The universe is projected from God through vibration…

–Swami Kriyananda

“Why did you make creation?” a saint asked God. “I did so,” He replied, “because I wanted to share My joy.”

God’s nature is bliss, and to share His joy He created us through the Cosmic AUM Vibration. When we commune with AUM, we enter into, and flow with, the stream of God’s love. AUM is Divine Mother existing in the heart of all things. During the Meditation on AUM exercise, try to feel Her blissful presence in everything you see and hear.

AUM not only proceeds from God, it is God.

–Paramhansa Yogananda

The Sun Is the Form of AUM

Look at the sun. See its rays flowing down, warming the nearby hills, and enlivening the trees and flower-covered meadows. Reflect on how all life depends on the sun.

Gaze at a plant and feel how it, and everything else, is nourished and influenced by the great power emanating from our star.

Just as an iceberg is formed of water, so the sun is formed of AUM. “The sun,” Kabir said, “is the most immediate ‘physical’ form of AUM we can experience, for it is really solidified, materialized AUM.”

See the sun as AUM. Think of it as AUM materialized.
Feel its vibratory rays descending from heaven and bringing into manifestation all life around you.

See each bird and flower as AUM solidified. Behind every form, sense AUM’s underlying presence and vibrancy.

Feel and hear all nature proclaiming and singing AUM.

Let Every Sound Remind You of AUM

Even in outward, physical imitations, sounds can be thrilling.

–Swami Kriyananda

Listen intently to the sounds around you: the rushing wind… the roar of a river… the buzzing of a bee… the joyful song of a bird. Commune with each sound you hear. Open yourself completely to it; feel it coming into you. Listen for the sound of AUM within every outer sound.

Watch the wind flow through the trees and grassy fields. See in every trembling leaf and sailing cloud — in every movement — the sacred AUM Vibration.

Try to perceive AUM in everything you do, see, and hear.

Attune to the Cosmic Choir

Observe the ways God, through Cosmic AUM, expresses Himself. Notice how each tree is marvelously unique. Take delight in the countless expressions of AUM you see before you.

Communing with AUM helps us understand and utter the language of all creation. When we unite with AUM, we unite with all existence.

Affirm your oneness with all beings and with God by practicing the following meditation by Swami Kriyananda from his book Awaken to Superconsciousness:

Imagine a choir composed of every atom in the universe, each one an individual, but all of them singing together in blissful harmony.

In your own mind, join that mighty choir, composed of all life.

Determine from today on to sing in harmony with the universe. Don’t impose on the great anthem of life your little wishes for how you want the music to sound.

Unite your notes to that Infinite Sound.

The more you do so, the more deeply you will know yourself to be an expression of the soaring anthem of Infinity.

Whenever you feel anxious or inharmonious, use this meditation to attune yourself with God and all creation. Then you will feel the universe is not against, but with you, in loving unity.

Live in the Consciousness of AUM

You are not a physical body, but a blissful manifestation of AUM.

–Swami Kriyananda

Live in the consciousness of AUM. One who constantly sings AUM during his activities, and with his whole being, makes his life a continuous song of joy.

AUM Booklet and CD/MP3

To inspire greater attunement with the Cosmic Vibration, I am creating an inspirational resource on AUM from the writing of Paramhansa Yogananda, Swami Kriyananda, and other saints. Included in this project will be personal stories from devotees to help make AUM more real to our consciousness.

If you’ve had a deeply inspiring experience of the Cosmic Sound, would you share it with me for possible inclusion in the resource? I realize spiritual blessings are sacred and should not generally be shared with others, so I will keep your experience confidential.

Below is a story a friend recently told me.

The Healing Power of AUM

“When AUM came,” a lady once said to Paramhansa Yogananda, “all my troubles vanished.”

A friend (who I will call “Nancy”) told me recently how her troubles had also vanished in the consciousness of AUM.

Nancy was waiting to make a deposit at her bank, when, suddenly, she found herself in the middle of a robbery. It was a highly stressful situation, and Nancy said she “lost it” emotionally.

