MYSTIC TALES
We are all connected
The Earth and it's People are One
We are all connected
The Earth and it's People are One
30 May 2022
Disclaimer: This article is inspired by the original article written at the below blog page. The entire content of this article is the result of hard work and research on the part of the author of this article. I take no credit for the content. It has been reproduced here in the hope that it may help the readers as it has helped me on my journey. The link to the original article is below:
https://journey2light.wordpress.com/?s=krishna&submit=Search
Good healthy relationships play a major role in ensuring a happy life. There are various kinds of relationships: blood relations which are dictated by the family we are born into, adopted relations determined by marriages, friendships we develop over lifetime, people we work with routinely, and so many people that we meet only momentarily or in passing.
Our mental and emotional health is affected to a great extent depending on how we manage our relationships and interact with people. Some of these relationships are supportive, some help us to grow as individuals, some just exist without having an affect one way or another, some may be challenging, and some may be detrimental to our mental and emotional health.
We are told that life on Earth is a school, a battleground for soul evolution. That is why we come across the different types of relationships. They help us to understand how we may successfully navigate the energies of each one of the relationships we get into, whether they are supportive or not.
What if we learn to characterize and categorize the energies behind the different relationship types, recognize the lessons that they have to teach and devise a formula to harness the energy such that it becomes a resource for happiness in our lives?
Relationships are the mirror in which we see ourselves.
Krishna and Radha
The story of Radha-Krishna is the story of the evolution of the soul. Krishna is said to have 16108 queens, 8 principal wives and one consort or twin-soul. Each of these relationships represents a different type of love-energy that we encounter over many lifetimes so that we may learn our lessons of soul evolution.
There are 16108 different types of people who will make a significant difference to our lives over many lifetimes. These relationships are relatively easy to manage.
There are 8 specific types of love-energies, which are sticky. We need several lifetimes to traverse these significantly strong love-energies. Out of the 8 main energies, 4 are sticky and disruptive and the remaining 4 are sticky but non-disruptive. It is important to have guidance so that we do not get ‘stuck’ in these 8 principal energies.
Once we have learnt how to traverse all 8 principal love-energies successfully, we meet our twin-soul. The real journey begins AFTER we meet our twin-soul. Then many births with our twin-soul will have to be dedicated to Earth-causes. At the same time, we purify ourselves to a greater and greater extent. Once this purification process is complete, then the twin halves may unite and become ‘One’.
The story of Radha-Krishna is the story of the evolution of the soul.
Raas Leela folk dance
Raas-leela (raas = ras = essence; leela = story) is a folk dance, which portrays this story in art form.
Krishna dances with 16108 gopis in the outer ring. Each of the gopis is entranced and feels that Krishna is dancing only with them. The gopis are ecstatic. He plays skillfully with the 16108 gopis in the outer circle to enter the inner circle.
Each of his 8 principal wives plays with him in the inner circle and demands his full attention. They all want Krishna for themselves and do not let him out of their sight. Krishna’s challenge is to keep each one of them happy, and yet escape to the center.
In the center of the circle, his twin-soul Radha is waiting for him. Here, both Radha and Krishna dance until dawn, oblivious to all else and then they suddenly disappear. This is their ‘Union’, they become ‘One’.
When there is 'Union', the 'Self' disappears.
Kundalini yoga is the method by which this ‘Union’ may be achieved internally by ourselves within ourselves. Within the human aura, our subtle body, there are seven force-centers called ‘chakras’ which line up along the spinal column. There is a ‘kundalini shakti’ or ‘serpent force’ lying coiled at the base of our spine. This serpent is lying lifeless. Love gives it life, it awakens the serpent. It hazily stretches itself whenever we emanate love. The stronger the love-force, the more alert the serpent becomes, lack of love makes it fall asleep again.
