Shiva is not a destroyer!

Once, a seeker met Lord Shiva, and said " Although millions of people around the world worship you, and we all love you very much, but, my Lord , we are afraid of you also"

"Why?" asked Shiva.

"Because it is said that you are the destroyer, that you end the Universe"

" Really? " answered Shiva,  " Now, tell me, how am I supposed to destroy the world?"

" By opening your third eye, wherever you shift your gaze then, turns to ashes."

    " That is the legend, the story,the mythology. Now, listen to the philosophy. At the personal level, the destruction of illusions, makes the meditator enlightened. This is the opening of Gyan Chakshu, this is the whole path of the yogis. The gaze of the discriminating mind destroys wrong previous concepts and illusions. Whatever scriptures such a man reads, he interprets rightly, whatever situation he encounters, he understands. The mind of spiritual discrimination destroys falsehood and delusion. At the transpersonal or cosmic level, I am a paradox however. My capability is to destroy the whole cosmic play. But, if I use only half my power, to destroy the destruction processes themselves, verily. I become the course expansion. So using half your power doubles your strength. It also takes double your strength to use half your power. Meditate upon this! " Said Shiva.

  " Aha, destruction, paving the way for creation. I understand my Lord", said the seeker." Like we have a defrost button in a refrigerator, which enables us to defrost the frozen zones, leaving the other, major portions intact. Destruction, paving way for creation. So you too, only thaw out the parts of mankind  which are frozen in ignorance!"

Shiva smiled at the seeker's understanding.and said simply, " Yes. That is my role. To Get mankind back on the track, to goodness and Godness, Kindness and Divinity "

" Aha, My Lord, It is obvious now, that although your symbol, the Shivalinga is a symbol of creation, they still call you the destroyer, this is a paradox."

      " Yes", said Shiva, " And you are learning to cut through the paradox."

~ Derived from the book
~ From the book The Yogi and the snake ( conversations with God Shiva)

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Shaivism Today Soul Speak ( 8 ) - A new year resolution

LET IT BE THE YEAR OF POSITIVITY!

Yet another year has passed us by.
Yet another  'New year'  is here!
Some of us make our personal resolutions at this time, and not without reason; Since the human brain is accustomed to work on linear signals,the first of January marks a good starting point for
re-programming our mind set. I too,have had my share of  resolutions year after year, mostly to be frittered away in a matter of days..

And this time,I sat down to reflect on why our will is not strong enough.There could be a plethora of reasons, but reasoning itself embarked on the fact,that since all things are connected, one resolve ,without the other, does not work. We know from our workplaces ,the importance of Teamwork. Well,our mind needs that too. A resolution,therefore,must be such that is holistic,
full. Holding in its content all the small bits of the team of good resolves.
It should be affirmative,not negative; that is, rather than thinking on what I should not do,
how about focusing on what I could do...
 Again a huge number of thoughts came up
and among these, all the noble ones found their summation in the one word "Positivity".
This lead me to the understanding that to " Let it be the year of positivity",
was an uncomplicated resolution that would take care of teamwork among thoughts,as well as goodness. And that too,without asking for an Olympic standard of genius and spiritual wisdom...
In eastern mysticism,the wise attribute all 'lucks' to three broad categories:
A) Adi Bhautik ( Those created by elements of Nature)
B) Adi Daivik ( Those created by higher powers)
C) Adi Aatmic (Self created)
While we can do little for the baby that is born blind , or an earthquake that destroys our homes and tenements ( Adi Bhautik), or the evil that resides in men as greed and expresses itself in oppressing others ( Adi Daivik) ; however, there is much that we can do about our own thoughts and their power ( Adi Aatmic).

A contemporary mystic, and my dear friend Lillian Too,in her brilliant book"Inner Feng Shui",
( an excellent tool for anyone that wishes to tune in to their positivity) explains about this power:
"You can make yourself distressed,bring tears to your eyes,simply by thinking of something sad -
a tragic event,the loss of a loved one,a sad movie.In the same way,you can make yourself confident by thinking about your achievements,and make yourself excited by thinking of your loved one.Your thinking will control your moods.The extent of this control will vary from person to person but thoughts determine your state of mind. Now let's look at your state of luck.You can make yourself feel lucky by thinking of all the good things that happen in your life.All the opportunities that came your way,all the big breaks you got. All the good health you enjoy.You are lucky even to be alive,what with all the wars,diseases and accidents in the world! When you adopt this perspective of life,you realise how really lucky you are.
Or,you can make yourself feel unlucky by thinking of every bad thing that has happened to you.
The toast got burnt.You slipped on the bathroom rug.You missed your deadline.You lost that promotion.You never win at lotteries.No one appreciates you.Everything that can go wrong with your life,has gone wrong.

