New Years Message

The dawn of a new year, and the momentum for positive change it brings, encourages us to explore the vast yet undiscovered potentials of our souls. It is an opportunity to revitalize our noblest aspirations and seek with greater zeal and enthusiasm to manifest them. An exhilarating sense of freedom, of renewed resolve, energizes our being when we realize that we need not be defined by the past but can choose to transform ourselves through our own sincere efforts and God’s ever-present help.

More powerful than our past deeds and habits is the potency of our thoughts and will, when they are focused on the ennobling goals we have chosen. Envision and affirm what you want to accomplish, with confidence that you can blaze new trails of positive, creative thought and action that will lead to success. Remind yourself to let nothing weaken your conviction that you can be whatever you want to be. There is no one obstructing you unless it is yourself. We need to erase from our consciousness the thought of “I can’t,” and rouse the divine conqueror within to make the determined daily efforts that prove “I can.” The valiant soul knows no defeat, only different stages of victory. Even if there are times when outwardly we do not see results, we should never be discouraged. If we have done everything we can, that infused mental power will remain with our soul.” Each day can be a chance to begin anew, and the present moment is our greatest opportunity to break free of confining patterns to consciously choose to think and act differently, and through those little victories to bring out the divine image within.

God has endowed us with the ability to change for the better, and therein lies much hope for all of humanity. Our efforts to use our free will correctly is the foundation of our transformation, and no one is more eager than God to help us attain our soul’s full potential. Through faithful meditation and living each day in His presence we will discover untold inner resources that we can draw upon to rise above the challenges of the day. Let us pray that His wisdom guide us, and His almighty will reinforce our will in each positive endeavor. May the divine love felt in communion with Him continuously charge our self-confidence, and flow through us to others in prayer and in every act of kindness.

Happy and Blessed New Year

I Am Always With You

Jesus said, I Am always with you,

And My words are always true,

Even as long as the Sun doth rise,

And the Moon at night lights up the skies.

In life, I give you one day at a time,

To come to Me and know you're mine.

Don't put it off, don't delay,

Hear My call and come today.

If you choose to abide in Me,

I'll give you life more abundantly;

Each moment filled with My love and peace

And spiritual blessings and joy increased.

My promises are sure, no matter what comes,

As a house built on a rock amidst the storms.

Though winds and waves of the world may rage,

Your heart in calmness and stillness will stay.

My love is stronger than all your fears-

Draw close to Me and feel Me near.

Every care will fade away,

As in My perfect presence , you stay.

                                                   Matthew 11:28; John 14:27
            Jennifer D. Wenzel

How is Soul defined in the East?

The majority of Eastern teachings (who follow Adi Shankara) believe that there is only one real Self. The concept of jiva-Atma in Sanskrit, or (individualized soul identifying oneself with body without realizing the true Self) is probably closer to the Christian concept of soul. There can-be or are more than one soul in Christianity. In the Eastern teaching, there is only one Atman (soul), which it the same as Brahman (God).

How is soul defined in Kriya Yoga?

Before creation existed there was Cosmic Consciousness: Spirit or God, the Absolute, ever-Existing, ever-Conscious, ever-new Bliss beyond form and manifestation. When creation came into being, Cosmic Consciousness “descended” into the physical universe where it manifests as Christ Consciousness: the omnipresent pure reflection of God’s intelligence and consciousness inherent and hidden within all creation.

When the Christ Consciousness descends into the physical body of man it becomes soul, or super consciousness: the ever-Existing, ever-Conscious, ever-new Bliss of God individualized by encasement in the body. When the soul becomes identified with the body, it manifests as ego, or mortal consciousness. Yoga teaches that the soul must climb back up the ladder of consciousness to Spirit. The soul is not slain when the body dies; and even when the soul returns to Spirit, it does not lose its identity, but will exist unto everlastingness.

"A soul, being invisible by nature, can be distinguished only by the presence of its body or bodies."

Hence, Yoga teaches that the abode of the soul of man’s life and divine consciousness is in the subtle spiritual centers in the brain: the Sahasrara, or thousand-petaled lotus at the top of the cerebrum,the seat of cosmic consciousness; Kutastha, at the point between the eyebrows, seat of Christ consciousness; and the medullary center (connected by polarity to the Kutastha), seat of super consciousness. Descending into the body (and body-consciousness) from these centers of highest spiritual perception, life and consciousness flow down the spine, passing through five astral spinal centers, chakras and branching outward into the physical organs of life, into sensory perception, and action.

To regain the blissful realization of its oneness with God, the soul of man must retrace its downward course, ascending by the sacred spinal route to its home in the higher cerebral centers of divine awareness.

What is the nature of the Soul in Sankhya philosophy? Sankhya fundamental idea is about Spirit and Nature or in Sanskrit Purusha and Prakriti.

Sankhya stops with the duality of existence, Nature and souls, soul as an individualized unit of Spirit. There are an infinite number of souls, which cannot die, and must therefore be separate from Nature. Nature in itself changes and manifests all these phenomena; the soul is inactive. It just is and Nature works out all these phenomena for the liberation of the soul; and the soul realizing that it is not Nature.

Every soul is omnipresent and cannot be limited, because all limitation comes either through time, space, or causation. The soul being entirely beyond these cannot have any limitation. To have limitation one must be in space, which means the body; and that which is body must be in Nature. If the soul had form, it would be identified with Nature; therefore the soul is formless, and that which is formless cannot be said to exist here, there, or anywhere. It must be omnipresent.

Just as Sankhya says, it requires some sentient Being with power, which makes the mind think and Nature work, because Nature in all its modifications, from gross matter up to Intelligence (Mahat in Sanskrit), is simply insentient.

The Vedantist (end of the Vedas) says, this sentient Being which is behind the whole universe is what we call God, and consequently this universe is not different from Him. It is He Himself who has become this universe. He not only is the efficient or instrumental cause of this universe, but also the material cause. Cause is never different from effect, the effect is but the cause reproduced in another form. We see that every day. Example: the ocean is the cause of the wave, but all is water.

