Knowledge Is Bondage

We have come to believe in our society that acquisition of knowledge is the hallmark of an intelligent, accomplished person. We strive to better ourselves by taking in more information, learning more skills, processing more facts, assimilating more content, and applying more of what we know.

We are better off when we "know", right? After all, when we don't know, we are unsure of ourselves. We are uncomfortable and anxious not knowing. We perceive knowledge as giving us dominance over our environment and each other. Certainty gives us comfort and eliminates fear, so we desire to develop certain knowledge. We give it a top priority in our lives.

Let me offer a different perspective on knowledge from the wisdom traditions...

In the Siva Sutras, the enlightened being Siva, shares a pithy but powerful aphorism: "Jnanam Bandhah", which translates from Sanskrit as "Knowledge is Bondage." What does he mean? Siva manages to pack a mighty punch in this little statement. He uses each word with great diligence and precision, and the phrase is loaded with meaning.

First, Siva acknowledges that the process of knowing quite literally binds things together. From unbounded chaos, "knowing" binds information together which is otherwise disorganized. Like the binding of a book, we take many loose concepts with countless possible configurations and solidify them into a defined volume. The process of gaining knowledge requires the infinite to become finite. Finiteness gives us comfort because is manageable - we like things to be definite and bounded. However, by Siva's standard, knowing is a degenerative process.

Second, knowledge limits our freedom. By forcing the infinite to become finite, we lose unity consciousness and are thrust into duality. As we freeze reality into a specific, defined configuration, we lose perspective of the whole. We perceive ourselves as separate from others. Knowledge is a concealing factor that makes us ignorant of our true nature. This identification with duality, caused by our reliance on the intellect and sense perceptions, is the source of human suffering.

Jaideva Singh, in his commentary on the Siva Sutras explains, "Man is bound...so long as he allows himself to be confined to the limited knowledge of his senses and mentation. When he recognizes his true nature, he is free."

In the Bible, when Adam and Eve "fell" from grace, the first experience they had was "they knew." Prior to the Fall, they were in unity consciousness - one with the Divine. That knowledge-free state was supreme bliss and freedom. The state prior to the Fall is not very different from the Buddha's concept of emptiness and Nirvana. When we are free from knowledge, we can empty the mind and experience the bliss of our true nature.

Zen also touches on this notion with their phrase, "When you know, you don't know, and when you don't know, you know."

So, various traditions describe this state in various ways - Nirvana or "emptiness", Satori or "no mind", Nirvakalpa Samadhi or "though-free, divine bliss." In these states, supreme intelligence beyond intellectual knowledge is experienced. By dropping our attachment to knowledge, ironically, we can become all-knowing.

By declaring that knowledge is bondage, Siva is asking us to stop being a slave to our limited knowledge, and to become free. No matter how impressive our intellectual repertoire, it is childs play compared to the vast intelligence of the Divine. Give up identification with knowledge. Set yourself free from bondage. Be fluid. Be in the space of 'don't know', and from there you will know everything.

Stand Up For The Light

After reading my post on Grace last week (along with the string of blog comments that followed), a friend dashed me a quick note. Her email read something like this: "Don't let 'em get you down. Keep standing up for the light!"

Now, I'm well aware that the HuffPo crowd is a bit more urban-edgy than, say, the readers of BeliefNet or Christian Science Monitor. I'm guessing the "Inner Life" columns aren't what bring you salivating to the keyboard each Monday morning. Even so, for most of us, there's usually room for a little more brightness and insight (especially on Monday morning), so this week I'd like to explore the sacred symbolism of Light.

Carl Jung did a great service for the intellectual world by making sacred concepts palatable. He appropriated God and religious mythology through the notion of "archetypes", collective imagery or symbolism shared across traditions. Jung also theorized that every culture would interpret God through its own cultural lens, what he called the "cultural inflection" of the archetype. In this way, each tradition preserves its own idiosyncrasy while still relating to a deeper shared pattern.

The sacred archetype of Light appears in nearly every tradition, with myriad cultural inflections. Here are just a few to ponder:

Light as Liberated Matter (Body)

Scientists have proven that our universe, while often appearing solid, is a vast vortex of energy. Einstein discovered the famous equation that governs the mechanics of atomic behavior, E=mc2. A few simple but profound conclusions flow of Einstein's work. Matter is in fact congealed energy. As Einstein said, "Matter is light stopped." Yet, light prefers a non-material expression and its natural physic is to seek release from the confines of matter.

Similarly, our natural evolutionary impulse as psycho-biological systems is to evolve beyond the confines of matter. Great mystics like Sri Aurobindo and Swami Ramalingam spent their entire lives working to purify the body-mind so that matter itself would gain more intelligence and evolve, perhaps ultimately being released entirely into light.

Light as Consciousness & Intelligence (Mind)

The light of consciousness governs the emergence and disappearance of thoughts within the mind, as well as the discriminating function that chooses among them. Our level of consciousness determines which thoughts we identify with, how we respond, and ultimately our entire experience of reality. For many millennia, humanity has been operating in relative darkness, exercising a limited consciousness that creates conflict, struggle, poverty and suffering. Given our current identifications and reactions - most notably fear, scarcity and exploitation - we seem to be in need of greater light.

In esoteric traditions like kundalini yoga, the yogis discovered that certain energy centers in the body directly correspond to dormant parts of the brain which hold vast amounts of unlocked potential. As those energy centers become enlivened and enlightened, new mental and intuitive capacities are stimulated, awakening seemingly "super-human" or "divine" intelligence. This supreme intelligence or radiant inner light, often depicted on religious icons as an aura around the head or body, has been described by the saints, prophets and enlightened masters of all faiths throughout the ages.

