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Christi
United Kingdom
4379 Posts |
 Posted - Feb 22 2007 : 08:58:57 AM
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Dear Yogani,
I have a question regarding ecstatic radiance. Over the last 6 months people around me have started experiencing strange energy movements in their bodies whenever they have been close to my physical body. Obviously these energies are not strange for me, they are strange for them. People have told me that they experience strong sexual energy, heart openings and overwhelming feelings of love. Some people experience these things so strongly that they feel uncomfortable, although nobody seems to be actually avoiding me because of this , in fact I would say that the opposite is true. People have told me that they experience these energies purely due to the distance between myself and them, in other words it does not matter if I am facing them, looking at them, or talking with them. Having said this, it does seem to me that people are more likely to experience love if I am looking at them (or maybe they are just more likely to tell me this if I am looking at them!). It's hard to say sometimes. Is this the beginnings of ecstatic radiance that you talk about in the green book on spinal breathing? For the most part I have felt that it is a natural process, and just shows that some people are more in tune with the energies around them than others (I experience huge waves of ecstacy and love a lot of the time). I started to become concerned recently though when someone told me that they were experiencing an energy build up in their head and particularly in their forehead whilst I was speaking with them. I didn't mind the sexual energies and love energies, but I don't want to give anyone a headache! More importantly, I don't want to cause energy imbalances in anyone, just by sitting or standing too close to them. So my real question is, do we need to be careful in this respect?
Christi
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Shanti
USA
4854 Posts |
Posted - Feb 23 2007 : 10:21:43 AM
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Hi Christi,
I know you have asked Yogani for an answer here. But I hope you don't mind me butting in.
I had asked Yogani this question awhile back.. (ummm.. not about giving others a headache.. when that happens I am sure it's not my ecstatic radiance that is causing it..  )... and this is a part of the reply.. hope it helps.
quote:
With power comes responsibility. With ongoing progress in yoga, we get plenty of both. The good news is that it is no challenge at all in the long run, because we come to know without a doubt what is real and what is not. We are That.
I suggest just favoring the practice. In the case of sexual energy, apply the principles of tantra. That does not mean engaging in sexual diversions, but it does mean recognizing the energy for what it is -- expansion upward through the nervous system. And yes, it will elevate others on a much higher level than sex. This is what the rise of ecstatic conductivity and divine love are.
If others become unduly distracted, then just turn it off in those moments as necessary. They will get the message. Over time, you will gravitate toward a lifestyle that accommodates all the good that is happening in you, without attracting the lower energies.
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Edited by - Shanti on Feb 23 2007 10:23:22 AM |
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yogani
USA
5195 Posts |
Posted - Feb 23 2007 : 10:44:35 AM
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Hi Christi:
Yes, we can regulate how our energy (ecstatic radiance) affects others. Then what happens is mainly a function of their bhakti -- always the case anyway. If there is a warm stove in the room, everyone makes their own choice on how to relate to that. We too can make a choice on how much we radiate in any given circumstance -- the other extreme is that we can choose to become essentially invisible. It is the management of energy on a higher level. Self-pacing for the benefit of everyone. Our practice is not only about us. It is about everyone! This becomes increasingly clear as we move along our path. Unity...
Thanks for chiming in Shanti with the rest of it.
I will be a bit scarce around here in the coming weeks due to a pressing family commitment, so it will be best to ask questions more openly to whoever can answer. That is also the ongoing policy -- these forums are for everyone to be helping each other. I will put in my two cents whenever able. 
All the best!
The guru is in you.
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VIL
USA
586 Posts |
Posted - Feb 23 2007 : 11:14:48 AM
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I hope that all goes well with your family, yogani. You will be missed in the subsequent weeks:
VIL |
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Jim and His Karma
2111 Posts |
Posted - Feb 23 2007 : 11:41:12 AM
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| Yogani, so far as I can see, this is an entirely new strand. Can you or anyone else point to a resource explaining how one can regulate radiance....or become invisible (yes, I know you don't mean it literally!) |
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jillatay
USA
206 Posts |
Posted - Feb 28 2007 : 12:33:47 PM
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Yes, I would like this information too. How I wish I knew about this 30 years ago when I first had an opening. It would have saved me so much trouble.
