Four Pillars of Wisdom

[Guest guest]

>From Ashokananda's "Four Pillars of Wisdom"

 

Now it is true that practice - just mechanical practice of withdrawing

the mind from outside things and concentrating it on one object - has

a great deal to do with acquiring the ability to meditate, but to be

successful in meditation and not to lose what you have gained by a

future revolt of the mind, you should have reached a condition where

the mind no longer wants any external thing. So ultimately you come

to the principle of renunciation. I cannot emphasise this too much.

Unless you have freed the mind from its natural habit of running out

and have brought it fully under control, you cannot make much

headway in meditation. But when you have attained to the condition

of perfect self-control so that the mind remains quiet in the bosom

of God, rests there,, then you feel His shining, loving presence......

Without renunciation you cannot attain to that state.

[Guest guest]

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<Afperry

<vivekananda

Thursday, August 02, 2001 11:59

Four Pillars Of Wisdom

 

> I am liking what I read on the Ramakrishna newsgroup and wonder whether

this

> and other books by Swami Ashokananda are commercially available in the UK

> (this one is not on the Vedanta Press). Perhaps you could advise me.

> Many thanks,

> God bless,

> Alan Perry

 

Dear Alan

 

I too was struck by some of the material that I came across

in Swami Ashokananda's talks. He was the swami in charge of

the Ramakrishna centres in San Francisco. If I remember it

rightly he passed away in 1969. His life story (of what I have read) is

equally inspiring. Some of the Ramakrishna List members

were personally involved with him (Like Swami Yogeshanada of

the Atalanta Centre).

 

Swami Yogeshananda has written a book called the 'Six lighted

windows' in which he gives a good account of his encounter with

Swami Ashokanada. (I am sending a copy of this email to him

so he can guide you about this and other books by Swami Ashokananda).

 

Some of these books by Swami Ashokananda

are available at Ramakrishna Vedanta Centre in London

Tel: 01628526464

 

The book that I quoted from is called "Ascent to spiritual Ilumination"

Ten lectures on Spiritual practice.