So this Being is the cause of Nature. All the forms and phases of Vedanta, either dualistic, or qualified-monistic, or monistic, first take the position that God is not only the efficient or instrumental, but also the material cause of this universe, that everything which exists is He.

The second step in Vedanta is that these souls are also a part of God, one spark of that Infinite Fire. "As from a mass of fire millions of small particles fly, even so from this Ancient One have come all these souls."

What is meant by a part of the Infinite? The Infinite is indivisible; there cannot be parts of the Infinite. The Absolute cannot be divided. What is meant, therefore, by saying that all these sparks are from Him? The Advaitist, the non-dualistic Vedantist, solves the problem by maintaining that there is really no part; that each soul is really not a part of the Infinite, but actually it is the Infinite.

Then how can there be so many? All these souls are but reflections and not real, not the real "I" which is the God of this universe, the one undivided Being of the universe. And all these little different beings, men and animals etc. are but reflections, and not real. They are simply illusory reflections upon Nature.

There is but one Infinite Being in the universe, and that Being appears as you and me; but this appearance of divisions is after all a delusion. He has not been divided, but only appears to be divided. This apparent division is caused by looking at Him through the network of time, space, and causation. When we look at God through the network of time, space, and causation, we see Him as the material world. When we look at Him from a higher plane, we see Him as the One Infinite Being of the universe, and that Being we are also. Thou art Tat (that). Not parts of It, but the whole of It. "It is the Eternal Knower standing behind the whole phenomena; He Himself is the phenomena." He is both the subject and the object; He is the you and me.

How to know the Knower?

The Knower cannot know Himself; I see everything but cannot see myself. The Self, the Knower, the Lord of all, the Real Being, is the cause of all the vision that is in the universe, but it is impossible for Him to see Himself or know Himself, excepting through reflection.

We cannot see our own face except in a mirror, and so the Self cannot see Its own nature until It is reflected, and this whole universe therefore is the Self trying to realize Itself. The highest reflection of that Being is both subject and object. We now see why we instinctively worship everything, and how perfect men and women are instinctively worshipped as God in every country. That is why we worship Incarnations, such as Christ, Krishna or Buddha. They are the most perfect manifestations of the eternal Self. They are much higher than all the concepts we have. In the perfect man the circle becomes complete; the subject and the object become one. In him all delusions go away and in their place come the realization that he has always been that perfect Being.

What caused man to be in bondage? How was it possible for this perfect Being to degenerate into the imperfect? How was it possible that the free became bound? The Advaitist says, he was never bound, but was always free. So in our innermost being we are eternally perfect. Nothing ever changes our nature, or ever will. All these ideas that we are imperfect, a man, a woman,  a sinner, the mind we think ourselves to be, are all hallucinations; we never think, we never had a body; we never were imperfect. We are the blessed Lord of this universe, the one Almighty ruler of everything that is and ever will be, the one mighty ruler of these suns and stars and moons and earths and planets and all the little bits of our universe. We are the all and in all. When this knowledge comes all delusion immediately vanishes.

Delusion binds us when we take for real that which is unreal. Only that which never changes is Ultimately Real. However, as long as we see the world around us with our ego, we think our sense perceptions and the world around us to be real. Upon realizing the Truth all illusions will vanish, melt away. This is realization. Philosophy is no joke or talk, it has to be realized. This body will vanish, this earth and everything will vanish, this idea that I am the body or the mind will in time vanish, or if the Karma is ended it will disappear, never to come back. When we reach the state where we perceive that which we now see as real, as being unreal that which our sense perception currently cannot grasp as Real, we are free, a Jivanmukta or liberated soul, free even while living in this body. The aim and end in this life for the Jnana Yogi is to become this Jivanmukta or liberated soul, who can live in this world without being attached. He is the highest of human beings, the highest of all beings, for he has realized his identity with the Absolute, he has realized that he is one with God.

As long as we think we are even the least difference from God, we will experience fear, but when we realize that we are one with the One, all fear vanishes. Being That, we are always That. What then will become of the world? What good shall we do to the world? It has no existence in the past, present, or future. If we have known the Self as It is, if we know that there is nothing else but this Self, that everything else is but a dream, with no existence in reality, then this world with its poverties, its miseries, its wickedness, and its goodness will cease to disturb us.

If they do not exist, from whom and for what can we be disturbed? We must dare to be free, dare to go as far as our thoughts lead us, and dare live accordingly. This body is not who we are; it must go. Not being the body we may declare, "I am not the body, therefore my headache must be cured"; but where is the headache, it is in the body.  Let a thousand headaches and a thousand bodies come and go. What is that to me? I have neither birth nor death; I am Existence-Knowledge-Bliss Absolute.

I am He, I am He. Who shall blame whom, who praise whom? Whom to seek, whom to avoid? I seek none, nor avoid any, for I am all, the universe. I praise myself, I blame myself, I suffer for myself, I am happy at my own will, I am free. This is the Jnani, the brave and daring. Let the whole universe tumble down; he smiles and says it never existed, it was all a hallucination, a dream. Where was it! Where has it gone? This state is experienced in Samadhi, in Oneness.

Before going into the practical part, let us ponder one more intellectual question. If we reason, that there is no purpose for us in this world until we comes to the realization, that there is just One Existence, and that everything else is nothing.  But how is it, that what is infinite, ever perfect, ever blessed, Existence-Knowledge-Bliss Absolute, has come under these delusions? It is a question that has been asked all the world over. Others may say, "How did sin come into this world?" This is a huge question, and the other is the most philosophic one, but the answer is the same.

The question has been asked in various ways, but in its lower forms it finds no solution, because the stories of apples and serpents and women do not give the explanation. In that state, the question is childish, and so is the answer. But the question has assumed very high proportions: "How did this illusion come?" The answer is, we cannot expect any answer to an impossible question. Why? We have first to define, what is perfection? Perfection is that which is beyond time, space, and causation, that is perfect. Then we ask how the perfect became imperfect. Another way of stating it, how did that which is beyond causation become caused?"

