Hi Buddy

Interesting thoughts on hopelessness! Let’s take this a little further and hopefully generate an interesting discussion. You have heard of a hologram. The three D image which no matter how many times you cut it continues to contain the whole. Recently some innovative cutting edge scientists have done path breaking work on the premise that the Universe is a hologram systematically proving that which we know as objective reality is in fact a phantasm of only our own projections/perceptions. Nothing else really exists. A London physicist David Bohm came to this conclusion while figuring out how subatomic particles such as electrons instantaneously communicate with each other even when billions of miles separate them.

The Vedic construct of atma and paramatma said precisely the same. Hence the supersoul is also a projection of our own minds until we get to the stage of realizing that there is no separation. The God/Supersoul we envision is projected precisely from that self-perception where we are. Actually Deepak Chopra has offered the most coherent/scientific chronology of how our perception of God/Supersoul changes as our own level of consciousness does. We begin with the fight/flight state of mind where Supersoul appears as chastising Patriarch, doling out goodies and move finally to stage of Unity Consciousness where there is no 'other' Supersoul. 'I am That' makes all indivisible.

So in fact as OSHO says all prayer is an illusion for there is no one out there to pray to. The sooner we figure out that all attention reverts to the right place-within us, digging to free the self of confusion, able to make the connections we need, grateful for the guidance that is coming at us from all sides, especially through our errors. Osho says prayer is the classic act of abdicating responsibility. Of deciding some 'other' power will make it better, give you what you need so in fact you can continue to make all the same mistakes with impunity, live willfully and yet ask for Grace.

So when we ask for worldly matters, it may appear to come from greed and when we ask in intense desperation it may come from a sense of helpless self-perception. But don't you think that the principles that rule are the same? Somewhere we are not able to make the connection and access the wisdom available to us, which says 'search within and all shall be made clear'.

Personally Buddy the journey of reaching ‘I Am That’ is a fascinating road, of merely dropping a billion blocks and bondages which all sit in the ‘mind’. Especially, all classical/traditional notions of man and God. The historic line ‘If you meet the Buddha on the road kill him’ points to none else than that need for total absolution of all concepts of Divinity/Sacred and profane to finally discover that there is nothing- a play and you are the centre of it. Hence your image of reality is the hologram, which you project as your life, experiences, tragedy/comedy/hope/hoplessness/clarity and confusion. And how does one know that amidst all the paradoxes of ‘Truth’ and life if this is truly the right road? YOU will know, for you will become and experience an expansion/emptiness/abundance, which you have never even been able to imagine let alone comprehend.
Dunno if I have just taken your post on some other tangent! Have I ?

love

Dear Aachi

Lovely parable. Just the other day I was talking to a young person who is very much distressed by her family situation. I was trying to explain to her that she needs to understand that just because one is born to certain people and begins to call them ones family does not mean that they are equipped or capable of providing solace, love, comfort and security. Their own lives are so messed up that there is hardly anything that they can give to another...even their own children. Wish I had remembered this parable.

love

There was once this boy ,who used to have lot of financial and also lot of family problems.He used to go the temple everyday , so that he could ask god ways so that he could solve his problem.Everyday the situation was same ..and one day when his guru asked "How come god has never solved his problems?"..the boy replied when ever I bow down to god I feel that I have everything I need and I dont need anything else.Thats why I come to the temple for reassurance that i have all the resources to handle my problems..the boy was none other than Swami Vivekananda.
Jasjit,
totally agree with what you have said

Dear Aachi,

You always seem to have an anecdote for your posts. This is what makes your posts so comprehendable.

It is true that we try to seek the supersoul when we are filled with hopelessness. But
I have experienced it myself that contact with the supersoul is not about connecting with it out of hope or hoplessness. It is about being confident that the supersoul exists in me. That the power of the supersoul is within me and there to guide me through my ups and downs, lows and highs.

Contact with the supersoul is about realizing it within us and not looking for it outside us.

I don't know how to explain it but I have a feeling that you are going to feel it too, very soon :)

dear jasjit,

there is a story of two birds...each on the same tree...the bird on the lower branch hops here and there...it eats this fruit and that fruit...once when it eats a real bitter fruit it shakes its head and looks at the other bird...Majestic, Peaceful and calm.....sitting on the highest branch.

It hops towards it and then again finds new fruits and busies itself...it eats another bad fruit when it looks up again....slowly through various experiences of eating bitter fruits it reaches the 'other' bird when it realises that there was no other bird...but it was all along one bird....itself. having reached the highest branch...it becomes Majestic, Calm, Peaceful.

The relationship of the soul and the supersoul is such.

I do agree with Osho a lot. I have been amazed to read his thoughts since the day I was introduced to this blog and his clarity and depth of vision in matters continues to amaze me.

About projections...well I do think it might be the cause...the above story illustrates it.

Dear Anusheh, hope the family finds joy soon. :)

Dear Chaitali,

what you say is a very potnt form of meditation...I would love to have that experience!:)

Dear Diya,

thanks for the lovely story.

lots of love to all.

Dear Aachi,

I am not involved in any potent form of meditation :) Just the usual pranayams and simple meditation that many of us do these days. But what even this simple form of meditation has allowed me is to calmly question myself as to where is the feeling of hopelessness/anxiety coming from.

The experience that I wrote about is not just in meditation but in my day to day life. The key to contact with the supersoul is being truthful to yourself. It is the true self that is the supersoul. It's actually so very simple but we make it complicated.

Hopelessness can be very beneficial as when you are hopeless, you might not be dreaming about a better future. In that moment, it may become easy to remain in this moment & rest in one's being. So, hopeless situations can be used for coming back to oneself.

Cheers, Rohit

I have been trying to relate to my experiences of 'hopelessness' and there have been times when I turned fervently to prayer. But the more I look at the states I was in the more I feel it was acute fear. Just the feeling of no control or power. So I wonder if hoplessndss is not just hidden fear.

Hi all,

New to the site and accidentally stumbled on it. Just reading what you all listed, interesting and makes you think.

Just making a comment to the initial posting by Aachin. You wrote
"When was the last time we really prayed to the Supersoul asking something purely from Him/Her?"
I personally think that we should never pray to the Supersoul (Pramartma, Ram, Allah, Akal Purakh, all meaning the same) to ask or beg for something for ourselves irregardless of the manner in which it is done. Praying to ask for something for is an act that can show your inner thoughts in respect to other beings.

Or is there anything wrong with just talking to God? And not neccessarily asking for anything.

I guess maybe we tend to aks for things or do things (beg, flatter, despise) because we are too busy with what everybody thinks of us or that we are being lead by our desires in this material world.

In relation to the comments made about the relation with the Supersoul I agree with the point made by Chaitali. We should look internally and not externally, however I would also like to add to add that inorder to find the Supersoul that is within each and every one of us is partly incumbent on our external acts. The point I am trying to make is that yes one can do meditation and prayer to remember the Supersoul but unless your external actions demonstarte this the steps to building relationship will not be made. These external actions are for example treating all beings as one, which is what we all are, part of the Supersoul.

Interesting blogs, keep it up.

Sunny

Dear Sunny,

Very true finding the Supersoul within is not enough but to exercise it in our external acts is what gives the Supersoul its form.

Thanks for making such a pertinent point!