Philosophy
The Gunas (Qualities of Nature): Sattwa, Rajas and Tamas
14/03/09 21:35
The photo below shows a detailed look at how the mind operates in relation to the three qualities (gunas).
Yoga Psychology
In this article, we will be talking about how the mind functions in relation to these. The mind is our instrument of seeing, surely as a pair of glasses affect how our sight operates. Therefore, understanding these three qualities is an excellent way to grasp what the nature of the mind and it’s mechanics are.
Since the essence of yoga is to rid one’s mind of it’s modifications, then this understanding is a key starting place.
A Natural Mistake
All of these qualities can be found in the Vedantic metaphor of the rope and the snake, leading one to grasp fully the implications of living in this phenomenal universe.
Consider the famous Vedantic “Rope and Snake” metaphor:
In twilight, you are walking along and see suddenly a snake on the ground, so you react to that danger, and leave. The next day, you walk again by that same area, and see that the snake you thought was there was only a rope.
So, how does one mistake a rope for a snake? Through the power of the three gunas:
Tamas- you didn’t see the rope correctly, it’s real nature was veiled to you.
Rajas- you projected the image of the snake onto the rope.
Sattva- you actually saw a rope, and it’s true nature was revealed to you.
In order to get from nothing to something, one must see the power of the mind, again, our instrument of seeing. The Three Gunas operate on this level.
Tamas
Tamas is the veiling form of nature that hides the true qualities of the object from us.
Tamasic thinking comes in some common forms that we have all heard of: denial, lack of common sense, many drug induced states of mind, laziness, inability to understand, control behaviors, and finally addiction.
Tamas, therefore, is a key part of many types of violence since it’s behind the dehumanization step needed to induce violence upon someone else.
It is said that the tamasic mind is like a frozen dirty lake, into which one can see very little.
Food that produces tamas include meat, alcohol, depressants, anti-depressants, opiates, fried and very fatty foods as well as various non-food ingestions like marijuana and smoking in general.
Rajas
Rajas is the projecting form of nature that imposes a quality upon an object it does not possess.
Rajasic thinking is the energy of action, change, and ego, or self-arrogation or arrogance. This is the quality we experience when a child is calling something “mine” or when fanatics of every sort proclaim “their” cause as the highest or best.
It is said that the rajasic mind is like one with an impurity mixed into it, or in whose waters the muddy bottom has been stirred up. One only sees mud and swirling activity under the surface and whose waters themselves are stirred up with many waves.
Food that is rajasic includes, caffienated beverages like coffee, tea, chai, power drinks, and soft drinks; as well as spicy foods with chilies, and very acidic foods in general. Garlic and onions are rajasic foods as well.
Sattwa
Sattvic thinking is that revealing power of seeing things as they are through one’s experience. People often speak of the ‘wisdom of experience’ and inasmuch as one sees something clearly with that experience and not move into cynicism, then this is sattvic thinking. If one has had an “aha” experience about any subject, this clarity of sattwa was operating there within the mind. This is an aspect of the mind which is trained in yoga to predominate.
A remarkable quality of expression is had by those who are sattvic. Their minds are very sharp and they see things past the obvious expressions found by normal folk. It is said that a sattivic mind is like a calm glassy lake with clear water, and one can see into great depths thereby.
Sattvic food is bland, nutritious, vegetarian and simple to digest. Since foods contain subtle qualities that become thoughts, it’s very important to see and experience how foods effect the mind through consistent meditation and the propagation of ahimsa (non-injury) in all aspects of life- food, thought, word and deed.
Om,
DurgaDas
Yoga Psychology
In this article, we will be talking about how the mind functions in relation to these. The mind is our instrument of seeing, surely as a pair of glasses affect how our sight operates. Therefore, understanding these three qualities is an excellent way to grasp what the nature of the mind and it’s mechanics are.
Since the essence of yoga is to rid one’s mind of it’s modifications, then this understanding is a key starting place.
A Natural Mistake
All of these qualities can be found in the Vedantic metaphor of the rope and the snake, leading one to grasp fully the implications of living in this phenomenal universe.
Consider the famous Vedantic “Rope and Snake” metaphor:
In twilight, you are walking along and see suddenly a snake on the ground, so you react to that danger, and leave. The next day, you walk again by that same area, and see that the snake you thought was there was only a rope.
So, how does one mistake a rope for a snake? Through the power of the three gunas:
Tamas- you didn’t see the rope correctly, it’s real nature was veiled to you.
Rajas- you projected the image of the snake onto the rope.
Sattva- you actually saw a rope, and it’s true nature was revealed to you.
In order to get from nothing to something, one must see the power of the mind, again, our instrument of seeing. The Three Gunas operate on this level.
Tamas
Tamas is the veiling form of nature that hides the true qualities of the object from us.
Tamasic thinking comes in some common forms that we have all heard of: denial, lack of common sense, many drug induced states of mind, laziness, inability to understand, control behaviors, and finally addiction.
Tamas, therefore, is a key part of many types of violence since it’s behind the dehumanization step needed to induce violence upon someone else.
It is said that the tamasic mind is like a frozen dirty lake, into which one can see very little.
Food that produces tamas include meat, alcohol, depressants, anti-depressants, opiates, fried and very fatty foods as well as various non-food ingestions like marijuana and smoking in general.
Rajas
Rajas is the projecting form of nature that imposes a quality upon an object it does not possess.
Rajasic thinking is the energy of action, change, and ego, or self-arrogation or arrogance. This is the quality we experience when a child is calling something “mine” or when fanatics of every sort proclaim “their” cause as the highest or best.
It is said that the rajasic mind is like one with an impurity mixed into it, or in whose waters the muddy bottom has been stirred up. One only sees mud and swirling activity under the surface and whose waters themselves are stirred up with many waves.
Food that is rajasic includes, caffienated beverages like coffee, tea, chai, power drinks, and soft drinks; as well as spicy foods with chilies, and very acidic foods in general. Garlic and onions are rajasic foods as well.
