Non-dual Meditation and Belief in God
What is the aim of our meditation? It is to expand our consciousness and to discover a fulfilment and security that nothing can disturb. On this path, much depends on our own ideas about ourselves and the great whole of which we are a part. When we think about these things and reflect on what…
Read MoreThe Role of the Witness in Advaita Vedanta
The ultimate enquiry begins with the question ‘What or who am I, the enquirer?’ It ends when this question has been answered, though the answer is not one that can be adequately expressed in words. Exponents of the highest wisdom from diverse traditions have affirmed that in our true nature, despite appearances, we are not…
Read MoreStories told by Swami Rama Tirtha
A selection from Scientist and Mahatma by H P Shastri A king went into a forest on a hunting expedition. In the heat of the chase the king was separated from his companions. Under the scorching rays of the sun, he felt very thirsty. He found in the woods a small garden. He went into…
Read MoreThe Ascent of the Mind
Notes of a lecture given by Hari Prasad Shastri The Yoga of Self-knowledge is the ascension of the mind from its states of heedlessness, passion-struggle, and the balanced equilibrium gained through training, into the higher state of illumination. The word ‘ascension’ has no spatial connotation; it just means lifting the mind from one state to…
Read MoreOne-Pointedness
There are basically two states of the mind: that of heedlessness, in which the mind drifts or responds passively to the events as they occur; and the consciously applied recollection of the purposeful life. In deciding to do anything worthwhile, we have to make a definite decision to set before the mind the purpose in…
Read MoreCreative Peace
Love means to enjoy the eternal in the passing by creating forms of beauty and ideas of truth, to understand nature and to transform the raw and chaotic into harmony. We cannot be happy unless we understand our place in nature, and make progress in learning, virtue, and in appreciation of beauty all around. We…
Read MoreWater as a Teaching Simile in the Bhagavad Gita
The Bhagavad Gita, as a long poem or song (gita), includes about twelve verses that mention water, usually to illustrate some particular point, either practical or philosophical, or both. The teaching is always relevant to our own experience, and is intended to awaken us to a higher state of consciousness. It gives us methods for…
Read MorePoem – There Was a Time
There was a time When my heart thawed on seeing a rose, And my eyes lingered on each bud and flower. The cherry blossoms intoxicated my brain And the dancing tulips Drew my lips nearer and nearer to them. In every cool and clear waterfall, I loved to bathe my head. Then I met You,…
Read MorePractice in Challenging Times
The public health crisis that began in Spring 2020 meant that meetings could not be held at Shanti Sadan. Presentations of the non-dual teachings and meditation practices had to be immediately adapted to the changed circumstances and provided initially on-line and then in print. Below are some of the talks and meditations given by the…
Read MoreThe Deeper Concentration
Our mental energy, flowing through the senses, reveals to us the wonder and complexity of the outer world. We have learnt how to extend that knowledge, and have come to regard human development, at least on the material plane, as a process of continuous improvement. Boundaries are to be transcended, records broken, feats surpassed. Everything…
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