Desire

The human mind disappears in the present. It lives in the future, in the hope, in the promise of the future; it moves through desire. Desire needs time, it cannot exist if there is no time. If suddenly you come to a moment where you realize that time has disappeared, that now there is no time, no tomorrow, what will happen to desire? – it cannot move, it disappears with time.

Basically time is not a physical phenomenon, it is psychological. Time is not there outside you, it is the very functioning of the mind that creates time. Jesus lived without time. That is why he said, don’t be bothered about what you will eat or what you will drink or what clothes you will wear. Be desireless and the gates of heaven are open to you. But to be desireless you have to be here and now by destroying the bridge facilitates the mind to exist in the future. Desire is the bridge.

 

Why suffer?

From the most ancient days, man has asked again and again why is there suffering in life. If God is the father, then why is there so much suffering? If God is love and God is compassion, then why does existence suffer? Only by understanding Jesus can we get a satisfactory answer to this question. Human beings suffer because there is no other way to mature, to grow. Humans suffer because only through suffering can one become more aware.

Nothing is meaningless in this world. It is a cosmos, it is not a chaos. We cannot understand it because we know only fragments not the whole. We experience life just as if we have only one tattered page of a novel: it makes no sense on reading because it is just a small fragment and the whole story is not known. Once the whole story is known, then that page becomes comprehensible, coherent, meaningful.

Jesus on the cross was the symbol of the final suffering, the absolute suffering, the peak of suffering. On the cross Jesus wavered a little. The suffering was too much. It was no ordinary suffering, not ordinary body pain, it was anguish: not only physical, but deep psychological anguish – the anguish of feeling abandoned by God. And He asked God, “Why?” It was a moment of very deep anguish, when all the foundations and even faith is shaken. Then suddenly he realized why, because he became very much aware; the moment of crucifixion he came to perfect awareness.

Before that moment he was Jesus, after that moment he became Christ. Jesus disappeared and there was Christ. Immediately after the anguish he said, “No! Thy will should be done.” He accepted it. Thy will should be done because my will is going to be wrong.

The same energy that was creating intense suffering in Jesus is now transformed. It’s quality changes. There is only one energy in the human body. You can use it for sex, you can transform it and make it into love, you can transform it still higher and make it into prayerfulness, you can transform it still higher and make it awareness. Whenever there is suffering – mental, physical or existential, close your eyes and look at the suffering, make it a meditation. Look at it as an object separate from you, with which you are not identified. The bridge is broken, and the energy that was going to move into suffering will not move, because the bridge is no longer there. Whenever there is suffering become aware; then the bridge is broken, there is no transfer of energy to suffering and by and by it starves to death.

 

Prayer

What is prayer? Ordinarily we think prayer is asking for something, demanding, complaining: we have desires and expect God to fulfil them. We go to God’s door to ask for something, we go as beggars. Prayer can never be begging; prayer can only be thankfulness. When we go to beg prayer is not the end, it is just a means. Prayer is not significant because we pray to get something; that something is significant, not prayer. Prayer can never be a means just as love can never be a means; love is the end. Prayer is love, it is simply to enjoy – not for asking, not for begging. Prayer is simply thanking the divine for allowing us to be, for allowing us to see different colours, for allowing us to listen. These are not things which we have earned, they are gifts. All we can ever do is to be thankful for all His gifts. Gratitude is prayer, and it is so beautiful to feel grateful that nothing can be compared to it. Prayerfulness is the climax of our happiness, it cannot become a means to some other end.

 

Jesus, Knowing Him

Its a very delicate affair to understand Jesus; intense training is needed for this. It is just like understanding classical music. When you listen to classical music for the first time it may sound boring. It is so delicate, a long training is needed. You have to be an apprentice for many many years; only then your eyes are trained to catch the subtle. And then there is nothing like classical music; then ordinary day-to-day music, is not music at all, it is just noise. For enjoying classical music you need trained ears; without the training we hear noise and think it is music. Training is needed, and the more you are trained, the more the subtle becomes visible. But classiccal music is nothing before Jesus, because He is the cosmic music. You have to be so silent that there is no single flicker of thought, not a single movement in your being; only then can you hear Jesus, can you understannd Jesus, can you know him.

 

Jesus of Nazereth

In his home town, people thought that Jesus was, “Just the carpenter Joseph’s son.” Nobody, nobody could recognize what had happened to this man: that he was no longer the carpenter’s son, that he had become God’s son. This is an inner phenomenon.

 

Khalil Gibran on Jesus

 

                       

 

There are three miracles of our Brother Jesus not yet recorded in the book: the first that He was a man like you and me; the second that He had a sense of humour; and the third that He knew He was a conqueror though conquered.

 

 

Crucified One, you are crucified upon my heart; and the nails that pierce your hands pierce the walls of my heart. And tomorrow when a stranger passes this Golgotha He will know that two bled here. He will deem it the blood of one man.

 

 

You may have heard of the Blessed Mountain. It is the highest mountain in our world. Should you reach the summit you would have only one desire, and that to descend and be with those who dwell in the deepest valley. That is why it is called the Blessed Mountain.

