Light of the Spirit Blog

The Inner Meaning of Bhagirathi’s Penance to Bring Down the Ganga

October 20, 2018 by Abbot George Burke (Swami Nirmalananda Giri)

Bhagirathi doing penance to bring down the Ganga

Q: Is there an esoteric meaning of Bhagirathi doing intense tapasya to bring Ganga to earth? Also, what is the significance of Lord Shiva and the redemption of Bhagirathi’s ancestors in this episode?

There is a symbolic, esoteric meaning to this, but that does not mean that the account in the shastras is only symbolic.

The Ganga is the water offerings made continually over the feet of Vishnu and which descends to earth through the hair of Shiva, then flows in the form of mist down and into a cave tunnel where it condenses in time into normal liquid and then emerges at Gangotri.

The mysterious source of the Ganga

Many years ago I lived for a while in the Saptarishi Ashram north of Hardwar. There I made the acquaintance with Swami Yogiraj, a permanent residence. One day Swamiji explained to me the meaning of a huge mural on the side of the temple in which the descent of the Ganga was shown.

He told me that although Gangotri is called the source of the Ganga, it only appears there. Some people have traced the source by following the tunnel behind the cave. They have said that at first there is a stream of actual water, but eventually it becomes a mist flowing down and condensing on the walls of the cave and becoming liquid. After awhile they emerged from the tunnel and found a “stream” of mist moving down from higher ground.

As they went on, this mist began to thin out and finally they were standing in a place where it was emerging from what seemed empty space. Obviously it is coming from a higher world.

This is the objective part of the matter.

The visible mouth of the Ganga (Gomukh, Gaumukh) in Gangotri

The spiritual explanation of the descent of the Ganga

Our actions are our “children,” our karma. The bones of his children represent Bhagirathi’s karma–and ours, as well. The Ganga is Atmajnana (Brahmajnana) which flows from the divine heights of our being down through the subtle nadis of the causal, astral and physical brain, the “hair” of Shiva. It takes a long time to complete the journey, but at last it floods our entire lower being, purifying and liberating it.

So this incident, like so many in our shastras, is a lesson in yoga sadhana.

Possession and Obsession by Negative Entities, and How to Protect Yourself

October 14, 2018 by Abbot George Burke (Swami Nirmalananda Giri)

Q: What is “possession” by spirits? It is the same as “obsession”?

This is a most important subject. Possession by negative entities is absolutely possible, although obsession is much more common. Let us look at both phenomena.

What possession is

Possession occurs when an entity actually enters into the body of a physically living being (it need not be a human being–evil magicians often use animals as “mediums” for the vile spirits they traffic with) and dwells within it as the controller of its life. That is, the entity is virtually incarnated in that body.

What happens to the rightful owner of that body? Usually he is expelled from the physical body (that is, his astral and causal bodies are pushed out of integration with the physical body) but remains within its aura.

On occasion, though, the invading entity snaps the connection the person has with his body, and he “dies.” This can be detected by physical means: such a possessed body will have no pulse, but rather a kind of heavy vibration or current that moves the blood through the body since the heart has become deactivated. (A living possessed person can also be diagnosed through the pulse. The heart will be found to beat for a few strokes and then be suspended for several strokes, then beat a few times more, then be suspended again. This pattern will continue until the possession is ended.)

If the rightful owner is astrally powerful, he may be able to push the invading entity out, at least for some time. Thus in some cases the possession seems to come and go. This is often mistaken for multiple personality, just as multiple personality is often mistaken for possession.

The purpose of possession is to live in a physical body, usually for sensual experience of some kind, though some very evil entities take over bodies to work for evil and the corruption of the world.

For true possession to take place, an entity’s astral and causal bodies have to be very like the body of the victim. Since this is rare, the phenomenon of obsession is more common.

What obsession is

Obsession occurs when an entity attaches itself intimately to the aura or body of an individual, sometimes even invading the body and lodging within it–usually within some organ. From its hold it attempts to control the behavior, and often the physical condition, of its host.

Its desire is complete possession, but it takes what it can get. Often it works to weaken the physical health of its victim so it may become possible to accomplish a possession. Obsessing entities are often human beings that were addicted to sex, violence (including murder), drugs, nicotine, or alcohol.

Rather than going on and getting another body in a legitimate manner by being born again, they are earthbound because of their cravings. They incite those they obsess to engage in sex, violence, drugs, nicotine, or alcohol so they can get an indirect form of experience.

