From Utpalavati With Love: In Divine Ecstasy, Devotion and transforming Himself into the Consciousness of Divine Mother in the form of Kali, our Beloved Swami Vishwananda danced. Bringing the Divine Mother into form before our 400 mesmerized eyes on the ninth night of Navaratri was something I place on my list: "Top 108 Things In Life My Dharma Had To Witness."
With beautiful, wild hair flying, eyes reflecting other dimensions of eternity, and enchanting, hypnotic music, chants and dance movements, The Divine Mother Kali demonstrated Her killing of the demon Mahashasuru. The demon stood in melon form held at arm's length before the face and body of the fearless Swami Vishwavijayananda. With face painted dark as night on Shiva's Mt. Kalias, the demon became, at least for some of us, menacing in our imaginations. Using a real sword, Swamiji/Kali slashed trees, fruit and finally the Demon Mahashasuru with acting skills of great believability.
A lemon rolled near my toes and as red, angry, fiery Kali eyes glanced my way, I heard her say soundlessly in my head: "Please push the lemon closer." Unenlightened human that I am, I chose not to comply with Her request; after all She held a real cutting sword. The relentless Kali, to my surprise, in one furious and quick thrust brought the sword down in a fast and fearless blow. Alas and alack, the lemon lay broken and conquered like the demon Mahashsuru/Melon lying vanquished on the floor as Swami Vijaya scampered off the stage to a safer place. Fortunately for me, as the sword began to move toward the lemon from Swamiji's shoulder height with relentless pursuit of perfection, my naked, red-painted toes, in God's design of human nature's involuntary response mechanism quickly hid themselves safely under my chair.
For those of you who love Swamiji, should He play Kali again; don't miss it!!!
Love is sometimes like this: Enya Beautifully Singing: Only Time
Lyrics: Who can say where the road goes, where the day flows. Only time... And who can say if your love grows, as your heart chose. Only time...
Dee dah dah dah dee dah dah dee dah dah ooh Dee dah dah doh dah dee dah dah dah dah dah
Who can say why your heart sighs, as your love flies. Only time... And who can say why your heart cries, when your love lies. Only time...
Dee dah dah dah dee dah dah dee dah dah ooh Dee dah dah doh dah dee dah dah dah dah dah
Who can say when the roads meet, that love might be in your heart? And who can say when the day sleeps, if the night keeps all your heart. Night keeps all your heart...
Dee dah dah dah Dee dah dah dah Dee dah dah dah Dee dah dah dah
Who can say if your love grows, as your heart chose? Only time... And who can say where the road goes, where the day flows. Only time...
Who knows - only time. Who knows - only time ... dahhh......
Swami Vishwananda clebrates Mahagouri Mother Goddess on the eighth day of Navaratri: The Mother's eighth form is known as "Mahagouri". She is mounted on an ox and has four hands. Her top right hand is rendering fearlessness and the hand below holds a trident. The top left hand holds a "Damru" and the hand below is in a gesture of giving a boon.
To have Shiva as her husband she went through a rigorous penance in the form of "Parvati". As a result of this arduous meditation her complexion turned dark. Lord Shiva, pleased with the devotion of Parvati, bathed her in the holy water of the Ganges. As she bathed in the holy water she turned fair. From then onwards she became known as "Mahagouri". She is worshiped on the eighth day of the Durga puja. The devotee is benefited on all fronts as he worships the deity. Due to the Goddess's grace the devotee attains supernatural salvation, he is relieved from all his pains and fatigue and can set himself free from his previous sins. He is never faced with sorrow and poverty and never commits any sin. The devotee wins pure and endless virtue.
Kalaratri is the Mother Goddess's seventh form. Her complexion is as dark as the night. Her cascading hair is flowing and she is seen wearing a garland that radiates light as bright as lightning. She radiates fire and is fearsome with her menacing three eyes radiating fire. She is mounted on an donkey. She has four hands with the top right hand positioned in a gesture of rendering boons to all. The bottom right hand dipicts fearlessness. The top left hand holds an iron dagger and the bottom left hand holds a sickle.
Although Kalaratri Mother Goddess has a menacing appearance, she always delivers favorable results and her devotees need not fear her manifestations in holding an iron dagger and sickle. Although she has a menacing appearance, she always delivers favorable results and her devotees need not fear her manifestations. She is worshiped on the seventh day of the Durga puja. Devi Kaalratri destroys evil. If anyone whole-heartedly pleads, She will rescue that one from any impending danger; she protects him. When the Goddess is called, the evils instantaneously disappear from the place. By the Goddess's grace, the devotees overcome their fear of fire, water, animals and foes
Swami Vishwananda celebrates Devi Kataayani on the Sixth Day of Navaratri this evening, September 24, 2009...Mahavatar Babaji responds to Blog Comment... Pictures of Swami Vishwananda and Devotees Stick Dancing Night Four Navaratri...
Katyaayani is the sixth form of Devi Durga. Sage Katyaayan was the son of the great sage Kat. Sage Katyaayn was born in the "Katya" clan. He was engaged in rigorous penance and worship of Bhagavati Paramba. His fervent prayer was for the mother to incarnate into his family as his daughter. Mother Bhagavati obliged him. After some time, when the world was terrorized by Mahishasura, Lord Brahma, Lord Vishnu and Lord Shiva with their divine powers gave form to a Goddess to combat the asura (demon) and destroy him.
Katyaayan was the first to worship Goddess Bhagavati and that is why she is known as "Devi Kattayani". It is mentioned in the Shastra that Katyaayani was born as the daughter of the sage Kattayan. Taking birth on the fourteenth day of the new moon in Aashwin (September-October), she accepted the worship of the sage Kattayan on Saptami, Astami and Navami and ultimately slew Mahishasura on Dashami. The deity‘s complexion is as bright as gold. She has four hands. The top right hand is positioned in a gesture of providing courage and the other top right hand is positioned in a gesture of rendering a boon. The top left hand is holding a sword and the bottom left hand is holding a lotus. The Goddess is mounted on a lion and she is worshiped on the sixth day of the Durga puja. If one worships the deity with a pure soul he attains success in religion, wealth, passion and salvation. Disease, sorrow and fear are eliminated. Worship of this deity helps one to emancipate himself from the sin he may have committed over the cycle of his births and rebirths. (Look tomorrow for a picture of Swami Vishwananda at Yagna this evening; it will be posted at top of this entry).
