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#2974 From: SantMatMysticism <santmat_mystic@...>
Date: Sun May 1, 2011 8:57 pm
Subject: The Wandering Mind and the Path of Return 		santmat_mystic
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The Wandering Mind
and the Path of Return - Light and Sound on the Path



Be empty of worrying.
Think of who created thought!
Why do you stay in prison
When the door is so wide open?
-- Rumi

"'The ocean of birth and death' is people's thoughts. Random thoughts come from nowhere in an instant, occurring and passing away, impossible to stop altogether. The recurring of a thought is 'birth,' the passing away of a thought is 'death.' In the space of a single day, we are born and die thousands of times, so transmigration is right in front of us -- no need to wait until we die to experience it." (Chen Yingning, commentary on a Taoist text)

"The individual soul (jiva), bound by illusion (maya), remains in the cycle of death and birth. This is the cause of one's suffering. In order to escape from this cycle of death and rebirth we must experience realization of the Supreme Being." (Maharshi Mehi)

"The mind is your servant, like fire it is a good servant but a bad master, you see. I won't let you go unless you progress." (Kirpal Singh)

Also See, Prisoners of Our Own Habitual Thinking":http://on.fb.me/iUPbCH


In the Book of Amar Mul, Dharam Das
asks how it is that Jivas [souls] fail to realize their
unity with God. Sat Guru Kabir replies:

"All the Jivas came from Satya-Loka [True, Eternal Realm]
undefiled and devoid of Karma.
The clouds lift up the water from the ocean
and rain down pure water,
but in contact with the earth the water becomes impure.
Then is the Jiva embraced by Maya [illusion];
the body at birth is defiled by Karma.
As the air purifies the impure water,
so does Gyan [Gnosis, Spiritual Acquaintance]
remove Karma and the purity of the Jiva is restored.
Knowing itself, it separates itself from the water
and being disembodied
reaches the Durbar [The Abode, Satya Loka].
The Atma [soul] mingles with Paramatma [God],
as the rivers flow into the ocean.
Only in this way
can Paramatma be found.
The Atma [soul] without Shabda* is blind
and cannot find the path.
He who sees Atma-Raam [God, Supreme Soul] is present everywhere;
all he sees is like himself,
there is nought else beside God.
'I am he, I am he; the true, Kabir.'"

* Shabda: The Positive Power, Current of Divine Light and Sound,

Tagged: know thyself, kabir, amar mul, soul, supreme soul, God, realization, sant mat, sat lok, karma, maya,


"Love is like a deep sea. Only that lover (of God) who will dive into it fearlessly shall be able to get the pearl of ultimate happiness in it. And one who will not be able to muster up enough courage to dive into it, shall remain sitting at the beach. He will remain without love in this world. How will he get the pearls of ultimate happiness then?" (from the Sakhis of Guru Kabir)


Transcending Mind in Meditation Through the Divine Sound Current

Kabir taught, "Subjugate the mind by finding the inner Sound; this precisely is the sahaj (natural) yoga. The True or Unstruck Sound (Word) is our very essence; this body of ours is otherwise unreal or impermanent."

Sant Charandas Ji further says, "By meditating on the Word, the practitioner becomes the same as God or Brahman. By practising this meditation, all obstacles are removed."

In the Nadabindu Upanishad it is written about the Nada Dhyan [Cosmic Sound Meditation] that, "Sidelining all worries and all effort, one should mainly focus on the exploration of Nada. By experiencing this, the mind gets dissolved into the Nada. The mind thus, absorbed in the Nada, does not crave anymore for the sensory objects."

Nada itself is Brahma [God]. We should absorb our mind in this very Nada. Adi Shankaracharya has stated in the Yogataravali:

"Lord Shiva, the propounder of the Yoga Shastra, has listed 25,000 ways of dissolution of mind. Amongst these, Nadanusandhana (the practice of meditating on the inner Sound) is the best as well as the easiest way.

"I bow to Thee O Nada!
You elevate me on to the highest throne.
It is only with your grace
that my prana-vayu (vital life-air)
and my mind
get dissolved
in the highest echelon
of the Supreme Lord.

"Therefore, renouncing all sorts of worries, with an alert and focused mind.... those who yearn for union with the Highest should meditate on the Divine Sound within".

(Yoga of Inner Light and Sound, by Swami Achyutanand Baba,
published by Santmat Satsang Samiti, Chandrapur, India)


When the Mind Wanders During Meditation - Pratyahara - The Art of Refocusing

Swami Achyutanand: The mind is, by its very nature, fickle and prone to frequently straying from manas japa [simran, zikhr, mantra of sacred name or names] and manas dhyan. When this happens during meditation, it should be immediately brought back to focus on its due target. Thus, perseveringly practicing pratyahara (the process of applying the mind back, again and again, every time it drifts away, to the selected target), the mind slowly gains in strength and is able to concentrate on its goal. With the mind getting focused thus, the inner Current: the Current of Light, is subsequently easy to grasp, facilitating the journey ahead [the inward journey]. This is why, Gurudev (Maharshi Mehi Paramhans Ji Maharaj) has stated:

"The mind (while attempting to focus on a fixed target during meditation) often goes astray with numerous thoughts. In all such cases when the mind wanders away from the target (as soon as its flight to objects or subjects other than the target is apparent), immediately bring it back, again and again, and refocus on your target.

"Thus practicing 'pratyahara' (the technique of repeatedly bringing the mind back to focus on its target or goal every time it strays), acquire the state of 'dharana' (the state of mind consisting of being focused on the target for a short duration) [an increment of time spent in quality meditation]."

Move ahead and ascend within yourself, counsels Maharshi Mehi Paramhans, "Holding onto the Current in the Inner Sky, then move further ahead."

We will have to merge into the Current of Light that is there within our own body. Those practitioners who assiduously practice meditation will behold wonderful spectacles within.

(Yoga of Inner Light and Sound, by Swami Achyutanand Baba, Translated Into English by Pravesh K. Singh)

"Through regular and rigorous practice of the Yoga of Light (Drishti Meditation) ... the shaking of the attention would automatically subside as the attention (surat) slowly matures (becomes absolutely fixed or stilled). The Tenth Door (Til Dwara or Third Eye) will break open under the piercing thrust of the focused gaze ... So keep on gazing at it constantly with all your attention, says Maharshi Mehi Paramhans Ji Maharaj." (quoted in, Yoga of Inner Light and Sound, by Swami Achyutanand, translated into English by Pravesh K. Singh)

"Knowledge of the Sar Shabd (True Sound, Essence of Reality) has such power that it can quickly destroy the karmas of the present life. This is indeed very desirable fruit of such knowledge that needs to be thoughtfully considered and understood. Knowledge of the Essence of Reality dawns within and gives enlightenment." (Brahm Nirupan of Kabir)

"Contemplating on the Sat Shabd [True Sound], even for half of a moment, confers much more spiritual merit than living in the holy city of Kashi for millions of years." (Brahm Nirupan of Kabir)

"Listen to the Sound Current every day when you are free, and do Simran even while walking. Then all your worldly work will by done by the Master Himself. Do not worry in any way. The Lord Himself has given you this Way to meet Him, so you should consider this your great good fortune and you should always hold onto the Sound Current. One day it will surely take you to Sach Khand." (Baba Jaimal Singh)

"The morning time is the best for you to practice Bhajan [listening to the Sound Current]." (Huzur Maharaj)

Sar Bachan Radhasoami Poetry, Volume One, by Swami Ji Maharaj, is online, both as a webpage and PDF file: HTML:http://bit.ly/l8SXC4


Sar Bachan Poetry, Volume Two is available as a PDF file:http://bit.ly/j256yW





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#2975 From: SantMatMysticism <santmat_mystic@...>
Date: Sat May 7, 2011 10:02 pm
Subject: Going Beyond the Universe via the Soundless Sound 		santmat_mystic
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Going Beyond the Universe via the Soundless Sound






"The breeze at dawn has secrets to tell you; Don't go back to sleep. You must ask for what you really want; don't go back to sleep. People are going back and forth across the doorsill where the two worlds touch. The door is round and open. Don't go back to sleep." (Rumi)


"Listen, open a window to God and begin to delight yourself by gazing upon Him through the opening. The business of love is to make the window of the heart, for the breast is illumined by the beauty of the Beloved. Gaze incessantly on the face of your Beloved! Listen, this is in your power my friend!" (Rumi)


"Within thine own self, behold the splendor of thy Beloved." (Param Sant Tulsi Sahib of Hathras, India)


"In that state there is celestial humming of bees, and it is sweet melody to the ears. There the bees fly without wings, and resplendent pictures are painted without hands, and lightning flashes dazzle the eyes even when there are no clouds." (Book of Brahm Nirupan)


"First of all I salute the Satguru, Who showed me the Inconceivable God." (from the Manglacharan of the Anurag Sagar, Published by Sant Bani Books)

Meditation Upon the Soundless Sound - Surat Shabd Yoga --
On the Anahat or Unstruck Melody

Maharshi Mehi Paramhans, quoted in, Yoga of Inner Light and Sound, by Swami Achutanand, a NEW BOOK Translated into English by Pravesh K. Singh:

"The perceiver of this Primal Word gains access into Sach Khand (the Realm of Pure Consciousness or Primeval Sound) and does not have to come again into this mortal world [does not have to reincarnate]. When single-pointedness has been attained by diligent practice of Drishti yoga [Inner Sight, Inner Light Meditation] learnt from an Accomplished Guru, a large variety of Sounds are heard within.

"However, this calls for intent, concentrated listening during meditation practice, keeping eyes, ears, and mouth all quiet. One Sound that is heard leads to another Sound, which, in turn, takes one ahead to yet another Sound.

"Thus, getting hold of several Sounds, one after another, one finally gets hold of the most captivating Quintessential Primordial Sound.

"And, as even this Unstruck Melody is transcended, the Highest State, the Nameless [Anami], the Soundless State [Anadi, Pure or True State of God] is attained."


Going Beyond the Universe
By Shahi Swami

"God is perceivable only through the soul. But our individual soul has become surrounded or covered by several sheaths or subtle bodies [astral, causal, etc…]. So long as it remains in the captivity of these various subtle bodies and the physical body, it will be under the knowledge of these bodies and organs only, will be under illusory knowledge only, and will not be able to realize God. In order to know Him, the Jiva-atma or the individual soul shall have to liberate itself from these bondage's. The one who is able to liberate himself from the body and subtle bodies, is able to lift himself beyond the universe, also." (Param Poojya Shahi Swami Ji Maharaj)
Commentary

Here, Shahi Swami speaks of the practice of Inner Light and Sound Meditation (Surat Shabd Yoga), and how it is possible during meditation to transcend the physical body (rise above body-consciousness), transcend the astral subtle body, transcend the causal or akashic subtle body, ascend beyond the mental subtle body, and shed the etheric subtle body. All that remains is one's true naked identity: atman, self or soul. After stripping off the garments of the outer worlds, the soul exclaims, "I Am That! I Am That!" In this sense, the soul has ascended beyond all the universes of space-time and experiences something of knowing itself in the Timeless State (Akal) or True Eternal Realm (Sat Lok). - James

"Sants reveal this truth. Only a gurumukh (faithful disciple) will believe and understand it." "This Mat (Teaching) of Sants is deep and hidden." None knows it except Sants. Radhasoami has revealed this Faith. Some seekers after truth will accept it." (Soami Ji Maharaj)

"Only the connoisseur, who will test the Shabda and listen to the Teachings with full attention, and within whom these Teachings will dwell, only he will understand this. He within whom the Sun of Knowledge will manifest and remove the darkness of attachment -- only he will understand this. I am telling you this Anurag Sagar (Ocean of Love) -- only rare saints will understand." (Anurag Sagar, Published By Sant Bani Books)

The Story of Ants in a Burning Log - How Dharamdas Met His Spiritual Master (Guru Kabir)

Dharma-das [Dharamdas] was extremely devout and practiced all the rules of charity toward the poor and guests. One day Dharma-das arrived at Mathura on a tour of sacred bathing places. After bathing in the Yamuna, he set about preparing his food. When he looked in the fire, he saw that an army of ants was desperately trying to escape from a burning log. He was filled with compassion and vowed not to eat the food. He put it on a plate and went out to find a suitable donee. Just then Kabir arrived in Mathura. Dharma-das offered the food to Kabir. Kabir told him: "Listen, merchant Dharma-das! When you were making this food, millions of ants were killed. Do you want to burden me with all this sin?" As Kabir spoke, all the rice grains on the plate turned into ants and began to crawl back to the ground.

Dharma-das then asked Kabir who he was. Kabir said: "In this Kali Yuga my name is Kabir..... I gave you a boon in a previous life. For this reason I have come here to enlighten you."

(Kabir Legends and Ananta-Das's Kabir Parachai, a translation of the Kabir Parachai, David Lorenzen, SUNY Press, New York)




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#2976 From: SantMatMysticism <santmat_mystic@...>
Date: Wed May 11, 2011 11:40 pm
Subject: Expanded Book List: 23 Books Online: Recommended Reading 		santmat_mystic
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Expanded Book List: 23 Books Online: Recommended Reading: Tulsi Sahib, Sant Mat, Agra Radhasoami, Kabir, Anurag Sagar, Guru Nanak, Sawan Singh, Classic Sants of India - Books on the Path of the Masters: Bhakti and Surat Shabd Yoga: Inner Light and Sound Meditation


1) Harmony of All Religions, by Swami Sant Sevi Ji Maharaj, explores inner Light and Sound Mysticism in the world religions: Hinduism, Jainism, Buddhism, Sikh, Islam, the Judeo-Christian tradition, and there is a chapter dedicated to Sant Mat.

Sant Mat Chapter online:

The Sikh Chapter:

Introduction and Hinduism Chapter:

The Jainism Chapter:

Buddhism Chapter:

Islam Chapter:


2) Philosophy of Liberation (Philosophy of Salvation), by Maharshi Mehi Paramhans - An Essential Manual of Sant Mat Mysticism:

There is a more recent and scholarly translation I highly recommend, which is only available as a hard cover book, via this site: 

Online excerpts from this translation here: 


[Note: Shortly I hope to make available online complete PDF file editions of, Harmony of All Religions (Swami Sant Sevi Ji), Philosophy Of Liberation (Maharshi Mehi), also, the newly translated book, Yoga of Inner Light and Sound (Swami Achyutanand).]


3) Param Sant Tulsi Sahib of Hathras, India - Anthology:


4) Sar Bachan Radhasoami Poetry, by Soami Ji Maharaj of Agra, Volume 1:


5) Sar Bachan Radhasoami Poetry, by Soami Ji Maharaj of Agra, Volume 2:


6) Prem Patra Radhaswami, by Huzur Maharaj, Volume 1:


7) Glossary of Sant Mat Radhasoami:


8) The Way Out Is IN, by Swami Ram Behari Lal: 


9) Someone by the name of Jaswani has an online library of books at Scribd: Spiritual Gems and Spiritual Discourses on Sant Mat, both by Sawan Singh, The Sar Bachan Prose, by Swami Ji Maharaj, Spiritual Letters of Baba Jaimal Singh, With A Great Master In India, by Julian P. Johnson:


10) Path of the Masters, by Julian P. Johnson. The PDF File version is quite good. I see they have added some other e-book options also:


11) Unquenchable Flame, by Julian P. Johnson:


12) The Making of a Spiritual Movement -- The Untold Story of Paul Twitchel and Eckankar, By David C. Lane: http://webspace.webring.com/people/de/eckcult


13) Online Library of Sant Mat Classics Published in Agra: Anthology of Sant Tulsi Sahib, Sar Bachan Poetry and Prose, Prem Patra Volumes, Prem Bani, Guru Updesh, Prem Updesh ..... many, many more:


14) Light On Ananda Yoga, by Shiv Brat Lal (Data Dayal):


15) Kirpal Singh Library:


16) Anurag Sagar (Ocean of Love), by Sant Dharam Das:


17) The Bijak of Guru Kabir: Excerpts from the three primary sections of the Bijak: the Shabdas, Ramainis, and Sakhis: http://www.Kabir.ca


18) Songs of Kabir: For the bhakti, devotional, poetic heart of Sant Mat -- the Way back to the Beloved Lord of Love: 


19) Adi Granth (Shri Guru Granth Sahib, Gurbani):


20) Guru Nanak's Book of Sidh Ghost (Conversations With the Yogis): 


21) Sants, Sadhs, Sufis, Mahatmas and Devotees of the Past:


22) History of Sant Mat and Spirituality: The Radhasoami Faith, A Historical Study, By Professor Agam Prasad Mathur:


23) History of Sant Mat, Surat Shabd Yoga, Radhasoami: The Sants - Studies in a Devotional Tradition of India - Google Books:


Much More: At the Sant Mat Fellowship Links Page scroll down to "BOOKS ONLINE" for many more titles:



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#2977 From: SantMatMysticism <santmat_mystic@...>
Date: Thu May 19, 2011 2:48 pm
Subject: Spiritual Fitness (SF) -- Making A Better World 		santmat_mystic
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"We elicit a new dimension to the term 'survival of the fittest', a term popularly used in evolution theory, and explicate its relevance for the meaningful survival of the human race in the light of achieving higher levels of consciousness. We also introduce a term -- spiritual fitness (SF) -- which signifies the higher/purer form of fitness which one should acquire to attain the ultimate enjoyment, i.e. God realization. The characteristics of SF are in contrast with 'fitness' as defined in Neo-Darwinism/Social Darwinism -- one gains it by competing with one's own mind (mann) rather than competing with others. Intuitively higher degrees of SF correspond with higher levels of consciousness. In Hindu philosophy, Turiya and Turiyatita refer to higher levels of consciousness. The Religion of Sants or Radhasoami Faith gave out the ways to achieve the highest/purest level of consciousness -- a true love and obedience towards a Living Sant Satguru (Supreme Father). The beauty of SF lies in its positive impact on the human race. Individuals with higher SF not only make a consequential endurance in this world and beyond, but also benefit others -- working towards achieving the 'Fatherhood of God and Brotherhood of Man' -- together forming a superior human race -- a race which will conclusively make a better world." 

(Spiritual Consciousness Studies, Spircon 2010: "Survival of the Fittest: Achieving Higher Levels of Consciousness", by Anju Shrivastava, and, Sanjay Srivastava, Agra, India) 

[The image above depicts a possible earth-like planet about 20 light-years away given the name "Gliese 581g"]



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#2978 From: SantMatMysticism <santmat_mystic@...>
Date: Fri May 20, 2011 7:13 pm
Subject: False Prophets Making Profits - It's the End of the World Again! 		santmat_mystic
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False Prophets Making Profits - It's the End of the World Again! 

Magical Calendars vs. the Reality of Being in the Present Moment, by James Bean
 

The mystics of each generation have successfully found their Kingdom of God and "second coming". They have experienced the rapture and bliss of spiritual exploration. They found this Reality, not by looking at dates on calendars, but by looking within.

 
 
Trending: "May 21 doomsday, rapture 2011, Harold Camping, judgement day may 21, Mayan calendar, Harold Camping May 21"
 
It's the end of the world again. I hate it when that happens!
 
I have this old book on "end times" prophecy written back in the 1920's, which is quite revealing and informative about the psychology of prophecy. Some things never change, and that includes the end of the world.
 
That book shows a black and white photo of a locomotive steam engine with a caption underneath containing a quote from the Hebrew Book of Daniel: "Many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall increase." Other illustrations include a sketch of a guy on a horse looking up at the sky, watching a meteor shower, with the caption: The Falling Stars, November 13th, 1833. "The stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig tree casteth her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind." (Book of Revelation 6: 13) Another image titled, "The Battle of Armageddon", depicts soldiers on horses fighting each other with swords as World War One era biplanes dogfight overhead.
 
In 1999 many were writing about a quatrain of Nostradamus predicting big stuff happening in the sky, one of the few actual dates mentioned by Nostradamus in fact. Things indeed looked pretty ominous, and yet ..... nothing. So, what did the Y2K prophecy hucksters do when their prophecy predictions fell flat, when they were proved to be utterly, totally, completely wrong? They pretended that everything was fine and simply set their sights upon a new date: 2012, and commenced writing books about that. Fascinating, isn't it? Others expressed disappointment when the world did not come to an end. Oh well. We get to live and complain yet another day. Yay!
 
Am a great fan of the Gospel of Thomas, a collection of the sayings of Yeshua (Jesus) discovered in Egypt several decades ago. Two partial Greek editions of this book exist, and a more complete copy written in the Coptic language was unearthed in 1945 along with forty nine other codices associated with the Nag Hammadi Library discovery.
 
In the Gospel of Thomas, disciples are always asking Yeshua when "the end of the world" will take place, when will the "Kingdom come"? And the reply is always something like: "You don't get it. What you're looking for is already here -- you just don't know how to see it." 
 
Saying 52. His disciples said to him, "Twenty-four prophets have spoken in Israel, and they all spoke of you."
 
He said to them,"You have disregarded the Living One who is in your presence, and have spoken of the dead."
 
Saying 91. They said to him, "Tell us who you are so that we may believe in you." 
 
He said to them, "You examine the face of heaven and earth, but you have not come to know the one who is in your presence, and you do not know how to examine the present moment." 
 
Saying 113. His disciples said to him, "When will the kingdom come?" "It will not come by watching for it. It will not be said, 'Look, here!' or 'Look, there!' Rather, the Father's Kingdom is spread out upon the earth, and people don't see it."  
 
Saying 5. Jesus said, "Know what is in front of your face, and what is hidden from you will be disclosed to you.  For there is nothing hidden that will not be revealed." 
 
The quotes above remind me of a saying of the Sufi poet Rumi: "Some persons, relying on the promise of 'tomorrow', have wandered for years around that door, but 'tomorrow' never comes. My friend, the Sufi is the child of the present moment: to say 'tomorrow' is not our way."
 
Most of the world religions have a cosmology of several heavens or planes, including Buddhism, Hinduism, Sikhs, Islam -- the Sufis, Kabbalah. The Gnostic religion, in Pagan or Hermetic, Jewish, and Christian forms, had a system of several heavens also. I recall that Shamanism has them being inside the earth. The old medieval view of the Catholic and Protestant West was/is? that the heavens were physically "up" in the sky or beyond the so-called "dome" of the sky. That series of volumes known as, A Course In Miracles, has a wonderful term for projecting outside one's self realms that are actually within and non-physical, or expecting a material Kingdom of Heaven to descend down from the sky and land on the earth like a flying saucer. The Course calls this: "level confusion". 
 
Another example of level confusion is the belief that magic dates on a calender can suspend the laws of physics, change human nature, or cause the physical universe to morph into the astral plane or some other heavenly region.
 
Gospel of Thomas, Saying 3: Yeshua said, "If your leaders say to you, 'Look, the (Father's) Kingdom is in the sky,' then the birds of the sky will get there before you do. If they say to you, 'It is in the sea,' then the fish will arrive there first. Rather, the (Father's) Kingdom is within you and it is outside of you. 
 
"When you know yourselves, then you will discover this, and you will realize that you are children of the living Father. But if you will not know yourselves, then you live in poverty, and you are the poverty." 
 
The book of Thomas presents a present-tense Kingdom of God or spiritual Reality which can be seen, heard or accessed in the living present. Prophecy however is portrayed as one of many illusions, diversions and intoxication's of humanity that needs to be overcome so people might move on to seeking the real Kingdom of God or spiritual dimensions that are already available, like radio waves within and all around us that have the potential of being tuned into and experienced. 
 
There is a similar passage in the Gospel of Mary Magdalene, another Nag Hammadi or Gnostic Gospel: When the Blessed One had said this, He greeted them all, saying, "Peace be with you. Receive my peace to yourselves. Beware that no one lead you astray, saying, 'Lo here!' or 'Lo there!' for the Son of Man [Seed of Humanity] is within you. Follow after Him! Those who seek Him will find Him.
 
Those that copied and contemplated the Nag Hammadi books were monks affiliated with one of several monasteries founded by Saint Pachomius in Egypt. For them seeing the spiritual dimension was through mystical practices, chant, prayer, silent meditation leading to visions and altered states. Not far from where the Nag Hammadi books were found are some caves used by monks during the 4th Century AD. The Nag Hammadi books remind me of Buddhism, Hinduism, and some of the teachings of the medieval mystics of Europe, Hildegarde of Bingen, Meister Eckhart, Jacob Boehme and many others who reinvented some of the same ideas later in history, a mystical approach of seeing the "Unseen" spiritual part of the spectrum. 
 
Through contemplative meditation, the mystics of each generation have successfully found their Kingdom of God and "second coming". They have experienced the rapture and bliss of spiritual exploration. They found this Reality, not by looking at dates on calendars, but by looking within.
 




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#2979 From: SantMatMysticism <santmat_mystic@...>
Date: Sat May 28, 2011 4:45 am
Subject: Dharmas and Karmas 		santmat_mystic
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Dharmas and Karmas


Dharmas (Duties, Dharam) and Karmas (Actions, Karam), 
From Discourse 36 of, Prem Patra Radhasoami, Book One, 
by Huzur Maharaj, Agra, India


1. Dharma refers to those rules of conduct and that mode of behaviour which everyone should follow for the performance of his or her karmas (i.e. actions), and paramarthi (spiritual or religious) activities according to which one should correctly regulate conduct and behaviour. 

2. Karma (action) refers to the activities of the mind and sense organs, be they good or bad, spiritual or worldly.

3. Paramarthi [spiritual] Dharma [duties] and Karma [actions] will now be discussed here.

4. Whoever is a true paramarthi [spiritual devotee] and wishes to work for the attainment of true spirituality should regulate their conduct according to true Dharma and true Karma.

5. True Dharma consists of:

(a) inquiring about the secrets relating to the True Supreme Being who is the Father and Mother of all and about how the Divine Realm may be found, 

(b) performing devotion to God, i.e. one should have love for, and faith in, the True Supreme Being Radhasoami Dayal [the Merciful Lord of the Soul],

(c) upon learning the modes of practices from the Sant Sat Guru for attaining His abode and getting His Darshan [vision], a devotee should practice them daily, and  

(d) experiencing for himself that as a result thereof, his mind and spirit, after gradually detaching from Pinda Desh [the material region] to some extent, are ascending towards the abode of the Supreme Being Merciful Radhasoami.


6. True Karma consists in those activities which help to facilitate the release of mind and spirit from Pinda [the material realm], and their ascent beyond the regions of Pind and Brahmand [universal mind, kal, illusion] towards the abode of Sants. 

7. True Karma consists in:

(a) attending daily the Satsang of the Sant Sat Guru, Sadh Guru or a devoted Abhyasi [meditation practitioner, initiate], reading and reciting the books and discourses of the Sant Sat Guru carefully, attentively and with sincerity,

(b) serving with enthusiasm and love the Sant Sat Guru, Sadh Guru or His devotee with body, mind and wealth to the best of one's ability,

(c) performing Sumiran [remembrance, repetition] of the True Name and the Dhyan [visualization, meditation] of the Form of the True Being in one's heart with love and devotion as taught by the Sant Sat Guru, and 

(d) providing, as far as possible and according to one's ability, food, water and clothing, etc... in the name of the True Supreme Being -- in the name of the True Father and Mother, Merciful Radhasoami, as gifts to the poor and the destitute irrespective of their caste, race, creed or any other consideration, such as self advertisement, name or fame. No service should be expected in return for the good done to the poor.

8. A true paramarthi [spiritual devotee] should regulate the conduct of his Karma and Dharma in this manner. He should behave towards others with kindness and sincerity as far as possible and desirable. He should also regulate his conduct in such a manner that he may not, as far as possible, give any trouble or cause injury to any living being by his mind, speech and physical action, for his own selfish ends or for entertainment, but as far as possible should make others happy and cheerful. And if he cannot do so, he should at least give them no trouble.