This question can only be asked within the limits of causation. As far as time and space and causation extend, so far can this question be asked. But beyond that we cannot go, because the question is illogical. Within time, space, and causation it can never be answered, and what answer may lie beyond these limits can only be known when we have transcended them; therefore the wise will let this question rest. When a man is ill, he devotes himself to curing his disease without insisting that he must first learn how he came to have it.

There is another form of this question, a little lower, but more practical and illustrative: What produced this delusion? Can any reality produce delusion? It certainly cannot. We see that one delusion produces another, and so on. It is delusion always that produces delusion. It is disease that produces disease, and not health that produces disease. The wave is of the same substance as the water; the effect is the cause in another form. The effect is delusion, and therefore the cause must be delusion.

We may ask what becomes of all these various forms of worship. They will remain; they are simply groping in the dark for light, and through this groping light will come. We have just seen that the Self cannot see itself. Our knowledge is within Maya (unreality), and beyond that is freedom. Within the Maya is slavery, it is all under law; beyond that there is no law. So far as the universe is concerned, existence is ruled by law, and beyond that is freedom. As long as we are in time, space, and causation, to say we are free is nonsense, because in that network all is under rigorous law, sequence, and consequence. Every thought that we think is caused, every feeling has been caused; to say that the will is free is sheer nonsense. It is only when the infinite existence comes, as it were; into Maya that it takes the form of will. Will is a portion of that being, caught in the network of Maya, and therefore "free will" is a misnomer. It means nothing, sheer nonsense. So is all this talk about freedom. There is no freedom in Maya or in the phenomenal world.

There is no freedom in this world until we go beyond Maya. That is the real freedom of the soul. Men, however sharp and intellectual, however clearly they see the force of the logic that nothing here can be free, are all compelled to think they are free; they cannot help it. No work can go on until we begin to say, we are free. It means that the freedom we talk about is the glimpse of the blue sky through the clouds and that the real freedom, the blue sky itself, is behind. True freedom cannot exist in the midst of this delusion, this hallucination, this nonsense of the world, this universe of the senses, body, and mind. All these dreams, without beginning or end, uncontrolled and uncontrollable, ill-adjusted, broken, inharmonious, form our idea of this universe. Within Maya, so far as this law of time, space and causation exists, there is no freedom; and all these various forms of worship are within this Maya. The idea of God and the ideas of brute and of man are within this Maya, and as such are equally hallucinations; all of them are dreams.

But we must take care not to argue like some men who say that the idea of God is a delusion, but the idea of this world is true. Both ideas stand or fall by the same logic. He alone has the right to be an atheist who denies this world, as well as the other. The same argument is for both. The same mass of delusion extends from God to the lowest animal, from a blade of grass to the Creator. They stand or fall by the same logic. The same person who sees falsity in the idea of God ought also to see it in the idea of his own body or his own mind.

When God vanishes, then also vanish the body and mind; and when both vanish, that which is the Real Existence remains forever. "There the eyes cannot go, nor the speech, nor the mind. We cannot see it, neither know it." And we now understand that so far as speech and thought and knowledge and intellect go, it is all within this Maya within bondage. Beyond that is Reality, where no thought, no mind, or speech can reach.

So far the topics are all intellectual, but now we come to the practice. The real work is in the practice. Are any practices necessary to realize this Oneness? They certainly are. It is not that we become this Infinite; we are already that. It is not that we are going to become God or perfect; we are already perfect; and whenever we think we are not, we are in delusion. This delusion which says that we are a certain man or women can be replaced by another delusion, and that is practice. Fire will eat fire, and we can use one delusion to conquer another delusion. One cloud will come and brush away another cloud, and then both will go away. What are these practices then? We must always bear in mind that we are not going to be free, but are free already. Every idea that we are bound is a delusion. Every idea that we are happy or unhappy is a tremendous delusion; another delusion is that we work and worship and struggle to be free.

There are people for whom it is sufficient knowledge to hear, "Thou art That" (you are that). With a flash this universe goes away and the real nature shines, but others have to struggle hard to get rid of this idea of bondage.

We may ask who is fit to become Jnana-Yogis? Those who are prepared to follow these steps: First, renunciation of all fruits of work and of all enjoyments in this life or another life. If we are the creator of this universe, whatever we desire we will have, because we will create it for ourselves. It is only a question of time. Some get it immediately; with others the past Samskaras (mental impressions) stand in the way of fulfilling their desires.

But what are we doing? We give first place to desires for enjoyment, either in this or another life. Deny that there is any life at all; because life is only another name for death. Deny that we are a living beings. Who cares for life? Life is one of these hallucinations, and death is its counterpart. Joy is one part of these hallucinations, and misery the other part, and so on. What have we to do with life or death ? These are all creations of the mind. This is called giving up desires of enjoyment either in this life or another.

Then comes controlling the mind, calming it so that it will not break into waves and have all sorts of desires, holding the mind steady, not allowing it to get into waves from external or internal causes, controlling the mind perfectly, just by the power of will. The Jnana-Yogi adopts philosophic reasoning, knowledge, and his own will, these are the instrumentalities he believes in. Next is forbearance, bearing all miseries without murmuring, without complaining. What is heat? What is cold? Let things come and go, what is that to me, I am not the body. It is hard to believe this in the West, but it is better to know that it is done. People need to be brave to think and act out their philosophy. "I am Existence-Knowledge-Bliss Absolute; I am He, I am He."Cling to the highest form of spirituality. What is religion? To pray, "Give me this and that"? Foolish ideas of religion! Those who believe them have no true idea of God and soul. Ultimately, we need to go beyond all names and forms. Let the whole universe vanish, and stand alone. "I am Existence-Absolute, Knowledge-Absolute, Bliss-Absolute; I am He, I am He."

No doubt we recognize from these descriptions that there are different descriptions of the soul and Ultimate Reality. Thus we need to find a common link between the teachings.