You can compound these feelings.You can strengthen feelings of good and bad luck by adding further thoughts to them. Thinking lucky thoughts brings you good luck.
thinking unlucky thoughts brings you bad luck.
It is as simple as that!"
  I laud  Lillian's ability in sharing such profound wisdom in simple terms, with millions of seekers the world over. This is what transforms one's personal resolution into a transpersonal guidance for all. Everything is within you, the Sages have repeatedly exhorted throughout the struggle of man over circumstance, and in due course of time ,even the Bhautik and Daivik smile on the efforts of a dexterous meditator...
Begin with your self created luck,yes, and that which seems to be beyond you,will one day,
twinkle in the palm of your hand....Start now, Let this be the year of positivity.

( This article was written about 20 years ago )

~ From the notes of Shail Gulhati, Author of SHIVA, The Ultimate Time Traveller.


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KRISHNA LOVED TO PLAY,AND SHIVA LOVED TO WATCH HIM PLAY.

"He had known Vishnu, the other God, through at least two of His incarnations. He had known Him as Rama, from His forest meanderings and resonated so completely with Him in the love for one’s spouse.
Shiva empathised greatly with Rama in the pain of separation, Having been through the loss of His own wife, Sati. A life cycle later, when Vishnu incarnated again as Krishna,
 Shiva went all the way from Kailash to the Plains to see Krishna as a baby", said Rishi Suta.

"Ah! I see" said Shaunaka.


“Krishna loved to play, and Shiva loved to watch Him play. He loved the infant Krishna’s delightful ability to steal butter cookies from His mother’s larder, much before He was a full-blown God. He smiled at Krishna’s charming adolescence as He dallied with the infatuated cowgirls of Vrindavan".Continued Suta.

" Lovely, master!" excaimed Shaunaka.
" Then again, years later, when the time came for Krishna to sermonise Arjuna about divinity on the battlegrounds of Kurukshetra, Shiva had watched from an eternally witnessing sky above, listening intently along with others to Krishna’s song of God, the Bhagwad Gita.
When Krishna sang eloquently to Arjuna about Mahakaal, The Great Timelessness, Shiva smiled again. He had known this song even before Krishna was born. He, verily, had known it even before Rama’s time," said Rishi Suta.

~ From the book SHIVA, The Ultimate Time Traveller. by Shail Gulhati
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INTERGALACTIC MONSTERS AND DEMONS

“So Gurudeva, basically, it was all about Shiva trying to help mould people into better souls,
 and thus live as one happy family in Heaven-like conditions?”
“Yes. Shiva always helped them evolve into the best version of themselves. He inspired them by example. But…”

“But?”

“But He had also known beings like Antariksharakshasas ; inter-galactic monstrosities of creation, who were now extinct, long gone and forgotten, except in the Akashik records, which were safely tucked in His own mind. It was better this way; to let some memories fade away from the cosmic carnival. But that did not stop Him from waking up at nights in a cold sweat, only to realize that all the monstrosity was just a bad dream, and that the sweat His hand wiped from His own forehead, was a greater reality of the now.
The universe had had some really bad creations and episodes, and Shiva had witnessed it all somewhere in time, sequence after sequence, rolled out like a cosmic film.” Replied RishiSuta.

“Ah!”

“Yes. And that is why Shakti manifested as Parvati: so that She could be with Shiva in the redressal of these intergalactic misadventures, and to check the malignancy that crept into the cosmic evolution.”

“Everyone wants to master the world rather than their own self, Gurudeva?”asked Shaunaka.

“Yes. It has been like that even from the beginning.”

“From the beginning?”

“Yes. Brahma and Vishnu also fought over Lordship.”

( From the book SHIVA, The Ultimate Time Traveller. by author Shail Gulhati )

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SHIVA MAHAPURANA

“Tell us about Shiva, the mountain God, respected Sutji,” Shaunaka would implore the master.