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#2980 From: SantMatMysticism <santmat_mystic@...>
Date: Thu Jun 2, 2011 2:32 pm
Subject: Inspiring Verses from Kabir 		santmat_mystic
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Inspiring Verses from Kabir



Achhai purush ek peD hai, niranjan waki Daar.
Tirdeva shakha bhaye, paat bhaya samsaar. 

Kabir gives analogy of a tree when he tries to describe the existence. He says the immortal Being is like a tree of which Niranjan is stem. The three deities are like branches of it and the whole world/universe is like the leaves of the tree.

Sab aye us ek se, Daar paat phal phool. 
Kabira pachha kya raha, gai pakari jab mool.

Everything in the universe has come out of the One -- the branches, the leaves, the fruits and the flowers (from the One -- the root). Kabir says what is left behind when I have grabbed the root of all -- the One?

Chhinahi chaDhe chhin utare, so to prem na hoy.
AghaT prem pinjar base, prem kahawe soy. 

The love which comes in one moment and goes away in next is not a true love. The Love, which is not lessened anytime, remains always filled in the body (and heart) -- is the true Love.   

Dekha-dekhi bhakti ka, kabahu na chaDhasi rang.
Bipati paDe yon chhaDasi, jyo kenchuli bhujang.

The devotion which is taken up under influence of others or as a fashion doesn’t last. Most of the time people go because someone else has praised about a temple, a Guru or a holy place, it is mass mentality. Such devotion is only skin deep, as soon as any trouble comes, such devotee looses faith in the Lord as a snake looses its skin.

Sau jojan saajan base, mano hriday manjhaar.
KapaT sanehi aangane, jaanu samundar paar.

The Beloved lives hundreds of miles away still he is always in the heart. The mean and cunning lovers and relatives live in the same home still know for sure that they are far away as if they live on the other shore of the sea.

Tera saai tujh me hai, jyu puhupan me baas.
Kasturi ka mirag jyu, phiri-phiri DhunDhe ghaas.

Your Lord resides within you just like the fragrance is in the flowers. You keep running here and there madly for the Lord like the deer which has the musk in its navel yet, it knows it not and searches [for musk] among grass for the source of the fragrance.

Ja kaaran jag DhunDhiya, so to ghaT hi maanhi.
Parada diya bharam ka, tate soojhe naahi. 

The one for which you keep searching in the whole world, resides within your own body. He has given this veil of illusion, that is why you see him not. 

Samajhe to ghar me rahe, harasa palak lagaay.
Tera sahib tujh me hai, anat kahu mat jay. 

If you understand it, you will stay in your own home and will not go outside to search him. Being ever joyful, keep your eyes closed and see him. Your Lord is within you; don't go to any other place.

Dehi maanhi videh hai, Saheb surat saroop.
Anant lok me rami raha, jaake rang na roop. 

In the form of body resides the Formless, my Lord. It is in the form of attention. The One is emanating in the infinite worlds who himself has no color or form.

Naam bina bekaam hai, chhappan koTi bivaas.
Ka indraasan baiThibo, ka baikunTh nivaas. 

Without the Name everything is worthless, the fifty six crores of deities are of no worth. What if you get the position of Indra, or you are granted the heavens, these all are fruitless and worthless without Naam. 

LooTi sake to looTi le, Raam naam ki looTi.
Pachhe phir pachhtahuge, praan jahi jab chhooTi. 

This is the bounty of Ram Naam. Everybody can get it without any discrimination. Get it if you like. The moment will come when you will be in death-bed and you will regret that you didn't take it. 

Shunya mare, ajapa mare, anahad hu mari jay.
Raam sanehi na mare, kahe Kabir samujhaay. 

The great void is subject to destruction, the AJAPA ([mantra repeated mentally] Simran without tongue, Name remembrance which goes on automatically) is also subject to destruction. The region of Unstuck Melody is similarly subject to destruction. Kabir says only those who are lovers of Ram [God] shall not die. They have become forever immortal.

Jin paavan bhui bahu phire, ghoome desh-videsh.
Piya Milan jab hoiya, aangan bhayaa videsh. 

You wandered on the whole earth searching your Beloved. You traveled your country and to foreign places in hopes of meeting him. What a strange phenomena it is, the moment you meet your Beloved, your own courtyard seems like foreign place (both in the sense of home and body where the soul resides). 

UlaTi samana aap me, prakaTi joti anant.
Saheb sewak ek sang, khele sada basant. 

You turned back to your own self. What a brilliant and infinite Light it produced! Now the Lord and the servant both live together. Forever they play together in spring-like Spirit. 

Jogi hua, jhalak lagi, miTi gaya ainchataan. 
UlaTi samana aap me, hua brahm samaan. 

You became a Yogi (absorbed, immersed) and the vision appeared. Now all doubts and conflicts are gone (they remain only till you have not witnessed it by yourself).

Kabira shabd sharir me, bin gun baaje taant.
Bahar bhitar rami raha, taate chhuTi bhrant. 

Kabir says -- The Shabad or Sound resides in the body without playing like the strings of musical instruments resonating. The Sound has surrounded me within and without and thus the illusions are gone.

Aadi naam nij saar hai, boojhi leu so hans.
Jin janyo nij naam ko, amar bhayo so hans. 

The Primal Sound is our own essence, understand it. The ones, who have known their own essence, have become immortal.

Aadi naam nij mool hai, aur mantra sab Daar.
Kah Kabir nij naam binu, booDri mua samsaar. 

The Primal or elementary Name (Sound) is our own essence, the root of our Being. Rest all mantras are like branches of it. Kabir says -- without knowing own real essence, own True Name, the world is drawn into illusions and dies.

Jabahi naam hirde dharaya, bhaya paap ka naash. 
Maano chinagi aag ki, pari puraani ghaas. 

The moment the Name entered in the heart, it burnt all the sins into ashes. If you pile the grasses, one small spark of the fire is capable of burning it all -- so does the Naam to our sins. 

Gyaan-deep parakash kari, bhitar bhavan jaraay.
Tanha sumir satnaam ko, sahaj samaadhi lagaay. 

Lit the lamp of the knowledge in the deep recesses of your home (body). Sitting there, remember the Satnam or True Name in deep absorption. 

Jaisa maaya man ramyo, taisa naam ramaay.
Tara manDal bedhi ke, tab amarapur jay. 

As you were earlier absorbed in the illusionary world and its pleasures, so do for the Name now. If you are capable to be absorbed in the Name, you will cross the region of the skies full of stars and will reach to immortal world.

Shabd Shabd bahu antara, saar shabd chit dey.
Ja shabde Sahib mile, soi shabd gahi ley. 

There are different types of the Words or Sounds. Pay attention to the Sar Shabad (Essence of the Sounds). Catch hold of the Sound which will take you to the Lord, don't pay attention or follow other sounds.   



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#2981 From: SantMatMysticism <santmat_mystic@...>
Date: Fri Jun 3, 2011 6:54 pm
Subject: New England Needs More Satsangs and Sanghas -- Spiritual Gatherings 		santmat_mystic
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New England Needs More Satsangs and Sanghas -- Spiritual Gatherings -- Instructions For Holding Satsang (Meetings) --

Exploring the World Religions Column
By James Bean
Copyright June/July 2011 -- All Rights Reserved

There are so few satsang meetings of any kind in New England, whole regions with little happening, where there has never been much for meditation groups connected with any Eastern spiritual path. There is room for new satsang activity, expansion,  and development.

Used in Hinduism and related paths from India, "Satsang" or "Satsangha" is a combination of words from Sanskrit. "Sat" refers to the "Eternal Truth", and Truth is another name for God. "Sang" means "association". Thus, a sat-sang can be defined as a meeting, association or spiritual gathering in the name of exploring and experiencing the Eternal Truth or God. "Sangha" is an equivalent term from Buddhism -- also used in Jainism -- for spiritual "association", "company," or "assembly" with a common vision, goal or purpose.

Satsang is the name given to meetings associated with a certain spiritual master, his or her lineage of gurus, and the spiritual disciple or yoga practiced by the group connected with this master or teacher. In India, there are tens of thousands of satsangs conducted on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis. Satsang is a word used, to some degree, in a similar way to "church" or "temple", but not necessarily in an institutional sense. A genuine satsang is not defined by buildings or temples made of wood, stone, plumbing, and parking lots. Rather, a satsang is a gathering of souls -- that's what gives it the potential of being a real genuine expression of God, Sat or Eternal Truth. That saying of Jesus often quoted from the New Testament would be a fairly good basic description of a satsang: "Where two or three are gathered in my Name, I am in their midst." 

Most spiritual paths with roots in Indian spirituality or mysticism call their spiritual gatherings "satsangs". A satsang usually is conducted in the name of a certain spiritual teacher, and is supposed to be one hundred percent focused upon the teachings and meditation practice of that particular school of spirituality or yoga discipline. In other words, there is an etiquette that comes with traditional satsangs organized in India. There is a reverential, warm and loving atmosphere permeated with peace and tranquility. Someone gives a talk that is always based upon the spiritual teachings of the group. It would not normally be considered proper to share materials from living teachers of some other path or tradition, or for there to be way-off-topic discussions about crop circles, emotional freedom techniques (EFTs), flying saucers (UFOs), politics, and conspiracy theories of one sort or another, or some other subject not directly related to the intended focus of the satsang. The idea behind satsang is to create an oasis of peace, a sacred space where the Truth (as one defines or experiences it) becomes celebrated, and is always to be the sole focus of one's attention. Satsang serves as a space for Truth in one's life, a weekly, monthly, or daily reminder about the important things, a Call to spiritual Remembrance in a world of distractions and forgetfulness.


The format of a satsang can include several elements:

1) silent group meditation practice;

2) chanting or the singing of bhakti/devotional hymns (kirtans, banis, bhajans,);

3) the recitation of certain key prayers as well as passages that define the central principals of the group;

4) a spiritual discourse, or readings from scriptures and the writings of spiritual masters; and,

5) perhaps a community meal. 


The Langar or Shared Meal

According to Wikipedia: "Langar is the practice, common to a number of Asian religions, of a community meal." So also in the history of the West, there has been the tradition of the "Agape feast" or communal meal. For instance, in the Nag Hammadi books found in Egypt, in one of the Gnostic scriptures known as, "The Prayer of Thanksgiving", there is a wonderful example of a shared vegetarian meal as the concluding event of a Hermetic gathering.

For an example of a recited text or "creed", see, "The Seven Principals" -- those are recited at each satsang by some in India:  http://on.fb.me/ekrYJk


The Spiritual Discourses Given At Satsang Gatherings

Spiritual instruction is always the central part of any traditional satsang. This can take several forms. One could share a talk of a spiritual master transmitted via satellite, or via the web, perhaps by Skype (internet chat), or Phone, DVD, CD, MP3, old VHS tape, cassette, or e-book -- whatever your technology might happen to be. Someone is likely to do readings from various books authored by spiritual masters. The standard here is: the words spoken must be coming from the highest level. They are intended to be the spiritual instruction of enlightened masters.....and only that. One must avoid much for opinion, home-grown "wisdom", sharing from the level of ego, in other words, even if this means reading from a book for forty minutes instead of attempting to "be a great orator" -- so be it. The satsang usually does not include an open floor, "open mic" type discussion as part of the format, as that would simply represent a built-in repetition or parroting back of old information (following the dictates of the mind) instead of learning something new. Satsang is about course-correction, change, growth, expansion of horizons, exploration. The goal should always be to communicate the purest teachings from the most advanced and enlightened beings available, unfiltered, in a receptive atmosphere of learning. 

Between an ocean and a river, choose the ocean. Between a river and a tributary, follow the river. "The mediocre teacher tells. The good teacher explains. The superior teacher demonstrates. The great teacher inspires."  (William Arthur Ward)  As Rumi says, "If you seek to know God, sit at the feet of the Saints."  


My Ode to the Sant Sat Guru

In Praise of the Sant-soul of love 

who has reached the Spiritual Realm above,

and merged in God.

Hail to the Competent Living Master, 

the Qualified Teacher, 

rare to find in this world,

so few and far between,

the True One, 

a genuine mentor of souls,
 
righteous and worthy Guide, 

a Fearless Being, 

Light-giver, 

leader of a spiritual community. 

With gratitude to the Competent Living One!

In a Sea of Samsara -- illusion and world of changes,
 
of falsehood and posing, 

there is a bright Light in the darkness. 

A silent Music becomes audible.
 
At the feet of such a Loving, Radiant One,
 
the soul can not help but find inner Light and
 
slip into deep samadhi meditation.
 
In the eyes of a Saint are
 
love, wisdom, light, compassion, grace,
 
a reflection of God in this realm of the material plane.
 
The Master-Power connects the soul with the
 
Supreme Lord of Love.


There are degrees or levels of satsang: 1) Experiencing God within directly in meditation (Associating with God); 2) A satsang gathering presided over by a living teacher (Associating with a Sat Guru); and, 3) Studying the scriptures and spiritual writings of masters of the past and present (Associating with Knowledge). See my Facebook Note titled, The Three Levels of Satsang (Associating with Eternal Truth) excerpted from the book, "Harmony of All Religions", by Swami Sant Sevi Ji Maharaj: http://on.fb.me/iaHvRp

For an example of a traditional "Satsang Template" of materials one can drawn upon for satsang readings, see the Shabdas, Ramainis, and Sakhis, which are chapters of Kabir's spiritual classic known as the Bijak, used for centuries in the satsangs of the Kabir Panth. Those volumes are in book form, and some of them are online at this website:  http://www.Kabir.ca

Also see my blog, which from 2006 to the present, mostly represents excerpts culled from hundreds of rare writings from India in the satsang discourse category: http://SantMatRadhasoami.blogspot.com


Group Meditation Practice

Though meditation is for the most part a solitary practice done alone at home, the weekly or occasional group meditation with other devotees can be very beneficial for one's spiritual growth. There is a wonderful group energy that is an indispensable helping factor on the spiritual journey. When seekers-after-Truth meditate together, one can notice significant improvements, an acceleration in inner progress, more experiences of inner Vision, Lights and inner Sounds. This, in turn, will help deepen one's own regular daily meditation practice at home.

Satsang is intended to always be a positive influence in one's life, a series of opportunities for spirituality to "not only be taught, but caught", as the popular saying goes. There is a great need to belong to a spiritual community, and few can maintain a quality spiritual practice in isolation, without sharing the journey with other kindred souls and spiritual friends on the path.

Satsang should always be a joyous occasion dedicated to celebrating the Eternal Truth, and never become held captive by a "controlling", cultish leadership structure, or governed by an ever-growing heavier and thicker book of burdensome or suffocating "rules and regs." Truth or Bust! 

I will leave you with these benevolent and noble thoughts by Huzur Baba Sawan Singh, who taught that satsang is a simple process that should always remain drama and politics-free, and is intended to abide by the motto, "The less organization, the better". Huzur Baba Sawan Singh:

"'Satsang' has more than one meaning: First, it means the meeting of the Master and a disciple. Second, it means the meeting of all Satsangis who may attend, whether the Guru is present in body or not. There is no formality about it, none at all. It is a simple meeting of all disciples who can attend. We avoid formality and anything that may have the appearance of a rigid organization. The less organization, the better. And there must be no idea of leadership. The only leader in Sant Mat is the Guru. Just the Master and His disciples meeting together is the only organization we have." 

For more on creating a local satsang meeting, see, "Instructions for Holding Satsang", by Kirpal Singh, posted at the Kirpal Singh Satsang Yahoo Group: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Kirpal-Singh-Satsang/message/96




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#2982 From: SantMatMysticism <santmat_mystic@...>
Date: Sun Jun 5, 2011 9:24 pm
Subject: Live From the Center of Your Being -- Light and Sound on the Path 		santmat_mystic
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Live From the Center of Your Being  -- Light and Sound on the Path


Radio Satsang: Click the Link to Hear/Downoad the latest edition of Spiritual Awakening Radio: Program Themes: Seven Things I Believe (and Experience), Who You Are, Experiencing, Seeing, Hearing, Knowing For One's Self, Cosmic Music That Will Take You Home, The Path of the Masters: http://download.liveindexer.com/podcasts/HealthyLifeOD/Audio//ECI_AUTO/May2011/SPA053111_wma.mp3


0 Soul! You Have Had Enough Sleep -- Mystic Poetry Reading Accompanied by an Indian Classical Raga on Bansuri/Bamboo Flute. At the page, click the play button:


Youtube video from The Observer Channel: "The content is a visual representation of my journey (so far) to understand Truth which can be known from the inner vistas of consciousness. The dialogue is about a conversation between myself and ‘Truth’ itself and how it can known 'absolutely'". Music is by Jimi Hendrix - Moon, Turns the Tides Gently: http://www.Youtube.com/watch?v=Xrzw1u2eZMg




"Be regular and lovingly devoted to your holy meditations, as that is the central pivot around which the whole sacred teaching revolves and therein an all around development of the soul is granted." (Spiritual Elixir, 140) Great Meditation Instructions For Initiates, by Kirpal Singh, PDF File:


"Practice truth, contentment and kindness; this is the most excellent way of life." -- Guru Arjun Dev


"The purpose of living beings is to assist each other." (Jain Scripture: Tattvarth-Sutra, Chapter 5, Sutra 21)


"Regarding laxity in the prescribed diet, I wish to say to all aspirants on the Path that it is necessary, so long as one is in the physical body, that vegetarianism should be strictly adhered to. Any relaxation in the matter of diet would not only be a definite hindrance in meditation but would unnecessarily contract karmic reaction. The real Goal is to use every means possible to rise into full God-consciousness." -- The Spiritual and Karmic Aspects of the Vegetarian Diet, From letters of Kirpal Singh and Sawan Singh: http://www.ruhanisatsangusa.org/pdf/VegetarianDiet-2010.pdf


I believe, based on the current practices of the dairy industry in India and around the world, that classic Sants such as Guru Kabir, Guru Nanak, Tukarama, Ravidas, Tulsi Das, Namdev, Dariya Sahib, etc.... if they were here today, would not only be advocating a vegetarian diet but a vegan diet. These days, many are making this transition, including in Sant Mat. This is the direction that the vegetarian movement is headed in. (from a recent edition of Spiritual Awakening Radio) 


"Until we extend our circle of compassion to include every living creature, we cannot enjoy world peace". (Albert Schweitzer)


"To act without understanding is to lose the treasure of this human life." (Guru Amar Das)


It is no longer good enough to cry peace,
 We must act peace, live peace and live in peace. 
(Shenandoah) Native American Proverb


Cosmic Music According to Quantum Physics (The Empirical Path, Science)

"So, physics are nothing but the laws of harmonies on a string. Chemistry is nothing but the melodies you can play on vibrating strings. And the mind of God, the mind of God that Einstein worked on for the last 30 years of his life, the mind of God would be cosmic music. Cosmic music resonating through 11 dimensional hyperspace." (Michio Kaku)


Cosmic Music According to the Path of the Masters (The Intuitive Path, Spirituality)

"There is not a cubic millimeter of space in existence which is not filled with this Music. Sweeter and sweeter its heavenly strains vibrate through every living being, great or small, from world to world, and from universe to universe. Its life-giving melodies may not be consciously heard by those who are not trained to catch them, but there is not one living being in all creation which does not derive its life from this Current." (Julian P. Johnson)


Rumi: "O lovers, lovers it is time to set out from the world. I hear a drum in my soul's ear coming from the depths of the stars."


Rumi: "Bring the sky beneath your feet and listen to Celestial Music everywhere."


Rumi: "So long as a spirit does not rise above the body-consciousness, it remains a stranger to the spiritual realms beyond".


Kabir: "The Shabad or Sound resides in the body without playing like the strings of musical instruments resonating. The Sound has surrounded me within and without and thus the illusions are gone. The Primal Sound (Adi Naam) is our own essence, understand it. The ones, who have known their own essence, have become immortal. There are different types of the Words or Sounds. Pay attention to the Sar Shabad (Essence of the Sounds). Catch hold of the Sound which will take you to the Lord, don't pay attention or follow other sounds."


"In that state there is celestial humming of bees, and it is sweet melody to the ears. There the bees fly without wings, and resplendent pictures are painted without hands, and lightning flashes dazzle the eyes even when there are no clouds." (Book of Brahm Nirupan)


"The Sound you hear, i.e., chirping, rumbling, etc. are lower sounds. We should not stick to these Sounds, but we should listen closely whether any higher Sound is coming, and while listening closely, repetition of the five names should not be done. (Letters to Vermont initiates) You will have more Sounds than one, but you have to stick to that of a big bell, a conch, a shell, thunder, drum-beat, a violin and the flute, which are the higher types of Sounds and leave all the rest. (Spiritual Elixir, 128) As regards the Sound of Bina, it somewhat resembles the sound of the instrument which the snake-charmers use to play to catch the snakes. Its tune resembles that of a flute – the difference is that the sound of the flute is shrill compared with that of the Bina – just as the sound of a violin is shrill when compared with that of the flute – and the Sound grows more in volume and thicker and continuous as the soul traverses higher. It is a continuous Sound resembling that of a bagpipe." (Letters to Vermont initiates) -- Kirpal Singh (Meditation Instructions PDF File linked above)


"Practice the Abhyas of Surat Shabd Yoga [practice Inner Sound Meditation]. Apply your body and mind to Sumiran (recitation of the Holy Name). Go on beholding the countenance of Guru. Listen to the Sound of Anhad Shabd every day." (Swami Ji Maharaj, Sar Bachan Poetry)


"Pure consciousness and the Primal Sound emanating from its center (God Himself) can be said to be Nirguna (beyond, or without the three attributes or qualities, namely: sat, raj, and tam), and Nirakara (Formless). This Primordial Sound was definitely produced before both the Conscious as well as the Non-conscious prakritis (creations) were formed. This very Sound is variously referred to as Om, Satyashabda, Sarshabda, Satyanama, Ramanama, Adi Shabda, Adi Nama, etc..." (Maharshi Mehi, quoted in, Yoga of Inner Light and Sound, translated by Pravesh K. Singh)


"It is a natural characteristic of a Sound [inner Sound, Shabd, Nada] to attract the perceiving soul towards its Source or Center. Besides, a Sound is itself imbued with the qualities of its source, and in turn, bestows the perceiving soul with the same qualities it itself is possessed of." (Maharshi Mehi)


"The True Word is a magnet, the magnet that guides the soul to the Realm of Consciousness." (Sant Dariya Sahib of Bihar)


Albert Einstein: "A human being is a part of the whole called by us universe, a part limited in time and space. He experiences himself, his thoughts and feeling as something separated from the rest, a kind of optical delusion of his consciousness. This delusion is a kind of prison for us, restricting us to our personal desires and to affection for a few persons nearest to us. Our task must be to free ourselves from this prison by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty." 


The Secret of Secrets is: We're already in heaven — we just don’t know it! 'Iraqi says: "By day I praised you but never knew it; by night slept with you without realizing; fancying myself to be myself; but no, I was you and never knew it!" (Fakhruddin 'Iraqi, Divine Flashes, Paulist Press)


"The center-most part of your being -- THERE is the Supreme Region. It is the sacred temple of the Spirit -- the place where God delights to abide. It is there He manifests Himself to the one He created. He gives Himself in a way that transcends both senses and all human understanding." (Miguel de Molinos, Spanish Mystic, in, The Spiritual Guide)


"First of all I salute the Satguru, Who showed me the Inconceivable God." (from the Manglacharan of the Anurag Sagar)


"Those who meditate on the Eternal, like the great ones have done, will discover the Eternal Teacher, residing in their own hearts." -- Guru Kabir


Guru Nanak says the True Guru unites us with God, gives us a God-ward Focus: "That preceptor is worthy who unites the aspirant with God."


"That which is Infinite in terms of time and space, which never fades away at any time, even after filling the entire endless universe -- That is the Supreme Soul". (Maharshi Mehi Paramhans)


"(1) Ultimate Reality is beyond any beginning or end, infinite, beyond birth, beyond the senses, all-pervading yet beyond pervasiveness. It must therefore be understood as the Supreme Being. This Essential Element is known as the Lord of All and is the foundation of all things. This Being is beyond both the inanimate and animate aspects of nature. It is without qualities and beyond qualities. Its nature is infinite, imperishable, all-powerful. It is beyond time and space, beyond sound and beyond form. It is the One without a second. The Supreme Being is beyond the scope of mind, the intellect and the senses. This entire universe is powered by the energy of this Being. This Being is not human. It is not manifested in physical form. It has existence beyond the illusion of maya, and there is nothing that exists outside of it. It is the Being which is eternal, existing from the beginning. Santmat considers this Being as the Divine Reality and this [knowing or merging with] Being is the goal of all spirituality. 

"(2) The individual soul is an inseparable part of the Supreme Being." (Maharshi Mehi Paramhans, from the Spiritual Principles of Sant Mat)


Souls Are Emanations of the Supreme Being

"This Supreme Being is the sole master of the whole creation, and the spirit entities [souls or jivas] clothed in body in this universe are emanations from Him, that is, their essence is the same, and they more or less exercise the same powers as the Supreme Being within their respective spheres or bodies, viz., controlling matter or the forces of nature and elements which work harmoniously in subordination to the Spirit Current." (Huzur Maharaj, Radhasoami Mat Prakash)


The Sants of India all say, 
"Repeat God's Name."


Radhasoami Studies -- Techniques For Exploring Inner Regions of Consciousness and Experiencing the Lord of the Soul

Spiritual and Devotional Practices (Abhyas) of the Radhasoami Faith,
By Huzur Maharaj, Prem Patra Radhaswami, Book One

(1*) Simran -- Repetition of the Holy Name (Radhasoami).

(2*) Simran with Dhyan -- Repetition of the Holy Name along with Contemplation of the Holy Form. 

(3*) Bhajan [Listening to the Spiritual Sound or Sounds of higher regions --the third Spiritual Practice]. 

(4*) Reading holy books or listening to their recital in Satsang, intelligently. 

(5) Discussing the principals of the Radhasoami Faith or listening to such discussion. 

(6) To think, ponder and reflect upon matters pertaining to the Radhasoami Faith and its practices. 

(7) To examine the ways of one's mind and senses daily, and to keep them under control, as far as possible.


Considering Merciful Radhasoami as the Supreme, the Almighty, the All-Merciful Being and the Vital Force within all, the devotee should surrender himself so completely to Him that he may leave the result of everything he does to His Will and Pleasure and should conform to it and should, as far as possible, perform the practices of: 

Sumiran (1*), 
Dhyan (2*) and 
Bhajan (3*) 
and engage in the path of the Holy Books (4*) and 
also in Seva (5*) 
and Satsang (6*) 

and having strong faith and reliance in His mercy and grace. In this way, all those Jivas [souls] who adopt the above mode of life, can pass their life fairly satisfactorily. If the devotee leaves the result of whatever he does to the Will [Mauj, Saran] and Pleasure of the Lord, he will have no attachment of any kind and he will remain free from the effect of karmas or actions even while performing karmas or actions. And after performing spiritual practices internally, when one surrenders himself so completely to the Lord, all his old and samchit karmas will, through Grace, gradually cease to have any influence on him and his life and if he performs actions in absolute reliance on the Will of the Lord, kriyamana karmas or actions would also not create any attachments and entanglements for him and the force of the 'prarabdha' karmas would also be weakened considerably. In this way, it is possible for the devotee to pass his life with normal comfort and ultimately to achieve salvation. The devotee can thus see even during his life-time, that all the three kinds of actions have ceased to have any influence on him. And if the devotee makes it the object of his life to reach the Holy Feet of Merciful Radhasoami [the Lord of the Soul] and performs his spiritual practices with the fixed determination that he would not stop short of achieving this object and goes on increasing his love and faith.
_____
*NOTES:

1. Repetition (Simran) of the Holy Name Radhasoami, one of the Spiritual
Practices taught in the Radhasoami Faith.

2. Contemplation (Dhyan) of the Holy Form of the Satguru, another Spiritual
Practice of the Faith.

3. Listening to the Spiritual Sound or Sounds of higher regions (Bhajan), the third Spiritual Practice.

4. The chanting of religious or mystic poems or poems of love and devotion for the Supreme Being is called 'Path' [singing bhajans, hymns of the Sants]. At the time of Path, the devotee keeps his attention fixed internally at the spirit center or at other higher centers and chants in a low tone, while feeling all the time that he is doing so in the presence of the Supreme Being or the Satguru. The Path is a great help in concentrating attention internally and as such, it is usually resorted to by devotees.

