Posts Tagged ‘Bible’
Death? Afterlife? Rebirth?
~ Easter Reflections on Resurrections
~ Ron’s Memoirs
At my death do not lament our separation …
as the sun and moon but seem to set,
in reality this is a rebirth.
~ Rumi
“I tell you the truth,
no one can see the kingdom of God
unless he is born again.”
~ John – 3:3
“The soul is eternal, all-pervading, unmodifiable, immovable and primordial.”
“The soul never takes birth and never dies at any time,
nor does it come into being again when the body is created.
The soul is birthless, eternal, imperishable and timeless,
and is never destroyed when the body is destroyed.
Just as a man giving up old worn out garments accepts other new apparel, in the same way the embodied soul giving up old and worn out bodies verily accepts new bodies.”
~ Bhagavad Gita, Chapter 2, Krishna to Arjuna
“I died as a mineral and became a plant,
I died as a plant and rose to animal,
I died as animal and I was man.
Why should I fear?
When was I less by dying?
Yet once more I shall die as man,
To soar with angels blest;
But even from angelhood I must pass on …”
~ Rumi
death, as men call him, ends what they call men
–but beauty is more now than dying’s when…
~ e. e. cummings
“The dewdrop belongs to the sea.
Separated, it is vulnerable to the sun and wind and other elements of nature;
but when the droplet returns to its source, it becomes magnified in oneness with the sea.
So it is with your life. United to God you become immortal.”
~ Paramahansa Yogananda
Eternal Life is gained by utter abandonment of one’s own life.
When God appears to His ardent lover the lover is absorbed in Him,
and not so much as a hair of the lover remains.
True lovers are as shadows, and when the sun shines in glory
the shadows vanish away.
He is a true lover to God to whom God says,
“I am thine, and thou art mine! ”
~ Rumi
Tree of Life
The Last Supper
Ron’s Introduction to Death? Afterlife? Rebirth? ~ Easter Reflections on Resurrections
Dear Friends,
At age ninety one, I have long reflected upon crucially important perennial questions concerning life, death, afterlife, and rebirth. And thereby I’ve been blessed to realize that consciousness as Divine LOVE continues eternally after inevitable physical death.
Background
My background in this precious human lifetime is summarized in my most recent memoirs postings as follows:
Until my mid-life spiritual awakening, I self-identified only as my mortal physical body, its thoughts and its story, and believed that inevitable death of the body ended life. I had no opinion, knowledge or belief concerning reincarnation or afterlife in ‘heaven’ or ‘hell’, or of an immortal “soul”.
Then in my early forties, I had irreversibly transformative experiences of spiritual self-identity and afterlife: I began to realize that I was not merely my mortal body, its thoughts and story, but eternal and universal awareness. And I started seeing visions of apparent past lives, and inner and outer appearances of deceased people, including my maternal grandfather and Mahatma Gandhi, who I now regard as my first perceived inner guide.
Then, after meeting my beloved Guruji, Shri Dhyanyogi Madhusudandas, I developed a deep curiosity and philosophical interest in the spiritual significance of death and dying, reincarnation and karma, and I began accepting Eastern ideas of reincarnation and transmigration of an eternal soul, while gradually losing fear of inevitable physical death.
[ I’ve shared many experiences, essays, quotes and poems on these subjects. See e.g., https://sillysutras.com/category/afterlife/ ;https://sillysutras.com/category/life-and-death/; https://sillysutras.com/category/reincarnation/ ]
Ultimately I concluded that cosmically there is no death; that “birth and death are virtual, while Life is perpetual” and that “as we lose our fear of leaving life, we gain the art of living life.” (See e.g. https://sillysutras.com/know-death-to-know-life-know-death-to-know-that-there-is-no-death/ )
Consequently, I’ve become ever less fearful about my own inevitable and perhaps imminent bodily death, and often witness Earth-life like an illusionary play or movie, rather than Reality – which I now consider to be Divine LOVE as Infinite Potentiality beyond comprehension, imagination or description.
Moreover, I’ve become persuaded that since everything is timeless energy (E=mc2) all our supposedly separate lifetimes, incarnations, emanations or appearances can be intuited timelessly and concurrently, as akashic records.
However (except for rare Avatars or Buddhas) I’ve realized that we are karmically challenged to live each supposedly separate space/time lifetime as lovingly and empathetically as possible, while remembering that we are not separate mortal entities but indivisible and Eternal Divine LOVE
Current Conditions.
We are now experiencing an unprecedented era of post-pandemic social, psychological, political, and economic turbulence, violence, and polarity, with seemingly imminent nuclear war or other human caused catastrophe threatening to end earth-life as we’ve known it.
More people than ever before are suffering fears of death, illness, impoverishment, or imminent calamity, and are unable to live normally. They feel deprived of God-given human rights and necessities, and are prevented from engaging in customary economic and social activities. Some are homeless or ‘sheltering’ unable to reverently commemorate the equinox holidays with others.
From my perspective they are experiencing obscenely insane transnational governmental and institutional exploitation and hypocrisy, rather than purported democracy. And thus our species is still insanely plundering, polluting and pillaging our planet’s limited resources, and unsustainably destroying it’s precious ecosystem and climate.
But, paradoxically, this is also a time of epochal opportunity, not just a time of apparently imminent catastrophe insanely caused or condoned by our species.
Thus, this is an especially appropriate time for us to deeply reflect upon our fundamental life purposes, priorities and responsibilities as sentient Earth beings.
Because ignorance of humanity’s immortal Self-Identity causes continual fearful sufferings which impede evolution and progress, it is crucial that we transcend current fears. So the foregoing writings are offered to help us overcome those fears, and thereby enter an unprecedented new era of peace and prosperity on earth.
My Optimistic Perspectives.
With unequivocal Faith in God I am optimistically convinced that these turbulent times are inspiring and awakening a pivotal “critical mass” turning point in human history, when much of humankind will energetically awaken to loving levels of consciousness and spiritual freedom.
Two thousand years ago Jesus Christ’s life and teachings demonstrated that we are not separated but exist as One Eternal LOVE; that when we love each other we love our Eternal SELF – our Divine Creator and Sole Source. Those ultimate teachings remain true in current times.
Therefore we are immensely blessed with the rare opportunity to participate in thus raising humanity’s collective consciousness, as we gratefully awaken from inside out as ONE INFINITELY POTENTIAL Divine LOVE
So to ever inspire and encourage our deepest spiritual insights I continue to post my ever evolving optimistic perspectives about perennial questions concerning life, death, afterlife, and rebirth.
May Easter and every day help us attain destined inner fulfillment and happiness during our ephemeral lifetimes on precious planet Earth.
And so may it be!
The biblical story of Jesus’ crucifixion and resurrection raises crucial perennial issues about life and death – about afterlife and rebirth – and about our true identity and reality.
As countless millions traditionally commemorate the rebirth and resurrection of Jesus Christ following his physical death by crucifixion, let us contemplate the deep significance of that story.
Whether we regard it as historic or metaphoric, the story raises crucial issues about life and death – about afterlife and rebirth – and about our true identity and reality.
Physical death is inevitable, but Life is perpetual.
Death of the physical body is inevitable and unavoidable. After birth, “no matter how we strive, no body leaves alive.” Uncertainty exists only about time of death, and about whether there is conscious life after physical death.
For millennia seers, saints, philosophers and mystics have considered perennial questions of life after physical death, and of our true identity and reality. Since the beginning of the 20th century when Albert Einstein revolutionized Western science with his theories of special and general relativity, quantum physicists and other non-materialistic scientists have begun confirming ancient mystical insights.
Raymond A. Moody, Jr., PhD, MD coined the term ‘Near Death Experience’ [NDE] in his 1975 best-selling book “Life After Life”. Since then NDE’s have become widely considered, especially by millions who claim to have experienced them. And some leading-edge non-materialist scientists have cited testimonies about NDE’s and other extraordinary mystical experiences as evidence that consciousness survives physical death.
For example, Dr. Elisabeth Kubler-Ross, world renowned scientist, teacher, author and pioneering authority on death and dying, believed in survival of spirit after physical death, and used butterflies as symbols of the death process.
Soon after World War II, she visited the children’s barracks at the Maidanek concentration camp in Poland. There, amazingly, she observed hundreds of butterfly images drawn by the inmate children on the walls, even with pebbles and fingernails. Spellbound by the sight of butterflies drawn on the walls, she wondered why they were there and what they meant.
Twenty-five years later, after listening to hundreds of terminally ill patients, she finally realized that the imprisoned children must have known that they were going to die, and intuitively were using butterflies as images of the physical death process. Dr. Kubler-Ross thus explained in The Wheel of Life, A Memoir of Living and Dying:
“They knew that soon they would become butterflies. Once dead, they would be out of that hellish place. Not tortured anymore. Not separated from their families. Not sent to gas chambers. None of this gruesome life mattered anymore. Soon they would leave their bodies the way a butterfly leaves its cocoon. And I realized that was the message they wanted to leave for future generations. . . .It also provided the imagery that I would use for the rest of my career to explain the process of death and dying.”
