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Spirit News Blog - July 2007
Philosophy and spirituality share some common ideas, but also differ in their approach and practise of the truth. To some people there is a wide divergence between philosophy and spirituality. However, to some extent, they share some similarities and both have their role to play in the discovery of truth.
1. Mind and Heart.
Philosophy deals primarily with the mind. It tries to understand, solve and explain problems through mental clarity and written explanation. Philosophy can seek to prove the existence of God, but this proof is always through the medium of the human intellect. In philosophy, it is the mind that is predominant.
"Philosophy is in the thinking mind. Philosophy is of the searching mind. Philosophy is for the illumining mind."
[1] - Sri Chinmoy
Spirituality accepts the mind can have a role to play; but, at the same time it can never be satisfied solely with the reasoning of the mind. Spirituality wishes to experience the heart of reality, and not just examine life from the fringes. Spirituality is not so much concerned with proving God's existence; spirituality teaches us to make the God a living presence in our consciousness.
"Spirituality is in the aspiring heart. Spirituality is of the liberating soul. Spirituality is for the fulfilling and immortalising God."
[1] - Sri Chinmoy
My Gratitude Flames
Thorns die,
Roses live.
Hate dies,
Love lives.
Desire dies,
Aspiration lives.
The human in me dies,
The divine in me lives.
My gratitude-flames
In the Heart of God
Never shall die.
Eternally they breathe,
Eternally they sport,
Eternally they manifest
The Supreme,
My Supreme.
By: Sri Chinmoy
More: Gratitude Quotes
Photo by: Prabhakar Street, Sri Chinmoy Centre Galleries
Quotes by P.Yogananda
"Let my soul smile through my heart
and my heart smile through my eyes,
that I may scatter rich smiles in sad hearts."
"Many people excuse their own faults
but judge other persons harshly.
We should reverse this attitude
by excusing others' shortcomings and by harshly examining our own."
"There is a magnet in your heart that will attract true friends.
That magnet is unselfishness, thinking of others first.
When you learn to live for others, they will live for you."
Photo by Pavitrata Sri Chinmoy Centre Galleries
"No matter which path you follow for meditation, the first and foremost task is to try to make the mind calm and quiet. "
- Sri Chinmoy [1]
Beginners to meditation find that when they sit down to meditate their mind is akin to a mad monkey; no matter how hard we try, the power of the mind's thoughts seem to make meditation most difficult. However, it is possible to have a completely clear mind. It is not easy, but there are various techniques that can be used to quieten the mind. These are some techniques that I recommend.
1. The Source of Thoughts.
Whenever a thought appears in your mind, ask yourself - where did this thought originate from? Try to dive deep into the source of this thought. When you follow the source of your thoughts you realise that our real essence is not mental thoughts; there is something beyond thought. This is a powerful technique for calming our mind because we realise there is a separation between what we are and our thoughts. When we feel thoughts as separate from our identity it is easy to stop them completely.
2. Will Power.
Another technique to stop thoughts is to use the power of our will. Develop the determination to stop all thoughts completely. Feel like you are vigilantly guarding your mind. As soon as a thought appears stop it entering. If you like you can imagine throwing it out of your mind completely. The important thing is to not allow any thought, whether good or bad.