* Focus On What Matters;
* Various Links to Podcasts, Online Books, Blogs and Websites;
* Behold the Universes Within You;
* Excerpts from Swami Ji's Letters -- From Master To Disciple;
* A Tree of Sant Mat: The Murar Declaration and the Inter-Faith Spircon 2010, A Historic Event Held in Agra -- A Basis For Fellowship -- Those Who Attended;
* Article: An Inclusive Rather Than Exclusive Spirituality: Kirpal Singh and the Lesson of Nag Hammadi (Gnostic Scriptures Found in Egypt);
* Kabbalah and Inner Light & Sound Mysticism;
* The Hidden Words of Baha'u'llah (Prophet and Mystic of the Bahai Faith);
* A Radhasoami Prayer by Shiv Brat Lal;
Links
* Many Podcasts-On-Demand: Spiritual Awakening Radio, and, Sant Mat Satsang Podcasts via Youtube and the Podcast APPS -- GO TO:
* Background: An Introduction to Sant Mat Spirituality -- GO TO:
* Sant Mat Blog With Extensive Archive and Search Engine:
* Daily Spiritual Quotes via Facebook, Twitter and Tumblr:
Focus On What Matters:
"The essence of life is in remembering God." (Kabir)
"We are all pilgrims treading the same path and desirous of reaching the same destination ultimately."(Huzur Maharaj)
"Come up, O lions, and shake off the delusion that you are sheep; you are souls immortal, spirits free, blest and eternal; ye are not matter, ye are not bodies; matter is your servant, not you the servant of matter." (Swami Vivekananda)
"Having been blessed with this human form, one must make proper use of their 'Pradhan Buddhi' or Supreme intellect by utilizing it for the attainment of Self-Realization and thus make fruitful or productive this human birth." (The Shri Paramhans Advait Mat Granth)
"The desire of an individual to be free from sufferings and to attain the happiness of absolute peace is naturally present in the hearts of all. The purpose of Sant Mat is to provide a system which fulfills the desires of attaining absolute peace." (Maharshi Mehi)
"Be regular and lovingly devoted to your holy meditations, as that is the central pivot around which the whole sacred teaching revolves and therein an all around development of the soul is granted." (Kirpal Singh, Spiritual Elixir)
"What matters is the bead that only bows to the Beloved,
And the tongue that only speaks in adoration of God."
(Sant Namdev)
"Be ready at all times for the gifts of God, and always for new ones." (Meister Eckhart, German Mystic)
Be at peace with your own soul,
Then heaven and earth will be at peace with you.
Enter eagerly into the treasure
house that is within you,
And you will see the things that are in heaven;
For there is but one single entry to them both.
The ladder that leads to the Kingdom in hidden within your soul...
Dive into yourself and
in your soul you will discover
The stairs by which to ascend.
-- Saint Isaac of Nineveh
From Master to Disciple -- Excerpts from Swami Ji's Letters
"Always remember the Lord. My blessings to you are that with a sincere mind, sincere spirit, sincere love, sincere devotion, sincere yearning and sincere attention in the contemplation of the Guru, you may peruse this letter."
"He is present with you all the time in Shabd Form. Therefore, banish all worry, and look with sincere attention and spirit, and you will get His vision."
"Always remember the Lord, and, knowing that He is always with you, imbue yourself with His love."
"Lord in Shabd Form is always with you and is never far. Have patience, and you will get a glimpse of True Light."
"Be saturated with His love and yearning. Keep away from evil tendencies and leanings. Combating with mind and its forces, remain absorbed in Shabd."
"Rest assured that His loving memory will always remain with you inwardly in a subtle form. This gift is bestowed on you as a matter of grace, for you have done nothing to incur so much of Huzur's pleasure as to deserve such a great gift. Just as a charitable person gives to an importunate beggar out of his habitual compassion, so to you also, He has given, given, given."
"I wish you all health and happiness, but keep uppermost in your mind Bhajan, Dhyan and devotion to the Supreme Being. The Grace of the Supreme Being on you is the same, as it was before. Attune yourself to the Will of the Lord. Renouncing all thoughts of the past and future, keep your spirit immersed in Shabd at the time of Bhajan."
