Good Wishes

“Peace of mind produces right values, right values produce right thoughts. Right thoughts produce right actions and right actions produce work which will be a material reflection for others to see of the serenity at the center of it all.”
― Robert M. Pirsig, Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance.

Reverence of mind and purity of intention

are the first steps towards tranquillity and harmony.

Be simple, natural, down-to-earth.
Purify all the senses, still the intellect and rest in the fulfillment of being.

With loving devotion, surrender to the Self in the Heart.
Rejoice in the blissful perfection of your true nature.

Be whole.
Be well.

Be at peace.

I wish you a Happy New Year.

" Abide in perfect stillness, with no movement of tongue or mind or body. Behold the effulgence of the Self within – the complete absence of fear, the vast ocean of bliss. Ha, so simple is Atma Vidya!” Bhagawan Ramana Maharishi, Atma Vidya Keertanam.

Merry Christmas Everyone

In humble surroundings, with no fanfare or fuss, innocence is born to redeem the world. 

Watched over by the liquid gaze of dumb beasts, the light of Life shines and thrives at his mother’s breast.

Three wise kings from the East kneel before the babe, for they know who he truly is- a pure spark of God.

Let that stable be re-created in your innermost heart. 

Let the star of revelation shine overhead as the light of your own Christ-nature is born within. 

Then you will see that this light of love is in everyone and in everything; indeed, it pervades the whole universe.

The Kingdom of Heaven is within you and within all.

Love is the key: can you look upon all the world with love?

Understand the inner meaning of this Christmas and celebrate the birth of the Divine within.

Allow the Lord of Love to be born again in your own heart. 

Then you will truly experience that infinite joy and that deep oceanic peace that is beyond all understanding.

Merry Christmas! May you be truly blessed this festive season!

Being Indian

(As politics and media become more and more stridently divisive and discordant, its time to remember who we really are.)

“You are the Truth, the Life of life, the Light that shines as “ I AM” in each living heart!” Sri Ramana Maharishi

India is not just a country.
It is a magical kaleidoscope of paradox and contrast, of horrific ugliness and transcendent beauty in perfect coexistence, of outer poverty and inner wealth.
It is a power, a living energy field, a source of infinite blessings fuelled by gods and oceans and serpents, sages and rivers and tigers, saints and murshids and elephants, people and mountains and birds and trees, angels and genies and the spirits of trillions of living beings distilled together over a million years.
The divine spirit of this ancient land lives forever in the very cells and blood and marrow of its people.
Every Indian, in his DNA, inherits infinite wisdom and joy and strength.
To be Indian is to feel connected to the earth, the air, the water, the fire and the ether of this land.
To be Indian is to be truly universal, to be one with all that exists.
To be Indian is to love all beings and hate none.
To be Indian is to be India.

Pity the hatemongers, the ones who try to spread division and fear and discord among the people of India, for they shall experience the worst hells of their own creation.

Pity the lost souls who have succumbed to the fatal temptations of wealth and power and become rakshasas who take and take and take; their greed is a bottomless pit in which they sow the seeds of their own destruction.

Pity the robots, who got so caught up in the machines of existence that they became brainwashed zombies who are tools in the hands of evil: they pay a terrible price by wasting their precious lives.

We greet every fellow-Indian with great love and respect.

Regardless of our social status, our caste or colour or creed, our language or culture, we are ONE.

We remember :

We are Indian.

We are forever cherished and protected by the spirit of this ancient land.

And we are not afraid!

Rejoice!

Worry, fear, despair and sorrow are all born of the mind.

The rock and the blade of grass,

the leaf and the caterpillar,
the sunset and the breeze,

the birds flying in effortless harmony against the sky, 

the mountains and forests and seas….

everything is perfect, without judgement or comparison or analysis or interpretation.

What is, IS – here and now.

Drop the mind and just be,
like a little child awestruck by the wonder of it all.

When intellect sinks and dissolves
in the simple reality of existence-awareness,

Tranquility and bliss are revealed 

as divine grace that always is, was and will be.

Rejoice!

Nothing exists but infinite, joyful peace.

Know Thyself

                    (Deccan Delight...6ft x 3 ft, acrylic on canvas -kind courtesy, Meena Subramaniam)

“ When you have not understood yourself, what is the point of understanding other things?
When you have understood yourself, what else is there to understand?” Atma Vidya, Bhagawan Sri Ramana Maharishi.

