Bhaja Govindam Companion Series - Worldly Attachments
Jai Maa Dear Ones,
This past Saturday I led another session in our Companion Series for Acharya Shunya's teachings on Bhaja Govindam. We dived into another samsaaric attachment that Adi Shankaracharya strongly encourages us to 'let go' - our attachment to these constantly changing, never permanent, mattters of the world that occupy our entire life's attention. Until we learn to stop identifying with the impermanent, we will miss this sacred opportunity to turn towards the eternal (Govindam, Ishwara, Cosmic Intelligence, Atman, Brahman).
Topics we focused on specifically: vasana, trishna, common attachment stages, and we began opening up to the value of Satsang to help us remember. In the recording you will find some contemplation topics to inspire your mananam over the next two weeks. Please use THIS THREAD to 'churn' together on this Theme of Letting Go: Futility of Worldly Attachments.
You can find this week's recording here and also in the Bhaja Govindam Companion Series playlist.
In this theme we are focusing on Acharya Shunya's complete original teachings on Verses 2, 7, 11, 13, 15, 29. You can find that original playlist here.
I look forward to hearing and sharing your deeper contemplations here.
With Gratitude and Light,
Sadhvi Aparna
This morning as I sit in the darkness of the morning which will soon bring in the first ray of light, I am rewinding the teachings from Sadhvi Aparna's Bhaja Govindham Companion Studies and Sadhvi Ishani's sessions on key concepts of Advaita Vedanta in my mind. I feel a duality of emotions flooding my consciousness. There is a sense of peace knowing about the concepts of samsara, maya, mithya and the teachings of Adi Shankaracharya around illusions which the hammer of divine consciousness as Self needs to break through, while there is also a sense of curiosity on how do we consistently live these teachings while being in samsara. In the last few months, it feels like the divine has orchestrated events in my life to exactly test my patience with this curiosity. As I learn more about these concepts, life is offering situations and experiences to apply them and I have to say sometimes I feel like I can stand like the lighthouse being hit by waves and sometimes I see myself drowning in those waves with the lighthouse afar! With the duality of the experience though, one thing that stands constant in the deepest knowing of my heart is the presence of Ishwara, the constant companionship that I feel even when I am drowning and I focus on my breathing and I call out to Govinda and for a second and sometimes a minute, I feel this expansive sense of calmness flooding my consciousness, providing me with clarity to go on! My heart is filled with gratitude for Shunya ji and her team of Sadhvis and Sadhyas for creating this space for learning, exploring, questioning, contemplating and walking this journey!❣️