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ARTArticleA Sudden and Decisive Spiritual Opening Transforms the Individual’s Life When It Takes PlaceSometimes the spiritual opening comes in what appears to be a miraculous fashion and the direction of the individual’s life takes a major turn. This goes beyond a brief glimpse of the spiritual truth which can fade and require renewal in order for it to stabilise and solidify the direction. Such a sudden opening may come with a near-death experience, as there are many instances where an individual awakes and knows that he needs to focus on the spiritual aspect of life. It may of course happen through other means.ARTArticleAddressing Alte ations in Spiritual Progress Over TimeWhen Milarepa approached Marpa, requesting liberation in one lifetime, he was haunted by the misdeeds he recognised in his own recent past and the harm he had caused many people. He had justified the harm based on the misdeeds of those individuals towards his family, but eventually he understood that his own fate was on the line. Instead of granting him the teachings, Marpa set him to work with hard physical labor for an extended period of time. What thoughts were going through Milarepa’s mind as he carried out the seemingly meaningless, back-breaking work?ARTArticleAids in Attaining Spiritual Realisation: the Scripture and the GuruA written scripture or teaching may help direct the focus of the mind and the heart toward the realisation to be gained. No book, however, can replace the experience, and an intellectual understanding does not constitute spiritual knowledge. Spiritual experience comes through receptivity to the vibratory pattern to be evoked in the being. The scripture, the ‘word’, helps to tune the consciousness toward the right vibratory pattern.ARTArticleAll Knowledge Is Within, Awaiting the Time and Circumstance to Manifest in Our Exte al BeingThe ancient Greek philosopher Plato described the method of teaching utilized by Socrates, known today as the “Socratic method”. Socrates understood that education was not the process of stuffing knowledge into an individual, but rather, as the root of the word ‘education’ implies, a drawing out of the knowledge already held within. He propounded a series of questions intended to provoke the person to express that knowledge and formalize it thereby in their exte al being.ARTArticleAn Inward Concentration Is Necessary for the Seeker of KnowledgeThe ability to concentrate the mind allows us to function in the world in a coherent manner and to create results in whatever field the concentration takes up. Without concentration, the mind would jump from one perception, one impression, one idea to another randomly and instantaneously as new impulses arise. Everyone has had the experience of concentration, whether it be taking a test in school, or trying to excel at some skill or sport, or in taking up the study of music, art or even, reading a book and being absorbed in it.ARTArticleAn Overview of the Intermediate Zone and Ways the Seeker Can Safely Maneuver Through ItAs the seeker begins to shift the consciousness inward, he becomes aware of forces, powers, and realms that are the native venues for our physical, vital and mental energies and activities, as well as existing in and by their own form of reality and under rules that do not necessarily match up with those we believe pertain in our exte al world. The opening to these realms can be extremely disorienting as the individual does not know what they are, what they intend, nor how, indeed, they act.ARTArticleApplying the “Hundredth Monkey” Phenomenon“The liberation of the individual soul is therefore the keynote of the definite divine action; it is the primary divine necessity and the pivot on which all else turns.” This is the first step but what must also be recognized is that as individuals here and there achieve new states of consciousness and begin to integrate it into their life and action, it also extends itself horizontally and begins to replicate itself. Every liberated soul becomes a focus point for a radiant action that leads to similar liberation.ARTArticleAspiration and PrayerMany people confuse aspiration with prayer. They are however, actually two different things, and while they may support one another when they align, it is not necessary that aspiration lead to prayer. Aspiration refers to the inner state of consciousness that arises from the psychic being in a spontaneous movement of directed focus on some form of growth, development or realisation. Aspiration does not require belief in a supreme deity, although, again, it may coincide with such a belief.ARTArticleAttaining Peace in the BeingA central key to attaining peace lies in achieving the poise of non-attachment. Non-attachment is sometimes confused with avoidance of action, or some kind of renunciation. But non-attachment can develop even among those who are active in the world. King Janaka was known as being non-attached while still ruling a kingdom and living amidst the luxuries that were part of his position. Buddha achieved non-attachment through overcoming the force of desire. Non-attachment is an underlying basis for refocusing the concentration of the being on the Ete al. Energy flows where it is directed.ARTArticleBecoming Aware of the Central Will of the BeingThe decisive spiritual experiences an individual has stay with him throughout his life. Those who are anchored in their exte al lives undergo countless experiences but these tend to fade, become jumbled or