Spiritual Practice – Spiritual Living

Healing by Changing your Consciousness

The prototype or original model of the human body in consciousness is perfect and healthy. Then, why does susceptibility to disease and constitutional disorders arise in our body?

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They arise largely from certain defective patterns that we carry in our mindset. We have inherited some of these patterns from our previous existence, and some of them are the result of our actions in the present existence.

Our consciousness gets associated with the contents of our mind, which are the personal thoughts, disturbing emotions, compulsive tendencies and faulty beliefs. And this association creates faults in the consciousness of our vital force or prana of the body. This faulty or disturbed prana then becomes ineffective in maintaining our body in a healthy condition, and gradually functional and constitutional disorders begin to arise in it.

Thus, the contents of our mind are largely responsible for the diseases in our body. The good news is that the effects are reversible. By making some changes in our belief-system, tendencies and negative emotions we carry in our subconscious, we can restore the consciousness of our vital force. Then it will restore health in our mind and body.

The way

Since our vital force is the true healer, the healing power is within us; and in its natural condition it is sufficient to maintain our health. The vital force malfunctions due to the negative patterns and entities in our mind. We are not sufficiently conscious of these patterns and entities, and so we allow them to disturb our vital force, influence our actions, and maintain our bad habits.

The negative patterns and emotions arise when we consider the happenings in life from a very personal and egoistic point of view. If we replace our point of view with a spiritual consciousness – with a large-hearted and inclusive point of view, the consciousness in the vital force will get restored, and it will be able to perform its natural function of healing our body.

Live the truth of health

Your health is holistic, so you are never sick in a part. The part is only the place where the ailment has shown up. It is always a mistake to focus on repairing a part of the body in isolation of the mental mechanism (thoughts and emotions) that has caused the ailment.

So, the major task in healing through consciousness is to FIND the deep-seated patterns caused by your egoistic considerations and to REPLACE them with the patterns got from a spiritual consciousness. The new patterns will make you large hearted and bring kindness, courage and joy into your life; it will change the consciousness in the vital force and cells of the body. And health will be the natural outcome.

Once you have lost your health, the restoration doesn’t happen automatically. You have to develop a health consciousness and allow it change your habits and lifestyle, and clear the negative emotions from your subconscious. In short, you have to promote your ‘health consciousness’; and let your actions speak louder than your words. Then your health consciousness will make you healthy.

A Practice: Choose what you think

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Pause often during the day to hear the self-talk going on inside your mind. These are the personal thoughts and psychological memories repeating themselves. They arise due to your egoistic point of view.

Now change your point of view: Decide to live and work for a cause that is always greater than your selfishness and personal considerations. Then your task is to look upon everything from higher point of view, and to reject the thoughts and self-talk that arises from a selfish and personal point of view. That’s all.

Choose the thoughts you want to think, and reject the negative thoughts that want to do your thinking. Accept one and reject the other; and do it persistently. Gradually this practice will change your consciousness.

Affirmations for good health

Your health mirrors your convictions. Hence, if you are constantly ill, you do not believe wholeheartedly in perfect health. So, take this opportunity to install some healthy beliefs in your mind. Declare these statements to yourself:

a) “Wellness is my natural state.”
b) “I am now filled with the energy of life.”
c) “My body will serve me as long as I need it. Hence, I banish the idea of old-age problems or going to an infirmary.”
d) “I am now healthy, energetic, enthusiastic and peaceful.”

Next, try to ACT AS THOUGH your health is real. Do it even if you are not really healthy.

Some necessary points of view

a) The original nature of the human body does not have sickness. Hence, my sickness is due to personal factors that disturb the natural flow of life-energy (prana) in my body.

b) My world is the result of my consciousness projected on a screen. Hence, I do not have to do workouts to develop a healthy body. I have to only develop a health consciousness to become healthy.

c) If I fear disease or poverty, I have a disease or poverty consciousness. It is sufficient to make me sick or poor. However, if I have faith in God and try to serve the spiritual purpose of my life, I develop a peaceful and loving consciousness. It is sufficient to make me happy.

Freedom & Contentment — how to experience them

By Prashant S. Shah; www.spiritual-living.in

The spiritual tradition in ancient India talks in terms of karma and dharma. When you act with personal or selfish motives you generate some imbalance, which is called karma. When you do what is proper and act without personal motives you generate balance and harmony, which is called dharma. Freedom and contentment are built on the foundation of Dharma.

In society the acts of dharma are fairness in dealings; balance in rights and obligations; restricting individual freedom where it transgresses the freedom of other people; subordinating personal benefit for the benefit of the team, group or unity; and serving the genuine needs of others.

True freedom and contentment are inner-life attainments. And to experience them you have to make some adjustments in your attitude and assumptions according to the rules of dharma or proper living. What are these changes and how can you make them?

1. Make the necessary inner changes

The ancient sages believed that there is a pre-decided element regarding all the major events of our life. The events are outcomes of past actions; other players are involved with the events; and there are hidden intelligences in the interior worlds that have their own agenda. Hence, it is said that we arrive at the events of our life. Our efforts in the present only make some cosmetic changes or adjustments.

So, whether we like it or not we have to accept the happenings of our life. We can do it in the same way as we accept other things that we cannot control – like the weather, the past, the market behaviour, etc. When we can do that, we can live peacefully and without experiencing frustration. On the other hand, if we keep on protesting or defying the situations of our life, we only hurt ourselves.

Whereas we cannot control the events that are happening now or are decided for us, there are many things that we can control. For example, we can control our expectations and how we respond to other people and events. We can always choose how we interpret the happenings in the world. Hence, instead of crying over the things we cannot control, we have to focus on controlling the things we can control.

First let us distinguish between what is under our control and what is not under our control: Our actions are always under our control, but another person’s actions are usually not under our control. We can influence other people’s behaviour by how we relate with them (by how we regard them, take interest in them, etc.) but we can never control them sufficiently. We must accept this reality just as we accept the other things that we cannot control.

When we keep our focus on controlling the things that are under our control, our attention is automatically directed to our own actions. We become more aware of our attitude, beliefs and actions; and the effect they have on other people and the happenings in our life. When we can observe all this, we become intensely aware of the inner changes that we need to make to be able to live a more peaceful and contented life.

You begin by becoming clear about what changes are under your control and what changes are not under your control. Then you accept the things you cannot change, and focus on making the changes you really need to make.

Here we explain the rules of dharma so that you can know the changes that you need to make.

2. Freedom and how to achieve it

Is freedom doing whatever we please, or does our freedom arise from understanding the limits of our power and the limits set by society, the natural law, and a higher authority?

To appreciate the idea of freedom first we have to understand how our wants control our actions: When we want something desperately, we get totally focused on having it irrespective of whether it is good for us, appropriate for us, or morally right for us. The only thing we see is the object that satisfies our want. We disregard other things or undervalue them. In this way our wants control our actions.

To experience freedom first we have to weaken our bondage (slavery) to our wants – to the cravings and compulsions that arise from within our nature. To do that, we have to deliberately regulate our wants. We have to give due regard to what is proper for us in society (according to the moral law) and what is enough (according to the natural law). We have to accept our limitations and the inevitable; and learn to work with them rather than try to fight them.

If we become easily obsessed by the desire to do things that are not right for us or which are not within our reach, our freedom is actually lost! If we cannot exercise control over our wants, the desires in our mind and body will enslave us. Then we cannot perform the duty of our roles properly. Then our actions will become out of sorts and we shall experience helplessness and frustration!

True freedom is not having ease and comfort; it is not bossing over others; and it is not doing whatever comes into our mind regardless of others. To experience true freedom you have to be able to conduct yourself according to the existing situation without giving in to your personal tendencies or temptations. You have to accept the limits of your power and the limits that are set on you by a greater authority.

3. Approach life as a banquet

Sometimes we think that if we don’t grab our share in life we shall miss out; if we don’t horde our wealth we shall get depleted. We think like this when we feel insecure; it causes us to grab things.

However, as a human being we are a part of a larger network that is governed by a greater intelligence and authority. We are connected to others on the inner planes; there is a law governing human life; and there is a greater intelligence in the inner worlds that administers justice and looks over our affairs. As a result we are only given things according to the needs of our roles or according to what we have deserved (according to the law of karma).

So, when we take the roles that we are given, we have to also trust that the greater authority will provide us with what we need to fulfil our roles. It will not make us struggle unnecessarily. When we understand this fact we can behave graciously in all situations. We know that we shall be given a part to play in the drama of life on earth; and that we shall be provided with what we need to fulfil that role or part.

When we understand this, we can approach our life as a BANQUET: When dishes are passed on to us, we take a moderate portion. If a dish passes us, we enjoy what is already on our plate. Or, if the dish hasn’t been passed on to us yet, we wait patiently for our turn to arrive.

When we choose to act according to dharma, we can never become jealous of others. When we find that someone has succeeded, we consider that today it is their time to succeed. Our time will also come. However, if we become impatient and grab for things before it is their time to arrive, we spoil everything.

The rule is: Always behave graciously in life and keep an attitude of polite restraint. Trust that what is due to you will come to you in the natural course, when your time has come.

4. Act well the part that is given to you

We get to choose only some of our roles life. Most of the roles that we have are given to us.

We are like actors in a play. A greater authority has assigned us with some roles without consulting us! Some people will act in a short drama, and others will act in a big movie. Some are assigned the part of a poor or retarded person and some are given the role of a celebrity or a leader.

Although we cannot control which roles are assigned to us, we are always responsible to act our given roles as best as we can, and to refrain from protesting them.

This brings us to the classical issue of dharma: Should we crave for different or better roles or should we seek to perform well in the roles that are given to us? Does our true satisfaction arise from getting into positions of great opportunity or does it arise from how well we perform in the roles we are given?

To choose here we have to see things in the correct perspective. We must understand that our true happiness does not arise from the roles themselves. It arises from within us as we perform the roles.

Thus, true fulfilment arises when we perform well in the roles that we are given. The outer conditions only provide us with the situations in life. However, it is up to us to make ourselves happy or sad as we pass through these situations.

Thus, it is a deception to think that our happiness arises from getting better or more attractive roles. Further, if we keep on craving for better roles in life, we shall remain continuously dissatisfied.

Hence, seek to perform the roles that you are given as best as you can – without protesting your situation. In whatever circumstances you find yourself, give an impeccable performance. If you are a teacher, teach well; if you are a maid, serve well; and if you are leader, lead well.

5. All advantages have their price

Does somebody enjoy the privileges, the opportunities, or the honour that you desire? Does it make you feel jealous, envious, inferior, or unfortunate?

