True Understanding

The ways of the guru are often a mystery. Once a guru gave his disciple a bird and told him, Kill the bird, but make sure that no one sees you killing it.

Ordinarily, one may wonder why a guru would want an innocent bird to be killed. Even if one follows the order, one might not be comfortable with taking a life. However, sometimes the guru gives assignments to the disciples to test how much of the teaching they were able to understand. No doubt a student who does not question the integrity of the teacher succeeds in following the orders of the teacher.

This particular disciple decided to follow the orders of the guru and left with the bird in his hands. After some time had passed, he came back holding the little bird, which was still alive. The guru asked him what happened.

My master, you asked me to kill the bird when no one else was looking, the dutiful disciple replied. But just as I was about to kill, I saw the little bird was looking at me. So I quickly covered his eyes. Next I realized that I was looking at the bird. So I covered my eyes also. Then I remembered that I still could not do it, because the all pervading Lord, whose eyes were everywhere, was watching me. Therefore I could not carry out your orders and I am humbly returning the bird to you.

The guru was quite pleased with how well the disciple understood the teaching and said, Your education is complete. Now you can go.

REFLECTION

The knowledge of Gods omnipresence allows us to pass through life’s trials and tests with ease. In every moment, feel that God  and masters are looking at you. If one is firm in this knowledge, one will be free from all negatives. For example, a child will not do anything wrong when he knows that his mother is watching him. Similarly, how can we do wrong when God is constantly looking at us?

Source: "Pebbles from the pond - Timeless Wisdom Tales" by Paramahamsa Prajnanananda

"Pebbles from the pond" is a very good book for kids. It is written in a very simple language with conclusion or reflection from spiritual standpoint.

 

Technorati Tags: paramhansa,prajnanananda,freedom,spirituality

What is Death?

Question:  What is Death?

Swami Ramsukhdasji:  Me and mine is death. Otherwise there is no death. I die if God dies. Till you are in the body there is death. By assumption of anything as mine, there is only loss. Nothing was yours, nothing is yours, nothing can be yours. Acceptance of mine is the mistake, the consequence of which is life and death. If you feel that the above is correct, accept it. No one is mine.

Question:  Just like one's time of death is inevitable, similarly the pain that one experiences at time of death is that also inevitable ?

Swamiji:  No! Each and everyone are experiencing the fruits of their good and evil actions. If someone has to undergo the consequences of past actions, then they will experience more difficulty at time of death. But sorrow only comes to he who within has desire for any particular thing.

Question:  Those who are holy and doing good only, they are deeply engaged in spiritual practices and worship of God, if they undergo suffering at time of death, then what is the reason?

Swamiji:  God desires to wipe out the sins of all their past birth's and make them entirely pure, so that they are benefited and attain salvation.

Question:  It has been said that at time of death the pain and difficulties experienced are as intense, almost as if thousands of scorpions are biting, but saints have spoken that death is not what is painful, it is the desire to live that results in the pain. In reality, what is correct?

Swamiji:  Just like from child to youth and from youth to old age, one experiences no difficulty.  Similarly at time of death in reality there is no difficulty. Only the one who desires to continue to live experiences difficulty. The point is that he who is attached to the body, only he has the sensation and difficulty like that of thousands of scorpions biting. The greater the attachment, proprietary feeling (mine-ness), desire, liking that one has for the body, that much more pain and difficulty one will experience at time of death.

Source: pg 92 "Prashnouttermanimala"  by Swami Ramsukhdasji

 

Technorati Tags: ramsukhdasji,death,spirituality

Sri Ramakrishna on Theosophy

Surendra’s Brother: "Sir, what do you think of Theosophy?"

Sri Ramakrishna: "I have heard that man can acquire superhuman powers through it and perform miracles. I saw a man who had brought a ghost under control. The ghost used to procure various things for his master. What shall I do with superhuman powers? Can one realize God through them? If God is not realized then everything becomes false."

