Meditation Offers Spiritual Balance Peace - Lia Fitzpatrick

Article printed in THE EDMONTON JOURNAL
on Saturday, July 31, 2004
in the Religion column, “Offerings” column, page B9:

Most North Americans have been raised in materialistic, superficial, technological, decadent times and have moved away from what is natural, real; that which has any lasting meaning. Many of us have lost our way, lost our connection, become internally disintegrated. In disappointment and hopelessness, many have taken to self-destructive behaviours. Others have forgotten their roots and have lost their sense of dignity, self-esteem, faith and positive outlook.
Without a real sense of meaning in life and feeling spiritually out of balance, we try to compensate for what is lacking – even if we don’t consciously realize it. This can include developing ourselves intellectually or physically, striving for better positions and more money, repeatedly buying things when we don’t need them, pouring ourselves into creative pursuits – often in the extreme. These compensations combined with the increasing pace of life have taken a toll within ourselves - most especially in our children. We can see our sense of inadequacy and unwholesomeness manifesting as anger, discontent, addictions and substance abuse, violence, criminal behaviour or health and mental problems.
The good news is that a shift of consciousness is underway. We can see, most visibly since perestroika and the dismantling of the Berlin Wall, that global society has been experiencing a wave of transformation. We have entered a time when, en masse, people everywhere are awakening to the call of the Creator to throw off internal and external imbalance, re-establish our roots and transform ourselves into wholesome, healthy, balanced, collective human beings, cleansed and healed of our past, and walking quietly but confidently on the true path. By all indications, we have entered the prophesied age of Truth.
The essence of many, if not all, spiritual beliefs share a common thread - “Know Yourself.” We cannot organize Truth or force it, although people have tried. We cannot package and sell Truth, although people have tried. We can only become one with it, and through that living process we improve, deepen, and are able to feel our connection with each other and with the Creator. In this way, we grow and mature in a meaningful way and understand ourselves, our families, our communities, our world, without the baggage of the past or the fears that ordinarily govern our behaviour.
To grow and improve ourselves we must clear the mental chatter to become silent and listen to the small voice within, the Spirit (Collective Being, Father of Creation, inborn guide, teacher and protector). By journeying into the center of one's being it is possible for a person to experience directly our connection with Spirit, each other and the rest of the world, but especially between our soul and the Creator.
Some call this prayer, others call it meditation.
Ancient eastern and western civilizations looked to the Tree of Life. By awakening the mothering, nurturing energy within, we become healed, and love, compassion, spiritual strength, wisdom and security are restored. If our roots are strong and healthy, our lives will be the same. This Tree of Life exists inside us in the form of a subtle energy system that is placed invisibly within our central nervous system. The Divine Creator has built within us electromagnetic energy centres that send subtle messages and signals which we may already feel on our hands, in our bodies, on our head or in our awareness - but do we know what those signals mean? Are we even aware of them? There is an easy way to learn through a living process known as self-realization through Sahaja Yoga. Establishing our self-realization through true meditation is the key - it’s personal, it’s real and it works for everyone no matter what our traditional beliefs are.
As masters of our own well-being, the tools available through the Sahaja Yoga technique enable us to become what we were intended to be. If we are living in reality, then we don’t react, we just see - this is peace. As a peaceful person, we are untroubled by people or events, seeing only the truth in a detached, impartial, but knowing way. We feel serene, clean, compassionate, totally connected to the all-pervading power of creation. Peace is the full and complete establishment of Spirit within us when we are no longer ruled by our mental activity and conditionings, fears or insecurities, the past or future.
Peace means we are completely within the Divine rhythm of Spirit and Truth. We can't achieve peace at a local or global level until we have first established peace within ourselves. When we have peace inside, it will automatically flow outward.

Lia Fitzpatrick has been practising Sahaja Yoga Meditation for 22 years and is a student of comparative religion and indigenous culture.

