#self-forgetfulness

[itsmythang]

Don’t be like Ron

[shinymoonbird]

ॐ

Just as the sight of a lion appearing in its dream will awaken an elephant from sleep, so also the Darshan of the Sadguru will awaken the disciple from the dream of this present waking state, which is merely an illusion, into the state of Jnana.

Guru Vachaka Kovai (The Garland of Guru’s Sayings) by Sri Muruganar - Chapter The Guru’s Grace, Versículo 283

Sadhu Om: 

The present waking state is itself an illusory dream; just as a dream can only exist by depending upon the background of sleep [i.e., the loss of waking bodyconsciousness], so this present dream, our so-called waking state, can only exist by depending upon the background of the sleep of our Self-forgetfulness [i.e., the apparent loss of our natural pure Self-Consciousness]. 

This ignorance [i.e., our Self-forgetfulness] is a much-prolonged sleep, in which innumerable dreams [i.e., our many lives] take place; refer to Ekatma Panchakam [The Five Verses on the Oneness of Self] verse 1*, in which Sri Bhagavan expresses this idea. 

What is destroyed by the Sadguru is not only the drama of our present waking state, but also the much-prolonged sleep of Self-forgetfulness, which is the background of all these dreams, our many births and deaths. 

Just as the lion seen by the elephant in its dream is false, yet its awakening is true, so the name and form of the Sadguru are false [from an absolute viewpoint], yet the Awakening [i.e., the Dawn of Self-Knowledge] caused by Him is very Real. After the elephant wakes up from his dream, he will know that the lion seen by him was not real, and similarly, after the Dawn of Self-Knowledge, it will be known that even the name and form of the Sadguru is not real [i.e., the notion that the Sadguru is other than Self, ‘I’, will be known to be false].

Jnana:  Clear and abundant knowledge, which is Self (‘I am’). The power of knowing.

* Ekatma Panchakam - The Five Verses on the Oneness of Self, linked into a single verse by Sri Bhagavan, was renamed Ekatma Vivekam -The Knowledge of the Oneness of Self:

https://shinymoonbird.tumblr.com/tagged/Ekatma-Vivekam

Seeing A Lion In A Dream:  https://shinymoonbird.tumblr.com/post/126299767766/the-voice-of-bhagavan-is-still-ringing-in-my

[spiritualgateway]

To study the Way is to study the Self. To study the Self is to forget the self. To forget the self is to be enlightened by all things of the universe. To be enlightened by all things of the universe is to cast off the body and mind of the self as well as those of others. Even the traces of enlightenment are wiped out, and life with traceless enlightenment goes on forever and ever.

Dogen

[gospelborn]

Tozer on the Freedom of Self-Forgetfulness

Before Tim Keller wrote The Freedom of Self-Forgetfulness, and before Dane Ortlund wrote Gentle and Lowly, there was A.W. Tozer writing The Pursuit of God. On a single train ride from Chicago to Texas, the Christian Missionary Alliance pastor wrote through the night, producing one of the Church’s most beloved meditations on communing with God. The book first released in 1948 and has never been…

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[letyourwordsbfew]

Catching up with myself today. There is a story I want to retreat to. I’m trying to figure out why I want to be swept into a story and forget myself. Not just any kind of story though. It has to be a redemption story.

[crownofcompassion]

New Post has been published on Crown of Compassion

New Post has been published on https://www.crownofcompassion.org/2017/07/11/when-we-live-in-disconnectedness/

When we live in disconnectedness

“Not only do we suffer when we live in disconnectedness, but then other people whom God place around us get cheated out of the love God intended us to give them (emphasis author’s).”- John Ortberg

“Anyone who does not love remains in death.”- 1 John 3:14

John Ortberg concludes Chapter 16 of The Me I Want to Be as he stresses that God designed us to live in connectedness.  Therefore, to help us avoid slipping into disconnectedness, John takes a look at five gifts connectedness brings.

1.  The Gift of Delighting.  Love involves action more than it involves feeing.  Hence, servanthood marks the circle of connection.  In Galatians 5:13, the apostle Paul urges us to “serve on another humbly in love.”  Thus, we give life to the people we notice- and vice versa.  Also, in that process of self-forgetfulness, our own soul flourishes.

2.  The Gift of Commitment.  Too often, Pastor Ortberg notes, the people most in need of cheers get them the least.  Everyone needs the gift of commitment.  Encouragement requires work.  It doesn’t just happen.  But, connectedness reaps incredible rewards!

3.  The Gift of Love. As of today, name one person in your life who just needs you to look them in the eye and say: I love you.  The Holy Spirit constantly works in us to prompt such expressions of love.  Hence, every moment provides an opportunity to practice a gesture of love.

4.  The Gift of Joy.  Pastor Ortberg observes that, while we know love we joy, we often forget the power contained in joy.  Joy:

gives us strength to resist temptation

brings the ability to persevere

is the Velcro that makes relationships stick

gives us energy to love

5.  The Gift of Belonging.  Simply stated, belonging – God’s gift to us.

Today’s question: During your desert, land between time, what sufferings resulted from living in disconnectedness?  Please share.

Tomorrow’s blog: “Step into openness – stop pretending”

[packing-bags]

The very first step is to forget about the self altogether. […] Even in social life, you will never make a good impression on other people until you stop thinking about what sort of impression you are making. Even in literature and art, no man who bothers about originality will ever be original whereas if you simply try to tell the truth (without caring twopence how often it has been told before) you will, nine times out of ten, become original without ever having noticed it. The principle runs through all life from top to bottom, Give up yourself, and you will find your real self.

C.S. Lewis - Mere Christianity

[wearestonecastle]

David Brooks on self-forgetfulness:

C.S. Lewis observed that if you enter a party consciously trying to make a good impression, you probably won’t end up making one. That happens only when you are thinking about the other people in the room. If you begin an art project by trying to be original, you probably won’t be original.

And so it is with tranquility. If you set out trying to achieve inner peace and a sense of holiness, you won’t get it. That happens only obliquely, when your attention is focused on something external. That happens only as a byproduct of a state of self-forgetfulness, when your energies are focused on something large. 

Source: The Road To Character