Source: Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna

Tags: Sri Ramakrishna, Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna, theosophy

Sri Ramakrishna on Caste System

Surendra’s Brother: "The Brahmo Samaj preaches the freedom of women and the abolition of the caste-system. What do you think about these matters?"

Sri Ramakrishna: "Men feel that way when they are just beginning to develop spiritual yearning. A storm raises clouds of dust, and one cannot distinguish between the different trees — the mango, the hog plum, and the tamarind. But after the storm blows over, one sees clearly. After the first storm of divine passion is quelled, one gradually understands that God alone is the Highest Good, the Eternal Substance, and that all else is transitory. One cannot grasp this without tapasya and the company of holy men. What is the use of merely reciting the written parts for the drum? It is very difficult to put them into practice on the instrument. What can be accomplished by a mere lecture? It is austerity that is necessary. By that alone can one comprehend.

"You asked about caste distinctions. There is only one way to remove them, and that is by love of God. Lovers of God have no caste. Through this divine love the untouchable becomes pure, the pariah no longer remains a pariah. Chaitanya embraced all, including the pariahs.

"The members of the Brahmo Samaj sing the name of Hari. That is very good. Through earnest prayer one receives the grace of God and realizes Him. God can be realized by means of all paths. The same God is invoked by different names."

Source: Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna

Tags: Ramakrishna, Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna, caste system

The value of Freedom

In a small village many years ago, there was a man who was imprisoned for a very long time for a mistake he committed when he was young. Everyday he sat in his lonely cell dreaming of the day he would be free. Then one day he heard the jingling of keys, looking up he saw the prison guard unlocking the cell door. The guard told him that he had now paid his debt and he is free to leave. Then he gave him a small sum of money and instructed him to use it wisely.

The man had only walked a short distance when he saw a person who was selling birds that were in a cage. The newly freed prisoner quickly walked over to the street vendor and asked him what the price would be if he purchased all twenty birds in the cage. The vendor told him that if any one was willing to buy all the birds, he would give a discount-then he quoted him a price. Reaching into his pocket, the prisoner checked his money and was happy to find that he had enough to buy them all.

Then, after paying for the birds, with great joy he deliberately set each one of them free, one by one. The man who sold the birds looked very surprised and asked the man why he paid so much of money just to set the birds free. The jubilant young man answered, "I did it because T too had been confined to a prison cage, and I have come to know the value of freedom."

REFLECTION:

We are imprisoned by our thoughts and attachments in this world. One who becomes free from this bondage tastes everlasting bliss and in turn helps others to become free.

Source: "Pebbles from the pond – Timeless Wisdom Tales" by Paramahamsa Prajnanananda

“Pebbles from the pond” is a very good book for kids. It is written in a very simple language with conclusion or reflection from spiritual standpoint.

Technorati Tags: paramhansa,prajnanananda,freedom,spirituality

Sri Ramakrishna on Bhakti

Sri Ramakrishna said: "Chaitanya used to shed tears of joy at the very mention of Krishna's name. God alone is the real Substance; all else is illusory. Man can realize God if he wants to, but he madly craves the enjoyment of 'woman and gold'. The snake has a precious stone ( A folk belief in Bengal.) in its head, but it is perfectly satisfied to eat a mere frog.

"Bhakti is the one essential thing. Who can ever know God through reasoning? I want love of God. What do I care about knowing His infinite glories? One bottle of wine makes me drunk. What do I care about knowing how many gallons there are in the grog-shop? One jar of water is enough to quench my thirst. I don't need to know the amount of water there is on earth."

Sri Ramakrishna arrived at Surendra's house. Many devotees had assembled there, including Surendra's elder brother, who was a judge.

Sri Ramakrishna (to Surendra's brother): "You are a judge. That is very good. But remember, everything happens through God's power. It is He who has given you your high position; that is how you became a judge. People think it is they who are great. The water from the roof flows through a spout that is shaped like a lion's head. It looks as if the lion were bringing the water out through its mouth. But look at the source of the water! A cloud gathers in the sky and rain falls on the roof; then the water flows through the pipe and at last comes out through the spout."

