Amazing story of Dr.Jill Bolte Taylor is a very renowned neuroautonomist who was trained in Harvard and teaches at the Indiana University School of Medicine in Bloomington IL. She relates in great detail what happened to her when she had a stroke in her brain. I confess its one of the rare occasions when I was teary eyed at the end of the talk. The gist of the talk can be summarized in three words “I am that” or “Aham Brahmasmi”.
Related links:
Source- Google Books, Servers of the Divine Plan
Of late, we keep hearing about the dawn of the new age of consciousness. The Mayan calendar also suggests that by the year 2012, sufficient number of beings in this world will be elevated who will lead and help mankind towards greater spiritual heights. I myself have heard this from several great spiritual Masters. If someone told me that even five years back, it would have been difficult to believe, but there is now a perceptible change throughout the world that is happening ever so subtly that humankind is being transformed slowly, naturally and permanently.
This is spoken about in great length in the book “Servers of the Divine Plan”. No one knows who the author of this book is and the author considered that the content in the book is more important than who he was. This book seems to be written very recently and whoever wrote that must surely be in a advanced state of consciousness; for it impossible to present in such detail the Divine plan. The book seems a little heavy (if not soporofic) in parts but for a serious spiritual aspirant, this book brings great hope and tries to explain how divinity descends into various levels to elevate all beings on our planet. Some passages are awe inspiring and some just too overwhelming to know that the divine has such great unfathomable compassion towards us.
Excerpt from the book:
“A growing percentage of human population are today remembering something of the intelligent design and infallibility of the Divine plan for Earth at this time and their role to play in it. It is in such remembrance that we wish to fulfill our duty to all people in every part of the world, and we are especially devoted to helping in the recalling process for those who came specifically to aid humanity and the planet through the impending Great transition.
Our long dark night, is almost over. Very soon, all awakened souls will unite again as one to greet the new Dawn, and to finally release that Grand Song which has been composed within their hearts during the course of many incarnations of personal sacrifice. It is our prayer that all servants of the race may now step forward to faithfully and confidently pool energies and resources so that we may make haste towards the fulfillment of the prophecy by consciously assisting in the predestined emergence of the New World Consciousness upon Earth.”
Article on VedaMata Gayatri. A nice easy read but conveying the importance of Gayatri Sadhana.
Link: SarvaDeva Swarupini
Thanks to SoulJerky, New Sounds
Carnatic music was featured recently on NPR’s New Sounds. The program features stalwarts like Lalgudi Jayaraman, L. Subramanian, Illayaraja and U.Srinivas.
Read about the fascinating astrlogical prediction Roger got in Chapter 1: The first Encounter
In the summer of 1995, I spent a long period of time living at Prashanthi Nilayam in southern India. Prasanthi Nilayam is the biggest ashram - spiritual community - in the world. It is the home of Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai Baba, who is considered to be the new spiritual leader of India. People from all corners of the world come to Prasanthi Nilayam seeking spiritual enlightenment and harmony.
It was during this trip that I was introduced to the story of the Great Goddess Durga by Bodhidharma - the famous storyteller from Calcutta. Bodhidharma provided me with a great inspirational, and often humoristic, framework to understand the enlightening and empowering teachings of Durga Yoga and the Devi Mahatmyan.
According to the ancient Hindu scriptures, Durga is the first female divinity in the Universe. She is the essence of creation in the Universe. Durga is a beautiful Goddess who slays demons, and who exists independent of male protection or guidance.
Durga represents a vision of the feminine that challenges the stereotype view of women in traditional societies and religions. Her life is a guide that demonstrates the extraordinary power that is repressed in women who are forced into submissive and socially demeaning roles. Her turbulent story is one of war, success, personal sacrifice, and final liberation. In her role reversal, she exists outside of the normal structures of life, and provides a new version of reality that brings new meaning and empowerment into our lives.
This story unfolds in the company of two of the most respected spiritual teachers in the world today. It is with great respect and admiration that I dedicate this book to them.
This book is a guideline for a powerful spiritual awakening, just waiting to happen in the hearts of its readers. Respectfully at the lotus feet of Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai Baba.
Thanks to tsemtulku
The most unlikely Dharma talk. Talk by Tsem Tulku Rinpoche in his own unique way.
Link: Notebooks
One of the foremost Western disciples of Ramana Maharshi, Paul Brunton was a great writer, mystic and a philosopher. Perusing his notebooks show his profundity of thought on several mystical topics. Check it out.
Source : Super Science of Gayatri by Pt. Sri Ram Sharma Acharya
Gayatri is the mantra which imparts true wisdom. It inspires the mind, intellect inner psyche and emotions of the devotee towards the righteous path. Its Sadhana helps in progressive growth of righteous (sat) elements. When the Sadhak concentrates on the meaning of this mantra he realises that the supreme prosperity and the greatest success in life is to attain true wisdom. When he gets fully convinced about the true aim of life, he single minded starts his self-effort to wards this goal. This aspiration creates an ever expanding vibrations in the universal realm which attracts and assimilates waves of righteous thoughts, emotions and inspirations pervading the subtle atmosphere. The magnetic power of thoughts is well-known. Thoughts attract thoughts of similar kind scattered in the mental universe with the result that powerful eternal thoughts and spiritual attainments of living and past illumined persons start accumulating spontaneously within the Sadhak as a divine boon and his accumulated capital of such thoughts goes on increasing.