We need to view the issue from a non dualistic and a dualistic perspective. Non-duality or Monism says:” Brahman (God) only exists and what we experience is only a reflection of Brahman, just as the Moon reflects the Sun. In non duality there exist not several fundamentally distinct principles, such as the Prakriti and the Purusha of the Sankhya Philosophy, but there exists only one all-embracing being. Advaita Vedanta taught by Sri Shankara is rigorous absolute, true spirituality. The teachings are not based on belief.

The different yogas postulate union with the Absolute and Self Realization.

What are the basic beliefs of the East?

Here are some of the key beliefs:

    Truth is eternal. ...

    Brahman is Truth and Reality. ...

    The Vedas are the ultimate authority. ...

    Everyone should strive to achieve dharma. ...

    Individual souls are immortal. ...

The goal of the individual soul is moksha, liberation

Its primary aim, like the quest of man, is freedom from the ills of life; and it conceives of God as one who creates the world, and is yet perfectly happy and free. The God is not a "person" in the sense in which the term is ordinarily used, as a living being in human or some other tangible form, like the creatures we see but rather as a personification of absolute reality or attributes of ideal life, Sat-chit-ananda real existence, characterized by goodness, intelligence and joy; and to the extent to which a we approaches this ideal, we come nearer unto God. 

Christmas Message a Season for Love and Sharing

Even though we don’t know the exact date when Jesus was born, we come together in remembrance of his birth; the birth of Jesus the Christ, the embodiment of love and forgiveness.

Jesus showed us that the heart can be purified through the love of God.

When we look at history, it shows us that cultures move in waves. They rise and they fall.

When cultures fall, which is often the result of wrong living; people are looking for answers outside themselves instead of into their own lives.

In the yoga traditions we read, that whenever the spiritual life, truth and righteousness of nations have been neglected or forgotten, God incarnates in the form of a person to re-light the flame of spirituality in the hearts men.

In the Bhagavad Gita we read:

Whenever goodness grows weak,

When evil increases,

I make myself a body.

In every age I come back

To deliver the holy,

To destroy the sin of the sinner, and

Establish righteousness.

God came to earth in the form of Krishna, Buddha and Jesus.

Each of them had a distinct message for humanity.

Jesus came at a critical time in history. It was a time, when the world was in need for spiritual hope and regeneration.

His message was not to form diverse churches, by each church claiming him as their own.

His was a universal message of unity, and brotherly love, of forgiveness, compassion, renunciation, equality, and supreme love for God.

His message is one of the grandest ever given.

He reminded us that it is written in the scriptures, “know ye not that ye are gods”, children of the most high.

St. John expressed the spirit of Christ’s teaching when he said:

 “But as many as receive him (the Christ Consciousness, or God’s intelligence that is present in all of creation and was manifested in Jesus), to them gave he powers to become the sons of God.”

                                                                                                  John 1:12

                                                                                                                              

This is a message of hope for all, the down trodden, the poor and the sick, it is a message for all of humanity.

Jesus himself spoke of the omnipresent Christ Consciousness when he said,

“Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing or penny? And one of them shall not fall from the ground without (the sight of) your father.

                                                                                              Mathew 10:29

This shows us, that God’s consciousness or Spirit is everywhere. His body represents the entire cosmos.

We can feel His omnipresent consciousness in our hearts as this great spiritual vibration; we call love, a love that embraces everything in creation.

We can also experience the Christ Consciousness; God’s creative, intelligent in creation.

Jesus was one with Christ Consciousness and when we experience this creative, intelligent force in our lives, we are one in Christ.

We may ask, how can we feel this consciousness?

Our whole being will be filled with love and light. Jesus said:” I am the light of the world”. When we are one with his light, we are one with Christ.

From Jesus we learn that the purpose of religion is to expand human consciousness and unite it with the omnipresent Christ Consciousness in all of creation.

We do this in a social way by cultivating divine love for all of God’s expression, including plants, the birds in the air, animals and man.

Only when we think and feel our connection to the all, will we act in accordance with the law of God. This is what is meant by expressing the wholeness of life.

Wholeness embraces harmony, it leads to an expression of freely giving and receiving; not only gifts, but also the giving of ourselves.

Jesus said:

Who soever does this to the least of my brethren, does this to me also.

                                                                                               Matthew 25-40

                                  

In a transcendental way we let our attention flow with Christ Consciousness in meditation.

In deep communion with the Christ we will be led to the realization of the Oneness in God. In union with God, in samadhi (absorption), we too can proclaim, “the Father and I are one”.

Jesus as a living example, he showed us how to be perfect as our Father in heaven is perfect.

                                       ‘Be ye therefore perfect’…

                                                                                                 Matthew 5:48

Jesus’ message clearly states, that it is not the believing in the person of Jesus, as many Christian teachers claim that bring us into Oneness with God, but it is by living our lives in accordance with the example he set before us.

                                                                                                   

He himself became the way, the truth and the eternal life.

                                                                                                John 14:16

Yet, we must clearly remember that it is always the same Supreme Spirit or Supreme Consciousness that embodies itself, in its manifestation, as it chooses different bodies for its expression.

Referring to Jesus,

St. Paul wrote: “For in Him dwelleth the fullness of God.”

                                                                       Paul’s letter to the Colossians

So to worship Christ, is to worship God which was the emphasis of Christ’s living testimony according to Paul. But Jesus’ teachings were all about God and not about himself.

                 “I have come to do the work of him who has sent me”.

From a historical perspective, we know little about Jesus’ life.

According to scriptural writings, He was born in the humble environment of a stable,

He grew up in or near Nazareth,

He was baptized by John, a dedicated Jew who preached the proclamation of God’s coming judgement,

He never traveled more than 90 miles from his birthplace, although there seem to be several accounts, that Jesus did travel the Orient from his young age to the time he started his ministry.

He owned nothing, asked for nothing in return for his good deeds,

Attended no college, marshaled no army, and instead of producing books,

He did his only writing in the sand.

He died at the age of 33.

Yet his birth is kept around the world.

Who then was he?

WHAT DID HE DO?

We are told he went about doing good.

He moved among society helping people in despair, healing the sick and counseling those in crises.

He loved everyone unconditionally.

He did not judge.