Source: Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna

tags: ramakrishna kathamrita, gospel of sri ramakrishna, bhakti, paramhansa

God only wants bhakti

Sri Ramakrishna was seated in Manomohan's parlour. He said: "God very much relishes the bhakti of the poor and the lowly, just as the cow relishes fodder mixed with oil-cake. King Duryodhana showed Krishna the splendour of his wealth and riches, but Krishna accepted the hospitality of the poor Vidura. God is fond of His devotees. He runs after the devotee as the cow after the calf."

Source: Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna

tags: ramakrishna kathamrita, gospel of sri ramakrishna, bhakti, paramhansa

Parmarth Prasanga – 14 Be Strong, Have Faith

14. Never think you to be weak. Have firm faith in yourself. Think, "There is nothing that I cannot do; I can do every­thing if I will." Why should you acknow­ledge defeat to your mind? Know that if you can subdue it, the whole world will be under your feet. One who has no self-confidence does not have real faith in God. Swami Vivekananda has said that the real atheist is he who has no faith in himself. Nobody listens to the words of one who has no self-confidence; and God also does not listen to his prayers.

Source: Parmarth Prasanga -Towards The Goal Supreme- Swami Virajanandaji of Ramakrishna Math

Tags: spirituality,self effort

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House holder has his duties to discharge

Mr. Viswas had been sitting in the room a long time; he now left. He had once been wealthy but had squandered everything in an immoral life. Finally he had become indifferent to his wife and children. Referring to Mr. Viswas, Sri Ramakrishna said: "He is an unfortunate wretch. A householder has his duties to discharge, his debts to pay: his debt to the gods, his debt to his ancestors, his debt to the rishis, and his debt to wife and children. If a wife is chaste, then her husband should support her; he should also bring up their children until they are of age. Only a monk must not save;  birds and monks do not save for tomorrow. But when a bird has chicks, it takes grains in it’s beak and brings to it’s nest for its chicks."

Balram: "Mr. Viswas now wants to cultivate the company of holy people."

Sri Ramakrishna (with a smile): "A monk's kamandalu goes to the four principal holy places[1] with him, but it still tastes bitter. Likewise, it is said that the Malaya breeze turns all trees into sandal-wood. But there are a few exceptions, such as the cotton-tree, the aswattha, and the hog plum.

"Some frequent the company of holy men in order to smoke hemp. Many monks smoke it, and these householders stay with them, prepare the hemp, and partake of the prasad."

Source: Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna

[1] At the four cardinal points of India, namely,

Kedarnath in the Himalayas,

Dwaraka in the west,

Rameswar in the south, and

Puri in the east.

Technorati Tags: spirituality,ramakrishna,kathamrita,gospel of sri ramakrishna

Sri Ramakrishna on house holders – continued

 

Sri Ramakrishna continued: "Man may be likened to grain. He has fallen between the millstones and is about to be crushed. Only the few grains that stay near the peg escape. Therefore men should take refuge at the peg, that is to say, in God. Call on Him. Sing His name. Then you will be free. Otherwise you will be crushed by the King of Death."

Sri Ramakrishna sang again:

Mother! Mother! My boat is sinking, here in the ocean of this world;
Fiercely the hurricane of delusion rages on every side!
Clumsy is my helmsman, the mind; stubborn my six oarsmen, the passions;
Into a pitiless wind
I sailed my boat, and now it is sinking!
Split is the rudder of devotion; tattered is the sail of faith;
Into my boat the waters are pouring! Tell me, what shall I do?
For with my failing eyes, alas! nothing but darkness do I see.
Here in the waves I will swim,
O Mother, and cling to the raft of Thy name!