Mahavatar Babaji Responds to Blog Comment ParamahansaYogananda: Do you know of the song, “Listen, listen, listen to my heart song,” by Paramahansa Yogananda? It is good advice also in today’s time. Think about that, meditate on that, listen to that place within you, the heart, that tells you the truth always. What does hitting back, either verbally or physically accomplish? You all know about that. Like attracts like, isn’t it? Do you hear me in your heart beyond the mind and at the depth of who you really are? Feel the you that you really are. When you express your life and your relationships from that place within yourself you will be with anyone in your life like you can be for any small boy who is learning the lessons of life we all must learn in our Earth lifetimes. And so it is! Be love, be light, be truth, be who you really are – Love Divine in all of your life. Love like God loves, unconditionally, whole-heartedly and with all your being and you will feel as light as an angel flying through the ethers in freedom to be. From the heart of Babaji, I come to you all. Amen and OM.
This is for all of you, and especially for the person who commented: "Sometimes I think I have understood You. But I am living in this world of surviving. For example: My son has trouble in school. The group of children where he belongs is finding out “who is who?” Of course, they quarrel and are fighting. I teach him, you have to be strong enough to protect yourself. There are several possibilities to be strong. One is to hit back. . .What would happen if I teach him to call Babaji? And sometimes I feel like my son. I only feel lost."
A small son in the time of life that you describe must find his own way with the ones in his life that love and support him as a bailiwick against the hardships of life. And so it is. Love and support such a one any of you that have such in your life. Have a talk with such a one and perceive if he is interested in one such as I am, and let your heart guide you in your teaching. In his heart a young son may be reaching out to you for love, for support, for guidance. So give it to him, unconditionally and with all your heart. It will help as you all well know. I am available to all who call me from the heart. Remember our standing question on this blog: From your heart, will you resonate?
Adieu until we meet again. -Babaji
Listen, Listen, Listen to My Heart’s Song / Yogananda Listen, Listen, Listen to My Heart’s Song I will never forget Thee, I will never forsake Thee Harken, harken, harken to the whispering of my soul I will never forget Thee, I will never forsake Thee Listen, Listen, Listen to My Heart’s Song
On This Fifth Day of Navaratri Swami Vishwananda Celebrates Skandamata Devi: Skandamata Devi – The fifth form of the mother is known as Skandamata. Devi Durga is the mother of Kartik, and he is known as Kumar Kartik as well as Skanda. She is referenced as Skandamata. This form of the Deity has four arms. The mother is seen holding her son, Kanda, with the top right hand and she holds a lotus in her lower right hand. The top left hand is positioned in a blessing gesture and the bottom left hand holds a lotus. Therefore she is also known as Padmasana. In the Skandamata Devi form, she is seen mounted on a lion. Anyone who worships her whole-heartedly receives the blessing of the Devi as she fulfills the wish of the devotee.
Swami Vishwananda celebrates the Fourth Day of Navaratri: Kushmanda. The fourth appearance of the devi is in the form of Kushmanda. The mother gets the name as she created the universe with a smile. When there was darkness everywhere and there was no existence of the universe she created the universe with a smile. She is believed to be the source of eternal power. The Goddess has eight hands and that is why she is also known as "Ashtabhuja". Seven of the hands hold the holy urn (Kamandula), a bow, an arrow, a lotus, a pot containing wine, a disc and a club. The eighth hand holds a string of rosary beads that is believed to provide success and prudence. Pumpkin is termed as "Kushmandam" in Sanskrit. Amongst the sacrificial vegetables that are offered in the worship of the Goddess is pumpkin and it is the most important vegetable with which Devi Kushmanda is most placated. That is why she is named "Kushmanda". She is worshiped on the fourth day of the Navratri celebration abiding by the rituals that are described in the Sashtras and the Puranas. Worship of this form of the Devi exterminates sorrow and diseases and augments life, fame and strength. Mother Goddess is appeased with the slightest of devotion and if any one whole-heartedly worships the deity that one will certainly gain her favour.
Chandraghanta - Mother Durga‘s third form is known as Chandraghanta. This name finds its justification in the half moon seen on the temple of the Goddess that resembles a bell. The deity has ten arms. The ten hands of the Goddess brandish ten different weapons. Mounted on a tiger this form of the mother is worshiped on the third day of the Navratri celebration. It is believed that a devotee who manages to earn the devi‘s blessings can set himself free from his sins and hazards that he has committed or may face in his life. The devotee gains the power to sense the supernatural, to see it and even smell the eternal fragrance. He is also able to distinguish the otherwise inaudible celestial sounds. This is the time when the devotee should be alert. Although the deity is always envisaged in the fearsome mood of demolishing evil, her appearance always spreads a calm and eternal peace all round. Mother Chandraghanta‘s devotees spread peace and happiness wherever they go. We should all whole-heartedly worship the mother with a devoted soul. Worship of the deity helps one eliminate the sorrow, hazards and dangers in ones life.
Brahmacharini In this form Durga is two-armed and carries a rosary and sacred water pot (Kamandalu). She is in a highly pious and peaceful form or is in meditation. This form of Durga is related to the severe penance undertaken by Sati and Parvati in their respective births to attain Lord Shiva as husband. Some of the most important Vratas observed in different parts of India by women are based on the strict austerities followed by Brahmacharini. She is also known as Tapasyacharini and is worshipped on the second day of Navrathri. The most importand quality of Mata Bramacharini is discipline. If you pray to her, she will help!
In this form Durga is two-armed and carries a trident and lotus. Her mount is an ox or bull. Sailaputri is believed to be the rebirth of Sati, the daughter of Daksha and the wife of Lord Shiva. In her second birth she is Parvati, the daughter of Himalaya and later she became the consort of Shiva. This is one of the very first forms of Shakti and is closely associated with Lord Shiva. Shailaputri is worshipped on the first day of Navaratri. She helps to overcome the pride of the divine beings (which are also us).
