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Ramakrishna Ananda

The Choice

Most people see their lives through distorted perceptions. Do you?

How do you choose to look at your life? So much of your future delight or sorrow is a matter of choice. Choice.

Keys to Higher Consciousness, Afflictions

Consider the elderly man who sat red-faced and fuming in his car. He shook as he tucked the nitroglycerine tablets into his mouth, hopeful they would forestall another coronary.

“You have no idea how to drive that van, young man,” he shouted. “Did you call the police?” he asked the sneering fellow. “You ruined it, my new car.

“Worked all my life for a car like this,” the old man muttered to the air as he closed his window. “What if the police believe that young fool? What if they say it’s my fault? Why, he was going too fast, never even looked around. I’ve been driving on this street thirty years.

“I need to drive. I know I don’t see so well, but I need to drive. I’m an important man. And my wife needs me to drive her, especially now that she’s sick,” he decided, rationalizing, trying to calm his racing heart. “There’s no way we can get around by taxi. Not here. How would we ever go to our cabin? What if the police believe that young idiot? He’s acting like it’s my fault. Snickering at me. When I was his age I thought I owned the road, too. If I can’t drive, how will I see my grandchildren?”

A young policeman arrived shortly. The van driver went to him and waved his arms. He laughed and threw both hands in the air in apparent exasperation.

The policeman, who looked like a high-school kid, approached the old man. “Have you ever had a course on how to drive a car, sir?”

The old man lost his breath and collapsed in another heart attack.

Sure that he had been found guilty, the elderly gentleman chose to think he had lost almost everything. Fortunately, he lived to learn that the policeman was new at his job and was required, because of a survey, to ask all drivers in all car accidents whether they had been to driving school!

The poor man had chosen to see matters in a tragic way.

Distorted Perceptions

The way we choose to see life most of the time is based on the flow of our thoughts and feelings. And, usually, the way we speak or act is, again, based on our thoughts and feelings. Our mental/emotional habits often distort our perceptions of what is happening in the outer world. Not too many people have elected to be conscious enough to notice what is going on in reality. There’s too much chaos inside people for them to be able to see life’s events clearly. Riots have occurred over two cents. People have been shot because of what somebody wrongly thought or blindly felt. The famous medieval scholar, Peter Abelard, was castrated because Canon Fulbert thought Peter was forcing Fulbert’s niece, Heloise, to become a nun. Peter was, in fact, scholars report, helping Heloise to hide in a convent far from the grasp of her uncle.

Your consciousness — that is, your thoughts, feelings, actions, and awareness of the outer world — is the main force toward life-enrichment.

Awareness Exercises

Your thoughts and feelings, for good or ill, usually dominate your perceptions of the outer world and so many of your actions. So, to stop the self-destructive tyranny of chaotic, incorrect thoughts and feelings, start now to do exercises of simply watching your thoughts or feelings come and go. Become familiar with the content of your mind and the myriad flows of your emotions. Also, strive to be truly aware of what your senses are conveying from the outer world.

One more extremely valuable practice: rather than simply reacting to important events by habit, strive to allow your actions to express your well-considered thoughts. In this way you will give your creative intelligence a chance to make your acquaintance.

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#2 THE MYSTIC GAZE
A Classic Technique

This classic technique is one of the mystic’s greatest treasures.

It is designed to stimulate your mystical faculties and begin the process of spiritual awakening.

With the Mystic Gaze enjoy the developing sense of clarity, coordination and attunement with life in all you do.

  1. Sit calmly and relax your eyes
  2. Gaze slightly upwards 20-30 degrees
  3. Look into space 20 feet or more
  4. Gaze, don’t stare or strain your eyes
  5. Simply observe and appreciate your awareness of space
  6. Enjoy the dawning wholeness for several minutes
  7. Gear down and go about your day

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#7 EXPANSION THROUGH ATTITUDE AND GOOD WILL
Change Your Heart

Your practice of good will cultivates the heart’s truest, deepest feeling:  love.

These good will practices are a boon to mystical study.

The goal of good will practice is the change of the heart.

