Ajay0
-
Content count
245 -
Joined
-
Last visited
-
Days Won
3
Posts posted by Ajay0
-
-
Rajini Menon is a modern enlightened sage who attained Self-realization by adherence to virtuous conduct and following the inner voice of conscience. I had created a thread on her a few years back.
Here is an Insightful article by Rajini Menon in distinguishing between the inner voice and mind noise.
https://rajiniji.com/whatislife/
QuoteThe most righteous act is what your inner voice or inner conscience, manasakshi, tells you and not what your mind tells you.
How do you differentiate between the true inner voice and the minds outer voice? If you are served a bowl of apples and a dish of sweets, and if you are diabetic with a craving for sweets, your mind will pull you towards eating the sweets, but your inner voice will tell you to go for the apples.
Suppose a bowl of apples and a tray of oranges are served to you and if your mind pulls you towards oranges and your inner voice will be telling you that either of these is all right.
That is to say if there is a conflicting voice in you, that is, an opposing voice between the inner and the outer voice, you have to listen to, or follow the inner voice, and where there is no conflicting voice between the inner and the outer voice, there you may follow as your whims and fancies are, that is you may follow your mind’s voice or outer voice! Your job is over. Now you sit there hand on hand doing nothing. The results are not your choice. Your botheration is over once you accept what comes to you and do what is the most righteous in the situation. ~ Rajini Menon-
1
-
2
-
-
The Indian Catholic bishops’ media institute in New Delhi, India, has celebrated “Rakshabandhan” (bond of protection), the festival of siblings with a group of Brahma Kumaris.QuoteThe Indian Catholic bishops’ media institute in the national capital has celebrated “Rakshabandhan” (bond of protection), the festival of siblings with a group of Brahma Kumaris.
The festival, which symbolizes the bond of protection and care between siblings, was marked by the Brahma Kumaris tying “rakhi” (colored threads) on the wrists of NISCORT staff members, including its director Father Robinson Rodrigues and principal Ritu Dubey Tiwari.
Expressing his gratitude and admiration for the initiative, Father Rodrigues said, “Raksha Bandhan is a beautiful reminder of the ties that bind us as a community. It’s heartening to witness the Brahma Kumaris joining us in celebrating this festival of love and protection. Such interactions foster mutual understanding and appreciation, which are essential in our diverse society.”
Brahma Kumari Sister Lovely, who tied the rakhi to Father Rodrigues and other staff members, said, “Rakshabandhan transcends religious and cultural boundaries. It’s about recognizing the universal values of love and responsibility towards each other. By participating in this event, we aim to promote unity and strengthen the bonds of friendship that exist between different communities.”
NISCORT principal Tiwari said the institute “places a strong emphasis on intercultural understanding and harmony. Events like this enrich our understanding of different traditions and enable us to cultivate a more inclusive environment for our students and staff.”
Father Rodrigues said the celebration served as a poignant reminder of the significance of festivals in fostering a sense of togetherness among people from diverse backgrounds.
Rakshabandhan is a popular Hindu rite or ceremony where sisters of all ages tie a talisman or amulet called the rakhi around the wrists of their brothers.The rakhi is also tied by women and girls to boys and men who are not blood relatives, cutting across lines of class and religion, accepting them as brothers and to foster social harmony and cohesion.
The above event is an example wherein the ceremonies and festivals in a religion can be used to initiate inter-faith harmony and brotherhood, mutual understanding and social well-being.
-
1
-
1
-
-
On 10/26/2023 at 3:35 AM, NaturaNaturans said:This is kind of interresting. How there is no mention of evil, but instead ignorancr, as If bad deeds are a result of lack of knowledge or understanding.
These three qualities or elements are sattva, rajas and tamas, which is referred to in Sankhya philosophy.
Sankhya means number in sanskrit, and Sankhya provided the philosophical conception for the numeral system used by the Indians, and later on by the Arabs and Europeans to the present day.
It is surprising hence for me that Sankhya philosophy is not studied by the world philosophers, as it would reap a lot of dividend and insight into Hindu and Buddhist philosophy and religions and world-view, as these elements are used extensively in their religious literature. It is also an integral element of eastern medical systems.
It has helped me a lot in creating a coherent understanding of nature and existence .
