SHUBH MAHASHIVARATRI!

ॐ नमः शिवाय || शुभ महाशिवरात्रि
Om Namah Shivaya!
Shubh Mahashivaratri!

My old Nataraj from Gurudev Siddha Peeth

Tomorrow is Mahashivaratri, one of my favorite celebrations in the Hindu calendar. In February we celebrate Shivaratri on the 13th night of the month. This being "maha" Shivaratri, the potential of each prayer, each blessing is multiplied by a thousand; keep your sankalpa fixed on the Lord within and without.

We honor Lord Shiva for his will to create, his compassion to destroy (our ignorance), and his loving grace, amongst many other characteristics of Mahadeva. In honoring Lord Shiva we also honor Shakti, the creative energy-- pure consciousness, that enables us to see and be a part of Shiva's dance.

Look up at the moon tonight and say--

ॐ नमः शिवाय
Om Namah Shivaya
शिवाय नमः ॐ
Shivaya Namah Om

My eternal Blessings to everyone, everywhere.
Bhakti

INSTAGRAM @jai_bhakti
TWITTER @BhaktiBrophy

(image c. 2018 D.L. BROPHY)

The Atman Is Beyond Stain

"The Inner Self (Atman) is blissful because it is not stained by the mechanics and ruminations of time."

~Bhakti Brophy

Photo & post © 2015 Brophy

JAI BHAKTI™ BLOG: Silver Linings Amidst Disability

Dear Ones,

"'Tis almost the season
to recline outside
And commune with the sky!"

I love when words flow through me, like the above poem. AUM.

Once you have experienced and lived from the hub of ALL creation, you see definitively that there's always a silver lining, no matter the level of chaos you are experiencing in the objectified field of awareness.

Chaos, too, is a manifestation of the One: Pure Consciousness.
Everything is a manifestation of the One.

This is what Subramuniyaswami refers to as DANCING SHIVA, and Baba Muktananda (as well as Vedic and Sufi mystics before him) called The Play of Consciousness.

Being 100% physically disabled and not able to sit up, one of my silver linings is becoming One with the sky (not that we have ever been parted!).

Find the One.

Discover WHO YOU ARE...your Truth...and meditate. Contemplate this Truth.

(Fifteen years ago, while on personal retreat at the now famous Omega Institute, a fellow devotee/bhakta recommended I read the back cover of TALKS WITH RAMANA MAHARSHI. I suggest you do the same. Read everything Ramana wrote...and watch the layers of your small self peel away.)

Find forms of remembrance because, friends, there are many levels of "enlightenment", and when maya tests your will, chances are you will need to remember what you have forgotten. (My quote, "I forgot to remember" sums up the dark night of the soul quite well. There is the dark night that lasts awhile, different for every seeker, and then, as has been my experience, we fall back into that place from time to time on our journey towards freedom from the cycle of birth and death.)

Twenty seven glorious years since I became
immersed in the glorious, cognitive pursuit of who, what, when, where, and why (jnana yoga);
glorious is an apt word, to be sure.

For me,  ever since childhood, the epiphanies  and experiences always came first, and then the pursuit of meaning, relativity...etc.
The journey through the fields of maya have been challenging, but as my beloved Guru said to me eleven years ago: "Sadhana is sweet, like a flower." Life may kick me down often and a lot...but indeed, my sadhana is sweet. So much grace.

How can I look out at this sky and not believe that everything is in perfect order--even while immersed in legal battle with Medicare to get my spinal meds paid for? (Thank you to my lawyer, from Maricopa, AZ, who is helping me pro bono. You see...right there: grace! More on that later.)


Eternal Blessings to you, as my very own Self.

Namo Namah
Bhakti




JAI BHAKTI ™ BLOG
CELEBRATING OUR TENTH YEAR ANNIVERSARY!

VEDAS: THE SOURCE OF KNOWLEDGE

"The original source of knowledge is the Vedas."

~ Srimad Bhagavatam, Canto 1

BHAKTI BROPHY QUOTE No. 462: SHIVA SHAKTI

Shiva is the screen.
Shakti is the movie.


©2014 DL Bhakti Brophy
All Rights reserved

Living with Chronic Illness in the Kali Yuga

YOU ARE NOT THE DOER
We are living in the Kali Yuga; the Dark Ages. Chaos is the principle characteristic of this time and age. It's all cyclical; the Satva Yuga, age of Enlightenment, is next in this wheel of time.

In dealing with chronic disease, severe pain, loss of autonomy, isolation, and all of the emotions that come with this life, etc.--STOP THE SELF JUDGMENT. Stop beating yourself up when you have had a difficult time treading the waters: the point is--you made it through to another day! By the Grace of God (Inner Self/Guru/Pure Consciousness/_____), you weathered the storm! Amen to that.


