Finding Your Voice

The story of caedmon, the first documented poet to compose in the English language in the late sixth century, is about an ordinary man whom God took aside from his busy everyday activity and from his own limited sense of who and what he was, and spoke to him in the quiet of the night.

Caedmon worked as a lay brother in the community of Abbess Hilda of Whitby. The singing of psalms and hymns played central role in the community, and at a feast it was an accepted tradition that all should sing in turn.

It bothered caedomon so much that he knew no songs and could not sing that whenever this began, he would quietly slip away.

Once frustrated by his inability to contribute to the songs of praise to God, he left the gathering and went to the stables, falling asleep among the horses.

As he slept, he dreamt that someone addressed him by name saying, “caedmon, sing me something”. He answered “I cannot sing” that is why I left the feast and came here…. The voice insisted. “Nevertheless you must sing”.

Feeling strangely compelled to obey, Caedmon asked, “What shall I sing” And was told: “Sing. His hymn was new, pouring from his heart: “Now we must praise Heaven kingdom’s guardian/ the maker’s might and his mind’s thoughts, the work of the glory-father as he established the beginning of every wonder. He first shaped for men’s sons. Heaven as a roof, the holy Creator; then middle earth mankind’s guardian, eternal Lord afterwards prepared for men the earth the Lord almighty”

Walking from his sleep, Caedmon remembered all that he had sung in his dream. He went to his superior and told him of the dream. His superior took him to Hilda, who recognizing the grace of God at works, instructed Caedmon to set aside his secular clothes and to take monastic vows.

She received him into the community and ordered that he should be instructed in sacred history and the scriptures. He learned all he could by listening to the lesson, and then”…. Memorizing it and ruminating over it, like some clean animal chewing the cud, he turned it into the most melodious verse, and it sounded as sweet as he recited it that his teachers become in turn his audience”

He composed more verses in the same manner, “praising God in a worthy style”, and went on to become a creative and dynamic force in the spiritual community a poet and a beloved teacher.

It was Caedmon’s fear of not measuring up – maybe to his standards or to those of those around him – that held him back. It was his trusting the ‘voice’ that allowed him to make that first attempt.

Even if only just one of Caedmon’s poems survives, that it is still in publication some 1,300 years after his death and continues to touch us, speaks of how even a small legacy can have a huge impact.

Caedmon’s story tells us too of our ordinary selves, afraid to find our true voice; but by heeding the call of ‘the other’ – divine prompting, - we can give voice to out previously withheld beautiful creativity  - whatever shape or form this takes.

Experience Life’s Rhythm

A Hoysala king on a hunting expedition captured a gorgeous white baby elephant that got separated from its mother. The elephants of noble breed belonged to the king of the neighboring region. The calf had imbibed the noble traits of its mother. But gradually the baby elephant was turning out to be naughty and ill mannered. The king who was concerned about its impudence with the mahout, irregular food habits and rudeness handed his minister the responsibility of tracing the cause of this sudden change in behavior. The minister hoisted himself on a tree close to the baby elephant to keep a watch on him through the night. As night approached, he saw some men of ill repute sitting near the baby elephant. They were badmouthing people, exuding anger and vengeance. This went on for several days. The minister duly reported this to the king who had the men barred from that place. He now sent a group of wise people to keep the baby elephant company. Very soon the baby returned to its natural state of goodness and virtuosity.

Can we hope to always be surrounded by good people or be in a good environment? Life is unstable and unpredictable. We are all the time being impacted by what is happening around us. How can we insulate ourselves from the bad effects?

The solution is to have a “living mind” a mind that is watchful and observant. When the mind is dominated by suspicion, anger, fear, hurt or anxiety it becomes dead and fossilized. It loses its ability to enquire into anything, be it an event or an emotion. It becomes compulsive, mechanical and repetitive. Such a mind devoid of awareness and alertness is prone to fall a victim to the vagaries of the world. It is weak and helpless. A mind that is awake and watchful nurtures goodness, virtue, joy and love within a human being in all aspects of life. A dead mind can only brag about its ideals of goodness and integrity but in reality its actions are prompted by fear, confusion and rigidity. It is fossilized thinking. Awareness is what can give you an extraordinary quantity of life.

