Tag: aha moment

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The Festival of Light come to life

Most weeks since 1999 I’ve listened to the Festival of Light as part of Ananda’s Sunday service.

In the Festival Swami Kriyananda condensed the central message of Ananda into ceremonial form, expressed in way that is moving and inspiring.

Over the years I’ve known a few fellow devotees who don’t enjoy the Festival, finding it boring and repetitive. I’ve always loved it, actually, but today the Festival came alive for me in a way that I would never have anticipated. And now I appreciate it on a deeper level than ever before.

Basically, it was one of those mornings when the to-do list seemed so overwhelming that I was tempted to skip meditation and just start “getting things done!” And although I successfully resisted that temptation, I had a hard time keeping my mind from treating my meditation as a planning session.

But then, it happened! I had a huge “aha” moment of getting it that none of what I ever do or have ever done is by my own power — everything is done through God’s infinite power acting through me.

And these words from the Festival of Light came to my mind:

Hours passed, and night fell. The little bird grew afraid. “How,” it cried, “can I fly in this darkness?” And the night whispered, “Fear not. For lo! peace awaits you in the unknown. Surrender to me, and your strength will be renewed.” And after a time the tiny rebel surrendered, and found the night’s counsel true.

And rain, and sky, and grassy fields all sang: “Behold, your very strength to fly has never been your own. Look to the source of all power, if you would conquer fear and weakness.”

And the bird asked, “Where can I find that source?”

And they answered, “Seek it in the farthest depths of Being, in your own Self.”

And I realized in the core of my being that the only way to truly resolve the issues I struggle with is through looking to the “source of all power” in order to conquer the fears that keep me bound to attitudes and behaviors that don’t serve me.

All in all, it was an emotional but remarkably freeing meditation.

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Giving it to Divine Mother

A dear friend shared about a HUGE “aha” moment this week. Her tasks seemed insuperable and she was feeling totally overwhelmed.

Then she remembered to give it to Divine Mother and….solutions happened (some of them downright miraculous)!

I’m so grateful for this reminder that God is the Doer and Divine Mother always has our back.

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Missing the music

I had a big “aha” moment the other day. Our work, our ministry, our very raison d’être is music — especially the music of Ananda. And in the normal way of things, we would be immersed in it all the time.

We would be singing or playing — solo, duo, choir, or instrumental — virtually every Sunday for service. We would be rehearsing choir every Tuesday. On the other days we would be reviewing music, working with small groups, planning programs, and otherwise discussing things musical in preparation for Sunday or Tuesday or an upcoming event like the Oratorio or Christmas concert or something similar.

But for almost a year now we haven’t had that! Sure, we’ve performed as a duo, even a few times as part of a quartet. And we’ve put together virtual choir pieces. But we’re engaged in only a fraction of the music that would be usual for us.

Making the situation worse is the fact that Ramesha and I aren’t in the habit of listening to music at home. Mainly because it’s hard for us to focus on anything else when music is playing. But also because, after hours spent singing and playing, or listening to others sing and play, we enjoy going home to silence.

So, the bottom line — my big “aha” — is that we’re actually music-deprived right now and need to make some serious adjustments in order to restore the necessary musical equilibrium to our lives.

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A little “aha” moment

Today we sang More Boxes? No, Thank You! for Sunday service and I had a little “aha” moment while we were hamming it up during rehearsal.

Just like we don’t go all “dreamy” when we sing Life Is a Dream, we don’t actually come from our egos while singing More Boxes. (“I, my, me, mine! I, my, me, mine!” — see rest of lyrics below)

Now I’m looking forward to identifying other songs to which this insight can be applied. And that’s it for tonight!

More Boxes? No, Thank You!
(A sailor from England remarked to a foe,
“The reason we win is, We pray ere we go.”
“But we pray as well, and just look at our dead!”
“Ah, but we pray in English,” the Englishman said.)

(I, my, me, mine! I, my, me, mine!
I, my, me, mine! I, my, me, mine!
I, my, me, mine, I, my, me, mine, I, my, me, mine, I, me, mine,
I, my, me, mine, I, my, me, mine, I, my, me, mine, I, me, mine!)

I had a little box when my Lord made me,
And in that little box I did put a tree,
A pony, a teddy bear, a bright green sled:
Everything around me that my eyes did see.

How can a little box ever hold a sled,
A pony, and a tree?—puzzles your poor head?
It can’t, of course, but in a tiny baby’s mind
This whole wide world becomes a little box instead.

Well, as I grew older my box grew, too:
Held airplanes, and ships, and a birch canoe,
And school books, a foreign trip, and college proms.
Good times, and friends aplenty—yes, and also, you!

But somehow in this box would only fit one school,
One family, one country, and one social rule,
And certainly one church, for only my way’s right,
And anyone with other ways is just a fool.

Well, so I used to think, but now I must confess
At judging fools I wasn’t any great success.
Truth somehow lived without me, though I called it mine:
What box could hold the world?—it’s just preposter-ess!