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Yesterday’s Guru Purnima was a beautiful day beginning with a Surya Ram class and ending with an evening of Vedic knowledge and sitting outside in the enchanting mountain night.
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Dr. Michael Mamas’ students honored him with some beautiful words spoken by Barbara Weisshaar.
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If you would like to hear this, you may download the mp3 file.
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“We first make our habits,
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and then our habits make us.”
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– John Dryden
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“Life is either a daring adventure or nothing.” – Helen Keller
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I have yet to meet the person whose life has not been a daring adventure, though I have met many who did their best to avoid that.
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Best to embrace the adventure, but to do so wisely.
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The universe
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~~is born of sound.
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Light is sound…
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~~of a particular frequency.
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From time to time scientists and academicians are referenced to support things that I say.
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Though it is appreciated and sometimes quite interesting and even helpful, it is important to remember that we are the authorities here.
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I mean no disrespect. Their knowledge certainly does have value.
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However, things must be kept in their proper place. The following quote addresses this.
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“The book-learned are reputed to be wise,
but they are attached to the world of ignorance.”
– Sri Ramakrishna Paramhansa
My years of commitment to the school and Mount Soma have led me along a most remarkable and unexpected path.
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By fully committing myself to my work, attention naturally shifted away from my personality, or what I like to call my samskara self. My identity ceased to be with my individuality. I have been overtaken by a flow that I can only describe as God.
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The universe is an unbounded ocean of consciousness in motion. It is a Divine flow. When the individuality melts away, you are left with universality. This is the path of devotion.
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Physical representations of God certainly have their value. Emotional enrapturement with God does also. However, a loss of individuality leads to a disappearance of the small self that most identify with.
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Devotion culminates in the dissolution of the samskara self (which is sometimes incorrectly referred to as the death of ‘ego’). It culminates in the awakening to the Divine Ego. The Ego does not die. It transforms, becoming infinitely huge, including all that is.
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The dissolution of the small self is at times a scary thing. You, at times, feel like you are losing your grip on life. You feel like you are being overtaken by something that at first feels separate from your self. The value system that you have clung to and were brought up with waxes insignificant.
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The process is one of all out commitment. You are in with both feet! No holding back. No hedging your bets! No compromising.
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I did not think of it in this manner as it happened. I did not view it as a technique that would evolve me. It was not about ‘me’ at all. It was about the throwing away of ‘me’ in the name of a purpose.
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Only years into the process did I begin to see where it was leading – to the death of ‘me.’
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God takes over everything. You cease to exist. It is as if I am becoming invisible – a virtual imagine. It feels like I am no longer really ‘here.’
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Yet it is not selfless… not really. Really, the old self is constructed of samskaras… conditioning… programming. That just melts away to leave you with what lies deeper.
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The true Self… God.
Beginning immediately after Thanksgiving, I will be taking a group of people deep into Kaivalya (the silent depths of the Transcendent.) This program will be very inward, including extensive meditation and mantras.
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This program will not be available to commuters. You must be able to arrange your worldly affairs in a manner that is at most minimally distracting. Participants will not leave Mount Soma during the course unless absolutely necessary and approved in advance.
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This intensive course is not for the faint of heart and is not recommended for those who have a history of confrontation, negativity or roughness during meditation retreats.
All participants will be required to strictly adhere to the program. The Student Union Building should certainly be completed well before then, so housing will be comfortable. Space is limited.
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Opportunities such as this rarely come about. If you are fortunate enough to attend you will enjoy a huge leap forward in your personal evolution.
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More information on how to apply and further details will be provided soon.
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Feel free to post brief questions in the Comments section of this blog. They will be addressed in upcoming blogs or notices. Please do not send questions to me or the office directly.
Though the sun shines, the blind cannot see it.
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Yet if they were to pay attention, they could not only feel the warmth of the sun upon their face, but could also distinguish between day and night- morning and eve.
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If they allow their attention to become yet more settled, by smelling the air they could make those same distinctions.
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They could know the nature of the clouds above by the feeling the sensation upon their skin.
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Few in life discern the subtle in that manner. They prefer clinging to the thoughts that rattle around in their brain and pursuing increasingly intense stimuli to keep them entertained.
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Oh, if only they were willing to pursue the sublime.
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They would learn to open their eyes and finally see the sun.
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Even in the most challenging incarnation, greatness can be attained provided your dedication is sufficient.
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Greatness can not be measured superficially.
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It does not involve wealth, recognition, or even success in worldly endeavors.
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This world is nothing.
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It’s what lies deeper that matters.
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You have to find that within yourself.
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That’s it.
The Truth about Religion and Flatlining
