Comfort Zone

As long as we are caught in our 'comfort zone' we are incapable of experiencing the 'zone'. This 'zone' is variously described from the perspective of athletics, business, music, art, etc. But what is this 'zone' really? It is the State of Being beyond ourselves.

Beyond our ordinary state of consciousness is the extraordinary State of Being. This is the state of consciousness devoid of ego superimposition. Our real nature is suppressed in the mind due to the presence of ego: due to the false identification of consciousness with the insentient (unconscious) elements, including the body, senses, mind, memory intellect, and the ego itself. These last four (mind, memory, intellect, and ego) are called the Antahkarana Cautusthya, or 'fourfold inner organ'.

Our mind, memory, intellect and ego are supposed to be used to express the inherent beauty and freedom of the Self, and when this happens one is in 'the Zone'. This is the Zone of zones. All other zones are indicative of this Zone. That is, all our high experiences of having 'gone beyond ourselves' point to the State of Being which is always beyond our self (our small self, ego). In other words, the pristine state of Pure Consciousness already exists. It always exists and is unchangeable, indestructible, unalterable. It cannot be adulterated or modified by the mind. However, its reflection in the mind is changed according to what we 'have in mind'. For example, we all have the potential to go beyond ourselves and achieve the 'zone'. But if our mind is filled with self-defeating thoughts, or we are attached to our 'comfort zone', we will NOT be able to experience the 'zone'. We always have the potential, but that potential is directly proportional to our determination.

We have to make up our mind to go beyond our self-imposed limitations. Our limitations include our bias, our mental images, our grudges, our laziness, and all the other 'babies' of mind and ego. Yes, these are our 'babies', they are produced by the union of mind and ego, and we are very attached to them. We identify with these (and other) creations of mind and ego and after a while we feel 'at home' with them; that is, we feel comfortable in our little space until something comes along to disturb it (which will always happen). This comfort zone is our own self-curse.

To reach our highest potential (in any field of life) we must break out of our comfort zone. In the field of life itself, we have to bring into play all our inherent talents and strengths, our innate knowledge, and most especially, our sincerity and humility to completely go beyond our ego and attain the highest state of Consciousness. OM

Little 'me' is your misery

Little 'me' is our misery, but we want to blame it on something outside ourselves. Little 'me' is the cause of our loneliness, little 'me' is the cause of our heartbreaks and headaches, but we want to blame it on the 'other'. My mother, my father, my brother, my sister, my husband, my wife--we blame everyone and then we blame 'life', but the truth is we are the author of our own strife.

Our life is a fiction that we create in our mind, and everyone's fiction is a little different, and this creates friction because we want everyone to think just like us. Even though most people are insane, everyone does not think the same.

To remove the friction and discord from our life we need to 'get out of our head' and open our heart to the wisdom of the Wise. Only a human being grounded in divine wisdom is really sane, and such a human being is rare to be found. Most so-called 'wise people' have not really 'wised-up' and are still chasing after name and fame. The wounded and lame flock around them like pigeons at the park, but these 'spiritual' pigeons remain in the dark. The blind cannot lead the blind, and the power-hungry cannot feed the hungry.

We should hunger only for the power of humility, because with that power comes the grace God. Only the grace of God can take away our misery and pain. That grace is essential, and that grace is our own Essence. When that grace flows, every trace of selfishness is removed from our nature.

Misery is of our own making; it is not superimposed upon us by others. Misery is the superimposition of little 'me' on the mind. If we have little 'me' on our mind, our mind becomes heavy and we lose all peace. Don't you think it's time to wise-up and drop little 'me'? We can let it go in the blink of an eye, but only if we connect the mind to the Supreme 'I'.

Connecting the mind to the Real Self is the only way to be happy and free, otherwise, we will remain caught up in little 'me.'

Mental Feelings Are Unreal

All feelings arising from the mind are essenceless; only the absolute feeling of the Absolute is Real, and that feeling is beyond the mind.

What is the Absolute Feeling?

The Absolute Feeling of the Absolute is the connection of our pure consciousness with the all-pervading Supreme Consciousness. Unless our consciousness is pure, we will not be able to grasp the meaning of the Absolute Feeling. In fact, we won't even have any interest in it.