-
1
-
-
Thought alone, when it is no longer connected with the much vaster realm of consciousness, quickly becomes barren, insane, destructive. ~ Eckhart Tolle
When scientific or rational thinking is grounded in presence it has a completely different outcome. It can never be monstrous. ~ Dr. Jean Klein
Once you are corrupted by thought you have no sense of life, simply your own psychological process is more important than the whole cosmic dimension of the existence. ~ Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev
Thought is creating divisions out of itself and then saying that they are there naturally. ~ David BohmThe mind is a superb instrument if used rightly. Used wrongly, however, it becomes very destructive. To put it more accurately... you usually don't use it at all. It uses you. ~ Eckhart Tolle
-
An insightful article by Sadhguru on the subject ...
https://isha.sadhguru.org/in/en/wisdom/article/plant-based-diet-benefits
QuoteThe type of food we eat has a huge impact on the mind. An average American is said to consume 200 pounds of meat per year. If you bring it down to 50 pounds, I would say 75% of the people will not need antidepressants anymore. Meat is a good food to survive if you are out in the desert or the jungle. If you are lost somewhere, a piece of meat will keep you going, because it provides concentrated nourishment. But it should not be a daily food that you eat when there are other choices.
There are many ways to look at this. One aspect is that animals have the intelligence to know in the last few moments that they are going to get killed, no matter how cunningly or how scientifically you do it. Any animal that has the capacity to express some kind of emotion will always grasp when it is going to be killed. Suppose you come to know, right now, that at the end of this day, you are going to get slaughtered. Imagine the struggle that you would go through, the burst of chemical reactions within you. An animal goes through at least some fraction of that. This means when you kill an animal, the negative acids and other chemicals are in the meat. When you consume the meat, it creates unnecessary levels of mental fluctuations in you.
For most of those who have become mentally ill, the illness is not pathological but has been cultivated. Such a large percentage of people cannot be mentally sick unless we are somehow culturing it within our social fabric.
If you put people who are on antidepressants on a conscious vegetarian diet, in about three months’ time, many of them will not need their medication anymore. We have seen this with many people who have come to the Isha Yoga Center.
-
'You don’t ‘have’ thoughts. You are not the ‘thinker’ of thoughts. That is not your true identity.You are the vast, clear, peaceful sky of awareness in which all thought-clouds are continually allowed to appear and disappear.Thought-clouds float by, feelings emerge and dissolve, and the vastness of what you are remains, always.' ~ Jeff Foster
'Awareness is the backdrop against which all individual consciousness and experience arises.
As such, it is the unmoved, ever present Essence of All That Is. We may become actively involved with, or even distracted by, that which appears within the field of individualized consciousness or human experience, but even in the midst of all this mental and physical activity, our inherent, Natural Awareness remains the undisturbed constant.' ~ Metta Zetty
-
On 10/20/2023 at 6:49 PM, Summer said:Thats great. Good for you. I do see a lot of this evangelical thinking with people who make the switch though (especially vegans) and its a bit condescending.
I only put my personal facts over here. What people eat is their individual choice, and I only provided data for informed decision-making.
If it comes to starvation and eating non-vegetarian food for a person, I would whole-heartedly go with the latter.
Reverence and gratitude to nature or the Divine would reduce any karmic impurities of the act.
The Hindu/Sikh practice of Jhatka, killing the animal or bird in a single stroke so as to minimize physical pain or suffering is also a good practice in this regard.
QuoteYou could have reigned in your overeating whilst still meat based, if you wanted.
Meat-based dishes are more delicious than vegetarian food, imho. The tendency for most people is to keep eating even beyond their needs and hunger. Hence there is austerity and discipline involved in control of the palate and taste buds.
The discipline of the tongue is also correlated to the discipline of the sex organs, and thus those focussed on celibacy would thereby try to discipline their palate as well.
QuoteIf you read I asked about what benefits or changes people had seen in terms of cultivation.
My perception is that eating fresh vegetarian food on a constant basis improves the quality of meditation.
I have noticed that fasting or eating fruits alone as a meal brings about a tangible leap in the quality of meditation during the day for the better.
I have also met advanced meditators who were totally vegetarian or ate non-vegetarian food sparsely. And this has increased my conviction in this regard.
But I have also met an enlightened sage who ate meat as well and enjoyed such dishes, and drank beer and alcohol too (prior to his enlightenment).
However he was someone who was able to discipline himself to live constantly in a state of total awareness or mindfulness in the midst of his wordly duties. And this is not an easy task.
His mind was very strong and focused in this regard, and this resulted in his eventual enlightenment. He was also in his twenties, and blessed with good physical and mental fitness and vitality at that time.
If you have cultivated such a heroic mind, I don't think meat or beer would be a problem for spiritual advancement.