Sri Swami Vishwananda tells a story about Krishna: Once when Krishna was dancing with the Gopis, He manifested Himself and then disappeared . . . And A Letter From Mahavatar Babaji:
Mahavatar Babaji: Dear Internet Friends, the time has come in eternity’s window to take the burdens of life on Earth and lay them at the feet of the Divine. All of you who read this blog are what is termed “old souls.” You have been on the spiritual path many, many lifetimes. Many of you are tired of the mesmerized way of being you have lived from lifetime to lifetime on the returning wheel of karmic life. Now I call you to awaken, awaken to the life Divine, to eternal life that may be lived in total knowledge and unity with the Divine. Let go of the need to be responsible for all mistakes as you may term them in life and begin to live in freedom evermore.
To the person who wrote this comment:Dear Babaji, thanks very much. When my daughter was younger I divorced from her father, (which as such I didn´t ever repent) and then had to work very hard, and my mother took care of my daughter and I lost my influence on her. I wished at that time, when she was younger, I had told her to call the Divine whenever in difficulties. Today she doesn´t believe in God so much, and this is a pity. If I were a mother of a child (my daughter is now an adult already and it has become more difficult to inspire her), yes I would try and teach to call for Divine help when in difficulties.
Babaji: Dear One, please meet me in an intentional meditationand I will speak with you personally and further on this question. I can help you to find peace within yourself with regular meditation. It is a perquisite for many of you in today’s world. I come to you in peace and love and with the intention to help you through the maya you all have created together. I will take you to the “promised land” of freedom to be if you trust me, hold my hand, and let us walk together in meditation to that place within you that knows that you are indeed a part of God and thereby peace will come. Please know that a daughter or any relationship you may have or have had in this lifetime carries the same possibility of loving them unconditionally. That is your assignment from the Divine. So loving unconditionally allows you to free yourself from any burden of wrong-doing toward anyone. Isn’t it like that? Leave the actions of the past in the past, forgive yourself and others and begin from this day forward to live in the present of now! Please trust that the Divine will take care of a daughter and everyone in your life. Learn to love yourself and others unconditionally and that is sufficient in the eyes and the grace of the Divine. So it is!
Meet me in meditation and we will see how willing you are to surrender to Divine Will, to Divine Love. It rests securely within you ready to spring forth like the lotus blossom when the sun’s rays touch its face of purity. And remember that the beautiful, pure lotus flower grows in a bed of mud.
To All of You who resonate from the heart: Please remember to do your Atma Kriya each day, those of you who have taken the courses of Swami Vishwananda. When you are consistent and committed to your sadhana practice you will find peace within and you will progress on your spiritual path to Unity With The Divine! I am Babaji, one who is your champion on your path toward Unity. Amen and OM.
Sri Swami Vishwananda tells a story about Krishna: Once when Krishna was dancing with the Gopis, He manifested Himself and then disappeared. At the moment when Krishna disappeared the Gopis realized what they had lost. Then Krishna manifested Himself again, showing and saying , “Hey, I’m not far away from you. You are in me and I am in you all the time. Why are you running after this manifestation of pain and happiness [maya]? Krishna told the Gopis: “If you want to attain me, rise above happiness and pain. Then only you can realize, because otherwise we are only bound by our emotions."
Surrendering To The Feet of the Guru Within Swami Vishwananda:We were talking of how one has to surrender. The most important thing is how one has to build up pure love in one’s heart. To surrender is one thing but how will you surrender if you don’t have pure love from your heart? Difficult. Pure love from one’s heart makes the Divine serve you. That’s what God wants that you awaken this Divine Love, that you can love like He loves, that you can spread the same love everywhere, that you become an instrument of this love.
But to become an instrument of this love you have to let this pure love from your heart awaken. Once it’s awake you will see that whatever you do will be only for Him. Even if you do something which is wrong in the eyes of other people but in His eyes it will be always good. Some people will say Yes I will go and kill somebody will it be good in His eyes. No, it is not like that. When the pure love awakens there will be no sign of negativity. [And that is how you can know.]
Note from Utpalavati: I am in Springen, Swami Vishwananda's International Spiritual Center until September 29. We completed the Atma Kriya Teacher biannual meeting today. Last evening began Swamiji's 9 days of yagnas for Navaratri, honoring Divine Mother. We will have three days dedicated to Durga, goddess of protection, invincible; three days dedicated to Maha Lakshmi, goddess of prosperity both spiritual and material; and three days to Saraswati, goddess of knowledge, music and the arts.
Mahavatar Babaji: When time began on Earth and registered in, and became embedded into human consciousness, the ego became the master of the individual. Previously the heart of man dictated the way the human consciousness expressed itself in daily life. All spiritual traditions have the stories of such, as in the Christian “Garden of Eden.” That was a time when man’s mind, thought and actions were aligned with Divine Will.
A comment was placed on this blog: There are many people who have been initiated into Atma Kriya but do not attend the Om Healing groups [of Swami Vishwananda]. Many say they don’t have enough time, but for their leisure activities they do have enough time.
Please understand that each human consciousness in this day has the same divine right to choose what he will do and what he will not do as in the beginning of time on Planet Earth. Therefore, each of us individually may choose for ourselves and leave it to everyone else to choose for themselves. And do we know if some of those we may think should be doing the OM Healing may or may not be doing sadhana and meditation of a different nature than the OM Healing that may be equally honoring, connecting with the Divine? You see, to be beneficial one must be drawn from the heart to such meditations as the OM Healing. And the beauty within that is that it is from the heart we align with Divine Will. And so it is written, and so it is.
For the person who placed the comment, be at peace with why you placed the comment on this blog. I send my eternal blessings to you and to all who read this blog. -Babaji
Swami Vishwananda: We often ask ourselves, “What is most important on the spiritual path?” The answer is self-discipline. This is a word which many don’t like to hear because it’s only through self-discipline that you will be able to do your sadhana. Without self-discipline it’s very difficult because you will always find excuses not to do your spiritual practice. You will always try to find excuses not to go to prayers in the morning because it’s too early in the morning. But what is sadhana? What does the word sadhana mean? Sadhana is to do some things [practices] by which we will attain our spiritual goal. That’s what sadhana is. In sadhana there is perseverance. There is eagerness. There is patience. Without these three you can try as much as possible; it will be very difficult. That’s how your mind will always make you think, “Oh, today I’m a bit tired. I will not go to prayer.” Or you may think, “I will not do this or I will not do that.” Then you start to build up this undisciplined-self because there is a lack of perseverance. You want to achieve your spiritual goal. You want to realize yourself. Do you think it happens just like that? No. Because if one just sits around and thinks, "I will go to prayer whenever I want. I will do my sadhana whenever I want." Then God will also say, “I will come to you whenever I want.” And He will come to you whenever He wants, it’s true, but you can make Him come faster. You can make God awake and consume you faster. And this is done only through your discipline.
