Levels of Grace in Kashmir Shaivism

November 15, 2015

[This is an excerpt from a meditation text I’m working on.] Shaktipat (or Saktipata) is the Sanskrit term for the descent of Divine Power, or Grace (Anugraha). This Divine Power is the Power of Now, the Holy Spirit. The goal of Power of Now Meditation is the same as that of Shaktipat Yoga: to receive […]

My Amazon Reviews of the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali

November 1, 2015

I was introduced to the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali forty-plus years ago by my first yoga teacher, John R. Logan. I remember reading three versions of the Yoga Sutras at that time – Swami Vivekananda’s, Charles Johnston’s, and Christopher Isherwood and Prabhavanda’s. I eventually taught Patanjali’s “Classical” yoga, and recently read several more versions of […]

Bonpo Dzogchen Versus Electrical (or Esoteric Mystical) Christianity

October 20, 2015

Tibetan Dzogchen is not limited to Tibetan Buddhist Dzogchen. The Bon spiritual tradition in Tibet also developed their own version of Dzogchen teachings, which, unsurprisingly, are not very different from the Buddhist versions. The foremost living exponent of Bon (or Bonpo) Dzogchen is Tenzin Wangyal. I’m going to quote a description of Bonpo Dzogchen from […]

“Cutting Through Spiritual Materialism” — Upgraded

August 24, 2015

In 1973, Chogyam Trungpa’s “Cutting Through Spiritual Materialism” hit and took the spiritual marketplace by storm. Though I liked the book, when I compared Trungpa’s Dharma to Adi Da Samraj’s (then known as Franklin Jones/Bubba Free John), there was no comparison: Da’s was a quantum leap more profound and esoteric. But since few spiritual seekers […]

Satsang = Real Meditation, Part 2

July 3, 2015

I’m going to begin this Part with a remarkable and intriguing analysis of Satsang (Divine Communion practiced in a group) by the legendary Kashmir Shaivism Guru Abhinavagupta. The quote is from “TheTriadic Heart of Siva” by Paul Muller Ortega: “Consciousness, which is composed of all things, enters into a state of contraction due to differences […]

Satsang = Real Meditation, Part 1

June 1, 2015

The term “Satsang” (Sanskrit) is commonly used to describe a gathering of yogic spiritual disciples, often in the company of a spiritual preceptor. But if the term is properly understood, then it becomes a synonym for Real Meditation, meaning Divine Communion. The literal translation of “Satsang” is “Fellowship with Being,” which is what Real Meditation, […]

The Two Direct Ways to God-Realization, Part 2

May 10, 2015

Given the Trinitarian “structure” of Reality, I contend that there are only two possible direct Ways to the Absolute – the Way of the Jnanis and the Way of the Mystics. Because the Absolute, the Divine Being, consists of two “vines” – the vine of Soul (Or Consciousness) and the vine of Spirit (or Light-Energy) […]

The Two Direct Ways to God-Realization, Part 1

April 29, 2015

[This is an article I recently wrote, which will be included in a meditation book I am writing. I contend that, based on the Trinitarian “structure” of Reality, there can only be two direct ways to the Absolute — the Way of the Mystic, Divine Yoga, and the Way of the Gnostic, Jnana Yoga. This […]

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