Sometimes they are able to momentarily possess the victim at the height of those activities. For example, if the host gets so drunk he passes out, they momentarily possess him until he begins to sober up and come to. They may possess a host when he is at the peak of a drug “high,” or at the moment of orgasm.

The kind of entities that are addicted to sexual energies usually incite their victims to commit acts of violence as well as (usually perverted) sexuality so they can get a high off of those distorted energies as well. This is also why many (truly) very gentle people become violent when they are drunk.

Those who ingest meat, alcohol, drugs, or nicotine are extremely susceptible to obsession. The sad truth is that nearly every person in the modern world is obsessed to come degree.

Protection from obsession

How can we guard against obsession? By abstaining absolutely from those elements whose low, deranged, or toxic vibrations make us susceptible (and this includes meat, alcohol, drugs, or nicotine); by eating food that is both pure and blessed; by wearing objects of sacred power; by keeping objects of sacred power in our environment. And most of all by regularly meditating.

One of the major purposes of spiritual discipline is to regain control of our physical and mental bodies and powers.

Sexual Scandals the World Over

October 6, 2018 by Abbot George Burke (Swami Nirmalananda Giri)

Q: Can you comment on the continuous sexual scandals in the Catholic Church, and why it is that western people and the Catholic Church never understood what celibacy is about?

First, such scandals are not just in the Catholic Church, but in Protestant churches as well. But they, too, get hushed up. Because of the Catholic Church’s size and prominence in the Western world, a scandal regarding it gets more public interest than other religious groups. (Especially if anti-Catholicism is a major part of their personal religion or anti-religion.) I know many instances of sexual scandal among so-called mainstream Protestant churches, but they never made the newspapers or television.

In my late teens I went one summer to Ohio to do volunteer church work. There I found that the entire town (not small) was agog with the news that the minister of a local church had “run away” with a twelve-year-old girl from his congregation.

In Oklahoma there was a minister of a local church who almost daily at the end of the school day drove around one of the high schools and picked up young boys whom he paid for sex. When it was discovered and did get in the papers, his denomination claimed he had a nervous breakdown and was hospitalized. Later he went to another state where he was made a bishop!

Sexual scandals in India, too

In India, too, there are scandals among Hindus and Christians. And for many centuries what should have been scandals were considered ordinary. For example, it was the custom for men to offer the company of their wives to the priests of a temple he visited on pilgrimage. In many temples the devi-dasis (handmaids of the goddess) who lived there and danced before the deity were freely violated by the priests and often by their friends and temple patrons. A friend of a friend of mine rescued many of these girls from temples in the Calcutta area at the risk of her life. As a result the British government gave her an award for bravery.

The Remedy to sexual scandals

Being religious is no safeguard if a person does not cultivate inner, Atmic consciousness. Otherwise they are “in the world” of lust and greed just like everyone else. The solution was given by Krishna to Arjuna: “Therefore be a yogi” (Bhagavad Gita 6:46).

How to Overcome Grief at the Death of a Loved One

September 29, 2018 by Abbot George Burke (Swami Nirmalananda Giri)

In reply to a friend who wrote asking how to overcome grief at the death of a loved one.

Please accept my heartfelt sympathy over your great loss and sorrow.

Karma determines all the aspects of our life, especially birth and death. Therefore your action or inaction could not effect when your beloved son would leave this world. His karma for this life is completed and now he goes on to further move toward the supreme goal.

It is true that often our beloved departed are aware of our grief and pain and are saddened by it. At the same time, what father would not grieve?

Please conduct for your son whatever rites are traditional in your family. Japa and kirtan may be done for the benefit of a departed soul.

Most important is your taking of refuge in the Divine through japa and meditation, difficult as they may be at this time. This will not only benefit you, but your son and those that remain with you in your family.

We will pray for you and your dear son that even this sorrowful event may draw you and him closer to the all-merciful God.

Further Reading:

Yajna (Sacrifice): The Many Meanings and Practical Applications in the Bhagavad Gita

September 22, 2018 by Abbot George Burke (Swami Nirmalananda Giri)

Yajna - fire sacrifice

Q: May I ask for your explanation of the true sense of yajna [sacrifice] and Adiyajna [Primal Sacrifice] as used by Lord Krishna, and is it found in the sacred teachings of The Christ?

