. Often in time, things open up. I just got ahead of the game so to speak. Sometimes I think the barriers are karmas we just have to move through. Perhaps they reflect our own remaining ego attachments or doubts, or perhaps resistance from our environment, or parabdha karma. There are so many examples of teachers and saints moving through obstacles toward their goals. This leads me to not automatically believe that God did not will it just because there are obstacles. Jai Maa , "srini_sadhu" <srini_sadhu wrote: > > Dear Family, > > Namaste! > > Thank you for your participation in the online class and discussions! > > We have question for the group: > > If you set a goal but encounter obstacles. Does that mean God does not will it? > > Looking forward to your thoughts and insights! > > with love > srini > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 3, 2006 Report Share Posted September 3, 2006 Wow, Chris, you really hit the nail on the head! I agree with you and find myself "living" this opinion all the time. It also seems to happen when I get discouraged about a particular endeavor and start allowing Self-Deprecation to have a say in the matter....those "nah, it probably won't work anyways" moments. If I just "do it anyways", many times I find the obstacles were never really there. Jaaaaaaaaaaaai Maa, Gauri > The important thing is not whether you encounter obstacles, but how > congruent your goal is with your dharma. > > Will Divine Mother allow the presence of obstacles in the way of a > goal that is not in harmony with your karma? I think so. > > Will Divine Mother remove the obstacles (or most of them) from Her > devotee's path for a goal in line with the highest dharma? I think so. > > It is not a simple thing to know. The closer to maya your goal is, I > think, the more important grace is in determining if it is a worthy > endeavor. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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