Follow me on Twitter:
@BhaktiBrophy


Love One Another. (JC)

©2013 DL Bhakti Brophy

New SHIVA NATARAJ Photo...

tags: jaibhakti, Shiva, photography
Photo © 2006 D.L.BROPHY

Enter the Pain

You cannot run from pain. It's a futile endeavor that only leaves you wounded and cold. Pain is like a tick: it is not just going to decide to get up and leave your dog's backside; you have to get out the tweezers and pick the darn thing out. Moreover, don't do a half-assed job or there will be more hell to pay when the pain rears its ugly head again sometime in the near future.

Pain does not really have an 'ugly head'. We say that pain rears its ugly head simply because pain is (in most cases) not a pleasant experience. However, pain is just another emotional red flag, another physical or physiological function of the body to let us know that something ain't right!
This is true. Well, if you read the last post, you know that I have a beautiful relationship with my true Self, my essence. But, as a mere human who is not fully-realized, I also experience all five functions of Shiva (click here if you are not familiar with the five functions; if you have no idea what I'm talking about; if you once knew but have since forgotten; or if you merely want to read a post from my early archives. Whatever floats your boat keeps you afloat, and that's fine with me.)

?

Don't ask.

Getting back to my point, Shiva is the Creator, Sustainer, Destroyer, The One who veils us from the Truth, and the Bestower of Grace. These are his five functions. Thank God, I do not spend a lot of my time with the veil of ignorance over my head, so to speak. I am usually privy to the wondrous source of Bliss and Joy that is contained within the depths of my Heart Center. Yet, last night I had a terrible case of deception. I couldn't find my 'center' because I was too busy chasing my tail. I was so unbalanced that I didn't even realize that I was chasing my tail!

I let myself get a bit overwhelmed with my current situation (being out of work, my health, etc.). Rather than checking in to see how I was doing both physically and mentally, I kept pushing forward--knowing that I needed to meet certain deadlines and attend certain meetings that I wasn't looking forward to participating in. Lot's of anxiety was coming up. I could feel it brewing in the pit of my stomach. Nevertheless, I didn't stop to meditate, to figure out where I needed to be paying attention to the pent up tension in my body so that I could release it.

Well, last night I got totally overwhelmed. For the life of me, I could not find my center. This is a terribly awful place to be; especially when you KNOW that the current anxiety and tension is all a state of mind. Actually, it is all created by the mind, but takes on physical traits when not given attention at the onset. I cried a lot--which is actually a very important way to release toxins. However, I woke up with the pit of my stomach still tied into knots, and my chest was tight as hell.

I went for a walk this morning, and felt the onset of a panic attack. I felt sweaty and faint. Oh, man! I thought. How did I let myself get this out of control? I haven't had a panic attack in YEARS! I stopped exactly where I was on the sidewalk; listened to the voice in my head (You're going to faint! Better call someone!); then I turned around and took a shorter route home. I counted every step:

Inhale for four steps...1..2..3..4..

Hold breath for four steps...1..2..3..4..

Exhale for four steps...1..2..3..4...

Hold breath for four steps...1..2..3..4..
Repeat
After doing about three rounds of this walking meditation, I was feeling much better. You see, the reason I was getting the panic attack symptoms were because I was so anxious that I was holding my breath (or, at the most, I was taking shallow breaths). I walked through the parking lot of a local church, and thanked God for helping me. I turned around to take one more look at the church, and discovered the moon out in full daylight, seeminly hanging right above the cross. Om Guru Om!

After I ate my lunch, I emailed my friend Sally, just to tell her how I was feeling. I was sick of identifying with the physical body and the pain. She told me to love myself. This was profound. She also reminded me of a very simple meditation technique to release the anxiety--or any other junk that was stuck in my body. Of course, I followed her advice and had a wonderful meditation. At first it didn't feel too wonderful! I sat on my cushion, did my formal prayers, and then sat. I just sat and simply felt the state of my physical body. I was so tense! I focused on the parts of the body that were filled with tension, breathed into those areas, and then-- on the out-breath-- released the tension. I wondered how long it had been since I actually checked in to witness the state of my body and mind.
I ended up repeating one of my favorite mantras, too. I let myself sing the mantra in any way that felt appropriate. After about 75 minutes, I was totally in peace. I could feel 'Aum', the primordial sound, reverberating in my body as I sang the mantra.


In closing, I would like to offer you this: You can't run from your pain. You have to deal with it when it rears its beautiful head. Pain is an indication that something is a bit off. Something needs attention. It's very important to check in with ourselves to see how we are doing. And, as Sally says, we need to do this breathing out the tension meditation repeatedly.

I thank Sally for being there for me, and always offering me her love and support and her infinite wisdom. And I thank all of you who have offered your good wishes and prayers.

Namaste!
Bhakti

tags: jaibhakti, Sally Kempton, meditation, pain management, spirituality