We become jealous of others when we think that they got it easier or they did not deserve what they got. However, this is a deception. It arises because we have a partial or limited view of things.

When we take a wider view of things, we can see that people get authority and resources according to the needs of their roles or they get it according to their karma. The law of justice has no favourites — it works invariably for all.

If we look at situations carefully, we can find advantages and disadvantages in every situation. Hence, no situation is absolutely more favourable or unfavourable. Further, authority is not merely a privilege. Authority and responsibility always go together. They are like the two ends of the same stick. When we pick up one end, we also get the other.

Still further, our happiness also does not really depend on the situation we are in. It depends more on what we make out of the situation that we are in. We can never earn the same reward as others without employing similar methods, or without investing a similar amount of time and effort. It is unreasonable to think that we can have the rewards without paying the price.

Hence, we should not envy those who have more than us. They had no real advantage over us. They have simply paid the price for their reward.

The true reward that people get in real life can also be very deceptive. The saying is, “The roses come with the thorns”; but the thorns are not always apparent to a superficial view. A man may have a beautiful wife, but she may crib all the time because she was used to having too much attention. An actress may have to show a happy face even when she inwardly feels degraded by what she is asked to do.

In our life it is always up to us to choose from the opportunities we get; and to decide how much we shall invest in it. For some things we may consider the price as too high: It may cost us our integrity; we may be forced to praise or appease someone whom we cannot respect; we may have to do the work for which we are not apt; or we may have to convince the people of things that we ourselves don’t believe in!

The truth is that all privileges have their price. So, before you demand something, ask the golden question: What is the price and are you willing to pay it?

6. Our duties are revealed by our relationships

In society we are not an isolated entity, but a unique and irreplaceable part of a network in a perfectly ordered human community. Hence, it is important to know where we fit into this web or network.

Our duties in society are defined by our relation with others. To know our duties we have to look carefully at the people we are connected with. Our duties emerge naturally from our family, our neighbourhood, our workplace, our community or our nation. Our role as a parent, a child, a wife, a neighbour, a manager, a citizen, etc. arises from our duty. Once we know our role to the people we are linked with, we can intuitively know what are the right things to do.

For example, if a person is our father, certain emotional and practical claims follow from this relationship. There is a natural link between us, and accordingly, we are obliged to care for him in old age; to listen to his advice even when we think differently; and to regard him with respect.

However, let us suppose that he is not a good father — that he is uneducated, crude, or holds outdated views. Then we have to ask ourselves: Does nature give everyone an ideal father, or just a father? When it comes to our duty as a son or daughter, whatever our father’s nature may be, whatever his personal habits are is secondary. The greater authority has not designed people or circumstance according to our tastes. Whether we find this person to be agreeable or not, he is still our father, and so it is our duty to live up to our obligations.

Suppose we have a brother or sister who treats us badly. Why should that make a difference? We still have a moral obligation to recognise and maintain our fundamental duty to him or her. The key to dharma is not focus on what he or she does, but simply look to ourselves and try to serve the role the greater authority has assigned to us – and to do it to the best of our ability.

True and authentic freedom places demands on you. It requires that you accept the obligations of your role and perform your duties sincerely. So, let others behave as they will; that is not within your control anyway, and so it should not concern you very much. The only question that should concern you is: “What is your duty and are you serving it?”

7. Control your interpretations

When we carry out our actions according to our duty, the greater intelligence or authority will support us. Then, we shall not feel victimised by the words or deeds of others. If others are selfish or ungrateful, we should take it that they are performing their duty poorly. Why should we let that bother us?

Except for extreme physical abuse, other people cannot hurt us unless we allow them to. If we don’t consent to be hurt, we won’t be hurt. Whatever happens in the world outside, it is always up to us to choose how we interpret it. So, our interpretation of events is a choice over which we can have absolute control!

People think of events or people as being good or bad, but we can ask: “What is a good event?” or “What is a bad event?” There is really no such thing. If there is a fire in our enemy’s camp, we may call it a good event. If there is a fire in our camp, we may call it a bad event. Otherwise the event by itself is value neutral. It simply happens. In the same way, there are really no ‘good people’ or ‘bad people’ out there. Each person has come to earth with his or her purpose. For some time destiny brings some people together. Then we find some people to be agreeable and some to be disagreeable.

Hence the rule is: Never react to events. Instead, exercise control over your interpretation of the events. When you can exercise that control, the events cannot hurt you or make you feel sad

8. Serve the greater purpose

When we consider the future, we must understand that all situations and events unfold as they do regardless of how we feel about them. Our hopes and fears sway us, but not the events!

Hence, a wise person does not project his hopes and fears onto the future. Such projections can only generate fantasies. There is a place for planning and making provision for uncertainties. But true preparation for life consists in developing self-control and good personal habits. And to make this preparation, we have to review our actions from time to time so that we can keep them free from the hold of fear, greed, jealousy or neglect.

Do not allow the happenings in your life to distract you from serving your greater purpose. To serve the greater purpose, just keep one question in your mind: “What is the proper thing for me to do right now and how can I get on to doing it?”

For information on the book: Solving the Problems of Life, click here: http://a.co/fDEjbYR

BookCover For details on the correspondence courses for implementing this philosophy, click here https://darshanacentre.wordpress.com/correspondence-courses/

Advanced Workshops

By Prashant S. Shah, http://www.spiritual-living.in

1. The Cosmos according to Occult Philosophy

This workshop gives you an insight into the place of the human being in the cosmos. Here, the human being is a microcosm, a miniature of the cosmos; and the growth of the human being is related to the development of the inner bodies and faculties on the interior planes of the cosmos.

The questions for the workshop are: What is the spiritual purpose of our human life on earth? What are the inner worlds? What is the correspondence between the inner worlds and our subtle bodies? What remains of us after death? How do we grow on the inner planes? What is the cosmos in occult philosophy? What is the law of correspondence? What is the place of ‘the occult’ in spiritual life? What is the nature of occult experiences?

CONTENTS

How Charles Darwin made a monkey out of us. The evolution of consciousness. The four stages in the evolution of life in the cosmos.
The occult constitution of the human being. The inner planes and how we function on them. What develops as we grow spiritually?
Occult cosmology: Placing a human being in the cosmos. Microcosm as the little world. Using astrology to illustrate the law of correspondence.
The place of ‘the occult’ in spiritual life. Understanding occult experiences.

Some Opinions Received:

An excellent exposition with many sets of examples symbols and charts. Paul Czkevianianc, paulc@questpartnersllc.com
(It was) a great course, but there is lots to digest. Very insightful. It gets better and better each time I do this course. Elizabeth, aleliz@aol.com
Prashant’s physical presence and his simple way of saying it wins my trust. The course answered many questions and raised many more! David, davyc67@yahoo.com
This course was an eye-opener. The discussion was very profound and subtle. I enjoyed the discussion on the correspondence between the planets and the emotional energies the most. Carmen, cla516@aol.com
Everything was very clear. You have retained the flavour of ancient things while making them accessible to the modern mind. Frank, nyudonne@aol.com
(This course was) very interesting. I pointed out the gaps in my practice. When you say these things they seem to be so simple, but when we do the practice we find it is a lot harder. Ludy, ludy_mr@hotmail.com

2. The Cosmic Cycle and the Sign of Our Times

Modern humanity, in the age of science, has made a lot of progress; we all can see it. However, we don’t see what humanity has lost in the process of making this progress. In this workshop we begin by showing this. We evaluate the progress in the modern world from the point of view of the spiritual purpose of human life. The aim is not to be critical of modern developments, but to make you aware of the nature of the challenge that is coming in the near future.

In particular, we show that the world is on the brink of a change in consciousness; and we, as human beings, can either participate in making the changes in ourselves and in society, or we can resist these changes. Further, to participate in these changes we have to prepare ourselves, since the new era demands ‘higher level’ solutions of a different kind. The message of this workshop will be most valuable to people who wish to serve as spiritual workers for the new era.

CONTENTS

Introduction: The two basic levels of human consciousness; the cosmic cycle; understanding the ‘men of antiquity’; why the present time is called the Dark Age.
Spirituality lost: What makes an idea sacred or profane; what is more important, knowing the whole or knowing the parts? Uniformity as the opposite of unity; the false supremacy of reason.
Counter spirituality: The decay of religions; confusing the super-conscious with the subconscious; mistaking the occult for the spiritual; the mushrooming growth of pseudo-cults.
The New Age: The ending of an era; how to participate in the coming of the new era; towards a change in consciousness; some expected changes in society.

This program is based on the speaker’s book: The Crisis of Modern Humanity.

Some Opinions received:

This was the most vibrant of all the teaching I experienced this time around. It felt as if you reached me directly with no filters. It helped to bolster my optimism about what is coming. I am thankful to be in a state to receive this powerful message. Frank, nyudonne@aol.com.

3. The Way of the Mystic

Behind the superficial existence of a leaf there is a greater existence of the tree. In the same way, behind your individual and personal consciousness there is the greater consciousness of the soul and the over-soul.

Here first, you install a presence of the greater consciousness in your mind. Next, you involve it in your affairs. It will develop your ‘truth sense’ and give you the guidance you need. Then you will not be easily misled by the tendencies and wishes in your mind, or be deceived by the people in your environment.

Contents:

The basics of mysticism: the relationship between your personal consciousness and the God consciousness
The technique of mysticism: making a personal God and learning to attune with it
Devotional exercise: making God a reality in your life; living for God’s sake; stages in the awakening
The levels in the practice; the doctrine of the mystics

Duration: 8 hours

To know more, read the book: ‘The Art of Awakening the Soul’ by Prashant S. Shah. The URL is http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00AXI9BRW/

Some Opinions received:

This workshop has reinforced my spiritual practice. Now I turn to the Deity often. It has led me to see things from a totally new perspective. Frank, nyudonne@aol.com.
This is my favourite course. It has really made me go for it. I could rename it as ‘mysticism for practitioners’. Ferdinand, seibert@hotmail.com
I have taken this course several times and it has become a major basis of my spiritual practice. Bob, boblester@hotmail.com

4. The Hidden Side of Spiritual Practice (Sadhana)

Spiritual practice is not about worshipping Gods, performing rituals; or following some moral precepts. The main aim is to clear the impurities from the mind so that you can mirror the calm, intelligent and balanced state of the higher consciousness.

In this task the techniques of concentration, prayer, meditation, breath control, gazing, etc. can only help you to an extent. To have a real breakthrough you have to overcome the forces inside your nature that RESIST the ways of the higher consciousness. Here you do not work to learn new things. Instead, you work to unlearn many things and to break away from the mindset that binds you to the lower consciousness.

