Spiritual Science Research Foundation (SSRF)

Section 1

1. About Happiness

1.1 Let us start at the very beginning

1.2 Reality of life

1.3 Why do we want happiness?

1.4 The law of change

1.5 How does one gain access to the Bliss from the Soul?

Section 2

2. Benefits of Spiritual Practice

2.1 The Balanced State of Mind

2.2 The increased tolerance for pain

2.3 Personality Development

2.3.1 Why does this happen?

2.3.2 What is Basic Nature and the concept of the three subtle basic components (trigunas)?

2.3.3 Basic Nature - As per the impressions in our sub-conscious mind

2.4 Insulation from Destiny

2.4.1 What is Destiny and Wilful Action?

2.4.2 Destiny and the rule of Give-and-Take

2.5 Bliss

2.6 Liberation from the cycle of birth and death

Section 3

3. General concepts in Spirituality

3.1 Spirituality is to be experienced

3.2 Spiritual Practice should be done on a daily basis

3.3 Increasing the level of spiritual practice regularly

3.4 Basic principles of Spiritual Practice

3.4.1 There are as many paths to God as there are people

3.4.2 Go from many to one

3.4.3 From Gross to Subtle

3.4.4 According to Spiritual Level or Spiritual Capacity

3.4.5 It should be relevant to the times

3.4.6 Offering to God as per your talent or capacity

3.5 Learning to listen to an authority in Spirituality

3.6 Do not waste your spiritual energy

3.7 Gaining spiritual experiences from spiritual practice

Section 4

4. Tools for lasting happiness

4.1 Chanting the Name of God

4.1.1 How does chanting as a spiritual practice conform to the basic principles of

Spirituality?

4.1.2 Which Name of God should one chant?

4.1.3 Frequently asked questions on what Name of God to chant

4.2 How does chanting work to purify our mind?

4.2.1 Establishing the Devotion Centre

4.2.2 How chanting works through the Deflection Method

4.3 Being in the Company of the Truth (Satsang)

4.4 Service to the Truth (Satseva)

4.5 Sacrifice to the Truth (Tyaag)

4.6 Spiritual love (Preetee)

Each of us today lives such a fast paced life. One rarely

takes the time to step back and view one’s life with a zoomed

out perspective.

So what is your goal in life?

Have you set the short term and long term targets to achieve

your goal?

Have you accomplished any of the targets that you had set?

Or has your goal changed as the years went by?

1.1 Let us start at the very beginning

Let us try to analyse what is the primary objective of any human being’s life. If you look

around, you will find that all of us look different, we come from diverse backgrounds, we

have distinct personalities, yet there is one aspect common in every one of us.

The one common aspiration that links each and every human being, regardless of faith,

gender and social or financial status is the desire to be happy. And in this quest our

species is not alone. Every living creature, from the tiniest ant to the majestic elephant

seeks happiness.

Let’s take the example of an ant. It will scuttle away from a distressing situation and run

to a pleasurable one. So if it comes close to fire it will flee, but will move eagerly towards

a little heap of sugar.

1.2 Reality of life

One of the contributing factors to this dilemma of more unhappiness in our lives is our educational

system. It is set up to teach us a vast array of subjects, but it does not teach students the subject of

lasting happiness in its curriculum. We are not formally taught how to be happy irrespective of the

situation we may face in life.

You could have a suave gentleman with an impressive business card, who feels depressed and

suicidal should he face some kind of financial loss. You could have a woman who is applauded at her

workplace for her tremendous contribution to the growth of an organization, but who is victimized by a

spouse who belittles her and plays on the fact that she feels emotionally insecure.

One studies hard and appears for many exams to get a head start in life, to get that perfect job that

would ensure a comfortable lifestyle, so as to attain happiness.

Spiritual research has shown that worldwide, the average human being

is happy only 30% of the time while 40% of the time he is unhappy. The

remaining 30% of the time a person is in a neutral state where he does

not experience happiness or unhappiness. For example, when he is

walking on the road or doing some mundane task etc and not thinking

happy or unhappy thoughts.

But are we looking in the right direction? Does a job really ensure we are happy? Does being

a family person always ensure that you are happy? Much as people would love to be happy,

we find that unhappiness plagues the uneducated as much as it plagues the highly

educated.

So maybe we need to explore new avenues that would give us non stop happiness,

regardless of our worldly situation.

Now some of you may be thinking, “I don’t think this is for me, as I am generally a happy

person.”

To that individual, we would say that these articles are for you for three reasons.

1. Life is in a constant state of flux. You cannot guarantee that all aspects of your life will

remain constant and unchanging - that is your job situation, financial situation, family etc.

2. You need to learn how to develop a technique that allows you to build great reservoirs of

inner strength to face bad times, as one never knows when in life one will turn the

corner and be presented with a not-so-nice life situation.

3. There is a saying, ‘Don’t wait to dig a well when you are thirsty, rather dig it well in

advance so that when you are thirsty you have water to drink.

1.3 Why do we want happiness?

Before we explore attaining lasting happiness, have you ever

wondered why is it that we yearn to be happy? A simplistic

answer would be, ‘Happiness feels good!

But the real reason is that deep within each of us is a Soul. The Soul is the God within us and one of the

qualities of God is perpetual Bliss. Bliss is that happiness which is of the highest order that is not

dependent on anything else. Subliminally we know that a superlative form of happiness (i.e. Bliss) does

exist and we struggle to find this natural state of Bliss.