Sattwa
Sattvic thinking is that revealing power of seeing things as they are through one’s experience. People often speak of the ‘wisdom of experience’ and inasmuch as one sees something clearly with that experience and not move into cynicism, then this is sattvic thinking. If one has had an “aha” experience about any subject, this clarity of sattwa was operating there within the mind. This is an aspect of the mind which is trained in yoga to predominate.
A remarkable quality of expression is had by those who are sattvic. Their minds are very sharp and they see things past the obvious expressions found by normal folk. It is said that a sattivic mind is like a calm glassy lake with clear water, and one can see into great depths thereby.
Sattvic food is bland, nutritious, vegetarian and simple to digest. Since foods contain subtle qualities that become thoughts, it’s very important to see and experience how foods effect the mind through consistent meditation and the propagation of ahimsa (non-injury) in all aspects of life- food, thought, word and deed.
Om,
DurgaDas
The Seven Phases of Separation
10/12/08 19:21
This article is based on our observations of modern Western society and a desire to expand the understanding of how the philosophical nature of Eastern thought can help the pragmatic Western mind understand itself.
"The intuitive mind is a sacred gift and the rational mind is a faithful servant. We have created a society that honours the servant and has forgotten the gift".
Einstein
Another excellent treatise on this from a logical basis is found in the Complete Illustrated Book of Yoga by Swami Vishnu-devananda in Chapter 10, The Origin and Evolution of Prakriti.
We post this knowing full well that even in those feeling separated according to this below text are actually not separated in any way, except in their own perception, and therefore the perception of others around them. The kind of Vedanta that is the most holistic is called Advaita Vedanta- literally, “Not Two” and the main proponent of this historically was Adi Sankara. Again, meaning ‘one without a second’. This is the philosophical underpinning we espouse on this website.
The following seven steps can be applied to any undertaking where one finds ego. Ego, using willpower from a narrow focused mechanistic manner of thinking pushes us along this path of separation through misunderstanding. Here is a funny example of this:
This is a description of the ‘process’ of ego manifestation. One finds this in all walks of life, including, sadly religions. This is so prevalent now that many Westerners have come to believe that religion is synonymous with control, and reject it on the basis of that reactively. Silent Motion Yoga teachers and practitioners always are seekers of the middle way between such polarizations and it is in this spirit we present you with this.
1) God-understanding (Self-realization, Samadhi, Nirvana, etc.)
One with everything, lacks separateness or identification with body, mind, etc., holistic in nature, compassion, kindness, and love are present. Internal focus sees all external things as mere reflections of internal reality.
Right brained, as in infants, or God-realized people (although Self-realization give one the capacity to think fully on both sides of the brain, while maintaining a root in the right brain). Varying degrees of capability regarding left brain function ranging from genius level intelligence (for example, Swami Sivananda could keep 16 minds busy at one time transcribing his thoughts) to unconscious switching into Samadhi, to the point of needing constant caretaking (for example, Sri Ramakrishna).
2) Misidentification As Separate From God
"God is dead."- Nietzsche
The main misidentification being the feeling/thought/idea that one is separate from God, Nature, other people and things, etc.; focus and energy changes from identifying with internal to the external now being considered real; left brained, still can maintain some varied periods of balanced internal/external understanding.
Ego becomes present, which is structurally contained in the left side of the brain. The need to be different than one is in the face of parents or social stresses tends to exacerbate this problem. Ego then drives all remaining distinctions hereafter, perpetually arrogating it's left-brained, or separatist, agenda. This is usually based on inherited shame from parental figures and a growing body awareness, reinforced by society, friends, and excess of media input and advertising.
3) Attachment
Narrowed EXTERNAL focus onto few objects or one as "mine", like the body or possessions, left brained, begins a denial of one's internal reality of Self, or interconnectedness with others. Shame inherited becomes more deeply and unconsciously rooted. What becomes important now is "my land", "my wife", even "my guru" or "my God".
Clearly, battles among religions, or even within religions(!) are found here. Battling nation-states and patriotism are also found at this level and are carried forward into the idealism stage, when one "identifies" with some religion.
I must note here that even gangs use this attachment or "brotherhood" feeling of belonging to carry out their agendas, later found to be a patho-ideal.
What I am pointing out here is not a value judgement, but rather a statement of observation of the reality of the human mind's journey, that later must be reversed.
4) Idealism
Creation of personal or group "rules" for maintaining attachment/ external focus in a personal or external mythology. This patho-myth tends to lack the recognition of how the external focus is changing the internal landscape of one's thoughts, leading to almost exclusive focus on left-brain, facts, details about facts, etc.
Because these rules never meet with reality and one's focus has previously been narrowed unnecessarily, one can strive harder to meet the constraints of this idealism, ironically motivated by the stress of further separation from one's True Self.
Our Western culture is chock FULL of examples of this. It is our single prevalent influence now. Everything from Apple Computer's computer cult to people pledging allegiance to certain brands of clothing falls into this.
It's the driving force behind advertising and people's difficulty with religion, corporate structures and the general malaise of meaning we find ourselves in today. NO IDEALOGY FITS YOU. So one feels left out by a constant stream of idealisms to choose from and nothing seems to just allow you to be yourself.
Ideals never fully meet the reality of this illusory and phenomenal life that has many gray areas and is constantly in flux and changing.
Even where some things do not change, it can be argued that our current culture very rarely recognizes such lasting things. Especially in view of the constant bombardment with factual information. One's reality can be skewed to think that all information is of equal value, thereby lessening the value of any unchanging experiences one might have, even where that experience is satisfying and relevant.
Even where one is apparently seeing the world in a specific way and this is socially acceptable, there tends to be a continuous and outsized reinforcement mentally and socially of one's identification in a narrow area (being Catholic or other religion, gay, feminist, left-ist, Mac user, PC user, etc.). These influences, by their heavy-handed (and to my view unneeded) reinforcement they tend to produce control behaviors.
