Surrender to Get the Bliss

Nescience - ignorance

From a satsang by Gautam Baiji ~

At the lotus feet of God, there is no desire.

Devotion needs surrender. If you surrender there, you will get what you want.

Only when the seed is fully absorbed in the soil will the plant grow. One day, when it becomes a big tree, it gives us fruit and shade and beauty.

The same thing with sugar. It needs to dissolve into the water, or the water cannot be sweet.

In the same way, if our mind is not merging with the holy power, with consciousness, with the divine power (which is such a blessed truth), how can we get bliss in our life?


Everyone wants that peace, but few people will surrender to get it.

Everyone wants electricity, no one wants to pay the bill. What happens? Try it. Once or twice not paying, they turn it off.

The same thing with us: if the mind doesn't merge with the Divine Energy, which is absolute truth, consciousness and bliss, this bliss cannot permeate our lives. We are waiting, waiting, waiting.

The reason: desire comes in front of that. Expectations come, and we give them all attention.

Open Hearts: Happy Diwali, Happy New Year, Seasons Greetings!

It seems people's hearts open more readily during the holidays.

Many say they wish people would act this way all year long, and that is an excellent goal.

We just weren't taught to come from our heart first.

The message of all the movies we watch give us this message: come from your heart! But we don't listen to that very well.

It's reflected in how we treat the least of us. When we solve world hunger and extreme poverty, then maybe we can claim victory of the mind.


So until then, keep sharing your flame!

"It's a Feel-Good Environment" - Reasons People Come to the Ashram

Why do you come to Divine Art of Yoga Center ashram? 

Serina: The ashram opens my mind, enhances my spiritual life and is such a feel-good environment with good, uplifting vibes which I take with me even when I leave. Everyone who comes to the ashram is so loving, it truly feels like home. 

Gautam Baiji Asks For Just a Few Minutes a Day - Satsang About Meditation

We all are like candles.
You know how much power is in a candle
A candle looks very small, but when we light it, it dispels the darkness, gives us light, and with light, we can get whatever we want

So when we get together, we learn good things from each other
You are not learning only from baijis

Sometimes we all learn from each other

This universe is like a university
And when God made us, he put good things in everyone
Everyone has good skills to teach
Once we collect and learn that good knowledge, our life will become good

And wherever we go we will spread the goodness and knowledge
And that way, we can help society

Because sometimes we think we should do some kind of charity
We might make food, or give to poor and needy people

But when you give someone food this month, what happens next time?
The person will have hunger again
But you cannot feed them all the time

So the best thing is - we don't need to feed them fish
We need to show them how to catch the fish themselves

If we are in peace, we can spread the peace

It's like perfume - people will get whatever scent you are using

The same way - if we have peace, we can give peace to others

How can we do that?
Whenever we go to any church, any temple, we feel peace
We feel happiness because we are getting something

But you have to go to your job, you have to go to college, you have to go home
What will we do there?

How can we bring the peace we get from the ashram everywhere?
How can we maintain that?

We have to make a discipline in our life
We have to make a rule in our life
We give importance to many things,
But we have to give importance to meditation

If you meditate every day...
I'm not saying for one hour, or two hours, or more than that
Just a few minutes

That means we are recharging our battery
And you all know how the cell phone needs that
If it's charged, we can do whatever we want
We can take video, we can record bhajans, listen to songs
And we can enjoy the whole day if we recharge it

The same way we can recharge our life

(to be continued)

Peace of Mind Ain't for Sale - A Poem

Peace of Mind Ain't For Sale

When life throws you lemons, and you just want to throw them back…

When the road splits in half, and demons leap out to attack…

When life pricks you, bleeds you, makes you tempted to cuss

When we’re too busy row-row-rowing-to-see life’s-but-a-dream-all-around-us…  

>And you’re feeling the squeeze…

In that dreamland we call reality there’s a temptation

To distract our self from life’s pain with medication

But if thousands of years of practice are any indication

The true alleviation for what ails us, is meditation    

>In lotus, if you please

Because the companies can’t bottle and sell soul rejuvenation!

