Rest in Peace

“ 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 in an apartment in the city of the dead
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! ”

From Lightsongs, the book.

When someone dies, people say: may he rest in peace. 

What does this mean? Does the death of the body guarantee peace?

Or will it merely  transfer your suffering into yet another movie,

Like it has happened a thousand times before?

If you would truly know peace, you have to be tired of all the movies.

You have to die before the body dies.“

"The death of the mind drowned in the ocean of Self-consciousness is the eternal silence. The real ‘I’ is the supreme Heart-space which is the great ocean of bliss. Having annihilated the delusive mind which always dwells upon worldly things, having killed the restless ego, and having completely erased the worldly vasanas, shine as Shiva, the pure consciousness itself. Do not wander outside, eating the scorching sand of worldly pleasures, which are non-Self; come home to the Heart where peace is shining as a vast, everlasting, cool shade, and enjoy the feast of the bliss of Self.”     

 Sri Ramana Maharishi, Guru Vachaka Kovai

There is a vast amount of garbage stored in the invisible hard disk that is your ego-mind complex. If you don’t delete all these trash files while you are alive, they will just get carried forward in a subtle body and drag you through more lifetimes.

The only way to permanently delete these files is to dissolve the ego-mind in the very core of your being: the Heart.

The divine light in the Heart burns away all the fears and desires, attachments and phobias, all the junk files that make up the ego-mind. The illusion of personality is destroyed completely- your cloud storage is completely cleared.

All suffering ends in that ocean of immortal bliss.

So, before this body dies, turn all your attention inwards – dive deep into the Heart.

Surrender with great love and devotion at the feet of Grace.

Discover the glory of the Self that shines unchanging, eternal, infinite.

Rest in that sublime and perfect peace – right here, right now.

Soul Connections

 Nothing happens by chance  - life flows precisely as it is meant to flow.

Every person you share your life with is connected to you by invisible strands of meaning and purpose. Some connections run deeper than others.

The deepest and most meaningful are soul connections, forged in the fire of a thousand lifetimes. 

From the moment you meet, your hearts will resonate as one.

Such soul connections, beyond all time and space,  will give each other love and strength and courage and share the Light.

In good times and bad, they will remind you of your true nature .

Recognise them as precious blessings and treasure them with deep love and gratitude.

The purpose of all soul connections is to help each other return to the One.

The soul family yearns to go home.

The greatest gift you can give your soul family is to be whole and centered in the source of your own being.

When you stay in the blissful peace of the Self, all your soul connections will share in your joy.

Without thoughts or words, the ocean of love will embrace you all.

When you surrender in loving devotion at the feet of Grace, you dissolve in the One.

When you understand experientially that you and Brahman are always one, you shine as the Self.

In this fire of perfection, all your soul connections shine with you!

At last, you will all be One. 

“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.” Varaha Upanishad

 

Grace is Essential

 “Except by the Lord’s grace, which begins to function when one surrenders oneself completely at His feet with sincere devotion, truth cannot be cognised merely by the skill of the mind of the jiva. So subtle is the reality.” Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharishi.

Perfection just is.

Everything in this universe functions naturally, flawlessly, miraculously, beyond explanation.
Truth is beyond all words - do not let your cleverness get in the way of understanding.
Suffering is always the result of  wrong identification with a body-mind complex.
Drop the heavy baggage of this ego story, this illusion of a separate individual personality.
Only Grace can help you do this.

“Keep turning your attention within. One day, the wheel of thoughts will slow down and intuition will mysteriously arise. Follow the intuition and let your thinking stop and it will eventually lead you to the goal of unwavering and perpetual Self awareness.” Paul  Brunton

Without any purpose or intent, the sun gives light and life to the world.
In the same way,  Grace makes the lotus of the Heart blossom.
With deep devotion, surrender to the Guru unconditionally, totally.
Live your life like a leaf floating on the river- have faith! Accept what is.
Like a bee seeking nectar,  dive deep into yourself and discover the reservoir of infinite  joy and peace that is your core.
As you dissolve in this bliss, you come home at last to your true being, becoming one with the One.
Here, all doubt and fear and sorrow and pain disappear like mist before the sun.
This is where everything changes : this is where you experience the divine perfection that you truly are.
Just stay here. Abide as the Self. That's how you hold on to God.
Whatever needs to happen will happen – spontaneously, effortlessly, perfectly.
Nothing more needs to be done.