Mahavatar Babaji: Greetings all who read this blog. Come with me on an imaginary journey, but one which you have taken many times in your minds in one of your lifetimes or another. Let us remember a time when you walked on the beach and the sun was warm on your skin. Look in the distance now and notice an outcropping of rocks in the distance. You find an immediate rapport with the rocks, water and sky. You continue to walk there and find a nice place on the rocks to sit in peace for a few moments.
You gaze out into the ocean and you see a ship there on its way to an unknown destination. You imagine yourself on the ship bound for a distant shore of your own choosing. Life is actually like that. You choose with your mind the plays you will play in any given lifetime. Likewise, the martyrs or saints came to this planet already with a script written in the soul. And those you read about were the ones who connected with the script they wrote before they came and then they played it out accordingly. Your job in this lifetime is to do the same. For many of you who are connecting with me now in a deeper way than ever before in this lifetime are ready, primed from all your lifetimes of making many spiritual right choices to walk the straight and narrow way to liberation. So come forth those of you who are brave, courageous and with enough commitment to your script that was written before you came into this lifetime and go to the finish line which is actually a continuation of the beginning without end. And so it is written and so it is!
A question was placed on this blog referencing something I wrote in Unity regarding Swami Vishwananda’s writing about the saints in Earth history. Question: Is it not that Swami Vishwananda said we have to give up our identity, our ego self=I? So as for the ego self isn´t it going to be a "martyrdom" in a way? But of course, we can choose e.g. the repeating of God´s names/Naam Jaap as a panacea/remedy, or just do as Swami Vishwananda proposed: when your mind is playing games with you, close your eyes and say to yourself: I am the light, I am love, I am joy, I am peace...
You may think of detaching from the ego as martyrdom if you like; it is one way or perspective in doing so. I tell you truly that when that time comes for each of you to detach from the ego, the freedom to be that it brings will give you a different kind of perspective of who you are at the core of your being and the ego will no longer attract you as to its penchant for being in control of you. As Swami Vishwananda and many spiritual teachers show you, there are many paths to God. Choose! Reading about the lives of saints and martyrs is one way to learn how those of mankind who have taken that path show you. That is all. Chanting the names of God or chanting “I am the light, I am love, I am joy, I am peace” is another way of being that you may use on your path to God. Choose, and you may choose them all along your way. It is all good and wise to follow your heart always and therein you will find the script you wrote before you came into the present incarnation.
I will help you; you have simply to call my name. -Babaji
Swam Vishwananda: We often ask ourselves how is it to unite with God? How is this unification and what does one feel in this unification with God? Actually, when one comes to a point of self-realization or one has come to the point of complete union with God, one doesn’t ask any questions of how is this and how is that. All the questions and all these things are in the mind. It’s the mind that asks questions. But you have to transcend the mind to understand devotion. Unless you have transcended the mind, you always will ask these questions because the mind always wants to be fed with negativity and this is where the mind gets its power. The more you feed the mind, the more the mind will have control. When fed, the mind will have the power to control you, to play the game with you and to make you dance in its game? The more you suffer, the more there will be to complain about. As long as you do not surrender the mind, it’s difficult. And how to surrender the mind is through chanting the name of God continuously. Loudly chant the name of God; surrender to the lotus feet of Narayana and leave it to Him.
Swami Vishwananda, in one of his talks told the following story: Once upon a time, a sage wandering from village to village in the Himalayan Mountains became very popular and people of the villages always anticipated the sage’s visits with loving preparations. The people of one village once began preparations weeks before the sage’s scheduled visit. A devotee of the sage came to participate in the preparations and told the people of this village that he had heard that when the sage said his prayers he liked to use seven flowers. The village people began talking among themselves wondering if the Swami used any seven types of flowers or if he had a preference for seven distinct flower types.
Eventually, in order to prepare properly, some of the people went to the saint and asked him which seven flowers he used in his prayers. The saint began laughing heartily and said: “Yes, I use seven flowers to pray and I request that each of you offer these seven flowers to God. When one gives gifts to God from the heart, it pleases Him, and thereby one also gives the gifts to himself. There is not a greater gift than these seven: Love, Truthfulness, Service to People, Prayer, Devotion, Loyalty and Control of the Senses.
After telling the story Swami Vishwananda added with great love in his voice: “That story reminds me of what Krishna said in the Bhagavad Gita: If someone offers me just a little leaf with love from the heart, I shall accept it.”
Mahavatar Babaji: Master Christ Jesus taught: “I Am the way, the Truth and the Life.” Many scriptures speak about the saints who have come to your planet to show you the way to liberation, giving their lives as an example.Swami Vishwanandaand his disciples have begun writing a series of books telling the stories of certain saints from both east and west. It will please me if you, who read these Epistles will choose to search out Swami Vishwananda’s work about saints. Study the examples of the varied lives of the saints and martyrs about whom Sri Swami Vishwananda has written and thereby attune to how saints have reached liberation while in the body, the Jivan Mukta. Use their examples as a blueprint for enlightenment. No! You do not have to become a martyr to become liberated. Reading about the saints provides another example of a formula for enlightenment. Excerpted from Unity With The Divine.
MAGNIFICAT -- Hymn to God.. . Swami Vishwananda, Mahavatar Babaji and the Crop Circle picture and article herein speak of transformation and transfiguration. Beautiful Crop Circle from Netherlands: By unknown. VBV Blog received the crop circle picture and article from a resident and one of the Swami’s at Swami Vishwananda’s Springen Center, Germany.
Swami Vishwananda: . . . there is bread and wine, the symbols that Jesus gave to everybody. The wine of transfiguration is from grape juice to wine. This is the transfiguration that man must go through from mere human being and rise to the Divine Self. And the bread, He [Christ] called His body. He identified Himself with the molecules of the bread; he became the bread and the bread became Him. There is no difference. So in this same way each of you may call upon this Christ energy within you! Say, “Oh God, Oh my Lord.”
