A lively and interesting discussion was started by June Meagher for her Healer’s and Therapists group on LinkedIn. She titled her discussion Words to Encourage You- do you have any? The words of Sri Sathya Sai Baba (Indian Spiritual leader, b.1926) were submitted by another member of the group -
“Life is a challenge, meet it!
Life is a dream, realize it!
Life is a game, play it!
Life is Love, enjoy it!”
“You have it in your power to make your days on Earth a path of flowers, instead of a path of thorns.”
“You must be a Lotus, unfolding its petals when the Sun rises in the sky, unaffected by the slush where it is born or even the water which sustains it!”
“Service is the highest spiritual discipline. Prayer and meditation, or knowledge of scripture, cannot help you reach the goal as quickly as service can. Service has a double effect, it extinguishes the ego and gives bliss.”
My thoughts-
Sri Sathya Sai Baba’s words are beautiful, inspired and form images often used in meditation. That said, I have a different take on meditation than that stated above which I want to share here for your consideration. Baba says “Service is the highest spiritual discipline. Prayer and meditation, or knowledge of scripture, cannot help you reach the goal as quickly as service can. Service has a double effect, it extinguishes the ego and gives bliss.”
I agree that service is the highest form of spiritual discipline. In my understanding , meditation on behalf of the planet, world and humanity IS a high form of service, service through meditation.
As a group we meditate regularly together to bring in the light on behalf of sending it out to the world in need. We focus, for example, on Haiti, the Gulf leak, world peace, or simply hold the space open for the light to go where it is needed.
Esotericists believe that our fundamental task is to handle energy rightly; the energy streaming through us, the energy which is us and all kingdoms of living things and the energy that makes our environment. Energy that effects any aspect of energy effects the whole. As our consciousness of these subtle energies grows the effect of our minds and thoughts and emotions and actions have upon them also grows. Meditation is an interchange of energies and can be directed to where there is great need. Energy follows thought. Empathy, compassion, peaceful action, allowing and not clinging are other energetic ways of directing energy in service to the whole.
The late 18th to 19th century English poet William Blake put it like this “For not one sparrow can suffer and the Whole universe not suffer also.” Blake also wrote “To see the world in a grain of sand…” and “Energy is eternal delight.”
What matters is the perception that we are all in this together, one for all and all for one. Meditation is a service to both our own growth for highest good of all and in the service to humanity and the planet’s growth for the highest good of all.
What are your thoughts on this, is meditation a service?
I recently attended the first academic gathering of mental health professionals and complementary health care providers such as nurses, acupuncturists, yoga instructors, nutritionists, biologists, brain scientists, with the focus on integrating all the useful disciplines to help a person return to or develop their highest mental health.
Many people are feeling trapped today. They feel trapped in a job they don’t like but fear they won’t be able to find another. Others feel trapped in their relationship with their spouse, parent, friend, child, boss, sibling, roommate, and on it goes. Many, many people feel trapped by their financial situation, their credit card debt and their mortgage. Others feel trapped in their bodies by their weight, illness, disability, color of their skin, facial features or height. People today feel trapped by technology and all the demands on their free time because of it.
Stressed out people develop symptoms in their body, cognition and emotionally. Their symptoms appear to increase when they take note of how trapped they feel. I say notice because many people numb themselves in order to avoid the feelings and awareness and the symptoms increase in an effort to get their attention.
What this means is that we are never really trapped. The entrapment is an illusion. Viewing the situation from within might help find an out, another choice, or the patience to deal with it longer. But this isn’t my point here.
Do you have 6 minutes? I was moved by the music, poetry in words really, of Jason Mraz’s song “Life is Wonderful” to make a visual montage. Most of the photos are ones I’ve taken, some are stock. I’m no photographer, but they do portray serenity and nature’s beauty. The beauty of Ojai, the sky from my backyard, and views from Meditation Mount are easy on the eyes even when using my cell phone camera.