-
1
-
-
Life is rooted in reality, not in your thoughts and emotions. ~ Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev
Thought can be so seductive and hypnotic that it absorbs your attention totally, so you become your thoughts.~ Eckhart Tolle
The stream of thinking has enormous momentum that can easily drag you along with it. Every thought pretends that it matters so much. ~ Eckhart Tolle
When each thought absorbs your attention completely, it means you identify with the voice in your head. Thought then becomes invested with a sense of self. This is the ego, a mind-made "me." That mentally constructed self feels incomplete and precarious. That's why fearing and wanting are its predominant emotions and motivating forces. ~ Eckhart Tolle
"You may see that every single thought you can entertain only serves to perpetuate the personal 'I" . ~ Jac O'Keeffe
Following a thought is what maintains it. If you remain present without becoming an accomplice, agitation slows down through lack of fuel. In the absence of agitation you are taken by the resonance of stillness. ~ Jean Klein
The thought 'I am meditating’ is an ego thought. If real meditation is taking place, this thought cannot arise. ~ Annamalai Swami-
1
-
-
A mind that is fast is sick. A mind that is slow is sound. A mind that is still is divine. ~ Meher Baba
All spiritual disciplines are done with a view to still the mind. The perfectly still mind is universal spirit. ~ Swami Ramdas
Non-action is unceasing activity. The sage is characterized by eternal and intense activity. His stillness is like the apparent stillness of a fast rotating gyroscope. ~ Ramana Maharshi
When the mind is still, it gets the power to fulfill any thought. ~ Sri Sri Ravi Shankar -
4 hours ago, Summer said:I eat a lot of meat. Generally cant stand vegetables. I seem to function better on meat, not only in terms of energy, will and digestion but in general.
Consumption of meat has been correlated to higher rates of cancer, cardiovascular diseases, alzheimers and dementia, as per scientific research.
https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/255644#1
In my family of non-vegetarians, I am the only one who is vegetarian. I noticed that my brothers and father suffered from painful kidney stones and had operations in this regard, which I never had.
Kidney stones emerge from excess protein consumption.
I became vegetarian due to religious and ethical reasons. Vegetarianism helped me to get rid of my comical pot belly and excess fat and become lean and trim. I have similarly seen other vegetarians who look a decade or two younger than their actual age.
-
Thinking is good, but excessive thinking is not. Between thoughts if there is a period of thoughtlessness, thoughts will be fresh and pathbreaking. A thinker will be able to cultivate a strain of healthy thoughts only when he pays attention to thoughtlessness also. ~ Acharya Mahapragya
While doing work if the mind continues to be active let it be so, but there must be at the same time a capacity for silence.
~ Sri Aurobindo
Reason does not need thinking. If you observe yourself making a plan you will notice that having fixed the object, the facts just keep coming, linking up into a chain of proposed action. Awareness is experiencing from moment to moment. Reason acts quickly in awareness, a thousand times faster than thought, and you do not even notice it is operating. ~ Barry Long
When the robot mind is mastered, undisciplined thinking ceases and is replaced by awareness. Awareness can know love. You can only experience the new when you are aware, when you are without thought. ~ Barry LongI do not know if you have noticed that there is understanding when the mind is very quiet, even for a second; there is the flash of understanding when the verbalization of thought is not. Just experiment with it and you will see for yourself that you have the flash of understanding, that extraordinary rapidity of insight, when the mind is very still, when thought is absent, when the mind is not burdened with its own noise. So, the understanding of anything—of a modern picture, of a child, of your wife, of your neighbor, or the understanding of truth, which is in all things—can only come when the mind is very still. ~ Jiddu Krishnamurti
-
“Life is available only in the present moment.” ~ Thich Nhat Hanh
“No one has ever lived in the past or the future, only the now.” ~ Thich Nhat Hanh
“The present moment is filled with joy and happiness. If you are attentive, you will see it.” ~ Thich Nhat Hanh“While you are walking, smile and be in the here and now, and you will transform that place into paradise.” ~ Thich Nhat Hanh
-
1
-
-
17 hours ago, NaturaNaturans said:Well, yess, but i will not sit down and meditate If i meet a hungry lion.
Nor am going to call it stupid or egoic, or an npc.A hungry lion is not unconscious or egoic, it just wants to satisfy its hunger following its natural instincts. If you meet a hungry lion obviously your duty is to evade it successfully, and if there is no option available, to kill it in self-defense. Krishna tells Arjuna to do his duty as a soldier and does not exhort him to meditate on the field in the lotus position.
A mind that is filled with strong desires in the form of cravings and aversions is bound to be in psychological time, either in the past through memory or future through imagination. Such a mind is unnatural, and consequently in a state of misery. It is bound to be inauspicious and self-destructive in the long run unless it realizes its natural state.
