The Inner Kingdom

1 Jun

Written By Rev Dinah Pemberton

Photo by Nayaswami Jyotish (View more art by Nayaswami Jyotish)

Purity of Heart

Reading and Affirmation for June

From the book The Beatitudes: Their Inner Meaning by Swami Kriyananda

Rays of One Light: Weekly Commentaries on the Bible and The Bhagavad Gita

The Inner Kingdom

Truth is one and eternal. Realize oneness with it in your deathless Self, within. The following commentary is based on the teachings of Paramhansa Yogananda.

Most people imagine that the “inner kingdom,” as Jesus described it, lacks the fascination they attribute to sense life: the bright lights, the diverse attractions, the joys and the laughter. Little do they realize what a vast universe exists in their own selves!

There are many passages in the Old and New Testaments of the Bible that describe aspects of this inner kingdom. In the Book of Genesis we read: “And the Lord God planted a garden eastward in Eden…. And the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil” (Genesis 2:8, 9). This garden was in no earthly place. It exists even now, in the very Self of every human being! The legend of Adam and Eve is allegorical. It describes how the first human beings dissipated their spiritual energy, centered in the spine. The spine is the channel through which flows the river of baptism and of spiritual life.

The Bhagavad Gita tells us, “The wise speak of an eternal ashvatta tree, with its roots above and its branches below” (15:1) The “tree of life,” spoken of also in Genesis, is the spine. Its roots are above, in the brain’s energy. Its branches are the outward spreading nervous system. When the “sap,” which is to say, the energy, flows downward the consciousness is drawn into delusion. On the other hand, when the energy is drawn upward in deep meditation, the consciousness is drawn toward its eternal source, God, and is at last united with Him.

Krishna in the Bhagavad Gita therefore urges his chief disciple Arjuna to embrace the yoga science, the path of meditation. “The yogi,” he says, “is greater than the ascetic, greater even than the followers of the paths of wisdom [Gyana Yoga] or of action [Karma Yoga]. Be thou, O Arjuna, a yogi!”

For those who would find the divine truth, Krishna gives this description of the yogi:

Steadfast a lamp burns, sheltered from the wind;

Steadfastly meditating, solitary,

Such is the likeness of the Yogi’s mind

Shut from sense-storms and burning bright to heaven.

Thus, through holy Scripture, God has spoken to mankind.

Whispers From Eternity

I Was Made for Thee

I was made for Thee alone. I was made for dropping flowers of devotion gently at Thy feet on the altar of the morning.

My hands were made to serve Thee willingly, to remain folded in adoration, waiting for Thy coming; and, when Thou comest, to bathe Thy feet with my tears.

My voice was made to sing Thy glory.
My feet were made to seek Thy temples everywhere.
My eyes were made a chalice to hold Thy burning love and the wisdom falling from Thy nature’s hands.
My ears were made to catch the music of Thy footsteps echoing through the halls of space, and to hear Thy divine melodies flowing through all heart-tracts of devotion.

My lips were made to breathe forth Thy praises and Thine intoxicating inspirations.

My love was made to throw incandescent searchlight flames to find Thee hidden in the forest of my desires.
My heart was made to respond to Thy call alone.

My soul was made to be the channel through which Thy love might flow uninterruptedly into all thirsty souls.

Paramhansa Yogananda

Inspiration from The Rays of the One Light

“Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.”

We will take this biblical verse by Jesus into our meditation together for deep reflection and contemplation. But firstly, we will listen to some beautiful music by Swami Kriyananda, called “God's Call Within”