He showed us how to live a life of excellence.

The Gospel accounts are filled with praise for his action.

The pages of Mark are crowded with miracles. Yet Jesus never used miracles to convince people to believe in him.

He performed all his extraordinary deeds quietly as a demonstration of the power of faith.

This shows us, that what is needed is NOT faith in Jesus, but what is needed is the faith that Jesus had.

(Jesus said that if you have the faith of a mustard seed, you can tell this mountain to be cast into the sea and it must obey you)

                                                                                                      Luke 17:6

PEOPLE SAID OF HIM:

“Never Spoke a Man Thus”.

It was not only what Jesus did, but also what he said that made his contemporary think of him in a new dimension.

Let us recall what he said:

Love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, with thy entire mind, with all thy strength, and all thy soul.

                                                                                           

Love thy neighbor as thyself.

                                                                                                     Luke 10:27

Love thine enemy. Only someone being in the wholeness of Spirit would make such a statement. Anyone in ordinary consciousness would never understand that one could love one’s enemy.

                                                                                                Matthew 5:44

Whatsoever ye would that men should do unto you, do ye also to them.

                                                                                               Matthew 7:12

Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. (We reach Christ consciousness in meditation, where we experience peace that transcends all understanding).

‘And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus’.

                                                         

                                                                                              Philippians 4:7

If ye abide in my teaching, ye shall know the truth and the truth shall make ye free.

                                                                                                John 8:32

If ye abide in me (the consciousness that is in me) and in my words abide in you, ask whatever ye will and it shall be done unto you.

                                                                                                John 15:7

This experience of truth is made possible through transformation or, in the words of Jesus:

Except a man be born again of spirit and water, he shall not enter the kingdom of heaven.” 

We are born of matter, but we must be born again of the Spirit.

Nicodemus a ruler of the Jews asked Jesus:” How can a man be born a second time”?

Jesus adds another surprise. Anyone seeking to enter God's kingdom must be born again! Nicodemus thinks only of another fleshly birth. "Surely he cannot enter a second time into his mother's womb to be born!" (John 3:4). Jesus is speaking of spiritual re-birth.

Very few people understood Jesus. They do not even understand Him today and this includes many clergies. Jesus spoke from Spirit, this is why He never explained his statements; people see things generally from a material point of view.

(Chit Sanskrit, Consciousness or Spirit is beyond the body. mind and the sense. Its transcendent nature is indicated by such phrases as, ‘the light of lights, the truth of truths’ or the all knowing).

Jesus expressed the folly of materialism by stating that:

It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to reach heaven.

He spoke in parables (A parable is a word-picture which uses an image or story to illustrate a truth or lesson) when He addressed the masses.

He spoke of buried treasures.

Here Jesus is comparing the kingdom of heaven to a hidden treasure. He tells the story of man who found a treasure hidden in a field. This discovery made the man happy. He quickly buried it and went home to sell all that he owned so that he can buy the field and get the treasure.

Of the Good Samaritan, (Samaritans and Jews did not get along.)

“A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he was attacked by robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead.  A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side; so too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him.  He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, brought him to an inn and took care of him. The next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper. ‘Look after him,’ he said, ‘and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.’

                                                                                                  Luke 10:25-37

The Story of the Prodigal Son

It is the story of a young man who spends all his inheritance on one huge binge and ended up tending to pigs.

It is mentioned that when he finally came to his senses, he said:” I will go to my father, and will say unto him, Father I have sinned against heaven and before thee and be no more worthy to be called thy son. Make me one of thy hired servants”.

But the father said to his servants, bring forth the best robe, and put it on him… For this my son was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found again; let us eat and be merry.

People who heard the teachings of Jesus marveled. They were astonished. Were we in the presence of these historical events, we too would be startled and amazed.

                                                          

                                                                                              Luke 15:11:32

Jesus also counseled people:

He told them not to resist evil and to turn the other cheek.

To love one’s enemies and to bless them that curses us.

Yet the world assumes that friends are to be loved and enemies to be hated.

Why should we not only love our friends but our enemies?

Jesus’ answer is explicit:

So that we may be sons and daughter of the Heavenly Father (raise ordinary consciousness to Christ Consciousness), for He makes his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and the unjust.

The world in material consciousness resents this, feeling that the sun ought to rise only on the just.

We are told that the path and gate that lead to salvation are narrow. The world, wrapped in convention and conformity, assumes it is safer to follow the crowd.

We are told to be as carefree as birds of the air and the lilies of the field. The world assumes that we should be ambitious, take infinite care and build our security.

We are told that the happy people are those who are meek, who weep, and are merciful and pure in heart. The world assumes that it is the reach and powerful who are happy.

We may ask, do we ….today, ….this very moment - understand and live the message that Jesus has taught or, are our hearts still too small  for what he was trying to say.

And what was he trying to tell us?

When we look at the parables and the beatitudes, indeed everything he said, it focuses on two important facts about life:

God’s overwhelming love for man and the need for man to receive this love, then, let it flow outward toward his neighbor.

To perceive this love, to feel it in our hearts, is to respond in the only way possible, in profound and total gratitude for the wonders of God’s grace.

We must open our hearts and minds to God’s Love and Grace.

This is the message of Christmas; this is what it is all about.

To love one another, to care for one another, to be of good will, to be at peace with ourselves and with the world.

Let us contemplate these words:

“Let Christ be born again in our hearts and let us carry PEACE AND LOVE the true message of Christmas with us wherever we go”.

May God’s Blessings Guide us on our ways.

Every Day Can Be Like Christmas

Christmas comes and Christmas goes;

From days of joy to those of woes.

We lift our voices in songs of praise,

And then go back to our former ways.

The truth of Jesus' virgin birth,

Proclaimed upon the entire Earth,

Is eclipsed by materialistic lust,

To gratify our bodies of dust.

Many give to those held near,

And desire gifts from loved ones dear,

Forgetting the poor who're in sore need,

While reveling in thoughtless greed.

Jesus came as a light unto the world,

God's gift much more precious than pearls,

To open the eyes of those lost and blind,

To see their ways and leave them behind.

