(Aug 3,2014) Spiritual Message for the Day – Our World Viewpoint by Sri Swami Atmaswarupananda

 Our World Viewpoint

Divine Life Society Publication: Early Morning Meditation Talks by Sri Swami Atmaswarupananda

Each one of us has our own individual world viewpoint, the way we see the world. If we were born in a very rich family, we see the world in a certain way. If we were born in a very poor family, we see the world in another way. If we were born a Hindu, we have a certain world viewpoint. If we were born a Muslim, we have another one. During the cold war, if we lived in the West, we saw the world from one point of view; if we were living in Russia, from another point of view.

Unfortunately these different points of view, which usually depend upon our circumstances of birth, frequently lead to clash and to quarrel. But actually, there is less difference between those of us born in different circumstances than we would think. We all think we are individuals, we all think we are separate from other individuals and that God is somewhere else.

The real difference we actually have is with the scriptures and the saints. They are the ones that have a radically different point of view than we do. And often throughout history we have treated the saints and prophets like enemies—persecuted them and sometimes even put them to death. But even when we worship them, honour them, love them, we don’t recognise how different our viewpoint is from theirs. We see everything as separate. They see the oneness of all things.

We talk about the oneness of all things, but we don’t see it. Why don’t we see it? Because there is a tremendous force within us that doesn’t want to see it from that point of view. There is a tremendous force within us that wants to be separate, that wants what we want. We don’t want to be the same as everyone and everything else. When this is discovered, then, so to speak, the gauntlet is thrown down. We are called on to face up to what we profess. Do we really want God, do we really want the saint’s point of view or do we not?

If we do, there is a battle to be fought. Our teachers tell us that the Puranas are only about us. The battle between good and evil is not some battle outside, but it is a battle that each one of us has to fight within ourselves. And it is literally a fight to the death. That force of separation has no intention of giving up easily. Kill it one place; it appears in another. Kill it there; it appears somewhere else in another form. It is a never-ending battle and a battle that all the scriptures tell us can only be won when, one way or another, we take refuge in the Lord.

But however we view it, the real battle of life is not with those who think differently from us, the real battle of life is against our limited view of ourselves. We must fight this battle until we achieve the world viewpoint of the scriptures and the saints.

Excerpts from:

Our World Viewpoint - Early Morning Meditation Talks by Sri Swami Atmaswarupananda

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(Aug 1,2014) Spiritual Message for the Day – We Want Two Identities by Sri Swami Atmaswarupananda

 We Want Two Identities

Divine Life Society Publication: Early Morning Meditation Talks by Sri Swami Atmaswarupananda

The call to the spiritual life is a call from God to a better life. Whether our life has been a difficult one or whether it has been one with a minimum of difficulties, the spiritual call is a call to a higher life, a life of greater satisfaction. Ultimately, in Pujya Swamiji’s words, total satisfaction.

In the beginning our spiritual life does seem to bring about some changes; but after some time, no matter how many changes we may see, there seems to be something that fundamentally hasn’t changed at all. We still seem to be a long ways from the total satisfaction that our hearts long for.

We blame it on our behaviour. We see so many weaknesses in ourselves, so many virtues that we do not have. But if we will analyse it very carefully, we will find that the reason we don’t feel total satisfaction or even partial satisfaction is because at the core we haven’t changed. Our fundamental identity hasn’t shifted.

Gurudev put his finger on it. He said, "You are not the body, not the mind, Immortal Self you are. Realise this and be free." We have been trying to realise the Immortal Self without, at the same time, realising clearly that we are not the body, not the mind. Indeed, the truth seems to be that we want to have two identities. We want to realise that we are the Immortal Self without giving up our identity with the body and mind.

But to have a double identity is neither logical, nor is it possible. Therefore, there is another way to describe the beginning of the spiritual life. That is when we recognise clearly that we cannot have two identities and that the fundamental change that is required is the willingness to give up our identity with the body and mind so that we can realise the Immortal Self that we already are.

The classic methods of doing this are to totally surrender our body and mind and our identity to God or to enquire into who I really am. The enquiry of "Who am I?" is actually to constantly discover who we are not. A fundamental error of the spiritual life is to think that the Immortal Self or who we really are is something that we can grasp, is some experience. The fact is that It is what is left over when time and time again we have recognised "Not this, not this."

