Around our cottage in Orkney there are fields filled with cattle, sheep, wheat, grass pasture, or wild growth. The ocean, with cliffs rising from it, is within walking distance. Spotted around are farm compounds. No stores. Virtually no people for us to see or hear. The main landmark, high on the ridge two miles away, is Marwick Head. Entertainment is …
Vacations….
Vacations are designed to help us. We say we need a break, we need a rest, we need to get away. Vacations can help us with detachment. When we go away or just stop our normal work or activity we are forced hopefully to disentangle from that very activity. We get to see how involved we were, which may not …
What Does the Guru Do?….
The Śiva Sūtras say the Guru is the means (Sūtra II.6). For me, my Guru, Swami Muktananda, Baba, has been and is the means. In all the years I knew, studied and worked closely with Baba, he never let me down. He was and is always guiding me to the state of union with God. If the Guru is the …
Resources….
Resources. What are they? Resources are people and materials that aid us in our lives. These resources can be within us or outside us. We should know what they are and use them wisely. Our resources should be looked on as gifts. Do not waste or disrespect your resources, because if you do they may run dry, and you are …
Whom Do You Serve?….
This question is a difficult one because we tend not to be completely forthright with our answer. God, we will say. And yet the truth is we are idolizing our egos, our sense of self. We are in fact committed to serving the ego in everything we do and are not aware of this. If it serves my ego to …
You Are Perfect Just the Way You Are….
You are perfect just the way you are. So, be where you are and accept it. That is the practice. Boring in toward the Heart does not mean you will feel good. It means you are heading in the right direction toward Home, where all vibration is stilled, and Love is. In order to get there, we have to stop …
Walking out of the Darkness….
Who or what is the Guru? The Guru is the Teacher, the Grace and Guide that God provides for each of us to go Home. The Guru is not the person that It inhabits, but the purer the person the more there is the Guru and less the person. Then all the actions of the person will express the Guru, …
Acceptance….
We have to face the ugly truth and accept it before we can get to the beautiful truth. We have to surrender to the way it is, not the way we want it or imagine it is. Then, through acceptance, we and everything around us changes. No, it does not end up being the way we wanted it to be; …
Act in Stillness….
We speak so many words, and then how much do we practice them? When I say practice, I do not mean “trying”; I mean actually “being “ them. Yoga Sutras II.18 says Prakrti (Nature, material) exists for the experience and liberation of the Seer. The Seen exists for the sake of the Seer. Experience and liberation are then knowables. When …
Qualities of a Student….
Doubt Certitude Contradict Agree Promiscuous Loyal/dedicated/faithful Worry Be at ease/be at peace Willfully obtuse Receptive Questioning Dogmatic Examine Stooge Free/open/searching/experimenting Fanatical Aware/concerned Blasé/oblivious/asleep Self protective Vulnerable/impressionable/gullible At some point we have all been in the role of student. We have all had teachers from whom we have learned. Sometimes we have learned what the teacher wanted …