Sri Vasudeva on Meditation

[Miss Hepburn]

Can I tell you what I have been shown as to what karma is?
Take it or leave it?

It is a glorious system, brilliant in every way to purify us to be
able to meet or to return to the Father, God, Source of All.

The key to the higher realms...ie, being closer to God, let's say...is
Divine Love, purity of heart...one pointedness, ie,
devotion to One Thing... "Him'', Who has no gender, ha.

Karma would be being shown particular stumbling points to overcome and to free ourselves
from so we can become this pure heart adoring
the All That Is.
Attachments to emotions, people, things...do not lend to complete
absorption
in the adoration of 'whatever one calls It'...the Higher Self, the True Self or God, Krishna, The Divine One....all the Same Thing.

Take it or leave it...maybe it will be of interest to someone here reading.
It doesn't come from 'me'...I was shown this.

Hope it is ok to post this, Uma.

[Uma]

Thanks for posting Miss Hepburn. I like your definition of karma.

[Uma]

This is not from Sri Vasudeva, but I found this cool website that has a lot of stories of people's Near Death Experiences and their insight into karmic life lessons and why we need to learn anything at all. link

[Uma]

Day 38 of 40 May 2, 2016 link (beginning at 1:13:20)

My subjective universe(s)
Sri Vasudeva began his talk by emphasizing that everyone's journey is unique. Next he brought forward the really important concept that it's a subjective universe: "…remember that everything is about 'me', nothing about the world around 'me' and the stories I create about the world around me. It's all about 'me'." My experience of life is different from your experience of life. I am able to experience life on earth because of my five senses - so it's all being experienced inside my human-brain-influenced-mind, it's all being interpreted inside that mind, my mind. For all I know it's all a dream. And the mystical view is that life is a dream and as soon as I become a lucid dreamer in this dream I can master it in the same way as when I am dreaming at bedtime if I become lucid in that dream, whatever I choose to think becomes manifest. That's why when Buddha was asked "Who are you?" he replied "I am awake." Enlightenment is about waking up in the dream and becoming a master.

But today what really captured my attention and what was the emphasis of the talk was about coming into my own power through making the most of the mystical relationship I have with my own master, Sri Vasudeva. It was about using the relationship with the master to capture and gradually own the energy and consciousness they have - sort of like upgrading my own software with their more sophisticated software - and thereby lose dependency on the master.

What I'm sharing with you are the deepest esoteric secrets of the Guru-disciple relationship! This was the topic of the 40 Days Observance of 2008 and what he shared today is the essence of it - the most important thing to remember.

Absorbing the master's energy and consciousness
Most people in the West think that when you have a guru/master you give your power away. That can certainly happen but it takes two to tango, right? Either the devotee is stuck in dependency wanting to worship the man or woman, or the guru is not perfected and still caught in narcissistic ego wanting to control the other person. What I have found is that once the master has accepted me as his devotee, it is only through an intense heart-felt psychic and spiritual connection with my master that I am able to be receptive to his energy field and allow it to refine or upgrade my own energy field. In his words:

"What the master does is provide an energy field around you because the master is in touch with your soul. The master can produce an energy field that holds your soul in a space. And in that energy field, the master is trying to wake you up to your own power. That's what the master is doing - providing a field so that you can wake up to your own power," ~ Sri Vasudeva

What is remarkable is that in Sri Vasudeva's own spiritual journey, this connection and upgrading happened in the physical absence of his guru. The energetic presence of his guru permeated the ashram and was maintained through the devotion of the devotees. There must have been a karmic link with this particular master because he did not feel this intense reaction to the energy in the other ashrams he visited. Similarly, other devotees who came to this ashram didn't feel a connection with his master. So everyone has their own master if they choose to use one and if the desire for a master is strong "when the student is ready the teacher will appear" and then the downloading can happen in a magnificent way. I wanted a guru from a very young age, there was an intuitive feeling in me, and I went guru shopping but from the moment Sri Vasudeva opened his mouth I felt something beginning energetically in me, and knew I was in the right place in the right time…the beginning of a long relationship (now 19 years since meeting him in 1997).

