Simran: The Sweet Remembrance of God. Mantra, Japa, Dhikr & Pray Without Ceasing Articles, Quotes, Poems & Stories

Size: px
Start display at page:

Download "Simran: The Sweet Remembrance of God. Mantra, Japa, Dhikr & Pray Without Ceasing Articles, Quotes, Poems & Stories"

Transcription

1 Simran: The Sweet Remembrance of God Mantra, Japa, Dhikr & Pray Without Ceasing Articles, Quotes, Poems & Stories Dedicated to: Sant Kirpal Singh Ji Maharaj The Beloved Master If You welcome me, then I am Your accepted one: If You do not, I am still Your rejected servant! I should not be worried whether You accept or reject me: My task, in either state, is to remain preoccupied with You! (Sharafuddin Maneri) Simran is the first step of the spiritual ladder. (Sant Kirpal Singh)

2 Table of Contents 1. Mantra, Japa, Dhikr & Repetitive Prayer 2. One Effort Sant Kirpal Singh Simran from Philosophy of the Masters Simran from My Submission More Sant Kirpal Singh 12. Excerpts from a satsang talk Attach Your Heart to God by Master Kirpal Singh 13. Electrified Words The Benefits of Practicing Simran 15. How to Repeat Simran; Simran Should Be Continuous Question & Answer with Sant Kirpal Singh 19. Mental Prayer 20. With Master in the Punjab Baba Sawan Singh on Simran 23. Sant Rajinder Singh, The Moment We Remember; Q & A 24.Sant Rajinder Singh, Pathways of Remembrance; 25. Sant Rajinder Singh, Merry-Go-Round of Simran 26. Sant Darshan Singh, Sweet Remembrance; Q & A 27. Sant Ajaib Singh, A Broom to Clean Our Soul Sant Ajaib Singh, Q & A Sant Ajaib Singh on Simran Sant Ajaib Singh, The Remembrance of God The Sukhmani of Guru Arjan 49. Quotes 50. Baba Ram Dass, Mantra from Be Here Now 50. Paramahansa Yogananda on Japa 51.Yogi Bhajan, The Power of Mantra 52. Gurumayi Chidvilasananda, They Glorify the Name 53. Swami Sivananda Radha, Mantras: Words of Power 54. Swami Sivananda Radha, Benefits of Using a Mantra Swami Sivananda, Japa Yoga 57. Sri Aurobindo; The Mother; Sri Ramakrishna; Mahatma Gandhi Eknath Easwaran, Becoming Established in the Mantram In Praise of Japa Vedanta Society 63. Sri Sarada Devi; Swami Yatiswarananda Quotes 66. Dhikr 67. Llewellyn Vaughan-Lee, Inner Transformation 68. Meher Baba on Japa Quotes 73. Buddhism Jack Kornfield 74. Nama-Japa Journal of Shin Buddhism 75.,Using a Mantra to Find Your Own Voice, Lama Surya Das 76. Crazy Little Drunk Monkeys & ANTSs, Brian Johnson Saying the Jesus Prayer St. Vladimir s Orthodox Theological Seminary The Power of the Name, Bishop Kallistos Ware 82. Quotes 83. Using the Jesus Prayer, Father Charles Joiner Selections from The Way of the Pilgrim

3 Simran at the Time of Death Sant Kirpal Singh, Sweet Remembrance 94. Baba Sawan Singh, Sweet Remembrance 95. Quotes Kabir Mirabai 103. Ramakrishna, Swami Ramdas 104. Sri Chaitanya, Tukaram 105. Tulsi Das 106. Namdev 107. Ravidas 108. Ravidas, Jayadeva, Baba Farid, Guru Arjan Stories of Simran 116. Master s Challenge 117. Summary of Simran Sant Kirpal Singh 118. Beware of the Thieves of Simran ii Param Sant Kirpal Singh Ji Maharaj When anyone would complain to Hazur about inability to still the mind, He would reply, Your Simran is not constant enough. And for the complaint of not being able to sit for long in meditation, the same reply was given. (Sant Kirpal Singh, Night is a Jungle, 190)

4 -1- Mantra, Japa, Dhikr & Repetitive Prayer Mantra is Sanskrit for a word or a phrase given to a seeker by a guru at the time of initiation to the spiritual practice. The word or phrase is considered sacred, and is to be kept secret. The seeker is instructed to meditate on the word or phrase, repeating it regularly and devotedly, which practice ultimately leads to God Realization. In Sant Mat the word Simran is used for the spiritual practice of repeating the mantra given by the Satguru during initiation. Simran repetition is done during meditation and also outside it. Japa, also a Sanskrit word, refers to the devotional repetition of any name of God, and specifically to the repetition of a mantra. Japa is practiced in Hinduism and Buddhism. In Hinduism, the great mantra or mahamantra is simply Ram Ram, invoking the name and presence of Ram. In Islam, dhikr [also spelled zikr] is Remembrance of God, which may take the form of devotional acts or the repetition of divine names. Similarly, repetitive prayer is a common practice in Christianity, such as, Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner or simply the name Jesus. (zoofence.com/define05.html) Muslims call it Dhikr", that is, to remember someone. Simran confers all the benefits of the eight aspects of Yoga. Simran is an essential part of Yoga. There is a reference to it in the Gita: It is the highest form of spiritual practice. (Sant Kirpal Singh, Philosophy of the Masters) Sant Kirpal Singh Ji Remembrance of God is the main thing before us to find the way to Him. (Sant Kirpal Singh, Spiritual Elixir)

5 -2- One Effort There is in our life only one effort, one unique effort through all that we do from morning till night: to rivet our attention on our Master who seeks us and loves us. To be dominated by this one thought of the Master, to let oneself be seized by it, to be literally possessed by it, is the goal of our life. Little by little, we take on the habit of turning away from ourselves and turning toward the Master. Putting oneself in the presence of His person, which is done continually, every time our attention wanders, eventually becomes constant and truly modifies us. The Master rubs off on us. By constantly thinking of Him, He passes into us. His manner, His reactions, His thoughts become ours by a kind of contagion, by a true osmosis. There is nothing more transformational than to be under the direct influence of a Divine Being in whom we have placed our love. When God s remembrance becomes well established, it is no longer the ego which is the principle motivator of our thoughts, words and deeds, but the God Power which lives within us. (Adapted from a book on the Jesus prayer) One night during prayers a vision of the Beloved appeared to me. Lifting the veil from his face, he said, Take a good look at the one you always leave behind. (Awhad al-din Kirmani)

6 -3- Simran Remembrance or Repetition Simran gives pleasure and removes pain. By doing the Simran of the Lord, one merges in Him. (Sant Kirpal Singh) So there are two uses of Simran: one use is to withdraw from the body by Simran of the electrified words given by a competent Master, and the second is to drive out the world and its thoughts from within us by the constant remembrance of the Lord (The Teachings of Kirpal Singh: Simran) The following quotes by Master Kirpal Singh primarily address the second of these uses to drive out the world and its thoughts from within us by the constant remembrance of the Lord. Excerpts from Gurmat Sidhant, Philosophy of the Masters Sant Kirpal Singh (dedicated to His Master Hazur Baba Sawan Singh) No one is free from repetition or remembrance of some kind. It is through this process that the worldly objects enter into every pore of our body, mind and intellect, and man is virtually dyed in the hue of the world. It is because of this that the soul has to be born again and again. As we think so we become. If we give up remembrance of the world and instead think of the Lord, we can easily gain the means of Salvation.

7 -4- It [Simran] has several meanings: to protect, to make a mental picture of one s deity in the heart, and to contemplate on this form, to remember a certain person or thing to such an extent as to think about it with every breath, to make it a part and parcel of one s life, and ultimately to awaken into and to live in it. The Simran of the objects of the world should be replaced by the Simran of God, and thoughts of the world by contemplation of the Master, who is God incarnate. Thus is imprinted on our subconscious mind the impression of God in the form of our Satguru. Simran is the first step of the spiritual ladder. Saints reveal to us the names of the presiding deities of the regions within. Therefore, the names that a Master imparts are the only ones to be repeated. These names are also energy-charged and help the transference of spiritual energy to the disciple The Names that are revealed to us by a True-Master carry His power, and this comes to the aid of the disciple, enabling him to transcend both death and the Negative Power. Each Name carries its own influence. By Simran of Holy Names, we get rid of the thoughts of the world. One feels the presence of God. Simran bestows happiness, peace and bliss, and leads us to a state of super-consciousness.

8 -5- Simran should not be done in haste. It should be done slowly and with love and devotion, the Names being repeated clearly and correctly. The results of repetition will be in direct proportion to the love and faith brought to bear upon it. His Names have a great power. When done with faith one feels intoxicated with joy, with the result that he forgets his body and himself and is aware of the presence of the Lord. How potent and blissful is the Name of God, for it creates in the devotee a fast-flowing current of bliss, peace and soul force, and he gets truly blessed. In the early stages considerable effort has to be made to carry out Simran, but as practice is gained Simran goes on automatically. If one is to succeed in this practice, he should carry out Simran at all times whether awake or asleep, just as the hands of a clock move ceaselessly. If Simran were to be done ceaselessly, all cares and anxieties would vanish. Then the mind would not give up Simran even for a second. Simran is possible only with the Grace of the Lord and through the kindness of a Master. Simran is a precious practice. It is only through great good luck that a person takes to Simran. The secret of Simran one can learn from a True Master alone. Simran should be done with every breath sitting, standing, walking, eating one should so remember Him with one-pointed attention that he becomes inseparable from Him and does not stray away.

9 -6- The Sikh Scriptures detail many a benefit from Simran. When an overwhelming adversity besets your path, when there is no other help, when foes hotly pursue you, when close relations desert you, when all hopes are dashed and when all avenues are closed, if you still remember God, no harm shall ever touch you. When a person is depressed for want of food and resources, when even the last penny has left him, when he is without a job, even then if he gives place to the Lord in his heart, he shall forever be freed from want. When one is torn by cares and anxieties, when his body is diseased, when he is deeply immersed in domestic worries, when he is at the mercy of the buffets of sorrow, when he wanders to and fro and finds no home nor hearth where he can rest even then, if he carries out the Simran of the Lord, he shall attain inner calm and peace. When a person is under the sway of lust, anger and attachment, when he is assailed by miserliness and avarice, when he is in the grip of the four vices, namely stealing, drinking, adultery and the persecution of saintly people, when demon-like desires to annihilate others have taken hold of him, when he will not listen to the reading of a holy scripture even then, if he thinks of the Lord, he shall gain freedom in the twinkling of an eye. Simran puts an end to sins, pain and doubts. It removes anger and ego. It takes away cares, all ills, and the three attributes. It rids us of ghosts and goblins. It bestows peace and bliss. By Simran a person is emancipated, and becomes a good example and a spiritual benefactor. He becomes a real philanthropist, has few needs, and becomes a leader of men. Simran banishes fear of death and frees one from the cycle of births and deaths. It removes obstacles and difficulties, and pleasure and pain. It grants miraculous powers, esoteric knowledge, and the merit of recitals and penances. Duality is shed, the dross and filth of the mind wear off, and the refulgence of God s Name becomes manifest. The devotee is ever at the feet of the Master.

10 -7- Guru Arjan has eulogized the state of Simran thus: Within our hearts we contemplate the Master, on our tongue is His holy Name, in our eyes resides His Form, in our ears resounds the Divine Melody. We remain completely engrossed in His remembrance. We become merged in the state of ceaselessly dwelling upon Him. Our mind and intellect their very fabric are completely colored with the dye of His constant remembrance. It is such persons who gain honor and glory in the Court of the Lord and thus fulfill the great destiny of human life. A person should pine for his Master as does the rain bird for a drop of rain. He should repeat His Name with every breath and should think of His Form day and night. In short, he should not forget Him even for a second. The truly great in the world are those who have in their hearts naught else save the recollection of the Lord. Guru Arjan says in Sukhmani: By Simran alone you get to the real Shabd or Sound Current which leads you to God. Kabir says: During Simran the longing for God in one s mind should be as intense as that of a lover for the beloved, so that sitting, standing, awake or asleep, the form of the beloved is always in the mind of the lover. He does not forget it even for a second. Again, Kabir says: Simran should be like the thoughts of a passionate lover, who does not forget his beloved even for a moment. Simran should have the same attention as that of a woman carrying a pitcher of water on her head. She talks, she walks on the uneven ground, but her attention is focused on the pitcher. Simran should be like a cow which is grazing, but has her attention fixed on her calf. Simran should be like a miser who has a coin in his pocket, and keeps his attention on it all the time. Kabir says: Remember the Name of the Lord with the same intensity of love as the fish has for water. It does not stand separation from water, and dies. Kabir says: Everybody remembers Him in times of distress and nobody does so during felicity. If one were to remember Him while leading a life of ease, why should pain ever visit him? When Simran is not done during comfort and is remembered only during grief, who can ever answer such a supplication? Guru Nanak mentions in Jap Ji: Ceaseless Simran is the ladder by which to reach the Mansion of the Lord. Were the tongue to multiply into many tongues, and each were to repeat His Name, it would still be inadequate.

11 -8- The Adi Granth has placed great emphasis on Simran: Remember the Lord with every breath. Forget Him not even for a moment. Likewise have Muslim Saints emphasized its great need: The Lord has thus ordained: You remember me and I shall remember you. Hazrat Mohammed says: Persons who repeat the Holy Names of God have angels around them. The Grace of God protects them. They enjoy peace and bliss. God remembers them. The whole purpose of abandoning sin is to ensure that evil desires are broken, and that the tendencies of human nature are brought to heel, with the result that a person does not turn aside from God! There is one further purpose that a person s heart may be governed by the thought of remembering God, and having been freed from the shackling tendencies of human nature, the heart might become purified for the task of remembering God and attaining a true vision of Him. (Sharafuddin Maneri) May it never happen, O dearest idol of mine, that love of You should depart my heart, or thought of You, my mind! (Sharafuddin Maneri) He who is in constant remembrance of God, only he is alive, O Nanak; all others are dead. (Guru Nanak)

12 -9- Simran Sant Kirpal Singh - from My Submission The book My Submission is a summary of the five volume Philosophy of the Masters, written by Sant Kirpal Singh and attributed to Baba Sawan Singh. Simran or Repetition Includes All Types of Recitation Some do it with the help of the fingers, others with their tongue, and many others with their throat, heart, or even navel. Simran is highly beneficial if it is done with the attention of the surat (soul). Therefore, if one has beads in his hands while the tongue moves in his mouth, and the mind wanders, it is not a useful type of Simran. Kabir Sahib has said in one of his verses: The beads rotate in the hand. The tongue moves in the mouth. The mind runs in all directions. This is not Simran. Why are you counting your fingers, with your mind rambling in all four directions? The mind, by rotating which, you would have realized Him, has been reduced to nothing better than a mere block of wood. The support of external things for doing Simran, like the counting of beads, is an inferior type of Simran. Simran by the tongue, by the throat, by the heart, or from the navel center is respectively more efficacious. Amongst the Muslims also, Simran is done in various ways: by the tongue, by pressure over the heart, by fixing the attention at the eye center, by application of the mind, by a secret method to be imparted orally by an Adept to his disciple. These five methods can be learned individually by one person from another. These types of Simran are beneficial to some extent when they are done with attention. But the Simran with the aid of beads or by the tongue is ineffective. It may be stated, however, that the Simran done by the tongue with the attention fixed at the eye center is resorted to by spiritually advanced persons and can be learned from them. But the Saints have chosen as best the Simran which is done with the tongue of the soul, because the soul gives energy and life to the body, the mind and the senses; and by doing Simran with the soul, the mind concentrates. Of course, all types of Simran purify the heart to a certain extent and result in some happiness and the feeling of longing for the Lord. In fact, one is even able to control and exercise certain supernatural powers by means of Simran. But complete concentration of the soul and the opening of the inner gate to enable one to listen to the Anahad Shabd will not be possible by any other means than that of Simran taught by the Saints. Simran is the Best Method Which Leads to Inner Concentration The real Simran, as taught by the Saints, is the most important part of Jap Yog (the Yoga of Repetition or Remembrance). And if it is done with the attention of the soul or with the tongue of the soul, then the heart of that individual becomes attuned to the Lord. All worldly thoughts vanish from the mind of the person who practices in this way, and are replaced by the thought of the Lord. Then one feels His presence everywhere.

13 -10- Kabir Sahib says: By repeating Thou, I became Thou. For, when the I-ness vanished from me, I saw nothing but Thou. A person who has naught but the remembrance of God in his mind is truly great. We run after the objects of this world through our senses. And if we were to analyze it carefully we would know that there are three main avenues through which we run out: the tongue, through speech; the eyes, through vision - we give and receive impressions through the eyes; the ears, through hearing. In this manner the impressions of the world enter our mind. In order to keep impressions away, one should have the seal of Simran on his tongue. Then the same organ will produce impressions of the remembrance of the Lord on our subconscious mind. By continuous Simran, our previous impressions will be erased. If any new thoughts arise, they will be concerning the Lord. This will eventually result in concentration of the mind and soul. This method is natural and easy, and every person, in any walk of life, can adopt it. In order to do the inner Simran, it is not necessary to resort to other methods like breath control, because these methods are difficult to perform and are artificial in nature. Above all, they invoke risk in being performed by a householder or a physically weak person. What Is Simran and How Should It Be Done? To remember the Lord with every breath of our life is known as Simran. Simran is practiced with the ultimate aim of attaining communion with Him. Simran should be done in accordance with the instructions of a Master whose own soul has merged in God. Such Simran will result in the greatest good, because it makes use of thought transference (Master to disciple), which removes all obstacles that confront us in our transport to the upper regions. Thus the soul receives personal and constant guidance on the difficult path leading to the upper spiritual regions. Simran should be done by sitting in a comfortable posture, by concentrating the attention at the center between the two eyebrows, and by lovingly and devotedly repeating the Holy Names with the tongue of the soul. By doing this, the wavering mind becomes steady and one is able to achieve concentration. Simran, of course, can be done while waiting, or in other conditions. Nor is it necessary to neglect worldly duties for this purpose. On the contrary, one should earn one s own living. One should keep one s mind and body unperturbed, in order to practice Simran as instructed by the Master. The hearing and the seeing power of the soul should also be developed. This kind of Simran, even for a moment, is far more efficacious than Simran of various other types, even if done for ages. Objects of Simran The object of Simran is to have communion with God. The soul alone can realize Him. It is not possible for the mind, the senses or the intellect to know God. But so long as the soul is active in all parts of the body and in the objects outside, it cannot know the Lord.

14 -11- By doing Simran according to the Master s instructions, we withdraw our attention from the worldly objects, thus withdrawing mind and soul currents from every pore of the body, bringing them to the eye center, and concentrating them there. In this manner, the mind and the soul are concentrated at the headquarters of the mind, and the body becomes dead to the world. When this happens, a person has conquered death while living. When the practice is properly done and one s inner eye opens, then that individual becomes aware of eternal consciousness. Simran is the ladder which takes us to the higher regions where we may have communion with the Lord. Whoever finds pleasure in doing Simran as instructed by the Master, will one day assume or merge into the form of God Himself. It is for this reason that all Saints have preached and taught the proper method of doing Simran within. More Sant Kirpal Singh When anyone would complain to Hazur about inability to still the mind, He would reply, Your simran is not constant enough. And for the complaint of not being able to sit for long in meditation, the same reply was given. (Night is a Jungle, 190) So you can say that the first step is Simran - controlled thought - and it should be constant, without a break. This is the washing process, before the soul is ready to be drenched in the color of God. "One jap (repetition), one thought. Think of One, sigh for One, sing the praise of One. Through mind and body, with love repeat the Lord's Name." With true service of mind and body, in love and devotion, one should increase one's remembrance of the Lord until there is nothing but constant sighing for Him. Then there is indication of awakening. We sigh for worldly things, but it is rare to find someone who sighs in remembrance of the Lord. (The Teachings of Kirpal Singh: Simran) Simran is the first step. Logically, one will be drenched in the color of the one in whose name the Simran is done. "If you keep someone in your heart, you will reside in theirs." If the disciple remembers the Guru, the Guru will remember the disciple. And if there is remembrance on both sides, that creates receptivity, and the Guru and disciple become one. "Satguru protects the disciple with His life." In such condition, the disciple becomes suffused in the Guru's color. In the clear heart, the true knowledge becomes apparent. Naturally, those who do Simran will be dyed in that color. When Masters feel so inclined, they reveal themselves somewhat and great wisdom comes forth - for our benefit, in whom the color of the Lord is not yet fast. (The Teachings of Kirpal Singh: Simran) Simran is the basis of all spiritual evolution. You will please appreciate that it is the constant thought of worldly pursuits which has been the cause of present human birth, and for attaining liberation from the cycle of birth and death, the very thought pattern is to be revolutionized by replacing it with divine thoughts. (Letters to N.Y. area initiates part 1) Do you repeat the sacred charged Names orally? If so, it is to be replaced, though gradually and slowly, to the mental repetition. It may further be explained thus suppose you met somebody some days earlier, and had a talk with him and you want to recollect it now. You will neither use the tongue nor speak again, but mentally you will have all the conversation repeated. This is the true form of repetition or Simran. The five holy Words are to be repeated mentally during meditation. (The Teachings of Kirpal Singh, How to Overcome Inaccuracies in Meditation)

15 -12- Selections from Attach Your Heart to God (Sat Sandesh, 4/04) Keep alive the memory of God, your Creator, all the time. He will, in the end, be your savior and abide with you even when the whole world will leave you. If we are a particle of His Being, it is but natural that the part draws towards the whole and becomes merged in its source. If you keep His memory alive, He will naturally become yours; even now you are not far from Him. He is the support of your soul and He will manifest Himself to you. We have forgotten God and our self by allying ourselves with the world, and we cannot see the world as being apart from us. Because we constantly think of the world, we have become identified with it. Similarly, the constant simran of God will cut us off from the world. As the thought of God grows more intense, the hold of the world loosens, driving out all worldly thoughts. Access to God lies in His constant simran. With His thought constantly in our mind, we will become identified with God, just as by dedicating ourselves to the world, we have acquired its shape and hue. Guru Arjan says that the first step towards God is simran constant repetition of His Naam. Your innate qualities will revive, and He will then come to live with you. We must, while going about our work, keep God in our mind, for it is of primary importance. The constant remembrance of God encompasses the teachings of all the religious books. If you do not forget Him, He will ever be present by your side and will be your savior. If you remember Him constantly with heart full of love, your mind will not run after other things. His remembrance, day and night, waking and sleeping, will suffuse your mind and body with His thought. You will begin to be drawn into Him. The Jap Ji, a composition by Guru Nanak of great spiritual depth, sings the praises of simran. Let one tongue grow into a hundred thousand, Nay even twenty times more; And each one endlessly chant His holy Name.

16 -13- Electrified Words The five charged Names given by a true Master are electrified words. (The Teachings of Kirpal Singh: Simran) Master souls always do, and recommend, Simran of the highest type, to wit, of the Original or Basic Names of God Such Names are charged with and electrified by the thought transference that usually accompanies them when communicated to an aspirant by a Master Soul. As these are magnetized, they have the power to attract and pull the spirit up to the planes to which they relate. The engrafted words charged with the Divine Spirit of the Master very soon bear fruit. (The Teachings of Kirpal Singh: Simran)) Again, these charmed words of the Master Basic Names of God have the power to dispel the forces of darkness that may meet and assail a Spirit on its onward journey. Simran of these Names helps the soul both in the physical plane and supra-physical planes, one after another. Hence it is imperative that Simran be done of such Names as the Master Soul enjoins, for they are charged with a tremendous spiritual power which negative powers can hardly put up with and from which they flee as from an enchanter driven. Immortal and everlasting as these words of the Master are, they bestow life everlasting to the soul in which they sink and take root. (The Teachings of Kirpal Singh: Simran) The Names that are revealed to us by a true Master carry His power, and this comes to the aid of the disciple, enabling him to transcend both death and the Negative Power. The words of the Master are eternal, and through them we are freed from the cycle of births and deaths. Therefore, whatever Names are bestowed upon us by a Master are conducive to our greatest good. Each Name carries its own influence. (Philosophy of the Masters, v. 1, Remembrance) You will please appreciate that the sacred charged words are highly efficacious and carry the thought transference of the Master. (The Teachings of Kirpal Singh, v. 3, 113) The Benefits of Practicing Simran Simran (or constant remembrance of God) is a tonic for the soul. It makes the will grow stronger from day to day. Troubles and trials however severe cannot cow him down. With a smiling face he pulls through the storms of fate or destiny unscathed. Simran is a panacea for all the ills of the world. It is a potent remedy and works wonders to remove worry where all human efforts fail. A man of Simran never has any worry or anxiety. Simran to be very effective must be constant and ceaseless. (Teachings of Kirpal Singh: Simran) Simran makes man introspective and concentrative. Extraordinary powers inevitably follow as a result of the concentration of mind in the inner planes (Jap Ji - Introduction) When you think of the Lord all the time, nothing can bind you to matter; hence you do not have any rebirths, for it is said: Through Simran of the Lord, you do not pass through the womb. (Jap Ji - Introduction)

17 -14- By Simran of Holy Names we get rid of the thoughts of the world. One feels the presence of God. Ultimately, Simran leads us to the unstruck music which is the means of taking the soul to upper realms. (Philosophy of the Masters) Repetition of God s Name is an unfailing remedy for all ills. This is a spiritual food for the soul. (Philosophy of the Masters) Simran done with faith produces a unique feeling in the heart. By doing Simran a feeling of bliss and divine influence fills the heart. This state is produced sooner or later, according to the individual devotee s sanskaras (predominating nature, the result of past karmic impressions). (Philosophy of the Masters) The repetition of the charged Names is given to the disciple as a weapon against all dangers. It acts also as a password to all spiritual planes, gives strength and sustenance to the body and mind during trouble and affliction, and brings the soul near the Master. It is instrumental in achieving concentration and imparts many other diverse powers. (Teachings of Kirpal Singh: Simran) If you wish to be filled with the Grace of God, then you should banish all else from your mind. Leave everything else aside and cherish the Name of the Lord alone in your heart. As soon as you empty your mind of all thoughts by means of Simran, you will find the way to the Lord s mansion. (Teachings of Kirpal Singh: Simran) Soul is of the essence of the Lord. You acquire the form you think about and have to return to it. As ye think, so ye become. If the essence thinks of its own source, which is all Consciousness, it will merge in the source and attain the eternal and everlasting state. (Teachings of Kirpal Singh: Simran) The results of Repetition will be in direct proportion to the love and faith brought to bear upon it. Carry out the Simran of the Lord with love and faith. His Names have a great power. When done with faith one feels intoxicated with joy, with the result that he forgets his body and himself and is aware of the presence of the Lord. How potent and blissful is the Name of God, for it creates in the devotee a fast-flowing current of bliss, peace and soul force, and he gets truly blessed. (Teachings of Kirpal Singh: Simran) If a person were to remember God constantly, he would awaken into super-consciousness. But this is a state which can be achieved only with the Grace and blessing of the Lord. One who gains this state even for a moment, gets life everlasting. (Teachings of Kirpal Singh: Simran) This is the only method by which the soul meets its Lord and becomes one with Him. But this state is realized only with the Grace of the Lord. Our own efforts are utterly futile. But by constant Simran one awakens super-consciousness and attains the state of everlasting tranquility and peace. (Teachings of Kirpal Singh: Simran) Simran is a potent remedy and works wonders to remove worry where all human efforts fail. A disciple who does Simran constantly has no worry or anxiety. Simran to be effective must be constant and ceaseless. Constant remembrance of God is life-giving to the devotee. (Sat Sandesh, March 1975, 26)

18 -15- There is nothing lost in nature, but the charged Words can give quicker results - as a fruitgrowing tree takes six to seven years to give fruit, but if it is given scientific food, it gives fruit in two or three years. ( The images manifesting within are the result of some past thoughts which can be excluded by Simran of the charged Names. These words carry the life impulse of the Master and serve as sure sheet anchor against the onslaughts of negative powers. Anytime you are overtaken with some horrifying phenomena, just give out charged Names, you will be blessed with instantaneous help and protection. (Letters to N.Y. initiates, part 8) Your experiences while repeating the charged Names even at work shows His gracious protection being extended to you at all times. You are fortunate enough to be privileged to enjoy these serene experiences of spiritual beatitude with His grace. (Letters to N.Y. initiates, part 9) How to Repeat Simran Simran should not be done in haste. It should be done slowly and with love and devotion, the Names being repeated clearly and correctly. To do it in haste or to regard it as an unwanted task, or to go through it merely as a routine leads nowhere. (Teachings of Kirpal Singh: Simran) Simran must be done slowly and the Words are to be repeated or thought out with clarity. The whole process is to be carried out with love, devotion and single-minded attention to ensure quick results. When properly done for some time, a state of divine intoxication comes upon the spirit and blessed calmness is experienced. (The Ambrosial Hour, 159) If you accept the Simran of charged Names as the basic Names of God in the Master, then you will be able to repeat them with affection, love and devotion. (The Teachings of Kirpal Singh, v. 3, 116) Simran Should Be Continuous Simran to be very effective must be constant and ceaseless. (The Teachings of Kirpal Singh, v.3 111) The constant remembrance of the Lord is but another form of love. Whom you love dearly you think of always. This constant thought of the Lord is what the Master exhorts all to do, for as you think so you become. (Jap Ji Introduction) Masters have said, I do not ask you to renounce the world; I only ask you to remember the Lord in all you do. By quoting this, I am not saying that you should leave life in the world and take the road to the lonely forests. I mean that no matter where you are or what you are doing, you should not forget God. (Teachings of Kirpal Singh: Simran) Only a person who has given his heart to another can know what it means to give the heart. It is a practical matter, for in true love there is incessant remembrance of the loved one perpetual. Gurumukh s remembrance is only one continuous. It continues without pause or end, unlike us; we remember many times with breaks in between. (Teachings of Kirpal Singh: Simran)

19 -16- While doing any manual or mechanical work or in idle moments, you can continue repeating the five Holy Names or recite some prayer lovingly all the time and you will feel new strength is entering within you and that Someone is working with you, sharing much of your labor. (Teachings of Kirpal Singh: Simran) You are requested to avoid all thoughts whatsoever all along your daily chores, and try to keep your mind enchained whether with the Simran of charged Names, or loving remembrance of the Master, or listening to the holy Sound Current as coming from the right side. This is the sublime solution for all the troubles caused by the mind. (Teachings of Kirpal Singh: Simran) A devotee, no matter in what circumstances he may be poor or rich, ill or well, awake or asleep, standing or sitting should remember Him and become so absorbed in Simran that he becomes utterly oblivious of his body. By doing so the soul ascends to higher spiritual regions. (Philosophy of the Masters) Ordinarily mind should be fully devoted in the work one does, as work is worship. But when mind is vacant, it should not remain vacant as a vacant mind is the home of the devil. It should be kept busy either in repeating the five Holy Names or in sweet remembrance of the Master or listening to the Sound Current if it has developed so much as to be audible and reverberating all the time. (Teachings of Kirpal Singh: Simran) It is very good that you commence and end the day with the repetition of the sacred Names. These sacred Names are charged with the life impulse of the Master and their Simran (repetition) invokes His mercy. To the best of your efforts you should resort to the repetition of charged Names all along your vacant moments and keep yourself immersed in the loving remembrance of the Master. (Spiritual Elixir, 169) One need not forget Simran even in the midst of the hustle and bustle of life and worldly obligations. (Teachings of Kirpal Singh: Simran) So from this moment onward, have the sweet remembrance of God; don t forget. Have it for three days two days. Ramakrishna says if a man has the sweet remembrance of God continuously for three days, he will see God. That will become the ruling passion. Continuously for three days, he said; continuously. (Come Back, My Children) The practice of Simran begins with the repetition of the Master s objective Names slowly with a mental poise. At first the practice is objective, but in time it becomes subjective. Then the constant thought of the Lord continues without cessation. Once this starts, the remembrance becomes automatic, continuous and constant and one never forgets the Lord. (Teachings of Kirpal Singh: Simran) The Mahatmas are never without Simran even for a single moment. As it is altogether a mental process (for it is to be done by the tongue of thought), no amount of physical and manual labor can interfere with it. In course of time, like the tick of a clock, it becomes automatic and ceaseless for all the twenty-four hours. While the hands are engaged in work, the mind rests in the Lord. (Teachings of Kirpal Singh: Simran)

20 -17- So the Gurumukh s life is lived in constant remembrance. The new life starts from initiation, and then he lives on remembrance, remembrance, remembrance which increases that new life it begins to surge within. As a person thinks, so does he become. It starts as a remembrance, but eventually the remembrance occurs by itself that means he has become that very remembrance. (Teachings of Kirpal Singh: Simran) Disciple: Are the five keys to the Kingdom of Heaven the five Holy Shabds? Master Kirpal Singh: They will give you charging give you a boost, that s all. Give you a boost, as well as serve as a sheet anchor against any negative effect both. Disciple: Have all Sikh Gurus given out the same words, back to Guru Nanak? Master: Yes. There are thousands of names. These are the names chosen by Saints because they are related directly concerned with the planes, something representing those planes, quite near to them. All other names are qualitative. These are not qualitative, but (they) give some clue of those planes. These names are given in the books, also, but they are not charged. When charged, anything that will come will also be charged. (His Grace Lives On, 44, 45) Disciple: Master, if we do Simran, is this thinking of God? Sant Kirpal Singh: Simran, what is Simran? It is the repetition of the different Names given to that Power working in all planes. The same God-power working in different planes is called by different names. In the highest plane it is called Truth. In the second plane it is called "I am you-you are me." In the third plane you find, "I'm above all three attributes." The same Power is called by different names in different planes, but it is the same Power. That is One. And when you see that Power working, that is Light and Sound. We are always doing some remembrance of the world, something. Every man, whether he is in the office or in the field or anywhere, starts remembering what he has to do tomorrow; here, there, everywhere, this and that, making programs, setting this and that. Nobody can remain without remembrance of one thing or the other. So remembrance of God is far better than remembrance of the world. Whatever becomes the ruling passion in your life - you go there after death. If it is for the world, then you come down to the world. If it is for God, then you return there. Remembrance of God is pointing your attention to something higher working in the universe; but unless you see that Power These are helping factors. Are they not? Just go deep down into that thing.