“I remain perfectly calm and fully aware of who I am and what is occurring. The self still exists but it is a changed radiant Self. Something that is far superior to my unimportant personality rises into consciousness and becomes me. I am in the midst of an ocean of blazing light. I sit in the lap of holy bliss. Divine grace descends and acts only when it is invoked by total surrender. It acts from within because God resides in the heart of all beings. Its whispers can be heard only in a mind purified by self-surrender and prayer. Rationalists laugh at it and atheists scorn it but it exists. It is a descent of God into the soul’s zone of awareness. It is visitation of a force unexpected and unpredictable. It is voice spoken out of cosmic silence. It is cosmic will which can perform authentic miracles under its own law.” Paul Brunton

The End of Suffering

 “Who is the doer and what is done? Is the end of the quest the end of the question?
You think you are the teacher and find you are the taught.
You think you are the seeker and find you are the sought.
Just sing a song of glory and you will be the glory!” 

 The Sufi Choir

Anyone who claims “I have achieved enlightenment” is dishonest or stupid or insane.

As long as there is an individual in search of an experience, the struggle continues: suffering is inevitable.

Stop struggling.

The end of suffering is the end of the experiencer.

"There's no such thing as enlightenment. It's a completely extraneous pursuit. To realize conclusively that the Buddha Mind you have from your parents innately is unborn and marvelously illuminating—that's enlightenment. Not realizing this makes you deluded. Since the Original Buddha Mind is unborn, it functions without thoughts of delusion or thoughts of wanting to be enlightened.

 As soon as you think of wanting to be enlightened, you leave the place of the Unborn and go counter to it. Because the Buddha Mind is unborn, it has no thoughts at all. Thoughts are the source of delusion. When thoughts are gone, delusion vanishes too. And once you've stopped being deluded, talking about wanting to attain 'enlightenment' certainly is useless, don't you agree?"Zen Master Bankei (1622-1693)

Break through the hypnotic illusion of a personality projected in space and time: it does not exist.

There is nothing to do and no one to do it.

Every human being is born with a natural clarity of being. 

It just gets covered up in layer upon layer of muck.

Clean it all off: return to the clear, unblemished sky of awareness at your very core.

That still mind is your original mirror mind – your Buddha nature.

Just be that.

Like a plant grows, a bird flies or a fish swims, live naturally – right here, right now.

Liberated from the grip of egoism, like the moon after the eclipse, full, ever blissful, self-luminous, one attains one’s essence. – Adhyatma Upanishad

Enjoy the Feast

 “When a man knows God, he is free: his sorrows have an end, and birth and death are no more. When in inner union he is beyond the world of the body, then the third world, the world of the Spirit, is found, where the power of the All shines, and man has all—for he is one with the One.” KrishnaYajur Veda, Shvetasvatara Upanishad 

In every moment, you make a choice:  between joy and misery, contentment and craving, peace and suffering. When you choose to pursue the dream of this world, you choose suffering. Sooner or later, when this makes you hunger for love, for solace and comfort, you  turn in desperation to God. 

Who is this God? Where is He?  Does He even exist?

Observing the exquisite perfection of the natural universe, the incredibly complex design of microcosm and macrocosm, a creative intelligence is undeniable. Call Him the Tao, the Void, the Absolute, Brahman –  He is the substratum of reality that is the foundation and substance of all that exists. He is pure, abstract, self-aware, intelligent Consciousness. He shines as the very core of being in every living thing. Eternal, infinite, omnipotent, He is the Self that is reality- awareness-bliss. 

To know Him is to be Him. Once you taste His perfection, nothing else will ever satisfy you.