“ What is meant by moksha? Do the heavenly world and heavenly bliss exist somewhere in the sky? Are these to be experienced in some other body and in some other world after leaving this world and this body? The supreme world is only the Heart. Tranquillity in the form of supreme silence is divine bliss, the happiness of liberation. Cessation of worries is the attainment of the supreme state. Through this state of being-consciousness, the life of perfect bliss can be attained at all times and in all states in this very world and in this very body.” Bhagawan Sri Ramana Maharishi.

The wise say that this human life is a precious gift.

Perhaps this is because, in this limited, mortal body, it is possible to experience the infinite, ecstatic perfection that is the divine essence of all things.

Since the dawn of time, there have been those among us who have borne witness to this wondrous experience, this pinnacle of human evolution that is the birth-right of every human being.

Everything will pass -do not waste your gift of life in trying to obtain the ephemeral; the blind pursuit of wealth or power or fame will merely rob you of your precious time.
Use your life wisely to obtain the greatest blessing, the one true treasure, the only eternal reality.

Shatter all the layers of mind-stuff and illusion – find your true nature, your divine core.

In the depths of being, discover lasting happiness, contentment, peace beyond all price.

Seek the blessing of the eternal present, the compassionate grace of the Self.

Be the magic – here and now.

Everything else is a waste of energy and time.

“ All words dissolve in voiceless stillness. All acts merge in the calm of awareness. All things rest in the plenum of peace.” Siva Yogaswami of Jaffna , on his meeting with Sri Ramana Maharishi.

One Truth

“The soul of all is one soul and the truth is one truth, under whatever religion or philosophy it is hidden.” Hazrat Inayat Khan.

“Something formless, perfect and serene existed before the universe was born.
It is empty yet whole, solitary, unchanging, infinite, eternally present.
Ever still, yet ever in motion, it is the mother of the ten thousand things.

For want of a better name, I call it the Tao.” Lao Tsu, Tao Te Ching.

“The real does not die; the unreal never lived.” Sri Nisargedatta Maharaj

The journey of spiritual evolution is a deeply personal experience that is surprisingly universal in its essence.

Down the ages, the mystics and sages of all races, creeds, and cultures discovered one supreme truth.

They all drank from the same immortal spring : the infinite depths of the Self.
This is the root of all life, the transcendental dimension that underlies the universe of form.
It is the unbroken thread of pure consciousness that everything is woven of.
It is the whole, the one, the timeless Being, shining eternally beyond all conceptual thought.
It is the indescribable,ultimate reality beyond mind and time and space.

It is that blissful perfection that is the essence of every being.

None can know it; you can only BE it.

Every human being remembers this experience: this occasional glimpse, this tantalising taste of something sacred, something divine.
Somewhere deep inside you, you know this truth is your very nature.

This is why there is always a longing, a craving for that which can make you truly whole.

Nothing else will ever complete you.

“That which is consciousness alone, which is all-pervading, infinite and eternal, which is all-full, which is of the form of bliss and which is indestructible, is the only true Brahman.” Varaha Upanishad

Seek Only This

“Knock, and He'll open the door
Vanish, and He'll make you shine like the sun
Fall, and He'll raise you to the heavens
Become nothing, and He'll turn you into everything.”
― Jalaluddin Rumi

Dive deep into yourself ;

with great devotion and humility, seek the core of your own existence. 

The perfect One alone exists as “ I am”, the divine effulgence in every living being.
It shines eternally as Atma-swarupa, the soul of the soul, the omnipotent, conscious and blissful energy that is God.
It is the source of the life-force, the radiance of compassionate grace, the boundless ocean of transcendent peace.

It is your true nature ; it is who you really are.

Every living creature has been given this greatest of gifts, this priceless treasure of truth, awareness and joy.

Only the constant distraction of outward attention prevents you from knowing and being this.

If the attention is made subtle and one-pointed and directed unswervingly inwards, the mind will melt in that fire of supreme love that is the real, the imperishable.
No words can describe the perfection that shines here.

If you would experience the deep serenity of abiding contentment,
seek only this.



“The Self that is subtler than the subtle and greater than the great is seated in the heart of every creature. One who is free from desire sees the glory of the Self through the tranquillity of the mind and senses and becomes absolved from grief.” – Katha Upanishad

“ To think is not your real nature. In deep sleep, there is no body or mind, just deep peace and joy. As soon as you awoke, your first thought is I…this thought leads you away from your true source.From this root, all the illusion arises. If this I turns within and seeks its own source, it will dissolve in the Self that is your true nature.This is the one truth that always shines in you that can never be lost.” Bhagawan Ramana Maharishi.

