Divine Messages - 92 : Glimpses of the Divine Vision by Swami Ramdas - God - 1/4

An extract from the book “Glimpses of the Divine Vision” by Swami Ramdas – Section “God”

·         In the depths of samadhi, the Yogis get the experience that the world is not, because in the Nirguna there is no name, form or movement. But after coming down to the external consciousness of life the visible universe is experienced as the revelation of that absolute, silent and immutable Spirit-”Sarvam Khalvidam Brahma” When you remember God in a particular form, you worship Him as Saguna, and when the image dissolves in your mind, raising you beyond the sense of duality, then you realize Him as Nirguna. Both are the aspects of one Truth.

·         For a human being there is no privilege greater than that of becoming the child of the Divine Parent-the immortal child of the Eternal Parent. This spiritual relationship is based upon the knowledge that the child and the Parent are one. Verily, there is none or nothing but the one Supreme Lord of the worlds, who is all, and all in all.

·         Truly when you become the smallest child of the Divine Mother, you merge your little individuality in Her cosmic personality. Here you realize that the Mother and the child are one. Here again in your play as a child, if you wish to remain so, you are ever basking in the sunshine of Her divine grace and protection. Mother is no mother if you do not understand Her in the true light, and submit to Her will and guidance in all matters. Really, what She wills is ever for your good. To revolt against Her will always knocks out of you a good deal of your strength and peace. This Divine Mother is the Heart of your heart, the Soul of your soul. Being universal, She is the supreme deity ever having Her place and seat within you. Her revelation of the world-phenomena is simply marvellous. Her sweet and gracious presence, Her smiling face, Her ever guiding and protecting hand are seen everywhere. Her dazzling form is the sole attraction of your eyes. Her melodious and soothing voice is the most charming music for your ears. To serve Her, that is, to do all things in Her name, for Her sake, is the most blissful service you could render. Oh! the Mother is your all in all. May Her light ever shine on the world. May Her light ever dawn in the hearts of all creatures, and awaken them to the knowledge of Her invincible and all-beneficent existence and power!

·         The personal is He. The impersonal is He. As personal He is with name and form. The entire, universe is He in the personal aspect. In the impersonal, He is without name and form, without attributes, beyond the range of intellect to understand, beyond words to describe. In the personal aspect, He is love, light, knowledge, power, peace, bliss, purity. The Nirguna (impersonal) stands for peace, while the Saguna (personal) for anand.

·         In the entire universe, He pervades as Shakti the universe itself being His form. He is most manifest in man. Mahatmas and Bhaktas are He in full manifestation. Service of them results in the realization of Sri Ram in His personal aspect, i.e., as Love. Sri Ram is ever seated in the hearts of us all and we are all His forms. Saguna, Nirguna-everything is He. No sacrifice is too great to attain this supreme realization-this Darshan of oneness in many-this height of inexpressible peace and bliss The mind must be purged of its selfish desires that make for diversity, pain and misery. It has to be freed from Raga and Dwesha. It must attain Samata, i.e., equality, which means Samadarshan which is again the same as Ramdarshan. Love all, love all. To love all is to love Him, for He is all. First see Him in Bhaktas and Mahatmas, then see Him in all-as all.

Swami Ramdas Web Site - anandashram.org

Divine Messages - 91 : Glimpses of the Divine Vision by Swami Ramdas - The True Vision

An extract from the book “Glimpses of the Divine Vision” by Swami Ramdas – Section “The True Vision”

• The true vision means the vision of the Reality within. The man of ignorance is ever busy clinging to external forms for support. So long as a man does not see the great Truth he is in search of, within himself, he can never know peace.
• Aim at the universal vision, i.e., behold the manifested universe as the very form and image of the Lord seated in your heart. Transcend all names, forms, lights, sounds etc., and merge yourself in the infinite ocean of divine peace and joy. Rise above the body idea, the Gunas and all mental states and enjoy the bliss and freedom of immortality. You and the supreme Lord are not different. You are His essence, nay His very form, because there is none and nothing but He. This is the truth. Realize.
• The way to escape from the clutches of Dwandwas, when you live in the consciousness of the world of name and form, is to behold all things and objects as the revealed forms of the one Eternal Truth. The divine power emanating from the Truth has manifested as the entire universe. All movements and activities of Prakriti are Hers. All your thoughts and play of the senses and body are Her lila. Behold everything as God Himself-manifest. By surrendering up your ego to the Divine Shakti you can attain to this vision.
• This vision will absolve you from all doubts, and your actions will have the nature of spontaneity and, therefore, full of bliss and ecstasy. The light of God will now dazzle in your eyes and you will behold Him everywhere. The Nirguna Swarup of the Atman and the Saguna Swarup of the universe will be the same to you. Verily, they are the two aspects of the same Reality. Be the child of the Eternal Mother-ever free and blissful-feeling conscious all the time that the Mother and the child are one Truth, although, in the play of love, they are assumed to be different. This is the supreme goal, the height of God-realization. “Vasudevah Sarvamithi” be your realization.