 

 

 

Long ago lived a man who was crucified for being too loving and too lovable. And strange to relate I met Him thrice yesterday. The first time He was asking a policeman not to take a prostitute to prison; the second time He was drinking wine with an outcast; and the third time He was having a fist fight with a promoter inside a church.

 

Love – Kahlil Gibran

Love – Kahlil Gibran

In Kahlil Gibran’s beautiful book, Jesus the Son of Man, he has created a fictitious but beautiful story; and sometimes fiction are more factual than facts. Mary Magdalene looks out of her window and sees Jesus sitting in her garden under the tree. The man is beautiful. She had known many men, she was a famous prostitute – even kings used to knock at her door – she was one of the loveliest flowers. But she had never known such a man, because a person like Jesus carries an invisible aura around him that gives him a beauty of something of the other world, he doesn’t belong to this world. There was light around him, the way he walked, the way he sat, as if he were an emperor in the robes of a beggar.

He looked so much of another world that Magdalene asked her servants to and invite him, but Jesus refused. He said, “I am okay here. The tree is beautiful and very shady.”

Then Magdalene had to go herself as ask. She could never believe that anybody would refuse her request. She said come into my house and be my guest.”

Jesus said, “I have already come into your house, I have already become a guest. Now there is no need.”

She could not understand. She said, “No, come, and don’t refuse me, nobody has ever refused me. Can’t you do such a little thing? Become my guest. Eat with me today and stay with me this night.”

Jesus said, “I have accepted. And remember, those who say they have accepted you have never accepted you; and those who tell you that they love you, none of them has ever loved you. And I tell you, I love you and only I can love you.” But he would not enter the house; rested, he left.

Love is not something you can do; it is the quality of your being. Only those whose need to be needed has disappeared can love.

 

Jesus, His Kingdom

The Kingdom of God is within you. Luke 17:21

Even though the teaching of Jesus is so clear the Kingdom of God is always preached as if it is somewhere else in time and space. Why does this happen? It happens because of the nature of the human mind. The human mind disappears in the present and lives in the future; it lives in the hope and promise of the future. The mind cannot exist without time. The more time one has, the more ground the mind has to play and fool around. When there is time the mind can create many dreams and desires. The Kingdom of God is presented as something that is going to happen at a later date because only the future can be understood by the mind.

If the Kingdom of God is presented as here and now no one is ready to accept it. Everybody thinks that there are many, desires to be fulfilled. Many, many things have to be done before you can even think about entering the Kingdom. Hence time is needed. Another reason is that everybody thinks that in the present condition they are in they themselves cannot accept themselves. How is God going to accept them? If the door of the Kingdom is opened right now and everyone has the opportunity to enter most would not find the moral courage to enter. So everyone seeks time to transform the self to reach the standard that will be acceptable in order to enter through the door. A little more time is needed to become saintly as there are many desires to be fulfilled.

Hence if the Kingdom of God is presented as something in the future it is readily accepted. Then there is time enough to work the way out, time enough to polish and make the necessary changes. Time to create an ideal and work towards becoming a saint. The truth is that the mind doesn’t want to change. If there is the time to postpone then the mind can remain the same. Postponing is the base of continuing in the same manner.

If a house is on fire then the inmates will not postpone their exit from the burning inferno they will simply jump out without even asking for the door or the stairway. They will not seek a teacher or guide. The mind is put aside in the face of danger since there is no time to think; only action can save.

Another reason for being content with the idea of the future Kingdom is that right now it is difficult but tomorrow it will be easier. But every tomorrow becomes a today and the same excuse is repeated since the possibility for postponing still exists. Those who are in this condition could be considered to be in a state of deep sleep. They need an awakening. Right now God is the last item on the list as many other things have to be accomplished, God is the last item on the list and the list is infinite. He is not going to get a chance.

Jesus was a Jew and he remained a Jew till the very last moment. And the Jews were waiting for the Messiah for thousands of years. All the prophets prophesied about him. They prayed and waited. But the irony is that when the messiah came the refused him. He knocked at their doors but the rejected him. It was good to think that the Messiah will come to them but it was very difficult him when he arrived.  It is easy for the mind to wait rather than change. The problem is because if the mind has to accept that there is no future, then desires cannot exist. If desires do not exist then the ego cannot exist. So the question is between choosing the ego or the Kingdom. Both cannot exist in one.

The Kingdom of God is in you. There is no other place or time where you can find it.

God Bless.

Ranji Varughis.

 

Postponing is not the way to the Kingdom as it does not lead to transformation. As long as it is possible to postpone there will be no change. For this change to happen the idea of tomorrow has to disappear. Realizing this is the way to the Kingdom.  So it is not a question of doing something.

 

 

Jesus, His Fortification

A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Matthew 5:14b.