Terminology
These are concepts as they are used in Sri Vasudeva's teachings, from my interpretation:

Guru as perfected outer master = Guru as sushumna-awakened Kundalini (the Inner Guide) = the Self (that part of me that is most connected to Source, in other words the real "I" not the false body/mind-identified I) = the brow chakra when it has opened to the degree that it begins to connect with the crown chakra (a very gradual process of many stages)

Guru Consciousness = Christ Consciousness = Krishna Consciousness = Buddha Consciousness = the brow is so open that Kundalini is able to completely and permanently reside in the crown chakra while maintaining a causal link to the body = total enlightenment/moksha/liberation of the "I" in the human experience = Guru Conscious "I" and Cosmic Conscious "I" become One (Chris: "My Father and I are one") = the total God-realized human (soul inside human) being.

Clear as mud, right? (This stuff is advanced... helps if you have the experience then you know what I mean.)

Coming into my own power
The absorption of the master's energy and consciousness is a gradual process once that first link is made (through shaktipat initiation or attunement). I could have have left Sri Vasudeva once my Kundalini began to awake in the sushumna but I would have missed out on the ongoing upgrading and support of having a master. Anyone who does reiki will know what it's like to plug into a lineage of power and what a powerful boost in energy that is beyond one's own personal storage of vitality. What allows me to master all this energy is the opening of my third eye or brow chakra. That's why the brow chakra is considered the seat of the Guru (Kundalini) and the space or dimension of Guru Consciousness.

I wrote above that my experience of life is all happening inside my mind. The awakening Guru Consciousness in my brow chakra makes me more aware of this life-is-a-dream quality and allows me to engage my intellect in meditation - in the exploratory laboratory of self-awareness and self-engagement. When speaking to the master, listening to the master, or just being in the presence of the master (whether he is there in flesh and blood or I am invoking his spirit), I need to focus on how my own Inner Guide or Kundalini is reacting:

"...constantly when you are in the master's field, when you engage your consciousness in the consciousness of the master and you are in the master's field, begin to observe whether your own consciousness is waking up to the power of Guru," ~ Sri Vasudeva

This is when I begin to notice that what excites him, excites me. I notice that when I am being totally open-hearted and loving like him, the Kundalini in me jumps for joy. I notice that when I allow my Inner Guide to guide my actions, my speech becomes more like his; the ideas he shares become my ideas. And the more I feel like the master, the more I am coming into my own power, and the less I need him. So this sacred alliance, this divine and mystical relationship is taking me further and further (deeper and deeper) into my own Guru power (and Cosmic connection too).

We are all one Self
I just came across a new word I've never heard of before: panpsychism which sort of captures the very ancient idea that we are all one mind joined at a point nearest the Source of mind. From concept to experience… In my own experience, developing psychic powers was a side effect of deepening meditation. And the upgrading of my Guru Consciousness through this mystical association with Sri Vasudeva and my own ascending Kundalini and the opening up of the brow chakra has over the years all brought me into a deeper understanding of the one mind, the Self of all. Now I am getting prematurely into the topic of Cosmic Consciousness, which is a next step beyond Guru Consciousness - but Cosmic Consciousness is where Sri Vasudeva is at and is why he says to us "I am your own Self," - he means the Self of all. His name means "the Light that exists in everything". It means that he has gone the full journey to enlightenment and his energy and consciousness radiate that supernova auric field people pick up on, and why he is able to take me the full distance to enlightenment, should I choose to continue to take the high road of self-development doing all the purification practices etc… And yes I so choose!

I need to use my brow chakra to bring the masters inside
Just as I experience life outside on the inside, my goal as a seeker of enlightenment/moksha/liberation/complete self-mastery is to completely unite my consciousness and energy with that of my master. It does not mean worshipping the man but inviting the Divine that lives inside the man into my space. In the meditation he said,

"The masters are all there. It's only an illusion that they are on the outside. They are all inside there," ~ Sri Vasudeva

And in his talk about the Buddha's words "lift yourself by yourself" he said,

"We need to bring the masters inside with the awakening of the brow chakra," ~ Sri Vasudeva

That means all the work is done in and through the brow chakra - even when working on the other chakras. And the brow chakra does not live in isolation to any other chakra. They are holographically contained in one another. He said:

"...when the chakra of the brow is weak, you go to all the other areas and you look for where that energy is leaking/dissipating, whether it's in the heart from uncontrolled emotion and attachment; or whether it's in the gut from uncontrolled energies in the gut area (vitality), or is energy dissipating from the sexual chakra or grounding chakra? Look! Look along the profile of your being. Your awakened shakti or energy will show you where the energies are leaking. You will feel the weakness happening there: [for instance] as much as you want to focus on the eyebrow, the emotion is pulling you away; as much as you want to focus on the eyebrow, the vitality of the gut is pulling you away, or the sexuality or the lack of being grounded in the body," ~ Sri Vasudeva

