Aum Namah Sivaya
For those that missed it, one of our latest publications is now available on our Himalayan Academy website. Gurudeva’s Seven Dimensions of the Mind is a powerful guide to the inner workings of our own inner and outer being. It’s currently available here in PDF, Epub and Kindle editions.

“The dimensions are a positive and helpful way of looking at life and understanding the experiences we have on the inward path. By identifying experience as being within one dimension or another, we are able to know at all times just where we are in consciousness, and that knowledge is the control over awareness that we need to continue the upward climb.

“At all times we are flowing through all of the dimensions. They all exist in total completion right now within us. However, we are only conscious periodically in one or another of them as awareness magnifies itself and registers the dimension by focusing upon it, shall we say.”

Gurudeva loved the idea of a black lava rock plinth sitting below the almost white granite stones of the temple, making the impression (especially once the landscaping is in place) that the temple sits atop a small mountain. This sense of elevation and color contrast is part of the magic he envisioned.

Yesterday the team (originally from Turkey) removed the tent shelters on the East side of the temple, revealing for the first time the completed plinth. There is more to be done on the other sides in the months ahead. It was last May that this project began, after years of planning and fund-raising. So, ten full months of work, and a few more to go. We took some photos last May when it began and offer today a simple photo-timelapse of the project, including at the end some close-ups of the finished effect. Now you have to imagine bronze panels populating the 14" by 47" frames on the perimeter wall. Elegant is a word that comes to mind.

Jai Gurudeva!

This morning our monks celebrated the Chitra nakshatra with their usual padapuja to Sivaya Subramuniyaswami. Yogi's Dayanatha and Haranandinatha performed the abhishekam.

"When you meditate, you become inwardly strong. You become extremely sensitive, and sensitivity is strength. But if you are not psychologically adjusted to the things you may be hearing and seeing and the depth to which you might see, you might see things that will be disturbing to you, that will upset your nerve system. Now, it is true that if you are centered in yourself completely enough to be all spine and just a being of energy, you can go anyplace in any type of environment, inside or outside, and the environment would be better for your having been there. You would not absorb any of the distracting or negative vibrations. But until that day comes, it is better to be wise and live in a positive vibration and among people who can help stabilize the force field around you, so that your inner life goes on without interruptions—of spinning out, having to crawl back, and spinning out and then having to crawl back. Why go through all those frustrating experiences, which are inconvenient, time consuming and totally unnecessary?" Gurudeva

Satguru Bodhinatha Veylaswami gives an Part 8 of his upadesha series on the concept of awareness and omnipresence from the yogic perspective.

Today we share Satguru's recent talks on Awareness and Omnipresence, a recounting of Gurudeva's upadeshas on the esoterics of previously unpublished works on Shum and of his writings on the Seven Dimensions of the Mind. Some of the works of Gurudeva during the 1970s are brought through from a rishi in the inner planes.

These are available through the SivaSivaApp on your phone. Go to the "Listen" module and select the collection "Bodhinatha's Recent Talks" for available links.

• 2021-02-21 - Awareness and Omnipresence-Niimf, Iif, Part 7
• 2021-02-12 - Awareness and Omnipresence-Iif, Part 6
• 2021-02-06 - Awareness and Omnipresence-Kaif, Part 5
• 2021-01-30 - Concept of Awareness and Your Omnipresence, Part 4
• 2021-01-22 - The Concept of Awareness, Part 3
• 2021-01-14 - The Concept of Awareness, Part 2
• 2021-01-07 - Concept of Awareness, Part 1

• 2020-12-23 - The Second Dimension and the Shum Perspective
• 2020-11-23 - The Third Dimension and the Shum Perspective, Part 2
• 2020-11-17 - The Third Dimension and the Shum Perspective, Part 1
• 2020-11-02 - The Fourth Dimension and the Shum Perspective, Part 2
• 2020-10-25 - The Fourth Dimension and the Shum Perspective, Part 1
• 2020-10-17 - The Fifth Dimension and the Shum Perspective, Part 4
• 2020-10-11 - The Fifth Dimension and the Shum Perspective, Part 3
• 2020-10-03 - The Fifth Dimension and the Shum Perspective, Part 2
• 2020-09-25 - The Fifth Dimension and the Shum Perspective, Part 1
• 2020-09-18 - The Sixth Dimension and the Shum Perspective, Part 2
• 2020-09-11 - The Sixth Dimension and the Shum Perspective, Part 1
• 2020-09-04 - The Seventh Dimension-Pure Awareness, Part 2
• 2020-08-27 - Shum on the Seven Dimensions, Pure Awareness

Aum Namah Sivaya

Recently we took some new aerial photos from our little drone. It was a chance to discover our aadheenam grounds, temples, building and gardens from a new perspective. Our hilly landscape and fascinating species of plants make for quite a picture. It's important to get an overview once in a while to keep the little things in proper perspective. They're just smalls strokes in a grand painting of life. Aum.

Recently the island of Kauai received a bout of heavy rains which fell for several days upon Mount Waialeale. This in turn caused the sacred Wailua River to flood its banks in a spectacular display of natural energy. Large branches and whole trees were whisked downriver. Here, we flew our small Quad Copter out over the waterfall to get a closer look. Aum.

Aum Namah Sivaya

Today was the Ardra Nakshatra, a time when our monks perform their monthly abhishekam to Lord Nataraja in Kadavul Temple. After several weeks of perfecting the gold leaf on Yogaswami's statue it was finally complete and this was the day he wanted to move. Yogaswami was brought up to Kadavul Temple and placed before Nataraja for the duration of the puja. Afterwards he was brought through the temple to the Guru Pitam where his small shrine resides and the statue was reinstalled. Aum.

You think that you are the doer and fall into the trap of bondage. But everything was accomplished long ago. Yogaswami