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CONFRATERNITY MEDITATION FOR OCTOBER 9

Annotation by Cherag Hamid Touchon

“What makes the soul know of its own existence? Something with which it adorns itself, something which it adopts, possesses, owns and uses. For instance, what makes a king know that he is a king? His palace, his kingly environment, people standing before him in attendance; if all that were absent the soul would be no king. Therefore the king is a palace, and it is the consciousness of the environment which makes the soul feel, 'I am so and so.' What it adorns itself with makes it say, 'I am this or that.' Otherwise by origin it is something nameless, formless.
 On the earth-plane the personality develops out of the individuality. The soul is an individual from the moment it is born upon the earth in the worldly sense of the word; but it becomes a person as it grows. For personality is the development of individuality, and in personality, which is formed by character-building, is born that spirit which is the re-birth of the soul. The first birth is the birth of man, the second birth is the birth of God.” The Sufi Message of Hazrat Inayat Khan - The Soul Whence and Whither – Manifestation

 “There is childhood, when a child knows nothing. He destroys things of value and beauty owing to his curiosity, his fancy. But when he grows up the child begins to feel his responsibility. The sign of maturity is the feeling of responsibility. So when a soul matures it begins to feel its responsibility, and it is from that moment that a person begins his life. It is from that moment that the soul is born again, and so long as the soul is not born again it will not enter the kingdom of God. The kingdom of God is here. As long as man is not conscious of his responsibility he does not know the kingdom of God. It is his becoming conscious of his responsibility which wakens him to the kingdom of God, in which is the birth of the soul.” The Sufi Message of Hazrat Inayat Khan – The Mysticism of Sound and Music – Cosmic Language – The Life of Thought

“The fifth aspect of religion is self-realization. This is the highest aspect, and everything we do leads to it: prayers, concentration, good actions, good thoughts. And how is it gained? Some say that we realize God by self-realization. But it is not so, for we can only realize self by the realization of God. Whenever someone tries to realize self while omitting God, he makes a mistake.
 It is very difficult for man to realize his true self, because the self he knows is a most limited self. The self to which he is awakened from the time of birth, the self which has made within him a conception of himself, is most limited. However proud and conceited he may be, however good his idea of himself, yet in his innermost being he knows his limitation, the smallness of his being. He may be a most successful general, he may be a king; but he discovers his limitation when the time comes for him to lose his kingdom. Then he knows that he is not really a king. Earthly greatness does not make him great. If there is anything that can make him great it is only the effacing of himself and the establishing of God instead. The one who wants to begin with self-realization may have many intellectual and philosophical principles, but he will get into a muddle and arrive nowhere. These are wrong methods.
 There are people who say, 'I am God'. This is insolence, stupidity; it is foolish to say such things. They insult the greatest ideal that the prophets and saviours of humanity have always respected. Such people can never reach spiritual perfection. In order to reach spiritual perfection the first thing is to destroy this false self. First this delusion must be destroyed; and this is done by the ways taught by the great teachers, ways of concentration and meditation, by the power of which one forgets oneself and removes one's consciousness from oneself, in other words rises from one's limited being. In this way a person effaces himself from his own consciousness, and places God in his consciousness instead of his limited self. And it is in this way that he arrives at that perfection which every soul is seeking.” The Sufi Message of Hazrat Inayat Khan – The Alchemy of Happiness – From Limitation to Perfection (1)

“It is the birth of God which is the birth of the soul. Every soul seeks for happiness, and after running after all objects which, for the moment, seem to give happiness, finds out that nowhere is there perfect happiness except in God. This happiness cannot come by merely believing in God. Believing is a process. By this process the God within is awakened and made living. It is the living of God which gives happiness.” The Sufi Message of Hazrat Inayat Khan – The Unity of Religious Ideals – The God Ideal – The Birth of God

1 Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God--this is your spiritual act of worship.
2 Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is--his good, pleasing and perfect will. Christian Tradition - The New Testament – Romans Chapter 12

10 but when perfection comes, the imperfect disappears.
11 When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put childish ways behind me.
12 Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known. Christian Tradition - The New Testament 1 Corinthians Chapter 13

3 In reply Jesus declared, "I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again. "
4 "How can a man be born when he is old?" Nicodemus asked. "Surely he cannot enter a second time into his mother's womb to be born!"
5 Jesus answered, "I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit.
6 Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit.Christian Tradition - The New Testament John Chapter 3

22 You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires;
23 to be made new in the attitude of your minds;
24 and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness. Christian Tradition The New Testament – Ephesians Chapter 4

A Fikr Practice (silent breath meditation)

However many breathes seem appropriate

On the in breath 
"DRAW US CLOSER TO THEE "

On the out breath: 
"EVERY MOMENT OF OUR LIFE"

Original material Copyright © 2000  Cecil Touchon all rights reserved