Mahavatar Babaji from Unity With The Divine:Krishna came some five thousand years ago to planet Earth and showed mankind, by his life lived in perfect contentment and the Grace of Love Divine, how to live each day to the fullest of its capacity. He did not waste a minute of that life. Krishna was aligned continuously with the inner self and his mission or reason for being on the planet at that time. Read the Bhagavad Gita and comprehend the vastness of God’s Will for His Creation. [transfiguration from human to Divine Self] . .
I beseech you my Earthen brethren of present time, to search also within the mathematical formula the Christ has given you in the crucifixion story of the birth,transformation and transfiguration. You live forever! Your consciousness cannot be extinguished for it is God Himself residing inside you. We all are one! From that understanding and great comprehension we will walk the path of birth, transformation and transfiguration into new birth with the Eighteen Epistles we humbly offer you in Love within Unity With The Divine.
SOURCE = Mayan Prophecy 2012 - The Butterfly Crop Circle Netherlands.
A Gigantic Butterfly Crop Circle formation(530 Meters x 450 Meters), the Biggest Crop Circle Ever ... appeared in Netherlands near a town in southern Holland called Goes,on the 8th of August 2009. It is an incredibly large butterfly with Da Vinci's 'Vitruvian Man' in the center, depicting the metamorphosis of the Caterpillar into a Butterfly. I stumbled upon this brilliant crop circle today while randomly checking one of my friend’s profile on facebook ... my first reaction was that of sheer amazement and the feeling of a rising wave of excitement within realizing the magical synchronicity communicating with all tuned in ...
The Blog Header for Mayan Prophecy 2012 has an image of a man much like Da Vinci's "Vitruvian Man" ... and just a few days ago I added a quote about the Caterpillar to Butterfly Transformation at the end of the blog with a small symbol for a Butterfly :) ... A friend called 'Vikas' (which means to 'Grow' or 'Evolve') sent me this quote couple of months back ... soon after the magical dragonfly crop circle appeared in England, which was also quite synchronistic as we were discussing dragonflies a day before it was reported :)
This formation has not yet been reported by Crop Circle Connector and there is massive drive by the media to keep this low key by suggesting it was man made ... :) We would love to see pictures or videos taken of the artists while at work :)
The Butterfly is symbolic of the process of evolution and is used in many cultures and traditions to symbolize the 'Psyche' or the 'Soul' ...
Spiritual Evolution: The butterfly exists in four distinct forms. Some consider that to do with: The fertilized egg is planted in our mother's womb. From our day of birth we are like the caterpillar which can only eat and creep along. At death we are like the dormant pupa in its chrysalis. After that, our consciousness emerges from the cast off body, and some see in this the emergence of the butterfly. Therefore, the butterfly is symbolic of rebirth after death.
For Christians, the butterfly's three steps of metamorphosis -- as caterpillar, pupa and then winged insect -- are reminiscent of spiritual transformation. The caterpillar's incessant crawling and chewing reminds us of normal earthly life where people are often wholly preoccupied with physical needs. The chrysalis (cocoon) resembles a tomb and empty, can suggest the empty shroud left behind by Jesus. Therefore, a butterfly represents the resurrection into a new condition of life that is free of any material concerns. In images of the Garden of Eden, Adam's soul is symbolized by a butterfly, or drawn with butterfly wings.
In paintings of Mary and her Child, [Christ Jesus], the presence of butterflies stands for their care for human souls. The Gnostics depicted the Angel of Death by showing a winged foot stepping on a butterfly. Since the insect is so fragile it can be torn apart by a hard rain, the butterfly stands for human frailty, both moral and physical. Also, as its life is not a long one, it is also a symbol of the ephemeral nature of physical existence. A butterfly with a torn wing is the icon for a North American charity that benefits disabled children.
Transfiguration :In America among the Aztec and Maya, the god of cosmic fire, Xiutecutli,is symbolized by a butterfly.Fire is considered the element of transformation, as in cookery and the smelting of metals [and the Hindu Yagnas]. This association is borne out in traditional psychoanalysis where a dream or drawing of a butterfly is taken as a symbol of the client's imminent transformation. En este caso no habido ni sueño ni pintura, pero si la sincronicidad jungiana de la aparición de una mariposa en tu ventana en pleno sand storm … (Roughly translated ... In this case not sleep or painting, but the Jungian synchronicity of the emergence of a butterfly in your window in full sand storm). The ancient Greeks depicted the spirit of a person as a winged stick figure. Interpretation of that symbol gave rise to the idea of the "Soul" or "Psyche" as a butterfly.
The Butterfly Effect suggests the idea that one butterfly could eventually have a far-reaching ripple effect on subsequent historic events and was first mentioned by Ray Bradbury in 1952 in a short story on Time Travel !
As Gregg Braden also suggests in one of his videos on the Holographic nature of the Universe ... One change anywhere in the hologram is mirrored throughout the Hologram ... ... We are the ones we've been waiting for ...
n Lak'ech ... May The Great Spirit Always Be With You ...
Butterfly 'Vitruvian Man' Crop Circle Netherlands -- August8, 2009
Swami Vishwananda:When you receive love, let the love flow. Increase this love inside of you and let it flow. Feel it in each part of your body, increase it and send it out. You can send it to somebody that you know. You can send it to nature. You can send it to whatever, but let this love always flow. You will see that when you have increased this love inside of you and you have sent it out, nature itself will increase in double what you have sent and send it back to you. And if this round happens, this is healthy. But many people do not do it because it’s easier just to receive love and then to keep it. So, open up! That’s what is important. Know that every moment, every second, every time you think of something positive, you think of God. When you think of something nice, you receive this love of God, you receive this energy of God. Let this love work through you, let it work through each part of your body and also let it flow out, then it will grow.
VIDEO: Guruji Beautifully Singing Bala Mukunda And Sending Love out 15,254 Views on YouTube : ) ) )
Swami Vishwananda: Isn’t it beautiful to sing the name of God? It’s so easy to merge with God. It’s so easy to realize His Divine Love. Just take one name and recite it continuously. Allow the power of the mind to combine with the power of the mantra. Let the manta take over the mind; let yourself become the mantra. What is in the name Narayana to give peace to the mind? It’s very simple; wherever you are keep reciting. It’s not limited. Wherever you are keep singing, when you are traveling or even when you are cooking and you will have better food. Become this mantra and let your heart open and let the love inside of you be reflected on the outside and you will become this Divine instrument. Let everyone next to you feel this love so that they will also want it!
