The Highest Praise

When I say that you do not exist apart from God, how can you interpret that to mean you are nothing? What greater honor and praise could there be? Ego does not understand this as praise, because ego can value itself only in relation to others. Value yourself as God, as Oneness, and you will see your perfection.

Do Not Be Misled by Ego

Do not be misled by ego into believing that your purpose is to bring good to others. Be aware that you can serve others only by example, and by pointing out the good which they already possess.

Simplicity

Spirituality is not complex. What could be simpler than Oneness? It is the elaborate visions constructed by Mind to distract Spirit that are complex. Do not seek to understand the intricate complexity of the Seen in terms of the Unseen. Seek only to absorb the awareness of the unity of all that is. On that foundation you can build your understanding of that which is unconditional and dismiss the need to integrate the conditional. Love is the one vibration that pervades all energy fields. Identify with love and allow all other associations to fall away.‏

In meditation, sense the life force of the Universe pervading your physical and etheric bodies. Allow it to vibrate in harmony with the energies that surround you, so that your energy can be cleansed and refreshed by its power. Feel your energy extending to the far reaches of the physical Universe and bonding with the energy of All that Is. Then become aware of the impossibility of any thing existing that is not a part of that vibration, of any discord arising in the presence of that harmony.

Surrender the illusion of separation and let your being merge with every other. Feel your individuality dissolve in the sea of Spirit. Accept that your fate is the fate of every other; your life is the life of every other. Then you will be suffused with the light and warmth of knowing pervasive, universal Love, and the sure awareness that all that is not Love is illusion.

The Teacher emerged from meditation and said:

"I am Brahma manifest as this body; you are Brahma manifest as that body. These bodies possess minds and those minds have created egos, but neither body, mind, nor ego is the Self. The Self is Aum, the universal vibration of Brahma from which all things are created. All spiritual principles in the Universe flow through the Self into the world of gross manifestation. The Self is the principle of which love is a manifestation. The Self is One."

Are there demons?

Many people believe that there are beings that are wholly evil. They may be called devils, or demons, or dark angels, among other names. If they existed, these would be beings whose life force was derived entirely from negative rather than positive energy. To accept the existence of such beings may imply that there exists a Lord of Demons, Satan, the Devil, Beelzebub. The Universe would then have two sources of energy, a positive source - God or the Universal Spirit - and a negative one. Belief in the Devil is seductive, because it allows us to blame our negative feelings and our misfortunes on an outside influence: "The Devil made me do it!" What's more, it allows us to make excuses for the bad conduct of others.

Recently I attended a class on the Bhagavad Gita at the Ananda Center in Palo Alto. Ananda is an organization which follows the teachings of Paramahansa Yogananda, as interpreted by his pupil, Swami Kriyananda. Yogananda taught that there is a demonic force in the world, according to the person leading the class. As much as I respect Yogananda and his teachings, I cannot accept this one aspect.

There is no doubt that there are people who seem possessed by evil spirits. Indeed, it is an encounter with one such person that leads me to this topic. Many of us have people in our lives whose sole purpose seems to be to cause trouble and pain for others. This may be particularly true for those of us who have chosen the path of love and harmony; there may be a person who appears to have made it his life's work to discredit you and goad or drive you off your Path. 

It is not necessary, however, to resort to explanations which presume the existence of demonic forces in order understand such behavior. If we are honest with ourselves we need look no farther than our own egos to find a sufficient explanation. You believe that Love is the Way; that the entire Universe is composed of positive loving energy. Yet your own mind, your own body, your own emotions are constantly pressing you to express negativity. In your personal, professional, and spiritual life you still find a voice nagging at you to be competitive, to undermine others to advance your own interests, to resent the success of others. If you are strong and resolute, you will resist these pressures most of the time. But they are there, and they will always be there as long as you draw breath.