So that's what I'm doing in my meditation practice. And then while going about ordinary life I am checking in constantly to see what's going on energetically when stuff happens on the "outside" in my world "outside-of-me" - during my interactions with people and stuff. Lots of self-critical checking going on all the time. I'm learning to use my inner tools of self-mastery, learning to listen to the Inner Guide, learning to follow my master's example…learning all the time…and never tiring of learning more.

There is so much more to these practices but once again this post is already too long. He gave so many practical examples in today's talk and a guided meditation that takes me through how to do this - much of which repeats the practices I have been sharing about already - using the prana-in-breath etc.

His talks are like a recipe in meditation practice (cooking is part art part science), and they are a recipe in how to live wisely as a result of meditation practice, so the lessons are progressive. One step at a time. Before I attempt a soufflé I first need to learn how to boil an egg, right?

Sat-Chit-Anando-Ham
Sat means "Being", Chit means "Consciousness" and the two together bring Ananda (Bliss). Ham means "I Am" so all together Satchitanandoham means "I Am Blissful, Conscious (Enlightened) Being." This is the ultimate awareness I want to capture from my master! I want his bliss!

"On the spiritual path it's extremely important to observe Self. It's a journey in Self, nothing about what is on the outside. And the quicker you know that, the more empowered and fruitful your journey will be. As much as I love everything around me, I am detached from it - so detached from it! What makes me so detached? It's the joy of my inner being! There is nothing to compare to the joy of Self inside in that Satchitananda awareness - Eternal Blissful Being! That's the promise of the inside - that we can get the awareness Satchitanandoham, that in my being there is Bliss of Self," ~ Sri Vasudeva

Once again, I have made a very long post. Can't help it (((sigh))) I hope one day to be able to speak less and share more, like he does. If you have read this far, then wow I'm impressed…and congratulations and God bless. May your practice be fruitful!
xo
Uma

[Uma]

Day 39 of 40 May 3, 2016

Today we come to the end of the 40 Days when in 1978 on the evening of the 39th day and into the wee hours of the 40th day, by grace of God and the Masters, Kundalini completed the opening of Sri Vasudeva's third eye and rested in his crown chakra. It completed the final surrender of his ego. And today he spoke about surrender in terms that I can use in my daily life so that the final surrender may come about as a natural consequence of all the spiritual practices I am doing.

Surrender - two concepts
When I follow the prompts of the Kundalini-Guide I am choosing to align myself with God's will, or I can put it another way, with the will of my own Higher Self. That is what Sri Vasudeva refers to as acting with wisdom, acting in humility, acting in alignment with the Divine. Often this takes a lot of courage because life can feel like a battlefield and doing God's will is not always going to please the status quo. And however noble or righteous my intentions I have to surrender the results of my actions to God (to Karma) because I have no idea when I drop a pebble into a pond what kind of ripples it's going to make…it's like that butterfly effect idea.

Seeing the karmic play for what it really is
First of all seeing life as a karmic play or illusion is not an intellectual idea, it's something I actually see with my third eye. As the third eye opens more and more, this "seeing" becomes more and more sophisticated. In fact one of the dare I say side effects of meditation is becoming hypersensitive to energies all the time - knowing what people are thinking versus what they are saying, or walking into a space and feeling that something isn't quite right or maybe the energy is wonderful and then spontaneously going into a meditative state and it's so seductive I forget what I was thinking about. And lots of people these days are having experiences of synchronicity - where patterns or themes seem to keep repeating or one is thinking of somebody and next minute they call you up.

The dreamy nature of reality
becomes more apparent
as the veil between dimensions lift…
like layer after layer stripping away
Salome's dance
revealing the naked truth
of Kundalini manifesting everywhere
in all forms

When the Divine is seen in the "other" - in every form
Sri Vasudeva said surrendering the fruits of our actions becomes possible only when we see the Divine in everything. He stressed the point of being in a space or attitude of genuine equanimity and even-mindedness. When failure and success no longer phase me, when I am truly at peace with whatever happens or doesn't happen, I begin to be more centred in my Divine Self. More and more I will be able to say with conviction:

"Whatever You give me I accept.
I simply want to connect to Your Being, Your Consciousness
within me
that I may feel my existence fully in You.
That is my righteous action in the meditation to align myself to You,"
~ Sri Vasudeva

In fact this was a central theme in Mother Teresa's spiritual practice (that was a combination of bhakti yoga and karma yoga) - to see the Christ in everyone. She had a very simple five-fingered mantra that went like this: You Did It To Me. All her actions were acts of devotion. Every leper she washed was an incarnation of Christ in her eyes.

