![\"Sadhu](\"https:\/\/yogafromtheheartcanada.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/03\/sadhu_praying-223x300.jpg\" "\\"Sadhu")
<\/a>Let us start first with the question \u201cWho is a spiritual person?\u201d.<\/p>\n- \n
- Is it he who sits perfectly upright in lotus position … intently practicing yogic breathing exercises (\u201cpranayama\u201d)? or concentration exercises? or chanting Sanskrit mantras?<\/li>\n
- Or is it he who performs worship ceremonies to God daily (\u201cpuja\u201d in Sanskrit) … offering flowers, incense, fire, and holy water, while singing devotional songs and ringing bells?<\/li>\n
- Or is it he who avoids consuming garlic, eggs, wine, and meat?<\/li>\n
- Or is it he who speaks and acts “politically-correctly”?<\/li>\n
- Or is it he who devours esoteric literature, in his desire for knowledge?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Well, a \u201cspiritual\u201d person doesn\u2019t necessarily do all or any of these activities. In fact, a person could do all these activities for years, and still not be any closer to the Spirit \u2026 he could even be further from the Spirit. So then, what exactly is a spiritual person? A spiritual person is the one who thinks of and does what’s best for the development\/expansion of the other person’s consciousness toward the Light (without expectation of personal reward) \u2026 a spiritual person is the one with the big heart \u2026 a spiritual person is the one who serves the people. To take this concept even further, a spiritual person is the one who serves the entire universe. This is the characteristic of a saint, the forgetting of one\u2019s own self to serve Life instead<\/p>\n
The only thing that matters in life is how big is your heart.<\/strong><\/p>\n
How is it possible to forget about yourself, and serve the rest of the universe instead? There are many actions you could take to prepare the consciousness for this high state of being, this expansive giving attitude of the soul which enables the forgetting of your own lower desires in order to serve Life instead (and consequently, to experience the divine bliss of sainthood). For example, you could practice consciousness exercises to facilitate an initial recognition of the subjective nature of your own thoughts and emotions, and\/or you could respectfully perform daily worship to a Higher Being, and\/or you could contemplatively read scriptures from any of the major religions, and\/or you could seek out a kind and wise teacher for guidance, and\/or you could objectively observe nature, and\/or you could volunteer to participate in a project that helps others, and\/or you could try to simplify your life and reduce your personal possessions. The possibilities are endless. There is a unique path to this higher state of being for each individual soul. Yes, there are many things you could do, but there is only one thing you MUST do<\/strong>, in order to become a truly spiritual person.<\/p>\n
So what is the one thing you must do in order to be a spiritual person? Unfortunately it is the most difficult thing for a human being to do (especially for us modern-day Westerners, with our extra-large-sized egos). You must give one particular thing to God <\/strong>(or to Buddha, or to Yahweh, or to Brahman the Super-Consciousness \u2026 or Allah, or the Higher Self, or the Tao \u2026 it doesn\u2019t really matter which words you use to refer to the eternal being\/power which created all things, and which, according to the enlightened souls, is infinite Love and Light). Do you know what it is that you must give to God in order to experience the pure joy of the Spirit?<\/p>\n
You must give your entire personality to God.\u00a0<\/strong>That is Bhakti Yoga \u2026the surrender of the ego out of deep faithful devotion to the Divine Life. (Bhakti is the Sanskrit word for devotion to the Highest.)<\/p>\n
Bhakti yoga means surrender <\/strong>of the personal life (of the ego, the \u201clower self\u201d) out of unwavering love for God \u2026 serve your ego up to Him on a silver platter.
\nBhakti yoga manifests as reverential devotion to Life <\/strong> (ie. to all of God\u2019s creation).
\nBhakti Yoga is not <\/strong>about \u201crenouncing\u201d your personality, but rather it is about \u201csurrendering\u201d it.<\/p>\nSo what remains after the personality is surrendered? What remains is the God that resides inside of you<\/strong> (the Transcendent \u201cI\u201d, called the Param-aatman in Vedic terminology) \u2026 AS YOU<\/strong>, the way you really are, in your natural uncontaminated state (ie. not influenced by the desires, aversions, emotions, attachments, conditioning, karmic imprints, etc. which comprise the ego). This state manifests as truth and purity in acting, speaking, feeling, and thinking \u2026 it is the Light of God, shining through the human being, which individual acts as an instrument for the unfolding of the Divine Plan.<\/p>\n
So how does one develop Bhakti (this selfless state of reverential devotion to Life) in one\u2019s own being? The answer is that one cannot really develop it through one\u2019s own personal efforts, because Bhakti cannot be \u201cachieved\u201d. Rather, the gift of Bhakti is received\/granted through the grace of God, via the Holy Spirit (or via the “Chit” in Vedic terminology).<\/p>\n
So although you cannot achieve Bhakti through your own personal efforts, nevertheless you can take actions and develop life style habits and nurture attitudes (ie. align yourself with the greater purpose) which attract the Spirit to approach your individual soul, and which prepare your consciousness to receive the grace of Bhakti when the times are ripe. For example, you could:<\/p>\n
i.\u00a0 Practice sadhana (sadhana is the Sanskrit word for the activities one consciously performs in order to expand the consciousness toward unity with the Supreme Being). Sadhana is usually practiced on a daily basis, and in a repetitive and rhythmical manner \u2026 that is, the same exercises each day (repetition), and performed at approximately the same time each day (rhythm). Some examples of sadhana practice are yoga asanas, consciousness exercises, contemplative reading of spiritually-inspired writings, mantra chanting, God worshiping ceremonies (either alone, or with a group … for example, attending church on Sundays \u2026 or in the Muslim tradition, praying five times per day at designated times).
