Thursday, May 25, 2006
Who are you ?
Ram Ram,
It is a common question..
Who you are in a specific sense is a million little things assuming a common identity that is only relevant at a particular point in time and space. Interesting when it comes to finding out what to do here and now, but so fragile and irrelevant.
Who you really are is the witness to all this, who is never changing, desireless, ever at peace. That real you looks through your eyes, as it looks through mine. Nameless, it needs not question who it is. And neither does it need to question its very existence, as it is eternal and universal.
A little Advaita Vedanta...
Ram Ram,
Peter
It is a common question..
Who you are in a specific sense is a million little things assuming a common identity that is only relevant at a particular point in time and space. Interesting when it comes to finding out what to do here and now, but so fragile and irrelevant.
Who you really are is the witness to all this, who is never changing, desireless, ever at peace. That real you looks through your eyes, as it looks through mine. Nameless, it needs not question who it is. And neither does it need to question its very existence, as it is eternal and universal.
A little Advaita Vedanta...
Ram Ram,
Peter
Wednesday, May 17, 2006
Are disagreable emotions necessary ?
Ram Ram,
The obvious question came up if disagreable emotions like anger, sadness, fear and disgust are necessary for spiritual growth ? And if Rasa Sadhana is not stopping the natural process in which people's suffering makes them turn towards a more spiritual viewpoint ?
I admit the question also bothered me in the first years that i was doing Rasa Sadhana. But after some time I realized that this question actually turns reality upside down. Of course suffering and the disagreable emotions that go along with it make us review our attachments, expectations, bad habits, etc... But in Rasa Sadhana that is exactly what we are doing. In anger sadhana, we stop expecting things from people, cars, computers, life,... In fear Sadhana we stop projecting into the future, stop attaching to things that we will obviously lose in the future, sometime or other. In sadness sadhana we stop attaching to things of the past. In disgust sadhana we stop our self-pity and lack of confidence. And why do we do all that ? Precicely because we are fed up with all those disagreable emotions. And because if we do not, then those disagreable emotions will be felt and noticed and tell us exactly that we can chose between the suffering or the changing of our attitude. As long as those attachments are still there, those disagreable emotions will come and do their work. So Rasa Sadhana is not stopping us from turning towards a more spiritual attitude, quite the contrary. It makes the link between suffering and reviewing our attitude into a conscious practice, rather than remaining a largely unconscious and often inefficient process.
The bottom line is, Rasa Sadhana is never completely mastered unless all attachements are gone, which requires nothing less than enlightenment. After doing Rasa Sadhana for many years I can say that those disagreable emotions are largely gone. But they do sometimes come peeping over some faraway hill to see if I am still determined to shoot them on sight, which I am, no doubt. I cant shoot them however if I am not detached from them and from the attachments on which they feed. And that is still work, of course...
Ram Ram,
Peter
The obvious question came up if disagreable emotions like anger, sadness, fear and disgust are necessary for spiritual growth ? And if Rasa Sadhana is not stopping the natural process in which people's suffering makes them turn towards a more spiritual viewpoint ?
I admit the question also bothered me in the first years that i was doing Rasa Sadhana. But after some time I realized that this question actually turns reality upside down. Of course suffering and the disagreable emotions that go along with it make us review our attachments, expectations, bad habits, etc... But in Rasa Sadhana that is exactly what we are doing. In anger sadhana, we stop expecting things from people, cars, computers, life,... In fear Sadhana we stop projecting into the future, stop attaching to things that we will obviously lose in the future, sometime or other. In sadness sadhana we stop attaching to things of the past. In disgust sadhana we stop our self-pity and lack of confidence. And why do we do all that ? Precicely because we are fed up with all those disagreable emotions. And because if we do not, then those disagreable emotions will be felt and noticed and tell us exactly that we can chose between the suffering or the changing of our attitude. As long as those attachments are still there, those disagreable emotions will come and do their work. So Rasa Sadhana is not stopping us from turning towards a more spiritual attitude, quite the contrary. It makes the link between suffering and reviewing our attitude into a conscious practice, rather than remaining a largely unconscious and often inefficient process.
The bottom line is, Rasa Sadhana is never completely mastered unless all attachements are gone, which requires nothing less than enlightenment. After doing Rasa Sadhana for many years I can say that those disagreable emotions are largely gone. But they do sometimes come peeping over some faraway hill to see if I am still determined to shoot them on sight, which I am, no doubt. I cant shoot them however if I am not detached from them and from the attachments on which they feed. And that is still work, of course...
Ram Ram,
Peter
Monday, May 15, 2006
Happily Lazy
Ram Ram,
When a feeling of lazyness comes, often we start feeling bad about ourselves. Often we even invent all sorts of problems as an excuse just to be lazy. And then we cannot even enjoy it if we give in to it.
There is nothing wrong with feeling a little lazy - if circumstances permit. If not, then the blog of feb 13th gives some answers on how to work with our body chemistry to overcome laziness. But when doing Rasa fasting of the disagreable Rasas, one also learns to be happily lazy, as long as duty isnt calling.
Whenever a feeling of doubt or dissatisfaction comes, just look at it with a smile. There is no lack of seriousness in this world. Give in to your need to relax so that you can also do it properly, in good rasa. That means in a good mood and with good taste. Tamasic laziness spend in boring yourself to death in front of the TV will not be very satisfying. Satvvic laziness means that you take your time to enjoy nature, beauty, company and some real peace in meditation as well.