-
Awareness is the greatest agent for change. If you get the inside right, the outside will fall into place. Primary reality is within; secondary reality without. ~ Eckhart Tolle
Stop being tense about the external situations. Once the inside of a person is clean, then the outside automatically becomes all right. - Mata Amritanandamayi
In the realm of mind, like attracts like. If the soul is peaceful, then it attracts peaceful environment and people around it. - Sri Sri Ravi Shankar
Set your mind right and all will be right. - Nisargadatta Maharaj-
1
-
-
The 9 day Navratri festival is being celebrated by Hindus around the world from last week onwards, and is from 15-10-23 (Sunday) to 24-10-23 (Tuesday).The Navratri festival is conducted in reverence of the Mother Goddess Durga. As per Shakta philosophy of Hinduism, all women are manifestations of the Divine Mother and reverence towards them results in auspiciousness and strength.
https://www.brahmakumaris.com/navratri/
QuoteNavratri is an opportunity to celebrate, rejoice, and rekindle our spirituality. During Navratri, we celebrate the nine forms of “Goddess Durga or Shakti”, who symbolises purity and divinity, while the depiction of demons like Ravana at her feet represents the five negative Sanskar(vices), including lust, anger, greed, attachment, and ego.. Thus, Navratri serves as an occasion to invoke the deities in our quest to transcend these negative traits and habits.
-
2
-
-
On 10/13/2023 at 5:00 PM, NaturaNaturans said:I agree and support this. The problem however, is that if some ethnicities adopts a more peacefull and tolerant perspective, while others do not, they can be outcompetet by the more «egoic» one.
That which is unconscious and egoic is self-destructive in the long run.
QuoteIf you are driven by fear, anger or pride nature will force you to compete. If you are guided by courage, awareness, tranquility and peace nature will serve you.~ Amit Ray
-
The state of consciousness that a great majority of humanity is in isn't natural. It's altered. We do not need to go looking for altered states of consciousness; humanity is already in an altered state of consciousness called separation. Separation is the ultimate altered state of consciousness.' - Adyashanti
'If as a culture, as a species, we continue to dwell in a divided state of consciousness, no matter what we change on the outside, we will continue to manifest division. But each of us who comes into the natural, simple, undivided state is making a contribution to all beings - without trying, without taking any credit, without even knowing it. When you become undivided in your own consciousness, you become part of the manifestation of unity.' - Adyashanti
'Without a shift of attention from concept to immediate experience and perception, spirituality tends to degrade into magical thinking, fantasy, and/or fanaticism. It is only by redirecting attention away from the surface level of the mind’s narrative, and towards the pure immediacy of the present, that we can break the trance of ego-identification and fall into conscious connection with our true nature.' - Adyashanti-
1
-
-
QuoteIf there is the genuine view, the pure view, then all of the ten negative actions will be abandoned naturally. ~ Chokyi Nyima Rinpoche
Here we see that comprehension of the genuine view or right view, leads to natural abandonment of a variety of negative actions without even having to develop their corresponding virtues to nullify these vices.
Thus right view or right understanding itself is potent enough to nullify negativity and vices or preempt such behavioral traits.
https://www.rigpawiki.org/index.php?title=Ten_unwholesome_actions
-
Vedanta contains eternal truths that are meant for the entire humanity. Their knowledge is neither emotional nor intellectual, but represents the actual reality that is. It teaches us that preoccupation with the past and the future makes for an agitated present. And as our actions are the greatest expression of our thoughts, it is not surprising that the world we live in is as turbulent as it is. -- Swami Purushottamananda
Emotions and even thoughts become depersonalized through awareness. Their impersonal nature is recognized. There is no longer a self in them. They are just human emotions, human thoughts. Your entire personal history, which is ultimately no more than a story, a bundle of thoughts and emotions, becomes of secondary importance and no longer occupies the forefront of your consciousness. It no longer forms the basis for your sense of identity. You are the light of Presence, the awareness that is prior to and deeper than any thoughts and emotions. -- Eckhart Tolle
Walk into a situation consciously and you will be able to walk out of it harmlessly. - Vernon Howard
Everything will turn out successfully when the mind is not agitated. - Yogar Swamigal
If I am agitated, I am wrong. - Vernon Howard -
Absolute Reality is always present, and when the personal is active (through identification with thought) only a relative reality can be experienced. Thought takes over and perceiving becomes subjective and illusory. This relative reality creates all the unrest that exists. All global and local disturbance stems from the thoughts of "I” and "me.”
