The Atma Jyoti Blog

If you're new here, you may want to subscribe to our RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!

Behold, the kingdom of God is within you.
–Luke 17:21

All in the mind

“In silent meditation Jesus sat beside a flowing spring [during his sojourn in India]. It was a holy day, and many people of the servant caste were near the place. And Jesus saw the hard drawn lines of toil on every brow, in every hand. There was no look of joy in any face. Not one of all the group could think of anything but toil.” (Aquarian Gospel 33:1, 2)

These two verses show the truth of Sri Ramakrishna’s frequent assertion: “The mind is everything.”

First, we are in Buddhist “territory,” and Buddhism rejected the caste system, yet here are “many people of the servant caste.” Even two thousand years later there are Buddhists in and around India that cling to caste identity. How amazing–Buddha’s teachings free them from the absurd idea of hereditary caste, yet they cling avidly to the imprisoning ideas he long ago repudiated. And so it was at the time of Jesus.

When reading about “the hard drawn lines of toil on every brow, in every hand…no look of joy in any face” we should not be quick to react emotionally, for we are told why they were so miserable: “Not one of all the group could think of anything but toil.” So it was all in their mind. Remember, this is a holiday and they are not working, but instead of relaxing and enjoying themselves they are all gloomy and glum. Why? Because they are slaves in their minds, revelling in their victimhood. We will see this when Jesus in his compassion starts reasoning with them.

Why?

“And Jesus spoke to one and said, Why are you all so sad? Have you no happiness in life? The man replied, We scarcely know the meaning of that word. We toil to live, and hope for nothing else but toil, and bless the day when we can cease our toil and lay us down to rest in Buddha’s city of the dead.” (Aquarian Gospel 33:3, 4)

“Buddha’s city of the dead”? Some Buddhism! This shows that no matter how surrounded people may be with freeing wisdom, if they choose ignorance and bondage that is exactly what they will get. I have seen this in nearly every ashram I have visited. No matter how wise and worthy the guru may be, and how many hours are spent listening to the guru’s teachings, there will always be some that act as though they have hardly heard of God, much less the subtleties of Indian philosophy. They are walking bundles of misery and resentment, what Yogananda called “spiritual skunks,” stinking up the place that is fragrant with holiness and the highest wisdom.

Heaven at hand

Perhaps those that choose to be miserable are more to be pitied than others who cannot help it for: “Jesus’ heart was stirred with pity and with love for these poor toilers, and he said, Toil should not make a person sad; men should be happiest when they toil. When hope and love are back of toil, then all of life is filled with joy and peace, and this is heaven. Do you not know that such a heaven is for you?” (Aquarian Gospel 33:5, 6)

One of the reasons so many people in ashrams–especially in India–are so miserable is that they live in a useless, pointless, and idle manner. Their minds have gone to seed from years of indolence and they are no longer fit for this world or any other. Swami Vivekananda and Swami Sivananda understood how destructive it is even for sadhus to fall into this morass and become worse than nothing. They wisely required that ashram inmates engage in useful work to keep their minds in shape and also to give them self-respect. Sivananda used to tell those that came to the ashram that he intended for them to become competent in all areas of ashram work. The idlers fled, but the fit remained and became proficient in spiritual life.

Read more of “The Real Heaven.”

Read more about the Aquarian Gospel.