21 -18- Constant remembrance does not mean automatic repetition of names. All the same, it (automatic repetition) is remembering that Power. Unless you become conscious of that Power, you are just like a blind man. Still, it is comparatively better than thinking of the world. To think of God is much better, but that is also not sufficient unless you see that Power (The Light of Kirpal, 306) Disciple: Kindly explain about the visualization of Master's form during Simran. Master: There is hardly any need to imagine or visualize the Master's Form while engaged in Simran. Any such attempt is likely to scatter the attention. Then there is another danger in doing so. What form you conjure up will be a make-belief, a projection of your mind and not the reality. When one is initiated the Master resides in the initiate for all time. What is already inside will automatically come in to view when you get in there fully and completely, though it may take quite some time to adjust yourself to the new surroundings, unknown before. God manifests of Himself more fully in some human form in which He is working without any visualization. (Spiritual Elixir, 83) Disciple: In repeating the five Names, does there come a time when just repeating Sat Naam is sufficient or is it necessary to repeat them in order every time? Master: Look here, there are five planes, five planes. The Power is the same, working in different planes, called by different names. You start from the physical, astral, causal, slowly and then go up, step by step. The Power is the same. Just as a power house in one building which lights up all the rooms in the building, the same power house power in each one goes to the second plane, then the third, then the fourth. The Power is the same, Naam or Word, only one. God has hundreds and thousands of names. But appropriately speaking, there are five planes and the names given are according to these planes, one by one. So it [Simran] is for remembrance and is how a man can go to Him (The Light of Kirpal, 148) Disciple: Master, would you kindly explain the principle and the importance of Simran? Master: Well, it is very clear. Whom do you remember? The one whom you love, don't you remember him? What is remembrance? It is a symbol of having love for somebody. If you have love for somebody, all the time you are remembering him, perhaps not with your mouth, but with your heart. And whomever you want to love, remember him constantly, and that will develop love, that's all. (ruhanisatsangusa.org/nonew.htm)

22 -19- Mental Prayer Sant Kirpal Singh A prayer may be repeated by the tongue of thought alone. This can be done only when one can prepare a suitable ground for it within himself. One must see the presence of God and be able to concentrate his thoughts before offering a thanksgiving to Him, making free and frank confessions of all his shortcomings and seeking His aid in all his endeavors. It is an art and like any other art requires a great deal of patience and steadfastness, as is necessary in learning music or painting. To start with, the mind has to be trained and stilled by constant thought of the Master, which works like a goad (the steel rod used by Mahouts or elephant drivers for keeping the animal under control). After offering such a prayer one must for some time wait for His grace or blessedness, which "descends like a gentle dove," says Christ. With it also comes peace that thrills one throughout from head to foot. Once a person tastes of this he feels a perfect satiation within himself. The infatuation of the world with its wondrous charms fall off like a discarded and a long-forgotten thing in the limbo of the past. In the world, he is now no longer of the world. What a wondrous change indeed! Some people consider this as the be-all and end-all of spirituality. But this is not the case. This change in outlook is but a precursor or a harbinger of the advent of the luminous form of the Master and much more thereafter. (From Prayer: Its Nature and Technique, ruhanisatsangusa.org/pray/pray_09.htm)

23 -20- With Master in the Punjab Wolfgang Sprenger The stay here [Dasuya] was highlighted by a beautiful morning darshan from which the following extract is taken: How to still the mind? There is one remedy: think of your Master. If a child is going around with his hand in his father s hand, no dacoit will dare touch the child. Always be conscious, be aware of the Father. Have sweet remembrance of Him, then the mind will not tell you anything; it will not harm you. When you forget the Master - the God in Him then the mind attacks. It robs you; drags you to the outgoing faculties and the earth. So for that reason have the sweet remembrance of the Master. It is the panacea for stilling the mind. But it should be SWEET remembrance - not automatic. Sweet remembrance of the Master is sweet remembrance of God. He always thinks of your welfare, so that you may reach your True Home - that s all. (1/74)

24 -21- Hazur Baba Sawan Singh The Power of Simran (Excerpts) Perfect Saints are engaged in Simran every moment. They tell us to do our work with our hands and feet, and do Simran with the tongue of thought. By constant practice, the Simran will become automatic, all the time, day and night. Anybody, be he rich or poor, who concentrates on Naam is most fortunate. But there is a secret in Simran. Many do Simran with worldly desires in their heart for one thing or the other. The luckiest of all are those who do Simran without any desire or motive whatsoever. It is only when we are in affliction that we think of God. If we remember God and do Simran all the time, then no trouble will befall us. Our troubles and miseries come only when we commit sins and are far from God. Without Simran there can be no peace for the soul, and our willpower can not become strong. By engaging in Simran one attains super powers. The best way to ward off cares and sorrows is to do Simran of the Lord. To do Simran with concentrated attention is the most natural and effective method to gain spiritual advancement, and is also the easiest way of all. Simran should be done with as much love and affection for God as the fish has for water. The moment it is separated from water it dies. In the same way, we should feel as if we are dying if we are separated from Simran. When the mind does Simran all the time the inner veil is lifted and the mind becomes still and quiet. (Sat Sandesh, 1/81) Go on steadily on the Path, and once your Simran becomes perfect you will find yourself endowed with the power to stop a speeding train. There is so much power in Simran. (Sat Sandesh July 1981, 31) Always remain one-pointed and never allow your mind to engage in foolish fancies. This is possible only by keeping your mind engaged in the Holy Names. At all times, whether walking, eating, drinking, or doing any other work which does not require much attention, try to concentrate your attention on the Holy Names and never allow your senses to wander away. Be always on your guard; this is the only way to get mastery over our mind. (The Ambrosial Hour, 30) Repetition of the holy Names during one s daily routine work is very useful. One is thinking about a thing within oneself; therefore, when one sits for devotional practices, the mind is naturally turned in this direction. (Spiritual Gems, letter 173) By Simran alone the soul leaves the body and goes up. (Spiritual Gems, letter 15) Without love Simran seems to be a burden. (The Ambrosial Hour, 129)

25 -22- The sign of complete Simran is that the soul will start gradually leaving the body. After crossing stars, moon and sun, it will reach the luminous form of the Satguru. To reach this point is the job of Simran. Before that, consider that the course of Simran is not yet accomplished. (The Ambrosial Hour, 130) During the day, if you have an occasion to go out for a walk or when you are studying or when you are not doing anything at all, keep your mind busy with Simran. Go to sleep while doing Simran, and when you wake up you will feel as if you are getting up from your Simran. By forming such habits, you will be able to control your mind during meditation. (Sat Sandesh, July 1981) From Baba Sawan Singh, in a letter to an American Initiate dated April 1927: Below is the answer to your question: How does repeating the Names help me on the journey? The Names do reveal to us something that lies within us and above the eyes. The deities do respond when their names are spoken but your receiving apparatus is not yet attuned to receive their message. Hazur Baba Sawan Singh When we are attending to our daily duties, our mind is usually not occupied with them but is wandering. Saints say, "Hold the reins of the mind tight in your hand throughout the day then, when you sit in Bhajan, concentration will be quick and easy." It is easier to concentrate the mind by Simran than by any other practice Do not let the mind remain idle. (Spiritual Gems, 8) To develop the spiritual power, you will have to forget all about the world and its belongings. It does not mean you are required to quit your profession; no, it means you should create a habit of repeating the Holy Names with the mind s tongue and hear the Holy Sound within even while at work. You can do it slowly and gradually, when the work does not require full attention; also, while walking and so forth. (The Dawn of Light, 6)

26 -23- Sant Rajinder Singh The Moment We Remember The Master is the embodiment of God s limitless Ocean of Love and Light. Whenever we turn our attention to him, his holy waters will flow into us. People think that we have to be in the physical presence of the Master to experience this divine radiation and nectar of love. It is true that when in his company we experience bliss and intoxication directly. That is because when we see him, our attention naturally goes to him. We do not have to try to think of him or remember him because he is right there in front of us. But we can also experience the bliss and nectar of his love by remembering him from a distance. The Master is connected with each soul under his care. He is always within each of us and is ready to pour forth his grace and love to every disciple. He is only waiting for each one to turn his or her attention to him. Even if we are ten thousand miles away, the moment we remember him with love in our hearts, we will feel the waters of his loving attention fill our very being This is called a state of receptivity. The Master s heart is very sensitive, and he knows who is remembering him, who is thinking of him with love. If we are open to receive his divine waters, they will pour into us, not only in small trickles, but with abandon and drench us in its intoxication. The floodgates will open and we will feel like we are not only filled with the nectar, but floating in it. Once that floodgate is open, the soul will find itself swimming in the Master s love, immersed in his love, and any physical distance between them will vanish. (Sat Sandesh, 9/02) Simran during the day is an activity that helps us in our meditation because it focuses us on God all day long. We can do that part of the Simran practice in which we repeat the Names mentally while involved in other activities of the world. If we do Simran when we are not engaged in a mental activity but while performing some physical activity, then our attention will be focused on God more easily when we sit for meditation, for either the Light or the Sound practices. (Spiritual Thirst, 88, 89) Question: How is it possible to keep Simran going on throughout the day when we are not sitting in meditation and still continue doing other activities? How can we do both at the same time? Sant Rajinder Singh: The Saints have always said that whenever we are doing an activity that is not requiring intellectual thought, such as driving the car or doing something with the hands, we should be doing Simran.

27 -24- For those whose attention on God is strong, they can do Simran while doing many different activities. We have heard about Saints who meditated with their eyes open. It seems like it is not possible to meditate when your eyes are open because there are many distractions attracting our sense of sight. But once our attention is focused, nothing distracts us and we are able to do Simran with many activities going on. When we are beginning to learn the Simran practice, we should start with one thing at a time. We should do Simran with one other activity, such as doing something with our hands. When we master that we can try doing Simran with another activity, such as walking or exercising. It takes practice and concentration. Through practice, we can become proficient. (Spiritual Thirst, 83) Pathways of Remembrance (Excerpt) Sant Rajinder Singh explains a verse by Sant Darshan Singh: On whatever paths my thoughts of the Beloved have traversed, I pay obeisance to those paths. The imagery of this verse is incredibly beautiful. We are now looking into the inner workings of the soul of the poet. The lover is thinking of the Beloved. A true lover thinks about the Beloved continually. Everything in life reminds the lover of the Beloved. Whether near or far, the lover is lost in thought of the Beloved. The poet is describing these thoughts as taking pathways. Each thought is traveling on a road or a highway. No matter what road the thought takes, the remembrance of the Beloved is on that road. If the lover s thoughts take a right-hand turn, the Beloved is there. If the lover s thoughts take a left-hand turn, the Beloved is there. If the lover s thoughts go straight ahead, the Beloved is there. Wherever his thoughts take him, they are imbued with remembrance of the Beloved. (Sat Sandesh, 4,5/07) Whether it is the morning or the night, we should only think about the Master. Only his name should come on our lips, because as we think so will we become. (Sat Sandesh, 12/06) Even when we are not meditating, we can be swimming in ecstasy. How? We can keep our attention on the divine Beloved all hours of the day and night. While driving, while working with our hands or body, while cooking food, while eating, while exercising, or doing any other activities, we can remember God. (Spark of the Divine, 141)

28 -25- Merry-Go-Round of Simran There is the story of a mother who had a naughty son. Whenever she took him shopping with her or to a park, he would try to run away. She tried everything to keep him by her side, but he would find a chance to break away and run. She felt that she could not put attention on anything that she set out to do. If she went shopping she could not focus on what she needed to buy. When she went to the park, she had to spend the whole time watching to make sure that he did not run away. One day, she went to an amusement park with her son. She was exhausted from keeping her eye on the boy every second. As she passed by one of the tents, an attendant said, Would you like to buy a ticket for this ride inside? The mother said, No matter what kind of ride I put my son on, I have to go with him, or else he will run away. Do you have a ride that can give me a break from watching him? The attendant said, I think this ride will do the trick for you. She decided to give it a try. She went into the large tent with her son and found a merry-go-round. The attendant told her that she would not have to worry about her son on this ride. The boy could go on the ride by himself, and she could relax. The boy took a seat on one of the life-size horses. He was strapped in. The merry-go-round started to move. It went round and round and round. The boy felt he was moving forward and did not realize he was going in circles. He was happy that he was moving forward, and the mother was thrilled that he did not need to run away. She would take a break on one of the benches while her son was absorbed in the merry-go-round. This is what simran does for us. It puts the mind on a merry-go-round of repetition, while the soul can relax in enjoying the inner Light and Sound without distractions. The mind feels it is doing something and moving forward as it says each Name of God, while the soul is lost in the blissful Light and Sound within. (Sat Sandesh, 10/09)

29 -26- Sant Darshan Singh Sweet Remembrance Unless our repetition of the five charged Words is coupled with sweet remembrance of the Master, it will not be so effective. Our meditations can be effective only when we have concentration, and that will come about when we have the Master s sweet remembrance. Sweet remembrance of the Master always helps us in concentrating. We should not sit as a duty, in a mechanical way. Someone asked me the other day if our simran should be directed toward the Master or toward God? How can it be effective when directed toward God? Nobody has seen God in His Absolute form. I have not seen Him, and you have not seen Him. How can we have love for anybody whom we have not seen? We can have attachment, we can have love, we can have affection, only for a living Master a God-realized being whom we have seen. Once we have seen the Master, we develop love for him, we develop regard for him, we begin to change our bad habits and live up to his teachings. (Secret of Secrets) Disciple: So you are saying that when we repeat the mantra, each Word should contain the sweet memory of the Beloved Master. But is it possible that each of the five charged Words can be felt as actually being the Master himself? Sant Darshan Singh: A stage does come when the Master is before you inside, and when we repeat the Names, each one will come to symbolize him. They are in fact the names of the Lords of the five stages inside. From the lowest to the highest stage, these Lords have been appointed as the rulers of their respective planes. But they all represent the same God Power: they are part of, and manifestations of, that Power at different levels. (Secret of Secrets) Our regularity in meditation and the amount of our leisure time we spend in sweet remembrance of the Master is directly proportional to the extent of our passion, zeal, love, and eagerness to reach our goal in the least possible time.

30 -27- Sant Ajaib Singh A Broom to Clean Our Soul Make the mind quiet as only a quiet mind can meditate. Don t understand the meditation as a burden, do it lovingly. During the meditation, don t pay any attention to the outer sounds or disturbances. Don t allow your mind to wander outside, concentrate it at the Eye Center. Satsangis should make the habit of keeping their attention concentrated at the Eye Center, even when they are not meditating, even when they are walking and doing other things of the world, because when we allow our attention to drop down from the Eye Center, it means that we are wasting a lot of our spiritual energy. There is a great importance in these Five Sacred Names which we go on repeating again and again. Behind these Five Names the charging of the Master works. Saints go within and They have contact with the owners of the five planes which our soul has to cross in order to get to the Real Home. These Five Names are the names of the owners of those five great planes. We can concentrate our attention and rise above the body consciousness only with the help of doing the Simran, and our soul can cross these planes only by climbing on the Shabd. The satsangis who want to make their thoughts pure and holy need to do Simran as much as possible, because our thoughts will only be purified by doing the Simran. Simran works like a broom to clean our soul, and the mirror of our soul also gets purified only by doing the Simran. When our soul becomes clean then the Shabd pulls her up. No matter how close you bring the rusted iron in contact with a magnet, still it will not attract the iron towards it. Unless you clean that iron, unless you remove the rust from that iron, that magnet will not pull it towards itself. In the same way, if our soul is not purified, if our soul has the dirt of the organs of the worldly pleasures and the worldly things, then that Shabd will not pull our soul up. What happens now? The Shabd is sounding in our within and it is very close to our soul. We are hearing it, we are even enjoying it, but because our soul is not purified, that Shabd is not pulling our soul up. So that is why we need to do a lot of Simran, because when our soul will be purified it will take no time for the Shabd to pull her up. (The Ambrosial Hour, 175) Disciple: At first I was puzzled by the phrase which Sant Ji used: completing the course of Simran. Based on what he said this morning, am I to assume that the course of Simran is completed when we reach the Radiant Form? Sant Ajaib Singh: Yes. When we reach the Radiant Form of the Master, and when the habit is developed, after that the Simran will not stop, it will go on indefinitely. When the Radiant Form of the Master is manifested within us, it will talk with us just as we are talking now. And when the course of Simran is completed, after that when you sit for meditation one second is longer than it will take to reach the Radiant Form of the Master. (Sant Bani Magazine, 9/83, 13)

31 -28- Question: If we work hard while we re here, could we perfect our Simran? While we re here at the ashram? Sant Ajaib Singh: Yes. Yes, but it is different for different people. You know that some students are so bright that they learn the lesson in just one day, and some students are not so bright, and it takes a long time for them to learn the same lesson. So it is different for different people; but you should understand why we have to do Simran. We do Simran only to change the thoughts of our mind. The thoughts or fantasies which we have in our mind, nobody has told us to have them; all those thoughts are coming from our mind, from within us, by themselves. We are not making any effort to bring them, but still they are coming. But we are very fortunate ones, because Master has given us Simran. This is the Simran on which They have meditated, and if we want, and if we work hard, we can perfect our Simran, we can change our thoughts, in just one day. We people don t pay much attention to Simran. That s why we spend our whole life in doing it and still remain far away from perfection. We people do Simran for ten minutes and then give up for many minutes, and again we do, and again we give up. Sometimes we forget Simran for many hours, and sometimes we don t remember Simran even for many days. It is only because of this that we are not able to perfect our Simran. But if we paid attention to Simran, and if we did Simran constantly, then we could perfect it in no time. Satsangis have no idea of the value which Simran has and the power which Simran has. And that is why they don t pay attention to Simran, and become careless. If we are strong in doing our Simran, we can have many powers, just by doing it. Many supernatural powers come within us just by doing Simran, and if the one who has perfected his Simran wants, he can stop a moving train. Such power can be achieved by doing Simran. There are many forces of mind. And when you do Simran and have control over your mind, then you will realize its value and you will not give it up. You will always want to do it. (The Ambrosial Hour, 306, 307) Disciple: How does the Simran work in improving our lives, and how can we develop more love for Simran? Sant Ajaib Singh: Love for the Simran is awakened only by doing it. You know that you can know about the quality of a tree only when you have eaten the fruit of it. In the same way, when you eat the fruit of the Simran - when you know how effective the Simran is only then do you appreciate and start doing more Simran. When we do the Simran, we love the Simran, then we come to know how delicious and fruitful it is. When we start getting the fruit of doing Simran, we start to withdraw from all outer attachments and we withdraw from the sense organs. We rise above the level of mind and senses and get attached to the Shabd. Once we become attached to the Shabd by doing Simran, after that we get so much love for the Simran that even if we want to break it we cannot. As Guru Nanak Sahib says, My Lord has tightened my string so tightly that it cannot be broken by anyone. When you develop love for Simran and enjoy the taste of the fruit of Simran, then your condition becomes such that even if you want to break the habit of doing Simran, you cannot do it. But in the beginning, love for Simran is awakened only when you do it. (Sant Bani Magazine, May 1988, 29)

32 -29- Disciple: There is so much emphasis on Simran, but (it seems to me), at times I am just saying five foreign words that I can t relate to except that the Master has told me that this will bring me to different levels. How do we get to understand or have more of a feeling for the Simran? Sant Ajaib Singh: Instead of thinking about understanding them, you should go on repeating them, which will bring the understanding to you by itself. When you go within then you will understand them. When you go within, everything will be like an open book. When you go within then you don t need to ask anything from anyone; there will be no doubts, no confusion. As long as we are outside, we don t know the importance of doing Simran, but when we have faith in the Simran and do a lot of Simran and go within, then we know the importance of Simran, and desire to do it more and more. (The Ambrosial Hour, 310) Disciple: I m finding when I have a penetrating gaze as my primary attention, I see more light but if my first objective is to hold the Simran steady, then I don t see as much. What I see is steadier but there is not as much to see. Is it better to put the primary attention on the Simran and to see less but have it more still, or to have a more penetrating gaze and then have the Simran come along from time to time as an added boost? Sant Ajaib Singh: The best thing is first to make your Simran perfect. It would be better for you to do more Simran first because, if you will be perfect in your Simran, then for your further progress, you will not have any difficulty. If you will not be perfect in your Simran, you can t go ahead. Where you are, you will stay there. You can overcome the lacking of Simran by doing Simran while you are doing any other work, and then while you are sitting, you will not have to put much attention on your Simran. It will come by its own self. (Sant Bani Magazine, 2/77) Disciple: While doing Simran is it best to remember the Master, also is it appropriate to hold a motive for doing Simran? Sant Ajaib Singh: The only motive you should hold on to or you should have is that you have to go within, manifest the Master, and talk to the Master. If you will not remember the Master, if you are not sitting to manifest the Master, dear ones, whose devotion are you doing? This is why we should always go on remembering the Master. Guru Arjan Dev says, Master, Master, always go on repeating the Master, because I am nothing without Him. If we will not remember Him then how are we doing His devotion? We should always remember Him, whether we are traveling in the bus, or sitting in the toilets, or bathing, or doing anything we should always remember Him. The Simran which we are doing has been given to us by the Master. We should always remember His form in front of us. (Sant Bani Magazine, 10/94, p. 27)

33 -30- Disciple: Could one visualize the Master s Form while doing Simran? Sant Ajaib Singh: If we will do the Simran lovingly and affectionately then without visualizing the Form of the Master, the Form of the Master Himself comes there and starts dwelling within us. It is a natural practice; you know that if you remember anything you will start seeing or feeling that thing in your within, in your mind. In the same way when we will do the Simran given by the Perfect Master, lovingly and affectionately, then by Himself His Form will start appearing within us. If we are making any efforts from our side, if we are trying to visualize the Form of the Master then we will not be able to get any success in that because we won t be able to visualize the complete Form of the Master. Sometimes we may be able to visualize only the eyes of the Master, sometimes the beard or turban, and in that way our meditation will be disturbed, we won t get any success at that. So it is better just to do the Simran lovingly because if we remember the Master lovingly He will start to appear within us by Himself. (Sant Bani Magazine, 7/91) Disciple: In doing Simran, I find that the hardest part of it is mentally pronouncing the first name. I have talked with several other satsangis who have the same problem. Is there an internal reason for that, or is it just my poor pronunciation? Sant Ajaib Singh: We should have love and faith in the Master within ourselves, and if we have both those things the pronunciation becomes all right by itself. (Sant Bani Magazine, 11/12-98) Disciple: I ve read that we should do Simran in intervals. What does that mean? Sant Ajaib Singh: If the worldly thoughts bother us a lot during the meditation, we should increase the speed of the Simran. But if our mind is quiet, and there are not many thoughts bothering us, then we should not stop our Simran. If it is happening with the tongue of our thought, if it is happening mentally, let it happen like that. Disciple: When you say, if it s happening mentally, does that mean when you re in a state of remembrance that you re not saying the words? Sant Ajaib Singh: When the Simran starts happening within us with the tongue of our thought, then we do not need to make any effort of doing the Simran. It is like this: now we do not make any efforts to think the thoughts of the world. In the same way, when such a state comes in respect to the Simran, then we do not need to make any effort of doing the Simran. (Sant Bani Magazine, 1/95)

34 -31- Disciple: I was wondering: when we got the Initiation instructions we were told that we re not supposed to do the Simran while we re doing Bhajan. But is it supposed to go on anyway, sort of real subtle? Sant Ajaib Singh: At the time of the Initiation, when the instructions are read to you, it is said that you should not repeat the Simran when you are doing your Bhajan practice, because you cannot do two things at one time. You can do only one thing at a time. That is why it is said that you should not repeat the Simran when sitting for Bhajan. But this is only for the beginners. In the beginning, because you don t know Simran and you have not developed the habit of doing constant Simran that is why you are told not to make any effort to do Simran when sitting in the Bhajan practice. But gradually you should develop the habit of doing Simran as the thoughts are coming in your within. You see, the thoughts are coming in your within without your making any effort, and you are not even conscious of the speed of the thoughts, whether they are coming quickly or slowly. They come without any effort. In the same way, you should develop the habit of doing the Simran and you should replace those thoughts with Simran. Just as breathing is going on in your within and you are not even aware of it you don t make any effort, it just goes on by itself in the same way, you should do so much Simran that the Simran should go on within you by itself, and you should not be aware whether it is going slowly or quickly. If you will develop the habit of doing this type of Simran, then you will see what power Simran has, and then you will realize how much you are getting from doing that type of Simran. And when you have perfected your Simran in that way, then you will not have to make any effort to do the Simran either when sitting in the Bhajan practice or in the Simran practice; it will go on by itself. When you will perfect your Simran in this way, then as soon as you will sit for meditation your thoughts and your attention will be collected at the Eye Center and you will start hearing the Sound Current without plugging your ears. Now, no doubt you hear the Sound Current when you sit for the Bhajan practice, but that Sound does not pull you up. This is only because of the lack of Simran. If you will complete the [needed amount] of Simran while doing your other work, if you do the Simran while walking, talking and doing other things, then your course of Simran will be completed and then when you will sit for meditation, your attention will go straight to the Eye Center and the Sound will pull you up. Now no doubt, you people do hear the Sound Current, but you do not enjoy it because that Sound is not pulling you up. This is only because of the lack of Simran. Sometimes it happens that you are enjoying the Sound and suddenly your soul comes back in the body and you feel a jerk in your body. Many people even get frightened and they feel as if they are going to die. This is only because of the lack of Simran. If you have done a lot of Simran, then you will never have this type of feeling of jerking in your body because once your attention goes to the Eye Center, you will enjoy the Sound Current and it will not come back into your body since you will have completed the course of Simran. (Sant Bani Magazine, 3/03, 26-28)

35 -32- Disciple: There seems to be a lot of confusion about when we're supposed to do Simran and when we're not. I was told to do Simran all the time. But then I understand I'm not supposed to do Simran when I'm sitting for bhajan. And if you're supposed to do Simran all the time, how can you not do it when you're doing bhajan? Are we supposed to do Simran at the same time or not? Sant Ajaib Singh: We do not need to bother about this confusion, because when the Simran is happening within us automatically, without our making any effort to do it, you will not remain aware whether you are doing the Simran or you are not doing the Simran. When it is happening within you by itself, then even if it is happening while you are sitting for Bhajan, you do not need to stop it. Until that stage comes, until we are able to perfect our Simran mentally, we should not do Simran while sitting for Bhajan. Guru Arjan Dev Ji Maharaj says, With your every single breath you should remember Gobind, the Almighty Lord, so that all the worries of your mind may vanish. When you breathe in you should do Simran, and when you breathe out then also you should do Simran. Just as you cannot stop your breath, in the same way you cannot stop the Simran. When the condition of our Simran becomes like this, then whenever we will sit for meditation, very soon the Shabd will pull our soul up. Now Satsangis should look within and see for how much time they do conscious Simran. For many, many hours people give up their Simran, and they remember the Simran only when they sit for meditation. Even then, when they sit for one hour, many times their mind makes them forget the Simran and brings the worldly thoughts. If you analyze the time which you have spent in the meditation sitting, you will find that a lot of time is spent in meditation without Simran. So when we have this kind of Simran - broken Simran, sometimes it is happening, sometimes it is not happening - Saints say, as long as you have this kind of Simran, you should only do one thing at a time; because you can only do one thing at a time. When you are sitting for the meditation for Light, you should do Simran. But when you are sitting for the Sound Current, you should pay attention to the Shabd and not do the Simran. Saints say that we should do the Simran with every single breath. Why do they say that? They say that because if we perfect our Simran like that, whenever we sit for meditation, at once the Shabd will start coming within us and we will be linked within. Disciple: Sometimes my Simran feels mechanical, as though I don t have enough attention on it to gain any benefit. Sant Ajaib Singh: Dear one, I just said that to surrender is worse than to be defeated. You should keep trying to keep your attention on it when you are doing the Simran. When your mind makes you feel that whatever Simran you have done, whether it is mechanical or otherwise, that it is useless because your attention was not there, that also is a success of the mind, because mind wants you to lose the fruit which you have gained by doing the Simran. Whenever you do the Simran, no matter how you have done it, it always bears fruit. (