There are different views about life. Some say it is predestined. Others say it is an accident and that it has no destiny. But there is a destiny and it is crafted by our thoughts. This is how we create our destiny.

Thoughts- emotion- moods- temperaments- actions-destiny.

When we do not throw the light of awareness onto our thoughts regarding a particular situation, it precipitates emotions like anger, hurt and fear. When these emotions are not attended to, we get used to them and they cause mood swings. Thereafter, it becomes our second nature, our temperament. Just as layer upon layer of sedimentation solidifies into rock, continuous unawareness and ignorance go to make our personality. We become defined, limited and controlled by them. Our actions would then be directed by our moods. Such unintelligent action would lead to a poor destiny, devoid of love, joy, abundance or success.

Hence, “a living mind” which is vigilant about what it thinks and feels is of utmost importance to create a great destiny. Destiny is also not created in one moment; it takes shape with each situation life throws up and with each response you give to it.

So come alive, live consciously, be aware of every movement, and be awake to every rhythm of life. In living life every moment that you see is each time a new beginning.

Body Mind and Spirit

Human existence is trifarious, a combination of three currents, physical, mental and spiritual. Most people may not transcend the limits of their physical existence; they get enmeshed in crude worldly pleasures, tormented by desire. Subtleties of life expression and practice are perhaps beyond their reach. Their world is limited to their bodies and physical requirements.

There are others who are more concerned with their minds as they feel that it is the supremacy of mind that sets them apart. Their lives are guided by their desires for mental satisfaction. By virtue of their endeavors they create poetry, art, music and sculpture, for instance. They express the finer human feelings of mercy, sympathy, love, friendship, and pity. They believe that the mind flows for the sole purpose of attaining the infinite and hence they focus their energies on the contemplation of the Transcendental Entity. They are spiritual aspirants. Drawn by the magnetic attraction of Cosmic Consciousness they speed forward and reach the stage which marks the end of mental existence and the beginning of spirituality. At that stage one is no longer a human being, one is a veritable god.

It ought to be the mission of every person to achieve confluence of the mental and spiritual strata. It is the pinnacle of human progress. It is the beginning of divine existence. The meeting point of the highest attainment of humanity and the blossoming of divinity is the base on which the cardinal human principles re established.

Looking back, it is evident that nowhere have human values been truly honored. What is worse, nobody has looked upon humanity with sympathy. Only those were respected who, by serving their self-interests, climbed onto the higher rostrum of society. It is difficult to step down from the high position of the vainglorious to rub shoulders with the less privileged. The neglect of humanity was particularly acute towards the end of each era of the social cycle. The progeny of the noble kshatriyas, the physically strong, on gaining power, engaged themselves in the pursuit of pleasure and comforts utterly neglecting their cared duty to serve their people. They never cared to know people’s suffering.

King-hearted and philanthropic kings did exist, but very few, if any met the psychophysical needs of his people and opened the gateway to realization of the infinite. For self aggrandizement and in a bid to conquer the world they invaded countries, one after another. How could they afford to inquire into the tragic plight of the common people? The Vipra era or intellectual era illustrated the same thing; the scholarly Vipras were hardly accessible to the common people. The innocents were busy appeasing the Vipras with oblations, honorariums and floral offerings.

Service to the needy might not yield immediate results but the potential for future benefit is immense. Rabindranath says, “By standing aloof from your fellow man daily, you have hated the God enthroned in his heart”. Instead of hating anyone, the Sadvipras – physically fit, mentally strong and spiritually elevated – will encourage every one to build good careers. This will be Sadvipra’s principle duty. None should feel that they have been doomed forever.

Don’t be Hurry

A man who was very found of trees wanted to see a green tree in the courtyard of his home. He thought that if he planted sapling, it would take a long time to grow into a tree. So he went to a garden and selected a fully grown tree. He then employed several laborers to dig it up and then transport it to his courtyard where he had it planted.

The man was very happy. He thought to himself; “I have traveled a long journey in a single day. Planting a sapling or a seed would have been a lengthy business and now I have found quick way of having a lush green tree”

But the next morning when he looked at the tree, he found that its leaves had begun to wither, and after a few days the whole tree dried up. He was disappointed. When one of his friends visited him, he found him in a very sad mood. When he asked the reason he said: “I am in a hurry, but God isn’t”

This story instructs us about the law of nature, which is based on gradual development and not on sudden leaps. One who follows this law of nature will be successful, while the one, who fails to follow it, will be doomed to failure.