Radha and Krishna represent the 2 divided energies of the serpent, and the energy that activates the serpent is ‘Love’. The 2 halves rising from bottom to top are the Ida and Pingala channels. The 2 halves have to traverse through the 7 chakras, while simultaneously navigating 16108 channels. Radha-Krishna or Ida-Pingala will meet, after long wayward journeys, just before crown chakra. Then they drop down in unification back into the base chakra. The drop from the pre-crown chakra to base chakra happens via the ‘sword’ that is pierced through the center points of all 7 chakras. The sword is the Sushumna channel. When energies enter the Sushumna channel, its cleansing process begins. Progressive cleansing means progressive enlightenment. From the base chakra, they rise again in unification moving slowly upwards in a spiral. This journey is a representation of ‘twin-soul’ journey on Earth. The Ida and Pingala will continue their rise and drop till the Sushumna channel is totally cleansed. It is during these numerous journeys that Radha-Krishna or Ida-Pingala will make a significant difference and contribution to Mother Earth. At some point, they will finally make it to the crown chakra. This is Moksha, Oneness with God.
It is time to pay back before it is time to move on.
The Caduceus
The Caduceus is the symbolic image of Radha and Krishna.
Radha and Krishna represent the feminine (Ida) and masculine (Pingala) energies respectively, both of which reside within us. Radha embodies softer, passive energies, her journey to the top is quicker; Krishna embodies harder, active energies, his journey is more arduous.
Note: Regardless of your gender, Krishna is the male half of your soul, Radha is the female half of your soul. They both exist 'inside' you.
In order to achieve Union with God, Radha and Krishna must meet and unite. In order for them to meet and unite, they must first successfully traverse the 16108 secondary channels and the 8 main channels. These are the various love-energies that we come across. Therefore, it is very important to recognize the type of energy we encounter and to stay connected with every energy we recognize. We may stay connected with them as a partner, friend, or guide. We must learn how to manage the love-energy, whether disruptive or non-disruptive, without killing it. We can examine Krishna’s relationships with his 8 principal wives to understand how to recognize the type of love-energy, its characteristics, and how to manage it successfully.
Note: To apply this to personal life, you are ‘Krishna’ regardless of your gender, and the other energies are represented by Krishna’s wives, regardless of their gender.
Krishna's 8 wives are Rukmini, Satyabhama, Jaambavati, Kaalindi, Mitravrinda, Nagnajiti, Bhadraa, and Lakshanaa.
1. Rukmini
Energy Type: Friend, philosopher, guide, peacemaker.
Personality Characteristics: She is simple, attractive, modest, and a good listener; Respects all your alliances, partnerships and relationships; Enjoys playing the role of counselor and peace-maker.
Management Tip: Use her energy to counsel and maintain peace among other relationships; a good talking-companion.
Love is ‘Peace’.
2. Satyabhama
Energy Type: Tantrums.
Personality Characteristics: She is proud, arrogant, domineering, self-centered, opinionated, condescending, demanding; Threatens to leave if you do not accede.
Management Tip: Play a supportive role; Mollify her tantrums in playfulness, yet do not succumb to them; Flatter her as her pride easily succumbs to it.
Love is ‘Me’.
3. Jaambavati
Energy Type: Beauty.
Personality Characteristics: She is exquisitely beautiful, well-groomed, well-adorned at all times; Believes you are attracted to her because of looks; Makes special effort to showcase her beauty so she appears cut-above-others at all times; Believes beauty can reign you in; Confident about the power of her beauty; Vain, desires appreciation; Willing to share you with others.
Management Tip: Offer her rightfully deserved appreciation; Offer her limelight along with responsibility; Gently highlight her inner beauty and allow that to over-shadow her outer beauty.
Love is ‘Beauty’.
4. Kaalindi
Energy Type: Games, nets, traps, lures.
Personality Characteristics: She uses connections or traps to gain entry into your life; Lays the trap, yet appears the victim; The excitement of trapping you into being with her is higher than the excitement of being with you; Enjoys competition, creates competition, enjoys winning over competition; Your desirability with others excites her; Enjoys catching you with your guard down, lures you into secret confessionals; Feels overpowered by others' secrets; Her energies mean alienation from loved ones to accommodate her; You may be forced to make a choice; Uses forbidden-love and guilt as weapons.
Management Tip: Do not empower her negatively; Do not succumb to guilt, playfully see through her game; Gently and lovingly hold your ground; She will always need you more than you need her.
Love is a ‘Contest’.
5. Mitravrinda
Energy Type: Amiable, amicable, friendly, mischievous.
Personality Characteristics: She rarely takes offense to anything you say or do; Works hard to manage and harmonize your relationships; Closest confidante, her advice is usually selfless; Perfect host to your social circle; Closest confidante for your other relationships too, she offers a safe haven to share grievances; Companionable, conversational and mischievous; Usually lightens conflict with her naughtiness.