Source: Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna

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Spiritual quotes from Vivek Chudamani

1. Nobody can give Jnana, Guru can only remove Ignorance
2. What is our true nature cannot be renounced
3. The qualities like peace, love, bliss and Sat-Chit-Anand cannot be renounced as it is our nature
4. Tyaga of vasanas (desires) can calm down mind. Vairagya is the absence of desires (in mind). Absence of desires brings deep peace and bliss. It is long lasting and there is less of mental agitation.
5. Upvasa (fasting) is also an ananda (Happiness / Bliss). When one is so engaged in the worship of God / Meditation, then one gets absorbed in peace and bliss. Unaware of time one stays in this state for as long as possible skipping lunch or dinner. Fasting in this way turns up into ananda.
6. True surrender is to accept the prarabdha with a smiling face. True surrender is not to interfere with Gods divine plan.

Extracted from a discourse on Vivek Chudamani (choodamani) by Swami Tadrupanand ji

Technorati Tags: spiritual quotes,swami tadrupanand,inspirational quotes

You always instruct us to meditate with love, but what does that mean?

You work, and if you do not work with love it becomes a labor that you cannot enjoy. If you sing with inner joy from the heart, your singing will create love in the hearts of others also. If you cook it is not just a job, a duty, or a responsibility. If you love to cook, while cutting vegetables you can see how to eliminate negative qualities. It is just like eliminating the useless part of the vegetable, throwing it away and taking only the useful part for cooking. When you cook you see how a vegetable is simply boiled. Making your life ready for spirituality is similar. When a vegetable is boiled it becomes soft; so be soft, be tender, and be beautiful. If you bring love to your everyday activities you can enjoy your work. The work will give you more love, joy, and satisfaction. It will give you a devotional, blissful state and divine feeling in your daily life. This is love in daily life.

Many people sit to meditate as a duty, “I have promised to meditate, so I will meditate.” Mechanical meditation with the attitude, “I should try,” is good, but if you practice this meditation technique with love, “I am not sitting on the floor; I am sitting on the lap of God. It is not my body; it is the temple of God. It is not my breath; it is the breath of God,” then God is not far away. God is within you, and to maintain this type of loving attitude you not only bend your body and bow, you bow at the feet of God. Omnipresent God is observing you. In bending you bring humbleness into your life. When you develop this type of attitude and practice, you feel more impetus, more inner transformation, more strength within. Real joy and real love flourish in you. That is why I tell you to practice with love. When you practice with love you experience; “this is a beautiful time. God has given it to me so I will use it just for me and God.” Meditation becomes more intensified and you get real transformation within, more joy, and more love.

Source: page 130-131, The Divine Quest by Paramhansa Hariharananda

Sri Ramakrishna on householders entangled in worldliness

Speaking of householders entangled in worldliness, Sri Ramakrishna said: "They are like the silk-worm. They can come out of the cocoon of their worldly life if they wish. But they can't bear to; for they themselves have built the cocoon with great love and care. So they die there. Or they are like the fish in a trap. They can come out of it by the way they entered, but they sport inside the trap with other fish and hear the sweet sound of the murmuring water and forget everything else. They don't even make an effort to free themselves from the trap. The lisping of children is the murmur of the water, and the other fish are relatives and friends. Only one or two make good their escape by running away. They are the liberated souls."

Source: Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna

Sri Ramakrishna on caste system

The conversation turned to the caste-system. Sri Ramakrishna said: "The caste-system can be removed by one means only, and that is the love of God. Lovers of God do not belong to any caste. The mind, body, and soul of a man become purified through divine love. Chaitanya and Nityananda scattered the name of Hari to everyone, including the pariah, and embraced them all. A brahmin without this love is no longer a brahmin. And a pariah with the love of God is no longer a pariah. Through bhakti an untouchable becomes pure and elevated."

