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We are born into the world, we grow, we learn, we participate in it, we age, and eventually we die. Many people look at this process without trying to understand any deeper significance. They involve themselves in the process and do not look at what happened before, what caused the existence we ... Views: 14
We tend to look at things through the standpoint of the external physical being, the body, life and mind with which we identify. From this standpoint we treat the soul as something that we need to search for, if we even acknowledge the existence of the soul, and as something secondary to and ... Views: 47
We observe in nature that certain plants turn towards the sun and follow the sun’s position in the sky throughout the day. This phenomenon, ‘heliotropism’, is based on certain sensor cells in these plants that identify the location of the light and automatically orient themselves towards it. ... Views: 13
Goethe, in his famous poem Faust, recounts a scene where Faust conjures the Earth-Spirit. He is stricken with fear although he felt himself to be a god and a peer to the Spirit he called forth.
“To view me is thine aspiration,
My voice to hear, my countenance to see;
Thy powerful yearning ... Views: 1
We train the physical body with intense repetition to create what is called ‘muscle memory’. This allows the body to respond, instantly, without thought, when certain circumstances occur. Not all circumstances require the instantaneous response of the body, or even if they do, the body may not ... Views: 251
As long as we are established in the consciousness of the external being and personality, the body-life-mind complex aggregated around the ego-personality, we interpret and decide things based on the external relationships each of those elements has developed in their dealing with the external ... Views: 1
Everything we experience is sensed or felt by some developed capacity or part of the being. Vibrations that occur within the ranges of the electro-magnetic spectrum that human beings can perceive are identified as light, colors, sound, etc. We have senses of taste, touch and smell, similarly ... Views: 104
The Bodhisattva vow represents an ideal of dedication and compassion by those who have reached the stage of enlightenment and who thereby have gained the freedom to choose liberation, moksha, from the cycle of birth and death. Those individuals who attain this state of consciousness make the ... Views: 11
There is considerable confusion about the nature of the soul. A sizable portion of humanity denies the existence of the soul, while another segment of humanity reduces its ‘value’ below that of material possessions and outward satisfactions. The ego-personality, bound up in the actions and ... Views: 51
.When we try to understand what is meant by the term ‘soul’ we run up against a confusing mix of ideas about what the soul actually is. Similarly, the use of the term ‘psychic’ has its own issues with confused interpretation. Recognising the need to have some term in English that can be employed ... Views: 587
Sri Aurobindo makes a key distinction that clears up much potential confusion about the nature and action of the psychic being. The psychic being is a direct expression of the soul and maintains thereby the direct connection with the Divine. It cannot be harmed or polluted by any actions of the ... Views: 28
There are certain questions about the meaning and processes of the evolutionary cycle, the existence and growth of the psychic being, and its relation to our human external existence that most of us have a difficult time addressing, as we have not had the experience or evidence from our own ... Views: 13
Humanity has long had the feeling that it represents something special and unique in the universal creation. Major religions have creation stories that emphasize this uniqueness, with God creating man in his own image and finding that it was good. Many people believe that humanity is the only ... Views: 20
A young individual recounted a tale of what he considered to be his own experience of a psychic conversion. He had a near death experience and when he awoke he suddenly knew there was a Divine Presence in the world and that he was meant to focus on that rather than the career he had been ... Views: 2
When we live primarily, or entirely, focused on our external life via the instruments of the body, life-force and mind, we cannot determine nor recognise the purpose and significance of our existence. We may speculate. We may hold opinions. We may adhere to some doctrine, such as a religious ... Views: 532
The ego is allured and enamoured of spiritual experiences and the development of unique powers that may arise with various openings of the being to other ranges of mental, vital or physical activity than we normally live in. Certain spiritual disciplines actually advise the seeker to avoid ... Views: 1