When your heart naturally and spontaneously radiates forth a palpable good will, then you are a changed person.

  1. Consciously direct your thoughts and feelings toward an attitude of good will
  2. Bring a person to mind
  3. Or place your awareness on a person closest to you
  4. Direct good will toward this person
  5. Feel free to add specific well-wishes like health, love, courage, etc.
  6. Allow your heart to expand, to change

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#6 EXPANSION LEVEL ONE
Quality of Life

Mystics break out of body bondage through numerous expansions of the heart — of the sense of self.

Your feeling of self-awareness imprisons or frees you.

Happily, you can do something powerfully liberating about the state of your heart and the quality of your life.

  1. Sit comfortably for 15 minutes
  2. Choose a person you know
  3. Imagine you’re walking in his/her shoes
  4. Feel you’re inside this person
  5. Say “If I were (name), I’d feel and think…”
  6. Have fun with it and let your heart expand

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#5 THE HEART AND ITS LIBERATION
Your Sense of Self

Mystics break out of mind and body bondage through expansions, expansions of consciousness.

Your “Heart” is your sense of self, your feeling about who you are.

Who are you as a distinct person from everyone else? This is your core individuality, your mystical heart.

  1. Focus on your mystic heart
  2. It is located in the right-central chest or inside the spine behind the heart
  3. Practice The Radiance or The Mist:
  4. Feel that your mystic heart…
  5. Radiates love, light and energy, or
  6. Generates a white mist flowing outward

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#4 THE MYSTIC BREATH
Your Window

Your breath is the key to the mystery of your life. The Mystic Breath is conscious use of this key.

Our individual natures will require different windows — different energy centers — from which to view the life force.

Allow the mystic breath to reveal your personal window.

  1. Stretch and then sit comfortably
  2. Take 5 to 7 deep breaths
  3. Focus on the center of your upper lip
  4. Witness the breath come and go
  5. Let your mind move to a natural center
  6. Watch your breath and the life force from this “window”

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#3 THE ASCENT
The Essence of Your Life

We begin meditation on the Infinite by focusing our awareness on Spirit, the life essence within us.

How can we do something so seemingly abstract? It’s easy. Spirit empowers your breath night and day.

Let the life force reveal itself to you. Sense the higher power which flows through you.

You’ll feel more alive.

  1. Stretch and relax your body
  2. Sit comfortably
  3. Take 5 to 7 deep breaths
  4. Focus on your nostril rims
  5. Witness the breath come and go
  6. Enjoy for 10 to 12 minutes
  7. Inhale deeply and stretch

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#0 THE MYSTIC SELF
Our True Nature

In the view of mystics, the major problem in life for most of us is ignorance of our true natures.

The Mysteries reveal many ways that you can actually contact your mystic self — and the Infinite Consciousness.

Do you, can you, contact your Mystic Self? Yes, indeed!

  1. Practice this anytime you like
  2. Probably your mind wanders quite often
  3. At times during the day, look at your mind and notice when it’s wandering
  4. Then, turn your attention to that part of your consciousness which observes that your mind is wandering
  5. That special overseeing awareness is part of your marvelous mystic self

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#1 MYSTIC AWAKENING
Benefits

Stimulate your mystical awakening.

When you wake up from a dream you realize you were only dreaming.

Consider too that this normal state of awareness in which you live may be a kind of sleep also.

As you do this technique you’ll find the world becomes more beautiful and enjoyable.

  1. Try this many times a day
  2. Whisper to yourself, “Wake up!”
  3. Mentally say, “Wake up!”
  4. Increase your attention, appreciation and feeling of love
  5. Just cheerfully exhort yourself
  6. Wake up!

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How to Succeed

As you may know, we do not charge for our courses. All Yoga World content is free and available to you with our blessings. However, we do have a simple, but important request that’s key to the transformations necessary to succeed on the path.

We ask you to commit two hours a week to selfless service. This service can be anything you choose ranging from helping a family member or neighbor to volunteering at a nonprofit organization.

I Commit to Serve

This commitment is solely between you and your inner self.

Why the Commitment?

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