What great good news He gives to all,

If only we would heed His call,

To love each other and follow Him,

A new and greater life will begin.

The woes will be replaced with joy,

Goodness granted to each girl and boy.

When the Prince of Peace reigns in every heart

Then God's Spirit of Love will never depart.

Soon will come the answer to Jesus' prayer,

For a Heaven on Earth, as it is there,

Where our Father dwells in infinite bliss,

Let it be, Amen, our prayer is this.

             - Jennifer Wenzel -

Yoga and Christianity

Yoga and Christianity are being bridged by many people who are trying to integrate Yoga with their roots of Christianity. Yoga is in religion, but religion is not in Yoga. Yoga is in Christianity, but Christianity is not in Yoga.

Yoga and Christianity are compatible: Yoga is increasingly being practiced by Christian people of the world, particularly in the West. While it is easy for critics to argue that the two are incompatible, many people intuitively know that Yoga, which is not a religion, and Christianity can be compatible. Actually, some principles of Yoga are already contained within Christianity and Christian meditation.

To say that Yoga can be compatible with Christianity is not to say that the two are the same. Compatibility and sameness are two very different principles. In addition, it is important to note that there may be individual denominations opposed to Yoga practices of body, breath, mind and philosophy, just as there are individual denominations opposed to medical treatment, modern technology, or a variety of social and cultural activities. However, the fact that some denominations are opposed, and thus incompatible with Yoga in their individual view, does not mean that the whole of Christianity is incompatible.

This paper seeks to provide a bridge for those Christians who are already engaged in Yoga as an additional spiritual practice; that is, who are trying to integrate their roots of Christianity with yoga.

Exoteric religion

Many of the Christians who are practicing Yoga are drawn to the esoteric spectrum, which belongs the domain of mysticism. Throughout human history the esoteric practitioners have been shunned by the more exoteric people. Thus, it is not only Yoga that some Christians are opposed to, but also the mystical practices of their own religion. In such cases, Yoga is a convenient, visible target, while the effort is actually one of attempting to suppress the subtler essence of their own roots.

What Jesus referred to as the "most important" instruction includes the instruction for the follower of Christianity to: 

"Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind and with all your strength.'" (Mark 12:30). Loving God with all you soul implies oneness of the soul with God through the practice of meditation.

The second instruction is to "Love your neighbor as yourself." However, we are only focusing here on the Yoga in the first instruction.

What is clear from the New Testament is that Jesus fully committed his life to do the Father’s work. ‘Not my will, but by thy will be done’. He was in union with God at all times while in the physical body. We ought to live the same way and yoga teaches us how to live a God surrendered life. 

Yoga practitioners can integrate their yoga teachings with the Christian message. Christianity emphasizes primarily the outer way, whereas the focus of yoga is more on the inner way. Through this combination of outer and inner practices, we will have a much greater appreciation for the message of Jesus and can effectively integrate it into our own lives The ultimate message of Jesus is oneness with God. The message of yoga is the same, it is union with the Absolute. This union is experienced as a state of inner Bliss.

On the journey stillness and silence support Christianity: “Be still and know that I am God.” (Psalm 46:10). It is the place where the followers of Christianity can find the door that leads to God realization, “Knock and the door will be opened. seek and ye shall find” It is in the silence where one can hear the Word that was in the beginning, the word that was with God, and is God. The  Yogi meditates on Om (the Word) and becomes one with Om, one with God. We can see, that Yoga (union) does not work in opposition to Christianity, it compliments it.

For a deeper study of the esoteric teachings of Christianity, one may visit, "The second coming of Christ" by Paramahansa Yogananda.

What is Religion and who needs it?

This may be the most difficult paper you have ever read on the subject of true religion, which is the union of our soul with spirit. It points out our identification with and bondage to nature in the realm of duality.

May I suggest, that you read a small section at a time, ponder it and try to understand it, before you move on.

If you background is Christian, which is based on faith and the atonement of Jesus (The Atonement is the sacrifice Jesus Christ made to help us overcome sin, adversity, and death. Jesus paid the price for our sins, took upon Himself death, and was resurrected). You may say to yourself ‘I thought being a Christian is hart, but this, being based on a universal Concept of Oneness, Wholeness, is another story’. Many people say, everything in the universe is connected. If you are one of them, read to the end…. Peace.

 How can we make the distinction between that which is living and that which is dead? This question seems to be a no brainer. In the living there is freedom, there is intelligence; in that which is dead, is bondage and no freedom is possible, because there is no intelligence.

This freedom is what all of us are striving for. To be free is the goal of all our efforts, for only in perfect freedom can there be perfection. This effort to attain freedom underlies all forms of worship, whether we know it or not.

If we were to examine the various sorts of worship all over the world, we would see that the most primitive of mankind are worshipping ghosts, demons, and the spirits of their forefathers. There is serpent worship, worship of tribal gods, and worship of the departed ones. Why do humans do this? It is because they feel that in some unknown way these beings are greater, more powerful than they are, and thus limit their freedom. They, therefore, seek to atone these beings with sacrifice in order to prevent them from molesting them, in other words, to get more freedom. They also seek to win favour from these so-called superior beings.

In general, this shows that the world is expecting a miracle. This expectation never leaves us, and however we may try, we all are running after the miraculous and extraordinary.

What is mind? It is but that ceaseless inquiry into the meaning and mystery of life? We may claim that only uncultivated people are going after all these things, but the question still is there: Why should it be so? The Jews were asking for a miracle. The whole world has been asking for the same for thousands of years. There is, again, the universal dissatisfaction. We get an ideal into our mind and before we do something about it, we rush into another direction. We struggle hard to attain some goal and then discover we do not want it.

This dissatisfaction repeats itself many times and what it creates is only more dissatisfaction.  

What is the meaning behind this universal dissatisfaction? It is because freedom is every one’s goal. The search is endless. It goes on forever.  The child rebels against the law as soon as it is born. Its first utterance is a cry, a protest against the bondage in which it finds itself.