The whole of life depend upon building it on a strong foundation. If the momentary is chosen then the foundation is being built on shifting sand. If the foundation has to be strong then it has to be built on the eternal. A city that is being built on the momentary is in ruins by the time it is ready, it is falling apart. This happens because the momentary lacks wholeness of vision. Only the moment is seen, and then it passes. These passing moments are seen and not a total vision. Since what is going to happen in the next moment is unknown what is done in the moment may have to be undone because it may not agree with the whole. So the uncertainty is always there. When decisions are made based on the momentary the whole may reject it and it may become absolutely useless and meaningless. For the city to be built on a rock wholeness of vision is indispensable. When life is built based on the momentary difficulties will arise as the whole will not adjust to the momentary.

The whole has to be consulted before the decisions are made. Life should be created and patterned with a vision of the whole. Have a vision that is timeless. For this to happen one has to move to a higher consciousness. A person standing under the tree can see up to the nearest curve on the road. If he climbs up the tree then he has a greater vision. From an aeroplane he can have a bird’s eye view of the whole city. The higher he ascends greater becomes the vision.

Imagine a person standing under a tree, he looks east and does not see a thing. Another person sitting on top of the tree says, “I can see a bullock cart tree.” The first person says, “I can’t see it. How can it be?” The bullock cart is in the future for him but for the man sitting on the tree the bullock cart is in the present. Hence present is not the same for everyone. Present is confined to each one and the present of one may not be the present for another. It depends upon the ladder of consciousness.

For Jesus everything is present: there is no future, there is no past. From the level of his consciousness the whole is visible. Nothing is past and nothing is future, everything is here and now. The existence of past and future only reveals the narrowness of vision. For an ordinary person when anything goes beyond the field of vision it becomes past; that which has not yet come becomes future. Existence is momentary as the vision is limited

The high altitude, which is awareness, is the fortification. A city that is built on a high mountain cannot fall nor can it be hidden. A city built on the timeless will be known for eternity. Nothing can hide it.

God bless.

Ranji Varughis.

 

Jesus, His Light

³ “Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? ⁴ How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? ⁵ You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye. Matthew 7:3-5

Everyone wants to change the world. But the truth is that no one needs change more than you. With this handicap if a person tries to change the other the result will be disastrous. Instead of transformation disintegration will occur. Only when a person is filled with light can he/she become a light to others. When you change the world starts changing. Self-knowledge is the transforming force.

Self-knowledge is the most difficult thing not because it is difficult but because there is a fright in knowing the truth about your-self. Because of this unconscious fear a person will consciously try to create all kinds of hindrances to this effect. When a person within him/herself it will become obvious that the image created of the self to the world is false. It will become evident that the whole life is a pseudo-existence. That there no love only a pretence of love. There was no happiness only pretence of happiness. It will become undeniable that the whole life was an act of deception. Because of the fear of exposure a person will do everything possible to avoid it and in the process create many images of the self. This guilt of creating false images prevents people from looking within.

People tried to be occupied twenty four hours of the day because it keeps them from avoiding confronting the self. A person may be constantly occupied with money so that the self may be buried underneath this occupation. But no matter how much money is earned there is still no satisfaction as the basic motivation is not to gain money but to remain occupied. A person may do the same thing over and over again because it is difficult to be at ease with the self. That is the reason the great masters said that is person is able to sit for a few hours without doing anything he/she will become enlightened.

Another fact is that it is difficult to maintain these fictions, so changes have to be made again and again to perpetuate this falsehood. Because of the fear to look within clouds are created so that everything looks misty and the self becomes blurred. Jesus is insisting, “Know thy self”.

There are two was of being good. The first is being good – which is very difficult. The second is to prove that the other is wrong and even if you are not good it give you a feeling of being good. It is this second method to which Jesus is referring here. A person need not be good just prove that the other is wrong and it gives a feeling of being good. There is no need to change the self just magnify the badness in others to look innocent. It can be observed that if something bad is said about a person it is accepted without any argument but to accept someone as good proof is required. Deep down everyone seeks to be good but it is difficult so the only alternative is to prove that someone else is worse in order to feel a little better.

“Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? ⁴ How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? ⁵ You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye. Matthew 7:3-5

A person may be looking on others as darkness to get a feeling of being in the light. Jesus implies that this is the problem with those people who try to transform society. Everybody wants to change the other whether it is the priest, politician, social worker or a leader. The other is considered to be in darkness but the truth is that this is a projected darkness. Projecting this darkness on the other is the result of being in the dark. Hence such an approach is wrong and dangerous. The so called leaders are trying to destroy the darkness which is actually not there in others but which they (leaders) can see. They see hell in others because it is the only way they can feel heavenly.

Jesus in edifying his people to understand that self-realization is the way to change. A person can only change him/herself. The moment this happens the world starts to change. Realizing the inauthenticity of the images created the religious person begins to drop them. Self-knowledge is a transforming force; nothing else needs to be done. Jesus says, “first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye”. The beams in a person’s eye prevent clarity of vision of the self. Only when these beams are removed can the eyes penetrate into fact without any projection. Self-knowledge happens to a clear mind, a mind that is not filled with judgements of good and bad. Once this self-knowledge happens through a clear mind the light will flow from that person like from a lamp, or like fragrance from a flower. The lamp is lit which will light others and everyone is benefitted. Life becomes a blessing.

God bless

Ranji Varughis