The paradox of 'being yourself'
13 Dec 2003
One of the nice things about scriptures of the Vedas, is that these are accepted as the Highest Truth, a source of comfort and guidance of us all, and these are also the 'maps of human consciousness' that have been verified countless times by those who have reached the stteadfast state of liberation, (self-realization). So I speak, Cor, from that place, context and source. For those who have ears and eyes to hear and see, there is no pridefulness, spiritual competition or contention.
The Skanda Purunas, ( a sacred Vedic text, Skanda being the son of Shiva, God), says:
" Mama catur-vidha-purusartha-siddhyarthe jape viniyogah"
In sanskrit that means " ..the four goals in life are dharma (righteousness), artha, (wearlth), Kama, (pleasure), and liberation, (moksha). The Vedas, especially Kashmir Shaivism and many other denominations, are firmly established in this ancient teachings, which include tantra. Tantra (being the main pointh here), is not only the harmonizing, balancing and merging of the 'male' and 'female' polarities of life for ascension, but also the reintergration of divinity back into 'ordinary' life, as a consequence. This could mean ordinary job, ordinary routine, ordinary relationship/intimacy, marriage, children etc... Life is meant to be lived as if in heaven. Self denial, austereties, celebacy, etc is no longer an issue in the ascended state ~ only continued alignment with the divine. This is an example of two completely different world views, or paradygms. When examined together, they are both true; a paradox. Someone wise once said that God speaks in paradox. Indeed, a measure of spiritual growth and maturity is the ability to understand paradoxical points of view at the same time. So, the greater challenge and ongoing spiritual lessons for the adept/self-realized man/woman, is to indeed not resist or hold back from the 4 goals of life, in their scriptural sense, which includes the needs of the body , mind and soul, whatever that may be for that individual.
The deeper issue here are social norms and unspoken rules of behavior with love relationships with the opposite sex, vs the state of no-self and Self in 'other'. As Silke mentioned, (IBASI student), in this state of completion, Divine Order is supreme, and one can not abide by Human Order any longer. How to re-integrate into 'normal' society while staying in integrity with Divine Order which the effects of the HC is propelling us into, is the most deep and rich contemplation here. Ultimately, we understand, in the Hindu wisdom tradition, that God created a reflection of 'himself' to simply enjoy and experience 'himself'. Once we realize who and what our greater Self is, (all, everybody and everything), then it is the great divine play to explore that with trust, love, innocence and joy...as the learning never stops! I hope this has helped in some small way, Silke, in alleviating your concerns. The bottom line is, continue to follow divine will, and release all the preconceived fears and ideas of what is 'right' and 'wrong', as in truth, there is no such thing, only Gods' Will, the Guru-Within your very own heart.
Om Shanti & Blessings,
Devi Nostrumananda
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