THE MOTIVAING POWER OF LIMITATION

Welcome to day 2 of our 40 Day retreat.

Review
During this retreat our main theme is that Guiding Principle in the Universe. This is a very powerful theme. Is there a Guide in the Universe; is there a Supreme Guiding Principle in the Universe? What does Guru refer to? And in the course of these talks I want to show you that ‘Guru’ is not a person but a principle.

Yesterday I chose a verse of the Guru Gita to speak a little bit about the Inner Journey. And I chose one verse with a question and the question was…How could an embodied soul become one with the Absolute Reality? How can the embodied soul become liberated? How can this soul which is trapped in a body become free? And that is the eternal question of all who are embodied…How can I become free in this embodiment?

The background story of the Guru Gita
Just to give a little background of the story of the Guru Gita…Guru Gita means ‘Song of the Guru, a song of that eternal principle that we call the Guide. And the question is asked to the Supreme Teacher…Jagat Guru, by his companion.

Now these two, the teacher and the companion, they’re also symbolic of higher principles which I will speak about later on, because the story is so profound in its symbolism. A little background information is, that the companion saw the Great Teacher, the Supreme Teacher, making prostrations, honouring someone, and she asks, “Everyone is honouring you, but who are you honouring? You make these prostrations every day; please tell me about this, I’m so interested in knowing who you are honouring?”

He replies he is honouring the Guru. Although he’s the Supreme Teacher in the Universe, though he is so great, he’s honouring Guru, so he’s honouring a principle. And she’s asking in the beginning of the story…please initiate me into the mystery of this, that you are honouring.

And then he goes into the story. Then she followed with the question I gave yesterday. How can the embodied soul become free? Become one again with that Divinity, that Absolute Reality inside? Then he goes into this beautiful narration, so it’s a narration, it’s a story, about who it is he’s prostrating to, who it is he’s honouring in the Universe.

What limits our awareness?
That which he’s honouring is called Guru Tattwa, or Guru Principle and that makes the story very interesting. The question was, how can the embodied soul (and this idea of embodiment is a powerful idea) having come into the body, how has it come into limitation?  This sacred being inside, having been embodied has come into a limitation. So the awareness within you, that awareness that you have now…I am body, or I am worthless, or I am ignorant, or I don’t know, whatever your awareness is, when in the body in ignorance, the awareness is limited. So we need to know having come into the body, what limits the awareness?

This limitation in awareness is also called Maya. And so his companion is asking, ‘please tell me how to become free’. And I’ll read his reply to her, which is also a profound reply that takes us also on the journey. And he replies…

Mamarupasi devi tvam   Tvat-prityartham vadamyaham,
Lokopakarakak prasno,  Na kenapi krtah pura

O Goddess you are my very self
No one has asked me this question before, this question which is a boon to all mankind.

The profound and supreme question
You are my very Self, here you see the greatness of the teacher. Although he’s the Supreme Teacher he’s telling his companion…you are my very Self. And he says “No-one has asked me this question before”. Which means this is such a profound question, it is a question not normally asked. So when we ask this question, this is the supreme question. He goes on to say “This question that you’re asking is a boon to all of human kind”. So important is this question, that all of human kind can benefit from the answer to this question. And so that excited the Great Teacher.

And by extension that is what excites our Universe. The moment you begin to ask the question…”How can I become free? Please teach me the way out of this ignorance”. You’re asking a supreme question that begins the journey to freedom. So that is the excitement by which the narration is being done. So we need to really ask ourselves that question. Are you really asking that question? And then he will go on to tell how you can recognize this guiding principle in the Universe, how to recognize it, which is a marvellous story. But I’m going to read one more verse to you. And this is also an important verse. It says…

Gudha-vidya jaganmaya  dehe cajnana-sambhava
Udayo yatprakasena  gurusabdena kathyate

And he says here, Maya (which is the veil, the limitation) the creator of the world, and the veiled knowledge born of ignorance, resides in the body. And he says, he by whose light (which means true knowledge) arises, is known by the word ‘Guru’. So he’s saying…inside this embodiment, or due to this embodiment, this Maya, this limitation, this ignorance, is born of being in the body. And he says “that which releases, that which liberates it, that is Guru”.