The real problem here is one of mixing up weakly expressed versions of personal internal ideals or ways of behaving with "similar" (but not the identically same) external strategies employed by others, some of which may be strongly (i.e. healthily) expressed.
5) Control
Idealism breaks one's ground floor of compassion and seeing one's self as the other, one gains an ability to de-humanize others now. From there, it's possible subject them to your personal expression of the Control Disease formed by idealisms (perfectionism, fanaticism, etc.) as a way of maintaining stability for what you have identified as yourself, which is essentially as a messenger of the Idealism you imagine.
The deeper one aligns with idealism, the more one must re-inforce the narrow view presented by the chosen idealism; excluding, ridiculing and eventually punishing those whose ideas are outside this view.
A very common symptom of cult activity (and just listen to your evening news to see how prevalent this is in our Western news media) is to imagine the horrible fate of the "fallen" former believers and talk amongst the "still faithful" about how terrible it must be to behave in such a way. This is a re-expression of control that implies going beyond the mere personal relationship one might have had with the formerly upright member. Now the "fallen" former member assumes a sort of 'cosmic inhuman' quality, where not even God could love this fallen personage.
I expressly don't want to confuse here positive control with negative control. Negative control is seen here as one where the rajasic nature of the mind projects one's ideals onto others, or even everyone. This can include languages or behaviors.
6) Addiction
Addiction comes as a last resort to failed or imperfect Control Behaviors, a lack of integrating and accepting choices or resistance from those being controlled (including one's self). One then goes back and re-affirms and re-establishes another or several other attachments to the tenets of the chosen Idealism. A total lack of understanding of the motivations of those who would not feel or subscribe to the same narrow viewpoint is had and repetitions of such behaviors begins.
Even where the person sees that this or that former idealism (such as drug, sex, or alcohol addictions) didn't serve them, they tend to assign the problem to the idealism chosen rather than the choice of idealism and then the control behaviors that follow it in a general sense.
7) Destruction
The essential result of this addiction, which is fed by addictions in various guises, be it drugs, war, profit or anything else. Often, this destruction can come in the form of destruction of one's relationships or one's own self physically, materially; or they can be "externalized" into the environment in the form of companions personally or in political terms. It can also happen in terms of one’s own destruction and death. One can dig one’s self into a hole that one cannot escape, like this man:
Expansion and Contraction
Throughout modern life, we will move in cycles between all these states. The cycle of separation can never sustain itself infinitely or it leads to a destructive impulse to the world around (like in the case of a Hitler or a Pol Pot) or one's self. Still, given the nature of our underlying spiritual lives, we can often learn enough to reverse this process again and head back up the ladder. The systematic process of undoing these phases of separation is called Yoga, and it has eight states or maturities.
With Yoga, these phases can begin to happen in the reverse order from what I have described and in a more effective manner; gradually undoing the negative direction this article has described as time goes on. Maturity sets in. When enough time has progressed to begin to see the madness and insanity of what these phases are doing we have realizations that lead to greater understanding of ourselves personally.
In a larger impersonal and political sense of the world, it appears that we operate in general in these cycles of expansion and contraction, influencing each other, learning as we go along, and developing ourselves toward a greater understanding even as we apparently destroy ourselves and others.
It is the hope of Yoga and my teachers before me, that we can, one person at a time, undo these cycles of separation so long understood by the ancient Yogis and spiritual aspirants across the globe.
Om Shanti,
DurgaDas
"The intuitive mind is a sacred gift and the rational mind is a faithful servant. We have created a society that honours the servant and has forgotten the gift".
Einstein
Another excellent treatise on this from a logical basis is found in the Complete Illustrated Book of Yoga by Swami Vishnu-devananda in Chapter 10, The Origin and Evolution of Prakriti.
We post this knowing full well that even in those feeling separated according to this below text are actually not separated in any way, except in their own perception, and therefore the perception of others around them. The kind of Vedanta that is the most holistic is called Advaita Vedanta- literally, “Not Two” and the main proponent of this historically was Adi Sankara. Again, meaning ‘one without a second’. This is the philosophical underpinning we espouse on this website.
The following seven steps can be applied to any undertaking where one finds ego. Ego, using willpower from a narrow focused mechanistic manner of thinking pushes us along this path of separation through misunderstanding. Here is a funny example of this:
This is a description of the ‘process’ of ego manifestation. One finds this in all walks of life, including, sadly religions. This is so prevalent now that many Westerners have come to believe that religion is synonymous with control, and reject it on the basis of that reactively. Silent Motion Yoga teachers and practitioners always are seekers of the middle way between such polarizations and it is in this spirit we present you with this.
1) God-understanding (Self-realization, Samadhi, Nirvana, etc.)
One with everything, lacks separateness or identification with body, mind, etc., holistic in nature, compassion, kindness, and love are present. Internal focus sees all external things as mere reflections of internal reality.
Right brained, as in infants, or God-realized people (although Self-realization give one the capacity to think fully on both sides of the brain, while maintaining a root in the right brain). Varying degrees of capability regarding left brain function ranging from genius level intelligence (for example, Swami Sivananda could keep 16 minds busy at one time transcribing his thoughts) to unconscious switching into Samadhi, to the point of needing constant caretaking (for example, Sri Ramakrishna).
2) Misidentification As Separate From God
"God is dead."- Nietzsche
The main misidentification being the feeling/thought/idea that one is separate from God, Nature, other people and things, etc.; focus and energy changes from identifying with internal to the external now being considered real; left brained, still can maintain some varied periods of balanced internal/external understanding.
Ego becomes present, which is structurally contained in the left side of the brain. The need to be different than one is in the face of parents or social stresses tends to exacerbate this problem. Ego then drives all remaining distinctions hereafter, perpetually arrogating it's left-brained, or separatist, agenda. This is usually based on inherited shame from parental figures and a growing body awareness, reinforced by society, friends, and excess of media input and advertising.
