The Shiva Forum

[SoulGenesis]

Originally Posted by Shivani Devi

I am not worried about what comes after this...I exist for the moment..and what will be, will be. I trust that God will take my hand when the time comes, but I don't buy into the illusion either.

But I know that God loves me, just because he revealed himself to me, not because he made me happy here and now (love is in his word/revelation). On the contrary I had to go through fire, that's the price we have to pay to reach there. But maybe women are the other side of karmic pain-debt, so supposedly from there could come the balance. I just paid what I had to pay and nobody owes me anything nor do I feel owing anything, it's just what God will reward when I'm "there" (as (reincarnated) soul in timespace).

[Shivani Devi]

Originally Posted by SoulGenesis

But I know that God loves me, just because he revealed himself to me, not because he made me happy here and now (love is in his word/revelation). On the contrary I had to go through fire, that's the price we have to pay to reach there. But maybe women are the other side of karmic pain-debt, so supposedly from there could come the balance. I just paid what I had to pay and nobody owes me anything nor do I feel owing anything, it's just what God will reward when I'm "there" (as (reincarnated) soul in timespace).

Yeah, God revealed himself to me as well through unconditional love. I also went through the baptism of Fire... Kundalini.

[SoulGenesis]

Originally Posted by Shivani Devi

Yeah, God revealed himself to me as well through unconditional love. I also went through the baptism of Fire... Kundalini.

So maybe we'll meet "there", but only when we met the conditions.
Maybe you're the unconditional grid/eye of the needle-keeper?

[Nature Grows]

Ok, thank u for taking the time to type that shivani.

[Shivani Devi]

Originally Posted by Nature Grows

Ok, thank u for taking the time to type that shivani.

You are more than welcome and I shall get back to you about Sadguru and the Aghori soon...I think I have already seen that one, but I can't be sure of it, so I'll have to watch it fully over the next day or so.

Aum Namah Shivaya

[Still_Waters]

Originally Posted by Shivani Devi

Namaste.

The weird thing is that it is not a problem or a dilemma for me, it is just like that for everybody else and because everybody else had huge problems with what I did and what I believed in, it created a dilemma for me, where there was none.

Until I learned that it did not matter if even the whole world disagreed with me and followed the same viewpoint. I am very happy and satisfied within myself overall...sure, there are a few "teething problems" but I have a very strong and stubborn will....and so does Shiva. LOL

I know that I honestly love Shiva as a "God", but having total Faith, trust and surrender is another matter... Sometimes it's like that... Sometimes it is not, but it should be like that all the time..or more often anyway and then if I am meant to obtain Moksha, it will be by His Grace.

These are concepts that the intellectuals know nothing about.

Aum Namah Shivaya

If you are truly "very happy and satisfied within myself overall", then just be where you are. I've noticed that, at times, I have felt very happy and content with my state at a particular point in time, and eventually discovered that this sometimes impeded further progress. When the time is right, tendencies (vasanas) fall away quite naturally as the ripe fruit falls naturally off the tree. Some spiritual tendencies never really fall away but one sees them in a different light and delights in them.

Ramana Maharshi is considered to be a self-realized master in India and he was asked why he continues to participate in kirtans and bhajans and pujas. His response was that he loves hearing the stories and chants/songs and delights in them. He added that he couldn't think of anything better to do. I never forgot that. I still delight in my favorite chants.

Aum Namah Shivay

[Still_Waters]

Originally Posted by davidsun

"Still waters run deep!"

Re: Omni-potent and all-knowing, let me ask readers to contemplate why (on earth or anywhere else for that matter :smile) would any soul even 'want' to be/experience that? As though sufficiency: i.e. sufficient knowledge and sufficient power wasn't completely being-fulfilling in one's present state.

It strikes me that the very desire to steady-state be/experience living at the Omni/All level implies a thought, feeling or belief of 'not enough'ness.

This is the very same 'temptation', to wit: "in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods" (which implies one thinks, feels, believes one isn't so as is), which falsehood-based 'seductive' temptation, as succumbed to, resulted in metaphorical Eve and Adam being allegorically 'exiled' from The Garden of Eden, and so existentially experiencing 'incompleteness' (i.e. insufficiency) thereafter.

Watch out for 'wanting', 'desiring', 'believing' that it would be better, i.e. that 'you' would be/feel more 'fulfilled', if you could be and did experience being more that you presently are, folks!

Let him or her that can hear hear! Lots of such 'temptation' being pied-piper-bandied about in places such as here!

Speaking of bandying hoops about (kids 'played' this way in India where I grew up) : "Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven."

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hoop_rolling

Your points are well taken, but you may have missed my point. Craving or desiring powers/siddhis such as omnipotence/all-knowing/etc. is considered problematic in many mystical traditions, as you duly noted, for exactly the reasons that you gave and more. Acquisition of powers can also lead to pride, which often precedes a great fall, and potentially problematic entanglement in the cosmic drama.

However, when one is truly pure of heart, such things happen quite naturally IN THE PROPER MOMENT as appropriate power flows through one's being to facilitate addressing a specific situation that may require more insight. To paraphrase what you wrote, what manifests is only what is "sufficient" in that moment to address that particular situation.

