Esoterics of Worship, Part Three
Author: Satguru Bodhinatha Veylanswami
Description: When you respect tradition, you call upon the collective wisdom of tens of thousands of years of experience. Tradition is wisdom of the past inherited by the men and women in the present. By depending on our Gods, on our forefathers, on our religious ancestors, we move more swiftly along the spiritual path. Hindu tradition is initiated and administrated from the inner worlds, from the Devaloka. Ours are the world's most ancient and traditions which you have, in previous lives, lived through and known. The mind of man exists within the microcosm, which exists within the macrocosm. When you worship the God in the temple through pūjā and ceremony, you are bringing that Divinity out of the microcosm and into this macrocosm. Get to know Gaṇeśa in an intimate way. Gaṇeśa is within you and there ahead of you to guide your soul’s evolution. Religion is the connection between the three worlds, and temple worship is how you can get your personal connection with the inner worlds. The Gods of Hinduism create, preserve and protect mankind and loving these great souls comes so naturally. "Master Course Trilogy", "Merging with Siva", Lessons 138-140
Transcription:
Good morning everyone. Continuing... Hello, good morning, yeah.
Continuing with "Merging with Siva" Chapter Twenty, entitled: "The Esoterics of Worship" from 1978.
Lesson 138
"The Potency of Tradition
"This is one of the reasons that religious tradition is very, very important. Modern existential thought tells us that we can do anything we want to; we don't have to follow tradition. Out of such a belief comes a great sense of loneliness, a schism between the individual and all his ancestors, all the generations that preceded him on the planet. Out of such a belief comes the breaking up of culture, society, religion and families.
"Tradition allows you to go through life's experiences in a controlled way, rather than just throwing yourself into life and upon life without forethought and preparation. When you respect tradition, you call upon the collective wisdom of tens of thousands of years of experience. When you follow tradition, you share the solutions of untold problems, solved once perhaps before recorded history began in order that future generations might avoid them. Tradition is wisdom of the past inherited by the men and women in the present. (That's a good definition.) Tradition is wisdom of the past inherited by the men and women in the present. Our religion has a vast tradition, and not everyone can or does follow the entirety of it. There is the greatest freedom within Hinduism. You can choose to not follow tradition, but tradition is there to be followed when you choose to do so. Of course, we can take the path of trial and error, testing every single precept before adopting any. That is a tedious path which leads slowly to the eventual goal.
"By depending on our Gods, on our forefathers, on our religious ancestors, we move more swiftly along the spiritual path. In the early stages we tend toward untraditional ways. That is natural. Experience later shows us another way, and we begin to become traditionalists. This maturation comes to all souls over a series of births as they learn to perfect the intricate patterns of Hindu culture and religion.
"There are certain traditions that can be broken up, that are lost and forgotten, covered over by the sands of time because they are traditions that men put in motion. Some traditions set in motion by people to solve certain problems at certain times have no relationship to our circumstances and our times.
"The Hindu tradition is initiated and administrated from the inner worlds, from the Devaloka. The Deities are the source of most tradition. They ordain the proper way to chant and the mantras to be used. They establish the language, the music, the dance, the systems of worship. Following the Hindu traditions better and better over the years attunes your mind to the great, positive mind flow of over one billion people on our planet.
"Ours are the world's most ancient traditions. They are the most profound, based on an esoteric understanding of man and his purpose in life. Tradition guides experiences in life. It is a protective mind structure. Any experience that you have to go through is gently guided by this great mind structure. The old ways are world patterns that have come down through thousands upon thousands of years, which you have, in previous lives, lived through and known."
Lesson 139
"Microcosm and Macrocosm
"The mind of man—and by that I mean his entire mental, emotional and spiritual structure—exists within the microcosm, which exists within the macrocosm that we can see and touch and that we call the physical universe. The Gods also live within the microcosm. The microcosm is within this macrocosm and, then again, within that microcosm is another dimension of space, another macrocosm. Similarly, you can look into a drop of water through the microscope and see a new dimension of space in which myriads of tiny creatures are experiencing a total existence. These minute living things are in the microcosm; from where they stand they see it as a macrocosm. While you might say there is only one millionth of an inch between each of those little organisms swimming in the drop of water, to them it may seem like fifty yards. There are tens of thousands within that single drop, and yet they are not at all crowded, for it is a different dimension of space. This is how the microcosm can have an even bigger macrocosm than this one within it. That bigger macrocosm is the Third World, the Śivaloka, where all the Gods and Mahādevas reside. It is within you, but it is ethereal, which means it is nonphysical. Your mind is in the microcosm. That is how it does all the things that it does. You can take your mind completely around the world in an instant, or across the galaxy. Right now we can take our minds to a star that is 680 million light years away from Earth. We can think about that star and see it in our mind. Time is not involved; nor is space. Thought is there instantly. The Gods are also in the microcosm, and in the macrocosm within the microcosm. From their view, all that they do for you, to help you work out a problem, even if they work on it for days of their time, happens faster than instantly. Since your mind, too, exists within the microcosm, the change takes place instantaneously. It then takes a day or two for the effects of that change to be felt in the macrocosm. Deep within your mind, in the microcosm, the problem vanished the instant you stood before the God in the temple. It takes you a few days, or at least a few hours, to catch up to the inner event and see the results in physical form."
Lesson 140
"Grace of the Gods
"When you worship the God in the temple through pūjā and ceremony, you are bringing that Divinity out of the microcosm and into the macrocosm. You supply the energy through your worship and your devotion, through your thought forms, and even your physical aura. The pujārī purifies and magnetizes the stone image for this to take place. The Gods and the devas are also magnetizing the stone image with their energy, and finally the moment is ready and they can come out of the microcosm into this macrocosm and bless the people. You observe that they stayed only for an instant, but to them it was a longer time. The time sense in the inner worlds is different.
"If you want to get acquainted with the Gods, first get to know Lord Gaṇeśa. Take a picture and look at it. Put a picture of Lord Gaṇeśa in your car or in your kitchen. Get acquainted through sight. Then come to know Him through sound by chanting His names and hymns. This is how you get acquainted with your personal Deity.
"You will get to know Him just as you know your best friend, but in a more intimate way, for Gaṇeśa is within you and there ahead of you to guide your soul’s evolution. As you get acquainted with Him, Gaṇeśa then knows that you’re coming up on the spinal climb of the kuṇḍalinī. He will work with you and work out your karma. Your whole life will begin to smooth out. Religion is the connection between the three worlds, and temple worship is how you can get your personal connection with the inner worlds. You never really lose connection with the inner worlds, but if you are not conscious of that connection, then it appears that you have.
"The Gods of Hinduism create, preserve and protect mankind. It is through their sanction that all things continue, and through their will that they cease. It is through their grace that all good things happen, and all things that happen are for the good. Now, you may wonder why one would put himself under this divine authority so willingly, thus losing his semblance of freedom. But does one not willingly put himself in total harmony with those whom he loves? Of course he does. And loving these great souls comes so naturally. Their timeless wisdom, their vast intelligence, their thoroughly benign natures, their ceaseless concern for the problems and well-being of devotees, and their power and sheer godly brilliance—all these inspire our love."
Thank you very much. Have a wonderful day.
[End of transcript.]