Let Us Pray

“ In prayer, one reaches the Divine Spirit which is all-powerful and yet ever-forgiving. It is by the power of prayer that man opens the doors of the heart, in which God the Merciful abides.” Hazrat Inayat Khan.

“Since I began to love, love has never forsaken me. It has ever grown to its own fullness within my innermost heart.” St. Catherine of Genoa, Life and Doctrine, 1551

True prayer is a gift of Grace; no words can describe its transcendent mystery.

Prayer is a cry for help, a heart-to-heart conversation, a song of faith, a dance of loving worship, a blissful communion with God.
Prayer is an exquisite yearning, a longing for the Beloved, a secret, sacred love beyond mind and space and time.
To pray is to trust: to let yourself be clay in the hands of the Divine Potter, to be the leaf floating on the river, the feather drifting on the wind.

Prayer is the sun rising, birds singing, trees growing and bursting into flower, water flowing, stars glowing, invisible frogs and crickets serenading the night.

Every atom and every cell, every mountain and every planet, every life-form exists but to pray, to resonate in harmony with that perfect symphony of the One.

Prayer is the eternal love-song, the hauntingly beautiful chorus of Life, the ethereal music of the spheres as the whole cosmos sings out in gratitude and praise.

Be it as soft as the murmuring of two lovers or as clamorous as the thunder-storm, prayer is the soul’s effort to return to the source.

Prayer is the heart bursting with joy, the lotus blooming in sunlight, the bee drunk with the nectar of immortal bliss.

Prayer is the doorway to awakening, the celebration of understanding who you really are.

So, with every breath we take, let us pray.

“In your light I learn how to love, in your beauty, how to make poems. You dance inside my chest where no-one sees you, but sometimes I do, and that sight becomes this art.” Rumi

“All my life I considered that the “I” within me is I. Now, by the grace of my Guru, I see that it is always You alone!” Namdev 

“The soul is satisfied now with nothing less than God. The pain is not bodily, but spiritual; though the body has its share in it, even a large one. It is a caressing of love so sweet which now takes place between the soul and God, that I pray God of his goodness to make him experience it who may think that I am lying.” St. Teresa of Avila.

The Fire of Jnana

“There is only One who is everything :see its Light shining in every living eye.
Like fire burns dry grass, jnana burns up all the vasanas.” Adi Shankaracharya

“Unless Thou extend Thy hand of Grace in mercy, I am lost, O Arunachala!”

Five Hymns to Arunachala, Bhagavan Ramana Maharishi.

By your compassionate grace, I touched the Heart-centre and tasted the ecstatic bliss of the Self- now nothing else will ever satisfy me.

O Lord! Like a drunkard longing for wine, like a babe longing for its mother, like a lover longing for the beloved, I long to be one with You!

Alas - all my efforts lead only to brief glimpses of the Self: how can I rest in It always?

Dropping identification with form is not easy; lifetimes of brainwashing and habit keep me firmly attached to the ghost of ego, the illusion of personality.
Seeing myself as the body-mind complex, I am caught in the limited dream of my current life-story.

I am addicted to doing, to enjoying, indulging, projecting, to dwelling in past or future but never being wholly present, here and now.

How do I escape these habit-patterns, these soul-destroying vasanas that cling to me through a thousand lifetimes?

How can I learn the art of staying still, silent, thought-free?
How do I dive deep into myself and find my true nature?

Stop toying with me, Lord, do not push me away: the ravenous winds of samsara will sweep me to my doom!

Save me from these savage vasanas that trap me in the nightmare illusion of endless rebirths.

Take my hand and embrace me – swallow me whole!
Burn me in the fire of Brahman once and for all.



Deham naham. Koham? Soham.
I am not this body. Who am I? I am That.
Before this body leaves you, you have to leave this body.
Consciousness is infinite and unlimited: limiting it within the body is an illusion.
You are consciousness.” Bhagavan Ramana Maharishi.

“That which is consciousness alone, which is all-pervading, which is eternal, which is all-full, which is of the form of bliss and which is indestructible, is the only true Brahman (infinite consciousness).” – Varaha Upanishad

All is Well

“ The softest thing in the universe overcomes the hardest thing in the universe.
That without substance can enter where there is no room.
Hence I know the value of non-action.
Teaching without words and work without doing
Are understood by very few.”
 Lao Tsu, Tao Te Ching

Birds need to fly so that they can figure out what the sky is like.