But we make one big mistake. We look for this happiness outside ourselves instead of trying to tap the

Bliss within.

Once a person said in jest, “It’s so unfortunate that God has created us with our eyeballs facing outwards

when we will only find unending happiness if we go within.”

And that is why we get captivated and quite literally entrapped by whatever we see in the outside world!

1.4 The law of change

Have you ever wondered why the external world can never give us non-stop happiness?

The answer is: The outside world is never constant – There is only one thing constant about the external

world and that is CHANGE.

For example maybe you love the new job that you have just got and find it enriching and stimulating. But

what happens a few years down the line when the job becomes repetitive or your team member’s change

and you don’t enjoy the company of the new lot of co-workers? The outside world is always changing –

so no lasting, permanent happiness can be found there.

Now if we want permanent happiness we have to invest ourselves in what is unchanging and eternal. The

soul within is unchanging and eternal. But if we invest ourselves in something that by its very nature is

impermanent then that is the kind of happiness we will get - short-lived happiness.

1.5 How does one gain access to the Bliss from the Soul?

In the course of the process of our spiritual evolution we acquire the

ability of going within and gaining access to the Bliss from our soul.

Every one of us is at different stages of spiritual evolution. The quality

and quantity as well as the duration of the experience of the Bliss are

directly proportional to the stage of our spiritual evolution.

When we look in the mirror every morning, we are so used to seeing

the image of ourselves. But have you ever wondered what you would

look like if you could see an image of your soul?

This is an internal image of how a common man in today’s world looks

like.

Externally, we clean our homes daily and we clean our bodies daily

because the dirt outside us is easily visible. However internal spiritual

cleansing is another matter and is rarely undertaken.

Externally, we clean our homes daily and we clean our bodies daily because the dirt outside us is

easily visible. However internal spiritual cleansing is another matter and is rarely undertaken.

We can have the brightest of lights within us, that is the Soul, but even the brightest of lights if

covered with thick blankets would be hidden from view. This darkness that surrounds our Soul is the

‘spiritual ignorance’ of our true state that is Bliss.

This spiritual ignorance refers to our inability to see beyond our five senses, mind and intellect and

perceive the Soul within. When we (the embodied soul) undertake/do spiritual practice then gradually

the darkness reduces and we are able to perceive the Soul and experience the Bliss from it.

As we get regular with our spiritual practice we begin to get flashes of the wondrous experiences of

the divine which are known as spiritual experiences. We will describe some of these experiences

further on.

The final state is of Shivadasha (i.e. a state of oneness with God or constant communion with God).

This final state comes when the covering has completely dissolved and the pure Soul can shine

through with no filters of ‘spiritual ignorance’ to block its radiance.

2. Benefits of Spiritual Practice

There are several benefits in commencing spiritual practice and being persistent with it. In

fact, one will be able to perceive some benefit almost immediately. Each of the benefits

has a direct or indirect effect on increasing our happiness or reducing our unhappiness.

2.1 The Balanced State of Mind

Each of us today lives such a fast paced life. One rarely takes the time to step back and view one’s life

with a zoomed out perspective.

As you can see from the diagram the blue

wave indicates a reduction in the magnitude

of being thrown off balance by

circumstances. In fact our emotional state

becomes more resilient and we are able to

handle both positive and adverse situations

calmly. This happens by virtue of our

knowledge of the science of Spirituality, as

we are able to apply a more philosophical

view of life.

Here is an example of this: When a person is elected as the leader of a country because he is

dynamic and has a fresh perspective – then the entire world applauds and supports him. But in a

couple of years his name gets embroiled in a scandal and then the entire nation goes against him.

What then should the attitude of a leader be with the fluctuating change in peoples' opinion of him?

Should such a person have a balanced state of mind, then even when people at first praised him,

he would think, “People think the world of me, but I know all my shortcomings and so I will continue

to improve myself.” Later when people hurled accusations at him, if such a leader had a balanced

state of mind, he would have thought, “People are against me but in the quiet of my heart and

between God and me, I know I am innocent, so their words do not disturb me.”

2.2 The increased tolerance for pain

Each of us has a different threshold to bear pain – be it

physical, emotional or psychological pain. Sometimes we come

across situations in life that are painful. The situations can

range from a painful divorce to the loss of a loved one. A

difference in the threshold levels to bear pain will be

understood from the following examples:

A woman is livid with rage as her fringe has been trimmed a fraction too short by her hair-stylist. The

effect lasts for many days as she complains to all her friends about the issue.

On the other hand we have a real life example of a woman who lost her husband shortly after marriage.

Even though she had suffered a terrible loss, due to her spiritual practice she showed inner strength by

maintaining composure and even consoling her in-laws inspite of her loss.

In the first instance a small event such as a fringe being trimmed a little shorter sparks off an intense

reaction. In the second instance one is able to bear a very adverse situation such as a loss of a loved one

with more resilience. We do not know which circumstance can bring out the worst in us until we come

face-to-face with it. With spiritual practice we get the strength to bear pain on all fronts.

2.3 Personality Development

By practicing Spirituality our personality changes permanently for the better. Along

with helping oneself to be more positive this change in attitude has a positive ripple

effect on the people around one.

Many of us may have read books on self-improvement which attempt to guide us on

achieving a change in our personality. While books such as these motivate and

educate us, do they really bring about a permanent change within us for the better?