In this workshop first you understand the psychological side of spiritual growth. Next, you observe the mental tendencies that seem to obstruct your spiritual awareness. Then, you learn to overcome these tendencies and clear up the faults in your perceptions. When this work is done you will be able to see yourself, the people and the situations of life better. You will not merely see things as they show themselves, but you will see them as they really are.

Introduction: The nature of spiritual quest; quantum learning; place of purification in spiritual life.
Working with emotions: Observing the emotions; balancing your perceptions; emotions in relationships.
Working with thoughts: The outer mind and its deceptions; introspection and disillusioning.
Cleaning the subconscious: The conflicts inside the mind; breaking habits; releasing suppressed emotions; overcoming the mental-self; towards direct awareness.

Some Opinions Received:

This is a great course that makes us aware of where we really are and where we can get to. It has made me aware and watchful of many things. It has removed so many of my illusions! Elizabeth, aleliz@aol.com
(It was) an extraordinary course with a superb presentation. The need to control the emotions instead of justifying them impressed me the most. Some of the exercises were remarkable and I can see some positive changes in me. Carmen, cla516@aol.com
This course was AA++. There is an immediacy about it — a direct connection, like being plugged into a live source of energy. Frank, nyudonne@aol.com
(This course was) very interesting. I pointed out the gaps in my practice. When you say these things they seem to be so simple, but when we do the practice we find it is a lot harder. Ludy, ludy_mr@hotmail.com

5. EKS: A Growth and Success Strategy

EKS is a ‘holistic approach’ to managing your affairs in an ‘open system’. It shows you how you should conduct yourself so that you can have sure growth and remain always wanted. The method was originally devised by Wolfgang Mewes of Frankfurt. It consists of a simultaneous application of the energy laws, cybernetic control and a benevolent strategy. An outline of our presentation of EKS is given under ‘TALKS’. Click here https://darshanacentre.wordpress.com/2016/01/28/inspiring-talks/

The Course Contents

Part-1: The Basic EKS

Session-1: Introducing Cybernetics and Systems Thinking.

Session-2: Using Strategy and the Energy Laws: Growth, concentration and gap behaviour.

Session-3: Energy Laws continued: Developing into the depth; bottleneck orientation; settling on a target group.

Session-4: Leaning to value of intangible assets; centralised versus cybernetic control; deciding your growth strategy.

Part-2: Advanced Applications of EKS

Session-5: The hierarchy of problems; Specialization; The growth spiral.

Session-6: Socially oriented specialization; finding your social basic-task; demarcating your target group.

Session-7: Locating the bottleneck; having outward looking behaviour; motivation through feedback.

Session-8: An overview of EKS strategy and problems solving.

DURATION: Each session is of two hours. The total duration of Part-1 and Part-2 is 16 hours.

About the Program:

This course was originally devised by Prashant Shah to assist students of the ‘Advanced Management Diploma Program on Energo-Cybernetic-Strategy’ (called EKS), which was then conducted jointly by the Baroda Productivity Council and Mewes Systems of Frankfurt, Germany.

Over the years he has conducted this program for many groups in India and USA. He uses this EKS method to help people solve their personal, professional and business problems. This method is very striking, simple to understand, and easy to use. The best part, however, is that if you follow it consistently, it always works.

What Our Participants Say:

You got all of us charged up. Now we use ‘bottleneck’, ‘concentration’, ‘gap’, ‘feedback’, etc. in our routine discussions. We look forward to having a refresher program when you visit next year. (Asheem Aggarwal, Chief Guru, New York).
I took your workshop only because a friend had recommended it very strongly. I expected to get some up-to-date ideas. However, I was totally amazed. This is a totally new way of looking at the issues of growth and success. Your presentation was very clear and enjoyable. The catchy words that you use make these difficult concepts easy to grasp. I’m happy I took this course. (KS, Management Consultant, Bombay).
This systems approach to management makes the issues of our business extremely clear. The program was much superior to the other (management) programs that we’ve had. It has really boosted our confidence. (N. C. Mehta, CEO, Bell Ceramics, Baroda).
Your course was very insightful. In many places it consisted in simply putting already known, but disparate concepts, in one cohesive framework… It has opened my eyes to the fact that things happen of their own, and more often we are facilitators to a process that is happening with or without us! (A.H., Partner in financial business, New York).
Your words are now engraved in my mind: “Develop your unique strength, grow into the gap between others, find superior solutions to the problems of your target group, and concentrate your efforts on removing the bottleneck.” Truly, I feel very confident. Thank you very much. (NMD, Works Manager, Bombay.)

Introductory (Spiritual) Workshops

SpiritualStars — Participants in New York, 2011

Conducted by Prashant S. Shah, http://www.spiritual-living.in

1. Understanding Karma and Destiny

People often ask: “Why are we born in a particular country or family? Why are some people healthy, rich or successful whereas some others are handicapped, poor or unfortunate? Why do we easily forge bonds with some people and find it so difficult to get on with some others? Why do some of us have an easy life while others have to struggle all the way?”

You can understand many such things by considering the Law of Karma. The law tells us that much of the destiny we experience today is the result of what we had done in the past; that we have all along been shaping our destiny, but earlier we were not aware of the process. In this workshop you understand the law of karma and how to use it to remove the unnecessary suffering from your life.

When you are ignorant of this law you make mistakes that violate the law. Then you suffer the consequences. As you develop some awareness of the law you conduct yourself better. Then you make fewer violations, and it reduces your suffering and helplessness. When you acquire mastery over this law you become the CAPTAIN of your ship. Then you can steer around the obstacles in your life and become a source of happiness to yourself.

The discussion is directed to the questions: What are the causes behind the events of my life? Is there natural justice or do I have to fight for my rights in society? When I faced with different choices, what criteria will guide me in making the correct choice? How can I learn to live a happy, meaningful and a fulfilling life?

Law of cause and effect. The necessity of making the correct choice.
Justice and the law of exchange. The moral law, laws of nature and man-made laws.
Predestination and free will. Karma in public life. Karma and the art of living.
Karma in relationships; nature’s memory; karma and reincarnation; the law of providence

Some Opinions received:

I see some karmic debts that I have to repay and I’m going to set right some balances. Frank, nyudonne@aol.com.
This course has great wisdom. It’s very well organised and you explained these very subtle issues in a very simple and interesting manner. Ludy, Ludy_mr@hotmail.com
Excellent – I understand that we are not here to move around as an unwinding doll. There is a cause and effect for everything and we how we play always makes the difference. Carmen, cla516@aol.com
This is my favourite course. I’ve done it again and will do it again in the future. It has put my whole life in perspective, and now I understand how to give direction to my life. David, davyc67@yahoo.com
Each time I do this course I hear it from a different angle and so it has grown to be much more valuable. Bob, boblester@hotmail.com
This course shows how our current thoughts and actions create our destiny. Hence, we can overcome anxiety of the future by exercising control over our present actions. The course is deep and profoundly transforming. Madanda, mgmachayya @hotmail.com

2. Concentration and Mind Training

The fine art of succeeding with yourself

In this workshop you learn the art of concentration and use it to develop your inner life. The inner life is important since your happiness and well-being depends more on your thoughts and emotions, and less on your external circumstances.

First, you learn to concentrate and take control over your attention. Next, you become aware of the influence of thoughts and emotions in your life. Then you exercise your control over the negative thoughts and emotions that occupy your mind. It will develop your ability to think clearly, to understand things better, and to be more focused on whatever you do.

In this workshop you learn to:

Concentrate the mind through chanting
Use concentration in everyday life
Develop your will-power through steady gazing
Deal with negative thoughts
Use thought power
Overcome negative emotions

This program is conducted in 8 hours (4 sessions of 2 hours each). If you need assistance in implementing these ideas, kindly read Mind-Training and Meditation under ‘Correspondence Courses’. We also have an interesting book on the subject: ‘Solving the Problems of Life’ by Prashant S. Shah; the URL is http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0176HQSOG. https://www.amazon.com/Solving-Problems-Life-Spiritual-Seekers/dp/1518786650/

Some Opinions received:

Shah is a cheerful teacher who shares his knowledge in a light hearted and easy-to-learn manner. I highly recommend his sessions. Edrina Rush, edrina.rush@yahoo.com
Shah is a true master of his teachings. You have to see to believe. Yvette Koshab
I’m very happy with the delivery and content of this workshop. I got a lot of benefit from doing this workshop. Shawn Edwards, shawnallison@hotmail.com
The topic was difficult, but it was delivered very simply and very well. Tokes Coker, tokeskoker@handsoflight.co.uk
I thoroughly enjoyed this workshop and recommend it highly for life enhancement. Jessica Hothersall, jessicahothersall@btinternet.com
This course on spiritual yoga was actually what I was seeking for furthering my spiritual journey. Now I’m really looking forward to the advanced course. Beryl Ross, brosscotton@hotmail.com
Shah is the real deal. He is precise and has crystal clear clarity of thought. It is a great program for those who are ready for it. Marcus Ubl, Marcus.ubl@gamil.com
The speaker was very clear and concise. I think I will be able to use these practices to bring changes in my life. Please organise other workshops with this speaker. Sri Spencer, stars659@yahoo.co.uk
This was the best speaker. Dr. Shah puts over complex ideas in an interesting way that allows them to be easily grasped. Linda Camping, l.camping@btinternet.com
I was surprised at how useful the course content was. The whole concept of dealing with thoughts and emotions was mind-blowing. Shana, darshana@entrevo.com
This course made me appreciate many things that I used to take for granted. Elizabeth, aleliz@aol.com
Now I have a clear focus — yoga is for achieving something greater than the ambitions of the mind and body. It is like going beyond the mind. Ludy, ludy_mr@hotmail.com
I understood the importance of withdrawing from the outer noise and focusing on my inner life. I think now I know how to put my inner things in order. Carmen, cla516@aol.com
You’ve given us a very refreshing and unusual insight into Yoga. I’m eager to put all this wisdom into practice. David, davyc67@yahoo.com
This time (third) it was a relearning experience. It has inspired me to renew my commitment to my practice. Bob, boblester@hotmail.com

3. The Art of Succeeding with People

Learning Interpersonal Skills

Most of our life is an INTERDEPENDENT reality. We have to work with people, live with people and deal with people. At work we work with partners, in teams and with associates. Very often our situation is that we share responsibility with others, but we don’t have the authority to direct them. Hence, if we are not skilful, we experience many difficulties in getting things done through others. The saying is: “The people problems are the worst!”