Fish need to swim to figure out what the ocean is like.

Human beings need to live in order to figure out what this world is like.

Birds don’t need to think…they just fly. Fish don’t need an education…they just swim.

Live like that.
Do what comes naturally.
Drop all the unnecessary baggage.

Breathe. Sit. Eat.Walk. Work. Love.  Sleep.
No effort, just go with the flow.

Cultivate the field of the heart and Life will plant the right seeds.
So think less, feel more.
The deeper you let yourself feel, the more you understand the joy of Being.

See with your gut, not just your eyes.
Experience the world directly without the distorting filter of the mind.

Return to innocence – unlearn!
Approach life openly with love and wonder – be aware, be awake.

Just be.

All is magic. All is well.

Glance of Grace

“I found in the glance of the Maharishi, the sizzling brilliance of the sun. My breath seemed to stop and my mind was elevated into some spiritual realm of unutterable peace and happiness.” Swami Madhavatirtha

“ For half an hour, I looked into the Maharshi’s eyes which never changed their expression of deep contemplation. I began to realize somewhat that the body is the temple of the Holy Ghost. I could feel that this master’s body was not the man; it was the instrument of God, merely a sitting, motionless corpse, from which God was radiating terrifically. My own feelings were indescribable.” Frank Humphreys, British police officer, one of the first Westerners to meet Ramana Maharishi

That lightning flashing from the Master’s eyes, burning away all illusion,
That compassionate look, like radiant moonlight, filled with unconditional love,
That gentle benediction healing all wounds and bestowing perfect ripeness,
That glance of grace, granting fearlessness and immortality;
The Guru’s gaze is itself the greatest blessing.

When I fell at his feet in total surrender,
the lotus of my Heart blossomed before the rising sun of the Self:
What a wonder! Such an infinite ocean of blissful peace!

Beyond matter and mind, nothing exists but the vast space of his Light.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Rejoice!

Master, disciple, God and world are all ONE .

“To the seer, all things have verily become the Self: what delusion, what sorrow, can there be for him who beholds that oneness?” – Isa Upanishad

“By your very look, you granted me total fearlessness, sublime joy and infinite peace ;now I rest in my true divine nature, endlessly singing your praise!” Murugunar, devotee of Bhagavan Ramana Maharishi

Only ONE

The mystics and wise men of all religions and races, throughout time, spoke with one voice. The quotes below speak for themselves…..please read slowly and ponder.

“Beyond all the barriers of race or creed or language we can all unite, because we are all part of one God.” Hazrat Inayat Khan, Sufi mystic.

“In God we live and move and have our being. The Kingdom of Heaven is within you.” Holy Bible

“The eye with which I see God is the same with which God sees me. My eye and God's eye is one eye, and one sight, and one knowledge, and one love.” Meister Eckhart, Christian mystic.

“The question is not if God exists apart from you; the question is do you exist apart from God?” Arthur Osborne, devotee of Ramana Maharishi.

“However quietly we speak, He is so near that He will hear us: we need no wings to go in search of Him but have only to find a place where we can be alone and look upon Him present within us.” St. Teresa of Avila.

“The very pure spirit does not bother about the regard of others or human respect, but communes inwardly with God, alone and in solitude as to all forms, and with delightful tranquillity, for the knowledge of God is received in divine silence.” St. John of the Cross.

“Silence is the most powerful form of teaching transferred from Master to adept. The soundless voice is pure intuition. It is the voice of the spirit speaking in our innermost being. Self -enquiry is the only path we have in order to eliminate spiritual unconsciousness, which is widespread. Self-enquiry brings consciousness of the Divine, the universal truth and the Light that governs the universe. All this must be known, felt, lived and realised, by eliminating the thinking mind by dissolving it in the Universal Self.”Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharishi.

“The soul is satisfied now with nothing less than God. The pain is not bodily, but spiritual; though the body has its share in it, even a large one. It is a caressing of love so sweet which now takes place between the soul and God, that I pray God of his goodness to make him experience it who may think that I am lying.” St. Teresa of Avila.