Ramana Maharshi similarly disdained the quest for acquisition of powers but did note that, when one is pure of heart and operates from the perspective of unitary consciousness, one can call upon whatever powers are necessary to address a specific situation in the best interests of all with no expectation of a reward. The power flows quite naturally and the insights manifest as what I call "pure intuition". A metaphor that I use often is that of an eagle soaring into the sky of consciousness to see the "Big Picture" from the "God Consciousness" perspective and then returning with that knowledge to address the situation as best as possible without displaying any signs of the power or traces of pride. I call it "pure intuition" as one can only respond "I don't know" when asked how one knew what was apparently unknowable. It just happens without desire or craving.

Nonetheless, your point is well taken.

I might add that I've personally met some remarkable beings with many of them being at the Khumba Mela in Haridwar, India, in 1998. One of them actually manifested in an empty open field and, in six simple words, answered a pressing question that a friend and I were discussing. He vanished as quickly as he appeared. When we hastened back to our ashram bursting with excitement (and pride) to tell our spiritual mentor about this, she was sitting with some great sages and beckoned us to come to her. As we told the story, the sages were quite calm as they listened. Then our teacher spoke something to the effect that the person whom we saw, who had been at the bandara (sadhu feast) the previous day, did this all the time and everyone knew it. She indicated that we had been blessed by the experience but that she did NOT want to hear the story circulating around the ashram that day. She instructed us to spend the day in silence and to meditate on what had happened and how such things are possible. To curtail our pride, she also told us to occupy our time that day washing the hallways and the bathrooms. As for the materializing sage, we never saw him again as he did not do it for attention or to attract disciples. However, I will never forget him nor will I forget the precise, concise, most appropriate statement that he made in six simple words. I have other stories alone those lines which led me to the conclusion that, for one who is pure in heart with no craving whatsoever, virtually anything is possible when one surrenders to that which lies beyond and connects to it.

[Shivani Devi]

Originally Posted by Still_Waters

If you are truly "very happy and satisfied within myself overall", then just be where you are. I've noticed that, at times, I have felt very happy and content with my state at a particular point in time, and eventually discovered that this sometimes impeded further progress. When the time is right, tendencies (vasanas) fall away quite naturally as the ripe fruit falls naturally off the tree. Some spiritual tendencies never really fall away but one sees them in a different light and delights in them.

Ramana Maharshi is considered to be a self-realized master in India and he was asked why he continues to participate in kirtans and bhajans. His response was that he loves hearing the stories and chants/songs and delights in them. He added that he couldn't think of anything better to do. I never forgot that. I still delight in my favorite chants.

Namaste... beautiful analogy and story...As I was reading about the ripe fruit falling off the tree, the Mahamrityunjaya Mantra came to mind;

http://greenmesg.org/stotras/shiva/m...aya_mantra.php

Ramana Maharishi would never give up his love for Arunachala Shiva...even after enlightenment.

There is a part which still delights in the separation, even after realising the nature of self.

Adi Shankaracharya was known for his non dual philosophy...for composing the Atma Shatakam which attests to the nature of his Divinity....but I much prefer this work from Shankara...It is the Kala Bhairava Ashtakam...A beautiful devotional piece to Lord Shiva, written after Atma Shatakam..
https://youtu.be/ASa08VbK5V4

Aum Namah Shivaya

[Still_Waters]

Originally Posted by Shivani Devi

Namaste... beautiful analogy and story...As I was reading about the ripe fruit falling off the tree, the Mahamrityunjaya Mantra came to mind;

http://greenmesg.org/stotras/shiva/m...aya_mantra.php

Ramana Maharishi would never give up his love for Arunachala Shiva...even after enlightenment.

There is a part which still delights in the separation, even after realising the nature of self.

Adi Shankaracharya was known for his non dual philosophy...for composing the Atma Shatakam which attests to the nature of his Divinity....but I much prefer this work from Shankara...It is the Kala Bhairava Ashtakam...A beautiful devotional piece to Lord Shiva, written after Atma Shatakam..
https://youtu.be/ASa08VbK5V4

Aum Namah Shivaya

Those are two of my favorite hymns, the Mahamrityunjaya Mantra and Shankaracharya's Atma Shatakam.

I am going to share with you a story that I don't share often.

I started yoga many many years ago and, at the end of some yogic practices at the ashram, they would do a kirtan which varied from day to day. At that time (certainly not now), I found that to be a waste of time repeating the same thing over and over and over again. (Needless to say, I discovered later that this reduces one's thoughts to one thought and, from one thought, one can proceed quite naturally to the stillness.)

Whenever I could extricate myself from the kirtan room, I did so as quickly as possible. However, there were times when I couldn't extricate myself because the room was particularly crowded or for some other reason where I couldn't get out without creating an inappropriate disturbance. It was interesting to note that, whenever I was "stuck", it was always the same mantra. In time, that mantra grew on me and I actually started to enjoy it and delight in it. Eventually, whenever I was "stuck" in this manner, I anticipated what the mantra would be and, sure enough, it was the same mantra. That eventually became my mantra quite naturally and very unexpectedly.