"Fix your spirit in Shabd, and Shabd is in Gagan. Fill your heart with yearning; and heart is at Trikuti. Unite your spirit with Shabd and see beauteous sights. The Til is located within Sukhmana (an artery of the human body, which lies between Ida, on the right and Pingla, on the left), and the form of Jyoti is in the Til. Sit in Bhajan after making your mind and spirit calm, with the help of love and yearning. By the Grace of the Guru, your object will be gained; rest assured, and have no fear whatsoever." (Soami Ji Maharaj's Letters To Huzur Maharaj)
Know Thyself and the Inner Master: "Realize your real form within, and then proceed further with your Surat (attention-faculty of the soul). Radhasoami enjoins upon you to ascend and meet the Shabd Guru." (Soami Ji Maharaj, Sar Bachan Poetry, Book One)
"When your eye turns inward in the brain and you see the firmament within, and your spirit leaves the body and rises upward, you will see the Akash in which is located Sahas-dal-kanwal, the thousand petals of which perform the various functions pertaining to the three worlds. Its effulgence will exhilarate your spirit." (Hidayatnama or Esoteric Instructions, Sar Bachan Poetry, Volume One, Swami Ji Maharaj/Sant Radhasoami Sahib)
"Rigorous practice of inner meditation will unravel the fourteen levels: the seven levels of 'Pind' or body and the seven levels of 'Brahmaand' or the macro-cosmos, namely: Ajnaa Chakra, Sahasra-Dal-Kamal, Shoonya, Maha-Shoonya, Bhanwar Gufaa and Sat Lok. But for this to happen you will have to, while alert, focus your attention at the place prescribed by the Guru.
"On reaching into the 'Shoonya' or Void, you will listen to the Sound or Word, the Sound (primeval or Quintessential Sound) through which God has been calling you right from the beginning since you separated from Him." (Param Sant Tulsi Sahib of Hathras)
Behold the Universes Within You by Learning the Right Method from an Accomplished Guide (Forwarded post by Pravesh K. Singh)
That a droplet is contained inside the ocean is common knowledge.
But very rare are those who can behold the ocean (universes) to be contained within the droplet (body).
-- Sant Kabir Sahab
The Drop is within the Sea, and the Sea is within the drop!
Who gets to know (experience) this? He who has learnt the right skill.
-- Guru Nanak Dev
Sleeping alertly (without slipping into the state of ignorance or unawareness), yogis visualize the various cosmos within their wombs.
-- Goswami Tulsidas
...Just as applying that lamp-black, meditators, the accomplished beings and the wise...
Relish seeing the wondrous spectacles of numerous stellar bodies, mountains and forests within them.
-- Goswami Tulsidas
All the features of the Macro-cosmos are there within the body.
-- Jnana Sankalini Tantra
As in the body, so in the Universe.
As in the Universe, so in the body
-- Yajur Veda
All knowledge is within, all deities live within.
All holy places lie within, but can be seen only with the art taught by the Guru.
-- Jnana Sankalini Tantra
The Cosmos is within the body; I have seen what lies even beyond these.
-- Sant Tulsi Sahab
We entered the house of realization,
we witnessed the body.
The whirling skies, the many-layered earth,
the seventy-thousand veils,
we found in the body.
The night and the day, the planets,
the words inscribed on the Holy Tablets,
the hill that Moses climbed, the Temple,
and Israfil's trumpet, we observed in the body.
Torah, Psalms, Gospel, Quran --
what these books have to say,
we found in the body.
Everybody says these words of Yunus
are true. Truth is wherever you want it.
We found it all within the body.
-- Poem # 4, Page 20, The Dervish Way by Sufi mystic Yunus Emre
The microcosm is hidden in the creation of man
and the macrocosm is the outer universe.
But for prophets the outer universe is the microcosm
while the inner universe is the macrocosm.