Whether our basic sadhana is one of surrender or whether it is one of "Not this, not this," success is not something that normally happens overnight. As Pujya Swamiji would say, "Perhaps it happens suddenly once in a million times, but it would not be wise for you to think that you are that one in a million." It is something that we must work on constantly, and indeed, integral yoga is the best way. Sometimes our path should be surrender. The next moment it may be "Not this, not this." We must use every weapon that God suggests to us in this battle against our stubborn identification with the body and mind.

But above all, we must first recognise that if we want to see a fundamental change in ourselves, then that fundamental change must start with our identification. The identification with the body and mind is a false one and must be clearly recognised as such.

Excerpts from:

We Want Two Identities - Early Morning Meditation Talks by Sri Swami Atmaswarupananda

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(July 13,2014) Spiritual Message for the Day – The Need for Both Dispassion and Practice by Swami Atmaswarupananda

 The Need for Both Dispassion and Practice

Divine Life Society Publication: - Early Morning Meditation Talks by Swami Atmaswarupananda

The normal way of thinking about the spiritual life is that the individual soul has taken birth after birth and needs to be liberated from this round of births and death. But the scriptures tell us that we are already what we are seeking: That thou art... You are the Atman, ever-free, ever-pure. 

If that is so, then where is the question of any bondage or any liberation in reality? The scriptures explain that it is the mind that is the cause of both bondage and liberation in the human being. In other words, it is an illusion that the mind believes in, and, therefore, how to control the mind, how to correct the mind, how to purify the mind, becomes our task. 

This gives special significance to Lord Krishna’s instruction to Arjuna in the sixth chapter of the Gita. Lord Krishna tells Arjuna to sit for meditation in order to control the mind. Arjuna protests: "It’s easier to control the wind than to control the mind." Lord Krishna doesn’t say that it is easy, but He does say that it can be done through dispassion and practice. 

So if bondage and liberation are both in the mind, and we need to learn to control the mind, then perhaps the words dispassion and practice contain the essence of the spiritual life. Dispassion means dispassion for thinking that we can get permanent happiness from anything of this world be it physical or mental, and practice is the practice of the presence of God.

As seekers it is important for us to realise that we require both dispassion and practice and usually a judicious balance between the two. It is possible to develop dispassion for the world, to see how fickle our own mind is, how impure our intellect, and thus develop true dispassion for everything about the world including ourselves, but if we haven’t developed the practice of the presence of God, it will be impossible for us to truly understand what liberation means. On the other hand, if we ignore dispassion and only practise the presence of God, we may experience the liberated state, understand liberation, but ultimately the pull of the world will make us unable to sustain that bliss and understanding. The mind will continuously pull us down by telling us that there is happiness to be had in the things of this world. 

Therefore, the importance of following both of Lord Krishna’s instructions. We must develop dispassion and at the same time practise the presence of God. And as both bondage and liberation are in the mind, this combination of dispassion and practice will ultimately allow us to see through the illusion and to recognise that we have ever been free.

Excerpts from:

The Need for Both Dispassion and Practice - Early Morning Meditation Talks by Swami Atmaswarupananda

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(July 8,2014) Spiritual Message for the Day – A Barometer of Our Spiritual Life by Swami Atmaswarupananda

 A Barometer of Our Spiritual Life

Divine Life Society Publication: Early morning meditation talk by Swami Atmaswarupananda

It is well known that Gurudev wrote over 300 books on all aspects of the spiritual life. Included in his breadth of interest were books on health, plays, poems, and he used to from time to time write different versions of spiritual barometers, which normally took the form of asking questions: "How would you feel if…" And then he would list a number of outrageous things and conclude, "If none of these disturb you, then you’re 50% of the way to the goal." In doing this, he was, in a sense, echoing Lord Krishna in the Gita, especially the end of Chapter two and Chapter twelve. 

To compare our spiritual progress to the ideals set out by Gurudev and Lord Krishna has the very salutary effect of making us recognise that we have a long way to go, no matter how long we have been in the spiritual life or what progress we might have made. Indeed, they seem to create such a gap that we have a tendency to ignore them altogether. Actually, we can feel more comfortable with something like Gurudev’s spiritual diary. At least we can understand when he asks us how much time did you spend in meditation, how much time for japa, what time did you get up? This is something that we can relate to and more easily do. 