For a few days after reading the book, we may experience an altered state with a

fresh, positive perspective but in time we go back to being our same old selves.

Why does this happen?

Suppose we have a nature that always thinks negative and subsequently develops a gloomy perspective on life. How could we change ourselves to be more cheerful?

2.3.1 What is Basic Nature and the concept of the three subtle basic components (trigunas)?

According to modern sciences the smallest particles include electrons, protons, mesons, quarks,

gluons and neutrons. However according to the science of Spirituality we are made up of even finer

particles or components. These components are subtle in nature and cannot be seen with any

instruments such as microscopes. These can only be perceived by subtle sense organs.

These most subtle particles are known as the three subtle basic components (trigunas) which are

made up of the following:

Purity and knowledge - (sattva)

Action and passion - (raja)

Ignorance and inertia - (tama)

Each and every one of us is made up of these three subtle basic components (trigunas).

However the proportion of each of the three subtle basic components (trigunas) within each

individual varies according to the level of spiritual evolution/maturity in a person.

In today’s world the average person is filled more with the tama

component. The different permutations of these three subtle

basic components (trigunas) define a person’s basic nature.

As one does spiritual practice, the tama component get

converted to the sattva (purity) component and even the raja

component gets purified.

The process of how the component of raja get purified is

explained below.

The impure raja tendencies which once manifested as volatile

anger and uncontrollable passion, they now get converted into

purified raja manifestations. This person now uses the action

component of raja to do constructive actions like doing good

deeds for others and serving God. By doing spiritual practice

there is an intrinsic change at a granular level bringing about a

complete change in a person’s personality for the better.

Let’s take an example of a class of students in the 4th grade. They are a noisy, rowdy bunch, with a

teacher who tries hard to discipline them. If the teacher's voice is very firm she has a fair chance of

keeping the class quiet. As a result the class is quiet only in her presence, but the moment she leaves

the class they are back to their mischievous ways. This is because these children are basically

rajasik and tamasik in nature.

If on the other hand there is a sattvik child in the class and his fellow students try to enlist his

participation in some incorrect act like bullying, playing a nasty prank or indulging in cheating, the

child would absolutely not be able to comply as his basic nature is sattvik. He is more likely to get a

knot in his stomach, than enjoy whatever his classmates were suggesting. He would not be able to

live with himself if he did any incorrect act.

Thus rather than superficially trying to change children through moral value lectures, a permanent

change could be found if they were encouraged to do spiritual practice and were brought up in a

spiritually conducive environment.

2.3.3 Basic Nature - As per the impressions in our sub-conscious mind

The diagram above is a representation of the mind. The conscious mind represents only 1/10th of the

mind while the subconscious mind is 9/10ths .

The iceberg that struck the Titanic did not look threatening from the top, but the real threat was the mass

that lay beneath the sea. This is exactly how it is with our state of the mind. The real cause of our

emotions and feelings is contained in the subconscious mind in the form of impressions and centres. An

example of a few would be:

1. The desire centre,

2. The temperament centre

3. The give-and-take account centre (Refer to the article on the Law of give and take)

Unknown to our conscious mind these impressions and centres in the sub-conscious mind are the

main cause of our actions and our reactions and the basis of our personality. In truth our personality

is a slave to the impressions in our sub-conscious mind. Is there a solution to this problem? The

solution is simpler than we can imagine and we shall expand on it in our section on spiritual

practice.

For more details on how the mind functions and how impressions are formed please read the article

on The structure and functions of the mind. (www.spiritualsciencereasearchfoundation.org)

2.4 Insulation from Destiny2.4.1 What is Destiny and Wilful Action?

To explain this concept we have to understand what destiny is:

•- The popular western view is that we are in control of our lives and everything that happens to us is as a result of our own

choice.

•- On the other hand the popular eastern view is that every thing that happens to us is not under our control and we are

nothing but puppets in a preordained plan.

However neither of these views are completely correct. The answer according to the science of

Spirituality is that in the present times 65% of our lives are ruled by destiny and 35% by wilful action.

But we can overcome the 65% of our destiny part, by using the 35% of our wilful action to undertake

the correct spiritual practice.

Destiny is when you have no control over life situations. Wilful action is that portion of your life which

you do have control over.

An example of wilful action: Suppose there is a person who is drunk and has a badly maintained car.

He decides to drive his car in a drunken state down a steep mountain side and he does so at high

speed. If he were to at some point skid off the road down the mountain side, whose fault would it

be? Would that be an accident caused by destiny or an accident caused by willful action?

Well, it is wilful action as he could have chosen not to drink and drive. He could have ensured that

his car was better serviced and could have driven slowly.

An example of a destined event: Take the case of another driver who is sober. He drives carefully

and maintains his car in a perfect condition. He too drives down the same mountain side observing

all precautions. All of a sudden a portion of the road collapses due to a landslide and he meets with

an accident. In this case the person had no control over the landslide that occurred and hence this is

a destined event.

Destiny is spiritual in nature and can only be overcome with a spiritual remedy which is spiritual

practice. Depending on the severity of destiny, appropriate levels of spiritual practice needs to be

done to overcome destiny. The following chart shows us examples of the different types of destiny

and measures to overcome it:

Many events in our lives are destined, beginning with our birth and

the family that we are born into. One is born into a family, where

conditions are conducive to undergo one’s destiny and where one

has significant give-and-take account with each member of the

family.