3) Attachment
Narrowed EXTERNAL focus onto few objects or one as "mine", like the body or possessions, left brained, begins a denial of one's internal reality of Self, or interconnectedness with others. Shame inherited becomes more deeply and unconsciously rooted. What becomes important now is "my land", "my wife", even "my guru" or "my God".
Clearly, battles among religions, or even within religions(!) are found here. Battling nation-states and patriotism are also found at this level and are carried forward into the idealism stage, when one "identifies" with some religion.
I must note here that even gangs use this attachment or "brotherhood" feeling of belonging to carry out their agendas, later found to be a patho-ideal.
What I am pointing out here is not a value judgement, but rather a statement of observation of the reality of the human mind's journey, that later must be reversed.
4) Idealism
Creation of personal or group "rules" for maintaining attachment/ external focus in a personal or external mythology. This patho-myth tends to lack the recognition of how the external focus is changing the internal landscape of one's thoughts, leading to almost exclusive focus on left-brain, facts, details about facts, etc.
Because these rules never meet with reality and one's focus has previously been narrowed unnecessarily, one can strive harder to meet the constraints of this idealism, ironically motivated by the stress of further separation from one's True Self.
Our Western culture is chock FULL of examples of this. It is our single prevalent influence now. Everything from Apple Computer's computer cult to people pledging allegiance to certain brands of clothing falls into this.
It's the driving force behind advertising and people's difficulty with religion, corporate structures and the general malaise of meaning we find ourselves in today. NO IDEALOGY FITS YOU. So one feels left out by a constant stream of idealisms to choose from and nothing seems to just allow you to be yourself.
Ideals never fully meet the reality of this illusory and phenomenal life that has many gray areas and is constantly in flux and changing.
Even where some things do not change, it can be argued that our current culture very rarely recognizes such lasting things. Especially in view of the constant bombardment with factual information. One's reality can be skewed to think that all information is of equal value, thereby lessening the value of any unchanging experiences one might have, even where that experience is satisfying and relevant.
Even where one is apparently seeing the world in a specific way and this is socially acceptable, there tends to be a continuous and outsized reinforcement mentally and socially of one's identification in a narrow area (being Catholic or other religion, gay, feminist, left-ist, Mac user, PC user, etc.). These influences, by their heavy-handed (and to my view unneeded) reinforcement they tend to produce control behaviors.
The real problem here is one of mixing up weakly expressed versions of personal internal ideals or ways of behaving with "similar" (but not the identically same) external strategies employed by others, some of which may be strongly (i.e. healthily) expressed.
5) Control
Idealism breaks one's ground floor of compassion and seeing one's self as the other, one gains an ability to de-humanize others now. From there, it's possible subject them to your personal expression of the Control Disease formed by idealisms (perfectionism, fanaticism, etc.) as a way of maintaining stability for what you have identified as yourself, which is essentially as a messenger of the Idealism you imagine.
The deeper one aligns with idealism, the more one must re-inforce the narrow view presented by the chosen idealism; excluding, ridiculing and eventually punishing those whose ideas are outside this view.
A very common symptom of cult activity (and just listen to your evening news to see how prevalent this is in our Western news media) is to imagine the horrible fate of the "fallen" former believers and talk amongst the "still faithful" about how terrible it must be to behave in such a way. This is a re-expression of control that implies going beyond the mere personal relationship one might have had with the formerly upright member. Now the "fallen" former member assumes a sort of 'cosmic inhuman' quality, where not even God could love this fallen personage.
I expressly don't want to confuse here positive control with negative control. Negative control is seen here as one where the rajasic nature of the mind projects one's ideals onto others, or even everyone. This can include languages or behaviors.
6) Addiction
Addiction comes as a last resort to failed or imperfect Control Behaviors, a lack of integrating and accepting choices or resistance from those being controlled (including one's self). One then goes back and re-affirms and re-establishes another or several other attachments to the tenets of the chosen Idealism. A total lack of understanding of the motivations of those who would not feel or subscribe to the same narrow viewpoint is had and repetitions of such behaviors begins.
Even where the person sees that this or that former idealism (such as drug, sex, or alcohol addictions) didn't serve them, they tend to assign the problem to the idealism chosen rather than the choice of idealism and then the control behaviors that follow it in a general sense.
7) Destruction
The essential result of this addiction, which is fed by addictions in various guises, be it drugs, war, profit or anything else. Often, this destruction can come in the form of destruction of one's relationships or one's own self physically, materially; or they can be "externalized" into the environment in the form of companions personally or in political terms. It can also happen in terms of one’s own destruction and death. One can dig one’s self into a hole that one cannot escape, like this man:
Expansion and Contraction
Throughout modern life, we will move in cycles between all these states. The cycle of separation can never sustain itself infinitely or it leads to a destructive impulse to the world around (like in the case of a Hitler or a Pol Pot) or one's self. Still, given the nature of our underlying spiritual lives, we can often learn enough to reverse this process again and head back up the ladder. The systematic process of undoing these phases of separation is called Yoga, and it has eight states or maturities.
With Yoga, these phases can begin to happen in the reverse order from what I have described and in a more effective manner; gradually undoing the negative direction this article has described as time goes on. Maturity sets in. When enough time has progressed to begin to see the madness and insanity of what these phases are doing we have realizations that lead to greater understanding of ourselves personally.
In a larger impersonal and political sense of the world, it appears that we operate in general in these cycles of expansion and contraction, influencing each other, learning as we go along, and developing ourselves toward a greater understanding even as we apparently destroy ourselves and others.
It is the hope of Yoga and my teachers before me, that we can, one person at a time, undo these cycles of separation so long understood by the ancient Yogis and spiritual aspirants across the globe.
Om Shanti,
DurgaDas
The Yoga of The Prophet: The Coming of The Ship
08/11/08 18:48
Book Version:
CD Version:
The Coming of the Ship
Almustafa, the chosen and the beloved, who was a dawn onto his own day, had waited twelve years in the city of Orphalese for his ship that was to return and bear him back to the isle of his birth.
And in the twelfth year, on the seventh day of Ielool, the month of reaping, he climbed the hill without the city walls and looked seaward; and he beheld the ship coming with the mist.