What is Pure Consciousness?

Pure consciousness is our awareness devoid of mental make-up. Our mental mascara (make-up) masks our perception of reality, hence we are unable to discern what is real and we easily get carried away by our own unreality.

What is Our Own Unreality?

Our own unreality is the story we have created in our own mind. In our mental story, we are the main character in the form of personality. Personality is our own unique flavor of ego. All the stories of our mind revolve around 'little me' (ego). The stories of our mind are unreal, because they have no basis in reality.

What is Reality?

Reality is that which is immutable, indestructible, incorruptible, indivisible, infinite, and immaculate. It is Absolutely Pure, All-Pervading, Formless, Perfect, Eternal, and Changeless. Anything that is based on Reality will naturally exhibit these characteristics. When we are connected to Reality, we manifest the qualities of that Absolute Consciousness. This means that we do not bend our principles to please our little ego, or anyone else's ego.

Principles Have Nothing to Do With Images

Principles have nothing at all to do with images and dogma. Principles are rooted in good practices, whereas images and dogma are rooted in ignorance. It is not possible to know Reality through an image of unreality, and all images are unreal.

What is an Image?

An image is an idea of ego. All ideas born out of ego are created for the sole purpose of supporting and sustaining our individuality, personality, and ego. Most images are only in the form of thoughts, but sometimes we give shape to these thoughts in the form of religion, dogma, and even philosophy. Even science has sometimes given shape to images. Art and literature admittedly give shape to images, but even this admission is sometimes omitted, and the artist or writer will falsely claim that their creation is of a 'special' character or quality, and sometimes even claim that their art or writing represents a Higher Power.

But the truth is, that Higher Power needs no special representation here in this world (or even in the world beyond), because each and every one of us is already the representative of that Supreme Power and Supreme Being. Our problem is that we do not perceive the presence of that Supreme Being within ourselves, and ourselves within that Supreme Being, hence we continue to flounder in our mind and feel tormented by our ego. Our images do not let us see clearly what we need to do to be happy.

We don't need to do much. All we need to do is to stay out of our ego. To do that, we have to drop our images. Images are the crutches of ego, that's why ego doesn't want to let them go. The wisdom of the Wise (the divine Wisdom) confronts our ego and dissolves our images, and we are at once free from both our images and ego (so long as we practice that wisdom).

What does it mean to 'practice wisdom?'

Practicing wisdom simply means to take it to heart and internalize it. If we take something to heart, we will really listen to the good advice even though we are still stuck in our ego. When we internalize what we have taken to heart, we deliberately apply that advice to ourselves, and in so doing our images dissolve and the grip of our ego on our mind is loosened. So long as we keep up the practice, we will ultimately attain the perfection of our consciousness and experience the absolute feeling of the Absolute, beyond the mind. OM

If you really want to be happy . . . .

If you really want to be happy, be in the company of the Wise. The wise people constantly revolve the mind around the wisdom of Consciousness. If our lives orbit around the wise and noble people, we too become wise and noble.

'Orbiting around the Wise' means staying tuned to higher vibrations. The Wise live in those higher vibrations because their mind is filled with wisdom. Wisdom keeps our vibrations high. When we have the knowledge of Soul (Atman, Consciousness) we do not succumb to negativity, boredom, excitement, and other shallow conditions of the mind. The wisdom of Consciousness gives us the power to go beyond our own personality.

Unless we go beyond our personality we can never stabilize our life in the depth of our being. The depth of our being, the core of our consciousness, is the state of Pure Awareness. In that Pure Awareness there is absolutely no pain, anxiety, want, or woe.

Our awareness is not pure if it is hooked to our self-will. We get hooked to our self-will (ego drive) only because we take the bait. In other words, we are driven by our ego only when we follow it. For example, if someone is in their ego and is blaming us for their own shortcomings, we don't have to react to them negatively. Instead, we can become the witness of their mental drama without becoming judgmental. We just see the whole thing as a drama of the mind and ego and remain established in the state of pure awareness. This is easy to do when we see everyone as the essence of Being, as the embodiment of Supreme Consciousness.