After the robbery, Nancy was disappointed in herself for reacting so emotionally. To change this tendency in herself, she began chanting AUM all day long. Whenever there was a tense situation, Nancy would silently and lovingly call on the healing power of AUM to calm herself and others.

AUM is the Great Comforter, and Paramhansa Yogananda said that when you are in the consciousness of AUM, nothing can touch you.

Three years later, Nancy was at her bank, and another robbery occurred. This time it was a much more violent one.

During this bank heist, Nancy was knocked to the floor. But her constant practice of thinking of and chanting AUM kept her calm and centered.

As Nancy began crawling discreetly away from the robbers, a hysterical woman latched on to her and she guided the terrified woman out of sight of the robbers, where they both would be safe.

Later, during an interview with the FBI, Nancy was told that the odds of being involved in two bank robberies were incredibly low. She was the only witness who could give an accurate description of the robbers.

Nancy attributed her calmness to her practice of tuning in to the unifying presence of AUM.

Paramhansa Yogananda said, “Most people live in the past or the future. When you can be truly happy in the present, then you have God.”1 This month’s Daily Meditator features The Vibrant Peace Walk, a meditation designed to help you experience the vibrancy and power of the eternal now.

Swami Kriyananda once told me, “When I was a child, beautiful colors would send me into ecstasy.” The more you are centered in the here and now, the more life will leap like a dancer and fill you with great joy.

Whenever you are in a beautiful outdoor setting, you can focus on the whole Vibrant Peace Walk or just favorite sections.

The Vibrant Peace Walk

“All good things come from stillness”
–Joseph Bharat Cornell

Feel the joy, serenity, and love that come from being fully aware of the present moment. John Muir said that to know trees (and all of nature) we must be as free of cares and time as the trees themselves. When we quiet our internal dialogue and are no longer self-preoccupied—every leaf, flower and rock will speak to us.

The secret to experiencing nature is to still our thoughts so we can fully receive and merge with the world around us. Li Po, the Chinese poet, beautifully expresses how the mind becomes mirror-like when it becomes still:

“The birds have vanished in the sky, and the last cloud drains away.
We sit together, the mountain and I, until only the mountain remains.”

The senses become heightened when we live in the present. Every tree, birdsong, and cloud seems vivid and joyous because our attention is totally focused in the here and now.

We see the world as being not separate but unified with us, and we feel great delight as we sail with the clouds and soar with the cranes high across the sky.

Thoreau’s Advice

Henry David Thoreau was serious about his walks in nature and gave the following advice for anyone contemplating taking a walk outdoors:

“We should go forth… in the spirit of undying adventure, never to return. If you are ready to leave father and mother… wife and child and friends, and never see them again, — if you have paid your debts, and made your will, and settled all your affairs, and are a free man, then you are ready for a walk.”

“When in the wilds, we must not carry our problems with us or the joy is lost.“
–Sigurd Olson

Calm Yourself

The breath reflects one’s mental state. As the breath becomes calmer, so does the mind, and vice versa. Relax your mind by doing these simple breathing exercises:

Inhale and tense your whole body. As you exhale, relax your body and feel you are energetically casting aside all worries, problems, and thoughts. Do this three times.

Inhale slowly counting one to eight, hold your breath for the same number of counts, then exhale for the same count. This is one round of “even count breathing.” Do five rounds.

The Stillness Meditation
(This is a variation on the Hong-Sau Technique of Concentration taught by Yogananda)

Observe the natural flow of your breath. Do not control the breath in any way. Simply follow it with your attention. Each time you inhale, think “Still.” Each time you exhale, think “Ness.”

Repeating “Still … Ness” with each complete breath helps focus the mind and prevents your attention from wandering from the present moment.

During the pauses between inhalation and exhalation, stay in the present moment, calmly observing whatever is in front of you. If thoughts of the past or future disturb your mind, calmly bring your attention back to what is before you, and continue repeating “Still … Ness” with your breathing.

Become Everything

When your mind wanders, repeat the following poem. It will help bring you back into the present.

