Understanding Consciousness

babyScience tends to ignore what can not be proven in a laboratory.  Though science can detect brainwave activity, science cannot prove we even have thoughts. The entire arena of how things feel, like how a church feels verses a bar, is not detectable in a lab.  Scientists tend to reject these things, saying they are just psychological. However, at least half of life is about the psyche – arguably much more than that.

The domain of consciousness is only minimally understood by science. The science and technology of that innate and natural domain, which is our birthright, cannot be studied in the traditional laboratory. It is only explored in the laboratory of individual awareness.

The science and technology of consciousness is the next major step in the understanding of life and existence.

© Michael Mamas. All rights reserved.

A Most Remarkable Day

A Most Remarkable Day - Michael Mamas BlogYesterday, we began temple roof repairs at Mount Soma. How can one communicate the wonders of that day? Is it even possible? To put it in words would be easy enough. To understand those words would be simple. Yet the wonder is not in the words. The wonder is in the experience. It is one thing to grasp a concept intellectually and think, “Oh, ok, I understand that”, and then to pack it away as just another perspective or notion. It is quite another to find it within yourself through direct experience and know from deep within your own being that it is true… It is real… It actually happened.

All Vedic Knowledge is like that. You can study it a good deal, appreciate it, find it fascinating, and even perhaps at some point decide you are an expert in that Knowledge. However, a time comes when it all clicks deep within you. It all comes together so perfectly that you realize it is true. It is real. It is not just a philosophy. It is the nature of existence. I guess it is similar in that way to studying math.  At first it may not make sense. It may even seem impossible. But in time, it resonates with the depth of your being. You know it is true. It is not based upon faith. It is knowledge that you have. Then, even though you have not added every possible combination of numbers, you know the truth that the principles embody. Those principles are not just philosophy. They are valid. They are true.

All sorts of beings, Devas, Ganas, Asuras, etc., revolve around and worship Lord Shiva. He is the embodiment of the Transcendent – the source and convergence point of all that is. Similarly, the idea of black holes in outer space suggests a point around which all things revolve. It is a point of infinite power. Not even time can escape it. There is an event horizon around it where things break down, similar to the band of underworld beings that revolve around and are devoted to Lord Shiva. To hear the story as myth is a far cry from understanding that it is the personified aspect of the physics of reality. But how can that be conveyed with words?

To repair the temple roof, the Kalash on top must be removed. The Kalash is like an antenna. It connects the temple to the cosmos. It holds and brings forth the energy of the Gods. Before it can be removed, that energy must be stored. After the Kalash is returned to its rightful place, that energy must be returned. To say it concisely, yesterday was the day those energies were collected and stored appropriately.

BhairavaThe entire pantheon of Gods is disturbed when an event such as removing a Kalash from a Vedic Temple occurs. They all become upset. Even Lord Vishnu takes great notice and His presence overtakes the sky. That energy of upset is so great that only three things can hold it… namely, fire, rice, and a cow. Yesterday, at the top of the stairs to the temple, a bust of Bhairava, a fierce form of Shiva, was created out of rice. Surabhi (our cow) and a fire were also present. Then, with threads in place to carry the energy from each murti to the appropriate station on an altar, a rope was attached from the tail of Surabhi to the Kalash. She made the initial movement of removing the Kalash. A cow’s strength is the only strength sufficient to carry the powerful disturbance from all those diverse beings around Lord Shiva.

This is a short description of yesterday’s events. However, to actually be there and witness those events is beyond description. To experience the power of those moments is to know the truth of their underlying reality. It was truly a remarkable day.

The repairs will be done around Thanksgiving. We will post the exact dates when they are confirmed. The Kalash will be replaced and the temple will be reopened. I encourage everyone to attend the events of that day if it is at all practical.

© Michael Mamas. All rights reserved.

Nine Days of Mother Divine Update

Mother DivineThese days at Mount Soma have been wonderful. The feeling of Mother Divine’s presence is exquisite. The fall colors and lovely October sky add to these magical days. Today we have the Durgasapthashati (Chandi) Havan at Mount Soma. It starts at 11:45 local time and lasts about five hours. It is extremely powerful and it all makes for one of my favorite days of the year!