Saint Gyaneswara’s description of the rising of the Kundalini from his commentary on the Gita

[from Chapter 6, commentary on verse 14]

Then the imagination subsides, activity becomes calm, and the functions of the body and the mind stand still. Then thoughts of hunger and sleep do not bother him and he does not even remember them. The in-beath which was confined by the anal construction (mulabandha) moves backwards and being excited and puffy, it grows in its place of confinement and bangs at the naval centre (manipura). Then this expanded in breath churns the belly from all sides and removes the impurities collected theirin from childhood. But instead of rolling at the bottom, it enters the belly and destroys the bile and phlegm therein. It overturns the seven humours without leaving a trace, pulversies the rolls of fat and draws out the marrow of the bones. It calms the nerves and making the limbs loose, frightens the spiritual aspirant, but he should not funk. It gives rise to illness, but cures it also instantaneously and mixes together the liquid (bile, phlegm etc.) and solid (flesh, marrow etc.) parts of the body (216-120). O Arjuna, next the heat generated by the posture wakes up the serpent power known as Kundalini like a young serpent bathed in red pigment (kumkuma) resting twisted round itself, this small serpent power, the Kundalini, is asleep with mouth downwards in three and a half coils. She is like a streak of lightening or a fold of flame, or a polished band of pure gold.
This Kundalini sitting crowded at the naval centre wakes up, when she gets pushed up by the anal contraction (mulabandh) (221-225). Now as though a star has fallen or the sun's seat has broken loose or the seed of lustre, which has been planted, has produced a sprout, so this serpent power is seen to uncoil herself and stand up relaxing her body on the naval centre. She has been hungry for long, and by reason of her being woken up, she opens her mouth wide and forcefully raises it up. Arjuna, then she embraces the in-breath collected under the lotus of the heart, and begins to bite the upper and lower flesh (226-230). She easily swallows the flesh wherever she can find it, and then she takes one or two mouthfuls of the heart's flesh also. Then she searches for the soles of the feet and palms of hands, and piercing their upper parts she shakes up all the limbs and joints. Thereafter without leaving her place, she draws out the core of the finger-nails, and cleansing the skin, clings to the skeleton. She clean up the bones and scrapes the fibres of muscles, so tht the growth of the hair-roots of the body begin to wither. Then she quenches her thirst by lapping up the seven humours, and makes the body completely dried up all over (231-235). Then she draws in forcibly the out-breath, flowing outwards from the nostrils to a distance of twelve fingers. She thereafter pulls up the in-breath and pulls down the out-breath, and when they meet, only the sheaths of nerve-centres remain. Both the breaths would have mingled at that time; but the Kundalini, being uneasy for a moment, asks them to keep away. O Arjuna, this serpent power eats up all the solid stuff in the body, and leaves nothing of the watery parts also. When she eats these solid and liquid parts of the body, she becomes satisfied and remains calm in the spinal cord (236-240).
In this state of satiation, the venom she turns into nectar and sustains life. The fiery venom comes out as nectar and sustains life. The fiery venom which comes out cools internally the body, which regains once again the strength which it had lost. The nervous flow stops and the nine life-breaths except prana cease and then the body too loses its functions. Then the breaths flowing through the left and right nostrils mingle, the knots of the three lower nerve-centres become loose, and the six nerve-centres become disjoined. The sun and moon currents of breath, which flow through the nostrils, are so subtle that they are not felt on the fibre held before them (241-245). The sparkle the intellect then ceases and the frangrance in the nose, along with the serpent power, entres the spinal cord. The cask of moon-nectar situated above tilts on one side, and the nectar begins to flow into the mouth of the Kundalini. The nectar fills her and then spreads to the whole body and is soaked therein by the aid of the prana. As wax, placed in a red-hot mould melts and fills it up, so the body looks as if lustre, covered by skin, has descended in the human form (246-250). As the sun, hidden behind the cloak of a cloud, comes out in full splendour when the cloud is scattered, so