Source: Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna

Quotes by Paramhansa Hariharananda – 3

 

1. If you are absorbed in the workings of the mind, then emotions, judgments, dislike, and other negativities arise and are reflected back to you in people, in nature, in the world.
2. Breath is your life. Through the breath you will have restlessness or calmness. Watch your breath - then you will have calmness
3. If you are constantly absorbed in the soul, then only love and goodness is reflected back. You see the good in everything.
4. Heredity, environment, and culture are necessary for quick spiritual
   evolution
5. A truly spiritual person neither hates nor praises. He or she is beyond it, because it is all the play of one consciousness.
6. There is a proverb: "the empty vessel sounds much." A person who is content within is a true yogi. That person who realizes the Truth does not speak about his attainment.
7. Watch the breath that is slowly going and touching Him, and then you will get calmness.
8. Only with thorough self-control and by practicing the technique can one go to the formless state. Calmly seek Him and watch Him. You will get divine joy.
9. Live with love in every breath. In work and in every step of your life, always feel that you are not you, but the imperishable soul, always free and always detached.
10. External vigilance is the price of liberty
11. One should master breath regulation. Breath mastery is self-mastery, and breath control is self-control.
12. Be ever vigilant so that no negativity can enter inside you.
13. Remain focused on the soul and be spiritual.
14. If you do not fight with your negative qualities, you cannot attain purity or perfection, but if you are fighting them constantly, then you can attain God-realization.
15. Kriya Yoga meditation emphasizes fixing attention on the top, moving quickly from the lower centers to the higher ones.
16. When you sit for meditation, you should keep your attention in the vacuum and focus on the atom point, and then you will hear the divine sound.
17. A spiritual person shoud Make your heart pure and perfect.You should
    have thorough control over the heart propensities
18. The body has many physical needs and weaknesses; hunger, thirst, and tiredness are just some of the obstacles to be overcome through sincere practice.
19. By magnetizing the spine through the practice of Kriya Yoga, you can immediately withdraw your mind, feel the vibration in your head, and control your whole body.
20. Always be aware of your goal. Do not allow forgetfulness.
21. When all the power has gone to the fontanel, you cannot come back from there. You will not have awareness of where you are. The whole body becomes the body of God.
22. To achieve success in life, you need to be careful, moderate, and balanced. An intelligent lifestyle and practical way of living will give you constant alertness and a taste of reality.
23. In every human being the heart center is very powerful and vicious.
24. Meditation is to go beyond all thoughts. If you remain focused on the
    soul you will perceive the thoughtless stage.
25. If you lead a life of activity, and think that work is worship, then you will get salvation. There is no doubt about it. The presence of God is all over the material world.
26. A life of moderation is the foundation of success. Moderation and balance are necessary in every step of your life. Even contemplation and meditation should be limited.
27. The soul abides in every human being, so each person is a guru or master. Everyone could be like the masters, with the knowledge that the marvelous power of God is hiding within them.
28. As long as you are not sleeping, constantly watch. He is always within you, even when you are sleeping.
29. Just as you touch the bare electrical cable and feel the power entering into your whole body, the power of God remains in the body of the guru. Come with love, and be realized.
30. If you can remember the guru and his teaching, and live accordingly, then your life will be filled with bliss and love.
31. "Be still and know that I am God." This is the teaching of the Bible. It is the talk of God. Find out how to be still. The body, the breath, and the mind should be kept in harmony, rhythm, and calmness.
32. Be always in the state of yoga, or union. You are never separated from God, as the wave is never separated from the ocean. You are always united with God, in love. Feel that constant union and live in this state.
33. Through love and faith, practice a life of yoga and discipline. It will give you real transformation and spiritual attainment.
34. Accept the guru as your eternal guide.
35. The soul is beyond the five gross elements. Soul is the controller and
    conductor of everything.
36. Be a person of faith and devotion. Practice with faith, and develop more love and devotion. Be united with me, with love and devotion. Love is the bond.
37. Divide your stomach into four parts: two-fourths of the stomach for
    food, one-fourth for water, and one-fourth empty. This is the best
    principle for taking food.
38. There is a jungle of thoughts in each of us, like wild flowers. You should not pluck many flowers. Offer your heart flower to God.
39. Before eating food think many times about how much food you really
    need.
40. Be thriving and enduring. When your effort is sincere, God Himself will guide you through the guru.
41. What is in the universe? It is only He. What is in the body? It is only He, the power of God. Know that He is within you, and then transformation becomes possible.
42. If by taking a bath in the holy river one will be spiritual, then all
    the fish and tortoises will get God-realization.
43. Do not waste your precious time with unnecessary emotions, fears and anxieties. Seek the state of eternal peace. It is your birthright.
44. When you look at yourself, you should remember that there are always two aspects within you: your body, made of dust, and your soul, the formless image of God.