5. 'Seva' means service. From very ancient times 'Seva' of the Guru or Sat guru has been considered to be a necessary part of the spiritual discipline through which a devotee has to pass. 'Seva' is not only service of the Guru, but includes obedience to Guru's orders and service of mankind. It is held that it is through 'Seva' that one is able to free himself from worldly entanglements.

6. Satsang ("Sat-sang") is association (sang) with Sat i.e. Sat Purusha (Supreme Being) or the Satguru (Spiritual Teacher, Living Master). Generally, it refers to the congregational divine service conducted with the authority of the Satguru or some Saint.


"Kabir has conceived of God, Raam, as one eminently attracting humanity to a Communion of Love, and of man's putting his earthly life to its best use in responding to this. The resulting Communion of Love finds the devotee as totally absorbed into God as is humanly conceivable." (Chapter Seven of "Kabir's Bhakti" in, The Encyclopedia of Saints of India, Volume Two: KABIR, Criterion Publications, New Delhi)


"I have found a Sea of Love, an inexhaustible flood; I have opened a treasure of spiritual knowledge, it diffuses the radiance of a million suns, arisen in Thy worshipper's souls. Unexpectedly, without an effort, I have heard the Eternal Secret, I have learned to know God." (Sant Tukarama)


"Sants reveal this truth. Only a gurumukh (faithful disciple) will believe and understand it." "This Mat (Teaching) of Sants is deep and hidden." None knows it except Sants. Radhasoami has revealed this Faith. Some seekers after truth will accept it." (Soami Ji Maharaj)


Recognize the Path to your Beloved, O travelers 
and take the route of the anguished lover in separation.
Keep the Master's grace in your thoughts, 
and reflect on his pure teachings. 
Develop love and devotion with endearment, 
and keep the thought of the Creator always before you.
Try to merge yourself into God like water in water. 
Fix your mind within by following the Path of the Sound Current. 
A yearning will arise; make then an intense and anguished call. 
Repeat the Name of your Beloved, 
day and night, 
again and again. 
With care in thought, word and deed, 
you will cross to the other shore. (Sant Dadu Dayal)





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#2983 From: SantMatMysticism <santmat_mystic@...>
Date: Thu Jun 9, 2011 4:54 pm
Subject: Spiritual Awakening Radio PODCAST 6-7-11 		santmat_mystic
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Spiritual Awakening Radio PODCAST 6-7-11

The Silence Speaks Volumes: Tapping Into 
Our Source of Inner Wisdom and Guidance: 
Spiritual Awakening Radio PODCAST -- 

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#2984 From: SantMatMysticism <santmat_mystic@...>
Date: Wed Jun 15, 2011 6:31 am
Subject: Without the Beloved I Am Nothing 		santmat_mystic
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Without the Beloved 
I Am Nothing




"No matter how sweetly one talks, how elaborately one explains, how expertly one gives interpretation of the Vedas [scriptures], if that truth is unknown, salvation is not possible. The Vedas speak of the inner world which can not be perceived by mind, intellect and sense organs." (Adi Shankaracharya)


No amount of telling beads of a rosary, recitation of hymns in ambrosial hours, acts of charity, rites and rituals, etc.... can help us see God. Only the shelter of a perfect spiritual master can make it possible for us to see God. 


God is not a matter of assumption but a subject of actual perception and realization. He can be seen with the Divine Eye.


"If the doors of perception were cleansed, everything would appear to man as it is: Infinite." (William Blake)


"This world is an illusion -- practice meditation." (Baba Devi Sahab)


"The love of Maya is sweet to the world, but in the end, this delusion is dispelled." (Guru Nanak)


"Where there is blind belief,
There the Truth is not verified.
Only he will know the Truth, O Ravidas,
Who has the inner experience." 
-- Sant Ravidas


Not just any mystical light and sound. Sant Mat is a God-based path with a foundation of Prem Bhakti: love and devotion for the Supreme Being. Without God-Bhakti being central, a spiritual practice would be limited to lower regions of Kal. Genuine Sant Mat is about reuniting with God.


"You faltered through a million lives before you found this human form. Do not waste it this time - devote every moment to remembering God." (Swami Ji Maharaj)


"So perform devotional worship, link your consciousness to the Lord, and dispel anxiety from your mind." (Guru Nanak)


All sadness and woe turns to happiness and deep eloquence in the company of the Beloved.


"The miseries of the world
Flee away from the one
Who carries on repetition
of the True Name,
Fixing attention within, O Ravidas."


"My (inner) tongue is constantly preoccupied with repeating God's Name, and my hands are constantly engaged in doing my work. Thus have I become carefree. God will take care of me, says Ravidas."


"He who remembers God's Name,
Having sought the company of a Saint;
His miseries are averted,
Thus does Ravidas proclaim." (Sant Ravidas)


"Meditation will remove all your burdens; meditation upon Ram's [God's] name will become your support." (Kabir)


"So long as love is not obtained, fondness for the Beloved cannot arise. When nectar-like true love takes abode within oneself, only then can one contact the loving Sound." (Sant Dariya Sahib of Bihar)


Param Sant Tulsi Sahab of Hathras, India is the Adi Guru, the grandfather or founding-father of modern-day Sant Mat, the Inner Light and Sound movement. 


Param Sant Tulsi Sahib is the connecting link between the classic Sants of India, including in the Kabir lineage, and contemporary Sant Mat. 


Any serious study of Sant Mat teachings must include the hymns and spiritual discourses of Sant Tulsi Sahib of Hathras. 


The term "Sant Mat" was coined by Sant Tulsi Sahib during the 19th Century. 


Mystic Verses of Tulsi Sahib: Reaching the Beloved Lord of Love

"Very exalted is the status of the Sat Guru and very sublime is his religion. He has revealed the Inaccessible Region. Surat [the attention of the soul] ascends to the gateway of Sat Lok [True Eternal Realm], and witnesses a spectacle which is beyond the reach and comprehension of ascetics. Every day she [the soul] visits the region of Shyam Set, i.e. the Third Til [Third Eye]. She sees the path in the company of her friends (the senses of perception) and, ascending above, gets a close view of the region. She is dazed on seeing the refulgence of the Beloved. Her attention remains riveted on Him, and she is oblivious of her body and mind. All the barriers on the way to the Beloved are removed. She quickly ascends one mansion after another. She rids herself of all her troubles by being baptized at the Ghat [bathing place] of Triveni [confluence of the three sacred rivers]. Says Tulsi, from the time she became acquainted with the Beloved she, enjoying the bliss of mansions after mansions, reaches the Beloved Lord."

-- "Param Sant Tulsi Saheb of Hathras, His Short Biographical Sketch, The Inner Meaning of His Hymns, and, Portions of His Ghat Ramayana found at the End of Prem Patra Radhasoami, Volume Six", S.D. Maheshwari, Agra, India: Online Book -- PDF File: http://bit.ly/hgxOB4




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#2985 From: SantMatMysticism <santmat_mystic@...>
Date: Sun Jun 19, 2011 3:38 pm
Subject: Sant Mat Satsang PODcast -- June 2011 		santmat_mystic
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Sant Mat Satsang PODcast -- June 2011






   Program Length: 30 Minutes:

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/santmatfellowship/2011/06/19/sant-mat-satsang-podcast-june-2011

Readings are from:


* "Spiritual Consciousness Studies -- Spircon 2010", featuring an excerpt from the "Sar Bachan Poetry" of Soami Ji Maharaj, the great Saint of Agra, India, on the States Beyond -- the Inner Regions;


* Edmond Bordeaux Szekely on the Three Holy Streams (Life, Light, and Sound);


* another reading from the "Sar Bachan Poetry" of Swami Ji Maharaj on how Saints attempt to liberate their students from their limited thinking. Normally we human beings are bound by mind and maya, the "tomb" of illusion that keep most jiva-surat-souls from making spiritual progress;


* a reading from "The Biography of Huzur Maharaj" (quoting from the Letters of Huzur);


* instruction about meditation practice from the new book, "Yoga of Inner Light and Sound", by Swami Achyutanand, recently translated into English by Pravesh K. Singh;


* "Phelps Notes" about the God of All Consciousness, the Ocean of Love;


 * pondering about how Sant Mat is as much a path of Bhakti (love and devotion for God) as it is a mystical path of out-of-body exploration via Surat Shabd Yoga (Inner Light and Sound Meditation);


* a Mystic Verse of Sant Dariya Sahib;


* some thoughts about the essential key elements of successful Sant Mat practice;


* also, The Four Essentials of Sant Mat: "True Guru (Sat-Guru), True Name (Sat-Naam), True Association (Sat-sang) and True Love (Sat-Anurag)";


* and, The Principals of Sant Mat.


Email me for info about initiation, and satsang locations worldwide.


Jai Guru,
James
James@...


http://www.Facebook.com/SantMatRadhasoami


http://www.Twitter.com/SantMat









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#2986 From: SantMatMysticism <santmat_mystic@...>
Date: Tue Jun 21, 2011 8:59 am
Subject: A Message of Peace For Humanity by Kabir 		santmat_mystic
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A Message of Peace For Humanity 
by Kabir

 
The image above is of the famous "Pale Blue Dot" photo -- Earth as seen from Voyager 1 while on the edge of our solar system (approximately 3,762,136,324 miles away).

A Message of Peace For Humanity,
by Mahant Purushottam Das 
(published in "Kabir Voice," Surry, BC Canada)


If one were to ask "what is the religion taught by Sri Kabir?" [all genuine Masters], then it may be said, "the religion taught by Satguru Kabir is the religion of the heart, the religion in which the most important quest is to seek God in the heart of humanity".

To seek God in the heart one must walk along the path of love. Sri Kabir was in love with love. His conception of love, which is synonymous with God, is immanental (God is immanent). Love works everywhere but most particularly in the human heart. It is possible for the individual soul to turn away from the sensual things and find the Lord, see Him and know Him. In away, somewhat akin to Vedanta, Sri Kabir identifies the Self with God. Love leads to absorption and "extinction" in God. In order to reach the state of Sahaj Samadhi (easy union with God) it is necessary to tread the path of love. This does not mean love to our close ones only, but to the entire Creation. Without love Sri Kabir says the heart is like a samsan (cremation ground). Love is the essence, it is the moving power of the Universe.

In love we have our being. Love becomes possible only when one is not concerned with one's own state of becoming, that is, when one is egoless. When "I-ness" is subtracted, says Sri Kabir, love manifests itself in its plenitude and one merges with pure being.

When 'I' was, God was not.
Now 'I' am not, God is.

The more loving the heart, the more sensitive it becomes to God, and one learns to recognize the Divine in every person. One becomes careful of every person with whom one comes into contact in one's thought, speech and action. For there is no person devoid of His presence (sab ghat mera saivan).

Complete submission to the will of God, say all Masters, is the condition sine qua non for love to dawn in the true devotee's heart. For true love involves no bargaining, no barter, no give and take. It does not need theories, doctrines, nor abstruse philosophical dissertations to add to those already existing, and which are puzzling the human mind. The practice of love is the only true yoga, the purpose being to escape from one's own illusory "I-ness" and, through illumination, to realize that God is the only Reality.

What the world needs today is the same message of love taught by Sri Kabir six hundred years ago. The absence of love is the only tragedy of life. The message which does not give a new doctrine is as old as the earth, Universal fatherhood of God and brotherhood of man, the fundamental unity of life. It asks for the tolerance on the part of each different faith, because their essence is the same. There is, in reality, no Hindu, no Muslim, no Christian, no black and no white, but there are HUMAN BEINGS, all the children of the same God. The message asks for harmony and consideration for all, irrespective of class, caste, age, sex, or nationality. For all people have only one destiny -- to abide in love and harmony.

At the time when parochialism, fanaticism, separation, tribalism and all negative "isms" ad infinitum are appearing like un-exorcised demons to crush humanity, the simple message of love must be heard, understood, internalized and practiced by all of us. This is the simple religion of Sri Kabir -- the Master of Benares. ////////       

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#2987 From: SantMatMysticism <santmat_mystic@...>
Date: Thu Jun 23, 2011 5:30 pm
Subject: Kirpal Singh's Introduction to, The Celestial Music 		santmat_mystic
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Kirpal Singh's Introduction to, The Celestial Music

"Thou hast created my soul, O God, after Thee, and it is restless until it rests in Thee." ST. AUGUSTINE

ST. AUGUSTINE has, in memorable words, given vent to his feelings of inner restlessness because of his being separated from his Creator. An embodied soul -- a soul invested with body and mind -- cannot be in unison with the Oversoul, unless it divests itself of all material coverings. This, in fact, is the sad plight of all sincere seekers after Truth, maybe anywhere in the wide world. And all of them have given expression to their burning passion for God, each in his or her own way, of course.

A rill of water descending from the snow-capped mountain top frets and fumes as it struggles its way through crags and ravines in its path. As soon as it crosses these hurdles, it swells and gradually grows mellow with time. Then comes the final stage when the mighty river plunges headlong into the ocean, losing all sense of separateness from the parent body of water from which it originally took its flight in the form of water-laden clouds, to descend as snow on distant mountains. 

All movement in the universe is parabolic in nature. Everything tries to reach out to its own source. A part cannot have a sense of fullness as long as it remains a part, separate from the whole. By the law of gravity, like is attracted by like. A candle flame will rise upward even though the candle is turned upside down. And similarly, an arrow shot into space must ultimately descend to the earth.

The human spirit likewise, being of the essence of God, cannot have rest until it rests in God. Perfection is the goal of life: "Be ye therefore perfect, as your Father in heaven is perfect," is the exhortation of Christ. But perfection does not come all of a sudden. It is a progressive process of the living entity in all created things and starts right from the mineral world and gradually works up through the vegetable kingdom, the birds of the air, and animals, until it reaches the top of the ladder in man, the roof and crown of the creation.

Thrice blessed is man for it is given to him to work simultaneously on the three planes of existence: the physical, the subtle or astral, and the mental; and further to transcend into the beyond if he chooses to do so and thus become a conscious co-worker of the divine plan, which is the summum-bonum of life. But by himself he can hardly do anything. Living in a state of perpetual auto-intoxication, he hardly gets a chance to pause and ponder over the vital questions of what life is, from whence it springs, and what its purpose and fulfillment is. When all of us are fast asleep on the plane of the senses, who is going to wake us up from this self-forgetfulness? This stupendous task can be accomplished only by some really awakened person, God's elect, with an authority from on high to lead the world-weary souls out of the wilderness back to one or another of the mansions in the House of the Lord.

The world, in spite of all its imperfections, is never without a Christ or a Messiah, who comes from time to time to give a clarion call to all. But, as St. Matthew tells us, "Many are called, but few are chosen." 

Everyone, no doubt, comes into the world with a divine light to light one's path; but hemmed in the work-a-day life of the senses, we are out of tune with our own Self and have, for ages upon ages, been drifting rudderless on the sea of life, ever an easy prey to all chance winds and waters that blow and flow from all sides. Helplessly we move along in spite of our best intentions, because we have no moorings or hand-holds to steady our barque.

How the divine grace of the Sant Satguru (the perfect Master-soul) works on the earth plane is too abstruse a subject to be dealt with in so many words. In the pages that follow, Mr. Leon Gurney Parrott, an English disciple in Malta of the living Master, has tried to give some account of the science spiritual in the light of his personal inner experiences, leading him to the "threshold of the Promised Land after forty years of wandering in the wilderness," as he affirms. 

It is possible that his interesting account of the unfoldment of his spirit may help many a faltering soul with "the Father's Name written on their foreheads" to work courageously in their quest for the God-Path. Where there is fire, oxygen on its own comes to its aid; when the Chela is ready, the Guru appears.
 
May the kindly Light lead the readers to the Fountain of Light and on to the Father of Lights.




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#2988 From: SantMatMysticism <santmat_mystic@...>
Date: Fri Jun 24, 2011 1:24 pm
Subject: Jap Ji -- Morning Prayer of Guru Nanak 		santmat_mystic
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Jap Ji -- Morning Prayer of Guru Nanak -- Also: The Quarrelsome Village

 
 

"Countless are the countries, earths and spheres.
Millions assign to Him ever new names, O Nanak." (Guru Nanak)
 

* Jap Ji -- Guru Nanak's Morning Prayer -- Sacred Text at YouTube,
Chant, Gurmuki with Line By Line English Translation:
 

* Jap Ji Beautiful Chant in Gurmukhi: 
 

* Online Book: The Jap Ji - The Message of Guru Nanak,
By Kirpal Singh: This book has five major parts:
An extensive introduction which gives the reader a
broad background of spiritual teachings; an English
translation and commentary on the Jap Ji:
 
 
The Creator of all is One (Ik Onkar -- "Ek Ong Kaar")
Truth is His Name (Sat Naam)
He is the Doer of everything (Kartaa Purakh)
He is Fearless, without anger (Nirbhao, Nirvair)
He is Undying, Unborn and Self-illumined (Akaal Moorat, Ajoonee, Saibhang)
This is revealed by the Sat Guru's Grace (Gurprasaad)
Meditate! (Jap!)
 
He was True in the beginning (Aad Sach)
He was True through all the ages (Jugaad Sach)
He is True even now (Haubhee Sach)
O Nanak, He shall ever be True (Naanak Hosee Bhee Sach)
 
-- Guru Nanak, Opening Verses of the Jap Ji
or Morning Prayer found in, "Peace Lagoon," an
anthology of the Sikh scriptures, 
published by G.T. International

 
There are millions of nether regions and skies above skies; 
Man has wandered endlessly in His search: 
The Vedas also say the same. 
The Muslim books speak of eighteen thousand universes, 
  but it is the same Power that sustains them all: 
If it could be accounted for, an account of it would have 
  been recorded. All attempts at description are in vain; 
O Nanak, admit His greatness; 
He alone knows Himself. (Stanza 22)

 
By communion with the Word, one becomes the abode of all virtues; 
By communion with the Word, one becomes a Sheikh, a Pir 
  and a true spiritual king; 
By communion with the Word, the spiritually blind 
  find their way to Realization: 
By communion with the Word, one crosses beyond 
  the Limitless Ocean of illusionary Matter; 
O Nanak, His devotees live in perpetual ecstasy, for the Word 
  washes away all sin and sorrow. (Stanza 11)

 
Who rejoice in the True One and live in perpetual bliss.
Sach Khand or the Realm of Truth is the seat of the Formless One. 
Here He creates all creations, rejoicing in creating. 
Here are many regions, heavenly systems and universes, 
To count which were to count the countless, 
Here, out of the Formless, 
The heavenly plateaux and all else come into form, 
All destined to move according to His Will. 
He who is blessed with this vision, rejoices in its contemplation. 
But, O Nanak, such is its beauty that to try to describe it 
  is to attempt the impossible. (from Stanza 37)
 
-- Guru Nanak, The Jap Ji - The Message of Guru Nanak, Kirpal Singh Translation




Guru Nanak Arrived at a Quarrelsome Village - Stories to Transform Your Life (Reposted)

Once, during the course of his travels, Guru Nanak arrived at a village where the people were a quarrelsome lot. He blessed them and asked them to prosper and live in that village forever. In the next village, where the people were peace-loving, Guru Nanak blessed them too but asked them to abandon the village and disperse. Mardana, his close disciple, puzzled by the guru’s strange blessings, asked him why he blessed the first village with prosperity though its people were unworthy of it, and asked the good people of the second village to disperse. Guru Nanak smiled and answered: "The quarrelsome will only spread unrest and friction wherever they go. So I asked them to remain where they were. But it is better for the peace-loving to disperse and take their good qualities with them so that all those who know them can learn the art of peaceful coexistence."







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#2989 From: SantMatMysticism <santmat_mystic@...>
Date: Fri Jul 1, 2011 2:44 am
Subject: Truth -- Light and Sound on the Path 		santmat_mystic
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Truth -- Light and Sound on the Path -- Sant Mat Satsang






To Hear Several Recent Spiritual Awakening Radio 
and Sant Mat Satsang Podcasts, GO TO:


"Only the connoisseur, who will test the Shabda
And listen to the teachings with full attention
And within whom these teachings will dwell, only he will under-
stand this. He within whom the Sun of Knowledge will manifest and remove the darkness of attachment -- only he will understand this.
I am telling you this Anurag Sagar (Ocean of Love) -- only rare
saints will understand." (Anurag Sagar/Ocean of Love, Sant Dharam Das)


Rumi: I Belong to the Soul of the Beloved

What can be done, O believers, as I don't recognize myself?
I'm neither a Christian nor Jew, Magian nor Moslem.

I'm not of the East or West, neither land nor sea;
I’m not of Nature’s mine, nor the stars in Heaven.

I'm not of earth, water, air or fire;
I’m not of Heaven, nor the dust on this carpet.

I'm not of India, China, Bulgaria nor Saqsin;
I’m not of the kingdom of Iraq, nor Khorasan.

I'm not of this world, nor the next, Paradise nor Hell;
I'm not of Adam, nor Eve, Eden nor Rizwan.

My place is in the Placeless, my trace in the Traceless;
I'm neither body nor soul, as I belong to the soul of the Beloved.

I have dispensed with duality, and seen the two worlds as One;
One I seek, One I know, One I see, One I call.

He is the first, last, the outward and the inward,
I know none other than He, and He Who Is.

("Rumi's Divan of Shems of Tabriz, A New Interpretation", By James Cowan, Element Books)


Rumi: I Belong to the Soul of the Beloved: 


Rumi -- The Cry of the Reed: 
(Farsi with English translation.)




God is not a matter of assumption but a subject of actual perception and realization. He can be seen with the Divine Eye.


"My true disciple is one who has seen the Divine Light within during meditation". (Guru Gobind Singh)


"The path leading to God is within your heart. Enter into the ajna-chakra [Third Eye Center] and you will find your Beloved." (Swami Sant Sevi Ji Maharaj)


The Infinitesimal Point -- Opening To Realms of Inner Light

"This calls for a motionless, still gazing ahead right in front of the center of the two eyes in the inner dark void that is seen upon closing our eyes gently. The art of gazing in the inner dark vastness that the currents of consciousness present in the two eyes, meet at a Point, so the gaze gets fixed in a Point, has to be learnt from an accomplished Guru and practiced regularly with utmost faith and sincerity. It must be noted here that Sants warn strictly against any kind of imagining of the presence of a Point within. Whenever the two currents meet, a bright Point is automatically seen -- it does not have to be imagined or visualized. Whenever this happens, breathing adjusts automatically. Awareness of own body and surroundings is lost even as the meditator is fully alert and conscious internally. Ascension or transcendence is a direct corollary of concentration, collection of attention. As a result, thus, of awareness shrinking completely into an absolute Point, the 'jiva' or 'Surat' (non-liberated individual soul that is combined with the mind, etc...) pierces through or transcends the gross sphere, and ascends into the astral sphere where countless varieties of Sounds called Anahad ('ana' meaning 'no', and 'had' meaning limit or boundary) Nada (Sounds) are heard. Brilliant lights, innumerable worlds, stars, moon, sun, advanced souls, etc...., etc.... are seen by the practitioner, who has become completely oblivious of, or has left behind the gross universe (that his physical body exists in) behind. The soul keeps flying in the inner sky like a bird, sighting all the magnificent scenes. Hence Bindu Dhyan or the Yoga of Light is also known as the 'vihangam marg' (vihangam means 'bird', and marg means 'path'). The perceiver becomes indescribably enthralled, ecstatic by the mesmerising sights. But he has to move on, resisting these temptations, and rise still further to accomplish his ultimate Goal, which is Self-Realization or God-Realization."

-- From the Preamble of, Yoga of Inner Light and Sound, by Swami Achyutanand, translated by Pravesh K. Singh


Swami Achyutanand Baba


"This world is an illusion -- practice meditation." (from the Last Words of Baba Devi Sahab)


"There is nothing more important than meditation. Increase this practice from day to day; never decrease it." (Baba Jaimal Singh)


Sant Mat is not the Path of information but this is the Path of Transformation.


The Four Essentials of Sant Mat, The Path of the Masters: True Guru (Sat-Guru), True Name (Sat-Naam), True Association (Sat-sang) and True Love (Sat-Anurag).


"No matter how sweetly one talks, how elaborately one explains, how expertly one gives interpretation of the Vedas [scriptures], if that truth is unknown, salvation is not possible. The Vedas speak of the inner world which can not be perceived by mind, intellect and sense organs." (Adi Shankaracharya)


No amount of telling beads of a rosary, recitation of hymns in ambrosial hours, acts of charity, rites and rituals, etc.... can help us see God. Only the shelter of a perfect spiritual Master can make it possible for us to see God.


"Saints and sages have unveiled all the Mysteries of the spiritual journey and of self-realization in their discourses. All the techniques have been documented in books. But without an Accomplished Teacher, we will not be able to understand the correct technique of true knowledge just by reading." (Swami Sant Sevi Ji Maharaj, Harmony of All Religions)


"I bow to the primal Guru.
I bow to the Guru of all ages.
I bow to the True Guru.
I bow to the great, invisible Guru."
-- Guru Arjun (Sukhmani Sahib)


Guru Nanak: "The love of Maya is sweet to the world, but in the end, this delusion is dispelled. So perform devotional worship, link your consciousness to the Lord, and dispel anxiety from your mind. Nanak speaks the Truth; focus your consciousness on the Lord, O my stranger soul. Rivers and streams which separate may re-united sometime. 

"That rare person who centers his consciousness on the True Guru, knows intuitively and realizes the Lord. 

"Nanak speaks the Truth; through the True Word of the Shabad, those long separated from the Lord, are united once again." (Shabad of Guru Nanak in Raag Aasaa on Ang 438 of Adi Granth)


"Kabir said, Recognise me and manifest the Guru in the form of the Sound Current behind the eyes [at the Third Eye Center]. Then you will have no doubts left. If you want to be free from anxiety, then catch the Sound Current. When ever you are in trouble, sit down for doing simran. When you reach the state of concentration, then you are surrounded by a protective aura automatically." (Anurag Sagar)


"Meditation will remove all your burdens; meditation upon Ram's [God's] name will become your support." -- Guru Kabir


"To the one who meditates on Him 
there comes perfect peace, 
and all pain and sorrows depart. 
Meditate on Him, 
Who contains this universe, 
Whose Holy Name is the whisper on the lips 
of the entire creation."
-- Guru Arjun (Sukhmani Sahib)


All sadness and woe turns to happiness and deep eloquence in the company of the Beloved.


