Consciousness

Excerpts from Sri Chinmoy's Book - The Wings of Joy

"Consciousness is the spark of life that unites each one of us with the Universal Life. It is the link between God and man, between Heaven and earth. Without consciousness, everything is a barren desert. When we enter into a dark place, we take a flashlight to see where we are going. If we want to know about our unlit life, we have to take the help of consciousness.

Consciousness is like a ladder. You can go up and down the various rungs. If you can meditate deeply, each plane of consciousness will present itself before you. The first rung is the physical body. The second rung is the vital. The vital is a term used in Indian philosophy. It embodies emotional, aggressive, and dynamic qualities. The third rung is the mind. Above the mind is the spiritual heart. It is in the spiritual heart that one feels the "quickening" of the soul. The soul is the self-effulgent messenger of God within us. It knows no birth, no decay, no death. It is eternal. It is immortal. It came directly from God, it remains in contact with God, and it will go back to God." ~Sri Chinmoy

Beyond speech and mind,
Into the river of ever-effulgent Light
My heart dives.
Today thousands of doors, closed for millennia
Are opened wide.

~Sri Chinmoy

Next - God-realisation