The Wise constantly live in the essence of Being and don't give importance to that which is non-essential (the non-essence and the nonsense). They do not seek to validate their small self (ego) because they know the ego is only a phenomena of this material Creation and is not the Unchangeable, Ever-Real, True Self.

Becoming wise, raising our consciousness, and being enlightened is an ongoing process that should never stop. The moment we think we are perfect we lose our connection to the Real and become unreal. Being unreal means being in our ego. The best way to stay out of our ego is to stay in the company of the Wise, because those who are truly wise will not feed into our unreality. To be in the company of the Wise we have to be humble, which simply means we have to drop our ego.

It is not always possible to be physically in close proximity with the Wise, but if we study their teachings and practice their precepts we will gain 'presence of mind', which means our mind will be clear and focused. When our mind is clear and focused on that which is Real, we will be automatically connected to the essence of Being. Established in the essence of Being, wherein reside all the noble and wise people, together we will celebrate every moment of this life in the ecstasy of Divine Consciousness. OM

Gayatri Mantra

Gayatri Mantra

OM BHUR BHUVAH SVAH
TAT SAVITUR VARENYAM
BHARGO DEVASYA DHIMAHI
DHIYO NAH PRACHODAYAT

OM--The Absolute, the Ever-REAL, never unreal, the All-pervading, imageless Truth

BHUH -- The Creator of all things living and non-living; the basis of all Life, all Creation; the Lower Region

BHUVAH -- The Sustainer of Creation, the Life-Force that pervades the body and invigorates the mind and intellect; the Middle Region

SVAHA -- The Giver of Self, the formulator of Consciousness, the Spirit Self, the Higher Region of Pure Consciousness

TAT -- That

SAVITA -- Creator of all this (Bhur Bhuvah Svaha)

VARENYAM -- is the best choice we can make for our lives; there is no choice more worthy than this choice (which is to choose the Highest State of Consciousness)

BHARGO DEVASYA -- The absolutely pure qualities of That absolutely imageless Self

DHIMAHI -- we meditate upon

DHIYOYO NAH -- We invoke that Supreme Power to guide our intellect so that we always make the right choices in our life.

May we always be guided by Divine Wisdom so that we can clearly discern between the Real and the unreal, the True and the False, the helpful and harmful. We affirm our connection to our Original State of Being, and we reaffirm our True Nature again and again by making up our mind to live in the Highest State of Consciousness while living in this human body. OM



This Gayatri Mantra (pronounced: guy-a-tree) is the universal prayer and positive affirmation, which contains the secret (hidden) power to transform ordinary consciousness into the highest state of consciousness. To unlock this power it is necessary to insert the key of deliberation into the mind. In fact, one of the connotations of the word MANTRA is 'deliberation'. In other words, we must deliberate on the meaning and deliberately practice the lessons derived from this deliberation.

Repeat the Gayatri Mantra over, again and again, concentrating on the meanings and losing your self (ego) in the vibrations. This Mantra will bring you close to your Real Self.

Meditation on the Gayatri Mantra

Knowing is Doing

Knowing what to do and doing it go hand in hand. If there is a disconnect between 'knowing' and 'doing', we are living in unreality. Unreality is self-deception. When we deceive ourselves we become deluded. Self-delusion is born of Ignorance--it arises when we ignore what we know and don't do what we know we should do. People who constantly ignore doing what they know they need to do become delusional.

Self-delusion is prevalent in all walks of life, but I will talk about self-delusion on the spiritual path.

The 'spiritual path' is supposed to be the way to Self-Realization (Enlightenment, At-one-ment, Nirvana, Moksha, etc.). But it is impossible to actually realize the Truth without practicing it. To reach one's destination one must walk in the right direction. If we take a wrong turn along the way and don't correct ourselves, we will not reach our destination, we will not end up where we really want to go. Unfortunately, this is the situation with many people who search for the Truth.