“Having annihilated the delusive mind which always dwells upon worldly things, having killed the restless ego, and having completely erased the worldly vasanas, shine as Shiva, the pure consciousness itself. Do not wander outside, eating the scorching sand of worldly pleasures; come home to the Heart where peace is shining as a vast, everlasting, cool shade, and enjoy the feast of the bliss of Self.” Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharishi

Once you discover the inner joy that is your divine core, you will gladly turn within and seek the light that is your true being. Deeply rooted in the Self, your life will be transformed miraculously in ways that cannot be defined. Reborn in God, you will rejoice in the bliss of the Self.

Happiness is your birthright.

Dive within, let go and dissolve in the Self in total, loving  surrender.

Drink deep of the nectar of blissful, infinite, peace.

Enjoy the feast.

You Are That

 “With whichever vessel you go to the ocean you can get only that much water. If it is merely a cup, you will get a cup of water. If it is a bucket, you will get a bucket. Empty yourself of everything else and you can  loot the whole ocean!” Bhagavan Ramana Maharishi, speaking on Guru’s grace.

Listen, I will tell you a secret : the greatest treasure is within you!

Throw away all your worldly baubles and make space for that which is most precious, the priceless gift of Grace.

Why is this gift the most valuable? Is it because it grants immortality and infinite joy?

Or because it bestows upon you that deep and perfect peace that is beyond all understanding?

It is because it reveals the astounding truth of who you really are: God dwells within you as you!

In this infinite universe, there is only One that is the source and the substance of all that exists.

You are that One.

Only remember: this same truth applies universally to every living creature.

So treat all life with deep love and respect.

All that you see is sacred. 

All that exists is pervaded by the Divine.

Live accordingly, and all will be well.

“Empty yourself of everything.

Let the mind become still.

The ten thousand things rise and fall while the Self watches their return.

They grow and flourish and then return to the source.

Returning to the source is stillness, which is the way of nature.

The way of nature is unchanging.

Knowing constancy is insight.

Not knowing constancy leads to disaster.

Knowing constancy, the mind is open.

With an open mind, you will be openhearted.

Being openhearted, you will act royally.

Being royal, you will attain the divine.

Being divine, you will be at one with the Tao.

Being at one with the Tao is eternal.

And though the body dies, the Tao will never pass away.” 

Lao Tsu, Tao Te Ching.

Beyond Thought

 

“The more you think about it, the further you are from the truth.
Cease all thinking, and there is nothing that will not be revealed to you.
To return to the root is to find the essence, but to pursue appearances is to miss the Source.
The moment you are enlightened, you go beyond appearances and emptiness.”
 Zen Master Seng Tsan, 6th century.

Discover the  treasure of the thought-free state, the crystal clarity of the empty mirror-mind.

Everything that happens is a gift.

Every circumstance that arises is a blessing.

All is always well.

All that you will ever need is already within you.

If you would dance through life with effortless ease, abide steadfastly in your own true nature. 

Being happy has nothing to do with how rich or famous or powerful you are.

Everything you think you possess can disappear in a flash.

Life is short and death is certain- the pursuit of wealth and power will rob you of your time.

Being who you truly are has nothing to do with how good you look or how tall you walk, how smart you think or how smooth you talk.

Being true to your self is being real, being present and aware, being one with what is in serene acceptance.

Stillness and silence are the great magicians- they transform earth into heaven, man into God.

“The darkness in me that had been heavy and unbearable before, gradually lightened and melted into a glow within. My erstwhile sadness disappeared completely, leaving in my Heart an inexplicable joy. My limbs appeared to be washed in an ocean tide of freedom. The colour of the world changed for me and the light of the day now took on an ethereal aspect. I saw the foolishness and futility of turning my gaze on the dark side of  life. Bhagavan, the strange magician, had opened before me a fresh new world of illumination and joy.” Chaganlal Yogi, describing his first meeting with his guru, Sri Ramana Maharishi.

The Guru’s grace is no ordinary blessing: it is the lightning bolt that changes everything.

Be still and open your heart to receive it.

Let go with total trust in absolute surrender.

As you return to the source deep in yourself, the veil of illusion disappears.

From here, wherever you look, the Self is revealed in all its glory.

Drink deep of that wellspring of infinite bliss!

Rejoice in that haven of perfect, unshakable peace.