\nii.\u00a0\u00a0 Try to keep the physical body healthy (for example, through eating a clean diet, practicing yoga asanas, and establishing rhythm in eating, sleeping, and working habits) because God lives inside of each of us, so each of our bodies is like a temple, to be treated with utmost respect.
\niii.\u00a0 Try to practice mindfulness (of your own thinking, speaking, feeling, and acting) throughout the day \u2026 try not to let the mind run on \u201cautomatic pilot\u201d \u2026 avoid trying to “multi-task” as it is not possible for the human mind to focus on more than one thing at the same time.
\niv.\u00a0 Try to practice attentiveness (of what\u2019s happening outside of yourself, in your environment) throughout the day. This helps to develop sensitivity, as well as to develop a sense for the inter-connectedness of all things.
\nv.\u00a0\u00a0 Try to nurture respect\/reverence for nature \u2026 for all of God\u2019s Creation (for every sentient being \u2026 for all the plant life \u2026 for every molecule of existence) \u2026 it\u2019s all a manifestation of the Divine.
\nvi. Try to live a life of service (this helps to fulfill the true need of the human soul, which is to share, and to open up one\u2019s heart to others) \u2026 for example, while inter-relating with another person, try to think about how to best serve his\/her needs (in the context of widening his\/her consciousness). Try to engage in work that makes a contribution to the Whole, not work which is limited to narrow personal pursuits.
\nvii.\u00a0 Try to recognize and let go of old dysfunctional thought patterns and emotional attachments which prevent one from moving forward in the development of the consciousness. For example, opt-out of power games and co-dependent relationships.
\nviii. Try to practice discrimination between earthly life and the spiritual life.<\/p>\nInterestingly, Christianity<\/strong> is a big picture of Bhakti yoga, because Bhakti is the path of redemption (according to spiritual teacher Heinz Grill, it is a mystery which penetrated the earth when Jesus Christ\u2019s body returned to dust). Just devote oneself entirely to loving and worshiping Jesus Christ (like Mary Magdalena, who really did offer up her personality to the Lord) … and that\u2019s all that\u2019s required to receive the heavenly bliss of Cosmic Love in this lifetime, before death. Jesus said to Mary \u201cYour sins are forgiven.\u201d, and \u201cYour faith has saved you.\u201d. So Mary went from sinner to saint, without renunciation \u2026 it was possible through deep devotion to Jesus Christ. This is Bhakti yoga.<\/p>\n
Bhakti yoga (devotion to God), Karma yoga (selfless service), and Jnana yoga (spiritual knowledge) form the three pillars of yoga. They are not separate disciplines, but rather they feed and support each other in the development of the human soul toward the Divine Life. So for example, with greater knowledge of the truth of who you are (ie. Jnana yoga), your actions will become less tainted by desire and attachment to the outcome (so Jnana yoga facilitates purity in action, which is Karma yoga). Conversely, through purposeful conscious action to align with God’s will (ie. Karma yoga), knowledge becomes more complete because, as Sat Shree of New Dharma said, “it has been tested and integrated into life” (so Karma yoga is supporting\/enriching Jnana yoga here). And as Jnana and Karma yoga grow together, the aspirant receives blessing upon blessing, and so devotion to the Divine Life (ie. Bhakti yoga) also grows. Ultimately these three pillars of yoga become united in the Self, and this is the teaching of the Bhagavad Gita, \u201cSong of the Lord\u201d (that ancient Vedic story which describes Lord Krishna’s teaching to the spiritual aspirant named Arjuna, and which is the true source book for yoga). According to spiritual teacher Heinz Grill, there is a tendency toward this synthesis of Bhakti, Karma, and Jnana in the human heart, because the true nature\/wish of the human heart is to seek out the bliss of pure devotion, of selfless service, and of spiritual knowledge. Note that in these modern times, with the human soul so deeply entrenched in the material body consciousness, the most essential posture of yoga is Bhakti.<\/p>\n
The spirit of Bhakti Yoga is encapsulated in the following verse of the Bhagavad Gita (ch. 18, v. 65) spoken by Bhagwan Lord Krishna: \u201cFix thy mind on Me \u2026 be my lover and adorer, be a sacrificer to Me, bow thyself to Me \u2026 then thou shalt come to Me. This is my pledge\/promise to thee, for thou art dear to me.\u201d<\/p>\n
Bhakti is not a human emotion <\/strong>\u2026 it is a state of deep perception \u2026 it is the heaven within you.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"by Anne Parsonage Let us start first with the question \u201cWho is a spiritual person?\u201d. Is it he who sits perfectly upright in lotus position … intently practicing yogic breathing exercises (\u201cpranayama\u201d)? or concentration exercises? or chanting Sanskrit mantras? Or is it he who performs worship ceremonies to God daily (\u201cpuja\u201d in Sanskrit) … offering …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"parent":13,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-97","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"yoast_head":"\n
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