"The more loving the heart, the more sensitive it becomes to God, and one learns to recognize the Divine in every person. One becomes careful of every person with whom one comes into contact in one's thought, speech and action. For there is no person devoid of His presence (sab ghat mera saivan)." (Mahant Purushottam Das)


"Love is the motivating power of all the high transports of the spirit, and the praises of love have been sung since the beginning of creation." (George Arnsby Jones)


"I shall sing the praise of the marvelous Radhasoami Dham (Abode of Radhasoami) and shall constantly utter the wonderful Name RADHASOAMI." (Huzur Maharaj, Prem Bani Radhaswami, Volume One, Agra, India)


"Through practicing Surat Shabd Yoga* with love and bhakti one is able to attain true salvation**. One does not have to forego one's worldly duties for this practice, which can be performed by anyone, whether young or old, male or female. The key ingredients of this faith are love and devotion." (A. P. Mathur, Petals of Love)


*Surat Shabd Yoga: The Union (Yoga) of the attention faculty of the soul (Surat) with the inner Light and Sound (Shabd) of GOD during meditation practice. See the article, "The Yoga of Sound -- Listening to the Music of the Universe", Part Five: http://members.cox.net/ahimsa/619.html


**Salvation: Jiva Mukti: the liberation, emancipation deliverance of the soul from further transmigration; the re-absorption of the spirit into the Supreme Soul. (Glossary of the Radhasoami Faith, Agra, India)


"You should listen attentively to the reverberating divine Sound. The Celestial Sound is coming to take you back to the Source." (Swami Sant Sevi Ji)




"Abstract Sound is called Saut-i Sarmad; all space is filled with it. The vibrations of this Sound are too fine to be either audible or visible to the material ears or eyes, since it is even difficult for the eyes to see the form and color of he ethereal vibrations on the external plane. It was the Saut-i Sarmad, the Sound of the abstract plane, which Muhammad heard in the cave of Ghar-i Hira when he became lost in his divine ideal. The Quran refers to this Sound in the words, 'Be! and all became.' Moses heard this very Sound on Mount Sinai, when in communion with God; and the same Word was audible to Christ when absorbed in his Heavenly Father in the wilderness. Shiva heard the same Anahad Nada during his Samadhi in the cave of the Himalayas. The flute of Krishna is symbolic of the same Sound. This Sound is the source of all revelation to the Masters, to whom it is revealed from within; it is because of this that they know and teach one and the same Truth." --  Hazrat Inayat Khan, The Mysticism of Sound


The soul has now to concentrate on the sounds that are heard ricocheting within, by practising Nada Dhyan/Surat Shabd Yoga/Nadanusandhana (Yoga of Inner Divine Sound). Countless varieties of sounds including the ocean's roar, thunder of clouds, melodies resembling those of musical instruments like drums, sitar, lute, flute, etc. are heard. These sounds are so captivating and pleasing that the soul forgets everything else. These sounds become more and more melodious as one moves into higher and higher realms. By learning the right tact from a true Guru one can grasp the five central sounds, as described above, one after another and go on rising further and further. All these words or sounds are flowing from higher realms and clasping on to them it is very much possible for the perceiving soul to keep ascending, just as a fish can swim against the stream or current.

Tiny fish especially are skilled enough to swim upstream even against very strong turbulent currents. The ascension of soul in the reverse direction of flow of streams of sounds can thus be compared to the swimming of fish. Hence the yoga of sound has also been referred to as "mana marg" (mana meaning fish and marg meaning path). Thus, climbing further and further, leaving all the five spheres behind one after another, the soul finally transcends even the domain of the quintessential unstruck sound and merges into the 'Anama' (Nameless/Soundless) or 'Kaivalyatata' (beyond Kaivalya) State to be one with the Supreme Godhead, to be God Himself. Thus yoga, union or bhakti (devotion) gets completed.

-- From the Preamble of, Yoga of Inner Light and Sound, by Swami Achyutanand, translated by Pravesh K. Singh


"If you should in this world bring many thousand sorts of musical instruments together, and all should be tuned in the best manner most artificially, and the most skillful masters of music should play on them in concert together, all would be no more than the howlings and barkings of dogs in comparison of the Divine Music, which rises through the Divine Sound and tunes from Eternity to Eternity." 

-- Jacob Boehme




Music without words
means leaving behind the mind.
And leaving behind the mind
is meditation.
Meditation returns you
to the Source.
And the Source
of all
is Sound. 

-- Kabir


"In all the higher regions, Heaven's Music is the spiritual food." (The Way Out Is IN, by Swami Ram Bihari Lal)


"If a person, after getting initiated into the secrets and methods of devotional practices, directs his spirit current towards the Daswan Dwar (tenth gate), he can secure greater energy and bliss of great purity. Instead of dissipating his energy, he would enhance it by elevating the spirit-current." (Huzur Maharaj, Prem Patra, Volume IV, Agra, India)


The Buddha: "If a man is struck by an arrow and is in excruciating pain, will he not remove the arrow and place medications on the wound? Or will that person first search for the cause of the arrow being shot at him? Will he first seek to know the intention of the person who shot the arrow?"

The inquirer answered, that, the person will first remove the arrow and treat the wound. The Buddha then said:

"Dear friend, you have been struck by the arrow of death, the cycle of death and rebirth (Kala), and therefore you should first rid yourself of the suffering, just as the man struck by an arrow first removed the arrow. Then you may consider questions about who created this world, and why, and by what means."

This example shows that getting rid of the arrow of suffering is a way to understand nirvana, which is ridding ourselves of the cycle of birth and death. It is not an exaggeration to say that one who conquers death through Sadhana (meditation) attains nirvana. 

...It can be seen that the state of liberation that both the Buddha and the sages of the Upanishads referred to as nirvana is the same as the state of liberation that the Indian Sants call mukti. The Buddhist and Vedic texts, as well as the Sant Mat texts, are in complete agreement with respect to these concepts of nirvana and mukti.

-- Swami Sant Sevi Ji Maharaj, in the Buddhism Chapter of, Harmony Of All Religions: http://spiritualawakeningradio.com/Harmony8-ChapterThree.pdf




"I said to the wanting-creature inside me:
What is this river you want to cross?
There are no travelers on the river-road, and no road.
Do you see anyone moving about on that bank, or nesting?
There is no river at all, and no boat, and no boatman.
There is no tow rope either, and no one to pull it.
There is no ground, no sky, no time, no bank, no ford!
And there is no body, and no mind!
Do you believe there is some place that will make the
soul less thirsty?
In that great absence you will find nothing.
Be strong then, and enter into your own body;
there you have a solid place for your feet.
Think about it carefully!
Don't go off somewhere else!
Kabir says this: just throw away all thoughts of
imaginary things,
and stand firm in that which you are."

 -- Kabir





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#2990 From: SantMatMysticism <santmat_mystic@...>
Date: Sun Jul 10, 2011 8:52 am
Subject: Starstuff Contemplating the Stars -- Light and Sound 		santmat_mystic
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Starstuff Contemplating the Stars -- Light and Sound on the Path -- Sant Mat Satsang






"We are the local embodiment of a Cosmos grown to self-awareness. We have begun to contemplate our origins: starstuff pondering the stars...." (Carl Sagan)


"O Soul (Surat)! Who are you and whence have you come? You are a ray from Purush (the Supreme Being) and an inhabitant of the purely Spiritual Region." (Swami Ji Maharaj/Sant Radhasoami Sahib)


"The teaching of the Saints is to raise the soul from the lower chakras to the higher chakras -- till it reaches the highest chakra, where it initially landed, and then reach the MASTER -- THE SUPREME SOUL, from where it initially parted. The path of upliftment is the same as that of descent, except that the movement is reverse, i.e., ascent in place of descent." (H.N. Saksena, The Secret of Realisation)


O Guru! May my consciousness ascend the sky.
Kindly help me catch the current of seven melodies and
the Quintessential One.
After allowing me to catch the support of your Radiant Being,
Let me have a glimpse of your highly resplendent Vision.
(Padavali of Maharshi Mehi)


"This world is perishable and so also is all that pertains to it. A wise man is he, who, having closely examined the nature of existence here, has realized that it is all transitory and illusory, and consecrated his human form by devoting himself to Bhajan and Simran (listening to inner sounds and repetition of the Holy Name of the Supreme Being) and who, taking the fullest advantage of the various faculties which the Supreme Father has graciously endowed him with, has translated the invaluable jewel within him, which is Surat (spirit) or the essence of his being, to its original abode." (Soami Ji Maharaj)


Day is Night - Night is Day

"Use all your power to free the senses from attachment and aversion alike, and live in the full wisdom of the Self. Such a sage awakes to Light in the night of all creatures. That which the world calls 'day' is the night of ignorance to the wise." (The Bhagavad Gita, Chapter 2, verses 68 and 69, Eknath Easwaran translation)


"That, which is night to all beings (who are turned away from God), in that state the disciplined Yogi keeps awake. And that in which all beings are awake (enjoying the worldly pleasures and prosperity), is night to the enlightened seer." (Bhagavad Gita 2: 69 from the online translation at IndiaDivine[dot]org)


"Only a perfect Master and Shabd
(Quintessial Unstruck Sound)
Are your two true friends.
Dedicate your heart to them
And discard everything else."
-- Sant Radhaswami Sahib


"When we receive initiation from a Saint, practice Naam simran to retrace our consciousness from toes to a spot behind the eyes [Third Eye Center], only then something is accomplished." (Baba Kehar Singh)


Sant Mat Meditation: "Those practitioners who assiduously practice meditation will behold wonderful spectacles within." (Swami Achyutanand)


"The support of the soul is in the head, and now I will tell you of the
recognition of Shabda. One who gets connected with the Unrepeated Repetition to see gets the infinite-petaled lotus. When he reaches the astral door, he [ultimately] goes to Agam and Agochar [by way of] the True Path. His inner Self-where Adi Purush resides-gets enlightened. Recognizing Him, the soul goes to Him -- and He takes the soul to its origin. The soul is of the same essence as Sat Purush and is also called Jiva-Sohang." (Anurag Sagar)


Quality of Concentration in Meditation: "Single-pointedness results in absolute concentration, which causes ascension (vertical rise) enabling one to move onto a higher level or stage. This way it would be possible to transcend all illusory sheaths [subtle bodies, astral, causal, etc...]." (Maharshi Mehi, The Way of Liberation)




Subtle Bodies Associated With Inner Regions
From the Article, Visions of Allah

The process of gaining a vision of paradise and mystic transport has been described as "stripping off old garments" and replacing them with a new heavenly robe made of Light. In his Persian Sufi classic, Divine Flashes, Fakhruddin 'Iraqi describes the process:

"When the Beloved would exalt the lover, He strips from him the garments collected from all the worlds, and clothes him in the robe of His own attributes. Then the Beloved calls him by all his own attributes. Then the Beloved calls him by all his own names, and seats him in his own place. When the lover studies his new clothes he finds himself arrayed in different colors, and will wonder 'what is this beautiful tint, this garment so unique?'"

This quote from Divine Flashes reminds me of Saying 37 in the Gospel of Thomas, one of the earliest collections of the sayings of Jesus.

His disciples said, "When will you appear to us, and when will we see you?" Jesus said, "When you strip without being ashamed, and you will take your cloths and put them under your feet like little children and trample them, then you will see the Son of the Living One and you will not be afraid." (The Complete Gospels, Robert J. Miller, Polebridge Press)

Sufism is a form of Islamic Gnosticism which really does have many affinities with earlier Gnostic mystical traditions of the middle east. Like other movements of the past that embrace spiritual experience and mystic transport through the Seven Heavens, Sufis have found it useful to compare out-of-body or ascension journeys to the stripping or shedding of garments. The above quote illustrates their view that each soul on the earth-plane is wearing several garments. We are souls wearing subtle bodies or coverings; our physical body is made out of the material substance of the physical universe. We are, as the late Dr. Carl Sagan put it, "star stuff pondering star stuff." Our bodies are made out of atoms that once came from stars and other objects in the cosmos. When we enter into contemplation and mystical states, our awareness is elsewhere; we become "dead to the world," have risen above body-consciousness.

In that sense, we have, for the duration of our meditation period, "stripped" ourselves of the garment of the body for the purpose of exploring other levels of our existence. The mystic traveler enters into what has been called "the fourth state of consciousness." In addition to the waking state, the dream state, the unconsciousness state of deep sleep, the truly holistic explorer can also integrate into his or her experience the spiritual worlds.

Mysticism teaches that there are many layers or levels of reality, that there are other garments that will eventually be shed during journeys of ascension. These garments or subtle bodies have been given names in Hebrew, Greek, Coptic, Syriac, Arabic, Persian, Hindi, and other languages. In addition to the "garment" of the physical body, each soul is wearing several other garments or bodies, other sheaths that surround the soul (the True Self), allowing the soul to connect to the various regions of creation. Counting the physical plane as Level One, Level Two is called by many "the astral plane," made of astral stuff -- astral substance, existing at a slightly higher vibration in the astral region. Level Three is the causal body, made of causal or akashic substance, inhabiting the causal plane. Level Four is the mental body made of mind substance, and is part of the mental plane. The etheric body allows the soul to access that region. Above these worlds of mind and matter, the soul resides in the Timeless Spiritual Realm of Truth (Sat, Haq). Metaphysically speaking, we're already in heaven, we just don't know it! 'Iraqi says:

"By day I praised you but never knew it; by night slept with you without realizing; fancying myself to be myself; but no, I was you and never knew it!"


"From the Source of the Ocean opens a Window of Light. Awaken that resplendent Light within thee....Repeat the name of the Lord and secure Him." (Shabdavali of Param Sant Tulsi Sahib of Hathras)


"Moment by moment gather thy soul and hold it at the Eye Center. Cleanse thou the mirror of thy mind, and catch the Divine Melody with thy soul. If thy longing is keen, thou shalt pierce the veil and attain the Quintessence." (Shabdavali of Param Sant Tulsi Sahib of Hathras)


"Within thine own self, behold the splendor of thy Beloved. In the pupil of thine eye is a mole, wherein is hidden the entire mystery. Peep within and behold thou what lieth beyond this dark curtain. The secret of the fourteen realms will, for certain, be disclosed to thee. Let thy attention not slip, see that thou art ever vigilant." (Shabdavali of Sant Tulsi Sahib of Hathras)


"I beheld in the firmament an inverted well, and was filled with resplendence of Light within." (Shabdavali of Sant Tulsi Sahib of Hathras)


Tulsi Sahib: "The disciple sees within himself the Akash (sky) which is like an inverted well, and merges his Surat [soul's attention] in it."




Chart of the Inner Regions: The Top-most Region is Anami (Nameless), Soundless (Anadi), Nirguna (Formless), Radhasoami -- The Lord of the Soul.


Surat Shabd Yoga: Surat refers to spirit and Shabd to the Sound Current; hence, it is the union the soul with Shabd; the spiritual exercise by which the Current of Consciousness is applied to the hearing of the Sound within; joining the mind and the Attention to the Sound Current. Surat Shabd Yoga: Union (Yoga) of the Soul (Surat) with the Inner Light and Sound of God (Shabd).


The Satguru: "When all the thought waves merge into the Divine Sound, they become Sound. There are no more thoughts. Only Word remains. The surati and Shabda cannot then be differentiated. When the surati unites with Shabda, it is just as when water mixes with milk and become one. Surati gives up its own identity and merges into the Word. Although surati and Shabda appear different, they are not really separate. Once the union has occurred, and the thought waves are silenced, bliss is experienced. When the waters of two rivers such as the Ganges and the Yamuna unite at Prayag, one cannot differentiate the waters, just so, when surati and Shabda unite, they are indistinguishable. However, for this to occur one has to meditate before that Oneness can be realized." (Prakash Mani Naam)


"When the soul (surat) mergeth into the Sound (Shabd) and becometh one with it, then one obtaineth the supreme Bliss. The lamp burneth inside, O Ravidas, and Divine Bliss ariseth within. Steeped in meditation with one-pointed attention, practice devotion to God, O Ravidas. Let the automatic repetition be continued within, Reverberating the True Naam." (Sant Ravidas)


"The divine Melody resounds within,
Upon hearing it, the mind rejoices!
And at long last, attains self-realization,
Never again to stray,
From devotion to the Eternal Teacher.
All its sufferings dissipate.
The soul grasps the rope of divine Melody,
And climbs upon it to liberation."
(Kabir, Songs of the Divine," Dr. J. Das)


Tulsi Sahib said: "When the Surat-disciple meets the Shabd-guru, the path will be traversed."


"The Divine Melody is always resounding when one becomes attuned to it through diligent meditation practice." (Brahm Nirupan of Kabir)


"I now daily hear Shabd in this mansion (of the body, Pind). All the time, I am engaged in this practice." (Swami Ji Maharaj)


"As long as the soul remains in the body, O brother, practice the Path of Shabda." (Anurag Sagar)


"Get detached from the world by associating with Shabd. Shabd removes the barriers." (Swami Ji Maharaj)


"Shabd alone can eradicate Karmas. Without Shabd, we are wandering homeless." (Swami Ji Maharaj)


"Saint Kabir says that our movement is that of a bird (represented by the Shabd); and that the Satguru has given us the key. With the resounding of Shabd, the doors have been flung open, that this Desh [realm] beyond Pind and And [the physical and astral] is ours." (from a hymn of Kabir quoted in, The Secret of Realisation, H.N. Saksena)


I fly as a bird, my wings the Word,
Saith Kabir I'm free, my Satguru liberates me.
My consciousness awoke
Only the Word did resound,
And then beyond the Pind and And,
my true home I
found. (Kabir, another translation of the verse above)


"The body is divided into four regions. These are the Pind or Pinda, the physical or material body; the And or Anda, the lowest part of Brahmand, the spiritual-material region; Brahmand, the spiritual-material region, which is mostly spiritual but mixed with a certain amount of refined matter; and Sach Khand, which is absolutely pure Spirit, the highest and only perfectly pure region. Sach Khand is also the only permanent region." (Huzur Baba Sawan Singh)


Go to heaven --
why go back to the world?
In the house of the fearless One,
where music, unstruck, sounds,
you shall play trumpets.

Meditate upon Him in your heart.
Without meditation there is no salvation.

Unfettered meditation
brings salvation:
Your heavy load is taken off.
Welcome Him in your heart,
so you will not be born
again and again.

Blissful meditation
will light a lamp inside you
that does not need any oil.
This lamp will make you immortal;
this lamp will draw out the poison
of lust and anger.

Pierce this meditation
that gives you salvation,
and wear it around your neck.
Never take it off.
Meditate always:
Your guru's grace will get you across.

Meditation will free you
from dependence on others:
You will sleep on silken sheets at home.
Your heart will be at peace;
your life will blossom:
Deeply drink this meditation.

This meditation
will erase your blemishes;
you will be free from Maya's touch.
Meditate, meditate, and sing,
"Hari, Hari" [God, God]. You will obtain
this meditation from your true guru [Satguru].

Always, always meditate day and night:
When you rise, when you lie down,
when you breathe in, when you breathe out.
Waking or sleeping,
relish the taste of meditation --
meditation will bring union.

Meditation will remove all your burdens;
meditation upon Ram's name [God's name]
will become your support.
Kabir, says, "He is limitless."
(Songs of Kabir from the Adi Granth, Nirmal Das, SUNY Press, NY)





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#2991 From: SantMatMysticism <santmat_mystic@...>
Date: Fri Jul 15, 2011 4:04 am
Subject: Happy Guru Purnima: Master’s Day 		santmat_mystic
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Sant Mat Satsang PODcast: Program Theme: Happy Guru Purnima: Master’s Day — Program Length: 23 Minutes -- Click For Streaming Audio:


Reflections about the role of Sant Satgurus: The Competent Living Master, a Qualified Teacher, The True One, Genuine Mentor, a Righteous and Worthy Guide, A Fearless Being, Light-giver, Leader of a Spiritual Community. An Ode to the Sant SatGuru, in Praise of the Sant-soul of love who has reached the 5th plane or above, and merged in God. With gratitude to the Competent Qualified Teacher, the Living Master, the Living One. In a Sea of Samsara, of falsehood, illusion and posing, there is a bright Light in the darkness. A silent Music becomes audible. At the feet of such a Loving, Radiant One, the soul can not help but find inner Light and slip into deep samadhi meditation. In the eyes of the Sant are love, wisdom, light, compassion, grace, and a reflection of God. The definition of a Sant Satguru is someone who connects the soul with the Supreme Lord of Love.  

Love and Light in the Sound,

Jai Guru, Sat Naam, Radhasoami,

James



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#2992 From: SantMatMysticism <santmat_mystic@...>
Date: Fri Jul 29, 2011 7:33 pm
Subject: Focus - Collect Your Diffused Spirituality 		santmat_mystic
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Focus - Collect Your Diffused Spirituality - Light and Sound on the Path - Sant Mat Satsang


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Satsang PODcasts

Kabir - the "Rumi" of India, Part 1 - Spiritual Awakening Radio PODcast -- Program Length: 60 Minutes. Click to Download MP3:
http://download.liveindexer. com/podcasts/HealthyLifeOD/ Audio//ECI_AUTO/Jul2011/ SPA071911_wma.mp3


Kabir - the "Rumi" of India, Part 2 - Spiritual Awakening Radio PODcast --Program Length: 60 Minutes. Click to Download MP3:
http://download.liveindexer. com/podcasts/HealthyLifeOD/ Audio//ECI_AUTO/Jul2011/ SPA072611_wma.mp3


For More PODcasts, go to:
http://www. SpiritualAwakeningRadio.com/ archive.html


NOTE: The August Sant Mat Satsang PODcast will be titled, "Spircon Revisited", and will be a follow up of an earlier program with Mark Juergensmeyer, with more information about the inter-faith Sant Mat event that took place in Agra (Spiritual Consciousness Studies: Spircon). Coming soon at:
http://www.BlogTalkRadio.com/ SantMatFellowship


Tao Te Ching: "The sage does not accumulate for himself.
The more he uses for others, the more he has himself.
The more he gives to others, the more he possesses of his own.
The Way of Heaven is to benefit others and not to injure.
The Way of the sage is to act but not to compete."




Inner Peace,
By Maharshi Mehi

1. Stillness or steadiness is the essence of Shanti.

[Shanti is a Sanskrit word with several English meanings: peace, tranquility, bliss, etc. The peace which results from some degree of communion with God is Shanti.]

2. He who has attained Shanti is a Saint.

3. Sant Mat encompasses the thoughts and Way of Saints.

4. The desire for attaining Shanti is natural in human beings.

In the Upanishads the formula for the attainment of Shanti is expounded by the seers and saints of these ancient works. Similar views have been expressed by the saints of all times, including such saints as Guru Nanak Sahab and Kabir Sahab who expounded their views in the Punjabi and Hindi languages respectively. Such expressions are for the inspiration and edification of all people.

However, the Upanishads uniquely and fully describe the means for attaining Shanti and describe the means for attaining the Highest Wisdom. That is why the Upanishads are considered the foundation of Sant Mat. Further, a comprehensive exposition of the Divine Word-Sound is given in the Upanishads which leads to the Highest Wisdom. The Upanishads explain the yogic techniques and systematic views of transcending thought and attaining the Absolute through the use of Sound (Yoga of Surat-shabda). Sant Mat follows the yogic path as prescribed in the Upanishads and specifically employs Surat-Shabda-Yoga in its practices. The result of such practice is the attainment of the Highest Goal, the knowledge of the Supreme. (Philosophy of Liberation)


Seeing the Unseen Within

Rumi: "Everything you see has its roots in the Unseen world.
The forms may change, yet the essence remains the same.
Every wonderful sight will vanish;
Every sweet word will fade,
But do not be disheartened,
The source they come from is eternal, growing,
Branching out, giving new life and new joy.
Why do you weep? The source is within you
And this whole world is springing up from it."


Sant Namdev: "I wandered through the cosmos in search of the treasure but found it within me."


Rumi: "If in thirst you drink water from a cup, you see God in it. Those who are not in love with God will see only their own faces in it."


"My eyes have turned inward. My heart clings to the feet of Ram [God]. I worship only God-within, nothing else, says Namdev."


"Always be in rapport with the Lord
And enjoy true contentment -
This is the state of ineffable serenity.
There is no peace except in the Name of the Lord -
Meditate on it with one-pointed attention.

"Experience the state of superconsciousness
Where the Lord's love surges
And you will see your own form
In each particle of the creation."
-- Sant Namdev


"God [Hari] is my companion
in life and death.
Hari, who rescued
the drowning creature.

"Hari, the Giver of joy
is always with me.
I am immersed in
the name of Hari
says Namdev."


"Service.
Worship.
Remembrance.
Meditation.
All are false
without God.....
Sing the name
Ram [God]
the State of Nirvana." (Sant Namdev)


"Dharm Dass pat khol dekho, tattva men nihatattva hai; kahe kabir nihatattva darse, awagawan niwariye. O Dharam Dass! Remove the veil of ignorance, and see that in the manifest forms is the unmanifest God. Kabir says that when God shows Himself to you, your cycles of birth and death will vanish, and you will gain immortality." (Book of Satsang Prayers)


Love bestirs the heart of the separated lover for God, and God responds by enlightening him. He then realizes that the soul and God are one. (Tisa Tantra/Thirty Gems of Kabir)





The Yoga of Inner Seeing and Hearing -- Inner Light and Sound Meditation

"The current of consciousness which is dispersed in the nine gates of the body and the nine senses must be collected at the tenth gate (the sixth chakra, the third eye, bindu, center between the eyebrows). Therein lies the path for our return. This is the act of leaving the gates of the sense organs and becoming established in the soul. We travel back from the realm of Darkness to the realm of Light, from the Light to divine Sound, and from the realm of Sound to the Soundless State. The Divine Essence permeates all beings yet transcends them." (Swami Sant Sevi Ji Maharaj)


"Avalokiteshvara Buddha [Quan Yin], the hearer and answerer of prayer, has visited all the Buddha-lands of the ten quarters of the universe and has acquired transcendental powers of boundless freedom and fearlessness and has vowed to emancipate all sentient beings from their bondage and suffering. How sweetly mysterious is the Transcendental Sound of Avalokiteshvara! Is is the subdued murmur of the sea-tide setting inward. Its mysterious Sound brings liberation and peace to all sentient beings who in their distress are calling for aid." (Surangama Sutra, Buddhist Scripture)


Reference to meditation on Inner Light and Sound Meditation found in the ancient scriptures know as the Vedas: "May the seeker of Divine knowledge learn its secret from a True Guru, practice (meditation thus learnt) and perceive the divine Light and Sound within. May seekers pray to God for getting such an accomplished Guru from whom this secret could be learnt!" (Yajurveda, Chapter 11, ManDal 3)


"Contemplating on the Sat Shabd [True Sound], even for half of a moment, confers much more spiritual merit than living in the holy city of Kashi for millions of years." (Brahm Nirupan of Kabir)


"Explaining 'Word' or Sound Current, Kabir says that for practical purpose the Sound Current assumes the form of Guru in this world and reforms the souls. Satguru carries a message from God and ties us to the thread of Naam Simran (i.e. concentration on the Word)." (Anurag Sagar)


Kabir: "So plunge into the Truth, find out who the Teacher is. Believe in the Great Sound!"

"A word has a natural characteristic or propensity to attract or draw its perceiver towards its source or origin. That word which has emanated from the Supreme Lord, therefore, possesses the property of leading its perceiver to God. It is also imbued with the qualities of its source and, therefore, endows its perceiver as well with the same. Therefore, Shabda Sadhana or Nadanusandhana, the Yoga of Sound has been regarded as the most essential and the loftiest meditation in Sant Mat." (Swami Achyutanand Baba, Yoga Of Inner Light and Sound)





Stilling the Thoughts of the Mind By Meditating On the Inner Sound, By Swami Achyutanand Baba

With Nada Dhyana [meditation on the Inner Sound] the mind gets completely dissolved. As a result of its dissolution, the mind forgets about the sensory objects, as has been depicted in the Nadabindu Upanishad:

"Just as the honey bee, while sipping the nectar of flowers cares not for their fragrance...The mind that is ever connected to the Divine Sound longs no more for any sensory objects. For it has come under the spell of the Divine Melody and has forsaken its fickle nature for good."

The Upanishad has compared the mind to the poisonous cobra. The venomous cobra is capable of killing several persons with its deadly poison, but the snake charmer renders it non-poisonous by uprooting its venom teeth, and thus the snake's power of lethal bite is destroyed. Similarly, as a practitioner progresses in the Yoga of Sound, his extremely lustful or covetous mind forgets all the objects and never again yearns for them, as is stated in the following lines of the Nadabindu Upanishad:

"The serpent-mind practicing Nada dhyana (Yoga of Sound) perseveringly gets completely lost in it and concentrates itself solely on the Nada (Divine Sound), forgetting all other objects around it."