-- The Conversations (Maqalat) of Shams of Tabriz
(Hazret Shams al-Din of Tabriz), Rumi's master
A Tree of Sant Mat: The Murar Declaration and the Inter-Faith Spircon 2010, A Historic Event Held in Agra
"We are all pilgrims treading the same path and desirous of reaching the same destination ultimately. Satsang movement has been started to spread the true religion and peace and tranquility in the world and to draw people towards the Holy Feet of Huzur Radhasoami Dayal. This object can be better served by maintaining mutual affection and brotherly relations among different Centres of Radhasoami Faith and working in cooperation to attain the common goal 'as the object of worship of everyone is the same (i.e. Merciful Radhasoami) and the Original Home of everyone is the same (i.e. the Abode of Radhasoami) and the real teachers of everyone are the same Bani and Discourses of Merciful Radhasoami, obviously then, all should have amity and heart-felt love and affection for each other.'" (Huzur Maharaj, Prem Patra)
".....The letter of Invitation was sent to Revered Leaders of seven Centres and also the draft of proposed Declaration on the lines of the one adopted by the Sabha at Murar was sent for consideration. Revered Baba Kehar Singh ji Maharaj of Taran Taran and Revered Kanwar Singh Sahab of Dinod participated in the Conclave. The Revered Leaders of Beas and Sawan Kirpal Ruhani Mission Delhi were going to be out of India on the dates set for the Conclave. Revered Baba Gurinder Singh ji Maharaj of Beas promising to visit Dayalbagh before the end of the celebrations did come on 16th March, 2011. He met Revered Dr. Prem Saran Satsangi Sahab and the two Leaders signed a General Statement declaring that "in all humility the two Satsangs declare once again their adherence in true letter and spirit to the guidelines contained in the Joint Statement (of Param Guru Sahabji Maharaj and Baba Sawan Singh ji Maharaj signed in 1932)." Revered Babaji was welcomed by President, Radhasoami Satsang Sabha on behalf of Satsangis of Dayalbagh of whom 7000-8000 were present and Satsang held. Sawan Kirpal Ruhani Mission has conveyed full support for Murar Declaration. Revered Agam Prasad Mathur Sahab of Pipal Mandi participated in the SPIRCON Seminar as Chief Guest of Honour and has indicated his support for the Declaration. Mahantji of Tulsi Math of Hathras attended SPIRCON throughout. Representatives of Soami Bagh and Dr. Hazra Group too were invited of which the latter attended SPIRCON."
The Murar Declaration: A Basis For Fellowship
Param Purush Puran Dhani Soamiji Maharaj was pleased to declare the Satsang open to general public on the occasion of Basant in the year 1861. This can be said to be the day when Radhasoami Faith was started. To mark the completion of 150 years of this momentous occasion, a year-long celebrations were organised in Dayalbagh and in all the Branches affiliated to it beginning from Basant 2010 and culminating at Holi 2011. Coincidentally, during this period Radhasoami Satsang Sabha, which is the main organising body of Dayalbagh Satsang also completed its 100 years in March 2010. Apart from a Special Meeting for thanksgiving held on 26th March, 2010 (the precise date) at Dayalbagh, a special session of the Sabha was also held at Murar which is the birth-place and home of Param Guru Sarkar Sahab, the fourth Revered Leader of the Faith and under whose inspiration the Sabha was formed.
In this year of general rejoicing and thanksgiving, it was felt that it would be in fitness of things to send out a message of goodwill and cooperation to various Satsang Centres inspired by the Message of Param Guru Huzur Maharaj (the second Revered Leader of the Faith) in the Prem Patra:
"We are all pilgrims treading the same path and desirous of reaching the same destination ultimately. Satsang movement has been started to spread the true religion and peace and tranquility in the world and to draw people towards the Holy Feet of Huzur Radhasoami Dayal. This object can be better served by maintaining mutual affection and brotherly relations among different Centres of Radhasoami Faith and working in cooperation to attain the common goal 'as the object of worship of everyone is the same (i.e. Merciful Radhasoami) and the Original Home of everyone is the same (i.e. the Abode of Radhasoami) and the real teachers of everyone are the same Bani and Discourses of Merciful Radhasoami, obviously then, all should have amity and heart-felt love and affection for each other.'"
It was considered desirable that the Radhasoami Satsang Sabha, Dayalbagh should issue a Declaration emphasising the need for maintaining brotherly and good relations amongst all Centres which would help in spreading the Message of Huzur Radhasoami Dayal faster and more effectively and bring about understanding of the Religion. The joint statement issued by Param Guru Sahabji Maharaj, the Fifth Revered Leader and the Founder of Dayalbagh and Baba Sawan Singh ji Maharaj, the second Revered Leader of Beas Satsang when he visited Dayalbagh in 1932 provided the guiding principle. The Joint Statement stated that because of the understanding reached about the commonality of fundamental beliefs held and practices followed at the two Centres:
"Satsangis connected with Radhasoami Satsang Sabha Dayalbagh and Beas Satsang will be able to maintain brotherly and affectionate relations with each other. Both the Satsangs will make arrangement for their Satsang independently and every Satsangi will have the right to join the Satsang of his choice and to follow the lead of Head of the Satsang Whose Guidance he likes. The Satsangis would make effort to strengthen the relations of brotherly love. They should abstain from unnecessarily instilling their own ideas and feelings in the minds and hearts of other Satsangis...."