Management Tip: Offer her unconditional friendship; Give her responsibility.
Love is ‘Friendship’.
6. Nagnajiti
Energy Type: Openness, truth.
Personality Characteristics: For her, love has to be an open book, diplomacy does not cut ice; Whatever is open is truth; whatever is hidden is false; She bares her soul and dares you to do the same; Conflicts center around your cleverness; Very blunt in her expression; Usually may help to convey hard truths to others; Can create conflicts in social and family circles.
Management Tip: Do not kill her true spirit; Appreciate her honesty but at the same time allow her to see that truths which hurt people cannot help them much; Channelize her truths into softer/gentler expressions; Offer a straight-forward and honest approach to love.
Love is ‘Truth’.
7. Bhadraa
Energy Type: Blending.
Personality Characteristics: She is happy to be what you want her to be; Chooses not to have a defined personality as it means separation from you; Gentle, subservient, unassuming, selfless; Places self last in priority believing this is love; Motherly, nurturing, nourishing, forgiving; Serves not only you but all your relationships dutifully; Usually the cornerstone that goes unnoticed.
Management Tip: Use care and sensitivity; Do not take advantage of her goodness; Ensure that she gets her due; Encourage her to stand up for self, by encouraging self-development through interests and hobbies.
Love is ‘Submission’.
8. Lakshanaa
Energy Type: Focus.
Personality Characteristics: For her, love is like a game of chess, move-countermove; Focused, goal-oriented; She plans and rehearses all her moves; Will always have 'Plan-B' in place; Feels inclined to checkmate you and win her rightful crown; All your other relationships are opposing pawns; Characterized by a strategic, methodical mind; Extremely logical; Every action needs to have a purpose; Less of disruptive and more of uninteresting; Her predictability overtakes creativity; Can be an extremely efficient partner, but her compulsive behavior can kill the charm.
Management Tip: Give her responsibility; Encourage creativity and spontaneity; Gently show her fun side of failures, inefficiencies and mistakes; Loosen her up.
Love is a ‘Goal’.
Radha
In Radha, you can navigate all 8 forms of love with ease and expertise. You know every high, low, bend, curve, fall and illusion. With Radha, there is no conflict, no challenge, no doubt, no lack. There is just pure ecstasy.
Love is ‘Krishna’.
We invariably meet one or more of these sticky love-energies in our lifetime. We move from love-energies in reverse order, that is, channels 8 through 1 before we meet our twin-soul, Radha. We must navigate the 8 principal energies successfully before we can reach our ‘Radha’, our twin-soul.
Amongst the lower 4 channels, Mitravrinda (channel 5) is toughest to navigate. Channels 8, 7, 6 are relatively easier to navigate. Mitravrinda is so amiable, so companionable, so pleasant, so fit into our social setup, that we will not wish to leave her. Chances are that we will choose to navigate Mitravrinda's channel over and over again; she has that effect.
When we do choose to move beyond Mitravrinda, we enter the lowest of the upper 4 channels - Kaalindi (channel 4).
Amongst the upper 4 channels, Kaalindi (channel 4) is toughest to navigate. Channels 3, 2, 1 are relatively easier. Kaalindi holds us back with her traps. We may find ourselves navigating her channel several times over, out of guilt or fear. It is not easy to leave Kaalindi, she has her own charm. Sometimes staying put in her channel makes worldly life lot easier.
When we do choose to move beyond Kaalindi (channel 4), we find channels 3, 2, 1 will be fairly easy to navigate.
Once we reach Rukmini (channel 1), and she emerges as our main consort/partner, we know we have reached a comfort zone in evolution. In higher stages of soul evolution, energies 5, 6, 7, 8 may come back as siblings, friends, loved ones. Energies we have navigated well in past lives will return to us in purest platonic love. Blocking an already well-navigated channel (example: family/parents/siblings) will mean coming back in another lifetime and making another herculean effort to re-navigate it.
The journey becomes faster under expert guidance, or if we are lucky to identify our Radha-Krishna or our twin-soul; then the purpose becomes evident.
Patience, faith and perseverance is the key to soul evolution.
10 October 2021
Russian Matryoshka Dolls
Chinese boxes
Boxes from 'Shaker' culture
In many cultures and beliefs, we find objects of decreasing size placed one inside another.