According to the law of Karma every positive deed generates a

‘merit’ while every negative deed generates a ‘demerit’ or a sin.

Subsequently one has to reap the results of one’s actions.

Whenever one does a good deed to others, it is bound to give a

positive return (in the form of some happiness), apart from a

simple thank you from that person! Whenever one inflicts harm, it

is bound to give negative return in the form of sorrow in some

form. It cannot be undone by a simple ‘Sorry’!

The law of Karma is infallible. It is something like Newton’s third

law of motion, which states, ‘For every action there is an equal

and opposite reaction’.

Throughout our lives we are either settling an old account or

creating a new one. If the account cannot be settled in this birth it

is carried over to the next. We are not consciously aware of the

give-and-take accounts generated in our previous births.

Besides, the status of the relationship and the sex of the individual

may change with subsequent births. So a father of a person in

one birth can be born as a daughter of the same individual in the

next.

The following are some examples of how accounts are created

and settled as one’s destiny. It also gives an understanding of how

spiritual practice can nullify the effects of destiny:

2.4.2 Destiny and the rule of Give-and-Take

According to the science of Spirituality, most of our family members are people with whom we

have positive or negative accounts from previous births. The reason for this is that one has to be

in the proximity of the other person to be able to experience pleasure or pain.

So we see how Spirituality can be useful to even those of us who have absolutely no spiritual

aspirations what so ever and only wish to be immersed in worldly pursuits. Even for those worldly

relations to be fruitful they need to be insulated from destiny.

2.5 Bliss

Bliss is a superlative state which is far above and beyond happiness. The happiness that we commonly refer to is in some

way or the other related to the external world. Bliss, on the other hand, is an experience pertaining to the soul and is not

related to external stimulii.

In life we find that whatever makes us happy has the potential to make us unhappy. To understand this further, we have to

study the media through which we can experience happiness.

They are:

•The five senses: These are pleasures gained through the experiences of touch, taste, sound, smell or sight.

Example: A person who loves ice-cream yearns to go to the ice-cream parlour. The first ice-cream always tastes the best.

As he keeps having more and more, the pleasure that he gained from the first one begins to wane until he begins to feel

physically uncomfortble by the 7th or the 8th helping. Thus the pleasure gained from ice-cream could not be sustained over

a period of time. We can relate this back to any object one desires in life - after our happiness from the object peaks, it

begins to wane.

•The mind: It is the part of one's thoughts that is linked with one's emotions (our emotions and thoughts are interwoven

with each other – unhappy thoughts lead to unhappy feelings and vice-versa). Pleasure gained through the mind is far

superior to that gained through the five senses.

Example: What would be the most pleasurable emotion we could have? Probably it would be the experience of falling in

love. So take the example of two people who fall in love and cannot dream of leading their lives apart from one another.

Once their relationship evolves into marriage, we find that the peak of their happiness cannot be sustained. Each partner

begins to see the other in a different light, and in time they find that no one can hurt them or make them angrier than the

very spouse who also gives them so much joy!

•The intellect: This is our decision making and reasoning ability. It allows us to experience a different kind of pleasure that

is qualitatively and quantitatively superior to the happiness gained through the mind.

Example: Let's take the example of a scientist who has immersed himself in research. Now, say one day he solves a riddle

that has baffled humankind for centuries – of course he is elated. But what happens to his ecstasy when after a while, the

applause dies down? Now he is no longer on a high – in fact he is restless, as he needs to busy himself with something

new to discover. Or worse still, he could be plunged into despair when he finds that this great discovery (e.g.: the energy

formula E=mc2) has been used for the destruction of humankind by way of the atom bomb.

This diagram shows how the happiness that we perceive through each of the media (i.e. the 5 senses,

mind, and intellect) progressively gets not only qualitatively better but also lasts for a longer duration

However, when we experience Bliss from the soul, it is the most superlative quality of happiness and lasts

indefinitely. Bliss cannot be verbally described and has to be experienced.

To indicate the limitation of words, let's take the example of the sweetness of sugar. Is there any way we

can verbally explain the sweetness of sugar to someone who has no tongue? No! We find no words that

can give us the actual experience of the taste of sugar. Just as with Bliss, sweetness has to be

experienced to be understood. Spiritual practice is the only means by which one can experience Bliss.

• 2.6 Liberation from the cycle of birth and death

According to the science of Spirituality the definition of being liberated means not being compelled to

take birth again because one's destiny has been significantly reduced.

Man is born repeatedly for two reasons. The first, that is, 65%, is to experience happiness and sorrow

according to destiny and the second, that is 35%, to make spiritual progress so as to acquire Bliss

On an average if one considers the accumulated account (that is

all one's accumulated merits and demerits caused due to the law

of give-and-take) to consist of 100 units, then in one birth, 6 units

of these are experienced as destiny. It stands to reason that a

man should attain liberation within 16-17 births. But this does not

happen, as while undergoing those 6 units of destiny usually an

average person does not do any spiritual practice. Besides due to

wilful actions the accumulated account increases by 10 units.

Thus at the time of death, the accumulated account becomes 104

units and once again one gets entangled in the cycle of birth and

death.