Swami Ramdas Web Site - anandashram.org

Divine Messages - 90 : Glimpses of the Divine Vision by Swami Ramdas

An extract from the book “Glimpses of the Divine Vision” by Swami Ramdas

·         You can conquer the effects of Prarabdha (Destiny) by absorption in the Almighty Spirit through constant meditation. In fact, by this practice you transcend the notion of the body and remain unaffected by the pains attending on it.

·         Man at first goes in search of God to various Tirthas, and sacred places, but at last finds the supreme quest of his life in the shrine of his own heart. Even in such places, when he experiences Anand, it is due to the overflow of it from the immortal source within himself. The Truth is within you. Keep up this consciousness always by constant remembrance. There are many who have attained God-realization without resorting to caves and jungles. Don’t think that, by dwelling in caves alone, man could attain salvation. Resort to solitude for meditation is of course necessary. This you can have wherever God has chosen to keep you. Travel is meant for gathering that experience which you may not get by remaining at one place. Forget not, wherever you go, you can carry with you the thought of God as ever dwelling in your own heart.

·         Really when hundreds of people assemble together at a spot in the name of God, there you realize the true spirit of universal love and brotherhood. In such an atmosphere, you get the taste of that supreme joy which is beyond the plane of distinctions and diversity of every kind. In short, it is here the immortal Reality of your existence is revealed, and you are absorbed in the ineffable bliss of it. Human life is mainly intended for the one great purpose of knowing God. To know God is to know one’s Self. God and universe, God and soul, are not different. He is the one great Truth who is, and has become all.

·         The word ‘desire’ in common parlance is used for the cravings of the senses. This desire must be subdued by substituting it with a burning aspiration of God. If desire could be used in both cases, we can say that the desire for worldly things must be substituted by the desire for the Eternal. In the last stage, when the Divine is attained, you become perfectly desireless, having neither a hankering for sense objects nor a longing for the Divine.

·         Lust, greed and wrath are verily the enemies on the path of the spiritual aspirant. To destroy these passions, as far as they relate to the sensual feelings for the satisfaction of the ego, does not mean to turn into an inert log of wood. In the cause of truth and righteousness, liberated sages do utilize or assume anger and such other moods, for correcting the ways of erring souls, from a purely impersonal standpoint. For instance, righteous anger for serving a good cause, you will admit, has a place in the life of even a God realized soul.

·         Through Bhakti yoga, the Kundalini is awakened and made to rise upwards. You need not watch her progress. Yours is to increase your devotion to God and so adjust your life as to keep Him always in your thought. Adopt the path of self-surrender to Divine Mother-Shakti. Put yourself in Her hands and permit Her to transform your life from the human to the divine. Jivatman is the lower or individual self and the  Paramatman is the higher or universal Self. God’s creation is there before you just as you have the light from the sun; in other words, it is the very nature of God to reveal Himself as the entire cosmos. Here the question why and wherefore does not arise. If you look at the world from its source which is God you cannot but visualise all activities of creatures and things in nature as the lila of the Lord.

·         Incarnation of God is a special descent of the Divine assuming a human body, imbued with all the powers and qualities of God for the work of directing the human vision towards the Divine. Truth has, of course, to be accepted at first intellectually, but eventually, it has to be realized. A burning aspiration to experience the bliss of the Truth is the one thing needed. Have this, and you will come  by that supreme joy and freedom which is beyond the pleasures of the mere intellect. Be ever courageous, free and cheerful.

·         Service of the poor is the worship of God. This is the real Yagna by which you expand your vision of life and attain true freedom and happiness. When all actions become a spontaneous and blissful movement of your life, you experience your inherent state of immortality and bliss.

Swami Ramdas Web Site - anandashram.org

Divine Messages - 89 : Glimpses of the Divine Vision by Swami Ramdas - Guru and Satsang

An extract from the book “Glimpses of the Divine Vision” by Swami Ramdas – Section “Guru and Satsang”

·         There is no higher deity than Guru. Guru is the Lord of the universe-the supreme ultimate Reality the sole master of your being and all existence. Guru is Sri Ram.