A set of such objects consists of a figure, which opens to reveal a smaller figure of the same sort inside, which has, in turn, another figure inside of it, and so on.
Typically, these are sets of seven.
The unreadiness of the general populace to understand esoteric truths along with the brutal prosecution of followers of esotericism necessitated the hiding of truths in mysteries.
These mysteries were hidden under a deeper symbolism, so that the race may find them when the time is ripe.
The symbolism of the seven objects placed one inside the other hides the esoteric knowledge of the Seven Principles of Man.
The Tests of the Scorpio
4 August 2021
Hercules was assigned the task to kill Hydra, a nine-headed snake.
Hydra was bred to kill Hercules.
Even it's breath was poisonous to all who crossed it's path.
In their fight, every time Hercules cut off a head, two more heads grew back in its place.
One of the nine heads was immortal, and therefore, indestructible.
Realizing this, Hercules burnt the stump of the cut-off head, to prevent it from growing back again.
He then used a golden sword to cut off the immortal head and placed it under a heavy rock.
Thus, his task was accomplished.
*******
A Scorpio prepares for three tests on the three planes, a total of nine tests:
On the physical plane, he faces the test of the appetite:
Sex: Union of the pairs of opposites.
Physical comfort: Acceptance of life conditions.
Money: Right use.
On the astral plane, he faces the test of desire:
Fear: Conditions activity.
Hatred: Conditions relationships.
Ambition/Power: Conditions objectives.
On the mental plane, he faces the test of self-will:
Pride: Barrier to soul growth.
Separativeness: Barrier to right group relations.
Cruelty: Makes mind the instrument of the sense of power.
Every time a head is cut-off, two heads grow back in its place.
The testing and experience may be passed through several times.
The stump must be burnt so that the head does not grow back.
The root must be destroyed to pass the test.
The result: Right Relations
Right relations with the soul and the environment.
Sacred or sacrificed?!
31 July 2021
Stories of bulls as sacred or sacrificial animals, or as animals used in sport are found all over the world.
Some exoteric facts:
Most bulls are capable of aggression.
A bull is generally unpredictable.
Bulls can be domesticated.
Bulls are used for herd maintenance, and represent fertility.
Some esoteric postulations:
The astral world is the sum of all sensations.
Sensations are developed in the animal kingdom.
A bull represents sensations, or the astral body.
A wild bull represents passions that are not under control. Generally, these bulls are depicted as being sacrificed. The Ego must gain control over the sensations.
A sacred bull represents passions that are under control. Generally, these bulls are depicted as being worshipped. The Ego has gained knowledge of wisdom, and control over the sensations.
1. Apis
Api or Hapi (Apis, Taureau Consacre a la Lune), N372.2, Brooklyn Museum
In ancient Egyptian religion, Apis/Hapis/Hapi-ankh was a sacred bull.
He was entitled 'renewal of life', but after death he became Osorapis (Osiris Apis) whereas dead humans were assimilated to Osiris.
Apas --> water
Water is the element of the Astral world.
Astral world is the world of feelings and sensations.
After death, the components of the astral body disintegrate and return to the Astral world.
2. Bull of Heaven
Ancient Mesopotamian terracotta relief (c.2250 - 1900 BC) showing Gilgamesh slaying the Bull of Heaven
In ancient Mesopotamian mythology, Gilgamesh fought the Bull of Heaven.
Gilgamesh rejects the sexual advances of the goddess Ishtar or Innana.
Ishtar asks her father, Anu, for the Bull of Heaven to attack Gilgamesh.
Gilgamesh and Enkidu slay the Bull together.
Enkidu is subsequently killed.
This inspires Gilgamesh to pursue his search for immortality.
The Bull of Heaven is the body of desires.
Once killed, Gilgamesh or the Ego searches for the path to end the cycle of birth and death.
3. Nandi
17th Century sculpture of a Nandi in Mysore
Nandi is the guardian deity of Kailash, home of Hindu God Shiva.
Nandi got divine knowledge of wisdom taught by Shiva, from Goddess Parvati.
Anand --> joy
In Shiva temples, Nandi is seated, generally facing the shrine.
Due to the knowledge of wisdom, the desires of the consciousness are transcended.
The consciousness focuses on Shiva.
The bull is seated, facing the shrine.