-- Swami Achyutanand Baba, Yoga of Inner Light and Sound, published in 2011:
http:// SpiritualAwakeningRadio.com/ Yoga_Of_Inner_Light_And_Sound_ .pdf


Collect Your Diffused Spirituality,
By Sant Radhasoami Sahib

O nightingale! Recognize the flower garden, where a
great variety of flowers are blossoming. (1)

Come along and live in close association with Guru.
Go on elevating your mind and Surat. (2)

Collect your diffused spirituality and be whole-heartedly
attentive. You will gradually merge in Jyoti [Light]. (3)

Remove the two slabs or curtains, and behold the
Thousand-petalled Lotus of Sahas-dal-kanwal. (4)

Peep into the creation there, then dwell freely and
openly. Pass over the bridge and get across. (5)

There, whiffs of sweet fragrance of sandal are enjoyed,
and Surat and mind are cleansed of impurities. (6)

The obstacles created by Kal will disappear, and
then, your Surat will apply itself wholeheartedly to
Shabd. (7)

Extricated from the mire of Karma, you will proceed
on and meet RADHASOAMI [Radhaswami, the Lord of the Soul]. (8)


-- Swami Ji Maharaj, Bachan 20 -- Shabd 23,
Sar Bachan Poetry, Volume One

Reply | Messages in this Topic (1)
#2993 From: SantMatMysticism <santmat_mystic@...>
Date: Sat Jul 30, 2011 2:24 am
Subject: Once you discover this Light and learn to live by it, your whole existence will be changed 		santmat_mystic
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Once you discover this Light and learn to live by it, your whole existence will be changed

The Light of life is in you; indeed you live by that very Light whether you realize it or not. Each one of you has had an experience of that holy Light. Now you must live in constant contact with the holy Light. It is uncreated and shadowless, eternally the same and peerless. The whole creation came into being by the same Light, and that very Light is shining in every heart. All are Divine in nature, and religion is the expression of Divinity already existing in man. 

The Light of life must be made manifest in existence. Be ye a witness to the Light of life, not only within yourself but in others as well, for the same Light shineth everywhere and there is no place where it is not. 

Once you discover this Light and learn to live by it, your whole existence will be changed. Love will permeate your very being and it will burst forth from the very pores of your body, transmuting all dross into sterling gold.

Love, you must know, is both the means and the Goal of life. Love, Light and Life are but different facets of the one Divinity.

Try to become a channel for the Divine and the Divinity will then flow through you. This is not something impossible, but it is the very acme of all human endeavours. In this world of matter one has of necessity to deal with matter. We have to make the most of the material raiment and the material world given to us. It serves a great purpose in the Divine Plan of Evolution. Matter is the ladder by which means the spirit has to rise above body-consciousness and move into the Realm Beyond -the Realm of Spirituality-its native habitat. Learn to make the most of the means given to you and surely as day follows night, the victory shall be yours.

-- Master Kirpal Singh
   Spiritual Elixir









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#2994 From: SantMatMysticism <santmat_mystic@...>
Date: Tue Aug 2, 2011 9:09 pm
Subject: Hear Spiritual Awakening Radio: PODcasts, and Streaming Audio 		santmat_mystic
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Hear Spiritual Awakening Radio: PODcasts, and Streaming Audio


Hear Spiritual Awakening Radio: PODcasts, and the Current Schedule For Streaming Audio via HealthyLife.net — The Positive Talk Radio Network: http://www.SpiritualAwakeningRadio.com/current.html

…..Exploring the World of Spirituality, Comparative Religion, Inner Light and Sound Meditation, Vegetarian Vegan Diet, and Peace -- A Positive Vision For the Future



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#2995 From: SantMatMysticism <santmat_mystic@...>
Date: Fri Aug 5, 2011 6:31 am
Subject: Online Sant Mat Books and New Webpages 		santmat_mystic
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Online Sant Mat Books 
and New Webpages

* Yoga of Inner Light and Sound, by Swami Achyutanand Baba -- PDF File:  http://SpiritualAwakeningRadio.com/Yoga_Of_Inner_Light_And_Sound_.pdf

* New Webpage Dedicated to the book, Harmony Of All Religions (Sarvadharma Samanvy) , by Swami Sant Sevi Ji Maharaj: all the chapters of the book as PDF Files, along with other related links:

* New Webpage Dedicated to the writings of Soami Ji Maharaj: Sar Bachan Radhasoami Poetry/Nazm yaani Chhand bandh (Volumes I & II), Sar Bachan Prose/Bartik, Soami Ji Maharaj's Letters to Huzur Maharaj, Swami Ji's Commentary on the Jap Ji of Guru Nanak, and, Last Words of Soami Ji Maharaj:

* The Anurag Sagar (PDF Files, MP3 Satsangs, Links): http://www.SpiritualAwakeningRadio.com/anurag.html



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#2996 From: SantMatMysticism <santmat_mystic@...>
Date: Thu Aug 18, 2011 11:34 pm
Subject: Philosophy of Liberation -- Light and Sound on the Path 		santmat_mystic
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Philosophy of Liberation -- Light and Sound on the Path




Happy 2011 Independence Day India (Night View of India From Space)


The Kabir Radio Series: The Poet Kabir - the "Rumi" of India, Parts One Through Five - Spiritual Awakening Radio PODCASTS:


Sant Mat Video: "The Light-Bearers


For Online Sant Mat Books (Yoga of Inner Light and Sound, Harmony of All Religions, the Writings of Swami Ji Maharaj/Sar Bachan Poetry, Radhasoami Mat Prakash, Light On Ananda Yoga, Two Radhasoami Libraries, Kirpal Singh Library, Classic Sants of India, Tulsi Sahib, Adi Granth, Kabir, Anurag Sagar), See:


Awakening, is a process of peeling away the many layers of illusion that we are in. Letting go of our judgements and need to define. Letting go of our ego and even our identity, until we no longer feel separate from God.

"If you are depressed you are living in the past.
If you are anxious you are living in the future.
If you are at peace you are living in the present."
-- Lao Tzu

"You wander from room to room hunting for the diamond necklace that is already around your neck." (Rumi)

Which is worth more, a crowd of thousands,
or your own genuine solitude?
Freedom, or power over and entire nation?
A little while alone in your room
will prove more valuable than anything else
that could ever be given you.
-- Rumi

"Feel yourself being quietly drawn by the deeper pull of what you truly love." (Rumi)

"Your worst enemy cannot harm you as much
as your own unguarded thoughts." (Buddha)

"With our thoughts we make the world." (Buddha)

"Whatever man thinketh, that he obtaineth. If he were to dwell on the Absolute........he would become immortal." (Sant Namdev quoted in the Adi Granth, Sikh Scriptures)

"Wherever one's thought dwells, there will that person rest. At his pleasure, he may go to the delusion of unreality or he may merge into the Lord of the self. Where thou keepest thy mind while living, to that abode shalt thou go after death. The soul finds lodging in a place wherein it has hitherto been immersed." (Dadu Dayal)

Accumulated thoughts of living beings cause births and deaths for them again and again

"The thoughts are of various types and each thought has its hidden import. The thoughts which are soaked in attachment and illusion, form the basis of transmigration. But the thoughts which are immersed in selfless service (seva), lead one to salvation. The flow of thoughts in the mind knows no end. Not a single moment passes without those, so much so, that during sleep even, they occur in the form of dreams. What are those thoughts? Desire for anything assumes the form of a thought. The moment a desire to attain something or the other, arises in the mind, that very moment, man is thrown into an ocean of thoughts. These very thoughts become the basis of resolutions and options which cause one to enter into different forms after death. Whatever the nature of thought at the time of death determines the next form or birth for that soul.

"All the doubts and desires should be made to merge with the Shabd or Word [the Divine Current of Light and Sound], to get rid of horrible consequences of innumerable births and transmigration. Except for the desire to recite Naam, no other desire should take hold of the mind......By remembering the Lord, one attains God-realization and when this stage is reached, then there is no need to resort to any other means of attain salvation [moksha]." (The Second Master, The Shri Paramhans Advait Mat Granth)


Meditate.
Live purely. Be quiet.
Do your work with mastery.
Like the moon, come out
from behind the clouds!
Shine.
-- Siddhartha Gautama

"Perform virtuous acts, you will receive happiness. Also do 'sumiran' (remembering God's name, or meditating on the Divine Sound) regularly." (Swami Harinandan Baba)

"The practice of meditation should be an essential part of the practitioner's daily routine." (Maharshi Mehi)

"In case of any trouble, one should always remember the Satguru, as He is always present with the disciple in His Nij Roop (Real Form)." (Soami Ji Maharaj, Sar Bachan Prose)

"To accept His teachings and act in accordance with them is the external form of Satguru Bhakti [devotion to a living master]. To hear the Shabd within is the internal form of Satguru Bhakti." (Soami Ji Maharaj, Sar Bachan Prose)

"To hear the Shabd that is ringing within us is devotion to Shabd [Shabd Bhakti]; to serve and love the heart (person) in which the Shabd is manifest is Satguru seva, and He alone is Satguru and the Shabd is His Nij Saroop (Real Form)". (Soami Ji Maharaj, Sar Bachan Prose)

"In each heart the Divine resides hidden; each heart is permeated with divine Light. By intense focus one is able to break the door open and reach the Realm of the Divine. By the grace of God the door shatters, and the mind becomes immersed in the sweet drizzle of divine Sound. By focusing on the divine Sound (Shabda) the consciousness goes beyond the realm of death and rebirth." (Guru Nanak)

"The great Sage Maharishi Mehi compared the ascending of consciousness to a fish swimming upstream. The mind must go inward, which is the reverse of its usual and easy outward path. Just as the fish struggles against the current, so an equal effort must be made to go against the current of the mind. By going inward against the current of the mind, one experiences the divine joy. In the words of Sant Maharishi Mehi: 'The stream of celestial nectar is flowing from the subtle canal of the sushumna nerve. Like a fish the consciousness current is moving upstream. Like a fish making its way upstream, the mind travels with consciousness away from the senses (the current) with great difficulty. (This will seem to the mind a difficult and 'unnatural' course, as the mind is habituated to move toward the senses and the sensory objects.)'" (Swami Sant Sevi Ji, Harmony Of All Religions)


Excerpts from the Book: Moksha-Darsan (Philosophy of Liberation), a Primary Text for Understanding Sant Mat (The Path of the Masters)

Philosophy of Liberation
By Maharishi Mehi
All rights reserved ©2006 Santmat Society

1. Stillness or steadiness is the essence of Shanti.

(Shanti is a Sanskrit word with several English meanings: peace, tranquility, bliss, etc. The peace which results from some degree of communion with God is Shanti.)

2. He who has attained Shanti is a saint.

3. Sant Mat encompasses the thoughts and way of saints.

4. The desire for attaining Shanti is natural in human beings.

In the Upanishads the formula for the attainment of Shanti is expounded by the seers and saints of these ancient works. Similar views have been expressed by the saints of all times, including such saints as Guru Nanak Sahab and Kabir Sahab who expounded their views in the Punjabi and Hindi languages respectively. Such expressions are for the inspiration and edification of all people.

However, the Upanishads uniquely and fully describe the means for attaining Shanti and describe the means for attaining the Highest Wisdom. That is why the Upanishads are considered the foundation of Sant Mat. Further, a comprehensive exposition of the Divine Word-Sound is given in the Upanishads which leads to the Highest Wisdom. The Upanishads explain the yogic techniques and systematic views of transcending thought and attaining the Absolute through the use of sound (Yoga of Surat-shabda). Sant Mat follows the yogic path as prescribed in the Upanishads and specifically employs Surat-shabda-Yoga in its practices. The result of such practice is the attainment of the Highest Goal, the knowledge of the Supreme.

This is not to undermine the teachings of other saints, but rather to say that in the Upanishads are found the basis of the teachings of these saints. Often the teachings of various saints would, on the surface, seem contradictory to each other or even contradictory to the principles of the Upanishads. In fact, there is an unbreakable unity in the spiritual views of all saints. In different times and in different places saints appear, and their followers name their tradition in respect to the particular saint. The appearance of differences can be attributed to time, place and language, giving varied labels to views which are in reality the same. Likewise, due to excessively zealous followers these seeming differences are often accentuated. When all sectarianism and the forms of the particular time or place of the writings of a saint are removed, the basic principles of Sant Mat are in unity. The Ultimate, Unbounded, Infinite state (as described in section 11) is the unique possession of a saint. Further, the means to attain this state (as described in section 59 and 61) are found in the writings of the saints. Even though there are differences in the name and form of the Deity of worship, the underlying unity of the Unbounded dissolves these seeming differences (according to the idea expounded in section 86).

Surat-Shabda-Yoga as a means to attain the Unbounded state is an integral and indispensable aspect of the Sant Mat tradition. Any tradition devoid of this essential aspect is not true Sant Mat. Various saints describe the Yoga of Surat -Shabda, and from these descriptions we become aware of the significance of Surat-Shabda-Yoga. The following are some words of the great saints, concerning the importance of Surat-Shabda-Yoga:

Guru Nanak Sahab states:

"The invisible and supra-sensory name of God (Divine Word-Sound) is extremely sweet and lovely."

Tuls Das states:

"I offer homage to the Divine Name of the Universal Being, Ram, which is the cause of the sun, the moon and the fire. That Divine Universal Name is the form of the creator, maintainer and destroyer."

............One will not succeed in Yoga if purity of character is disregarded. Lying, stealing, smoking, taking of drugs (including alcohol), violence, and adultery are all obstructions to the successful practice meet the Supreme Sovereign).

53. Listening to and study of the discourses on this sacred knowledge is an important step in the Sant Mat tradition. Listening to satsanga (spiritual discourses) is prescribed as an essential activity.

54. The personal and private instruction in the art of this spiritual practice should be received from a Sadguru (an accomplished spiritual master). Once the technique has been learned, one should practice it regularly and daily according to the instructions given by the master.

70. Through constant practice of the Meditation of Sound, the practitioner also experiences the Divine Light. Just as upon attending a concert, one cannot help but notice the beautiful setting, of Upper Nature, the plurality of sounds ceases to exist, and only then can the Essential Divine sound be experienced. Other sounds of the various Realms are not experienced at this level of the State of Oneness because diversity does not exist in the state of Oneness.

75. The State beyond Sound is acknowledged in the writings of saints as the goal of their teachings. In addition, their writings accept repetition of a Divine name, concentration on a form of the Divine, fixing the mind on a point and concentrating on the inner sounds of the different spheres as a means to reach the Soundless State. These four techniques are therefore essential in Sant Mat.

76. Without achieving perfection in the Yoga of Sound, the realization of the Supreme Sovereign God or the Knowledge of the Self cannot be achieved.

77. Without resolute devotion to the guru (a spiritual master), even by means of the Yoga of Sound, the realization of the Supreme Sovereign God is not possible. Without the help of the master, it is not possible to attain the full devotion for the Divine and the highest good.

82. The recognition of a true spiritual master is the most difficult of tasks. However, the one who has purity of character (rectitude), who practices diligently the Yoga of Sound, and who can explain clearly Sant Mat (the path of saints) can be accepted and trusted and given devotion as a spiritual master. A person without rectitude or purity of character, regardless of the other qualities just mentioned, should not be regarded as a true master.

If one has accepted a spiritual teacher and later finds him or her lacking in rectitude, that teacher should be abandoned. In spite of the teacher’s exquisite knowledge, association with that teacher is not desirable if he or she is lacking in moral character. As the aspirant is particularly affected by the teacher's moral character, it is imperative to avoid teachers without moral virtues. Purity of character is the essential quality of a teacher and if purity is lacking that teacher is no better than an animal. A teacher lacking purity of character or other essential virtues is a false spiritual teacher. The fruits of accepting a true master are immense. Unfortunately, true teachers are few and difficult to find. A spiritual master who is wise, pure and a practitioner of the Yoga of Divine Sound gradually imparts his or her virtues to the student. The good will of the spiritual teacher cannot but help affecting the aspirant in a positive manner because one is affected by the power of a higher vibration. Section 77 describes the qualities of the teacher and how the aspirant benefits from his or her relationship with the teacher.

The master who practices the Yoga of Sound but is negligent in his moral character and in his spiritual knowledge is harmful to the seeker of spiritual knowledge. If one has accepted such a master, disregarding the importance of rectitude and knowledge, the aspirant would be deprived of the benefits of the association with a true preceptor, mentioned in the previous paragraph. In addition, in following an immoral teacher the aspirant would have the difficult task of not going astray, much less advancing on the spiritual path. However, without the aid of a true teacher this spiritual task can be undertaken by a few steadfast learned disciples. For most it is almost impossible to undertake this task. of gaining grace as described in the writings of the saints.

83. The aspiration to serve with love and behave humbly before the teacher arises naturally in the hearts of students. Therefore, devotion to the spiritual teacher is also natural. To say anything against devotion to the teacher is pointless. And also, the wise will not give devotion to an unworthy teacher and will influence other aspirants to do the same.

84. The four essential elements an aspirant of the spiritual path needs are the following: one, association of saints and hearing of things spiritual; two, moral rectitude; three, dedication to the teacher; and four practice of meditation. These essentials have previously been discussed; association is referenced in section 53; moral rectitude is addressed in section 60; meditation is referenced in sections 54 through 59. In Sant Mat an intense eagerness to acquire these essentials must be present. However, devotion to the teacher is paramount to the other three essentials and is the key to achieving the other three.

85. The desire of an individual to be free from sufferings and to attain the happiness of absolute peace is naturally present in the hearts of all. The purpose of Sant Mat is to provide a system which fulfills the desires of attaining absolute peace.

87. The practice of Nadanusandhana (the Yoga of Sound) is not mere child's play. Its full practice cannot be exercised by one who lacks Yama and Niyama (virtues and moral rectitude). See the following section 88 for more detail on Yama and Niyama.

There are sounds due to gross vibrations in the material body. To meditate on these gross sounds and believe it to be as the full practice of the Yoga of Sound shows a lack of knowledge of Yoga. According to the literature of the Sants (Saints), Yama and Niyama are essential for mastery in the practice of the Nadanusandhana (Yoga of Sound [Nada-nu-sandhana, the spiritual practice of inner Sound meditation, also called Surat Shabd Yoga]).

88. Yama consists of five disciplines: satya (truthfulness), ahimsa (non-violence), asteya (non-stealing), brahmacarya (continence), and aparigraha (control of greed or non-possessiveness).

Niyama also consists of five practices, which are the following: sauca (internal and external purity), santosha (contentment), tapas (penance), svadhyaya (study of spiritual matters) and lsvara pranidhana (meditation on God).

89. In following Yama and Niyama, one exercises aversion from the five sins, serves the spiritual master, attends satsang, and practices meditation as referred to in section 60.

90. A comfortable asana (a pose of sitting or posture) of keeping the head, neck and trunk straight and steady is a must for meditation. Without the ability to sit in such a steady posture for prolonged periods, meditation cannot be practiced.

91. Meditation should be practiced being alert, without being drowsy, shutting the eyes comfortably and without turning the eyeballs or pressing them in any way.

92. The practice of meditation should be an essential part of the practitioner's daily routine. The preferred time of meditation is Brahmamuhurta ([Hour of God: Brahma-mu-hurta, or Amrit Veela: Hour of Elixir]: very early in the morning: 3:00 A.M.). Likewise one should meditate at mid-morning and then again in the evening time. While falling asleep, one should also engage his mind in meditation. Further, it is good to practice Manas japa [Simran] or Manas dhyana [Dhyan] while working.

93. Before learning the Nadanusandhana (meditation on inner Sound) in practicing Manas japa (mantra repetition), Manas dhyana (focusing on the form of the master or deity) and Drshti Yoga ([inner Light meditation in the Third Eye Center or Eye-Focus] focusing on a Point that is practicing one-pointedness), one should meditate with eyes and mouth shut. Upon learning Nadanusandhana (Yoga of Sound [Inner Sound meditation]) from the Master, one should also close the ears.

94..........In the initial stages of dhyana (absolute concentration), pratyahara is practiced. [Note: Pratyahara means to bring back. Bringing back or refocusing one's attention during meditation, bringing the mind distracted by worldly thoughts back to the Focal Point during meditation.] Through the means of pratyahara, the mind is brought back repeatedly to the Focal Point. By this constant practice of pratyahara, one is eventually able to concentrate for a short period on the Focal Point. This state of concentration is called dharana (steadiness of concentration or absorption). When absorption is maintained for longer and longer periods of time, then it is dhyana (absolute concentration). Then in this state of dhyana, one is able to grasp the Streams of spiritual Sounds (described in section 60) and finally achieves samadhi (Unity [Union, Absorption, Oneness in deep meditation]). Drshti Yoga (seeing the inner Light---the Yoga of Vision) will greatly facilitate pratyahara and dharana......

............The saints and true teachers are known to be impartial; their blessings fall like the rain. However, the rain, while falling on all, tends to collect in deep pools just as the grace of the saints while showering on all flows rapidly and collects in the deep pools of the aspirants who are devoted. It is not surprising that the aspirants through their devotion draw the grace of the master towards them. Aspirants who give great attention to the ways of the teacher are worthy of the gift of knowledge. Obviously, not the careless one, but the one who honors the gift and cares for the receiving bowl receives the gift of the grace of the teacher. Making oneself worthy is the secret of devotion to the master, and will greatly facilitate meditation explained in detail in section 59.

105. The means to attain the direct knowledge of the Supreme Sovereign

God (Summary of the Philosophy of Liberation)

Before learning the technique to attain the direct knowledge of the Supreme Sovereign, intellectual understanding of the essential nature of the Supreme Sovereign God and one's own self is necessary. Through hearing and studying the discourses of spiritual teachers and contemplation, such knowledge can be acquired. Along with knowledge of the order of creation, the reason for not having the direct knowledge of both should be sought. Through intellectual understanding of the essential nature of the Supreme Sovereign, it is determined what needs to be attained. One should be able to discern whether it is the body which realizes the Supreme or the Self, Knower within the body.

Also, for this realization should the practices be of an external nature (outwardly devotional practices) or internal nature (Yoga of Vision and Yoga of Sound)? Having come to an understanding, these wanderings will be left behind. After gaining the intellectual knowledge of one’s Self, one will understand whether one is suited for attaining this Knowledge. Once, intellectual knowledge of the order of creation and the reasons for not having direct knowledge of God and one’s own Self are understood then the means will be brought to light. With this revelation one will be able to go be ultimately merging in Soundlessness or the Supreme Sovereign God. The internal practice of meditation ends here: the Supreme God is realized and the work is completed.

98. The practitioner should support himself in gainful employment, living on one’s own earnings. The aspirant is best content with a few things.

99. The aspirant should keep himself free of impulses such as lust, anger, greed, delusion, egotism, jealousy and fear. In his interest for spiritual progress, the practitioner should create pure mental habits: compassion, mercy, contentment, forgiveness and humbleness.

100. The following should be avoided because they cause unsteadiness of the mind: intake of intoxicants, including alcohol and various non-prescription drugs, and eating of meat and fish.

101. Through association of saints, the hearing of spiritual talks and study, wisdom can be acquired. Wisdom is essential in determining what is the right way to live your life. Without wisdom one can make poor decisions, which result in undesirable consequences.

...........In conclusion, as has been stated the microcosm and macrocosm are interconnected as they are completely permeated by the realms described above. Likewise, to go beyond all the realms is to go beyond all concealments. Further, in whatever realm the individual dwells, he dwells in that realm both in the microcosmic sense as well as the macrocosmic sense. In addition, if one ceases inhabiting one of the Realms, then he leaves behind both the microcosmic as well as the beyond the concealments of Causal Nature imposed on the creation and the Self and then will meet with the Supreme and experience direct knowledge of the Supreme Sovereign God.

(Philosophy of Liberation, By Maharishi Mehi)

The soul (Surat), seeking to glimpse the Absolute,
concentrates through its gaze at the tenth door,

Watching the luminous point, the pole star, the Moon and the Sun,

Surat hears many sweet sounds of the five
spheres;

Mehi says, this is the quintessence of Santmat;

And he has only repeated the words of the saints,

He has understood and tested them fully,

They are so very true and are of great benefit to all.

-- Maharishi Mehi




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#2997 From: SantMatMysticism <santmat_mystic@...>
Date: Wed Aug 24, 2011 2:06 am
Subject: Instructions for Holding Satsang 		santmat_mystic
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Instructions for Holding Satsang
By Sant Kirpal Singh

SATSANG, as the term implies, is association with Sat or Truth. Satsang meetings should therefore be exclusively devoted to the discourses on Sat, which in its broader connotation includes talks on God, Soul, Word, the relation between Soul and God on the one hand, and Soul and the Universe on the other, the God-Way or the path of God-realization, and the Godman or Spiritual Master, what He is, His need and importance, and His teachings. It also includes discourses on allied topics like ethical life, love, faith, compassion, and all that which makes way for the healthy and progressive development of Divine Life leading to efflorescence of spirit in cosmic awareness.

THE PURPOSE OF SATSANG

It must always be borne in mind that the actual awakening of the spirit is the work of the Master Power overhead. The talks and discourses are just like refresher courses which may help in the proper understanding of Sant Mat, or the teachings of the Master, on the intellectual level; for theory precedes practice. Both the initiates and non-initiates derive immense benefit from such talks. In these congregations, universal truths are brought home to all alike. A spirit of universal brotherhood on the broad basis of human beings as the children of one Supreme Father is inculcated, so as to link all with the silken bonds of love and amity. For the initiates, these talks serve as cementing factors on the Path, clarify doubts and misapprehensions, if any; and for the non-initiates, ground is prepared for an inner search which may stimulate the inquisitive mind and help the individuals in their innate craving for a Way out.

The Highway of the Masters has been, is, and ever shall remain the same for one and all. It is secular in character and everyone, whosoever, can tread it. There are no turnpike gates of religion, faith, caste, color, creed, nationality or avocation. All are welcome to it, even though retaining their distinctive religious organizations, social modes of life, and use of national language, etc., for the spirit or soul in man is above them all and remains unaffected by outer pursuits.

SATSANG APART FROM RITUALS

The "Science of Soul" is just like any other science, but more exact, more natural, more lasting, and the oldest of all the sciences. It is the Science of Realized Truth directly connected with the soul in man, and should therefore be kept distinct and apart from rites and rituals, forms and ceremonials; the performance or observance of which keeps one tied down to the plane of the senses, and as such must be strictly eschewed. Our discourses and talks in Satsang should be confined only to explaining the Science itself in lucid terms, without any outer embellishment like lighting of candles, burning of incense, offering of flowers, tinkling of bells, exhibiting photographs and the like. Even though these may appear innocent and harmless in themselves, yet the seekers after Truth are likely to go astray by such symbolisms and forms, and may get entangled and lost.

SUBJECT AND SCOPE OF SATSANG

For the subject of a talk, we may take up the hymns from any scripture, preferably from the Masters of the Sound Current. It may be supplemented by apt quotations from the parallel writings of other Master Saints. The Holy Gospels themselves are full of such material as may fit in with such a context. The illustrations from various Masters are essential so as to bring out the essential unity in the teachings of all the Saints. We should not, however, discuss the practical part of the Science.

Again, the subject itself should be of a non-controversial type. It must strictly refer to the Spiritual Science. Its exposition should be couched in terms that are loving and create a fragrant atmosphere which may have a universal appeal to the audience, without hurting the feelings of anyone. At the conclusion of the talk there should be no questions and answers in the open congregations. It should not form a debating club. If anyone has to inquire anything or wants elucidation on any particular point, that can be done more happily in private. The thistles of doubt and misapprehensions, if any, have to be weeded out with a tender hand, and nobody should be allowed to remain in suspense, for clearing of the mental ground is absolutely necessary before sowing the seed of Naam.

The Satsang should end with meditation for some time, say half an hour, in which all should take part, except for an urgent and unavoidable reason.