Dr. Kubler-Ross’s writings have inspired many other non-materialist scientists, authors, and teachers who have followed her lead. Also, of great importance in helping us understand whether spirit survives physical death were the ground-breaking scientific studies by Dr. Ian Stevenson, Professor of Psychiatry at the University of Virginia School of Medicine, who for forty years studied children world-wide who spontaneously remembered past lives. Dr. Stevenson objectively validated and documented about twelve hundred such cases.
Thanks to the ‘leading edge’ work of Dr. Kubler-Ross and Dr. Stevenson, and of distinguished non-material scientists inspired by them, there now exists overwhelming scientific evidence that consciousness and mind are independent of physical bodies; that our physical bodies and brains are not originators of consciousness and mind, but their receptors, tuners and transducers. And that until we evolve beyond space/time duality reality, apparent reincarnation or rebirth may happen after death of the brain and physical body.
What survives physical death?
If – like snowflakes – each of us manifests as an absolutely unique physical form, what is it about us that can survive death of that unique form, and be “born and reborn”?
“Reincarnation” is often understood to be the transmigration of a “soul” – viz. apparently uniquely circumscribed spirit – to another body after physical death.
In the Bhagavad Gita, Hinduism’s most cited ancient scripture, Divine Avatar Krishna instructs Prince Arjuna that:
“The soul is eternal, all-pervading, unmodifiable, immovable and primordial.”; “The soul never takes birth and never dies” but “when the body is destroyed” or when “giving up old and worn out bodies . . [it] accepts new bodies.”
~ Bhagavad Gita, Chapter 2
Though in Buddhism there is no concept of separate soul or individual self that survives death, Buddhists believe in rebirth. Like most mystics, Buddhists say that in addition to our physical body, we are enveloped by subtle astral and mental bodies, which survive death of the physical body and become consciously associated with successive physical bodies.
Thus the Dalai Lama says that:
“We are born and reborn countless number of times, and it is possible that each being has been our parent at one time or another. Therefore, it is likely that all beings in this universe have familial connections.”
A detailed and compelling description of afterlife can be found in “Autobiography of a Yogi”, by Paramahansa Yogananda, Chapter 43 – The Resurrection of Sri Yukteswar . There Yogananda credibly recounts a long discussion with his physically deceased Guru, Sri Yukteswar, who – like Jesus – resurrected to explain to his disciple Yogananda many details of afterlife. [You can read that extraordinarily fascinating story at http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Autobiography_of_a_Yogi/Chapter_43
Many psychics say that on physical death “we” survive and enter different realms. eg. http://www.victorzammit.com/Whenwedie/whatdoeshappen.htm
But ancient Vedic and Buddhist non-dualism philosophies (“Advaita”;”Advaya”) have for millennia taught that this impermanent and ever changing world is an unreal illusion called maya or samsara; and, that “all that we see or seem is but a dream within a dream”… .
“The world, indeed, is like a dream
and the treasures of the world are an alluring mirage!”
~ Buddha
“A wise man, recognizing that the world is but an illusion,
does not act as if it is real,
so he escapes the suffering.”
~ Buddha
Notwithstanding the Buddha’s non-dualist teachings, the Dalai Lama says he practices death and rebirth eight times daily. And, as Tibetan Bodhisattva of Compassion, he intends to return until all sentient beings are liberated from suffering.
If you had the option of a one-way exit pass to ‘heaven’, would you volunteer as a Bodhisattva to come back to this crazy world?
Vivekananda and Einstein.
The ancient Eastern non-dualism teachings were first brought to large Western audiences by Swami Vivekananda, principal disciple of nineteenth century Indian Holy Man Sri Ramakrishna Paramahansa, at and after the 1893 Parliament of World Religions in Chicago.
In an eloquent New York City lecture called “The Real and the Apparent Man”, Vivekananda equated maya or samsara with “time, space, and causation” and presciently predicted scientific confirmation of the ancient Vedic non-dual philosophy of One Infinite Existence. He said:
“According to the Advaita philosophy, ..this Maya or ignorance–or name and form, or, as it has been called in Europe, time, space, and causality–is out of this one Infinite Existence showing us the manifoldness of the universe; in substance, this universe is one. So long as any one thinks that there are two ultimate realities, he is mistaken. When he has come to know that there is but one, he is right. This is what is being proved to us every day, on the physical plane, on the mental plane, and also on the spiritual plane.”
“What then becomes of all this threefold eschatology of the dualist, that when a man dies he goes to heaven, or goes to this or that sphere, and that the wicked persons become ghosts, and become animals, and so forth? None comes and none goes, says the non-dualist. How can you come and go? You are infinite; where is the place for you to go? “So it is with regard to the soul; the very question of birth and death in regard to it is utter nonsense. Who goes and who comes? Where are you not? Where is the heaven that you are not in already? Omnipresent is the Self of man. Where is it to go? Where is it not to go? It is everywhere. So all this childish dream and puerile illusion of birth and death, of heavens and higher heavens and lower worlds, all vanish immediately for the perfect. For the nearly perfect it vanishes after showing them the several scenes up to Brahmaloka. It continues for the ignorant.”
“Your own will is all that answers prayer, only it appears under the guise of different religious conceptions to each mind. We may call it Buddha, Jesus, Krishna, but it is only the Self, the ‘I’.”
~ Swami Vivekananda – Jnana Yoga
Revered 20th century Indian sage, Sri Ramana Maharshi – who was a renowned exponent of non-dualism – taught that for self-realized beings there is no reincarnation, but that reincarnation exists until self-realization – that self-realization reveals this entire world of space/time/duality as illusionary maya or samsara. Thus, responding to the question: “Is reincarnation true?”, he said:
“Reincarnation exists only so long as there is ignorance. There is really no reincarnation at all, either now or before. Nor will there be any hereafter. This is the truth.”
Einstein’s revolutionary non-mechanistic science and unconventional religious ideas were consistent with highest non-dualistic Eastern religious teachings, because they questioned the substantiality of matter, the ultimate reality of space, time and causality, and reincarnation. Like Vivekananda, Einstein said:
“Reality is merely an illusion, albeit a very persistent one.”
“Our separation of each other is an optical illusion of consciousness.”
“Space and time are not conditions in which we live, they are modes in which we think”
“Concerning matter, we have been all wrong. What we have called matter is energy, whose vibration has been so lowered as to be perceptible to the senses. There is no matter.”
“There is no place in this new kind of physics for the field and matter, for the field is the only reality.”
“That which is impenetrable to us really exists. Behind the secrets of nature remains something subtle, intangible, and inexplicable. Veneration for this force beyond anything that we can comprehend is my religion.”
“I cannot imagine a God who rewards and punishes the objects of his creation, …Neither can I believe that the individual survives the death of his body, although feeble souls harbor such thoughts through fear or ridiculous egotism.”
~ Albert Einstein
Dedication
These writings are deeply dedicated to encouraging reflection about our Eternal Self-identity as timeless Divine LOVE.
May they help us experience ever expanding fulfillment and inner happiness during our ephemeral lifetimes on precious planet Earth, whatever we believe about death, afterlife or rebirth.
Invocation
May we – in this ephemeral human lifetime
on our precious planet Earth –
realize our common dream for a new reality,
where everyone everywhere is happy.
May Everyone Everywhere Be Happy!
“Lokah Samastah Sukhino Bhavantu!”
“Infuse Us, Enthuse Us, and Use Us,
To BE and Bless All Life as LOVE”
And so shall it be!!
Ron Rattner
From Darkness To Light
“And God said,
“Let there be light,”
“And God divided the light from the darkness.”
~ Genesis 1:3-4
“I wish I could show you
when you are lonely or in the darkness,
the astonishing light of your own being.”
~ Hafiz
Into my heart’s night
Along a narrow way I groped;
and lo! the light,
An infinite land of day.
~ Rumi
“The night is as bright as the day.”
“Darkness and light are both alike.”
~ Psalms 139:10-11
“Darkness cannot drive out darkness;
only light can do that.
Hate cannot drive out hate;
only love can do that.”
~ Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
“Do not be sad.
For God sends hope in the darkest moments.
The heaviest rain comes from the darkest clouds.”
~ Rumi
“See, I will create new heavens
and a new earth.”
~ Isaiah 65:17
The people who walk in darkness
Will see a great light;
Those who live in a dark land,
The light will shine on them.
~ Isaiah 9:2
For nothing is hidden,
except to be revealed;
nor has anything been secret,
but that it would come to light.
~ Mark 4:22
The trumpet shall sound,
and the dead shall be raised incorruptible,
and we shall be changed.
~ 1 Corinthians 15:52
“Light is the real essence of everything.
This earth is not “earth” as you see it;
it is light.”