36 -33- The Value of Chanting Disciple: What is the value of learning the art of sound, of chanting, of doing sacred dances like the kalma from the Sufis? I ve found that certain mantras are very effective as a means of elevating my personal awareness and as a means of healing myself when physically ill. The only trouble is that sometimes I find myself doing Simran to the melody of one of those chants and sometimes I find that I ve switched to the other mantra in the process. The difficulty of course is that Simran doesn t have any set way to be sung inwardly. How do you feel about us using devotional chants from other traditions other than our own when we prepare our spirit for Satsang? Sant Ajaib Singh: All this outward music or chanting, whether it is devotional or not, can only intoxicate the mind because it is done on the level of the mind and intellect. That s why it can do only a little bit of good through the mind. Our soul gets intoxication and happiness only when she listens to the music of the Shabd which is within us. Our soul isn t intoxicated because of outward music, chanting devotional songs or whatever. It dances only when it hears the Shabd, and only with the help of Simran can we make our souls hear the music of the Shabd and make her dance. These other things have value and are good after we have perfected ourselves in meditation, after we have taken our soul up from the limit of the mind. Then, it is good to listen to other forms of music; but if we do this before we have separated our soul from the mind, our mind will make us forget Simran and we will become involved in all these things so much that it will not be good for us. The satsangi needs Simran and it is not good if he spends all his time in learning the notes and chanting. If you do these things to earn your livelihood then it doesn t matter. But for real devotion there is no need to take help from any outward instrument or playing drums or things like that. You need only to do Simran. Anyway, you can chant bhajans in which you feel so much of Master s Love. Further, we should always sing the bhajans without too many instruments because they spoil the real meaning of the words. As far as Sant Mat is concerned, all these outward forms of music, chanting, etc., are child s play. ( Disciple: Is it all right for a person to ask another initiate the five names if he forgets them? And also, what if a person is giving out the five names to a non-initiate? I know the words are not charged, but what if this person is constantly doing this? Isn t that dangerous? Sant Ajaib Singh: Well, if you are sure you are asking from an initiate or you are telling to an initiate, you may ask or tell to the initiate the five charged names. But if any initiate gives out the five names to any non-satsangi, he will have to carry all the burden of all his karma, and in that way all his progress will be stopped. It is very dangerous. Guru Nanak says, Master is bound to whom He is going to put on the Path. Only He can carry the burden of the karmas. (

37 -34- Disciple: In meditation, I find this symphony of thoughts coming back again, back again, back again, like music very sweet. Then I find I am thinking I should do the Simran lovingly, yet I find I m shouting the words to get rid of the thoughts. Of course, the hour is over sometimes. But what s the solution in the long run? Sant Ajaib Singh: Saints have given us this Simran only to remove the weakness of our mind which we are having. Because you know that we have been in the habit of doing the simran or the repetition of thinking of the [worldly] things in every lifetime. We have had this habit from ages and ages, from birth after birth. And this habit is even bothering us in this lifetime, in this birth also. That is why Saints have given us the Simran which They have meditated upon, which They have earned Themselves. They have given us the Simran on which They have perfected Their life, on which They have molded Their life. And if we do the Simran of the Master lovingly, without understanding it as a burden, if we do it sweetly, if we keep trying to do the Simran, then definitely we can get rid of the thoughts. And in our within, only the Simran of the Master will go on happening, and no thought will bother us. We people don t have the habit of doing the Simran continuously and constantly. That is why we lack in doing the Simran. You know when you are traveling in the bus or when you are flying in the airplane, or when you are doing any other thing, you have all sorts of worldly thoughts coming in your mind without making any effort. If, instead of all those worldly thoughts, which are of no use at that time, if you can do Simran, if you can have the Simran go on happening in your mind, then you can perfect the Simran in no time. And if you do it lovingly, then you will not have such problems in the meditation. (Sant Bani Magazine, 11/94) Disciple: Does it matter if we should get so absorbed in focusing our attention that we forget the order of the charged names? Sant Ajaib Singh: Yes, it does. In that way, we will only be able to sit - our soul will not go up. Daily I am telling every dear one that you perfect your Simran in this way, just as the worldly thoughts are coming within you, without thinking of it, or without making any effort for it. If you will perfect this type of Simran, then you will not have any problem, because you will not be aware whether Simran is going on within you, or whether you have to start doing Simran. If we perfect our Simran so that it becomes just like those worldly thoughts, there is no power within us that can stop us from rising above. As soon as we sit for meditation, our soul will go right up. You can perfect this type of Simran very easily. During the daytime, when you are thinking about the worldly thoughts, give up that, and instead of that, always do Simran. (

38 -35- And you people forget Simran sometimes for many hours, sometimes for many days, unless you meet some Satsangi or you go to any Satsang, you don t remember the Simran, or unless you sit for meditation. And even when you sit for meditation the mind brings so many other thoughts and you forget Simran then also. I give you this advice only because if you will do Simran while you are doing any other work, when you sit for meditation you won t have to sit for a long time repeating the Names to bring your attention to the seat of the soul. As soon as you sit for meditation, within a few minutes you will go up. In the ancient times, Saints gave only the Simran to the true seeker. And when he completed the course of Simran, then only, they gave the Sound Current. But many incidents happened that before the disciple could complete the course of Simran, either the disciple left the body or the Master left the body. So Simran is only to vacate the nine openings and to bring the soul to the seat of the soul and after that it is the work of Sound Current to pull your soul. In Kali Yuga or the Iron Age, Guru Nanak and Swami Ji Maharaj and many other Saints started giving full initiation - that is for seeing Light and hearing the Sound. But we are not doing Simran and are always thinking about the worldly things while we are traveling or doing any new thing. ( The speed of Simran depends upon the thoughts which our mind is having when we sit for meditation. If our mind is bringing many thoughts and bothering us, then we should do Simran quickly. If we don t have many thoughts in our mind, then it should not go very fast; it should go on slowly. The speed of the Simran depends on the thoughts which your mind has, because we are doing the Simran to control our thoughts. (Sant Bani Magazine, 3/03, 26) They give us the Simran which They have earned Themselves; and behind that Simran given by the Masters, Their renunciation, Their hard work, Their Charging, is working and They know that only by doing the Simran of the Master can we cut the simran or remembrance of the world. That is why They tell us to do Simran. And as you know, when we do something without making any effort to have the image or the form of that thing in front of us, that form or that image comes in front of us if we do the Simran given by the Master, without our making any effort of having the Form of the Master in front of us, we can have it. (The Ambrosial Hour, 254) So on the tongue of the dear ones, the Simran should go on happening all the time. Whether one is sitting, sleeping, whether one is talking to other people, traveling in a train, or whatever one is doing, he should always be doing the Simran. When he develops such a habit of doing the Simran, then he feels as if the Master is always with him. He is sleeping with him, He is sitting with him, He is doing everything with him. When we develop such a habit of doing the Simran we always feel the presence of the Master with us. (The Ambrosial Hour, 187)

39 -36- Simran, more Simran, and still more Simran that s the message that Sant Ji emphasized, just as He had done on His western tour. Whatever your problem, He said, just do more Simran and it will be solved. One Westerner said after a meditation session that he found he had been listening to Simran instead of doing it. Sant Ji said yes, once it becomes automatic, the process was more like listening. It takes effort in the beginning, He said, but eventually it becomes effortless. In any case, it is really the Master s Simran that helps us across-not our own. (Sant Bani Magazine, 2/78, 20) Saints lovingly explain to us the importance of doing the Simran which they have given to us. You should know that the Simran which the Masters give us is not hearsay: they have not picked it up from any book or scripture. The Simran which the Master gives us is the Simran which He has earned Himself, which He has meditated upon. He has practiced that Simran according to the instructions of His Master and in that way He has perfected it. That is why behind such a Simran given to us by the perfect Master, the charging of that Master works. And only by doing such a Simran, which has been given to us by the perfect Master, which carries the charging of that Master, can we cut the simran or remembrance or desires of worldly things. In the beginning, when we get the Simran from the Master, it may be difficult for us to repeat it. But if we go on repeating it wholeheartedly and honestly, gradually it comes onto our tongue and then it goes on happening within us automatically. (Sant Bani Magazine, 3/87) To think about weakness in old age is also a trick of the mind: By making us worry about all the weaknesses which some do experience in old age, our mind is keeping us from Simran. Instead of thinking about old age and its weakness, we should do Simran, which could be of some help to us. But worrying will not help. (Sant Bani Magazine, 3/85) Only by repeating the Five Holy Words, the Simran given to us by the perfect Master, can we make our life good and peaceful. You must complete the course in Simran before you can rise above the body in Bhajan. You must learn to do Simran all the time, continuously. Simran is the tool.

40 -37- The Remembrance of God From The Jewel of Happiness: The Sukhmani of Guru Arjan Commentary by Ajaib Singh I bow to the Adi Guru [Anami Purush, Swami] I bow to Jugad Guru [Sat Purush] I bow to Satguru [Shabda Guru] I bow to Gurudev [the living Master] In this hymn, Sri Guru Arjan Dev Ji Maharaj first of all bows down to the Almighty One. He says, I bow down before the Anami [Absolute] Master, I bow down before the infinite Shabd Master, and I bow down before the prefect living Master. Do Simran; achieve happiness by doing Simran; Remove the afflictions of mind and body. The Guru lays great emphasis on doing Simran or the Remembrance of God. In the old days, the perfect Masters first required their disciples to perfect their Simran. Only after they had done that were they given the Sound Current. In the present time, the Saints have showered much grace on the soul: now They give Simran and initiation into the Sound Current at the same time because in the days when They were giving the Sound Current only after the disciple had perfected Simran, what would often happen? Either the Master would leave the body before the disciple had perfected his Simran, or the disciple would finish his journey through the world before he could perfect his Simran and get the Sound Current. In either case, the work of the disciple remained incomplete. So in this age the Masters have showered much grace and are giving both the Sound Current and Simran at the same time, at the time of Initiation. Simran is the only means to reach the Dhunatmak Naam which we are supposed to catch. But we do not know the value of Simran, and therefore we do not put enough emphasis and effort into doing it. Because we do not know its value, we are not able to appreciate it. Simran has a lot of power in it, and only if our Simran is perfected can we catch the Dhunatmak Naam the Sound Current that will pull us up. No matter how much or how loud the Sound we are hearing, that Sound will not be able to pull our soul up if our Simran is not perfected. So Guru Arjan says, Do Simran, and do Simran. By doing Simran you will be able to get rid of the evils of your body lust, anger, greed, attachment and egotism. By doing Simran you can easily overcome these evils. Remember Him Who sustains the world; By meditating on His Naam many got liberation. Now everybody is doing the simran of his work or activity. The shopkeeper is doing the simran of his shop; women are doing their simran, they are remembering their duties; the clerk is remembering what he has to do in the office. In this way, everybody is remembering the activities of the world in which he is involved. Because we are all involved in doing the simran of the world, we are always having worldly thoughts and we are always involved in worldly pursuits. That s why the simran of the world the remembrance of the world brings us back into the world. It does not allow us to become liberated from this world.

41 -38- But Guru Arjan says that you should do the Simran of such a Power which can liberate you from this world. By doing that Simran you will not have to come back into this world. The good pious words of the Vedas, Puranas and Smritis declare that the Name of God is the only true Word. The twenty-seven Shastras, eighteen Puranas, and four Vedas are the Holy Scriptures of the Hindu religion. Guru Arjan says, I have read all these holy books and I have found only one thing: emphasis on doing Simran. One cannot get emancipation except through the Simran of the Lord. One in whose heart His Name is caused to dwell even a little bit- His glory cannot be described. The glory of Simran cannot be described. Even if one has done only a little bit of Simran, still the glory of that Simran cannot be described in words. Guru Gobind Singh Ji Maharaj says, If one remembers Him with all his attention even for a moment, he also can become free from the clutches of Kal. There was an initiate of Master Sawan Singh who was a school teacher. He used to do Simran in the morning while going for his morning walk. Once he was so much absorbed in doing Simran that he did not realize he had walked for thirteen miles. Realizing that he had come so far, he asked how far he was from Ludhiana, the place where he was living, and was told it was thirteen miles. The people there wanted to arrange for his transportation back to Ludhiana, but he said, No, I will go back with the same Power Who has brought me here. I still have the Simran which has brought me here. So when we are doing Simran, we should never remember our body; we should not have even a little bit of awareness of our body or our mind. Nanak says, Liberate me with those who yearn to have Your darshan. Now Guru Arjan says to the Lord, Oh Lord, bless me with the company of those who have the desire of getting Your company and those who have become one with You so that I may also get liberation by being in the company of those who have become one with You. Just as iron floats on the water if it is accompanied by wood, if You will bless me with the company of those who are one with You, I will also get liberation. The Ambrosial Naam of the Lord is the jewel of happiness which resides in the devotees of the Lord. This bani or writing, which is called Sukhmani or The Jewel of Happiness, does give happiness to the mind, but only because it sings of that which is the real Jewel of Happiness, the Naam of the Lord, Who resides in the devotees of the Lord.

42 -39- By doing the Simran of the Lord, one does not return to the womb: By doing the Simran of the Lord, the fear of Yama runs away. This is the importance of Simran: by doing Simran, we do not have to come back into the womb of the mother again, we do not have to take birth in this world again. Further, the Angel of Death cannot come near us; we become free from the fear of him. If we do Simran, we can become free from the problems and pains of this world also. By doing the Simran of the Lord, Kal cannot approach; By doing the Simran of the Lord, the five Enemies go away. If we are doing Simran, Kal does not come near us because behind the Simran given by the perfect Master the charging and the Power of the perfect Master is working. The perfect Masters do not give us the Simran which they have heard from others; they give us the Simran which they have meditated upon and perfected. Behind the Simran given by the Masters the strength of the Master Power is working. By doing such Simran even our enemies leave us. Our greatest enemy is the mind which is residing within us; if we are doing Simran, the mind comes under our control and we can easily dominate it. Guru Nanak says that by doing the repetition of the Name of the Lord our mind which is wandering here and there, very swiftly, like a deer comes under our control if we are remembering the Name of the Lord. By doing the Simran of the Lord, no obstacles come; By doing the Simran of the Lord, one remains awake day and night. If we are doing constant Simran, we will not have to face any obstacles and our body will not have any pain. If we are doing constant Simran we wake up in Simran and sleep in respect to the world. Everyone knows how sleep bothers the dear ones. Sleep is dominating us very much; that s why it is a problem. But if we wake ourselves up in the Naam, then there is no problem. Those who wake up in the Naam, even if they do not sleep for three or four nights, will not have any problem, because Naam has such strength, such power in it. By doing the Simran of the Lord, fear is not felt; By doing Simran, pain does not affect us. By doing Simran our will power gets increased and whatever fear of the world we have goes away. We have fear of the world only as long as we are doing bad deeds, as long as we are involved in sin. But once we manifest the Truth within us, and once we realize what the Truth is, and once our will power is increased, we need not be afraid of the world. Once we attain that condition, we always see the world as Lord and God. Because we have recognized the power of God, we need not be afraid of the world.

43 -40- The Simran of God resides with the true devotees; Nanak says, The devotion of the Lord is the treasure house of all riches. Can we get the Simran by ourselves? Can we achieve Simran by our own efforts? Guru Arjan says, No, you cannot achieve Simran by yourself. If you will go in the company of a perfect Master, a perfect Sadhu, and if that perfect Master or Sadhu is gracious on you, and if graciously He gives you the Simran on which He has meditated and which He has perfected, only then will you be able to have it. This Simran is the abode of all happiness, and by doing it one gets the happiness of all the world. Kabir Sahib says, O Kabir, in the company of the Sadhu, God is remembered. Only the moments which we have spent in the company of the Masters are counted. All other moments are wasted. By doing the Simran of God one gets supernatural powers and the nine treasures. By doing the Simran of God one gets knowledge, meditation and understanding. If we are doing Simran, the supernatural powers come under our control. But the Satsangis are told not to use them: those who are doing the meditation on Naam, the supernatural powers are their slaves. By doing Simran, knowledge comes within us. What knowledge? The knowledge of God: that God is all-pervading and is working within us. The Simran of God is worship, repetition, austerities; By doing the Simran of God, duality vanishes. If we are doing constant Simran, we are getting the benefits of repetition (japa), performing austerities (tapa), and all the rites and rituals. If we are doing constant Simran, the sense of duality leaves from within us, and we see God working at every place. When we see God working at every place we do not call anything bad or good. Guru Nanak says, O Lord, when You have made all this creation, whom can we call the bad ones? We see God working in everybody; for us, God is everywhere; for us, God is good. One who does the Simran of God is the real pilgrim; One who does Simran is honored in the court of the Lord. In India, people go to holy places and bathe in holy water to remove the dirt of the sins which they are carrying. There are many temples and holy places, and at each one of them there is a pond of water, and of each one it is believed that whoever bathes in that particular holy place will become free of sin. But Guru Nanak says about those places that the so-called holy waters also want some Saint to come and put his feet in the water. That water is carrying the sins of all those who come and bathe there, and it is longing for the dust of the feet of the Master, so that it can become free of the sins of those people. The truth is, as Guru Arjan says, that those who are doing the Simran of God get the benefit of bathing in all the holy places and of all the pilgrimages while they are sitting at home. If one is doing the Simran of the Lord, he is given respect in the court of the Lord.

44 -41- One who does the Simran of God gets all things done in a good way. One who does the Simran of God reaps the fruit. It is always good for us to do the Simran of the Lord. When we do the Simran of the Lord, He always gives us the benefits. Only those who are made to do His Simran, do it; Nanak says, I touch their feet. This is a matter that requires great understanding: when we know how important it is to do Simran, when we know its value and what we get from doing it, when we know it is so beneficial, why can t we do it? By listening to talks on the importance of Simran, everybody will feel like doing it, but Guru Arjan asks, Is it possible for everyone to do Simran? and replies, No, it is not possible. It is not in our control to do Simran unless God showers grace on us. Only he can do the Simran of God on whom God showers grace. Guru Arjan, in another place, says, O Lord, if it had been in our hands, then why would we have gone away from you? Now when we are weeping in Your separation, if it were in our hands why would we be separated? Hazur Maharaj Kirpal Singh Ji used to say, It is not in the hands of the blind man to go and touch the man who has eyes; unless the man who can see calls the blind one to come and take his hand, he cannot do it. In the same way, unless God showers grace on us, and links us in the company of those who have done Simran, and unless he gives us Simran through a perfect Master, we cannot do it. If we are fortunate and if God wants to shower grace on us, then He brings us in the company of such a Mahatma. And when that Mahatma or Master gives us the Simran in all His grace and glory, and when He makes us do that Simran, only then can we do it. Otherwise it is not in our hands. The Simran of the Lord is the highest; By doing the Simran of the Lord, many have swum across. Those who are doing the Simran of the Lord go to the highest place: Sach Khand. And by doing the Simran of the Lord, they bring many other souls to that place. Kabir Sahib says, Even a leper, from whom a bad smell is coming, who is doing the meditation of Naam is better than one who has a body of gold who is not doing the Simran. By doing the Simran of God the desires are extinguished; By doing the Simran of God everything is seen clearly. The desires which have made us a mad dog, and are leading us like a mad dog taking us here and there if one is doing the Simran of the Lord, even if he is ridden with desires, he gets contentment and all his desires and madness go away. Those who achieve this come to know everything that is, they come to have the knowledge of the Lord. They know that except God there is nothing.

45 -42- By doing the Simran of God the fear of Yama goes away. By doing the Simran of God all desires are fulfilled. If we are doing the Simran of God, the Angels of Death cannot stop our course, cannot frighten us, and cannot give us any trouble. If we are doing the Simran of the Lord, whatever desires or needs we have in this world, He fulfills; and we become free of all desires. By doing the Simran of God the dirt of mind is removed, And the nectar of Naam dwells within us. By doing the Simran of the Lord, our mind, which is laden down with dirt from ages and ages, becomes free from it; the dirt is washed away. By doing the Simran of the Lord, the nectar of Naam starts flowing within us, by drinking which our soul becomes immortal. God resides on the tongue of the Saint; Nanak says, I am the servant of the servants of God. Guru Arjan Dev is asking: Where does God reside? Does he reside in America or Africa, or any other country? Does He reside in any city or village or town? Does He reside in a temple or church, or any other holy place? Tell me, where does God reside? If He were residing in the churches, the Christian priests would have found Him; If He were residing in the temples, the Hindu priests also would have found Him; If He were residing in the Gurdwaras, the bhais or the Sikh priests also would have found Him. Then there would have been peace all over the world: the problems which we now have regarding religions the conflicts which one religion has with another we would not have seen. People would not hate each other, or care about the difference of black and white. But this is not the way of the world: everywhere people are fighting in the name of religion; everywhere injustice prevails. Guru Arjan replies to His own question. He says that God resides on the tongue that is, in the words of the Sadhu. That is why Guru Arjan Dev Ji Maharaj says, I am the servant of such Masters in whose words God is residing. Kabir Sahib also says, I am the servant of those Sadhus who have controlled their minds. Kabir Sahib says in another place, My mind became a bird and went into the heavens. To my surprise I saw that the heavens were empty and God was residing within the Saints. Guru Nanak says, God always resides in the human form of a Saint. Whenever He wants to come into this world, He takes on the form of a Saint. He comes as a human being and resides in the world. Those who remember God are truly wealthy; Those who remember God are truly honored. Who is wealthy? Who is honored in this world? Only those who meditate on the Naam of the Lord and who do the Simran of the Lord are wealthy, and only they are truly honored. Neither the riches of this world nor the honors of this world will go with us. Only the meditation of Naam and the Simran of the Lord will go with us. That s why Guru Arjan calls those who are doing the Simran of the Lord the wealthy ones and the honored ones.

46 -43- Those who remember God are welcomed; Those who remember God are the highest men. Those who remember the Lord constantly, who are doing the Simran of the Lord constantly only they are well-respected, only they are welcomed in the Court of the Lord, and only they are given the highest places in the Court of the Lord. Those who remember God are independent; Those who remember God are the rulers of all. Those who remember God become independent; they do not remain dependent on others. They are the only true kings in the world, because they rule over the hearts of the people. Those who remember God dwell in the real happiness; Those who remember God become indestructible. Those who remember the Lord constantly become the abode of happiness, and they become indestructible. They never come to an end. Guru Nanak says, My Satguru always remains in life. He never comes, He never goes. He is the indestructible Person, and He is all-pervading. Only those upon whom He showers grace get attached to Simran Nanak prays for the dust of their feet. Guru Arjan says that He longs for the dust of the feet of those who have applied themselves to Simran, and those who are doing Simran day and night. Those who remember God are the true philanthropists; I sacrifice myself on those who remember God. One who does the Simran of the Lord, or one who repeats the Name of the Lord, becomes the true benefactor, or philanthropist; he works for the benefit of other people in this world. Now this is very important to understand properly: Who truly helps others? Who can really be called a great benefactor? Master Kirpal Singh used to explain this by giving the example of a prison. Suppose there is a prison in which there are many prisoners who are in poor condition. One good man comes there and he sees that the condition of the prisoners is not good; they are not getting good food, and their health is not being taken care of. So he donates a lot of money to the prison, and arranges for good food and medical care for them. He has done a very good thing for the prisoners; but still they remain prisoners. Another benefactor comes and sees that in summer it is very difficult for the prisoners because there are no fans and the ventilation is poor. So he spends money and puts in fans and a ventilation system. He improves the condition of the prisoners; but still they remain prisoners, still they are in jail. One more benefactor comes there, and he has the key to the prison. He says, Come on, dear ones! I have the key to this prison and I am opening this door for you. Those who want freedom, just go out. If we compare the actions of all four benefactors, we will come to the conclusion that the one who had the key to the prison was the most effective because he set

47 -44- the prisoners free. The other ones no doubt did good things for the prisoners, but they were only able to improve the condition of the prisoners as prisoners; they could not completely change their condition and set them free. In the same way, in this world we may find many philanthropists or benefactors who work for the benefit of the people. But only the Master Who has Naam with Him can be called the Great Benefactor, because only He has the key to our freedom. If He showers grace on us, we can become free from the miseries of the world. Only the Master who has the key of Naam, the key to the Court of the Lord only He can set us free from this prison of the world. Because this world is a big prison, maintained by the Negative Power, in which we are all suffering. Only the Satguru has the key, and only He can set us free. Kabir Sahib says, The river flows for the benefit of others, not itself; the trees bear fruit for the benefit of others, and the rain showers water for the benefit of others. The Saints also take up the body and come into this world only for the benefit of others; they don t have any other purpose. Ever since our soul was separated from God it has taken up the bodies of animals, trees, and many other forms of life; but He comes into this world taking up the human body only for the benefit of our soul. So Guru Arjan says here that those, the Masters or the Saints, who do the Simran of the Lord, within them comes the power of working for the benefit of others. And, He says, I sacrifice myself on them, and I sing praises of those who have become the form of the Lord by doing the Simran of the Lord. The faces of those who remember God are bright; Those who remember God live happily. In the court of the Lord, the only faces which are glorified and respected are those of the souls who are doing the Simran of the Lord. Those who do the Simran of God have conquered themselves; Those who do the Simran of God are pure and true. Now Guru Arjan tells us what the power of Simran is, and up to what point Simran can carry us. Only through Simran can we withdraw our attention from the body, and concentrate it at the eye-center. When we do Simran we start cutting ourselves off from the world; and when we withdraw all our attention from the body and bring it to the eye-center when all our consciousness is gathered there we will cross the stars, moon, sun, and then we will come to the Radiant Form of the Master. Master is always waiting for us. As soon as we cross the stars, moon, and sun, we will meet Him. That form of the Master will tell us to catch the Shabd Dhun and He will take us above. But Simran is the only thing which can take us up to the Radiant Form of the Master. The Guru says that by doing the Simran of the Lord one conquers the world, because when the mind is conquered, the world is conquered. If we conquer our mind by doing the Simran of the Lord, we can bring even the creator of this world into our control.

48 -45- Those who remember God, their happiness is dense; Those who remember God live near Him. If there is any real pleasure or happiness in this world, only the people who are doing the Simran of the Lord have it. God is very near to those who do His Simran. Once there was a king who had several queens, and they were all bathing him. One of the queens was weeping because she had received a letter from her brother saying to come and see him if she wanted, because after a week he was going to become a Sadhu. She was very sorry to learn that, and while she was wiping the water from the body of the king tears fell from her eyes and the king asked the reason. She told him, but the king said, You should not worry about him; he is not going to turn into a Sadhu. Those who become Sadhus do not invite their relatives, nor do they announce it ahead of time. Those who become Sadhus do that without letting anyone know. So you do not need to worry about him. (Baba Sawan Singh Ji used to say, Those who are shot by the bullet of love become useless for the world. For them no accounts of the world have any meaning. ) Then the king said, Those who have the yearning for God do not tell people that they are going to leave this world. As soon as the yearning comes within them, they just leave. When we have the desire to get Naam, the yearning comes to us. And the real yearning comes only when Naam is manifested within us. The queens wanted to know what this yearning was, and the king told them, All right, I will show you. From then on he stopped looking at the queens with thoughts of lust; he completely withdrew from the pleasures of the world. The queens complained to him and asked him why. He replied, A girl plays with dolls as long as she is not married. When she gets married to her husband, she stops playing with dolls because she has a husband and she plays with him. In the same way, a soul plays with toys or worldly things as long as he has not realized the real thing. When a soul gets attached to the Shabd Naam, that soul finds no pleasure in worldly things and even if one offers him gold and all the riches of the world, still he will never be ready to enjoy worldly pleasure because he has realized the real pleasure of Shabd Naam. Now the king was pretending that he had realized the Shabd Naam and had become a Saint; so the queens told him, You are pretending that you have attained the Supreme Bliss and therefore you don t want to enjoy worldly pleasures. But we are afraid that you are going to repent like the crane who wanted to leave eating fish and act like swans do! They were referring to a story of a crane who came to a place where swans were living, and he saw that they were not eating fish because swans do not eat fish, and cranes do, although they look alike. When that crane saw that the swans were not eating fish and were drinking coconut milk, he tried to break through the coconut and drink that milk; but he couldn t do it. The crane s companion told him that he should not try to drink coconut milk, because the beak of a crane is not as strong as that of a swan; if he tried too hard he might break his beak and then he wouldn t be able to even eat fish! But the crane thought that there was no difference between him and the swan, and he kept on trying. In the beginning he drank some of the milk which had been spilled, and he told his companion, We have been uselessly wasting our energy in eating those fish. This is the only thing which we should drink. But his companion said, You should not think about it, because you can never drink that milk. Even though you look like a swan, you cannot drink the milk, because you do not have that beak. And if you don t eat the fish, you will neither be a swan nor a crane. So forget about it.

49 -46- But he didn t take the advice of his companion. Daily he came to the place where the swans were drinking milk out of coconuts. One day all the swans left and in their absence the crane tried to break open a coconut and drink the milk. But he couldn t do it, because his beak was not as strong as theirs; his beak broke, and he was not even able to catch fish. He couldn t eat or drink anything, and he eventually drowned himself in the ocean. Our condition is also like the crane s. We come to the Satsang, and we see that Master is just like us he is also a human being and when he talks about Shabd Naam and all these things, we think, what is the difficulty in experiencing such things? When we come in the company of the Saint, we also try to pretend that we are Saints and not less than Him. But then we are easily overcome by lust and other things and we let ourselves go in their direction. Sometimes we come into the Satsang and pretend we are good people; but because we are not completely saintly, we can neither enjoy worldly pleasures nor can we realize the real taste of Shabd Naam. Guru Nanak says, We, the worldly people, are hanging between these two things: We are neither saintly nor worldly. When we come into the company of the Saints, we want to become Saints. We say, What is the difference between me and the Master? But there is a great difference, because the Master has done the Simran of the Lord, and within Him, God has kept that power of recognizing the Shabd. Whereas God has not kept that within us; we have to earn it. That is the difference between us and the Saint. Mahatma Charan Das Ji says, The crane looks very beautiful, and he pretends he is doing the devotion of God by standing on one foot. But in his mind he has the desire to catch fish. When he has such a desire, how can he expect to meet God? By the grace of the Saint one remains awake day and night; Nanak says, one gets Simran only if he has good fortune. If we have good fortune and we come in the company of the Saint, why do we have to remain awake? Guru Arjan says, We have to remain awake in remembrance of the Lord. He says, Remain awake in the name of the Lord. Guru Nanak says that when our good past karmas come to fruition we meet a God-realized soul. And when we meet such a soul, we wake up from the sleep which we have been in for ages and ages. By doing the Simran of God, all works are accomplished; Those who remember God never repent and never have pain and grief. If we are doing the Simran of the Lord, then all the works which we are supposed to do in this world are taken care of; they are all done. And up to now, those who have done the devotion of the Simran of the Lord have never repented. There is an incident in the life of Bhagat Namdev, who was a perfect Saint. He was in the business of selling cloth: along with his brothers, he made cloth and went to the market to sell it. But because he was in remembrance of the Lord, instead of going to the market and selling the cloth, he would remain in deep meditation: he was not able to do business as his brothers did. Whenever he came back, his mother and the other members of his family would get angry at him.