“That which is consciousness alone which is all-pervading, which is eternal, which is all-full, which is of the form of bliss and which is indestructible, is the only true brahman (infinite consciousness).” – Varaha Upanishad

“I, the fiery life of divine essence, am aflame beyond the beauty of the meadows. I gleam in the waters. I burn in the sun, moon, and stars. With every breeze, as with invisible life that contains everything, I awaken everything to life. I am the breeze that nurtures all things green. I encourage blossoms to flourish with ripening fruits. I am the rain coming from the dew that causes the grasses to laugh with the joy of life.” Hildegard of Bingen, Christian Mystic, 1152 AD

“As rivers, flowing down, become indistinguishable on reaching the sea by giving up their names and forms, so also the illumined soul, having become freed from name and form, reaches the self-effulgent supreme Self .”– Mundaka Upanishad.

“Listen, O drop, give yourself up without regret,
and in exchange gain the Ocean.
Listen, O drop, bestow upon yourself this honor,
and in the arms of the Sea be secure.
Who indeed should be so fortunate?
An Ocean wooing a drop!
In God's name, in God's name, sell and buy at once!
Give a drop, and take this Sea full of pearls.”
― Mawlana Jalal-al-Din Rumi

“ In the stillness of the mind , I saw myself as I am : unbound, infinite! “ Nisargedatta Maharaj, Hindu Mystic

“ Nothing in all creation is so like God as stillness.” Meister Eckhart, Christian Mystic

“Since I began to love, love has never forsaken me. It has ever grown to its own fullness within my innermost heart.” St. Catherine of Genoa, Life and Doctrine, 1551

“A fish cannot drown in water,
A bird does not fall in air.
In the fire of creation,
gold does not vanish,
the fire brightens.
Each creature God made
must live in its own true nature,
how could I resist my nature,

that lives for oneness with God?” Mechthild of Magdeburg, 13th Century Christian mystic.

“Perfect humility tends to the annihilation of self. Grace is from God and works in the depths of the soul, whose powers it employs. When the Divine Light penetrates the soul, it is united with God as light with light.” Meister Eckhardt

“It is only by the death of self that the soul can enter into Divine Truth, and understand in part what is the light that shineth in darkness.” Jean Guyon, Christian mystic.

“Can you coax your mind from its wandering
and keep to the original oneness?
Can you let your body become
supple as a new-born child's?
Can you cleanse your inner vision
until you see nothing but the light?
Can you love people and lead them
without imposing your will?
Can you deal with the most vital matters
by letting events take their course?
Can you step back from your own mind
and thus understand all things?
Giving birth and nourishing,
having without possessing,
acting with no expectations,
leading and not trying to control:

this is the supreme virtue.” Lao Tse, Chinese Mystic,Tao Te Ching (Stephen Mitchell translation)

“ When you realise how perfect everything is you will tilt your head back and laugh at the vast blue sky!” “ Leap and the net will appear!” “In Zen, we don’t find the answers: we lose the questions!” “The obstacle IS the path.” “When the student is ready, the teacher will appear.” Zen Buddhist quotes

“The art of a warrior is to balance the terror of being human with the wonder of being human.” Carlos Castaneda, Journey to Ixtlan



“Peace of mind produces right values, right values produce right thoughts. Right thoughts produce right actions and right actions produce work which will be a material reflection for others to see of the serenity at the center of it all.” Robert M. Persig, Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance.

Be Who You Truly Are

( In loving memory of dearest Rami Aunty. .who now shines as Brahman forever! )

"Life and death are of supreme importance. Time swiftly passes by and opportunity is lost. Each of us should strive to awaken. Awaken! Take heed, do not squander your life.”
― Zen Master Dōgen

There is but one Reality.
Beyond body or mind or soul, this is the root, the substratum underlying all that seems to exist.
Smaller than the smallest, yet greater than the greatest, atoms, planets, stars and galaxies are but expressions of its playful joy.
It is the mystery of all mysteries, the seed that contains infinity, the One that exists as the life-spark in every living being.

Ever-present, self-luminous, aware, whole,
this is the Perfection that is the source and the substance of all things.
Call it God or Brahman or Self, Tao or Buddha-mind,

it is beyond all names or forms, beyond all words and concepts - 

indescribable, unknowable, effulgent.

It is infinite and eternal, almighty and all-merciful, pure and divine.
It is that vast sky of possibility, that heaven free of all fear and suffering, that sweet, intoxicating elixir of immortal, conscious bliss.

This is your inheritance, your birth-right.
Every night you sink into it so gladly in your deepest, dreamless sleep.

This is who and what you really are.

So wake up!
Discover the mystery of waking sleep, the joy of freedom from mind.