~ Paramahansa Yogananda
From Darkness To Light
Dear Friends,
We are immensely privileged to have incarnated on Earth at a rare time in modern human history, as a “critical mass” of Humankind pass from violent, fearful and dark times to an age of lasting peace, light, and Love.
During ages of ignorance and darkness we’ve unknowingly and unwittingly been imprisoned and exploited by ego-bonds of belief in a simulated mental matrix from which we are at long last escaping and ascending incorruptible and awakened to the Divine eternal light of Universal Awareness.
Following the December 21, 2023 Winter Solstice, we are about to emerge from eons of outer darkness to a new age of awakened inner eternal Light; from an era of collective fearful psychoses threatening God given human rights and freedoms, to an evolutionarily “enlightened” age free from suffering and deprivation.
On our precious planet Earth, time is inescapable. We cannot live timeless lives, in dense 3D relative “reality”. So until we transcend illusory ego mind beliefs of separation from Divine Source, every Earthly ending is a new beginning. And the ending of eons of human bondage is an extraordinarily historic turning point, with infinite opportunities for our transcendent Self realization as Divine LOVE.
Thus, in this new Earth age many souls will be blessed to ascend to previously unknown awakened levels of awareness, by fearlessly emanating and radiating harmonious heart levels of loving serenity and calmness. However such ascension will require Humankind to consciously receive Divine Grace.
“Love cannot be learned or taught.
Love comes as Grace.”
~ Rumi
“The winds of grace are always blowing,
but you have to raise the sail.”
~ Sri Ramakrishna
For humanity’s “critical mass” ascension to elevated states of awareness, we must individually and collectively radiate heartfelt loving energies, without ego-mind thoughts and emotions of fear, anxiety, aggression or hatred, that invariably perpetuate our perceived illusory separation from each other and Nature.
“Darkness cannot drive out darkness;
only light can do that.
Hate cannot drive out hate;
only love can do that.”
~ Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
So let us experience current insane space/time events like a projected movie or “Light Show”. And may we thus elevate our energetic emanations by realizing that these dreamlike dark and dystopian times cannot threaten or harm our true immortal SELF identity and Reality as Eternal LIGHT, LIFE and LOVE.
Conclusion
This is a pivotal turning point in human history, when much of humankind will energetically ascend from darkness to light and loving levels of consciousness and spiritual freedom.
We are immensely blessed to participate in thus raising humanity’s collective consciousness, as we awaken to BE inner Source ultimate Reality.
Invocation
Whatever happens in this ever impermanent illusory world of inevitable karmic suffering,
May we never forget our eternal immortality and spiritual Oneness with Nature and all Earth-life.
And may we ever emanate and widely radiate universal peace and happiness,
While realizing that this world is like a projected movie or “light show” –
Just a dreamlike ever changing illusory play of Universal Awareness.
And so may it be!
Ron Rattner
Finding Lasting Happiness
~ Ron’s Memoirs
Happiness is the meaning and the purpose of life,
the whole aim and end of human existence”
~ Aristotle
“From the moment of birth every human being wants happiness and does not want suffering. Neither social conditioning nor education nor ideology affects this. From the very core of our being, we simply desire contentment. Therefore, it is important to discover what will bring about the greatest degree of happiness.”
~ H.H. Dalai Lama
“Happiness is your nature. It is not wrong to desire it.
What is wrong is seeking it outside when it is inside.”
~ Sri Ramana Maharshi
“True happiness cannot be found in things that change and pass away. Pleasure and pain alternate inexorably. Happiness comes from the Self and can be found in the Self only. Find your real Self and all else will come with it.”
~ Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj
“Seek first the kingdom of heaven,
which is within.”
~ Matthew 6:33; Luke 17:20-21
“Love is the only sane and satisfactory answer to . . problems of human existence.”
~ Erich Fromm
“We carry inside us the wonders we seek outside us.”
~ Rumi
“There is nothing outside of yourself, look within.
Everything you want is there.
You are That.”
~ Rumi
“You are not just the drop in the ocean.
You are the mighty ocean in the drop.”
~ Rumi
“Our destiny is Divinity.”
~ Ron Rattner, Sutra Sayings
“Earth-life is a round trip metaphoric journey,
on which we are destined to return to where we began.
On return, we learn – we never left.”
~ Ron Rattner, Sutra Sayings
Introduction to “How can we find lasting happiness?”
Dear Friends,
We’re all matriculating as supposed mortal persons on the Earth branch of the Great Cosmic University. We are here to learn lasting happiness from our life experiences, especially from our karmic successes and failures.
We don’t ‘graduate’ until we’ve learned to non-judgmentally accept everyone and everything everywhere in the Universe, (including ourselves and our enemies) with loving, compassion, and forgiveness.
Upon ‘graduation’ we find timeless happiness as LOVE, beyond all fears, pain and suffering.
And as we begin the ’second 2023 biannual Earth-school semester’, I greet you with wonderful news!
Because current global sufferings and interruptions of normal lives are awakening billions of human souls to our God-given blessings, we have unprecedented opportunities as Earth students and citizens to co-create a new and wonderful world of lasting happiness, harmony and health, with freedom, peace, and justice for all.
To explain this optimistic observation, I’ve posted the above quotations and sutra sayings, and the following Q & A essay about finding lasting happiness.
These writings follow recent SillySutras postings which revealed for us that chronological time is being quickened by unique cosmic energies, and auspicious cyclical and astrological planetary alignments, to awaken a “critical mass” of Humanity worldwide to our instinctive caring for one-another, which will bless Earth-life with an unprecedented era of Universal LOVE.
And so may it be!
Ron Rattner
Q&A Sutra Essay: “How can we find lasting happiness?”
Q. How can we find lasting happiness?
A. We can find lasting happiness upon transcending our illusionary ego-self, and Being our true SELF.
Knowingly or unknowingly, everyone wants lasting happiness.
However, most seek it futilely in worldly pleasures which are always impermanent.
But, ever abiding Happiness is our true inner nature – our eternal SELF – and our ultimate destiny.
So to find lasting happiness we must look within.
There mindfully we can uncover and eliminate all illusory ego-mind ideas which obscure awareness of our true SELF.
And upon so transcending our ego-self we can BE our true SELF,
which is the lasting happiness of Divine LOVE.
Ron’s Explanation and Dedication of “How can we find lasting happiness?”
I’ve shared the foregoing quotations, sutras and Q & A essay/poem, to help remind us of profoundly simple answers to seemingly complicated questions about happiness and suffering, and to help us discover that lasting happiness as Love is our true nature, and ultimate destiny.
These writings are dedicated to inspiring us to help heal this beautiful world with heartfelt Love, as we remember that ‘everything we think, do or say, changes this world in some way’, and realize that “Love is the only sane and satisfactory answer to problems of human existence.”
Accordingly, I wholeheartedly encourage us to join billions of others worldwide as an awakened “critical mass” of humanity which will peacefully end insane and unsustainable desecration of our precious planet, and immoral exploitation of all other life forms thereon.
And so may it be!
Ron Rattner
Invocation
May our current unusual fears and sufferings
prove immense disguised blessings.
May they deeply awaken our instinctive caring for one-another,
and inspire an Earth-life era of wholehearted Universal LOVE.
And so may it be!
Ron Rattner
Solstice Salutations and Quotations
~ For a Happy World
“Happiness is the meaning and the purpose of life,
the whole aim and end of human existence”
~ Aristotle
“The purpose of our lives is to be happy.”
~ Dalai Lama
“A disciplined mind leads to happiness,
and an undisciplined mind leads to suffering.”
~ Dalai Lama, The Art of Happiness
“Thousands of candles can be lit from a single candle,
and the life of the candle will not be shortened.
Happiness never decreases by being shared.”
~ Buddha
“The world is so unhappy because it is ignorant of the true Self.
Man’s real nature is happiness. Happiness is inborn in the true Self. Man’s search for happiness is an unconscious search for his true Self. The true Self is imperishable; therefore, when a man finds it, he finds a happiness which does not come to an end.”
~ Ramana Maharshi
Solstice Salutations and Quotations For a Happy World
Dear Friends,
Happy Summer Solstice!
With a new summer solstice sunlight zenith, let us envision the dawning of an Aquarian age of divine light, peace, compassion, and joy everywhere on our precious planet and beyond.
May we thereby rededicate ourselves to the Eternal Light of LOVE within and beyond everyone and everything on Earth; to THAT universal spirit of eternal light, love, harmony and happiness, which is the unseen Source of the worlds we see.
And as we optimistically envision a new season of previously unimagined planetary peace and joy, may we be infused with unprecedented illumination and inspiration for harmoniously healing our beautiful blue planet and all its life-forms.
To help inspire us, hereafter posted is a collection of wisdom words about finding timeless happiness. Please enjoy and accordingly consider these inspiring quotations.
Perennial Wisdom Words About Finding Happiness:
“Seek first the kingdom of heaven,
which is within.”
