The Puzzles of Life – Can they give us a push towards inner serenity?

Author: TC Gopalakrishnan

Human beings are caught in the habit of thought-running as they face problems in living.  This externalizes the awareness; so much so, they lose contact with their inner being.  As a result, complications arise in their lives and they are unable to face life's challenges squarely.  A healthy avenue to step out of this scenario is available through paying attention to the puzzles of life.  If people are not wedded to some belief system, they have the opportunity to apply themselves to the puzzles with the freedom to discover what lies beyond the apparent.  Such an approach augments the non-verbal understanding of the undercurrents of life.  Thus, one does not fall a prey to the inclination "One believes what one wants to believe."  It is like the approach of a scientist – eager to find the truth rather than look for evidence to prove one's belief.  However, the difference here is that while the scientist has to rely on the verbal knowledge, the soul searcher (SS) banks on direct awareness assisted by intuition.  No doubt, the scientist too uses the intuition but he or she has to fit everything to the bricks already laid while the SS can fly free towards the truth.

The closer the SS is to his inner being, the deeper the serenity.  It is a progressive evolution.  Thus, the serenity is not a matter of completing the journey but being on it and sensing the serenity with increasing intensity.  This does not decrease his interest in worldly matters because the puzzles he faces are, indeed, intertwined with his mental disposition and his worldly interactions.  Hence, it is a harmonious blending of both spiritual and mundane movements that leads to vibrant living.  Primarily, it deepens the spiritual awareness by bringing the SS ever closer to his inner being.

So, let us consider some of the puzzles that can help us take the inward journey.  They can arise as pensive questions from one's life situations, from watching a movie or reading a story and the like.  The SS applies himself or herself to the puzzle and let the deeper intelligence reveal the hidden truths.   There are many issues in our lives that can give us a push in that direction.  They serve as guide-posts and keep us focused on the intriguing puzzle of the inward journey.  Some of these arise as questions in the following manner:   
       
1.  Why is it that, even after practicing a religious system for years, freedom from fear, attachment and hatred does not take place?   The practice only puts a lid on them and makes it appear as if they are gone.

2.  Why are the ‘non-believers' too – the atheists and agnostics – who put themselves against the ‘believers', do not find that freedom?

3.  Can the philosophical content of mortality serve as an affectionate guide into the unknown?

4.  What roles do joviality and cheerfulness play in the inward journey towards self-discovery?

5.  Is the beckoning of sorrow in life an invitation to visit the hidden corners of ourselves?

6.  Unknowingly, we build a psychological wall around us through thoughts of ‘I', ‘me' and the ‘mine'.  Are there pointers in our daily life that can alert us to that fact and, perhaps, open a door in that wall?

In Chinese philosophy, Tao is considered the Ultimate Truth or Divinity and Taoism contains the associated philosophic tenets.  Their book ‘Tao Te Ching' deals with Taoism.  There is a poem in it that has puzzling questions for the reader to reflect on, somewhat along the lines of the puzzles above. Some of them are given below:
  1.  Can you go beyond the habitual mind, hold to the One and never depart from it?
  2.  Can you bring down your breath to a mellow state, the breath of a baby?
  3.  Can you purify your esoteric vision and wipe it until it is spotless?
  4.  Can you be like the female and allow passivity to govern the response to life?        
  5.  Can you love all beings on Earth and govern them without being known?
  6.  Can you be aware of the four corners of the Earth and not interfere with them?

Similar issues are discussed in this website on spirituality.  It would be good to apply ourselves to such puzzles as above and lead a life of intensity that is intrinsically spiritual rather than practice a discipline to reach a predetermined, ego-satisfying end.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/psychology-articles/the-puzzles-of-life-can-they-give-us-a-push-towards-inner-serenity-6040552.html