Skill in dealing with people is very valuable for everyone in society — for a businessman, a professional, a colleague, a housewife, and a member of any group in society. This ability becomes increasingly important as we occupy the higher positions in the social system. Businessman J. D. Rockefeller once said: “I will pay more for that ability (to succeed with people) than for any other under the sun.”

In this workshop you learn the art of dealing with people effectively to generate win-win solutions. Further, you learn to leverage your skills such that the rewards are much greater than the effort. The guidelines are easy to understand, but they will make a BIG DIFFERENCE in your relationships at work and in your personal life only when you apply them consistently.

Some Opinions received:

This was the best course. I got the most from it. It really answered the questions that have been puzzling me for years. This workshop was practical, useful and a lot of fun. (Robert Leyster of Lester Watson Inc. New York. boblyster@hotmail.com
I’ve stopped wanting people around me to change to fit to what I want. Now I try to see what they want of me. I also see the importance of giving space to other people to be as they want to be. Frank, nyudonne@aol.com.
This workshop goes far beyond the obvious. I’ve learnt to be more tolerant, tending and caring. Elizabeth, aleliz@aol.com
This course was really empowering. All my faults in dealing with others have become obvious. Now I’m going to change some things. Carmen, cla516@aol.com
This is the second time I’ve done this course and I am glad to say that it has really helped me in fine tuning my ability in deal with people. It has made me much more effective. David, davyc67@yahoo.com
You really tied up these things very well. I’ve been reading this (self-help) stuff for a long time, but your course has cleared up most of my doubts. The ideas are very clear now and I feel confident that I can get them to work. (N. C. Mehta, CEO, Bell Ceramics, Baroda).
I like your style of presentation — very direct, precise and to the point. You made these very complicated and confusing things seem very simple. I really enjoyed both of your programs. However, I wish I could have you convey this message to my boss! (KYA, New York)
I found this course to be very revealing. I’ve read many psychology books, but the understanding that you provided here was very clear. I felt you were speaking directly to me and addressing my issues. (S. Gopalkrishana, Plant Superintendent, Baroda)

4. Restore your Health Naturally

A Simple Solution to your Health Problems

Your health depends mainly on you; on your lifestyle, diet and eating habits. However, these days you are given to believe that your health depends mainly on doctors and the health care system. Thus, you have become very dependent on the medical profession. And at the same time the health care system has become very expensive, highly specialised and too technical for your comprehension. So you naturally feel vulnerable, helpless, and confused.

However, there are alternatives; they always existed! Your health is not something that depends on the progress of modern science. There are much simpler ways. They talk in terms reducing the toxaemia in the body and strengthening its vital force. Here we you learn to use these alternatives. Believe it or not here you will learn how to detox your body and restore your vital force naturally – WITHOUT depending on medicines or the medical profession.

Contents:

Holistic healing: healing vs. curing; health in terms of the vital force; how toxaemia develops;
Simple ways to detox the body: Diet, nutrition and eating habits; fasting and the healing crisis
Water therapy; cleansing diets; and the ‘no breakfast’ plan
Healing the body by changing the consciousness; correcting emotional disorders

Duration: 8 hours

The workshop is based on Prashant’s book ‘Healing without Drugs’ and ‘How to Restore your Health Naturally’.

Some Opinions Received:

(It was) a very interesting presentation; a most welcome and rare insight into the science of health and healing. I say it is A++. Elizabeth, aleliz@aol.com
I’ve read of the concept of toxins before, but now I really understand its implications on my health and recovery. David, davyc67@yahoo.com
The effect of not eating the right kind of food and the consequences of increase in the toxin level in the cells was very well explained. This certainly becomes more important in old age. Carmen, cla516@aol.com
(It was) a superb discussion — very practical and accessible. Frank, nyudonne@aol.com
Both the book and the course presentation were very good. However, the presentation filled in many gaps that arose when I read the book. Now the ideas have become very clear and more workable. Ludy, ludy_mr@hotmail.com

5. Living by Intuition

Intuition is the guiding voice of the soul. When we listen to our intuition, our life becomes more interesting; we see a purpose to everything; and we feel a sense of wonder. Although everyone is intuitive to an extent, this ability can be greatly enhanced by doing some spiritual practices.

The basic step for becoming intuitive is to shift the focus of our life from our ordinary nature, which is governed by mental preferences, to our higher nature, which sees the ways of the soul. Once we get into a condition where we can spontaneously call for intuition, we can allow it to guide our actions and give a deeper meaning and purpose to our life.

Installing the spiritual seed; creating the necessary mental space; some preparation & results
Considering intuition as coming from a higher intelligence; how to make your intuition reliable
Purifying the mind and correcting the disturbances arising from the mental-self
The place of self-consciousness & intuition in occult philosophy

6. The Spiritual Tradition of the Ancient Hindus

Traditional wisdom is concerned the knowledge of the higher worlds and its attainment; and insight into the higher purpose of human existence. This knowledge was originally uncovered through the higher faculties that were developed by the ancient Sages. They passed down this knowledge through a tradition, and the people know of it as doctrines, beliefs and practices.

The past century has seen explosive developments based on a materialistic attitude. Correspondingly, the interest in pursuing the spiritual goal of life has become lost. The light of the spiritual heritage in humanity has become dim, and it may become lost to future generations. However, what was so great about this heritage that it had been fancied by many great men through the centuries? Here we show the tradition of the men of antiquity that prevailed in ancient India.

7. The Biochemic Way to Health

In the 18^th century, Dr. Schuessler analysed the ashes of the human body and found the presence of twelve mineral salts in them. He called them the ‘biochemic tissue salts’ and showed their value in the healthy functioning of the body. Whenever a deficiency of any of these salts arises in the body tissues, certain typical symptoms arise. You can use these symptoms to identify the specific tissue salt deficiency. Then all you have to do is to supplement the tissue-salt in a dynamic form (6X potency), and the body will on its own find its way to return to natural health.

Here you learn how to use the book: The Biochemic Prescriber for finding your remedy. You can treat common everyday ailments and simple constitutional disorders with these Biochemic Tissue Salts. The method is simple and safe. You can use it to help yourself, your family and your friends and overcome your helplessness in health matters.

Contents:

The principles of Biochemic Remedies and Holistic Healing
The functional disorders of the body, and their relationship with the ‘biochemic remedies’
Treating constitutional disorders and some everyday ailments with the Biochemic Tissue-salts

Duration: 4 hours

The discussion is based on Prashant’s book: “The Biochemic Prescriber”, https://www.amazon.Duration: 8 hours

8. How to Recognise a Sage?

This course is based on wisdom of the book: Tao Te Ching. The Tao is a universal awareness that underlies all things. Hence, by aligning your ways with the way of the Tao you can attain inner freedom, transcendental peace, and deep contentment in your life. However, the Tao is very subtle. It can only be grasped with a mind that is without personal motives. So, how can you pursue the Tao?

Master Lao Tzu gives the clues: First, follow the law of heaven and purify your motives. Next, find a Sage, a living master. Then, track the ways of the Sage, for the Sage naturally follows the Tao. However, there is a difficulty since the Sage does not show himself in society. So, how can you recognise the Sage? Here we address this issue.

Contents:

Who is a Sage? How does he behave? What are his guiding principles?
Why does the Sage value things differently? What is his true attainment?
What strategies does the Sage adopt? How are his ways different from the ways of ordinary people?

Some Opinions Received:

The old Tao translations I own come nowhere near this exposition. This is seamlessly connected with the rest of the teaching I have been privileged to attend. Frank, nyudonne@aol.com.

A Journey Into the Higher Worlds

A Pilgrimage into the Cosmos Within

We are born with a mind that directs our attention outward, towards things in the external world. Hence, we do not see the interior world or understand the realities of inner life. As a result we are easily confused about the true purpose of our life on earth or what we have come here to achieve.

To understand such things in the spiritual context, we have to journey into our interior; into the deeper realms of our own consciousness. What do we find? Here are some insights of this journey.

1. Our condition at the beginning

In the beginning, that is before we undertake the journey within, into the interior of our own consciousness, our attention is exclusively turned outward, towards things in the external world. To begin this journey we have to withdraw some of our attention from outer things and direct it inward, into our interior.

At first this will be very difficult to do. Our mind is like a restless monkey. It keeps on hopping from one thing to another. It keeps us continuously distracts by outer things. We get fascinated by them. However, we cannot dwell on any one thing for sufficient time to really understand it. So, we observe everything superficially, and our understanding remains shallow.

Our attention it totally caught up with personal thoughts. So we keep on think of ourselves, our pending matters, our desires, our possessions, or our future.

2. Taking control of our attention

We can change this wandering tendency of the mind by practising concentration. Earlier our mind was like a ‘wild horse’, constantly resisting our control and distracting our attention. But as our concentration improves, this wild horse gets tamed. Our mind begins to listen to us; our attention follows our will.

We can use concentration practice to bring together all the scattered forces of our attention. When these different forces come together they are compelled to adjust and integrate themselves under the central leadership of our will. It makes our will strong and powerful.

We can use this strong will-power to control the thoughts and emotions that frequently occupy our mind. We do it by simply accepting the thoughts and emotions that we want, and by rejecting those we don’t want. In this way we can remove the distracting thoughts and disturbing emotions from our mind. It will make our mind becomes calm, alert and one-pointed.

Such a mind allows us to observe its contents – the thoughts and emotions that occupy it; and the mindset – the beliefs and tendencies that we use to interpret the happenings of life. We see how our habits and tendencies compel our behaviour. We see how these forces dominate our thinking and feelings, and decide our beliefs.

Now we can begin to change this inner situation; to free our mind from the compulsions created by our habits and tendencies. However, when we try to change or re-set our habits and tendencies is that we only succeed in making some superficial or cosmetic changes; and even these changes are not long lasting. That is, when we relax our control the habits and tendencies tend to return.

That happens because our habits and tendencies are rooted in the subconscious, whereas our will-power is mainly functional in the conscious mind.

3. The nature of the subconscious

The subconscious is a dark region of our mind. It is called ‘dark’ because here we do not see things clearly. Hence, we cannot observe how the forces work in this region.

We see things clearly at the surface, in the conscious mind; but here also our control is limited. That happens because some of these forces are supplied from below, from the subconscious.

So, what happens when we try to uproot a small or insignificant habit or tendency? The habit tends to return. That happens since the habit is empowered by the thoughts, emotions and desires that are connected with it in the subconscious. Since we do not see these connections clearly we take a compromising approach and settle for some small adjustments.

4. What we see in the subconscious

However, we can learn to take the ‘light of our awareness’ into the subconscious and observe these forces. Then we see the ‘hidden contents’ of our mind – our suppressed desires and emotions. They live here, and every now and then they come into our conscious mind and make us indulge them. Further, they make us justify having them. It gives them a hold in our nature and the right to return. In this way they break our will to resist them.