Jill |
Edited by - jillatay on Feb 28 2007 12:37:00 PM |
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emc
2072 Posts |
Posted - Feb 28 2007 : 1:50:37 PM
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On the invisible part... I just had a conversation with a friend on this, since I experience quite often on the train (I travel a lot on trains) that people don't seem to notice my sometimes very odd behavior. It is as if I am totally invisible. When automatic yoga sets in (which it does more and more seldom, but it still happens) and I do lots of strange movements, there is absolutely no reaction from those around me. Usually people at least give you an eye, or even check with you if you are OK if you start behaving oddly, but it is as if I am in a bubble and could scream without them hearing me.
I remember my ex telling me about this being a result of being at another energy level, and thereby becoming "invisible". Before I started to feel energies, I did not think they existed - I could not pick up higher energy frequences. This is the same thing. Before others can pick up the energy, they won't notice what's going on on that frequence.
If this is correct - can you become "invisible" with others who are also on a higher frequence? Probably not.
My friend told me the most amazing story of how he could control his radiance. (He comes from a non-yoga tradition, so this explanation is not very yogic.) I am not 100% sure I remember all the steps, but the main technique was something like this: When he wanted to become invisible he first stopped thinking, (getting into stillness from what I could understand) and then he - by will - "sucked his aura in", into his body. And how he did this he could not explain. I guess it was through strong visualization?!
Once he found himself walking on a pedestrian path toward a big arena. Behind him he suddenly heard masses of huligans coming on their way to a match. He happened to have the same kind of clothes as they had, so when they came up behind him, wild and shouting, he just melted in with the crowd and was sort of pushed in front of them. Coming out of a tunnel, he saw that the police in full armour was waiting for the crowd, standing in a line in front of him with shields up. He understood he was the one who would be the first target, so he quickly made himself "invisible". Yet, he was pushed up against one police shield, but the police didn't seem to notice him, but hit OVER him on the guy behind! He could just side step calmly along the shields and get out on the side without any police touching him!
It would be interesting to hear if anyone could add info on this topic!
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Richard
United Kingdom
857 Posts |
Posted - Feb 28 2007 : 3:23:15 PM
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quote:
My friend told me the most amazing story of how he could control his radiance. (He comes from a non-yoga tradition, so this explanation is not very yogic.) I am not 100% sure I remember all the steps, but the main technique was something like this: When he wanted to become invisible he first stopped thinking, (getting into stillness from what I could understand) and then he - by will - "sucked his aura in", into his body. And how he did this he could not explain. I guess it was through strong visualization?!
Hi EMC I just read your post and I have realised I have been doing something like this for ages it seemed so natural that I never thought about it before.
Faced with threatening situations or in circumstances where I don’t want to talk to someone, I consciously go into a mode rather like Samyama, I sort of look right past them think of nothing and they don’t seem to notice me. I have always done this and I thought everyone did but I just talked to someone and they said they never have, so you have got me thinking now.
If I ever meditate in public I try and consciously control automatic Yoga, Mine can be quite extreme with head and neck movements and even arms and hands sometimes I don't think I could make that invisible 
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Edited by - Richard on Feb 28 2007 3:57:32 PM |
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jongler
Israel
12 Posts |
Posted - Mar 01 2007 : 02:27:49 AM
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Hi Christi
There are stories about Yogis who threw stones over people which came to meet them in their remote solitude places, they knew that those people are not on the same level (energetically speaking) as they were and didn't want that any harm would happen to them.
Never the less, the yogis solitude behavior, some say, came from the public-safety and responsibility to others. |
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Christi
United Kingdom
4379 Posts |
Posted - Mar 01 2007 : 02:42:35 AM
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Hi Yogani,
Thanks for the reply.
quote:
I will be a bit scarce around here in the coming weeks due to a pressing family commitment, so it will be best to ask questions more openly to whoever can answer. That is also the ongoing policy -- these forums are for everyone to be helping each other. I will put in my two cents whenever able.
Hope all is well with your family. Sorry to direct the question to you, but you were the only forum member that I knew of that had mentioned ecstatic radiance, or anything like it.