~ Matthew 6:33; Luke 17:20-21
“Happiness is your nature. It is not wrong to desire it.
What is wrong is seeking it outside when it is inside.”
~ Ramana Maharshi
“Happiness comes when your work and words
are of benefit to yourself and others.”
~ Buddha
“The happiness of one’s own heart alone cannot satisfy the soul;
one must try to include, as necessary to one’s own happiness,
the happiness of others.”
~ Paramahansa Yogananda
“One great question underlies our experience, whether we think about it or not: what is the purpose of life? From the moment of birth every human being wants happiness and does not want suffering. Neither social conditioning nor education nor ideology affects this. From the very core of our being, we simply desire contentment. Therefore, it is important to discover what will bring about the greatest degree of happiness.”
~ H.H. Dalai Lama
“I believe that the very purpose of our life is to seek happiness.
That is clear. Whether one believes in religion or not,
whether one believes in this religion or that religion,
we all are seeking something better in life.
So, I think, the very motion of our life is towards happiness…”
~ Dalai Lama
“True happiness cannot be found in things that change and pass away.
Pleasure and pain alternate inexorably.
Happiness comes from the Self and can be found in the Self only.
Find your real Self and all else will come with it.”
~ Nisargadatta Maharaj
“There is only one life and one world, and this one life and one world is appearing to us . . . . like a dream. . .You do not live in your dreams. The dreams come one after another; scene after scene unfolds before you.
So it is in this world of ninety per cent misery and ten per cent happiness. Perhaps after a while it will appear as ninety per cent happiness, and we shall call it heaven. But a time comes to the sage when the whole thing vanishes, and this world appears as God Himself, and his own soul as God. It is not therefore that there are many worlds; it is not that there are many lives. All . . is the manifestation of that ONE.”
~ Swami Vivekananda
“He who has not looked on Sorrow will never see Joy.”
“We choose our joys and sorrows long before we experience them.”
~ Kahlil Gibran
“Find ecstasy in life;
the mere sense of living is joy enough.”
~ Emily Dickinson
“I do not think of all the misery, but of the glory that remains.
Go outside into the fields, nature and the sun,
go out and seek happiness in yourself and in God.
Think of the beauty that again and again
discharges itself within and without you and be happy.”
~ Anne Frank
“The root of joy is gratefulness…
We hold the key to lasting happiness in our own hands.
For it is not joy that makes us grateful; it is gratitude that makes us joyful.”
~ Brother David Steindl-Rast
“We are formed and molded by our thoughts.
Those whose minds are shaped by selfless thoughts
give joy when they speak or act.
Joy follows them like a shadow that never leaves them.”
~ Buddha
“People are just as happy as they make up their minds to be.”
~ Abraham Lincoln
“When you are suffering, when you are unhappy, stay totally with what is now.
Unhappiness or problems cannot survive in the Now.”
~ Eckhart Tolle
“Happiness does not depend on how the furniture is arranged –
it depends on how I arrange my mind.”
“When you change the way you look at things,
the things you look at change.”
“Simply put, you believe that things or people make you unhappy,
but this is not accurate.
You make yourself unhappy.”
~ Wayne Dyer
“The surest way to be happy
is to seek happiness for others.”
~ Martin Luther King, Jr.
“Joy comes not through possession or ownership
but through a wise and loving heart.”
“If one speaks or acts with a pure mind,
happiness follows like a shadow.”
~ Buddha
“If you want others to be happy, practice compassion.
If you want to be happy, practice compassion.”
~ Dalai Lama
“Happiness resides not in possessions, and not in gold,
happiness dwells in the soul.”
~ Democritus
“The secret of happiness, you see, is not found in seeking more,
but in developing the capacity to enjoy less.”
~ Socrates
“Happiness belongs to the self sufficient.”
~ Aristotle
“The essence of philosophy is that a man should so live
that his happiness shall depend as little as possible on external things.”
~ Epictetus
“Do not spoil what you have by desiring what you have not;
remember that what you now have was once among the things you only hoped for.”
~ Epicurus
“Cultivate compassion; harvest happiness.”
~ Ron Rattner, Sutra Sayings
“Joy is not in things; it is in us.”
~ Richard Wagner
“I am happy even before I have a reason.”
~ Hafiz
“The superior man is always happy.”
~ Confucius
“Happiness is the absence of the striving for happiness.”
~ Chuang-Tzu
“By letting it go it all gets done.
The world is won by those who let it go.
But when you try and try,
the world is beyond the winning.”
~ Lao Tzu
“What is the worth of a happiness for which you must strive and work?
Real happiness is spontaneous and effortless.”
~ Nisargadatta Maharaj
“He who binds to himself a joy
Does the winged life destroy;
But he who kisses the joy as it flies
Lives in eternity’s sun rise.”
~ William Blake
“Always be joyful. That is the only truly saintly state.”
~ Teresa of Avila
“Joy can be real only if people look upon their life as a service,
and have a definite object in life
outside themselves and their personal happiness”
~ Leo Tolstoy
“I slept and dreamt that life was joy.
I awoke and saw that life was service.
I acted and behold, service was joy.”
~ Rabindranath Tagore
“Somehow not only for Christmas
But all the long year through,
The joy that you give to others
Is the joy that comes back to you.
And the more you spend in blessing
The poor and lonely and sad,
The more of your heart’s possessing
Returns to make you glad.
~ John Greenleaf Whittier
“Sanity and happiness are an impossible combination”
~ Mark Twain
“For every minute you are angry you lose sixty seconds of happiness.”
~ Ralph Waldo Emerson
“Worry never robs tomorrow of its sorrow,
it only saps today of its joy.”
~ Leo Buscaglia
“Some cause happiness wherever they go;
others whenever they go.”
~ Oscar Wild
Closing Invocations:
May we consciously and cooperatively participate together in co-creating an ever better world – Happy, Harmonious and Peaceful – as we intend and envision it to be.
May we so become infused and used as instruments of Light and Love for everyone and everything everywhere – on Solstice Holidays and Always!
May everyone everywhere be happy!
And so may it be!
Ron Rattner
Words About Words
““No more words. Hear only the voice within.”
“Learn to speak by listening.”
~ Rumi
“We are what we think.
All that we are arises with our thoughts.
With our thoughts, we make the world.”
~ Buddha
“Better than a thousand useless words is one useful word,
hearing which one attains peace.
Better than a thousand useless verses is one useful verse,
hearing which one attains peace.”
~ Buddha
“In the beginning was the word
and the word was with God
and the word was God”
~ John 1:1
“The grass withers, the flower fades,
But the word of God stands forever.”
~ Isaiah 40:8
“True communication” is neither verbal nor mental –
but transcendental.
True communication is communion –
Heart to Heart.”
~ Ron Rattner, Sutra Sayings
“Speak little; say much.”
~ Ron Rattner (aka Swami Onandonananda)
Ron’s Introduction to Words about Words
Dear Friends,
Today’s “Words About Words” posting, is deeply dedicated to preserving, advancing and blessing all miraculous Earth-life with our compassionate and empathetic thoughts, words, and deeds, as co-creators of our perceived space/time reality.
With the foregoing apt quotations, “Words About Words” is a collection sutra-sayings and verses about words, and follwing explanatory comments which supplement other related SillySutras postings about silence, words, and thoughts.
These writings reveal important reasons (especially in these Orwellian post-pandemic times), for us to consciously consider how and why our thoughts, words and behaviors karmically cause our Earth-life experiences.
They accept ancient Eastern non-duality and karma philosophies as well as Einstein’s revolutionary scientific insights revealing that our world is a thought created mental illusion, like a wonderful mirage, where “reality exists in the human mind, and nowhere else”. [George Orwell “1984”]
According to mystic masters, the more elevated and compassionate our thought emanations, the further and faster we advance our spiritual evolution. (See e.g. Thoughts About Thought) So this posting is deeply dedicated to thus elevating and advancing our spiritual awakening process, and to helping us live ever happier lives.
May these writings encourage and inspire us, as spiritually awakening beings, to ever emanate elevating word and thought energies of kindness, compassion and empathy which help transform the world, and advance our spiritual evolution toward ultimate Self-realization of our true non-duality identity and infinite Reality – as Universal Life, Light and LOVE.
And so may it be!
Words About Words
Words are thoughts.
Words are mind symbols uttered or inscribed
to denominate and communicate ideas.
Words are then,
Life is NOW.
Life is a word game:
Adding a few syllables to the Ineffable,
we play the word game of life
until we find and become THAT –
Silence that says ALL.
Language can be a ladder for ascent to the Ineffable.
With wisdom words
we implicate
that Truth
words never explicate.
Truth transcends wisdom:
Wisdom is primordial;
but,
Truth is pre-primordial.
There’s nothing to say, but words point the way.
So, let’s elevate our spiritual “lexi-consciousness.”