Before this body dies, embrace your true nature
and be that which you were always meant to be.

“ Abide in perfect stillness, with no movement of tongue or mind or body. Behold the effulgence of the Self within – the complete absence of fear, the vast ocean of bliss. Ha, so simple is Atma Vidya!” Bhagavan Ramana Maharishi, Atma Vidya Keertanam.
 https://lightsongs.blogspot.com/2019/06/who-you-really-are.html

Mother

“The soft spring wind of the New Day raises fresh waves of joy;

Gently it carries to the earth the fragrance of God's Love,

Till all the yogis, drunk with bliss, are lost in ecstasy.

Upon the sea of the world unfolds the lotus of the New Day,
And there the Mother sits enshrined in blissful majesty.
See how the bees are mad with joy, sipping the nectar there!
Behold the Mother's radiant face, which so enchants the heart
And captivates the universe! About Her Lotus Feet
Bands of ecstatic holy men are dancing in delight.
What matchless loveliness is Hers! What infinite content
Pervades the heart when She appears! O brothers, says Premdas,

I humbly beg you, one and all, to sing the Mother's praise!” Bhajan to Divine Mother.

Om Shri Maatre Namaha.

O great Mother of all creation,
You of a thousand names and forms,

I sing your praises with every beat of my heart.

All Gods are but babes at your feet, the elements are your humble servants, the three worlds are mere playthings created by your Divine glance.

You are the fierce destroyer of ignorance, the infinite ocean of compassionate grace, the lotus that blooms as Self in the Heart.

You are the womb of infinite possibilities, the embodiment of unconditional love.

You are the beginning and the end, the source and the substance of all things – who can ever describe your beauty, your power, your infinite mystery?

Jai Jagadambe! Jai Ma!

O Divine Mother, may I bow forever at your feet!

https://lightsongs.blogspot.com/2017/09/prayer-to-devi.html

Sweet Surrender

“ It is enough that one surrenders oneself. 

Surrender is to give oneself up to the original cause of one’s being.

Do not delude yourself by imagining such a source to be some God outside you.

Your source is within yourself. Give yourself up to it.
This means you should find your source and merge in it.

Surrender can take effect only when it is done with full knowledge as to what real surrender means. Such knowledge comes after enquiry and reflection and ends invariably in self-surrender. Therefore, there is no difference between jnana and absolute surrender to the Lord, in thought, word and deed.” Bhagavan Ramana Maharishi

The older I get, the more I realise how little I know.
When I let go of trying to be in control,
I discover how great a mystery everything truly is!

The birth of humble and heartfelt surrender is the dawning of wisdom.
When the stream of loving devotion meets the ocean of divine grace,
the lotus of jnana blossoms in ecstatic bliss.

O Bhagawan,  your compassionate blessing,
like a radiant sunrise,
Dispels the darkness of ignorance that is my ego
And reveals the precious jewel that is you
shining eternally in the cave of the Heart.

No words can ever describe the joy and the wonder of this!

“ To attain the flourishing immortal life in which death no more exists there is no means other than absolute surrender. Bliss comes to you by sweet grace through self-surrender performed lovingly in the heart.” Bhagavan Ramana Maharishi

The Emperor Has No Clothes!

( This post is in honour of my dear friends at Bhoomi, who have ceaselessly worked to transform education and human consciousness. May all the blessings of the universe be with them!)

“Human civilisation today is like a never-ending stream of high-speed traffic heading straight for the abyss, with ninety-nine percent of the drivers either drunk or asleep at the wheel…including and especially those responsible for teaching humanity how to drive!”Adyashanti

When truth must be cried out by the children who see that the Emperor has no clothes, will no one listen? When our very system of so-called rationality and conceptual thought is the root of all our problems, can more thinking deliver a solution?

If money and power are the greatest goals, insatiable greed is the greatest virtue and war is the biggest business on earth, is that a civilised society? If blind, unconscious human drives continuously lead to the destruction of entire ecosystems and terrible suffering for millions of beings, can it be denied that this race is undoubtedly insane?

Who will cure the ills of the human race? Can the physician heal anyone else without first healing himself?
Will there finally be a true quantum leap in the evolution of human consciousness, or will we destroy ourselves and our planet first?