This law of nature is applicable not only to tree; it is a universal law. In every field, one must follow this natural course; otherwise one cannot attain any worthwhile goal.

Why is it that when the tree was in the garden, it was green, but when the same tree was transferred to another place – the courtyard – it dried up? The reason is that when the tree was in the garden, it had its roots intact, but when it was transferred to the courtyard, it had very few of its roots left. And it is roots that give life to a tree.

This is a law of nature and this law of nature applies to all human activities. It is the need of every business, every profession, and every institution to have proper roots, that is, a sound basis. There is no exception to this law of nature.

For example, education is the basis for a job, reputation is the basis of a business, and infrastructure is the basis of national development. Constructing a really solid foundation requires a long period of time; you cannot have such a foundation by just taking wild leaps.

When you are in a hurry to achieve something. It means that you are denying the law of nature. You want to build a world on your own and this kind of procedure is not possible in this world. Those who engage in a gradual process will find support in nature and without such support no achievement is possible in this world.

Why did God decree this nature? He did so for the purpose of consolidation. If you try to achieve something by leaping into things, the final result will be like an uprooted tree. But when you adopt the gradual process, you consolidate your achievement.

An agriculturist once rightly pointed out that it requires only six months to grow a kakdi plant, but if you want to grow a tree like the oak, it will take 50 years to produce a fully grown tree. From this example one can understand how the law of nature functions.

Wave and the Ocean

God or what we perceive as the supreme energy is never an object of isolation but the very core of your being. The difference between self and God is just like the wave and the ocean.

If you think you are just the body – don’t for the body has its limitations. If you think that you are the mind – don’t for the mind, too, has its limitations. It is just another layer of our existence.

Just like your body is made up of proteins, amino acids, and carbohydrates, you are made up of love. Every little atom of your body is made up of love and that is what is God and not someone sitting somewhere in heaven. God is here and now; He is love, and space. When you are meditating feel at peace, at home with everyone, you are in touch with the Divine force. In the Upanishads, it is said ‘kham kham brahma’ – space is Brahman, in which everything is and into which everything dissolves. It is universal consciousness.

God is omnipresent, omnipotent and omniscient; therefore wanting to see God as something or someone separate from you is also an illusion. God is not an object of senses but the feeling the presence, the sound of silence the light of life and the essence of the world and the taste of bliss.

God is to be felt in the depth of your heart; He cannot be perceived through your senses or through the mind for He is the Seer. As space He is everywhere, and everything is in space. Nothing can tough space. Nothing can destroy space. And you cannot see space as a separated object.

There are three types of space, bhuta aakash or outer space space in which the universe exists, chitta aakash or the world of impressions, thoughts and dreams that exist in your mind; chida aakash or the sky of consciousness that is all permeating every consciousness – everywhere – consciousness, the basis of all Creation, that is Divine that which knows all.

The whole of existence has a mind of its own. This mind is what you call Atma or God and that is what you are. As Generator; Operator and Destroyer; as Brahma, Vishnu and Maheshwara. God has generated the present moment; the present moment is operating and the present moment destroyed the past. So you are in God and Divinity is in you. There is a place for everybody in the heart of the Divine.

Divinity is the very core of your being. Like an onion, if you start peeling the layers one by one, when you reach the centre there is nothingness and everything is made up of that space. Universal consciousness is present everywhere. That being, that space, that very consciousness is what people look up to because it is present everywhere at all times.

In the body there are many cells and each of them has its own life. New cells are coming up and old cells are dying but they have no knowledge of you. Yet they are affected by you and you are affected by a single cell. In the same way, know that the big life and the big mind which encompasses all our minds and all our lives, is what we call as God.

The Flower and Its Fragrance

The most beautiful thing on earth is our gratitude to divinity. Children always see more beauty than grownups do; because of their tremendous inner purity they see beauty in everything. Therefore we have to appreciate and admire them because they are still in the world of the soul.

When the mind is “developed” it also goes through conditioning and so begins to find fault. We love to see ugliness and impurity even in things that are really beautiful and good. If an artist has created something, we look for anomalies. The child however regards everything as his very own, so he sees beauty in everyone and in everything. He feels that there is nothing in comparison with other thing is beautiful.