The gift of Enlightened vision
The final surrender, when it comes, will be the surrender of my own free will - of everything I think I am or know or do - in fullness, where I will be able to love everybody as my own Self - not only seeing the Divine, but becoming one with the Divine. Sri Vasudeva put this experience into a beautiful invocation today:

I come humbly before You in my consciousness
centred in the energy of my entire being, all my chakras,
I bow to You in each one of them.
Come fill my space with Your Light!
I am Your humble servant, Your instrument!
Fill my every chakra with Your Light!
Let there be understanding at every level of my being!
Let me act in a holistic way with integrated awareness!
Open my third eye that I may see only You in the play,
in the karmic play of this day
may I see only You!
It is You in those who love me!
It is You in those who challenge me!
It is You in every reward - it's You in every lesson!
It's only You!
Open my eyes to see only You everywhere oh Supreme One!
That's the only way I'll be able to meet this play wisely and act from there. That's the only way.
~ Sri Vasudeva

[Uma]

Day 40 of 40 May 4/16 link (talk begins at 1:21:30

Today on the last day, on the anniversary of 38 years of enlightened consciousness, Sri Vasudeva shared an awesome secret: How he experiences of others in his expanded sense of Self and how he uses his self-mastery in his own being, to influence others, to transform their darkness, shift their space and uplift them. What's even more exciting is that once we have learned how to centre in our Divine Self space, even without total enlightenment we can do it too!

Point of view of an empath
Those of us who are empathic know how deeply it hurts when we are in the space of someone who is angry. Their subtle energy penetrates our own, like a bullet or a bomb exploding. Anyone can see the energy experience using aura photography (although we experience energy in different ways).

"Your awareness when it's limited to body consciousness and to individuality in body consciousness, it's local awareness - 'I'm just limited to the body and its senses.' But when we come into soul awareness, or what we may call non-local awareness, it's a different kind of awareness. It's an awareness that allows us to experience the "other" differently. We begin to experience the "other" in us. We have a more intimate experience of the "other" ~ Sri Vasudeva

Then he began to speak about the heart and I got really excited because, as someone who is hypersensitive to energy, I can totally relate to this!

When your heart is open

"When the heart chakra is opened up, really opened up, where you do think you experience the emotion of the other - whether it's a very elevating emotion or very contracted emotion? Where do you think you experience that emotion? When you are with someone and your heart chakra is opened up, how do you think you're experiencing the other? The other's emotion becomes very powerful in your own experience. You begin to feel the other's emotion inside of you. The pain of the other is felt inside of you. The love from the other is felt inside of you. You are having the experience inside of your being. That's how we experience the other in open consciousness. We experience them as part of ourselves!

Perhaps we do not notice this and we try to limit our awareness to the local awareness of body consciousness without having a real deeper look at what we're experiencing. And sometimes when we become so sensitive because our energy's field is opened up and our consciousness is opened up, we become scared when we feel such energies within our space. But when we really understand the science of what is happening, we'll begin to appreciate operating in a new consciousness when we can feel the other within ourselves."
~ Sri Vasudeva

Later in in the talk he spoke about what it feels like to a master to feel someone else's energy in their being, and how they work with people's energies consciously and the steps I can take to do this too!

A master's point of view
The whole process is happening from their space of self-mastery because they remain unshaken, and in the clear space of the Witnessing "I" unburdened by their own mind and the influence of the triune brain.

This is the most important part:

"The more and more you come to the Centre of your consciousness and the Centre of Being, you experience the more of the other within your space," ~ Sri Vasudeva

The SECRET IS STAYING IN YOUR CENTRE OF BEING - IN YOUR GOD-CONNECTION SPACE. The secret of EVERYTHING is that.
That's what gives me more power over myself and what gives me more power over others too. It gives me more power over others because that centre space is common ground - it's the oneness from which everything in the Universe emanates or manifests from. It's the Source of existence. That's the destination of meditation ultimately. If you are feeling some of it now, the goal is to keep it, and to go deeper, until you are permanently there.

