Unexpected synchronicities between people, a sign that the inner timing is going well. Be a little more than human; go within with willpower and find the strength to give. Desires, cravings, aversions, being overly attracted to the material world creates unneeded mental activity.

Commentary on The Master Course, Lesson 328.

Unedited Transcript:

Good morning everyone.

Reading some from today's "Merging with Siva" Lesson which is 328: "Clinging to the Light Within."

"Many years ago, during the spring at our Mountain Desert Monastery, a young man wrote to me saying that he intended to give up the world and become a Hindu monk. Here is a letter that I wrote in response and an inspired talk I sent to him to ponder, entitled "On the Brink of the Absolute."

"'Namaste! Your lovely letter arrived just as I returned to the monastery today from our India Odyssey pilgrimage to my ashram in Alaveddy, Sri Lanka, and eight other countries. That good timing indicates that you are on an inner beam, no doubt from the efforts already expended in your spiritual quest."

In terms of good timing, it's interesting to note that had our two mantra diksha ceremonies this morning. And was checking my e-mail beforehand and there was one e-mail, title said: samaya diksha. And a devotee in Australia had just completed the requirements for samaya diksha and was requesting samaya diksha. Requesting it the very morning we had the ceremony. I thought that this was an example of this principle of good timing, when we have unexpected synchronicities between people, between events. A sign that the inner timing is going well. And why is the inner timing going well?

Gurudeva explains: "...no doubt from the efforts already expended in your spiritual quest."

So, for good timing to be going well between those who are following spiritual path it means they're both putting energy into their spiritual quest. The timing isn't going well then it means somebody's slacking off.

"From your letter, it is certain that you have exhausted the many dead-end trails on the path. Your decision to be a renunciate monastic is a good one. It is a big step and I know you have thought it over well. Times are changing. Dedicated souls like yourself are needed as helpers on the path in our monastic orders to stabilize and teach those who are seeking. It is time now for the Western mind to rediscover the vast teachings of Saiva Siddhanta Hinduism."

(And I'll skip a paragraph.)

Gurudeva goes on to say: "It is my duty as your spiritual teacher to to assure you that there will be..."

What do you think he says? Lots of good times? That life's going to be easy from now on? No! He doesn't say that. He says:

"It is my duty as your spiritual teacher to assure you that there will be trials. The spiritual path is not an easy one. It will demand of you more than you ever thought possible. You will surely be asked to serve when tired, to inspire when you feel a little irritated, to give when it seems there is nothing left to offer."

Isn't that a nice sentence? So it shows that we don't want to just be human, we want to be a little more than that. And we're tired and we really don't feel we can give any more to go within to find some strength and give anyway. You know we have that ability to go within and kind of do more than just an ordinary person would do in that circumstances because we're in touch with our willpower and know we can do better and offer more than what is common.

"...The goal, of course, is Self Realization. That will come naturally. A foundation is needed first, a foundation nurtured through slow and arduous study, through sadhana performed and the demands placed by the guru upon the aspirant. 'This is a wonderful crossroad into your life. Don't hurry into it.'"

Then Gurudeva give him the assignment of reading: "The Brink of the Absolute, every day. So we'll just read a few lines from that.

"The higher states of consciousness very few people are familiar with, having never experienced them. They are very pleasant to learn of, and yet out of our grasp until we have that direct experience of a higher state of expanded consciousness. The mind, in its density, keeps us from knowledge of the Self. And then we attain a little knowledge of the existence of the Self as a result of the mind freeing itself from desires and cravings, hates and fears and the various and varied things of the mind. I say 'things' because if you could see hate, you would see it as a thing that lives within one as a companion. If you could see fear, you'd see it as a thing, and as an understanding comes, and as understanding comes, that thing called fear walks away down the road, never to return."

Very interesting, similar to what Patanjali says in his yoga sutras, is talking about the various kinds of mental activity and what generates it. Talks about attraction, which is what this is talking about. Freeing yourself from desires and cravings. You're attracted to something and that creates a lot of mental activity. But what Patanjali says after that is aversion. We dislike something. And that also causes the same amount of mental activity. So it's not something we usually think about. So, we have to be careful not only not to get overly attracted by believing those adds on television, you know. Overly attracted to the material world but we want to also be careful not to dislike or with or feel or shun. You know, stand back from things, have them effect us in the opposite way. Cause that also generates unneeded mental activity.

Have a wonderful day.

Aum Namah Sivaya