By and large, every one wants to live their life such that their next

few lives will be very happy. But the aim of life is not to have

happy future births, but rather to get out of the cycle of births and

deaths. The reason that we are born is that we haven’t yet learnt

the lessons that we were meant to learn and so just as we have to

repeat a class if we fail our exams – likewise we have to be born

over and over again. Being liberated from the drudgery of this

unending cycle can happen in this very birth if we make an effort

to grow spiritually and realise God. This is the supreme spiritual

goal any man can have.

Through spiritual practice, once a person reaches a spiritual level

of 80% one does not have to be reborn to make further progress.

3. General Concepts in Spirituality

Before we explore the steps in spiritual practice it will be beneficial if we understand a few concepts in Spirituality.

3.1 Spirituality is to be experienced

In Spirituality, words have only 2% importance while 98% importance lies in the experience.

In the diagram, we see two cliffs and between them there is a chasm. How

does one cross over from pure intellectual knowledge to the other side so as to

experience the knowledge?

As you can see the bridge represents “spiritual practice” and is the key to

experiencing the intellectual knowledge. ‘Spiritual practice’ is a stumbling block

for even the most intelligent person who reads or listens to any matter on

Spirituality. The reason being most intellectuals tend to get caught up in the

words and debate the holy scriptures. However ultimately one needs to

experience Spirituality and the words written in the scriptures. (Refer to article

on What are Spiritual Experiences?)

This can be understood by the famous story of the scholar and the boatman.

Once a scholar was being ferried across a river by a poor boatman. During the

boat-ride, they spent a while in conversation. The scholar named a number of

holy texts and asked the boatman if he had studied them. When the boatman

replied in the negative, the scholar remarked, “You have wasted half your life.”

As this discussion was going on, the boat sprang a leak and water rapidly

entered it through the crevices. Seeing this, the boatman asked the scholar,

“Sir, can you swim?” The scholar replied, “I have read several books on

swimming and gathered a lot of information on it, but I cannot swim.” The

boatman then commented, “Then your entire life has gone to waste. The boat

is about to sink!”

The scholar’s theoretical knowledge was of no use to him. Similarly, to be able

to cross this vast ocean of worldly life and experience happiness through it,

one should practice Spirituality and not just acquire verbal knowledge.

3.2 Spiritual Practice should be done on a daily basis

If we are serious about any endeavour in life we need to be

both persistent and regular.

For example, if one wants to be fit one would need to do

exercise regularly. So also if one wants permanent

happiness one needs to do spiritual practice on a daily

basis.

3.3 Increasing the level of spiritual practice regularly

Just as we increase our levels of fitness by steadily

increasing our exercise regime, the same is true in

spiritual practice.

If we do the same spiritual practice year in and year out it

would lead to stagnation. To avoid stagnation in spiritual

growth we need to adopt increasing levels of spiritual

practice.

3.4 Basic principles of Spiritual Practice

How can we ensure rapid spiritual progress towards achieving

Bliss?

Rapid spiritual progress can be achieved when we do spiritual

practice according to the basic principles of Spirituality. Even though

there are many different types of spiritual practice, whether our

spiritual practice adheres to the basic principles of Spirituality is a

true litmus test for its effectiveness. If not, we run the risk of putting

in a lot of effort but not seeing the results that match that effort.

The six basic principles of Spirituality are

1.There are as many paths to God as there are people

2.Going from many to one

3.Progressing from gross (tangible) to subtle (intangible)

4.Undertaking spiritual practice as per the spiritual level or spiritual capacity

5.Doing spiritual practice relevant to the times

6.Offering to God as per your talent or capacity

3.4.1 There are as many paths to God as there are people

When undertaking spiritual practice it is important to bear in mind that each individual is different and so what works for one

person may not work for another. When climbing a mountain each climber thinks his way is the only way. But when he

reaches the top of the mountain, he realizes that there were an infinite number of ways that could have taken him to the top.

Likewise there are as many paths to God as there are people.

If five patients were to go to a doctor and each was suffering from a different ailment, then giving all five the same medicine

would not result in each of them being cured. So also each of us are different and hence the same spiritual practice cannot

be recommended for all. In a spiritual context each of us is unique across the following parameters.

The composition of the 3 subtle basic components (Trigunas) i.e. whether they are sattvik, rajasik or tamasik by nature.

•The five cosmic elements (earth, water, fire, air and ether)

•The degree to which different aspects of spiritual practice have been completed in prior births.

•The different accumulated account, destiny and wilful action that each one has.

•A person may also adopt a certain path depending on his temperament.

3.4.2 Going from many to one

The impact of our efforts is much more powerful when we concentrate our efforts on the one instead of the many.

Which is more effective?

•Digging one well to access water which is 10 meters deep or digging 10 wells of 1 meter each.

•Accruing frequent flyer miles from various airlines or sticking to just one airline.

The following is how this principle works depending on the various generic paths to God.

Path of Action (Karmayoga): In the initial stage a seeker gives alms to several beggars. In the next stage he focuses his efforts

on a single cause such as a donation to a school or a hospital.

Path of Knowledge (Dnyanyoga): After studying various spiritual texts from new age philosophy to religious texts a seeker

finally turns to a single one that has the most percentage of spiritual truth in it.

Path of Devotion (Bhaktiyoga): A seeker progresses from worship of several deities to that of one, goes to one place of

pilgrimage rather than to many, reads one book of holy verses rather than many.

Path of Chanting the Name of God (Namasankirtanyoga): Here the seeker chants the Name of only one deity instead of

many.

