“My guru was standing motionless before me; I started to drop at his holy feet in gratitude for the experience in cosmic consciousness which I had long passionately sought. He held me upright, and spoke calmly, unpretentiously.
“You must not get overdrunk with ecstasy. Much work yet remains for you in the world. Come; let us sweep the balcony floor; then we shall walk by the Ganges.”
I fetched a broom; Master, I knew, was teaching me the secret of balanced living. The soul must stretch over the cosmogonic abysses, while the body performs its daily duties.”
This excerpt from Paramhansa Yogananda’s spiritual classic, Autobiography of a Yogi, describes on a grand scale, the challenge of every aspiring yogi. In our lives we may not be so uplifted as to experience cosmic consciousness….yet, but we do experience almost immediately the cool, refreshing waters of inner peace that a regular meditation practice bestows. The challenge is always, how do we bring it into our daily lives?
Cosmic Consciousness is our birthright, for now dipping into the peace and then learning the proper way to “sweep the floor” with the awareness of God in us and all around us, is the task at hand.
Yogananda’s teachings offer many strategies and techniques to help us integrate our experiences and grow spiritually, not the least being, keeping the company of other like-minded, consciously aspiring souls. We call that satsang. Environment has a lot to do with our ability to foster right attitudes while nurturing the peace within us. Finding balance in our lives means making different choices: how we spend our time, who we spend it with, and discernment over what really nurtures our endeavors to live in a more uplifted consciousness.
A recent article in Scientific American, talks about new research that has shown how our brain waves synchronize with each other. In other words, “being on the same wavelength” as another person is literally speaking the truth!
We can help each other by coming together “synchronizing of our brainwaves” into uplifted consciousness. We hope you will join us at the Ananda Sangha House for any of our many gatherings. It will be a strong reminder of the enhanced value of keeping spiritual company.
Ananda in Texas