simply blend into one another. Who can, after all, remember what they ate for breakfast 10 days ago, much less 25 years ago? We remember high points in our lives, whether they are exte al events, such as a wedding day, or the death of a loved one, or the birth of a child.ARTArticleBeginning the Process of Bringing Meditation into One’s LifeIf we shift to the standpoint of the observer of the mind, we will notice that as conditions vary, the ‘mind-stuff’ (citta) takes on different characteristics based on our state of reactivity and interaction with perceptions, feelings, events or exte al circumstances. We may consider an image of a lake that can either appear perfectly still and have a glass-like and reflective consistency, or when whipped up by wind or other exte al factors sends up waves, whether steady and of measured amplitude, or extremely agitated.ARTArticleCalmness Belongs to the Strong — Quietude Is the Basis of True PowerIn today’s world we are confronted by politicians and business leaders who act aggressively, beat their chests, berate others, bully and otherwise exhibit behavior that proclaims “might is right” and therefore, due to their financial power or physical strength, they have the right to control others. These aggressive behaviors are frequently mixed up with racism or misogynistic tendencies where they can pick on those weaker than themselves, and rape, torture and sadistic actions are often part of their repertoire.ARTArticleChanging Outer Actions Is an Essential Aspect of Inner DevelopmentWhen an action takes place in the world, it has a number of effects both in the world, and in the psychology of the individual carrying out the action. Each action creates a formation, a rhythm, or a solid result that tends to perpetuate and repeat itself on an ongoing basis. Thus, the more we carry out specific forms of action, the more difficult they are to change or remove. This is the secret of why habits, addictions and instincts are so hard to change.ARTArticleCognitive Bias and Occult ExperiencesWestern psychology has investigated the impact of subtle forms of bias on what and how we perceive things, and how we interpret what we perceive. An individual’s cognitive bias subtly influences what he believes has occurred, and various people, witnessing the same event, but coming from different viewpoints, will report out what happened differently, in line with the cognitive filter they have applied.ARTArticleComparing Current General State of Human Consciousness With More Evolved States, Part 1 Unconsciousness Versus Increasing ConsciousnessWhat does the evolution of a new power of consciousness imply? When we observe the impact that the Life-Force has had on Matter, we can see that it brings in a radical transformation of Matter itself to allow the Life-Force to act. Matter has to become more responsive, more flexible, less dense, in order to carry out the demands of the Life-Energy.ARTArticleComparing Current General State of Human Consciousness With More Evolved States, Part 2 Distractability Versus ConcentratednessWith even a very cursory examination of the thoughts and sensations that enter our awareness, it becomes quite clear that there is a constant flow of sensations, impressions, perceptions, feelings, emotions and thoughts that seem to bombard us all the time. Our attention flits from one thing to the next instantaneously, seemingly without any control. When this becomes somewhat extreme, so that the individual can barely function in the world, Western psychologists term it ‘ADHD”, or in the general language “attention deficit disorder”.ARTArticleComparing Current General State of Human Consciousness With More Evolved States, Part 3 Dispersed Versus Gathered ConsciousnessDistraction is actually a symptom of another characteristic, that of “dispersion” of the consciousness. If we take the time to observe our own sense of awareness we find that it seems to be primarily on the surface of our being, receiving sense perceptions, reacting to people, things, events and circumstances and otherwise busying itself with all the details of the exte al life. From time to time we may experience a centred, indrawn state of awareness where we feel ourselves to be ‘self-contained’, so to speak, and thus, at peace.ARTArticleComparing Current General State of Human Consciousness With More Evolved States, Part 4 Agitation Versus Peace in the BeingIf we observe ourselves carefully, we find that as a natural consequence of the distractions and the dispersion of the consciousness, we have little if any calm and peace in the being. We experience not only the more overt forms of anxiety and concern, but the more subtle forms of nervous disquiet and mental lack of ease.ARTArticleComparing Current General State of Human Consciousness With More Evolved States, Part 5 Identification With the Exte al Nature Versus Poise of DetachmentWe generally experience ourselves as our body, life and mind. When we injure our body, we say that we have hurt ourselves. When there are hunger pangs, we say that we are hungry. When we experience an emotion, we say that we have become angry, or are in love, or are feeling lonely or depressed. Rene Descartes famously stated “I think, therefore I am”, showing his sense that he was identified with his mental consciousness. When the body dies, we believe that we die.ARTArticleComparing Current General State of Human Consciousness With More Evolved States, Part 6 Subjection to Suffering from the Dualities Versus EquanimityThe dualities, or pairs of opposites, are