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yajvan
09 February 2011, 01:09 PM
hariḥ oṁ
~~~~~~

namasté

To advance on the spiritual path, the right conditions must occur or unfold. What do you think are the right conditions? Some of these conditions ( as I see it) are:

Right timing
Right place
Right frame of mind
Right teacher
Right practiceRight timing
We say well begun is half done. So starting one's practice and continuing its unfoldment seems an important aspect of this.
In jyotish we consider pañcāṅga: 5-limbed or 5-membered ; a calendar or almanac treating of 5 things: vāra (solar days of the week) , tithi (lunar days of the month) ,karaṇa-s ( first and second halves of the lunar day) nakṣatras, (asterisms of the moon) & yoga-s ( unions).

Right place
This suggests 2 things. Being in the right place and the right time. This can be viewed for one just receiving their practice or instruction, and also continuing it. That is, practicing during the saṁdhya (junction points) times of the day.
More can be found here : http://www.hindudharmaforums.com/showthread.php?t=622 (http://www.hindudharmaforums.com/showthread.php?t=622)

Right frame of mind
Frame of mind is that of intent.That one looks forward to their practice. That there is balance in one's life and view.
Kṛṣṇa-ji informs us , yoga is not for him who eats too much nor for him that does not eat at all. It is not for him who is too much given to sleep nor for him who keeps awake.
'Eats too much' is not only via the mouth, but by all the senses. He is saying avoid excess.

Right teacher
The teacher (guru) is the first letter (a) ; the student (śiṣya) is the last latter (ha) ; knowledge is the meeting place (ṁ) ahaṁ - instruction is the link.

Right practice
We call this upāya - that by which one reaches their aim. I find this definition interesting because in the praṣna upaniṣad¹ the seeker, the upāsaka¹ is called an arrow (bāṇa). What is an arrow meant to do? Hit it's mark. It requires right aim & right strength to hit the mark.

What are your thoughts on how you view this ? What do you view as the right conditons?

praṇām

words

upāsaka - intent on; engaged or occupied with - in this case one's unfoldment
praṣna upaniṣad - 2.2 , or the 2nd question posed and the 2nd śloka of the conversation.

NayaSurya
09 February 2011, 01:30 PM
These conditions above are the ground work for all else.

The one thing which finally snapped into place for me was that I had to have peace at home. Being a mother this was the singular thing which made any forward movement impossible as I was so overly consumed with it. It's not to say others couldn't move forward under lesser conditions, but for me this state was crippling.

This would fall within "right frame of mind".

When you no longer are gripped with paralyzing worry over the survival of your children...when you are loved wholly and accepted for who you are...

The gaping hole became very apparent to me.

We shove it full of food, wine, pleasure....money and items...but nothing...absolutely nothing can fill this hole but Beloved. So when those attempts to stop filling the hole with useless things subside, the frame of mind comes..

These things fall away and you are left standing in front of the mirror with nothing else but your own hole. The hole which existed before I found Beloved.

yajvan
09 February 2011, 09:21 PM
hariḥ oṁ
~~~~~~

namasté

Here is another view of the right conditions from someone much wiser then me.

Within Ādi śaṅkara-ji's Vivekacūḍāmaṇi¹, he calls out the sādhana catuṣṭaya sampatti. That is, the attainment (sampatti) of the 4 fold (catuṣṭtaya) qualities/characteristics for spiritual development or practice thereof (sādhana ).
They are:
1. viveka - the ability to discriminate ; the ultimate discrimination is the Real from unreal;
2. vairāgya - dispassion for sense objects; the senses are not swayed or pulled in by the objects of the world.
Said another way an aversion or distaste from worldly desires or an indifference to worldly objects i.e. knowing that finite things do not contain happiness.
3. samādhi ṣaṭka sampatti - A group of six behaviors or traits ~virtues~.

śama - calmness , rest , equanimity
dama - is taming or subduing; it is self-control, self restraint
uparati - stopping, to rest (of the mind) ;desisting from sensual enjoyment or any worldly action - allowing intro-spection
titikṣā - forbearance, endurance, patience
śraddhā -faith, unwavering faith; trust , confidence , trustfulness , faithfulness
samādhāna or samādhā - to fix or hold. One pointedness; absorbed in meditation; associated with samādhi 4. mumukṣutva - intense desire for mokṣa (liberation)


praṇām


references
Vivekacūḍāmaṇi or the Crown jewel of Discrimination ( some say crest jewel) , 19th śloka

jasdir
10 February 2011, 08:19 AM
hariḥ oṁ
~~~~~~

namasté

To advance on the spiritual path, the right conditions must occur or unfold. What do you think are the right conditions? Some of these conditions ( as I see it) are:

Right timing
Right place
Right frame of mind
Right teacher
Right practice

When "Love" towards "Love" or "God" occur.

When "Love" itself becomes the condition for "Love" then it is called unconditional "Love".

When "Love" occurs; Right Time, Place, Frame of mind, Teacher, Practice etc.. are helpless to occur.

But when will "Love" occur ?

When someone "Fall in Love".

But when someone "Fall in love" ?

Ask: Romeo & Juliet, Laila & Majnu, Heer & Ranjha, Jesus & Lord, Muhammed & Allah or Love & God..... But not Jasdir.

But am sure when you will discover "Love" you will find that "Love" has captured you and now you are helpless to leave it.:)

Please Beware!, Yes you can enter but there is no way to come out.

Sorry i think now the topic of OP has changed, So :)

_/\_
"Namaste" by Jasdir.

yajvan
10 February 2011, 10:46 AM
hariḥ oṁ
~~~~~~

namasté


This notion of the right conditions.... consider a seed that is planted in the dirt. It is placed in the dirt and watered. Will it grow?
Are the right conditions in place? Is the sun shining to bring warmth and germination to the seed? Is the soil favorable? Is it the right
season for planting - that is , is the environment conducive for the seeds growth?Is the seed protected from others ( birds, etc) that
may view the seed as a quick meal?

