The Golden Orb of Love

Thoughts of love Thought is a label attached by the brain to one of its apparent functions; thinking. It names breathing to the functioning of lungs, seeing to eyes, hearing to the function of ears and so on. Love is a special thought but another label for the thought that tries to explain attraction felt by a human body. Similar attractions occur all through out the universe but they are labelled differently by the brain, e.g. Gravity, magnetism and electrical energy. If we try to go deeper into the meaning of the label "thought or love", we quickly end up at the bottom of the rabbit hole. This is not unique to this label but to all names and labels. Take "table", a word used to describe the functioning of a rectangular object made of something called a tree, which is made of something called molecules, atoms and then strings and eventually energy. What is energy, another question at the bottom of the hole, begging for what philosophers call the "one free

Consciousness is an attribute, a property, a quality of living things, even inanimate things rather than an independent object in itself. If we start looking for it like an entity to be found through meditation or pilgrimage, we may find something very different. In fact its the attribute of all there is. Consciousness of emptiness brings manifestation into this presence. Consciousness or awareness does not perform an act or control anything directly but through an object such as a human body. In fact all functions of a body and it's mind can be attributed to its only property,  consciousness. Eyes do not see, they funnel light through a lens onto a detector whose signals are rearranged into images and then consciousness of the body allows us to see. Same with all other senses. Even thoughts are just electric signals in the brain which get translated into images or sounds and the conscious ability of brain allows us to make an intelligent thought. In simple terms its like the

JANUARY 19 , 7-10 PM Patanjali, well known seminal author of yoga guide for all practitioners, defines yoga as "chitta vritti nirodhuh" meaning "cessation of mental formations." We will cover the eight limbs of yoga that leads to this cessation in what is known as samadhi, a complete absorption into and of the self. Yoga without understanding what the process is designed for is an incomplete practice. FEBRUARY 16 ,  7-10 PM Bhagwat Gita, is a satsang between an undefeated warrior, Arjuna with his charioteer, friend and teacher, Krishna in the middle of an epic battle. Gita's lessons of how to conduct oneself while arrows and spears fly past you and still maintain a meditative calm are as good today as thousands of years ago. This is the guide for all who want to find peace without having to escape the vicissitudes of life and its torments.

Literally to bring something out of darkness by shedding some light on it. The same definition could be used for guru, a sanskrit word meaning someone who brings you out of darkness. But in the end it is a word based on a concept like the one described above therefore it was created by a human brain which has but one purpose, to produce happy chemicals through actions to stimulate its five senses and through thought. And ironically it is the frustration felt by that brain when it fails time and again to find a permanent and constant source of happy chemicals that it wants the panacea of enlightenment. Most teachers point to a great mistake, an illusion, a maya perpetrated by the brain or mind as the source of all suffering. The brain keeps trying to end this suffering by making another mistake, this time to seek enlightenment. It is when the brain realises its error, the great mistake by retreating from the endless loop of seeking happy chemicals, the light goes on. The curse

It almost seems like you have to be already in a neutral mood, not too happy not too sad before you can follow the simple mindfulness meditation tips and tchniques, like paying attention to your breath, finding a comfortable seat, peaceful corner, on and on. Well that's not much help. If I am already calm and neutral or happy, who cares. Why mediate? It has to work when all you can see is doom and gloom, bleak future and painful present. And when you sit to meditate when you're upto your navel in alligators, all your mind tries to do is solve the problems you have and protect you from the impending disaster. But you really need to meditate when life sucks. How? What I have found is a simple two step process works quite nicely. One, bring the suffering in front of you instead of hiding from it and then resist trying to solve the problem right now. Say to your self, first I must calm myself now becuase then I will be better prepared to find the best solution. Do

Literally it is the attraction between a human, the only species that has this word, and other beings, matter and thoughts which include concepts, ideas and imagination. But this word is so heavy in its impressions. It is the reason for much anguish, for so many conflicts and heartaches. Attraction between two objects is at the heart of all creation. Gravity makes earth go around the sun, stars around black holes and galaxies in spirals. Gravitational attraction keeps the entire universe from flying apart at much faster speed and instantly vanish into the original void it apparently came from. Attraction keeps particles bound in specific orbits that make the infinitesimal to macro; molecules, cells, rocks and trees. This attraction is innate in all living beings. It's this attraction that makes all living things seek company of other living things. Even though a lion kills for food, he only takes what it needs. Only one animal actually hates as well as loves. And that is t

I am all there is... Krishna is I Arjuna I believe falsely to be me. Kurukhshetra is the world I have imagined Mahabharata is the war I engage in all the time Happening now Demons I have slaid in my mind Virtues I have to protect in my mind. The grand vision of godhead is the infinite nature of my field of consciousness. Arjun must surrender to know me.

