Posts
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I have started a new blog...
Its not everyone's cup of tea...
Its really just about Vedanta and my journey along the path. Its not meant to be authoritative or academic...
If you are looking for that, you wont find it there... This is MY stuff... personal and subjective.
Just one Jivi's journey to Oneness... thats all...
The blog, like me, is a work in progress.
http://thecandc.wordpress.com/
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Thursday, April 1, 2010
Friday, February 6, 2009
Saturday, January 17, 2009
Life is a full on game!
I went to Bhajans last night, for the first time in ages...
It was definitely what the doctor ordered, given my life of late...
I tend to operate on the philosophy: "Don't rush me, I like to make a decision at the last minute!"
Well, it works, sometimes...
But of late, life has been busy, and pressing...
I have heaps of stuff orbiting around the central nature of who I am. Elements that call me, siren like, to give them attention. One of the key challenges that I face in the moment is doing what needs to be done.
Of course, this is all a little ironic, given that I am a counsellor. That's the advice that I tend to give most people. Whilst I must admit that I hear those words loud and clear each and every time I utter them to another (uncomfortably so), there is that part of me that would like to just retreat to a Himalayan cave and sit in solitude. Let life pass me by...
Now, I know, that's not the way it works. But its about finding that balance between the spiritual and the mundane that is a trial for me. Running away to a cave is still running away.
On my last trip to India, the big question was to discover if a life as a Swami was for me. It is very alluring. When you cut yourself off from all the 'distractions' of life, and are able to devote your life entirely to your Sadhana, it has been my experience that it is a totally different ball game.
You go from simply studying your path, to living it. And with that comes the realisation that you always were living it.
There never has been, is not currently, and can never be, any separation between the self and the Self... But, I digress...
It was early one morning when I got an answer to my question. I had missed Omkar, so I had left the ashram, and gone to sit under the Meditation Tree. The question rolled endlessly in my unsettled mind as I walked past the beggars on the path up to the Tree. "What is the direction of my life? Should I take up robes?"
I settled myself, and 'assumed the position'. But, Peace did not come to me. The mind just did not want to come home. That just took my frustration over my question (which was incessant now) and escalated it. All I wanted was to sit in silence for a while, and to rest my chattering mind! Was that too much to ask?
After a time, I opened my eyes, and stood up. The town was waking, and the sound of it was distracting me even more. I decided that I would leave meditating for now, as it was having a reverse effect on me.
I gathered my meditation mat, dusted myself off, and started back down the path to either the ashram, or the town... I needed a chai...
Strangely, the beggars had left the path, leaving me able to enjoy the view as the town and the rooftops of the ashram as they came into view as I made my way back down the hill. It was only February, and it was already set to be a warm south Indian day.
As I progressed down the hill, still sort of hazy from my attempt at meditation, I noticed the many signs that highlighted the edge of the path. Each sign had a unique phrase, a piece of timeless wisdom. The signs passed by as made my way, each one a little blurry and indistinct.
I rounded a corner, not far from where the short road connecting the path from the Tree to the town was. A sign by the side of the path caught my eye. It sort of stood out in a way, almost shimmering...
From where I was I could clearly see that the sign harboured it's words of wisdom on the other side. I would have walked straight past it on the way up, taking no notice. As I got closer to the sign, my interest grew. When I reached it, and read it, the whole morning made sense... The sign said:
"Head in the forest. Hands in society."
At once, there was peace within me... The answer couldn't have been clearer if God himself had sat me on my lap and said "Now Russ, about this becoming a monk thing..."
At Bhujans last night, I reflected upon that experience. Sitting amongst our small group always takes me back to the darshan hall - effortlessly. At once, I could feel the cool marble beneath my crossed legs, and hear again a few thousand voices united in Love and prayer, straining our necks for just a single glance of the Prema Swaroopa.
"Life is a game... play it!"
Last night came with the realisation that I had indeed run away to a mountain cave in my recent life. Not that life has not been challenging, but, "Life is a challenge, meet it!" Perhaps I need to rethink the whole "don't rush me..." attitude... The challenges of my life are the challenges of MY life. Last night, I realised that my head had no more been in the forest than my hands had been in society...
In my role as counsellor, I realise that everyone is susceptible to emotional stress. There have been a great many wonderful changes in my life of late, as well as some enduring icky moments that seemingly just wont end. Some stuff that I really would rather not have to deal with. Of course, that doesn't mean that I can't deal with them, in fact, it is my duty to deal with them.