About the Author
The Author: T.C. Gopalakrishnan was born in Madras (now Chennai), India, in 1941. He received his doctoral degree in Coastal Engineering from the North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, USA in 1978. He served on the research and teaching faculty of the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras, India, the North Carolina State University and the Kuwait Institute for Scientific Research, Kuwait. Aside from his professional involvements, he was interested in the philosophic issues of life for the last forty years or so. This led him to the messages of Ramana Maharishi, Lao Tzu, J Krishnamurthy, UG Krishnamurthy, Nisargadatta Maharaj, Eckhart Tolle, Marcus Aurelius and similar Masters. His book entitled "In Quest of the Deeper Self" is the outcome of his reflections on those and his wish to share the outcome with others.
Gopalakrishnan is a member of the International Association for Near Death Studies, Durham, NC, USA. He presented a paper at the 2011 conference of the Association on the theme "The spiritual content of near death experiences". Functions as a freelance counselor for peaceful living.  Lives in Kodaikanal, a hill town in south India, with his family.  Now he and his wife are both retired and currently involved in developing a fruit farm at a village 20 km from their residence.
Blog: http://nde-thedeeperself.blogspot.com      Email: gopal.tc@gmail.com

From books and words come fantasy, and sometimes ...

By: James Kyle

“From books and words come fantasy, and sometimes, from fantasy comes union.”

These are the words of the Sufi mystical poet Rumi. And if you have not heard of Rumi, he was a renowned spiritual master of 13th century who founded his own school of Sufism, the mystical branch of Islam. In his day his fame crossed all religious boundaries and when he died in 1273 mourners included representatives of 5 different faiths. Rumi's work very much fits into my personal definition of what constitutes real art: a communication of the artist's perspective in such a way as to bring about a shift of consciousness in the artist's audience.

The beauty of Rumi is that to read his poetry is to share in a world where there is a real and immediate spiritual connection. Consider these lines in which Rumi refers to his God as the Beloved:

"One went to the door of the Beloved and
knocked. A voice asked, 'Who is there?'
He answered, 'It is I.'

The voice said, 'There is no room for Me and Thee.'
The door was shut.

After a year of solitude and deprivation he returned and knocked.
A voice from within asked, 'Who is there?'
The man said, 'It is Thee.'
The door was opened for him."

Or again Rumi's thoughts on how his poetry is inspired by his spiritual connection:

“In your light I learn how to love.

In your beauty, how to make poems.

You dance inside my chest,

where no one sees you,

but sometimes I do,

and that sight becomes this art.”

Rumi celebrates life - all of life. For example here is response from Rumi to one of the life's biggest questions - why is there pain and suffering:

“But that shadow has been serving you!

What hurts you, blesses you.

Darkness is your candle.

Your boundaries are your quest.”

To this point I have been quoting from Rumi, but to reassure you that this is not a lost art form here is an extract from a present day poet, David Whyte, on a similar theme:

We shape our self
to fit this world

and by the world
are shaped again.

The visible
and the invisible

working together
in common cause,

to produce
the miraculous.

Did these words speak to you?
Did you catch a glimpse of a different perspective on life?
Did you only hear these words as fantasy, the words of a writer of fiction, or, as you took the words in, did you experience some kind of shift in your own reality?

“From books and words come fantasy, and sometimes, from fantasy comes union.”

It is my opinion that these are some of the most profound words ever written. They remind us that al that we read and hear are merely words, that everything we hold intellectually is a fiction, a make believe world that is our inadequate human attempt to understand an awesome and profound universe. However sometimes, just sometimes, these words can lead us to an experience of reality that goes beyond words to a more direct experience of a spiritual connection.

Perhaps you have been inspired to explore this poetry further, if so please see Rumi or David Whyte

I leave you with the following lines from the Sufi master as he recognizes his God, his host:

“For sixty years I have been forgetful,

every minute, but not for a second

has this flowing toward me stopped or slowed.

I deserve nothing. Today I recognize

that I am the guest the mystics talk about.

I play this living music for my host.

Everything today is for the host.”