“Let my mind become silent,
And my thoughts come to rest.
I want to be
All that is before me.
In self-forgetfulness,
I become everything.”
–Joseph Cornell

Feel Yourself in Every Sound and Movement

It’s wonderful how everything in wild nature is part of us.
“The sun shines not on us, but in us.
The river flows not past, but through us.”
- John Muir

As you walk, feel that everything around you is a part of you. Feel yourself in the trees, standing tall and firm. Feel inside of you the movement of their branches and leaves as they sway and flutter with the slightest breezes.

Become the birds as they flit from branch to branch. Listen to their voices and feel their joyous songs resonating within you.

Follow the wind by the sounds and movements it creates as it flows through, around and over trees, meadows and rocks.

Feel yourself in every sound, movement, and creation of Nature.

Live Expansively

If your mind begins to dwell on the past or to anticipate the future, focus your thoughts with the following practice:

As you walk, Make a smile with your whole body and joyfully repeat the words:

“I am peace… I am joy.
I am… in all things.”

Always live expansively. Enjoy the contrast between being self-absorbed and tiny—and embracing all life around you.

1. The Promise of Immortality
By J. Donald Walters (Swami Kriyananda)

I would like to share with you a marvelous visualization we have been using at Ananda Village for lessening (and even transcending) the intensity of karmic challenges. This visualization was inspired by our study of Swami Kriyananda’s course, Success and Happiness Through Yoga Principles. Since Ananda members have found this visualization so beneficial, I thought you might find it useful, too.

“To overcome karma,” Paramhansa Yogananda said, “meet it calmly and pleasantly.” Too often, however, we resist rather than embrace our karmic tests. We forget that whatever comes to us is coming directly from God. Swami Kriyananda has told us, “Karma is an expression of divine love.” Karmic circumstances are a gift, especially crafted by God and designed for our growth and liberation.

Years ago, I had a major illness for 3 1 years. It was an extremely challenging time for my wife and me. Fortunately, during the last 8 months of the illness, I was able to see what a great gift the illness was and I was deeply thankful to God for the soul lessons I had learned. Interestingly, years later after I had recovered from the illness, a psychic told me during her reading of my life, that it was uncommon to see someone make such a dramatic change in one lifetime. She said this transformation was due to my friend – the illness I had had for 3 1 years.

Accepting with love and faith whatever God sends us is the fastest way of moving through karmic challenges, because we attune to the process more deeply. “When you accept reality as it is, your energy becomes positive,” says Swami Kriyananda, “and that positive attitude will help you transform failure into success.” What appears to be a disaster in your life can be your greatest blessing.

The highest form of accepting reality is seeing that it is God who comes to you through all your life experiences. Seeing God as the real doer in your life can turn the despair or pain you might feel due to challenging karma into loving faith and courage.

_______________

When you face challenging or intense karma, use the following visualization to feel God’s loving presence in the situation. You can also use this visualization before meditation and during the day to free you from something that is troubling you.

People have reported immediate and transforming changes in their consciousness and outer life after using this visualization because it has helped them become more receptive and positive:

“After doing the visualization twice, once at the start of my morning meditation and once in the evening, I felt a significant lifting of a karmic challenge that I know is coming my way. I felt my body relax and the tension in my lower back release. The fear I felt over this impending challenge has greatly lessened. I’m certain that as I continue to do the visualization it will disappear entirely.

“As I do the visualization, I remember that the karma that comes to me is already greatly mitigated by the guru’s loving help. When I receive the gift of karma from him I take it into my heart and then fold my hands over my heart in prayerful gratitude.

“I’m doing this visualization regularly and absolutely love it. There is great power in it.”

~ J.S., Palo Alto, California

Embracing Your Karma Visualization

Karma is an expression of divine love.

Everything that comes to us is made especially for us by God—to free us from all limitation.

Visualize God as the Divine Mother, standing before you.
(You can visualize Yogananda or another saint if you prefer.)

See Her eyes gazing deeply into your own, filling you with Her love.
Know that She is with you, always.

Think now of a karma that is challenging for you.

See Divine Mother holding before you this karmic test. See Her smile as she reaches out and offers this test to you with loving kindness.
Reach out your arms and take hold of this karma.
Bring this karmic challenge into your heart.