recognised throughout the world as a condition of life. Night and day, positive and negative, and all other dualities, can be seen in material nature, as well as in our vital and emotional existence and in our minds. Electricity flows between positive and negative poles. The pairs of opposites are seemingly inescapable in our world.ARTArticleComparing Current General State of Human Consciousness With More Evolved States, Part 7 Separative Ego Versus Universal, Transpersonal AwarenessThe default standpoint for almost the entire human race is that of the ego. There are tribal societies that try to reduce the predominance of the ego through a collective mindset, but even in such societies, pride, rivalry for dominance, and other forms of ego persist. In the West, a premium is placed on the development of the ego and the individual personality. People are taught to compete, to win against others at just about any cost, to succeed in the self-aggrandising process in whatever field of endeavour one finds oneself.ARTArticleComplex Interaction of the Gunas Can Bring About Opposite Responses from an Individual Under Various CircumstancesAs we take our standpoint primarily in the exte al nature, we are clearly subject to the action of the three Gunas, or ‘qualities’ of Nature. These qualities do not remain constant and are ever-changing, and they then determine the type of reaction and action an individual has in any particular situation or provocation. Thus, depending on the predominance of a particular quality at any point in time, an individual may exhibit totally different responses to any situation.ARTArticleConcentration Is Not the Same As MeditationThere is considerable confusion about meditation and concentration. They are, however, not quite the same. Achieving a meditative state inwardly can aid in the development of concentration. Certain forms of meditation utilize techniques that lead to concentration. Yet meditation can be calm, relaxed and peaceful without being a concentrated state of awareness that focuses on a single point, which is the definition of concentration. It can be ‘blank’ of ‘content’. Certain forms of meditation let the mind rest quietly in a state of vast general awareness, which is not ‘concentration’.ARTArticleCultivating Inner Peace as the Basis of Spiritual SadhanaGiven the reactive nature of the exte al being, the mind, the vital, the physical body, there is generally a lack of peace and we are driven from one response to another as circumstances, events, sense impressions, etc. impinge upon us. Development of an awareness that is separated from this exte al being is an enormous aid to creating a platform for cultivating peace in the nature. The separation of the witness-consciousness from the active nature is one such technique that is recommended by Sri Aurobindo.ARTArticleDealing with Periods of Dryness or Dullness in the Yogic SadhanaIt is a frequent and universal experience that when an individual takes up the practice of yoga, there are periods of great enthusiasm, aspiration is active and progress is palpable.ARTArticleDetermining the Appropriate Posture for Beginning with MeditationFor someone beginning with meditation, every aspect of the process raises a question. One of these questions relates to the body. The eventual goal is to attain a state whereby meditation can occur regardless of what the body is doing or how it is positioned. However, this is not usually the way things start out. Sri Aurobindo responds on this point.ARTArticleDeveloping and Integrating Calm and Peace in the BeingIf we remain constantly in active motion and react to all the sense impressions and pressures that impinge upon us from the outer world, it is difficult to achieve a status of calm or peace. One of the values of sitting regularly for a time of quiet reflection, meditation or concentration is just the ability to step back away from the hustle and bustle of our daily lives and cultivate an atmosphere of serenity around us. Once this atmosphere is well-established, it can automatically aid us as we take up the daily life and meet our daily challenges and provocations.ARTArticleDifficulties, Obstacles and the Spiritual PathEvery individual faces difficulties during his lifetime. They may be difficulties imposed due to exte al circumstances attendant on one’s birth, cultural or societal position, opportunities, or economic prospects. They may be difficulties that arise due to climate or natural disasters. They may also be difficulties that arise as a result of limitations of the individual or as more general manifestations of human nature as presently constituted.ARTArticleDiscovering One’s Role or Mission in LifeWhen we are fixed in the exte al personality we take our cues about our role in life from our family, our friends, the social and economic environment and, with that framing, our particular interests and aptitudes. As a child we may want to emulate people in uniforms and thus, may want to be a pilot, or a service technician, or any of a number of ‘uniformed’ professions. As we mature, we begin to hear advice about what education we should receive and what career path we should follow. Much of this revolves around income potential and status.ARTArticleDistinguishing Between Personal Growth and Inner GrowthWhile humanity embodies the development of the mental consciousness, in principle, it must be noted that this generalisation does not apply specifically to each and every human individual.

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