A New Way is Born: Even if one is not formally educated in the Vedas which include the oldest tradition containing the Guru or Spiritual Teacher-Disciple relationship, one may understand and relate from the soul relationship with God from his own heart. That is the same place of connection all the paths to God must originate and not only the Bhakti Marga Path, the path of devotion to God. The Jnana Marga Path is simply the wisdom path of knowledge, but in the end that path also must connect with God at the heart for enlightenment to ensue. We are truly all one and all paths are one in a final analysis as you might think, understand and speak.
Comment Blog Question: Dear Babaji, Bhakti Marga is easier to tred on than Jnana Marga, isn’t it? In both paths one has to literally give up any attachment to die literally (i.e. the ego) for that one goal of self-realization, but as a Bhakti, one renounces everything out of love, that is focused towards a Guru (other than the formless God), it is easier? But then some saints say that both paths cannot really be separated/considered as separate? Could You please throw some light on this?
What is easier for one person is harder for another and so it goes in human conditioning. Easier or harder are concepts of the human mind. One may walk his chosen path in life as he chooses from the mind if that is what rules the life or the heart when one is more aware, more awakened from the illusion called maya of the material world. Enlightenment can be this simple: On a hot summer’s day you feel like an ice cream cone. You are deciding between chocolate and vanilla. Finally you make a choice. At some point in your deciding you chose. Enlightenment can be that simple and that is how all the spiritual traditions inform you that in an instant you may be enlightened or find salvation. The enlightened person at some point made a choice wherein from the heart he wanted enlightenment with all his being more than he wanted maya. That is all! And each one makes it as hard or as easy and takes as long as he chooses. Do you want the hard, long path or the short, easy path? From the heart make a choice: chocolate or vanilla, enlightenment or maya?
This blog was created as one of the many forms of support for Swami Vishwananda’s mission. Swami Vishwananda is a different kind of Spiritual Teacher. Once he taught within the traditional structure of the Guru Disciple Relationship wherein the disciple surrenders to the Guru, body, mind and soul. I tell you truly from the heart of Babaji, even then, Swami Vishwananda knew what He was doing! He, in Divine Truth, was teaching His diciples, through life experience and a great challenge, a different kind of lesson than that of "surrendering body, mind and soul to the Guru of the past!"
Swami Vishwananda says: “I don’t teach the way a normal teacher will teach you. I teach you through life, through experience, through challenges. That’s how you will build up your spiritual strength. If you are not strong enough you will not be able to make it, because to get self-realization, to get God-realization you can’t be weak. You have to be very, very strong to get it, that’s how life is."
We refer you to Swami Vishwananda’s website for information on the “Guru Disciple and Teacher Student Relationship” as He teaches and relates to his disciples and students. And, in truth, this has been Swami Vishwananda's "New Way" of teaching from His beginning! http://www.bhaktimarga.org/-Babaji
September 8, 2009, yesterday, two residents of Springen Center, Dakshine and Dristi, discovered something fascinatingly interesting in the chapel at Swami Vishwananda’s International Spiritual Center, Springen Center in Germany.
Oil was clearly visible, freely flowing and streaming down one of the beautiful icons of Mother Mary. This icon was first seen with oil flowing from it on the Ascension Day, August 15, 2009.
VIDEOS: One: Ave Maria (Schubert) – Andrea Bocelli Two: Tamil Hymns to Mary, the Mother of God
Swami Vishwananda teaches a great spiritual lesson in a dream: We like very much to acquire the title of “Looking Good;” it is simply human nature. We will fashion our speaking and acting about anything so that our self, the ego-self, appears in the best light. In my case, in this story I wish to share with you, I went to the opposite polarity poll. In some types of interactions with people I sometimes do not bother at all to consider how I am being with people, how my ego-self is “looking” in this duality game of life on planet Earth. My spiritual teacher, Swami Vishwananda taught me a lesson about that recently in a dream. The dream came after I had posted the VBV Blog, meditated at 3:00 A.M. and had gone back to sleep. After the meditation, I asked Swamiji to please help me with this stumbling block on my path to enlightenment that I had noticed in meditation.
In meditation, I clearly saw this about myself: Recently I have had the great blessing of Maha Lakshmi “introducing me to her husband,” Vishnu-Narayana. I am overwhelmed and feel greatly humbled when I think about that experience. And maybe it is not humility I feel but the great love of Divine Mother and Father that brings Bhakti tears, as I remember the experience! In meditation, I was re-living that experience when I noticed something about myself, something I wish to correct, wherein with these Great Beings, Narayana, God Himself, I don’t show sincere humility and proper respect in honoring their appearance to me. For instance, I did not bow down to Vishnu, I did not greet Him. It never occurred to me that it would have been proper for me to greet Him in some way, perhaps by pranaming at the very least! I just stood there waiting for the authority figure, The Father, to show me what to do! Vishnu was standing approximately nine-feet tall in a luminous, deep blue, energy light of a shade of blue I have not seen on Earth. He, Himself, was blue and very tall, big!
As I stood there looking at Him, I wished He would say something to me. I thought, “This could be my only chance in this lifetime to speak with Vishnu,” or something mundane like that! But it was more than that! I longed for “The Father” which I have looked for all my life since I was born to say something; perhaps “I love you.” I really don’t know, I just wished for The Father to say something to me, the two of us alone like that. Lakshmi had discreetly, and respectfully, stepped aside to my left a few feet. Where was my resolve to be happy with what the Divine sends or does not send? Why wasn't it enough that through His great blessing and Grace the Divine allowed me to stand near Him and be with His Universal form? This experience has shown me how much more ego-self I have yet to surrender before enlightenment has a chance to manifest in my life! Even so, with this state of mind, the Divine revealed Himself and showered His Grace! The love the Divine has for us as we strive to reach Him is manifested in our lives each day if we only will acknowledge it.
