June 28, 2020

A Path To Inner Peace, Love and Joy

Paula Whang-Ramos

"No amount of self-control or discipline will bring love, or peace, or joy because they are divine qualities.
They are not the result of something we do or produce.

As divine qualities, they are revealed; they flower from within us when conditions are right."
~ Yogacharya Ellen Grace O'Brian 06/20/2020

In this tradition of Kriya Yoga, we do not meditate to be more peaceful, wise, joyful, or loving. Instead, we meditate to remove the mental and habitual obstacles that prevent us from directly experiencing these qualities that already reside within every one of us.

Kriya is a Sanskrit word that means "actions", and includes our thoughts and words, in addition to our overt behaviors. Yoga is a Sanskrit word that means "to bind back to our essential wholeness". Kriya Yoga is learning to redirect our thoughts, words, and actions to cultivate conditions for our essential peace, love, and joy to be revealed. In addition to ancient, time-tested meditation practices, Kriya Yoga offers universal spiritual wisdom and empowering practical guidance to heal and thrive through daily blessings and challenges. Kriya Yoga offers open-hearted, compassionate teachings for all seekers of peace, lovers of Truth, and hearts devoted to the Holy One in all.

If you are called to shift the inner compass and quality of your life from emotional fear to spiritual courage, from reactive anger to inner peace, and from isolation to Oneness, then join us for CSE's online Kriya Yoga Retreat this Thursday through Sunday. Gift your Self the opportunity to receive these ancient, universal spiritual teachings from Yogacharya O'Brian and participate in a new beginning in your life in Wholeness.

Study, meditate, and grow with others devoted to thriving in peace, love, and wholeness. Make this the year that we affirm and skillfully live in peace - in our minds, our hearts, our families, our community, and our world. Blue Lotus Meditation & Yoga Center welcomes sincere seekers from all backgrounds.

June 21, 2020

The Purpose of Meditation

Paula Whang-Ramos

"Maintain an inner, meditative awareness, even in the midst of activities, and you will discover
a centralizing principle within you that will rightly guide your activities."
~ Yogacharya Ellen Grace O'Brian, 06/20/2020

In this teaching tradition of Kriya Yoga, we are blessed with many ancient meditation practices. However, the goal of these teachings is not to collect a vast array of meditation techniques, or to even become an excellent meditator.

In this tradition, the purpose of our meditation practice is to empower a meditative life. We meditate so we can take the peace, love, and wisdom experienced in our sitting practice and consciously allow these qualities to inform and inspire our thoughts, words, and actions. If the only time we experience our true Selves is during our sitting practice, then we are depriving our Selves of the opportunity to fully benefit from all that our meditation practice has to offer.

To experience the essential wholeness that a meditation practice can reveal, we consciously seek to allow the inner qualities revealed from our sitting practice to overflow into the blessings and challenges of our daily lives. As we learn to live from the inside out, we can open into the greater grace that can inspire clarity and right action. Even during the most turbulent circumstances, this inner compass remains ever steadfast and ready to guide us back to the clarity, calmness, and conscious Wholeness that indwells us all. Join us this Thursday for Living In Freedom when we will meditate and explore deeper study of how to live a meditative life.

Study, meditate, and grow with others devoted to thriving in peace, love, and wholeness. Make this the year that we affirm and skillfully live in peace - in our minds, our hearts, our families, our community, and our world. Blue Lotus Meditation & Yoga Center welcomes sincere seekers from all backgrounds.

June 14, 2020

Serving the Highest Good

Paula Whang-Ramos

"We align ourselves with the power for good in the universe when we consider how our success will contribute
to the well-being of others. The universe itself will support our plan if it benefits everyone."
~ Yogacharya Ellen Grace O'Brian, 08/02/2015

This is such an interesting time of ever-changing transitions. We want to return to our daily routines of shopping, eating out, traveling, and socializing with friends. And, as quickly as "shelter-in-place" orders are lifted to invite us to do so, concern arises for the well-being of the greater good as we witness the rise of COVID-19 cases once again. It can be challenging and confusing to follow a grounded way of living when we seek clarity from circumstances that are always changing.

Looking within and contemplating how our thoughts, words, actions, and choices serve the highest good of all offers a different pathway to clarity and fulfillment. On this more selfless path, we may be challenged to mature our consciousness beyond personal desire. As we open into how we may serve the One in all, we also open into the inherent grace that can guide our own lives into a more grounded clarity and sense of fulfillment, even during times of interesting, ever-changing transitions.

In alignment with the Center for Spiritual Enlightenment, BLC's mother center, and for the highest good of all, Blue Lotus Center will continue to provide all services on-line through 2020. Our on-line services continue to welcome meditators from many communities. We are very grateful for the participation and generosity of BLC friends so we can continue to maintain our beautiful physical site and obtain the Zoom resources needed to serve our newly extended community when we return to the Center.

Study, meditate, and grow with others devoted to thriving in peace, love, and wholeness. Make this the year that we affirm and skillfully live in peace - in our minds, our hearts, our families, our community, and our world. Blue Lotus Meditation & Yoga Center welcomes sincere seekers from all backgrounds.

June 7, 2020

What Shall We Choose?

Paula Whang-Ramos

"Every day, spiritual life presents a question: What should I rely on for happiness and security?
We can choose the world with the material or emotional supports it promises, or
we can choose Spirit—the invisible, infinite support. Spiritual insight reveals which is truly reliable.”

~ Yogacharya Ellen Grace O'Brian, 05/15/2020

Events of the past week exemplify the changing nature of all earth life experiences. Within our own minds, we may experience confusing emotions and opinions about the same news story. Or we listen to others offer an opposing view regarding an important issue. Our continued focus on this dissension within and between us serves to escalate our fear, frustration, and confusion, as it sabotages our realization of reliable, peaceful, wisdom guided ways to be with these changing times.

In Yoga, we do not seek inner peace, clarity, or joy outside ourselves. We recognize that the changing nature of all earth life experiences, and our reaction to them, lack the inherent stability we need to ground ourselves in the inner peace and clarity we seek now. Instead, we turn within to realize these inner resources that indwell us all.

Yes, we can still get carried away by mental and emotional reactivity and other outer experiences. And, as we continue to meditate and live more consciously, we can become more skillful at making course corrections towards grounded inner clarity through life challenges. In patience, kindness, and compassion, we return again and again to the essential spiritual wholeness and integrity that indwells us all. From this deeper Oneness consciousness, we can live in the world as we are guided by divine wisdom.

Study, meditate, and grow with others devoted to thriving in peace, love, and wholeness. Make this the year that we affirm and skillfully live in peace - in our minds, our hearts, our families, our community, and our world. Blue Lotus Meditation & Yoga Center welcomes sincere seekers from all backgrounds.

“If anything disturbs your peace, practice having faith that divine grace is already actively at work restoring wholeness and well-being.

Then make any necessary adjustments in harmony with that insight.”
Yogacharya Ellen Grace O'Brian, Spiritual Director, Center for Spiritual Enlightenment

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