50 -47- They would even inspire his wife to fight with him, because he was not doing well in his business. Once it so happened that he came back from the market without selling any cloth and his wife got angry and said, If you couldn t find any customers who would give you cash for the cloth, you should have given it to somebody on credit. Sooner or later he would have given us the money. But you should have done some business, either cash or credit. He said, All right; if you want me to give this cloth to someone on credit, I will go find a customer right now. It was night time, and there was no one outside his house to buy his cloth, so he took the cloth and draped it all on some stones and said, All right, I am giving you this on credit and after some time I will come to collect the money. For security he took one stone from that place. When he came back, everyone was surprised and asked him, How come you came back so soon? He said, When I went out of the house, I found many customers waiting for me; they all wanted the cloth on credit. I have given it to them, and I have brought this as security. Then he sat in meditation, and for one week he was continually connected with the Lord. When he got up from meditation, everyone told him he should go and get the money for the cloth which he had sold on credit. He said, Don t worry. I will get the money. He took out the stone which he had brought as security, and he found that that stone had turned into a piece of gold. So he said to his relatives, Subtract the cost of the cloth from this piece of gold, and leave the rest with me. Because he was doing the devotion of God the Simran of the Lord God took care of his business, and he turned the piece of stone into a piece of gold. This happened only because he was doing the Simran of the Lord. One who does the Simran of the Lord, completely, all his works are done by God Himself. By doing the Simran of God, one s speech is devoted to praising God; By doing the Simran of God, one absorbs himself into the state of Sehaj. If we are doing the Simran of the Lord, and the devotion of God, our speech becomes very sweet. It becomes such that we can liberate many souls; it becomes pleasing to everyone, and we achieve the state of Sehaj. By doing the Simran of God, one gets the immovable seat; By doing the Simran of God, the lotus blossoms. By doing the Simran of the Lord, we achieve a place that never falls in the dissolution or the Grand Dissolution; that is, Sach Khand. We become the resident of Sach Khand if we are doing the Simran of the Lord and our inner lotus blossoms; peace comes within us if we are doing the Simran of the Lord. By doing the Simran of God, one hears the limitless melody; There are no limits to the happiness of doing Simran. Simran is the means of withdrawing from the nine openings of the body. We get liberation we go up only by catching the Sound Current; but unless we do Simran, we cannot vacate our body and contact the Sound Current. Nobody can know the limits of the happiness of Simran. Only those who are doing Simran and have realized the perfection of Simran can know how important it is to do Simran.

51 -48- Those on whom God showers grace do the Simran of God; Nanak says, I am in their shelter. Who can do the Simran of the Lord? Only those on whom God is gracious, only those with whom God is pleased; they can do the Simran of the Lord. He says, I long for the dust of the feet of those who are doing the Simran of the Lord. I have taken shelter with them. The devotees are remembered because of the Simran of God; Because of the Simran of God, the Vedas were composed. What is the power of Simran? What has Simran done in this world? The devotees of the Lord who have come into this world and have liberated souls, were able to do so only because they had done Simran. When Kabir was on this earth, there was a king who was very popular and very powerful. His name was Sikandar Lodi. Not many people remember Sikandar Lodi now, but with how much love and respect we are remembering Kabir Sahib! At that time Sikandar Lodi tried to kill Kabir Sahib, who was despised by many because he was considered of low caste. But even so, now we remember Him with so much love and devotion, and no one remembers Sikandar Lodi, even though he was popular and mighty in his time. In the same way, Ravidas was born into a family of cobblers a low caste but still people remember his name with love and respect today. In the same way, Guru Arjan Dev Ji Maharaj, who has written this Sukhmani which we are reading, was tortured to death by the Emperor Jahangir who made him sit on hot coals and threw hot sand on his head. Nobody remembers Jahangir now, but how lovingly every morning the Sikh people remember Guru Arjan Dev and read this bani. Why did such devotees become known in this world and why are they well remembered to this day? Only because they did the devotion of God and the Simran of the Lord. By doing the Simran of God, a man becomes a Sidh [seer], a jati [celibate] and a giver; By doing the Simran of God, even a low-caste person can become famous in all four directions. Up until now, those who have become well-known in this world because of their celibacy or their charity achieved that because they had done Simran. Even those from the lower castes who were not considered good men also became kings of spirituality and received the worship of other people, only because they had done the Simran of the Lord. The Simran of God supports the whole earth. Remember God, Who is the cause of all creation. The Simran of God has created this whole playground; In the Simran of God resides the Formless God Himself. He whom God makes graciously understand Nanak says, he gets the Simran from the Gurumukhs.

52 -49- Do simran as if one were collecting or counting precious jewels. Each repetition of a word or words should be done with the mind attentive, much like a jeweler who inspects each diamond with meticulous care. (Jagat Singh) If I forget You O God, even for a fraction of a minute, this amounts to me more than fifty years. (Guru Nanak) If I remember Thee I live. When I forget Thee that means death to me. (Guru Nanak) Simran washes away the dirt of sins from off the mind. (Gauri M.5) Through Simran one hears the sweet music of the unending Song of the Universe (the Word) and has experiences ineffable. (Gauri M.5) Through the favor of a God-man it (Simran) gets ingrained in the mind, only then one reaps the fruit thereof. (Gauri M.3) Ceaseless Simran is the ladder by which to reach the Mansion of the Lord. (Guru Nanak) The breath that does not repeat the Name of God is a wasted breath. (Kabir)

53

54 -50- Baba Ram Dass Mantra from Be Here Now (Excerpts) The major obstacle at every stage of the path of enlightenment is our own thoughts. Thoughts keep us separate. Even the thought of Unity is far different from Unity. And the thoughts keep coming; each one making its bid for our attention and identification. Are some thoughts better than others? Just as diving into the water is aided by a spring board, and crossing the great ocean is aided by a raft, so certain thoughts are useful along the way. What are the steps of the process of calming the mind? Think of a lake in whose depths lies hidden what you seek. You try to see down into the lake, but you can t because the surface is covered with waves going in all directions choppy water thoughts coming from all directions from your senses, from your memory habits of thought learned unconsciously, running off mechanically the causes of which are too subtle for your analytic mind to grasp. Now create an artificial wave consciously add a new component choose a single thought and consciously set about making that thought dominant so that a continuous sequence of even waves all coming from one direction overrides all the choppy water, as an ocean wave absorbs all the eddying waters at the shoreline. Now each wave is that same thought over and over again no other thought can capture your attention which remains fixed upon the single thought. Does this mean that other thoughts stop! No. Thoughts continue as a natural process in nature, but you run them through on automatic (base brain) the same way most people drive an automobile, that is, without attending to each movement of the accelerator or steering wheel. We function under the fallacy that we are our thoughts and therefore must attend to them in order for them to be realized. To break your identification with your own thoughts is to achieve inner freedom. So you identify with this new thought you have added, until you and that thought become one and all other thoughts are passing just like clouds in the sky. When you have arrived at the point where that one thought is the dominant one for you at all times when going to sleep or waking when walking or sitting when talking or eating then all of your life is on automatic. Then you are free of all but that one thought and then through deep meditation you leave that thought aside too. Paramahansa Yogananda Japa, in general, is devotional repetition, aloud or mentally, of sacred prayers, words, or names of God. Chanting of any word creates a certain vibration; practice of japa fills the mind with holy vibrations that neutralize vibrations of material consciousness. There are special incantations used in India, called mantras, which have great vibratory force. Repeating them aloud or mentally with sincere feeling, intelligent understanding, and intense concentration and determination to persevere until divine contact is actually felt produces distinct results; body and mind are charged with power as their vibratory rate is heightened.

55 -51- The Power of Mantra Yogi Bhajan Mantra is that which projects the mind in a fixed direction. Mantra is a code of projection to decode the mystery of divinity. And when your mantra is perfect, connection is perfect, you get what it is. God is everywhere, waiting for you to call. His zip code is His mantra. Mantra is just like that: you take a stone and you throw it in the water, and constant waves go. That is what mantra is all about. It is to be remembered, remembered, remembered; it is to be chanted inside of you with your heart, your mind, your body. The only longing you have is to repeat it. It may be difficult to begin with, but soon God will come through and work for you. Japa is when you sit and meditate on a mantra and you spend days and days and days in constant repetition of God's name and God progressively calms the ego. The more mild the ego is, the more your finite Infinity starts seeing the Infinite Infinity. First you do things to be secure on Earth. Then you start seeing things beyond Earth, and what is beyond Earth is called higher consciousness. When you start seeing that, you become humble, because when you see that kind of greatness you become humble. When you see the creativity of the Creator and you compare it with yourself as a creature, you start seeing the vastness, the happiness. That is how the consciousness becomes happy. Chanting the japa is for this. Even the politicians know something about chanting to create vibrations, to create a magnetic field of energy. We know how to do it. Unconsciously we do it. Meditation in japa is a conscious effect of creating that huge magnetic ether energy to have the grasp of the Infinity. What does it mean to master a mantra? When you have repeated it so much, so often, and so well that you hear it within your being, and it comes handy to you especially at the moment of death you have mastered a mantra. Every element of the Universe is in a constant state of vibration manifested to us as light, sound, and energy. The human senses perceive only a fraction of the infinite range of vibration, so it is difficult to comprehend that the Word mentioned in the Bible is actually the totality of vibration which underlies and sustains all creation. A person can tune his or her own consciousness into the awareness of that totality with the use of a mantra. By vibrating in rhythm with the breath to a particular sound that is proportional to the creative sound, or sound current, one can expand one s sensitivity to the entire spectrum of vibration. It is similar to striking a note on a stringed instrument. In other words, as you vibrate, the Universe vibrates with you. Don t worry! Whatever is supposed to come always comes; it never fails. Face everything contentedly while absorbing your mind in the Lord. (Lalleshwari)

56 -52- They Glorify the Name Gurumayi Chidvilasananda (Excerpts) The great beings never forget the Source. This is why they chant and glorify the name of God. As you repeat God s name, your own soul is exalted. You feel as though you re living in paradise. Then, even if a thorn pierces you, you know it is the Lord s will. And God will remove that sorrow. You won t be subjected to it forever. If a thorn enters you, it will also be removed. When you chant God s name all the time, you understand this and your burden is lifted. The sages have said if you repeat the name of God, the Name itself keeps you on the Path. As long as you do not forget the name of God, which is both the practice and the goal, you will never lack anything. It has been the experience of all the Saints that God s name can give you absolutely everything. No matter how restless your heart may be, it is soothed when you hear God s name. One Saint has said, I won t stop chanting the name of God. Even if I am burned alive, I ll never stop repeating the name of God. Even if I am drowning, one thing is sure, I won t stop repeating the name of God. When you have such a divine attachment to God s name, then that very Name becomes a boat which carries you across the river of this world. When you repeat the Name in this way, it becomes your greatest friend. Whenever you are upset, you want to find someone to talk to. But when you repeat God s name, when you absorb yourself in His name, then there is no need for this kind of dependency. You experience total freedom. You have inspiration after inspiration, revelation after revelation. Tukaram Maharaj writes, I will make pilgrims bored with wandering to holy places. I will make even the pleasures of heaven seem bitter. There is so much sweetness in chanting, there is so much nectar in the name of God, you won t have to go to any holy place. As you repeat the name of God, your entire body becomes a holy place. Your mind itself becomes a holy river. Whenever the need arises, you can bathe in the river of your own mind. You ll feel so refreshed and rejuvenated; you ll feel one with God. Tukaram Maharaj continues, I will chant the name of God for so long and in such a way that ascetics will take no more pride in their yogic practices. I ll make even charity feel shy. The name of God is the highest charity. If someone is suffering, say the name of God; it will uplift him. If someone is agitated, say the name of God; it will soothe him. The name of God is the greatest gift you can ever give to anyone. It is also the best gift you can give to yourself. So if you want to be a true seeker, a true human being, attach yourself to God. No matter what happens, at what time, in what place, or with whom never forget the name of God. Never forget His bounty.

57 -53- Mantras: Words of Power Swami Sivananda Radha The mantras were transmitted from generation to generation, from guru to disciple, and in this process the power of the mantras was greatly increased. The repetition billions of times by countless devotees over the centuries has brought about a vast reservoir of power that augments the inherent spiritual potency of the mantras. Each mantra has a bija or seed. This is the essence of the mantra and it gives the mantra its special power its self-generating power. Just as within a seed is hidden a tree, so the energy in the mantra is the seed from which will grow a beautiful spiritual being. The kilaka, or pillar, is at first the driving force, the persistence and willpower that the disciple needs to pursue the mantra. But when the power of the mantra begins to take on a selfgenerating flywheel motion, the kilaka becomes a very fine thread joining the disciple to the mantra, to the power of the mantra, to the guru and to the deity, until all become one. There is only one energy in all created things. In the mantra that energy is present in pure form. The potency of the mantra is released through repetition until the individual finally comes to his or her Devata and a spiritual experience may take place. By constant recollection or thinking of the mantra, one is protected from the impact of maya, the illusory world. Through repetition of these words of power, the goal of Mantra Yoga is achieved that is, as with all yogas, unity of individual consciousness with its Source. Through constant repetition of the mantra one becomes like a magnet attracting the spiritual power of the mantra to oneself and becoming aware of the Self. This repetition gradually awakens the higher faculties in a person and raises the consciousness toward the level of the mantric resonance. According to Vedic teaching, a mantra has the power of releasing the cosmic and supra-cosmic consciousness, and it bestows freedom, ultimate illumination and immortality. By reciting the mantra you carry its force and power, and this will be a blessing for all those you meet. At times the mantric power may take over so that it will not even be necessary to speak. As a person, as a mind, you do not need to get involved. This is a much more valuable communication that can take place on the soul level. Mantra is an accumulation of power that is activated by the one who practices it, thereby drawing this power to oneself and merging in it through surrender. Through the use of mantra, one becomes conscious of the self, beginning with a small s. Expanding awareness will eventually lead one to become aware of the Self with a capital S. This results eventually in achieving unity of the lower self and the Higher Self. Mantra leads the Spirit, lost in trivialities and worldly pursuits, back to pure Essence.

58 -54- Benefits of Using a Mantra Swami Sivananda Radha The repetition of a mantra is a means of improving the powers of concentration. The use of the mantra purifies the subconscious and even if it is repeated mechanically some purification will take place. However, each mantra is devotional by nature and has the Divine as its form and essence. When you repeat a mantra your whole being changes for the better. Build up the habit of repeating the mantra at all times. The work you do will become easier and more joyful because the mantra is continually in the back of your mind. As the mantra is put into the subconscious, the mind is purified to an extent of which we would be incapable without this aid. Slowly the ego is overpowered by the Higher Self. Because it purifies the mind, the mantra is also a great protection from fear. When emotions are purified they develop into love, which is an important step in the awakening of further levels of consciousness, and the influence of the mantra becomes very subtle. Feelings that have been purified bring us into the presence of the Divine and from the Divine we feel a sense of protection. The mantra is like a shield against all that is negative and disturbing. As the mantra is repeated, moods will in time be brought under control and awareness in the here and now will grow. Attention, and therefore energy, will be withdrawn from the old thought patterns like records on a record player that play over and over. These mental background noises keep us tied to the past and future, to fearful imaginings and senseless fantasies that cause our self-created sufferings. The energy will now be channeled to the Most High, to a positive affirmation of one s innermost Self.

59 -55- Japa Yoga Swami Sivananda The repetition of the Mantra removes the dirt of the mind such as lust, anger, greed, etc. Just as the mirror acquires the power of reflection when the dirt covering it is removed, even so, the mind from which the impurities have been removed acquires the capacity to reflect the higher spiritual Truth. Just as soap cleanses the cloth of its impurities, so also, the Mantra is a spiritual soap cleansing the mind. Just as fire cleanses gold of its impurities, so also, Mantra cleanses the mind of its impurities. Even a little recitation of a Mantra with one-pointed mind destroys all impurities of the mind. You should utter the Name of God or any Mantra regularly every day. The recital of a Mantra destroys your sins and brings everlasting peace, infinite bliss, prosperity and immortality. There is not the least doubt about this. Repeated repetition of the Name of the Lord builds up gradually the form of the special manifestation of the Deity whom you seek to worship, and this acts as a focus to concentrate the benign influence of the Divine Being, which radiating from the center, penetrates the worshipper. Just as fire has the natural property of burning flammable things, so also the Name of God has the power of burning sins, samskaras, and bestowing eternal bliss and everlasting peace on those who repeat it. Just as burning quality is natural to and inherent in fire, so also the power of destroying sins with their very root and branch, and bringing the aspirant into blissful union with the Lord is natural to and inherent in the Name of God. O Man! Take refuge in the Name. Sing the Lord s Name incessantly. Remember the Name of the Lord with every incoming and outgoing breath. In this iron age Japa is the easiest, quickest, safest and surest way to reach God and attain immortality and perennial joy. Repetition of God s Name enables the devotee to feel the Divine Presence, the Divine glory, the Divine consciousness within himself and also everywhere.

60 -56- Japa checks the forces of the thought-current moving towards objects. It forces the mind to move towards God, towards the attainment of eternal bliss. Constant and prolonged repetition for some months cuts new grooves in the mind and the brain. During Japa all the divine qualities steadily flow into your mind from the Lord Japa changes the mental substance from passion to purity. It calms and strengthens the mind. It makes the mind introspective. It checks the outgoing tendencies of the mind. It eradicates all kinds of evil thoughts and inclinations. It induces determination and austerity. Eventually it leads to the direct Darsana of God. When the mind thinks of the image of the Lord during Japa and worship, the mental substance actually assumes the form of the image. The impression of the object is left in the mind. This is called Samskara. When the act is repeated very often the Samskaras gain strength by repetition and a tendency or habit is formed in the mind. He who entertains thoughts of Divinity becomes transformed actually into the Divinity itself by constant thinking and meditation. His disposition is purified and divinized. The meditator and the meditated, the worshipper and the worshipped, the thinker and the thought become one and the same. This is Samadhi. This is the fruit of doing Japa. Silent repetition of God s Name is a tremendous tonic and potent specific for all diseases. It should never be stopped even for a day under any circumstances. It is like food. It is a spiritual food for the hungry soul. Even simple mechanical repetition of a Mantra has got very great effect. It purifies the mind. It serves as a gate-keeper. It gives intimations to you whenever some worldly thoughts enter the mind. At once you can drive those thoughts and do repetition of the Mantra. Even during mechanical repetition, a portion of the mind is there at work with it. Repetition or thinking of His Name produces a tremendous influence on the mind. It transforms the mental substance, Chitta, overhauls the vicious old Samskaras in the mind, transmutes the diabolical nature and brings the devotee face to face with God.

61 -57- Sri Aurobindo the Mantra which is chosen for Japa has the necessary power within it and by constant repetition under proper conditions the power can be evoked into operation to effectuate the purpose. The vibrations set up each time the mantra is repeated go to create, in the subtler atmosphere, the conditions that induce the fulfillment of the object in view. The Divine Name, for instance, has the potency to stamp and mould the consciousness which repeats it into the nature of the Divinity for which the Name stands and prepare it for the reception of the gathering revelation of the Godhead. The Mother I repeat my mantra constantly when I am awake and even when I sleep. I say it even when I am getting dressed, when I eat, when I work, when I speak with others; it is there, just behind in the background, all the time, all the time. In fact, you can immediately see the difference between those who have a mantra and those who don t. With those who have no mantra, even if they have a strong habit of meditation or concentration, something around them remains hazy and vague. Whereas the Japa imparts to those who practice it a kind of precision, a kind of solidity: an armature. They become galvanized, as it were. Sri Ramakrishna Japa means silently repeating God s Name. When you chant His Name with single minded devotion you can see God s form and realize Him. Suppose there is a piece of timber sunk in the water of the Ganges and fastened with a chain to the bank. You proceed link by link, holding to the chain, and you dive into the water and follow the chain. Finally, you are able to reach the timber. In the same way, by repeating God s Name you become absorbed in Him and finally realize Him. One should have such burning faith in God that one can say: What? I have repeated the Name of God, and can sin still cling to me? How can I be a sinner any more? How can I be in bondage any more? Mahatma Gandhi One must be completely absorbed in whatever mantra one selects. One should not mind if other thoughts disturb one during the japa. I am confident that one who still goes on with the japa in faith will conquer in the end. The mantra becomes one s staff of life and carries one through every ordeal. One should not seek worldly profit from such sacred mantras. The characteristic power of these mantras lies in their standing guard over personal purity, and every diligent seeker will realize this at once. Each repetition has a new meaning, each repetition carries you nearer and nearer to God. This is a concrete fact, and I may tell you that you are here talking to no theorist, but to one who has experienced what he says every minute of his life, so much so that it is easier for the life to stop than for this incessant process to stop. It is a definite need of the soul.

62 -58- Becoming Established in the Mantram Eknath Easwaran From the very first day you begin to use the mantram, it begins to grow in your consciousness. It germinates like the tiny seed that will eventually grow into a magnificent tree, and as you repeat it often and enthusiastically, it sends its roots deeper and deeper. Over a period of many years, if you have been practicing all the other spiritual disciplines (meditation) which strengthen your will and deepen your concentration, the tap root of the mantram will extend fathoms deep, where it works to unify your consciousness resolving old conflicts, solving problems you may not even be aware of, and transforming negative emotions into spiritual energy. When this mantram root reaches the bedrock of consciousness, you become established in the mantram. It has become an integral part of your being, permeating your consciousness from the surface level down to the very depths. Then it is no longer necessary to repeat the mantram; it goes on repeating itself, echoing continuously at the very deepest levels of the mind. Becoming established in the mantram is one of the many marvelous developments which take place towards the very end of the spiritual journey, as we draw near to realizing the supreme goal of life. At this point, as the Sufi mystics put it beautifully, there is only one thin veil remaining between us and the Lord. We can already make out the outlines of our real nature abiding joy, unshakable security, and infinite love. But we do not reach this state overnight. We must have been repeating the mantram as often and as sincerely as we can for many years; and for the vast majority of us, we must have been practicing meditation sincerely and systematically also. Even then, the mystics of all religions tell us, we cannot become completely established in the mantram except through what I can only call divine grace. We must put in the effort; otherwise the Lord will not take us seriously. But in the end it is only he or she, as Sri Ramakrishna would say of the Divine Mother who will open the doors of the Holy Name and take us in. When this happens, there is a marvelous sense of security that comes, for you know that the mantram can never let you down. It has taken root deep in your consciousness, and as soon as a negative emotion begins to arise, the mantram automatically transforms it into tremendous positive power. For my mechanically minded friends, I sometimes say this is like having a transformer inside with a thermostat attached. When a negative emotion like fear or anger begins to rise, the thermostat sends the message, Things are getting a little hot down here, and the mantram transformer switches on. Most of us become aware of these negative emotions only after they have risen to the surface level of consciousness, when they have gathered tremendous momentum. But the mantram transformer intercepts fear and anger and greed while they are still in the formative stages, deep in the unconscious, and converts them immediately into immense constructive power. When you have managed to become established in the mantram like this, there are really no negative emotions left; every little cranny of consciousness has been flooded with light. Sri Ramakrishna tells us that being established in the mantram is like receiving a pension after many years of faithful service.

63 -59- Of course, these marvelous developments do not take place overnight, the mantram begins its work of purifying our consciousness long before we reach the unitive state. At first, most of the work goes into trying to open the door of our mind a little so that the mantram can slip in. Once it gets in under the surface level, it can go on with its work of purification even when we are not consciously repeating it. But at first, it is all we can do to open the door of the mind even a little crack. All the time that we are repeating the mantram at the post office, while walking, while washing dishes, while falling asleep, we are working away at opening that door to our consciousness. When we can use the mantram to overcome likes and dislikes or to change old habits, we are beginning to open the door just a little, and when we learn to repeat the mantram to transform fear and anger and greed, we are not only opening the door but turning on the porch light and putting out the welcome mat, too. Even in the early days, there are several sure signs that the mantram has begun its work of purification. One sure sign is that you will hear the mantram occasionally in your sleep, either in a dream or in the state of dreamless sleep. In a dream, the mantram can save you from all sorts of unpleasant situations Sometimes, too, you may hear the mantram echoing deep in your consciousness, not necessarily in connection with any dream. It will have an unearthly beauty and clarity which will haunt you when you wake up. During the following day you will not be able to recapture just how it sounded in all its beauty, but the mere memory of it will fill you with joy and security. This will give you added incentive to try harder in all your spiritual disciplines, because you know that sustained effort is what really enables you to drive the mantram deep into your consciousness When you hear the mantram in your sleep, you are not consciously repeating it; this is the mantram at work on a deeper level of consciousness. To become established in the mantram, you must be able to repeat it consciously far below the surface level of thought and action. For this to take place, I cannot stress too much how important it is to make use of every opportunity during the day and night to repeat the mantram. Even then, it is not just the number of times you have said the mantram which takes you to a deeper level but the sincerity and enthusiasm with which you say it, as well, combined with the other spiritual disciplines like meditation. I have no hesitation in saying that you cannot become established in the mantram unless you have also reduced your self-will to a very considerable extent. These two go together. Selfwill is devotion to I, which the mantram transforms into devotion to the Lord. The Holy Name reverberating in the depths of consciousness transfigures our entire vision of life. Just as the mantram transforms negative forces in consciousness into constructive power, so it now transforms all our perceptions of the everyday world into unbroken awareness of the unity of life When we are established in the mantram, established in awareness of the Lord, everything for us is full of joy.

64 -60- In Praise of Japa Vedanta Society of Southern California Prayer and meditation require our full attention, but one of the advantages of japa is that you can do other things at the same time. Holy Mother, who was famous for doing prodigious amounts of japa, undoubtedly did much of it while busy with her household chores husking paddy, sweeping and scrubbing the floor, washing and cutting vegetables. It s also a good way to shut down the endless chatter of the mind. We often find our thoughts wandering. Japa pulls them back and gives them focus. It s like a thread that ties the mind to the lotus feet of the Lord; it reminds us always to pay attention to him. Sri Ramakrishna taught a variety of spiritual practices, but Swami Brahmananda and Holy Mother placed special emphasis on japa. If you study their teachings, you ll find that they constantly emphasized the necessity of doing it, and especially at fixed times in the morning and evening. The fixed times establish the habit. Once you get used to doing it at certain times, you get restless to do it when those times come. If you don t do it, you feel guilty. In fact, guilt feelings are common among devotees who skip doing their japa. If you don t want to feel guilty, better not skip it! A common complaint among beginners is that they don t feel any results. Swami Brahmananda constantly had to reassure his disciples that if they didn t feel any results in the beginning, they would feel them later on. Perseverance is the key. In fact, he told one disciple, Follow some spiritual discipline for at least three years, and then, if you find you have made no tangible progress, you may come back and slap my face! Vicarious Japa: A Gift from Holy Mother Holy Mother said that some of her disciples were incapable of doing much japa, so she did it for them. In her old age, when her attendant noticed that she was doing japa even in bed, she asked, What can I do, my son? The boys come and entreat me eagerly. They take the mantra and go home. But nobody does any japa regularly. Some don t do it even once. Yet as I have shouldered the burden, should I not look after them? That s why I do japa and pray to the Master, O Master, grant them enlightenment, grant them emancipation, and do you take on yourself their care in every way here and hereafter! I can imagine some people grumbling, Holy Mother made it too easy for her disciples. She spoiled them. How could they develop any character if she did everything for them? I can also imagine her giving a sharp reply: I am the Mother! Shall I not do everything for my children? As for their character, you don t need to worry about it. I will take care of it. Lazy guys like me envy Holy Mother s disciples. What a soft deal they had! We don t have the luxury of knowing that she s doing japa for us. Some of us have to do three rounds of the rosary just to get started. Sometimes it takes that long just to drag the mind away from worldly thoughts and get it settled down. That s especially true in the evening, after a day of being beaten up by the world.

65 -61- Coffee, Tea, or Japa? Early-morning japa, which is recommended most highly, is supposed to take hold quickly, because the mind is fresh and doesn t have to wean itself away from worldly thoughts. But you have to make sure that you re fully awake, or you re likely to fall asleep. People like me, who need three cups of coffee just to wake up in the morning, are always relieved to read about a disciple of Holy Mother who told her that it was impossible for him to do japa before having his morning tea. Fortunately for us all, Holy Mother gave him permission to drink his tea first. I have been quick to interpret this as permission to drink my three cups of coffee in the morning before trying to do anything that requires the slightest bit of intelligence. I console myself for this weakness by invoking the example of an eminent Tibetan lama, the late Kalu Rimpoche, who used to drink Tibetan tea while meditating. Don t Mess with the Mantra Japa is sometimes difficult for Westerners, because the mantra is in Sanskrit, a language we re unfamiliar with. I know an American devotee who once rebelled against his mantra. I m tired of this Sanskrit gibberish, he complained. I want an English mantra. So, although he had been initiated by a perfectly well-qualified teacher, he made up an English mantra and started doing japa with it. At first it seemed new and fresh, and he was heartened by the results. The image of his Chosen Ideal glowed within him; it seemed to be cheering him on. Novelty is always exciting, and he expected to make rapid progress. But surprise, surprise! Novelty wears off pretty quickly unless there s some substance behind it. Pretty soon, about halfway through his rosary, he began to nod off, and his old mantra started welling up from the depths of his mind. He stopped it, reimposed his English mantra, and succeeded for awhile; but the old Sanskrit mantra was stubborn, and kept resurfacing when he least expected it. No matter how much he resisted, it kept coming back. Eventually the image of the Chosen Ideal seemed to be grinning at him, and then he got the message. Finally he gave up and returned to his old mantra. There s more to this mantra stuff than meets the eye, he admitted. I guess you can t keep a good mantra down. But It s Boring! The big complaint that most people make about japa is that it s boring. Who wants to keep chanting the same old line? What a waste of time! What s the point? The point, of course, is to recondition the mind. That s what spiritual practice is all about: to recondition the mind so that it will become a fit place for the indwelling of the Lord. But our minds are restless, and scream for more exciting fare. This is especially true in our switched-on era, when cyberspace is crackling with high-tech entertainment. Who wants to pray when you can google? Who wants to chant when you can twitter?

66 -62- If we re serious about spiritual life, we have to shut down the computer and dig out the old rosary. Swami Brahmananda s remark that his disciples could come back and slap his face if they didn t feel any results within three years is something we ought always to keep in mind. He didn t mean three years of just piddling around. He meant three years of persistent and intensive effort. Experience shows that if we keep working on our japa, it gradually takes hold. It stops being boring and eventually becomes sweet. The mantra becomes an old friend, something solid in the foundation of our minds, an anchor for our wayward thoughts. It can be a healing balm in times of grief, a refuge in times of trouble. It takes on a life of its own, and rises from our subconscious to greet us whenever we turn to it. It also becomes something very much like the default setting of the mind. When the mind wanders, the mantra often emerges spontaneously. We find it resounding within us without making any effort. All we have to do is listen. In fact, this may be one answer to the famous Zen koan, Who is it that recites the Buddha s name? When we become established in japa, the Buddha s name recites itself. Be aware of me always, adore me, make every act an offering to me, and you shall come to me; this I promise, for you are dear to me. Leave all other support, and look to me for protection. I shall purify you from sins of the past. Do not grieve. (Krishna to Arjuna)

67 -63- Sri Sarada Devi Do you know the significance of Japa and other spiritual practices? By these, the power of the sense organs is subdued. Repeating the Name of God a fixed number of times, telling the rosary or counting on fingers, is calculated to direct the mind to God. The natural tendency of the mind is to run this way and that way. Through these means it is attracted to God. While repeating the name of God, if one sees His form and becomes absorbed in Him, one's Japa stops. One gets everything when one succeeds in meditation. What a lot of work I did when I was of your age! And yet I could find time to repeat my Mantra a hundred thousand times every day! A devotee took a tiny banyan seed and said to Mother, "Look, Mother, it is tinier even than the tiniest seed we know. From this will spring a giant tree! How strange!" "Indeed, it will," Mother replied. "See what a tiny seed is the Name of God. From it in time comes divine moods, devotion, love, and spiritual consummation. Just see the power of habit. By the law of habit man attains realization by continuous practice of Japa. One has to suffer the consequences of one's deeds. But by repeating the Name of God, you can lessen its intensity. If you were destined to have a wound as wide as a plough share, you will get a pin-prick at least. The effect of Karma can be counteracted to a great extent by Japa and austerities. The Mantra purifies the body. Man becomes pure by repeating the Mantra of God. It is said, 'The human teacher utters the Mantra into the ear; but God breathes the spirit into the soul." Do not give up Japa even if the mind is unwilling and unsteady. You must go on with the repetition and you will find that the mind is getting gradually steadier - like a flame in a windless corner. Any movement in the air disturbs the steady burning of the flame; even so the presence of any thought or desire makes the mind unsteady. The Mantra must be correctly repeated. An incorrect utterance delays progress. Swami Yatiswarananda That which is done with full knowledge becomes more effective, says the Upanishadic seer. But mechanical repetition of the name of the Ishtam or one s Mantram has its effect too. We should always go in for that which is more useful though, but at times, when our mind is very much disturbed, we may just sit in some quiet corner and begin to do our Japa mechanically, but with great doggedness. Sri Ramakrishna used to say, Japa is like a chain. From one link we pass on to the next, and finally we pass on to God.