When we can see the working of these forces clearly, we know that our tendencies have friends. They have made connections, associations and alliances with other forces in the subconscious. So, when we try to overcome even a simple habit, we are not we are not dealing with just one thing, but we are dealing with a whole web of forces. This web of forces is strong, and it can resist our effort to change. So what seems to be simple actually turns out to be difficult and complex.

The habits and tendencies of our nature are like ‘entities’ that have a parasite-like existence. They feed on our attention by keeping a hold over our vital urges, inclinations, imagination and mindset. However, once we see all this clearly we can begin to uproot our tendencies and change our habits.

5. The inner battle

Before we change or uproot any habit or tendency, first we have to weaken it. We do it by finding its connections in our mind and disconnecting them. For example, if we want to overcome our craving for some food, we must begin by developing an aversion to having it. It will reduce its power.

Initially the tendency is strong like a lion, but after we cut its connections it becomes weak like mouse. We cannot throw out the lion, but we can easily close up the mouse hole.

Once the tendency has lost its power, it cannot move us with its suggestions; it cannot decide our behaviour; and it cannot make us dance to its tune.

However, these entities don’t leave us without putting up a fight. They may try to seduce us into believing that a life without (indulging) them will be dull, dry and uninteresting. And if we are taken up by such suggestions, we give them the right to continue or persist. Then they can again become active and try to dominate our awareness.

It is expected that there will be many battles inside the mind, and so for some time we may struggle. But if we persist, we will succeed. And the behaviour, urges, beliefs and philosophy that were built around this habit or tendency will also change.

6. After the victory

The entities in our subconscious do not have a power of their own; they merely draw it from our will-power. So, when we overcome some habit or tendency, our will-power gets stronger. And with a stronger will-power it will be easier for us to overcome other bigger or more vital habits and tendencies.

We can continue this process until we have overcome all the contradictory forces within our nature. It will overcome our inner resistance to doing anything. And as a result, our internal conflicts, aversions, and subconscious reactions to the happenings in the world will also disappear.

Earlier the forces in the subconscious would project illusions in our mind and tempt us or deceive us to scatter our force. But after we have cleared these entities from our subconscious, we do not experience wish or fear projections. Hence, we are not deceived easily. The light of our intellect pass right through the subconscious, so we see everything clearly. We do not act in ignorance and we are not easily fooled.

In the earlier stages of our spiritual practice we had to make a lot of effort to concentrate. Now our attention is free from the binding influences from the subconscious. Hence, no extra effort is needed. Our concentration is ‘at will’. We simply focus on something and our attention gets concentrated around it.

7. The separate awareness

Then we can keep the habit of keeping our mind in a concentrated state. It develops a ‘Separate Awareness’ within our consciousness. Something separates from our personal nature, but remains within our consciousness. It is a calm, wide and alert state of mind. It sees everything clearly, but it remains unaffected by what it sees. We can use this separate awareness to develop our insight and have a multidimensional point of view.

Initially this ‘separate awareness’ remains in the background. So we have to concentrate upon it to access it. But gradually it develops into a faculty that we can use like other senses. It gives us clarity of vision and a sense of direction in life matters – it tells us where we should look for the truth. We still have to use the mind to work out the details, but with this faculty we don’t have to depend on mental inferences.

8. The purpose of the separate awareness

The separate awareness greatly enlarges our field of knowledge and action. We can use it to look into the ‘mind of things’ and know the inner qualities and hidden motives in anything.

Further we can learn to transfer our will on to the separate awareness. It enables us to act on the inner planes of the cosmos and influence the happenings from there.

However, the true purpose of this faculty is not for making some things happen, but it is for integrating the forces within our own consciousness. It will change ‘the state’ of our consciousness and how we function with it.

9. Awareness beyond the mind

As we develop further, our awareness begins to recede inward. We become more conscious of our interior. First the contents of our mind (the thoughts, emotions, feelings and memories) become objective. Then the entire the interior worlds becomes objective, like external things.

Then we can awaken in our dreams and travel consciously in the interior worlds. We can make the light of our awareness bright and carry the greater light into the interior worlds. We become aware of so many things that earlier we could not even imagine.

At a certain stage in our development something turns over within our consciousness and we awaken inside the separate awareness. An inner veil is lifted, which enables us to become directly aware of things by making an inner contact. Then the automatic subconscious processes that were earlier going on in the mind also get discontinued.

Earlier we were led by social values and mental-inferences of right or wrong. Now we see such things as ignorant mental inferences that disturb the expression of living truth. Hence, we do not use them to function any more. We can draw our wisdom directly through direct awareness.

Spiritual Alchemy through Yoga

Adapted from the book ‘The Art of Awakening the Soul’ © 2011, Prashant S. Shah; http://www.spiritual-living.in

Alchemy is the process of transforming Lead, your ordinary nature, into Gold, a spiritual being. How is this process accomplished through Yoga? How does it unveil the mysteries of the cosmos?

Here we explain this process in terms of our growth in consciousness. It will also give an insight into esoteric doctrines like the Hermetic Wisdom and the Emerald Tablet.

1. The world as consciousness

Consciousness is the basic stuff and the creative essence of the universe. Movement of consciousness has created the universe and all that is in it. The same consciousness that manifests as the universe is also the Self, the spiritual essence, of every individual being that arises in it. Hence, the metaphysical structure of the world is like a ‘woven fabric’, wherein subject consciousness (the essence) is the vertical thread, and object consciousness (the substance) is the horizontal thread.

Since consciousness is everywhere, everything in the cosmos can be known. The consciousness in one form can connect with consciousness in another form and come to know things from inside out. This is direct knowing.

However, in human beings consciousness is identified with the mind and body. Due to this identification the power of pure consciousness (the Self) is reduced to a ‘level of perception’ in the human mind. The particular level of perception depends on what our consciousness is attached to or associated with, and on its conditioning in the individual. Hence, the human mind can only know things INDIRECTLY, through inference and interpretation. This semi-conscious and roundabout way of figuring things out is called ‘mental knowledge’.

Alchemy speaks of purifying Lead and transforming it into Gold. In the spiritual context, it is the process of transforming the consciousness from being a narrow and inferring mental-consciousness, to becoming a wider and directly aware consciousness of the Self.

2. Our personal consciousness

When consciousness identifies with our body, we experience physical fears and sensual desires. When it identifies with the mind, we experience its tendencies, beliefs and conditioning. All these things put their limitations on our consciousness. They cloud the transparency of pure consciousness in our Nature. Hence, we do not experience the world with a pure consciousness, but we experience it with a personal consciousness.

The personal consciousness generates a duplicate-self, called the mental-self. This mental-self creates a personal world from our thoughts and emotions, and it keeps us constantly engaged with them. As a result we think in terms of ‘me’, ‘my story’, ‘my likes’, ‘my fears’, ‘my desires’, ‘my way’, and ‘my possessions’.

3. The human situation

When we look deep into ourselves, into our subjective experience, instead of at the world, we can identify two parts of our being: One part is a consciousness that is totally calm. It sees and observes. We call it our Soul. The other part is a consciousness that is active and always doing something. It thinks and acts. We call it our Nature.

At the beginning of our spiritual quest these two parts of our being seem to be separate; they stand apart. The ‘observer consciousness’ is calm and reflective, whereas the ‘doer consciousness’ is restless and doing something.

We can understand the process of our growth in consciousness by relating these two parts of our being.

4. What is Bondage?

The Soul quietly observes the activity of our Nature and mirrors it in its own consciousness. The Nature or the doer consciousness, on the other hand, acts out of its own impulse, not caring about the will of the observer, the Soul. Hence, our Nature dominates, and the Soul has no say in the decisions and actions of our Nature.

Although these two parts of our being seem to be unrelated, there is a connection. The Soul observes the decisions and actions of our Nature, but it is unable to accept all of them. However, since the Soul is in a passive condition, it has to endure what it cannot accept. Hence, the association of Soul with our Nature is bondage for the Soul.

5. The Separation

On deeper observation we find that although our Nature can act out of its own impulse, to carry on in this way it needs the acceptance of the Soul. When the Soul was passive, Nature took this acceptance automatically. However, once the Soul is awake, it can refuse to grant its acceptance.

When our Nature acts according to the wishes of the Soul, the Soul accepts all the actions of our Nature. It does this by mirroring these actions in its consciousness. However, when Nature acts against the wishes of the Soul, the Soul can withhold its acceptance. It does this by refusing to mirror the actions of our Nature.

The Soul is an independent consciousness that lives in the spiritual world. When we identify ourselves with the Soul, we can separate ourselves from our Nature. Then the contents (thoughts, desires and emotions) of our mind become like objects. We can look upon them as things within us, but separate from us; we can remain unaffected by them. When we exercise this option, we are liberated from our bondage to a purely mental existence. We have a mind and body, but we experience ourselves as separate from them.

6. What is Purification?

The Soul is an independent consciousness, whereas our Nature is a derived consciousness; it is formed in nature, but derived from impressions carried by the soul. Hence, our Nature arises out of the Soul and depends on it for its sustenance. The Soul has power over Nature and it can exercise the power.

The Soul sees the actions of our Nature and quietly mirrors them in its consciousness. By mirroring them it sanctions them. However, when our Nature acts out of its own impulse, the Soul can also refuse to mirror its actions. Then our Nature has to change its ways. Thus, the seeing of the Soul acts as a command for our Nature.

To experience the Soul consciousness we have to find something within us that is independent of the continuously changing thoughts and forms of life. Once we find this consciousness, we have to identify with it. Then we can know the right movement; we can know what the Soul wants our Nature to do. Then further, through a process of approving or disapproving the actions of our Nature, we can purify it and make it transparent to the Soul.

7. The Al-chemical Marriage

Alchemy uses the alternate movements of ‘separation’ and ‘purification’ to know and change the habits, tendencies and conditioning of our Nature. As our Nature gets purified we overcome the contradictory energies and divisions within our consciousness. Then the Soul and our Nature begin to dance to one tune. Our Nature acts according to the wishes of the Soul; and the Soul accepts all the actions performed by our Nature. This is the famous alchemical marriage or ‘MATING’ in consciousness.

From this mating a new consciousness is born, which is undivided and totally different from our earlier ‘mental consciousness’. It is neither subjective nor objective, but something all inclusive and beyond. This consciousness holds the key to the mysteries of the cosmos.

The Purpose of Our Life

There is a spiritual presence that stands behind the activity of our mind. It oversees our actions and understands us deeply. It also oversees the actions of people and the happenings in the world.