When my future (and final) spiritual mentor initiated me years later, she asked me if I wanted a mantra. I knew which mantra I wanted but I also wanted to have complete trust in my teacher so I responded affirmatively regarding her giving me a mantra. Sure enough, she gave me the same mantra.

Years later, at the Khumba Mela in Haridwar (India, 1998), I was talking with a friend while walking through a huge empty field towards the Ganges River. We were discussing which practice is better ---- japa (mantra meditation) or aarti. Suddenly, out of nowhere, a mysterious sage appeared. (It was a sage whom we had seen at a sadhu feast the previous day when the acharya and mahamandeleshwaras had all bowed down to him and touched his feet). Without even asking him, he spoke to me directly and part of what he said was my mantra. (The rest of the story has already been told in a prior post in this thread.) That reinforced my connection to the mantra.

I'm sure that you won't be surprised to hear that the mantra was and IS "Aum Namah Shivay".

P.S. By the way, I have learned that each much choose the practice best suited to one's spiritual temperament and progress. For me, it was japa. For my friend, it was devotional aarti. One practice is not better than the other. However, one practice may be better suited to a particular individual than the other at a particular point in time.

Aum Namah Shivay

[Shivani Devi]

Originally Posted by Still_Waters

Those are two of my favorite hymns, the Mahamrityunjaya Mantra and Shankaracharya's Atma Shatakam.

I am going to share with you a story that I don't share often.

I started yoga many many years ago and, at the end of some yogic practices at the ashram, they would do a kirtan which varied from day to day. At that time (certainly not now), I found that to be a waste of time repeating the same thing over and over and over again. (Needless to say, I discovered later that this reduces one's thoughts to one thought and, from one thought, one can proceed quite naturally to the stillness.)

Whenever I could extricate myself from the kirtan room, I did so as quickly as possible. However, there were times when I couldn't extricate myself because the room was particularly crowded or for some other reason where I couldn't get out without creating an inappropriate disturbance. It was interesting to note that, whenever I was "stuck", it was always the same mantra. In time, that mantra grew on me and I actually started to enjoy it and delight in it. Eventually, whenever I was "stuck" in this manner, I anticipated what the mantra would be and, sure enough, it was the same mantra. That eventually became my mantra quite naturally and very unexpectedly.

When my spiritual mentor initiated me, she asked me if I wanted a mantra. I knew which mantra I wanted but I also wanted to have complete trust in my teacher so I responded affirmatively regarding her giving me a mantra. Sure enough, she gave me the same mantra.

Years later, at the Khumba Mela in Haridwar (India, 1998), I was talking with a friend while walking through a huge empty field towards the Ganges River. We were discussing which practice is better ---- japa (mantra meditation) or aarti. Suddenly, out of nowhere, a mysterious sage appeared. (It was a sage whom we had seen at a sadhu feast the previous day when the acharya and mahamandeleshwaras had all bowed down to him and touched his feet). Without even asking him, he spoke to me directly and part of what he said was my mantra. (The rest of the story has already been told in a prior post in this thread.) That reinforced my connection to the mantra.

I'm sure that you won't be surprised to hear that the mantra was and IS "Aum Namah Shivay".

P.S. By the way, I have learned that each much choose the practice best suited to one's spiritual temperament and progress. For me, it was japa. For my friend, it was devotional aarti. One practice is not better than the other. However, one practice may be better suited to a particular individual than the other at a particular point in time.

Aum Namah Shivay

What an incredible and amazing story and thank you so much for sharing it. I always enjoy talking with you, because nobody else on here gives real life experiences of Yoga and Hindu practices and this is like a breath of fresh air for me.

My turn:

For most of my life, I have been a devotee of Lord Shiva...I first became interested as a young girl, during a Thaipusam ceremony at Batu Caves in Malaysia...of course, if Shiva's son could make all that possible, I wanted to know what the Father was capable of.

I became interested in Lord Shiva, altered states of consciousness and before long, in my late teens, I ran away to Rishikesh and the Divine Life Society, studied under Swami Satyananda and Swami Chidananda Saraswati and did my IYTA accreditation based on the works of Swami Vishnudevananda...yeah, studied Patanjali, Swami Svatmarama's Hatha Yoga Pradipika and all.

Then Swami Chidananda's secretary asked if I wanted Mantra Diksha and I jumped at the opportunity...However, when the time came, he gave me a Devi Goddess Mantra.."Sarva mangal mangaalye" and I was disappointed because I wanted something like "Aum Namah Shivaya" and so I whined to Swamiji...who just said "the way to Shiva is through Shakti" and left it there...So I went back to chanting Aum Namah Shivaya anyway, waiting for those vasanas to clear themselves...too many samskaras for that. LOL

I enjoy your Kumbh Mela stories...that time we worked on my Rudra Granthi...that time we discussed Gaudapada's Karika of the Mandukya Upanishad...

Aum Namah Shivaya

PS...What "works best" for me is Trataka, Yoga Nidra, focusing on the murthi of Lord Shiva, kirtans and Tantric rituals (non sexual).