And here's the "how to" part about transforming other people's energies:

"When the energy of the other comes strongly inside of you, you need to centre in your own being and open up to that energy. And you can detach from it if you want to but there is a whole big opportunity there to help to transform the other when you are established in your inner being firmly." ~ Sri Vasudeva

Do you know what secret he is giving us? This is the deep esoteric or hidden or mystery meaning behind Jesus' famous words:

If someone strikes you on one cheek, turn to him the other also.

It doesn't mean be a martyr for goodness sake. It doesn't only mean offer love. It means being centred in Love, being one with Love, feeling the other person energetically within your own being because that's what gives the power to be able to respond ENERGETICALLY to counter the negative incoming energy. It's the energetic response that does the transforming, not just loving actions that mask one's own anger. I would not tolerate darkness in my space whether it's mine or someone else's. I would transform that energy into Light and only express that energy back to the other person as Light. So no matter how darkly someone is coming at me, I am sharing back only my Light, God's Love. (That's if I can stay CENTRED!)

Now here's what can go wrong:

"When we experience the anger of another and we are not so stable in our own centre of being, and we begin to feel that anger rising within us and we become afraid (we cannot control this raging anger that we are feeling for the other), it's the other's anger reflected in us. And because we are centred now in the [heart] chakra we are picking up this energy.

And if we react from that anger and the person becomes more angry and shoots that anger towards us and we begin to feel it in our awakened consciousness and we become more angry now because we want to build more anger than the [other] person, it builds and builds and builds and you know what can happen then." ~ Sri Vasudeva

So now I'm offered a choice - either to react because I allowed the other person to destabilize me from my centre or to re-establish myself in my centre. If I have been doing meditation moment-to-moment as a lifestyle practice, I will be able to do this:

"But when we feel the anger of the other and think "Oh my God, look at what this person's experiencing. How disturbed they are! How uncomfortable that must be for the other. Let me send an energy, let me shoot an energy in the space that is calming and loving and understanding and compassionate." And then we look at the other in the space and the other becomes confused "What is happening there? This person is calm and quiet." And then the other has no power because all that is coming back is a neutralizing power, not anger.

So the other is becoming less and less powerful because all we're doing is neutralizing their anger from another space from the centre of our being.

And ultimately without their knowing it the other person will start to calm down because they will be receiving no anger from us. And as they begin to calm down, we begin to realize more unity in that consciousness with the other." ~ Sri Vasudeva

So this is the whole process, basically and there is a part two to it but I've done my share for today. We interact physically and non-locally too. And we can transform people's energies that way too - that's why remote healing works! Love is a healing energy.

This practice of returning anger with love comes spontaneously and effortlessly the more I maintain my centre throughout my daily living so that I am protected, nourished, strong, and uplifting my world by extending those positive energies into the spaces where I interact with others. And that involves all these meditative practices I've been sharing these last 40 days.


So that's the gist of today's talk, what I wanted to share today. Tomorrow there will be one last talk, to finish off the 40 Days Observance and after that one I will post an index to my reflections, so I have a reference to it.

There is so much more to all of this that I have learned and each time I revisit the teachings I grow a little more in self-realization and that's why I will never stop singing his praises!

[Uma]

The day after the 40 Days - May 5, 2016 link

Thank you to those of you who have read any of these posts - I didn't set out with the intention to write a diary but I hope that you got something useful out of it anyway. I certainly did! Thank to the moderators/administrators too for indulging me and for keeping the site so clean! I will post an index to my posts so I can refer to them more easily. I hope this encourages some contemplation and conversation so that I can learn from you, now that you have a little better idea of where I am coming from. Sri Vasudeva has often said that there is such a thing as unity in diversity - that we live in a global village, different to one another yet connected in the same crucial place, our common centre of being, and that the diversity is what makes us beautiful - like many coloured flowers in one bouquet.

Expressing appreciation for my Teacher

Thank you Sri Vasudeva for the Gift of Maha Yoga - for spontaneously awakening the Kundalini within me that allowed me to access the Supreme Guide or true Guru within my own being and connecting me to such powerful and divine Siddha Masters.