The common phrase living in the real world” is in fact referring to the unreal world, the world of thoughts that know no rest. ~ Jac O'Keeffe
It is only when without ego, and there is no individual, that the act of absolute compassion takes place through your form. From emptiness, selfless giving takes place. It is then that there is nothing personal in such actions and it is impossible not to act without love. ~ Jac O'Keeffe
If there is attachment to your personality, or to any story within what your personality believes to be true, then there will be desire and suffering.You are Pure Awareness shaped into a human being. You are not a separate human being playing with levels of awareness. ~ Jac O'Keeffe
-
On 10/9/2023 at 11:12 PM, Daniel said:I think calling it "false" is a misnomer that produces misunderstanding. It is "incomplete" not "false".
The incompleteness disappears in perception of the true Self in samadhi or unitary perception. You will recognize it easily and clearly due to the lack of mental agitation and tension associated with egoic thinking and emoting.
QuoteIgnoring the "false" misnomer, this is much better. Contrast requires the lower self. Self requries self. They're partners.
Identities such as nationality or gender or sexual orientation have functional utility in case of pass-ports or washrooms or dating purposes.
However if they are used as a source of innate identity due to lack of Self-knowledge, they will be invested with corresponding emotion.
If you don't know who you are, you will desperately cling to all known external labels you have for yourself for a sense of identity and would be willing to fight and even die for them. Any perceived assault on the adopted identity would not be tolerated, because of emotional and egoic identification with it.
This is the reason why racial, religious, nationalistic, ideological and linguistic identities have a history of violence and cruelty associated with them which continues in the present day due to lack of Self-knowledge.
-
1
-
-
Clear thinking results in correct action. ~ Nataraja Guru
The average man is ruled by the explosions of his emotions, and cannot think clearly. ~ Yogananda
Conflict is always emotional. ~ Sri Sri Ravi Shankar
Emotions arise from thoughts which arise, in turn, from foundational belief structures about the nature of Reality and your own innate identity. ~ Metta Zetty
The conflict in the world is not between good and evil, as is so often projected. The conflict is always between one man’s belief and another man’s belief, whether it is within the family or between nations. The moment you believe something, you are in conflict with the opposing belief. You can postpone it with moderate talk. But conflict is inevitable. ~ Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev
Ego is complete identification with thought and emotion. ~ Eckhart Tolle
Be aware that what you think, to a large extent, creates the emotions that you feel. See the link between your thinking and your emotions. Rather than being your thoughts and emotions, be the awareness behind them. ~ Eckhart Tolle -
On 10/6/2023 at 6:35 PM, mat said:Atman refers to the individual's true self, or soul. In Hinduism, it is asserted that Atman is eternal and divine, and it is identical to Brahman, the universal spiritual reality. Monism is a philosophical position that claims there is one fundamental substance or reality in the universe, and everything that exists, including the physical, the mental, and the spiritual, is derived from this one substance.
The 'individual's true self' is often referred to as Self in Advaita and Hinduism and nondual philosophy, with the 's' being in capital case letter.
The higher or true 'Self' is contrasted with the false or lower self or ego.
The Self is pure consciousness or awareness, and distinct from the lower self which is essentially an artificial or fictitious identity brought about by identification with the mind-body complex and its social conditioning.
Because of the inherent falsehood in the lower self, this state is associated with psychological suffering due to its unnaturalness, and the spiritual quest lies in gaining self-knowledge or the knowledge of the Self.
Sat-Chit-Ananda ( Truth-Being-Bliss) are the qualities asssociated with the Self.
-
1
-
-
When there is attention (awareness), goodness flowers; when there is no attention, every form of evil comes into being. So attention is the only virtue. ~ Jiddu Krishnamurti
You miss the real by lack of attention and create the unreal by excess of imagination. ~ Nisargadatta Maharaj
Evil is the shadow of inattention. ~ Nisargadatta Maharaj
There is nothing like ignorance, only inattention. ~ Nisargadatta Maharaj
Everyone post some favorite quotes!
in General Discussion
Posted
The pollution of the planet is only an outward reflection of an inner psychic pollution: millions of unconscious individuals not taking responsibility for their inner space. ~ Eckhart Tolle
With the changing of seasons and the integrity of matter, the external form of the earth changes over time. The driving force behind this devolution is the human mind. The higher, pure consciousness manifests in a robust, verdant planet, while the lowest, impure consciousness produces a polluted, corroded state of existence. ~ Prajapita Brahmakumaris
The damage we cause to the environment is a consequence of how we are within ourselves. If we realize that maintaining our inner climate is in our hands, we will understand that taking action for the environment is also in our hands. ~ Sadhguru