How to choose a spiritual practice

[Guest guest]

NAMASTE

 

Welcome Ken, to Shree Maa's family. Glad you could join us. I read

your post with delight. What a great place to be, thinking about the

divine and deciding where to put your attention. I understand your

desire to connect to the highest purest source in order to have the

most powerful connection and experience. I too have been in your

shoes, and I can offer advice from a book from the Devi Mandir

entitled, "Before Becoming This". It is a book of interviews with

Shree Maa and Swami regarding all aspects of life and spiritual

growth. Also, there is a mantra for worship of Surya which one could

repeat if desired. There is a great CD from the Devi Mandir website

which has Maa chanting the mantras of the nine planets, including

Surya. It is very powerful.

On page 269, Chapter 25,Shree Maa is asked how to choose a spiritual

practice.

Maa: "The only way to choose a path is through inspiration. We need

to find the example, the Guru, who inspires us to choose that path.

If we get inspired by a Buddhist or a Christian or a Muslim or a Jew,

it doesn't make a bit of difference. We will find that the eternal

ideal of perfection is attainable through any discipline that we pursue.

Many Westerners go from one path to another, from one inspiration to

another because that wasn't their true inspiration. There are many

levels of inspiration. Some inspirations are so great they evoke

commitment, and some are so transitory they inspire little or no

commitment.

It is possible to be inspired by something that is not your path, but

happens to be right in front of you and that is OK, and we will pursue

it until we find that it's not our path and then we'll be ready for

the next inspiration. It will lead us to the next step. We will

search many paths until we find something that inspires us enough to

make a commitment. Once we make a commitment, we can begin to practice.

If it is satisfying, it will draw us to practice.

In the meantime, we follow every inspiration we get. We may get the

inspiration to do the wrong thing for us, but eventually we'll realize

that and leave that inspiration because it no longer calls to us. We

may get the inspiration to do the right thing for us and start it with

a minimum of engaegment and effort until we find that it's really

neat. It will make us want to give more effort; it will pull us in.

It is not something you will have to force yourself to do. You don't

meet someone and say, "I am going to force myself to fall in love with

him or her." It just doesn't happen that way. You fall in love

gradually or you fall in love head over heels at first sight. Either

way, one we have made the commitment, we want to honor that commitment

and pursue it with conviction.

Even thought you have distractions and many demands, when you love so

much that you don't think about all the distractions and you only

think about your beloved, then you really are a lover.

How do you get to that place? You keep trying. You don't say, "Just

because I didn't automatically fall in love at first sight, I'm not

going to try it anymore." You take the small inspiration you do get

and cultivate it. Try to put yourself in the position of a lover

instead of waiting to be loved. First you become the lover, and after

a while you become the beloved.

What does that mean? When you become a lover, you become the person

you love the most. You know what it is like to love. So you give

yourself over to that love. That is pure love without selfishness.

You love yourself because you know your true self. When you know your

true self, you know God. You know your beloved. You make friends

with your best friend, the closest person to you, yourself. The you

cultivate that relationship. We can't expect love to just descend on

poor, little, unworthy me. When we love God in such a way that we

become the lover, then we are putting out the energy of love, and

automatically it will come back to us.

You may choose the path of hatha yoga or sitting or chanting or study

or whatever "ism" you choose. There are only a certain, limited

number of practices. The mantras are different, the language is

different, the customs are different. there's a little bit of a twist

on the philosophy. But either you are going to sit down or stand up,

sing, or be quiet. Either you are going to focus inside or focus on

one point outside. The practice is essentailly the same. There are

very few distinctions in the practice when you look at what people are

doing.

One of the common denominators in all practices in the cultivation of

satsangha, the association with people who are doing similiar

practices. In every "ism" we have a congregation and we get together

and do a number of different activities. Satsangha is a bonding

process which creates an opportunity for people to grow by receiving

inspiration and feedback from others who are practicing in a similiar

way.

If these ideas resonate with you. I will share the thoughts from Maa

about how to start a spiritual practice from next chapter of the book,

#26, entitled, "Getting Started". In it, Maa helps one understand the

act of worship and talks about worship of Shiva, the Guru of all the

Gods. She often recommends one begin worship by learning Shiva Puja

for Beginners. There is a book and CD on the web site for sale.

 

If you become inspired to worship any aspect of God, Maa and Swami

have translated scriptures for worship of all the Gods and Godesses.

The books have the Sanskrit mantras, and the transliterations, and the

English. Some of them are also on CD, chanted by Maa or Swami so one

can learn by listening and following in the book.

 

Hope this helps. I worship Shiva and Surga daily for many years so can

offer help if you desire.

 

Jai Maa Jai Swami

 

vishweshwar

 

 

 

 

 

 

, kenshaw007 wrote:

>

> Respected Devotees,

> When I found this community I was basicly familiar with the "Hari

Krishna" school of the Vedic tradition, and, more extensively, with

Buddhism.

> Over time I've begun to understand that the Devi Mandir Tradition is

in the great Tradition of Shree Adi Shankaracharya's Smarta lineage.

> I have a general question about the individual Ishta-Devata. Is it

proper for the individual seeker to chose a personal Ista-Devata based

on a personal sense of inner attraction to that deity, or should the

seeker be given the Ishta-Devata by the Guru, like a Doctor prescribes

medicine to a patient?

> I have an interest in Surya Deva, because He goes all the way back

to the RgVeda, which appeals to my hunger to connect with the most

ancient Tradition. Then again, my Jyotish chart indicates that I have

a severly debilitated Sun, which should be remedied by Surya worship.

> So I have personal reasons for being "interested" in Surya, but I'm

not at all sure if my "personal reason" are a valid means of entering

to a devotionl commitment to an Ishta_Devata.

> Can anyone help with this??

>

> Thanks!

> Ken Shaw

>