This longing for freedom produces the idea of a Being who is absolutely free. The concept of God, this is a fundamental element in the human psyche.

In yoga, Sat-chit-ananda (Existence-Knowledge-Bliss) is the highest concept of God possible to the mind. It is the essence of knowledge and is by its nature the essence of bliss.

We have been stifling that inner voice long enough, seeking to follow law and quiet the human nature, but there is that human instinct to rebel against nature's laws, as the law of cause and effect. We may not understand what the meaning is, but there is that unconscious struggle of the human with the spiritual, of the lower with the higher mind, and the struggle attempts to preserve one's separate life, what we call our "individuality".

Even hell stands out with this miraculous fact that we are born rebels; and the first fact of life, is the inrushing of life itself, against this we rebel and cry out, "No law for us." As long as we obey the laws we are like robots, and on goes the universe and we cannot break it. Laws as laws become man's nature. The first inkling of life on its higher level is in seeing this struggle within us, to break the bond of nature and to be free. "Freedom, O Freedom! Freedom, O Freedom!" is the song of the soul. Bondage, to be bound in nature, seems its fate.

Why should there be serpent, or ghost, or demon worship and all these various creeds and forms for having miracles? Why do we say that there is life, there is being in anything? There must be a meaning in this search, this endeavour to understand life, to explain being. It is not meaningless and vain. It is our ceaseless endeavour to become free. The knowledge which we now call science has been struggling for thousands of years in its attempt to gain freedom, and people ask for freedom. Yet there is no freedom in nature. It is all law. Still, the struggle goes on.

The whole of nature from the very sun to the atoms is under law, and even for man there is no freedom. But we cannot believe it. We have been studying laws from the beginning, yet we cannot, will not believe that man is under law. The soul cries ever, "Freedom, O Freedom!" With the conception of God as a perfectly free Being, humankind cannot rest eternally in this bondage.

Higher we must go, and unless the struggle was for ourselves, we would think it too severe. We may says to ourselves, "We are born slaves, we are bound; nevertheless, there is a Being who is not bound by nature. He is free and a Master of nature."

The conception of God, therefore, is as essential and as fundamental a part of mind as is the idea of bondage. Both are the outcome of the idea of freedom. There cannot be life, even in the plant, without the idea of freedom. In the plant or in the worm, life has to rise to the individual concept. It is there, unconsciously working, the plant living its life to preserve the variety, principle, or form, not nature. The idea of nature controlling every step onward overrules the idea of freedom.

 Onward goes the idea of the material world; onward moves the idea of freedom. Still the fight goes on. We are hearing about all the quarrels of creeds and sects, yet creeds and sects are just and proper, they must be there. The chain is lengthening and naturally the struggle increases, but there need be no quarrels if we only knew that we are all striving to reach the same goal.

The embodiment of freedom, the Master of nature, is what we call God. We cannot deny Him, because we cannot move or live without the idea of freedom. Would we come here if we did not believe we were free? It is quite possible that the biologist can and will give some explanation of this perpetual effort to be free. Take all that for granted, still the idea of freedom is there. It is a fact, as much so as the other fact that we apparently get over, the fact of being under nature.

Bondage and liberty, light and shadow, good and evil must be there, but the very fact of the bondage shows also this freedom hidden there. If one is a fact, the other is equally a fact. There must be this idea of freedom.

While now we cannot see this idea of bondage, yet the idea of freedom is there. The bondage of sin and impurity in the uncultivated savage is to his consciousness very small, for his nature is only a little higher than the animal's. What he struggles against is the bondage of physical nature; the lack of physical gratification, but out of this lower consciousness grows and broadens the higher conception of a mental or moral bondage and a longing for spiritual freedom.

Here we see the divine dimly shining through the veil of ignorance. The veil is very dense at first and the light may be almost obscured, but it is there, ever pure and undimmed, the radiant fire of freedom and perfection. Mankind personifies this as the Ruler of the Universe, the One Free Being. He does not yet know that the universe is all one that the difference is only in degree, in the concept.

The whole of nature is worship of God. Wherever there is life, there is this search for freedom and that freedom is the same as God. Necessarily this freedom gives us mastery over all nature and is impossible without knowledge. The more knowing we are, the more we are becoming masters of nature. Mastery alone is making us strong and if there is some being entirely free and master of nature, that being must have a perfect knowledge of nature, must be omnipresent and omniscient. Freedom must go hand in hand with these, and that being alone who has acquired these will be beyond nature.

Blessedness, eternal peace, arising from perfect freedom, is the highest concept of religion underlying all the ideas of God, absolutely free Existence, not bound by anything, no change, no nature, nothing that can produce a change in Him. This same freedom is in us and is the only real freedom.

God is still, established upon His own majestic changeless Self. We try to be one with Him, but plant ourselves upon nature, upon the trifles of daily life, on money, on fame, on human love, and all these changing forms in nature which make for bondage. When nature shines on anything what depends on light, it actually depends upon God and not upon the sun, nor the moon, nor the stars. Wherever anything shines, whether it is the light in the sun or in our own consciousness, it is He. He is shining in all and all shines after Him as a reflection.

Now we have seen that this God is self-evident, impersonal, omniscient, the Knower and Master of nature, the Lord of all. He is behind all worship and it is being done according to Him, whether we know it or not. Let’s go one step further, that at which all marvel, that which we call evil, it is His too. There cannot be any life or any impulse unless that freedom is behind it.

Unless there is unity at the universal heart, we cannot understand variety. We are in essence one with God. He, who is the coloring in the wings of the butterfly, and the blossoming of the rose-bud, is the power that is in the plant and in the butterfly. He who gives us life is the power within us. Out of His fire comes life, and the direst death is also His power. He whose shadow is death, His shadow is immortality also.

Let’s take a still higher conception. See how we are running like hunted rabbits from all that which is terrible and thinking we are safe. See how the whole world is fleeing from everything terrible, if we are ever to gain freedom, it must be by conquering nature, never by running away. Cowards never win victories. We have to fight fear and troubles and ignorance if we expect them to flee before us.