Cosmic contra-diction:
In the beginning was the Word,
but in the end Silence says all.
We maximize the impact of our words
when we minimize the number of our words.
The epigrammatic is most dramatic.
Better than any words is experience.
As the Bible says, “God” is a word – a noun –
with countless connotations,
different for different people –
all believing or disbelieving in “God”.
“God” is a word designating different ideas of a Transcendent Power.
Thus, “God” did not create man,
but man created the word “God” –
with thoughts from ruminations, revelations, intuitions, and speculations,
trying to identify THAT which is beyond words, beyond all thought.
When words are inscribed or uttered with deep insight
and heartfelt compassion, they can be very powerful.
Such words are imbued with the energy of their originator.
So, words from an ‘enlightened being’ are like sun rays;
they radiate the light of their Source.
Live laconically, and
Walk your talk:
Join “The Society of Laconic Walk/Talkers”, where –
The less we talk,
the further we go.
The further we go,
the more we Know.
The more we Know,
the less we say,
’Til as Silence we are the Way.
Ron’s audio recitation of “Words About Words”
Ron’s explanation of “Words About Words”
Our space/time world is an ever impermanent and illusory ‘reality’ in which everything and everyone is flowing energy. All supposedly separate forms and phenomena are energy vortexes or information systems constantly vibrating and oscillating within a continuum, field or range of frequencies. Most energies are imperceptible to humans. But some energy vibrations, like those of perceived physical matter, are slow enough for us to detect.
Thoughts and emotions are vibrating energy-forms which humans don’t normally see. They have a vibratory range from lower negative to higher positive. Negative thoughts of anger, anxiety or fear afflict us, while thoughts of kindness, compassion and love, bless us. Therefore, according to mystic masters, elevating our thought vibrations and emanations can be of fundamental evolutionary importance. Because:
We are what we think.
All that we are arises with our thoughts.
With our thoughts, we make the world.”
~ Buddha
Thus the more elevated our thought emanations, the further we advance our evolution toward realization of our true self-identity as Life, Light and LOVE. See: Thoughts About Thought
Thoughts from mistaken beliefs of separateness from each other and Nature cause slow vibrations and low emanations. As we evolve spiritually we gradually quicken and elevate our thought energies. And we thereby progressively transcend supposed separateness, and increasingly understand and experience our Oneness with all Life everywhere. Integral to a divine ‘design plan’, we are graced with infinite potentiality to collectively advance all life on planet Earth, through our loving and compassionate thoughts, words, and deeds, even while we still experience illusionary perceptual separation from Universal Awareness – our shared essence and ultimate identity as Absolute Reality.
It is with words that we mostly express and communicate our beliefs, thoughts and consequent mistaken concepts of perpetual separateness. So words are at the root of our thought-created illusionary space/time world and its inevitable karmic suffering. Thus, the Bible metaphorically tells us that
“In the beginning was the word”.
But, as destined, we inevitably evolve from thinking to loving; from living mentally, to Being consciously. In our evolutionary process, thoughts are obstacles if they muffle or mute our eternal inner voice of conscience, intuition and Love. And ultimately we learn experientially that, whereas in the beginning was the word, in the end it is silence that says all.
Also, we learn that as we gradually clear our conceptual conditioning, we may consciously communicate by various means other than words: that, without words or thoughts, we can powerfully communicate through gestures, touch, tears, smiles, music, and even telepathically.
And we learn that, however it is shared, LOVE is a ‘contagious’ blessing, for all Life everywhere. So, whereas in the the beginning we mostly communicate mentally to share our ideas and emotions, in the end we mostly commune silently to share Love; as we learn that true communication is neither verbal nor mental, but transcendental – that true communication is communion – Heart to Heart.
Thus, as spiritually awakening beings, we are ‘contagiously’ transforming the world by Being and emanating the Eternal Light of Truth and LOVE.
Dedication
The above sutras about words are shared and dedicated to advancing the human awakening process. They are especially important during current extraordinary polarized and turbulent times, when we must transcend fearful and hostile communications and emanations to avert impending calamity, and to co-create a blessed world of Peace and Love.
Invocation
May these Words about Words
encourage and inspire us,
as spiritually awakening beings,
to ever emanate elevating word and thought energies
of kindness, compassion and empathy
which help transform the world,
and advance our spiritual evolution
toward ultimate Self-realization
of our true non-duality identity and infinite Reality –
as Universal Life, Light and LOVE.
And so shall it be!
Ron Rattner
Humility: A Supreme Virtue
“Humility is the solid foundation of all the virtues.”
~ Confucius
“Spirituality automatically leads to humility.
When a flower develops into a fruit,
the petals drop off on its own.
When one becomes spiritual,
the ego vanishes gradually on its own.
A tree laden with fruits always bends low.
Humility is a sign of greatness.”
~ Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa
“Holy humility confounds pride
and all the men of this world
and all things that are in the world.”
~ St. Francis of Assisi
“Humility grows as ego goes.”
~ Ron Rattner, Sutra Sayings
“Humility is next to godliness.
No one enters the highest heaven
believing s/he belongs there.”
~ Ron Rattner, Sutra Sayings
Introduction to “Humility: A Supreme Virtue”
Dear Friends,
The following Q and A essay defines “humility” and explains why it is perennially considered a great spiritual virtue inversely associated with “ego”. (Previous posted related articles include collections of quotations and Sutra Sayings.)
Humility: A Supreme Virtue
Q. What is “humility”?
A. Authentic humility is a core virtue and a sign of spiritual evolution.
It is a state of modesty, free from pretension, pride and arrogance;
a state that intuitively recognizes the Divine equality of all beings as blessed with the same Eternal Essence, and their Oneness with Nature; a state which opens us to learning by allowing us to acknowledge our limitations and fallibilities, and to experience with awe and wonder how little we know about the miraculous magnificence of this Creation.
Yet, humility is not a state of powerlessness or of low self esteem, but of powerful inner security, inner knowing, and inner-directedness.
Q. How does humility happen?
A. Humility grows as ego goes. As we ever more realize that we are part a vast universe and not separate from it, we gradually become less and less egoistic and self centered and more and more compassionate and humble. As Einstein says, this is a process of “widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty.”
Q. Why is humility considered a virtue, especially in prominent people?
A. Prominent people are subject to great flattery, praise and adulation which can entice and inflate ego, the enemy of compassion and humility. Those who have resisted such ego temptations have been lauded as truly great beings. Eg. Gandhi was called “Mahatma” a Sanskrit word meaning “great soul”.
Throughout history, “humility” has been recognized and appreciated as a supreme virtue manifested by great beings from every tradition and culture, who chose to lead non-pretentious, simple lives dedicated to helping others, and who have thereby inspired countless others. Today, for example, H.H. the Dalai Lama who is revered by millions worldwide as a great sage and religious leader, often describes himself as a “simple monk”, and sometimes publicly responds to questions with “I don’t know.” *
[*According to Buddhism, ego and “enlightenment” cannot coexist. No “enlightened” Buddhist can acknowledge “enlightenment” because any such acknowledgment would necessarily imply an ego-identity, a personality, a being, a separated individuality. ~ Diamond Sutra, Chapter 9]
Discussion
Enduring scriptures affirm importance of “humility”. For example, the Bhagavad Gita [13:8-12], perhaps the most important Hindu scripture, recognizes humility and lack of pride as virtues essential to Self Realization.
In the Tao Te Ching the great Taoist sage Lao Tzu states that
the Master’s “constant practice is humility.”; and that: “Humility means trusting the Tao, thus never needing to be defensive.”
Various bible passages attest to the humility of Jesus. Jesus once said of Himself,
“I am meek and humble of heart”
~ Matthew 11:29.
And in the Sermon on the Mount,
“Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.”
~ Matthew 5.5.
Jesus claimed no special powers but attributed all to God. eg.
“I speak not of myself: but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doth the works.”
~ John 14:10;
“..I can of mine own self do nothing…I seek not mine own will, but the will of the Father which hath sent me.”
~ John 5:30.
And Jesus counseled humility:
“Yea, all of you gird yourselves with humility, to serve one another: for God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace to the humble.”
~ 1 Peter 5.5.
Of Moses the bible says:
“Now the man Moses was very humble, more than all men who were on the face of the earth.”
~ Numbers 12:3.
Modern humble heroes included Albert Einstein. He remained simple and self-effacing despite the world’s “genius” label and immense flattery, using his great prestige to advocate for social justice and controversial causes, like pacifism.
Einstein was a very humble man who regarded himself as just an ordinary person, with certain abilities in theoretical physics. [eg. see Synchronicity story: Analyzing Einstein’s Autograph]
For example, he disclaimed the ‘genius’ label, saying:
“I have no special talent. I am only passionately curious.”
“It’s not that I’m so smart; it’s just that I stay with problems longer.”