Thank you Sri Vasudeva for these wisdom teachings that are like bottomless wells of Light taking me deeper into my own Truth. May I remember them always. May they become such a part of me that I live them in fullness in every moment, as you guided us today:

"This is a gift of wisdom/knowledge deep within that allows you to deal with life in a more meaningful and purposeful way on the journey in every interaction. This knowledge will become relevant in every interaction opening up to perceive your world from every chakra, aligning to the Divine in every situation and treating with the situation in an intuitive way that allows you to bring Light to it, to be uplifted in the process,"
~ Sri Vasudeva

Thank you Sri Vasudeva for the gift of the ongoing support of the Masters - inner and outer, including of course, yourself. Although, as you say, the Master is really none other than the Self within (the Guru Principle) I greatly treasure the gift of your presence here on Earth and how approachable and available you make yourself giving so much of your time in selfless service to the world.

Thank you Sri Vasudeva for the gift of your shaktipat - that divine energy transference that flows like mother's milk streaming from your divine words, thoughts, intentions, speech and touch. Anytime I need that boost, you make it available to me 24/7.

Thank you Sri Vasudeva for introducing me to the marvellous Guru Gita chant that has become like a mantra flowing continuously in my head and in my heart, and for explaining its profound secrets so clearly. Truly its essence is, as you suggested today, Om Guru Om, that mantra invoking that mystical relationship with all Gurus that brings such wonderful blessings to all who know its secrets.

Thank you Sri Vasudeva for teaching me how to meditate properly and in alignment with my inner awakened Guide that I may experience the freedom and joy of my own unique journey as I co-create a pathway to enlightenment.

Thank you Sri Vasudeva for allowing me to quote you here so liberally on the forum. I will have made many blunders in interpreting your words and in my style of presenting them but I pray that the shakti from these quotes will compensate for my many inadequacies. I am nothing, I know nothing, I own nothing.

God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change
The courage to change the things I can
And the wisdom to know the difference
Thy Will be done.
Thank You for Your Grace these 40 Days
And for Your Grace every day
May I be a blessing to Your world
And may I always deserve Your Grace
Om shanti shanti shanti
ॐ शान्ति शान्ति शान्ति
Om peace peace peace

Peace, Love, Light
Namaskar "I bow to the Light in you"
Uma

[Uma]

Here are links to my 2016 retreat reflections posts:

ॐ
Introduction Introduction to the 2016 40 Days Observance and this video link
Night before Preparation = Better Meditation
Day 1 Seeking the Self Within
Day 2 Mind is not a Brain!
Day 3 Being Mindful of BOTH Anatomies
Day 4 That which is beyond mind
Day 5 Deepening the practice
Day 6 Piloting my plane during sitting meditation practice
Day 7 Discriminating & detached observing
Day 8 Uniting head, heart & body
Day 9 Centering
Day 10 The Guru Principle
Day 11 Meditating on the Guru
Day 12 Light my light with your light
Day 13 Observing where I'm blocked
Day 14 Oh Goddess within
Day 15 Spring cleaning
Day 16 Goal of meditation
Day 17 Keeping my private eye on my "I"
Day 18 Acknowledging Divine power & presence and letting go to it
Day 19 Breath to brow <3 the joy of pranayama & More about prana
Day 20 Mantra power
Day 21 Guru Consciousness
Day 22 Present Moment Awareness
Day 23 No Free Lunch!!!
Day 24 From knowing to flowing to flying
Day 25 Surrendering doer-ship
Day 26 Observing ego transforming
Day 27 The super-charger meditation
Day 28 Strengthening my nervous system
Day 29 Striving for Satya Yuga consciousness
Day 30 Sporting with the elements
Day 31 Gut consciousness & power
Day 32 Emotional intelligence in the play
Day 33 Spiritual Intelligence of Crown Consciousness
Day 34 Following my Joy
Day 35 Every spiritual experience is a gift that should be put to work
Day 36 The importance of moment-to-moment meditation
Day 37 Transforming karma from the inside
Day 38 Coming into my own power
Day 39 The final surrender!
Day 40 How a master transforms other people's anger
Day After Appreciating the gifts of the 40 Days
ॐ

[Uma]

Trying to hold on to the spiritual discipline of the 2016 40 Days Observance, I thought I'd go back and revisit the 2015 40 Days Observance and finish what I started. I got as far as Day 12:

Introduction to the 2015 40 Days Observance link
Day before 40 Days Self-Mastery = World Mastery
Day 1 The Master within
Day 2 The Field behind form
Day 3 Yogic-Taoist combination technique
Day 4 Experiencing your Essence through relationships
Day 5 How Masters help us back to our centre
Day 6 Granthis - the Knots also Introduction to our 4 bodies/states
Day 7 The joy of moving from "doer" to "non-doer"
Day 8 Observing the power of the mind to create its reality
Day 9 The 4th state
Day 10 Centred in the Space beyond forms
Day 11 (Easter Sunday)
Day 12 Entering the Zone of pure potential

The links to the talks are no longer up on livestream, although there is always the option of purchasing through www.blue-star.org if you wish.

Now I have the luxury of going through them at a more leisurely pace not racing through 40 days only, so I can reflect on each day more in depth. That's why I've decided this time I'm just going to extract 1 thing at a time from each one and maybe spend a few days in contemplating the fullness of each day's message before moving on to the next one. What the heck - maybe I'll even flip back and forth. No boundaries!

As always I welcome comments, feedback, and your insights too in understanding and living this meditation thing.

[Uma]

From Day 13 of the 40 Days Observance, 2015

Sometimes Sri Vasudeva says things I call T-Shirt quotations because they sound so succinct and complete in themselves. Here is one of them:

"Nonattachment is not about the dryness of letting go of the world, that passionless existence. Nonattachment simply means not being driven by the world but being in one’s own power, and allowing yourself to be driven by inside. And when you’re driven by inside, the drives are noble, they are uplifting instead of destructive,"
~ Sri Vasudeva

To look at this more deeply…

"Nonattachment is not about the dryness of letting go of the world, that passionless existence"
That's what I used to think "non-attachment" meant. I remember a long time ago going to a lecture on Buddhist meditation and the person speaking said there are 3 kinds of attachment: "I like", "I don't like", and "I don't care". So I thought non-attachment means "I don't care" - disinterest.

Then in learning to "let go of the world", that is in shutting off the senses, I thought that non-attachment meant being released from the hold of the senses, from the hold of my physical body and the physical world around my body, that I sense with my physical senses.

Later on when I began to see my thoughts from an observing space, I thought non-attachment meant "I am looking at this but it doesn't have the power to affect me" - protection.

Then as I started to work more with my ego, I would use self-negating affirmations like "I am not this" "I am not that" - along the thinking of Bulleh Shah"I know not what I am; but I know what I am not,". That's when I figured that non-attachment meant no more identifying with anything. Thing-less-ness. Form-less-ness.

But all of these are just conceptionalizations that really only muddied the still and squeaky clean mental pond I was trying to achieve. They were useful tools in getting to the meditative state but after the meditation session was over, I was back out there in the world having to use my senses, and be bombarded with life, and dealing with my ego as well as other people's egos. Then along came Sri Vasudeva into my life with this radical, emancipating notion of what I'll call proactive non-attachment:

"Nonattachment simply means not being driven by the world but being in one’s own power, and allowing yourself to be driven by inside."
And I thought - wow how cool is that?! It's simply means being centred as I act. And then I knew what I had to focus on. It was to get more and more centred, in deeper and deeper in contact with Source Consciousness. But that wasn't enough because I needed to stay centred throughout the meditation, and if I could, stay centred throughout my entire day, or at least being able to reconnect at a moment's notice.

Then he puts this caveat to it:

"And when you’re driven by inside, the drives are noble, they are uplifting instead of destructive"
That's telling there is genuine centring in the Source, and there is false centring in the Source because my ego is tricky and my mind is in league/partnership/conspiracy with my ego. I can think I am centred in Source when I am not. I have witnessed this many many times! (It's super easy to see this in others.)

Here he is giving me a simple way of knowing when it is genuine centring: "The drives are noble, they are uplifting instead of destructive". That applies to both me and to the "other" who (in this reality) appears as "not me". "Uplifting" can mean all kinds of things that bring up the vibration - happiness, new insights, vitality, inspiration - a whole range of things. And what is "noble"? Well to me it's things done by people I admire - random acts of kindness, turning the other cheek, and other things.

Non-attachment is really part of this lifestyle of living-in-surrender that I'm trying to achieve. I would have never put that together with all the concepts I was given over the years. It certainly doesn't mean "I don't care." Central to the goal of meditation is not to be dead to the world but to be an active participant in it.