4. Gavaevodata
In Zoroastrian cosmogony, Gavaevodata is a hermaphroditic cow/bull, the progenitor of all beneficent animal life.
gau --> cow
aevo --> thus
data --> given
also referred to as gaw i ew-dad or ewazdad or ewagdad
The primordial beast is killed but from its marrow and organs, the world is populated with animal life.
In a hymn, the soul of a bovine despairs over her lack of protection from an adequate herdsman.
She was promised to receive the protection of Zoroaster, so she agreed to be created back to the world as livestock.
The astral body complains that the Ego is not adequate to take care of it.
The conscious Ego is the protector of the astral body.
5. Tarvos Trigaranus
Bronze statuette of the Celtic God, English Private Collection
In a Celtic relief, a bull stands in front of a tree with spreading branches, with two of the birds perched on it's back and the third on it's head.
taurus --> bull
tri --> three
garan --> crane
A crane represents grace and harmony.
In this case, the bull represents the refined astral body and is considered sacred.
In another depiction, a warrior is about to spear the neck of a prostrate bull which far out-scales him.
In that case, the bull represents desires which have been brought under the conscious control of the warrior and is sacrificed.
6. Mithraic Mysteries
Tauroctony scene on side A of a two-sided Roman bas-relief. 2nd or 3rd century.
Tauroctony are the central cult reliefs of the Roman Mithraic Mysteries.
tauroctony --> bull killing
Mithra --> name of Sun God
Mithras forces the bull to the ground.
The consciousness gains control over his desires.
Mithras holds the bull down by his left leg, the knee bent and pressing on the bull's spine.
The left side represents the passive side.
The knee represents pride; the bent knee represents pride which is overcome.
The bull represents desires.
The bull's spine helps to control its motions.
The consciousness holds down his desires passively (without conscious effort) due to his humility.
The bull's rump and right hind leg is restrained by Mithras's right leg, which is almost fully extended.
The right side represents the active side.
The right leg is almost fully extended; the consciousness is fully exercising its strength in restraining the desires.
Mithras's head is turned away from the bull, sometimes looking over his right shoulder up to the Sun.
The consciousness is not interested in the desires.
The consciousness is looking over his right shoulder.
The shoulder allows free movement of the arm.
The consciousness has freedom to dip in desires or to control them.
Mithras is facing the Sun.
The consciousness is actively turned away from the desires and facing the Soul.
With his left hand, Mithras pulls back the head of the bull by the nostrils or the muzzle.
The septum in the nostril is a very sensitive area, and used to bring the animal into submission.
The consciousness knows, through wisdom, the weaknesses that feed the desires.
The consciousness controls the desires by controlling these weaknesses.
In his right hand, Mithras usually holds a knife or short sword which is plunged into the neck/shoulder of the bull.
The main artery is located in the neck/shoulder area.
A cut in the main artery kills the animal quickly.
The consciousness quickly kills the desire body once it has been brought under his control.
Mithras may be nude.
The astral body is a covering over the consciousness.
Once the astral body is transcended, the consciousness stands nude.
Detail: Dog and serpent set at the bull's wound
Detail: Scorpion heading for the bull's testicles
The dog and serpent reach for the wound.
The wound site is where the blood pours out.
The blood represents the life of the bull.
The desires have been killed.
The life of the desires is taken up by the dog and the serpent.
The dog represents an animal which is loyal, acts as a guardian, and has a warrior spirit.
These sentiments are enforced after the killing of the desires.
The serpent represents the kundalini force entwined at the base of the spine.
Once the kundalini rises, the consciousness awakens.
The serpent reaches for the blood.
The kundalini energy is awakened, and the consciousness rises.
The scorpion reaches for the genitals.
The genitals represent fertility, birth.
The scorpion sting kills.
The desire to take birth is killed.
7. Bull fight
Bull fights are common in many countries all over the world.
Any kind of animal cruelty is condemned.
Misguided mental perceptions of esoteric concepts that are erroneously enacted on the physical plane are condemned.
Fact: Bulls do not see the color red. They are red-green color blind.
They charge at the cloth.
Desires are blind.
They charge at any astral body or the body of sensations.
The matador kills the bull, wearing the traje de luces (suit of lights) with help from the banderilleros and the picadors.
The Ego kills the desires, equipped with inner light with help from sensations and thoughts.