If you, with your devotion to spirituality, have such feelings, how much more must they dominate the lives of those who lack a commitment to love and harmony? No question there are individuals - perhaps they are a majority - who are, in Eckhart Tolle's words, completely unconscious at all times. That is, their consciousness is totally submerged and subjugated by their egoic mind. A person who is controlled by ego cannot help but act out in egregious ways that are petty, spiteful, and calculated to cause nothing but pain. That is how the ego seeks to validate and aggrandize itself - by driving others down and trying to bring out egoic reactions in them. 

What is the correct way to deal with these individuals? One way is to ignore them, as you do with the proddings of your own ego to the extent possible. However, it is also important to remember that these beings are not the undiluted egos that they appear to be. Each person has within him or her the unblemished manifestation of Spirit without which there can be no life. You may despair of ever seeing any evidence of this fact in some people. Indeed we all have known of heard of people who went to their graves as ornery and cantankerous as they had been all their lives. This does not detract from the fact that somewhere under that seemingly inpenetrable shell is a glowing pearl aching to be revealed.

The good news is that it is not your responsibility to reform such a person. The most that Spirit expects of you is to honor the Spirit within them with silent love and forgiveness. Their inner light - or Higher Self - may muster the strength to burst forth in this life and produce the flowering of what seems to be a new person; or it may remained buried under its karmic burden and await an opportunity to reassert itself when reincarnated in a new body. Either way, the most you can hope for is to maintain your own equanimity and perspective. 

Finally, your forgiveness must extend also to yourself. If you look at your own thoughts and actions honestly you are likely to find ways in which you contributed to the problem between you and this other person. You may have treated him unfairly or thoughtlessly. There may have been times when your ego gained control and lashed out in its own defense against the calculatedly treacherous and unfair attacks of the other. You can regret this experience and learn from it, but do not fall into the trap of believing that you should give yourself over to ego as a way of retaliation. Just as the ego dominated by negativity suffers more than its victims, so will you endure more suffering from surrendering to the egoic impulse than you could ever hope to inflict upon another. Simply return to your centered state as quickly and easily as you can.

The Mind's Filter

The Teacher said,

When I teach you, I am usually speaking to your higher self. Your egoic mind will process the information, but in many cases will resist my teaching. This is understandable, because much of what I tell you attacks the ego at its foundation. Your higher self is aware of its oneness with Spirit; the ego denies it. The ego is all about differentiating the small self from other beings, and making itself look important, while the higher self seeks to minimize differences, break down barriers, and reach out for unity. If I could, I would bypass the mind and body and share my insights with you on a soul level. Since I cannot do so in this life, I must teach you first to listen from the higher self, free of the filter of egoic concerns; and then try to express in words what would best be communicated wordlessly from soul to soul. I too must deal with the filtering effects of expressing soul concepts in a medium designed for communication between egos. This is another important reason for you to meditate, because in meditation the higher self communicates directly with Spirit and there is no need for wisdom to pass through the mind's filter.

Your Way

There are so many voices telling you what to do, which way to go. Many of them are sincere, and some are truly aligned with Spirit to a greater or lesser degree. You do not have to choose among them until you are ready. But at the same time, you do not have to listen to them all, even if you are convinced of their Truth.

Everyone sees Truth a little differently. You must ultimately follow your own vision, even if it is different from every other's. In fact, your authentic vision is bound to be different from anyone else's. There is much to learn from teachers and sages. But they each have only one vision. By studying many viewpoints you may achieve a sort of holographic picture of Truth as others see it. There is a great deal of convergence in the visions of those who have seen some aspect of Truth clearly, and you can save yourself much confusion by consulting them. Yet you cannot find your own Path simply by walking in the footsteps of others.

Eventually you will need to break from the pack and pursue your own vision. You will just exhaust yourself by trying to follow all the well-meaning voices. They will pull you in many directions and you will end up not very far from where you began. Only by striking out in the direction chosen for you by the higher Self can you attain a clearer vision of the Truth that is meant for you. This will not be the easiest path or the most comfortable, but it will be your authentic Path. You will know it when you are ready, and will be drawn irresitibly to it. Accept it when it comes and offer your heartfelt thanks to Spirit for showing it to you, no matter what hardships or difficulties you may encounter on the Way. That Way also lies your Joy.

And so it is.