Wonderings & Wanderings of the Soul

<strong><a href="http://thesoulsource.net/blog/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/285414_524104220973237_1964272197_n.png"><img class="alignleft size-medium wp-image-2994" src="https://thesoulsource.net/blog/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/285414_524104220973237_1964272197_n-259x300.png" alt="285414_524104220973237_1964272197_n" width="259" height="300"></a>“<em>When perfection exists as the nature of your Heart, why do you lose your composure by dwelling on imperfections?</em>”</strong> Sri Ramana Maharshi I wish I could completely live by the wisdom captured in Sri Ramana Maharshi’s words. So often, too often, I find myself dwelling on imperfection. Do you strive for perfection or for it in those you love and interact with? Perhaps you can’t relate to the word – perfection – but if you look closely and are completely honest, can you admit that you hold yourself and others to incredibly high standards and are pained when these standards are not met? While this tendency inspires great achievements, seeds innovation, spawns advances on all levels of society and for that matter the evolution of civilization itself, it can leave one feeling miserable [...]

<a href="http://thesoulsource.net/blog/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/images5BDXXYV7.jpg"><img class="alignleft size-full wp-image-2952" src="https://thesoulsource.net/blog/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/images5BDXXYV7.jpg" alt="images5BDXXYV7" width="274" height="184"></a>Love – it’s everywhere this week or at least one is left with that impression. If you opened the weekend paper you couldn’t help but notice that almost every advertisement featured love this week – flowers, cards, candy, and even red kitchen appliances! Turn on the television and similar sales pitches abound -- ‘show her your love with a keepsake diamond pendant’. And how about your weekly foray to the grocery store, did you succumb to the beautiful bouquets of pink, white and red flowers or the abundance of heart shaped chocolate candies or balloons? Don’t get me wrong, I’m every bit as sentimental as the next person, admittedly having sent my share of paper hearts over the years and distributed many miniature heart shaped candies stamped with ‘luv you, you’re special and [...]

<a href="http://thesoulsource.net/blog/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/index.jpg"><img class="alignleft size-full wp-image-2945" src="https://thesoulsource.net/blog/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/index.jpg" alt="index" width="259" height="194"></a>Snow is falling and the world outside my window has been silenced at least long enough for me to contemplate with wonder and humility the magnificence of this beautiful earth, the serenity it offers and the beauty and peace that lies within. Each snowflake perfectly formed – concurrently encapsulation beauty and peace within itself. If only we could stop time’s advance and freeze frame this scene! If this was possible, might we be able to hold onto the tranquility that lies within, to reacquaint with it, to savor it and to formulate and execute a plan for holding onto it long past snowfall’s end. Billions of snowflakes, each as unique as the billions who populate this beautiful oasis we call Earth. It is really quite amazing when you stop to think about it, [...]

The movie Sliding Doors is a must see whether you are looking for holiday entertainment or getting ready for winter hibernation. And while you are tucked in, kicking backing and sipping your hot chocolate you will be entertained as well as provoked to look at the turning points in your own life in a new way. The plot centers around the main character Helen, an executive with a London based public relations firm. Both her love life and career hinge on whether she catches the subway on her way home after being fired. A romantic comedy-drama, it is clear that this is no ordinary tale about life’s ups and downs, its twist and turns. The story alternates between two parallel universes based on divergent paths Helen’s life could take. In the one scenario she catches her train and in the parallel [...]

<a href="http://thesoulsource.net/blog/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/5-newmethodfor.jpg"><img class="alignleft size-medium wp-image-2938" src="https://thesoulsource.net/blog/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/5-newmethodfor-300x297.jpg" alt="5-newmethodfor" width="300" height="297"></a>Celebrate this season of light by recognizing and reveling in the LIGHT within. Millions of people around the world have begun the annual celebration of Christmas – the gift of Christ Consciousness; while others commemorate the Winter Solstice, Chanukah or the presence of Buddha or Krishna Consciousness. It is a time for deep reflection and joy regardless of which banner one pauses to celebrate under. Over the centuries, traditions have come and gone merged and morphed. What remains constant is the gift each of us has received regardless of our religious or philosophical orientation. Each of us is a child of God, our existence made possible through the vast power, creativity and love that is the Source of All That Is. Each of us is on an eternal journey through the vastness of [...]

