The Two Perfections of Our Soul, Part Three
Author: Satguru Bodhinatha Veylanswami
Description: Description: Begin to live in the eternal now not going unnecessarily into the past or the future. Contemplation is man's power over his mind as he begins to go within himself. Concentration is man's power over his mind. Meditation is man's wisdom. In expanded consciousness, free from the lower state of mind, you begin to know the Truth. Only to the lower realms of the mind is the sun so many million miles away. Gurudeva's letter to an aspirant monk and the beginning of his inspired talk "On The Brink of the Absolute." "Master Course Trilogy", "Merging with Siva", Lessons 327-328
Transcription:
Good morning everyone. We are continuing with "Merging with Siva" Chapter forty-seven entitled "The Two Perfections of Our Soul which is from 1981.
Lesson 327
"Expanded Consciousness
"The struggle with the mind is an easy struggle if you are constantly vigilant, all of the time, doing always what you know you should do, not allowing the mind to become instinctive, not excusing the mind when it does become instinctive, not allowing the mind to justify, rationalize, excuse, become combative, but making the mind always remain poised, (quite a challenge) like a hummingbird over a flower, so that you begin to live in the eternal now, constantly, permanently. And then the within becomes natural to you, not something you hear about, study about, talk about, sing about, for you become open, awakened within. (So, the eternal now, the way I like to comment on it, being in the present moment, not going unnecessarily into the past or future, is just that. There should be a reason for going into the past or the future. So, going into the past, we come back from the past and something productive has happened because we've gone into the past. Likewise, we go into the future, something productive happened. We're just not letting the mind wander and not producing something productive. So we don't want to go into the past or future without producing something positive.) Contemplation is man's power over his mind as he begins to go within himself. Concentration is man's power over his mind as he goes through life working out life's problems. And meditation is man's wisdom.
"Let's expand our consciousness once again, and see if we can become conscious of the entire universe all in one instant. Where is that universe? It is very real to you in that instant, but where is it? You might look above and say, Its out there, but where is out there? Where do you conceive above? You might say the sun is way up in the sky. So is the moon. But where is the focal point of your conception? How do you create the sun, and how do you create the moon? You might say the sound of a waterfall is twenty feet away from you. Where is that sound created? Where do you conceive it?
"Only to the lower realms of the mind is the sun so many million miles away, or the waterfall so many feet from where you are sitting right now. Expand your consciousness, and you begin to know this truth. Do all the petty little things that you can do if you give way to the negative states of mind, and you bind yourself to the lie and live in the lie, like an animal would live in a cage. Know the truth, and the truth will make you free. Therefore, freedom does not come through what you have remembered, how well you can rationalize, how well you can talk yourself into and out of situations, how well you can excuse negative happenings. The knowing state of consciousness in which you can know the truth only comes when you can control the lower state of mind and live a godlike life each day, and then your consciousness does expand automatically. Your daily life becomes a life of inspiration, and in your expanded consciousness you begin to know the truth, and that knowing of the truth sets you free from the lower state of mind which you then realize is the lie, the eternal lie. The point of conception is the apex of creation.
Lesson 328
"Clinging to the Light Within
"Many years ago, during the spring at our Mountain Desert Monastery (that was Virginia City), a young man wrote to me saying that he intended to give up the world and become a Hindu monk. Here is a letter that I wrote in response and an inspired talk I sent to him to ponder, entitled 'On the Brink of the Absolute.'
"'Namaste! Your lovely letter arrived just as I returned to the monastery today from our India Odyssey pilgrimage to my āśrama in Alaveddy, Sri Lanka, and eight other countries. That good timing indicates that you are on an inner beam, no doubt from the efforts already expended in your spiritual quest. From your letter, it is certain that you have exhausted the many dead-end trails on the path. Your decision to be a renunciate monastic is a good one. It is a big step and I know you have thought it over well. Times are changing. Dedicated souls like yourself are needed as helpers on the path in our monastic orders to stabilize and teach those who are seeking. It is time now for the Western mind to rediscover the vast teachings of Śaiva Siddhānta Hinduism.
“'I am going to give you the first of many challenges we may share together in this life. It is to meditate deeply every day for one full month on a talk I once gave to a small gathering of maṭhavāsis, monks, at the San Francisco Temple. In fact, it was August 28, 1960. Like you, they were beginning to experience the blissful and peaceful areas of their inner being, and we spoke of enlightened insights one has on the very brink of the Absolute. You will be challenged by this assignment. Remember, the rewards are more than worth the effort required.
“'It is my duty as your spiritual teacher to assure you that there will be trials. The sannyāsin’s life is not easy. It will demand of you more than you ever thought possible. You will surely be asked to serve when tired, to inspire when you feel a little irritated, to give when it seems there is nothing left to offer. To drop out of this great ministry would not be good for you or for those who will learn to depend on you. A Hindu monastic order is not a place to get away from the world. You must teach us and yourself to depend on you, so that twenty or thirty years from now others will find strength in you as you fulfill your karmic destiny as a spiritual leader in this life.
“'Therefore, read carefully these words. Weigh your life and consider well where you wish to devote your energies. The goal, of course, is Self Realization. That will come naturally. A foundation is needed first, a foundation nurtured through slow and arduous study, through sādhana performed and the demands placed by the guru upon the aspirant.
“This is a wonderful crossroad in your life. Do not hurry into it. Do this assignment and should you wish a more disciplined and intense training, do sādhana. Settle your affairs of the world. “Then we can sit together.'”
(Then we get the talk. This is just the first paragraph of the talk; we're going to do the rest next time.)
"ON THE BRINK OF THE ABSOLUTE: The higher states of consciousness very few people are familiar with, having never experienced them. They are very pleasant to learn of, and yet out of our grasp until we have that direct experience of a higher state of expanded consciousness. The mind, in its density, (I like that, "density." The mind, in its density, keeps us from the knowledge of the Self. And then we attain a little knowledge of the existence of the Self as a result of the mind freeing itself from desires and cravings, hates and fears and the various and varied things of the mind. I say 'things' because if you could see hate, you would see it as a thing that lives with one as a companion. If you could see fear, you’d see it as a thing, and as understanding comes, that thing called fear walks away down the road, never to return."
Thank you very much. Have a wonderful day.
[End of transcript.]