THE CONCLAVE: Those Who Attended
In keeping with the concept of Murar Declaration and its objective, it was considered desirable to enlarge the basis for cooperation among different Centres of Radhasoami Faith in the light of the observations made by Param Guru Huzur Maharaj as cited in the note regarding Murar Declaration. Hence immediately following the two-day Seminar on Religion of Saints ('Sants') -- Radhasoami Faith: Spiritual Consciousness Studies (SPIRCON-2010) which was held under aegis of Dayalbagh Educational Institute (Deemed University) and in which practitioners and scholars of Sant Mat from India and various parts of the world participated, it was decided to hold a Conclave of Leaders of different traditions of Radhasoami Faith on 14th November, 2010 at Dayalbagh. In sending out invitations for participation for the Conclave, three criteria were identified that they should:
(1) recognise Param Purush Puran Dhani Soamiji Maharaj as Avtar of Radhasoami Dayal
(2) accept Radhasoami Naam as the true Nij Naam and consider
(3) the practice of Surat Shabda Yoga under the guidance of a living Sant Satguru as the way for attaining salvation.
Accordingly the letter of Invitation was sent to Revered Leaders of seven Centres and also the draft of proposed Declaration on the lines of the one adopted by the Sabha at Murar was sent for consideration. Revered Baba Kehar Singh Ji Maharaj of Taran Taran and Revered Kanwar Singh Sahab of Dinod participated in the Conclave. The Revered Leaders of Beas and Sawan Kirpal Ruhani Mission Delhi were going to be out of India on the dates set for the Conclave. Revered Baba Gurinder Singh ji Maharaj of Beas promising to visit Dayal Bagh before the end of the celebrations did come on 16th March, 2011. He met Revered Dr. Prem Saran Satsangi Sahab and the two Leaders signed a General Statement declaring that "in all humility the two Satsangs declare once again their adherence in true letter and spirit to the guidelines contained in the Joint Statement (of Param Guru Sahabji Maharaj and Baba Sawan Singh ji Maharaj signed in 1932)." Revered Babaji was welcomed by President, Radhasoami Satsang Sabha on behalf of Satsangis of Dayalbagh of whom 7000-8000 were present and Satsang held. Sawan Kirpal Ruhani Mission has conveyed full support for Murar Declaration. Revered Agam Prasad Mathur Sahab of Pipal Mandi participated in the SPIRCON Seminar as Chief Guest of Honour and has indicated his support for the Declaration. Mahantji of Tulsi Math of Hathras attended SPIRCON throughout. Representatives of Soami Bagh and Dr. Hazra Group too were invited of which the latter attended SPIRCON.
At the Conclave held on 14th November, 2010 a Declaration was issued signed by Leaders of Dayalbagh Satsang, Dinod and Taran Taran Satsang.
DECLARATION
The following is the text of the Declaration which was signed by Revered Dr. P.S. Satsangi Sahab, Revered Baba Kehar Singh Sahab and Revered Kanwar Singh ji.
"Radhasoami Dayal incarnated Himself in the year 1818 in the form of Param Purush Puran Dhani Soamiji Maharaj in this world for the redemption of jivas. On Basant day in 1861, He declared open His Satsang to public in general which was an event of unparalleled Mercy since the beginning of creation. By His grace Satsang has been making steady progress ever since. The Nijdhar has continued to function in different human forms continuously. We have the assurance that the Nijdhar will not return until it had completed its task of redemption of all the jivas.
2. In course of time, several Centres of Radhasoami Satsang have got established. It is with the strength of Nijdhar that the Sant Satgurus of different Centres are maintaining progress of their respective communities.*
3. We are all pilgrims treading the same path and desirous of reaching the same destination ultimately. Satsang movement has been started to spread the true religion and peace and tranquility in the world and to draw people towards the Holy Feet of Huzur Radhasoami Dayal. This object can be better served by maintaining mutual affection and brotherly relations among different Centres of Radhasoami Faith and working in cooperation to attain the common goal "as the object of worship of everyone is the same (i.e. Merciful Radhasoami) and the Original Home of everyone is the same (i.e. the Abode of Radhasoami) and the real teachers of everyone are the same Bani and Discourses of Merciful Radhasoami, obviously then, all should have amity and heart-felt love and affection for each other."
4. As Satsang completes 150 years, it is the right time to take an initiative in this direction. We recognise all those belonging to larger Radhasoami community who satisfy the following criteria:
(A) Recognise Param Purush Puran Dhani Soamiji Maharaj as Avtar of Radhasoami Dayal
(B) Accept Radhasoami Naam as the true Nij Naam and,
(C) the practice of Surat-Shabda-Yoga** under the guidance of a living Sant Satguru as the way for attaining salvation.
In order to strengthen the Satsang movement for attainment of its goal we make the following declaration:
(1) That all Satsang Centres and the Satsangis affiliated to them would maintain and promote brotherly relations and affectionate behaviour towards the followers of Radhasoami Faith attached to different Centres.