“The scientist's religious feeling takes the form of a rapturous amazement at the harmony of natural law, which reveals an intelligence of such superiority that, compared with it, all the systematic thinking and acting of human beings is an utterly insignificant reflection. This feeling is the guiding principle of his life and work, in so far as he succeeds in keeping himself from the shackles of selfish desire. It is beyond question closely akin to that which has possessed the religious geniuses of all ages.” Albert Einstein

The total knowledge of the human race, accumulated over millennia in every field of human endeavour , is less than a few grains of sand on the vast beach of Nature’s perfection. Therefore, a little humility is always in order.

The greatest scientists have always been those who approached the wonders of Nature with humility, awe and delight. They had the wisdom and mature intuition to recognise the elegant, aware intelligence that underlies everything. Such understanding is a natural outcome of deep, continuous contemplation and tremendous inner refinement, which is also the state of the greatest sages and mystics of the race.

It is time to wake up from the nightmare, the insanity that is our current “civilisation”, to heed the wisdom of our greatest scientists, philosophers and spiritual teachers. Existing in harmony with the universal web of life is our birth-right .The only real solution to the self-created problems of the human race is to discover our own innermost nature and transform the racial consciousness.

This can only happen when we learn to still the mind and listen to our souls, when we turn our attention inwards instead of outwards. This is what all the prophets and sages and sacred books have been saying, since time began. Will we listen now?

May the Divine intelligence that is the source and the substance of creation guide and bless us all !

“ The Divine gives light to the mind and shines within it. Except by turning the mind inward and fixing it in the Divine, there is no other way to know Him through the mind.” Forty Verses on Reality, Bhagawan Sri Ramana Maharishi

Being Alive

"Through the eyes of jnana, this very world, which was seen as a hell of misery, will appear as a heaven of infinite bliss.” Guru Vachaka Kovai

If the world you perceive is filled with fear and suffering , is this living?
Have you discovered the art of staying rooted in peace?
Have you bathed in the fountain of divine bliss in the center of your being?

To be alive is to escape the veil of mind and experience life directly.
To be alive is to be alert, aware, conscious and total in every moment.

To be alive is to be in love with what is, to just BE, right here, right now.

Look into a baby’s eyes and you will see God looking back at you.

A baby is pure, innocent existence , untainted by ego, responding directly to reality.

The adult human being is covered with layer upon layer of concepts, thoughts, emotions, habits, fears and longings,memories and projections.
So much accumulated garbage clouding the original true nature!

Drop the garbage, slough off the layers and discover your Self.
Burn the veil of ego in the sacred flame in the Heart.

Return to the Buddha nature you were born with that can never be lost.

In that innocence rediscovered, your whole world will be filled with the light of Grace.

The eyes of the jnani blaze with this original and eternal Light.

Rejoice!

" The Self is the source of abiding joy, enshrined in the depths of our consciousness. If he were not there, who would breathe, who would live? He it is who fills every heart with joy.” Taittiriya Upanishad

Live your life gladly and fully- one day at a time.

Stop thinking too much. Stop complicating things unnecessarily.
Just take things as they come.

Accept what is and stay rooted in Being.
Be aware, be present.

Feel the magic in everything around you.
Savour the joy and the power of your own existence in each moment of your life.

This is the gateway to the kingdom of heaven,

Not at some distant time or place, but right here and right now.

Know this: no matter what is happening in your life, the core of your being is filled with infinite love and joy and strength.

This is what keeps you alive, gives you courage, keeps you going through good times and bad.

Nothing can take this away from you.

So rejoice! Celebrate the wonder and the glory of who you really are. 

Time to Dance

“Enlightenment is here and now: just rend the veil and you will be it.

Do not wait for death - after death, no change happens;
You merely end up with an apartment in the City of Death
With the ghosts of your memories and the baggage of your unfulfilled desires.
You incarnated for one reason only: to know and express the One.

So clean your mirror - and BE It!” Lightsongs, the book.

Imagine that you are dying: your last hour is upon you and life is slipping away.

A voice speaks to you and says:“ I gifted you a trust fund of 10 billion US dollars on the day you were born…so you must have had a great life, wanting for nothing.”
With your last, dying breath, you groan – “Oh S**T ! Now you tell me!”

It’s a cosmic joke. It’s also the absolute truth.

You were born with treasures beyond all imagining - how come you didn’t notice?

How long did it take you to find out?

“Be aware of the privilege of life -open your eyes and raise your head up from your world. Then you will see -above and below, to the left and to the right, before and behind – the grace of God flowing everywhere in bounteous abundance!” Hazrat Inayat Khan.

