I was recently hired as a news reporter for a local television station. The job position I had of being a News Reporter was quite demanding and took up a large extent of my time. For a lot of the time spent on the job, my mental energy was depleted rapidly on a daily basis which caused me to be quite tired both physically and mentally very regularly. I wanted the feeling of being completely relaxed and on a vacation without actually going on a vacation, and going to the movies or looking at television never struck me as truly relaxing. I wanted to feel something that relaxed as well as rejuvenated my energy. I realized whenever I got home from work I would mostly enjoy and prefer a peaceful silent evening, so that led me to understand, I just wanted and longed for that peace and silence as it felt unimaginably great reflecting on the past day in silence.
Physical outer silence was important, but not as important as silencing the mind of the day’s problems. Every evening afterwards I made time to go into silence at least for half hour and feel my energy being replenished whilst my mind is cut free from the clutter of problems. The practice of meditation/reflection helped me greatly in controlling the mind as well as decreasing the large amount of waste thoughts I would usually have causing me mental tiredness.
After some time, I left my job as a News Reporter to pursue other endeavors. Upon leaving, the head of news for the department I was working in said to me, I would truly miss your positive energetic vibrations. That statement made me realize that the power of silence rejuvenates your power as well as sends vibrations wherever you go.
As a University student, I have a lot of responsibilities which can be quite tiring at times. A couple days ago, I had my classes to attend as well as cater to my responsibilities of overseeing the running of a social club I am in charge of at the University. These events demanded a lot of my time and energy. By mid-day my energy level was on empty and I had only 5 minutes before my class lecture. I sat in a quiet room alone. I closed my eyes, took 3 deep breaths and ceased the constant racing of thoughts in my mind. In this silence, every breath felt like a wave of renewed energy. From then, every problem began to show solutions, every thought became positive and powerful all because I took the time to stop, observe my thought pattern and steer them the way I wanted.
Almost four years ago, I was in the middle of an emotional storm; and I was looking for real answers. It was at the local Raja Yoga Meditation Centre that I found them and after that my life changed drastically. I have experienced nothing but unlimited protection, peace, happiness, understanding, acceptance, and support--all from the main source, of course, from God. He ignited my soul.
My main challenge and proof of this protection took place two years ago when my parents died unexpectedly 22 days apart from each other in my country, Venezuela. Although I lived in the United States, I was very attached to my parents; and I used to visit them at least once a year and talked to them over the phone on a daily basis. My father was sick with a lung infection, and he was in the hospital. Although HE was the patient, my 70-year old mother, who was taking care of him, passed away suddenly at the foot his hospital bed--probably from a heart attack.. Upon her death, I immediately flew to Venezuela to be with my family.
Under these circumstances, I was truly amazed that I was able to remain serene. An internal voice told me "this is what you have been preparing yourself for." After Mom's death, my father was experiencing deep sorrow, and it was then found out that what he actually had was lung cancer. Dad, age 72 , was put through a lot of medical procedures, and during that time he had heart failure and passed away 22 days after Mom's death. I had remained by his side night and day until the day before he passed at which time I returned to the United States--of course, upon my departure we didn't know that he was going to pass away the very next day.
I honestly did not know how much support I had received from God, until those events took place. Amazingly, I was able to experience the peace, love, support, etc. that can only come from God in a moment like that. There were many other significant events taking place in my life at the same time. Actually the same day my father passed away in Venezuela, my only child was leaving home to start his college career and weeks after that I was taking my Pediatric Board Certification test in the USA.
The only way I survived emotionally and was able to be as supportive as possible with family and friends was to hold the Father's hand, to follow his directions, and to experience his love and blessings constantly. To this day, this is still my SECRET for moving through life with ease and joy and helping others do the same.
My relationship with God began with presiding over funeral ceremonies as a little girl. My best friend Karlye had a cat that expressed its love for us by leaving dead squirrels on the doorstep. This of course horrified us , but we would bury the “gifts”. Then, as the priestesses of the ceremonies, we would create a cross out of wooden sticks and pray to God to please receive the departed victims of the housecat.
As a teen, I retired from funeral ceremonies but would sometimes spend days just carrying on an inner prayer to God. I only knew that when I did this, I simply felt better. But that was it. God was a serene energy somewhere out there…a bit of a mystery.
In 1996, my idea of God took a radical turn. I had been studying raja yoga for a few weeks and went to a retreat in Boston with Sister Mohini. She conducted a meditation and when she placed her gaze on me, I launched. In my mind I saw myself on a mountain. But it wasn’t an ordinary scene. It was as if everything around me was woven with a light that sparkled with jewels. It was similar to a near death experience in the sense that the solid world of earth and sound vanished. This luminous body of light that I recognized as God held out a hand and with just the eyes, invited me into a divine romance. This was definitely not a face of God I was expecting to see. I felt bathed in tenderness beyond any love I had ever known. I knew in that moment this would be a lifelong link.
That experience revealed a few things to me. It showed me that God was a personality I could engage with in a real and beautiful way. It also showed me that He was in on my secrets and knew I had fallen asleep to sappy love songs since age 6. So He knew exactly how to lure me in.
There were a few other transport moments where the doors to God’s world blew open and I became absorbed in some face of God …as the Mother, the blissful Friend, or the Guru.
But months later, I sat down with my teacher in angst and asked, “I’m no longer having these experiences when I sit in meditation. What happened? What did I do?” She smiled and said, “He carried you as a baby. Now you have to walk.”
In time, I learned I was the one who needed to clear the path between my world and God’s world and that I was the one who needed to use the hands of spiritual awareness to open the door to God’s world. Then He would take care of the magic.
One of my father’s friends once told me that you can be happy when you find someone to love that’s worth dying for and something to do that’s worth living for. Raja yoga has helped me open the door to a Love that is truly worth dying for. And I must say the fruits of what I attain through yoga with God are much sweeter than the perks of a housecat priestess.
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