45. Only by changing the type of food eaten one cannot become spiritual.
46. Breath is the symbol of life. Breath is visible in plants, animals and humans. Your breath is not really yours - it is the breath of God.
47. Because of the soul in the body, you have breath, life, and love. Only by the meditation of Kriya Yoga can you come to know that the body and soul are one.
48. Meditate and feel that you are the image of God, and that your breath is God's breath.
49. The mother always gives toys to her children to keep them busy and entertained. Similarly, God has kept delusion in front of every person.
50. Busy with the play of maya we are forgetting the real Mother and Father. With every breath, there is union between Mother Nature and Father Nature, the body and the soul.
51. No one is friend and no one is enemy. Due to your behavior one becomes
    a friend or an enemy.
52. Do not ignore the value of human life. Make the best use of it.
53. Time wasted is life wasted. Use every breath. Use every moment of your time.
54. Thorough control over all the centers in the body and all your
    activities will help you in your spiritual evolution.
55. Mind can be a good servant, but a bad master.
56. "Every moment there is a battle between the evil propensities and the
    divine qualities in the battlefield of your body, the battlefield of
    your life.
57. Ignorance and knowledge are both coming from the same source.
58. Three things should be clear about practice: regularity, repetition, and sincerity. Any practice undertaken must be accompanied with these three; then success is sure and certain.
59. In our every disposition our inhalation changes.
60. Constant practice of breath control can transform your life.
61. The mind is the lord of all the senses. The breath is the controller of the mind. So breath control will lead you to mind control and liberation.
62. Attachment brings all troubles, while detachment is the road to freedom. Live in the world, but be compassionately detached.
63. Through breath control, when one withdraws the senses from the lower to the upper centers of the spine, one can achieve calmness and detachment, and so become one with the Divine.
64. The sun is keeping the solar system together, and keeps unity and harmony in the cycle of seasons. In the body, the soul does a similar thing, keeping everything together in harmony. You have to feel the oneness.
65. Silence has three meanings: stillness of body, calmness of mind, and peacefulness of breath. In such a state of silence, a teacher can impart the highest truth, and a disciple can easily assimilate and digest it.
66. In still water the reflection is clear, but in a disturbed lake nothing is visible. Still the lake of your mind with the practice of inner silence!
67. As the moon gets its light from the sun, so the mind reflects the light of the soul.
68. In the body, the right eye is the sun, the left eye is the moon, and the third eye is the fire. If you go to the third eye, then you will feel the presence of God.
69. In every activity you must perceive divinity. You cannot evolve if you do not live a life of awareness and consciousness.
70. From the mango tree, you cannot get an apple. From the formless, you cannot get any form, but in all forms, there is still the formless. You are to seek and remember the formless in all forms.
71. Always feel the futility of everything, then you will utilize every moment in God.
72. The real worship of God is to watch Him constantly.
73. Surrender to Him; you will attain peace and love in a moment's time.
74. The spine will be just like a tube of light. Your whole brain will be illumined by the power of God.
75. Although He is formless, God said He made us in His image. We live as form, but the body has a formless counterpart. Behind this visible body there is the presence of the invisible soul.
76. The vacuum center in the body is the place of intelligence, religion, and philosophy. If one concentrates there and in the soul center, with a feeble breath, one can conceive a child of calmness.
77. In the battle of life, one who is calm and not disturbed is yudhishthira, having excellence in the neck center, being religious and philosophical.
78. In the heart center, you should harmonize your emotions. Do not suppress them or express them.
79. How do you get above emotion? It is by transforming emotion into devotion and love. It is the state of inner transformation.
80. Breath is not only the cause of life; it brings about quality of living, too. As is the breath, so is the mind, and as is the mind, so is the person.
81. We are free if we realize that we are the soul. However, all the time we are thinking that we have so many responsibilities, and that we are bound to so many things. If the soul leaves the body, where is the responsibility?
82. If we practice breathing slow, long and deep, then life will be more active and peaceful. Those who breathe fast live short lives.
83. Work with a sense of detachment, and watch who is helping you to work. You are then free.
84. When the breath is calm, as when you are only listening, your mind is calm. Transformation of your breath is the easiest way to calm your mind and life.
85. Have a good heart. If the heart is full of ego, hatred, jealousy, anger, and hypocrisy, it is diseased.
86. Weak people become angry or get upset easily. If there is something you cannot change, accept it. If it is something that can be changed, be strong and change it.
87. Without atmosphere, air, there is no creation. As breath is life, to love breath is to love all the living creation.
88. What cannot be changed has to be accepted. When you accept, you can either accept with a smile or accept with a tear.
89. When you smile at a trouble, the trouble is not a trouble. When you cry due to a trouble, it becomes manifold and unbearable.
90. Association and attachment breed temptation. You have to practice detachment with firm determination. Be compassionately detached.