“There was a time when Shiva Himself told His story to the forest dwellers, and Vyasa, the bard, used his prolific skill to record the self-revelations of the Divine One." Replied rishi Suta.

"Oh i see, the revelations of shiva in his meditations?"asked Shaunaka

"When He sat alone, He was in deepest oneness, always. When He closed His eyes in self-repose, a most enigmatic dance presented itself to Him; a dance of Time; where the past and the future got animated as players and themselves entertained Him , like performers in a carnival. It had dawned on Him that He was an eternal witness, and thus too, the realisation that the story of all life, was actually His own story."

" I see Master" said Shaunaka.

" Yes, and this is how  Shiva would tell the rishis of his own previous incidents. Through generations of the rishi's children and the forest dwellers, the constant retelling of these narratives of the great forester came to be called the Shiva Mahapurana. The delight of the young bhaktas  in the hearing of the stories remained ever the same, ever fresh and ever in wonderment, and who was to say, perhaps,  somewhere in His snowy abode, The great mountain God too, smiled in approval." Replied rishi suta.

"Oh. That is interesting, Master"

"And then, true to His trademark humility, Shiva receded into the background. But perhaps, wishing secretly that we would all remember Him, we would all know His legend, always"
( From the book SHIVA, The Ultimate Time Traveller. by author Shail Gulhati )

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Shaivism Today Soul Speak ( 7) Alone -ness

There always comes a time in our life when we know that we are alone, that we are all that we have for ourselves. What was your first awareness of being on your own, in this world?

Mine was, when as an eleven year old, I was sent away more than a thousand miles from home to a boarding School. On the very first day, we were woken up in the early morning by the matron with her crisp and authoritative voice, calling us by our School numbers. So it was not  ' Wake up Shailendra', but rather ' Wake up 314'. Right there, away from ' home' , in the middle of a dormitory of 12 boys, a class of 35, and a school of 700 students, i realized that i was just a number. Oh, the miserable feeling that only i knew my own thoughts and emotions, and that i had to keep them closely to myself. I knew right then , that i had to make my own place for myself in the middle of all the 'Others'. And the knowing that i was alone in this ,was indeed a sad one.
And then came the  more amazing realisation that actually, the 'Others' were also in the same situation.  Hmm.

It is the same with our Cosmopolitan world today. We sometimes realize all too deeply that we are just a number ; This realization can come to you anywhere, when you view and understand how many  'multitudes' of people are present in your world, even though you don't know many of them. Especially for example, when you look at the thousands of windows in a  'High- rise'  apartment complex, and though you cannot see them, you know that thousands of people live somewhere inside these windows. .. And there,as a witnessing bystander in the middle of this Universal circus, you may become determined to make some good sense of this beautiful life that has been gifted to you by God:
You want to shine out much beyond your ‘ Just one of many thousands’ status.

Am i right?

But wait, the world of God isn’t just a huge challenge after all, there is another beautiful phenomenon that we come by.
Togetherness.

What was your first realisation of sharing the world?
Mine was when i held my soulmate's hand during our wedding ceremony. Right there, in the middle of a crowd of friends who had gathered for our event, i realised the world was going to be totally different from now on. Somewhere between alone and together, the binary of life started to make itself known - There always comes a time in your life , when you know that it was meant to be lived in Togetherness...

And i knew then, that Alone-ness is not meant by Nature as a way of life. The Alone -ness we get, is for providing us Ekaant, Kevalya; it is good for us to think, to introspect, to wonder about the purpose of life, the challenges and the opportunities; And then, to come out into the world ready to share it with a beautiful partner and together dance this binary dance of Shiva and Shakti…And that fabulous feeling that i can share my thoughts and emotions, that i don't have to keep piling them up like a heap of secrets that only i can know or think about, but rather, that i can share my inner world, every little fairy tale i hold in the heart of the eleven year old child, with my partner in life.
Meditate upon this.
Aum Namah Shivaye.
~ From the notes of Shail Gulhati, Author of SHIVA, The Ultimate Time Traveller.

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Shiva nayan- The eyes that tell a story.

A beautiful picture of Shiva made just today by Qk arlene. Shiva seems to be alone , by Himself.
But He is actually not alone, His eyes are meditative, in a deep Self repose , a reflection that reminds him of all things of the past, a mystical spirit that shows him all things that are yet to come.
His hair is the most telling : It is flowing in all directions.