Then the gates of his heart were flung open, and his joy flew far over the sea. And he closed his eyes and prayed in the silences of his soul.
But he descended the hill, a sadness came upon him, and he thought in his heart: How shall I go in peace and without sorrow? Nay, not without a wound in the spirit shall I leave this city.
Long were the days of pain I have spent within its walls, and long were the nights of aloneness; and who can depart from his pain and his aloneness without regret?
Too many fragments of the spirit have I scattered in these streets, and too many are the children of my longing that walk naked among these hills, and I cannot withdraw from them without a burden and an ache.
It is not a garment I cast off this day, but a skin that I tear with my own hands.
Nor is it a thought I leave behind me, but a heart made sweet with hunger and with thirst.
Yet I cannot tarry longer.
The sea that calls all things unto her calls me, and I must embark.
For to stay, though the hours burn in the night, is to freeze and crystallize and be bound in a mould.
A voice cannot carry the tongue and the lips that give it wings. Alone must it seek the ether.
And alone and without his nest shall the eagle fly across the sun.
Now when he reached the foot of the hill, he turned again towards the sea, and he saw his ship approaching the harbour, and upon her prow the mariners, the men of his own land.
And his soul cried out to them, and he said:
Sons of my ancient mother, you riders of the tides, How often have you sailed in my dreams. And now you come in my awakening, which is my deeper dream.
Ready am I to go, and my eagerness with sails full set awaits the wind.
Then I shall stand among you, a seafarer among seafarers.
Who alone are peace and freedom to the river and the stream,
Only another winding will this stream make, only another murmur in this glade,
And then shall I come to you, a boundless drop to a boundless ocean.
And as he walked he saw from afar men and women leaving their fields and their vineyards and hastening towards the city gates.
And he heard their voices calling his name, and shouting from the field to field telling one another of the coming of the ship.
And he said to himself:
Shall the day of parting be the day of gathering?
And shall it be said that my eve was in truth my dawn?
And what shall I give unto him who has left his plough in midfurrow, or to him who has stopped the wheel of his winepress?
Shall my heart become a tree heavy-laden with fruit that I may gather and give unto them?
And shall my desires flow like a fountain that I may fill their cups?
Am I a harp that the hand of the mighty may touch me, or a flute that his breath may pass through me?
A seeker of silences am I, and what treasure have I found in silences that I may dispense with confidence?
If this is my day of harvest, in what fields have I sowed the seed, and in what unrembered seasons?
If this indeed be the our in which I lift up my lantern, it is not my flame that shall burn therein.
Empty and dark shall I raise my lantern,
And the guardian of the night shall fill it with oil and he shall light it also.
• These comments are quite excellent examples of a person who considers himself merely an instrument in the hands of God. Even his words at the end allude to the lantern of wisdom he sees himself being asked to raise on behalf of those whom would call upon his wisdom, yet he sees through this illusory conceit that could be had by lesser teachers. When a Yoga teacher teaches, it’s the energy of their own spiritual practice. He says as much explicitly: “A seeker of silences am I, and what treasure have I found in silences that I may dispense with confidence?” This is a true teacher of Yoga and spiritual stuff. A practitioner, not a preacher. You will notice that it’s ONLY when he’s called upon to do so does he speak out. There is a Buddhist saying: “Only if you can improve upon silence should you speak.” Naturally, the internet is not a place for silence, rather it’s a place to encourage those who would seek it out for themselves. Many in our culture are inspired by those who seek silence, yet it’s also important to seek it for yourself, as the example is what is important for the best spiritual teachers.
These things he said in words. But much in his heart remained unsaid. For he himself could not speak his deeper secret.
And when he entered into the city all the people came to meet him, and they were crying out to him as with one voice.
And the elders of the city stood forth and said:
Go not yet away from us.
A noontide have you been in our twilight, and your youth has given us dreams to dream.
No stranger are you among us, nor a guest, but our son and our dearly beloved.
Suffer not yet our eyes to hunger for your face.
And the priests and the priestesses said unto him:
Let not the waves of the sea separate us now, and the years you have spent in our midst become a memory.
You have walked among us a spirit, and your shadow has been a light upon our facs.
Much have we loved you. But speechless was our love, and with veils has it been veiled.
Yet now it cries aloud unto you, and would stand revealed before you.
And ever has it been that love knows not its own depth until the hour of separation.
And others came also and entreated him.
But he answered them not. He only bent his head; and those who stood near saw his tears falling upon his breast.
And he and the people proceeded towards the great square before the temple.
And there came out of the sanctuary a woman whose name was Almitra. And she was a seeress.
And he looked upon her with exceeding tenderness, for it was she who had first sought and believed in him when he had been but a day in their city.
And she hailed him, saying:
Prophet of God, in quest for the uttermost, long have you searched the distances for your ship.
And now your ship has come, and you must needs go.
Deep is your longing for the land of your memories and the dwelling place of your greater desires; and our love would not bind you nor our needs hold you.
Yet this we ask ere you leave us, that you speak to us and give us of your truth.
And we will give it unto our children, and they unto their children, and it shall not perish.
In your aloneness you have watched with our days, and in your wakefulness you have listened to the weeping and the laughter of our sleep.
Now therefore disclose us to ourselves, and tell us all that has been shown you of that which is between birth and death.
And he answered,
People of Orphalese, of what can I speak save of that which is even now moving your souls?
(The words for this were taken from a website which had previously published the entire work. I am reproducing it here in the spirit of Fair Use. Kindly email me if this creates a problem for you. )
CD Version:
The Coming of the Ship
Almustafa, the chosen and the beloved, who was a dawn onto his own day, had waited twelve years in the city of Orphalese for his ship that was to return and bear him back to the isle of his birth.
- Like Almustafa here or Swami Sivananda, all those who are enlighted can be considered a sun in this world, providing a dawn of light where there is darkness, which the word ‘guru’ itself literally means- ‘remover of darkness’.