91. Only human beings can change their evil ways, their ups and downs, pitfalls, shortcomings, anger, pride - all their bad qualities. Then they can experience their own divine nature.
92. Nothing belongs to you. Everything is a gift of God. You should develop this attitude in everything you do.
93. When breath flows through the right nostril, the body, mind, and brain power are all active and when it flows through the left, usually the mind is less active and dull.
94. You can be in the world, but you should remain in God. Remain compassionately detached and be free from the tempting world, otherwise you will be in the cycle of suffering.
95. No one knows when temptation will come and knock on the door, so be alert. Constant alertness of the inner Self brings freedom from all troubles.
96. God, or Self, cannot be known through the senses. We are always engrossed in the material world with our five sense organs and we are forgetting Him.
97. Follow one master and be faithful. He can lead you to God.
98. If you want to get God-realization, you should sit by the side of one master and practice as he directs, with implicit faith, love, and loyalty. Be free from doubts and confusion.
99. Normally one is not aware of Reality and Truth, because they are looking outside and not inside. They look at creation, but forget the Creator.
100. I do not say that God cannot be perceived; I am saying that God cannot be perceived by talk or by sight or sound, because sight and sound are coming from God, and so is the mind.
101. Each human being is born for Self-realization, and should seek a realized guide and practice according to the instructions he receives.
102. The desire should be born in the heart of the person for self-transformation and spiritual evolution.
103. You should be conscious of your delusion, and question yourself every day, if you are to overcome it and proceed towards Truth. But first of all, you must have the deepest desire.
104. Who is allowing you to think? It is the light of consciousness that illumines the mind. It cannot be thought of by the mind because it rules the mind. Because of this light, the mind is able to function.
105. Sitting above, in the fontanel, is the abode of God. God has made it the softest place, and the life of God is hiding there.
106. Breath, or air, is the super-electronic force of every human being, and is constantly creating and maintaining life.
107. You should meditate and perceive the power of God within you. There is no other alternative.
108. Self, the internal illuminator, alone is Brahman.
109. Earning money alone cannot give real joy in life. One should be constantly learning the real art of thinking and living.
110. God is everywhere. The presence of God is in the eyes as well as in the object seen. Seer and seen are God.
111. Nowadays, it is not so easy to have good company, or to find a teacher, but if you are sincere in your quest, and pray, you will find one.
112. In deep meditation one feels as though the body has no limits. The physical body is gone, and one can feel the cosmic form.
113. Every religion teaches how to achieve calmness, the ultimate goal of all religions. This calm is possible when one is completely united with God.
114. Breath is responsible for thinking and communicating. Breath helps us to speak. Every word is not only a vibration of sound, but also a vibration associated with the breath.
115. There is a source for everything, including sound. As water is the cause of ice, similarly, divinity is the cause of all thoughts. Thoughts and God are one.
116. Calmness and completeness are one and the same thing. If you are experiencing incompleteness, then you cannot be calm.
117. Inner talk arises in the brain and is easy to change and regulate. It is clearly visible to those who are contemplative and meditative.
118. Incompleteness breeds restlessness, while completeness is inner fulfillment. It is to be experienced through deep meditation.
119. Each word should be like honey or milk, with all their nourishing qualities. Each word is like a mantra. It should be used properly, with utmost care and love.
120. Every thought or word is a seed, which you are storing in your life as karma. This remains within you to give a result in the future.
121. Knowledge, according to the Vedas, is both external and internal. The end of knowledge is in knowing one's Self.
122. You should know that all your activities are for your Self-knowledge. You are doing everything only to know thy own Self.
123. Submerge your soul in the Infinite before, during, and after any action.
124. It is knowledge of the indwelling Spirit or Self-knowledge that helps us to understand life and live accordingly.
125. When you are free from thinking of ordinary things, your mind will be absorbed in God, in the formless state of divinity.
126. With sacrifice, if there is an element of ego, then there is no real result. In reality everything belongs to God.
127. Heart is the place of emotion, ego, and attachment. You have to rise above all the propensities of the heart. Clean it thoroughly, surrendering it to God through regular prayer and meditation, and through sincere and steadfast effort.
128. Causal body is the sound A, astral body is the vibration U, and gross body is the beauty that is M. If you add A+U+M, then it is om.
129. The human body is like a pitcher. In this fragile pitcher of clay, the spiritual treasure resides, but you have to uncover it.
130. In your spiritual life, if you go beyond the three bodies, or integrate the three bodies together with yogic practice, you will then get the imperishable talk of God. It is a nonstop, continuous sound in the ethereal state.
131. Who am I? From where did I come? Who is my father? Who is my mother? Ask yourself these questions again and again to find the truth. You will see that this world is transitory, like a dream.
132. The reality is within. A true seeker is one who is seeking to find the reality and truth from within. Such sincere seekers are rare.

