By Gurudevi Nirmalananda

We love the moon’s silvery-white light, a cooling light. Its soft glow illumines the darkness, soothing and calming your mind.

Yet the moon is not the source of its light. It merely reflects the light of the sun.

Similarly, the light of Consciousness shines through your mind. The source is within, your own Divine Essence.

If your mind were clear and spacious, your mind’s light would be cool, soothing and comforting. This is why spending time with your Guru is so valuable — the Divine light shining through their mind cools, soothes and comforts you.

Lokanandah samadhi-sukham. — Shiva Sutras 1.16

Such a yogi experiences the bliss of Consciousness in every situation, and it is transmitted to those in contact with him.

The Guru’s influence is unerring. Like sitting under a shade tree, you cool down. As you cool down, you settle into yourself. By Grace, your settling inward goes deeper — into your own Self.

You blossom like night-blooming jasmine in moonlight. I use this metaphor because my Baba had a row of these shrubs in his India Ashram. I walked by them on my way to the hillside meditation hall every morning at 3 am. Their fragrance was intoxicating! Now I know that it was not only the shrubs that were blooming. It was me, too.

However, if your mind is full of limiting notions, Consciousness first has to burn them away. I know how it works because my Baba gave me this — the fire of yoga burning away everything that held me back. Shaktipat initiates this inner process which leads to moksha, liberation.

The process is called purification. You are burning away the inner impurities. It can get hot, especially if you try to keep yourself limited and small. The alternative is clinging to your feeling of being incomplete. You already know this is painful.

Your yogic future is described in the Shiva Sutras…