Self-Knowledge Journal – Autumn 2019
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Read MoreMeditation Practice: the Power that Guides the Mind
What is the most effective means of learning about meditation? It is our own practice, done regularly. There is no teacher greater than our own experience. But before we enter into the practice, here are one or two ideas that may be helpful. Meditation involves making a new use of that familiar instrument—our own mind.…
Read MoreHappiness
by Hari Prasad Shastri All our activities from the time we see the light to the day we cease to breathe are directed towards one aim—to be happy. We perform our duties so that our conscience may be light and we may be happy. The wise in pursuit of their happiness do not want it…
Read MoreThe Highest Devotion
The Conclusion of the Sixth Chapter of the Bhagavad Gita In chapter six of the Bhagavad Gita detailed guidance is given on meditation practice. In a quiet place, on a suitable seat, the seeker is to practise equanimity, stilling the mind, and focusing on Self, the inner light of awareness. This is to be done…
Read MoreYoga and the Idea of a Deeper Reality
What is the meaning of yoga in the context of the non-dual teachings? The popular idea of yoga, which many take for granted, is that it is a system of physical exercises which originated in India and is now available in most sports centres. One with deeper knowledge would point out a link between yoga…
Read MoreThe Sufism of al-Junayd— Self Forgotten, Self Fulfilled
This article is about the Sufi mystic al-Junayd, more completely, Abu-al-Qāsim al-Junayd, or Junayd of Baghdad, who lived from about 830 to 910 of the common era, that is about 215 to 298 according to the Islamic calendar. Al-Junayd is interesting for several reasons. Although he did not write voluminously, his teachings in person and…
Read MoreThe Nature of Man
By Hari Prasad Shastri Every human being is a microcosm in which all grades of existence are repeated on a minute scale. Our nature reaches up to the Absolute on the one hand, and down to the animal and the plant worlds on the other. Although we are bound up with matter and occupied with…
Read MoreVerses from Samadhi Shataka
A selection of verses from Samadhi Shataka, also known as Samadhi Tantra, written by Shri Pujyapada, a great teacher of the Jain tradition who probably lived in the 5th-6th century CE. The translation is by Hari Prasad Shastri. He who identifies the body with the Self never finds liberation, though full of learning and ever…
Read MoreLife Skills for Inner Peace and Freedom
It is sometimes said that every person who comes into this world has their own unique contribution to make. Each of us has a special gift or talent, and, given the right circumstances—the right shaping influences—our gift will develop and flower. This way of thinking—that we all have something we can do that others cannot…
Read MoreStepping Stones
When we cross a stream on stepping stones, we have to watch every step. Each stone has its unique shape and tilt, causing us to vary our tread. Some stones adjoin each other; with others we have a small gap to mind. The stones are a blessing, conferred by our predecessors. They are also a…
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