(2) Each Centre will continue to make separate arrangement for Satsang as it deems proper. It will be open to a Satsangi to join any Centre according to his/her inclination and to follow the lead of the Sant Satguru Whose Guidance he/she wants.
(3) Each Centre will be free to manage its properties according to its wishes but access to the shrines under their management will be provided to the followers of the Faith attached to different Centres.
(4) No Satsangi by any written word or utterance will make any statement which may be derogatory to other Satsang nor try to instil his/her ideas and feelings in the minds of others.
We enjoin upon Satsangis attached to various Centres to follow this Declaration in letter and spirit.
(* & ** NOTE: For the benefit of some in the West it should also be said: Surat Shabd Yoga in all of the above-mentioned communities is taught to students at no cost. There is no charge, no money involved whatsoever, in order to learn the practice. There are no membership fees or payments required for "membership dues" or monthly "discourses". In order to qualify to learn the Inner Light and Sound meditation practice known as Surat Shabd Yoga one simply needs to be willing to learn from a living teacher, adhere to the vegetarian diet and the other basic ahimsa principles universally taught in all of the Sant Mat communities listed above.)
An Inclusive Rather Than Exclusive Spirituality: Kirpal Singh and the Lesson of Nag Hammadi, by James Bean
Copyright October 2012 -- All Rights Reserved
The "old school" approach of sectarianism consists of a narrow belief that one's own path is the "one-and-only true" one. That's the old-fashioned approach of shutting out the rest of humanity and the cosmos. Fundamentalism can be a kind of mental tyranny or idolatry, the worship of one's own belief-system or interpretation as a god, a "finger pointing at the moon" that often gets mistaken for the moon itself.
I love this passage from Maharshi Mehi on the dangers of sectarianism, showing how hard-headed and hard-hearted sectarianism is a form of violence. Sectarianism according to enlightened Masters is not a virtue. It is a vice. Coexist!
"In different times and different places saints appear and their followers name their religion according to the sage or saint who propounded that tradition. The appearance of differences can be attributed to time, place, and language. This gives rise to various labels for the common views held by all religions. Likewise, due to excessively zealous followers, these seeming differences are often amplified. When all sectarianism and the temporal and linguistic aspects are removed, the basic principles of all the saints are in accord and the voices of the saints are in harmony."
There are the great world religions: Hinduism, Jainism, Buddhism, Taoism, Zoroastrianism, Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Sikhism, the Bahai Faith, Aboriginal/Indigenous/Native American/Sami People, etc... In addition to comparative religion there is also comparative mysticism, the study of various schools of spirituality or mystics that are, or once were, operating within many of these above-mentioned faith communities, East and West. Viewing religions through this particular "lens", one's list may include: Kabbalah, Gnosticism (Valentinians, Barbeloites, Nassenes, Manichaeans, Cathers, Bogomils,), Hesychasm (Eastern Orthodox mysticism), Syriac and other forms of Monasticism, Quietism, the Beguines, Gottesfreunde or Friends of God, to name a few in the Christian category, Sufism, numerous lineages of Saints, Sant Satgurus and Bhaktas based in India.
"The great Seth wrote this book...... He placed it in the mountain that is called 'Charaxio,' in order that, at the end of the times and the eras..... it may come forth and reveal..... the great, invisible, eternal Spirit....... The Gospel of the Egyptians. The God-written, holy, secret book." (Gospel of the Egyptians, The Nag Hammadi Library)
In December 1945 a collection of ancient scriptures -- fifty two books -- was unearthed near the village of Nag Hammadi in Egypt. These texts had been placed in a clay storage jar, sealed, and buried sometime during the Fourth Century AD. They most likely were hidden there at the time by monks who lived at a nearby monastery founded by Saint Pachomius. They would have been sacred texts once part of the library of this monastic community, one of several Pachomian monasteries operating in Egypt.
"The god of time (illusion) has put a cover over the teachings of Saints and thus concealed them from humanity." (Swami Ji Maharaj)
Rather than confining themselves to only reading the Old and New Testaments or teachings exclusively from Orthodox Christian sources, these monks had a surprisingly diverse collection of writings that can only be characterized as inter-faith and multi-tradition. In other words, they were also studying the scriptures of other religions and mystical movements of their day.
The papyrus codices of the Nag Hammadi scriptures includes Christian texts such as the Gospel of Thomas, a collection of the earliest known sayings of Jesus, Dialogue of the Saviour, Gospel of Mary Magdalene, the Book of Thomas the Spiritual Athlete, Teachings of Silvanus, and Apocalypse of James (Parts I & II).
