The Joy of Silence

Baba Hari Dass was a sadhu and spiritual teacher from North India who observed the spiritual discipline of “maun” (complete silence). His was not a life of seclusion but rather one of vigorous activity as an author, builder, and joyful teacher. When circumstances demanded, he communicated with a small chalkboard upon which he scribbled cryptic notes, and though his voice was silent, he spoke abundantly with his eyes, expression and bearing, displaying an inner power that attracted all who came into his orbit. Known affectionately as “Babaji” to his disciples, Baba Hari Dass left his body on 25 September, 2018 at the age of 95.  

When I was a young man, new to spiritual practices, I first met Baba Hari Dass in California. I had never encountered anyone such as him although I had heard of yogis who lived in mountain caves, but for someone to intentionally keep silent while engaged in a busy life was something I’d never considered. Intrigued by his example and spiritually eager, I decided to experiment with silence and see what happened.  

My first attempt lasted one day, away from opportunities to speak with others. Encouraged, I then tried practicing in the midst of my day-to-day life but, as you might imagine, that was not so easy. We often don’t notice a habit’s grip upon us until we try to change it and so it was for me. The effort to remain silent in the midst of others made me even more restless than before but nevertheless, I persisted and by the second day, my thoughts had calmed and the desire to mix with others melted away.  For convenience, I pinned a little note onto my shirt that said “Please excuse me, I’m practicing silence today.” At that time of my life, I was fortunate enough to live in an ashram, surrounded by supportive friends, but even in less supportive environments, I found it possible to practice with a little bit of extra effort.

Silence awakened me to how much physical and “psychic” energy is lost through “chatter.” To my surprise, after a day or two of silence, I felt physically energized and needed less sleep. What I had thought so important to share didn’t need to be said at all and no longer did it seem necessary for me to “add my two cents” to every discussion, big or small. An inner relaxation came and I put aside my compulsion to interject my opinion into others’ conversations. Thomas Merton, a Christian mystic, once said, “It is not speaking that breaks our silence, but the anxiety to be heard.” That anxiety well describes the popularity of social media and the ego’s compulsion “to be heard” and assert its existence.  

The deeper purpose of restraining speech is, of course, to nurture an inner stillness of heart, the goal of meditation and the state in which love attains perfection. Saint Augustine reminds us, "Lord, Thou hast made us for Thyself, and our heart is restless until it finds its rest in Thee". Inner silence, by calming the heart’s impulse to reach outside of itself, makes possible divine perception. After incarnations of searching elsewhere, we find fulfillment in God’s presence within.

Why not experiment and give silence a try? Here’s a few benefits you may notice after a very short time.

- You will gain control over your emotions, especially anger and criticism.

- Fewer useless thoughts will bother you.

- You will find more time to introspect.

- You will be better able to keep your attention at the spiritual eye.

- Practicing “maun” is a powerful complement to the practice of “Japa”.

- You will learn to listen. In growing silence, God’s whispers are heard.

Look for Opportunities

Years ago, Sadhana Devi and I were asked by Swami Kriyananda to become Directors of an Ananda meditation retreat established on the East Coast of America. That was a big change for us native Californians as we had both been staying at Ananda Village for many years. Naturally, I was curious about our future duties.

A few weeks later, I had the good fortune to sit directly across from Swami Kriyananda at a luncheon. My mind was full of questions about our coming move as I waited for a break in the conversation to ask them.  When it came, I seized my chance. “Swamiji, we’ll be shifting to Rhode Island soon and I’m wondering if you have any advice.  What exactly are we to do?”  With hardly a pause, he looked at me and replied, “Look for opportunities and act on them!”  Saying nothing more, he continued with his meal. 

Over the years I’ve meditated on those words and have discovered layers of meaning within them. Opportunity presents itself every day but how often do we recognize it?  It often comes disguised as challenges and sometimes we find opportunity has been knocking at our door for years but we’ve failed to recognize it.  Often, one man sees his path blocked while another sees the same barriers as a signal to turn left or right.  

I remember an old story of two shoe salesmen who sailed to a foreign land.  Upon disembarking, the first noticed the locals were barefoot as it was the custom in those parts to go without shoes.  He sent a telegram back to his office, “Returning home. No hope for shoe sales here.” The second salesman, noticing the same conditions, immediately wired, “Great opportunity!  Send more shoes immediately!”