Of course I am happy for anyone to help out with advice etc. that's why I put the question on the forum.
quote:
Yes, we can regulate how our energy (ecstatic radiance) affects others. Then what happens is mainly a function of their bhakti -- always the case anyway. If there is a warm stove in the room, everyone makes their own choice on how to relate to that. We too can make a choice on how much we radiate in any given circumstance
This is good to know, although it raises the obvious question of how we can regulate the energy. I have been aware that this effect is real for a long time, as I have felt this kind of radiance coming from Higher (invisible) Beings, and also from Gurus in India. These Gurus are Enlightened Beings, and I had thought that the radiance of energy was limited to these two classes of being (Higher Beings and Enlightened Beings). So I have been very surprised to find it happening to me, as I am sure you can understand.
I am aware that I change the energy. Actually it is more like, if I am talking with someone, or praying with them, then I feel the silence descend. If I surrender into the silence, and allow the energy to rise, then it gets stronger, and more expansive. This is what was happening in the case of the person that I mentioned above, who I was talking to, and they felt a build up of energy in the head. So in a sense, I was in control of the situation. Maybee if I had been a bit more sensitive, I wouldn't have let the energy get so high.
But this doesn't work for people arround me who I am unaware of. If someone is sitting behind me for example, and they feel the energy rising and expanding inside themselves, I could have no awareness of the process. Again, maybe if I was more sensitive (psychic) then I would? I have been watching the process since my last post, and it doesn't feel so much like a radiance, in the sense of something going out from me. It is more like the energy goes up in me, especially in my core (central channel), and my mind expands because of the energy. Everything and everyone arround me is being continuously energetically drawn up by this energy as well. It is a bit like the electrical field around a motor. Some people are more susceptible to this process than others, and many seem to feel (or notice) nothing at all.
So in the case of people who are within my auric field, but whom I am unaware of, I guess the analogy of the stove works the best? It is up to them to work out that something is happening, and to regulate the time they spend physically close to me accordingly?
I must admit though, I am a little worried about my two daughters. I can feel the energy affecting them in various ways, but I have to spend a lot of time close to them to take care of them.
As for becoming invisible, I feel that I can dampen down the energy to a certain extent, by thinking thoughts that are not related to God or Love, but there is a limit to how far down I can bring the energy. It always seems to be rising with a certain force, at all times whatever I do. Is this something that comes in time?
I have to confess that I am slightly daunted by this and any input from you or anyone else would be very welcome.
Hi Shanti
Thanks for the input. I tried to find the thread where you took that quote from so I could read the context, but nothing came up from a search. It seems very relevant. Was it a private email, or can you give the link?
Christi |
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emc
2072 Posts |
Posted - Mar 01 2007 : 03:47:39 AM
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azaz - cool that you recognize it!
If you ever would meditate in public and let the automatic neck, head and arm movements come, I would guess: noone will notice! That's exactly what I am doing. I can sit in front of someone who is looking right by me out the window, I must be right in their sight. I can make strong ujjaji-sounds while my neck is bent 90 degrees backwards, my mouth opens and I make the longest hssssssssssssss. I prepare to meet their look and come up with an explanation and excuse myself. I would expect a glimpse from them and perhaps a little discomfort signal - you know, that kind of subtle signal people send when they want to be polite and not mind others business, but still notice there is something very odd going on, they usually plock with their handbag, change their sitting a bit or give a quick glance and look a bit suspicious... None of this happens. They treat me like air. |
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Jack
United Kingdom
305 Posts |
Posted - Mar 01 2007 : 04:38:40 AM
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Please keep in mind sometimes people will do anything (or nothing!) to avoid weirdness. That includes completely ignoring it.
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Christi
United Kingdom
4379 Posts |
Posted - Mar 01 2007 : 06:44:43 AM
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Hi Jongler,
quote:
Hi Christi
There are stories about Yogis who threw stones over people which came to meet them in their remote solitude places, they knew that those people are not on the same level (energetically speaking) as they were and didn't want that any harm would happen to them.
Never the less, the yogis solitude behavior, some say, came from the public-safety and responsibility to others.
Actually I carry a small bag of rocks around with me at all times for this very purpose. Fortunately I have not needed it yet!
