Spiritual progress.

 There has to be spiritual progress, otherwise there is no point in practising. We have to get switched on – inspired. Apart from being more contented and having less desire, there are three main signs of progress – an increase in intelligence, devotion and compassion.

Intelligence, here, means having some understanding of the nature of mind. From this, devotion and compassion arise. We may have devotion and compassion but what gives them strength and stability is intelligent understanding.

Spiritual progress is not a matter of knowing lots of words and rituals: parrots and monkeys can do that. Is it a matter of recognising awareness, and that awareness looks in on itself, and finds it is empty of any contamination. That is pure awareness. That is truly satisfying, and confidence arises.

Then a deep sense of appreciation arises, and that is devotion. This is a contentment from being one with enlightened activity, and this blessing gives power to our practice. From that, compassion arises as it is a natural expression of love.

The recognition of spiritual progress may take a little time. We have to look back at how we were a few years ago, and see if there is any change. Personally, I was on the wrong paths (for me) for many years, because I was either just studying, just practising devotion or just engendering compassion: what was missing, for me, was intelligence – wisdom! You may have to look around to find what suits you…or it may just appear at the right time!

No path is a waste. We just find ourselves…where we find ourselves. Years of ‘idiot meditation’ (so my teacher informed me…wasn’t too pleased about that!) actually served to focus me more, when I found what I was looking for. That is so strange! We are looking for something we intrinsically know about. It is possible that we were engaged upon certain practices in a previous incarnation, and now we remember!

We may practise for years, either because we enjoy it, or because we hope it’s doing us good. This is excellent, as we know we are facing the ‘right’ direction. However, a time will come when we will need to upgrade our understanding.

This Kali Yuga is an excellent moment, as those juicy emotions are staring us in the face!