SPIRITUAL AWAKENING

We need to understand that spiritual awakening is naturally orderly and progressive when we ‘spiritual beings’ live in harmony with the laws of nature and our aspiration to be fully awake is constant. Generally, it is erratic and inconsistent for ‘spiritual beings’ live against the laws of nature and not at all aspire to become spiritually awake. The lack of harmony with the laws of nature is great. When our awareness is blurred and fragmented, flawed illusions may appear and be accepted, presumed as facts.

When our thoughts are material and our awareness is clear, what is perceived is seen and known as it is. Our awareness is our perceptions as it is referred to our minds. When our awareness is not clear, then our perceptions are never accurate. This normally happens when we are not attentive. This hinders us from ‘seeing’ what is present to be seen or fully know what is present to be known. That means having eyes we do not see and having the sense of hearing we do not hear and, having the capacity to be intelligent, we do not accurately discriminate for true knowledge is absent.

Due to the lack of knowledge, the mind is impressed with the increasing accumulation of misinformation, confusion, irrational thinking and erratic behaviour. This situation is trouble-causing, therefore it must be corrected by improving our powers of concentration and clarifying our awareness. To do this we must become alert and attentive at all times.

Spiritual awakening proceeds through seven stages, each of which is related to the chakras in our subtle body. The characteristics of each stage are determined by psychological states, behaviours, intellectual capacities, heights of alertness and powers of perception and functional abilities by one’s habitual mental attitudes and stages of consciousness.

Just by efficiently removing useless habits and procedures, and overcoming obstacles, you could accomplish your divine Spiritual purpose. Thus, it should be your life-purpose to divinely plan your present existence. Constructively analyse what you will do and why you will do it. Let everything be clear and constructive. Make sure there are no restrictive habits present in your planning.

Are you as simple a being as you look? That is, in this body form, covered by skin, do you understand that your total being is beyond this, your simple physical organism. You have within you many, many powers or energies. You also have the potential to tap into them at any time you want, according to your physical or personal requirements. This is how you have managed to survive all the drastic conditions of this world. This potential is exceptionally great, beyond your ordinary perception Paramahansa Yogananda said, “Behind the light in every little bulb is a great dynamic current, beneath every little wave is the vast ocean.” So it is with you. You have your own divine freedom and, in the ‘eyes’ of God, you are identical to him. You are the one that lacks the ‘know-how’ to tap into these energies because you forgot your own source and therefore do not know clearly the power of God, which is unequalled to anything you know, being a greater part of you.

The nature of life is to attain higher levels
of consciousness and total bliss;
the desire to know thyself,
implanted in the inner altar of the being.
To attain freedom, the only way to
reach the state of Effortless Being,
is through enlightenment;
to attaiunion with God
through loving dharana.

Swami Shankarananda