·         Since you have received the Gurumantra, do you think that you require a repeated assurance that you are an accepted child of God? Feel always that you are such. Your God, your Guru, is dwelling in yourself.

·         Really there is nothing so elevating as Satsang. All saints must be of the same opinion with regard to the need of a Guru. To say that without a Guru an aspirant can reach the spiritual goal is as good as to say that a child could be born without the existence of the mother.

·         Do not forget for a single moment the immortal and all blissful nature of your true being. This consciousness or remembrance you can keep up only when you are in constant touch with saints. Be kind, forgiving and charitable towards all who come in contact with you. Don’t be like the dumb-driven cattle. Assert your innate divine nature and allow it freely to illumine your personality and all activities. You have by association with divine men understood the supreme purpose of life. Let nothing throw a veil over the light and knowledge which you have gained by such communion. May the Lord bless you and keep you ever in His divine presence.

Swami Ramdas Web Site - anandashram.org

Divine Messages - 88 : God In Quest of Man by Dada J. P. Vaswani - God is Our Deliverer and Three Truths

An extract from the book “God In Quest of Man” by Dada J. P. Vaswani.

Far from the madding crowds of cities, he dwelt in a tiny village by the seashore. He lived in silence communing, with the Wonder that is Endless, the mystery that travels in beauty from plant to tree, from flower to fruit, from stone to star. He rarely spoke to anyone; and to the few that came to him for a counsel and guidance, he said, “Be simple ! Be loving ! Be true ! For the heart that is simple and loving abideth in the wonder of revelation still to be seen by those who live in fellowship with the Lord !”.

Once every month, he left his wooden hut and walked to the city, if perchance, God might bring him in touch with an aspiring heart, a yearning soul. And for these he chose the darkest night. He never came to the city by day; the shouts and tumults were more suffocating than he could bear. He stole into the silence of a sleeping city every night before the new moon. And in silence he moved from street to street, as a pilgrim in search of a fellow-pilgrims.

On one such night it was my great privilege to meet him. I was then, a fellow of the Karachi College. During the day I did a little teaching work. At night I did research work in the laboratory on a problem, which I had taken up for the M.Sc. degree. At night the silence was wonderful, and the research work was so absorbing that, very often, I sat late into the night and at times, returned home even after two or three o’clock.

On that particular night, just as I began my work, the electric  fuse blew off, plunging the laboratory into darkness. In vain, I tried to replace the fuse; there was a short circuit somewhere, which I could not locate. Accepting it as the will of God, I left the laboratory.

The best things travel to us when we lest expect them. It was still too early for me to return home. I went out for a stroll, letting my feet lead me where they would. Aimlessly I moved on, until I found two sparking eyes peering into mine, and heard a soft flute-like voice say to me, “My son !, why have you taken so long to come? I have been waiting for you !”.

I felt startled. Then, quickly collecting myself, I said, “Sir ! It seems you make a mistake. And little wonder, for, it is a dark night ! Your face is new to me. I don’t think we have ever met before !”.

And he said to me, “My son ! Our acquaintance is more ancient than the earth on which we stand. But you know it not, for your memory fails you !”.

I felt intrigued. I was known in the college for possessing a prodigious memory. Here was a man who claimed to have a memory “more ancient than the earth” !.

My petty “scientific” brain would not hear of it. I wanted to dismiss this strange nocturnal visitor as a harmless lunatic. And with the words, “May you hoary memory be with you !” I turned back.

Gently, he held me by his hand. There was something in his touch, which held me captive. I could not move away from him. In my helplessness, I said to him, “Sir ! I do not know what is happening to me. Pray, deliver me ! Let me go !”.

And he said, “To deliver you I have come all the way, walking many miles in the dark of this moonless night. Bear with me a little while, and I shall let you go. For I do not meet the same person twice !”.

He beckoned me to a big stone lying in front of us on the ground. And together we sat on it. Then he looked at me softly, gently; he looked through me. And in his large, compassionate eyes was the light of all the universe.

He opened his lips to speak. Out of his mouth dropped pearls of great price, rubies of rich value. He spoke of many things. He described the five-fold journey of the jiva, the journey from the Realm of the Spirit to the plane of matter, the journey through the cycle of birth and death, the return journey to God, the journey in God, and finally the journey of the emancipated soul back to the earth-plane as a helper and healer of creatures in suffering and pain. He spoke of the strait, narrow way which leads to the Life Eternal, the way which is to be trodden alone, and yet not alone: for One there is who is always beside us. And with such a comrade, who loves, who knows, who cares, no one may feel lonely.

