So often times travelers on the spiritual path; the Path of Life, say that they want very much to improve their life, to have some deep spiritual experiences, and wish to expand their consciousness. And, in their indications, they seem most sincere. Yet, when I ask them how they are changing their life to make these things happen, I learn that the majority of their energies are directed to other priorities.
So, one of the very steps a person must take in their spiritual development and improvement is to determine if their task is important enough in their life to give it its needed time and energy. Not only in simply giving it some of their time and energy, but their best time and best energy.
What does this mean? Some tell me that they are so tired by the end of the day that they do not have the energy to study the Teaching. Others will say that even though they had hoped to give more time to studying and meditating, things at work or at home simply prevented them from doing so.
There is a wonderful Agni Yoga verse, found in the book Heart: verse 97: After two weeks of apparently superficial striving, a man comes to the conclusion either that he is unfit or that the Higher World does not exist. Whereas the very same man will tell his servant after a year of service, “A year is too short. I cannot yet raise you.” Even in common earthly affairs, people understand the significance of dates.… It is difficult to speak to those who have not matured in heart or who have succeeded in extinguishing it. It would seem that the fires of the heart are very natural and simple in manifestation; but long periods are needed in order that this understanding which links the lowest with the Subtle World may become evident in the physical world. …There are very few who strive to become citizens of the Universe. This title demands numerous cares, observation, vigilance, and, primarily, an indomitable striving.”
Spiritual improvement and perfection does not come over night or in two weeks, nor is perfection reached in a year’s time. Improvement and perfection are achieved in stages, not all at once. But in order to improve, striving is required. And in striving we are required to position our energy where it is needed the most. Improvement must be continuous; not sporadic, or two days a month, or on Sundays, or once a year at during, let’s say at the Full Moon of Wesak. As spiritual students we must strive to improve our personality and our environment. As we improve physically, we must change our environment. As we improve emotionally, we must change our relationships. As we improve mentally, we must change or expand our creativity and our contact with the world.
So, improvement to those upon the Path of Life is a multi-faceted improvement. The verse stated: After two weeks of apparently superficial striving, a man comes to the conclusion either that he is unfit or that the Higher World does not exist. This tells us that patience is one of the keys to spiritual improvement. The verse also said, Whereas the very same man will tell his servant after a year of service, that a year is too short for me to give you a raise. This tells us that the ordinary person understands the importance of time, but in consideration of the higher order, people do not wish to know that one of the most essential to spiritual development is not only patience, it is also assimilation, assimilation of the Teaching.
The most important part to assimilating the Teaching for spiritual development and improvement is to find out what is no longer serving your higher goals and to throw it out. If you do not know what those things are, read the Agni Yoga books that will give you many things to practice on the Path of Life. If you are going against those practices, that is what needs to be thrown out. For example, here are some ideas the Agni Yoga Teaching suggests: guard against the harm of undisciplined thought; avoid thoughtless actions; discipline should be regarded as organized, voluntary cooperation; it is impossible to hope for victory when there is disunity; watch yourself in order to reject egotistic thoughts and actions.
As you begin to change yourself, and strive to create a new rhythm in your life, you will slowly slowly have room for the Great Teaching to be distributed throughout your whole system. A distribution, which will occur because your physical, emotional and mental bodies will be ready to assimilate them.
For example, a goal of assimilation is to be a healthy human being; healthy physically, emotionally, mentally and spiritually. What is health? To be healthy means to remove all contradictory activities from your body in order to make it harmonious and progressive. You must have an activity that is harmonious and progressive. But, if it is not progressive, you can, as the Teaching says, become a harmonious corpse.
Assimilation requires change; it requires cleansing. What needs to be cleansed? Our minds need cleansing. Our character is full of things that are not good for us. When we see these things, our light then increases. As our light increases, we will find negative things that need immediate change.
I recall many years ago a spiritual teacher who was almost blind due to cataracts. Each time I would visit his house I noticed how dirty it was yet he didn’t seem to mind. I would do his dishes for him and clean his kitchen and he would be grateful, but he never saw the piles of dust that had accumulated for such a long time. And the mildew, too, that was building for he lived in the tropics. If I would visit him in the late afternoon or early evening, and turned on the light, the light would reflect on the dust and mildew and seem to act like a focused lens. You could not pretend the years of accumulated dirt was not there. It is much the same way when our inner light increases; it places a focus on the areas that need the most immediate cleansing.
We are blind to so much of the dirt, the negative and obsessive parts within our nature, but as our light increases, those parts cannot be missed. As our light increases we find out that there are some very intolerable things in our nature, more than we ever thought possible.
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Our present life reflects what we were in our past. If a person wants to know about their past, look at their present life, their present body, emotional body, and mental body. They will discover the things they need to eliminate from their nature to bring greater, more beautiful things into their life and consciousness.
So, let’s say for example, someone hurt you; they hurt you a million times; but you are not going to sit and worry about those million hurts. Do something to clean those hurts out and get rid of them.
The verse said: It is difficult to speak to those who have not matured their heart or those who have succeeded in extinguishing the flame of their heart. We cannot talk to them. You cannot teach these things to people with dead hearts, or those who have extinguished the flame in their heart. My experience has taught me that it is impossible, no matter my good intentions or motivations to teach them.
The heart dies when a person thinks heartless thoughts, speak heartless words, when they behave heartlessly. If that person is heartless in their activities, their heart dies. If a person is sending arrows of hatred day and night to someone, their heart dies. When their heart dies, they have no way to understand the Teaching. It becomes impossible.
One of the treasures of the heart is psychic energy; it is the power in a person’s heart that understands and assimilates. Some people have so much devotion in their heart, that when they meet a holy person, they will dedicate their lives to helping humanity. We are inspired when we are touched by their purity and want to dedicate our lives to the Community of Great Ones and to the Mother of the World. It is so beautiful.
Spiritual improvement requires that we dedicate our life in such a way that we will eventually become a fully bloomed lotus; a chalice. Spiritual improvement requires striving. Striving is destruction of the past and a building of the future.
As always, I welcome your own thoughts, ideas, and experiences.
With love,
Joleen