Accept this precious gift—sent from the Wisdom of the Universe.
Know that it is a perfect gift, sent by Divine Mother, to help your soul become free.

In your heart embrace this karmic test fully, with gratitude and trust.
This karma can help you raise your energy level and consciousness to where your Godly nature resides.

Focus now at the point between the eyebrows.
See yourself rising to meet this karmic test and transcending its limitations.

See yourself becoming free in God.
Feel the bliss of being united with Spirit.

Sharing Nature Worldwide

Do you enjoy the expansiveness of nature and the stillness felt in beautiful and wild places?

For many years I have written nature awareness books to help children and adults feel the joy of nature. The exercises in my books have become well used and loved all over the world. I thought you might enjoy reading how I’ve used the principles of meditation and universal awareness to help people have a more inspired experience of their inner and outer nature.

This May 3 – 8, 2009, I will be hosting at Ananda’s Expanding Light guest retreat an international Sharing Nature Training and Retreat.

To learn more about Sharing Nature, read the Sharing Nature Worldwide 30th anniversary booklet (PDF).

May you always feel the guidance and loving presence of God.

In Divine Joy, Bharat Cornell

Ananda Meditation Ministry
14618 Tyler Foote Road
Nevada City, CA 95959
530-478-7561 ext 7014
meditation@ananda.org
www.learn-meditation.org

“True meditation begins only after the mind has been interiorized.”
–Swami Kriyananda.

In this month’s Daily Meditator, we offer excerpts from Swami Kriyananda’s book, Awaken to Superconsciousness, where he describes the deeper states of meditation.

His description of them is a valuable reminder of where, ultimately, we’re trying to go in meditation.

Last week I was studying Paramhansa Yogananda’s higher meditation techniques when I was again impressed by his emphasis on practicing them with strong mental focus. Without deep concentration, one’s effort to meditate will be neutralized, because it is by complete attentiveness that we cooperate and align ourselves with the goal of the technique.

The Highest States of Meditation

“The mind, in meditation must be so perfectly still that not a ripple of thought enters it. God, the Subtlest Reality, cannot be perceived except in utter silence. Once the mind is interiorized, it receives the first clear intimations of the ecstasies that await it in superconsciousness.

“Inner sounds and lights, tear-inducing love and joy, healing peace – all of these and more are enjoyed by many meditators from the very beginning. To perceive them clearly and steadily, however, instead of in fleeting glimpses, is another matter.

“The moon, reflected in a lake’s surface, rarely appears as it does in the sky. What is seen are reflections, leaping, glimmering, darting here and there in a thousand ripples, its light ever lacking in definition. Only when the surface of the lake is completely calm are the reflections in it perfectly clear.

“Dharana, (the sixth stage of Patanjali’s Eightfold Path), means ‘concentration.’ This concentration implies not only a focused mind: It implies the rippleless first stages of superconsciousness, when the ego perceives clearly at last levels of reality of which it has received only flickering glimpses before.

“The seventh stage on the path is called dhyana, or ‘meditation.’ Dhyana signifies that stage when the mind, calm and fully receptive, loses itself in the light (or in some other divine attribute) and finds its ego-consciousness dissolving in that light. If one is communing with AUM, the sound vibration is experienced in the entire body. The soul marvels in the realization: ‘This is what I am! Not a physical body, but a blissful manifestation of AUM.’

“The light that one beholds in deep meditation, or the sound that one hears, or the love or the joy, redefine one’s self-awareness. One recognizes oneself as a manifestation of Infinite Truth, and longs to become absorbed in it.

“Spiritual awakening is an ‘unlearning,’ finally, in the sense of being a process of divine remembering. ‘Ah, yes!’ the soul murmurs. ‘I recall everything now. This is what I am!’

“Dhyana, the seventh stage, is the true state of meditation. At this point the ego, contemplating the supernal reality, forgets its separate identity and becomes the soul.”

May your love and deep concentration bring you ever closer to divine awareness.

In Divine Joy, Bharat Cornell

Ananda Meditation Ministry
14618 Tyler Foote Road
Nevada City, CA 95959
530-478-7561 ext 7014
meditation@ananda.org
www.learn-meditation.org