We are now underway with Easwaran’s Climbing the Blue Mountain. This is our third-ever book study as an eSatsang, and we’re building an excellent habit of systematically reading whole volumes from Easwaran.
This week let’s begin the book’s first essay, “Taking the Plunge,” and read from the start on page 17 through the middle of page 22, ending with “…where is the room for boredom?”
As promised in the introduction, Easwaran is rousing us to pursue the spiritual journey:
“Here we have a uniquely human choice: shall we wait for millions of years, knocked about in the painful process of evolution, until we finally enter this sea of joy; or shall we try to enter now, in this very lifetime, by taking our personal evolution into our own hands? Whatever our past, whatever our condition, this is something that can be done by every one of us through the practice of meditation.”
The whole of life, Easwaran tells us, “is moving inexorably toward the sea of joy and fulfillment that we call God.” We are so glad to be continuing the journey with you!
If you have a particular issue you are struggling with right now, look into this reading for tips, and try them out this week.
Last week we began exercises to extend our practice of putting others first. Here is this week’s challenge:
Is there a situation or person that annoys you or makes you impatient? This week, put special effort into focusing on the positive in that person. Whenever you think a critical thought about the person, correct it by reminding yourself of a positive quality. When interacting, focus on their positive qualities. When you remember the interaction afterward, or when you talk to others about it, purposely focus on the things that you had in common or that went well. You will need your mantram for this exercise! Share your brave experiments.
If you don’t yet have the book Climbing the Blue Mountain available, make sure you get it so you can join for the rest of the book study.
We offer a 20% discount on books sold through our distribution partner Indiepubs.com. Here is a link to Climbing the Blue Mountain on that site.
For spiritual entertainment, here is Christine Easwaran reading the passage “The Lamp of Wisdom” from the Yoga Vasishtha.