It is easy to delude ourselves into thinking we are knowers of truth. There are people who think they know everything, but until we realize that we know nothing it is impossible to become truly wise. There are many so-called spiritual masters who are presumably experienced guides on the spiritual path, and yet few of them have truly trodden that path. There are many people who are wise in their own eyes, even though they remain spiritually blind.

It is easy to preach but difficult to practice what you preach. How can you teach others if you haven't learned your own lessons? There are people who profess to know the truth, and yet they live untruthful lives and continue to delude themselves. We are untruthful to ourselves if we compromise our principles to please our ego or gratify the selfish whims of our mind. If the mind hasn't been purified, we will continue to live in the putrid feelings of our small self. Decorating our mind with images of unreality will not remove the stench of our self-centered habits and gross persona.

There is only one path to the Truth and that is the 'path within'. The 'path within' means we need to be self-contained and zealously avoid self-contamination. We need to restrain our ego and purify the mind. This is done through our daily actions. It is not accomplished by merely reading a book, going to so-called places of worship, or attending a self-help seminar or spiritual discourse.

If we don't know what we need to do, then we need to find out what that is. Once we know what we need to do, we need to practice it. When our practice becomes perfect (which means, 'when we remove all our excuses'), then our 'knowing' and 'doing' will be in concord, and that harmony will resonate in our whole being, and we will have attained the highest state of Consciousness. OM

Life is not a Mental Exercise

Life is not all about thinking. Most people over think and under do. Thinking should be effortless and should not cause any anxiety.

We should be paid for our thinking, otherwise it is a waste of time. At work, we are paid to think. Aside from our duties on the job, our thinking should be minimal, because too much thinking is a source of anxiety. Too much analysis can lead to mental paralysis. The deepest and most meaningful experiences of life do not come from thinking, they come from direct experience. When we experience something through the mechanism of our thinking apparatus (the brain and mind), we are NOT experiencing directly. Thinking is a tool, and we shouldn't become so attached to our tool that we don't know how to put it down and just be ourselves.

When we are thinking about ourselves we are NOT being ourselves. Most of the time, people are thinking about themselves: their feelings, their memories, their expectations, wants, worries, hopes, gains and losses. This is what we call ego-driven thought. When our ego is in the driver's seat it drives us crazy! When we falsely identify ourselves with our mind and its ups and downs, we have no peace or stability. To create balance in our lives we have to find the inner balance and then it will automatically project outward. Inner balance can only be discovered when we control our mind. In fact, inner balance means the control of the mind, and this balance is called Yoga.

A Yogi is one who practices inner balance. A Yogi practices self-restraint. The great sage, Patanjali, has clearly stated in his Yoga Shastra that Yoga is the restraint of the mind; Yoga is to make the mind one-pointed and thus stop it from fluctuating. When the mind becomes still, the Real Self is clearly reflected in the mind; that is, the expression of consciousness is no more distorted.

Too much thinking distorts our perception and cripples our ability to respond in the moment. Instead, we react or just become inert. Mental inertia means to remain stuck in our negative feelings and emotions. We might not outwardly react, but inwardly we are burning up or drowning in our own cesspool of negativity. The 'cesspool of negativity' also includes self-centered exciting feelings which are rooted in our small self ego. For example, you might feel excited when someone pampers your ego, but that excited feeling is not really a positive expression of consciousness, it is simply the stimulus and response mechanism of mind and ego.

Many people drink alcohol, take so-called recreational drugs, engage in promiscuous behavior, etc., all for the sake of experiencing the non-thinking state. But the feelings they experience from these activities are all negative in nature, because these selfish activities destroy the fabric of our being and make us disgusted, demented, and demoralized. 'The fabric of our being' is our character: it is the crystal clear quality of pure consciousness. Only the pure mind can give us the high experience of pure consciousness. People who 'get high' by stooping down to their selfish desires and weaknesses only go lower and lower, and eventually 'bottom out'.

It is not possible to keep our heads high if we don't keep our spirits high, and vice versa: we cannot keep our spirits high unless we can hold our heads high. We should become true Yogis and restrain our mind and senses, and live a life of balance. 'Bhog' means enjoyment, and a Bhogi Yogi is a bogus yogi, a hypocrite and a fraud. Similarly, those people who waste their life away in the shallow enjoyments of the mind and ego, defraud themselves out of their own Real Nature. We rob ourselves of our own true nature when we think and connive in our mind about how to make ourselves permanently happy with the temporary things of this world.