This is not visible to the naked eye nor can it be understood from purely physical point of view. But those who are endowed with the occult knowledge of the working of the inner being know it well that decrease in the elements of tam and raj and increase in sat is almost similar to the steady process of elimination of disease producing toxins, viruses and germs from the body and replacing them with health-giving rejuvenating cells.
With increase in sat element in the body there is significant change in physical activities. The constant turbulence of sense organs steadily calms down. Bad habits like greediness for delicious dishes; craving for eating articles of different tastes; desire to eat more and repeatedly, irrespective of any consideration whether what is being eaten is eatable or not; dislike for satvik foods and liking for pungent, spicy, sweet, gross, indigestible items of food are gradually reversed. The Sadhak develops liking for light, easily digestible, juicy simple foods and shuns luxurious, tamsik food. Like-wise, sexual urge is restrained and moderated on account of righteous thoughts and the mind hardly gets an opportunity to get engrossed in passion, debauchery and intense sexual desire. Faith is developed in observance of brahmachrya which helps in increasing vitality. Sex and taste are the two main sensual urges which on being controlled can promote preservation of health and physical wellbeing. Coupled with these restraints, other daily routines like physical work, sleep, awakening, cleanliness, simplicity etc. also get regulated with the growth of satogun. Such a pious way of life automatically leads to vibrant health and longevity.
In the mental sphere, with the development of virtues, vices like passion, anger, greed, attachment, pride, jealousy, selfishness, laziness, intoxication, lewdness, deception, falsehood, pretence, worry, fear, sorrow etc. get reduced and with their reduction virtues like self-restraint, regularity, sacrifice, equality, humility simplicity, straight-forwardness, truthfulness, fearlessness, carefulness, valour, wisdom, courage, patience, compassion, love, service, generosity, dutifulness, devoutness etc. start developing in the Sadhak. The result of this inner transformation is that the Sadhak acquires the wisdom and strength to meet with equanimity routine challenges and setbacks of daily life.
On account of faith in God, the intellect remains unperturbed and the Sadhak remains care-free about his future. Other people are also benefited by the sadhak’s virtues like service-mindedness, politeness, generosity, philanthropy, honesty, benevolence etc. and there is no apprehension of any harm being done to anybody by him. The result is that out of gratitude for his unconditional service people become his admirers, friends and defenders. On account of this mutual goodwill, life becomes exceedingly blissful.
Man being an integral part of Divinity, all divine powers are hidden in the human soul in seed form. These powers remain dormant under the debris of mental agitation , sensual peversions, defects and vices in the form of ignorance. People think that they are poor, miserable, insignificant and infirm, but the sadhaks who are able to sweep away this debris from within themselves are able to have a glimpse of the pure light of the inner self. What is needed is simply to remove the dense and dark covering which envelops the inner light. The sun of righteous Sadhana of Gayatri removes the clouds of ignorance and the resplendent divine light of the soul is manifested. This is instinct with all divine powers, riddhis-Siddhis.
The development of righteousness through Gayatri Sadhana gives birth to numerous kinds of spiritual and material prosperity. The purification of the body and mind makes worldly life happy and peaceful. With the growth of prudence and spiritual power several difficulties which appear to others to be daunting like a steep mountain top become as simple and light as a straw. The Sadhak finds no insurmountable hindrance in accomplishment of any work. Either circumstances change according to his will or he adjusts and changes his desires to the circumstances. Suffering is due to conflict between desire and unfavourable circumstances. A prudent person is always resilient and avoids conflict and thus leads a happy life.
Rejuvenation of life
Gayatri mantra rejuvenates a person spiritually. As soon as a person starts Gayatri Sadhana he feels a new vibrancy surging within himself. With the increase in the element of righteousness, vices, evil thoughts, evil tendencies, malice, avarice etc. start decreasing and virtues like self-restraint, politeness, sweetness, honesty, truthfulness, generosity, love, contentment, peace, service-mindedness, warmth start increasing day by day. Everybody has to face difficult circumstances due to destiny and as an essential outcome of his own deeds. Whereas, an ignorant and unrefined person feels suffocating pain and suffering on account of loss, bereavement, disease, violence, opposition, shock etc., a Gayatri Sadhak endowed with spiritual discernment and faith meets these adversities with perfect equanimity. He remains in blissful peace even in adversity.
Gayatri Sadhana is also performed for averting a particular crisis and fulfilling specific needs. The results are often astonishing. It has been observed that where utter darkness, failure, apprehension and fear prevailed, a divine light emerged, hopelessness was transformed into hopefulness and difficult tasks became easy by the grace of Vedmata.
In the ancient times, eminent seers had undergone great penance and performed yog-Sadhana and had achieved riddhi-Siddhis like anima, mahima etc., the basis of which was Gayatri Sadhana. Ancient scriptures are full of descriptions of miraculous powers which they possessed. Such illumined souls are present even today and they are of the view that there is no other as sure and easy a way of achieving success in yog-marg as Gayatri Sadhana. All the emperors of Suryavansh and Chandravansh were worshippers of Gayatri. By virtue of this divine power, brahmans were called Jagatgurus and kshatriyas as emperors. This is an eternal truth and is as effective now as it was in the past. No one who takes refuge in Gayatri Mata
with devotion is ever disappointed.
