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Spirit News Blog - May 2007
"The Mongolian steppes stretch as far as the eye can see – right to the edge of the sky: hard-packed dirt and shale punctuated by small shrubs and feathergrass. Here and there, a lone ger – the round nomadic tent – with dung smoke rising through its roof hole toward a pale sun!"
- A Spiritual Odyssey Through Mongolia : Chidananda Burke, of the Sri Chinmoy Centre, recounts a recent visit to Mongolia.
"My heart-rate drops almost instantly, but jolts on hearing the dulcet tones of 50 Cent, which a kindly school boy at the back is treating his fellow travellers to. Too much of a coward to ask him to lower the volume, I realise this is the perfect test of my meditation techniques.."
- Commuting Meditation Meditation on your daily commute at Sumangali.org
"One evening, Shyama Charan Lahiri was roaming at the foot of the Himalayas while on a short visit to the area, when he heard a voice saying, Shyama Charan, Shyama Charan. He was surprised to see a sadhu calling him from a distance. The sadhu approached him and said, Cant you recognise me, my child, my son?"
- Lahiri Mahasaya's Initiation and other stories about the Indian Spiritual Master, Lahiri Mahasaya
I have loved Thee with two loves -
a selfish love and a love that is worthy of Thee.
- Rabia al Basri
- Poetry of Rabia al Basri at Poet Seers
More Links
Spiritual Articles by Sahayak Plowman at Sri Chinmoy Books.com.
71 Things you can do - good list (I'll give the dancing a miss though)
Ramayana Bridge seen from Space
Picture by: Projjwal, Sri Chinmoy Centre Galleries
The Existence of God
"They proved to me by convincing reasons that God does not exist; Afterwards I saw God, for he came and embraced me. And now what am I to believe- the reasoning of others or my own experience? Truth is what the soul has seen and experienced; the rest is appearance, prejudice and opinion."
By: Sri Aurobindo
Photo by Unmesh Sri Chinmoy Centre Galleries
- Talk on the Existence of God by Sri Chinmoy
Related:
Sri Ramakrishna and Swami Vivekananda
Swami Vivekananda
When Naren, (Swami Vivekananda ) first came to visit Sri Ramakrishna , he was not altogether impressed with what he saw. His mind doubted this perplexing, unorthodox figure. He left dissatisfied, but, at the same time he felt strangely compelled to return to visit Ramakrishna at Dakshineswar. Sri Ramakrishna, on the other hand, immediately saw in his beloved Naren, tremendous spiritual potential. After his first meeting, he predicted Naren would at one time do great things for his beloved Mother Kali.
Love's Philosophy
THE fountains mingle with the river
And the rivers with the ocean,
The winds of heaven mix for ever
With a sweet emotion;
Nothing in the world is single,
All things by a law divine
In one another's being mingle—
Why not I with thine?
See the mountains kiss high heaven,
And the waves clasp one another;
No sister-flower would be forgiven
If it disdain'd its brother;
And the sunlight clasps the earth,
And the moonbeams kiss the sea—
What are all these kissings worth,
If thou kiss not me?
By: Percy B. Shelley
Photo by Phoolanjaya: Sri Chinmoy Centre Galleries
Daibatsu Buddha
"For centuries the light of the Buddha has shone as a beacon beckoning men from across the sea of darkness. Like lost children, millions of seekers have reached out to the light with their heart's inmost cry, and the Buddha has shown them the Way. The world stood before the Buddha with it's ignorance, and the Buddha, the Enlightened One, gave man Truth. The world offered its age old suffering to the Buddha's heart and the Buddha, Lord of Compassion, showed man the Dharma."
From Introduction to: Siddhartha Becomes The Buddha by Sri Chinmoy
Other selected parts from the play:
Buddha and Ananda On the passing of Lord Buddha.
Ranjit and Unmesh Swanson, are meditation students of Sri Chinmoy, who have frequently visited the Indian subcontinent. They have visited various spiritual sites such as Dakshineswar (where Sri Ramakrishna lived)
This is a selection of some of their music. It is sung in the Baoul tradition of wandering mendicants; they are accompanied by simple stringed instruments and percussion. Enjoy:
Recording 1: Vishna Ar Droma by Sri Chinmoy + Song of Sri Ramakrishna. Listen Now (m4a)
Recording 2: 1 song by Sri Chinmoy: 1 song by Sri Ramakrishna: Listen Now (m4a)
Recording 3: 1 song composed by Sri Chinmoy: 1 song a Bhajan of Mirabai: Listen Now
More:
Picture of Dakshineswar, India by Unmesh Swanson: Sri Chinmoy Galleries
By: Kate Carvalho
Akbar the Great
Akbar the Great Moghul emperor ruled Northern India from 1556 to 1605. He was a great leader, warrior, hunter, a lover of nature and the arts, expert sportsman and philosopher. Akbar was a multifaceted man - a master of all arts, yet one of his most revered qualities and greatest legacies was his great love for and practice of religious tolerance. Viewed in the context of the era in which Akbar lived this is all the more astonishing and impressive. In a time where wars constantly waged in the name of religion, prejudice was rife in many parts of the world and would remain so for hundreds of years, Akbar practiced an unprecedented kindness, compassion and reverence for many religious other than his own Muslim faith.