Upon unlocking the gate, the typical bull, having spent the day in darkness, will bolt into the lighted area of the arena.
Desires, coming from the realm of darkness, will bolt into light.
A cowardly bull (manso) may try to enter back through the gate.
Often he will bellow, shake his head and paw the sand.
He poses a great danger to the matador as his movements are erratic and difficult for the matador to gauge.
Desires which are fickle and changing are more difficult to master.
A brave bull will make bold, predictable charges.
Desires which are strong and firm are easier to master.
The matador observes the bull's characteristics and temperament.
The Ego learns to discern the true characteristics of the desire.
There is a part of the ring where the bull feels most comfortable (querencia).
The bull charges most dangerously to get to that spot and defend it.
The desire is most comfortable in the subconscious or the unconscious.
The desire will fight fiercely to hide there.
The matador makes passes with the cape, eventually forcing the bull to turn quickly and bringing it to a stop.
His objective is to gradually control the wild charges of the bull.
The Ego must lure the desire out of the subconscious or the unconscious, eventually reversing the desire quickly and bringing it to a stop.
The matador performs cape passes among which is the serpentina, which transfixes the bull in place, at which point the matador can actually turn his back on the bull and walk away.
The Ego may arouse his kundalini, which transfixes desires in their place, at which point the Ego can actually turn his back on the desires and walk away.
The matador now performs dangerously close passes with the bull to prove complete mastery.
The Ego now works within the realm of desires to prove complete mastery.
The Ego does not need isolation or protection from the desires anymore.
The matador will typically kill by thrusting forward the muleta with the left hand, causing the bull to lower its head and lunge, while sinking the sword with the right hand into the small opening between the bull's shoulder blades at the junction with the neck.
The sword, if it severs the aorta, causes almost instant death.
The Ego will typically kill by weakening the desire passively due to his humility, while consciously killing the desires very quickly once they are under his control.
The hope of this article is to to examine the esoteric wisdom that lies behind the exoteric appearance.
13 July 2021
The Buddha, while visiting his kingdom, visits his wife, Yashodhara.
Yashodhara is in great distress.
The King, the Buddha's father, describes how Yashodhara modified her lifestyle to match the Buddha's lifestyle, giving up comforts and garlands and perfumes and meals, even while she lived so far away from him.
Upon hearing this, the Buddha says that Yashodhara had been his loving mate over many lifetimes, and narrates the story of one of his births, when both He and Yashodhara were kinnara.
*******
The kinnara are mythical musical semi-divine beings that resemble humans (kim = what; nara = human).
They are depicted as harmless and innocent beings, with half animal and half-human form.
In the Adi Parva, they are described as the everlasting lover and beloved; they never separate.
They are eternal husband and wife.
They never permit anyone or anything between them; their's is a life of perpetual love.
*******
The Universe is divided into:
Rupaloka (world of forms)
Arupaloka (formless world)
The Rupaloka is further divided into:
Tangible physical world (perceived by the five senses)
Intangible physical world (cannot be perceived by the five senses)
The tangible physical world is the world of action.
It is the world where the consciousness can be tested.
The consciousness is so deeply embedded in matter that it cannot pass the tests unless it is ever aware, ever vigilant; unless it has learnt all required lessons at the conscious, subconscious and unconscious levels.
The automatic reaction of the consciousness determines its eligibility and capability for passing the tests.
The intangible physical world is a world of passive passing where the consciousness experiences the results of its subconscious and unconscious (good or bad) actions in the tangible physical world.
This is a world of pleasure or pain, depending on the actions in the tangible world.
The lifetime in this world varies.
The consciousness must re-enter the tangible physical world at the end of that lifetime.
The Arupaloka is a world of passive passing where the consciousness experiences the results of its conscious (good) actions in the tangible physical world.
This is a world of peace and joy.
The lifetime in this world is very long, but limited.
The consciousness must re-enter the tangible physical world at the end of that lifetime.
*******
The kinnara world is a part of the intangible physical world, a world of passive passing.
It is a world of great pleasures and great love.
It is a world with a limited lifetime, however long.
The consciousness must descend from this lofty place into the tangible physical world, the world of action at the end of that lifetime.
The memory of the long lifetime in the kinnara world haunts the consciousness in the tangible physical world; the consciousness cannot bear the separation from its beloved.