So in desperation they push sedation on the population

To stop the contemplation that there’s a direct correlation between our agitation

from spiritual starvation that leads to a lack of liberation with no salvation  

>Possibly connected to all the new disease

Now I know there’s exceptions, just don’t let-em predominate 

Remember the goal, it’s for your soul-union I advocate...

So look around, you’ll see there’s no public indignation

People shrug and indulge their addictions with resignation

Big pharma media’s smoke and mirrors obfuscation

Ensures people will line up like sheep for slow-drip stimulation     

>Their reprise...

Is BRING DOWN YOUR HEART RATE

IMPROVE YOUR FLOW RATE

YOU’LL NEVER AGAIN GAIN WEIGHT

OPEN THE FLOODGATES     

>To your dis—ease

Causing us to say, “I got no time for self-realization

Don’t need to hear ‘bout karma and reincarnation

I reject meaningful conversation ‘bout sun salutation

Now let me go back to my inebriated hibernation    

>We’ve become whose devotees?

But… become the hero of your story and you’ll stay free through meditation

You’ll realize it’s nature’s most organic vaccination

Against life’s roughest and toughest tribulations  

And the only place you’ll hear this kind spiritual articulation   

>Is in rooms like these

But wait – society has other distractions to fill up our God hole

With things that steal the present moment and-I-think-you-know-exactly-what-I-mean - but our goal

Should be to look at ourselves with God’s eyes before we need real damage control

Nothing should divert us from hearing the voice of our soul       

>And that voice is saying please…

And even you Matrix escapees, spiritual devotees, spiritual sojourners who aren’t just sightseers

Can sometimes relapse and let in that insidious ego puppeteer

Let it distract us, extract us from our inner seer

And all that realization just… disappears     

>It gets better but, the challenge never ceases

So listen well, because it’s never too late

To get your real power back and set yourSelf straight

That’s Self with a capital S

Tap in often, you’ve got the access

No need to guess or get distressed

Just Keep practicing, don’t digress   

>And at the very least increase your peace

Meditate, don’t take their bait

Meditate, don’t play their game,

Your higher self will be your guide

Go inside, the truth won’t hide

Meditate and your life

Will be

Blessed.

>Peace.                                                              

                                                          

© Scott Ware, 2016 (to be featured in an upcoming DAYC publication)

"I Get So Much Meaning and Understanding" - Reasons People Come to the Ashram

Why do you come to Divine Art of Yoga Center ashram?

Smita: "I love coming to the ashram because it gives me so much peace, and I love listening to the baijis' satsang (spiritual discourse) because I get so much meaning and understanding of the things that we deal with in daily life, and it helps me implement them. And the people there are so loving, it just seems like I have a big family. There's so much love and joy, and every time I come I just don't want to leave! I look forward to every Sunday - I always try to get my dose."

The Ashram is "One of the Greatest Gifts" - Reasons People Come to the Ashram

Why do you come to Divine Art of Yoga Center ashram?

Nishma: The goal of achieving spiritual or self-awareness can feel like climbing a mountain for many; but what I’ve learned throughout my years with the baijis is that it’s not the destination that matters, it’s the journey. As Buddha once said, “Each Morning we are born again. What we do today is what matters most." If we make our goals simple and work on them daily; our goals become much more reachable and life becomes very fulfilling, that is true self-awareness. Baijis are living examples of this; each day they impart wisdom, spiritual skills and above all… love to all the patrons of the Ashram. It is their limitless love and guidance that has steered me through even the darkest times in my life. What makes the Ashram different than any other spiritual or religious place that I have experienced is that everything is focused on teaching you how to achieve bliss here and now. In a society that is ever changing and becoming more and more media and fear driven; self-awareness and true satisfaction are the most invaluable gifts we can give to our children. The Ashram gives kids a place to nurture these values and instills a sense of self within them from a young age. Life is full of trials and tributes; but I truly feel that having Baijis in my life and being able to appreciate all that they have to offer has been one of the greatest gifts that I have been offered in this lifetime.