Life is not all about thinking, and thinking, and thinking. Life is all about experiencing our True Nature, our Eternity. For that, we need to silence the mind. To silence the mind, we need to remove our mental disturbances with the wisdom of Consciousness. OM

Universality of Truth

There are billions of people living on this planet earth, and probably trillions more living in other regions of the universe or in other universes. There are millions and millions of differing opinions, ideas, experiences, and so forth. Is there anything that is common to everyone, irrespective of their personal experience or different ideas?

Some people hypothesize that there is no common basis of understanding or experience, and that basically everything is made up according to ones own like or dislikes. They say that everything is a matter of personal preference. Some people say the Truth is just what we make it up to be, and that just as "beauty is in the eyes of the beholder" so also is truth in the eyes of the beholder.

This form of thinking is rooted in individuality, and is not uncommon in a culture that bases itself on the ideal of 'rugged individualism'. Each of us is, after all, unique and 'one of a kind'. One who contemplates deeply on this uniqueness of the self, comes to realize that there is a world of difference between being 'unique' and being 'individualistic'. A unique person is truly one of a kind, whereas an individualistic person is quite common and ordinary. Individuality is the quality of ego, whereas uniqueness is an inherent quality of the soul-self, the pure consciousness.

Ego is the false identification of the conscious self with the mind and body. The soul-self, or pure consciousness, is consciousness devoid of ego expression. When we are really not in our ego, we experience directly the beauty of life, and that experience is always unique, it is always ever-new, and it is not possible to copy that experience in the memory or find a substitute for it. On the other hand, when we are in our ego we intuitively know that our experience is limited, and the mind and ego then react by attempting to cover up our lack. Ego reacts by asserting itself and claims dominion over the mind, which it uses to manufacture images to prop itself up. Ego-individualistic-self-confidence is a very poor substitute for the soul confidence (aatam-vishwas) inherent in the state of pure awareness (aatam-stiti). In fact, it is no substitute at all, because there is no substitute for the state of imageless awareness, the state of pure consciousness.

By its very nature, ego does not let us experience the universality of Truth, because to do so would negate the existence of ego. But of course, ego wants to believe it knows everything, so it creates its own 'Truth', because to know the Truth makes the ego feel important and powerful, even though the truth it knows is not the Truth at all but only its own images. This is why ego holds onto its images, including its images of universality.

There are many, many religious preachers, pundits, prophets, and profiteers but very, very few real teachers and tellers of Truth. No one can really tell you the Truth unless you are ready to hear it, which means no one can teach you the Truth unless you are ready to learn it. Emotional maturity and the desire to learn are both prerequisites.

We become emotionally mature when we begin to realize that the whole world does not revolve around us. The less self-involved we are, the more fit we become for self-realization. Every insight we have into the real nature of our being increases our desire to learn more. The time comes when our desire for Self Knowledge out weighs all other desires. Eventually we are ready to hear the Truth from the lips of a True Teacher.

The Truth-teacher is a facilitator and not a dictator. He or she simply facilitates the truth-seeker in the search for Truth. A true Guide will guide you to look within your own self and discover by direct perception your own True Self.

It is not possible to see clearly if our perception is clouded by our misconceptions, images, and false knowledge. As long as we are holding onto our ego we will remain confused and unhappy. We need to drop our ego by letting go of our images and begin with a clean slate. As the Zen meditation says, "We need to empty the picture filled with mud and water, so that the fresh water can be poured into it." We need to empty our mind of all our preconceived notions of Truth in order to learn the Truth from within. When we drop our ego and images we become simple, humble, human beings, who are eager and earnest to get to the bottom of the matter and experience the Truth directly.

Everyone who has had a taste of divine bliss, a taste of Truth, knows without any doubt that is absolutely real and far beyond the realm of mind, intellect, and ego. Everyone who has had an insight into the Nature of Truth, knows unequivocally that this Truth is Universal and has nothing at all to do with individuality, morbidity, mortality, and immorality.

