As the year draws to a close, many of us may be reflecting on what we have been through in the past twelve months.....the ups and down, the challenges and achievements.
For many of us, the pandemic may have helped to focus our minds on what is important in life, what really matters. It has shown us how ephemeral life on this planet is, how quickly everything can melt away. Life as we knew it has fundamentally changed. We do not know when things will return to normal, and it is likely that even if they do, they will never be the same again (to an extent, perhaps in a good way).
When we reflect upon life and what is important, our loved ones often come up as a key priority. Ultimately, our experience of life depends on the people we have in it. The yogis say we meet people and part ways from them based on destiny-- the Sanskrit/yogic word for this is 'karma'. The pandemic has acted in strange ways to bring people together and also keep them apart.
Many of us are using online tools such as Zoom to attend classes or events that could be taking place in a completely different country to where we live. And because of this, we meet some wonderful people whom we may never have met before. Yet at the same time, we are unable to easily meet our neighbours and friends in the same city due to the risk of infection. It is a strange paradox.
Coming back to what is important is life, as I was saying love seems to be a key part of this for most of us. But what is love? The yogis would say, it is not the conditional love of body, mind and intellect that belongs to the ever-changing, material realm. But rather, real love, they tell us is the unconditional love of the spirit, that eternal element within us. In fact, they say, it is the very nature of all beings. It is the the very nature of God, the source of our very being, our innermost core. The love that is God or Spirit knows no change, does not depend on any external factor for its existence. It exists because existence is its very nature; it is immortal and eternal.
We look for this love everywhere-- but in the wrong places according to the yogis. We connect with people, buy things, go places, ultimately for the sake of happiness, for the sake of love. Sadly, say the yogis, this is all too often met with disappointment. Everything here fades. People fade away, objects eventually lose their charm, places rise and fall. Everything here is subject to time, to death. It is all mortal.
However, there is something in us that yearns for immortality. For immortal love, for eternal undying love. There is something beautiful about that. It is the stuff of movies and books, it is something that is desired by people in all societies, regardless of language and culture. And as I mentioned above, that something that compels us to seek this eternal love is the fact that this is our very nature. We are ultimately seeking our own true nature, which is known by various terms such as the Self and God.
Which brings me to a topic that is closely related to love, namely truth. Truth is a big deal in spiritual life as we all know. Why? Because it is said to be the essence of God. When we say we are seekers of God, we are seekers of Truth. We seek to know the truth of our very being, our existence. Why we exist here, why we are the way we are, why the world is the way it is. We want to know these things and much more. And the yogis say, these answers are found in Truth, in God.
Truth is closely related to love. Without truth, there is no love. One of the names of God is 'Satya', meaning Truth. This Truth is to be known intuitively through spiritual practices such as meditation. It is not something we can grasp with our limited human intellects. Because it is the very origin of everything, including our intellects. It is the source of everything.
There is famous saying in Sanskrit-- 'Satyam eva jayate', meaning 'Truth alone triumphs'. This can be interpreted in many ways. In a simple sense, we may say that ultimately that which is true emerges in our ordinary lives. It is the very nature of truth to be known. The truth cannot be hidden forever. Eventually it must be known in one way or another. This does not just apply in the material world, but is also a spiritual reality.
The higher Truth which is our nature will triumph one day. It is its nature to triumph over the lower aspect of our nature. It will ultimately triumph, sooner or later, it is simply a matter of time, whether one lifetime or a few more.
How are we to find this unconditional love, this Truth, that we seek? That we are subconsciously yearning for when we want various people and things around us? The yogis tell us we must look for it in the place where is actually is, that is, within ourselves. Hidden in the very core of our being, whether we acknowledge it or not, is this unconditional love, this Truth.
There are many beautiful spiritual traditions around the world that enable us to seek and find this love and Truth. One important spiritual technique is japa, the practice of the name or mantra of God. I attended a wonderful online satsang recently during which a senior spiritual teacher reminded us that the name of God is not merely a sound, not merely a prayer to God, not just a symbol of God. It is God Himself.
Therefore, he reminded us that when we say the name or mantra of God, we should bring into our consciousness the truth that we are in the presence of God Himself/Herself in a special way. God is omnipresent so we are always in His presence but the recitation of His names/mantras connects our consciousness to Him in a wonderful way. The yogis say His names heal our bodies, minds and souls in a way that nothing else can.
Therefore, in many ways, it is the greatest thing, the greatest gift. Yogis are forbidden from pressuring anyone to take up spiritual practices including the recitation of God's names and mantras. There is a well-known saying "You can take a horse to the water, but you can't make it drink". In other words, the reason for this is that people will not benefit in any way from a practice that they cannot yet see the value of. Nature/the universe will guide everyone in good time.
But for those who are willing to listen, who are open-minded, who are willing to try something new, there is no more valuable gift that the recommendation of the name or mantra of God. In ancient times, a spiritual teacher would give this knowledge to a disciple only after years of preparation and testing. It is such a precious gift, that it is not to be given casually. It was given only to the most deserving, the most sincere, the most committed of students. These days we live such stressful, rushed and busy lives with barely any time for spiritual practices, that there is no question of us being able to find the time and energy for passing any such tests. Therefore, spiritual teachers have ceased to test anyone. They simply give the mantra to anyone who expresses an interest in the subject.
These final days of the year are a time of spirituality, worship and celebration. We celebrate this time with the giving of gifts. To those of you who are open-minded but yet to explore the wonder of the practice of the name or mantra of God, this is something that I would like to recommend. It can be any name of God from any spiritual tradition in the world. All names of God are equal in their spiritual effects say the yogis. The holy names of Krishna, Durga, Buddha, Jesus, Mary, Allah, Jehovah and others are all regarded as equally potent and suitable for daily recitation.
I would recommend taking up the spiritual practice of the name of God from today and commit to this in the New Year. Even as a beginner on the spiritual path, I can say that it has been my direct experience that this practice grants mental strength, an ability to cope with the most extraordinary challenges, brings help when it seems that none is available and gives hope when it seems that none can exist. It is a practice that is rooted in love and in truth. It creates the experience of love and truth in our lives.
And so, if those that I love would listen (and frankly many of them do not ;) this is the gift that I would want to give them at this special time. There is no greater gift than this...the key to discovering their own immortal spiritual nature, that love which knows no end, that truth which ultimately cannot be hidden and which must eventually reveal itself.
The name 'Aum' or 'Om' is the universal mantra, the name of the nameless, formless aspect of God. So much has been said and written about Om (including its numerous beneficial effects on mental and physical health), yet it is beyond all explanation say the yogis. It must simply be recited with gentle concentration, either verbally or mentally, and it will lead one to the experience of Truth. Because the nature of Om is Truth, it is itself Truth. This is a complete mantra in itself, and is also the first portion of many other mantras. To those who would like to explore the practice of a Sanskrit mantra, I would suggest simply repeating Om for five minutes a day in the new year. Even a little practice produces excellent results over time.
I like this short meditative chanting of Om on YouTube so am sharing it here:
With this reflection upon our true nature as eternal beings, whose nature is both love and truth, let us commit to another year of spiritual practice. God-willing the coming year will be more joyful than the one we have just been through. I hope you have had a wonderful Christmas and wish you a very happy New Year.
Om Namo Narayanaya.
Hari Aum Tat Sat
P.S. As in previous years, the four Krishna books that I have written and published on Amazon, will be available for free download from Dec 31 to Jan 4 inclusive in celebration of the New Year.