LOVE AND SERVICE THE BASIS OF SATSANG

The work of Satsang should be conducted in a dignified spirit of love and service. Our thoughts, words and deeds should radiate nothing but love and sweetness. As "Service'' precedes the "Science," our motto should be "Service before self." We cannot adequately advance the interests of any science, far less that of the Science of Realized Truth, unless we are prepared to devote our heart and soul in its service, like a worshipful votary. The Science will make headway of itself if we are true to ourselves and truly offer to serve it.

In case of disagreement on any important issue among the workers themselves, it is better to immediately refer the matter to the Master for his decision, instead of indulging in controversies that ruffle the feelings, cause unnecessary tensions, and lead to unpleasant rifts. It is all the Master's work and he knows best how to guide and straighten out things. With friendly love, we can win over even the dissidents to the Great Cause, and avoid defections. Love can surmount all obstacles and is a veritable cure for all the ills of the world. The necessity for love cannot therefore be over-emphasized in the service of the Master's Cause.

EXTRACTS FROM HAZUR'S LETTERS [Hazur Baba Sawan Singh]

"It is very beneficial for the Satsangis to meet with each other; it promotes their love and faith towards each other and the Holy Master; it also gives stimulus to the spiritual exercises. It helps to clear the doubts and difficulties of other Satsangis. Combined Satsang serves a useful purpose. It gives an opportunity for exchange of ideas. The Satsang time is especially valuable in this: that it increases love for the Master. In a large Satsang there are some advanced Satsangis also who speak from their personal experiences, and this helps in developing faith in others who may come into contact with them.

"Karmas may be physical as well as mental. The gross karmas are washed out by means of external methods such as Satsang, reading of good books, as well as by the company o/ the Master; while subtle karmas are removed by internal Sound Practice. Initiation is sowing of the seed, which needs the water of Satsang and concentration for sprouting, while love and faith are necessary/or its growth.

"Meetings with the members will benefit them greatly. Meet them all with love and affection, such that even a dry, withered heart takes courage and flourishes."

INDIVIDUAL MEDITATION

A few words about individual meditation will not be amiss here. A daily and regular practice of the three Sadhnas or disciplines--viz., Simran, Dhyan, and Bhajan--as enjoined by the Master, is of the utmost importance to achieve results. A disciple must do his or her part of the job and the Master does his. It is for him or her to sit and do the Sadhnas in an atmosphere conducive to progress, with a sweet remembrance of the Master. He or she is not to presuppose things or visualize results, for those will follow of their own accord. We have but to sit in loving remembrance, with steady gaze fixed in between and behind the two eyebrows, and do mental repetition of the Five Holy Words, without any exertion or strain on the eyes or on the forehead. Ours is to be an attitude of passivity, for the Doer is One and only One: the Master, who is the best judge of the time and measure and manner of each step on the Path.



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#2998 From: SantMatMysticism <santmat_mystic@...>
Date: Sat Sep 3, 2011 11:31 pm
Subject: Love Your Practice -- Close Your Eyes And See 		santmat_mystic
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Love Your Practice -- Close Your Eyes And See -- Light and Sound on the Path


"Sant Mat" means: "The Way of the Saints" or "Path of the Masters". The term "Sant Mat" was coined by Param Sant Tulsi Sahib of Hathras, during the 19th Century, but the Sant tradition, with its many guru-lineages or branches, is a spiritual movement that dates back many centuries to ancient India. Sant Tulsi Sahib was of the opinion that the Sant movement goes back to the time of Krishna thousands of years ago, that Krishna knew of Sants during his day, the age of the Bhagavad Gita.




Now Available On-Demand: The September Sant Mat Satsang PODcast via Blog Talk Radio: Program Theme: Spircon Revisited: On the historic Murar Declaration: Mutual affection and brotherly relations among the different branches of Sant Mat and Radhasoami. Human Unity begins at home. Program Length: 15 Minutes -- Click To Listen: http://bit.ly/pQSoNd


Sant Mat Radio: The Kabir Series: Kabir - the "Rumi" of India, Parts 1 Through 5 - Spiritual Awakening PODcasts: http://santmat.tumblr.com/post/9092841469/the-kabir-radio-series-the-poet-kabir-the


"Well I think the Good Book is missing some pages." -- Tori Amos
See the Article, Lost Books of the Bible, on Other Mystical Scriptures of the West (Gnostic Gospels, Dead Sea Scrolls):


"People usually consider walking on water or in thin air a miracle. But I think the real miracle is not to walk either on water or in thin air, but to walk on earth. Every day we are engaged in a miracle which we don’t even recognize: a blue sky, white clouds, green leaves, the black, curious eyes of a child – our own two eyes. All is a miracle." (Thich Nhat Hanh)


Brain Cell, and, The Universe: Macrocosm Inside the Microcosm -- As Above, So Below. One is only micrometers wide. The other is billions of light years across. One shows neurons in a mouse brain. The other is a simulated image of the universe. Together they suggest the surprisingly similar patterns found in vastly different phenomena. This is a much larger image and the written information is easier to read: http://sprott.physics.wisc.edu/pickover/pc/brain-universe.html


"If the doors of perception were cleansed, every thing would appear to man as it is -- infinite." (William Blake)


"The word 'Consciousness' means conscious and aware. As per the Hindi dictionary, four different meanings of the word 'Consciousness' are: intelligence, tendency of the mind, awareness, and memory. It is clear that the word 'conscious' is used to denote intelligence, tendency related to knowledge, tendency related to memory, and awareness. Consciousness is that element in human beings which differentiates them from other inanimate objects. Consciousness basically refers to that power which helps one in understanding and evaluating one's surroundings and environment. By the terms 'Spiritual Consciousness' is meant the relationship between individual Spirit and God. The human body is endowed with the divine spark in the form of spirit. The aim of human life is to recognize that divine element present within and reach the heavenly abode." (Abstract of a Paper by Prem Kali Sharma, Professor Emeritus, Del, Agra, International Seminar on Religion of Saints -- Spircon 2010)


Within this body
shines the entire Universe,
so the saints say.
-- Param Sant Tulsi Sahab of Hathras


Rumi: "All is known in the sacredness of silence."


"Whatever little is possible, do meditation everyday. But never ever give up or discontinue meditation. You will definitely meet with success." (Swami Sant Sevi Ji Maharaj)


"The practitioners of Sant Mat should perform meditation daily with yearning, zeal and regularity." (Huzur Maharaj)


"Those who enshrine the Beloved in their hearts have both worlds at their command. Lovers remain completely intoxicated in the ecstasy of their love for the Beloved. They offer their souls to the Beloved while still living, and thus immortalize themselves in this life and in the hereafter." (Hazrat Sultan Bahu, Sufi Master)


Make Friends with the Sound (Surat Shabd Meditation): "O surat [soul], the darling of Sant Satguru! Turn around and prick up your ears to the resounding reverberations of the Unstruck Melody. Your stay in this phenomenal world is short-lived (literally four days [the four stages of life, namely, Brahmacharya, Grihastha, Vanaprastha, and finally Sanyasa]); why do you take on such a heavy load (of karmas, bhramas, attachments, greed, lust, anger, ego, hostilities, enmities, hated, revengefulness, jealousy and envy). The guru is repeatedly crying and calling you to come on and make friends with the Sound. (Swami Ji Maharaj, Sar Bachan Radhasoami Poetry)


It is the Primeval Sound which carries one to this Abode,
And it is the Satguru who makes it known.

Our path is through subtle regions,
There the inner sight illumines our way.

He, who carries on the practice of the true Sound,
Beholds the Truth from the beginning to the end
within his body.
By realizing the true Sound with rapt attention,
He attains the status of a pure swan.
Such a devotee reaches the Immortal Abode,
And there he sees mysterious and wondrous sights.
-- Sant Dariya Sahib


The Role of the Master/Sant Satguru In Traditional Sant Mat


"Hope is a lie
and desire a mere dream --
yet both are construed
as actual reality.
But when my guru
gave me his holy wisdom,
I awoke from my dream
and my heart yielded."
(Sant Namdev)


"The Satguru-given Gnosis [direct experience] is lit up in the heart, with whose Light is dispelled the darkness of spiritual ignorance." (Sri Guru Granth Sahib, English and Punjabi Translation, Manmohan Singh, Volume 3)


"The personal and private instruction in the art of this spiritual practice should be received from an accomplished spiritual master. Once the technique has been learned, one should practice it regularly and daily according to the instructions given by the master." (Maharshi Mehi, Philosophy of Liberation)


"The saints and true teachers are known to be impartial; their blessings fall like the rain. However, the rain, while falling on all, tends to collect in deep pools just as the grace of the saints while showering on all flows rapidly and collects in the deep pools of the aspirants who are devoted. It is not surprising that the aspirants through their devotion draw the grace of the master towards them." (Maharshi Mehi)


"By the Guru's instruction the mind of the disciple is rendered immaculate and she keeps God clasped to her heart. She keeps God enshrined in her mind, arranges her affairs, and by the Master's instruction knows her Lord."


"By the Master's instruction the name of God is contemplated. By the guru's grace, soul and body are saturated with the Lord and the Lord's name seems sweet to the mortal. The Lord's name seems sweet to them. He liberates all their families. With their mouths they utter the Lord's name. Their comings and goings cease. They obtain bliss, and their attention remains absorbed the Home of Celestial Music." (Adi Granth)


Remember Simran. "Keep on doing your work. Keep on reciting God's name, and you will live pleasantly in the world." (Guru Kabir)


"The technique of love is truly the root of spirituality. Follow this technique as imparted by the Master. When with his grace the inner lamp is lighted, the true Naam [inner Light & Sound], the support of all, comes to sight." (Sant Dariya Sahib of Bihar)


"One may make any amount of endeavors to withdraw one's Surat [attention] and mind and to open the Third Eye, but all will be in vain without the manifestation of the Current of Grace within." (Maharaj Saheb/Brahma Shankar Misra)


Without love there can be no devotion and wisdom.
With love arisen, they can be experienced
with the Guru's grace.
With intensification of love, one comes in contact
with the True Sound,
And like a lotus in water, abides in its peace and bliss.
-- Sant Dariya Sahib of Bihar


Reverse thy gait from the court of this 
world and attain thy True Home. 
The drop will merge in the Ocean, and thou 
thyself will know the wonder. 
The lost treasure will be found and thy true 
Self will be revealed. 
He who has solved this riddle, O Tulsi, 
is indeed a true Saint. 
-- Param Sant Tulsi Sahab of Hathras


Seeing, Hearing, Exploring the Light and Sound Within You


In the beginning was the Tao.
All things issue from it;
all things return to it.

There was something formless and perfect
before the universe was born.
It is serene. Empty.
Solitary. Unchanging.
Infinite. Eternally present.
It is the mother of the universe.
For lack of a better name,
I call it the Tao.

It flows through all things,
inside and outside, and returns
to the origin of all things.
(Tao Te Ching, Lao Tzu, Stephen Mitchell)


"When God came to have the playful mood ('mauj') to make this creation, a vibration was produced in the beginning along with its companion Sound. This sound itself was termed 'Adi Naam' ('adi' means the original, the first or the primeval, and 'nada' means Name, Word or Sound). This Word is present in each and every, even the minutest particle of the creation. That is why, it is also called the 'sarvavyapini dhvani' ('sarvavyapini' implies all pervading and 'dhvani' means Sound). This very Sound has been variously referred to by rishis (sages) as Om, Sfota, Udgeeth, etc... Subsequently, Sants called it Ram Naam (name of God), sat-naam or satya-naam (True Name), sar-shabda (Quintessential Sound or Word), sat-shabda (True Word) as well. This sound is perceived by the spiritual seeker in inner meditation to attain to the Supreme Sovereign God." (Swami Achyutanand Baba)


"It is essential to practice bindu dhyan, drishti-yoga or the Yoga of Inner Light before doing nada dhyan (Meditation on Inner Sound), because with continued practice of drishti yoga (Yoga of Inner Light) the ability to do nada dhyan is easily gained. The mind gets completely controlled with nada dhyan. .... In Nadavindu Upanishad it has been said about the Nada Dhyan that, 'Sidelining all worries and all efforts... one should mainly focus on the exploration of nada. By doing thus the mind gets dissolved in the nada. The mind thus absorbed in the nada does not crave anymore for the sensory objects.'" -- Swami Achyutanand Baba, "Yoga of Inner Light and Sound":


What is the Audible Life Stream and Why is it Important? Video: http://www.Youtube.com/watch?v=oj_cSvYfrJY


Inner Sound Meditation in Buddhism, Sant Mat and Sufism: This link is to download a Sant Mat Satsang PODcast. It lasts around 30 minutes. This program contains readings about inner Sound meditation, including from Buddhist, Sant Mat, and Sufi sources: http://bit.ly/p2EORu


"The Yoga of Inner Sound or (Nada dhyan [Nada meaning sound while dhyan means meditation] is also called nadanusandhan [exploration {anusandhan} of the Sound {nada}), surat shabd yoga (Yoga or Union of the Soul [surat] with the Sound [shabd]), or shabd dhyan (Meditation on Sound). 'Nada' or 'shabd', meaning sound or word, has great attractive power." (Swami Achyutanand Baba)


"The Sound heard internally is a current which has originally emanated from the Supreme Being and is the means not only of concentrating the will but also of raising the spirit to the Source from which it emanates." (Huzur Maharaj, Radhasoami Mat Prakash)


"My Master has taught me a lesson:
it repeats itself -- without my repeating it.
When I plug my ears with my fingers,
without hearing, I hear its melodies."
--Hazrat Sultan Bahu


"One Sound that is heard leads to another Sound, which, in turn, becomes yet another Sound. Thus, getting hold of several Sounds, one after the other, one finally gets hold of the most captivating Quintessential Primordial Sound.... And, as even this Unstruck Melody is transcended, the Highest State, the Nameless or the Soundless State (Pure or True State of God) is attained." (Maharshi Mehi)


The soul in Sunn will hear resounding peals of Sound,
She will uncover and know the essence of Shabd.
They alone, O Tulsi, will know that Perfect State,
Who have seen and experienced it themselves. 
-- Param Sant Tulsi Sahab of Hathras


"What Sants have said about Sant Mat is what they saw with their own eyes. They have sung of it in the form of couplets and hymns.....Sants have spoken of the secrets of Shabd and the path on which Surat has to proceed......" ("Param Sant Tulsi Sahib", S.D. Maheshwari, Agra)


My eyes got fixed at the central Point 

between the two eyebrows [third eye center],

They do not glance sideways, 

and are fixed at the Point in front;

The Light of God appears within, 

and darkness of the night vanishes,

The Sun, with its extraordinary rays, 

ascends with so many sparkles,

Consciousness finally gets immersed 

in the Quintessential Sound,

Baba Devi Sahib tells Mehi to remain 

absorbed day and night 

in such applications. 

(Padavali of Maharshi Mehi)


"The waves or vibrations of Sound permeate the whole of the body...... It exists in the body in the form of vitality or Life-Current. It exists in the mental sky in the form of Light, while it exists as Sound in the void.... It is the highest duty of every individual to acquire experiential knowledge of this Sound and to investigate or explore the Origin or Source from where this Sound flows out." (Baba Devi Sahab)


Entering the cave of the inner sky,
See the manifestation of the boundless Sound.

By dwelling upon the Unstruck Divine Music,
the inner experience opens up.
And with the realization of the Truth,
one reaches the other shore.

This realization is beyond the experience
of the three worlds.
It is the realization of the Primeval Lord,
the very goal of our love.
-- Sant Dariya Sahib of Bihar


Online Book About the Classic Sants and Sufis of the East: "Sants, Sadhs, Mahatmas and Devotees of the Past": http://bit.ly/ruZrt1



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#2999 From: SantMatMysticism <santmat_mystic@...>
Date: Sat Sep 10, 2011 1:52 am
Subject: Essential Teachings of Baba Devi Sahab of Moradabad 		santmat_mystic
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Essential Teachings of Baba Devi Sahab of Moradabad






Some Rare Passages That Have, For the First Time, Appeared in English

Background/Introduction

Baba Sevi Sahab (1843 - 1919)

According to Veena Howard, Baba Devi Sahab's parents were followers of Param Sant Tulsi Sahib of Hathras, India. As an infant he was blessed by Tulsi Sahib (indeed, even before birth according to the account from the SadGuruMehi website below), and grew up being part of the Hathras Sangat. 

Baba Devi Sahab eventually spent some time in nearby Agra and was friends with Huzur Maharaj (Rai Saligram) of the Agra Radhasoami Satsang. He regarded both Soami Ji and Saligram as true Sants. He eventually settled in Moradabad, where he established an ashram and spiritual mission.

"Baba Devi Sahab became a great Sant after Sant Tulsi Sahab. Sant Tulsi Sahab had predicted the incarnation of Baba Devi Sahab as a born yogi. Munshi Maheshwari Lal had utmost devotion for Sant Tulsi Sahab. So, due to that love Tulsi Sahab used to visit his home. Maheshwari Lal had no son and so he used to remain sad. Being pleased by his selfless service and love, Sant Tulsi Sahab once blessed Munshi Maheshwari Lal, saying that soon he would have a great sant-soul as his son who would change millions of lives by his spiritual power. Sants' sayings never become false. Thus Munshi Maheshwari became father of a boy that very year, March 1841.....Baba Devi Sahab started the propagation of Sant Mat widely from the year of 1887, visited many places in India and neighboring countries and spread the knowledge of Sant Mat. He delivered many discourses on different subjects such as Salvation, Devotion, the Universe, God, and Meditation." (SadGuruMehi.com)

Baba Devi Sahab used to travel widely to awaken the masses by propagating the precepts of Sant Mat. In this process, he had also traveled and delivered his discourses in a number of cities located in what is now Pakistan, such as Multan, Quetta, Karachi, etc. 

Baba Devi Sahab was in possession of a hand-written manuscript of Sant Tulsi Sahib of Hathras printed at Hathras itself in the year of 1896, and had it published, sharing the teachings of the great Saint of Hathras with spiritual seekers everywhere: "The book Ghat Ramayan is said to be the work of Tulsi Saheb of Hathras. The first edition of this book was published by one Munshi Devi Prasad Saheb alias Devi Sahib. Subsequently, an edition was brought out in the year 1911 from Belvedere Press....." ("The Esoteric Meaning of the Ramayan", by S.D. Maheshwari, Agra)

Baba Devi Sahab was the Guru of Maharshi Mehi Paramhans ji Maharaj (see the book, "Philosophy of Liberation"). 


Note: All translations below are by Pravesh K. Singh, except for the discourse titled, "God is the Creator of Yoga", rendered in English by Amit Jyoti.


Spiritual Teachings of Baba Devi Sahab


"Those persons who live and practice in accordance with this tradition and principle are called sadhus (sages), and those who have reached or raised themselves into that Realm, where the Truth alone exists, are called Sants [the English word 'Saint', though close and the nearest match, is not an exact translation of the Hindi or Sanskrit word 'Sant']."


"The pathway to the liberation of the 'jiva' (individual soul) already exists within each one of us. Unless one treads onto this Path himself/herself, it is not possible for him/her either to attain freedom (from the cycles of existence) which is the real fruit of any religion, or to know the true wisdom inherent in other religions, or to understand the right meaning of the scriptures belonging to his/her own religion or sect, regardless of however great a 'pundit', 'maulavi', or priest he/she might be."


"The common message that all the Sants have to give is that whatever – inside or outside -- can be seen (comes into sight -- gross or subtle), and as far as there is "roop" (form or shape), all is illusory and impermanent; beyond this (roop) is a Realm which has never been born and will never die or be destroyed. That alone is Truth. It is indestructible. It has no color, no shape or form, and no particular name [is Nameless, Soundless, Formless]; but it is something which can be perceived or understood and, therefore, is entitled to be described or explained with the help of a (symbolic) name. Jiva [the soul] is a part (inseparable part) of it, because jiva, too, is indestructible. Merging this (jiva) into God is known as internal Satsang and where (in the outside world) spiritual people gather together to discuss (these principles) is called external Satsang." 


"We should go to that place where the way to remove these veils is taught. In the terminology of Sants and noble people, such a place is called 'Satsang' (association of devotees to discuss God, meditation and the teachings of the Sants) where methods are taught to inculcate bhakti [love and devotion] and remove the veils that keep it under-cover."


"Only seeing great souls does not bring well-being to anyone. What's needed is to listen to their words, contemplate their teachings, and put them into practice. This means to listen to the words of great souls with veneration, ponder their meaning, and live accordingly. This is what works."


Guru is Indispensable for Self-Realization

Very little of what Baba Devi Sahab said is available in written form and the poems composed by him are still rarer to find. Given below is English translation of one such poem taken from the book, "Satsang Bhajanaavali," compiled and edited by Swami Achyutanand ji. Swami Achyutanand ji is a direct disciple of Maharshi Mehi, still very actively involved in propagation of Sant Mat even at his ripe age of about 80 years. He was the founder editor of the spiritual monthly, "Shanti Sandesh", founded by Maharshi Mehi. 

"Our Lord resides in all of us. 
He is so wonderful that though He pervades 
everything, (yet) He is separate from 
and transcends everything. 
It is not possible to see Him (in His true form) 
without meeting, and learning the secrets from 
an accomplished Guru. 
He is blessed and adorable within whose body 
He reveals Himself (i.e. who can see His true form 
within himself). 
He is without form, color and shape, (so that) 
the Vedas sing 'neti neti' (meaning, 'nothing in this 
creation is like, or resembles Him') in His praise. 
Baba Devi Sahab wonders as to how and in 
how many ways he should describe Him, as He 
(God) is indescribable, beyond the faculties of 
speaking and hearing."


Sayings of Baba Devi Sahib on Love (Bhakti)


"God and bhakti are otherwise one and the same thing".


"In short, bhakti is such a thing without which no worldly or heavenly acts can be accomplished. He alone is a human being (in the true sense) who knows the key to or secret of bhakti. He whose heart is devoid of the spirit of love is not even as good as an animal; he is rather much more inferior to that".


"Bhakti is that essential substance without which any work, either of this world or of the other world, can not be fulfilled; for all such tasks which a man performs with genuine zeal get accomplished well, and all other works in which we do not feel sincerely involved remain incomplete or are only half done."


"Bhakti makes a person immensely wise and of pure intellect. Virtues such as of honesty and truthfulness stand with folded hands in attendance of a devout being. Bhakti is the religion/duty of the whole world; no creed, faith or sect can remain steady and stable in absence of it".


"What is most significant about bhakti is that is opens up inside man the easy pathway to God, treading on which man reaches his centre or destination from where he never (needs to) return".


Sayings of Baba Devi Sahab On Meditation Practice


When Sadguru Baba Devi Sahib was nearing the time of his departure from this ephemeral world for his true destination, satsangis humbly requested him to bless with his parting words. To their request, Baba Devi Sahab had obliged by saying, "Duniyaa waham hai, abhyaas karo", meaning, "This world is an illusion -- practice meditation."


"Do not live even a single day without inner meditation."


"Such persons who are all the time busy in mundane worldly affairs and are not able to spare even one or two hours a day (for meditation), are not fit to be initiated into inner meditation, for even if these persons get to know about the way to the inner secrets, of what use it would be to them!"


"The loftiest or the highest outcome of adopting and following the ways of these (Sants) is that it takes one beyond 'aawaagaman' (the repetitive cycles of birth and death)."


From the Preface to, "Baal Kaa Aadi Aur Uttar Kaa Ant", of Sant Tulsi Sahib:

"Sages and Sants adopt the straight and simple way of living and teach us to meditate with surat (concentrated or focused, alert attention); this meditation can be practiced in any posture -- sitting or reclining, and by anyone whether a follower of Vedic Religion, Islam or Christianity whatever. What is important is not to live a single day in life without practicing meditation, all the experiences of pains and pleasures of the world, one has to go through, notwithstanding."


God is the Creator of Yoga, By Param Sant Baba Devi Sahib (Translated by Amit Jyoti)

"There are two types of dharma in the world. They are first, "udhaar", and second, "nakad". Udhaar dharma is that in which it is said, one attains salvation after death, and nakad dharma is that in which the state of salvation is believed to be experienced/attained during this lifetime. People keep thinking and living on-borrowed-dharma. Some are involved in rituals and outward devotions, while others are pretending to have become divine themselves. They are unaware of the natural screens or veils of Darkness, Lights and Sounds between jiva-souls and God. (God is veiled by five different bodies and subtle bodies, each one inside the other [physical, astral, causal, mental, and etheric]). These are veils which can't be transcended by merely reading some mantras or performing yagna or outward devotions/rituals. For them to be shed, you will surely have to be oriented towards going within, perform Dristi-sadhana [Yoga of Inner Light], and Shabd-sadhana
 [Yoga of Inner Sound], which will make it possible for your consciousness to travel along the solitary Inward Path, crossing the natural and supra-natural realms to reach to such an auspicious place from where your soul would never become detached again to return back in the outer world. But no one can really know of, and practice, these processes by simply reading authentic scriptures.

"First of all, the screen of Darkness can be accessed by closing your eyes. Secondly, the screen or veil of Light can be experienced by crossing the Darkness. Thirdly, the veil of Sounds can be known by listening to them. Fourthly, not so much a screen or veil, but there is a Mystery which can not be understood like the first, second and third. It can only be experienced by perfect practice. 

"According to Sant Mat, having crossed these realms or levels, we achieve the final goal called Mukti (i.e. salvation). To attain liberation/salvation, Sant Mat does not follow numerous complicated practices, but two essential methods: 

1) Drishti Marg (i.e. the Path of inner Light/Vision) and,

2) Shabd Marg (i.e. the Way of inner Sound/Transcendental Hearing). 

"Unlike other worship methods popular in religions and sects with different names, these two methods are not man-made. God himself is the founder and operator of these methods. Since the beginning God has kept these two methods inside human beings with full qualifications. The way of redemption of jivas (i.e. bounded souls) is available within all human beings. Unless the jiva walks along this way, it can't achieve salvation; the real and ultimate goal of religion."


Discourse on Bhakti By Baba Devi Sahab

Baba Devi Sahab departed from Multan and reached Karachi (now in Pakistan) through Queta and many intermediate places. In Karachi, He delivered a marvellous speech on Bhakti i.e. devotion.

Sayings of Baba Devi Sahib on Love (Bhakti) Excerpted From "Baba Devi Sahab: Jeewan Aur Updesh" (Baba Devi Sahab: Life and Teachings), authored by Baba Nandan, a main attendant and great disciple of Baba Devi Sahab:

"Friends! At this time I want to say something to you on a topic which is often talked about, which is often at the tongue of all the people of the earth, but alas! They pay no attention at all to it and regard it as a petty thing. In my view this is an extremely valuable thing that has been considered by the sages of all faiths and creeds to be absolutely essential for accomplishment of their goals. They treat this as the quintessential principle and reckon all other principles as secondary and subservient to this. Also, they believe that without its help, no (other) principle can be effective, nor can success be achieved in any activity - this worldly or the other-worldly. If we choose to call it a 'mystery', it undoubtedly deserves being called so, because that Supreme Soul (God) is the biggest of all mysteries; but, in fact, its rank is no lesser than His. There is a relationship of equality between it and God, and even between the two, it holds the
 higher rank God coming second after it. If God is considered as a lock, it is the key (to open that lock); because without its help neither has the secret of God, nor the secret of creation been revealed to anybody. Whoever comes to possess even a precious little of this wealth also comes to know of both the above secrets, or else there are millions of people who part this world without having realized the secrets of God and (His) creation.
 
"Now the question is: what is this entity called and where is it to be found? Well! Its name is 'Bhakti', 'Ishq', devotion and love. Seen superficially, these three words might appear to be different but in essence these are one and the same. Call it 'bhakti' (devotion), call it 'Ishq' (Urdu equivalent of intense love) or call it love. This (bhakti) has the quintessential and innate character to unite two things together and give birth to a new shape or form. These shapes may be of different kinds, small or large. Some of these shapes at this time are so large that we come to recognize that this is this. And, some shapes are so small that it is not possible to know them even with the help of a microscope. In such a situation how can such an intricate subject be easy of comprehension to common people!
 