Limitations of the human existence
So the question that I want to pose to you again is…are you aware or do you recognize that you have come into limitation? Do you recognize that you are in limitation? Do you recognize that something is trapped inside of you that needs to be free? Because if you don’t recognize that, then how can you seek freedom? So you need to recognize and understand that ‘I have come into limitation’. And the limitation or the darkness within is…I am worthless, I am ignorant, I am unhappy, I am sad, I am miserable, or my happiness is limited in the world, my pleasure is limited, there is suffering in the world.

These limitations of being in this human existence should drive us into wanting to become free of it. Are you so happy where you are, that you don’t ask the question that she asked (the companion)? Or do you really ask this question yourself…how can I become free? Yesterday I was speaking about that which is concealed inside. The Universe has a way of concealing that which is great, inside of us. So within all of us greatness is concealed.

So the idea of seeing the body as a limitation, seeing that we are ignorant inside, that we are held in limitation, is an important recognition. So the idea of understanding the ignorance that is within us due to the embodiment is important.

How can I become free?
When you begin this spiritual path, one of the most important things is not wanting to be in limitation. And in my own journey, what pushed me, as I said, is my inability to control my mind, my lack of the feeling of love within, and my basic ignorance of who I was. These limitations pushed me to ask the same question…How can I become free? In my journey in asking this question, I ultimately realized, that it is not by reading books, it is not by mere practices, because I did a lot, but by meeting the One who lives in the awareness of Freedom…meeting that one was so important. And in my journey when I actually met such a one, I was inspired to go inside of myself. Not to become attached to a form, not to become attached to a limitation, but I was inspired to go inside of myself to become what I saw before me. So what is important here, is that when we begin to ask this question, the Universe responds.

Are you the recipient of Grace?
Yesterday we spoke about the idea of Grace, that one of the cosmic processes of the Universe is not to just conceal that which is great within us, but also to liberate that which is great within us. That act of the Universe to liberate, or to bring support is called Grace. Are you the recipient of Grace, do you think that there is something that supports you or guides you? Do you feel that there is some power in the Universe that responds to you? When you begin to feel this, then the real journey begins.

Experiencing this Great Power
In ignorance when I didn’t directly feel a response, somehow I acknowledged that there was a Great Power. I began to trust, I began to work with, and then ultimately I begin to see it, I begin to see and experience this great power. So he’s saying in the Guru Gita, you’re my very Self. He’s telling the one who asks the question, you are me, my very Self.

So the Universe and the Guiding Power, treat us with great respect…you are my very Self. When we begin to ask the question that searches deeply, the Universe is happy to respond. The Universe wants to respond.

The Principle of Guru
In our next session I’m going to talk about the embodiment and how the embodiment creates the ignorance inside. Because we need to understand the trap that we have come into if we are to step out of the trap. Do you feel that limitation? And if you feel that limitation…that I know little, that my power is little, my experience of who I am is little…my knowledge of who I am is little. Then this should spur us to want more.

But today, I want to emphasize the fact that the Universe is happy when we ask the question. Then grace follows, and it is that Principle which leads us out of the ignorance, that is the Principle that we need to recognize, understand and begin to follow. That is the Principle of Guru.

In these series of workshops, or series of talks, I’m going to go deeply into the Principle that we may see it, like I said yesterday, not as a person but as a Power in the Universe at work in every moment.

Our True Journey
Today the contemplation is…the trap that I have come into, can I see my limitations and am I spurred on to come out of this limitation. Can I see my limitation? Does it bother me? Does it really bother me (like it did me)? And am I really serious about coming out of it? Do I want to open my awareness? Do I want to see my world differently? Do I want to rise above ignorance? Do I really want to? So when we really ask the question of the Universe…How can I, an embodied soul, become free? When we really begin to ask that question, our true journey to freedom begins.

These first sessions, it is going to be recognizing the limitation, asking the questions, so we continue the conversation tomorrow, but now we go into meditation.