Path of Guru’s Grace (Gurukrupayoga): After visiting several Saints, a seeker finally visits only one Guru. Irrespective of the

path of Spirituality one follows, spiritual progress does not really occur beyond a certain level without the grace of a Guru.

3.4.3 Progressing from gross (tangible) to subtle (intangible)

This principle states that we need to improve upon our spiritual practice by going from just physical actions to a practice at a

more subtle level.

A subtle spiritual practice is more powerful than a gross one. Take for example, a relationship where two people shake hands

in friendship, while in reality, they may not like each other. The physical display of friendship is merely a façade. On the other

hand, two people may feel genuine goodwill towards each other even though there may be no physical contact.

Likewise when it comes to practicing Spirituality, going through the motions of just external ritualistic worship (physical level)

with no devotion needs to be replaced by having real inner devotion for God or intense desire for spiritual growth.

3.4.4 Undertaking spiritual practice as per the spiritual level or spiritual capacity

We must check that the spiritual practice we choose is as per our spiritual capacity or spiritual level. A student who has passed

grade 3, will not be able to sit for the grade 4 exams if he has been continually studying only the grade 3 syllabus.

So spiritual seekers too should not get stuck at one level of spiritual practice and should try to improve their capacity to do

spiritual practice.

Let us go through the various stages of development from more gross forms of worship to more subtle forms as per the level

of the seeker:

At an initial level we feel that we can make contact with the divine only by going to a place of worship and through praying to a

statue of God or a divine being.

Then we feel a connection with the divine not just through rituals but through reading spiritual books whilst sitting in the place

of worship.

We then feel that even words are too gross and just experiencing the vibrations in a church or temple are enough to spiritually

nourish a person.

After this we do not need to even go to a place of worship but can experience God in the beauty of Nature, high up in the

mountains, at a serene lake, etc.

At an even higher level, we do not need nature anymore but can experience God even in daily living.

Even if we are in an unpleasant place such as a filthy slum or in the middle of a war zone, we can

perceive the comforting blanket of God's presence and can worship Him there in the quiet presence

of our hearts.

3.4.5 Doing spiritual practice relevant to the timesIn all things in life there is a time for them to happen. If the right thing happens at the wrong time then

the desired result is not achieved. For example, if seeds are sown in the dry months instead of the

rainy season, they do not take root no matter how fertile the land is. Similarly, certain spiritual

practices are conducive according to the time or era.

Satyayuga: This was a very pure era when the average spiritual level of a person was 70% (this is the

level of a Saint). These people were so pure spiritually that the Path of Knowledge was best suited to them

as they had the potential to spontaneously understand the implied meanings of all spiritual scriptures.

Tretayuga: This was the era when the spiritual level of the average person dropped to 55% and so they

lost their potential to follow the Path of Knowledge. But they were spiritually capable enough to undertake

penance (the kind that allowed a seeker stand on one foot for 12 years) and meditation (the kind that made

a seeker meditate long enough for an ant hill to grow all over him).

Dwaparyuga: There was a further decline in spiritual levels and people lost their potential for rigorous

penance and sustained meditation. So it was divinely ordained such that they would be able to make

progress through ritualistic worship. These rituals and sacrificial fires (yadnyas) were very time consuming

and laborious as they had to be done after searching for the right ingredients. Along with this there were

numerous steps which had to be followed to the last detail. But people were religious-minded enough to

spend the time, effort and money to do them.

Kaliyuga: This is translated as the ‘Era of strife’ and is the current period. The average person’s spiritual

level has dropped to only 20%. Our capacity to do any of the above spiritual practices has greatly reduced.

But considering the turbulent times we live in and the extent of the spiritual pollution – God has made a

simple provision for us to still grow spiritually. All He wants of us to do as spiritual practice, is repeat His

Name.

3.4.6 Offering to God as per your talent or capacity

All of us have some kind of resources at our disposal. These have been given to us by God. A basic principle in spiritual

practice is that we use these same resources to serve Him as part of our spiritual practice and grow spiritually. The

resources we have fall broadly into four categories:

1. Our body

2. Our wealth and worldly connections

3. Our mind and intellect

4. Our sixth sense

Let’s look at these four aspects in a little more detail:

Serving by our body’ means using our body to serve God. For example:

Cleaning a venue and getting it ready for a lecture on Spirituality

Driving seekers to the venue

Putting up posters to advertise a lecture on Spirituality

1. Our body

An example of serving God by offering our wealth and worldly

connections respectively would be:

Paying for the venue where a spiritual discourse is to be

conducted

Arranging for a lecture on Spirituality at an institute which

one is associated with

2. Our wealth and worldly connections

Using our mind and intellect is about using our creative and intellectual

processes to serve God. Examples of this would include:

Using our intellect to study Spirituality, put it into practice and then tell

others about it

Using our writing skills to spread Spirituality by writing articles on

Spirituality

Helping in the maintaining of records and administration of an event

3. Our mind and intellect

Some of us have been gifted with sixth sense from an early age. This is due to

spiritual practice from either a previous birth or from this birth. The onus is on

us to use it only to facilitate spiritual growth in us and others. The use of our

sixth sense needs to be under the guidance of a Spiritual Master.

4. Our sixth sense

In summary, the following points can be kept in mind:

•By consistently offering what we have to serve God as part of our spiritual practice, we grow

spiritually.

•Even if one does not have wealth or a high intellect he can still offer his body in service to God and

thereby grow spiritually.