"Thus it is evident that these extremely tiny entities or atoms are definitely acted upon by some such thing which has a natural propensity of uniting. Had there been no such thing in action, all these bodies and things would not have come into existence; such a vast world would not have been there for us to see. Beginning from the atom to the whole world, there is a common thread running through all of these so that they can not budge from their position in any way, and that (thread) is bhakti. If that part of indwelling bhakti leaves these the whole of world and its atoms would be disassembled and broken into pieces. 
 
"Therefore, we should understand that bhakti is the life or soul of the entire world; it is responsible for the existence of everything from the tiny atom to all the bodies and masses....." 
 
For the Rest of the Discourse on Bhakti, go to:


For Other Discourses of Baba Devi Sahab, See:

Sayings of Baba Devi Sahab – Part 1:

Sayings of Baba Devi Sahab – Part 2:

Sayings of Baba Devi Sahab – Part 3:

Sayings of Baba Devi Sahab – Part 4:

Sayings of Baba Devi Sahab – Part 5:




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#3000 From: SantMatMysticism <santmat_mystic@...>
Date: Thu Sep 22, 2011 4:06 am
Subject: Light and Sound on the Path: A Digest of Newly Posted Spiritual Quotes and Announcements 		santmat_mystic
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Light and Sound on the Path:
A Digest of Newly Posted Spiritual Quotes and Announcements


At Youtube: An excellent newly recorded introduction to the Journey Within according to Sant Mat, Part 1: http://www.Youtube.com/watch?v=Kcep2WC8N7Q


New E-Book and Audio Book Online: Yoga of Inner Light and Sound -- Several E Book Formats To Choose From! Click the Speaker Icon in the Upper Right Corner For the Audio/Talking Book Option and Enjoy! http://bit.ly/o4zQHa




Sant Mat Radio Podcast: The Opposite of "Not One Of Us" is "We Are All One". Co-Exist! Welcome to our classroom without walls via the radio airwaves and worldwide web: The Nirguna Bhakti Sant Poet-Mystics of India: When has there ever been "only one" Sant Mat guru or true "Gurumukh successor of the time" in Sant Mat history? The answer is: never has there been only one Satguru at a time. There have been multiple genuine guru-lineages contemporary with one another since the time of Guru Kabir (and his successors) and Guru Nanak (and the Sikh Gurus). Program Length: 60 Minutes. Click to Download MP3 and Hear This Edition of Spiritual Awakening Radio [via HealthyLife.Net -- The Positive Talk Radio Network]:




Sant Mat Radio Podcast: Charts of the Heavens -- Maps of Inner Space: Quite amazing actually that there is a general consensus about the different planes on the part of those who practice advanced meditation today, and during previous generations. And not only in Sant Mat. The other day I was reading a Sufi book which presented the same basic understanding of the inner regions, suggesting that some Sufi mystics have experienced the same inner regions also. There is a consensus universally in Sant Mat about the Light, the Sound practice, and the Inner Regions -- what experiences will be encountered along the way in meditation: stars, moons, suns, dark voids, tunnels/the whirlpool cave, bright light, etc.... References to the Inner Regions turn up everywhere, even in the teachings of Saints who lived several centuries ago in different parts of India. There are references to Trikuti, Maha Sun, Bhanwar Gufa, etc.....in the bhajans of Mirabai, Dariya Sahib of Bihar, Tulsi Das, Ravidas, Tukarama, and countless others. "All mystics speak the same language for they come from the same country." (Louis-Claude de Saint-Martin) Program Length: 60 Minutes. Click to Download MP3 and Hear This Edition of Spiritual Awakening Radio:




The iconic spiritual classic, "Path of the Masters", by Julian P. Johnson, is an online book, uploaded by various people at several sites on the web. On this page there is a speaker icon in the upper right corner. By clicking it, you can hear the book being read aloud -- the "Read This Book Aloud" option. You can change the page being displayed, and click the speaker icon again to hear any part of the book being read!


"There is only one time when it is essential to awaken.
That time is now." (Buddha)




"What we are today comes from our thoughts of yesterday, and our present thoughts build our life of tomorrow: our life is the creation of our mind.

"If one speaks or acts with an impure mind, suffering follows them as the wheel of the cart follows the beast that draws the cart.

"What we are today comes from our thoughts of yesterday, and our present thoughts build our life of tomorrow: our life is the creation of our mind.

"If a man speaks or acts with a pure mind, joy follows him as his own shadow.

"'He insulted me, he hurt me, he defeated me, he robbed me.' Those who think such thoughts will not be free from hate. 

"'He insulted me, he hurt me, he defeated me, he robbed me.' Those who think not such thoughts will be free from hate.

"For hate is not conquered by hate: hate is conquered by love. This is a law eternal.

"Many do not know that we are here in this world to live in harmony. Those who know this do not fight against each other.

"He who lives only for pleasures, and whose soul is not in harmony, who considers not the food he eats, is idle and has not the power of virtue - such a man is moved by MARA, is moved by selfish temptations, even as a weak tree is shaken by the wind.......

"Those who think the unreal is, and think the Real is not, they shall never reach the Truth, lost in the path of wrong thought.

"But those who know the Real is, and know the unreal is not, they shall indeed reach the Truth, safe on the path of right thought."

-- Buddha, Dhammapada, from Chapter One, Translation by Juan Mascaro:




"If thine eye be Single, thy whole body shall be full of Light". (Yeshua, New Testament)

"He who remembers the Poet, the Creator, who rules all things from all time, smaller than the smallest atom, but upholding this vast universe, who shines like the sun beyond darkness, far far beyond human thought; and at the time of his departure is in union of love and the power of Yoga and, with a mind that wanders not, keeps the power of his life between his eye-brows, he goes to that Spirit Supreme, the Supreme Spirit of Light." (Krishna, Bhagavad Gita)


"Who am I; what is the reality of my existence; what is the Truth are some of the questions that agitate a spiritual seeker's mind. None of these questions can be answered fully, since these questions as well as their answers arise at the level of mind, whereas the truth thereof can only be realized, not by the mind but at a level beyond the mind, at the level of the Self. All the scriptures attempt to provide answers to these questions in their own way, but no explanation or description can be fully satisfactory, as the Truth cannot be comprehended completely in words....."

"To realize the Truth, one has to first realise the Self, because the essence of the Truth is the same as the essence of the Self....." (R.K.Gupta, The Science and Philosophy of Spirituality)


"The great philosopher Socrates was asked by Crito 'in what manner should he be buried?' It is said that Socrates had replied: 'In any manner you like, but first you must catch me, the real me. You can bury only my body and not the real me.' Being the irradiation of the all-shining luminous Sat Purush, the soul is also luminous." (R.K. Gupta, The Science and Philosophy of Spirituality)


"When the Lord wants one of his souls to come back Home, He makes that person feel lonely deep inside, like something is missing. This is the Great Lord's special way of reminding the soul that its Real Home is not in this world but back in the ocean of Light. God has placed an invisible secret door in every human being. God sends his own Great Power, Mercy and Love down into our world to find the marked soul drops and bring them back Home. This Great Power is called a True Living Master and lives inside a human body that looks like yours and mine. He makes a faithful promise to take the soul back Home. He shows that person how to close his eyes, sit very still and lovingly remember the Great Lord. His mind becomes so peaceful and quiet that he is able to hear the wondrous wave of Sound and seek the shining Light of the stream that flows all the way back to Ocean of the Lord."

-- The Journey of The Soul:


Kabir says, "When the drop loses itself in the ocean, then all the worries are finished." (Saying of Kabir quoted by Sant Dharamdas in the Anurag Sagar)
"In the inner realms of being, there is a shower of beautiful shimmering rays of Light, and also the rain of divine nectar of divine Sound. In these two forms is found the true divine elixir within. There has always been a talk of this nectar in the myths and legends, but no one has seen this nectar. What is this true elixir?

"Guru Nanak says:

'Those who follow the True Guide (Satguru) find the nectar in the form of Divine Sound.'

"Guru Nanak tells us that one must seek this inner Light, this inner Sound, and this nectar through the following technique:

'In each heart the Divine resides hidden; each heart is permeated with divine Light.

'By intense focus one is able to break the door open and reach the Realm of the Divine. By the grace of God the door shatters, and the mind becomes immersed in the sweet drizzle of divine Sound.

'By focusing on the divine Sound (Shabda) the consciousness goes beyond the realm of death and rebirth.'

"While journeying within, the seeker at first experiences the Anahat, the divine vibrating Sound, and then the Anahat Sound, the transcendental un-struck Sound which reverberates in the depth of the soul. This is also known as Omkar. Through Omkar the entire creation came into being.

"The tenth Guru, Gobind Singh sings the praise of the divine Sound:

'OM is the Sound of the beginning. Through this Sound the whole world, the earth and the sky. came into existence.'

"It is said in the Prana Sagali:

'The Sound is the essential essence of the world. This (Shabda) Sound reverberates in the heart of each person, proclaims Guru Nanak.'

"Those seekers who can experience this Sound find that it takes them to the Divine Realm. In this way of meeting God, the inner self finds true peace. Therefore, aspirants should meditate on the words of the guru and should abandon the ego -- this is the path to liberation."

-- Swami Sant Sevi Ji Maharaj, Harmony Of All Religions, from Chapter 6: Sikhism (Online in the Library Section of SpiritualAwakeningRadio.com)


"The current of Radhasoami Dayal's [the Lord of the Soul, Supreme Soul's] compassion is ever-flowing, but its effect will not be perceptible unless the current of the devotee's spirit and mind touches it or mingles with it. This will only be possible when the mind and the spirit get engaged in Abhyas [meditation practice, spiritual exercises] with Virah and Prem [love, and yearning to meet the Beloved]." (Huzur Maharaj)




"Begin meditation with internally chanting or repeating the Guru-mantra-incantation. And then try to visualize the radiant form or image of the Satguru in the still darkness of the inner sky (with eyes closed). Follow that with focusing your attention at the seat of the soul within, i.e. at the Third Eye or the Inner Eye, by making the two streams of consciousness in your two eyes converge in a Point.

"When the two currents of consciousness meet in a Point, Divine Light appears within. Then, practice Surat Shabd Yoga (Yoga of Divine Sound) i.e., try to shift your attention to listening to the Divine Sounds or myriads of melodies (Anahad Naad) ringing inside. Listening to the Divine Sound destroys all the perversions, agitations and fickleness of the mind.

"Ascending beyond or transcending myriads of sounds, try to identify and tune in to the Quintessential Unstruck Melody, called 'Saar Shabd' or 'Anaahat Naad' which alone is capable of taking you and merging you into oneness with the Supreme Lord; this is the ultimate deliverance, emancipation or liberation." (Couplets of Swami Sant Sevi Ji Maharaj on Meditation Practice)




Sweet Melodies Which Attract the Soul, By Shri Shivbrat Lal

"The human body is a kin to a radio broadcasting station (transmitting point). It transmits into the ethers subtle and mental waves of what the mind thinks. Mental thought-forces and spiritual currents go out in the atmosphere according to the disposition of one's mental and spiritual make up. The human body system is also a radio receiver. A powerful broadcasting station is more effective. Likewise, the receiving set has to be tuned to listen to such broadcasts. The mind can be made receptive to the Guru's solace-giving thought and spiritual Currents. This can be achieved by the quality of attention. One's attention is the number one tool which can do and undo things. The magnetic force of the Guru's holy touch is the guiding principle. If the initiate fixes their attention properly, there is no question of failure in meditation.

"Various sorts of Sound Currents reverberate in the human system from which the initiate has to pick up the right one and listen to it, otherwise he will go astray and lose his equipoise. The practical Guru forewarns his disciple and directs which Sound to listen to and which one to discard. A variety of Sound Currents are of a lower order which have to be rejected. The experienced practitioner [of Surat Shabd Yoga] knows that some of these low order Sound Currents can become audible. Therefore the initiate his to be very careful and avoid then in entirety. If not, they are bound to create a sort of roadblock in the ascension process.

"As aspirant must first get the know-how, this is what initiation means and implies. It is fruitless to make an effort independently. It is bound to fail. Unless one gets the name and address of a person's house in a large city, he cannot find the residence he wants to go to. The same law operates in the pursuit of Satsang. The Guru there is the living divine guide in the person of a living Master. One needs help from such a living source to acquaint himself and then start practice. The discourses of the Master are very instructive. The very presence of the Guru is a suggestive and corrective phenomena. The atmosphere is serene, calm and peaceful. The spiritual Current of the Guru plays its own role. All this produces a sobering and purifying effect on the mind. The law of association with the Guru works wonders. So let him be the guiding light of life. In this way alone would the initiate cast away ignorance and dispel all obscurities and failings. The devotee receives the required knowledge. Then he needs to commence his spiritual journey internally. No doubt the devotee gains knowledge, receives Naam Dan (initiation) and gets happily engaged in his practice.

"The devotee in his spiritual journey upwards hears sweet Melodies which attract him. The Melodies are a powerful magnetic force which draws the attention inwards and makes it fully attuned to proceed up and up. We hear external instrumental music like the sitar, sarangi, violin, harmonium, fiddle, flute and veena. We become attracted by them and almost acquire a semi-rapturous condition. One can well imagine how charming the Dhun-Atmic Shabda (internal Music) emanating from both subtle and causal regions can be. It is a thousand times more enchanting and absorbing! All one needs is to get the know-how of this simple method of the Saints. A Sufi of note has described this condition thus:

'If I were to reveal
a little of the Heavenly Music
that is heard within,
even the dead
will rise from their graves.'"
(from the Radhasoami book, "Dayal Yoga")


Huzur Baba Sawan Singh: "When you sit [in meditation]... see that the mind is at rest and does not go out and unnecessarily think about other things. When, by Repetition of the Names [Simran] with attention fixed in the eye focus, you have become unconscious of the body below the eyes, then your attention will catch the Sound Current. Select the Sound resembling the church bell and discard all other sounds. Then slowly your soul will leave the body and collect in the eyes and become strong. Then fix your attention in the biggest star, so much that you forget everything else except the Sound and the star. Then this star will burst and you will see what is within and beyond. After crossing the star you will have to cross the sun and the moon [inner manifestations of light]. Then you will see the Form of the Master. When that Form becomes steady it will reply. This Form will reply to all of your enquiries and guide you to higher stages... These stars are of the first sky only, and Hindu philosophers will have spoken of seven skies [in universes of elevating degrees]... After crossing the star, the sun and the moon you will see that Form which will never leave you, not even for a moment." (Enchanted Land)


"Sar Shabda (the Essential Divine Sound) beckons a return to the Supreme Sovereign [Supreme Soul]. The progression of Sound in all centers of the Realms is upward, carrying one's consciousness from the lower centers to the higher centers, ultimately reaching the Supreme Sovereign God." (Maharshi Mehi, Philosophy of Liberation)


"As long as the soul remains in the body, 0 brother, practice the Path of Shabda." (Anurag Sagar/Ocean of Love)


"Surat [the Soul] is an ansh (particle, emanation) of the Supreme Being, as the sun and its rays." (Huzur Maharaj, "Guru Updesh")


"The Light of one soul is equal to that of sixteen suns." (Anurag Sagar)


Music Video: Everybody's Gotta Learn Sometime - Korgis:


Music Video: Lisa Gerrard: Space Weaver:

Lyrics

my precious love can only come from above
in unity is born a kiss of dignity
my precious love will only come from above
and there you wish away
and with the least they met
you love better
precious love precious love precious love precious love precious love
precious love precious love precious love precious love precious love



When Universes Collide: New Evidence of Multiverse Theory Detected

"The highly-theoretical idea of universes beyond our own has just received a nudge of evidence thanks to what appears to be bruising on the walls of our own known universe.

"Our universe, according to the theory, is in a type of bubble, which is essentially the cosmic microwave background (CMB) left behind from The Big Bang. If this is true, then there would be rare collisions with other universe bubbles that would leave a type of signature or mark behind.

"After seven years of working with the Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe, Dr Hiranya Peiris and a team from The University College London have detected patterns in the CMB that may be physical evidence of the multi-universe run-ins":





Reply | Messages in this Topic (1)
#3001 From: SantMatMysticism <santmat_mystic@...>
Date: Mon Sep 26, 2011 8:43 am
Subject: Sant Mat Library 		santmat_mystic
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Sant Mat Library

Recommended Reading: the LIBRARY SECTION of SpiritualAwakeningRadio.com, a comprehensive collection of links to Sant Mat, Radhasoami, and Surat Shabd Yoga E Books, also, Audio/Talking Books. These have been uploaded by various individuals at Google Books, Archive.org, Scribd, and other third-party ONLINE LIBRARIES around the world -- A Sant Mat Granth – The Teachings of the Masters: 

Reply | Messages in this Topic (1)
#3002 From: SantMatMysticism <santmat_mystic@...>
Date: Sat Oct 8, 2011 7:58 pm
Subject: All About the Sound -- Light and Sound on the Path 		santmat_mystic
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All About the Sound -- Light and Sound on the Path: In the Beginning was the Sound, and the Tao was with God, and the OM was God




New Satsang Podcast Available: Exploring the Path of the Masters: Inter-Faith Readings: Some Thoughts About Thought -- We Become What We Think, The Dhamapada (from Chapter One), Phelps Notes on God as an Ocean of Love and Spirit, the Mystic Poetry of Dadu Dayal, and, My Three Favorite Stories About Guru Nanak. Program Length: 60 Minutes. Click to Download MP3 and Hear This Edition of Spiritual Awakening Radio [via HealthyLifeNet -- The Positive Talk Radio Network]: http://bit.ly/nAbms3


New Book Added to the Sant Mat Library:
Dangers Of Spiritual Healing, Yoga and Occult Powers, by Kirpal Singh.

New Book Added to the Sant Mat Library: "Phelps' Notes: "The Supreme Father is a vast homogeneous Ocean of Pure Spirit." (Myron Phelps)

Spiritual Books from India Online:
The Sant Mat Library:
Some Recommended Reading:


"Look at God within yourself, how 'God is Light.' For his Nature is a glorious, many-splendored Light. He manifests the Light of his Nature to those who love Him in all the worlds." (John of Dalyatha, Syriac Mystic)

Music Video: ".....In The Grace Of Your Love":
"In the grace of your love I see you shining inside":



Idolatry Comes In Many Forms

C.U.L.T. (Controlling Understanding, Limiting Talent): As religious organizations or institutions grow larger and become ever more controlling, the smaller it makes everyone feel.  In simplicity, be like the Buddha and his disciples, gathered together around the Bodhi Tree.

"We have only one consciousness stream. When we associate with truth, we ascend upwards and when we associate with untruth we fall down." (Acharya Tulsi, a Jainst teacher quoted in, "Harmony of All Religions", by Swami Sant Sevi Ji Maharaj, Published by Maharshi Mehi Ashram)

"Knowledge without love for the Supreme Being is futile and tends towards untruth or darkness or materialism, while love turns everything to good use and leads to enlightenment and truth." (Huzur Maharaj)

"Moving down from the middle of the two eyes is going towards ignorance, and moving up from the middle of two eyes is going towards Knowledge." (Bhagirath Baba)

"The souls are all bound by illusions and are rotating round the great wheel of birth and death. This state of the individual soul or souls is the root cause of all sufferings. In order to come out of these, the only remedy is devotion to God." (Maharshi Mehi)

"Put all imaginations away, and stand fast in that which you are." (Kabir)

"O Jiva [captive Soul somewhere in time]! Give up all blind adherences and beliefs, concentrate within and seek the Supreme Being there, adopting Him alone as your goal. Do ponder over what I say and see for yourself with eyes wide open that there is none in this world whom you can call your own. You should adopt the Supreme Being alone as your prop and support." (Param Sant Tulsi Sahib)

"The highest aim of humanity is to know one's self and to know God. Every moment of our life is most precious. We should not fritter it away in useless pursuits, but devote it in the search of self and God." (Kirpal Singh)

"The true bliss of meeting the Beloved Lord is such that its rapturous absorption does not diminish or wear out. There is continual intoxication of the Holy Name and nectar." (Huzur Maharaj, Nij Updesh Radhasoami)

"The Supreme Being, being a boundless Ocean of Spirit or Love; and, human being, being a drop or current of spirit or love from this ocean; and, love being the very essence and means of existence of the whole creation, it follows that no effort in any direction, temporal or spiritual, unless actuated by love or affectionate regard, can be crowned with success, and, the work or labour rendered easy, sweet and harmonious. Love is most sublime, having its origin in the highest region, the abode of the Supreme Being. In whatever heart it sprang up, it will gradually raise and carry the fortunate possessor of this lofty and noble passion to the highest region." (Huzur Maharaj, Radhasoami Mat Prakash)

"Through association of Saints, the hearing of spiritual talks and study, wisdom can be acquired. Wisdom is essential in determining what is the right way to live your life." (Maharshi Mehi)

"The place where people are always talking about the secrets of the path of Surat Shabd Yoga, is true Satsang." (Huzur Maharaj)


The Reality Within

"This practice can be conducted easily and comfortably if the devotee has a little love for the Supreme Being. Without love it will be too hard and difficult to practice Surat-Shabd-Yoga with any good result to be obtained within a short time." (Huzur Maharaj)

"The one who has purity of character, who practices diligently the Yoga of Sound, and who can explain clearly Sant Mat (the complete Path of the Masters with nothing missing), can be accepted and trusted as Satguru/Teacher." (Maharshi Mehi)

The true living teacher (Sant Satguru) guides their students into methods of contemplative meditation practice so that the Unseen may become seen, and the Unheard may be heard:

"It is the mercy of my Satguru that has made me to know the unknown;
I have learned from Him how to walk without feet, to see without eyes, to hear without ears, to drink without mouth, to fly without wings;
I have brought my love and my meditation into the land where there is no sun and moon, nor day and night.
Without eating, I have tasted of the sweetness of nectar; and without water, I have quenched my thirst.
Where there is the response of delight, there is the fullness of joy. Before whom can that joy be uttered?
Kabir says: 'The Guru is great beyond words, and great is the good fortune of the disciple.'" (Songs of Kabir, Rabindranath Tagore)

"Seeing without eyes
Hearing without ears
Walking without feet
Working without hands
Uttering His Name without tongue
And dying while living
Is accepting His Will."
-- Guru Angad

From a prayer found in the Mandaean Gnostic scriptures of Iraq: "Thou hast showed us that which the eye has not seen, and caused us to hear that which the human ear has not heard. Thou has freed us from death and united us with Life, released us from darkness, and united us with Light. Thou hast shown us that which the eye has not seen, and caused us to hear that which the human ear has not heard." (Canonical Prayer Book of the Mandaeans)

"With the Divine Eye, which is purified and surpasses the human, a bhikkhu surveys a thousand worlds... I have proclaimed to my disciples the way whereby with the Divine Ear element, he hears both kinds of sounds, the divine and the human, those that are far as well as near. And thereby many disciples of mine abide having reached the consummation and Perfection of Direct Knowledge." (Buddha, The Middle Length Discourses of the Buddha, A Translation of the Majjhima Nikaya)

"All is known in the sacredness of silence." (Rumi)

"There is a silence of the tongue. There is a silence of the whole body. There is a silence of the soul. There is a silence of the mind, and there is a silence of the spirit." (Abraham of Nathpar, Syriac Mystic)

"I am the Voice whose Sound is manifold
and the Word whose appearance is multiple....
I am the hearing which can be attained by everyone."
(Nag Hammadi Library: Thunder: Perfect Mind, a Gnostic Gospel)

"Each celestial body, in fact each and every atom, produces a particular sound on account of its movement, its rhythm or vibration. All these sounds and vibrations form a universal harmony in which each element, while having it's own function and character, contributes to the whole." (Pythagoras)

And there are different levels of meaning with the quote from Pythagoras. I am reminded of this passage by George Arnsby Jones: "All beautiful forms and tones of this world are mere reflections of some aspect of that ultimate Love-Music of the Great Creative Word. Within the vast complex of creation, each individual spirit is himself/herself a spark of that Eternal Song of Love."

"That eternal Sound is in everyone, but dormant. One has to 'awaken' it with love, devotion, recitation of the Name and meditation. That Sound is unceasing and unfathomable, and is full of bliss." (Prakashmani Sahib)

"The Eternal Truth ('Sat' or Eternal Word) is hidden in every being. Without the Satguru it does not become known." (Prakashmani Sahib)

"The Satguru imparts knowledge of Surat Shabd Yoga, and control of the mind and senses. When both are controlled, we glimpse the essence of everything. Thus we bow down to Him that reveals this essence.

"The Satguru came into the world to remove bondage from the souls. Those who had positive and good thoughts and pure hearts came close to Him. He showered his grace on them and freed them from the worldly bondage. Whenever the devotees called for him, he appeared and, with the power of the Word, alleviated their suffering and taught them the essence of all knowledge. We need to take refuge in the Satguru who is the manifestation of the Word." (Prakashmani Sahib)

"Light and Sound arise from the Primal Shabd. Let one make one's attention one-pointed, and let the Surat catch the Sound Current with rapt attention! This is the only way to rise to the Primal Shabd. One should fix one's attention at that point where the sun and the moon meet (at the eye-center). One will find a Resounding Melody emanating from the Primal Shabd. One should merge oneself into that Melody. There the Thousand-petalled Lotus blossoms, although the Primal Source is above the Akah Lotus. There arises a unique fragrance from the Thousand-petalled Lotus, enjoying which the souls are thrilled with great delight." (Sant Dariya Sahib of Bihar)

"When using this Mystical Sound as the basic support for his meditation, the seeker should also be very alert and attentive as to where the subtler aspects of this Sound are drawing him within himself. He will thus, little by little, gravitate to ever finer states of consciousness and will start to sense an out-of-the-ordinary inner continuity of being that is beyond description and that it is impossible for him to experience in his habitual state. As his meditation deepens, it will bring with it a most subtle, transparent, and luminous consciousness that he will finally become immersed in and one with. He will no longer sense himself in the same way as he did in the past. He will become mysteriously transformed into an unchanging and enigmatic 'Spectator', plunged in the vast silence of an eternal cosmic 'Nowness.'"

