Om Sri Ganeshaya Namah!
Om Namo Bhagavate Sivanandaya!
Om Namo Bhagavate Chidanandaya!
Om Namo Bhagavate Krishnanandaya!

Namaste!

Auspicious Beginning
by Swami Krishnananda

We regard this day of January 14th as very auspicious. It is called in India the Makara Sankranti, which is when the sun crosses the Tropic of Capricorn. Slowly winter will begin in Australia and summer will come to the northern hemisphere. This day is very auspicious for various reasons. It is at this very sacred moment that we gather here with a common purpose. The purpose is more than that which lies between a teacher and a the taught. In matters that are more than human, relationships are slightly supernormal. I hope you all understand what I actually mean.

The relationships in the world are of one kind, but the relationships which pertain to questions, issues and matters which are superhuman are themselves supernormal. This is the inner essence of the relationships enshrined in spiritual institutions. The relationship between one person and another in institutions of the spirit are not individualistic or human, but they imply and bear the stamp of something which beckons from above. It is something like a movement forward along a road on which one walks to a destination. Every step that we take forward is like a pull onwards; so also is this mysterious and unintelligible relationship among seekers of a common supernormal purpose.

I purposely use 'supernormal' instead of saying 'religious' or even 'spiritual', because these words have not been understood properly—but instead misused and sometimes even abused. We use the words 'religious', 'spiritual' and 'yogic' so many times that they have become commonplace. It appears as if we knew what yoga is, what religion is, and what spirituality is because we have heard the names so many times in newspapers, books and from people who profess to be teachers of yoga.

An idea occurred a year back, that it would not be bad if a few interested seekers were called to this institution and told what the essence of this matter is. Not that there are no people in the world who know this, but they are few in number; and few as the teachers are, so are the disciples also few. There are many who want this thing called yoga or religion or spirituality for a purpose that seems to be different from yoga, religion or spirituality. Very interesting indeed is this psychological phenomenon. We talk of yoga as the aim, religion as the aim, or spirituality as the aim, but internally, in our heart of hearts, we want to make use of these for a different purpose altogether, which lurks in our own bosom, so that our pursuits become means to certain personal ends. And so we use this so-called 'yoga' as a handmaid for our own personal ends. This we may intellectually argue, but it is at the bottom of the hearts of many seekers, honest they may be. Not that they are dishonest or hypocritical, but it is difficult to overcome what man essentially is. Man is man, after all. He has certain ways of thinking, and it is difficult to get over these stereotyped ways of human thinking. We have some ideas of good and bad; we are born with these ideas, and we want to die with them.

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The following article was recently posted at Sri Swami Krishnanandaji's site:

• Dhyana

Yours in the service of Gurudev,

Pannirselvam

BOOK SYNOPSIS

Samadhi Yoga
by Sri Swami Sivananda

It was in the year 1934 that a small pamphlet "Samadhi in Six Months" was written by Sri Swamiji Maharaj and printed and published at Madras. This booklet had a very warm reception and many enquiries poured in for a deeper understanding of the Ancient Secret contained in the Yoga Sastras. The subject was however touched upon in most of the later writings of the Swamiji, but still the revered author cherished a desire to bring out a profounder work on this subject. This work is thus the direct outcome of such a Sankalpa, and its appeal should be far-reaching in giving such Sadhakas, as are fit to enter the portals of the Blissful Union, many direct hints and instructions on practical experiences, and point out the way to the desired illumination.

In placing this book before all thirsty aspirants and seekers of Samadhi, we feel that a thorough understanding of the subject, after a perusal of the other writings of the Swamiji along with sincere spiritual practices and with the grace of the Guru and God, will surely lead them to the summum bonum of existence.

For more information, please see: Samadhi Yoga

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PHILOSOPHICAL SONGS: At the Satsang the following song was sung by the Master:

When your throat is choked at the time of death,

Who will help you for your salvation?

See what is true, hear what is true,

Think what is true, speak what is true.

“What we are in small things, that we are in big things also. We should not think that we can just be careless in small matters but then be very careful in big matters. When we are careless in tiny things, then we will also be careless in big things. Drops make the ocean, as you know. A small thing as a cup of tea that we sip is important in the manner of its intake, and a small thing like a few words that we speak to a brother is as important as the big matter that we regard as God-realisation or the practice of yoga. I am not just joking — these are serious things to reflect and meditate upon. There is nothing that is unimportant. Before God at least, nothing is unimportant, insignificant or unnecessary. We should not imagine that we are wiser than God, or that we can distinguish between the important and the unimportant. There is no such thing as unimportant in this world.” – Swami Krishnananda

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Various Selections from Sivananda's Works