•The four types of offerings mentioned above are not mutually exclusive. If a person has a good

intellect and a strong understanding of Spirituality he may be inclined just to offer his intellect.

However the principle is about ‘offering all what one has’. As the person has a body and also may

have some wealth, he should offer that along with his intellect.

•Out of all offerings, the mind and intellect is the most superior as through that medium one can help

others understand and practice Spirituality.

3.5 Learning to listen to an authority in Spirituality

When our television is not working, we take it to a service centre that specialises in repairing televisions.

When we are ill, we go to a doctor. So also is the case with Spirituality. We need to listen to an authority

in the field of Spirituality. According to the science of Spirituality an authority in the field of Spirituality is

known as a Guru or a Saint.

3.6 Do not waste your spiritual energy

By doing spiritual practice one gets spiritual energy. If we use this energy, for example in the form of

prayer to get worldly benefit then the spiritual energy gets depleted. The reason for this is that we draw

upon our spiritual energy to orchestrate something for our worldly gains. Therefore instead of spiritual

energy being utilised to enhance our spiritual growth we could even regress spiritually. There is no end to

worldly difficulties and most of them are due to our destiny. With spiritual growth one derives increasing

ability to face destiny and ultimately overcome it.

3.7 Gaining spiritual experiences from spiritual practice

In Spirituality, only 2% of importance is given to intellectual knowledge and 98% of importance lies in the

experience of that knowledge. These experiences are known as spiritual experiences and help us to

generate faith in our intellectual understanding of the science of Spirituality. Spiritual experiences can

manifest in many ways.

Some of the more tangible aspects are when one experiences something with the five senses with no

rational cause.

For example, a person is in a quiet room meditating and he has shut the door and windows to seal off any

disturbances. Suddenly he begins to perceive a fragrance of incense of sandalwood. He is puzzled and

he looks around for the source of the fragrance by checking around the house and even opening the

windows. The fragrance follows him wherever he goes. This is God’s way of encouraging us. For more

information refer to the article on Spiritual experiences.

On the other hand one may experience how divine intervention works by applying a spiritual principle or

concept in their lives. As a result one gains faith in that principle and internalises it.

Spiritual Principle How chanting is in accordance with the basic Spiritual principles

There are as many paths to God as there

are people

Everyone is not expected to chant the same name – each one chants as per their religion or their

family deity.

From many to one We go from many words in prayers to just one word, i.e. the Name of God. This one Word is a

concentrated form of God’s energy.

From Gross to Subtle One grows from ritualistic worship like attending church services or performing namaz to a

subtle spiritual practice i.e. chanting the Name of God that can be undertaken anywhere without

any restrictions.

According to Spiritual Level Chanting is the basic foundation and after one moves to higher steps in spiritual practice one

takes up progressively higher levels of chanting like chanting without lip movement, then

mentally and finally continuously.

Relevant to the times According to the Science of Spirituality chanting is the recommended spiritual practice for

humanity in the current era.

Tools for lasting happiness

The following are tried and tested tools of spiritual practice for achieving happiness that is both of the highest quality and

also long lasting.

4.1 Chanting the Name of God

According to the science of Spirituality, chanting the Name of God as per one’s religion of birth is the recommended

foundation of spiritual practice in the current era i.e. the era of Chanting (Kaliyug). It is done throughout one’s spiritual

journey. Chanting can be done anywhere and at any time and is the most convenient spiritual practice.

4.1.1 How does chanting as a spiritual practice conform to the basic principles of Spirituality?This spiritual practice, besides being convenient also fits the requirements of the 6 basic spiritual principles that were

mentioned earlier.

4.1.2 Which Name of God should one chant?

In today’s times the most effective way of progressing spiritually is chanting the Name of God according to the religion of

our birth. We are born in that very religion which is most conducive to begin our spiritual practice. This forms the basic

foundation for spiritual practice. Repeating the Name of God according to the religion of our birth also enables us to

overcome destiny. Infact spiritual practice helps us both in this world and the world after we die.

Let us look at a few examples of the Name of the Lord we should chant depending on the religion of our birth.

4.2 How does chanting work to purify our mind?

4.2.1 Establishing the Devotion Centre

If you have read the article about how impressions in our sub-conscious mind influence our actions, you

will understand that only by overcoming negative impressions can we live better lives.

Just as we remove a thorn embedded in our foot or hand with a needle, so also we create a new

impression to remove the defective ones. This powerful new impression is known as the devotion centre.

Any repeated thought or action forms an impression, which if reinforced becomes a centre. This is similar

to how a footpath is created in a field. Only if one were to walk in a grassy field repeatedly would a

footpath be created.

This is the same principle used to create the devotion centre. We chant the Name of God according to the

religion of our birth.

4.2.2 How chanting works through the Deflection Method

Chanting works to kill the incorrect impressions in the subconscious mind. This method, known as the

deflection method, helps us to benefit from chanting

If we look at the diagram, we see a barrier, which comes between the conscious and sub-conscious mind.

This barrier has some special qualities. It doesn’t allow the conscious mind to know what secrets are locked in

the sub-conscious mind. This sheath is also porous, but it only allows one thought to emerge at a time from

the sub-conscious mind. This thought that emerges is the strongest thought. So impressions from the sub-

conscious mind rapidly hit the conscious mind in quick succession and return to strengthen the centre that

they arose from.