"The aspirant should look upon this Nada [Mystic Sound] as a Divine Grace and rare opportunity, always turning to it with the utmost respect, revering it as the treasured means that can make his deliverance possible." (Edward Salim Michael, "The Law of Attention - Nada Yoga and the Way of Inner Vigilance")

"When meditating with this Nada [Inner Mystic Sound], it is essential that the aspirant always seek and follow the particular aspect of it that is most subtle and 'ultra' in pitch as well as in brilliance. Even when the Sound becomes very shrill and loud in moments of deep concentration, he [or she] must not be tempted to be satisfied with it merely because it is sharp and resonant. He should relentlessly attempt to rise further and further into ever more subtle spheres of its mysterious Invisible Kingdom." (Edward Salim Michael, "The Law of Attention - Nada Yoga and the Way of Inner Vigilance")

Guru Baba Sahib propagated the secrets of Sant Mat [Teachings of Sants].
We were all marching ahead in darkness,
Not being acquainted with the inner secrets of Sant Mat.
Guru Baba Sahib explained to us all about these secrets.
First of all, he asked me to close the eyelids and further advised not to allow the mind to wander outside,
He directly helped me catch the star lying in front of my nose and between the two eyebrows.
The Soundwaves rose up in the very house of Sushumna [middle passage within],
And Surat [attention of the soul] mounted up with the help of Drishti Yoga [inner seeing].
Catching, with the help of Surat, the Quintessential Sound among the multiple Sounds,
By way of Surat-Shabd-Yoga [Yoga of Inner Sound], the devotee ascends,
Leaving the intricacies of the multiple Sounds,
That keeps him engrossed in deep illusions.
Guru has given the secrets of the Yoga of Sound, Surat-Sabda-Yoga.
His secrets are so very deep, says Mehi, that they were not known to the world. However, Guru Baba Sahib kindly made these secrets public for the benefits of all. (Padavali of Maharshi Mehi)

"Various sorts of Sound Currents reverberate in the human system from which the initiate has to pick up the right one and listen to it, otherwise he will go astray and lose his equipoise. The practical Guru forewarns his disciple and directs which Sound to listen to and which one to discard." (Shiv Brat Lal)

"'Maulana Rumi, the great Sufi mystical poet, wrote of the plaintive strains of the flute, played upon the top of a mountain', remarked the Master. 'This flute melody tells of the separation of the soul from its True Source'......As my Master had informed me, the Whirling Region and all the realms below it -- supercausal and causal, astral-mental and physical -- must eventually fall into dissolution. Dissolutions of a relatively frequent nature and short duration extend to the top of the causal region, while the immeasurably longer and far less frequent Grand Dissolutions extend through the supercausal realm of the Cosmic Lake of Purification into the high realm of the Whirling Region. And so the aspiring soul must journey further upwards in order to attain true spiritual liberation; for only the Abode of Love, the Fifth Inner Region above the plane of the physical universe, is unaffected by the many cosmic dissolutions, great and small. It is the Abode of Love that is the true home of each and every human soul." (The Pilgrimage of James -- An Odyssey of Inner Space, by George Arnsby Jones)

"I listened carefully and my consciousness was now permeated with melodies and harmonies that were partly reminiscent of the finest string compositions that I had ever heard in the physical world. However, such a comparison is totally inadequate, for I was now enjoying the Unstruck Music, that celestial melody that sounds endlessly in the exalted levels of the cosmic universe." (The Pilgrimage of James -- An Odyssey of Inner Space, by George Arnsby Jones, Peacehaven Press)




Nada Yoga: Inner Sound Meditation, the Music of the Spheres
By James Bean
Copyright November 2004

"The person, who is in tune with the universe, becomes like a radio receiver through which the Voice of the universe is transmitted." (Hazrat Khan)

"This creative current, filling all space, may be likened to the electromagnetic waves of the radio." (Julian P. Johnson)

"...The Great Creative Current flows outwards and downwards to create, govern and sustain all regions. It passes out from this region somewhat like the radio emanations going forth from a great broadcasting station. It is the Audible Life Stream, the most important factor in the system of the Masters. This Stream permeates the entire system of universes. A thing of great importance to us is that the music of this ever-flowing current, the stream of life, can be heard by a real Master and also by his students who have advanced even a little on the Path." (Julian P. Johnson, The Path of the Masters)

"The subject of Shabd (Inner Sound, The Music of the Creator) is such that we cannot do justice to it by discursive reasoning. All that can be said is that 'Shabd' implies the Power of God that has created and is sustaining the various grand divisions, divisions and sub-divisions of the vast creation of God. It is a current from the Ocean of Consciousness and is characterized by Sound-vibration, or in other words, It is a live and active principle which, emanating from God, is enlivening all creation. It is the instrument with which God creates, controls and sustains His vast universe. It acts as a life-line between the Creator and His creation and serves as a golden bridge between the two. The divine currents, like the ethereal waves of a radio, are spread out in the atmosphere in all the directions of the compass, giving out delectable strains of music. We, however, cannot catch the ethereal vibrations and listen to the divine melody until we get in tune with the Infinite by adjusting our mental apparatus. Therefore we become etherealized more and more as we come in tune with the heavenly music. Shabd is the connecting link between God and man." (Sant Kirpal Singh)

"The vibrations of this Sound are too fine to be either audible or visible to the material eyes or ears..." (Hazrat Khan) Yet, as Masters and mystics often point out, there is another kind of hearing and another kind of seeing. The eyes and ears of the soul -- the spiritual senses -- can be developed. There is Light coming from beyond the darkness, and there is Music coming from beyond the silence, for those who have ears to hear -- those who desire to meditate and discover the wonders of inner space for themselves.

Nada Yoga, Inner Sound Meditation, in Hinduism

Hinduism is very much a religion of divine Light and Sound; many Indian scriptures and spiritual traditions teach about the universe being created through the Sound of AUM, the ecstasy of hearing the cosmic flute of Krishna, or hearing the Unstruck Melody (Anhad Shabad) of God that reverberates throughout the universe. Yogis of Nada Yoga and Masters of Shabd Yoga Meditation impart to their students knowledge about developing their inner spiritual sense of transcendental hearing.

"Our physical and astral bodies, our Indriyas and the mind, all have Sound as their basis. As we penetrate deep into them they only lead us to Sound. As we analyze our individual existence, it takes us to Sound before we reach the transcendent Self." (Sri Swami Sivananda)

"By one who is desirous of attaining perfection in Yoga, Nada alone has got to be closely heard (meditated upon), having abandoned all thoughts and with a calm mind." (Sankaracharya, "Yoga-taravali," quoted in Nada Yoga by Sri Swami Sivananda, The Divine Life Society)

"Let yogi sit on Sidh Asana and while practicing the Vaisnavi Mudra, should hear the sound through his right ear. By communion with the Word, he will become deaf to the external sounds, and will attain the Turya Pad or a state of equipoise within a fortnight. First the murmuring sounds resembling those of the waves of the ocean, the fall of rain and the running rivulets and the Bheri will be heard intermingled with the sounds of bell and conch,..." (Nada Bind Upanishad)

The following is from the Nadbindu Upanishad, on the practice of Nada Yoga (Inner Sound) meditation. It's from Thirty Minor Upanishds - Including the Yoga Upanishads, K. Narayanasvami Aiyar, Santarasa Publications. ("Minor" as opposed to the twelve "major" Upanishads, which are most widely translated: Mandukya, Isa, Katha,Chandogya, etc. There are 108 Upanishads in all.)

"The Upanishads represent for the Hindu approximately what the New Testament represents for the Christian. The earliest of these spiritual treatises, which vary greatly in length, were put down in Sanskrit between 800 and 400 B.C." (The Upanishads, Penguin Classics)

Nada Bindu Upanishad: "The yogin being in the siddhasana (posture) and practicing the vaishnavimudra, should always hear the internal sound through the right ear.

"The sound which he thus practices makes him deaf to all external sounds. Having overcome all obstacles, he enters the turya state within fifteen days.

"In the beginning of his practice, he hears many loud sounds. They gradually increase in pitch and are heard more and more subtly. At first, the sounds are like those proceeding from the ocean, clouds, kettle-drum, and cataracts: in the middle (stage) those proceeding from mardala (a musical instrument), bell, and horn.

"At the last stage, those proceeding from tinkling bells, flute, vina (a musical instrument), and bees. Thus he hears many such sounds more and more subtle.

"When he comes to that stage when the sound of the great kettle-drum is being heard, he should try to distinguish only sounds more and more subtle.

"He may change his concentration from the gross sound to the subtle, or from the subtle to the gross, but he should not allow his mind to be diverted from them towards others.

"The mind having at first concentrated itself on anyone sound fixes firmly to that and is absorbed in it.

"It (the mind) becoming insensible to the external impressions, becomes one with the sound as milk with water, and then becomes rapidly absorbed in chidakas (the akas where Chit prevails).

"Being indifferent towards all objects, the yogin having controlled his passions, should by continual practice concentrate his attention upon the sound which destroys the mind.

"Having abandoned all thoughts and being freed from all actions, he should always concentrate his attention on the sound, and (then) his chitta becomes absorbed in it.

"Just as the bee drinking the honey (alone) does not care for the odor, so the chitta which is always absorbed it's sound, does not long for sensual objects, as it is bound by the sweet smell of nada and has abandoned its flitting nature.

"The serpent chitta through listening the nada is entirely absorbed in it, and becoming unconscious of everything concentrates itself on the sound.

"The sound serves the purpose of a sharp goad to control the maddened elephant -- chitta which roves in the pleasure-garden of the sensual objects.

"It serves the purpose of a snare for binding the deer-chitta. It also serves the purpose of a shore to the ocean waves of chitta. The sound proceeding from Pranava which is Brahman is of the nature of effulgence; the mind becomes absorbed in it; that is the supreme seat of Vishnu.

"The sound exists till there is the akasic conception (akasa- sankalpa). Beyond this, is the asabda soundless Para-brahman which is Paramatma."

A good example of Nada (Sound) Meditation practice is found in The Shambhala Guide To Yoga, George Feuerstein, Shambala Books:

"First, the practitioner should block his or her ears with the fingers and focus inwardly, listening for the arising of the inner Sound. To begin with, a variety of sounds may be heard -- the practitioner may hears sounds like: the sound of the ocean, a rain cloud, a drum, a kettledrum, a conch, a bell [ringing sound], a horn, a flute, a lute, or a bee [humming sound]."

The Nada Bindu Upanishad also mentions the possibility of hearing a sound that resembles the Vina, a somewhat sitar-like instrument used in Indian classical music.

These mystic or heavenly inner sounds are always resounding in the soul, thus when one attains a certain level of stillness and concentration, spiritual Sound becomes audible. In truth, the inner Sound is always there, it is we (our attention) who come and go. We gain awareness of the Sound, and this creates the illusion that the Sound has "arrived." When we get distracted or leave off our meditation practice it seems to us that the Sound has "stopped." However, this otherworldly Sound continues, like radio waves flowing through the atmosphere, available to be "tuned in" anytime we wish to listen (do bhajan: listen to the inner Sound in meditation). ////////






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#3003 From: SantMatMysticism <santmat_mystic@...>
Date: Fri Oct 21, 2011 5:03 am
Subject: Teachings of Sant Tulsi Sahib -- Light and Sound on the Path 		santmat_mystic
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Teachings of Sant Tulsi Sahib -- Light and Sound on the Path -- Sant Mat Satsang





[Below are links to: a new Sant Mat Podcast; Bhajan (Hymn) at Youtube of Tulsi Sahib;
a Youtube video about Tulsi Sahib, Saint of
Hathras and certain guru-lineages;
online map of Hathras at the Gate;
Article: Who Was Tulsi Sahib's Guru?
PDF File of Tulsi Sahib writings in English;
Quotes from: Ravidas, Dalai Lama, Quran, Khalil Gibran, Kirpal Singh, Sant Sevi Ji;
passages from Param Sant Tulsi Sahib,
the great grandfather/modern-day founding father or Adi Guru of Sant Mat lineages;
Shyama, disciple of Tulsi Sahib; Maharshi Mehi, "God is Like a Black Hole or Gravitational Singularity",
and, "The Teachings of Sant Dariya of Bihar",
A Good Introduction to Sant Mat from the
Sant Dariya Mission Website.]


New Satsang PODCAST: An Ode to the Unknown God - the Mystic Poetry and Teachings of Sant Ravidas. Program Length: 60 Minutes. Click to Listen - Download MP3 of Spiritual Awakening Radio with James Bean [via HealthyLifeNet -- The Positive Talk Radio Network]: http://bit.ly/oTBmXd




"Have trust in God alone,
And in none other, says Ravidas.
If one is engrossed in something else,
leaving God aside,
One will ever remain disappointed." (Sant Ravidas)

"Love cannot be hidden, O Ravidas,
Howsoever much one tries.
Love is never expressed by the mouth,
But tears do appear in the eyes.
The body is ablaze with the fire of longing
As soon as the memory of the Beloved
comes to mind.
Like the sprinkling of water
on pieces of limestone,
Instantaneous fire arises every time."
(Sant Ravidas)




"My religion is very simple. My religion is kindness." (Dalai Lama)


"Your living is determined not so much by what life brings to you as by the attitude you bring to life; not so much by what happens to you as by the way your mind looks at what happens." (Khalil Gibran)


"Be good, do good, and be one." (Kirpal Singh)


"All bliss, peace and glory lie within you, on the Holy Road upon which you are traveling. So please carry on with your meditations with love, faith and devotion, and you will progress within from day to day and enjoy in ever increasing measures the great love and peace that inner spiritual development affords. Master-Power is working overhead and is your ever benign companion giving all feasible help and grace." (Kirpal Singh, Spiritual Elixir, Volume One)


"After rising above the physical body, you will have self awareness. When you rise above the astral and causal bodies, you will come into your true I-hood. You will see that 'I and my Father are One'. The whole thing depends on the concentration of your attention within yourself. Then, whichever way you direct your attention, you will work wonders." (Kirpal Singh)


"We sit in meditation, fail to concentrate, and get upset or fed up. A pessimistic thinking sets in as to whether or not 'I would be able to do it.' No, we should not get nervous, or anxious, nor should we nurture any doubts in our minds. We must go on trying, with persistence and perseverance." (Swami Sant Sevi Ji Maharaj)




Bhajan (Hymn, Chant) of Param Sant Tulsi Sahib of Hathras: "Dil ka huzra saaf kar, jana ke aane ke liye":


Discovered a new Youtube video recently showing scenes from the Sant Tulsi Sahib Mandir/Ashram in Hathras: I recognize several of the images: Sant Tulsi Sahib, Surswami, and Girdhari Saheb, a disciple of Tulsi Sahib who was friends with Swami Ji Maharaj, staying at his house for a time according to the Biography of Soami Ji Maharaj. The previous mahant, Prakash Das, and current mahant in Hathras are also shown in the video. Am not familiar with some of the other photos, perhaps teachers connected with a couple of other ashram centers. Glad to see everyone from India getting online these days:http://www.YouTube.com/watch?v=-orRDiam1mU


Hathras, India: "It was during the times of Ramayana, that Hathras was established. When Tulsi Sahib began to recite a particular version of the epic poem called Sampurn Ramayana, he chose to start with the town of Hathras......Tulsi Sahib's grave is housed at the Siyal, Kila Gate, Hathras, and throngs of devotees and admirers flock to this site each year to celebrate the great poet." (AnkitaSagar.Wordpress blog)


Hathras, at the Gate: The Tulsi Mandir: Samadh of Sant Tulsi Sahib is located at Siyal, Kila Gate, Hathras, India:http://wikimapia.org/16470275/Mandir-Tulsi-Saheb


Sant Mat History: Article: Who Was Tulsi Sahib's Guru? My Thoughts:


"Within This Body" -
Mystic Poem of Sant Tulsi Sahib

Within this body
breathes the secret essence.
Within this body
beats the heart of the Vedas.

Within this body
shines the entire Universe,
so the saints say.

Hermits, ascetics, celibates
- all are lost
seeking Him
in endless guises.

Seers and sages perfectly parrot
the scriptures and holy books,
blinded by knowledge.

Their pilgrimage,
and fasting,
and striving
but delude

Despite their perfect practice,
they discover no destination.

Only the saints
who know the body's heart
have attained the Ultimate, O Tulsi.

Realize this, and you've found your freedom
(while teachers trapped in tradition
know only the mirage
in the mirror).




"It was Kabir who first gave out the secret of Surat and Shabd. That Shabd is Sar Shabd (True Shabd, True Sound), which is inaccessible and unique. The soul travels in the region of Saat Naam [True Name], and it is the Surat which merges into Sar Shabd." (Sant Tulsi Sahib)


"In the month of Kuar (September-October), Surat [the soul], the paragon of virtues, has lost memory of its Original Abode because of the company of crow-like impudent persons. It has forgotten all about the delicacies available in its own abode of pure spirituality, the secrets of which are disclosed only in Satsang of Sants. Without adopting saran (refuge) of the Sat Guru, the path cannot be known, nor the method of elevating the Surat and mind to higher regions. With the approach of the month of Katik (October-November), the Surat receives secrets of all chakras and ganglia in the human microcosm. It starts its upward journey from the Third Eye, the centre at which is to be found the first true form of Surat (spirit). It proceeds to Sahas-dal-kanwal [the sphere of the Thousand-Petaled Lotus]. It adopts the saran (refuge) of Sat Guru, wipes off impurities and attains true knowledge. The heart is illumined with the inner Light." (Sant Tulsi Sahib)


Sant Tulsi Sahib: "External practices and formalism are worth nothing. The real sadhana [spiritual or meditation practice] is within one's own self."




Sant Tulsi Sahib: "Without realizing the soul and the Sound Current, all this is a vain show. All this is a vain show till the soul rises above and abides in it's Natural State."


"Without the Saints, O Tulsi, we are tossed about endlessly. Without the merciful, compassionate Master, aeon after aeon we rove." (Shabdavali of Param Sant Tulsi Sahib of Hathras)


"Masters reveal the Path of Inner Light and Sound. They still the mind and raise one's attention to Mystic Skies within. The soul concentrates at the Portal [Third Eye] and is in bliss." (Sant Tulsi Sahib)


The True Guru Does Not Neglect His or Her Students, is a Good Teacher of Wisdom, and Properly Guides Their Followers

"Tulsi Sahib says that people devote themselves to worldly learning, but of what use will it be if they do not recognize Sants?

"The Jiva's [soul's] inner eye has not opened, and though he has his external sight, he is really blind, that is, cannot see things in their true perspective. Without the Satguru, he will drift in the lower centers and will never be rid of his worldly attachments.

"No other Yuga [epoch] can be compared with Kali Yuga in which Sants [Saints, Heavenly Beings, Enlightened Masters] incarnate themselves. If the Jiva adopts the Saran [refuge] of a Sant, he will get across the ocean of material existence."


"From the Source of the Ocean opens a Window of Light. Awaken that resplendent Light within thee....Repeat the name of the Lord and secure Him." (Shabdavali/Hymn of Param Sant Tulsi Sahib of Hathras)


Sant Tulsi Sahib: "He who follows the precepts and teachings of Satsang, is a blessed soul. I sacrifice myself at him again and again. His Surat [soul] is absorbed in the bliss of Satsang, and is sure to attain the goal. Tulsi says that he who has come under the protection of the all-powerful and merciful Sat Guru is enjoying the greatest bliss and joy internally. He is one with the Beloved. The bliss of the Holy Feet is indescribable."


"I saw a brilliant flame bursting forth within me, on which I kept my Surat [attention of the soul] fixed. Then, piercing the flame, my surat proceeded onward and it reached a gateway, as it were, from where could be seen a sky studded all over with suns and moons. By your grace and compassion have I been able to partake of the bliss of higher regions." (hymn of Shyama, disciple of Tulsi Sahib)


"Tulsi Saheb says that the Master resides in Gagan [the inner mystic sky] and to meet Him, Surat [the soul] has to rise up. Only in this human form which is a replica of the whole infinite expanse, can the soul [jiva] work out his salvation and can easily cross the ocean of existence." "When my Surat [soul] reached Gagan [the inner mystic sky], I met the Sat Guru, who guided my path onwards. He embraced me and made me one with Himself, and, by His grace, my Surat ultimately reached the abode which is unfathomable and where there is no fear of any kind."


"Tulsi Sahib used to go often to places quite far from Hathras wrapping his body in a blanket and with a stick in hand. He usually used to remain in a state of withdrawal, and in that very state, an incessant flow of utterances concerning the secrets of higher regions used to emanate from his mouth like a babbling stream. Ghat Ramayan, Shabdavali (collection of hymns) and Ratan Sagar are well known works of Tulsi Saheb. Another book which he wrote but remained unfinished is Padam Sagar. All these books were written after Tulsi Sahib's coming to Hathras.......


"....Near the above-mentioned Banyan Tree, a stupendous two-storeyed building had been constructed later on by Tulsi Sahib's devotees, which is still there and in which he stayed till he left his mortal coil. In this very building there is a place marked, where Tulsi Saheb used to sit whilst initiating people into Sant Mat [inner Light and Sound Meditation Practice]. There is also a hemispherical cave where he used to practise Bhajan [meditation]." ("Param Sant Tulsi Saheb", translated into English by Sant Das Maheshwari)


All Tulsi Sahib quotes above are from, "Param Sant Tulsi Sahib", edited by Sant Das Maheshwari, Agra, India.

Online Book: Param Sant Tulsi Sahib of Hathras, India -- PDF File: http://bit.ly/hgxOB4




Sant Tulsi Sahib, from his Spiritual Classic, "Ghat Ramayana":
Sat surat samajhi sihaar saadhau, nirakhi nit nainan rahau", translated at the SadGuruMehi Website:

"The Surat i.e. consciousness-force or individual soul [soul's attention or awareness] is true and she has been extended and entrapped in the untrue realms of Pinda (the microcosm or body, physical plane) and Brahmand (Universe or macrocosm). So, being deprived of the attainment of the self-existence of the Supreme Sovereign God, she is suffering from the pain of falling down (degeneration). To be free from this pain of degeneration, take care of the Surat in such a way that she be liberated from all miseries by concentrating through the untrue realms, being free from untrue spheres, and thus attaining the innate (natural and pure) form of the Supreme Sovereign God.

"The practice of holding Surat (consciousness-force) will begin with Maanas Jappa [Simran] (a meditation process in which an alphabetical holy word instructed by Guru is chanted/repeated with eyes closed), and then Maanas Dhyaan (a meditation process in which holy form of Sadguru is concentrated upon with eyes closed), and then Bindu Dhyaan (Drishti Saadhan, the Yoga of Inner Vision), and then finally: Surat Shabda Yoga (the Yoga of Divine Sound). The first shutter within our inner vision is hard and impenetrable darkness. The Surat can cross it by the practice of Dhrishti Sadhana (Yoga of Vision).

"When the Surat (consciousness-force) will experience the miracles of Brahma within its own body while crossing the concealment of darkness, then she (the Surat, soul) will be immersed always in the love of Supreme Sovereign God. Then she will move ahead grasping the notes (Sounds) of the Flute by knowing the proper method.

"The Surat will recognize the Sar-Shabda (Essential Divine Sound) through catching the 'Gagan-Dori' -- (Divine Light or Divine Sound of the Inner Sky).

"The Surat being poised onto the Essential Divine Sound (Sar-Shabda) will become tranquil in that Unlimited (Infinite) State where form, design, appearances, body, mind and Maya (illusion) do not exist; and that is the Inexpressible and the fundamental Original State.

"To whom this Ultimate State will be realized, his/her Surat (consciousness-force, individual soul) will be merging into that Ultimate State (the Nameless State, the State beyond Sound) again and again."


Tulsi's earlier name was "Dakhani Baba", meaning, "Saint from the South," and he often meditated in a cave. I know some living saints who, like Tulsi Sahib, also meditate in caves!


The term "Sant Mat" was coined by Param Sant Tulsi Sahib of Hathras, during the 19th Century, but the Sant tradition, with its many guru-lineages or branches, is a spiritual movement that dates back to ancient India. Sant Tulsi Sahib was of the opinion that the Sant movement dates back to the time of Krishna thousands of years ago, that Krishna knew of Sants during his day, the time of the Bhagavad Gita.




God is Like a Black Hole or Gravitational Singularity

Maharishi Mehi in his spiritual discourse, The Philosophy of Liberation, states that "the individual self, the part of God which dwells in the body, is concealed. Direct knowledge is not experienced because of the concealments of the four Realms of Qualified Lower Nature: Gross [Physical], Subtle [Astral], Causal [Akashic] and Supra-Causal [Universal Mind]."

"The realm of creation in which we live is the Gross Realm. Above the Gross is the Subtle Realm; above the Subtle is the Causal; above the Causal is the Supra-Causal, and above the Supra-Causal is Kaivalya, the realm of Oneness (Pure Conscious Realm). The existence of these four realms is as fixed as the Pole star. Thus, there are five spheres of creation including the Gross Realm. Kaivalya is of Pure Consciousness and the other four realms are Non-Conscious, but coexisting with the conscious." (Philosophy of Liberation)

Note: the top part of Kaivalya in some systems of Indian cosmology is called "Nirvana", "Radhaswami", "Anami" or "Anadi". Maharishi Mehi called it "The Soundless State", a State beyond Light and Sound, a heaven beyond the other heavens.

God is described as being Formless (Nirguna), Nameless (Anami), Soundless (Anadi), Unknowable (Agochar), Invisible (Alakh), and Inaccessible (Agam), unfathomable, hidden or veiled by divine Light and Sound.

The above reminds me of the description by astronomers of black holes in the cosmos, which are invisible but indirectly seen all-the-same as they are a kind of "donut hole" surrounded by luminous matter of swirling atoms smashing together, which give off immense light as this matter falls into the gravity well, just before slipping out of the normal space-time of the regular universe. Looking for the halos of light astronomers are able to sometimes indirectly see these invisible black holes. By the light surrounding black holes one sees black holes. So too, mystics can see the Light that veils the Supreme Being. "By the Light of Allah, I see Allah." (Quran)




The Teachings of Sant Dariya of Bihar,
A Good Introduction to Sant Mat
(from the Sant Dariya Mission Website)

Sat Purush [True, Eternal, Original Being, God] sends His sons to the world to save the living beings from the clutches of Kal [time, illusion]. Sant Dariya Saheb came to this world under the instructions of the Lord to save Jivas [souls]. Sat Purush came to Dharkandha (a village in Bihar, India [in the form of Dariya’s Satguru]) to instruct Dariya Saheb. The Lord enthroned Sant Dariya and assured him to save the souls that followed his teachings.

The Sant preached ahimsa (non-violence in thought, word, and deed) against all living beings. According to him, unless the lamp of kindness and compassion is lit, the soul cannot find the Path that leads to the Lord.

The teachings of Dariya Saheb are above sects, castes and religions. People belonging to any race, religion and caste can be benefited from His teaching. According to the Saint, all the men and women are the creation of the Sat Purush. One should love and respect others as one expects love and respect from others. Harsh words should not be spoken. One should see his own image in others. The Sant preached love and devotion to the Sat Purush only. According to him no purpose is served by visiting places of pilgrimage if true devotion to the Lord is missing. The Sant preached against ritualism. The human body has all the sixty eight tirthas (places of pilgrimage). It is the true mandir/masjid [temple] in which the Lord can be discovered and worshipped.

Sat Purush is unborn, eternal, all-powerful, the creator of everything. He does not take birth and meet death. He is beyond description.

The Jiva [soul] is the resident of Satlok [True, Eternal Spiritual Realm]. It has got entangled into the snare of Kal [lord of time and illusion] and is wandering in samsara (the world of changes) in different forms.

Sat Purush sends Satgurus to the samsara (world) to teach the misguided souls (Jivas). Only the Satguru knows the Path that liberates Jivas from the snares of Kal. The Jiva, by following the teachings of the Satguru, gets liberated and goes to his permanent abode, that is: Satlok.

Devotion to Sat Purush alone can free the souls from the clutches of Kal. Worship to poly-gods, ghosts and other celetial objects have been discouraged by the Saints/Sants/Sant Mat.

Observance of rituals and wandering in places of pilgrimage without true devotion to the Lord serves no purpose.

One should take vegetarian food only. The eating of meat is completely prohibited in his order.

The Sant has advocated two paths only for attainment of Nirvana:
1) The Path of Knowledge [Inner Experience], and,
2) The Path of Bhakti (Devotion)

Human birth is most precious and it should not be lost in mere satisfaction of sensuous pleasures, accumulation of wealth and wielding power. Human birth should be utilised for the realization of Pad-Nirvan (God). If this opportunity is lost, none can say when one would be fortunate to get human birth again. Getting human birth is rare.

One does not become high or low from his origion of birth. By acquiring virtues and doing good deeds only, one becomes high.

Like all other Saints of the Nirguna School [Devotion to the Formless God], Dariya Saheb discarded Avatarbad (Incarnation theory). He did not believe in the theory of Divine creation of four classes of people as Brahman, Kshatriya, Vaisya and Sudra.

Jiva and Brahma are two different entities. The Jiva takes different forms (Rupas) in Samsara, whereas Brahma is beyond Samsara. Brahma is one while Jivas are many. The Jiva gets tainted by loads of deeds and reaps the fruits of his actions. Brahma is nirlep (beyond getting tainted).

The Teachings of Sant Dariya Sahib could be summarized as these three:
1. Right Gahani (Understanding)
2. Right Rahani (Living)
3. Simran (Mindfulness, Remembrance, Meditation)





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