- The ‘twelve years’ he waited in the city is normally the time spent with the guru in India in the gurukula system learning about yoga and spiritual life.
- The gurukula is the beginning of learning spiritual life, and it’s considered without a guru, one cannot begin spiritual life, except for those few like Swami Sivananda, Jesus and the many other remarkable saints and sages throughout time.
- ‘His ship’ and ‘the isle of his birth’ can be considered two ways: 1) to be in fact his own physical death, the “leaving the body” as it’s said about those high souls who can do such a thing. And, 2) Even without physical death, but rather in Self-realization- which Almustafa is on the cusp of now, at the start of this book- one leaves behind one’s previous conceptions of the way to world appears and see everything as God. In so doing, one could say that one is shifting the identification of the mind on a constant basis to the “atman” or the immortal sould, which is said and believed to be the core of our True Self, which is in fact one with, according to Adi Shankara, the all-pervading substratum of all reality, or Brahman.
And in the twelfth year, on the seventh day of Ielool, the month of reaping, he climbed the hill without the city walls and looked seaward; and he beheld the ship coming with the mist.
- Again, the twelve years are now the amount of time he’s spent sowing the seeds and doing the internal work toward enlightenment, and the month of September (Ielool) is the month of reaping the fruits, the shifting, of one’s mind toward God in it’s identification.
- Using September as the month is also a way of alluding in a natural way, according to Gibran’s natural philosphical tone- one which is shared by the yogic philosophy- of the seasons of life. Birth comes just before springtime bursts, then spring so full of life, and the summer in which one lives fully with long days, and for the enlightened, then the harvest has come at last. Astrologically, this is represented often by moving into the Ketu dasha, or time period.
- This is a nice way of showing the way in which enlightenment is said to come, as though one has come over the walls of his own mind (the city of Orphalese, with it’s bustle of people, i.e thoughts) from the mist of mystery, which is only broken by meditation, according to Swami Sivananda. He also comments that meditation is a mysterious ladder to this misty understanding.
Then the gates of his heart were flung open, and his joy flew far over the sea. And he closed his eyes and prayed in the silences of his soul.
- Of course, being a meditator, he would again meditate upon this shift, having realized it. This is confirmed later by: “a seeker of silences am I and what treasure have I found in silences, that I may dispense with confidence?”
But he descended the hill, a sadness came upon him, and he thought in his heart: How shall I go in peace and without sorrow? Nay, not without a wound in the spirit shall I leave this city.
Long were the days of pain I have spent within its walls, and long were the nights of aloneness; and who can depart from his pain and his aloneness without regret?
Too many fragments of the spirit have I scattered in these streets, and too many are the children of my longing that walk naked among these hills, and I cannot withdraw from them without a burden and an ache.
It is not a garment I cast off this day, but a skin that I tear with my own hands.
Nor is it a thought I leave behind me, but a heart made sweet with hunger and with thirst.
- Now we see the remnants of attachment, so often talked about in spiritual circles as the thing which is most difficult to cast off us, that still remains with him, even with his brief enlightened state. It’s said to be this way for all of us, we go through stages of understanding, and Almustafa in this case is standing right on the brink of the largest shift of all, and yet he still feels the pull of attachment.
- He is here remarking, in a beautifully lyrical way, about the choice which encompasses all spiritual effort. I read and cried to this very verse many many times in my difficulties during my spiritual training and understandings. One chooses to tear the skin of the ego and it’s attachments with one’s own hands. Only he can do this for himself, and it is the same with us.
- Yoga is largely about the attenuation of the ego, and so even with a teacher, one must remain centered in the idea that the teacher is encouraging you to tear off your own skin with your own hands. Often, it feels as though they are doing it, without your consent, however!
Yet I cannot tarry longer.
The sea that calls all things unto her calls me, and I must embark.
For to stay, though the hours burn in the night, is to freeze and crystallize and be bound in a mould.
- In a sense, being in the body is to be bound in a mould of flesh, blood, and bone. Even the particular structures and ways of seeing things with our type of mind and life experience can be thought of as a mold from which one must rise above. Paramahansa Yogananda has a chapter in his book “Autobiography of a Yogi” which is called “Outiwtting the Stars”, and this is even more remarkable since Yogananda’s guru was a very famous Vedic Astrologer as well as a Swami. Since we are talking about Self-Realization here, it’s clear that this is very understood by Gibran here.
A voice cannot carry the tongue and the lips that give it wings. Alone must it seek the ether.
And alone and without his nest shall the eagle fly across the sun.
- In this verse, he answers himself- as only one who has examined the nature of his own mind so closely can do, the attachments he still recognizes within.
- One might also say this about children, and what an elegant way of releasing one’s own body and mind attachments for the greater ‘sea’ awaiting him!
Now when he reached the foot of the hill, he turned again towards the sea, and he saw his ship approaching the harbour, and upon her prow the mariners, the men of his own land.
And his soul cried out to them, and he said:
Sons of my ancient mother, you riders of the tides, How often have you sailed in my dreams. And now you come in my awakening, which is my deeper dream.
- I always think of this verse as being related thematically to the one in “On Work” where he says: “...and to know that all the blessed dead are standing about you and watching. Work is love made visible.”
- My reasoning is that this harkens the mind to a forgotten time when our elders and those who died for us, and before us, back genetically many many generations were revered. It is simply not the case in our modern society where we worship little but the young, and seek to forever be young. This is to set ourselves against the duality in which we are trapped, and to allow us to be blind in yet another important way to the reality that is around us, yet is also to be transcended.
- A good quote I know on this topic comes to me from the song “Cheyenne” by John Arch, where he samples a quote from Chief Joseph of the Nez Perce Native American Tribe: “I have heard talk and talk but nothing is done. Good words do not last long unless they amount to something. Words do not pay for my dead people. They do not pay for my country now overrun by white men. They do not protect my father's grave. They do not pay for my horses and cattle. Good words do not give me back my children. Good words will not give my people a home where they can live in peace and take care of themselves. I am tired of talk that comes to nothing. It makes my heart sick when I remember all the good words and all the broken promises.”