Most people do not understand why it is they are alive, what it is they are here to do in the world. Many simply think that ‘eat, drink and be merry’ is the sum of their purpose; in other words, they do not recognise a life purpose or mission in that sense, and just want to find a way to enjoy ... Views: 361
Throughout my life, I have persevered through much pain and misfortune; however, instead of using my experiences as reasons for a life of retaliation and reparations, I used these tragedies as motivation to making other people’s lives better. I believe that we all have untapped potential, ... Views: 857
We are not destined to be the puppet or plaything of the external Nature, Prakriti, through the working of the 3 Gunas or qualities of Nature. When we shift our standpoint to that of the Divine, when we recognise our Oneness with the creative Force, we can participate in the ordering and the ... Views: 138
When people take up spiritual practices, they are exposed to many different ideas about the proper diet. With the idea that ‘you are what you eat’, there is a long list of foods that are considered suitable for spiritual practitioners to eat, what are called in the ancient traditions of India, ... Views: 554
The quality of Rajas, when it predominates in the action of the individual seeking spiritual growth, can have quite disruptive effects. A certain amount of focus and energy is required for any spiritual endeavour, to be sure, but there is a fine line between too little energy and too much. Rajas ... Views: 149
At a certain point in life, an individual begins to appreciate that the surface events, surface ‘facts’, the ‘reality’ of the external world are all derivative results, with the causal forces and energies active on more subtle planes or domains and creating from that place, the physical forms ... Views: 246
The question of possession by vital beings has been sensationalized to such an extent in modern society, with an entire genre of motion pictures depicting such things in an extreme way, that it is difficult to have a serious discussion and review of whatever reality underlies these sensational ... Views: 328
Once we acknowledge the idea that forces, beings or entities from the vital planes can act upon and through human individuals, the question then arises as to how we can identify this action and distinguish it from what we might call normal actions of a human being under the impulsion of the ... Views: 299
There are many methods that have been tried to shift ideas, thoughts, motives and actions in the world. Some of these methods involve subtle, or not so subtle, use of various forms of propagandizing, proselytizing, sermonizing, or dominating others through use of covert or overt force, including ... Views: 156
We generally live, most of the time, within a framework of the ego-consciousness. We look at and experience our lives from this standpoint, and it places limitations on our understanding and our response to circumstances. Those who are called to yoga and spiritual development practices in ... Views: 350
People commonly believe that espousing a particular religion or religious doctrine, reading scriptural texts, singing devotional songs, practicing yoga, or meditation or any of the numerous other practices often called ‘spiritual’ makes them spiritual. While these practices may help to turn ... Views: 196
It is a bit shocking that in the midst of all the astonishing scientific and technological knowledge that has been discovered/invented over the ages, confusion and disbelief still abound regarding the existence of other invisible or inaccessible parts of creation; there is also uncertainty as to ... Views: 1450
Modern society, influenced heavily by the scientific/technical focus of the West, puts a premium on the concept of “objectivity” versus anything that can be considered ‘subjective’, which is then treated with suspicion and largely dismissed. This implies several things. First, it implies that ... Views: 240
We have a strong bias in favor of accepting things that we can perceive with our physical senses, and we tend to disbelieve or discount anything that is not directly, physically available to our experience. Yet if we reflect on the totality of our life experience, it becomes clear that there are ... Views: 448
The Supreme Consciousness refracts itself into sub-spheres of awareness depending on the level of the creation that needs that awareness. Thus, the unified Supreme Consciousness, known as Sat-Chit-Ananda, creates apparent separate forms at the Knowledge level, the supramental consciousness, ... Views: 43
Developing external power through the use of technology has several unexpected or unintended consequences. One of these, of course, is to give us powers of observation and action that were not available to us through the normal progression of physical, vital and mental development. In order to ... Views: 291
As long as we remain rooted in the external surface consciousness and ego-personality, we are firmly bound by the determinism of Nature. Nature, whether on the physical, vital or mental level, operates under its own ‘laws’ of action. The more dense the expression of consciousness is, the more ... Views: 350