Dream With Swami Vishwananda: Swamiji is dressed in a pair of white painter coveralls with rainbow splotches of paint colors liberally sprinkled over them. He has his hair down in what I call “Swami Mode.” He dips a paint roller into a pan of paint rolling it around as if to get the paint distributed evenly. I walk up to him and ask a question bluntly: “Swami, I have this problem, will you help please?” I perceive a quick flash of “annoyance” on his face. Then I tell Swami in the dream what I already have told him in meditation. And I ask him: “Will you please help me with this problem of not showing proper respect to the Great Beings in the Etheric experiences?” End of Dream!
Swami Vishwananda’s Teaching - Interpretation: Swamiji appeared in an ordinary human work scenario – painting walls. However, He is still Swami because He appears to me as how I see Him in “Swami Mode.” with his hair down. I go up to Him and without any prelude like, “Hello, Swami. How are you? Need any help?” Without any polite conversation as is normal in such an encounter, my ego-self just selfishly blurted out my question and request for His help! Remember, He is engaged in painting walls! I see a flash of annoyance on His face. That “subtle flash” in his look is where the teaching comes in, I think. Have you all noticed that Our Swamiji teaches indirectly or subtly? You have to be alert or awake somewhat, or you miss it. I think that is an effective way of teaching because one only “gets it” if one is willing to control the ego enough to actually take the lesson within, embrace it, and implement it into the life thoughts and actions. Please know that I am not speaking for Swami, of course, this is just my experience.
This is what Swami was communicating to me in the dream, and I will say it in His usual economy of words: I think Swami was communicating: “How can you express sincere humility and proper respect to the Great Beings in the Etheric when you have not learned to show the same to an ordinary house painter; he is a part of God too!” Swami was playing both roles, that of house painter and Swami with His hair down. In the dream, I did not show proper respect to either of them, my fellowman, the house painter; or Swami, the Enlightened, Great Being. Good Job, Swami! Thank You; I got it! Now it is my job to subdue the ego and live the lesson; and therein is where Your teachings have the possibility to produce enlightenment. Please accept my sincere gratitude for so beautifully and simply helping me understand the “root” of my problem, my ego-self, and how to correct it. Jai Guru Dev! —Utpalavati
Mt. Kailash & Lake Manasarovar Video Below: Mt. Kailash is the abode of Lord Shiva. In the Hindu tradition, the lake was first created in the mind of Brahma. Therefore, in Sanskrit it is called “Manas sarovara,” which is a combination of the words manas (mind) and sarovaro (lake). In certain stories, the lake is also associated with Lord Vishnu. Hindu tradition informs us that drinking the water from the lake cleanses one of sins [from the ego-mind-self] committed over a hundred lifetimes. Perhaps if we could drink some of this water, Swamiji would not have to work so hard creating dreams and many other plays to help us get beyond the ego-mind. : )
Mahavatar Babaji: “East and West must establish a golden path of activity and spirituality combined. India has much to learn from the West in material development: in return, India can teach the universal methods by which the west will be able to base its religious beliefs on the unshakeable foundations of yogic science.” From Autobiography of a Yogi by Paramhansa Yogananda [spoken by Babaji to Sri Yukteswar Giri, Yogananda's Guru].
Swami Vishwananda: The one thing that one should not forget is that you are made in the image of God. In this way you have to go back to this image, back to this complete love.
Note From Moderator: The following article recently was published in Newsweek magazine, one of the largest news magazines in the United States. We reproduce it here for those who may be interested. We found the article interesting. Those of you, who choose to read it, please make of it what you will.
In the early Twentieth Century both Parmahansa Yogananda and Swami Vivekananda came to America with the mission of joining East and West through yogic science, union with God. They included all spiritual paths in their teachings.
U.S. Views on God and Life Are Turning Hindu / Newsweek Article:
. . . We are, it is true, a nation founded by Christians, and according to a 2008 survey, 76 percent of us continue to identify as Christian (still, that's the lowest percentage in American history). Of course, we are not a Hindu—or Muslim, or Jewish, or Wiccan—nation, either. A million-plus Hindus live in the United States, a fraction of the billion who live on Earth. But recent poll data show that conceptually, at least, we are slowly becoming more like Hindus and less like traditional Christians in the ways we think about God, our selves, each other, and eternity.
The Rig Veda, the most ancient Hindu scripture, says this: "Truth is One, but the sages speak of it by many names." A Hindu believes there are many paths to God. Jesus is one way, the Quran is another, yoga practice is a third. None is better than any other; all are equal. The most traditional, conservative Christians have not been taught to think like this. They learn in Sunday school that their religion is true, and others are false. Jesus said, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the father except through me."
Americans are no longer buying it. According to a 2008 Pew Forum survey, 65 percent of us believe that "many religions can lead to eternal life"—including 37 percent of white evangelicals, the group most likely to believe that salvation is theirs alone. Also, the number of people who seek spiritual truth outside church is growing. Thirty percent of Americans call themselves "spiritual, not religious," according to a 2009 NEWSWEEK Poll, up from 24 percent in 2005. Stephen Prothero, religion professor at Boston University, has long framed the American propensity for "the divine-deli-cafeteria religion" as "very much in the spirit of Hinduism. You're not picking and choosing from different religions, because they're all the same," he says. "It isn't about orthodoxy. It's about whatever works. If going to yoga works, great—and if going to Catholic mass works, great. And if going to Catholic mass plus the yoga plus the Buddhist retreat works, that's great, too."
Then there's the question of what happens when you die. Christians traditionally believe that bodies and souls are sacred, that together they comprise the "self," and that at the end of time they will be reunited in the Resurrection. You need both, in other words, and you need them forever. Hindus believe no such thing. At death, the body burns on a pyre, while the spirit—where identity resides—escapes. In reincarnation, central to Hinduism, selves come back to earth again and again in different bodies. So here is another way in which Americans are becoming more Hindu: 24 percent of Americans say they believe in reincarnation, according to a 2008 Harris poll. So agnostic are we about the ultimate fates of our bodies that we're burning them—like Hindus—after death. More than a third of Americans now choose cremation, according to the Cremation Association of North America, up from 6 percent in 1975. "I do think the more spiritual role of religion tends to deemphasize some of the more starkly literal interpretations of the Resurrection," agrees Diana Eck, professor of comparative religion at Harvard. So let us all say "OM."