A sufi master, Dr. Syed Hussein Nasr during the 2013 festival of faiths in Louisville said why is it that horses do not overeat nor do most animals, but we do? Even after your belly is full, the craving for the next tasty morsel persists. Even after you can barely see, you want another drink. It doesn't take long before your heart is after another lover.  His answer was that something propels us to want everything, the point he made was that within us  is a desire for the infinite. Where does this desire for the infinite come from? Surely it can't be the organs like a mouth, a stomach or even our sexual body- none of these have a will. They serve a bigger master. Is it the brain or its representative, the mind? When we look we find no mind, no brain, just thoughts coming and going like wisps of clouds; sometimes arbitrary and other times evolved out of a stimulus. For a moment just imagine an engine behind all desires in the world including yours. This engine has no name

Past regrets and future worries are the main ingredients in a soup called suffering. Masters recommend seeing through the dream like quality of these in many words such as time is in the mind, only the now is real all else imaginary thoughts and that history is just a story. The difficulty in truly accepting and understanding these arguments lies in the fact that the present or now seems so real. And that past events were at one time felt just as real as the present does now. So how can we possibly say that the presence is real but not the past? Or that the future will not be similar to the real now. The answer lies not looking at just the past or future as dream states but deconstructing the present as being unreal. This is impossible as long as we use our senses which report a very real direct experience of the now. But there are two components of this now. There is the sensory experience including the sensation of thought. And overlaid on them is a fog like story that ke

As a four year old, I attended a satsang with my grand uncle who was practicing pratyahara by abandoning all usual domestic life and wandered small villages of mithila giving words of wisdom to whomever would listen. Unfortunately, 7 pm was about the end of the day for me and I pretty much fell asleep in the wonderful ambiance his presence along with candles, incense and flowers had created. All I remember is his first word which was samsara and a memory of deep peace. I asked older folks later what he meant and they told me the world. It has taken me sixty years to really understand the vastness of the word and what world he was talking about. I have spent pretty much rest of my life to try and find simplicity in teachings which mostly confuse me even now. So when Mooji says look, I find mostly noise confounding most of my senses. So I close my eyes and the loudest noise from photons disappear. What remains when I sit for a while is a vast ocean of quiet and peace with frequent d

Is enlightenment supreme bliss? So many of us on the new age path are attracted to the veiled promise of satori bliss, SHAKTIPAT sidhi, nirvana peace or sakshat moksha. These promises originate from certain ancient, current teachers and authors who have described the fruits without properly releasing the contradiction. Nirvana means blowing out the fire of ego, enlightenment happens to no one and moksha means liberation from the body. So, if there is no one left after liberation who feels bliss and joy? Body and mind do not disappear until death. Feelings are intact as ever perhaps even more. All hindrances of mind chatter, negativity and preoccupation are gone. What is left is a body and mind with sensuality only available at a primordial time or perhaps at birth. The body falls madly in love. Falling madly in love is the natural state of the body and mind. It longs for this twenty four seven. Alas, most objects it finds including other beings are impermanent leaving it t

Why not just disappear? Take a look, a close look Are you really needed in whatever That fills your day, good and bad That makes you happy and sad? It's not a magic trick You disappear every day When you lay down to sleep When you are engrossed in tv. Are you there when you fall in love With a person, an object or an idea? Are you there when you are passionately angry or happy? Why bother showing up When all you find is suffering With an occasional smattering Of relief. Just disappear into the space always there when you close your eyes Beckoning you to spend time In solitude, reverie and meditation. Just disappear into a place So familiar it feels home. So vast, there is no end Nor beginning, just calm. Disappear to whatever aches you To unwanted arguments, Useless future plans Or past hangovers. Disappear into the background Like a tree, the cloud and the earth. Just being there to serve all That deserve your molecules.

There are two questions here. First, what is the purpose of life itself. Many have tried to answer this and there are millions of words written on this. The purpose of your life is perhaps easier to understand, for it is limited to an assumed identity, you. This assumed identity has been programmed by your parents, teachers and society as well as the biology itself to charge it with a purpose. The biological entity acts for survival and procreation. This purpose takes on the shape of the world you know, live in and love. This world of action seems to have no end but if you reduce all the grandiose acts from exotic dinners to space flights to discovering dark matter, it comes to common denominator of biological progress. This natural path of securing survival comes to somewhat of an end for many when the body feels secure. Until then, the answer to the question is simply taking one step after another towards this mundane goal of survival. You share this purpose with all living bei

How do you feel when someone says to you, it's so good to see you? Or, you look so pretty, handsome, cheerful or wonderful today. Feels nice? Why? Doesn't matter who you are, a king, a popper, a minion or a boss. It feels nice. Why? Even if you don't believe the words. Even if the teller is disingenuous. Even if he is a stranger. It still feels nice. Why? And this nice feeling, where does it manifest in you? And how long does it last? Watch your thoughts when hearing these words or when you do not hear these words but were expecting them. Why? For therein lies the true definition of what makes this illusion of you.

Yoga is an adopted name originally from the word yog which is still in use by languages derived from Sanskrit. Yog simply means a way, a method, a process. Some say it comes from the word Yoke but I can't find any reference to this. Yoga as it is practiced in our neighborhoods today is just one (asanas) or may be two (pranayama) of the eight limbs of Ashtanga as taught by Patanjali in his book of sutras which is the most esteemed reference book used by yoga schools. The eight limbs of yoga are Yama, niyama, asanas, pranayama, pratyahara, dharana, dhyana and samadhi. The first four of these are practice of yoga but normally we find asanas (often in Hatha yoga)and  pranayama taught in most studios. The first two, Yama and niyama are codes of living as recommended by Patanajali and also by Buddha in vipassana. Practices like vegetarianism, noble silence are part of Yama and niyama practice. Pratyahara is withdrawal from five senses which is a result of yoga practice of the fi

Putrid is the smell where I was born Filthy is the pond Where I took the first sip. Where cows defecated Buffalo played and frogs frolicked Beasts used it as a playground Humans use as a dumping hole. From where the grass Looked greener outside. A home that looked Dark and murky. Then I saw the light from a blazing sun cutting through layers of filth it reached my innards. I opened my eyes looked for nectar in the crud little by little I drank the wine. Little by little I blossomed and got stronger to raise my head above the grime until blue sky and clean breath. Now all I see is love of shining treasures beauty beyond  occasionally the filth I left behind .