Akbar ruled Hindus, Muslims, Zoroastrians, and Jains, members of which were all treated equally under his philosophy of sulahkul or "universal tolerance. With Akbar as their ruler, for the first time in their history India had a Muslim leader who not only tolerated the many other religions, but actively sought out their guidance and wisdom.
"No price is too great to pay for inner peace. "
- Sri Chinmoy
Consciously or unconsciously we are all searching for inner peace. Inner peace is the foundation of lasting happiness, and satisfaction. Without inner peace, man can not know, either himself, or be at peace with the world.
1. Inner Peace is a Choice.
It is our own thoughts that will either bring us peace or restlessness. If our mind is clear of useless, undivine thoughts, we can experience inner peace in abundance. When we lose our inner peace it is because of our own thoughts. It is tempting to blame our problems on the world and other people. However, a man of inner peace will not allow the outer world to disturb his inner mind. If we maintain equanimity and detachment to events of the world, inner peace will remain a permanent feature of our mind.
- Sri Chinmoy [1]
Criticism has no peace
Either in the inner world
Or the outer world.
~~~
Forgiveness
Is mightier
Than the mightiest
~~~
The aspiring heart
Makes my life
Beauty's heart-garden
By: Sri Chinmoy
Aphorisms from Seventy Seven Thousand Service Trees part 33 by Sri Chinmoy
Photo by Prabhakar: Sri Chinmoy Centre Galleries
If
If you can disentangle
yourself from your selfish self
all heavenly spirits
will stand ready to serve you
if you can finally hunt down
your own beastly self
you have the right
to claim Solomon's kingdom
you are that blessed soul who
belongs to the garden of paradise
is it fair to let yourself
fall apart in a shattered house
you are the bird of happiness
in the magic of existence
what a pity when you let
yourself be chained and caged
but if you can break free
from this dark prison named body
soon you will see
you are the sage and the fountain of life
By: Rumi
Translation by: Nader Khalili
Photo by Prabhakar: Sri Chinmoy Centre Galleries
by Vidagdha Bennett
A university-educated friend of mine once asked Sri Chinmoy if he should accept a challenging, executive position or one that offered far less pay. Sri Chinmoy responded with this enigmatic message: “Just earn enough to defray the costs of your earthly existence.” Overcoming a certain amount of ambition, my friend accepted the lower salary. It enabled him to live simply and, at the same time, this job gave him the freedom to pursue his spiritual life.
According to Sri Chinmoy’s philosophy, a moderate simplicity is a great advantage. The desire for material things not only binds us but also entangles our thoughts, our emotions. It creates unnecessary worries and anxieties in our lives. Admittedly, it is extremely difficult to extricate oneself from that cycle, but if we can make even the slightest move to lead a simpler life, the resultant feelings of freedom and joy percolate through our entire existence. That is why, perhaps, books like Karen Kingston’s Clear Your Clutter have found such a receptive audience in recent years. They encourage us to examine all our possessions and reduce them—drastically.
Anger
Anger says:
"I can destroy
The whole world."
Peace says:
"Not when I work
Inside you."
By: Sri Chinmoy
- Poems on Anger at Poetseers.org
Photo by Unmesh Sri Chinmoy Centre Galleries
Related post:
- Losing Face - Gaining Wisdom - Ashrita gives an honest insight into his experience of anger and transcendence.
Leisure
WHAT is this life if, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare?—
No time to stand beneath the boughs,
And stare as long as sheep and cows:
No time to see, when woods we pass,
Where squirrels hide their nuts in grass:
No time to see, in broad daylight,
Streams full of stars, like skies at night:
No time to turn at Beauty's glance,
And watch her feet, how they can dance:
No time to wait till her mouth can
Enrich that smile her eyes began?
A poor life this if, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare.
By: W.H.Davies
Photo by Pranlobha: Sri Chinmoy Centre Galleries
- Poems on Life at Poetseers.org