“He is our Deliverer,” he said to me. “Trust in Him utterly, entirely, completely ! He never fails ! He does the very best for us. He knows, what we cannot know. He sees what we cannot see. He is Infinite Love, Infinite Power, Infinite Intelligence, Infinite Wisdom. Leave all things in His safe Hands. And know that whatever He permits to happen is the very best that can happen to you at any given time. In this faith let the boat or your life float on uncharted seas. And trusting that He, the Lord of Love, is every by you to protect guide you, rejoice in every incident and accident of life ! And give praise to Him whose mercies greet you at every step, in every round.

He spoke of God again and as the Great Give, the All-Giver. He gives and gives and ever gives ! And if man is to grow in the Life Divine he must become a giver. True it is, that to live is to give, to give for the love of Him who giveth all that is ! how the world would be if we share with the poor and needy all we could not use ! Blessed is the man who died leaving nothing, having spent all his wealth in the service of the Lord and his suffering children !.

I listened to him spellbound. I was with him for about a couple of hours when, suddenly, he said “Lo! I hear the bells tinkling. ‘Tis time for me to go. Khudha hafiz, my child ! May missing God be with you !”.

I clung to the hem of his garment. “Take me with you,” I implored. “For life without you will not be worth living. I fain would stay near you, to serve you, to sweep your room, to wash your clothes, to cook your food, and be blessed !”.

“That cannot be, child !” he gently said. “For I live a lonely life. I live alone, with the Great Alone ! But my presence will be with you, here and hereafter. Call me and I shall come. Speak to me and I shall answer ! I go away from you only to come, near to you, for your heart is now become my aboded !”.

With tears in my eyes, I said to him, “Go, if go you must ! But before you leave, give me I pray, a teaching which I may treasure in my heart, teaching which may be to me a light and lantern in the dark hours of life.”

He paused for a  brief while, then said, “My child ! Three truths I leave with you. Treasure them in your heart. Cling to them. Bear witness to them in your daily life. They will take you out of darkness into light, out of illusion into reality, and out of bondage into the freedom of the truly strong and free

(1)   God grants us not what we want but what we need.

(2)   We are punished not for our sins but by our sins.

(3)   Heaven and hell are not some remote regions to which we travel after the death of the body. Heaven and hell are states of consciousness in which we abide here and now. ! We carry heaven and hell with us wherever we go !”

So saying, he quickly vanished.

Sadhu Vaswani Mission Web Site - sadhuvaswani.org

Divine Messages - 87 : God Spoke To Me by Eileen Caddy - Be - 2/2

An extract from the book “God Spoke To Me” by Eileen Caddy – Section “Be”

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·       "ALLOW MY CLOAK . . ." - Allow My cloak of peace and stillness to fall around you and envelop you completely. In quietness and confidence shall be your strength. I can work through you when you are in this state of consciousness no matter what you are doing.

·       ONE GLORIOUS WHOLE - Be at peace. It is the opening of the heart centre which makes you feel everything so deeply. You find that tears flow so easily? These are tears of joy; let them flow. They are tears of recognition of Truth and Love divine. This brings a feeling of elation, of thanksgiving, of a new and deep understanding. It is as if you had slept and have now awakened to find a new world. Everything looks different and beautiful, as if you went to sleep in winter when everything lay dormant and have awakened to spring in its full glory. The same trees, the same garden are there, but vibrant with life, growth, colour and beauty, for all is made new and you feel new in the process. New thoughts, new feelings, new understanding... a new, deeper and more glorious Love... are vibrating through your whole being. Rejoice, My child, rejoice. Tread delicately, alertly, so that you miss nothing See even the tiniest insect in a new light. Because you have chosen to open your eyes, all is indeed made new. You have divided up life, but now it is one glorious Whole. The wholeness fills your heart, expands it, raises your consciousness. This newness has to start within and then expand outwardly and up and up. There is no limit to this expansion; it can go on forever and ever.

·       ALL SHALL BE ONE - Have I not told you that all the sheep and the lambs will be gathered into the fold? All those who hear My voice will come and nothing can stop them. In perfect peace and harmony shall they dwell one with the other, for they shall find a unity which nothing shall break, a unity in Me, in My Light My Love, My Wisdom, and all shall be One.

·       UNFOLD LIKE A FLOWER - Unfold like a flower in the rays of the sun. Grow strong and beautiful, for with Me all is beauty, all is harmony, all is perfection. Have I not asked you to walk in My ways?

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·       Eileen Caddy’s Web Site – findhorn.org