Christi |
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yogani
USA
5195 Posts |
Posted - Mar 01 2007 : 11:30:34 AM
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Hi All:
The reason I haven't addressed the energy effect on others question very much yet is because it is largely a matter of experience and intention.
It is like when we learn to walk, at the same time we learn not to walk into walls or over cliffs. So it is less about "technique" than it is about becoming familiar with our own capabilities via direct experience in our environment, and adjusting our intentions and actions accordingly.
Obviously, we don't want to be frying ourselves or anyone else with our spiritual energy, so we develop our intentions in relation to that, let them go, and the rest is samyama. It is a form of self-pacing. At least that is how I have viewed it for a long time. Perhaps we will develop more definitive methods for energy regulation as time goes on, with more people coming into that realm of experience.
But, as I have mentioned before, much of this is organic development that comes naturally from stillness in action. We can trust that process.
What we don't want to be doing is laboring excessively over (or against) the energy scenery, especially if we are not even seeing it fully yet. We are in transition, and it is a natural process, like learning to walk. There will be no abyss of energy (or ego) disaster as long as we are operating from inner silence. Everything will work out just fine as long as we favor our practices over our experiences, and self-pace as needed.
If some find this to be an over-simplification of a complex process, well, I am happy for that, because it opens the door for more folks to unfold their own destiny. That is the whole game around here -- maximizing access for everyone. We can deal with it. Somehow we have managed, for the most part, to master kitchen knives, automobiles, airplanes and nuclear energy. I'm quite sure we can master spiritual energy also. Call me an optimist.
May the research and development of applied spiritual science continue indefinitely. All the answers are within us.
The guru is in you.
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Doc
USA
394 Posts |
Posted - Mar 01 2007 : 7:24:00 PM
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quote:
Originally posted by yogani:
"We too can make a choice on how much we radiate in any given circumstance.....we can choose to become essentially invisible. It is the management of energy on a higher level."
Greetings everyone!
Yogani's comment quoted above beautifully summarizes the matter, IMO. By simply stating the obvious, he reminds us that Yoga has always been about the self-discipline and self-regulation of our mental activities and our energetic vibrations.
It is probably quite obvious to most longtime yoga practitioners that the regular practice of genuine yogic methods, and the incorporation of yogic principles into everday life and activities, usually results in a dramatic increase of vital force and personal 'presence' which impacts virtually everyone we come into contact with. This 'radiance' or 'presence' is both dynamic and magnetic, and thus attracts or repels others for various reasons and with varying degrees of intensity. It reflects the personal resonance of our outgoing energy....and the transmission of spiritual vibration, IMO.
The other half of the equation reflects the practices from which this increased volume and intensity of intrinsic energy and spiritual vibration develops. Specifically, I am referring to the withdrawal of outgoing mental attention and energy, and the increasingly profound experiences of inner silence and blissful peace found in states of deep meditation. 
A common result of such training is to gradually become so quiet and so still, both mentally and physically, that we literally become invisible whenever or wherever that state of consciousness is maintained. There simply may not be enough brain wave modifications or mental vibrations emanating outward for others to take notice of...sort of like flying under the radar...and so our 'presence' becomes invisible. When maintained during daily physical activities, it can be rather like operating in a completely invisible 'stealth mode'.  This is a very interesting phenomenon, wouldn't you agree?
Hari OM!
Doc |
Edited by - Doc on Mar 01 2007 7:40:36 PM |
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Jim and His Karma
2111 Posts |
Posted - Mar 01 2007 : 11:12:36 PM
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quote:
Originally posted by azaz932001
If I ever meditate in public I try and consciously control automatic Yoga, Mine can be quite extreme with head and neck movements and even arms and hands sometimes I don't think I could make that invisible
The great thing about periodically practicing in public is you discover exactly how much of the externalized drama (automatic yoga, movements, sounds, etc) is automatic, and how much is just out of habit of making certain movements/noices at certain times. It's a good way to clear off some of the barnacles.
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Christi
United Kingdom
4379 Posts |
Posted - Mar 02 2007 : 03:15:24 AM
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Hi Yogani,
Thanks for the great reply.
quote:
It is like when we learn to walk, at the same time we learn not to walk into walls or over cliffs. So it is less about "technique" than it is about becoming familiar with our own capabilities via direct experience in our environment, and adjusting our intentions and actions accordingly.