However when the devotion centre becomes stronger, as shown in the diagram through the spiritual practice

of chanting then it becomes the strongest thought to shoot up to the conscious mind. Every time God’s name

shoots up into the conscious mind, the barrier seals and doesn’t allow any other impression to come through.

Each thought from the sub-conscious mind tries to enter the conscious mind but the barrier will not allow it to

go through and so it gets deflected as you see in the diagram.

Thus in the process the other impressions and centres get ignored. By being continually ignored, the other

centres get reduced until they cease to exist. So this is another effective way in which the devotion centre

cleanses the subconscious mind.

4.3 Being in the Company of the Truth (Satsang)

The company of the Truth is also known as 'satsang' where ‘Sat’ means the Absolute Truth i.e. God and

‘sang’ refers to the company of seekers or Saints. In short, satsang refers to an environment which is

conducive for experiencing the presence of God.

This is the next step of spiritual practice after one begins to chant the Name of God but it does not mean

that we stop chanting. It has to be done along with chanting of the Name of God. It always helps to be with

like-minded people on a regular basis.

There are many benefits to be gained by attending a satsang.

One is able to ask questions about the science of spirituality and therefore clear any doubts that one might

have. If we have any doubts about spiritual practice or about the principles we need to get them cleared or

else we will not be able to practice spirituality wholeheartedly.

One gets to share one’s spiritual experiences and also to understand the spiritual significance behind

them. This gives us the motivation to persevere on this path as we get inspired by someone else’s faith.

At a subtle level, one gets the benefit of Divine Consciousness. The added sattvikta of the satsang helps

to facilitate one's spiritual practice. Due to spiritual pollution in the form of rajasik and tamasik elements

around us, it becomes difficult to even think about God and spiritual practice. However, when we are with

a group of people who have been chanting the Name of God all day, the opposite flow happens! We get

the benefit of the sattvik rays or the Divine Consciousness that emanates from them. We may enter the

satsang badly beaten up by life’s ups and downs during the past week, however we are revived from

within and feel as good as new by the end of the satsang.

The following picture is a representation of what actually happens during satsang.

Here is a comparison of how much we benefit from each stage of spiritual

practice. If we consider satseva or service to the Truth as 100% beneficial,

then satsang is 30% beneficial and chanting is 5% beneficial.

4.4 Service to the Truth (Satseva)

This is the next step in spiritual practice. Here one has understood the importance of spiritual practice and has

also been graced with a number of spiritual experiences by chanting the Name of God and also attending

satsang. One has seen how one's life has been positively impacted by spiritual practice and that one is happier,

irrespective of the situation that he is in. At this point in one's spiritual journey, one undertakes service to the

Truth (satseva).

The best way we can be of service to the Truth is to assist in spreading this knowledge. This can be done in a

number of ways. For example, telling other people about what we have learnt and experienced so that they too

can benefit from the positive changes in their lives. We have seekers who spread Spirituality by giving lectures

free of charge, to awaken people to the science of Spirituality. They do not earn any money for this - then what

is the benefit for them? They gain an inner feeling of Bliss, which no amount of money or worldly success can

give. Some are not comfortable giving lectures, so they write articles for newspapers or use their computer

skills to assist in website related work. This website is also an example of service unto the Truth. Some serve

God through art by designing the beautiful covers of the spiritual books. Some seekers assist other seekers by

buying their railway tickets when they travel to conduct lectures. One simple devoted lady seeker, had none of

the above skills to offer but she was a good cook. She would pack lunch for seekers who had to go out of town

to deliver these lectures. Please refer to the article on 'How can i contribute to SSRF?'

Whatever we do best, we should offer that to God with devotion in our hearts. Our attitude should be one of

service with humility and not of ego - that one is giving so much.

4.5 Sacrifice to the Truth (Tyaag)

If there is anything that helps us to truly make progress, it is sacrifice. Sacrifice helps to create the space

within us to receive. Only when we let go of the sand in our hand, can God fill it with the diamonds that

He has in store for us. Sacrifice can be of one’s mind, body or wealth.

The above picture is a vision by one of our seekers as to what actually happens when one

sacrifices for God. It shows that we are infact uplifted and protected.

An example of sacrifice of the mind is when we have the option to watch our favourite movie or

help with setting up a satsang, we choose the latter. Here we sacrifice something, that the mind

enjoys, for God. Chanting continuously is also a sacrifice of the mind.

An example of sacrifice of the body would be sleeping an hour less in order to do God’s work, such

as completing an article for the website or performing some other spiritual service.

4.6 Spiritual love (Preetee)

Spiritual love (Preetee), means love without expectations.

Ordinarily when one loves anyone there is some form of expectation attached and it is conditional.

However spiritual love is unconditional, no matter what the circumstances are. This form of love is divine

and only develops after a considerable amount of spiritual practice when one perceives God in everyone.

So also, we become happier individuals when our love is not adulterated or diluted by expectations.

The above diagram shows how worldly love i.e. love

with expectation is based on the similarities with

another person’s nature. But there is no guarantee

that all aspects of our nature will be similar or

compliment the other person’s nature. When we

begin to discover the difference, that’s when the strife

and trouble begins.

On the other hand, spiritual love or love

without expectation is based on the

unchanging Soul. This is akin to how a string

links the beads on a necklace whatever the

shape, colour or size – the external nature is

not important. The hole in each bead

represents our soul which is the same for all

of us i.e. the God in one is not in any way

different from the God within another.