Namaste. Welcome. From here you may learn a little more about the creator/founder of blissful Self. Information is offered below and, in the dynamic menu bar to your left.

  I n   h e r   o w n   w o r d s . . .

1. God is one.

Swami Chidananda explicates: there is "only one God, only one Universal Spirit, one supreme Cosmic Being." Call God "by any name you know — Brahman, Tao, Ahura Mazda, Yahveh, Father in Heaven, Allah, Ek Omkar or Bhagwan, but all the same." God is one only, and in God, "we are all one" (Swami Chidananda. Divine Grace).

2. Atman (i.e. soul) is Brahman (i.e. the Ultimate Reality).

I choose these words as they best capture what I attempt to briefly explicate here. That is, we are — and always will be — intimately and eternally attached to God; the creator of All. Our inner (i.e. often unrealized or unknown) nature, is itself Divine. Eternal Life is All that Is. The eternal essence of ourselves is one with everything...and this includes even the little sensations we feel in our bodies now, also. At the same time, this eternal essence that we are outlasts our bodies. The form of the body changes yet, while the form changes, the truth of our existence does not. As an oversimplified (perhaps), example: the body, perhaps, is like water that evaporates with the heat of the sun and then falls as it cools and freezes as cools further, only to regain a more fluid form as it experiences warmer temperatures. Just as the essence of water is present throughout all of those changes, we are present also, throughout all that we experience.

Further, we are intimately connected to everything, and our innermost natures — the truth of ourselves — is that we are all potentiality, all possibility, all beauty, all consciousness, all intelligence, all peace, all bliss... We can experience this place/space/truth, in our present form by elevating or expanding our consciousness, via steadfast and devoted prayer, the science of meditation, the art of love, etc.

When experiencing this place, we experience the reality of our unity or One-ness. From here we know our freedom, bliss, love, deathlessness and birthlessness... From here, we can then clearly see how our innermost Self is never negatively or positively affected throughout life, and yet, we can also see how all of our actions affect our experiences to create our realities. From this place of innerness, Nothing slips in between Being and Becoming (to borrow a phrase from Sartre). Every part of ourselves deeply connected with all of life...and only Life Is. From this place of understanding, one world ends and another begins. From here we might likely see the world a little differently. Perhaps, one world ends and another begins, then, with the opening of another — a third — eye.

3. Matter, as most of us presently understand it, is a cosmic delusion.

Yogananda notes that material consciousness possesses us through a law of delusion. "We cannot banish [this delusion] except by learning the opposite law, that of truth." 

Continuing, he notes that "Spirit, through a series of processes of materialization, became matter; hence matter proceeds from and cannot be different from its cause, Spirit. Matter is a partial expression of Spirit, the Infinite appearing as finite, the Unlimited as limited. But since matter is only Spirit in a delusive manifestation, matter per se is nonexistent" (Sri Sri Paramahansa Yogananda. 1981. Scientific Healing Affirmations).

4. We are all very deeply connected.

Seriously, this point could be subsumed under another above, but, again: you are deeply connected to everything...

« When we pick a leaf on a tree, the tree is affected and all that lives in the tree are also affected.

«When we gaze at another person who appears many feet away from us and has face turned away from us, that person may turn to face us and know our mind.

A poet once wrote, "You cannot pluck a little flower without the shaking of a star." All of life is connected. There is "one common consciousness" which "links the life of all beings into one great cosmic unity" (Sri Swami Chidananda. 2006. Life is One). We are all a very intimate part of this Consciousness — a great Being; a Cosmic Being, Cosmic Body, Cosmic Entity, or Cosmic Consciousness.

5. Learning is helpful. Humility can help learning. Reflection can help learning.

This point relates to creating one's life from the unaware ego, as compared with creating from one's sacred truth or sacred space. By delusion, forgetfulness, leela (game) or all of these, we do not see ourselves as we are. Instead, we see ourselves as deeply separated from God; from Omnipresent, Omnipotent, All-Powerful Consciousness...

