quote:
From The Book Of Secrets, Dr. Deepak Chopra, page 257-259
In pure essence, Vashistha knew that he had found the secret of universal happiness. That secret has three parts: freedom from all limitation, complete knowledge of creation, and immortality. Vashistha found all three. That such a condition is possible proves the existence of love, since nothing more could be wished for. Until the moment when these three things are achieved, every other awakening is false; the whole universe exists in the dream state, the pursuit of a cosmic delusion.
This delusion has now been presented to you in full. It consists of separation, fragmentation, the loss of wholeness. There must be a final "No!" that refuses to participate in the delusion, and Vashistha has said it, loud and clear. He is often the one teacher I reach for when I imagine that I am in trouble. Reading his words, I can feel myself rising to his level, not fully and not permanently, but with enough validity that I come away feeling reassured. There are times when I want CNN to stop running endless crises in the crawl space at the bottom of the television screen and start running these words instead so that people can be reminded about what's real:quote:
Whatever is in the mind is like a city in the clouds.
The emergence of this world is no more than thoughts coming into manifestation.
From the infinite consciousness we have created each other in our imagination.
As long as there is "you" and an "I," there is no liberation. Dear ones, we are all cosmic consciousness assuming individual form.
It's nearly impossible perhaps to take these noble sentiments into the rough and tumble of everyday life, but the basic thing that Vashistha wants us to do is to live from essence-and that is workable. The teacher I mentioned before, Nisargadatta Maharaj, lived such a life. As a young man he was raised on a farm to walk behind a pair of oxen pulling a plow. But spirituality intrigued him and he made his way to a guru who gave him one piece of advice: "You are the unborn and undying 'I am.' Remember that, and if your mind wanders from this truth, bring it back." The young Maharaj went away, needing no more visits to gurus, and found his essence with that simple teaching.
The most exalted state of awareness comes down to realizing how commonplace it actually is to live a cosmic life. We do it all the time. One only has to listen to how matter-of-factly Vashistha looks around and sees infinity in every direction. His is the teaching to keep by your bed when you want to do something other than fall asleep:quote:
To a suffering person, a night is an epoch. To a reveler, a night passes like a moment. In a dream, a moment is no different from an epoch. But to the sage, whose consciousness has overcome all limitations, there is no day or night. As one turns away from the notion of "I" and "the world," one finds liberation.
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