amanpeter 0 Report post Posted August 24, 2001 Received this in my Email and found many nuggets of nectar within. Hope you agree! Peter/valaya James Bean Moderator, Spiritual Awakening Instant Messenger ID: sant_mat_gnosis e mail: santmat@zdnetonebox.com ________________ ------ There is 1 message in this issue. Topics in this digest: 1. The HEART of Mysticism "sant_mat_gnosis ( James )" <santmat@zdnetonebox.com> ______________________ ______________________ Message: 1 Thu, 23 Aug 2001 22:05:30 -0000 "sant_mat_gnosis ( James )" <santmat@zdnetonebox.com> The HEART of Mysticism Sant Mat Fellowship: santmatfellowship ___________________ This is an article I wrote on the power of love and devotion to open us up to the spiritual domain. It's a long post so it'll be the only new post for a couple of days. Enjoy! Have a great weekend! ___________________ The Heart of Mysticism By James Bean (Copyright August 1997) Cultivating love is one of the central teachings of mysticism, East and West. In India, Masters often use the term "Bhakti," which means love and devotion. Students of spirituality are instructed how to develop love for the Creator and for all souls. They're taught that approaching spiritual exercises and meditation with an attitude of love will lead to a much more succssful spiritual practice. An ascetic attitude of discipline can achieve some results, but love concentrates the mind much more effectively. Love takes the difficulty out of one's practice. Instead of meditation being thought of as a "duty" or "chore" to be tolerated, it's transformed into joy, a divine love affair! The book "Enchanted Land," published by the MSAC Philosophy Group features encounters with several Indian mystics. I remain in awe of this particular quote from Yogani Mataji (Nirmala Pandit), a Radhaswami guru who now lives in Bombay. I often use this quote in my meditation classes. The author asked Mataji: "How can one sit so still, repeat only holy names and think of God constantly?" Mataji serenely replied: By falling in love, because when one is truly in love nothing but the Beloved can enter one's mind. So the secret of Surat Shabda Yoga and of mysticism is not necessarily 'practice and more practice,' but love. To be so devoted to one's Lord that nothing can stand in the way, this and nothing else is the truth of Sant Mat. The reason why love is so effective is, as many saints have revealed, the universe was created by love, is sustained by love, and is returning back to love; love is the essence of everything including our soul. Our true nature is love. Kirpal Singh, an Indian master popular in the 1960's put it this way, "Love is innate in our souls. God is love and our souls are the drops of the ocean of all Love, which is also love personified." The great 19th century mystic Shiv Dayal Singh, the founder of the Radhaswami movement said, "The essence of Spirit (Atma) and God (Paratma) is love (Prem). Bhakti and the Supreme Being are one. A genuine Master is the embodiment of love. You are also love in essence, so are all souls." (Sar Bachan Radhaswami Poetry) Spiritual practices like silent meditation can gradually transform the practitioner in profound ways. Meditation is the method used throughout the ages to re-identify with our soul, the spark of love within. "When we identify ourselves with our true essence we will discover the wealth of spiritual regions rich in knowledge modern science can only dream about." (Rajinder Singh) Instead of perceiving ourselves as being merely five dollars-worth of chemicals plus H2O, or a collection of neurons firing and molecules, we perceive who we really are: SOUL. This process of self-realization, re-identifying with the love-essence of our soul is viewed as one of the most important steps of our spiritual evolution. Who we think we are will determine the course of our lives, both inwardly and outwardly. Orthodox academic voices often portray our identity as solely materialistic: the 'five dollars worth of chemicals and neurons firing.' Other rigid or closed 'fundamentalist' belief-systems portray human beings as ugly sinners and ugly saints perpetually unworthy of partaking of divine mysteries, and that only after death will the meaning of life be revealed. This appears in the context of mysticism to be to little, to late. Fortunately, other alternatives exist! The approach of the mystical tradition transcends blind faith in limited belief-systems and encourages individuals to directly verify the existence of the soul, higher spiritual realities and God through personal contact with them. For mystics, the human body is a kind of laboratory where spiritual claims can tested for oneself. My favorite quote from The Nag Hammadi Library is found in The Book of Thomas the Athlete, one of the Gnostic gospels: Examine yourself that you may understand who you are, in what way you exist, and how you will come to be. How logical. We're advised to examine who we are and how we have come to exist in this body of ours. This admonition implies that human beings have access to higher intuitions and senses, through which we are able to make new spiritual discoveries -- that is, IF we are willing to make use of them. Contemplatives seek spiritual knowledge through meditation. This focuses all of one's attention upon the soul, that life force which makes us alive. The eastern way of self-knowledge is one in which the soul increasingly learns of it's true nature. The drop seeks to discover the ocean from whence it came -- the ocean of life. Mystics call this looking within process, "inversion." In this way, souls learn to know themselves as well as to gain perception of the oversoul, the Supreme Being. "To convey this soul/oversoul relationship the saints and mystics have resorted to various analogies. Jesus spoke of it in terms of 'father and son.' Shri Ramakrishna spoke of it in terms of 'mother and child.' Mira Bai spoke of it in terms of 'husband and wife.' Like St. Teresa of Avila and mystics throughout the world, St. John of the Cross depicts the relationship of the soul and God as that of lover and beloved, of bride and bridegroom. As the relationship develops, the lover awakens to his or her lover and is changed into love itself. This is the