Please visit my latest article just posted on Linkedin by clicking here:
“To Solve Problems, Start With ‘Being'”.

© Michael Mamas. All rights reserved.

Vedic Rights of Passage

flowersRecently, a number of people have been inquiring about how things should be handled when someone passes, particularly with respect to Mount Soma. This is something I have discussed extensively in the past with our Panditji and other Vedic authorities. From time to time in classes this has all be explained.

That information follows here:

Generally, bodies are cremated. This helps to release the soul from the earth plane, so the individual can most rapidly move forward with their evolution. The ashes are not to be taken home. They should instead be quickly placed in a large river, ideally a holy river in India. Currently, there is a movement in India to clean the Ganges, so people are no longer allowed to put the ashes in that river.

In the West, it is a common practice to construct a little shrine or garden area to honor the deceased. That practice too can hold the soul back from moving forward with their evolution as they let go of their worldly life.

Along those same lines, mourning is something that is best to be limited. There is, of course, a natural mourning period which is not to be suppressed or judged, but is also not to be prolonged. The mourning process is another way the soul is held back.

In short, after a person passes, the best thing to do is what is best for that soul. Though it is understandable, if we are not careful, we end up doing what makes us feel better which may not be the best thing for the departed.

We, at many times, have received requests for ashes of the deceased and shrines or garden areas to be placed at Mount Soma. According to the Vedic tradition, that cannot be permitted. Mount Soma is a place that moves souls forward. So, we certainly take great care in not doing anything that would hold them back.

I certainly understand and am most sympathetic with the more traditional approaches.  I understand traditions like the spiritual teacher not being around the sick, mourning, or dead is difficult for many to understand. In these most delicate and tender times, it is extremely difficult to handle all of this seamlessly. Please know, however, that we are all doing our very best. In so doing, we often find ourselves in an awkward position. Please understand that.

Please also keep in mind that in the best situations, change is difficult. In these challenging times of a life in passing, may we all do our very best to do what is best for the soul of the deceased.

© Michael Mamas. All rights reserved.

The Enlightened City

I believe it was 33 years ago, 1982 as best I can recall.  I was living in the ashram when someone told me that in the Vedic literature the instructions exist– how to building an enlightened city.  Every detail was covered.  For a reason unknown to me at the time, this information struck me very deeply.  I marveled over the idea.  I wondered why, if this knowledge exists, there is no such city on the face of the earth.

I started my school in 1994.  Students who were with me then now tell me they recall me talking about the Enlightened City idea that very first year.  I do not recall doing so.  Then years later, I decided to build an Enlightened City.  Based upon the parameters I could remember, I found a piece of property that conformed.  I called it Mount Soma…  a mountain of Soma.  Soma means Divine Nectar.  Though I asked many pandits if they could help me, none of them seemed to know anything about Enlightened Cities.  As time passed, I decided to put a Shiva Linga in the very center of the city.  I imagined we would just build an inexpensive garage sort of structure to house it in.  One thing led to the next and it turned out that we built a complete Shiva Temple with all the details called out by the Vedic architects (Sthapatis).

It was at that time that I met Sthapati Santhana Krishnan (SK).  He was from the organization with V. Gananpati Sthapati, a world-renowned Vedic architect.  SK designed our Shiva temple for us.  Remarkably, around that time, I consulted with a Bhrigu Nadi in India.  He had no idea who I was.  Yet he told me I would be building such a city.  I was amazed.  How could he possibly know that?!

Now here is something perhaps even more remarkable: SK (the very Vedic architect we used to build the Shiva Temple!!) and Ganapati Sthapati have, and are translating, the original texts from Mamuni Mayan and his devotee Manasara.  It is those texts that contain the knowledge of how to build an Enlightened City!  Furthermore, those texts say that the Enlightened City we want to build must have a Shiva Temple right in the center.  I was floored!  What if we put a Durga or Ganesh temple there!?

After that, it seemed every pandit I spoke with knew about Enlightened City design. It was as if the knowledge was being withheld from me until I found knowledge of it within my own self.

Mount Soma

 

© Michael Mamas. All rights reserved.