There are also many examples of mystical or Gnostic Jewish texts. Perhaps the oldest book of the Nag Hammadi library, Eugnostos the Blessed, is one of many that originate with a sect known as the Sethians, who practised a somewhat Kabbalah-like form of Jewish mysticism.
Several important Nag Hammadi books are part of the Corpus Hermeticum, sacred texts of the Hermetic tradition, an esoteric religious and philosophical mystery school or school of spirituality based in Egypt attributed to Hermes Trismegistus ("Thrice-Greatest Hermes"). These include: The Discourse on the Eighth and Ninth Heavens or Planes, Asclepius, and The Vegetarian Prayer of Thanksgiving.
Scholars have noticed there is a strong influence of Neoplatonism, a mystical philosophy based on the teachings of Plato, present in many of the Nag Hammadi texts and Gnostic gospels. Both the Corpus Hermeticum and Nag Hammadi Library refer to India on a couple of occasions, and one Nag Hammadi book by the name of Zostrianos mentions the Persian Prophet Zoroaster. The books of Nag Hammadi are in the Coptic language and are copied by monks from much earlier Greek manuscripts. Some of the writings seem to originate in Syria, just north of Israel, including the Gospel of Thomas (Sayings of Jesus) and book of Mar Sanes.
The Sentences of Sextus is a Pythagorean text, a collection of proverbs popular with many during the early centuries C.E.. The Pythagoreans were, as the name suggests, followers of Pythagoras, a sect that believed in a fascinating combination of mathematics and mystical beliefs and practices including reincarnation, transmigration of the soul, and hearing the Music of the Spheres, the Harmony of All Harmonies. They also adhered to a vegetarian diet. In fact, for most of the last two thousand years in the western world the word "vegetarian" has been synonymous with "Pythagorean", such was their influence on Pagan, Jewish, and Christian traditions. Vegetarians have been referred to as "Pythagoreans" up until recently, when the word "vegetarian" became fairly popular.
Some of the scriptures of Nag Hammadi are from a moderate, more mainstream Gnostic Christian movement called the Valentinians, founded by Saint Valentinus of Alexandria. Many suspect that many of the Pachomian monks had been followers of Valentinus and brought their scriptures with them when they joined the monastery near Nag Hammadi.
From the point of view of the monks contemplating the words of these scriptures, their interest was not a schizophrenic or contradictory eclectic spirituality. All these writings do have much in common, common themes and threads, a universal wisdom that transcends narrow religious sectarian boundaries, a rich treasure-trove of spirituality. What a fascinating version of Christianity these people had: "a faith once entrusted to the Saints". (Book of Jude)
"Wisdom leads the soul to the place of God." (The Sentences of Sextus, Nag Hammadi Library)
The Lesson of Nag Hammadi
These codices or scriptures of Nag Hammadi were buried after Bishop Athanasius condemned the use of non-canonical books in his infamous Festal Letter of 367 AD. As a new conservative sectarian hard-line leadership, with it's lists of "approved" and "banned" books, imposed itself upon the monastic communities of Egypt, it is believed that some monks took these forbidden books from the monastic library and hid them away, thus rescuing them from certain destruction, and this free-spirited act ended up preserving them for future generations. Now, this collection of the sayings of Jesus known as the Gospel of Thomas, rather than being the victim of censorship and the book-burning hysteria of the Fourth Century, has it's own website. The Gospel of Mary Magdalene, illustrating the leadership role of women during the early days of Christianity, instead of being forever wiped from the pages of history, is now the subject of great interest by many open-minded spiritual seekers around the world.
"The tyrant will not be able to take away happiness." (The Sentences of Sextus, Nag Hammadi Library) "And there is nothing hidden that will not be revealed. There is nothing buried that will not be raised!" (Gospel of Thomas)
Planetary Lobotomy
The loss of the Nag Hammadi Library and the destruction of the Library of Alexandria represent two spectacular examples of 'Planetary Lobotomy', the unrestrained wanton destruction of the knowledge of humanity. At least in the case of Nag Hammadi, a large percentage of the texts have been restored to us.
Beware of today's "Athanasius types". The spirit of Athanasius lives on in each generation, seeking to take freedoms away, seeking to blow up statues of Buddhas and Saints, forbidding the study of "unauthorized" spiritual wisdom -- deliberately causing books to go out of print, causing trouble for many seeking souls, ever thinking up new rules and regulations. The results of the imposition of over-reaching rule-making, control and censorship in spiritual organizations, despite the usual good intentions that are advertised, ultimately leads to the loss of knowledge and wisdom of the Masters, the dumbing down of a tradition.