"The world is a training ground. A place for you to practice Dharma and dispense your duties with compassion. That is the only value it has..."
That opportunity exists in each and every moment.
How true those words are...
Stay well.
Russ
It was definitely what the doctor ordered, given my life of late...
I tend to operate on the philosophy: "Don't rush me, I like to make a decision at the last minute!"
Well, it works, sometimes...
But of late, life has been busy, and pressing...
I have heaps of stuff orbiting around the central nature of who I am. Elements that call me, siren like, to give them attention. One of the key challenges that I face in the moment is doing what needs to be done.
Of course, this is all a little ironic, given that I am a counsellor. That's the advice that I tend to give most people. Whilst I must admit that I hear those words loud and clear each and every time I utter them to another (uncomfortably so), there is that part of me that would like to just retreat to a Himalayan cave and sit in solitude. Let life pass me by...
Now, I know, that's not the way it works. But its about finding that balance between the spiritual and the mundane that is a trial for me. Running away to a cave is still running away.
On my last trip to India, the big question was to discover if a life as a Swami was for me. It is very alluring. When you cut yourself off from all the 'distractions' of life, and are able to devote your life entirely to your Sadhana, it has been my experience that it is a totally different ball game.
You go from simply studying your path, to living it. And with that comes the realisation that you always were living it.
There never has been, is not currently, and can never be, any separation between the self and the Self... But, I digress...
It was early one morning when I got an answer to my question. I had missed Omkar, so I had left the ashram, and gone to sit under the Meditation Tree. The question rolled endlessly in my unsettled mind as I walked past the beggars on the path up to the Tree. "What is the direction of my life? Should I take up robes?"
I settled myself, and 'assumed the position'. But, Peace did not come to me. The mind just did not want to come home. That just took my frustration over my question (which was incessant now) and escalated it. All I wanted was to sit in silence for a while, and to rest my chattering mind! Was that too much to ask?
After a time, I opened my eyes, and stood up. The town was waking, and the sound of it was distracting me even more. I decided that I would leave meditating for now, as it was having a reverse effect on me.
I gathered my meditation mat, dusted myself off, and started back down the path to either the ashram, or the town... I needed a chai...
Strangely, the beggars had left the path, leaving me able to enjoy the view as the town and the rooftops of the ashram as they came into view as I made my way back down the hill. It was only February, and it was already set to be a warm south Indian day.
As I progressed down the hill, still sort of hazy from my attempt at meditation, I noticed the many signs that highlighted the edge of the path. Each sign had a unique phrase, a piece of timeless wisdom. The signs passed by as made my way, each one a little blurry and indistinct.
I rounded a corner, not far from where the short road connecting the path from the Tree to the town was. A sign by the side of the path caught my eye. It sort of stood out in a way, almost shimmering...
From where I was I could clearly see that the sign harboured it's words of wisdom on the other side. I would have walked straight past it on the way up, taking no notice. As I got closer to the sign, my interest grew. When I reached it, and read it, the whole morning made sense... The sign said:
"Head in the forest. Hands in society."
At once, there was peace within me... The answer couldn't have been clearer if God himself had sat me on my lap and said "Now Russ, about this becoming a monk thing..."
At Bhujans last night, I reflected upon that experience. Sitting amongst our small group always takes me back to the darshan hall - effortlessly. At once, I could feel the cool marble beneath my crossed legs, and hear again a few thousand voices united in Love and prayer, straining our necks for just a single glance of the Prema Swaroopa.
"Life is a game... play it!"
Last night came with the realisation that I had indeed run away to a mountain cave in my recent life. Not that life has not been challenging, but, "Life is a challenge, meet it!" Perhaps I need to rethink the whole "don't rush me..." attitude... The challenges of my life are the challenges of MY life. Last night, I realised that my head had no more been in the forest than my hands had been in society...
In my role as counsellor, I realise that everyone is susceptible to emotional stress. There have been a great many wonderful changes in my life of late, as well as some enduring icky moments that seemingly just wont end. Some stuff that I really would rather not have to deal with. Of course, that doesn't mean that I can't deal with them, in fact, it is my duty to deal with them.
"The world is a training ground. A place for you to practice Dharma and dispense your duties with compassion. That is the only value it has..."
That opportunity exists in each and every moment.
How true those words are...
Stay well.
Russ
Saturday, January 3, 2009
Forum Frustrations...
Hmmmm....
What I really want to create here is a forum... a place for us all to sit in Satsang and discover the deeper truths about ourselves...