I suggest here, therefore, "Speak and do what you know, but, please be open to changing your practice once you know better. Also, try to discover when you know better." Reflect. Be open to new knowledge, new insights, or new interpretations. Try not to have too many preconceived concepts. Try to learn about other people, things, places or cultures, from the perspective of an insider to these other cultures. Better yet — try to learn from a meditative mind. Apart from being better informed, from this place of understanding, I feel that we'd be more able give and receive deep love...

To paraphrase Sriram Sharma Acharya, 

Without undertaking a treatise on "the desirable, good, undesirable and bad," suffice it to say that I take from this statement that openness to possibilities, being aware of one's biases and how these effect one's thinking/actions, questioning what may be or has become "common knowledge or common sense," and a general questioning and self-reflective spirit, can be important.

Now, consider students (or any others) who are aware, to at least some degree, that they are learning. When viewing oneself as a student, I suggest that we are less likely to create from an unaware ego space. We might be more open to learning, sharing, and growing with others. Hence, perhaps we might be more apt to actively seek to work with others. Yet, why might we want to avoid creating from an unaware ego-space? Including the fact that they might not evolve as planned (I propose), consider that an unaware ego = imagining a separateness from God and perplexities such as wielding power over others (yuck) without first developing the ability to restrain the egoistic self (major yuck). Conversely, core-creating — or undertaking action while knowing or valuing a connection with all others — tends to have everyone in mind. Such acts of loving acceptance are often so small yet so magnificent; so grand ...Oftentimes we cannot imagine that we have actually done a thing, at all.

6. Heaven exists.

I believe that heaven exists as joy, bliss, peace and love in the experience of perfect unity with everything that is; with Source. Heaven: the experience of pure consciousness that knows its true nature and exists in perfect harmony with itself; All. Love, freedom, bliss, potentiality... I believe that this is also a space of infinite power; infinite strength. I believe that in death or re-creation we enter this space, and also, that through devoted spiritual/religious study or practice (I particularly enjoy japam/mantra yoga and kriyayoga meditation) we might also enter this space. In this space — in this place of breathtaking beauty — we see and know our own deathlessness; we see life, and light, we are highly aware and also experience a realization of our very own great power... 

7. Remembering our innermost nature (Bliss) and our everlasting connection with All that Is, improves everything.

Sometimes we forget ourselves. Sometimes we feel alone. Sometimes we experience stress, confusion, and pain. Keeping close to faith and love, loving ourselves and others, remembering our essential nature, and keeping in mind that we are all connected or intimately related, can help. In a moment of stress, whenever you are ready: actively choose to let go of all stress, confusion and pain, and then just wait for the miracle. You might also reflect on your body and appreciate it, apart from all external contexts or stresses. That is, you might reflect on the changes occurring within: changes, synthesis, development — life working inside. So many changes are connected to so many other changes in different parts of the body: miraculous!  ...After trying the above, well...you let me know what happens!

... ... ...And therefore:

8. Pray, meditate, or perform japam/mantra yoga/kriyayoga meditation, daily.

I find that taking the time to consciously remember our connection to All that Is — regardless of how busy we are — makes all of life run a little smoother. These actions can help greatly with work, study, play, joy, peace, clear understanding, stress reduction, everything...The brain seems sharper, as well as the senses. Actions seem  wiser. I feel that regardless of how far along we are spiritually or religiously, these actions never seem to lose efficacy and yet they aid further growth — enlightenment in all spheres of life — peace, more... 

9. Love.

I feel that it's nice to show appreciation, to show love, to forgive, to grow and learn together, to help each other without egoistic/predominantly selfish interests... to play together. Loving seems the most sensible thing to do, given our intimate eternal connection. We're deeply connected and yet each of us is a unique expression of creation. Why not celebrate this? In learning how to love others, let's try to love without fear, expectation, or self-interest as much as possible. In learning how to love ourselves, let's try to release judgments about ourselves, to enjoy existence, to ask for and accept help from others, to take care of ourselves, and to be intimately at peace within ourselves. In our loving let's love ourselves and others as much as possible. Let's seek first, to feel as whole as possible within ourselves and then seek to love others. A tall order? ...Perhaps not so, at all.

(If you'd like to examine my religious/spiritual path a little more, you might start with a paragraph on this page. Just scroll down to read the article, "my 2cents or humble love offering". Enjoy.)