68 -64- We should know in perfect consciousness that human life is bestowed upon the conditioned soul to achieve spiritual success and the easiest possible procedure to attain this end is to repeat the holy Name of the Lord. (Sirmad Bhagavatham) This temporary life is full of miseries. Take shelter of the holy Name as your only business. (Bhaktivinoda Thakur) If one chants the holy Names of the Lord, even in helpless condition or without desiring to do so, all the reactions of his sinful life departs, just as when a lion roars, all the small animals flee in fear. (Bhaktivinoda Thakur) Lord Chaitanya has given the greatest boon: in this age one simply has to chant the holy Name of God to attain perfection in spiritual life. (Srila Prabhupada) Japa does not mean a tongue exercise. It is only effective when we put our mind where the sound is, so that the sound can vibrate unpleasantness out of mind. (Radhanath Swami) Japa must be heart deep and not only with the lips like something mechanical in other words, chanting with the heart is our goal. (Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura) If japa is maintained, no useless talk during work will be possible. The mind will always remain peaceful. Modern day diseases are mostly psychosomatic. Japa will bestow good health to both mind and body. (Mata Amritanandamayi)

69 -65- Misery is due to the great multitude of discordant thoughts that prevail in the mind. If all thoughts be replaced by one single thought, there will be no misery. (Ramana Maharshi) Those who really want to be yogis must give up, once and for all, this nibbling at things. Take up one idea; make that one idea your life. Think of it, dream of it, live on that idea. Let the brain, muscles, nerves, every part of your body, be full of that idea, and just leave other ideas alone. (Swami Vivekananda) The mantram becomes one s staff of life, and carries one through every ordeal. It is no empty repetition. For each repetition has a new meaning, carrying you nearer and nearer to God. (Mahatma Gandhi) There is nothing so lovely and enduring in the regions which surround us, above and below, as the lasting peace of a mind centered in God. (Yoga Vasishtha) I am easily attained by the person who always remembers me and is attached to nothing else. Such a person is a true yogi, Arjuna. (The Bhagavad Gita)

70

71 -66- The Sufi aspires to remember God every moment of the day, with each and every breath. The dhikr, the repetition of the name of God, is the fundamental practice of remembrance. (Vaughn-Lee) Dhikr From an internet article The Prophet said: "If your hearts were always in the state that they are in during dhikr, the angels would come to see you to the point that they would greet you in the middle of the road." Remembrance of Allah is the foundation of good deeds. Whoever succeeds in it is blessed with the close friendship of Allah. That is why the Prophet, peace be upon him, used to make remembrance of Allah at all times. When a man complained, "The laws of Islam are too heavy for me, so tell me something that I can easily follow," the Prophet told him, "Let your tongue be always busy with the remembrance of Allah." The Prophet, peace be upon him, would often tell his companions, "Shall I tell you about the best of deeds, the most pure in the sight of your Lord, about the one that is of the highest order and is far better for you than spending gold and silver, even better for you than meeting your enemies in the battlefield where you strike at their necks and they at yours?" The companions replied, "Yes, O Messenger of Allah!" The Prophet, peace be upon him, said, "Remembrance of Allah." The author of Fiqh al-sunna mentioned that Mujahid explained: "A person cannot be one of 'those men and women who remember Allah much' as mentioned in the above verse of the Qur'an, unless he or she remembers Allah at all times, standing, sitting, or lying in bed," and that when asked how much dhikr one should do to be considered as one of "those who remember Allah much," Ibn as-salah said that "much" is "when one is constant in supplicating, in the morning and evening and in other parts of the day and the night as reported from the Prophet, peace be upon him." There is no such thing as too much dhikr. The Prophet is related to say: "He who loves something mentions it much." We love Allah and His Prophet, and therefore we mention Allah and His Prophet. ( Whether you believe or not, when you practice zikr regularly for a period of time, its benefits will manifest automatically before long and you will observe the changes in your life. Because, the repetition of zikr words increases neural activity in the brain and new areas and additional neural groups are put to action and the results manifest simultaneously in your daily life. When the zikr is practiced, different regions and dormant neural groups of the brain engages and becomes active, so the working capacity of the brain increases. ( Dhikr is a tree with fruits of awareness. The more frequent the dhikr is made, the stronger the roots of a tree and the more fruits on it. (Ibn al-qayyim Al Jawziyah)

72 -67- Inner Transformation Llewellyn Vaughan-Lee The way that the name of God permeates the pilgrim is not metaphoric, but a literal happening. From the initial process of mental repetition the name goes deep within, into our psyche. Working in the depths of our being it alters our mental, psychological, and even physical bodies everything becomes infused with the energy of the name. On the mental level this change is easily apparent. Normally, in our everyday life, the mind follows its automatic thinking process, over which we often have very little control. The mind thinks us, rather than the other way around. Just catch your mind for a moment and observe its thoughts. Every thought creates a new thought, every answer a new question. And because energy follows thought, our mental and psychological energy is scattered in many directions. Spiritual life means learning to become one-pointed, to focus all our energy in one direction, towards the One. Through repeating the name we alter the grooves of our mental conditioning, the grooves which like those on a record play the same tune over and over again, repeating the same patterns that bind us in our mental habits. The name gradually replaces these many old grooves with the single groove of the divine name. How the repetition works psychologically is more mysterious. There is a saying of the Prophet Muhammad: There is a polish for everything that takes away rust; and the polish for the heart is the invocation of Allah. The name of God is a powerful agent of inner transformation. It is like a catalyst of the inner alchemical process that turns our lead into gold. Its constant repetition goes deep into the unconscious where it both purifies and transforms. This process works partly to align our psyche with our divine nature, which is the real agent of any transformation. Psychologically, it is the Self that transforms us. This center of divine consciousness within us works in the unconscious, disentangling and freeing us from complexes and patterns of conditioning. One example is the marked effect the prayer can have on fear or anxiety, feelings that often beset the spiritual traveler. Repeating His name can help to dissolve these feelings and the hold they have on us. The name of God can also be used in a more conscious, directed manner. In my own practice I have found that I can focus the dhikr on a problem or psychological block, allowing the feelings, the pain, anger or difficulty, to be contained by the energy of the divine name. This can help bring these feelings to the surface without their being overwhelming. Gradually the energy of the dhikr transforms this inner darkness, freeing me from a constriction, giving me access to more energy, allowing more inner space for the Divine. I found that doing this practice while walking was most helpful and grounding, when the rhythm of my footsteps and the rhythm of the dhikr allowed me to turn inward and focus on the slow and gradual work of polishing the heart. Invoking the name of God can give one access to the power of the Divine. The constant repetition of the divine name aligns us with the source of divine energy and power that is within us. Without this energy there can be no real inner transformation. We always need to remember that this work on the soul is something we do together with God. Repeating the name of the One we love reminds us of this primal companionship, this intimate friendship. One might imagine it would be boring to repeat one name over and over again for the rest of one s life. But how can you become bored with the name of the One you love, the name of the One to whom you belong? Every repetition is an offering of love, a recognition of this link of love that is within everything.

73 -68- Meher Baba Day and night you breathe, but do you ever think of it? Even at night when you sleep and when it is not possible to think of it, your breathing goes on for twenty-four hours, continuously and naturally. Do the japa in a similar manner; do it in such a way that it goes on spontaneously all the time while eating, drinking, sitting, walking, talking so that in the course of time, it becomes a natural habit. To form this habit, first you have to repeat the one name of God most dear to you for half an hour daily, increasing the time gradually until the mental repetition becomes a natural habit, and you keep repeating it for twenty-four hours. God has hundreds and thousands of names. Select an easy one and with every inhalation, repeat it. While doing it, no special sitting or standing posture is required. This habit will make you repeat God s name always while eating, working, urinating, defecating and so on. If at all you forget to take His name, take it at once as soon as you remember. Do this, thinking that it is a duty given to you. Don t worry if you ever forget to take His name. If your thoughts begin to flow into a different channel, stop them and go on repeating His name. When it becomes a firm habit with you, even while thinking other thoughts, the repetition will be uppermost and you will not even be conscious that you are doing it exactly in the same way in which you are unconscious of your breathing. Question: What is the spiritual significance of Mantra (Persian 'Zikr')? How is a neophyte helped by a monotonous incantation or repetition of a certain word or words? Meher Baba: Mantra is very beneficial to a neophyte on the spiritual path, particularly so when it is given by the Guru. The first and immediate result accruing from the oft repetition of word or words is the concentration of the mind on the subject to be gained. Secondly, the sound vibrations as a result of continuous repetition induces, in course of time, an harmonious sympathy to the sound vibrations of the higher planes engendering a blissful feeling - a factor greatly encouraging to a beginner. Whoever has God in mind, simply and solely God, in all things, such a man carries God with him into all his works and into all places, and God alone does all his works. He seeks nothing but God, nothing seems good to him but God. He becomes one with God in every thought. Just as no multiplicity can dissipate God, so nothing can dissipate this man or make him multiple. (Meister Eckhart)

74 -69- Of all spiritual practices the dhikr is the practice most apt to free spiritual energy The advantage of the dhikr is that it is not restricted to any ritual hour; its only limitation is the personal capacity of the student. (Henry Corbin) In Arabic, repetition and remembrance are the same word. It is said that remembrance of God begins with the repetition of God s Names by the tongue. Then, the repetition of the tongue descends and becomes the remembrance of the heart. Finally, the remembrance of the heart deepens and becomes the remembrance of the soul. At first, you chant the Divine Names, then they chant themselves, then God chants through you. Implicit in the term remembrance is the notion that we are coming back to what we once knew, what we have already learned. The Sufis believe that our souls were in the world of souls for thousands of years, there, bathed in God s presence, our souls experienced the Divine more fully and deeply than we can imagine. In practicing remembrance, we are seeking to recapture a small part of that blessed state. Health food enthusiasts insist that you are what you eat. It is also true that you are what you think. By the practice of remembrance of God, eventually the process of remembrance takes hold until you are in a constant state of remembrance. Then, self falls away and God remains. (James Fadiman, Robert Frager; Essential Sufism: Remembrance of God) All the hundred and twenty-four-thousand prophets were sent to preach one word. They bade the people say Allah! and devote themselves to Him. Those who heard this word with the ear alone, let it go out by the other ear; but those who heard it with their souls, imprinted it on their souls and repeated it until it penetrated their hearts and souls, and their whole being become this word. They were made independent of the pronunciation of the word, they were released from the sound and the letters. Having understood the spiritual meaning of this word, they became so absorbed in it that they were no more conscious of their own non-existence. (Abu- L-Fadl Muhammad Ibn Hasan) Truth has been planted in the center of the heart as Allah s trust, entrusted to you for safekeeping. It becomes manifest with true repentance and with true efforts. Its beauty shines on the surface when one remembers God and does the dhikr. At the first stage one recites the name of God with one s tongue; then when the heart becomes alive one recites inwardly with the heart. (Abdu l Qadir Al-Gilani) One cannot taste the intimacy of remembrance without having suffered the desolation of forgetfulness. (Abu Uthman Al-Hiri)

75 -70- Separation from God is like a well; Remembrance of Him is the rope. (Rumi) Persons who repeat the Holy Names of God have angels around them. The Grace of God protects them. They enjoy peace and bliss. (Hazrat Mohammed) The similitude of one who remembers his Lord and one who does not remember Him, is like that of the living and the dead! (Abu Musa Al-Ash ari) God most high said, I give more to the one who is so occupied with My remembrance that he does not ask things of Me, than I give to the supplicants. (Hadith) There is a punishment for all things. The punishment for the mystic is to be cut off from His remembrance. (Sufyan Ath-Thawri) Never be without the remembrance of God, for His remembrance provides the bird of the spirit with strength, feathers, and wings. (Rumi) Remembrance of God instills in us a desire for the journey, and makes us into travelers. (Rumi) Your breath is a sacred clock, my dear - why not use it to keep time with God s Name? And if your feet are ever mobile upon this ancient drum, the earth, Oh do not let your precious movements come to naught. Let your steps dance silently to the rhythm of the Beloved s Name! (Hafiz)

76 -71- The true saint goes in and out among the people and eats and sleep with them and buys and sells in the market and marries and takes part in social intercourse, and never forgets God for a single moment. (Aabu Sa'id Ibn) When the mind is consumed with remembrance of Him something divine happens to the heart that shapes the hand and tongue and eye into the word love. (Hafiz) Water gets poured through a cloth to become free of impurities. The Beloved s Name is a mystical weave and pattern - a hidden sieve of effulgence we need to pass through thousands of times. From my constant remembrance of the Friend, all I now say is safe to drink. (Hafiz) No one can keep us from carrying God wherever we go. No one can rob His Name from our hearts as we try to relinquish our fears and at last stand victorious. We do not have to leave Him in the mosque or church alone at night; we do not have to be jealous of tales of saints, those intoxicated souls who can make outrageous love with the Friend. Our yearning eyes, our warm-needing bodies, can all be drenched in contentment and Light. No one anywhere can keep us from carrying the Beloved wherever we go. No one can rob His precious Name from the rhythm of my heart, steps and breath. (Hafiz) Forgetfulness of God, the Beloved, is the support of this world; spiritual intelligence its ruin. For Intelligence belongs to that other world, and when it prevails, this material world is overthrown. (Rumi) The repentance of the masses is from sin, whereas repentance of the elect is from distraction. (9 th century Egyptian Sufi) Recollection is forgetting everything besides Him. (Abu Sa id Ibn Abi-L-Khayr)

77 -72- Keep God, the Beloved, always in your heart. Let your prayer, dhikr, be the prayer of your heart. (Abd L-Khaliq Ghijduwani) There are different levels of remembrance and each has different ways. Some are expressed outwardly with audible voice, some felt inwardly, silently, from the center of the heart. At the beginning one should declare in words what one remembers. Then stage by stage the remembrance spreads throughout one s being descending to the heart then rising to the soul; then still further it reaches the realm of the secrets; further to the hidden; to the most hidden of the hidden. How far the remembrance penetrates, the level it reaches, depends solely on the extent to which Allah in His bounty has guided one. (Abdu l-qadir Al-Gilani) Dhikr is, in its reality, the progressive power of the Named on the heart, while the dhikr itself wears away and disappears. (Al-Ghazzali) I make abundant remembrance of You not because I have forgotten You; That is simply what flows from the tongue. (Dhu-L-Nun) Not a day passes but that the Exalted cries out, O my servant, you treat me unjustly. I remember you, but you forget me. I invite you to myself, but you go to others. (Sahl) When God wishes to befriend one of His servants, He opens for him the gate of His remembrance. When he experiences the sweetness of remembrance, He opens for him the gate of nearness. Then He raises him into the gatherings of His intimacy. Then He settles him upon the throne of unity. Then He lifts the veil from him and leads him into the abode of unicity and reveals for him the divine splendor and majesty. When his eyes fall upon the divine splendor and majesty, naught of himself remains. Thereupon His servant is entirely extinguished for a time. After this he comes under God s exalted protection, free from any pretensions of his self. (Abu Sa id Al-Kharraz)

78

79 -73- Buddhism In Buddhist psychology, the instructions for thought transformation are very explicit. The Buddha instructs his followers: Like a skilled carpenter who removes a coarse peg by knocking it out with a fine one, so a person removes a pain-producing thought by substituting a beautiful one. The carpenter s peg is a practical description of how we can remove unhealthy thoughts by substitution. What is required is the selection of a helpful substitute and repeated practice. Repetition is key. Repetition, compassion, and the belief that the painful cycles of thought can be transformed all have a part in developing new patterns of thought. (Jack Kornfield) The use of mantra or the repetition of certain phrases in Pali is an extremely common form of meditation in the Theravada tradition. Simple mantras use repetition of the Buddha s name, Buddho, (actually Buddho is a title rather than a name) or use the Dhamma, or the Sangha, the community, as mantra words. Other mantras that are used are directed toward developing loving kindness. Some mantras direct attention to the process of change by repeating the Pali phrase that means everything changes, while other mantras are used to develop equanimity with phrases that would be translated, let go. Very often mantra practice is combined with breathing meditation, so that one recites a mantra simultaneously with in-breath and out-breath to help develop tranquility and concentration. Mantra meditation is especially popular among the lay people. Like other basic concentration exercises, it can be used simply to still the mind or it can be the basis for an insight practice where the mantra becomes the focus of observation of how life unfolds, or an aid in surrendering and letting go. (Jack Kornfield)

80 -74- Nama-Japa Journal of Shin Buddhism The dispensing with the need for a formal rite of initiation in Shinshu clearly illustrates the difference between mantra-japa and nama-japa. In its original practice by the earlier Jiriki, or self-power sects, such as Tendai and Shingon, the Nembutsu undoubtedly functioned as a mantra. For mantra-japa several essential conditions are required: the mantra must be communicated to the disciple by word of mouth from the Ajari (Sanskrit: Acarya), or initiator, along with oral instruction as to its correct pronunciation, intonation, and rhythm in chanting. This may only be done when the master considers the disciple ready to receive the mantra, and he must supervise its repetition to correct inaccuracies and ensure the safety of the disciple. Such a mantra is usually chanted not in isolation but conjoined with asana, or seated posture, mudra, or symbolic gestures of the hands, along with the manipulation of ritual implements, at the same time as the mind is concentrated on the iconographic form of a particular Buddha, Bodhisattya, or tutelary divinity, visualized in imagination according to the sadhana, or canonic prescriptions. In nama-japa, on the contrary, all these conditions are dispensed with except the Divine Name alone, which is repeatedly invoked with faith. The Nembutsu may be called either silently or aloud, in any rhythm or tone of voice and in any posture, while walking, standing, sitting, or lying down. For the ordinary man (and Shinshu provides expressly for his need), great learning, indeed any learning, is not necessary. Anyone, no matter how modest his intellectual endowments, can learn to repeat the Nembutsu anywhere and at any time. The Nembutsu is so perfectly simple that a child can memorize it in a few moments, and according to the Japanese, a baby's first words are: 'Dabu, Dab', or Amida's Name! The Nembutsu should occasion no scholastic hairsplitting or logic-chopping argumentation such as often arises in religious circles about the orthodox interpretation of lengthier scriptural texts, because the Name is not of human choice or composition but originates with the Buddha Amida himself. At first, the Nembutsu was considered as an accessory aid to concentration of the mind; which was the view of Genshin, the Japanese Sixth Patriarch, who as an orthodox Tendai monk still regarded the Nembutsu as a mantra. The great innovation of Honen Shonin, the Seventh Patriarch, was to insist that the invocation of the Name with faith was alone sufficient to ensure rebirth in Jodo, even though the Name were only called once. He thus exoterized this previously esoteric formula and so transformed mantra-japa into nama-japa, making the Name freely available to all followers. Even mindfulness was no longer necessary, since the Name could work its total transformation of the being on other than ego-conscious levels. It was Honen's revolutionary change that aroused the hostility of the older die-hard sects of Mount Hiei and Nara and necessitated his foundation of a separate Pure Land sect, the Jodoshu.

81 -75- Using a Mantra to Find Your Own Voice Lama Surya Das Mantras are sacred words of great power and blessings. In most Asian countries, including Tibet, mantras are still typically chanted in the original Sanskrit language, which is considered the language of the gods. The word mantra is literally translated as something to lean the mind (manas) upon. And that s what a mantra can do. Mantra practice can be relied upon as a quick, effective, and powerful way of focusing, stabilizing, and freeing the mind. Mantra practice can help inculcate constructive states of mind; reinforcing mind-training, it enhances our basic intelligence, wakefulness, concentration, and present awareness. Mantra practice, a highly effective centering skill, can legitimately be regarded as a tool of transcendence or a kind of technology of the sacred Mantra practice can alter the atmosphere and effect swift transformation, both externally in the world and within ourselves. 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 an impure mind, suffering follows him 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. (Buddha)

82 -76- Crazy Little Drunk Monkeys & ANTs Brian Johnson In Buddhism, they like to say that our minds are like monkeys swinging from thought to thought to thought. Only, the monkey in our mind is drunk, swinging from thought to thought to thought. Then, our little drunk monkey is stung by a scorpion! That s not all, though. Take that drunk little poisoned monkey and make him crazy! That is how our minds tend to be. Psychologists actually have a way to describe this as well. Apparently somebody figured out how to count all those monkey-swings and came up with the stat that we have, on average, about 60,000 thoughts per day. Get this: 95% of those are the same thoughts from day to day to day. And, 80% of those thoughts are negative! Daniel Amen calls them automatic negative thoughts. ANTs for short. Whether we see our minds as filled with crazy little drunk monkeys or equally crazy little drunk ANTs, let s tame and sober em up! Did you know the Sanskrit word mantra literally means a tool of thought? For thousands of years, people have reshaped their minds via the power of mantras. Mantras are a great way to tame the monkeys and relocate the ANTs. Our minds have a tendency to automatically generate negative thoughts to the shocking range of 45,000 such negative thoughts a day. Mantras help us rewire our brains so, rather than automatic negative thoughts, we can get some automatic positive thoughts. The basic idea is simple. Reshape your mind through the repetition of certain phrases you find inspiring and empowering.

83

84 -77- Saying the Jesus Prayer St. Vladimir s Orthodox Theological Seminary The classical form of the Jesus Prayer is, "Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner." The actual words of our short prayers can vary. We might say the classic version of the Jesus Prayer, or we might say, "Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me." We may say, "Lord Jesus, have mercy." Or, we might say a Psalm verse, or a Bible quote, or some other prayer. Monks of old said, "Lord, make haste to help me. Lord, make speed to save me," all day long. The history of the Jesus Prayer goes back, as far as we know, to the early sixth century, with Diadochos, who taught that repetition of the prayer leads to inner stillness. Even earlier John Cassian recommended this type of prayer. In the fourth century Egypt, in Nitria, short "arrow" prayers were practiced. Abba Macarius of Egypt said there is no need to waste time with words. It is enough to hold out your hands and say, "Lord, according to your desire and your wisdom, have mercy." If pressed in the struggle, say, "Lord, save me!" or say, "Lord." He knows what is best for us, and will have mercy upon us. We are all called to pray without ceasing, says St. Paul in 1 Thess 5:17. The real questions is, how. The Jesus Prayer provides one good way to pray constantly. In fact, the Jesus Prayer is the most widespread and most specifically Orthodox spiritual prayer, according to Metropolitan Corneanu. Our task is to draw nearer to God. St. Isaac of Syria says that it is impossible to draw near to God by any means other than increasing prayer. Trying to pray repetitively is an inner asceticism. According to St Ignatius Brianchaninov, trying to pray without ceasing is a "hidden martyrdom." A casual, but profound, example of this came to a small group of high school students. They were visiting a home for unwed mothers. The woman who directs the home spoke to them for a half hour. Because the woman sensed that the students were wondering about her own faith commitment, she said, "Well, you have been here 30 minutes and I have prayed 15 times." She hadn't been out of their sight, nor out of their conversation. Yet, during the active interchange, this woman found the desire, attention, and time, to shoot 15 "arrow" prayers to God. That's keen vigilance. That's a hidden martyrdom, especially when attempted all day long. Prayer requires super-human courage, given the atmosphere of the world today. The whole ensemble of natural energies is in opposition. So says Sophrony. Lions may not eat us for the sake of the Gospel. Rather, our call to martyrdom takes the form of being attentive to the present moment, relying upon God's power always, and doing His will. Our call to martyrdom may not be any easier than death by violence. Clearly, the Jesus Prayer is not only for monks. We are told that the prayer is for cab drivers, social workers, business persons, teachers, professional baseball players (not necessarily used to win a game), and psychiatrists. We use the Jesus Prayer to do God's will, not our own bidding. Anyone, everyone can say the Jesus Prayer. There are no prerequisites for saying the Jesus Prayer. We are all sinners and need to pray, always. We try to keep the Commandments, be living members of His Body on earth, and try to find a guide. Bishop Kallistos Ware has

85 -78- sound advice for those who simply can't find a suitable guide. "But those who have no personal contact with starets may still practice the Prayer without any fear, so long as they do so only for limited periods - initially, for no more than ten or fifteen minutes at a time - and so long as they make no attempt to interfere with the body's natural rhythms." The Jesus Prayer is recommended in the morning, following our prayer rule, for some period of time, perhaps 10 or 15 minutes. If that is impossible, then sometime before noon, or in the evening. This might be called "formal" use of the prayer. The second form of the Jesus Prayer is the "free" use of the prayer. This means at any and all other times of the day, or night. This is especially true for the semi-automatic tasks such as driving, doing dishes, walking, being unable to sleep, etc. The Jesus Prayer is notably useful in time of extreme concern or upset. When alone, we might find it helpful to pray the Jesus Prayer, out loud. This can help lower the distraction level. Orthodox prayer ropes are usually soft and made of wool. The purpose is to help us concentrate, not necessarily to count. In the famous book, The Way of the Pilgrim, the pilgrim said the prayer 2,000, then 6,000, then 12,000 times. Is 12,000 Jesus Prayers better than 2,000? Absolutely not. Quantity has nothing to do with love, and a living relationship with Jesus. The pilgrim did 12,000, no more and no less, as an act of obedience to his spiritual father, not because he was "making progress." He also prayed much because that was his "heart's desire." Every prayer is an act of love, made to the Author of Love, Who is waiting expectantly for our desire, and our acceptance of His Love. As medicine, the Jesus Prayer is destructive of the passions and altering of conduct. Just as a doctor places a dressing on a patient's wound, and the dressing works without the patient's knowing how, calling on the Name of God "removes the passions" without our knowing how and why, according to Barsanupius and John. The Holy Name, when repeated quietly, penetrates the soul rather like a drop of oil, spreading out and impregnating a cloth. Our modern translation of "mercy" is limited and insufficient. "Mercy" comes from the Greek eleison. Eleison has the same root as elaion which means olive and olive oil. In the Middle East, olive oil provides physical healing for many sicknesses, particularly respiratory. "Have mercy" means to have "healing oil" on my soul. The Fathers tell us that praying the Sacred Name changes our personality, from overstrain to joy. "Hitherto you have asked nothing in my Name; ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full" (Jn 16:24). The Jesus Prayer functions as therapy, much like healing oil, transforming our personality from overstrain to joy, and by continuing to pray, these changes become permanent. The Jesus Prayer according to numerous Church Fathers is "essential" to our spiritual growth. The Jesus Prayer proclaims our faith and humbles us by asking mercy for our sinfulness. The Jesus Prayer is thought to be as old as the Church itself. The Jesus Prayer, says Metropolitan Anthony Bloom, more than any other, helps us to be able to stand in God s presence. This means that the Jesus Prayer helps us to focus our mind exclusively on God with no other thought occupying our mind but the thought of God. At this moment when our mind is totally concentrated on God, we discover a very personal and direct relationship with Him.

86 -79- Three Stages in the Practice of the Jesus Prayer There are three stages of prayer. The first level is oral prayer or as it is often referred to, prayer of the lips. This is the beginning stage where the prayer is said aloud. This engages more of our brain and helps us to focus our attention on the words of the prayer. Here we discover the nature of our distracted mind and programming of our brain. We encounter our own thoughts that will ride on top of the words of our prayer like a hitchhiker. We will also have the sensation that we are more than our thoughts as we gradually begin to know our soul. We find that we can actually observe our thoughts interfering with our prayer. We wonder, Where do these thoughts come from? At this stage prayer is still something external to us so we need to consider this as a first step. The second level is mental prayer. As we continue with prayer over a period of time we will find that we will be able to pray without using the lips and say the prayer silently in our mind. This will happen naturally. We don t want to force it prematurely. Don t try and be overzealous and end up like the hare instead of the tortoise. If we experience distraction at this level then simply go back to using oral prayer. Keeping our attention focused on the words of the prayer is essential. Theophan says that at this stage, "the mind is focused upon the words" of the Prayer, "speaking them as if they were our own." We begin to see how we can intercede and counteract our thoughts. We discover a new control center that we are beginning to see exists in our heart. When you try and unite your mind with your heart the mind finds a hardness of the heart and cannot easily penetrate it. The mind will be frustrated and distracted by many other thoughts. As you begin to enter into mental prayer the words will be said in your mind and not your heart. This is where you need to expect to begin at this stage. Only later after much patience and effort will you be able to penetrate the heart. Try to keep your focus on the words as you pray and it will naturally open the door of your heart. The third level is called prayer of the heart. At this level, prayer is no longer something you do, but something you are. This stage involves a transforming action as you discover your true nature. You find that you are much more than a body and brain, but that you are noetically connected with the divine energies of our God, and know that He dwells in the depths of your heart. This is not something you will be able to explain to others but you will recognize it. The prayer is now said continuously without any effort in the heart. This kind of prayer comes as a gift of the Holy Spirit. As Paul tells us, "God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit that cries 'Abba, Father!'." (Gal. 4:6) At this stage we now know what it means to be in union with God. We feel the divine presence within and sometimes are connected with the vision of the uncreated light, which is the pure energy of God. We can experience the kingdom of heaven within each of us. At this stage the door of our heart is wide open and we find our lives transformed as we begin to live a life of love. We now can pray without ceasing as Scripture instructs us. (

87 -80- Practice of the Jesus Prayer is a Long and Difficult Path A struggle is required in the practice of the Jesus Prayer. Saint Maximos said, Spiritual knowledge without ascetic practices is the theology of the demons. To transform our being and free our mind from domination by passions, and to bring it into the heart to be aligned with God as its focus is not a simple task. Reflect on the difficulty you encountered in developing other disciplines you have learned in your life, whether it relates to your work life, home life, or a sport. You will find that the same is even more true for your spiritual life. The practice of the Jesus Prayer requires a firm commitment, much effort and time. The practice of the Jesus Prayer must become a daily practice and engrained in your daily life. It is not something that you can allow yourself to ever say, I am too busy today, or I feel too tired for prayer. It must become just like other things you do without fail, like the simple act of brushing your teeth, taking a shower, and other such activities that are not treated as options in your life. If you skip it you should have the same unclean feeling as if you skipped your shower or brushing your teeth. This is how daily prayer needs to find its place in your life. It needs to become an integral part of your life. We need to have caution about being over zealous in the beginning. When we start a new activity we are often overly enthusiastic and throw ourselves into it with great zeal. We start out thinking we are some kind of superstar of prayer making bold changes in our life. We too think we can do anything with our own will power. But, when faced with difficulty, we very quickly fade and often do not finish the race. Our actions can be like the seeds referenced in Scripture that are sown on the hard ground that don t germinate. We too often find what we started with such zeal is too difficult to master, and we become discouraged and drop out. Beware of this tendency and try to start with the realization that this is a difficult process. Make a commitment to enter into it with humility, seeking the help of God, and begin slowly so you can finish the race. Remember the story of the tortoise and the hare? You want to be the tortoise with a consistent and steady effort. The path is not easy and you will encounter difficulties. As you repeat the prayer over many months you will find that it gradually, on its own accord, goes deeper and deeper into your consciousness and will begin to act on your soul. The Church Fathers counsel us to not be concerned about the difficulty we will encounter. They remind us that we are fighting against strong forces for our salvation. Gregory the Sinaite says, In the beginning there occurs unutterable contrition and unspeakable pain of the soul. We should expect forces to work against us in this endeavor. We must recognize the nature of our brain and how it is programmed to keep things as they are. To live in union with God there must be changes made in our mental programming. This is not easily done. This is why we say the prayer has two functions. One is worship with repentance with humility and the other is to develop the capacity to focus our attention on the prayer and God. The Jesus prayer will lead us from earth to heaven and carry us to another world if we have patience and perseverance. Saint Ignatius Brianchaninov reminds us of the aim of the practice of this prayer. He says, Dwelling with the mind and heart in heaven and in God - this is the chief fruit or end of this prayer.