the scales of skin, which seemed dry, fall off like husk, and then the body assumes a complexion so comely as though it is fashined out of crystal or has sprouted from a gem, or dressed up with the red hue of the evening sky, of it is the figure taken on by the inner light. Then his body looks as if it is filled with red pigment and nectar or it appears as though it is peace incarnate (251-255). It is like a picture of delight, or a form of great happiness, or a full-grown bush of contentment, or a bud of gold-flowered champak (michelia Champaca) or a bust of nectar or an orchard laden with tender leaves, or like the moon embellished with the autumnal dew, or like a statue made of lustre sitting on a seat, when the Kundalini drinks the moon elixir. Then even Death-god stands in awe of that figure.
Then old age recedes, youthfulness takes a leap backwards, and the childhood which had long past returns (256-260). Even though he looks so young, he performs great feats and his courage is equally great and unexcelled. Even as sparkling buds come out from the leaves of the golden tree, new lustrous finger-nails come out of his body. He also gets new teeth, but they are so small, that they look like two rows of pearls set in the mouth. Like the broken bits of atom-sized rubies, tips of hair grow on his whole body. The palms of the hands and the soles of the feet become red like red lotuses and how can one describe his clear eyes (261-265)? Just as the shell cannot contain the pearl when it swells and becomes oversize, and its seam gives way and begins to open, so the sight, instead of being held within the eye-lashes, goes out far and wide and pervades the whole heaven. O Arjuna, the body takes on a golden colour but possesses the lightness of wind, having lost the liquid and solid parts of matter.
Then the yogi can see beyond the seas, hear the sounds of heaven, and comprehend the desire of an ant. He can ride on the wind, walk on water without wetting his feet, and in this way he acquires many miraculous powers (266-270). Holding the hand of prana and climbing the steps in the region of hearts, the Kundalini reaches the heart centre through the spinal cord. This Kundalini is the mother of the world, who illumines the self and gives shade to the sprouted seed of the universe. It is the embodiment of the formless Brahman, the cask of Lord Shiva, the main spring of the sacred syllable Om. When this youthful Kundalini enters the heart-centre, she begins to utter unbeaten sounds. The sounds fall slightly on the ears of intelligence, which is very close to the serpent power (271-275). In the cubicle from which these sounds emanate, they manifest themselves as figures as if drawn on the lines of Om. This can be known only by imagination, but where to find one who possess it? No one knows that rumbling foes on in the region of the heart. I forgot to mention, O Arjuna, that so long as prana remains, these subtle sounds are produced in the region of the heart. When the latter resounds with these sounds resembling the rumbling of clouds, then the window to the Brahmarudhra readily opens. There is another great region resembling the calyx of a lotus, in which the self resides aloft (276-280). The supreme Kundalini then enters this abode of the self and offers him the victuals of her lustre. She indeed offers intelligence as a vegetable dish to him and does it in such a way as to leave no trace of dualism. Then the Kundalini gives up her fiery complexion and remains in the gaseous state. You might as well ask how she looks at that time. She dissolves herself in this gaseous form and keeps aside her garment of golden stripes. Even as the light is extinguished by the touch of the wind, or the lightning flashes and disappears in the sky (281-285), so when the Kundalinin enters the lotus of the heart centre, she looks like a gold-chain or like water flowing from a spring of light. Then all of a sudden she subsides into the calyx of the heart, and her form merges into the formless Shakti. Although she is called Shakti, she is still in the form of gas (Vayu). At that time one is not aware of the Nada, or the Bindu or of the Kalajyoti. Then the conquest of mind, the support of breath-control and resort to meditation do not survive, and though and its absence come to a stop. So she is the crucible in which the gross elements crumble (286-290). That the body should be swallowed by the body is the Natha creed and and its purport is disclosed here by Lord Krishna, the incarnation of Vishnu. Untying the bundle of that purport and unfolding the truth, I have presented it before you, who are its clients.

