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#1465 - Wednesday, June 18, 2003 - Editor: Joyce (Know_Mystery)

Sri Ramana Maharshi quoted by Robert O'Hearn ~ AdyashantiSatsang

Along with this "unknowingness" there is also the internal, ever-present supreme knowledge which saints and sages have described as the hallmark of enlightenment. Jesus said, "The Father and I are one." The Sufi martyr, Mansur al-Hallaj, shouted before his execution, "ana'l-Haqq" (I am the Truth). Sarmad, the Jewish-Indian saint, exclaimed, "I am King of Kings." And Meister Eckhart, in slightly different language wrote, "The eye with which God sees me is the same eye which I perceive Him."

These quotations illustrate that mysticism is concerned with spiritual knowledge: the relationship of the soul with God, and not with any secondary psychic abilities which may arise as a result of intense spiritual discipline.

However, this kind of knowledge cannot be equated with logical, objective learning. The former is the realization of one's eternal nature, a transcendental experience of oneness. The latter is concerned with dualistic thinking, knowing about things--that which is based upon an illusory division of the world into two separate components: the subject and the object. Thus, when saints talk about the ultimate knowledge, they are referring to the Ground of Being, that which is the condition for all subsequent conditions.

"From all such experience I have come to this conclusion that Who am I?--I am a bubble of supermost consciousness. That is what my realization is. This is what I have gained. Now what I feel is that there is One, Infinite, Supermost Element. From it, when it moves, sound and light come out and from that light and sound this creation takes place. Cosmic rays and many other types of rays come out of this light and sound and all this gross matter is made. So it is the Will of that Supreme Power. Everything is oozing out of it and is merging back in it. There is egoism in us and it moves us to do this or to do that.

There are four kinds of egoisms in us: 1. Egoism of Physical Form;2. Egoism of Mental Form; 3. Egoism of Light Form; and, 4. Egoism of Sound Form. I ask myself, what have I attained? Silence in the beginning and silence in the end. Whatever is happening, it is all His Will. Every philosopher or saint who came and made inward search for realization wrote his experience. But their followers in order to gain fame and name and to collect wealth kept this a secret from the general public. Though to keep the secret was necessary in those days, it is not required now. Today humanity has been divided into different sects and religions. Every day there are communal conflicts in the world. Hindus and Muslims are fighting and Arabs and Jews are fighting. Therefore, after realizing the secret, I raised the slogan of Be Man. Why? My spiritual Father had told me, "Before leaving your physical frame change the teachings." So I have changed the teachings. No one on this earth, he may be Christ, he may be Radhaswami, he may be Kabir or he may be anybody--none has the right to say that he has understood the Reality in all respects. That power is bigger, bigger, bigger, bigger and bigger. Our senses cannot reach there. This is what I have understood. So I pass my life helping others, serving the poor and teaching the truth.. To the general public I preach the art of living a happy life."

~ Sri Ramana Maharshi ~ 

"Talks With Sri Ramana Maharshi"

  Sri Ramana Maharshi quoted by Mazie Lane ~ HarshaSatsangh

"Solitude is in the mind of man. One might
be in the thick of the world and maintain
serenity of mind. Such a one is in solitude.
Another may stay in a forest, but still be unable
to control his mind. Such a man cannot be said to
be in solitude. Solitude is a function of the mind.
A man attached to desires cannot get solitude
wherever he may be, whereas a detached man is
always in solitude."

~ Sri Ramana Maharshi ~   

Jan Sultan ~ AdvaitaToZen

It takes all kinds to make the "what is"

"It takes all kinds to make the world." All types of characters are part of the "what is". And acceptance of "what is" includes the acceptance of all types of weird characters [including me and you].

If you have ever criticized anyone, then know that that was a rejection of "what is". Almost every sage, one time or another, has said that acceptance of "what is" is wisdom [or words to that effect]. Your attempt to change anyone is the same as not accepting "what is".

When you criticize [or advise] someone, you are bringing in your "me" filter. For without your "me" [ego] filter everything is already perfect. It is your ego which differentiates and judges.

Of course, on these lists, there is no need to communicate if the egos are not in the forefront. Every interaction is the ego's game. However, it would make things easier if at the back of our minds we remembered the reality of non-duality.

Vicki Woodyard ~ NDS

Nerds in the Garden

There are nerds in the garden
Among the dew
A pocket protector...
Does it belong to you?

There are thoughts in the garden
Among the loose dirt
Was it you who thought
"I like this plaid shirt?"

There are nebbishes hidden among
the soft flowers
Some of us write drivel for hours and hours

There are nerds in the garden
Treading on the sweet grasses
Fingering tape on their thick plastic glasses.

  Ramana quoted by Robert O'Hearn ~ AdvaitaToZen
  

Disputes

"Of what use are disputes about the world,
saying that it is real,
that it is an illusory appearance,
that it is conscious,
that it is insentient,
that it is happy,
that it is miserable ?

All men alike love the Egoless State,
which is won by turning
away from the world and
knowing the untainted real Self which
transcends the assertions that
It is one and that
It is manifold.

It is due to illusion born of ignorance
that men fail to recognize that which is
always and for everybody
the inherent Reality
dwelling in its natural heart-centre and
to abide in it, and that instead
they argue that it exists or
does not exist, that
it has form or
has not form, or
is non-dual or
is dual.

Can anything appear
apart from that which is
eternal and perfect?

This kind of dispute is endless.
Do not engage in it.

Instead turn your mind inward and
put an end to all this.

There is no finality in disputation."

~ Ramana ~

Zen Oleary ~ Spiritual-Friends

No Repeats  

Mornings arrive in my life,
or my life arrives in morning,
like waves surging in from the sea,
here it is again but yet not,
for it is never really a repeat,  

only if not present, not mindful,
does it wear the same clothes
and then only in my own vision,
the eternal present that was yesterday
has shed her garments,
slightly bruised and color faded,
and slipped into the new clothes of today,  

"nothing happened" we may think to ourselves,
cocooned as we are in our own little worlds,
opening the envelopes of our private memory,  

yet how many times did your heart beat,
how many small creatures gasped
their first newborn breaths,
these wiggling surges of life in
feather, fur, scales and skin,  

did you hear the songs of lovers
floating above the hum of machinery
in the hot fume filled city air,  

did you hear the echoes of whale songs
on damp sand beaches, feel the
curling kelp winding between your toes,  

did you answer the cries and tears
of a child, lost and hungry,
huddled on a stairwell,  

did you feel the joy of the young owl,
flushing his wings on a branch, hesitant,
then taking his first solo glide
to the neighboring tree,  

did you see the faces of refugees
from the endless wars being fought,
hungry, bone tired, aching from
days of walking, bruised from falls,
shrapnel or worse,  

did you feel the earth turn
or the pulse of the sun, hear
the humming winds of space as
galaxies dance forever outward,  

we need to break the egg of
our private mind bubbles,
splinter the shell and,
like a hesitant chick,
all downy feathered and yolk damp,
struggle to open our eyes,  

to see this mystery we breathe
and are part of,
that beats through our hearts and
breathes through our lungs,
wobble a bit to our feet,
then totter off into the
waiting and ecstatic morning.

Photo: Untitled, by Al Larus

Ram Chandran ~ Advaitin 

I used to wonder why the elders repeat the story of Ramayana to the again and again. The reason is quite obvious. The leading character, Rama embodies True Human Nature and Rama has shown that how "TRUTH" and "Dharma" can always be maintained even when one faces adverse situation. Rama actually did not express unpleasantness or anger even at the worst circmstances. There are number of incidents in Ramayana Rama demonstrated eqanimity by keeping his emotion under control. Repetition of Ramayana and stories with high moral values can remind us our true nature and correct our actions.

Let me take this opportunity to repeat a story that contains a powerful message for controlling anger. Many times during discussions, we fail to control our temper and express our anger through inappropriate words in frustrations. After sometime, our inner voice forces us to apologize and feel sorry for our hasty action. The story below points out that every _expression of inappropriate words on others injects permanent scars that will never disappear. Let us read the story one more time so that the moral of  this story remains permanent in our memory!

An angry person scars everyone and injects permanent scars! This story is from an unknown source: There was a little boy with a bad temper. His father gave him a bag of nails and told him that every time he lost his temper, to hammer a nail in the back fence. The first day the boy had driven 37 nails into the fence. Then it gradually dwindled down. The boy discovered it was easier to hold his temper than to drive those nails into the fence. Finally the day came when the boy didn't lose his temper at all. He told his father about it and the father suggested that the boy now pull out one nail for each day that he was able to hold his temper. The days passed and the young boy was finally able to tell his father that all the nails were gone. The father took his son by the hand and led him to the fence. He said, "You have done well, my son, but look at the holes in the fence. The fence will never be the same. When you say things in anger, they leave a scar just like this one. It won't matter how many times you say I'm sorry, the wound is still there.

Warmest regards,

Ram Chandran 

Hilary Collins ~ TrueVision

Please Don't Pickle Beauty's Tickle

Beauty's told in give and take
pieces freeze framed from the dance between
balance beam's embrace of shadow and the light.
We share what moves inside
as Beauty tickles us, we get the urge
to move Her in and send Her out.

Interpretation's placed on canvas
we give it up with all we've got,
while picking up and putting down
reflective strokes which rise to mind
we give it out as best as we can.

These images seem to dry rock solid,
and although they take our breath, that's true
we're wise to remember that these
reflections are not who Beauty is.

Watch how wise we humans are
when we believe that She stands still.
When permanence and rigidity is what
we do agree to mistake Her for,
we'll defend this belief
die dramatically and violently,
for the solid rock,
which we believe Beauty to be.

So why you might ask,
does Beauty send us the tickle then?
And what about our urge to share
and to gather pieces of Her dance?
And what if not... claiming, organizing, arranging
and defending the hard copies which we make of Her
would we humans even dream of doing?

Is there something in our instinctual knowing,
we're forgetting to listen to?
Are these pickled treasures that we hang and hold
really key pieces of one big puzzle that's unfolding?
Are they here to enable us one day....
in the future....say...
to get it all together into one giant epiphany?

Please let's reassess, let's undress,
let's stop and listen to Beauty as She speaks,
She's always singing everywhere,
telling us in simple terms, who She is.
While we're at it, let's look deeper
at what it means for us and Beauty
to hold onto a chant that says of life,
today sure stinks...but if we grin and bear it,
"later will be better".....

There now, come and fall into Her,
feel as She stirs you up with me
"Yup", I hear you exclaim,
"Hey, so that's what the tickle is for!"
In Her song is where the cosmic child giggle lives,
it's the song She's tickling us to remember all along.

Right there in Her mix
you see, you've gone..nowhere all along,
and your giggle burp erupts,
Beauty spills out of you
in the rushing lava flow
of human laugh and diamond tears.
The laugh is when we recognize
that Her mix is what and where we've always been,
and the cry is our embrace of each and every form,
we thought was other than ourselves.
All of us are Beauty's mingle dancing mix
and knowing She's our fluid nature,
makes it simple to reply to Her tickle
and to be as a child, relaxing into being liquid
and delighted painting Beauty pictures.

 Anonymous ~ NDS

Hi Jerry,

Wanted to communicate something to the guy who posted asking for a teacher... perhaps you could just send the below to him if you wish, rather than the other stuff I posted -- request to send it as an anonymous response, if possible.

-------------------------

From here, a helpful 'pointer' (as helpful as pointers get anyway), was the Buddhist statement "Samsara is Nirvana." Supposedly uttered joyously by a Buddhist monk (I forgot who), upon wakening.

This statement looked very puzzling -- Samsara is Nirvana? What does it mean, Samsara is Nirvana? How could Samsara be Nirvana? At some point, it dawned that the statement means exactly what it
says -- Samsara is Nirvana.

The implications are 'staggering'. If Samsara is Nirvana, then was I attempting to get to Nirvana? If so, it was really an attempt to escape Nirvana.

What the hell was I doing? If Samsara is Nirvana, then I am in Nirvana, I am Nirvana. The other shore is this shore -- as it is. There is nowhere to go, nothing to escape from and no reason to try
getting from here to there -- there's nowhere else and nothing else.

Peace to you...

---

Sri Ramana Maharshi quoted by Mazie Lane ~ AdyashantiSatsangh

"All other knowledges are only petty and trivial
knowledges; the experience of silence alone is
the real and perfect knowledge. Know that the
many objective differences are not real but are
mere superimpositions on Self, which is the form
of true knowledge."

~ Sri Ramana Maharshi ~

---

Panhala ~ Joe Riley

The Apple Orchard  

Come let us watch the sun go down
and walk in twilight through the orchard's green.
Does it not seem as if we had for long
collected, saved and harbored within us
old memories? To find releases and seek
new hopes, remembering half-forgotten joys,
mingled with darkness coming from within,
as we randomly voice our thoughts aloud
wandering beneath these harvest-laden trees
reminiscent of Durer woodcuts, branches
which, bent under the fully ripened fruit,
wait patiently, trying to outlast, to
serve another season's hundred days of toil,
straining, uncomplaining, by not breaking
but succeeding, even though the burden
should at times seem almost past endurance.
Not to falter! Not to be found wanting!  

Thus must it be, when willingly you strive
throughout a long and uncomplaining life,
committed to one goal: to give yourself!
And silently to grow and to bear fruit.      

~ Rainer Maria Rilke ~  

(Translated by Albert Ernest Flemming)

 

---

Lisbeth ~ SufiMystic

Minerva - Goddess of Wisdom

365 Tao Opportunity
A green bird darting in the night.
will you be able to see it?
Will you be able to catch it? Cling to Tao like a shadow.
Move without a shadow.  
Times of oppression and adversity cannot last forever. How is the transition made to new and better situations? In the midst of great difficulty, a tiny opportunity will open, if only by chance. You must be sharp enough to discern it, quick enough to catch it, and determined enough to do something with it. If you let it pass, you may be filled with regrets.   Stick to Tao like a shadow. Wherever it goes, you go. As soon as it throws something your way, catch it by sheer reflex. It is like the bird: If you try to catch it, you will miss. If you are always with it, moving at its speed, as much a part of it as its own shadow, then it is easy to seize it.   When you act, however, you in turn must have no shadow. In other words, what you do must leave no messiness, no leftover consequences, nothing that will haunt you later. That is one of the ways in which you avoid creating more bad situations for yourself: Your every movement is traceless.

---

Sri Ramana Maharshi quoted by Mazie Lane ~ HarshaSatsangh

"Liberation is our very nature. We are that.
The very fact that we wish for liberation
shows that freedom from all bondage is our
real nature. It is not to be freshly acquired.
All that is necessary is to get rid of the false
notion that we are bound. When we achieve
that, there will be no desire or thought of any
sort. So long as one desires liberation, so
long, you may take it, one is in bondage."

~ Sri Ramana Maharshi ~

---

Joyce ~ NDHighlights

"You can discover more about a person in an hour of play than in a year of conversation."

~ Plato ~

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