88 -81- The Power of the Name Bishop Kallistos Ware The Name is power, but a purely mechanical repetition will by itself achieve nothing. The Jesus Prayer is not a magic talisman. As in all sacramental operations, the human person is required to co-operate with God through active faith and ascetic effort. We are called to invoke the Name with recollection and inward vigilance, confining our minds within the words of the Prayer, conscious who it is that we are addressing and that responds to us in our heart. Such strenuous prayer is never easy in the initial stages, and is rightly described by the Fathers as a hidden martyrdom. St Gregory of Sinai speaks repeatedly of the constraint and labour undertaken by those who follow the Way of the Name; a continual effort is needed; they will be tempted to give up because of the insistent pain that comes from the inward invocation of the intellect. Your shoulders will ache and you will often feel pain in your head, he warns, but persevere persistently and with ardent longing, seeking the Lord in your heart. Only through such patient faithfulness shall we discover the true power of the Name. This faithful perseverance takes the form, above all, of attentive and frequent repetition. Christ told his disciples not to use vain repetitions (Matt. 6:7); but the repetition of the Jesus Prayer, when performed with inward sincerity and concentration, is most emphatically not vain. The act of repeatedly invoking the Name has a double effect: it makes our prayer more unified and at the same time more inward. There is a flexibility as regards the outward circumstances in which the Prayer is recited. Two ways of using the Prayer can be distinguished, the free and the formal. By the free use is meant the recitation of the Prayer as we are engaged in our usual activities throughout the day. It may be said, once or many times, in the scattered moments which otherwise would be spiritually wasted: when occupied with some familiar and semi-automatic task, such as dressing, washing up, mending socks, or digging in the garden; when walking or driving, when waiting at a bus stop or a traffic jam; in a moment of quiet before some especially painful or difficult interview; when unable to sleep, or before we have gained full consciousness on waking. Part of the distinctive value of the Jesus Prayer lies precisely in the fact that, because of its radical simplicity, it can be prayed in conditions of distraction when more complex forms of prayer are impossible. It is especially helpful in moments of tension and grave anxiety. This free use of the Jesus Prayer enables us to bridge the gap between our explicit times of prayer whether at church services or alone in our own room and the normal activities of daily life. Pray without ceasing, St Paul insists (I Thess. 5:17): but how is this possible, since we have many other things to do as well? Bishop Theophan indicates the method in his maxim, The hands at work, the mind and heart with God. The Jesus Prayer, becoming by frequent repetition almost habitual and unconscious, only in the sanctuary or in solitude, but in the kitchen, on the factory floor, in the office. So we become like Brother Lawrence, who was more united with God during his ordinary activities than in religious exercises. It is a great delusion, he remarked, to imagine that prayer-time should be different from any other, for we are equally bound to be united to God by work at work-time as by prayer at prayer-time.

89 -82- Prayer of the heart, when and if it is granted, comes as the free gift of God, which he bestows as he wills. It is not the inevitable effect of some technique. St Isaac the Syrian (seventh century) underlines the extreme rarity of the gift when he says that scarcely one in ten thousand is counted worthy of the gift of pure prayer, and he adds: As for the mystery that lies beyond pure prayer, there is scarcely to be found a single person in each generation who has drawn near to this knowledge of God s grace. One in ten thousand, one in a generation: while sobered by this warning, we should not be unduly discouraged. The path to the inner kingdom lies open before all, and all alike may travel some way along it. Just as it is impossible to fight battles without weapons, or to swim a great sea with clothes on, or to live without breathing, so without humility and the constant prayer to Christ it is impossible to master the art of inward spiritual warfare or to set about it and pursue it skillfully. (Saint Hesychios) Constantly call Lord, Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy upon me! in order that this remembrance of the Name of our Lord Jesus should incite you to battle with the enemy. By this remembrance, a soul forcing itself to do this practice can discover everything which is within, both good and bad. (Saint John Chrysostom) Only with the help of this prayer can the necessary order of the soul be firmly maintained; only through this prayer can we preserve our inner order undisturbed even when distracted by household cares. (Saint Theophan the Recluse) Bear in mind the method of prayer how it is possible to pray without ceasing, namely by praying in the mind. And this we can always do if we so wish. (St. Gregory Palamas) Always try to make sure that the prayer of Jesus Christ is included in your daily cycle, your work, your every breath and your every sense. (Elder Joseph, the quieter and Spilaiotou)

90 -83- Using the Jesus Prayer Father Charles Joiner Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me a sinner This prayer has the potential to transform your consciousness and bring you closer to God. It is a prayer rooted deeply in the tradition of the Church. It is a prayer to be repeated over and over, many times. You can begin to develop the use of this prayer by incorporating a number of repetitions in your daily prayer rule. It is a simple prayer and you can learn to say it everywhere and at any time. In fact, your aim should be to make it an unending prayer. In this way your whole life becomes a life of prayer. Recognize, however, that this prayer is incredibly difficult to practice even though it seems to be very simple. In its practice, you continually recite it so that it permeates your heart and focuses your mind, predisposing you to follow God s will instead of your own ego-directed will. Start by repeating it for ten minutes in the morning or evening. Begin by saying it out loud or at least by moving your lips. Eventually you will repeat it mentally, but start with a verbal prayer. Add more repetitions, slowly building up the time you are able to concentrate on the prayer. When your mind wanders, bring it back to the prayer. Concentrate, but do not be harsh on yourself. This is not something you will master with your self-will. Ask God to help you conquer the restlessness of your mind. With persistence, humility and patience, the practice of this prayer will prepare you for God s grace to work actively within you. Along with saying this prayer as part of your prayer rule, try to say it whenever you can. You can do this while walking, while waiting in the doctor s office, in line at the post office, or while waiting to board a plane. You can say it when doing dishes or yard work. You can say it when you are stressed, afraid, or nervous. When you become angry, repeat this prayer over and over until your anger subsides. Do this whenever your mind is agitated, and you will find that it will calm your mind. When you do say it, be sure to think of God and His endless love and seek His mercy. The use of the Jesus Prayer is done with an attitude of repentance and humility seeking an encounter with the living Christian God, Jesus Christ. We may gain benefits of relaxation or reduced stress, but this is not the aim of our effort. Union with God is. It is NOT a mantra to simply quiet the mind. You will also gain this benefit if you learn to repeat it hundreds of times, but it is important that you truly feel contrition for your sinfulness and seek God s mercy as you repeat it. All prayer is about a personal relationship with God. Many Orthodox Christians use a prayer rope to aid them in concentration as they repeat the Jesus Prayer. Prayer Ropes come in a great variety of forms and sizes. Most prayer ropes have a cross woven into them or attached to mark the end, and also have some kind of marker after each 10, 25, or 50 knots or beads. There are many forms of prayer ropes, some knotted of wool or silk, or other more elegant or simpler materials. At the time of our regular prayer, when you pray following your rule of prayer, hold the prayer rope with your hand between the thumb and the index finger and move from knot to knot each time you say the prayer. Do this until the number of repetitions in your rule have been completed.

91 -84- Selections from The Way of the Pilgrim (Anonymous19th-century Russian mendicant) Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. (Saint Paul) On the twenty-fourth Sunday after Pentecost I went to church to say my prayers there during the liturgy. The first Epistle of St. Paul to the Thessalonians was being read, and among other words I heard these "Pray without ceasing." It was this text, more than any other, which forced itself upon my mind, and I began to think how it was possible to pray without ceasing... A burning desire and thirst for knowledge awoke in me. Day and night the matter was never out of my mind. So I began to go to churches and to listen to sermons. But however many I heard, from not one of them did I get any teaching about how to pray without ceasing. They always talked about getting ready for prayer, or about its fruits and the like, without teaching one how to pray without ceasing, or what such prayer means We went into his [monks] cell and he began to speak as follows. "The continuous interior prayer of Jesus is a constant uninterrupted calling upon the divine name of Jesus with the lips, in the spirit, in the heart, while forming a mental picture of His constant presence, and imploring His grace, during every occupation, at all times, in all places, even during sleep.

92 -85- The appeal is couched in these terms, 'Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me.' One who accustoms himself to this appeal experiences as a result so deep a consolation and so great a need to offer the prayer always that he can no longer live without it, and it will continue to voice itself within him of its own accord. Now do you understand what prayer without ceasing is?" "Yes indeed, Father, and in God's name teach me how to gain the habit of it," I cried, filled with joy. For a week, alone in my garden, I steadily set myself to learn to pray without ceasing exactly as the starets had explained. At first things seemed to go very well. But then it tired me very much. I felt lazy and bored and overwhelmingly sleepy, and a cloud of all sorts of other thoughts closed round me. I went in distress to my starets and told him the state I was in. He greeted me in a friendly way and said, "My dear brother, it is the attack of the world of darkness upon you. To that world, nothing is worse than heartfelt prayer on our part. And it is trying by every means to hinder you and to turn you aside from learning the prayer. But all the same the enemy does only what God sees fit to allow, and no more than is necessary for us. It would appear that you need a further testing of your humility, and that it is too soon, therefore, for your unmeasured zeal to approach the loftiest entrance to the heart. You might fall into spiritual covetousness. I will read you a little instruction from The Philokalia upon such cases." He turned to the teaching of Nicephorus and read, " 'If after a few attempts you do not succeed in reaching the realm of your heart in the way you have been taught, do what I am about to say, and by God's help you will find what you seek. The faculty of pronouncing words lies in the throat. Reject all other thoughts (you can do this if you will) and allow that faculty to repeat only the following words constantly, "Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me." Compel yourself to do it always. If you succeed for a time, then without a doubt your heart also will open to prayer. We know it from experience.' "There you have the teaching of the holy Fathers on such cases," said my starets, "and therefore you ought from today onward to carry out my directions with confidence, and repeat the prayer of Jesus as often as possible. Here is a rosary. Take it, and to start with say the prayer three thousand times a day. Whether you are standing or sitting, walking or lying down, continually repeat 'Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me.' Say it quietly and without hurry, but without fail exactly three thousand times a day without deliberately increasing or diminishing the number. God will help you and by this means you will reach also the unceasing activity of the heart." I gladly accepted this guidance and went home and began to carry out faithfully and exactly what my starets had bidden. For two days I found it rather difficult, but after that it became so easy and likeable, that as soon as I stopped, I felt a sort of need to go on saying the prayer of Jesus, and I did it freely and willingly, not forcing myself to it as before. I reported to my starets, and he bade me say the prayer six thousand times a day, saying, "Be calm, just try as faithfully as possible to carry out the set number of prayers. God will vouchsafe you His grace." In my lonely hut I said the prayer of Jesus six thousand times a day for a whole week. I felt no anxiety. Taking no notice of any other thoughts however much they assailed me, I had but one object, to carry out my starets's bidding exactly. And what happened? I grew so used to my prayer that when I stopped for a single moment I felt, so to speak, as though something were

93 -86- missing, as though I had lost something. The very moment I started the prayer again, it went on easily and joyously. If I met anyone I had no wish to talk to him. All I wanted was to be alone and to say my prayer, so used to it had I become in a week. My starets had not seen me for ten days. On the eleventh day he came to see me himself, and I told him how things were going. He listened and said, "Now you have got used to the prayer. See that you preserve the habit and strengthen it. Waste no time, therefore, but make up your mind by God's help from today to say the prayer of Jesus twelve thousand times a day. Remain in your solitude, get up early, go to bed late, and come and ask advice of me every fortnight." I did as he bade me. The first day I scarcely succeeded in finishing my task of saying twelve thousand prayers by late evening. The second day I did it easily and contentedly. To begin with, this ceaseless saying of the prayer brought a certain amount of weariness, my tongue felt numbed, I had a stiff sort of feeling in my jaws, I had a feeling at first pleasant but afterward slightly painful in the roof of my mouth. The thumb of my left hand, with which I counted my beads, hurt a little. I felt a slight inflammation in the whole of that wrist, and even up to the elbow, which was not unpleasant. Moreover, all this aroused me, as it were, and urged me on to frequent saying of the prayer. For five days I did my set number of twelve thousand prayers, and as I formed the habit I found at the same time pleasure and satisfaction in it. Early one morning the prayer woke me up as it were. I started to say my usual morning prayers, but my tongue refused to say them easily or exactly. My whole desire was fixed upon one thing only to say the prayer of Jesus, and as soon as I went on with it I was filled with joy and relief. It was as though my lips and my tongue pronounced the words entirely of themselves without any urging from me. I spent the whole day in a state of the greatest contentment. I felt as though I was cut off from everything else. I lived as though in another world, and I easily finished my twelve thousand prayers by the early evening. I felt very much like still going on with them, but I did not dare to go beyond the number my starets had set me. Every day following I went on in the same way with my calling on the name of Jesus Christ, and that with great readiness and liking. Then I went to see my starets and told him everything frankly and in detail. He heard me out and then said, Now I give you my permission to say your prayer as often as you wish and as often as you can. Try to devote every moment you are awake to the prayer, call on the name of Jesus Christ without counting the number of times, and submit yourself humbly to the will of God, looking to Him for help. I am sure He will not forsake you and that He will lead you into the right path." Under this guidance I spent the whole summer in ceaseless oral prayer to Jesus Christ, and I felt absolute peace in my soul. During sleep I often dreamed that I was saying the prayer. And during the day if I happened to meet anyone, all men without exception were as dear to me as if they had been my nearest relations. But I did not concern myself with them much. I thought of nothing whatever but my prayer. My mind tended to listen to it, and my heart began of itself to feel at times a certain warmth and pleasure.

94 -87- If I happened to go to church, the lengthy service of the monastery seemed short to me and no longer wearied me as it had in time past. My lonely hut seemed like a splendid palace, and I knew not how to thank God for having sent to me, a lost sinner, so wholesome a guide and master. And that is how I go about now, and ceaselessly repeat the prayer of Jesus, which is more precious and sweet to me than anything in the world. At times I do as much as forty-three or four miles a day and do not feel that I am walking at all. I am aware only of the fact that I am saying my prayer. When the bitter cold pierces me, I begin to say my prayer more earnestly, and I quickly get warm all over. When hunger begins to overcome me, I call more often on the name of Jesus, and I forget my wish for food. When I fall ill and get rheumatism in my back and legs, I fix my thoughts on the prayer and do not notice the pain. If anyone harms me I have only to think, "How sweet is the prayer of Jesus!" and the injury and the anger alike pass away and I forget it all. I have become a sort of half-conscious person. I have no cares and no interests. The fussy business of the world I would not give a glance to. The one thing I wish for is to be alone, and all by myself to pray, to pray without ceasing; and doing this, I am filled with joy. God knows what is happening to me! Of course, all this is sensuous, or as my departed starets said, an artificial state that follows naturally upon routine. But because of my unworthiness and stupidity I dare not venture yet to go on further and learn and make my own spiritual prayer within the depths of my heart. I await God's time. And in the meanwhile I rest my hope on the prayers of my departed starets. Thus, although I have not yet reached that ceaseless spiritual prayer which is self-acting in the heart, yet I thank God I do now understand the meaning of those words I heard in the Epistle "Pray without ceasing." I noted that continuous interior prayer bears fruit in three ways: in the Spirit, in the feelings, and in revelations. In the first, for instance, is the sweetness of the love of God, inward peace, gladness of mind, purity of thought, and the sweet remembrance of God. In the second, the pleasant warmth of the heart, fullness of delight in all one s limbs, the joyous bubbling in the heart, lightness and courage, the joy of living, power not to feel sickness and sorrow. And in the last, light given to the mind, understanding of Holy Scripture, knowledge of the speech of created things, freedom from fuss and vanity, knowledge of the joy of the inner life, and certainty of the nearness of God and of His love for us. All who call upon the Name of the Lord shall be delivered. (Joel 2:32)

95

96 -88- Simran at the Time of Death ( The afterlife is not a place like the world you know around you now. What survives is the inner you. If you are spiritually advanced, you may immediately become aware of the Divine Light of God. Many Eastern religions believe that the last thoughts and words of the dying person will determine the level of spiritual attainment in the next life. The spiritual person will think of God at their passing moments. As the assassin s bullets tore through Mahatma Gandhi s body, his final cry was He Rama (Oh, God). Clearly Gandhi was a man of exceptional spirituality and, according to Hinduism, these final words would have enabled him to merge with the godhead. Remembrance of God at the time of death leads to the attainment of this state of being. The Tibetan Buddhist will read to the dying from The Tibetan Book of the Dead to help them attain a fortuitous future state. By keeping the mind on God at the end of life, we draw closer to the absolute. I m sure that spiritual thoughts at the end of life will help the journey. However, saying the name of God on your last breath will not wipe the karmic slate clean, nor will a last-minute confession of your sins. The sum total of your life is what matters. The last thoughts and words do, however, reveal what your primary drive has been in life. You will carry these with you to the threshold, and as you pass into the afterlife states. Someone who has habitually developed spirituality and often thinks about God is more likely to be drawn instantly to God consciousness than someone whose life has been spent on lesser things. The Eastern teachings say that a person who has followed a true sacred path in life will have greater freedom of action at the time of death. However, nothing can be done for the evil man at his dying moment, for he has no independence and is drawn forward by the weight of his past deeds.

97 -89- Each man has to die in the manner destined by past karma, either by disease or accident. Death cannot befall us before it is due. Then why worry? We may not know as to how we will meet death, whether by disease or by accident, but one thing is sure, that if the sweet remembrance of the Lord exists at the time, we will have a peaceful death as the Master s presence will be overhead. The only thing required to be done is the sweet remembrance of the Lord all the time. (Sant Kirpal Singh, Sant Bani Magazine, January 1984, 16) So why do the Saints always emphasize doing Simran? Why do They make us do Simran? They make us do the practice of Simran so that at the time of our death either we should be doing Simran or we may have the Form of the Master within us. If we are doing Simran, or if we are remembering the Form of the Master, we will go directly to Him. (Sant Ajaib Singh, The Ambrosial Hour, 253, 254) If you die in that sweet remembrance of the Master you are not to return to the world. (Sant Kirpal Singh, If you have been accustomed to one thought, a ruling passion in your life, then naturally that will be the last thought with you. Anything which has been ruling your mind will come up. (Sant Kirpal Singh, ruhanisatsangusa.org/lok/protection.htm) Wherever our desire is, we shall go there. That is why a person s thought should be on God at the time of death. (Sant Kirpal Singh, ruhanisantangusa.org/serpent.htm) To create the most positive possible imprint on the mind-stream before death is essential. The most effective practice of all to achieve this is a simple practice of Guru Yoga, where the dying person merges his or her mind with the wisdom mind of the Master, or Buddha, or any enlightened being. Even if you cannot visualize your Master at this moment, try at least to remember Him, think of Him in your heart, and die in a state of devotion. When your consciousness awakens again after death, this imprint of the Master s presence will awaken with you, and you will be liberated. If you die remembering the Master, then the possibilities of His or Her grace are limitless. (Sogyal Rinpoche)

98 -90- Your mind state at the time you draw your last breath is crucial, for upon this hinges the subsequent direction and embodiment of the life force. (Roshi Philip Kapleau) I do not ask Thee, Master, riches, good fortune, or salvation; I seek no happiness, no knowledge. This is my only prayer to Thee: that as the breath of my life forsakes me, I may chant Thy Holy Name. (Shankara) Those who remember me at the time of death will come to me. Do not doubt this. Whatever occupies the mind at the time of death determines the destination of the dying; always they will tend toward that state of being. Therefore, remember me at all times and fight on. With your heart and mind intent on me, you will surely come to me. (The Bhagavad Gita) Remembering me at the time of death, close down the doors of the senses and place the mind in the heart. Then, while absorbed in meditation, focus all energy upwards to the head. Repeating in this state the divine Name, you will go forth from the body and attain the supreme goal. (The Bhagavad Gita) Moreover, whatever state of being he remembers when he gives up the body at the end, he goes respectively to that state of being, Arjuna, transformed into that state of being. (The Bhagavad Gita)

99

100 -91- Sweet Remembrance Sant Kirpal Singh A person in whose heart love for the Master has been bestowed by God is really fortunate, because love for the Master is the method by which we come to love God. (santmat-thetruth.de/index.php?option=com_book&book=3886&page=111) So all these outward practices, reading of scriptures, are meant only for what? That the desire to see God, love for God should develop. What is the criteria of love of God? Whom you love, He is always in your heart. You never forget him. If you want to love God, then what should you do? You should remember Him every second of your life, never forget Him. When you love somebody, naturally constant remembrance of that person remains in your heart. You wish to have love for that person and naturally, if you have constant remembrance of him and keep him in your heart, that will result in love. (Morning Talks, ch. 6) As you keep His sweet remembrance, the world will gradually seep out and you will become saturated with the love of God. (Sat Sandesh, 12/81) You are requested to avoid all thoughts whatsoever all along your daily chores, and try to keep your mind enchained whether with the Simran of charged Names, or loving remembrance of the Master, or listening to the holy Sound Current as coming from the right side. This is the sublime solution for all the troubles caused by the mind. (Teachings of Kirpal Singh: Simran) When you are at work, be completely absorbed in it, and when there is no work, do not permit your mind to wander aimlessly or to remain idle, for an idle mind is the devil s workshop as the saying goes. You should resort either to the repetition of the five holy Names during all vacant hours of the day and night as well as keeping your mind in sweet remembrance of the Master wherever you may be, or in listening to the sweet symphonies of the melodious Word, if it becomes audible. This will leave no room for idle thoughts and they will not disturb you in meditation. (Spiritual Elixir, 250, 251) So Master is the very life of the initiate. Don t forget Him. Do nothing more, you ll become what He is. But we are always thinking of the worldly things. If your attention is always diverted to the Master - higher consciousness - you ll be charged with Him. Whatever is in Him, will be transferred to you without request. You ll become the mouthpiece of the Master. (ruhanisatsangusa.org/lok/dont-forget.htm) Sweet remembrance of the Master is the sum total of all practices. We do them only to show that He may not be forgotten in weal or woe. As you think, so you become. (ruhanisatsangusa.org/lok/dont-forget.htm) The more you direct your attention and absorb yourself in the sweet remembrance of the Master, you will develop receptivity and feel that Master is within you and you are in the Master. (The Teachings of Kirpal Singh, v. 3, 113) When the mind needs no other thing except the Master, He who is always within draws the veil aside and appears. So it is a question of developing an intense desire for Him. This desire is aroused by meditation and by sweetly remembering Him in one s heart to the exclusion of all other things. (Spiritual Elixir, 174)

101 -92- Devotion requires purity of heart. Purity of heart requires that no other thought should strike in your heart other than of the One whom you love. (ruhanisatsangusa.org/mt/devotion-diaries.htm) Have sweet remembrance of Him, of the Master or the God-in-Him all the time. You can be doing so many works and all the same be remembering somebody with whom you have love, can you not? (ruhanisatsangusa.org/lok/occupied.htm) So to be in constant sweet remembrance sprouts forth into love. Again, where there is love there is constant remembrance. You have to develop love in this way. (ruhanisatsangusa.org/lok/occupied.htm) So the main thing is to have love of God. The criterion of love for God is sweet remembrance of God. You never forget Him, even while eating, sleeping, coming or going. If that is developed, then naturally you will go to God. So delve deep down in your hearts and see how you stand. (Morning Talks, ch. 6) A devotee remembers his Guru at all times, with every breath of his life. He will never forget his Guru - who is the manifestation of God - and always remembers with his mind and with his body the sweet recollections of his Guru s actions. (Philosophy of the Masters, book 2, ch. 1) Of course, physical presence cannot be underrated. You get the radiation. When you enjoy that, then naturally you always carry the sweet remembrance when you think of Him. No more lectures are required. That's all, it's a very simple thing. There are no very strenuous penances that you have to undergo. Simply, sweet remembrance. What does it cost? (ruhanisatsangusa.org/lok/occupied.htm) To keep sweet remembrance, you have to develop love - have the sweet remembrance of Him all the time. When that develops then naturally you'll have Sweet Remembrance. This is one way. And when you have seen Him, His physical body at your own level, talking to you, have enjoyed His presence, then that effect carries sweet remembrance all the time. Naturally you see, there's no difficulty. (ruhanisatsangusa.org/lok/occupied.htm) To have sweet remembrance of God while you are in the world - when doing other duties, while your hands are working let your mind be in sweet remembrance of God. We have to develop that, you see, by sweet remembrance. Where there is love, there is constant remembrance. (ruhanisatsangusa.org/nothome.htm) Guru Arjan put a question: "If a disciple remembers his Master all the time, what does the Master do?" What does He do? He remembers the disciples: those disciples who remember Him react in Him. And in this way, they develop receptivity. (ruhanisatsangusa.org/stjohn.htm) How is real love developed? If you love somebody, you will naturally have sweet remembrance of him always in your heart. If you want to develop love, then just have sweet remembrance of God all the day and night. (ruhanisatsangusa.org/mt/truelove1.htm) Mind that, love is a gift from God to man. Love seeks union with the Beloved. First there is yearning, there is pining. You want to see Him, to be near Him. What is love? What is the result of love? When love is there, whatever, for whomever, you are always, constantly in sweet remembrance of Him. (

102 -93- The man-body is the Temple of God, in which God resides and we also reside. So constant remembrance, sweet remembrance, is bliss giving, specially in cases where man has a contact with Him. If you have seen Him and enjoyed His love, that love becomes embedded in your heart. ( If you sleep in remembrance of God, the very thought will be circulating in your blood stream; and when you awaken, you will arise in His sweet remembrance. They say that if one's early morning hours are wasted in sleep, one dies before living. ( As you think, so you become. If your mind constantly dwells on a chaste person, you will unconsciously attract and imbibe chastity. ( So Masters say, we should only love the one who never leaves us till the end of the world - who always looks after us. Of course we have to pay off certain debts. But one thing, if an operation is to be performed on the child, the mother takes him on her lap while the operation is performed. In that case the child knows that "I am in the lap of my mother." He feels less pain. If you are in constant sweet remembrance of the Master within you (He is the God-in-man) outer things won't pinch you. ( A disciple then said, "I just want to pray to you that I develop more love and faith in you." Master told him, "That love will sprout forth when you come in contact with Light and Sound Principle or sweet remembrance of the Master." ( As the needle of a compass, even though you shake it, always points to the north, so in worldly affairs, everything, you should always have the sweet remembrance of God. ( If you want to have love for somebody - remember Him sweetly. That will result in attachment of mind and outgoing faculties. (ruhanisatsangusa.org/lok/love.htm) It is necessary that we must first of all mold our life according to the instructions of the Master, and feel a genuine delight in thinking of Him. (ruhanisatsangusa.org/pray/pray_06.htm) Each repetition is a step towards the Beloved.

103 -94- Baba Sawan Singh If you really love a saint or mahatma, then - asleep or awake - you always think of Him. Where would you go after death? You go to the place of the person on whom your thoughts have been dwelling all along. Remember the Satguru so much so that at every breath a pang of separation from Him troubles the heart. This condition will only come when you drive away all other thoughts. The sleeping mind comes to its own by constant thought of the Master. (Guru Ram Das) Remembrance lowers the cup into His luminous sky-well. The mind often becomes plagued and can deny the all-pervading beauty of God when the Great Remembrance is forgotten Remembrance of our dear Friend lowers the soul s chalice into God. (Hafiz)

104 -95- Those years are the best of my life which are spent in remembrance of Thee. O Satguru, when I forget Thee those moments are like death. (Bhai Nandlal) Repeating the name of Ranjha I have become Ranjha myself. Ranjha is in me, I am in Ranjha. No other thought exists in my mind. I am not, He alone is. (Bulleh Shah) When the one thought of God saturates your mind, naturally all other desires will disappear from it. (Swami Ramdas) People do not know what the Name of God can do. Those who repeat it constantly alone know its power. It can purify our mind completely. The Name can take us to the summit of spiritual experience. (Swami Ramdas) I found completeness when each breath began to silently say the Name of my Lord. (Saint Teresa of Avila) Have only one fear, the fear of forgetting your Beloved, all other fears have no meaning and soon fall victim to death. (Kabir) God doesn't mind your imperfections: He minds your indifference. (Yogananda)

105

106 -96- Kabir Remembering the Name of the Lord All happiness rests in oft-repeated Simran; all sorrow and suffering is removed by Simran; practice this Simran and be one with the Lord, declares Kabir with utmost force and clarity. Whether a prince or a pauper, only he is great who ever remembers the holy Name of the Lord; but greatest among the great is that devoted one who does his Simran free of all desires. I tell you outright, all will go to hell who are attached to the body and the world. And only he will go to the Lord, declares Kabir, who does his Simran free of all desires. Every disciple does his Simran when in trouble; few do it in the days of their prosperity. But if they were to do it in their days of happiness, they never then would days of sorrow see, for the devotee by pleasure or pain is unaffected. How will the Lord respond to the call of a devotee who has forgotten Him in times of happiness and has remembered Him in days of grief alone? Watch carefully the village maidens carrying water vessels. They fill their vessels by the riverside, then place them on their heads one on the other, and walk back laughing and chatting to their homes. But the vessels always stay in perfect balance, because the maidens keep their attention ever on them. So let thy mind be ever fixed in Simran while carrying on the duties of thy day.

