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ARTArticleHow to Change One’s Consciousness, Part 2: Following the Clues to Spiritual Awakening WithinWe rightly recognise that memory is not the same as a living experience. Yet, the power of memory holds a key for those who wish to undertake spiritual development. We see this in the context of religious and spiritual pursuits that rely on the power of memory in some form to renew and actualise experiences. The simplest process is to recall and reflect on the peak spiritual experiences that one has had. It may help to visualise the circumstances as one recalls the memory.ARTArticleHow to Change One’s Consciousness, Part 3: Observing and Being AttentiveSpirituality is not about having an intellectual understanding. There are methods described in various paths of spiritual growth, in books, or in other forms of instruction which have their potential benefit, but they are not a replacement for an actual inward experience that changes the texture of consciousness for the individual.ARTArticleHow to Convert Mental Seeking into Living Spiritual ExperienceSri Aurobindo describes the first step to move from a mental seeking to a living spiritual experience as “the practice of concentration of your consciousness within yourself.” We ask what this means exactly. Some observation of our mental state discloses what we normally consider to be concentration. We focus on solving some issue or problem in our lives, or we focus on some experience, some opportunity, some relationship, some event. In each case, we turn our concentration outwards towards the exte
al world and attach our focus to those exte
al objects.ARTArticleHow to Make Progress in the Practice of Karma YogaWe tend to be carried away by the exte
al focus in the work we are doing, and thus, the presence of mind needed to remember and offer is set in the background of our awareness. If we reflect on the state of consciousness we experience when focused on some exte
al work, we soon find that we can be almost totally absorbed, and in fact, that work is generally best accomplished through what may be called a “one-pointed” concentration. So how do we convert this work into karma yoga when we are not paying attention at the time of the work to the spiritual focus?ARTArticleImpatience and the Practice of YogaImpatience is endemic to modern day society. We expect everything immediately. If it does not come, we exhibit frustration, annoyance, anger and a disturbed energy which impacts the the body, the life-energy, the nervous envelope and the mental state. Impatience, therefore, creates an energetic state that is diametrically opposed to that required for yogic development.ARTArticleInner Growth Differs from Modern Concepts of Growth of AwarenessWe have seen a phenomenal growth of practices that bring attention to our daily actions. Mindfulness training asks us to attend to each movement, each step, each bite of food, and each thought and emotion. Clearly with the amount of distraction we suffer from as a result of our love affair with technology, mobile phones, tablet computers, internet, television, radio and streaming audio and music, there is barely any time in our lives to simply attend to what we are actually doing. We eat while interacting with our mobile phone, texting, or surfing the internet.ARTArticleIntegral Purification of All Parts of the Being Is a First Preparation for the Integral YogaIn the context of the practice of yoga, purification is not the enforcement of some kind of moral code or precepts. This is a common perception based on religious tenets that have abounded through the ages that set forth a moral code and try to both control the actions of people and judge them based on their adherence to that moral code. Purification in a yogic context is the creation of a calm, clear light of awareness in the being.ARTArticleIntensity of an Experience Does Not Guarantee Its VeracityThere are occasions when an individual experiences something that is so powerful, so intense, that it causes him to trust the experience. Spiritual experiences in particular can have a force that overwhelms the normal mental standpoint of the individual and impose themselves upon the seeker in a way that goes far beyond the normal action-reaction processes of the mind-life-body complex. It is easy in such an instance to believe that such a powerful experience represents a truth that cannot be denied.ARTArticleIs It Realistic to Expect Instant Transformation of Human Nature?We live in a time where we expect everything to happen instantly. We want to take a pill and achieve ‘instant enlightenment’. Life is speeding up with enhancements to communications, travel, and devices that make us react faster every day. Life itself seems to have speeded up and days disappear quickly. It is no wonder then that we seem to be more impatient and even when it comes to spiritual practice, we expect immediate results.ARTArticleIssues in the Establishment of Equanimity and Peace in the BeingWe have long-established instincts that harken back to the animal kingdom, in what we may call the “fight or flight” response. This instinct is deeply embedded and lies at the root of one of the biggest obstacles to achieving calm and peace in the being. Every impulse we receive from outside triggers a