Although we naturally equate yajna with the fire sacrifice, agnihotra, yajna basically means any kind of offering.

Those who publish and distribute books of spiritual and scriptural knowledge are said to be engaging in Jnana Yajna. It is very common to call akhanda kirtan (especially of the Mahamantra) Nama Yajna.

As in virtually all spiritual matters, the supreme authority is the Bhagavad Gita. There we find the subject explained thoroughly and perfectly. No commentary is needed because Sri Veda Vyasa has expressed everything so clearly.

1. “The world is bound by the actions not done for sake of sacrifice. Hence for sacrifice you should act without attachment. In the beginning along with mankind Prajapati created sacrifice and said: ‘By this shall you increase: this shall be the granter of desires. May you foster the gods by this, and may the gods then foster you.

Then, each the others fostering, you shall attain the highest welfare. The gods, fostered by sacrifice, will give you desired enjoyments. But he who enjoys the gods’ gifts without offering to them is a thief.’ The good who eat the sacrificial remains are freed from all evils. The wicked eat their own evil who cook food only for themselves.

From food all beings are produced, and from rain all food is produced. From sacrifice there comes down rain. From action is born sacrifice. Understand that action arises from Brahma, Brahma arises from the Imperishable. Hence the all-pervading Brahma is eternally established in sacrifice” (Bhagavad Gita 3:9-15).

2. “The karma of one who is free from attachment, whose thought is established in knowledge, undertaking action for sacrifice, is wholly dissolved.

Brahman is the offering, Brahman is the oblation poured out by Brahman into the fire of Brahman. Brahman is to be attained by him who always sees Brahman in action. [Read more…]

Thinking of God: the Perspective of the Serious Sadhaka

September 15, 2018 by Abbot George Burke (Swami Nirmalananda Giri)

thinking of God

Q: With regard to the particular means of thinking of God: are you advocating the traditional forms of cultivating our relationship with God through perceiving the Divine as Mother, Father, Child, Lover or even a Transpersonal Tao?

No. Such an approach is totally egocentric: “I want a Mother, Father, etc.” This is most crassly expressed by the oft-cited statement: I don’t want to be sugar, I want to eat it.” God is not an object of our gratification or delectation.

It is not a matter of what we merely want or like, but what we need. And that is a single thing: knowledge of our Self (jivatman) and the Supreme Self (Paramatman). God is the Self of our Self and can only be approached in that way. These other ways of viewing God do not even begin to do the needful.

I am very aware of this since I wasted time with them before I gained real knowledge of Sanatana Dharma and Yoga. Nevertheless they have their place for those who do not have clear understanding. A person has to start somewhere. That is why Krishna said:

“At the end of many births the wise man takes refuge in me. He knows: All is Vasudeva. How very rare is that great soul. Those whose knowledge has been stolen away by various desires resort to other gods, following various religious practices, impelled thus by their own natures. Whoever wishes to worship whatever form with faith, on him I bestow immovable faith. He who, endowed with this faith, desires to propitiate that form, receives from it his desires because their fulfillment has been decreed by me. But temporary is the fruit for those of small understanding. To the gods go the worshippers of the gods. Those who worship me come unto me: (7:19-23).

Can this be expanded upon by what comes most naturally or arises most organically within each individual given our psychological disposition to find the essence of our lives?

No. That, too, is purely of the ego.

Should we commit to one form or can this evolve as our perception transforms?

Certainly it will change as the seeker changes. But will he attain enlightenment thereby? Playing with dolls does not really prepare a little girl to be a mother. Nor does playing with concepts of God that are imaginary and ultimately unreal prepare us for atmajnana and Brahmajnana. [Read more…]

What to Do About Sleep in Meditation and Other Problems

September 8, 2018 by Abbot George Burke (Swami Nirmalananda Giri)

To an Indian Christian friend who asked about experiencing blankness and spontaneous bodily movements in meditation.

I am very happy that you are meditating regularly. This is so very important. It is also good that you are meditating longer.

Sleepiness

It does happen sometimes that the meditator gets into a kind of blank or tamasic state in meditation, and may even pass into dreamless sleep without realizing it. This is because the mind is used to going into the sleep state when the mind becomes still and relaxed. In time this problem goes away. But be sure you are getting enough sleep at night.