People who are individualistic, people who are depressed and morbid, people who are dying everyday in selfishness, and people who are living immoral, fiendish, degrading lives do not know the real meaning of this beautiful human life. They remain asleep in Ignorance and continue to suffer in the duality of their nightmares and fantasies until they awaken to the 'still small voice within', the whisper of their own soul beckoning them to return home to their True Self, to reclaim their inheritance of Supreme Ecstasy and Divine Love.

Truth is not in the eyes of the beholder but in the eyes of the True Beloved. When we look into the eyes of the true Love of our Life (that is, when we have the perception of the vision of Eternity), we forget our own small self and experience directly the Supreme, Divine, Universal Truth.

Desire, Its Origin and Dissolution

What is desire and from where did it originate, and how is it resolved or dissolved?

Desire at its origin is Energy, and it originates within the Self and is also dissolved there. The Self, in this case, is Consciousness itself, devoid of form or expression.

Consciousness is expressed by means of its inherent energy (PRANA), and that energy takes shape in the things seen, heard, tasted, touched, smelled, and thought. In essence, all the five sensory experiences are rooted in the mind, and thus can be considered as forms of thought. Thoughts may or may not be clothed in language. In other words, much of what we experience in our day to day existence is made up in our mind; all of our ordinary experiences are expressions of the mind. “I think therefore I am.” All unenlightened human beings are thinkers of one sort or the other.

The first expression of Consciousness is the desire to create. This is the same thing as saying that the first expression of Consciousness is the manifestation of PRANA (life force), which we experience as both sentient and insentient forms of life. ‘Forms of life’ means Existence, which is all living and non-living things; non-living things include gross matter such as water, air, fire, rocks, etc., and subtle ‘matter’ such as thoughts, feelings, memories, etc.

So, PRANA, or Lifeforce, is the first expression of Consciousness. Prana is the energy of Consciousness. The manifestation of this energy causes the appearance of the distinction between Spirit and Matter, between Purush and Prakriti. In the Sankhya teachings of the Sage Kapila, we learn that the creation of this world of matter begins with the union of Purush and Prakriti, and from that union everything has evolved in an orderly fashion as explained below (for modern readers):

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Purush—Prakriti (Spirit—Matter)

Mahatatva: Cosmic Intelligence

Ego and subtle states of matter (spaciousness, gaseousness, luminosity, liquidity, and solidness)

Intellect

Mind, including memory

Subtle senses of perception and action

Gross organs of perception and action in the form of the physical body, and all other gross objects of mental perception comprised of physical matter in the form of Space, Air (which includes all substances of a gaseous nature), Fire (which includes all substances of a luminous, and hence thermal nature, such as fire, electricity, etc.), Water (which includes all substances of a liquid nature), and Earth (which includes all objects of a solid nature such as minerals, rocks, bones, etc.).

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In essence, Spirit and Matter are never joined because they have never been disjoined. The union of Spirit and Matter, or Purush and Prakriti, is AVIDYA. Here is the inception of Ignorance. Here is the creation of Darkness and the manifestation of Light. Here is where the Cosmic Light Show begins.

The distinction between Purush and Prakriti is first manifested in the form of Cosmic Intelligence (Mahatatva). The Creative Force inherent in that Cosmic Intelligence expresses as “Aham Brahm Asmi”, “I am the Creator.” This principle of self-consciousness is inherent in the Cosmic Intelligence, and is known as Ahamkara, or EGO. Literally it means “I am the doer of actions”.

Through the element of Ego, the self simultaneously experiences the subtle states of matter, known as the five Tanmatras (spaciousness, gaseousness, luminosity, liquidity, and solidness).

The interaction of Ego with the Tanmatras gives rise to the existence of Intellect and Mind. Intellect discerns the existence of Ego and Matter (subtle matter in the form of the Tanmatras), which gives rise to the existence of the mind which in turn records all these subtle experiences (which have been generated by the flow of Lifeforce, or Prana). This subtle activity of the mind results in the manifestation of the subtle senses of perception and action, which together are referred to as the subtle body, or astral body.

All experiences at this level are recorded as impressions (Samskaras) in the mind-stuff (Chit, Memory), and these impressions give rise to tendencies (Vasanas) in that same mind. These tendencies are innumerable and are the basis of all desires as we know them.*

(*In other words, everything to this point has been the product of Desire in the form of the flow Energy, but only at this point, with the manifestation of Vasanas-Tendencies, do we generally begin to view this energy as desire.)

In conjunction with all the other roots of this Tree of Creation (seen with the roots upward, and branches downward), the gross elementary particles and physical body are materialized. The body takes shape (is formed) according to the nature of the mind.

The nature of the mind is formed by (1) the impressions (Samskaras), (2) the tendencies (Vasanas), (3) the subsequent thoughts and attitudes (Vrittis) which arise from those tendencies, and (4) the actions (Karmas) embraced by our five (subtle) senses and our subtle, or intentional, organs of action.

Depending on the type of body formed by the mind, the living organism will have the potential to act; which really means we have the ability to fulfill our desires according to the life form (i.e., body) in which we reside. When embodied in the form of dog or cat (or other animal species), our experiences and our potential to experience are limited. Embodied as human beings we have the potential to have the highest (i.e., most fulfilling) experience of our existence.

When we are embodied as human beings, we bring with us the experiences of many, many—countless lives in millions and millions of different species of existence. (According to Hindu Shastras, we take birth in 8,400,000 different species before we are born as a human being.) Hence, we have innumerable impressions (Samskaras) and associated tendencies (Vasanas---which give rise to, or can be understood as, DESIRES).

As human beings, our impressions (or for the sake of simplicity, we can say memories) and desires DO NOT decide our fate or destiny. Our life is what we make it, according to our attitude and action.

The Cycle of Karma (Action) is this:

Impression --> Tendency -->Thought/Attitude --> Action --> Impression

We can change our life by changing our thoughts/attitudes and actions. Desires will always arise. It is up to us whether we REACT or RESPOND. Animals can only react because they are creatures of habit; but human beings equipped with superior intelligence and power of discernment can consciously respond and make choices based on wisdom, and not just on habit or limited past experience.

Desires CANNOT be resolved by means of an intellectual or empirical process, because intellectual gymnastics is just another ploy of ego. The mind enslaved by ego will continue to revolve around in circles of self-deception, self-delusion, and self-destruction.

We can continue to solve and resolve the same problem over and over, but unless we let go of our ego the problem is not going to go away: because EGO IS THE PROBLEM.

We are a slave of our desires only because we are a slave of EGO. When our ego is dissolved, so is our desire. Hence, the only way to dissolve desire is to dissolve our ego.

The dissolution of ego is the essence of spirituality (Sadhana). In other words, spirituality lies in spiritual practice, and spiritual practice means we must practice being the spirit self, not the ego self. Remember: the Spirit Self (PURUSH) is the original self. To dissolve all desires all we need to do is be our Self. We need to be true to our Real Self.

Being true to your Real Self doesn’t mean having no desires. We are human beings, and desires are a natural element of our existence. The question is this: which desires are healthy and conducive to our well-being, and which are detrimental to our well-being?

The innumerable choices we make will weave a tapestry of colors and designs in the fabric of our mind. Wearing this wonderful costume we will move about in this world and dance with the sun, moon, and the stars. The changes that unfold will be beautiful and awe-inspiring, and the sound vibrations produced by those movements will be melodious and enchanting. In our mind’s eye we will experience the vision of Eternity, our Heart will expand into Infinity and our whole being will vibrate with the Love and Wisdom of the Supreme Being. OM

Infatuation is Self-love

Infatuation is a mental phenomenon that arises when we are in love with our self (ego-self). It is a form of self-involvement. It is a shallow feeling of the mind that manifests in shallow behavior, shallow discussion, and shallow thoughts.

Infatuation is born out of self-delusion and leads to self-degradation. When we are infatuated we do not see clearly. We lose our objectivity and become a puppet of our feelings and emotions. Our ego is pulling the strings, but we think we are in control.