Had a lazy day yesterday, really...
Ram Ram,
Peter
When a feeling of lazyness comes, often we start feeling bad about ourselves. Often we even invent all sorts of problems as an excuse just to be lazy. And then we cannot even enjoy it if we give in to it.
There is nothing wrong with feeling a little lazy - if circumstances permit. If not, then the blog of feb 13th gives some answers on how to work with our body chemistry to overcome laziness. But when doing Rasa fasting of the disagreable Rasas, one also learns to be happily lazy, as long as duty isnt calling.
Whenever a feeling of doubt or dissatisfaction comes, just look at it with a smile. There is no lack of seriousness in this world. Give in to your need to relax so that you can also do it properly, in good rasa. That means in a good mood and with good taste. Tamasic laziness spend in boring yourself to death in front of the TV will not be very satisfying. Satvvic laziness means that you take your time to enjoy nature, beauty, company and some real peace in meditation as well.
Had a lazy day yesterday, really...
Ram Ram,
Peter
Always look on the bright side of life ?
Ram Ram,
The question arose whether Rasa Sadhana is something like always looking on the bright side of life, as in the song of that famous Monty Python movie ?
In a sense it is and in a sense it is not. Always looking at things in a positive way is more officially called positive thinking. And that can only take you so far. When life brings us some hardship, most people will feel so bad about it that "think positive" seems like an empty, powerless phrase. Rasa Sadhana is positive feeling and thus a lot more powerful. Step by step one learns to control the emotions, so that whatever happens negative feelings become very shortlived and one may consciously shift to the more agreable Rasas. This learning process involves understanding as well as excercise.
Still, I always loved that song as it uses the Hasya Rasa of humour in such a talented way. Like in this part :
If life seems jolly rotten
There's something you've forgotten
And that's to laugh and smile and dance and sing.
When you're feeling in the dumps
Don't be silly chumps
Just purse your lips and whistle - that's the thing.
Quite useful to keep this tune in mind...
Ram Ram,
Peter Marchand
Ram Ram,
Sorry not to have posted any news here for so long, but all this time my son's illness has largely kept me away from the computer. In the last post I was mentioning that he was better - but just the day after that his fever again started rising. He ended up in a hospital for about 3 weeks, diagnosed with a severe leg muscle infection, nothing life threathening or cause of permanent damage, but still quite acute. Now he is back on his feet and to school and I am trying to catch up with a million delays.
Meanwhile, a lot happened. The Rasas book finally came out and is now available through Amazon and I hope also in many bookstores. Sitting by my son's sickbed, the best thing I could do while he was asleep was to write. That I did and the result is that my second book is about ready. More about that one later. Anyhow, it was one of the best examples in my life of how a big problem can turn into a big opportunity. My sons illness just became the perfect excuse to drop my regular work for about a month and focus on my writing. This way, a situation that would normally trigger lots of Fear and Sadness could be turned into a drive for the Rasas of Peace, Love and Courage.
Should be back here soon, depending....
Ram Ram,
Peter
The question arose whether Rasa Sadhana is something like always looking on the bright side of life, as in the song of that famous Monty Python movie ?
In a sense it is and in a sense it is not. Always looking at things in a positive way is more officially called positive thinking. And that can only take you so far. When life brings us some hardship, most people will feel so bad about it that "think positive" seems like an empty, powerless phrase. Rasa Sadhana is positive feeling and thus a lot more powerful. Step by step one learns to control the emotions, so that whatever happens negative feelings become very shortlived and one may consciously shift to the more agreable Rasas. This learning process involves understanding as well as excercise.
Still, I always loved that song as it uses the Hasya Rasa of humour in such a talented way. Like in this part :
If life seems jolly rottenThere's something you've forgotten
And that's to laugh and smile and dance and sing.
When you're feeling in the dumps
Don't be silly chumps
Just purse your lips and whistle - that's the thing.
Quite useful to keep this tune in mind...
Ram Ram,
Peter Marchand
Monday, May 08, 2006
Back from duty
Ram Ram,Sorry not to have posted any news here for so long, but all this time my son's illness has largely kept me away from the computer. In the last post I was mentioning that he was better - but just the day after that his fever again started rising. He ended up in a hospital for about 3 weeks, diagnosed with a severe leg muscle infection, nothing life threathening or cause of permanent damage, but still quite acute. Now he is back on his feet and to school and I am trying to catch up with a million delays.
Meanwhile, a lot happened. The Rasas book finally came out and is now available through Amazon and I hope also in many bookstores. Sitting by my son's sickbed, the best thing I could do while he was asleep was to write. That I did and the result is that my second book is about ready. More about that one later. Anyhow, it was one of the best examples in my life of how a big problem can turn into a big opportunity. My sons illness just became the perfect excuse to drop my regular work for about a month and focus on my writing. This way, a situation that would normally trigger lots of Fear and Sadness could be turned into a drive for the Rasas of Peace, Love and Courage.
Should be back here soon, depending....
Ram Ram,
Peter
Previous Posts
- Want to be happy ?
- Old emotional patterns die hard
- Who are you ?
- Are disagreable emotions necessary ?
- Happily Lazy
- Always look on the bright side of life ?
- Back from duty
- When someone dear is suffering
- New Moon
- Back from the land of spiritual milk & honey
archives
February 2006
March 2006
April 2006
May 2006
June 2006