The perception of opportunity demands a willingness to look for it as well as an openness of heart and mind to perceive it. The opportunistic man has an ability to see life in fresh, new ways.  Creative inspiration is the product of a developed intuition, the same “sixth sense” through which we experience divinity.  Paramhansa Yogananda defined intuition as the “direct perception of reality,” without the intermediary of the physical senses.  It is the direct fruit of daily meditation and our practice of kriya yoga.  

Let’s be like the second salesman and open our eyes to possibilities. Then act! Don’t be a bystander. An enthusiastic response to whatever life offers will clarify your vision and magnetically draw additional opportunities.  By sensitive receptivity and positive, willing action, success will come.  

Stillness is the Altar of Spirit

As a child in Los Angeles, Nayaswami Dhyana, Ananda Sangha India’s Spiritual Director, attended church every Sunday with her mother.  African American congregations are noted for their exuberance and lively spirit and her church was no exception. Dhyanaji once laughingly commented upon her minister’s Sunday discourse on the oft-quoted Biblical verse, “Be still and know that I am God.” “I can assure you,” she said, “Nobody was ever still in my church!” 

“Stillness is the altar of Spirit. Where motion ceases, Spirit begins to manifest.” Paramhansa Yogananda was referring to the “inner stillness” behind the outer world of emotions, sense enjoyments, desires and restless thoughts. At the still center of all vibratory motion, the soul perceives love, bliss, infinite peace and the mystical sounds of Aum. 

Sri Yukteswar tells of his once meeting Mahavatar Babaji in Serampore. When he excitedly rushed home to return with an offering of sweets, Babaji had disappeared. The great guru later explained, “I assure you that I was fairly extinguished in the ether by the gust of your restlessness.” So it is with us, a hundred-fold. Only when motion ceases is God revealed.   

It's not possible to hear God’s whispers if we fidget and make only restless appeals. Stillness within comes when we first learn to be still without. I have found my daily meditation greatly improved simply by keeping my body absolutely still for an extended time. This is the essence of Patanjali’s meaning of asana in his Yoga Sutras, the ability to hold the body absolutely steady. Physical, mental and emotional movement draws our attention away from the stillness residing at the heart of all creation. 

Try this when you next meditate. Sit upright in a comfortable position, one that allows you to both relax your body while also maintaining a straight spine. With your eyes gently uplifted toward the spiritual eye, calm the breath and feel yourself to be a solid block of stone or a mighty mountain, immovable and rooted to your seat, impervious to the winds of change. Relax into this image and become infinitely heavy beyond the point of possible movement. Let not the slightest muscle move while you mentally affirm, “My mind is steadfast as a rock.” You will soon begin to forget your body as your spirit soars. 

Eventually, your attention will be drawn to one remaining obstacle to perfect physical stillness, the breath. Watch it intently. Lose yourself in concentration upon the breath and the pauses between. You will find it naturally and effortlessly calming until, at last, it too ceases to move. What freedom you will then feel. In breathlessness is deathlessness. 

Guruji said, “Free the mind with the steel knife of stillness. Cut loose your consciousness from the body. Use it no more as an excuse to accept limitations.” In the mirror of inner stillness, we will see God’s face reflected.

Magnetism

Walking past a bookstore in Guangzhou, China, a lady I know glanced at the display of newly released books in the front window.   Her attention was drawn to a picture of a long-haired man in robes.  Stopping, she studied the face more closely and spontaneously began to weep, overcome by an unexplained emotion.   Collecting herself, she continued her walk, but within a short distance she stopped again and was drawn back for second look at what had so moved her.  Again, tears came to her eyes as she entered and purchased a copy.  That book was the “Autobiography of a Yogi.”  

Dramatic as this story is, it‘s not unique.  I’ve heard similar accounts and, in fact, my own introduction to “The Autobiography” was much the same.  A recent graduate from college, I had been drifting aimlessly toward a career when I came upon the “AY” and my life radically changed course.  It was as if a door had opened, inviting me into another realm.  Swami Kriyananda too had a similar experience and later asked Yogananda about the book’s influence.  “Yes,” the Master said, “It’s because I put my ‘vibrations’ into it.”  

What did Yogananda mean by that?   Just as we know spoken words convey a speaker’s consciousness, so too does the written “voice” reveal an author’s character.  Some immediately attract us while others do the opposite, repelling us like a magnet.  That woman in China was sensitive to Yogananda’s “magnetism” which awakened long buried feelings and “memories”.  