Now, an interesting thing about Shivji , it is said all creation comes from him,and each tribe of the world is represented by a strand in his jata. Therefore jata dhari would also mean 'He who supports all beings of the world'  Thus too, this picture with thick dreadlocked hair seems to suggest how strongly the father loves all his creation, how thickly he is Himself weaved into the play of His creation: how, he has the most stories to tell! He, who has seen the very first stories from when the world itself was a baby!
But then we look into those eyes again, and we can perceive a certain sadness.
Is He remembering His Shakti? perhaps yes, this may be a time between Sati And Parvati . When, in the face of the greatest personal storm, he waited for a sad past to evolve into a great future, knowing this too, shall pass.
Of course, we all know why Shiva is famous in the Samundra manthana...For, even while being Mahadeva- The God of all gods, Shiva has always taken his fill of the venom of this world. Infact, sometimes swallowing all the visha -poison of negativity created by others actions( karma) , as his Vishvkarma ...waiting always, for his creation to understand his vision for them.

They say Shiva can create a whole new world from the ashes of the old; that at the end of every life cycle, only Shiva remains, and then he projects forth a new creation, this is called "Shivlok Unmilana".

And in those deep eyes is the memory of all the past, for giving life to the future, Ultimately, at the end of the cosmic day, it is all as Shiva wills.
The wise have known this and lived their lives accordingly, not wanting to be set aside after one creation, but to be cast again in every new play of Shiva.
Aum Namah Shivaye.

~ From the notes of Shail Gulhati, Author of SHIVA, The Ultimate Time Traveller.


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https://www.amazon.in/dp/B017ECI6CU Shiva art QK Arlene

The centre of Shiva's world.

One day, Shiva told Sati , “It is said of me that I do not incarnate. And yet I can vouchsafe of your love that you are one who can make even Shiva manifest. That makes you an enchanting sorceress! The original Bhaktin  indeed!”
“Me, a sorceress! And what are you?” She asked “You, who have hypnotized the whole Universe, especially me.”
“I am Shiva, the yogi, ever immersed in Shiva, the tattva. And yet… and yet, so much in love with Tattva as Sati!” He smiled.

“Why do they call you a Brahmchari then?” Sati asked.

Shiva understood that this was not actually a casual question. He had come to realise Sati’s innate wisdoms, which were often expressed in Her innocent questions; the answers to which could benefit all spiritual-seekers.

“I told you, asana is only a seat for yoga, not yoga itself, so too the physical restraint of Brahmcharya, is only a seat for Brahm acharya, being established in Godhead.” He replied.

“Aha, I see, but then why do I feel so deeply in love with you, even deeper than my admiration of your spiritual Nature?” Sati persisted.

“In the beginning was the One.
And he thought, may I be two, may I be many.
To love and to be loved.
And so the universe came into being.”

“Ah, lovely,” said Sati.

“Yes. And an electrifying attraction happens in love.
A spiritual preceptor can also bedazzle you with one look.”

“Yes, for sure,” said Sati.
“Only later, you realise that love and spirituality run on the same current,” Shiva replied with mystic precision that was His paradoxical hallmark. “Life is still the One, playing with itself, discovering itself.”
“With many, many layers to its own gifts...” Sati thought dreamily.

Even His smile was profound. Everything about Him was the embodiment of wisdom. Sati noticed that there were traces of this wisdom even when He joked.

“Tell me you love me,” She said one day. “Prove it with your poems and poetic words.”

“Oh, but I do love you,” He said.“And it’s when you specifically ask me to say that I love you, I find myself speechless; such are your charms and magic,” Shiva laughed.

“Really?” Sati was pleased. “So go on, tell me more.”

“Before I met you, I had no wants. I was okay with everything that already was, but now…”
“Now?”
“Now it’s all changed, it’s all different”
“How?”
“Now you have become the centre of my Universe"

“Oh, really? But you are aloof for days on end…and I thought it’s me for whom you don’t have any time…”

“That’s only when some very technical thought comes to me. Then I can’t let go until I see it to its logical culmination,” He looked at Her.
“Yes, I know. I know, and I understand, Chintan,” She said.

“But then, when I see you, and I see us together in this world, it all takes on a whole new meaning! The world is such a great place to be, with you by my side. I never thought I would want anything so much as your company.”

~ From the book
  SHIVA, The Ultimate Time Traveller. Part 2. (Humesha)
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