<div class="irc_mutc"></div> <div class="irc_mutc"><a href="http://thesoulsource.net/blog/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/gratitude3.jpg"><img class="alignleft size-thumbnail wp-image-2920" src="https://thesoulsource.net/blog/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/gratitude3-150x150.jpg" alt="gratitude3" width="150" height="150"></a></div> <div class="irc_mutc">We are on the verge of gathering for our Thanksgiving celebration -- a time when most in our culture press the PAUSE button to gather to acknowledge the many blessings that we enjoy and to express our gratitude.</div> <div class="irc_mutc">Some have traveled to join family and friends while those separated by great distances will connect through their hearts as we pause to celebrate the bounty that fills our lives. Most who are hosting the annual feast have finished the long preparation. What remains is the quiet time to prepare one's list of gratitude.</div> <div class="irc_mutc">My list of things to be grateful for remains virtually unchanged from year to year.</div> <div class="irc_mutc">To the SOURCE of all that is, I offer thanks for the breadth of life, my senses and [...]

<a href="http://thesoulsource.net/blog/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/Sufi-image.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-2885" src="https://thesoulsource.net/blog/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/Sufi-image.jpg" alt="Source of the Realization" width="262" height="193"></a> &nbsp; Two great Sufi leaders and teachers inspire us to break through the grand illusion of duality to discover the truth of our existence and the source of the realization. <p style="text-align: center;"><em><strong>“The source of the realization of truth is within man; he himself is the object of his realization”. </strong>Hazrat Inayat Khan</em></p> The elaboration on this essential truth is offered by Pir-o-Murshid Inayat Khan, Hazrat’s cousin and fellow leader of the Sufi movement to help us shatter the illusion. <p style="padding-left: 30px;">“Men have differed in all ages because they have called their Deity by different names. There have existed wars, fights and family feuds for ages, men dividing themselves merely for the difference of the names they gave to their Deity. Man always sees just what he sees; [...]

<a href="http://thesoulsource.net/blog/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/Sufi-image.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-2885" src="https://thesoulsource.net/blog/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/Sufi-image.jpg" alt="Source of the Realization" width="262" height="193"></a> &nbsp; Two great Sufi leaders and teachers inspire us to break through the grand illusion of duality to discover the truth of our existence and the source of the realization. <p style="text-align: center;"><em><strong>“The source of the realization of truth is within man; he himself is the object of his realization”. </strong>Hazrat Inayat Khan</em></p> The elaboration on this essential truth is offered by Pir-o-Murshid Inayat Khan, Hazrat’s cousin and fellow leader of the Sufi movement to help us shatter the illusion. <p style="padding-left: 30px;">“Men have differed in all ages because they have called their Deity by different names. There have existed wars, fights and family feuds for ages, men dividing themselves merely for the difference of the names they gave to their Deity. Man always sees just what he sees; [...]

I  admit, my last blog post - Cosmic Motion Picture -- calls out for amplification, so consider this Cosmic Motion Picture part two. Easier said than done, you've scoffed! How can I possibly detach from my life you have wondered? Believe me when I say that I am quite familiar with the wide range of disparate reactions to the idea that we are just illusory figures playing parts in a massive cosmic illusion. The philosopher within quietly concurs with the great sage and guru Paramahansa Yogananda who continues to counsel from the far edges of eternity -- encouraging us to shift our level of awareness and extolling the benefits to successful detachment -- peace . . bliss. The spiritual aspirant within understands that detachment from the ups and downs of daily life and its triumphs and disappointments is the only route [...]

Paramahansa Yogananda’s prayer Make Me See That I Am But An Actor In Thy Cosmic Motion Picture is a source of great inspiration and comfort. His wisdom provokes one to contemplate the play of life - lila - from the observer perspective. This detachment, while difficult to achieve, is key to achieving peace and serenity in one's day-to-day life as well as a milepost on the journey to immersion with the Source Creator and the bliss that is its rewards. “Beholding the ever-changing sound-and-motion pictures of life, I am aware that this turbulent dancing show is only a vast illusion. The tragedies, comedies, and paradoxes of life; the dreams of birth and death; the changing scenes ad places that surge round us: all these are nothing but movies, designed to engage us in the Cosmic Illusion. O Divine Operator, with Thy [...]