In the Tamil language of southern India, this light is called 'Arul'. 'Arul' is defined as "soul intelligence" as opposed to 'Marul' which means "mind intelligence". Science and technology would fall under 'Marul'. Humanity's current mind intelligence, while certainly useful, is not sufficient to wisely correct our problems. The nurturing of a new "soul intelligence", a new type of consciousness beyond logic, is required to evolve both the individual and the collective into a higher order of enlightened existence.

Light as God (Spirit)

In the New Testament, John 1:5 says, "This is the message we have heard from Jesus and proclaim to you, that God is Light and in Him is no darkness at all." Light is an expression of the Divine, not of one religion but of all religions. It is the burning bush for Moses, the light of Jesus that blinded Paul on the road to Damascus, the power of Allah as perceived by Mohammad, the inner light of the Buddha and the enlightened ones of all faiths. There is not a single religion that doesn't glorify the light.

"The hero is the one who kindles a great light in the world, who sets up blazing torches in the dark streets of life for men to see by," wrote American educator and author, Felix Adler. "The saint is the man who walks through the dark paths of the world, himself a light." As we awaken divine intelligence, realizing the inherently radiant nature of the soul, the human becomes the Divine.

Now for the cynics among you: you don't need to take my word for it. You can know the light through your own direct experience. Test it in your life. Become a scientist. Investigate with an open mind.

For the rest of you: do the same. Tap into the collective archetype. Let the light fill you - body, mind and spirit. Given our deep connection with this shared sacred symbol, it doesn't take much to stand up for the light.


For more on "Grace" and "Light", visit www.thegracelight.com

Amazing Grace (VIDEO)

"Gracefulness has been defined as the outward expression of the inward harmony of the soul," wrote British essayist William Hazlitt. If gracefulness is the outer expression, then perhaps grace itself is the source of the inner light.

I have been reflecting recently on the notion of Grace. Nearly every religion has a concept or definition of grace: Grace is the "freely given, unmerited favor and love of God." It is the "spirit of God operating in humans to regenerate or to strengthen them." And it is "Divine love and protection bestowed freely on people."

Each of these definitions hints in some way at the mercy of the Divine to shower us with blessings freely, without any pre-condition.In my post last week, I shared the inspiring and transcendent experience of astronaut Edgar Mitchell during his return trip toward earth in Apollo 14. I also shared my own transformational experience in India when, in a glorious instant, my consciousness exploded into radiant and ecstatic Oneness. All sense of separateness and individual identity vaporized and, for several (timeless) days, "I" was pure Being, imbued with supreme power and intelligence. That was grace.

I did nothing to deserve that experience. The day started out much like any other day. I had no forewarning that my body would soon erupt into brilliant, self-effulgent light, nor any reason to suspect my life was about to take a drastically different course. Yet when the illusion of separation was shattered, my fundamental understanding of reality was radically re-configured. Even this briefest glimpse of the inherent interconnectedness of all things changed "me" forever. That was grace.

It was nearly a year later when I thought to ask my spiritual teacher whether the experience had a name. "Of course," he said, "you experienced the light body."

This answer was profound coming from a sage whose lineage are masters of light and transcendence. His deeply mystical tradition teaches that ultimate enlightenment is not simply liberation of the mind (as if that weren't hard enough), but also liberation of the body. The yogis discovered that we have many layers of existence - from the gross physical body, to subtle energy bodies, to the radiant body of light. As we expand our capacity to hold greater light by awakening various energy centers in the body, we can ultimately transform the dense matter of the physical form into the spiritual body of light. Well-known eastern saints such as Babaji and Swami Ramalingam are documented as having achieved this liberation, the immortal "light body", similar to the resurrection of Jesus, the assumption of Mother Mary, or the ascension process in other faiths.

I share this whole story for a particular reason. Independent of your ability to perceive it, or your sense of merit or worthiness, everyone is infused with grace light. Grace light is the incredibly radiant light of the Divine within every soul -- compassionate, intelligent and almighty. It is not a physical light -- it is an explosive inner light, more brilliant and powerful than the sun. It is the burning bush for Moses, the light of Jesus that blinded Paul on his way to Damascus, the power of Allah, Buddha and the enlightened ones of all faiths throughout the ages.

Recognizing this universal truth, the Tamil Siddha lineage is acknowledging an emerging phenomenon - the awakening of grace light in the hearts and minds of more and more people around the globe. According to them, humanity is undergoing a major evolutionary transformation and the great masters of many traditions are here to help steward the process. This lineage believes that grace light will awaken both individual and collective consciousness, affecting a global shift into a new level of human evolution.

Every individual will play an important role in this shift, as the primary conduit for expression of light is the human body. Once various energy centers are opened, (a process the Siddhas call "opening the 9-Gates") you become a vehicle for transmitting light to others. It is an opportunity for everyone to contribute to a shift of consciousness on a global scale.

The beginning of this shift will correspond with a significant astronomical event on the eastern calendar. The "Full Moon of the Guru" or Guru Purnima (July 17th) is an ancient tradition in India when heavenly teachers offer powerful blessings to the human race. It is a time of opportunity for divine energy to enter the collective heart of humanity, bringing new levels of compassion, joy, peace, and divine intelligence to the world.

I encourage you to 'tune in' to the sacred energies during this time. Open into a state of receptivity and faith. Take time for prayer or meditation, let go of fear, and simply let the blessings wash over you. That is grace.

For more about grace light, watch this:



For information about grace light gatherings across the U.S., Europe & Asia, click here.