Saturday, June 18, 2016

Symeon the New Theologian - How is it?



How is it I can love You
within me,
yet see You from afar?

How is it I embrace You
within myself,
yet see You spread across the heavens?

You know. You alone.
You, who made this mystery,
You who shine
like the sun in my breast,
You who shine
in my material heart,
immaterially.



Rumi - Silence



"The story admits of being told up to this point,
But what follows is hidden, and inexpressible in words.
If you should speak and try a hundred ways to express it,
'Tis useless; the mystery becomes no clearer,
You can ride on saddle and horse to the sea-coast,
But then you must use a horse of wood (i.e. a boat).
A horse of wood is useless on dry land,
It is the special vehicle of voyagers by sea.
Silence is this horse of wood,
Silence is the guide and support of men at sea."

{The Masnavi of Jalaluddin Rumi. Abridged translation by
E. H. Whinfield, p.326.}

 

Thursday, June 16, 2016

Sri Ramana Maharshi - Silence Is Most Powerful



Silence and Grace are frequent topics that occur in devotee conversations with Bhagavan Sri Ramana. “Silence is most powerful” says Bhagavan in Day By Day, 9-3-46.

Bhagavan used to say that the highest spiritual teaching and transmission is given only in silence. True Silence comes when there is complete surrender to God without any reservation. There is no room for mental noise then and all is peace.

Here is an actual event narrated by T.K. Iyer where he witnessed the the power of Bhagavan’s silence.

The Highest Teaching is Given in Silence It was a Sivaratri Day. The evening worships at the Mother’s shrine were over. The devotees had their dinner with Sri Bhagavan, who was now on His seat, the devotees at His feet sitting around Him. At 8 p.m. one of the Sadhus stood up, did pranam (offered obeisance), and with folded hands prayed:
“Today is the Sivaratri Day; we should be highly blessed by Sri Bhagavan expounding to us the meaning of the Hymn to Dakshinamurti (stotra).
” Bhagavan said: “Yes, sit down. I will do that.”

Editor’s Note: For those who may not know, Dakshinamurti is the famous ancient Sage who transmitted Divine Knowledge to his disciples not by words but through simple silence. Now here Bhagavan is being asked to explain the Hymn to Dakshinamurti, the silent Sage.

Now back to the story! 

The Sadhu who had asked the question sat down and waited for Bhagavan to start speaking. All the devotees gathered there eagerly looked at Sri Bhagavan in anticipation. Sri Bhagavan quietly looked at everyone assembled but did not say anything. He sat in his usual pose. Sri Bhagavan sat and sat in His usual pose of half lotus. He was calm and serene. There was no movement from Him, no words, only perfect stillness. The whole atmosphere became completely silent and still. All was stillness! He sat still, and all who were there sat still, waiting. The clock went on striking, nine, ten, eleven, twelve, one, two and three. Sri Bhagavan sat and those who were assembled sat. Stillness, calmness, motionlessness — not conscious of the body, of space or time. Everyone sat for hours in perfect poise. 
Eight hours passed in Peace, in Silence, in Being, as It is.
Thus was the Divine Reality taught through the speech of Silence by Bhagavan Sri Ramana Dakshinamurthy. At the stroke of 4 a.m. Sri Bhagavan quietly said: 

“And now have you known the essence of the Dakshinamurti Hymn”? All the devotees stood and made pranam to the holy Form of the Guru in the ecstasy of their Being.

This incident was narrated by sri T.K.Sundaresa Iyer, an ardent devotee of Bhagawan Ramana Maharishi in his book, “At the Feet of Bhagavan.” 



“At the Feet of Bhagavan.”  PDF

source text here 

Wednesday, June 15, 2016

Michael Jeffreys - Reality is silent



Reality is silent, yet IT never stops speaking to you!

IT’s here now.

IT’s all around you.

IT’s all there is, was, and will ever be.

Everything you see, hear, taste, touch, smell, think and intuit is IT.

IT is waving to you from every direction, and yet still you don’t see it.

Why?

Because you are hypnotized/mesmerized/lost in thought, in your own “private” fantasy about what never happened.

A dream for no one from no one.

Amazing.


facebook 


When I am liberated by silence, when I am no longer involved in the measurement of life, but in the living of it ...
My whole life becomes a prayer. My whole silence is full of prayer… where everything I touch is turned into prayer: where the sky is my prayer, the birds are my prayer, the wind in the trees is my prayer, for God is all in all.
~ Thomas Merton

Sunday, June 12, 2016

Rumi - What is Soul?



What is the soul?  Consciousness. 
The more awareness, the deeper the soul,
and when such essence overflows,
you feel a sacredness around. 

It's so simple to tell one who puts on a robe
and pretends to be a dervish from the real thing. 
We know the taste of pure water. 
Words can sound like a poem
but not have any juice, no flavor to relish. 

How long do you look at pictures on a bathhouse wall? 
Soul is what draws you away from those pictures
to talk with the old woman who sits outside
by the door in the sun. 
She's half blind, but she has what soul
loves to flow into. 
She's kind, she weeps.

She makes quick personal decision, and laughs so easily.


(version by Coleman Barks from The Soul of Rumi)