Sunday, May 28, 2017
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May is a month for study of Bhakti Yoga. As a bhakti yogi (bhakta), you establish a devotional relationship with God through study, prayer, ritual, and worship. You practice giving every action, thought, emotion, perception and tendency “a Godward turn.” All of your energies and attributes, both positive and negative, are offered to the Divine Presence. Your prayer is for complete self-surrender, in ecstatic union with your Belovèd.
Here’s what to expect in this talk:
- first, a guided meditation
- then, a 30-35 minute talk on the inner light that is a reflection of your true original nature
- finally, we’ll finish with our usual 15 to 20 minutes of Q&A and discussion
Chapter 6, Verse 14 of the Svetasvatara Upanishad says,
“There the sun shines not, nor the moon and stars, nor does the lightning illumine, much less this earthly fire. He alone shining, everything shines after him. By his light all this universe shines!”
Svetasvatara, having realized the ultimate Reality, does his best to share that knowledge with us. His words are awe-inspiring, no doubt. Yet, they can leave us feeling something like this:
“If I’m honest, I can’t say I understand him. Here I sit, a seemingly isolated individual. I live my life as best I can, from day to day, in a troubling and sometimes frightening world.
Sure, I’d like to share Svetasvatara’s realization. I’d love to be free from suffering and sorrow! Is that really possible?”
In a number of unambiguous promises, our great teachers tell us, “Yes, you certainly can.” In this talk, we explore and discuss those reassuring promises.
But first, after our guided meditation, we review:
- Successes and gifts you’ve had so far in life
- Challenges to your continued progress, and
- Obstacles — habits of mind that, while they persist, can “freeze you in place.”