- While the above quote is sad, it shows the priorities faced by natural cultures out of which has grown a natural philosophy untouched by “organizations” in the Western model of religion, i.e. a respect for one’s elders, even their burial grounds and so on. Still, one can see the influence of the English society in speakng about payment, which wasn’t something known to Native American cultures previously. How can one own something far greater than oneself, or even their tribe?
- The statement: “And now you come in my awakening, which is my deeper dream.” is an allusion to an upcoming section “for he himself could not speak his deeper secret”, which is a reference to the unspeakable silence itself in which he has immersed himself, impossible to describe, but also showing his awareness of the threshold upon which he stands now, which is the dawning of Self-Realization.
- Even Einstein, as a scientist, can recognize the importance of this: “The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious. It is the source of all true art and science.”
Ready am I to go, and my eagerness with sails full set awaits the wind.
Then I shall stand among you, a seafarer among seafarers.
Who alone are peace and freedom to the river and the stream,
Only another winding will this stream make, only another murmur in this glade,
And then shall I come to you, a boundless drop to a boundless ocean.
And as he walked he saw from afar men and women leaving their fields and their vineyards and hastening towards the city gates.
And he heard their voices calling his name, and shouting from the field to field telling one another of the coming of the ship.
And he said to himself:
Shall the day of parting be the day of gathering?
And shall it be said that my eve was in truth my dawn?
And what shall I give unto him who has left his plough in midfurrow, or to him who has stopped the wheel of his winepress?
Shall my heart become a tree heavy-laden with fruit that I may gather and give unto them?
And shall my desires flow like a fountain that I may fill their cups?
Am I a harp that the hand of the mighty may touch me, or a flute that his breath may pass through me?
A seeker of silences am I, and what treasure have I found in silences that I may dispense with confidence?
If this is my day of harvest, in what fields have I sowed the seed, and in what unrembered seasons?
If this indeed be the our in which I lift up my lantern, it is not my flame that shall burn therein.
Empty and dark shall I raise my lantern,
And the guardian of the night shall fill it with oil and he shall light it also.
• These comments are quite excellent examples of a person who considers himself merely an instrument in the hands of God. Even his words at the end allude to the lantern of wisdom he sees himself being asked to raise on behalf of those whom would call upon his wisdom, yet he sees through this illusory conceit that could be had by lesser teachers. When a Yoga teacher teaches, it’s the energy of their own spiritual practice. He says as much explicitly: “A seeker of silences am I, and what treasure have I found in silences that I may dispense with confidence?” This is a true teacher of Yoga and spiritual stuff. A practitioner, not a preacher. You will notice that it’s ONLY when he’s called upon to do so does he speak out. There is a Buddhist saying: “Only if you can improve upon silence should you speak.” Naturally, the internet is not a place for silence, rather it’s a place to encourage those who would seek it out for themselves. Many in our culture are inspired by those who seek silence, yet it’s also important to seek it for yourself, as the example is what is important for the best spiritual teachers.
These things he said in words. But much in his heart remained unsaid. For he himself could not speak his deeper secret.
And when he entered into the city all the people came to meet him, and they were crying out to him as with one voice.
And the elders of the city stood forth and said:
Go not yet away from us.
A noontide have you been in our twilight, and your youth has given us dreams to dream.
No stranger are you among us, nor a guest, but our son and our dearly beloved.
Suffer not yet our eyes to hunger for your face.
And the priests and the priestesses said unto him:
Let not the waves of the sea separate us now, and the years you have spent in our midst become a memory.
You have walked among us a spirit, and your shadow has been a light upon our facs.
Much have we loved you. But speechless was our love, and with veils has it been veiled.
Yet now it cries aloud unto you, and would stand revealed before you.
And ever has it been that love knows not its own depth until the hour of separation.
And others came also and entreated him.
But he answered them not. He only bent his head; and those who stood near saw his tears falling upon his breast.
And he and the people proceeded towards the great square before the temple.
And there came out of the sanctuary a woman whose name was Almitra. And she was a seeress.
And he looked upon her with exceeding tenderness, for it was she who had first sought and believed in him when he had been but a day in their city.
And she hailed him, saying:
Prophet of God, in quest for the uttermost, long have you searched the distances for your ship.
And now your ship has come, and you must needs go.
Deep is your longing for the land of your memories and the dwelling place of your greater desires; and our love would not bind you nor our needs hold you.
Yet this we ask ere you leave us, that you speak to us and give us of your truth.
And we will give it unto our children, and they unto their children, and it shall not perish.
In your aloneness you have watched with our days, and in your wakefulness you have listened to the weeping and the laughter of our sleep.
Now therefore disclose us to ourselves, and tell us all that has been shown you of that which is between birth and death.
And he answered,
People of Orphalese, of what can I speak save of that which is even now moving your souls?
(The words for this were taken from a website which had previously published the entire work. I am reproducing it here in the spirit of Fair Use. Kindly email me if this creates a problem for you. )
The Yoga of The Prophet
08/11/08 18:26
This article is the first of a series of articles planned about classic works of literature and poetry; how the practice of classical yoga explains the fundamental human experience in relationship to how we can further our spiritual growth, recognize patterns that have existed in the minds of all humans throughout time, not just in India. It is the hope that by explaining works like The Lord of the Rings, The Matrix, Battlestar Galactica and others, I can highlight the underlying patterns prevalent and hopefully make Classical Yoga easier to understand and relate to.
In this edition: The Prophet.
This series of article posts focus on “The Prophet” by Kahlil Gibran and it’s relationship to the practice of real Classical Yoga. In successive posts, I will draw parallels between this classic work and the classical yogic practices, and link to some further explanations of how those work as well.
My focus here in the introduction is to talk about my experiences in learning this monumental and well-known and -loved work.
I recommend you purchase the cd version of this work in order to really understand what I am talking about.
