(Palm Sunday) Who Is This Son of Man?
Who are the Meek?
Reading and Affirmation for March
From the book The Beatitudes: Their Inner Meaning by Swami Kriyananda
Who Is This Son of Man?
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.
On Palm Sunday, the throng joyfully acclaimed Jesus Christ as he entered Jerusalem, casting palm fronds before him and singing, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! The Lord bless the king of Israel!” (John 12:13)
Jesus Christ had told the people, “The son of man must be lifted up.” His reference – so we are told – was to the mode of his impending crucifixion. Some persons on that occasion had asked, “Who is this son of man?”
Was Jesus a human being, merely? Those who, on Palm Sunday, called him king little realized the actual nature of his kingdom. He was far more than what they imagined. Yes, of course he ate, drank, walked, slept, and talked like others. His consciousness, however, was centered in infinity. Yes – again – he laughed like others: But his laughter expressed divine joy, not mere merriment. Again, he wept like them: But never with human grief. The tears he shed were for the sufferings of unenlightened human beings: Never were they shed in self-pity.
Jesus Christ was wakeful in God. Most people, by contrast, are asleep spiritually.
How strange to reflect that less than a week from that entry into Jerusalem – so joyfully acclaimed – he would be arrested, condemned, and crucified! Such is the bitter-sweetness of human existence: smiles of welcome one day – insults, even persecution the next. How few realize that Christ’s suffering would not be for himself, but for people’s ignorance – for those who had not yet understood the deeper reality that dwelt also in them!
Everyone is born “trailing clouds of glory,” as the poet Wordsworth put it. Even the meanest beggar has lived a story, or will eventually have lived it, more magnificent than the greatest epic ever written.
In the Bhagavad Gita, this dichotomy between the “son of man” and the inner “Son of God” is beautifully described. Sri Krishna, representing God in human form, reveals his true nature in infinity. In the eleventh chapter of that great scripture, his chief disciple Arjuna exclaims:
O Infinite Light!
Thy radiance, spreading o’er the universe,
Shines into the very darkest abyss!
Thy voice o’erwhelms the roar of cosmic cataclysms!
Lo! the myriad stars are Thy diadem;
Thy scepter radiates power everywhere!
O Immortal Brahman, Lord of all:
Again and again at Thy feet of Infinity
I lie in prostration before Thee!
Thus, through holy scripture, God has spoken to mankind.
Whispers From Eternity
120. Receive the orphans and the stricken; they have come to Thy door
The orphans and the stricken have heard of Thy healing power. They have come to Thy door. Wilt Thou turn them away empty-handed? Those whose hearts are breaking with sadness and despair: dry their scalding teardrops with Thy invisible hand. Those who are lost in delusion — to whom shall they turn, but to Thee? Lift Thine unseen veil of silence and appear in Thy overwhelming, divine compassion. Before the coming of the dawn of Thy presence, all their dark troubles will take wing.
Paramhansa Yogananda
Inspiration from the Rays of One Light
“Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! The Lord bless the king of Israel!” (John 12:13)
John 12:13
We will take these meaningful words into our meditation together for deep reflection and contemplation. But firstly, we will listen to the beautiful Psalm of David, sung by Mary Kretzmann.
Psalm of David
Listen to the Psalm of David
Reflect, Meditate and Listen to Instrumental Music
Reflection from the Rays of the One Light
Peace Sangha
Happy Palm Sunday
This week, I was inspired by the words from Saint John
“Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! The Lord bless the king of Israel!” (John 12:13)
John 12:13
I’m not fully familiar with the deeper meaning of Palm Sunday. I’m still learning, still finding my way through these stories and what they mean. I’ve been praying for God to remove any false teachings that have shaped my life and to create something new and true within me. But as I’ve sat with this Bible verse, this is what has come to me.
Today, we remember a moment when a city gathered at its gates, not because they fully understood who Jesus was, but because something in them hoped that life could be different.
The streets of Jerusalem were filled with people who were tired, people who were searching, people who were quietly bearing burdens in silence. Some believed with confidence. Others weren’t sure what they believed at all.
Yet all of them lifted their voices and cried and sang to the Lord, “Hosanna save us.” Palm Sunday is not a celebration reserved for the strong. It is a doorway for the weak. It welcomes the uncertain. It is a blessing spoken over anyone who dares to hope that God might meet them where they are.
When Jesus rode into the city, he didn’t come only for the faithful. He came for the broken, the overlooked, the ones who felt their lives had drifted too far from grace. He came for those who had almost given up on the truth that we can change. He came for those who whispered their prayers instead of shouting them. He came for those who couldn’t pray at all.
He comes for us all in a way that we would never really understand.
Christ enters our lives not when we have everything sorted, but when we don’t, and when we are at our lowest. He comes quietly with a love that does not wait for perfection. He receives our “Hosanna” even when it is spoken through tears, fears, doubt, or longing.
What moves me most is knowing that while the crowd was celebrating him, Jesus already knew the road ahead. Yet he didn’t turn away. He kept moving forward, step by step, showing us that his love for us goes deeper and farther than we can ever imagine.
So today, as we remember the branches waving and the voices rising, as I saw in the film “The Chosen”. We join together with the ancient crowds, the ancient Ones. We bring our joy, our questions, our wounds, our hopes.
We stand together as doubters, non believers, believers, seekers, and lovers. We come with different stories, different questions, different levels of faith, yet we stand side by side. Not as white people or Black people, not as Asian or Chinese, not divided by race or background, but simply as human beings. And in this sacred land, we welcome the One, the King who comes in the name of the Lord. The King who meets us exactly where we are and accepts us for who we are. He is the One who sees beyond labels and looks straight into the heart.
Blessed is he who comes.
Blessed are we who dare to welcome Him into our lives.
Blessed is the change that begins when Christ draws us near.
A Palm Sunday Prayer for Healing and Unity
Beloved Mother, God,
As I come to you today, still learning what Palm Sunday truly means. But this much I know.
When the ancient crowd celebrated Jesus, he already knew what was ahead. He knew the cross was coming, and still he walked towards it, because his love for us is infinite and deep.
Christ, some of us are confident, some not confident, some uncertain, some carrying quiet wounds and pains, and some who desperately need healing.
We think of every place in the world that is hurting, every community in need, every person carrying sorrow.
We ask for relief, for healing, for aid, for peace. Meet us now in that same love that you walked in, hold us, and lead us.
We trust that you have come to save us and heal us.
Blessed are you who comes in love, and blessed are we because you came to each one of us.
Aum Peace Amen.
