alxindia

An eclectic spiritual & inspirational place to heal, learn, feel & expand. Heart & soul first. Miraculous experiences from India as well as the life & times of a spiritual healer/teacher in the U.S. Miracles, saints, sages, gurus, healing, life & death... and more...!

Friday, July 28, 2006

Baba means 'father,' -- not a real name...


Baba sitting
Originally uploaded by alxindia.


(from Chapter 3, "The Happy Excursion," of Chuang-Tzu)


among men who have achieved happiness,
there was one named Lieh-Tze, who could even ride on the wind.

but although his happiness was great,
it was dependent on the wind
and therefore incomplete.

but now
suppose there were one who could chariot on the normality of the universe,
ride on the transformation of the five elements
& thus make excursion into the infinite.

what has such a one to depend on?

therefore it is said

that the wise man has no accomplishment
the spiritual man has no achievement

& the true sage

has no name.




Saturday, July 15, 2006

where Jesus walked...


Jesus Yogi bigger
Originally uploaded by alxindia.



so the shit in the Middle East is hitting the fan once again.

as a student of humanity, I’m always looking to read ‘between the lines’ and trying to peep behind the scenes in matters like this, I mean, contrasting the surface world realities with some spiritual mechanisms running behind.

trying to dig to the essential bedrock and find out what’s going on, energetically. to inhabit that place where the answers should be easy and somehow aren’t.

(and noticing that they usually contradict the 'official Western media versions' in any case.)

(maybe this partly explains my youth as an activist in the Arab-American community?)

I’ve studied the Middle East from all angles (politically, culturally, religiously, linguistically, etc.) for decades and my conclusion is that something really interesting is happening in relationship to Israel/Palestine having been the place where mystic Judaism expressed itself and then Jesus lived, walked, and was tortured there by way of ushering in a new phase in human enlightenment – an initiation, if you will. Mohammed, later, made a soul journey to Jerusalem and was greeted there by angelic characters.

my feeling about the Middle East in general, and more specifically Israel/Palestine, is that the last 2000 years of conflict in that region (Crusades and all) has been a kind of fallout in response to whatever Christ did there, 2000 years ago. he set love in motion, instead of 'an eye for an eye.'

so – how to see through the veils of illusion and conflict, negativity and suffering that region’s been through for milleniae?

the standard spiritual solution – praying for peace and love – and sending that love, from each of our hearts to the people in the region – is a powerful one.

I would add, though, that human beings can be inspired, ignited, and SHOULD be moved by situations like this to keep digging for the underlying understandings of how this world operates – tragedy on such an epic scale can be a cause for more research of a deeper kind, not hopelessness or resignation or cynicism.

it’s so desperate and knotted, so painful and on-going, we have to ultimately ask ourselves, “how can this happen, in this world?” (ie, "if there's a god who's all-merciful and all-loving.... how can human beings all be doing this crazy torture to one another, in his or her name?")

the inquiry that follows this first question is a spiritual adventure………………!

for each of us, praying STRONGLY to see the truth behind the illusion of conflict and suffering is a complementary approach to sending the love to the people trapped in the conflict and suffering.

if we can see the truth, we can change the illusion.



Wednesday, July 05, 2006

real moksha


doglixkitten
Originally uploaded by alxindia.

“While we are here on this planet we have to do something noble with our lives. Our actions must leave a sweet fragrance and be a great message that lives long after we are gone. This is the dharma of each person. Real moksha (enlightenment) is when someone looks in your eyes with gratitude because you have done something to remove their suffering."

-- Sri Kaleshwar

Tuesday, July 04, 2006

the importance of 'groupism'


class in session!
Originally uploaded by alxindia.



it's a little-articulated but perfectly obvious mechanism in spirituality, how spiritual communities and groups form and what the benefits of being in a group dynamic, on the spiritual path, are.

I mean, most spiritual paths (and their devolution into religions, I mean the organized and otherwise) revolve around some sense of community, of people coming together, working together toward common goals or vision, sharing their mutual joys and pains as a kind of extended family. human beings seem to understand this importance, intuitively.

the question is why, and what's the underlying reason for forming spiritual groups? it's about soul protection... there's a story about a group of monks meditating at the time the US dropped the atomic bomb on the Japanese city of Hiroshima -- IN Hiroshima. the whole city was reduced to fire and ash but their monastery kept standing and the whole group of monks was unharmed by the explosion and subsequent radiation.

why? the strength of the group.

another part of the answer lies in the necessity, in serious spiritual disciplines, to burn off karma. being in a group helps people SEE directly the creation of karma through action and reaction, in their own lives.

finally, after enough purification and spiritual work and friction and egoism flare-ups between group members, the personalities settle down and the souls start asserting themselves as the dominant arbiters of acceptable or unacceptable behavior. mostly, the personalities get tired of flinging themselves against one another (mostly out of egoism, jealousy, unworthiness or fear, or some combination thereof) and seeing an immediate and unpleasant reaction.

over time, people start behaving in a respectful, communal way with one another out of a kind of soul self-defense (it's easier to be kind and loving and elicit a loving response from one's family members), rather than acting out over and over again, causing more karmic reaction and staying stuck in the drama of anger, misunderstanding, taking everything personally and holding onto blame, resentment, rage and petty jealousy against others.

all of this kind of stuff, these illusion blocks, cause quite a commotion, a disturbance, at the soul level. a person holding onto anger and resentment quite literally can curb their own soul's development.

eventually a smart soul starts to catch on to the game: if I'm rude or cruel to another person, I'm shooting myself in the foot because that person IS me.

people in spiritual groups behaving in unpleasant ways to one another and holding their personal grudges and resentments really disturbs the group harmony and unity -- and their overall chances of succeeding in spiritual life.

we finally get it through trial and error, crashing and burning, mistake after mistake, until we really grok how out of control our egos really are, and that everything we're blaming on another person is really a beautiful (and painful) reflection of our own karma, our own actions, our own reactions.

nothing more, nothing less.

yikes. more surrender, please. I'll have mine with a helping of humble pie and a side dish of patience. and a cup of faith to wash it all down with.

my point: what counts is an understanding that the shakti that runs through us all is the SAME, regardless of what illusion of separation (I am me, you are you) we're operating under. surrendering to a group means surrendering the illusion of our individual egoism -- and acting only to support or promote the group's interest.

as a spiritual person fumbling toward the light... these days... my motto is: "surrender now. avoid the rush."

(think I should have t-shirts made up.)