Einstein explained his humility, thus:
“What I see in Nature is a magnificent structure that we can comprehend only very imperfectly, and that must fill a thinking person with a feeling of humility. This is a genuinely religious feeling that has nothing to do with mysticism.”
In eulogizing Mahatma Gandhi’s virtuous life, Einstein said:
“Generations to come will scarce believe that such a one as this ever in flesh and blood walked upon this earth.”
The great Gandhi, whose example of non-violent relentless pursuit of Truth and selfless service to humanity continues to inspire countless others, remained a humble man despite his immensely important accomplishments. His humility was evidenced by these Gandhi statements:
“It is unwise to be too sure of one’s own wisdom. It is healthy to be reminded that the strongest might weaken and the wisest might err.” . . . .
“I claim to be a simple individual liable to err like any other fellow mortal. I own, however, that I have humility enough to confess my errors and to retrace my steps.”
Humility and Ego
Spiritually, the supreme virtue of “humility” is inversely associated with “ego”. Thus prominent humble people are often regarded as great beings, because they are not egotistic.
From childhood we are acculturated to identify only with a limited and disempowering self-image. We are taught to believe that we are born into Nature as limited and separate mortal beings; but not that Nature is our nature, or that essentially we are Beings of Light, sharing limitless immortal Cosmic consciousness with all life-forms.
Such restrictive self-image is what spiritual teachings call “ego” – as distinguished from Freud’s salutary psychological definition of “ego”.
Spiritually, “ego” refers to fundamentally mistaken human mental self-identity as personalities separate from eternal Infinite potentiality;
our restrictive self-identity which causes us endless karmic suffering from unskillful thoughts, words and deeds.
Thus the ancient Rig Veda called “ego”:
“the biggest enemy of humans.”
And Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa told us that:
“All troubles come to an end when the ego dies”
~ Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa
Since “ego” arises from mental activity – from thoughts and beliefs – it cannot continue without persistently mistaken thoughts about who or what we are. Through an evolutionary process of conscious psychological self-transformation, we can transcend mistaken egoic ideas of who we think we are, and gradually realize and remember that ultimately we truly are ONE with Universal Intelligence – with Eternal Spirit.
As gradually we transcend our illusory ego identities as merely separate mortals, and increasingly self identify as Eternal Spirit, we inevitably become ever more humble. Our Humility grows as ego goes. The smaller the ego, the greater the being.
Conclusion
Authentic humility is a supreme virtue which ever expands as we become less and less egoistic and self centered and more and more compassionate, thereby “widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty.”
Dedication and Invocation
In these critical times of immense suffering and jeopardy, yet unprecedented opportunity, let us join together with utmost love and humility in envisioning our precious planet democratically ruled bottom-up by humble, peaceful and compassionate citizens, rather than top-down by selfishly plutocratic and egotistic purported “leaders”.
May these biblical passages prove prescient:
Pride goes before destruction,
a haughty spirit before a fall.
~ Proverbs 16:18
God opposes the proud,
but gives grace to the humble.
~ James 4:6
And so may it be.
Ron Rattner
Why The Choir Was Late
~ an Amazing Synchronicity Story
“Synchronicity is an ever present reality
for those who have eyes to see.”
~ Carl Jung
“Every good and perfect gift is from above,
coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights,
who does not change like shifting shadows.”
~ James 1:17
“Synchronicity is choreographed by a great, pervasive intelligence that lies at the heart of nature, and is manifest in each of us through what we call the soul.”
~ Deepak Chopra, Spontaneous Fulfillment of Desire
All things appear and disappear because of the concurrence of causes and conditions. Nothing ever exists entirely alone; everything is in relation to everything else.
~ Buddha
“As I look back upon my own life, I see how many events – which at the time appeared horribly painful or unnecessary – contained remarkable lessons which I sometimes did not understand until many years later. Now life appears to me – more and more – as a gorgeous Persian rug. Seen from underneath (that is, from the ordinary human viewpoint), it may be a mess of loose strands, knots, pieces of wool hanging in a disorderly manner; but seen from above – from another level of perspective – what perfect order, harmony and beauty!”
~ Pierre Pradervand
Why The Choir Was Late: Introduction
When the West Side Baptist Church in Beatrice, Nebraska, was demolished by an explosion on Wednesday, March 1, 1950, fifteen people were supposed to be there. But miraculously the church was empty and no one was injured.
Choir practice at the church always began punctually at 7:20 p.m. on Wednesday evenings. Choir members were usually prompt and ready to sing by 7:25 p.m. But at 7:25 p.m., when the explosion occurred, nobody was there.
The blast collapsed the church, caused power outages which forced a nearby radio station off the air, shattered windows in surrounding homes and could be heard around the town.
Miraculously not one of the people who should have been present had yet arrived when the building collapsed. Every one of the choir’s fifteen members escaped injury, saved by an astonishing fortuitious “coincidence”. For different apparent reasons, all were late for practice that night.
Though amazing, this story actually did happen. See e.g. Snopes. Also see Beatrice Daily Sun article commemorating the sixtieth anniversary of the explosion entitled: “Church explosion 60 years ago not forgotten – Remember the miracle”
Embedded below is an excellent and accurate video portrayal of the story. Watch it after reading the story.
The following article telling the story originally appeared in the March 27, 1950 issue of Life Magazine, was reprinted in the June 1950 issue of Reader’s Digest, and in the 1951 30th Anniversary Reader’s Digest Reader. And it was republished in 1991 by Time-Life Books in World of Luck: Library of Curious and Unusual Facts.
Why The Choir Was Late by George H. Edeal
It happened on the evening of March 1 in the town of Beatrice, Nebraska. In the afternoon the Reverend Walter Klempel had gone to the West Side Baptist Church to get things ready for choir practice. He lit the furnace – most of the singers were in the habit of arriving around 7:15, and it was chilly in the church – and went home to dinner. But at 7:10, when it was time for him to go back to the church with his wife and daughter, Marilyn Ruth, it turned out that Marilyn Ruth’s dress was soiled, so Mrs. Klempel ironed another. Thus they were still at home when it happened.
Ladona Vandegrift, a high school sophomore, was having trouble with a geometry problem. She knew practice began promptly and always came early. But she stayed to finish the problem.
Royena Estes was ready, but the car would not start. So she and her sister, Sadie, called Ladona Vandegrift, and asked her to pick them up. But Ladona was the girl with the geometry problem, and the Estes sisters had to wait.
Mrs. Leonard Schuster would ordinarily have arrived at 7:20 with her small daughter, Susan. But on this particular evening she had to go to her mother’s house to help her get ready for a missionary meeting.
Herbert Kipf, lathe operator, would have been ahead of time but had put off an important letter. “I can’t think why,” he said. He lingered over it and was late.
It was a cold evening. Stenographer Joyce Black, feeling “just plain lazy,” stayed in her warm house until the last possible moment. She was almost ready to leave.
Because his wife was away, machinist Harvey Ahl was taking care of his two boys. He was going to take them to practice with him, but somehow he got wound up talking. When he looked at his watch, he saw he was already late.
Marilyn Paul, the pianist, had planned to arrive half an hour early. However, she fell asleep after dinner, and when her mother awakened her at 7:15 she had time only to tidy up and start out.
Mrs. F.E. Paul, choir director, and mother of the pianist, was late simply because her daughter was. She had tried unsuccessfully to awaken the girl earlier.
High school girls Lucille Jones and Dorothy Wood are neighbors and customarily go to practice together. Lucille was listening to a 7-to-7:30 radio program and broke her habit of promptness because she wanted to hear the end. Dorothy waited for her.
At 7:25, with a roar heard in almost every corner of Beatrice, the West Side Baptist Church blew up. The walls fell outward, the heavy wooden roof crashed straight down like the weight in a deadfall. But, because of such matters as a soiled dress, a cat nap, an unfinished letter, a geometry problem and a stalled car, all of the members of the choir were late – something which had never happened before.
Firemen thought the explosion had been caused by natural gas, which may have leaked into the church from a broken pipe outside and been ignited by the fire in the furnace. The Beatrice choir members had no particular theory about the fire’s cause, but each of them began to reflect on the heretofore inconsequential details of his life, wondering at exactly what point it is that one can say,
“This is an act of God.”
Unsolved Mysteries – Lucky Choir
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=95pzg4O_GPY
Conclusion
After reading the story and watching the video, consider how such an amazing synchronistic event might have happened.
Though various choir members gave various explanations for being late for choir practice that night, was there an underlying common Cause for all of them fortuitously missing death or injury in the church explosion?
Were all of the choir members subliminally guided from a deep level of higher consciousness – a level at which everyone and everything is connected?
Were they unconsciously entrained with and guided by what Einstein calls “Universal Intelligence”?
Was it predestined that all of them would live unharmed; that none would die?
We can only speculate on answers to these questions, or on other possible explanations. But whatever our views, such marvels and blessings can infuse us with awe and gratitude for our miraculous life in this wondrous world and with abiding faith in the eternal mystery of Divine Love –
its Source.