Although the nature of this spiritual presence is a mystery for us, we can learn to relate with it and bring it forward in our life. That is the spiritual purpose of our life.

Thus, the true purpose of our life is not concerned with improving our living standards or increasing our power in society. Such things can only have a passing value. It is concerned with the kind of person we are becoming and the extent to which we are able to involve the spiritual presence in our life.

Here we call the ‘spiritual presence’ a higher-level consciousness. We contrast it with our ordinary (mental) consciousness and show what happens when the higher consciousness begins to awaken in our inner life.

We also address the issue of finding our purpose in life and the conditions under which we have to do it.

The two levels of our consciousness

There is mortal part of us, the mental-self, which is running our outer life today. It is selfish and self-centered, and we all know it. However, there is also an immortal part of us, a soul, which gives us our sense of conscience and the feeling of unity. These two parts are like two beings within us. Both of them are represented in our mind, but individually they function at two separate levels of consciousness.

We can understand the two levels of our consciousness by COMPARING our life to the life of a tree: A tree has a trunk and leaves. The leaves come and go according to the seasons, but the trunk sustains for longer. Further, the consciousness in the leaf is essentially the same as the consciousness in the trunk. However, when the consciousness is confined to a part, the powers of consciousness are contracted. Then the consciousness in the part experiences itself as an individual with interests that are separate from the whole. Thus, the leaf experiences the burning in summer, the chill in winter, and the fear of extinction in the fall season; but the trunk does not experience this fear. It grows over the years.

In the same way, our perception and insight into life depend on how we regard and consider ourselves. If we consider ourselves to be just a body with a mind, we experience ourselves as separate individuals with selfish interests. The consciousness in us gets confined to our mind and body. And we live mainly to satisfy the desires in our mind and body. Thus we think in terms of comforts, sensual thrills, money and prestige.

However, when we consider our identity as a soul, the in-dweller, we regard our mind and body as our possessions, like our car or house. Then our consciousness expands, and we can experience spiritual qualities and the higher values of life; we regard the forms of life and the conditions we are passing through as something temporary, like the leaves that come and go.

Further, the focus of our life shifts from outer growth to inner growth. Just as the trunk of a tree grows as it passes through the seasons, our inner life also matures as we assimilate our varied experiences from our existence on earth. Thus, the experiences of our mortal life mature the seeds of our immortal life. What we develop within us, stays with us; and we experience it as the STATE of our consciousness.

The Process of Spiritual Growth

Both the ordinary and the higher level consciousness are always reflected in our mind. However, initially we function mainly at the ordinary level. That is, we serve the mental-self, and in turn it keeps us preoccupied with physical activity and egoistic pursuits.

Our soul also has its influence in our mind. However, we give it so little attention that it seems to be something vague, hesitant and far removed. The result is that we do not experience the ‘unity principle’; our ‘truth sense’ is weak; and we cannot perceive any ‘deeper purpose’ to our life.

HigherOrdinaryNature

To grow spiritually, we REVERSE this situation. We can do that by simply changing our ‘point of view’. Instead of looking upon everything from the ordinary level, and giving an ordinary meaning to higher things, we have to begin to look upon everything from the higher level, and try to give a spiritual significance to higher things. When we can do that sufficiently, it will change the ‘level’ of our perceptions. It will change ‘from where’ we see and ‘from what depth’ we see.

Gradually we can see everything as a part of a much LARGER PICTURE: Then we can situate everything correctly; we can put each thing into its proper place; we can look at the significance of what is happening; and we can also know the motives that are involved. As a result we are not easily deceived by outer appearances.

The Spiritual Purpose of our life

When we function mainly with the ordinary consciousness, we only hear the voice of our mental-self. It says: “Play it safe and do as others are doing. Don’t try to be insightful or take unnecessary risks — you may have to face unnecessary difficulties, rejection or failure.” But when we follow the ordinary consciousness we live as a pretender or worse, as a commuter — someone who has to get up every morning with the crowd and do the job just to earn enough money to pay the bills. We may live comfortably, be able to pay our bills on time, and do everything by the book. But after doing all this we still feel that such a life is not really worth living. We cannot feel enthusiastic about living in this way.

On the other hand, when we can mirror the higher consciousness in our mind we can sense the deeper purpose to our life. We feel happy to know that there is more to our life than being a commuter. We feel that there is a deeper purpose for which we have come to earth. Hence, we want to find it and serve it. And unless we do this we cannot be at peace with ourselves or feel fulfilled. So, we ask: “What is the deeper purpose of my life? What is my mission? What is the work I have come to do?”

Most people think of finding life’s work in terms of career choices. However, it is more like involving the higher consciousness in the work we do. The task is to make our mind receptive to the higher consciousness and allow it to guide our actions and reorganize our inner-life. This task is complex and each one of us has to find our own answers, not intellectually, but by actually living our life. We do it in two parts. First we look for answers to our ‘proximate issues’. And after we have done that we can ask questions relating to life issues.

When people begin their spiritual practice they often ask: “What happens if my practice is not successful?” Evidently they are looking for some tangible result –like mental or psychic power. However, if our task is to simply serve the higher consciousness, then the issue of achieving some tangible result becomes a non-issue. The effort itself becomes sacred; and the work itself becomes a privilege. Failure or success is only a mental judgement that we make against some expectation. In the true sense our failure is not pursuing what we have come here on earth to do!

The Coming of the New Era

ShivNeon In the book ‘The Crisis of Modern Humanity’ we explained the concept of Cosmic Cycle and showed the significance of our times by describing the ‘Signs of Our Times’. In particular, we showed the modern trend is to generate a false spirituality by making it rational or psychological. This trend is expected to continue until a ‘critical point’ is reached, when a radical change in orientation can be expected. This change would transform the conditions and purposes with which people live on earth. Something similar has also been declared by many visionaries over the past century. We return to this discussion because the critical point is near. Our purpose is not to scare our readers, but to prepare them for a smooth transition into the new era. We expect that ‘fear based systems’ of our times will be replaced in the next era by systems based on a higher-level consciousness.

To be able to participate in the making of the new era, we have to first cultivate spiritual qualities in our nature. We cannot allow fear, selfishness, greed or falsehood to motivate us. The extent of our difficulties will depend on the traits we have developed so far and how enthusiastic we are in making the necessary changes. The difficulties we may have to experience will not be caused by the new era; they will arise due to our attachment to the modern life-style, which is a product of the ordinary-level consciousness.

Today all kinds of practices have sprung up under the banner of ‘New Age Practices’. To name a few, you have past-life regression therapy, psychoanalysis, tantric worship, scientology, pyramid therapy, ceremonial magic and elaborate ritual practices. Many shops have arisen to sell ‘New Age Products’ and numerous ‘New Age Gurus’ have come in to market their ‘brand’ of spirituality. The symbols and techniques that were used to prepare a person for spiritual living have been hijacked today. People now use them with the opposite intent – to pursue their egoistic and mundane goals. The title of ‘New Age’ has also become a brand for generating business opportunities!

Much of the ‘New Age Information’ is propagated through the internet. It is cleverly adapted to promote commercial interests and gain cheap popularity. People sometimes ask: “Why true spirituality cannot become popular with the masses?” The answer is simple. Popularity requires a wide base; and the masses, particularly in our modern times, are most uncomprehending. Hence, if something has to be made popular, it has also to be brought down to the level of comprehension of the masses. On the other hand spirituality seeks to lift up the person, so that he or she can become adequate for higher knowledge. But lifting the level of our comprehension is something each one of us has to do for ourselves. It is not something that someone else can do for us. Hence, it is expected that true spirituality will remain unpopular with the masses.

People who live by selfishness, greed, sensuality, corruption and falsehood will certainly find it difficult to function in the new era. Their personal value system will collapse and they may find it difficult to adjust to the new higher-value system. Hence, they may fall out.

However, there are many persons who accept the terms of the new era. They want to participate in the change that is happening without getting disoriented. Here we address them here.

When the critical point is reached, each one of us has to make a DECISIVE CHOICE. Either we go along with the spirit of the New Era (by overcoming our preoccupation with our lower nature and our attachments to the ordinary life) or we continue to live according to the norms of the ordinary life. If we choose the former, we can catch the truth in life and get lifted. If we ignore this choice, we can fall out or face rejection.

How can I Participate?

Many spiritual seekers have asked this question in one way or another. What they really want to know is how they can actively participate in preparing for the new era. Here we indicate the way.

The ordinary-level consciousness dominates the modern world today. However, it may become dysfunctional in the new era. When a person works with the ordinary level consciousness without any higher influence, he or she becomes selfish and cunning. The ordinary consciousness dehumanizes the social life; mechanizes the work; and generates monstrous growths in society in the form of insanity, cruelty, corruption, and vulgar entertainment.

These monsters do not arise from the ordinary-level consciousness; they arise from the sub-human levels after the human being has been cut off from the higher-level influence. Without the spiritual influence of the higher consciousness a person can be easily swayed by sub-human influences that arise from the nether worlds.

Many strange and new things are arising in the modern world in the name of liberal and democratic values. They are not unexpected. They only show the decay in spirit, the decay in thought, and the decay in public life — at least from the spiritual or traditional point-of-view.

Each person has to reverse this trend within themselves. Then they can extend ‘their presence’ to the society they are involved with.

The KEY idea of Spirituality is that wisdom and the higher values of life arise naturally in the mind when we make it responsive to a higher or spiritual consciousness. Thus, wisdom is never the result of developing the ordinary consciousness, which is what is wrongly attempted through modern education! Wisdom is the result of disciplining the mind and making it responsive to the higher consciousness.

No amount of supervision or legislature can curb personal and social evils. It can only be brought about by involving the higher consciousness in the individual and in public life. We can do it by serving the higher consciousness; and it won’t happen when we remain indifferent to it.

The higher consciousness lifts our thinking, our values, and our inner worth. It will reorganize our nature, and make us responsive to higher things. Then we can use our presence to re-organised the social systems we are involved with. In this way we can participate in establishing the higher consciousness in humanity.

On Promoting a Spiritual Mission

The primary aim of any mission is to spread its message so that it can REACH the people who are capable of using it. The secondary aim is to provide a ‘support services’ to those who want to IMPLEMENT the message in their life.

However, for a mission to remain genuine, it has to also employ means that are in harmony with its aim. And that raises the question of motivation: “Should the mission be run like a ‘business for profit’ or as a non-profit (not non-profitable) service organisation?”