Pilot study on ADHD children and meditation, done by Sydney University

By Danielle Teutsch, Medical Reporter
Children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) will be taught to meditate as an alternative way of controlling their behaviour, in a Sydney program that is the first of its kind. The children, aged 10 and under, will be taught meditation techniques practised by devotees of Sahaja Yoga, a method of meditation founded in India. The techniques - intended to relax the mind and to improve concentration - include lying still, repeating affirmations and soaking feet in salty water.
The program will be run by the natural therapies unit at the Royal Hospital for Women at Randwick in January.
Program co-ordinator Dr Ramesh Manocha said the unit decided to set up a trial program after requests from a number of teachers and schools looking for better ways of controlling classes with ADHD children. "We are not particularly interested in the spiritual dimension of Sahaja Yoga, but its therapeutic use," he said. "ADHD is essentially a problem of attention control and meditation is a way of helping people control their attention span."
A small pilot study on ADHD children and meditation, done by Sydney University researchers this year, has shown promising results.
Meditation is thought to prompt changes in the brain similar to bio-feedback techniques or drug therapy.
Some families have already used meditation as an alternative to Ritalin. Concord mother Liallyn Fitzpatrick introduced her 14-year-old daughter, Grace, to Sahaja Yoga after Grace was diagnosed with ADHD last year. Grace now meditates up to five times a week. "She was on Ritalin for a while, but she doesn't need it any more," Mrs Fitzpatrick said. "She knows what she has to do to stay on top of it."
Dr Paul Hutchins, an expert on ADHD, who heads the Child Development Unit at the Children's Hospital at Westmead, said the efficacy of Ritalin had been well established scientifically. However he said alternative therapies such as meditation could be useful in reducing anxiety, which was a significant problem for many ADHD children.
"The idea that hyperactive children, who normally swing from the ceiling, will sit on the floor and breathe in one nostril to calm down may seem odd," he said. "But it's important to recognise that many children are anxious and that yoga may help them." Sydney psychologist Rosemary Boon, who specialises in ADHD, said she had been including meditation in her holistic treatment program for the past five years. "People are sick and tired of going to a pediatrician and walking out with a script for Ritalin," she said. "They are on the lookout for something that is less invasive and more body-friendly." Barbara Goldsmith, from the North West Sydney ADD Support Group, said she wished such a program had been available when her three children, who all have ADHD, had been growing up.
"There is a demand out there for alternative therapies," she said. Parents, who are interested in having their children take part in the meditation program.Children must have a formal ADHD diagnosis.

Vibrations & mobile phone

We are all aware that in sahaja yoga, vibrations are emitted from our body when our kundilini raises to sahasrara. The extent of vibrations could be felt & had been measured by various people including doctors. This is also a mythological fact confirmed in sahaja yoga that these vibrations create an aura around us. this aura protects us from any outside badha. That is where the importance of bandhan comes in sahaja yoga.


There is a modern & interesting way of measuring vibrations through mobile phones. There are four rods like structures signals on the top of mobile screen which is an indication of reception on any mobile/ WLL instruments. the more the structures, the better the reception. We have a regular centre at Ahmedabad on every Sunday. It was observed during the centre that these signals were getting weaker & weaker with the flow of vibrations. A stage had also come when no signal could be observed. These observations have been noticed for 3-4 weeks.


The reason for the same is very clear as the vibrations create an aura & don't permit the outside waves of mobile phones to enter the area/ aura of vibrations. That's why the stronger the vibrations, the weaker is the signal. I believe this is a modern evidence of importance of vibrations, auro & the ultimate sahaja
yoga.


Regards


NareshModi

Prophecy: The Sweet Age

From: "sahajhist" Date: Sun Feb 1, 2004 10:33 pm

Lionel Johnson, Vita Venturi Saeculi (1902)

Be glad with beauty, white with perfect grace,
Sweet Age to come, whose face
Dawns dimly in our prophesying eyes
Eager with good surmise! …

Sweet Age to come, whose wings are of white fire,
Deny not our desire;
O kingdom of the Spirit, conquering all
Take willing earth in Thrall!
Let green woods wave thee welcome, and blue seas
Laugh welcome, and each breeze
Be sacred incense round thee: peace appear
Through crystal atmosphere,
Impassioned, perdurable, omnipotent;
Given by God, not lent,
Foretaste of Heaven, ere heaven be all in all,
Come to the vexed world's call; …

Sweet Age to come, declare the doctrine clear;
We wait thee now, wait here!
Sweet Age to come, upon our ready ground
Let lily and rose abound,
With pure supremacy of fragrant state
Sweetening this world of hate,
Which does the wrongs, it knows not, and it knows;
Plant thou thy lily and rose!

Commentary: This English-born Irish writer cooperated with W.B.Yeats in developing a Joachimist doctrine of a forthcoming third age of the Spirit. Based on a famous passage in Joachim's Liber Concordie (12th century), this poem concentrates on the sweetness of the third status (age). (JN)

Source: 'Joachim of Fiore and the myth of the Eternal Evangel in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries' by Warwick Gould and Marjorie Reeves (Oxford: Clarendon Press, rev ed. 2001), pp261-2. Unpublished in the poet's lifetime (1867-1902), the poem has been dated to 1902 and may be unfinished (ibid, note 123).

