In recently held Vidwat Sangam at Bengaluru, Sri Sri Ram?Shankar said ‘Om Namah Shivay’ is the matter that connects all corners of Bharat. Not only that, from creation, destruction and recreation every aspect of our life and each aspect of knowledge domain is influenced by ‘Lord Shiva’. On the occassion of Mahashivratri, organiser presents scientific aspect associated as this supreme consciousness
David Frawley
Modern science is beginning to recognise that the greater universe in which we live contains other forms of intelligence, perhaps very different than our own and more advanced, not only in terms of technology but also in terms of consciousness. We are beginning to learn that our universe does not consist simply of matter, energy, or information but contains the reflection of a deeper knowing and seeing that pervades time and space as a whole.
We are gradually moving beyond the concept of a mere anthropomorphic God made in the image of our human fears and desires, to recognise a cosmic awareness beyond all partiality and personality. We sense such a universal reality with wonder and doubt, but tend to keep our distance from it, feeling that it might render us insecure or unimportant. What is our place in a greater cosmos that seems infinitely more than what we are individually or we are today as a species?
Approaching the experiential realities of the greater Conscious Universe is not an easy task. It takes us beyond our personal ego and contemporary society. It requires a revolution deep within our psyches, a fundamental shift to a new level of insight. Mere words cannot take us far in this inner change, though universal spiritual teachings taken to heart can help set in motion its transformations.
First, we must recognise the primacy of the greater Conscious Universe over our social world and conditioned human mind. We must be willing to provide a special space within ourselves to dialogue with the Universal Being with honor and respect. For this to occur, we need to clear our psyches of wrong concepts, misperceptions, and beliefs. We need to turn our minds into tools of a deeper inquiry. If we hold to our usual opinionated reactions and let our habitual thought processes dominate, then the inner doors of perception are likely to remain closed, whatever else we may do.
This greater field of consciousness behind the known universe has probably been better experienced by earlier cultures, when we lived more in contact with nature. One of the most important encounters with the universal being is in the form of Shiva and the yogic and mantric teachings associated with him throughout the history of India.
Shaivite teachings remain a powerful point of entry for us to reach the higher reality beyond the visible world. Yet for this to occur we must look to the cosmic truth behind Shiva. We must understand his yogic connections; his reflection of the cosmic being on all levels, personal and impersonal, from all of nature to the formless Absolute beyond all known or possible universes. Lord Shiva holds the yogic secrets of asana, pranayama, mantra and meditation that are the necessary tools of transcendence to take us to the inner truth of this magical universe in which we live.
Shiva indicates the supreme consciousness that exists deep inside us beyond our ordinary body-mind awareness, as the eternal silent witness ever present at the core of our being. To approach our Shiva nature requires a strong inner discipline, tremendous concentration, and yet a pliable receptivity of mind and hearts – qualities that can only be developed with both sustained effort and grace.
The realisation of the Cosmic Shiva is a movement into an unbounded existence in which even our current universe is but one possible manifestation, one gem on an endless strand of gems. To discover the Cosmic Shiva is requires a radical change of consciousness beyond the mind and its time-space limitations and bondage to Maya. This universal awareness remains at the core of our being as our inmost Self, the Atman or Purusha of Vedic thought. The supreme goal of life is for each one of us to realise the universal being within ourselves, which is to take us to the inner truth beyond all manifest existence. This has been the great teaching of India’s saints in every generation, the scientists of consciousness who have discovered the eternal reality of both ourselves and the entire cosmos.
Shiva is India’s perennial image and guide to our universal being. He reflects India’s timeless culture and its global role as the guru of nations, directing all humanity forward in the evolution of consciousness. The yogic wisdom of India’s traditions, indicated by Lord Shiva, has the power of universal dharmic guidance, through which humanity can be brought into harmony with all existence.
We desperately need that Shiva consciousness today in order to apply science and technology with a yogic vision that can lead to world peace and understanding. Otherwise our new technology will get us further trapped in division and violence, as the world is still experiencing today. May that Cosmic Shiva awaken within all for the benefit of all!
(The writer is a renowned Vedic scholar)