"The Pharisees and the scholars have taken the keys of knowledge and have hidden them. They have not entered nor have they allowed those who want to enter to do so. As for you, be as sly as snakes and as simple as doves." (Gospel of Thomas)
As I've written in the past, 'there is no permanent Institution or University of Mysticism, but a decline-renewal process, a continuous pattern of Masters..... making a fresh start in new locations, remaining free to exist in genuineness and authenticity without a hierarchy of scribes and an ever-growing caste of Pharisees running the show, surrounding the Master, blocking him from our view. Let's just stick with visiting with the Master around the Bodhi or Banyen Tree of simplicity. The true Masters do spend time with their disciples. Personal interviews? You bet. Make every effort to enjoy their company whenever you can during this lifetime, while both you and they are in the body.
The Master says, "What your own eyes cannot see, your human ears do not hear, your physical hands cannot feel, and what is inconceivable to the human mind -- that I will give you!" (The Gospel of Thomas -- Wisdom of the Twin, Lynn Bauman, White Cloud Press)
Administrative religious councils have been at war with enlightened souls since the beginning of time, and ultimately seek to retire and replace living Masters altogether. I remain suspicious of the institutionalization process, the thirst and eagerness on the part of some to building ever larger buildings, creating new committees and councils for themselves to rule over. Only mystics care about mysticism.
"Do not lay down any rule beyond what I ordained for you, nor promulgate law like the lawgiver, or else it will dominate you." (Yeshua, Gospel of Mary Magdalene)
The Example of Kirpal Singh (1894--1974)
Sant Kirpal Singh, advised his students to follow a satsang template that included a long reading list of potential scriptures and sources of inspiration or instruction: "For the subject of a talk, we may take up the hymns from any scripture, preferably from the Masters of the Sound Current. It may be supplemented by apt quotations from the parallel writings of other Master Saints. The Holy Gospels themselves are full of such material as may fit in with such a context. The illustrations from various Masters are essential so as to bring out the essential unity in the teachings of all the Saints." (Instructions For Holding Satsang, by Sant Kirpal Singh)
"To fill the human heart with compassion, mercy and universal love, which should radiate to all countries, nations and peoples of the world. To make a true religion of the heart as the ruling factor in one's life. To enable each one to love God, love all, serve all, and have respect for all, as God is immanent in all forms. My goal is that of oneness. I spread the message of oneness in life and living. This is the way to peace on earth. This is the mission of my life, and I pray that it may be fulfilled." (Kirpal Singh)
Kirpal Singh was a prolific writer, publishing scores of books over the years, quoting from most every world scripture, mystic, poet, philosopher, and great Master that has ever existed spanning the centuries, very much embodying this same curiosity and inclusive universal spirituality we find present in the Nag Hammadi Library of Egypt. May the legacy of both always be remembered and honored for all time to come. ////////
Kabbalah and Inner Light & Sound Mysticism
"The mystical spirit that craves for a direct encounter with God, for a fresh illumination of soul, is not content with pondering a tradition, even a mystical tradition. To gain this boon the mystic must travel the lone road of meditation, of struggling with his own opaque material self, to break the barrier that separates him from God and to enter directly into contact with the divine mystery." (Rabbi Ben Zion Bokser)
Simran/Zikhr/Remembering/Repeating God's Name(s)
To Thy Name and to Thy remembrance
is the desire of our soul.
With my soul have I desired Thee in the night;
Yea, with my spirit within me
have I sought Thee earnestly. (Hebrew Bible: Isaiah 26: 8-9)
And nothing lies in the power of a man.
Know then that peace comes from understanding His Will.
So wear His Name like a charm around your neck,
Meditating on Him alone,
And no harm shall approach you.
"One can attain to the Spiritual World through the practice of outward and inward holiness, excessive love of God and the delight in His recollection (zikr) and Holy Names." (Abraham he-Hasid, Jewish Sufi mystic)
Ascending Through the Heavens Repeating Names of God
"The first century Rabbi Akiva ascended through the seven heavens and the seven palaces in the highest heaven by means of passwords uttered to the angelic gatekeepers. His meetings with God were characterized by luminosity." (Joan Borysenko, "Seven Paths to God: The Ways of the Mystic")
The Five Names (Panch Naam) of the Sethians, a Jewish-Gnostic Movement in Antiquity
Name One: Armoz-el of the first region,
Name Two: Oroia-el of the second region,
Name Three: Daveithe of the third region,
Name Four: El-ethe, of the fourth region
The Fifth Aeon.....Fifth Name not translated:
the Divine, is the all-encompassing Self-Begotten One.