What is the difference? When a business is focuses on generating profits, it attract profiteers and people who side-track the organisation onto selling. A non-profit service organisation, on the other hand, can focus on providing genuine value without indulging in seductive claims and deceptions just to improve their numbers. Such an organisation will lack the means (money) to carry out its mission, but it should not change its ways just to get more money.

What are the implications? You invite people who really want to ‘serve the cause’ and not encourage people who come in with the ulterior aim of using the opportunity to grow their personal business. The people have to be attracted with qualitative benefits and not with quantitative (financial) rewards. If they lack the motivation, it is better that they don’t join.

A Brochure for Correspondence Courses

Introducing the Inner Life

We are born on earth with a mind that directs our attention outward towards things. Hence, we do not see the inner life and we seek our satisfaction from the outside — by having things of the outer world. Thus, we chase comforts, pleasures and possessions in our life.

We pursue these things thinking that by having them we shall get the deeper satisfaction that we really want. However, these things only give us some superficial satisfaction for a short time. Then we again become dissatisfied and start to chase something else. In this way the chase goes on.

However, our mind and body are only the instruments through which we function on earth. They are our possessions, like our house or car. Hence, by satisfying the desires in our mind and body we cannot get the deeper and lasting satisfaction that we really want. To have the deeper and lasting satisfaction, we have to satisfy something that is truly deeper and lasting!

The true satisfaction arises in our life when we develop spiritual qualities in our inner life. These qualities will transform the values and motives with which we live and act; and ultimately they lead us to experience our spiritual being.

On the Correspondence Courses

The spiritual practice is organised into four courses as follows:

Course-1 is preparatory. It makes you adequate for the spiritual pursuit. Here you develop the power of concentration and use it to overcome the disturbance from thoughts and emotions.
Course-2 is the foundation course. It is designed to get you on the spiritual path.
Course-3 teaches you how to access to the higher consciousness. Then, instead of being led blindly by your desires and tendencies, you will be guidance a higher intelligence.
Course-4 helps you in understanding the subjective nature of your mind and in clearing the faults in your perception. Thereby you overcome the obstacles that usually arise on the spiritual path.

Course-1: Mind Training & Meditation

Lessons:

Basic Meditation
Concentration in the everyday life
Developing your Will Power
Using Thought Power
Mastering your thoughts
Overcoming Negative Emotions

Course-2: Mantra Yoga

Lessons:

Reciting a mantra (Jap)
Meditating with a mantra (Dharna)
The mantra practice in the everyday life
Opening up your spiritual path

Course-3: Yoga-Mysticism

Lessons:

Steady Gazing (Tratak)
Installing a personal God
Tantric Yoga
Contemplation
Devotional Meditation
Living for God’s sake

Course-4: Advanced Spiritual Practice

Lessons:

The nature of the inner work
Deflating the emotions
The outer mind and its deceptions
Self-observation and disillusioning
Overcoming subconscious tendencies
Awareness beyond the outer mind

Advantages of learning through Correspondence

Some people wonder how someone can learn to do spiritual practice through a correspondence course. Hence, it calls for some explanation.

You do not grow spiritually by learning some philosophy or by following a belief system. You grow by doing your spiritual practice under the supervision of a Guru.

Our basic instruction is given through lessons. You study a lesson and do the practise for a period of time. Then, you answer the questions of the lesson and email it to us. The issues usually become clearer to you when you make out your answers AFTER doing the practise. On our part, we read your answers and give you appropriate feedback. Then, we give you the next lesson. We maintain your file and monitor your progress.

These courses are practical. Hence, you are only given the information you need to do the practices properly. As you do the practices you will actually develop the skills and capacities that are necessary to build your inner life. We ensure that you do not skip the necessary steps, for the spiritual practice is a sure process only when it is taken as a whole.

We administer information to you in a stepwise manner so that you can accomplish difficult things by taking small and convenient steps. You can also have your personal difficulties solved as you go along. Further, you can learn at your pace, in the convenience of your home, and practice in your environment. In addition, we have a provision for a personal meeting with our students. You can visit us or meet through the internet.

About Darshana Centre

Darshana Centre has been conducting these spiritual courses through correspondence since 1988. The courses are practical, practise based, and without pursuing any religious agenda. You get personal attention and the help you need to implement the mystic philosophy.

The courses have been devised and conducted by PRASHANT SHAH. He was educated in Chemistry at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (BS), and University of California, (MS & PhC), and initiated into Mantra Yoga by Shri Nyaya Sharma — a Master of Shiva-Tantra-Yoga.

About Prashant Shah: He is an author, counsellor and a spiritual guide. He also conducts ‘Spiritual Awareness WORKSHOPS’ in India, USA and UK. He writes and speaks clearly, in simple language, and from personal experience. He is the AUTHOR of the books: The Crisis of Modern Humanity (1976); The Essence of Hindu Astrology (1987); The Art of awakening the Soul (2011); Healing without Drugs (2014) Solving the Problems of Life (2015); The Biochemic Prescriber (2016) and How to Restore your Health Naturally (2017). These books are available from the Amazon and Kindle online bookstores.

An Invitation

Dear Reader,

After carefully reading this BROCHURE, think it over. Do you feel there is some deep mystery underlying your existence and that unless you uncover this mystery you cannot feel satisfied? Are you willing to give up some superficial things in the outer life so that some deeper satisfaction can arise from within you? Will you be able to invest a half-hour every morning and evening for doing your spiritual practice?

If you are thinking of taking these Courses mainly because you wish to develop some ‘psychic powers’ (something that will give you importance or an unfair advantage over others), please DON’T. The true spiritual powers won’t arise in any measure before you have changed your motives and point of view. Your object in taking these Courses should not be to ‘have more’ externally, but to ‘be more’ internally.

However, if you sincerely want to grow spiritually, then here is an opportunity that you should not miss. You will have the guidance that you need. You will use methods that have worked under the conditions of the modern world.

Please don’t entertain unnecessary doubt, suspicion or fear regarding spiritual development. Here you do not lose; you only get rid of the unwanted. If you have been doing spiritual practice, but you still feel the need for personal guidance, then also these Courses are for you.

Sincerely,

Prashant

Criteria for Admission

Some REQUIREMENTS that make you eligible to take these courses:
You should believe in the existence of an intelligence and power that is higher and greater than the human mind.
You should not be deeply committed to any particular religious group or institution.
Our lessons and correspondence is in English. Hence, you should have sufficient comprehension of English language to be able correspond with us.
You should have sufficient free time and energy for doing your daily spiritual practice. The courses mainly help you in implementing the spiritual message.
You need to make your application in the APPLICATION FORM that is given on our site. Just fill in all the details and email it to us. We shall read it and inform you if we think our Course are suitable for you. THEN you can pay the fees and take the admission.
Upon admission you will receive our instructions through LESSONS. Our next lesson will be sent to you ONLY AFTER you have completed the answers of the previous lesson. You can also send your queries along with your answers. We shall try to help you in sorting out your personal difficulties.
Each course entitles you to one PERSONAL CONFERENCE/MEETING. You can ask for it anytime upon completing the third lesson. You have two options. Either you visit us at Baroda with a prior appointment or we can discuss on the Internet through WhatsApp or Skype. You aim should be to seek clarifications or to sort out your personal difficulties.
Each Course is to be completed within one year or 12 months. If you are unable to complete the set of Lessons of the Course within that time, you have to send a CONTINUATION FEE of Rs. 700 or US $ 10 to continue.
In these Courses you will receive one-on-one instructions. You will get the necessary individual attention. We shall keep your correspondence confidential, and on your part you must also not to disclose, publish or distribute our lessons, instructions or replies.
In addition, we require you, our student, not to become a personal guide (guru) in spiritual matters. The purpose is not commercial, but you need to lie low and not arrive before you are ready. This factor is incorporated as a “SECRECY CLAUSE” in our Application Form. It requires you to keep your spiritual practice private and to treat our correspondence as confidential.

The Application Form is on our site http://www.spiritual-living.in under the tab ‘Correspondence Courses’. Please download it and use it.

Living by Intuition

Blumenbaum

The basic step for becoming intuitive is to shift the focus of our life from our ordinary nature, which is governed by mental preferences, to our higher nature, which sees the ways of the soul. Once we get into a condition where we can spontaneously call for intuition, we can allow intuition to guide our actions. It will continuously amaze us and satisfy our deeper aspirations.

In this article first we characterize the two natures within our being that we call – the higher nature and the ordinary nature. Then we learn to implant a seed of the higher nature in our mind and begin to nurture it. It will show us the ‘inner work’ that we have to do to grow spiritually and live a more fulfilling life.

Our Higher Nature and our Ordinary Nature

Sensual pleasures, self-preservation, and the survival instinct are the driving forces of our ordinary nature. When we follow them we become egoistic and selfish. On the other hand unity, dharma and kindness are the qualities of our higher nature. When we follow these qualities, we become ethical, kind, and act with a ‘sense of conscience’. Both these natures are active throughout our life and they are mirrored in the mind.

However, before we begin our spiritual pursuit we are largely guided by our ordinary nature. As a result our ordinary nature totally dominates our thinking today. At the same time we give very little attention to the aspirations of our higher nature. Hence, it is starved. And as a result it has become quiet and hesitant. HigherOrdinaryNature The aim of every spiritual practice is to reverse this situation in our mind. We have to quieten our ordinary nature and bring forward the higher nature in the mind. How can we do it? We can do it by simply withdrawing the attention we spontaneously give to our ordinary nature and its activities, and begin to give it to our higher nature. That’s it. Admitted there will be a lot of going back and forth, but if we persist with this task we can make the higher nature the default program in our mind.

Installing the Spiritual Seed

To begin our spiritual journey we have to plant a spiritual seed in our mind. We can do it by saying to ourselves (daily) as follows:

“I am essentially a spiritual being;
I believe that there is a spiritual intelligence that is looking over my life; and
I am going to receive guidance and love from it.”

As you nurture this seed with your attention, it will sprout. Then your soul or the inner being will become active in your life. Then intuition and spiritual qualities will begin to arise in your mind naturally.

Creating Mental Space

The next step in our spiritual pursuit is to make space in the mind so that our higher nature can arise in it easily. Here are some things you can do:

Daily take a long walk alone or walk with someone who has friendly vibes.
In the evenings, avoid externalizing yourself by taking or making telephone calls or socializing.
Read story books regularly and reduce reading magazines and newspapers.
Always prefer reading and thinking to passively watching the TV (Don’t allow your attention to become passive).
Play with someone. You can do it with animals, with children and also with adults.
Daily do some work just for fun and not for earning money or getting favors.
Daily sit for some time near a window and just watch what is going on without being judgmental (without labeling anything as good or bad).