In the Taittiriya Upanishad, a seeker successively realises the basis of existence, first in the physical sheath, then in the vital or life sheath, and then in the mental sheath, before exceeding each of these as the progression of his realisation went beyond the mind into the “knowledge” and ... Views: 690
In an age where social media platforms dominate the information landscape, one might wonder why radio podcasts still attract a significant audience. Despite the plethora of content available at our fingertips, radio podcasts continue to thrive. This article delves into the reasons behind this ... Views: 304
Most of us are wedded to the sense that enjoyment of life and richness of experience are inseparably linked to the play of the dualities. We believe and find our satisfaction in the mixture of darkness and light, joy and pain, beauty and ugliness, and the challenges attendant on meeting and ... Views: 347
Particularly (but not exclusively) in the beginning of the spiritual sadhana, the seeker has to find a way to navigate through the countless obstacles, resistances and difficulties that arise as he tries to transition from a focus on the external responses of the ego-personality and the embedded ... Views: 103
The idea of overcoming lower drives and desires of the vital, or that stem from the physical or the subconscient, through indulgence in a purposeful way is an enticing one, particularly to the vital nature, which can use this excuse to convince the mind to fulfill the myriad of powerful desires ... Views: 588
Dealing with deeply embedded drives of the subconscient and the lower vital through raising them up and indulging in them not only contains risks that one may fall into a deeper pattern of habitual response, but also can be a pretext for the vital enjoyment of the action with a veneer to ... Views: 595
Spiritual aspirants frequently complain about the obstructions provided by the physical body. There is a need to eat, a need to sleep, the constant pressure of physical existence, the wear and tear of the aging process, the potential for illness or injury, and the eventual breakdown and ... Views: 377
The physical body has provided spiritual seekers with a riddle and a challenge throughout time and across the globe. For those focused on the external life there is no question. They enjoy, they develop the capacities of the body, they do not think twice about it, other than to the extent that ... Views: 705
The life-force represents the next evolutionary stage beyond physical Matter. It transforms material energy and channels it for development of perception, feeling, and interaction. It prepares the way for the advent of the subsequent evolutionary phase of the manifestation of Mind. When it first ... Views: 725
If we view the development of the ego through the lens of the evolution of consciousness, we can see the importance that this evolutionary step plays. The process of individuation opens up the potentiality of new, complex interactions, creative development and faster evolutionary change.
The ... Views: 444
The argument has been going on forever: “why does God permit evil to exist?” and “if the Divine constitutes everything, where do the hostile forces come from?” John Milton, in his Paradise Lost, posited ‘fallen angels’ who were thrown out of heaven as the cause of evil in the human world. ... Views: 677
The spiritual seeker often is confronted with a situation that seems to pit faith against medical science. The debate between religion and science goes back millennia and this is one small part of that larger debate. Those who are dedicated practitioners are asked to face all difficulties with ... Views: 608
The spiritual aspirant practicing the integral yoga devotes his efforts to coming into contact with the Divine Force, being receptive to its influence and action, and bringing it down to transform the action of the mind, life and body. Once this force is completely assimilated into the physical ... Views: 56
When Sri Aurobindo states “all life is yoga”, he is speaking generally about the long, slow ‘yoga of nature’ which is taking place in the universe, leading to ever-greater stages of consciousness manifesting and transforming, successively, the previously manifested planes of awareness. This ... Views: 546
The vital ego is attracted to the excitement of having experiences that are unusual or powerful. It therefore wants to find ways to repeat or expand upon them once they have had such an experience. In reality, however, there is very little of long-term value in this approach. The experiences ... Views: 442
In one of his aphorisms, Sri Aurobindo observes: “…the ego was the helper, the ego is the bar.” For most spiritual seekers, the attachment to the ego-personality is the great hindrance which they must find a way to overcome. Some try extreme methods to minimize the role and power of the ego. But ... Views: 534