However, is there another simple question that we could ask ourselves that could act as a barometer of our spiritual life and at the same time is doable for us? There may be many simple questions we could ask, but one that surely goes to the heart of our spiritual life is to ask ourselves, "How much am I prepared to let go of control of my life?" 

This is not normally a question we ask ourselves. We assume that our life belongs to us, and we resent it if anyone else tries to control us, especially unless we’re getting something in return. If we’re getting protection from somebody else, we recognise we have to give up a certain amount of control. If we’re being paid by someone else, we recognise that we owe them a certain degree of obedience and control over our lives. If we’re deeply in love with someone, then that person has a certain control over our behaviour or we won’t have a relationship that will last. But other than that, where we perceive that we are getting something in return for giving up control of our lives, we don’t want to give up control for nothing in return. "This is my life" is an automatic assumption. 

If we’re on the spiritual path though, we begin to gradually discover that thinking about ourselves, controlling our lives, being in charge is a route to unhappiness, confusion, misery. Letting go, even temporarily, is the path to peace, contentment, and happiness. In fact, the whole purpose of our spiritual life is to give up this individual sense of control. Indeed, our whole sadhana ultimately is one of surrender and trust, letting go and letting God. 

Does this mean that we give up activity? This is a common error. What it means is giving up control and recognising that we have always belonged to God. We have never belonged to ourselves as an individual. That practice means that the ego is gradually being rubbed away. When the ego goes, peace remains. Therefore, one barometer, one test, of our spiritual life is how much are we prepared to give up control of our life and acknowledge that our lives now, always have been and always will be part of God.

Excerpts from:

A Barometer of Our Spiritual Life by Sri Swami Sivananda

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(July 2,2014) Spiritual Message for the Day – The Essence of the Spiritual Life by Swami Atmaswarupananda

 The Essence of the Spiritual Life

Divine Life Society Publication: Early Morning Meditation Talk by Swami Atmaswarupananda

Scriptures tell us that in the beginning, One alone was; and then that One said, 'Let there be many.' But even then, One alone was; and even now, One alone is. What is the nature of that One alone? Scriptures tell us that it is unknowable, unthinkable, but to try to help us, they say, 'It is That which was the same in the beginning, is the same now and will ever be the same.' And they say that it is of the nature of existence, consciousness, bliss; or if you want a simple description, it is 'I'.

That 'I' is everywhere, manifesting Itself as everything. But in the human being there is a peculiarity. That 'I' manifests as self-awareness. Unfortunately that self-awareness is not an awareness of the grandeur, the unknowableness of the 'I', but rather, that self-awareness identifies with a body and mind. This we call ego. It means we feel separate. 

The word hell comes from an old English word meaning to be walled off from. So hell means to be separate. On the other hand, the word heaven comes from the same root as the word harmony. So hell means separation and heaven means harmony. Thus, when the principle of self-awareness in the human being identifies with the body, it feels separate, and that is hell. When it identifies with the true 'I'—I am That—it is in harmony, it is in heaven. 

The whole purpose of the spiritual life is to convert this self-awareness in the human being from a mistaken awareness that 'I am the body' to a true awareness that 'I am That.' How is this done? It is not just enough to discover this truth intellectually, nor even to feel this truth, we must actually become this truth. That means we can no longer assert the separate 'I'. The separate 'I' has to surrender to the true 'I'; it has to take refuge in the true 'I'; it has to follow the true 'I'. There is nothing else to the spiritual life, in the final analysis, except this. 

Following the ego keeps us in hell and compounds the hell. When we repent, which means to turn around and go in the other direction, we surrender our individuality, our separateness, and exchange it for harmony with the Whole. This is spiritual life. And if our spiritual life doesn’t contain this element of surrender, if it doesn’t contain this movement from separation to harmony, it perhaps explains why we don’t feel that we’re making the progress we had hoped for. 

Therefore, the essence of the spiritual life is moving from being separate to being in harmony. The ego doesn’t usually want to do it until it has suffered so much that it sees that there is no other way. Thus, often suffering can be a great blessing. But we needn’t suffer if we have the humility to see that the essence of the spiritual life is in surrendering our individuality and taking refuge in God, that it is in surrendering our sense of separation, so that we are in harmony. 

Excerpts from:

The Essence of the Spiritual Life - Early Morning Meditation Talk by Swami Atmaswarupananda

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