reaction and if it appears at all threatening, it triggers this virtually automatic process. There are other reactive triggers, such as the built in neuro-chemical transmitters that are evoked when something is pleasurable or unpleasurable.ARTArticleKindling and Increasing the Psychic FireThe flame of aspiration is the force that powers spiritual growth. Many people believe that the association of a fire or flame with the psychological stance is purely some kind of poetic device, without any underlying reality. Yet, human experience shows us that various modes of emotion, for instance, can create a real sense of heat or warmth in the being (or in opposite cases, a sense of cold or coolness). We speak of ‘warm-hearted’ and ‘cold-hearted’ people for example, and this is another instance where the feeling is real and palpable.ARTArticleLight and ShadowYin and Yang, dualities that are inextricably intertwined with one another, that continue to play into one another and which contain an element of the opposite quality within themselves. We live in a world characterized by duality and when we examine closely we find that we cannot have light without darkness, happiness without sadness, etc. Even those who work the hardest to achieve a status of light retain some element of shadow.ARTArticleLiving Within: Summary and ConclusionsLiving Within: The Yoga Approach to Psychological Health and Growth, compliled by Dr. A.S. Dalal, is an eminently practical handbook for understanding and addressing the complexity of our psychological makeup. Modern-day civilisation creates enormous pressures for individuals, while at the same time immersing everyone in a vast array of information, misinformation, and divergent opinions which tend to confuse rather than clarify our status.ARTArticleMethods for Quieting the Activity of the Mechanical MindThe mind seems always to be busy, and we seem to have a constant inner commentary about sensations, perceptions, memories, anticipated activities, hopes and dreams, and worries about situations we need to address. Then there are the drives and cravings such as hunger, thirst, or sensations of discomfort, pain or desire. The mind remains constantly busy and there seems to be no way out.ARTArticleObtaining a Clear Perception and Understanding of Life Purpose and SignificanceIf we examine closely our mental state when we undertake activities with which we are familiar, experienced and educated, we see that our minds are sharp, our perceptions are detailed and our understanding is precise. We find it easiest to achieve this status with exte
al things, although some with a developed intellect can apply this to abstract matters such as mathematical formulae or complex games such as chess.ARTArticleOccult Powers and the Spiritual SadhanaIn his lectures on Raja Yoga, in the chapter titled “Powers”, Swami Vivekananda explains how various occult powers arise or can be developed. The process is an extension of the preceding efforts of purification, quieting of the ‘mind stuff’ and then gaining the ability to fix the concentration on a particular object. If one turns to the focus on development of specific powers, this form of concentrated effort will eventually bear fruit. If done with serious intent and discipline, the power eventually can be utilized at will.ARTArticleOne Should Be Greater Than One’s ExperienceWhenever an individual has any kind of powerful emotion or experience, he tends to “lose himself” in that experience. He becomes angry, or lustful, or ecstatic, or joyful and the feeling takes over his entire being and for a time, he “is” that force. The same thing can, and does, tend to happen with spiritual experiences, particularly those that are intense and which demand attention when they occur. The experience fills the body-life-mind of the exte
al being.ARTArticleOpening to a New Consciousness Through the Revealed WordA seed in the plant kingdom remains inert and non-developing until such time as it is placed in the proper conditions and pressure from outside, in the form of heat or moisture primarily, is exerted upon it. A corollary process takes place in the animal kingdom, of course. Once the encoding contained within the seed is activated by the exte
al means, and assuming it is located in a suitable environment for its development, including both ambient conditions and suitable nourishment, the involved pattern manifests and takes on its pre-determined form.ARTArticleOvercoming Negative Suggestions Through Faith in One’s Spiritual DestinyHow many times in the course of an individual’s practice of yoga do thoughts of failure and lack of capacity or ability to succeed intervene and work to create doubt and despair? If allowed to dominate the being, the quest fails, at least for the time being, or for the rest of the current lifetime, as it requires the willing and persevering dedication of the individual to stay the course. What brings these thoughts and feelings into prominence?ARTArticleOvercoming the Static, Self-Satisfied Rigidity of the Mental Consciousness Is a Precondition to Development of a New Mode of BeingAs long as we are blinded by the light of the mental consciousness, we fail to recognise the greater consciousness and power of the spiritual consciousness. We look upon human existence as static. The stories and myths held