The greatest spiritual teacher is life itself.
From despair to bliss, from joy to sorrow, from pleasure to pain, life flows like a river, carrying you through so many different states of being.
This is the journey your soul takes to grow into its own ripeness.

You are not the changing states: you are the river.

Consciousness manifests to become aware of itself: you are that consciousness, you are the Self. You just forgot who you really are.
The cacophony of the mind confused you, distracted you, veiled your Light.

All you had to do was flip your perception.

Turn your attention inwards. Just be still, be silent.
Let yourself sink into truth.
Deep inside you, at the very ground of being, Spirit shines in divine perfection.
This is your source, your infinite, immortal and eternal true nature.

Staying rooted in this keeps you connected to the universal harmony. 

Now you will see and feel this perfection in all beings and everywhere.

This is the joy of the Self in which you can dance forever!

It’s time to dance. Right here, right now!

Right Perception

“In the stillness of the mind , I saw myself as I am : unbound, infinite!” Nisargedatta Maharaj 

“ Nothing in all creation is so like God as stillness.” Meister Eckhart

As long as you are stuck in the ego-trance, you do not see reality.
Conceptual thought is the veil that conceals the truth, the lens that distorts perception.
The shift of perception from conditioned mind to direct, unconditioned consciousness leads to total transformation.

Don’t see with your mind, see with your gut, the core of your being, directly.

Stop pursuing enlightenment.
Stop grasping at straws.

Stop trying to figure everything out. 

Drop all your attempts to intellectually understand awareness.
Drop your efforts, your actions, your struggles.
Drop the mind.

Just listen to the quiet spaces inside yourself. 

When the doer disappears, you can rest in awareness, in plain,simple existence.

Stillness and silence are the ground of being.

Your perfect, unborn nature shines within yourself.
Let it be.



“Be a Light unto yourself. Don’t be bothered about what others say, don’t be bothered about traditions, orthodoxies, religions, moralities. Just be a light unto yourself. ” The last words of the Buddha

Rest in the Self

Photo by Meena S.

“To the seer, all things have verily become the Self: what delusion, what sorrow, can there be for him who beholds that oneness?” – Isa Upanishad

That which exists in self-luminous splendour at the heart of every being,

That One who is the source of peace in deep sleep,

That mighty rider who tamed the wild stallion, mind,

That Lord of the Heart who is the ocean of compassionate Grace,

That fierce God who dances at the cremation ground where the ego burns-

Shiva, Brahman, Atman, Self - beyond all names and forms,

O fortunate devotees, prostrate at His shining feet always!

Here, all sorrow vanishes, all misery ends - the illusion of time and space dissolves.

Here there is only the solace of peace, the pure delight of just being.

Surrender with great love and devotion at the altar of the Self inside;
when you dissolve in that ocean, this whole universe becomes your playground!

Once the Self chooses you, a divine power takes over completely.

Give thanks, sing praises and dance in infinite bliss;

There is nothing more for you to do.

“ The illuminated one rests happily in the peace of the Self without thought of past and future. Simply witnessing the present every moment, such a one alone has cut the knot of bondage.” Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharishi

Eternal Sunrise

"The seen is the darkness of ignorance; the seer is the light of wisdom.”
Adi Shankaracharya

The Upanishads cry out , “ Awaken from this sleep of ignorance! You are Brahman!”

For this body, life is short, death is certain – so use your time wisely!

Remember: the experience of the Self is deeply subtle – it is only available to a pure and silent mind.

To escape from the darkness of ignorance, turn your attention away from the seen and focus inwards on the seer.

Who is the life-force, the absolute essence of you?
Who experiences your waking state, your dream, your deep sleep?
Who dwells within you in the innermost cave of being?

When the mind, remaining conscious and aware, sinks deep in silence,
the heart-lotus blossoms in the fullness of infinite bliss.

Truth shines as the Self in that thought-free state of waking sleep.

For the one who abides firmly in the Self, there is only Light; how can darkness ever enter? 

Once the sun of jnana rises, it will never set again.

“One could cause God through alchemy.
But even if that God tells you something don’t believe it.
If I come in front of you, don’t believe it.
The Seer is most important. You are. That is most important.
Concentrate on the Seer, not on the seen.
All that you see is false and the Seer alone is true.
All knowledge you gather is useless, until you hold on to your Self.
You are the Truth, not what is being told to you, not what you see.”
Bhagavan Ramana Maharishi