How to deal with bodily movements

Bodily movements and tremors do occur to some yogis in the beginning. When it happens, stand up for a few moments and then sit back down. Sometimes these things occur because the meditator has habitually been living with some muscles tensed, and now they are beginning to relax and cause such movements. It is good to take a deep breath and let out all tension occasionally. It is important to not let such movements take over, but stop them immediately. There are so many sources for these problems that it is impossible to determine them.

There are many people who sway back and forth or side to side and claim subtle pranic forces are causing this. Really it is their restless minds seeking some distraction and activity. (I am not saying this is your situation, but it is good to know, especially if in the future you meet such people.)

The yogi must always be in charge of body and mind. That is easier said than done, but can be done. [Read more…]

Friends: What Serious Spiritual Aspirants Need to Know

September 2, 2018 by Abbot George Burke (Swami Nirmalananda Giri)

Q: What are friends? Is it good to have friends?

Books can be written on the subject of friends and friendship, so I will confine myself to the perspective of a seeker for higher consciousness: a sadhaka. Not a religious or philosophical dilettante, but a committed yogi.

A true and worthwhile friend is one whose company is both elevating and strengthening, who also like the sadhaka looks toward eternal matters and values. These we should associate with and value.

Pleasant and enjoyable is not enough

There are very good and warm-hearted people whose friendship is most pleasant and enjoyable, but their minds never turn toward higher things. In time the friendship of such people is seen to be valueless, a waste of time for the serious sadhaka.

I do not mean that he comes to dislike or despise them: he likes and appreciates them, but realizes that association with them has little meaning. Just as an adult lays aside childish pursuits and interests, in the same way the evolving yogi simply lays such associations aside. And often they dissolve of themselves just as childhood friends often fade out of an adult’s life.

In his heart the sadhaka will still feel friendly toward them and even love them, but he has to recognize that their association really has no value. However, if they actively continue contact he does not end it. [Read more…]

Eclecticism in Religion: Is It Good?

August 25, 2018 by Abbot George Burke (Swami Nirmalananda Giri)

Q: What is your opinion of those who preach the gospel of eclecticism?

There are those who because of their past life involvement with various religions need to pick up the threads of those religions and follow them to some extent.

One of my teachers at California State University, Los Angeles, had grown up in Hawaii attending a church that honored four major religions: Hinduism, Buddhism, Christianity and Zoroastrianism. The pulpit in the church had four panels depicting the founders/symbols of those religions, and the Sunday sermons were based on each of these religions in turn: one per Sunday. She knew a great deal about those religions and considered herself an adherent of them all.

Certainly there are those that just make a kind of mishmash of bits and pieces from religions, but that, too, is their prerogative.

Informed and respectful

One of the things I admire most about the swamis of the Ramakrishna Mission in the West (Vedanta Society) is their very real knowledge of all the major world religions and their genuine respect for all. Of course that just points out that fact that Sanatana Dharma is the only religion in the world that enables its adherents to comprehend all other religions.

Do you find Questions & Answers like this helpful?

Read over 350 questions and answers in Satsang with the Abbot: Questions & Answers about Life, Spiritual Liberty, and the Pursuit of Ultimate Happiness by Abbot George Burke, available in print and Kindle formats at Amazon.com.

Worship of God in Meditation or in Church: Which Is True?

August 18, 2018 by Abbot George Burke (Swami Nirmalananda Giri)

Q: In meditation, I feel myself OF God; in church, in the sacraments, I feel a “surrender” to God. Both are beautiful and in my mind, they are compatible energies, one feeding the other. But, I would welcome your thoughts on this matter in the event I am missing something or perhaps “confusing” energies.

Your experiences of meditation and sacramental worship are exactly true. (I do not say “correct” because they are not intellectual formulas but much deeper perceptions in consciousness.)

God is both within and without us in our present relative state. The oldest Upanishad, the Isha Upanishad begins: “All this, whatever moves in this moving world, is enveloped by God.” So when we look outward we experience God, and when we look inward we experience God. But the experiences are different.

The inward look is to ourselves and our union with God. The outward look is to the wonder and glory of God in his relation to us as we are in the world. One produces a non-dual wonder, and the other a dual wonder. Our inmost consciousness recognizes God as our Self. Our outer, illumined consciousness embraces God in love and joy. This is the experience of all yogis.

The theological word-worshippers may not agree, but what do they know? They only have words and the ego those words inflate.

I am so happy for you that you are fulfilling and experiencing the essence of the Bhagavad Gita: “Be a yogi!” (6:46).

Further Reading: