Paramhansa Yogananda

Mirabai composed many ecstatic songs, which are still treasured in India. I translate one of them here: 

If by bathing daily God could be realized Sooner would I be a whale in the deep; 

If by eating roots and fruits He could be known Gladly would I choose the form of a goat; 

If the counting of rosaries uncovered Him I would say my prayers on mammoth beads; 

If bowing before stone images unveiled Him A flinty mountain I would humbly worship; 

If by drinking milk the Lord could be imbibed Many calves and children would know Him; 

If abandoning one’s wife could summon God Would not thousands be eunuchs? 

Mirabai knows that to find the Divine One The only indispensable is Love. 

(Extract from Autobiography of Yogi)

Sri Atmaswarupananda

A Simple But Powerful Spiritual Practice

It is common thinking throughout the world to make a division between the spiritual life and the secular life. But if all is one, if God alone is, then perhaps the purpose of our spiritual life is to recognize that there is no such thing as secular life, that all life is spiritual. 

We may not be able to find time during the day for longer periods of spiritual practice, but usually we can find times when we can just sit—in the kitchen, in the office, no matter where—for a few moments, and close our eyes and relax. That practice alone will help to steady our consciousness. 

If we add to it repetition of God’s name, our mind will become focused, our consciousness will be raised. And as we are repeating God’s name we can recognise that something is aware of that repetition. We don’t create a witness, because that’s just another thought, but whatever is in our mind, we recognize that something is knowing it.

That something can never be grasped, but it is never absent whether we are sitting quietly, whether we are active, whether we are dreaming or whether we are in deep sleep. The remembrance of that ungraspable witness raises our consciousness and puts us in another dimension. And all this can be done in a few moments.

The spiritual life is not, at its core, something dramatic. Except in very rare circumstances, it is a step by step journey that continues for years. Some time ago one of our senior devotees passed away. She was a housewife who for years and years had followed regular spiritual practices. She didn’t seem to be anything special, but when she was having her health crisis—even though she could have expected to have many more years to live—she was totally resigned to whether she lived or not. Swamiji (Swami Chidananda) marvelled. He said it is a result of her many years of consistent spiritual practice.

So we shouldn’t underestimate the inner spiritual power of something like simply—for a few moments as frequently as we can—sitting quietly, repeating God’s name and being aware that there is an unknowable witness who is always silently knowing everything.

Swami Venkatesananda

When Love Comes Into Being

I cannot love you. Impossible. 

We are two completely different beings. As long as I still cling to the consciousness that I am I and you are you, I cannot love you. I may temporarily pretend to love you, I may temporarily profess to love you, but it is only a passing fancy. As long as you scratch my back and I scratch yours, we will call ourselves lovers. 

But as soon as this ceases, it's all over and we begin to hate each other. This is not true love it all. Love can only come into being when the ‘I’ has seen itself out and ceased to interfere in the operation of the natural intelligence, this natural intelligence being cosmic and indivisible.