What is death? What are terrors? Do we not see the Lord's face in them? Flee from evil and terror and misery, and they will follow us. Face them, and they will flee. The whole world worships ease and pleasure, and very few dare to worship that which is painful. To rise above both is the idea of freedom. Unless we pass through this gate we cannot be free. We all have to face these.

We strive to worship the Lord, but nature rises between Him and us and blinds our vision. We must learn how to worship and love Him in shame, in sorrow, and in sin. The entire world has ever been preaching the God of virtue. We have to come to the point where we preach about a God of virtue and a God of sin in one. The Ultimate Truth which we must realize is that all is Oneness. Then will we give up the idea that one is greater than another. The nearer we approach the law of freedom, the more we shall come under the Lord, and troubles will vanish. Then we shall not differentiate the door of hell from the gate of heaven, nor differentiate between men and say, "I am greater than any being in the universe." Until we see nothing in the world but the Lord Himself, all these evils will be-set us and we shall make all these distinctions; because it is only in the Lord, in the Spirit, that we are all one; and until we see God everywhere, this unity will not exist for us.

We are in reality one with the Lord, but the reflection makes us seem many, as when the one sun reflects in a million dewdrops and seems a million tiny suns. The reflection must vanish if we are to identify ourselves with our real nature which is divine. The universe itself can never be the limit of our satisfaction. That is why the miser gathers more and more money that is why the robber robs, the sinner sins, that is why we are learning philosophy. All have one purpose. There is no other purpose in life, save to reach this freedom. Consciously or unconsciously, we are all striving for perfection. Every being must attain to it.

The one, who is groping through sin, through misery, the one who is choosing the path through hells, will reach it, but it will take time. We cannot save him. Some hard knocks will help us to turn to the Lord. The path of virtue, purity, unselfishness, spirituality, becomes known at last and what all are doing unconsciously, we are trying to do consciously. This is the lesson for the whole world to learn.

What have philosophies and theories of nature to do, if not to help us to attain to this one goal in life? Let us come to that consciousness of the identity of everything and let us see our self in everything. Let us be no more the worshippers of creeds or sects with small limited notions of God, but see Him in everything in the universe. If we are knowers of God, we will everywhere find the same worship as in our own heart.

In the first place we need to get rid of all our limited ideas and see God in every person, working through all hands, walking through all feet, and eating through every mouth. In every being He lives, through all minds He thinks. He is self-evident, nearer unto us than ourselves.

If we think, that the basis of religion is faith; may it please the Lord to give us this faith! When we shall feel that oneness, we shall be immortal. We are physically immortal even, one with the universe. As long as there is one that breathes throughout the universe, we live in that one. We are not this limited little being, we are the universal, I am, the life of all the sons of the past. I am the same soul that is of Jesus, of Buddha, of Mohammed. I am the same soul of the teachers, and all the robbers that robbed, and all the murderers that were hung, I am the universal. This is the highest worship. We are one with the universe. That only is humility, not crawling upon all fours and calling ourselves sinners. That is the highest evolution when this veil of differentiation is torn off. The highest creed is Oneness. I am so-and-so is a limited idea, not true of the real "I". I am the universal; stand upon that and ever worship the Highest through the highest form, for God is Spirit and should be worshipped in spirit and in truth.

Through lower forms of worship, man's material thoughts rise to spiritual worship and the Universal Infinite One is at last worshipped in and through the spirit. That which is limited is material. The Spirit alone is infinite. God is Spirit, is Infinite; man is Spirit and, therefore Infinite, and the Infinite alone can worship the Infinite. This is what we must realize.  .  

In contrast when we theorize, rationalize, talk, philosophize, and something unforeseen comes against us, we unconsciously become angry, we forget that there is anything in the universe, except this little limited self. We forget to say, "I am the Spirit, what is this trifle to me? I am the Spirit." I forget it is all myself playing, I forget God, I forget freedom.

Razor sharp, long and difficult and hard to cross is the way to freedom. The sages have declared this again and again. Yet let not these weaknesses and failures bind us. The Scriptures have declared, "Arise! Awake! And stop not until the goal is reached." We will then certainly cross the path, sharp as it is like the razor and long and distant and difficult though it is. Man becomes the master of gods and demons. No one is to blame for our miseries but we ourselves. Do we think there is only a dark cup of poison if we go to look for nectar? The nectar is there and is for everyone who strives to reach it. The Lord Himself tells us, "Give up all these paths and struggles and take refuge in Me. I will take thee to the other shore, be not afraid." We hear that from all the scriptures of the world that come to us. The same voice teaches us to say, "Thy will be done upon earth, as it is in heaven," for "Thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory."

It may be difficult for some of us to say this very moment, “I will take refuge in Thee, O Lord. Unto Thy love I will sacrifice all, and on Thine altar I will place all that is good and virtuous. My sins, my sorrows, my actions, good and evil, I will offer unto Thee; do Thou take them and I will never forget."

One moment we may say, "Thy will be done," and the next moment something comes to try us and we jump up in a rage.

The goal of all religions is the same, but the language of the teachers differs. The attempt is to kill the false "I" (ego), so that the real "I", the Lord, will reign. "I the Lord thy God am a jealous God. Thou shalt have no other gods before me," say the scriptures. God must be there all alone. We must say, "Not I, but Thou," and then we should give up everything but the Lord.

He and He alone, should reign. Perhaps we struggle hard, and yet the next moment our feet slip, and then we try to stretch out our hands. We find we cannot stand alone. Life is infinite, one chapter of which is, "Thy will be done," and unless we realize all the chapters we cannot realize the whole. "They will be done", every moment the traitor’s mind rebels against it, yet it must be said, again and again, if we are to conquer the lower self.

We cannot serve a traitor and yet be saved. There is salvation for all except the traitor and we stand condemned as traitors, traitors against our own selves, against the majesty of Mother Nature, when we refuse to obey the inner voice of our higher Self. Come what will, we must give our bodies and minds up to the Supreme Will."They will be done on earth as it is in heaven, for Thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory for evermore” Amen.