Hence for the seed, the right time ( season) and the right place ( the soil ) is of great concern.

Like that we too need to consider the right conditions for our spiritual growth. One must consider the right instruction or learning ,
from this what then germinates? Here is some ideas from abhinavagupti-ji.


right reasoning or vicāra¹
reflection or due consideration called vimarśa¹
meditation or parāmarśa¹It is from this that one attains right knowledge or vijñāna. This word means skill and also the act of distinguishing or discerning , understanding , comprehending , recognizing , intelligence , knowledge. Hence it is the ~skill~ in discerning the truth about one's own Self (ātman).

Yet one must proceed with a level of caution. Why so? Along the way one's knowledge becomes firm and incorrect teachings fall off.
Some tend to be excessively critical of other teachings ( different) from their own. They come to the conclusion these other
teachings are ~wrong~ and show disrespect. This may be true as being ~wrong~ for that person but just may be ~right~ for others.

praṇām

words

vicāra विचार - pondering
vimarśa विमर्श - consideration , deliberation , trial , critical test , examination ; reasoning
parāmarśa परामर्श - is a beautiful word. It meaning bending or drawing back as in drawing back a bow string. We
think of meditation as drawing back the mind to the source, the Self or ātman. The word also meaning recollecting
or remembering - the remembrance of one's true Self.

yajvan
13 February 2011, 10:26 AM
hariḥ oṁ
~~~~~~

namasté

Take an earthen pot that has just been made. Add water to the pot. What occurs? The water seeps through the pot and cannot contain the water. Take the same pot and condition it , called firing the pot; making it suitable for its task.

Being the adhyāyin¹( a student) on the spiritual path is like this. In the beginning knowledge comes in but is not retained. Doubts arise, ideas and knowledge seep out. Yet over time & with practice ( tapas) one improves in mental alertness, spiritual strength. One becomes grounded in the knowledge.

For some, they are shaped and ~fired~ by the guru. For others this is not the case.They can be shaped and molded by life's experiences, by study, by trial and error.
In each case the container is being prepared to hold the most infinite experience of the Supreme within them. They are being prepared to become satyakāma, a lover of truth.

praṇām


words
adhyāyin अध्यायिन् - a student; engaged in reading and note it has ties to adhvan , a path, inferrng one's spiritual journey.

Smooth_operator
26 November 2012, 04:49 PM
namaste yajvan very insightful post

i have a question how would you define righteousness?

yajvan
27 November 2012, 12:39 PM
hariḥ oṁ
~~~~~~

namasté


namaste yajvan very insightful post

i have a question how would you define righteousness?
The first way is being aligned to dharma. Now when one is perfectly aligned to dharma we can call them Self-righteous , that is, possessed of the Self (ātman).
Note this has a negitive connotation when we call someone self-righteous. Note the small 's' in self. That suggests 'me' righteous. It then becomes My own personal ( not univeral) righteousness that is filled with me, and me alone or self-centered or a bound condition. Yet when one is Self-righteous , possessed of the Self (ātman), then that is a universal view and the smallness of 'me' resigns.

So how does this tie in to righteous ? Righteous = right actions, proper actions pending the time, place and circumstance. This is the power of dharma¹ ( i.e. that which upholds/supports). It is dharma that upholds . So when we are aligned to this then one can feel confident that their actions are in accord with the laws of nature. Laws of nature are never wrong. There is this univeral intelligence that guides this. So :

Self-righteous = possessed of the Self (ātman) = aligned to dharma = aligned to univeral intelligence = right actions = life supporting behaviors.

The question one must ask , what do I do before this Self (ātman) dawns in my awareness ? For this we abide by the rules and guidelines given to us by our śāstra-s, our reliable elders, etc.

praṇām

1. dharma arises from dhṛ, defined as maintain , preserve , keep , possess; it also is defined as to hold , bear (also bring forth).

Smooth_operator
27 November 2012, 02:26 PM
namaste yajvan

question: some people say good and evil are the same thing or they are a matter of opinion do you agree?

yajvan
27 November 2012, 02:42 PM
hariḥ oṁ
~~~~~~

namasté


namaste yajvan
question: some people say good and evil are the same thing or they are a matter of opinion do you agree?
If we consider good to = sattva, and evil to = tamas then we can see for ourselves that they are not equal. Yet if we consider good actions and bad actions, both are actions and both bind the person that has not realized his/her own Self (ātman).

This sattva¹ is light, being, fullness, wholeness; tamas¹ is darkness, smallness, lethergy. The question (for humans) is, which is more desirable, more attractive, and promotes well-ness within the individual? Yet both these qualities allow the 3 guna-s their display and play.

praṇām

sattva - being , existence , entity , reality ; the quality of purity and wholeness
tamas - mental darkness , ignorance , illusion , error; in the sāṃkhya view of reality it is
one of the the 5 forms of a-vidyā