Because this is currently hosted with Blogger.com, it makes it difficult to be able to have a forum that is attached to the site, and as a result, I am considering hosting this site independently, so that I can have the flexibility that I would prefer...
I have a few options open to me, but I am keen to hear of the experience of others in terms of who and what are the best choices to go with...
I am a bit of a noob when it comes to hosting and forum options, so anyone out there with any feedback from providers would be more than welcome...
Hooray!
Life is a funny thing...
This morning, I attempted a search on my teacher's name in Google, just on the off chance that there may be something of him there... I was amazed to discover that some of His students have placed videos of him in Satsang on Youtube...
It has been nearly two years since I attended Satsang with Cesar in the south of India, but seeing his form again, even after so long, I was immediately transported back to the grass of the ashram where I sat at his feet, basking in the light of truth, and seeing that same light shine from within myself...
Of course, finding that light 'within' is an impossible experience to explain to someone else. Obviously, since such a thing happens in 'a place' that exists prior to consciousness and language, it is not possible to explain it using such tools. Any attempt to do so limits the experience of the experience, which is again limited by the experience of those that you try to communicate it to.
Awareness displays itself to itself, for itself, and by itself...
Although I have long since given up trying to communicate the Ananda of that experience to others, I have encouraged others to seek it within themselves. As time passes, I will compile some of the exercises in Awareness that Cesar and his teacher, the great Ratan Lal, have prescribed to myself and others, so that they may be enjoyed by anyone with the inclination to take them up.
Until then, I will add a link to the videos of Satsang with Cesar...
http://au.youtube.com/watch?v=WSHzXzdStd0
Pranams and shastanga at the feet of the teacher, the Prema Swaroopa...
Profile Pic...
There have been a few enquiries regarding my profile pic... It was painted for me by a good friend Ralph Koegel whilst I was on a sojourn in India. In it, he depicts me in the shape of Shiva. The spirit of the concept is that of 'God is in Man, and Man is in God'. It is honestly one of the nicest gifts I have ever received from anyone...
Ralph's work is highly influenced by his connection to 'The All That Is', and many of his pictures deptict his models embedded into a broader landscape. There is something intimate about Ralph's art, at the same time as being timelessly universal in their appeal.
This post is a big thank you to Ralph for his refreshing outlook on life, his wit and friendship, and his ability to take the broadest of spiritual concepts back to the quantum level... where life and the Absolute seem to continually confirm themselves in an endless dance of the divine Mandelbrot and open source chaotic harmonies...
Friday, January 2, 2009
Welcome to The Western Hindu!
Hi, and welcome to the inaugural post of The Western Hindu!
Thanks for stopping by!
The aim for this blog is to create a home for honest and open discourse on Hindu Spirituality for those of us who follow the path of Sat, Chit, Annanda and to assist each other to grow and develop in a community spirit of support and nourishment.
My motivation came from a recent invitation by a friend to join The Tao Bums forum. For those of you who are not familiar with it, The Tao Bums is a place for lively discussion on all things Tao and Tai Chi. When I went looking for a similar creature related to Hindu discussion, very little seemed to appear in the search engines.
The thing I love about The Tao Bums is the opportunity it affords to people to make contact with others of a similar bent from all over the planet. It provides a platform for discussion and growth. In the spirit of The Tao Bums, it is hoped that all casts and creeds will be welcome at The Western Hindu, and that it will afford us all the opportunity to broaden and deepen our own views of what Spirituality is, and how to live out our Sadhana in the society we inhabit at the time.
For my part, Spirituality is the only game in town, and all other things are a reflection of it. I have had the blessing of being exposed to a variety of teachings over the years, and have walked a path that has ultimately led me to the source of all life and experience: my Self.
In this initial phase, I am happy to pick a topic that seems to be a reflection of my current experience of life, and invite feedback from others about it. I certainly do not wish to put myself up as some sort of 'Guru'. When it comes to the development of the soul - we are always at the beginning... Like others (I assume) that will use this forum and leave comments here, I often find myself grappling with issues that invite clarification and reflection.
Of course, this is not meant to be a one-sided affair. The aim here is to grow a community of folks with just as much input as I have. So, please, feel very free to leave your comments and such. In time (when I can sort out how), I will install a forum to facilitate this process. (If there are any readers out there who know to install a forum, please let me know. Any assistance will be greatly appreciated... ;) )
So, in this spirit, I offer you The Western Hindu. I hope that you will enjoy your time here. As the friend of mine who invited me to join The Tao Bums offers as a welcome new members over there:
Welcome, take a seat. How do you like your tea?
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