My First Puja Experience Prakashsahaj

From: "prakashsahaj"
Date: Sat Oct 22, 2005 9:14 am

Jai Shri Mataji
By the Grace of Shri Mataji, I was fortunate enough to witness what Puja is? Yes, my long time desire was fulfilled by Shri Mataji by making me to attend the just concluded Navratri Puja at Gurgaon, Delhi.
Actually, I secretly prayed to Shri Mataji to give me a puja experience when we were doing a Public Program at Bahrain on the 29th Sep 2005. I never imagined it would be granted so fast by Shri
Mataji.
Three of us from the Kingdom of Bahrain landed on the 14th Oct morning. Of the 3 SYs 2 are coming for the first time including myself. We landed at the right time; the morning meditation just
started. The moment we sat there at the Pandal, I started experiencing the cool breeze like splitting on top of my head and on hands.
I had so many queries in my mind about the puja and its facilities. The moment I reached the venue everything vanished in thin air and I was just enjoying the vibrations and amazed to see the collective
participation of SYs around the world including the little angels from Dharmsala. What a grace in their dance and glow in their faces? Surely it's divine work.
Both the days of Musical evening, I enjoyed so much and felt the vibrations throughout. Not a soul moved out of the venue during the program.
Here comes the most important day, the puja day. Upon seeing Shri Mataji in person, I felt like I've attained my salvation. Words are not enough to describe the vibrations I felt. Thank you Shri Mataji,
If this is what vibrations are and if this is what all Sahaj is about, I'm ready to take any number of births, just to enjoy the bliss.
In literal sense, I felt as if 2 huge blocks of Ice was placed on my hands and on top of that, air blown off from a fan. Top to toe, drenched in vibrations.
During the aarthi, with all the people singing, conch blowing, drums beating, I felt like I was in Paradise or Kailash in the midst of Devas, Rishis and the presiding deities. Amazing!!!!!!
After the puja, I realised little things like:
How could with 3 and half coils, Mataji could tie down the whole world?
In fact, those 3 little words, which is shorter than the kundalini length, how could it transform the world? (JAI SHRI MATAJI)
All my conditionings were blown apart.
Only way we could please Shri Mataji was to spread Sahaj as much as possible, without thinking too much about the pros and cons.
Finally, thanks to the Organizers of this puja for such a wonderful arrangments and we felt at home.
Jai Shri Mataji
Prakash s
Bahrain Collective

My Experience with Sahaja

From: Kaushik Rajasve Date: Fri Oct 21, 2005 8:36 am Subject:

Dear Sahaji Brothers and Sisters

It is really a blessing that one is able to enter to Sahaja Yoga. It is only the wish of holy mother that one can come and see what Sahaja Yoga is……….!

It is more than a year now that Mata Ji has blessed me with Sahaja Yoga. Initially when I was told about this, I astonished how can a women be so powerful. If you sit in front of her photograph you will get cool vibrations on your head and palms. Well, I did not give any note to this.

At that time I was passing through very bad phase of my life at Gurgaon (India). My room mate Amit Gupta, A Sahaji brother, has kept Shri Mata Ji’s photograph in the room. One afternoon, when I was very sad and unhappy, in my room, I was looking at Shri Mata Ji’s photograph. I started feeling the vibrations in my both palms and head. The intensity of the vibrations was so high that I could not believe on this. I came out of the room, vibrations still continued.

I came back to room and folded my hand towards The Aadi Shakti Shri Mata Ji. My kundlini was on my Shastrasrth Chakra. I am sure as being in Sahaja Yoga, you all can understand, how I was feeling at that time.

From that day till today, I am blessed with her blessings.

Even by her blessings, I have seen by my eyes the vibrations around me, mostly, to which we see in Shri Mata Ji’s miracle photographs

In this Navratra Period, my parents had visited Vaishno Devi (A holy place in J & K State where the Adi Shakti lives in a cave as Ma Kali, Ma Laxmi and Ma Saraswati). I missed that visit.

So, Shri Mata Ji has shown herself in all 3 avtars in my dream on 14 October morning. Jai Shri Mata Ji.

It was really An Unforgettable Experience that I had on 15 October evening, when I saw Shri Mata Ji by my eyes at Gurgoan.

When Shri Mata Ji reached to stage, the photograph behind her started shining more. This is what I observed. Have any of you got the same vision, then please let us know all.

Long live Sahaja Yoga

Jai Shri Mata Ji

Rajasve Kaushik+91 98992 48175