Obviously, we don't want to be frying ourselves or anyone else with our spiritual energy, so we develop our intentions in relation to that, let them go, and the rest is samyama. It is a form of self-pacing. At least that is how I have viewed it for a long time.
I agree with you on this. I feel like I am on quite a steep learning curve, and hopefully things will work themselves out soon enough.
quote:
There will be no abyss of energy (or ego) disaster as long as we are operating from inner silence.
Obviously you are right, there is a great danger here of ego expansion. That always comes with power. But I don't really feel that it is my power, more that it is something that happens around me, and that increases in effect the more I surrender into the silence. So it is like "a power", which manifests more in the world the more I am removed from the equation. But then the ego is a slippery customer, and can easily pop up again going "Look at Me, aren't I amazing now I have been removed from the eqation!"
But I am surprised that this form of radiant energy is occuring in my life at such an early stage in my spiritual evolution. I certainly have not disolved my ego enough to be safe from temptation. Even beautiful women still tempt me (usually successfuly ) so this kind of thing doesn't make life any easier. This could explain why so many have fallen from the path, because occult powers manifest long before there has been any significant reduction in ego identity.
I don't think that this aspect of our spiritual evolution is necessarily more dangerous egoically than any other. It is just as easy as we learn more about the spiritual process for the ego to attach itself to that and form itself around the idea of being someone who has "great spiritual knowledge", or "great spiritual experience". We find that we have an answer for everything, and get angry if anyone contradicts us. At the end of the day, it is just another ego identity which will have to go, another part of "the story". This kind of spiritual materialism seems to be becoming increasingly common these days.
quote:
If some find this to be an over-simplification of a complex process, well, I am happy for that, because it opens the door for more folks to unfold their own destiny. That is the whole game around here -- maximizing access for everyone. We can deal with it. Somehow we have managed, for the most part, to master kitchen knives, automobiles, airplanes and nuclear energy. I'm quite sure we can master spiritual energy also. Call me an optimist.
I am not entirely sure that we have exactly "mastered" nuclear energy. We seem to be pointing large amouts of it at each other in very menacing ways! But I will agree with the rest, especially about our ability as a race to master spiritual energies. In fact personally I would say that this process could go a long way towards saving the world. If Love radiates out from every person who is undergoing a spiritual transformation, and this energy begins to transform everyone around us, then there is great hope for the future. So you can call me an optimist too.
Thanks again for your help in this matter.
Christi
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Etherfish
USA
3615 Posts |
Posted - Mar 02 2007 : 07:18:28 AM
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| We have mastered all those things as far as how to produce and control them. So we are sure not to hurt ourselves with kitchen knives and nuclear energy, and we carefully pick who we are going to harm with them. What we have not mastered is non-harming of others, and that goes hand-in-hand with spiritual energy practices, so AYP is exactly what is needed in the mainstream. |
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Christi
United Kingdom
4379 Posts |
Posted - Mar 02 2007 : 09:37:26 AM
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Hi Etherfish
quote:
We have mastered all those things as far as how to produce and control them. So we are sure not to hurt ourselves with kitchen knives and nuclear energy, and we carefully pick who we are going to harm with them. What we have not mastered is non-harming of others, and that goes hand-in-hand with spiritual energy practices,
You are right of course. I stand corrected. I was really trying to make the point that this is a particularily precarious time for humanity, and love is needed now all over the world more than ever before. This is why I practice Yoga.
quote:
so AYP is exactly what is needed in the mainstream.
It would certainly be an amazing world if it was.
Christi |
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Doc
USA
394 Posts |
Posted - Mar 03 2007 : 09:23:23 AM
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quote:
Originally posted by Christi:
"....there is a great danger here of ego expansion. That always comes with power. But I don't really feel that it is my power, more that it is something that happens around me, and that increases in effect the more I surrender into the silence."
Hi Christi!
So long as this 'power', which you say is not your power, manifests around you...and increases in effect the more you surrender into the silence...then there would appear to be a direct correlation between your level of inner silence and the outer manifestations of the 'power'. This is no doubt true for all of us!
As such, we are never out of the equation. We are the equation!
Hari OM!
Doc |
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Katrine
Norway
1813 Posts |
Posted - Mar 03 2007 : 10:30:13 AM
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Hi All
Christi wrote:
quote:
But I don't really feel that it is my power, more that it is something that happens around me, and that increases in effect the more I surrender into the silence
Yes....
Only..... it is not something that happens "around you". It is you. Radiance is never not here. You are always that. And as such - it truly is your power. But....with "me" as the reference point.....I cloud the shine. It is not that I "should not" use the power for my own benefit.....it is simply that it is impossible. It can't be done. When "me" is the reference point...I immediately make the shine unavailable. When I surrender.....when I am quiet....the shine of reality floods into the vacant space previously occupied by "me". The increased radiance.... is not really an increase - it is simply less obscured, that's all.
Christi......
Thanks for sharing your radiance. Embrace it as yourself. Let the intelligence of the shine determine what to do or not do. Nothing is wrong. You are not harming anybody. On the contrary. Don't be overly concerned with how others are dealing with this. How are you embracing and surrendering to the love you are, is more crucial. Everything starts with you.....and ends with you.
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Doc
USA
394 Posts |
Posted - Mar 04 2007 : 6:14:48 PM
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quote:
Originally posted by Katrine:
"It is not that I "should not" use the power for my own benefit.....it is simply that it is impossible. It can't be done."
"When "me" is the reference point...I immediately make the shine unavailable."
"Everything starts with you.....and ends with you."
Hi Katrine:
I really like your overall train of thought in this last post. I would, however, like to comment on the your above quoted statements.
I disagree with the first statement in that I believe it is indeed possible for any individual to develop spiritual powers and personal 'presence'...using legitimate training methods with patience and consistency...and then choose to use these for totally selfish agendas focused solely on personal benefit. Many even choose unethical, immoral, and illegal means of doing so.  History has recorded countless instances of this in virtually every sphere of human endeavor. Past and present examples include people in all walks of life...from priests and gurus to politicians and CEO's...and others as well. Here are a few thoughts from other thinkers regarding this:
Lord Acton:
"Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Great men are almost always bad men."
Nadine Gordimer:
"Power is something of which I am convinced there is no innocence this side of the womb."
Rabindranath Tagore:
"Power takes as ingratitude the writhing of its victims."
Charles A. Beard:
"Whom the gods would destroy, they first make mad with power."
Carl Jung:
"Where love rules, there is no will to power; and where power predominates, there love is lacking. The one is the shadow of the other."
William E. Gladstone :
"We look forward to the time when the Power of Love will replace the Love of Power. Then will our world know the blessings of peace."
I totally agree with your second statement ...i.e. that whenever self interest is the reference point, the perpetual infusion of 'power' and 'presence' immediately becomes impeded and separated from its Source, unable to continually 'recharge'. Such an individual will only retain influence and power until their formerly fully charged 'batteries' use up all of their stored 'power'.
Lastly, I also disagree with your third quoted statement. I believe that everything starts with God...and ends with God, the Alpha and the Omega, the Source of All, and does not begin and end with us!
Hari OM!
Doc
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Edited by - Doc on Mar 04 2007 6:54:21 PM |
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yogani
USA
5195 Posts |
Posted - Mar 04 2007 : 10:41:00 PM
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Hi Doc:
I don't think divine power and worldly power can be regarded as synonymous, though both are expressing from the same source. One is born of loving surrender and is unlimited. The other is born of external manipulation and is limited. While it may not always be clear which is manifesting in the moment, we will always find out soon enough ... "Ye shall know each tree by its fruit."
Interestingly, there will always be power manifesting in one way or other, either divinely through loving surrender, or in a worldly way through willful expression. In reality, it is always going to be a blend in each of us.
There has never been a spiritual master who did not willfully express the tiniest bit of worldly power (some have expressed a lot of worldly power). And there has never been a powerful megalomaniac without some trace of a soul (some have had a lot of soul).
So it is not a matter of being one or the other. We are all both, and we each choose which way to go on that scale -- toward divine expression, or toward egoic expression. The manifestation of power is inevitable and unavoidable. Yet, from where that power is manifesting we can choose -- direct from infinite inner silence that is eternal divine love, or through a limited ego that will run us up on the rocks again and again. Is this such a difficult choice?
The guru is in you.
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Doc
USA
394 Posts |
Posted - Mar 05 2007 : 01:07:45 AM
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quote:
Originally posted by yogani:
"I don't think divine power and worldly power can be regarded as synonymous, though both are expressing from the same source. So it is not a matter of being one or the other. We are all both, and we each choose which way to go on that scale -- toward divine expression, or toward egoic expression. The manifestation of power is inevitable and unavoidable."
Hi Yogani:
Quite so! This was my point exactly. Who can say with certainty that the "worldly power" wielded by one person is not also granted unto them by God just as the "divine power" manifested by another person is? Perhaps each one of us is called to serve God in a uniquely different way in accordance with a Divine Providence....which may or may not be readily understood. The fullest potential of all manifestations and expressions of power within us and through us, for the greatest positive good of all, is dependent upon our willingness to accept our calling for its use with complete surrender to God's Will, IMO. This is the ultimate act of devotion, is it not?
Unfortunately, there are always some who confuse the Divine Power that manifests within them and through them as their own personal power...created by their own intelligence...developed through their own talents...earned through their own efforts alone...and is thus viewed as the fruits of their own personal merit to do with as they please.
We are all challenged to some degree to look past the Illusion of our own reflection in order to perceive the Presence of God within us, and our At-One-Ment with the Divine Presence as the Ultimate Reality of our Soul Consciousness. I believe that by the Grace of God and the blessings of Divine Providence, all are capable of attaining Self-Realization...if they are willing to receive it.
Hari OM!
Doc |
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Katrine
Norway
1813 Posts |
Posted - Mar 05 2007 : 03:37:52 AM
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Hi Doc
quote:
I disagree with the first statement in that I believe it is indeed possible for any individual to develop spiritual powers and personal 'presence'...using legitimate training methods with patience and consistency...and then choose to use these for totally selfish agendas focused solely on personal benefit
Yes.
But looking beyond this.....(I am not disputing that the world is full of egos working for themselves; great list, by the way, Doc).....is the fact of Being. I may think i am the doer; I may think I am benefitted by "my actions".....but as long as I take the "me" (humble or not; spiritually educated or not) to be the reference point, I will be stuck in duality. Very simple, really.
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I totally agree with your second statement ...i.e. that whenever self interest is the reference point, the perpetual infusion of 'power' and 'presence' immediately becomes impeded and separated from its Source, unable to continually 'recharge'. Such an individual will only retain influence and power until their formerly fully charged 'batteries' use up all of their stored 'power'.
Exactly.
Whether we agree or not, Doc, is not so important. What is truly beneficial (to all), is to act according ones own understanding (true understanding - not mental knowledge; "borrowed knowledge"). In other words - it is not beneficial to anyone to know something to be true, and then do something not resonant with this understanding. But we are full of such inner conflicts. If I act according to what I understand - truth will immediately respond. The response will be the guide to further understanding. If acted on, the light approaches (because of less resistance), if not - then have I really gained anything other than impermanent comfort? Not only have I harmed "others"; the harm I have done pierces my own heart.
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Lastly, I also disagree with your third quoted statement. I believe that everything starts with God...and ends with God, the Alpha and the Omega, the Source of All, and does not begin and end with us!
Well.....again....we don't have to agree. Only act on what we understand. This will make both statements true. We are both home - no matter all the appearances of the contrary. The reference point is all.
I am......is not separate from God. There never was "two".
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emc
2072 Posts |
Posted - Mar 05 2007 : 07:20:43 AM
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If I act according to what I understand - truth will immediately respond. The response will be the guide to further understanding. If acted on, the light approaches (because of less resistance), if not - then have I really gained anything other than impermanent comfort? Not only have I harmed "others"; the harm I have done pierces my own heart.
Katrine, I have said it before and I say it again: YOU WRITE LOVELY POSTS! This is my only guide nowadays, and it is the only guidance I use to interpret other's actions! Is the light approaching? Yes or No? Do I get an immediate response of TRUTH?
THANK YOU! |
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Ecstatic radiance?