Source: Subscribed to http://www.kriya.org/resources__nectar.php

Original source: Nectar Drops by Paramhansa Hariharananda and other similar books written by Paramhansa Hariharananda.

Posted with kind permission from Kriya Yoga Institute.

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California Hinduism Summit.

The Hinduism Summit aims to unite everyone interested in Hinduism, to preserve it in the face of denigration and misconceptions about Hinduism today. This Summit follows the success of recent similar events held by FHA in US states of Virginia, New Jersey, twice in Chicago and in UK and Australia.

The free event will be held by the Forum for Hindu Awakening (FHA) on Shravan Krushna Chaturthi, 5112 (28 August 2010) at the Sunnyvale Hindu Temple, California, USA with support from noteworthy Hindu and spiritual organizations. It will also be webcasted live from FHA website for attendance and participation from anywhere in the world.

Please see below links about the latest news and to register for the event:

http://forumforhinduawakening.org/articles/id/news/fha-announces-hinduism-summit-ca

 http://forumforhinduawakening.org/events/event.php?id=97

Details:

Date:  Saturday, 28 August 2010
Time: 2.30 - 6 PM
Where: Sunnyvale Hindu Temple
Address: 420-450 Persian Drive, Sunnyvale, CA 94089

Source: Email from Ms. Kavita Paramshetti of Forum for Hindu Awakening

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