My Personal Guru

By: James Kyle

Once upon a time I had my own personal guru. Now when I say “had” I’m not of course implying sexual knowledge. For one thing he was a male. And for another that would be completely against Guru moral standards - which are very strict (well for most of them anyway). My guru was, in fact, a mistake. I had just arrived in Poona, India and I got off the train intending to visit a Yoga ashram run by - let’s call him Guru One - but on the station platform I was entrapped by a couple of spiritual entrepreneurs, India’s equivalent of timeshare salesmen, who convinced me to visit this other ashram - Guru three’s ashram - my guru to be.

For those of you still paying attention, thank you, and you may be wondering what happened to guru two. Well, at that time Poona was also the location of a world famous ashram founded by Rajneesh. So I decided to take the opportunity to visit this renowned guru first before going on to achieve perfect enlightenment at the feet of my own spiritual master. For those of you aware of Rajneesh’s history, this was before he emigrated with his followers to Oregon and tried to kill the local district attorney by the use of poison. Anyway way back then in his Poona days his, and his disciples, specialty was falling foul of a completely different commandment:  “thou shalt not commit adultery.” Now,  for this quasi virginal young Scotsman that was enticement enough to visit his ashram for an afternoon. That and my search for spiritual enlightenment, of course. So paying my ten rupees entrance fee I crossed the threshold into this local Shrangli-la - only to discover that the movie sets had somehow been mixed up - and find myself in Haight-Ashbury San Fransisco, time machined into the middle of India. There was plenty of white flower power to be seen - but not one Indian - not even Rajneesh. Perhaps he was stuck at the entrance trying to talk his way in: “yes, yes I know that the rules say no Indians allowed on the premises - but, I am the bloody boss here, and anyway I own 12 Rolls Royce’s and so I am karmically white.” He did eventually make an appearance that day -  on an ashram TV broadcast - warning about the danger of being attached to worldly possessions. And I could see how much he wanted to be spiritually supportive towards his disciples. As I contemplated the price list for his ashram’s services it was so obvious that he wanted to help them become completely unattached from all of their possessions. Not wishing to bring bad luck onto Rajneesh by contributing to funding Rolls Royce number thirteen, I decided it was time to leave. I had one last look around to see if anyone wanted help working through their “Idiot’s Guide to Tantric Sex” workbook. ( Please!) As ever, it was not to be the case. In fact, I once read in Karma 101 that an overindulgence in a prior life is eventually balanced by deprivation in a subsequent incarnation. … I must have owned a harem in everyone of my twenty previous existences. Anyway, with my genuine native Guru awaiting me, it was time for me to make my way back to the exit, leave this geographical aberration behind, and return to India.

My new guru was in fact an advisor to important Indian politicians. In retrospect given the continuing farcical state of Indian politics - this was not a good sign. Another warning sign should have been the prominence he gave to the spiritual qualities of - toothpaste. He had this thing that any society that puts sweetener in its toothpaste must be morally decadent and spiritually bankrupt. Now - while this is true - building a universal philosophy around this as a central concept is taking things a bit far. In addition Pavlov’s dogs also held a prominent place in his philosophical teachings. Now you know I am not making this up. No writer of fiction could come up with a spiritual philosophy based on tooth whitener and salivating conditioned animals. But wait - the best is yet to come. My guru had also thrown in the second law of thermodynamics to the mix and had consequently managed to compute - the precise temperature of the fires of hell. In degrees Fahrenheit if I remember correctly. I can’t recall the exact figure, but for those of you who could do with a friendly word of warning - I can assure you it was very hot. Meanwhile things were getting too hot for me at the ashram. My scientific background was getting in the way of my continuing suspension of disbelief and my guru had finally had enough of his cynical pupil. He threw me out. In fact being a failed disciple is now my biggest claim to fame. As I proudly tell people I am the only person I know who has received a dishonorable discharge from his own personal guru. And for all my efforts, infernal oven temperatures aside, I hadn’t even learned one secret of the universe. Well except this one subsequent, subtle, but insightful realization. And now I am going to share this profound secret with all of you. You don’t need a guru to achieve enlightenment, all you really need is a hot dog salesman. Because, of course, to experience the fundamental cosmic interconnectedness of all life all you need do is go up to any hot dog vendor, center yourself, and say: “Make me one with everything.”