And so may it be!
Ron’s Reflections on “Why The Choir Was Late”
Dear Friends,
From a long life of learning, I have gratefully discovered a mysterious Divine Power which is Source of everything that appears or happens in our universe. And with abiding Faith in THAT Power, I’ve realized that life always gives us whatever experiences we need for spiritual evolution, often through ‘miraculous’ synchronicities. [ see e.g. I’ve Found A Faith-Based Life ] So synchronicities can be important spiritual experiences.
Of all SillySutras “Synchronicity” stories probably the most miraculous and Faith inspiring is Why The Choir Was Late. More than any other posting, I believe it can help encourage us to surrender ego illusions of separation from immortal SELF; and, to abandon and transcend our physical fears and worries of death, disease or suffering, which are now everywhere exacerbated in this unprecedented “new normal” era.
Can you intuit the deep significance of this story? Was it “luck” that saved fifteen lives, or was it destiny, or Divine Love?
Perhaps you’ll share my perspective that the choir story instills total Faith in our immortal SELF? As a lawyer I’ve granted general power of attorney to THAT Power to guide my life.
In all events, may our inner reflections on this miraculous story help bring all of us ever increasing happiness and peace of mind.
And so may it be!
Ron Rattner
God is a Word
“In the beginning was the word
and the word was with God
and the word was God”
~ John 1:1
“And God said to Moses,
I AM THAT I AM”
~ Exodus 3:14
“An important part of the adventure of life is to get hold of the mind, and to keep that controlled mind constantly attuned to the Lord. This is the secret of a happy, successful existence.”
~ Paramahansa Yogananda — Man’s Eternal Quest
“God alone is the Doer.
Everything happens by His will.”
~ Ramakrishna Paramahansa
Remember God, forget the rest.
Forget who you think you are,
to know what you really are.
~ Ron Rattner, Sutra Sayings
“Consciousness is always Self-Consciousness.
If you are conscious of anything,
you are essentially conscious of yourself.”
~ Sri Ramana Maharshi
“This separation between man and man,
between nation and nation, between earth and moon,
between moon and sun . . does not exist, it is not real” ;
“Your own will is all that answers prayer, only it appears under the guise of different religious conceptions to each mind.
We may call it Buddha, Jesus, Krishna, but it is only the Self, the ‘I’.”
~ Swami Vivekananda – “Jnana Yoga”
God is a Word*
Q. What is God?
A. As the Bible says – God is word:
A word used by different people
to designate their different ideas
of a transcendent power;
An omnipresent, omniscient, omnipotence
which they may intuit, accept or reject,
but can’t ever comprehend.
Nor can such transcendent power
ever be aptly named.
For any designation would
constitute limitation
of the illimitable –
THAT.
So, whether or not the “universe” was created by God,
“God” is a word created by humans.
But, just as ‘a rose by any other name is the same’,
However humankind calls or tries to imagine it
There exists an indescribable infinitely potential and supreme Power:
An Absolute Reality and Existence, and Origin of All,
as
THAT.
Footnote.
*Innumerable words – God, Love, Nature, etc. – may be used to signify an ineffably infinite divine Power or any of its infinite potential aspects. Or as in the Jewish tradition it may be acknowledged that no name can denominate “THAT” which is beyond conception or expression – since naming limits the illimitable and ineffable Infinite Reality.
Ron’s Comments about “God is a Word”
Dear Friends,
The word “God” is extremely common. Countless people commonly curse, exclaim, read, think, or pray to “God”. “In God we trust” appears on all US currency and coins.
But who of us has deeply considered what “God” really means to us or other life-forms? How many times have we unthinkingly uttered or heard such exclamations as “thank God!” “God bless you”, “God love you” – or even curses including the word “God” – without wondering about their significance.
Encouraged by my beloved Guruji I have spent much of my post-retirement life-period reflecting about “God”, and other synonymous words. And I’ve found that our beliefs and concepts about “God” evolve as we evolve spiritually; and that continually contemplating God as non-duality Reality furthers our evolution.
The above poetic essay was composed to propose that “God” is a word used by different people to designate their different ideas of a transcendent power, which ultimately is beyond words. Thus, it explains that humans created the word “God” – with thoughts from ruminations, revelations, intuitions, and speculations, paradoxically trying to identify THAT which is beyond words, beyond all thought.
It is offered to encourage exploration of our common inner Divinity and SELF-identity – in furtherance of our (conscious or subliminal) universal longing for a state of ONENESS with Divinity – with “God” or THAT.
“As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he.”
~ Proverbs 23:7
“A man is but the product of his thoughts;
what he thinks, he becomes.”
~ Mahatma Gandhi
“We are what we think.
All that we are arises with our thoughts.
With our thoughts, we make the world.”
~Buddha
With our continuing reflections and thoughts about “God”, may we increasingly discover and experience our joyously loving common inner Divinity – until ultimately we non-dually melt and merge immortally as ONE Divine LOVE.
And so may it be!
Ron Rattner
Asking Is The Answer
“We never cease to stand like curious children
before the great Mystery into which we were born.”
“The important thing is not to stop questioning.
Curiosity has its own reason for existing.”
~ Albert Einstein
“What I see in Nature is a magnificent structure
that we can comprehend only very imperfectly,
and that must fill a thinking person with a feeling of humility.
This is a genuinely religious feeling that has nothing to do with mysticism.”
~ Albert Einstein
“Ask, and it will be given to you
For every one who asks receives.”
~ Matthew 7:7-8; Luke 11:9-10
The quest is in the question.
The question is the answer.
~ Ron Rattner, Sutra Sayings
“I claim to be a simple individual
liable to err like any other fellow mortal.
I own, however, that I have humility enough
to confess my errors and to retrace my steps.”
~ Mahatma Gandhi
Asking Is The Answer
In asking, we are curious.
In asking, we don’t know.
In asking, we are humble.
In asking, we are ever open to inspiration.
Ever asking,
ever curious,
ever open,
ever humble,
ever unknowing:
This is the answer
to the enigma of the Unknowable,
to the mystery of Divinity –
The sacred secret of Life.
Ron’s audio recitation of “Asking is the Answer”
Ron’s explanation and dedication of “Asking is the Answer”.
Dear Friends,
The above “Asking Is The Answer” sutra poem summarizes one of the most important lessons I’ve learned so far from living a long and blessed lifetime: viz. to always keep curious and open minded, just as when we begin our lives as unacculturated children.
Since my midlife spiritual awakening, I’ve learned that open-minded curiosity and humility are crucial for life-long learning and spiritual advancement.
One of my greatest joys has been to continuously learn from life, while realizing that we live as part of Nature, in a world of infinite mystery with infinite possibility.
In his wonderful poem “Certainty” Sant Tukaram reminded us that nothing is “certain” in this world of permanent impermanence; that inflexible certainty – even about God – “can become an illness that creates hate and greed”.
And similar perennial wisdom was expressed and demonstrated by Albert Einstein, a scientific genius who was always intrigued by the eternal mysteries of Nature. Einstein, who described himself as a deeply religious man awed by the mystery of the eternity of life, and the … marvelous structure of reality, observed that:
“We never cease to stand like curious children
before the great Mystery into which we were born.”
“The important thing is not to stop questioning.
Curiosity has its own reason for existing.”
~ Albert Einstein
Especially in these extraordinarily turbulent and divisive times of worldwide interpersonal and international challenges arising from our “leaders’ and our species’ harmful and unsustainable behaviors, we can best address life’s challenges by heeding and following perennial wisdom demonstrated and counseled by our wise ancestors like Einstein and Sant Tukaram.
So let us learn, individually and societally, to get along with all others, especially our supposed adversaries or enemies.
Let us remain open-minded, humble and curious, always remembering and compassionately honoring the spiritual essence and divine equality of everyone everywhere, without mistaken certainty or hostility about them.
Invocation
With stilled minds and opened hearts, may we resolve current crises and compassionately live with peace and justice everywhere, without immoral exploitation and discrimination against the world’s most vulnerable sentient beings, and the iniquity of inequity in our societies.
And so shall it be!
Ron Rattner
Harmony ~ Quotations and Sayings
“Harmony is the secret principle of life.”
~ Paramahansa Yogananda
“Love is the energizing elixir of the Universe,
the cause and effect of all Harmony.”
~ Rumi
“When there is harmony between the mind, heart and resolution
then nothing is impossible.”
~ Rig Veda
Introduction to Harmony Quotations and Sayings
Dear Friends,
To commemorate the 2021 Vernal Equinox season, I’ve augmented and posted below a treasury of inspiring quotations about “Harmony”, which express enduring spiritual ideas and ideals of fundamental significance.
This collection of quotations and sayings about “Harmony” is dedicated to helping heal the world, by awakening us to our spiritual Oneness with Nature and Universal Awareness, as LOVE.
Please deeply reflect upon this perennial wisdom.