by large numbers of people in the world place the human being at the top tier of consciousness, and we applaud human achievements as the summit of what is possible. While we recognise the ability to increase the power of the mind, we fail to recognise that there are greater powers yet to be revealed that lie beyond the mind.ARTArticleOvercoming Vital Reactions of Attraction and Repulsion in ActionThere are numerous activities we undertake in our lives that engage us with more, or less, interest. Some we treat as purely mechanical, some we detest but do them because we ‘have’ to. Some elicit very positive and focused interest from us and we tend to like those activities. Our vital nature creates, in its normal action, a response of liking or disliking and we then tend to be attracted to those things we like, and repulsed by those we do not.ARTArticleProgressively Becoming ConsciousEveryone believes they are ‘conscious’. Spiritual seekers, especially, having awakened from the purely mechanical, habitual processes of the exte
al life, certainly believe they are conscious. Those who believe in various religious traditions, by virtue of that belief, accept that they are conscious. This belief, however, does not change the facts of their lives, or the numerous areas where their lives are purely based in habit and a form of dull sleepwalking.ARTArticlePurification of the Being Is More Essential Than Extraordinary Spiritual ExperiencesThe vital nature revels in having extraordinary experiences that arise as a result of spiritual practice or some type of opening to other planes of being. These experiences support the ego, making the individual feel special, uniquely qualified and selected for spiritual progress, and they are frequently ‘shown off’ to others as a type of spiritual “one-upmanship” and as a sign of authority to exercise influence or power over others.ARTArticlePurification of the Nature: Negative and Positive ApproachesOrdinarily, when we reflect on addressing impurities in the nature, whether in the mind, the emotions, the vital nature or the physical body, we tend to fixate upon the weakness or limitation we have identified and work to directly control, change or suppress it. This is what may be termed a ‘negative’ approach to purification. A positive approach consists of building up the psychological force of peace which, in and of itself, prevents many of the disruptions that we otherwise would want to change or remove from our nature.ARTArticlePurity from the Moral Standpoint or the Spiritual StandpointIn the Bhagavad Gita, Arjuna poses the question to Sri Krishna as to how to identify the realised soul, asking how does he act, how does he speak, etc. Sri Krishna responds that it is not through outer action that one can identify the liberated individual, as this is something that can only be understood from the inner state of consciousness of that individual.ARTArticleRecognizing and Understanding Spiritual ExperiencesWhen we live primarily on the exte
al surface of our being, anchored to the physical world, the vital energy and mental status of living in the world, we try to judge everything that occurs within us by the standards of what we expect and understand from our outward existence, experience and education. We tend to put a primary focus on things that are palpable, that appear to our outer senses as real and substantial and that our mind can grasp in its ordinary way of seeing things.ARTArticleReconciling the OppositesIf we recognize that the two extremes, matter and spirit, despite their apparent and irreconcilable opposition, both speak to some deep seated truth within the human sense, then we can begin to accept the idea that this is not a matter of one being “true” and the other being “false”, but rather, that each of these extremes actually manifests an important principle of existence and its significance.ARTArticleReligious, Mechanical and Psychological Methods of Inner DevelopmentWhen an individual awakens to the inner need for significance and meaning in life, he generally takes up one or more methods to try to understand the purpose of his life. Religious worship and belief systems tend to be quite exte
al in their nature, trying to find a relationship between the individual and a separate powerful deity, a creator. Efforts are made to please this deity and the concepts of heaven and hell represent a system of reward and punishment to signify the success of the individual in pleasing God.ARTArticleRisks and Difficulties Attendant on the Practice of a Yoga of TransformationPeople tend to underestimate the risks and difficulties attendant on the practice of yoga, with a focus on the growth of consciousness and transformation of human nature.ARTArticleSetbacks in Sadhana Due to Incomplete Purification of the NatureWith careful observation we can understand that an individual’s greatest weaknesses and difficulties represent the opportunity and specific need for progress for spiritual growth. Each individual faces his own unique challenges. In many cases, the confluence of the soul’s pressure, the outer societal expectations and framework, the circumstances into which one is born, even physical hereditary factors, will create for the soul the specific focus that needs to be delved into for substantive, long-term progress to take place.