As you do such practices your mental habit will change. Your mind will begin to slow down; it will become calmer and at ease. It will not be like that when you are overbooked, juggling too many things at one time, or constantly playing the ‘catch-up’ game. When you rush, you simply miss the subtle insight and the healing touch that comes from your higher nature, the soul. The soul is the basis of your intuition, your joy your purpose of living. And so, if you want to live a meaningful, joyful and intuitive life you have to involve the soul in your everyday life. Let’s begin to do it.

Preparatory Exercises

a) Take Mini Breaks

Take a mini break of about 20 minutes every day to spend time with yourself. During that time you can do anything that is not ‘work related’. You should also avoid reading the news or your emails during this time since such things keep the mind occupied with personal thoughts.

b) Create some ‘sacred space’ at home

Begin by making your room clean, organised and well arranged. If you leave this space disorganized and cluttered for days, it will become a source of disturbance or negative energy in your life. So mark out some time for clearing up the mess and arranging everything properly on a regular basis. Let’s say, you will do it on Saturday morning.

c) Keep a sacred spot

Put your favorite object, photo and or talisman in your sacred place. It may be a religious icon, the photo of a saint or master, or simply a rosary – anything that lifts your spirits. Then daily make some offering to it. It may be a fresh flower, the light of a candle, or the smoke of an incense stick. Further, chant a mantra or say a prayer to charge your sacred place with vibrations of peace and tranquility. Then when you sit in this place, it will immediately put you into a receptive mood.

The Practice

In the morning, sit quietly in your sacred spot and think you are in the presence of your guiding spirit (like a master or your soul). Then some questions on what is to come during the day will come into your mind. Verbalize them and put them one at a time before to your guiding spirit. Then ask for guidance. Something will come – now or later on.
During the day, pay keen attention to the world around you. At every point of choice or interpretation, don’t get to it by yourself. Instead, refer it to your guiding spirit. It will send an image into your mind which will show the matter in a different light. Persist in this practice and you will come out of the ordinary world and experience into an extraordinary one – wherein the old rules of the ego don’t apply. It will relieve you.
In the evening, mentally speak to your guiding spirit. Speak just as you would speak to a dear friend. Tell what happened and what you are thinking of doing next. Then once again ask for approval or guidance.

The Steps

Open yourself to intuitive guidance daily
Expect intuitive guidance in all matters concerning your life
Once you get the intuitive idea or feeling, trust it and put your reliance on it
Then begin to act on the intuition instead of postponing the action.

In the beginning your intuition will not be clear. It happens to everyone. It is due to mental restlessness or your egoistic considerations. However, when you act on the little intuition you have received, it will be easier to receive more of it. As you persist with these exercises the balance will change in your mind and suddenly you will find that your intuition has become more reliable.

Some Suggestions

You have to ask for intuition. It usually doesn’t happen by itself. You have to value it. You have to want it above all things. Then it comes.
When you live by intuition, being right is not the goal; being sensitive to the truth or the higher nature is the goal. Some misunderstandings and misinterpretations will arise. Consider them to be a part of your development process.
Try to share your intuitive insights with people who are supportive. Don’t show off. Do it to reinforce this new habit.
When you use intuition, you don’t try to do everything by yourself. You only focus on doing your part and the invisible helpers will bring others to collaborate with you. You have to observe this.
Regard your intuitive message as a directive from the boss. Try to follow it even when it inconveniences you or upsets your personal plans. Consider your success as following your intuition.
Use intuition to inject a sense of wonder in your life. So, when the phone rings, mentally ask who is calling? When you need to park, mentally ask where is the space kept for you? When you receive mail, mentally ask what is the content? When you meet someone, mentally ask what is the person up to? When you go for a feast, mentally ask what is on the menu?
Always show gratitude for receiving the intuition. Verbalize it when you sit in your sacred place. Before going to sleep you can think of something good that happened during the day. Take the opportunity (and every opportunity) to thank your guiding spirit for its support. It will enliven your intimacy with your guiding spirit.
Daily use your connection with the guiding spirit to send a smile to the people you are connected with. It will overcome your indifference to people and events.

Some results

Living by intuition is simply listening to our heart or the higher nature before we decide or act. What happens when we do that? We get a direction or clue for searching the truth in any real-life situation.

The insight got through intuition comes from a higher level intelligence. Hence, will be more reliable and balanced than what we can get through mere rational inference. However, initially we can get intuition only in ‘flashes’ or pieces. So, we have to put the pieces together through mental inference! This becomes the source of our mistakes. However, as our intuition develops the pieces become larger; and they fit better into the greater picture.

There is a lot of inner work that has to be done before intuition can become a fact in our life. However, as we do this work, it will totally change how we make our decisions or interpret the happenings of life. Gradually a ‘truth sense’ will arise, which will point out the difference between what is true and what is false; between what is real and what is imaginary; and between what is valuable and what is worthless in all real-life situations.

Ultimately we shall perceive the action of a higher consciousness behind all the happenings of life. Then we know that the world is in safe hands; and we will be able to serve our purpose in life with grace and ease.

To know more, click on to our page on Yoga-Mysticism

The Virtue of Slowing Down

© October 2015, by Prashant Shah, spiritual-living.in

Quote from a song by Simon & Garfunkel: “Slow down, you move too fast; you’ve got to make the moment last; just sitting around and kicking the corner stone; looking for fun and feeling groovy.”

In the modern world people try to get things done fast and play busy. Hence, we show the great virtue of moving slowly and not hurrying through life.

When we are at peace with ourselves, we rarely choose to be in a hurry. Hence, hurrying up is an egoistic movement that pushes us to get things done, as though that is all that matters right now. But when we keep on hurrying, our life becomes superficial. Although we can be satisfied with the results we have for a while, the joy does not last. Soon we become dissatisfied or bored and begin to rush into doing something else. Let us try to understand why this happens.

When we rush, we act like an automaton or a machine. Then we are consumed by doing things that can increase the ‘quantity’, but not the ‘quality’ of our life. Further, it makes us respond to the ego’s wants and not to the deeper wants of our true, inner being. Then, we don’t seek the joy from living, but we seek it from getting more money or more power. It can give us some temporary satisfaction, but we have to keep on chasing things to sustain it.

When we slow down our pace of life and combine it with a devotional attitude, we can access a spiritual presence that is itself joyful and filled with wisdom. On the other hand, when we combine hurrying up with personal ambition, we view our life through the lens of fear, scarcity and competition. Then we cannot trust life and allow it to look after us. Instead, we have to cope with our fears and insecurities by constantly pushing ourselves to do something. It gets us caught up in the ego’s world, where we can never be at rest or just be. It makes us we lose our touch with a spiritual presence which seems to tell us all is going to be well.

If we are truly thoughtful, we can understand that our life is much more than just getting things done; that there has to be something deeper and more mysterious behind all this outer activity that makes sense of the drama of our life. We can intuitively begin to understand that there is a spiritual presence behind the happenings of life; and that it is guiding us to move us naturally and spontaneously in various ways.

However, as long as we keep on hurrying through our activities, we march to the drumbeat of our ego. Then we don’t notice what else is there besides the ego’s voice in our head; and we don’t notice the spiritual presence at the core of our being that is continuously seeking to guide us.

Further, we don’t take the time to do the little things that this spiritual presence suggests — like just hanging around peacefully; being patient with other people; playing with animals or children, being present to the situation that you are in; or simply sending off a kind email to a friend. The ego doesn’t initiate such acts because it does not perceive any value in them. Such acts are motivated by our spiritual being, and not by our ego.

The strange thing is that when we slow down, we actually find the time to do such little things. We do them because it makes us feel good about doing them. We feel that doing such things is worthwhile. However, if we keep up a fast pace of life, we only amplify the ego’s voice that says: “Hurry up; you still have a lot more to do; you’ll never get it done in time; you didn’t do that well; you cannot have the time for doing such little things…”

The voice of the ego not only disconnects us from the ‘quiet voice of our higher consciousness’, but it also keeps us stressed-out and not feeling too good about ourselves. So, when we find that we have gotten into such a state, all we have to do to regain our perspective is to simply slow down. It will make us look at life through different eyes and feel it with a different heart. Then, instead of being lost in the ego’s ideas about what our life should look like, we can accept life as it is and as it comes. It will make our life more joyful, meaningful and valuable to us and to others.

If you enjoyed this blog post, we’d like to know. Thanks.

The way

Live the truth of health

A Practice: Choose what you think

Affirmations for good health

Some necessary points of view

Contents:

1. Make the necessary inner changes

2. Freedom and how to achieve it

3. Approach life as a banquet

4. Act well the part that is given to you

5. All advantages have their price

6. Our duties are revealed by our relationships

7. Control your interpretations

8. Serve the greater purpose

Contents:

1. The Cosmos according to Occult Philosophy

Some Opinions Received:

2. The Cosmic Cycle and the Sign of Our Times

Some Opinions received:

3. The Way of the Mystic

Some Opinions received:

4. The Hidden Side of Spiritual Practice (Sadhana)

Contents

Some Opinions Received:

5. EKS: A Growth and Success Strategy

The Course Contents

About the Program:

What Our Participants Say:

Contents:

1. Understanding Karma and Destiny

Contents

Some Opinions received:

2. Concentration and Mind Training

In this workshop you learn to:

Some Opinions received:

3. The Art of Succeeding with People

Contents:

Some Opinions received:

4. Restore your Health Naturally

5. Living by Intuition

Contents:

6. The Spiritual Tradition of the Ancient Hindus

Contents:

7. The Biochemic Way to Health

8. How to Recognise a Sage?

Some Opinions Received:

CONTENTS:

1. Our condition at the beginning

2. Taking control of our attention

3. The nature of the subconscious

4. What we see in the subconscious

5. The inner battle

6. After the victory

7. The separate awareness

8. The purpose of the separate awareness

9. Awareness beyond the mind

Adapted from the book ‘The Art of Awakening the Soul’ © 2011, Prashant S. Shah; http://www.spiritual-living.in

CONTENTS:

1. The world as consciousness

2. Our personal consciousness

3. The human situation

4. What is Bondage?

5. The Separation

6. What is Purification?

7. The Al-chemical Marriage

The two levels of our consciousness

The Process of Spiritual Growth

The Spiritual Purpose of our life

The Coming of the New Era

How can I Participate?

On Promoting a Spiritual Mission

Contents:

Introducing the Inner Life

On the Correspondence Courses

Course-1: Mind Training & Meditation

Course-2: Mantra Yoga

Course-3: Yoga-Mysticism

Course-4: Advanced Spiritual Practice

Advantages of learning through Correspondence

About Darshana Centre