107 -97- Watch too the cow that grazes in the meadow. She wanders to and fro across the pastures, but ever is her mind fixed on her calf in the stable. Kabir says, in the same way do thy worldly work, but let thy mind be ever fixed in Simran while carrying on the duties of the day. Watch too the pauper, how his mind is fixed on money. Kabir says, he forgets it not for even a single moment. In the same manner let thy mind be fixed in Simran while carrying on the duties of thy day. Watch too the moth, how, fascinated by the light, it hurls itself against the lamp to meet with death. In the same manner fix thy mind in Simran, heedless of any kind of bodily suffering. Watch too the fish, how when removed from water it pants for breath and then gives up its life. Likewise, be restless if deprived of Simran, and rather prefer thy death to forgetting Simran. Keep ever thy mind engrossed in the Name of the Lord, as the lover s mind is ever engrossed in his beloved, he never forgets her, not for a single moment, but day and night he ever remembers her. In the same manner keep thy mind engrossed in the Name. In futile discussion is much poison; in much talk is great mischief. Keep your mouth shut; suffer all in silence; and remember the Name Unfathomable. (Kabir) Think of God more frequently than you breathe. (Epictetus)

108 -98- The Value of Every Breath Kabir I declare to the loud beat of the drum, That with every breath that passes Without remembering the Name of the Lord, You are losing the chance to conquer the three worlds, The chance to reach those spiritual heights. If you lose a single one of these invaluable breaths, Your loss is greater than the loss of fourteen spiritual worlds. Why do you throw away such precious breaths? What guarantee have you of life? Your body may be destroyed in a single moment. Therefore, with every breath remember the Name of the Lord, And discard every other thought. Even a short life is most valuable, If spent in remembering the True Name of the Lord. But useless is the life of a hundred thousand years, In which the Lord s True Name is quite forgotten. Remember, only that breath is truly valuable, Which is spent in remembering the True Name of the Lord; All other breaths you breathe Spent in some other schemes and plans are useless. Kabir, as long as there is life, Continue fearlessly repeating the One Lord s True Name. When the oil of life is exhausted, And the wick of the lamp extinguished, There then will be quite time enough to sleep both day and night. A Good Disciple A disciple s mind is always in his Master, As a cobra s is always in his diamond; He forgets not his Master for a single moment. That is the sign of a good disciple, says Kabir. A good disciple thinks of his Master As a rich man thinks of his riches. He sees no other thing and thinks of nothing else; So must a good disciple think at all times of his Master, says Kabir.

109 -99- Kabir on Zikr Kabir! The one purpose of us being in this world is to constantly remember our Beloved; I searched high and low and found no other purpose, all else is merely a source of worry. Even if you are carrying a load of sins the size of a mountain, contemplating on the Beloved is enough to destroy it like a spark of fire igniting a heap of dry grass. The Name of the Lord is the best medicine my Master ever gave me; once ingested it cured me of all ailments. The very essence of all religions is Zikr. He who has mastered it safely swims across this ocean of Maya. When your star is in the ascendant, pleasure drunk you forget your Beloved, when down in the dumps you remember; oh Kabir! He who worships his Beloved with such selfish motives, the Beloved pays no heed to such prayers. That s why I Kabir declare, sorrow is sweet, it makes us remember our Beloved; without His constant remembrance what use is all this world, wealth and well-being? The Name of the Lord is like a precious jewel - preserve and protect it with your very life. His Name alone is the safeguard against all difficulties. Whether awake or asleep, whether sitting or moving about, throughout all actions let His Name be your constant companion. Countless are the stars in the heavens; if that many are your foes, still by His Grace none can harm even a single hair of your person, so just keep remembering Him. I write Your Name on the palm of my hand; Fixing my eyes on that Name, I shed tears of blood. Yet I want nothing but to rivet my attention on You! No matter where my gaze alights, it is of You that I think! (Sharafuddin Maneri)

110 -100- Counting Beads Kabir Know thou this secret: Nothing at all is gained by counting over the polished beads of the rosary, while the mind still wanders out into the world. But if you turn the rosary of the mind, thy body will be full of light within. Even if an age-long time is spent in turning the rosary, the mind will never take a turn unto the Lord. O brother! Throw aside the rosary in your hand, and turn the rosary of your mind instead. The rosary of the mind, declares Kabir, is the only rosary that is worthwhile. The physical rosary is an empty show. If by turning the rosary you could meet the Lord, why does the Persian wheel, revolving day and night, remain without the Lord? In thy hand there turneth ever the beads of the rosary; In thy mouth there turneth the tongue; Thy mind turneth in ten directions; This, my dear friend, I say, Is no remembrance of the Name of the Lord. The seeker never forgets the Name of the one True Lord When sleeping he is meeting Him in dreams; And when awake the Lord is ever in his mind; He uses his eyes indeed, only in order to seek Him. (Kabir)

111 -101- Weaving Your Name Kabir I weave Your Name on the loom of my mind, To make my garment when You come to me. My loom has ten thousand threads To make my garment when You come to me. The sun and moon watch while I weave Your Name. These are the wages I get by day and night To deposit in the lotus bank of my heart. I weave Your Name on the loom of my mind To clean and soften ten thousand threads And to comb the twists and knots of my thoughts. No more shall I weave a garment of pain. For You have come to me, drawn by my weaving My ceaselessly weaving Your Name On the loom of my mind. Very narrow the lane through which one enters the path of divine love, And even more difficult for the Lord to make His abode in your heart; And yet, Kabir says all great ones achieved both Only through constant remembrance of the Beloved. (Kabir) And I will bring forth in shining light those who have loved my Holy Name and I will seat each on a throne of honor. (The Book of Noah)

112 -102- Singing Your Name Mirabai Singing Your Name day and night, It echoes in my mind all the time. O Lord, I am the dust of Your feet; how can I lift my voice in Your praise? Singing Your Name heals all wounds, and guards the mind against selfish thoughts. I am armed with the arrow of Your Name fixed on the bow-string of my heart; I wear the armor of Your glory as I sing Your Name continuously. My body is a musical instrument on which my mind plays songs of love. To awaken my soul from sleep, I sing the Lord s Name waiting for the door to open. Your Last Breath Mirabai Even with your last breath repeat the Name of the Lord, whose abode stands high like a date palm, loaded with luscious fruits. Do not depend on your own skill and strength to reach the top. Let the Holy Name be your ladder and your rope. Thus supported you can neither fall nor fail to reach the top. Make this house of flesh and blood a temple of the Lord. This is Mira s secret to share with you.

113 -103- The Power of the Holy Name Mirabai If you want to know the power of the holy Name, spend your time with lovers of God. To repeat the Name constantly may be hard and bitter at first, but don t stop until it becomes sweet like the luscious mango to the taste. When the time comes for the body to be shed, the Name will take you safely through death s door. So keep singing the Holy Name in your mind, and the Lord of Love will take you safely from this shore of death to immortality. Chant the Sweet Name of God Ramakrishna With beaming face chant the sweet Name of God till in your heart the nectar overflows. Drink of it ceaselessly and share it with all! If ever your heart runs dry, parched by the flames of worldly desire, chant the sweet Name of God, and heavenly love will moisten your arid soul. Be sure, O mind, you never forget to chant His Holy Name: when danger stares in your face, call on Him, your Father Compassionate; with His Name s thunder, snap the fetters of sin! Come, let us fulfill our hearts desires by drinking deep of Everlasting Joy, made one with Him in Love s pure ecstasy. How Great Is His Name! Swami Ramdas If you would have peace, seek it in His Name. If you want to see God, chant His holy Name. If you wish for freedom and joy, find it in His Name. If you aspire for life eternal, on your tongue have His Name. Name is your path, Name is your goal; Name is the means, Name is the end. Name is the Truth, Name is God.

114 -104- O Name, Stream Down in Moonlight Sri Chaitanya Chant the Name of the Lord and His glory unceasingly, That the mirror of the heart may be wiped clean And quenched that mighty forest fire, Worldly lust, raging furiously within. O Name, stream down in moonlight on the lotus heart, Opening its cup to knowledge of Thyself, O self, drown deep in the waves of His bliss, Chanting his Name continually, Bathing in His Name, that bath for weary souls. In each and every Name Thy power resides. No times are set, no rites are needful, For chanting of Thy Name, So vast is Thy mercy. Think on His Name Tukaram While you are busy at work, think on His Name: Then shall evil be vanquished, and grief shall be turned into peace: To this at the end you must come, When your last breath fails And home, children, wealth are forgotten: For long you can put Him off, You can live your life as you will, But at last your barge shall be sucked to the whirlpool: Break the snares from yourself now, Do now what you some day must do: At the end you have one defense, One only, Trust in His Name. By this alone you can find salvation, But by this alone: Then trust in Him now.

115 -105- Tulsi Das Say Ram, say Ram, say Ram, you fool! That Name is your raft on the awful sea of life. It is the only way of gaining true gain and wealth, for this sick age has swallowed ways that helped in ages past. Whether good or bad, right-handed or left, in the end the Name of Ram works for everyone. This world is a sky garden of flowers and fruits, towers that are only clouds you should never forget. Those who abandon Ram s Name for something else, Tulsi says, leave the table set at home to beg for filthy scraps. The Name of King Ram: think of it with love. It is provisions for those who journey empty-handed, and a friend for those who travel alone. It is blessedness for the unblessed, good character for those with none, a patron to purchase goods from the poor, and a benefactor to the abandoned. It is good family for those without one, they say and the scriptures agree it is, to the crippled, hands and feet, and to the blind it is sight. It is parents to those who are destitute, solid ground to the ungrounded, a bridge that spans the sea of existence and the cause of the essence of joy. Ram s Name has no equal rescuer of the fallen: the thought of it makes fertile earth from Tulsi s barren soil. A blind, mean-minded, dull-witted, withered-up old man on the road got knocked down by a son of a pig. As he fell, fear filled his heart. Oh God, O God! Unclean, unclean! An unclean thing has killed me, he moaned and groaned as he fell into the jaws of death. Tulsi says, his sorrows vanished and he went straightaway to the land of the lord of all worlds. As everyone knows, it is because of the power of the Name. That very Name of God is what people say with love. So how can they say the holy Name s magnificence places it where it s impossible to go? Place the name of Rama as a jeweled lamp at the door of your lips and there will be light, as you will, both inside and out.

116 -106- Namdev Whose sin remains intact the moment he utters Ram s name? Sinners become holy the moment they cry out Ram. By embracing Ram the slave Namdev believed, why now should I fast every month and go on pilgrimages? Namdev says, good are my deeds, pure my heart. By following the Guru s path, by uttering Ram, who has not gone to heaven? The Guru made my life fruitful; I forgot suffering and gained peace. The Guru put wisdom s kohl in my eyes: Without Ram s name life and heart are empty. Namdev perceived Him through meditation, and now my soul has blended with His soul. By saying Hari, Hari, all doubts vanish. Repeating Hari s name is the highest religion. By saying Hari, Hari caste and lineage vanish. Hari is the blind man s staff. I praise Hari, I bow before Him. By saying Hari, Hari Yama s pain vanishes. O my brother, I would cut my tongue into a hundred pieces, if it did not say Lord Gobind. With Hari s name I have stained my tongue. How beautiful is that stain of Hari, Hari. Other words are useless on my tongue. The name of the one Hari is salvation. Were I to worship a hundred million others, I would not come close to adoring Hari's name.

117 -107- Ravidas A high house and a beautiful woman. Without Ram s name, you ve lost the game. Ravidas forever repeats Ram s name. I have nothing to do with Yama. Ravidas says, Death has looted the whole world. I alone escaped by saying Ram. My thoughts are only about You. My eyes see only You. My ears hear only Your enchanting praise. Make my soul a bumble bee and place Your feet in my heart. Let my tongue forever repeat Ram s ambrosial name. O Ocean of Bliss, You possess the five heavenly trees, the wish-fulfilling gem, and the cow that grants all wishes. In your hand are the four goals of life, the eighteen powers, and the nine treasures. Repeat Hari, Hari, Hari with your tongue, And forsake all other worthless efforts. All those countless stories and accounts told in the Puranas and the Vedas are merely a play of the alphabet. Vyasa, after meditating, spoke the truth There is nothing higher than the name of Ram. The fortunate few who find His love abide forever in the eternal realm. Say Ravidas, those who have His light in their hearts chase away forever the fear of dying and being reborn.

118 -108- Your name is my aarti, O my beloved Murari. Without Hari s name all is vanity. Your name is my prayer mat, Your name is my grater, Your name the saffron that I take and sprinkle before You. Your name is holy water, Your name is sandalwood, and I grate Your name by repeating it, which I then offer to You. Your name is the lamp, Your name the wick, Your name is the oil that I pour into the lamp. Your name is the fire that lights the lamp, and the light from this lamp glows and illumines all the three worlds. Your name is the string, Your name the garland of flowers, for all other flowers and plants are unclean and impure for You. What can I offer You, for You are the Creator of all that exists. It is Your name that I wave over You Only Your true name can be a fit offering to You. (Ravidas) Only Ram s name can entice the heart. Repeat this always: His name is ambrosia, it is the true reality. Remember His name and suffering shall vanish. Remember His name and birth, old age, death shall not touch you. (Jayadeva) True lovers are those who love with all their hearts. Those who think of another, speak of another, are called false lovers. Those stepped in the color of God s love abide in His care. Those who forget His name are a burden upon earth. (Baba Farid) Frightening are the faces of those who have forgotten His name. Here on earth, they suffer black sorrow, and up ahead they have neither house nor home. (Guru Arjan)

119 -109- Stories Divert Your Attention Bulleh Shah was a Saint of India. When he came to his Master, who was working in a garden at that time, putting some plants here, some there, Bulleh Shah asked Him how God could be met. "Oh it is very easy," replied Bulleh Shah's Master, "it is just like taking one plant from here and putting it over there." So you are to divert your attention from the world to God, that's all. God is already within you, He is not living in the Heavens. He is the very Power that is controlling you in the body. (Sant Kirpal Singh:ruhanisatsangusa.org/mt/truelove1.htm) Rescued by the Five Charged Words In 1985, while visiting India, I went to downtown Delhi and was stopped on the street by an Indian man who wanted to sell me something. After trying to get past him a couple of times, I gave up and listened to what he was trying to say. He was trying to sell me a talisman of some kind, which he assured me would give me great protection. At that moment I thought of Master Darshan Singh Ji, because I thought this person would do me physical harm, and I did not want Master to be blamed or get a black mark because I got hurt while visiting Him. I prayed to the Master for guidance, feeling I needed His protection. I then told the man, "I have a spiritual Master and I do not need a talisman." In fact, I also told him that I was in India to visit Sant Darshan Singh Ji Maharaj. Still, he insisted that I buy his talisman, which he claimed was very powerful! "I see you have big American dollars in your pocket," he said. Just as I was thinking that I had brought the $100 that my mother had given me to buy her a gift in India, in that instant he said that I had that amount, which led me to believe he was omniscient. That really scared me and with that my heart welled up, and I prayed inwardly: "Oh Master!" I started to repeat the 5 charged words given to us at initiation that Master Kirpal said would protect us from the Negative Power in this world and in the beyond. Immediately Master took me out of the body, and I found myself looking down at my body from about 15 feet up in the air. The man was aware and looked up at me when Master took me up above the body. I could see a dome of light that pushed him back to a safe 10 foot distance away from me, and I was up at the top of the dome with my body standing underneath me.

120 -110- The man was visibly very upset that Master had given me His protection. This was a complete shock to have the Simran of the five charged words work in this way, however, I felt extreme gratitude that the Master Power had come to my rescue! And I became aware at the same time of the great love that the Master has for His disciples. The man was unable to enter the field of light, which gave me total protection. He ran towards me twice and from above I could see that he bounced off or could not penetrate this powerful field of light. Very angry he shrugged his shoulders and walked away. When he was half a block away I stopped doing the Simran and Master gently brought me back into my body. The man looked back over his shoulder several times, and when he saw that the light had disappeared, he became very angry. He turned around and ran towards me. Terrified, I started the Simran or repetition of the 5 charged words again, and was taken instantly above the body. Looking down I was aware of the strong circle of white light completely surrounding my physical body and extending up about 15 feet and out about 10 feet. It was a force field of light, which the man could not enter. He was stopped, and became very frustrated. He gave up, turned around and this time he ran away. I stopped the Simran and was again very gently brought into my body. I checked my wallet and the Indian man could read my mind, however, he was not omniscient, as he had told me how much money I thought I had in my wallet, not how much I actually had. Master had often said that we have to suffer through our pralabdh karma's even though these may be sped up (gone through quicker), slowed down in duration or toned down in intensity by the grace of the Master. I can only assume that this incident came as kriyaman karma or in the "free will" zone and not in the "fate" zone. And I am extremely grateful to the Master that the Simran which at times seems mere words with no power, became at this time magical and more powerful than anything I had ever before experienced in this life. I developed great respect for the Masters and Simran from this incident. (Initiate of Sant Kirpal Singh) Bahlul s Love for God Bahlul had a reputation for being madly in love with God. We think that we all love God. But Bahlul s kind of love was different indeed, far different. He conversed with his beloved day and night. It is as if he was in love with the most astonishingly beautiful woman in the universe, and she has stolen his heart and soul totally. He carries her with himself everywhere, talking to her all his waking and even sleeping moments. One day Bahlul s love for God got so out of hand that he left his home, quit his job, and started wandering only God knows with what purpose. Since that time, he has become so totally lost in love that he has abandoned all thought of anything but God, ignoring his own appearance and well-being. The man has no time for himself, and that s why his clothes are so ragged and his hair and beard have grown so long. Any moment that is not spent paying attention to the Beloved, Bahlul has said, is a moment wasted. (Attar)

121 -111- The Mantra as Best Friend Over the years, the mantra has been one of my best friends on the spiritual journey and has helped me through many difficulties, bringing me back time and time again to the stillness at the core of my being. The mantra is there to cool us out when we get angry at someone, to help us stay centered when we get impatient. The night that my twin brother was taken in for major surgery, it helped me rest in the assurance that, no matter what happened, everything would be fine. The real work of sadhana is to deal with the restlessness of the mind, and for this the mantra is an excellent tool. I went through a period many years ago when my mind seemed to be constantly in motion. One day when the mental chatter had reached an intolerable level, I said to myself, I can t stand this anymore. I have to do something about it. I began saying the mantra like I had never said it before with fervor, with passion. It was as if all the cells in my being were repeating my mantra. I was determined not to stop until something had changed inside. It wasn t very long before I began to have the same internal sensation that I have on an airplane that is beginning to lift off the ground: I felt I was soaring in some new inner space. At first it was rough and choppy. It was as if the plane was going through dense clouds and turbulence. But I didn t give in to the thoughts; I used the mantra as a weapon, repeating it faster and faster. And then, suddenly, I broke through. I was soaring through the inner sky, not a cloud in sight. I saw a dazzling, brilliant sun. I felt boundless, as if my being included the whole universe. I was totally at peace. The awareness flooded through me: This stillness is who I really am. (Swami Siddhananda) The Mantra Washed Away Unhappiness I was going through an extremely bad period. I ve always had a lot of guilt, and somehow my bad feelings about myself had mounted until I could hardly bear to live with my own mind. Finally I realized that I had to do something. I decided that I would begin to repeat the mantra, and that I would repeat the mantra continuously whenever a thought arose. Sometimes the negative thoughts would squeeze themselves around the mantra. Sometimes the mantra would just dissolve them. But as the days went on, I began to notice that not only were the thoughts becoming fewer, but that I was starting to feel really good. It felt as if the mantra had just washed away the unhappiness from my mind. (Swami Durgananda)

122 -112- The Calming Effect of Mantra on Others Once during my hospital training years I was called to a ward late at night to attend to something routine. At the time I received the call, I was meditating and experiencing great stillness inside. I decided to make an effort to stay with this experience while I went up to the ward. I kept repeating the mantra silently inside. In this ward was an old man named Jim who was dying from respiratory failure. I had gotten to know him very well since he had been on the ward for several weeks. As I walked down the ward past his room, an unusual thing happened. I suddenly found myself veering off course and entering his room, still experiencing meditation and still repeating the mantra silently. He was sitting as usual in his darkened room, reclining in his chair, wheezing heavily with every breath. For some reason I felt no need to say anything to him at all. I just sat with him for about ten minutes, repeating my mantra silently to myself, and then just as abruptly was on my way again. The next morning when I arrived on the ward the head nurse cornered me and said, Have you seen Jim? He s a new man today. He s no longer afraid of dying. He says you had a long chat with him about death and dying last night. What did you say to him? I was amazed by this. It made me aware that the power of meditation and the power of the mantra not only affects our own state, but also the people and the circumstances that surround us. (Dr. Ferguson) Oh Ram Once the disciple has recognized his Guru, he can understand only his Guru s teachings and none other. Hanuman (Lord Rama s greatest devotee) was once asked what day it was, and he replied, Oh Ram. On being asked what month it was, he said, Oh Ram. He was so immersed in the sweet remembrance of his Beloved that he could think of nothing else. Wherever he looked, he saw Ram, and every person he spoke to was Ram. It is really worth having a Guru if you are receptive like this. (Sant Kirpal Singh, ruhanisatsangusa.org/tghp.htm) Engrossed in Remembering Him Sahl said to one of his disciples: Try to say continuously for one day: Allāh! Allāh! Allāh! and do the same the next day and the day after, until it becomes a habit. Then he told him to repeat it at night also, until it became so familiar that the disciple repeated it even during his sleep. Then Sahl said, Do not consciously repeat the Name any more, but let your whole faculties be engrossed in remembering Him! The disciple did this until he became absorbed in the thought of God. One day, a piece of wood fell on his head. The drops of blood that dripped to the ground bore the legend, Allāh! Allāh! Allāh!

123 -113- Bheek is My God There is one event in the life of one Saint whose name was Bheek. Bheek was the name of the Master. His initiate used to remember him; he forgot God, he simply remembered, Oh Bheek, Oh Bheek, Oh Bheek. That was his constant remembrance, repetition of the Master's name. During the Mohammedan reign, it was a heinous crime to say that Bheek is God. They considered somebody else as God. (Social rules were strict.) Somebody asked him, Well, who is your God? Bheek, Bheek is my God. Who is your prophet? Bheek is my prophet. That was a heinous crime at that time, so he was sentenced to death. The orders were passed and sent out to the King for further sentence. The King sent for him and saw that his eyes appeared to be intoxicated. Well, the King asked, Who is your God? My God is Bheek. Who is your prophet? My prophet is Bheek. Release him. Why, he will run away. Don't fear, he has some intoxication in him. Then the King requested, Well, look here, Bheek, your Master, is very good. As there has been no rain in the country for so long, will you kindly pray to your Bheek to give us rain? All right, I'll ask him. When will you return? Sometime during the day after tomorrow. So he went away. The next day it rained torrents, cats and dogs; and on the third day, he came up. Well, very many thanks to your Bheek who has sent us rain. Then, what did the King do? He just ordered the revenue of 21 villages to be taken to his Master so that he may have it for use of those coming to him. Oh, I won't take these amenities to my Master. He never invited it. He doesn't care for any worldly things. Then he went back and his Master said to him, When you were just in unison with me and I was in unison with God, what you wanted was given to you. Why do you do it? For the sake of the world over, his Master replied. Sweet remembrance of the Master is the sum total of all practices. We do them only to show that He may not be forgotten in weal or woe. As you think, so you become. (Sant Kirpal Singh, ruhanisatsangusa.org/lok/dont-forget.htm)

124 -114- Hari Bol It is spoken of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, a great Saint who lived in the Bengal, that He used to just utter the name of God. (Every Master has his own Name for God. There are so many Names of God; and we are concerned with this. But they utter the Names; and because they are one with the Nameless, any words they utter are charged with intoxication.) He went to a place where many washermen together were washing clothes. He used to repeat the Name of God in the words, "Hari bole" - "Say God's Name." A man speaks out of the abundance of his heart. As his heart, I mean his soul, was intoxicated, those very words were charged with that intoxication. And he stood by one of the washermen and said to him, "Hari bole!" "Say God's Name!" The washerman thought that perhaps he was a mendicant and wanted money. So he kept quiet; he would not utter the words. He said, "I won't utter the name you say." And Chaitanya Mahaprabhu told him, "You will have to, you must." And the washerman thought, "Now he won't leave me alone; let me utter the name and finish it off, so that he will go away." As soon as he uttered the words (the very words were charged), he got intoxicated and stopped working and began to utter loudly, "Hari bole, Hari bole, Hari bole!" When he began to do that, the other washermen asked, "What has become of our fellow brother? What is he doing?" They came to him and asked, "What is the matter?" He said, "Hari bole!" And whoever uttered those words also became intoxicated. So it happened that all the washermen in the entire place began to leave their work and dance in ecstasy. This is what we do not get from books, mind that. This is what you can have from the presence of a Master who is God-intoxicated. Of course, he will not give you an overdose. He will give you only as much as your receptacle can receive. First he will make the vessel fit for it, and then put it in. (Sant Kirpal Singh, ruhanisatsangusa.org/dyedin.htm)

125 -115- I Was the Magnet A devotee was praying when Satan appeared to him and said: How long will you cry O Allah? Be quiet for you will get no answer. The devotee hung his head in silence. After a while he had a vision of the prophet Khidr, who said to him, Ah, why did you cease to call on God? Because the answer, Here I Am, came not, he replied. Khidr said, God has ordered me to go to you and say this: Was it not I that summoned you to my service? Did I not make you busy with my name? Your calling Allah! was my Here I am, your yearning pain my messenger to you. Of all those tears and cries and supplications I was the magnet, and I gave them wings. (Rumi) Your love, from before the beginning of time, is my soul it s my very self. Your love is the treasure of my weak, begging heart. Perhaps your beauty has been far from me But the vision of your face has stayed with me always. (Sultan Walad) The Name s priceless ruby I received as my reward for all my good deeds. With great cunning and craft I hid this ruby within my heart, but it would not stay hidden. Hari s virtues cannot be described: like sweets to a mute man. Joyous is my tongue repeating His Name; Joyous my ears hearing His praise; Joyous my mind contemplating Him. Says Bhikhan, both my eyes are joyous: Wherever I look, He is there. (Sheikh Bhikhan)

126 -116- Master s Challenge One Saint says, If you can pass three days and nights in sweet, constant remembrance of God, you go to His feet. Three days--can we? It's not much. Let no other thought other than God strike your mind. Why not start with one day? Start from today. All right, from now on till tomorrow evening, no thought--constant remembrance, even when you eat, don't forget Him. Try one day. That will give you good training. We don't care for the trifling things, but that is where the substantial thing comes from. One day is not much. You have been here how many days? So many days. And if you had passed even one day and night in constant remembrance, you would have changed very much. (Sant Kirpal Singh, ruhanisatsangusa.org/lok/complaint.htm) So, the Gurumukh's life is lived in constant remembrance. The new life starts from initiation, and then he lives on remembrance, remembrance, remembrance, which increases that new life it begins to surge within. As a person thinks, so does he become. (Sant Kirpal Singh,ruhanisatsangusa.org/joyfully.htm) So your attention should be just like a compass. The needle of your attention should always be directed to the North, to the Master. (Sant Kirpal Singh, ruhanisatsangusa.org/farewell2.htm) Retirement frees the attention to engage in more Simran.

127 -117- Summary of Simran Sant Kirpal Singh 1. Remembrance of God is the main thing before us to find the way to Him. 2. All types of Simran purify the heart to a certain extent and result in some happiness and the feeling of longing for the Lord. 3. But complete concentration of the soul and the opening of the inner gate to enable one to listen to the Anahad Shabd will not be possible by any other means than that of Simran taught by the Saints. 4. Saints reveal to us the names of the presiding deities of the regions within. Therefore, the names that a Master imparts are the only ones to be repeated. 5. The Names that are revealed to us by a true Master carry His power, and this comes to the aid of the disciple, enabling him to transcend both death and the Negative Power. The words of the Master are eternal, and through them we are freed from the cycle of births and deaths. Therefore, whatever Names are bestowed upon us by a Master are conducive to our greatest good. 6. Each Name carries its own influence. 7. In the early stages considerable effort has to be made to carry out Simran, but as practice is gained Simran goes on automatically. 8. You are requested to avoid all thoughts whatsoever all along your daily chores, and try to keep your mind enchained whether with the Simran of charged Names, or loving remembrance of the Master, or listening to the holy Sound Current as coming from the right side. This is the sublime solution for all the troubles caused by the mind. 9. Simran should not be done in haste. It should be done slowly and with love and devotion, the Names being repeated clearly and correctly. 10. The results of repetition will be in direct proportion to the love and faith brought to bear upon it. 11. Simran done with faith produces a unique feeling in the heart. By doing Simran a feeling of bliss and divine influence fills the heart. This state is produced sooner or later, according to the individual devotee s sanskaras (predominating nature, the result of past karmic impressions). 12. The sign of complete Simran is that the soul will start gradually leaving the body. After crossing stars, moon and sun, it will reach the luminous form of the Satguru. To reach this point is the job of Simran. Before that, consider that the course of Simran is not yet accomplished. (Baba Sawan Singh)

128 -118- Beware of the Thieves of Simran! All material attractions are dangerous and prove a stumbling block on the path Godward. Appearances are deceptive because they keep our attention diverted in a wrong direction. Truly speaking, we were to unite our soul with God but, alas! are getting lost in the mundane things. These worldly charms may be compared to broad daylight dacoits that keep us far removed from reality. (Sant Kirpal Singh, ruhanisatsangusa.org/thinkofdeath.htm) The more the Lord and Master dwells within the mind, the more the Gurmukh drinks in the Ambrosial Nectar. (Guru Granth Sahib) Kirpalct@yahoo.com For more booklets go to: kirpalsingh.org (Spiritual Quotations for Lovers of God)

A Short Course in Guru Bhakti Excerpts from Param Sant Kirpal Singh

A Short Course in Guru Bhakti Excerpts from Param Sant Kirpal Singh A Short Course in Guru Bhakti Excerpts from Param Sant Kirpal Singh That Lord which even the great Brahma and the gods could not find, though they became exhausted in the search; that Lord is found by

More information

A Little Simran. Sant Kirpal Singh Ji Maharaj

A Little Simran. Sant Kirpal Singh Ji Maharaj A Little Simran Sant Kirpal Singh Ji Maharaj And I will bring forth in shining Light those who have loved my holy Name and I will seat each on a Throne of Honor! (The Book of Noah) -1- The Simran of the

More information

Sant Kirpal Singh. Philosophy of the Masters: Book 2, Chapter 3: Love. From: (Excerpts) Sant Kirpal Singh with His Master Hazur Baba Sawan Singh

Sant Kirpal Singh. Philosophy of the Masters: Book 2, Chapter 3: Love. From: (Excerpts) Sant Kirpal Singh with His Master Hazur Baba Sawan Singh Sant Kirpal Singh From: Philosophy of the Masters: Book 2, Chapter 3: Love (Excerpts) Sant Kirpal Singh with His Master Hazur Baba Sawan Singh -1- A person in whose heart love for the Master has been bestowed

More information

Make a Habit of Meditating

Make a Habit of Meditating Make a Habit of Meditating Sant Ajaib Singh Ji a meditation talk given in March 1986 Make the mind quiet as only a quiet mind can meditate, do not understand meditation as a burden, do it lovingly. While

More information

Sukhmani - The Secret of Inner Peace. Spiritual Dialogues Project P.O. Box 656, Ridgefield, WA

Sukhmani - The Secret of Inner Peace. Spiritual Dialogues Project P.O. Box 656, Ridgefield, WA Sukhmani - The Secret of Inner Peace Spiritual Dialogues Project P.O. Box 656, Ridgefield, WA 98642 www.spiritualdialogues.com Copyright 2014 by Doug Marman (PDF) Sample Chapter All rights reserved. No

More information

How to Balance Spiritual Living & Outer Life

How to Balance Spiritual Living & Outer Life Science of Spirituality Satsang How to Balance Spiritual Living & Outer Life This satsang explores ways in which we can pursue our spiritual goals while fulfilling our daily responsibilities. Welcome Every

More information

Surat Shabd Yoga. the yoga of the Sound Current

Surat Shabd Yoga. the yoga of the Sound Current Surat Shabd Yoga the yoga of the Sound Current Surat Shabd Yoga is a practical meditation technique to enable the mystical experience of seeing the Inner Light and listening to the Shabd soul music. This

More information

The Omnipresence of God Practicing the Presence of God Practicing the Presence of the Master. God s absence is an illusion. (Abraham Joshua Heschel)

The Omnipresence of God Practicing the Presence of God Practicing the Presence of the Master. God s absence is an illusion. (Abraham Joshua Heschel) The Omnipresence of God Practicing the Presence of God Practicing the Presence of the Master God s absence is an illusion. (Abraham Joshua Heschel) -1- So the first principle of devotion or bhakti is to

More information

God Hears the Cry From the Heart

God Hears the Cry From the Heart God Hears the Cry From the Heart This talk was given by Master Kirpal Singh at the Cowan Heights Ranch in Tustin, California on the afternoon of December 12, 1963, just after arriving there. 1963 Tour,

More information

The Condition and Qualities of a True Lover of God

The Condition and Qualities of a True Lover of God Science of Spirituality Satsang The Condition and Qualities of a True Lover of God This satsang explores the qualities that we need to develop to know ourselves and to know God. Welcome Every satsang should

More information

Saint Theophan the Recluse on the Jesus Prayer

Saint Theophan the Recluse on the Jesus Prayer Saint Theophan the Recluse on the Jesus Prayer The hands at work, the mind and heart with God You have read about the Jesus Prayer, have you not? And you know what it is from practical experience. Only

More information

C H A P T E R XXV: HOW SHALL ATTAIN THE LORD, OH MASTER?