transformative power through which the human becomes divine." ("Streams Of Nectar," Darshan Singh) Many mystics have used the language of romance to describe the ineffable joy of divine love and union. The ultimate goal of mysticism is the union of the soul with the oversoul. In the Narada Bhakti Sutras, a twelfth century Indian scripture and manual of Bhakti Yoga, it describes this union as intoxicating. The soul "is completely immersed in the enjoyment of the bliss of the Atman, the truest and highest Self." This goal is reached in mystical states discovered or realized during contemplative meditation. Spiritual practice is done with an attitude of sincere love or a strong fervent desire and perseverance to approach the Supreme Being. Love removes all obstacles and forms a link with the Creator. The medieval Indian mystic Dadu composed many odes to this divine state of being: When the heart merges into the Merciful One, then no difference remains. Like ice dissolved in water, in God is merged the lover. God has become the anguished lover, and the anguished lover has become God. (Dadu, The Compassionate Mystic, RS Books) One of my most favorite books of Eastern love poetry is "Songs of Kabir," published by Samuel Weiser books. The translator, Rabindranath Tagore, was himself a great spiritual poet. Kabir asks: How could the love between thee and me sever? As the leaf of the lotus abides on the water: so thou art my Lord, and I am thy servant. As the night-bird Chakor gazes all night at the moon: so thou art my Lord and I am thy servant. From the beginning until the ending of time, there is love between thee and me; and how shall such love be extinguished? Kabir says: 'As the river enters into the ocean, so my heart touches thee.' Further to the West, the medieval Christian mystics also used the language of love to describe spiritual union with their heavenly Beloved. Saint John of the Cross, a Spanish mystic, spoke of "the touch of the Beloved as setting the heart on fire with love; as if a spark had fallen upon it." Christian mystics also agreed with their Eastern counterparts that the soul, through mystical union, becomes deified -- becomes divine. Saint John of the Cross said: And to make the soul perfect and to raise it above the flesh more and more, He assails it divinely and gloriously, and these assaults are really encounters wherein God penetrates the soul, deifies the very substance of it, and renders it godlike, divine. After reaching this exalted state he said, "The soul beholds itself as one immense sea of fire." (quotes from his classic, "Living Flame") Another example of love consciousness or Prem-Bhakti manifesting itself among the Christian saints is the 14th century English mystic Richard Rolle, who said: Among these delights which he tastes, moreover, he experiences in love so sweet, the secret sent into him from heaven, which no one here knows unless he receives it, and bears within himself the potion which intoxicates lovers rejoicing in Christ... The love of God takes up to itself with marvelous rejoicing the soul of the one whom it perfectly penetrates and sets it truly ablaze by the fire of the Holy Spirit, and does not permit it to stray for a moment from the memory of so great a love. (The Fire of Love, Richard Rolle) I recommend two textbooks on mystical tradition. "Mysticism" by Evelyn Underhill, first published in 1955, has become a spiritual classic on Christian and Sufi spirituality. Another beautiful book is "Streams of Nectar" by Darshan Singh, featuring chapters on 18 different saints of the Sant Mat, Sufi/Muslim, Christian, and Hindu traditions, SK Publications, 4 S 175 Naperville Road, Naperville, IL 60563 /// ------------------ amanpeter@hotmail.com [This message has been edited by amanpeter (edited 08-24-2001).] Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest guest Report post Posted August 24, 2001 St. Teresa of Avila and mystics throughout the world, St. John of the Cross depicts the relationship of the soul and God as that of lover and beloved, of bride and bridegroom. As the relationship develops, the lover awakens to his or her lover and is changed into love itself. This is the transformative power through which the human becomes divine. It is unbelievable how their realizations and philosophy are so close to those of Sri Caitanya's. They were almost contemporaries but couldn't have any direct relationship due different birthplaces, different origins and languages. But both San Juan de La Cruz and Santa Teresa D'Avila could express the same feelings towards Hari than the gopis of Vraja: Unselfish love like the paramour lovers use to have. Just like Sri Caitanya and his party. I had read most of San Juan's poems, I would like to translate and to post some of them, but I am not qualified to proper express his feelings in English. Maybe Jijaji, who is an expert spiritual cybernaut, can post his biography and some of his poems already translated. I think there are some in net in English. Make a search after "San Juan de La Cruz," you'll gonna get surprised!!! [This message has been edited by Satyaraja dasa (edited 08-24-2001).] Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
talasiga 0 Report post Posted August 24, 2001 Saint John of the Cross poem: O LIVING FLAME OF LOVE O living flame of love That tenderly wounds my soul In its deepest center! Since Now you are not oppressive, Now consumate! if it be Your will. Tear through the veil of this sweet encounter! O sweet cautery, O delightful wound! O gentle hand! O delicate touch That tastes of eternal life And pays every debt! In killing You change death to life. O lamps of fire In whose splendors The deep caverns of feeling Once obscure and blind, Now give forth, so rarely, so exquisitely, Both warmth and light to their Beloved. How gently and lovingly You wake in my heart, Where in secret You dwell alone; And by Your sweet breathing, Filled with good and glory, How tenderly You swell my heart with love! a translation found in a book by Nitya Chaitanya Yati entitled Love and Devotion copyright 1979 published by East West University of Brahmavidya Srinivasapuram, Varkala, India. ------------------ talasiga@hotmail.com Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