An excellent lecture on the work is also available here by Bhagawan Shree Rajneesh, later known as Osho, in XML. His comments I am sure will be more enlightening than mine.
Note: this link’s text is hard to read in my web browser, but it might be just me. Click here for the cleaner, but much, much shorter HTML version.
NOTE: I will put in the complete work from the book, bullet point the parts which are my comments, and italicize the parts that are in the music.
How I Came To Spiritual Life- Through the Eyes of Almustafa, The Chosen and the Beloved
When I was 10 years old, my mother one day walked into my room and handed me a vinyl record with a spooky and serious looking man on the front cover surrounded by a yellowed-parchment colored background.
She said “I think you’ll like it” and left. Little did I know that in the subsequent few years, this small interaction (and so MANY repeated listens) would forever change the face of my understanding of the world, spirituality in general, and my future yoga experience waiting for me 20 years later.
Throughout my time spent living (from August 2005 to January 2008) at the Sivananda Ashram Yoga Farm, part of the worldwide International Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Centres, the Teacher Training Course there, and all of my subsequent research into Classical Yoga, I have been gradually relying on this musical rendition of the book for my sense of correctness of spirituality and using it as a sort of ‘Oracle’ toward making decisions in life and learning.
Richard Harris (the original Dumbledore in the first Harry Potter film, by the way), I have heard, had a personal mission to turn this classic book (I didn’t know it was a book until I was 30) into a musical work. He enlisted the legendary Arif Mardin (who died on June 25, 2006) to produce this work with him. Tony Levin, in one of his first professional gigs, was playing bass guitar.
I emailed Tony Levin years ago asking why there was no cd version of the record I had long since worn out (but still carried from move to move, the album cover). Very soon after this, my mom sent me the cd version, re-awakening my delight and reminded me that I had memorized the entire musical version as a child. To this day, I can still hear
Richard Harris reputedly had to personally track down more than 90 of the heirs to the legacy of Kahlil Gibran throughout the world, and get them ALL to unanimously authorize such a musical rendition of the book. He did so, and the world is a better place for it. I am very saddened that I will never get now to thank personally either Arif Mardin or Richard Harris himself for the gift they gave me in my life. I have, however, thanked my mother numerous times!
Like 2112 by Rush before it (in my discovery), it has a sweeping and epic flavor to it, although both works are markedly different in philosophy. Mostly spoken word, this Irish Elizabethan-trained actor’s inflections and dramatic flair added so much to my pre-teen life that I wasn’t able to fully appreciate until I began studying Classical Yoga as taught in the Saraswati lineage from Swami Sivananda and his disciples.
I have since branched out to understand Classical Yoga as a immense, indeed the largest, body of spiritual work available to mankind, but it is largely summarized by ‘The Prophet’ in Kahlil Gibran’s poetic words. To this end, we proceed...
In this edition: The Prophet.
This series of article posts focus on “The Prophet” by Kahlil Gibran and it’s relationship to the practice of real Classical Yoga. In successive posts, I will draw parallels between this classic work and the classical yogic practices, and link to some further explanations of how those work as well.
My focus here in the introduction is to talk about my experiences in learning this monumental and well-known and -loved work.
I recommend you purchase the cd version of this work in order to really understand what I am talking about.
An excellent lecture on the work is also available here by Bhagawan Shree Rajneesh, later known as Osho, in XML. His comments I am sure will be more enlightening than mine.
Note: this link’s text is hard to read in my web browser, but it might be just me. Click here for the cleaner, but much, much shorter HTML version.
NOTE: I will put in the complete work from the book, bullet point the parts which are my comments, and italicize the parts that are in the music.
How I Came To Spiritual Life- Through the Eyes of Almustafa, The Chosen and the Beloved
When I was 10 years old, my mother one day walked into my room and handed me a vinyl record with a spooky and serious looking man on the front cover surrounded by a yellowed-parchment colored background.
She said “I think you’ll like it” and left. Little did I know that in the subsequent few years, this small interaction (and so MANY repeated listens) would forever change the face of my understanding of the world, spirituality in general, and my future yoga experience waiting for me 20 years later.
Throughout my time spent living (from August 2005 to January 2008) at the Sivananda Ashram Yoga Farm, part of the worldwide International Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Centres, the Teacher Training Course there, and all of my subsequent research into Classical Yoga, I have been gradually relying on this musical rendition of the book for my sense of correctness of spirituality and using it as a sort of ‘Oracle’ toward making decisions in life and learning.
Richard Harris (the original Dumbledore in the first Harry Potter film, by the way), I have heard, had a personal mission to turn this classic book (I didn’t know it was a book until I was 30) into a musical work. He enlisted the legendary Arif Mardin (who died on June 25, 2006) to produce this work with him. Tony Levin, in one of his first professional gigs, was playing bass guitar.
I emailed Tony Levin years ago asking why there was no cd version of the record I had long since worn out (but still carried from move to move, the album cover). Very soon after this, my mom sent me the cd version, re-awakening my delight and reminded me that I had memorized the entire musical version as a child. To this day, I can still hear
Richard Harris reputedly had to personally track down more than 90 of the heirs to the legacy of Kahlil Gibran throughout the world, and get them ALL to unanimously authorize such a musical rendition of the book. He did so, and the world is a better place for it. I am very saddened that I will never get now to thank personally either Arif Mardin or Richard Harris himself for the gift they gave me in my life. I have, however, thanked my mother numerous times!
Like 2112 by Rush before it (in my discovery), it has a sweeping and epic flavor to it, although both works are markedly different in philosophy. Mostly spoken word, this Irish Elizabethan-trained actor’s inflections and dramatic flair added so much to my pre-teen life that I wasn’t able to fully appreciate until I began studying Classical Yoga as taught in the Saraswati lineage from Swami Sivananda and his disciples.
I have since branched out to understand Classical Yoga as a immense, indeed the largest, body of spiritual work available to mankind, but it is largely summarized by ‘The Prophet’ in Kahlil Gibran’s poetic words. To this end, we proceed...