C H A P T E R XXV: HOW SHALL ATTAIN THE LORD, OH MASTER? C H A P T E R XXV: HOW SHALL ATTAIN THE LORD, OH MASTER? (A translation into English by Prof. JANAK RAJ Puri of 'Rag Gauri Purbi by GURU ARJUN DEV, from Granth Sahib.) How shall I attain the Lord, Oh Master?

More information

Prayers from the Heart

Prayers from the Heart Prayers from the Heart Dedicated to Sant Kirpal Singh Ji O Master, God of gods, and Lord Supreme, grant me the gift of true and real devotion, I seek for nothing else, except Thy service all the day and

More information

The Razor s Edge: The Difficulty of God-Realization. Hazur Baba Sawan Singh Ji (The Great Master)

The Razor s Edge: The Difficulty of God-Realization. Hazur Baba Sawan Singh Ji (The Great Master) The Razor s Edge: The Difficulty of God-Realization Hazur Baba Sawan Singh Ji (The Great Master) 1858 1948 Don t be amazed at those murdered in the dust at the Friend s door. Be amazed at how anyone can

More information

A Dozen Gems by Sant Kirpal Singh Ji

A Dozen Gems by Sant Kirpal Singh Ji -1- A Dozen Gems by Sant Kirpal Singh Ji Thankfulness Every day and every hour convey thanks to the Master the God in Him, Who has put you on the Way and for all other gifts you enjoy. In this way you

More information

FROM SATSANGS OF GURUDEV SHRI OJASWI SHARMA KIRTAN AND MANTRA

FROM SATSANGS OF GURUDEV SHRI OJASWI SHARMA KIRTAN AND MANTRA KIRTAN AND MANTRA The theory is that you become what you think. What is japa? You go on chanting and remembering Christ, Krishna or Ram so that someday the qualities which were in them become yours. This

More information

London, England. March 2015 Day 3, Afternoon

London, England. March 2015 Day 3, Afternoon London, England March 2015 Day 3, Afternoon Welcome, friends to this final session of our three-days program here in London. I am very happy that I spent these days with you and shared my experiences and

More information

The Noble Eightfold Path

The Noble Eightfold Path The Noble Eightfold Path A Few Relevant Quotes By Maharaj Sant Kirpal Singh, 1894-1974 The Noble Eightfold Path is the fourth of the Buddha's Four Noble Truths, and asserts the Path to the cessation of

More information

The Sat-Guru. by Dr.T.N.Krishnaswami

The Sat-Guru. by Dr.T.N.Krishnaswami The Sat-Guru by Dr.T.N.Krishnaswami (Source The Mountain Path, 1965, No. 3) From darkness lead me to light, says the Upanishad. The Guru is one who is competent to do this; and such a one was Bhagavan

More information

What is a Holy Place?

What is a Holy Place? What is a Holy Place? Sant Ajaib Singh Ji two meditation talks from Bombay, January 1991 It is the morning, the ambrosial hour, and we have just awakened, and our soul has just newly entered the body.

More information

Ramana Bhaskara Speech delivered in Chinchinada, dated

Ramana Bhaskara Speech delivered in Chinchinada, dated Ramana Bhaskara Speech delivered in Chinchinada, dated 4-3-2000. 1 God s Love for the devotees is much more than the devotee s Love for God. You like God to a certain extent and presume that you possess

More information

PROCEEDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE 7 TH WORLD CONFERENCE

PROCEEDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE 7 TH WORLD CONFERENCE PROCEEDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE 7 TH WORLD CONFERENCE The 7th World Conference of Sri Sathya Sai Organizations was held at Prasanthi Nilayam, November 19-24, 2000, in the Divine Presence. 18,000

More information

The Purpose of Human Life

The Purpose of Human Life The Purpose of Human Life This is the English version of one of Master Kirpal Singh s Satsang talks at Sawan Ashram, Delhi, India. This was originally published in the March 1968 issue of Sat Sandesh.

More information

With Free Will You Can Seek To Go Home

With Free Will You Can Seek To Go Home With Free Will You Can Seek To Go Home Friends, I am very happy to be here in Toronto and to meet all of you. The reason why I am here is because I want to meet all the seekers, my fellow travelers, co

More information

Why Chant the Hanuman Chalisa?

Why Chant the Hanuman Chalisa? Why Chant the Hanuman Chalisa? In 1996, I visited Maharaj-ji's temple at Kainchi. At the time, one of his very old great devotees, Shri Kehar Singh, was also staying there. I spent many hours talking and

More information

Ramana Bhaskara Speech delivered in Palakollu, dated

Ramana Bhaskara Speech delivered in Palakollu, dated Ramana Bhaskara Speech delivered in Palakollu, dated 23-11-03. 1 In order to get released from ignorance, the Lord has prescribed several paths like Karma, Bhakti, Dhyana and Jnana in the Gita. Treading

More information

Om Shree Sumangalayai namah

Om Shree Sumangalayai namah AUGUST 28 Through the ever new transformations of a life dedicated to the supreme quest one must strive to become firmly established in one s true self (Swarup). Om Shree Sumangalayai namah AUGUST 29 God

More information

Devotional Chanting. an excerpt from the. Self-Realization Fellowship Center and Meditation Group Manual

Devotional Chanting. an excerpt from the. Self-Realization Fellowship Center and Meditation Group Manual Devotional Chanting an excerpt from the Self-Realization Fellowship Center and Meditation Group Manual CHANTING Paramahansaji once said: Chanting is half the battle. Chanting awakens a devotional zeal

More information

Sounds of Love. Bhakti Yoga

Sounds of Love. Bhakti Yoga Sounds of Love Bhakti Yoga I am going to today talk to you today about Bhakti yoga, the traditional yoga of love and devotion as practiced in the east for thousands of years. In the ancient epic of Mahabharata,

More information

Love and Intoxication

Love and Intoxication Love and Intoxication A talk given by the Master Kirpal Singh on January 26, 1964 in Washington D.C. Editor s Note: This tape began while the talk is in progress. Master is telling a story about Guru Nanak,

More information

SELF EXPERIENCE V. V. BRAHMAM. Excerpts from talks given in Satsang in Tiruvannamalai, in February of Edited by Kristin Davis.

SELF EXPERIENCE V. V. BRAHMAM. Excerpts from talks given in Satsang in Tiruvannamalai, in February of Edited by Kristin Davis. SELF EXPERIENCE By V. V. BRAHMAM Excerpts from talks given in Satsang in Tiruvannamalai, in February of 2004. Edited by Kristin Davis. Emptiness Heart open. Heart open means without covering of mind...

More information

Sadhana words from YB

Sadhana words from YB Sadhana words from YB What is sadhana? It is a process which you do every day to grow, to be. There is a fight in this lifetime: to be or not to be. Nobody can destroy you....you destroy yourself by not

More information

Ramana Bhaskara. Speech delivered in Shringavriksham, dated

Ramana Bhaskara. Speech delivered in Shringavriksham, dated Ramana Bhaskara Speech delivered in Shringavriksham, dated 26-9-98. 62 God has neither name nor form. But He assumes a form and comes onto the earth not to experience the destiny but to give us a message.

More information

Om namo bhagavate vasudevaya [...] satyam param dhimahi

Om namo bhagavate vasudevaya [...] satyam param dhimahi By connecting with the Supreme Truth, expressed in Om Satyam Param Dhimahi, all challenges melt away. When the Truth begins to be born in us, we will begin to feel freedom from all limitations, known and

More information

How to Impress Your Subconscious Mind with Positive Statements to Mold Your Future

How to Impress Your Subconscious Mind with Positive Statements to Mold Your Future EDUCATIONAL INSIGHT How to Impress Your Subconscious Mind with Positive Statements to Mold Your Future from the teachiings of satguru sivaya subramuniyaswami he power of affirmation changes and remolds

More information

2016 Meditation and Mindfulness Course Handbook

2016 Meditation and Mindfulness Course Handbook 2016 Meditation and Mindfulness Course Handbook Where Should I Meditate? How Often Should I Meditate? Why Journaling & Keeping a Calendar Can be Beneficial Glossary of Terms Used in this Course When a

More information

The Thirty-Seven Practices of Bodhisattvas By Ngülchu Thogme Zangpo

The Thirty-Seven Practices of Bodhisattvas By Ngülchu Thogme Zangpo The Thirty-Seven Practices of Bodhisattvas By Ngülchu Thogme Zangpo Homage to Lokeshvaraya! At all times I prostrate with respectful three doors to the supreme guru and the Protector Chenrezig who, though

More information

LEKH 112 SIMRAN- part 3

LEKH 112 SIMRAN- part 3 LEKH 112 SIMRAN- part 3 In gurbani special emphasis has been placed on Amrit Vela (3am-6am) and the noisy and confusing vibrations of materialism in the worldly atmosphere are less. During amrit vela nature's

More information

The Light Of Ajaib. Questions and Answers from Sant Bani Magazine

The Light Of Ajaib. Questions and Answers from Sant Bani Magazine The Light Of Ajaib Questions and Answers from Sant Bani Magazine Volume 6: 2001 2005 2 The Light of Ajaib Volume 6 The Light of Ajaib Volume 6 3 Volume 6: Table Of Contents 2001... 5 2001 February: Connect

More information

Sri Swami Muktananda ji

Sri Swami Muktananda ji Sri Swami Muktananda ji Satsangs in Rishikesh from January to March 2005 Notes by Gonçalo Correia Preface In 2004 I had the opportunity of going 5 months and alone to India for intense Yoga Sadhana. I

More information

Sitting in the Silence

Sitting in the Silence Sitting in the Silence Dr. M. W. Lewis San Diego, 8-14-55 Subject this morning, "Sitting in the Silence... on the sunny banks of my mind, with the Krishna or Christ Consciousness by my side. When the thoughts

More information

PONDER ON THIS. PURPOSE and DANGERS of GUIDANCE. Who and what is leading us?

PONDER ON THIS. PURPOSE and DANGERS of GUIDANCE. Who and what is leading us? PONDER ON THIS PURPOSE and DANGERS of GUIDANCE Who and what is leading us? A rippling water surface reflects nothing but broken images. If students have not yet mastered their worldly passions, and they

More information

Meditation enables you to withdraw

Meditation enables you to withdraw Meditation enables you to withdraw your mind and thoughts from the noisy and restless external world and focus within on the peaceful, blissful world of the intellectual frame, on Truth, on Light, on God,

More information

Path of Devotion or Delusion?

Path of Devotion or Delusion? Path of Devotion or Delusion? Love without knowledge is demonic. Conscious faith is freedom. Emotional faith is slavery. Mechanical faith is foolishness. Gurdjieff The path of devotion was originally designed

More information

VEDANTIC MEDITATION. North Asian International Research Journal of Social Science & Humanities. ISSN: Vol. 3, Issue-7 July-2017 TAPAS GHOSH

VEDANTIC MEDITATION. North Asian International Research Journal of Social Science & Humanities. ISSN: Vol. 3, Issue-7 July-2017 TAPAS GHOSH IRJIF I.F. : 3.015 North Asian International Research Journal of Social Science & Humanities ISSN: 2454-9827 Vol. 3, Issue-7 July-2017 VEDANTIC MEDITATION TAPAS GHOSH Dhyana, the Sanskrit term for meditation

More information

EXPOSITION OF PRINCIPAL GURMAT DEVICE (JUGTI) OF

EXPOSITION OF PRINCIPAL GURMAT DEVICE (JUGTI) OF EXPOSITION OF PRINCIPAL GURMAT DEVICE (JUGTI) OF LISTENING AND FUSION OF CONSCIOUSNESS WITH SOUND AND IMAGE OF GURMANTER (UNION OF SURAT WITH DHUN AND GURMANTER) Definition of listening Through the grace

More information

Ramana Bhaskara Speech delivered in 1995

Ramana Bhaskara Speech delivered in 1995 Ramana Bhaskara Speech delivered in 1995 1 Though the birthplace of the mind is not in your experience, the mind is within your experience. Isn t it so? The birth place of mind is within you. Unless the

More information

LovingKindness Practices

LovingKindness Practices LovingKindness Practices Love Yourself Mayumi Oda Here are some examples of the phrases different teachers use: May I be happy. May I live in safety. May I be healthy. May I live with ease. May I be filled

More information

Sounds of Love. Intuition and Reason

Sounds of Love. Intuition and Reason Sounds of Love Intuition and Reason Let me talk to you today about intuition and awareness. These two terms are being used so extensively by people around the world. I think it would be a good idea to

More information

Meditation. By Shamar Rinpoche, Los Angeles On October 4, 2002

Meditation. By Shamar Rinpoche, Los Angeles On October 4, 2002 Meditation By Shamar Rinpoche, Los Angeles On October 4, 2002 file://localhost/2002 http/::www.dhagpo.org:en:index.php:multimedia:teachings:195-meditation There are two levels of benefit experienced by

More information

Have You Heard Me? electricity? Parkhotel, Stuttgart Germany, 1972

Have You Heard Me? electricity? Parkhotel, Stuttgart Germany, 1972 Have You Heard Me? Question: [German man, written question] Since I don t speak English would it be better if I stayed in my room and meditated instead of coming down for darshan? The Master: If you sit

More information

The remembrance of every thing should merge into the remembrance of one

The remembrance of every thing should merge into the remembrance of one The remembrance of every thing should merge into the remembrance of one Sri. M Radhakrishna Murthy 1. The remembrance of every thing should merge into the remembrance of one- the Ultimate, resounding all

More information

Next is the explanation of how one practices the Generation stage and the completion of HYT.

Next is the explanation of how one practices the Generation stage and the completion of HYT. Tantric Grounds and Paths Khenrinpoche - Part 2 22 Oct 2010 ** For Highest Yoga Tantra Initiates Only One should set up a proper motivation that one must achieve the precious supreme state of enlightenment

More information

THE SPIRITUAL PATH. Compiled from Letters of Swami Yatiswarananda. Contents

THE SPIRITUAL PATH. Compiled from Letters of Swami Yatiswarananda. Contents THE SPIRITUAL PATH Compiled from Letters of Swami Yatiswarananda Contents 1. Preparing the Instrument...5 2. The Right Approach...5 3. Inner and Outer Guru...6 4. Divine Principle...6 5. Qualified Non-Dualism...7

More information

Sounds of Love Series. Path of the Masters

Sounds of Love Series. Path of the Masters Sounds of Love Series Path of the Masters https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2cwi74vvvzy The path of the Masters, when we talk of this subject, we are referring to the spiritual Masters of the East, Who have

More information

LEADERS WITH HUMANITY. A PRACTICAL GUIDE FOR THE WELL BEING OF HUMAN RIGHTS AND ENVIRONMENTAL ADVOCATES By ADO in collaboration with Daniel King

LEADERS WITH HUMANITY. A PRACTICAL GUIDE FOR THE WELL BEING OF HUMAN RIGHTS AND ENVIRONMENTAL ADVOCATES By ADO in collaboration with Daniel King LEADERS WITH HUMANITY A PRACTICAL GUIDE FOR THE WELL BEING OF HUMAN RIGHTS AND ENVIRONMENTAL ADVOCATES By ADO in collaboration with Daniel King 1 In dedication to all the courageous beings that offer their

More information

PEOPLE think there are many troubles,

PEOPLE think there are many troubles, 237 21 Love Is God; Live In Love Embodiments of Love! PEOPLE think there are many troubles, difficulties and sorrows in this world whereby they are filled with anxiety and worries. But in fact there is

More information

Teachings from the Third Dzogchen Rinpoche:

Teachings from the Third Dzogchen Rinpoche: Teachings from the Third Dzogchen Rinpoche: Pith Instructions in Dzogchen Trekchod SEARCHING FOR THE MIND Concerning these unique instructions, we have now arrived at the threefold mental preliminary practice.

More information

Ramana Bhaskara Speech delivered in Bhimavaram, dated

Ramana Bhaskara Speech delivered in Bhimavaram, dated Ramana Bhaskara Speech delivered in Bhimavaram, dated 5-2-06. 1 If you study the subject (words of God or Guru or scriptures), understand it and put it into practice, it will then come into your experience.

More information

The Harvest Is Waiting

The Harvest Is Waiting The Harvest Is Waiting Dr. M.W. Lewis San Diego, 1-11-59 The subject this morning, The Harvest Is Waiting, The Harvest Is Waiting. As we, in this outward existence, search here and there, following false

More information

Have Grace on Your Own Self

Have Grace on Your Own Self Have Grace on Your Own Self This talk was given by Master Kirpal Singh, after giving initiation at Santa Barbara, California, the morning of December 2, 1963. We are all here for the same cause of the

More information

150 SPIRITUAL ELIXIR

150 SPIRITUAL ELIXIR 150 SPIRITUAL ELIXIR And you can hear His Voice when your inner ear is opened. The ABC of the Master's teachings start when you rise above the body-consciousness. No one can rise above the body-consciousness

More information

HIS FRAGRANCE 108 Sayings of Dadaji

HIS FRAGRANCE 108 Sayings of Dadaji HIS FRAGRANCE 108 Sayings of Dadaji (out-of-print) 1 st Edition printed in USA - 1977 copyright by Center for Truth Rt 1 Box 314 La Center WA 98629 USA 2 nd Edition 2006 for online distribution by permission

More information

Bani Magazine. Sant. The voice of the Saints. December 1997, Volume 22, Number 6

Bani Magazine. Sant. The voice of the Saints. December 1997, Volume 22, Number 6 Sant '. Bani Magazine The voice of the Saints December 1997, Volume 22, Number 6 Sant Bani Magazine The Voice of the Saints December 1997 - Volume 22, Number 6 I Don't Go Alone,] on This Path I Sant Ajaib

More information

Practice Assignments for God is Breath Class 5

Practice Assignments for God is Breath Class 5 Beloved Ones of God, Practice Assignments for God is Breath Class 5 Bismillah ar-rahman ar-rahim. Peace and Blessings of the all-compassionate One be with you on the path of your life. As I reflect on

More information

Ramana Bhaskara Speech delivered in Visakhapatnam, dated

Ramana Bhaskara Speech delivered in Visakhapatnam, dated Ramana Bhaskara Speech delivered in Visakhapatnam, dated 3-12-02. 1 One has to do the work whole-heartedly, steadily and without any pomp and show. There is no need of comparing with others. When you compare

More information

m - Use the Time You Have Now

m - Use the Time You Have Now m - Use the Time You Have Now front cover, Theresa Crawford; p. 2, Gurmel Singh; pp. 7, 8, 13, 21, Jonas Gerard; p. 16, Neil wolf; p. 24, Pat Brown; back cover, Bobbe Baker. PHOTOCREDITS SANT BANI volume

More information

An analysis of the life of Shirdi Sai Baba would indicate that the advices rendered by Him and the examples set by

An analysis of the life of Shirdi Sai Baba would indicate that the advices rendered by Him and the examples set by An analysis of the life of Shirdi Sai Baba would indicate that the advices rendered by Him and the examples set by him can be considered to be the easiest path to spiritual evolution in the present world,

More information

The New Hermetics. Level 2 - The Zealot

The New Hermetics. Level 2 - The Zealot The New Hermetics Level 2 - The Zealot Welcome to the Zealot level of the New Hermetics. Now that you have gotten this far you are really doing well! This level is about understanding and managing your

More information

JOHNNIE COLEMON THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY. Title KEYS TO THE KINGDOM

JOHNNIE COLEMON THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY. Title KEYS TO THE KINGDOM INTRODUCTION AND OVERVIEW 1. Why are we here? a. Galatians 4:4 states: But when the fullness of time had come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, in order to redeem those who were under

More information

YOGA VASISTHA IN POEM

YOGA VASISTHA IN POEM YOGA VASISTHA IN POEM CHAPTER V 4. The Story of Punya and Pavana BACKGROUND Once lived a holy man with his family Wife and two very dutiful sons Punya, the first son reached enlightenment Pavana the second

More information

A unique flavor of love is the Guru-disciple relationship. If there is no love then there is neither Guru nor disciple. No one can come in between a

A unique flavor of love is the Guru-disciple relationship. If there is no love then there is neither Guru nor disciple. No one can come in between a Devotion A unique flavor of love is the Guru-disciple relationship. If there is no love then there is neither Guru nor disciple. No one can come in between a Guru and a disciple, nor is there any space

More information

Chapter 1 TRUE MYSTICISM

Chapter 1 TRUE MYSTICISM Chapter 1 TRUE MYSTICISM 9 Nearly every seeker after Truth stands baffled at its gates and asks the question: "What is the Truth and where can I find it?" Most races and nations have their own Sacred Scriptures,

More information

How to Behave When Struck by Illness

How to Behave When Struck by Illness How to Behave When Struck by Illness ية اتلرصف عند املرض ] إ ل ي - English [ www.islamreligion.com website موقع دين الا سلام 2013-1434 Before talking about how a believer behaves when ill or injured it

More information

Jesusʼ Invocation for Victory over Death

Jesusʼ Invocation for Victory over Death Jesusʼ Invocation for Victory over Death In the name of the unconditional love of the Father, the Son, the Holy Spirit and the Mother of Light, Amen. In the name of the I AM THAT I AM, Jesus Christ, I

More information

How to Calm the Storm of Restlessness Dr. M. W. Lewis San Diego, "How to Calm the Storm of Restlessness.

How to Calm the Storm of Restlessness Dr. M. W. Lewis San Diego, How to Calm the Storm of Restlessness. How to Calm the Storm of Restlessness Dr. M. W. Lewis San Diego, 10-31-54 "How to Calm the Storm of Restlessness. I believe our Master, Paramhansa Yogananda, has given the best definition of restlessness

More information

METTA (LOVINGKINDNESS) MEDITATION: BASIC INSTRUCTIONS

METTA (LOVINGKINDNESS) MEDITATION: BASIC INSTRUCTIONS METTA (LOVINGKINDNESS) MEDITATION: BASIC INSTRUCTIONS Metta is a Pali word that means good will, lovingkindness, and friendliness. Metta meditation is very helpful in checking the unwholesome tendency

More information

The Good news is that now we can get all the benefits sitting at home, absolutely free of cost.

The Good news is that now we can get all the benefits sitting at home, absolutely free of cost. Here is a new innovative discovery of spiritual science in which we don't have to spend money neither to waste our time in months and years to learn yoga and meditation. The Good news is that now we can

More information

The Parabhakti of Gopikas. Compiled from the speeches of Sadguru Sri Nannagaru

The Parabhakti of Gopikas. Compiled from the speeches of Sadguru Sri Nannagaru The Parabhakti of Gopikas Compiled from the speeches of Sadguru Sri Nannagaru 1 Normally we consider Knowledge as Supreme. However when we get the taste of devotion, even Knowledge seems to be insipid

More information

Kriya Yoga and the Future of the World

Kriya Yoga and the Future of the World Kriya Yoga and the Future of the World Dr. M. W. Lewis San Diego, 2-27-55 The subject this morning: Kriya Yoga and the Future of the World. Let us discuss first and say a few words about Kriya Yoga. According

More information

Love, Concentration and Self-Surrender: The Psychology of Mysticism (Circular 17)

Love, Concentration and Self-Surrender: The Psychology of Mysticism (Circular 17) Love, Concentration and Self-Surrender: The Psychology of Mysticism (Circular 17) This extraordinary circular letter, first issued in August 1961, is Master's clearest explanation of the psychology of

More information

A Four-Week Course in Passage Meditation & An Eight-Week Study Cycle

A Four-Week Course in Passage Meditation & An Eight-Week Study Cycle A Four-Week Course in Passage Meditation & An Eight-Week Study Cycle 2010 by The Blue Mountain Center of Meditation Post Office Box 256, Tomales, California 94971 Telephone 707 878 2369 or 800 475 2369

More information

Attaining Inner Peace

Attaining Inner Peace Attaining Inner Peace Dr. M.W. Lewis San Diego, 2-7-60 Our subject this morning: "Attaining Inner Peace;" Attaining Inner Peace. I remember when Master first came here, years ago; he brought with him a

More information

THE RISING STARS OF THE 20 TH CENTURY

THE RISING STARS OF THE 20 TH CENTURY THE RISING STARS OF THE 20 TH CENTURY SWAMI KRISHNANANDA The Divine Life Society Sivananda Ashram, Rishikesh, India Website: www.swami-krishnananda.org Human nature, in its present state of achievement,

More information

This is an extract of teachings given by Shamar Rinpoche. This section

This is an extract of teachings given by Shamar Rinpoche. This section Mastering the mind This is an extract of teachings given by Shamar Rinpoche. This section of the teaching was preceded by Rinpoche's explanation of the reasons for practice (why we meditate) and the required

More information

READ: The Living Flame of Love (St. John of the Cross, Complete Works) Read the prologue and poem, then the section on Stanza no. 1.

READ: The Living Flame of Love (St. John of the Cross, Complete Works) Read the prologue and poem, then the section on Stanza no. 1. THE LIVING FLAME OF LOVE Lesson 1 READ: The Living Flame of Love (St. John of the Cross, Complete Works) Read the prologue and poem, then the section on Stanza no. 1. Also, each day before your half -hour

More information

that is the divinity lying within. He had doubts. He asked all the notable people of Kolkata, Sir! Have you seen God? Do you think all the notable

that is the divinity lying within. He had doubts. He asked all the notable people of Kolkata, Sir! Have you seen God? Do you think all the notable Swami Girishananda (Revered Swami Girishananda is the manager, trustee and treasurer of Sri Ramakrishna Math and Mission, Belur Math. As a part of the 40th year celebrations of Vidyapith, Swamis Girishananda

More information

Life as a Pilgrimage

Life as a Pilgrimage Life as a Pilgrimage Pilgrimage As I am planning another pilgrimage to India I was thinking of all of life as a pilgrimage, a journey of discovery, challenge, of overcoming obstacles and then reaching

More information

Ramana Bhaskara Speech delivered in Keshavaram, dated

Ramana Bhaskara Speech delivered in Keshavaram, dated Ramana Bhaskara Speech delivered in Keshavaram, dated 8-2-01. 1 None will attain Self Knowledge when the body dies. No spiritual practices are needed for the body s death. It will die on its own on some

More information

Notes from the Teachings on Mahamudra, by Lama Lodu, January 26 th, 2008

Notes from the Teachings on Mahamudra, by Lama Lodu, January 26 th, 2008 1 Notes from the Teachings on Mahamudra, by Lama Lodu, January 26 th, 2008 The lineage blessings are always there, very fresh. Through this we can get something from these teachings. From the three poisons

More information

Jac O Keeffe Quotes. Something underneath is taking care of all, is taking care of what you really are.

Jac O Keeffe Quotes. Something underneath is taking care of all, is taking care of what you really are. Jac O Keeffe Quotes Personality is a useful tool but it cannot define who you are. Who you are lies far beyond who you think you are. You don't have to be perfect, you don't have to have good health, you

More information

PROBLEMS. Comfort. Sensitivity

PROBLEMS. Comfort. Sensitivity PROBLEMS Comfort At present man is like a seed. He is not fully aware, he is not consciousness. But many people think that: I am consciousness, I am soul and I am god. This is the most dangerous and poisonous

More information

Satsang with Sri Swami Viditatmananda Saraswati

Satsang with Sri Swami Viditatmananda Saraswati Satsang with Sri Swami Viditatmananda Saraswati PRATAÙ SMARAËAM 1 of 5 Introduction The meditator and the object of meditation are different from each other in one type of meditation Prätaù is dawn and

More information

The mantra of transcendent wisdom is said in this way: OM GATE GATE PARAGATE PARASAMGATE BODHI SVAHA

The mantra of transcendent wisdom is said in this way: OM GATE GATE PARAGATE PARASAMGATE BODHI SVAHA HEART SUTRA Thus have I heard: Once the Blessed One was dwelling in Rajagriha at Vulture Peak Mountain with a great gathering of monks, nuns and Bodhisattvas. At that time the Blessed One entered the samadhi

More information

The Voice of the Saints October 1983

The Voice of the Saints October 1983 The Voice of the Saints October 1983 The Essence of God volume eight numbe FROM THE MASTERS Humility, Meekness and Love July 11, 1980 The Essence of God November 28, 1982 OTHER FEATURES Prophets Without

More information

Sufi Order International Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Guidance

Sufi Order International Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Guidance Page 1 Guidance Note: These quotations have been selected from the works of Hazrat, the founder of the Sufi Order International. Guidance 1 1 The Sufi says this whole universe was made in order that God

More information

WHY PEOPLE SUFFER IF THEY DO NOT HAVE THE PROPER GARMENT TO WEAR

WHY PEOPLE SUFFER IF THEY DO NOT HAVE THE PROPER GARMENT TO WEAR WHY PEOPLE SUFFER IF THEY DO NOT HAVE THE PROPER GARMENT TO WEAR You will come to realize that your Spirit is not contain in your body and your Soul is your divine God-Self, and it is your creator and

More information

Change Your Life as You Would Like

Change Your Life as You Would Like Change Your Life as You Would Like Dr. M.W. Lewis Hollywood, 12-19-54 The subject this morning, "Change Your Life as You Would Like. I think we might just change that subject a little bit to read this,

More information

^P W OVERCOMING CORRESPONDENCE SCHOOL LESSONS. A course of study designed for the purpose of training the mind in hahits of spiritual thought.

^P W OVERCOMING CORRESPONDENCE SCHOOL LESSONS. A course of study designed for the purpose of training the mind in hahits of spiritual thought. CORRESPONDENCE SCHOOL LESSONS ^P W A course of study designed for the purpose of training the mind in hahits of spiritual thought. 1 OVERCOMING Series 1 Lesson 5 UNITY SCHOOL OF CHRISTIANITY 917 Tracy

More information

The Meaning of Prostrations - by Lama Gendun Rinpoche

The Meaning of Prostrations - by Lama Gendun Rinpoche The Meaning of Prostrations - by Lama Gendun Rinpoche Why do we do Prostrations? 1.The Purification of Pride - First of all, we should know why we do prostrations. We do not do them to endear ourselves

More information