The analogy of a magnet is particularly apt in the study of yoga.  From physics we learn of two ways to create one. The first is to place a bar of iron in close proximity to a strong magnet.  In time, the bar too becomes magnetized simply by being in association with the strong magnet.  For a spiritual aspirant, the lesson is obvious; put yourself in the company of those who are spiritually strong and your own strength increases. 

Yogananda often quoted a phrase from the Bible, “To all those who receivedhim, gave He power to become the Sons of God.” When with close disciples, rarely did he speak of philosophy or techniques, but instead he emphasized attunement to the guru.  “Be in tune,” he repeatedly advised.  To the receptive and willing heart that is “in tune”, the guru magnetically transfers his blessings.  

There is a second way to create a magnet.  By rotating a current of electricity around an iron bar, the bar’s molecules align themselves in a uniform north/south polarity to create a magnetic field.   Applying this principle to meditation and pranayam gives us the science of Kriya Yoga. Subtle pranic currents associated with the breath are rotated around the central “bar” of the spine, thereby aligning our scattered energies to create a magnetic pull upon the outward flow of life force which normally moves toward the senses and outward involvement.  Through daily practice and living in harmony with Nature’s Laws, the yogi withdraws his attention away from the bodily senses into the inner spine and from there, directs his life force upward toward the brain and superconscious bliss.

Magnetism is the secret of all spiritual and material success and is within our power to increase or change.  We draw to us those people, circumstances and opportunities with which we and our karma resonate.  Ask yourself, “To what am I magnetically attuned?”  Prosperity and health come not by karma alone but also by our power of attraction.  Change your magnetism and you will change your life.  

First published in 2016, Speaking Tree, Times of India

Forget the Past

Ed was a neighbor and eventually a friend who looked upon life with a humorous detachment.  He died a few years ago and I can imagine it was with a smile on his face.   Ed was also, as a young man, a bank robber.   Like most who take up that “profession,” he was captured and sent to prison, but a decade in jail didn’t harden him as it does many.  He served his time, studied, got along with others in difficult circumstances and came out looking to start life anew.   

After his release, Ed bounced from one job to another, keeping quiet about his past. Invariably, his prison time would eventually come to light and when it did, his employers’ and co-workers’ attitude toward him would subtly change.  Nothing might be said, but they showed less trust and his relationships with them cooled.

In the eyes of the world, and maybe even in his own, Ed couldn’t escape being an “ex-con” and treated as such.  He felt stigmatized but he was wise enough to do something about it and take a new approach.  When asked, “So Ed, what have you been doing up to now,” he began to casually reply with a smile and seemingly carefree tone, “Oh, nothing much.  I tried robbing banks for a few years but that didn’t work out too well. ” He’d then pause.  His forthright and unusual answer usually gained his listeners’ attention and combined with his relaxed manner, put them at ease enough to ask, “Really? Tell me about it.” Wouldn’t you too be interested in hearing his story? 

Ed had come to see his past as “youthful folly” from which he had learned painful lessons.  As time passed, he saw it as nothing other than an interesting story only, as if it had happened to someone else. In a real sense, that was true.  The old Ed was long gone and as a consequence, others too no longer saw him in that light, as a man not to be trusted.   

Ed’s story is an example of someone not allowing the past to define who and what he is now.  He refused to accept others’ definitions of who he was.  Swami Sri Yukeswar summed this up clearly in the Autobiography of a Yogi, “The past lives of all men are dark with many shames.  Everything in future will improve if we make the right spiritual effort now.”

Our personality is but “clothing” we wear for a short time, remnants we carry from one lifetime to the next, but they are not who we truly are. First and foremost, we are children of God; let that be our self-identity.  Others may choose to see us otherwise but we need not accept their view; the choice is always ours.  When we relax our hold on the past, the past begins to let go of us.  Remembrances of past lives are then seen as but a panorama of light and shade on the screen of duality.     

We are all “works in progress.” Be honest with both yourself and others but don’t advertise your faults either, lest others’ perceptions strengthen your own identification with past mistakes.  Don’t cling to them.   As Ed aged, he rarely mentioned his past as there was no need.  He had accepted it for what it was, an ancient history for which he held karmic responsibility, but he refused to allow it to define who he was now. “Ed, the Bank Robber” had become simply an amusing character from a long time ago.