Divine love and divine beauty are inseparable. Love is the flower, beauty is the fragrance. They go together. A flower is an object, God’s creation. But the flower has to offer its quality, that is, its fragrance. Only when you come near a flower will you see and appreciate its beauty. But even when you are far away, its fragrance can permeate the air. If a flower does not have any fragrance, half its divinity is gone. Beauty comes forth from the flower which is love. Flower and fragrance are inseparably one.

When earth’s cry and heaven’s smile meet, beauty’s perfection dawns. Joy is a bird that we all want to catch. It is the same bird that we all love to see flying. What is the difference between pleasure and joy? Pleasure is followed by frustration, whereas joy is always followed by peace and more joy. There are two kinds of joy, outer joy and inner joy – there’s a subtle difference between them. We feel that the possessor of outer joy is somebody else, not ourselves. Very often we want to snatch this joy from others.

Inner joy is not like this. When we meditate or contemplate, at that time we feel that we are the soul of joy. This joy that we possess inside is like a fountain; it comes spontaneously. Inner joy has no fear. It can, if it wants transform our human nature in the twinkling of an eye.

If we can experience true inner joy even for a second we will feel that the world is totally different. Now, we feel that we will have to change our attitude towards certain aspects of the creation if we want to have joy, because the world is constantly fighting and doing all un-divine things. But if we can look at the world with our inner joy, we will see that the world has already changed?

How can we get this inner joy? If we really feel that inner joy is the breath of our life, if we feel that we cannot exist without joy and we will die at this very moment if we do not have it, then God showers his choicest blessing, which is joy, upon us.

Real joy comes from the feeling that we are constantly in the lap of the Supreme. Twenty-four hours a day we cannot meditate. But on the strength of our imagination we can feel that 24 hours a day we are in the lap of the Supreme.

Of Strangers and Friends

Normally preoccupied with family members and a small circle of friends, most of us do not generally want to become familiar with strangers; we look upon them as ‘others’. This kind of thinking is based simply on suppositions about others and sometimes such suppositions are unfounded. Experience shows that it is perfectly possible to make friends out of strangers.

Swami Ram Tirath a man of considerable education decided in the last decade of the nineteenth century to visit the US, despite paucity of funds and not knowing anyone there who could receive him and host his stay there. After a long sea voyage, he reached the American coast, where he disembarked along with the other passengers. There were many Americans who had come to receive their friends and relatives at the port. However Swami Ram Tirath found himself walking all alone by a corner of the port. An American, seeing him there approached him and asked, ‘Do you have any friends in America?” Swami Ram Tirath said: ‘Yes, there is one friend and that friend is here.’ Saying this he embraced the American.

This kind of behavior was unexpected and the American was impressed. He said: ‘Yes, I am your friend.” And then he took him along to his home. Swami Ram Tirath remained his guest till he left America for India.

No one is a stranger to you; everyone is your potential friend. Just behave in a friendly way and accept others as your sisters and brothers. If you can sincerely adopt this kind of friendly attitude, you will find that everyone is your friend and no one is alien to you.

The fact is that all the men and women have common ancestors. This means that the whole world is a single family and everyone has that kind of attachment with others that is no noticeable in family life.

It is only distance that makes you a stranger. If you eliminate distance, nature will prevail and all can be like blood brothers and sisters to you. The formula for friendship is very simple. If you are truly a friend to others, then you can safely predict that they will also become your friends. Develop genuine love for others in your heart and then others cannot but love you in return.

A Philosopher said that man keeps radiating feelings all the time. If you are a compassionate person and you are radiating compassion then others are bound to receive those radiations of compassion from you. If you have developed love for others, then you are radiating love and others are bound to receive the radiation of love. This is the law of nature. You will therefore receive a positive response to positive radiation and a negative response to negative radiation.

The only condition in this regard is that you should be a selfless person. Positive behavior combined with selflessness always works. It is selflessness that makes your behavior ring true. On the contrary, if you are a selfish person, your behavior will be like that of a salesman. And such behavior cannot have any positive effect.

Abide by your own nature and you will be a successful person. Everyone is born like an angel but, after receiving negative impulses from his environment, he becomes otherwise. So, return to your original nature and you will be acceptable to all.