What If It Cost Money to Meditate?

I was listening to a recording of one of Gautum Baiji's satsangs, and she seemed to suggest we should meditate as insurance against the tougher moments of life.

When I asked her about it later, she agreed.

Baiji reminds us that life is like an ocean, and many times there will be smooth sailing. But there will always be waves too. How we ride out the waves in our boat will determine the quality of our life.

So if we know the waves will come, shouldn't we prepare for them so we don't get thrown overboard?

We buy health insurance because we know we will need it at some point. We get home insurance and car insurance for similar protection.

Why don't we give ourselves meditation insurance that would provide well-being protection?

Do we think we're somehow done experiencing problems? Did we "win" at life already?

I wonder if meditation cost money, would we appreciate it more? If we had to run our debit card through a little machine and pay $40 for 10 minutes of meditation, or $125 for an hour (what a therapist charges), maybe we'd even be lining up for it.


Going within actually takes very little effort. The least amount of effort. So little effort, that our mind wants to fight us and keep us busy so we don't meditate.

But practice is all it takes.

Peace be with you.

"I Feel Like I'm in the Care of Family" - Reasons People Come to the Ashram

Why do you come to Divine Art of Yoga Center ashram?

Graciela: "This is a place where I feel really peaceful. I never see bad energies. I love the sisters (baijis) and I feel like I'm in the care of family. Also I come to yoga, and I like to have tea with them afterward and chat for a while. When you feel the peace you feel here, when you exercise doing yoga, your spiritual life gets expanded. Since I started coming here, I feel much better in the world."

The Difference Between Belief and Faith - Satsang by Gautum Baiji

Gautum Baiji shared a story of Hanumanji and his great faith and devotion to Rama (God).

When Hanumanji was given a gift of a beautiful pearl necklace, he started breaking it apart. When someone asked why he was doing that to the precious necklace, he said he was trying to find Rama in the pieces. If Rama wasn’t there, why did he need the necklace?

People laughed at him and told him because he lived in the jungle, he didn’t know the value of the necklace.

Hanumanji was trying to show them that actually, Rama is everywhere; he is omnipresent. Rama is in my heart, in your heart, everywhere. At this point in the story, Hanuman opens his chest and shows that Rama is indeed inside his heart.

How can we get that kind of strength to have that kind of faith? That kind of bhakti and devotion? Hanumanji had no ego – how do you get that?

We all believe in God. But believing and faith are different. We believe there is oil underground, but is that enough to run our cars? No – we have to dig, look for it, pull it out, and then we can drive our cars.

So believing and faith are different. With Believing, we are not sure. With Faith, we are sure, 100%. We know. Hanumanji had that kind of faith.

To get that faith, that fruit from the tree (the kind you cannot buy in any stores), you have to put a seed in the ground. You nurture it by watering it, feeding it, cultivating it. This is the first thing to know.*

The second thing: If a stranger comes to your home, do you ever say, “Oh please stay at my house for free, we have so many rooms for you." We don’t do this because we don’t know anything about them. How can we have faith that they will be okay to stay in our home? You get to know them, you talk with them, you become friends, and then you have the faith to say, “You can stay in my home.” 

We would never invite a thief into our house, right? “I have so much gold jewelry, a diamond necklace – what time do you want to come, Thief?”

Yet why do we let negative thoughts come into our minds, to stay there and live? Why are we giving these negative thoughts a chance to steal our happiness? Steal our joy, our bliss? When we do this, we get depressed, tense, and worse.

What we want to bring into our life is up to us.

That’s why satsang is very necessary because it's a positive force for us. Listen to it as much as you can.

Rama asked one of the Rishi: show me the place where I can live so people will have joy and not have problems.

Rishi answered: Rama, you are everywhere. But still, if you are asking me, just live in those hearts of people whose ears are like oceans. Live in the hearts of those who love satsang, who listens to your glory. We can get all our questions answered only by satsang.