(The Nag Hammadi Scriptures)
"Throughout Jewish history, many of the rabbis and sages believed that direct experience of God is possible, resulting in a higher type of knowledge than can be gained by means of intellect. Aside from the visions of the prophets recorded in the Bible, the rabbis based this belief on the passage in Psalms, "O, Taste and see that the Lord is good; Happy is the man that taketh refuge in Him" (Psalm 34:9). The word taste is very graphic, tangible, and non-intellectual. It suggests knowledge through direct experience of the divine essence, rather than by thinking or reasoning. Similarly, many Indian and Muslim mystics have sung of their experience of the Divine in meditation as tasting the inner ambrosia, the spiritual food, and as drinking the inner nectar.
"The rabbis of the Talmud interpreted God's command to Abraham in the Bible, "lekh lekha" -- "go to yourself" (Genesis 12:12), as meaning "go within yourself"....
"The Jewish mystics of the Sufi tradition, as well as the later Kabbalists of Safed and elsewhere, practiced various forms of meditation in order to obtain knowledge of God. For example, according to the thirteenth-century Spanish Jewish mystic Isaac ibn Latif, even the highest type of intellectual understanding reaches only the "back" of the Divine, but a picture of the "face" of the Lord can be gained through supra-intellectual ecstasy, which is an experience even higher than prophecy. Ibn Latif calls this type of direct perception "the beatitude of supreme communion."....
"Meditation is the proper mystic training that brings the soul in direct contact with the divine reality and "the beatitude of supreme communion." In meditation, one learns to detach the soul from the mind and body and merge it in the Lord, its Source."
"The spiritual Master, the mystic, comes to this world to teach a method of freeing the soul -- the spark -- from the shell of mind and illusion, so it can merge back into God. This is the real unification, or yoga.....
"All saints teach that the creation came from the Word, the holy Name of God, the Shabd -- the divine energy of life, the divine music, the audible life stream -- which activates the creation and manifests as sound and light, emanating from En-Sof -- the realm of pure Spirit.
"The goal of spiritual practice is to reverse this process of creation on an individual level -- of the soul's separation from the divine source and imprisonment in matter. Jewish mystics call it tikkun, 'fixing,' but Indian mystics simply describe it as the merging of the soul into its divine source, so that it never again has to experience separation and imprisonment in the material creation." (Miriam Bokser Caravella, "The Holy Name -- Mysticism in Judaism")
"Close one eye and open the other. Close one to the world and all that is therein, and open the other to the hallowed beauty of the Beloved." (The Hidden Words of Baha'u'llah)
"O Son Of Dust! Blind thine eyes, that thou mayest behold My beauty; stop thine ears, that thou mayest hearken unto the sweet Melody of My Voice; empty thyself of all learning, that thou mayest partake of My knowledge; and sanctify thyself from riches, that thou mayest obtain a lasting share from the ocean of My eternal wealth. Blind thine eyes, that is, to all save My beauty; stop thine ears to all save My Word; empty thyself of all learning save the knowledge of Me; that with a clear vision, a pure heart and an attentive Ear thou mayest enter the court of My holiness." (The Hidden Words of Baha'u'llah)
Radhasoami Prayer
O August Radhaswami (Lord of the Soul),
Thou Living Self and Living Master,
Beneficent Father and Mother of All!
Be merciful -- make us Thine own,
And thus save us from the snares of Time.
Past are the Golden Age and others,
Unknowing of the Heavenly Melody proper,
Yet now art Thou Merciful, in this hard Dark
Age,
To chant in loud and lucid strains, the Sacred
Word,
O Lord, having descended into this plane
below,
Helpest Thou the living entities,
To span the Worldly-Ocean across;
To cast off the Trinity, and reach the Fourth
Abode,
Whence the Living Name unfolds,
And the Living Mastership.
Bathed in Glory and Effulgent Light,
Thy servant tenders this Solemn Petition:
Grant us even The Regionless Region,
The Chief Abode, the Sphere of Bliss,
The Holy Refuge at Thy Feet,
MY LORD!
-- Prayer of Sant Daata Dayal Ji (Shiv Brat Lal), "Light On Ananda Yoga -- The Yoga of Happiness," Sant Bani Books, 1982, with the encouragement of Steve Morrow (Note: I was friends with the late Steve Morrow, who, once upon a time, had an inter-faith Sant Mat satsang at his home in Texas called Sant Mat Fellowship.)