The consciousness has worked hard in its previous lifetimes to be eligible to dwell in the abode of the kinnara.
Now the consciousness must make similar efforts to be united back with its beloved.
It has passed the tests before with flying colors.
It must now remember where it comes from and for what purpose.
It must remember that it is ever united with its beloved in perpetual eternal love.
It must remember that there are loftier abodes that both of them must aim for and work together to attain.
*******
Knowing who we are, where we come from, and for what purpose, empowers us to fly to greater heights with renewed love and strength.
May there be light and love!
11 July 2021
Lyrics
Upon a darkened night
the flame of love was burning in my breast
And by a lantern bright
I fled my house while all in quiet rest
Shrouded by the night
And by the secret stair I quickly fled
The veil concealed my eyes
while all within lay quiet as the dead
Oh night thou was my guide
of night more loving than the rising sun
Oh night that joined the lover to the beloved one
transforming each of them into the other
Upon that misty night
in secrecy, beyond such mortal sight
Without a guide or light
than that which burned so deeply in my heart
That fire t'was led me on
and shone more bright than of the midday sun
To where he waited still
it was a place where no one else could come
Within my pounding heart
which kept itself entirely for him
He fell into his sleep
beneath the cedars all my love I gave
From o'er the fortress walls
the wind would his hair against his brow
And with its smoothest hand
caressed my every sense it would allow
I lost myself to him
and laid my face upon my lover's breast
And care and grief grew dim
as in the morning's mist became the light
There they dimmed amongst the lilies fair
there they dimmed amongst the lilies fair
there they dimmed amongst the lilies fair
The words of the song 'The Dark Night of the Soul' are based on the poem 'Dark Night' by St. John, arranged and adapted by Loreena McKennitt
*******
Dark Night
(Poem by St. John of the Cross)
On a darkened night,
Anxious, by love inflamed,
— O happy chance! —
Unnoticed, I took flight,
My house at last at peace and quiet.
Safe, disguised by the night,
By the secret ladder I took flight,
— O happy chance! —
Cloaked by darkness, I scaled the height,
My house at last at peace and quiet.
On that blessed night,
In secret, and seen by none,
None in sight,
I saw with no other guide or light,
But the one burning in my heart bright.
This guide, this light,
Brighter than the midday sun,
Led me to the waiting One
I knew so well — my delight!
To a place with none in sight.
O night! O guide!
O night more loving than the dawn!
O night that joined
The lover with the Beloved;
Transformed, the lover into the Beloved drawn!
Upon my flowered breast,
For him alone kept fair,
There he slept
There I caressed,
There the cedars gave us air.
I drank the turret’s cool air
Spreading playfully his hair.
And his hand, so serene,
Cut my throat. Drained
Of senses, I dropped unaware.
Lost to myself and yet remaining,
Inclined so only the Beloved I spy.
All has ceased, all rests,
Even my cares, even I;
Lost among the lilies, there I die.
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The poem narrates the journey of the soul to the mystical Divine Union.
St. John describes the ten steps on the mystic ladder of Divine Love.
The first five steps give strength to the soul to climb the last five steps.
1. Love causes the soul to languish.
The soul loses interest in all things except for the Beloved.
2. Love causes the soul to seek the Beloved in all things without ceasing.
In everything that the Lover does, all he cares about is his Beloved.
3. Love gives fervor to the soul.
The fire burning in the Lover is so strong that it gives him the strength to undertake great work such that the soul does not fail.
The Lover is ready to die a thousand deaths because of the greatness of his Love.
4. There is great suffering in the soul because of the Beloved, yet without weariness.
The soul is detached from everything, and it cannot rest or find peace anywhere.
The soul now seeks no gain for itself, its sole desire is to please his Beloved, at any and every cost.
5. The vehemence of the Lover to comprehend the Beloved and be united with Him is such, that every delay, however brief, becomes very long, wearisome and oppressive.
The Lover swoons away with yearning.
6. The soul's strength is renewed; the soul takes wings as an eagle.
7. The soul becomes vehement in its boldness; the soul receives what it desires.
8. The Lover finds Him Whom his heart and soul love; the Lover holds Him and will not let Him go.
9. Love makes the soul burn with sweetness.
10. The Lover unites with His Beloved.
*******
For love is like fire, which ever rises upward with the desire to be absorbed in the centre of its sphere.