One who is infatuated is in an unfocused state of mind. That person is mentally imbalanced. The element of desire is predominant in the mind. It is not a selfless desire; it is a selfish desire. When we feed into that desire it increases like fire fed with fuel. When we fuel our desires they can grow out of control and overwhelm us.

Many people have been burned to death by their own desires. Many people have lost control of their mind because they become infatuated with themselves--in other words, thinking to themselves that they were in control, they never realized that really their ego was in control. If we do not keep our ego in check, it will rule our mind and wreak havoc in our lives.

Step back from your self and objectify the human experience and realize that you are potentially divine. "Your potential is in direct proportion to your determination." Dr. Khanna

OM

Premarital Sex is Premature Sex

Unfortunately, nowadays many young people are engaging in premarital sex, which results in premature aging. So many young people are so old and worn out even before they reach middle age (50). At middle age, one should have the vigor to strive strenuously for spiritual knowledge and experience. But this is not possible if one is burned out by too much sex, excitement, overeating, and over-entertainment. If this poor lifestyle begins when a person is just a teenager or young adult, it can become a lifelong habit of self-indulgence and self-abuse.

Bad habits are the result of repeating mistakes. If we make a mistake and learn from it, we can change for the better. The more we learn and grow, the fewer mistakes we will make. ‘Mistakes’ means wrong choices. When our choices (and decision-making process) are guided by commonsense and by the wisdom of those who know better than us, we will make fewer and fewer bad decisions.

The Wise know better than we do because they have practiced longer. It’s as simple as that. We are NOT wise if we know better but do not DO better.

Most people know intuitively that premature sex is just not right or healthy. This knowledge has nothing to do with religion; it has to do with who we really are. The knowledge of who we really are, what we really are, is called Dharma.

Our Dharma, the knowledge of our own real nature, compels us to do what is right. Of course, if we have gone against our Dharma, again and again, it may become our habit to do what is wrong. Then the forces of good and evil will fight for supremacy in the battlefield of our mind, and we will feel much distressed.

Young people should devote their time and energy to learning and growing, to building a strong foundation (in body, mind, and spirit). The time for married life will come soon enough, and one can enjoy the conjugal bliss without any remiss. The married life is only for those who have prepared themselves—because married life is not a child’s play, its hard work, dedication, unbreakable commitment, and lot’s of love without expectation.

When people have premature sex they are likely to lose their balance even before they have learned what balance is! Marriage is a balancing act, and a sexual relationship before marriage is a dysfunctional act that leads to a dysfunctional life. We are dysfunctional if we haven’t learned how to be self-contained, whole, complete human beings without any emotional or sexual strings attached. In other words, if we have emotional or sexual conditions for personal fulfillment, we are confused human beings. If this is the case, we are in need of wisdom and training in the laws of Consciousness. The laws of Consciousness, the Soul-knowledge, tells us that we are not dependent on anything outside of our self for happiness and fulfillment. Of course, this same Soul-knowledge tells us that we are, at the core of our being, all the same Consciousness. Each and every soul is permeated by that same Supreme Consciousness. When we see that Supreme Consciousness in everyone, and everyone in that Supreme Consciousness, we hate no one and we are infatuated by no one; hence, there is no emotional pain or suffering. Our love is pure because it flows from the depth of our being. In that Love, there is no wanting, no possessing, no fear (anxiety), and no grudge or grieving.

When two mature people, who share this soul-understanding, are joined together in marriage, that marriage will not be just a mirage. Challenges will always be there (there is no perfect marriage), but those souls who are matured in the wisdom of Consciousness will be well-equipped to meet those challenges. Whereas, those who have not built up an arsenal of wisdom and commonsense, will only be shooting in the dark (in Ignorance), and may even end up destroying each other.

So, a word of advice to the wise: wait until you are married before engaging in sex. And if you are already having sex, then rethink what you are doing and consider carefully the consequences of your actions. Yesterday is gone, but tomorrow is the outcome of what you do today. You can change your lifestyle if your change your mind and back it up with your actions. OM