Swami Vishwananda’s Recent Pre-Darshan Talk in Finland: What Is Life? Mahavatar Babaji reiterates the benefits of Swami Vishwananda’s Atma Kriya…”Be free and have no regrets at your time of departure as . . . speaks about. . .”
Swami Vishwananda: How many know what life is? Life is Divine. How many know that it’s Divine? How many people know how precious life is? Once you realize what life is, you will see life completely differently. Life is not just working, eating, sleeping. That’s what people think very often. People enslave themselves in work and in eating. Most of the time people don’t eat properly and often they enslave themselves in just sleeping. Life goes on. When the time comes for their departure, they will realize, “Oops, I have missed something.” When they look back at how many opportunities they had of realizing the beauty of life and they have regrets. They then realize how many opportunities have come their way where they could have realized themselves. They realize at departure time how great this gift of life is that God has given; and yet they have wasted it.
Again I ask the question: What is life? [Someone in darshan audience says, “Love.”] That’s it! The Divine seems far away. For the mind to understand the Divine, it’s very difficult. Until you have really cleansed the mind from thinking, until you have really purified the mind completely, the Divine is quite difficult to understand. Life is love. And love of course is Divine; love is God. The feeling of love is what life is about, and to realize this great love and not just partial love. Not that today I say “I love you,” and tomorrow, “Who is that person?” Not that love, but know love which is beyond expression, love which is unconditional and love that is in everything around you. That’s what love is; that’s what life is. [Excerpted].
Mahavatar Babaji Babaji reminds us today: [excerpted from Unity With The Divine]. Swami Vishwananda’s Atma Kriya is comprised of tools for transformation that reach all levels of existence: physical, energetic, intellectual, emotional, mental and spiritual. It creates transformation that is a catalyst for reuniting limiting human consciousness with the atma, the soul, and thereby reuniting the atma with Cosmic Consciousness. In essence Atma Kriya is a powerful and potentially expeditious pathway to achieving Cosmic Consciousness – Unity With The Divine. Babaji says today: This is life, this is love. Do not be one who wastes this precious gift of life. Become free and have no regrets at your time of departure as Swami Vishwananda speaks about in his above address to the people of Finland recently.
Deora Ar Mo Chroiby [Song by Enya] InerBeing [Poem by Thich Nhat Hanh]
The sun has entered me The sun has entered me. . . together with the cloud and the river.
I myself have entered the river, and I have entered the sun with the cloud and the river.
There has not been a moment when we do not interpenetrate.
But before the sun entered me, the sun was in me, also the cloud and the river.
Before I entered the river I was already in it. There has not been a moment when we have not inter-been.
Therefore you know that as long as you continue to breathe I continue to be in you. . .
Mahavatar Babaji. . . speaks about Heaven, free will and right and wrong. . . Dearest Friends, Beloveds of the Divine, as you walk the narrow pathway toward union with the Divine, dare to experiment with light as you daily experiment with limitation. Dare to embrace the idea and take it into action that light and dark are one; all beings are one and Heaven is one dimension of the “many mansions” Christ spoke about that exists in “Heaven.” Learn to fly free of the Earth boundaries within your mind and heart. Then you will have the experience of having mastered the Earth dimension of the “many mansions” the Savior of lost souls taught you. For many of you feel “lost,” is it not???
I place three question marks at the end of that last sentence for a reason, my dear friends and compatriots. All this punctuation of emphasis makes me smile and most pleased with all you bloggers in the Internet phenomenon of spiritual development; both of the light and the dark as most of you presently define it. I see now within many of you the true desire for eternity’s doorway to open for you. You wish to experience the light of forevermore, to know that you will exist within it eternally, isn’t it? Many of you are becoming intense about it and truly committed to your growth and loving development into your remembered light body. And in the midst of all that, please remember to do your Atma Kriya daily! ! !
A comment was placed on this blog: “I am not sure some times what is wrong or what is right. How does communication work in Heaven? Does "Life in Heaven" also have light and shadow?
For those of you interested in those thoughts and questions: Feel the vibration of this Heaven as you imagine it and allow yourself to go there in meditation. Truthfully it will not be beneficial for me to paint you a pretty picture of what I know “Heaven” to be. Do you understand? I am responding to all of you and the “you” that is the eternal you. If you “take on” what I am requesting about this question of “Heaven,” and right and wrong you will find peace about it.
What is right and what is wrong? What if actually right is wrong and wrong is right? Is that right or is that wrong? Do you know? Truthfully, it is divine if you will begin to embrace the idea that right and wrong are one. Then in all your thoughts and actions, just do what feels right to you. And if you feel like doing something wrong and then do it, well, you have a certain amount of free will. Go ahead and do it and you simply reap the consequences of cause and effect. Is that wrong or is that right? Isn’t it simply choice and not wrong or right but according to one’s perspective it could be understood as either right or wrong or just choice of being? My dear friends, that is duality ! ! ! Take a stand from this day forward that you will be one who embraces the Oneness of Earth life and live it as you choose, and henceforth be free of the limitation of duality. It is your choice, right or wrong according to perception, ONE!
I would like all of you reading this blog to meditate with me on the following: A certain Enlightened Being living in India in present day has said many times in all Earth languages at one time or another; truly a teaching for the world awareness, world collective consciousness:
“Understand that there is no free will for individuals. They are constrained by various limitations. God alone has total free will. All others are bound in one way or another. Nobody has free will; for man is subservient to his senses. Even if he wants otherwise his eyes will look at the world. Ears listen to all sounds. Legs move to places unwanted by him [like to work some Monday mornings]. He is thus reduced to the state of a slave of the senses. Where is the free will? Added to this, man’s behavior is also fashioned around the acquisitions of previous birth; not only that, the effect of the deeds of his parents too will influence the child born to them. Thus man is subjected to and influenced by diverse forces – the effect of his own deeds, that of his parents and above all the influences of his senses. Then how can free will prevail for man? This faculty is enjoyed by God alone.” Whatever one’s efforts, the ultimate outcome lies with Providence. Therefore, place your faith in God and do your duty, wherever you may be.”
Adieu until we meet again in meditation. I am Babaji. My beloved ones take my hand, take the hand of your spiritual teacher, be it Swami Vishwananda or whomever it may be; let us join hearts, minds and hands in Divine Love. Amen and OM ! ! ! It is written and so it is.
A New Way is Born:
September 8, 2009, yesterday
