Heartfulness Course - Day 12 - Nourishment

[Jacquelyn_LSRF]

Access the Course: The Yoga of Heartfulness 4-Week Course • Ram Dass

Share a favorite quote or passage from this week’s lectures that touched your heart somehow.

[MJK]

Well, I loved Jai Uttal’s talk and what stuck with me was what does it matter how you feel (about your service) - what does it matter how I feel about my practice? I really needed the reminder to practice daily regardless of how I feel - about my practice or myself. It’s deceptively easy to skip, make excuses, end up very far from my practices, and very hard to start over because I don’t feel like it…

[Jaspen]

Similar to MJK - A few days earlier I was wondering about how often is it good to repeat a mantra (the mantra that I’m currently working with)? Then, serendipitously, I heard, “repeat the name of god all the time; every moment; in whatever you’re doing . . . “

I’m imagining that what that does is that by repeating a name or phrase (for me right now it’s “I’m grounded in Wisdom and Grace”) over and over during my normal daily activities, it integrates the concept or blessing or connection both subtly and subconsciously, to touch and influence all the mundane things that I am doing, that I’d usually just have a “git-‘er-DONE” attitude about.

It integrates the practice into the Self.

[Zach_V]

@Ram Dass

There are nine forms of bhakti. That is, there are different ways that are ways in which you meet God through your heart. And they are determined by your own psychodynamic predilections. That is, from where your ego starts. So the one person… Like, I get to go to Maharaj-ji, who turns out to be like a good father figure for me because that’s my mashugana business. You have yours. So that some of the forms of loving God are as lover, beloved, like Radha and Krishna, as mother to son, like Mary to Jesus, as friend to friend, like John and Jesus, as Hanuman to Ram, as servant to master. These are the vehicles through which - the doorways - these are the doorposts through which you go to come into the truth.

I’ve been guilty lately of expecting my spiritual path to manifest in certain cookie-cutter patterns I’ve been reading and listening about - there are so many ways up the mountain

@Ram Dass

When you sing to the beloved, whether it’s the Mother, Durga, or Kali, or Tara, or Mary. Or if you sing to Krishna, or Jesus, or Ram, realize at first, when you’re still thinking, that you are - it is as if the part of you that thinks you’re singing is singing to the song that you are. It’s like the levels of your own being. It’s like your ego is singing to awareness, but you are awareness. It’s a dialogue within yourself

I love how Ram Dass can take such complex esoteric wisdom and boil it down to such digestible language. This one will absolutely stick with me whenever I’m chanting

@Ram Dass

And some, for some of you, I mean, I have a cat, let me tell you. I have a cat named Maya, and I love Maya very deeply. She’s an extremely interesting cat. And when she’s sitting on my belly, which is the softest place she finds, and purring in my face, she is the beloved that I’m singing to. So, whatever it is that turns you on, start with that.

~many ways up the mountain~

[Tony_Roh]

@MJK

Well, I loved Jai Uttal’s talk and what stuck with me was what does it matter how you feel (about your service) - what does it matter how I feel about my practice?

Jai Uttal definitely touched my heart too.

I love this quote from We Can Be Lovers:
“I share with everybody that listens, my imaginary playmate. Because when you’ve met one, you’ve met One.”

[Dana_G]

@MJK

I loved Jai Uttal’s talk and what stuck with me was what does it matter how you feel (about your service) - what does it matter how I feel about my practice?

Ditto…this one really sticks!

[Robert_McDonald]

I’ll echo what others have said that Jai’s story about Siddhi Ma asking why what he’s feeling matters. I’ve reflected on that, especially today because it was a tough morning puja with a closed, dry heart but I remembered Siddhi Ma’s words that Jai shared and just did my practice anyway and about halfway through I felt my heart break wide open again and the practice became just as moist as usual.

This course has helped continue the development of my sadhana just like each new RD book or lecture.

[Travis_Barker]

I am interested in investigating further the intersection of stillness, presence, happiness, emptiness, and love.

[K.A_Corlett]

When Jai said something like, “I’m not sure I have a third eye,” that killed me. LOVED it. Such a wonderful reminder not to be attached to a prescriptive understanding and not take ourselves or our practices too seriously.

[TaylerBailey]

Hmm… there was a lot. I really enjoyed this weeks lectures. I whizzed right through it!

The talk about bhav. I LOVED THAT.

“What does God eat? God eats bhav.”

I think that really spoke to my heart because it was one of those words that English doesn’t have a translation for really. I always find those interesting. And it just made sense. Plain it simple. He explained it and I thought click I get it.

Also, during the community meeting (i was a bit late my apologies!), but Jackie had mentioned that the three languages Hebrew, Aramaic (i think), and Sanskrit were vibrational languages that were the essence of God.

That really made my heart feel comforted because I’ve always loved to sing and when I sing mantras, something ethereal happens and i just figured it was me just tapping in to the mantra itself or shifting my brain waves or something.

But it made me happier to sing, and happier to chant and just happier.

I may not be paraphrasing that so well, but hopefully it came across!

Many blessings and namaste

[Annie_Watson]

Blockquote

It’s only when it’s either through like agony, like the hurt or loss of a loved one, tremendous pain, trauma of some sort that most of us ever breakthrough into the place where we really open like that. – Ram Dass from the “From Suffering to Blessing” piece.

[Conireeder]

[…] when people in the world reject or turn off or give you that glassy-eyed thing, you’re crazy. You allow them to do it, but it doesn’t diminish your love because you, it turns out, are not vulnerable. What are they gonna do? Catch you with your love hanging out? How terrible. How embarrassing for you. I’ll love you if you love me. Now, it isn’t that game anymore. Your only friend is God. Ram Das “From Suffering to Blessing”

My only friend is God which I would rather call the Creator. Part of my running away from Christianity was about running away from a male god. RD also reinforces the idea that we don’t need a building or a religion. All we need is Ram Ram Ram.

[norm]

KD’s reminder to surrender really struck a chord. And I love the way the course organizers summarized it: “Typically, we want some big lightning bolt experience like Ram Dass’ experience with his guru. More often, we have small, subtle, incremental experiences that integrate into our being.”

I often find that when I surrender, life unfolds exactly as it should. Surrender also helps me see and appreciate those smaller, subtler, incremental experiences. It’s like watching a flower bloom and I’m so grateful to all the teachers who shed their light and provide nourishment to us “finders.”

[Jacquelyn_LSRF]

I just feel so incredibly happy reading these! And Love the cat photo!!! Such sweetness.