And so may it be!
Ron Rattner
Harmony Quotations and Sayings
“Harmony is the secret principle of life.”
~ Paramahansa Yogananda
“When there is harmony between the mind, heart and resolution
then nothing is impossible.”
~ Rig Veda
”Neither human wisdom nor divine inspiration
can confer upon man any greater blessing than
[to live a life of happiness and harmony here on earth].”
~ Plato
“Clothe yourselves with compassion,
kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.
Bear with each other and forgive one another . .
And over all these virtues put on LOVE,
which binds everything together in perfect harmony.”
~ Colossians 3: 12-17
“(A)ll problems of existence are essentially problems of harmony.”
~ Sri Aurobindo
“The heart and mind can find peace and harmony
by contemplating the transcendental nature
of the true Self as supreme effulgent life.”
~ Patanjali
“Where the heart is full of kindness which seeks no injury to another,
either in act or thought or wish, this full love creates an atmosphere of harmony,
whose benign power touches with healing all who come within its influence.
Peace in the heart radiates peace to other hearts,
even more surely than contention breeds contention.”
~ Patanjali, Yoga Sutra
“Affirm divine calmness and peace,
and send out only thoughts of love and goodwill
if you want to live in peace and harmony.
Never get angry, for anger poisons your system.”
~ Paramahansa Yogananda
“A harmonized mind produces harmony
in this world of seeming discord.”
~ Paramahansa Yogananda
“Go forth in every direction –
for the happiness, the harmony, the welfare of the many.
Offer your heart, the seeds of understanding,
like a lamp overturned and re-lit, illuminating the darkness.”
~ Buddha
“The life ahead can only be glorious
if you learn to live in total harmony with the Lord.”
~ Shirdi Sai Baba
“Happiness is when what you think,
what you say,
and what you do are in harmony.”
~ Mahatma Gandhi
“Virtue is harmony.”
~ Pythagoras
“God reveals himself in the orderly harmony of what exists.”
~ Albert Einstein
“Always aim at complete harmony of thought and word and deed.
Always aim at purifying your thoughts and everything will be well.”
~ Mahatma Gandhi
“The sage is one with the world,
and lives in harmony with it.”
~ Lao Tzu
”One who lives in accordance with nature
does not go against the way of things,
but moves in harmony with the present moment.”
~ Lao Tzu
“He who lives in harmony with himself
lives in harmony with the universe.”
~ Marcus Aurelius
“The essence of saintliness
is total acceptance of the present moment,
harmony with things as they happen.”
~ Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj
”The superior person is in Harmony,
but does not follow the crowd.
The lesser person follows the crowd,
but is not in Harmony.”
~ Confucius
“Love is the energizing elixir of the Universe,
the cause and effect of all Harmony.”
~ Rumi
“Love opens all doors, no matter how tightly closed they may be, no matter how rusty from lack of use. Your work is to bring unity and harmony, to open all those doors which have been closed for a long time. Have patience and tolerance. Open your heart all the time.”
~ Maharishi Mahesh Yogi
“The life of this world is nothing but the harmony of opposites”
~ Rumi
“Where there is discord,
let us sow Harmony.”
~ Peace Prayer attributed to St. Francis of Assisi
”Without law or compulsion,
men would dwell in harmony.”
~ Lao Tzu
As soon as laws are necessary for men,
they are no longer fit for freedom.
~ Pythagoras
”Happy the man whose lot it is to know The secrets of the earth.
He hastens not To work his fellows hurt by unjust deeds,
But with rapt admiration contemplates
Immortal Nature’s ageless harmony,
And how and when the order came to be.”
~ Euripides
”To have a positive religion is not necessary.
To be in harmony with yourself and the universe is what counts,
and this is possible without positive and specific formulation in words.”
~ Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
“The unlike is joined together,
and from differences results the most beautiful harmony.”
~ Heraclitus
”Mutual respect and mutual listening
are the foundations of harmony within the family.”
~ Buddha
“Harmony can not thrive in a climate of
mistrust, cheating, bullying;
mean-spirited competition.”
~ Dalai Lama
”Wherever I go meeting the public…
spreading a message of human values …
[and] harmony, is the most important thing.”
~ Dalai Lama
”If you want peace and harmony in the world,
you must have peace and harmony in your hearts and minds.”
~ Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj
“Happiness is not a matter of intensity
but of balance and order and rhythm and harmony.”
~ Thomas Merton
”Harmony sinks deep into the recesses of the soul
and takes its strongest hold there,
bringing grace also to the body and mind as well.
Music is a moral law. It gives a soul to the universe,
wings to the mind, flight to the imagination, a charm to sadness,
and life to everything. It is the essence of order.”
~ Plato
”Music then is simply the result of
the effects of Love on rhythm and harmony.”
~ Plato
”Music is an agreeable harmony for the honor of God
and the permissible delights of the soul.”
”Harmony is next to Godliness”
~ Johann Sebastian Bach
“If only the whole world could feel the power of harmony.”
~ Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
“Every element has a sound, an original sound from the order of God;
all those sounds unite like the harmony from harps and zithers.”
~ Hildegard of Bingen
“A life in harmony with nature,
the love of truth and virtue,
will purge the eyes to understanding her text.”
~ Ralph Waldo Emerson
“With an eye made quiet by the power of harmony,
and the deep power of joy,
we see into the life of things.”
~ William Wordsworth
“Life’s errors cry for the merciful beauty that
can modulate their isolation
into a harmony with the whole.”
~ Rabindranath Tagore
“The highest education is that
which does not merely give us information
but makes our life in harmony with all existence.”
~ Rabindranath Tagore
“Training the intellect does not result in intelligence.
Intelligence comes into being when one acts in perfect harmony,
both intellectually and emotionally.”
~ J. Krishnamurti
“As long as people will shed the blood of innocent creatures
there can be no peace, no liberty, no harmony between people.
Slaughter and justice cannot dwell together.”
~ Isaac Bashevis Singer
”I believe in Spinoza’s God, who reveals Himself in the lawful harmony of the world, not in a God who concerns Himself with the fate and the doings of mankind…”
~ Albert Einstein
”The harmony of natural law reveals an Intelligence of such superiority that,
compared with it, all the systematic thinking and acting of human beings
is an utterly insignificant reflection.”
~ Albert Einstein
“In art, and in the higher ranges of science,
there is a feeling of harmony which underlies all endeavor.
There is no true greatness in art or science
without that sense of harmony.”
~ Albert Einstein
“My feeling is religious insofar as I am imbued
with the consciousness of the insufficiency of the human mind
to understand more deeply the harmony of the Universe
which we try to formulate as “laws of nature”
~ Albert Einstein
”Today wherever you go, carry the intention of peace, love, and harmony in your heart.” “Just as light brightens darkness, discovering inner fulfillment can eliminate any disorder or discomfort. This is truly the key to creating balance and harmony in everything you do.”
~ Deepak Chopra
”There is great freedom in simplicity of living, and after I began to feel this, I found harmony in my life between inner and outer well-being.
There is a great deal to be said about such harmony, not only for an individual life but also for the life of a society.
It’s because as a world we have gotten ourselves so far out of harmony,
so way off on the material side, that when we discover something like nuclear energy we are still capable of putting it into a bomb and using it to kill people!
This is because our inner well-being lags so far behind our outer well-being.”
~ Peace Pilgrim
”Everyone has the perfect gift to give the world-
and if each of us is freed up to give our unique gift,
the world will be in total harmony.”
~ R. Buckminster Fuller
“Beauty of style and harmony
and grace and good rhythm
depend on simplicity.”
~ Plato (The Republic)
“Out of clutter find simplicity.
From discord make harmony.
In the middle of difficulty lies opportunity.”
~ Albert Einstein
“The simplification of life is one of the steps to inner peace.
A persistent simplification will create an inner and outer well-being
that places harmony in one’s life.”
~ Peace Pilgrim
“Adversity draws men together and produces beauty and harmony in life’s relationships, just as the cold of winter produces ice-flowers on the window-panes, which vanish with the warmth.”
~ Soren Kierkegaard
“Harmony with land is like harmony with a friend;
you cannot cherish his right hand and chop off his left”
~ Aldo Leopold
“Live harmlessly in Harmony.”
~ Ron Rattner, Sutra Sayings
“How can there be harm in me,
when I’m in harmless Harmony?”
~ Ron Rattner, Sutra Sayings
“Let us live in harmless harmony,
and stay in cosmic synchrony,
as we play in Nature’s symphony.”
~ Ron Rattner, Sutra Sayings
“Don’t disrupt and polarize,
but syncretize and harmonize.”
~ Ron Rattner, Sutra Sayings
Invocation
Imbued with heartfelt “Harmony”,
May we help heal the world –
by Awakening NOW
To the Eternal inner Light
Of our ONENESS
with Nature and Universal Awareness,
as LOVE.
And so shall it be!
Ron Rattner
