Eknath Easwaran

Thousands of young people are being misled by the assertion that psychedelic drugs can bring about spiritual awareness. Even well-known people have made statements about Indian sages using drugs; but I have no hesitation in saying that no sage worth his mantram has ever taken drugs for spiritual purposes. Meher Baba, a great modern mystic, warned us that not only do drugs not bring spiritual awareness, but when taken for a long time they may damage our capacity for spiritual ...awareness. If we look for a chemical shortcut through drugs, there is a possibility we will reach a point where we will be unable to meditate. Meditation is such a demanding expedition into the world within that we must have a strong, resilient body, a fit nervous system, a calm mind, and a lucid intellect, all of which are likely to be impaired not just by drugs, but by any form of excessive indulgence in the senses and in self-will. Eknath Easwaran, from vol. 1 of "The Bhagavad Gita for Daily Living: The End of Sorrow"

Sri Krishna, the perfect incarnation of Vishnu, is represented as a young man with extraordinary physical beauty. He is thoroughly masculine, yet his thick, long, wavy hair, slim limbs, and delicate features make him as beautiful as a girl. There is even a chic air about him, as if the Changeless were always up with the latest fashions. One of Sri Krishna's hallmarks is a shimmering peacock feather which he wears in his hair. If you have never seen a peacock dancing, you have... missed one of the most magnificent displays of color in nature. I suppose peacocks are not common in the United States, but when one of our small children happened to see a peacock dancing by the side of the road, the hues of his tail glinting and changing in the sun, he got so excited just telling me about it that he almost knocked over the dinner table demonstrating. The peacock feather makes a perfect symbol for spiritual living. It is the worldly life, the selfish life, that is dull and drab; the spiritual life is full of color. But we have been so conditioned by the glitter of physical attractions that we mistake drabness for color and color for drabness. When we live for ourselves, the Gita says, we are living in the night and calling it day. Sri Krishna's feather is a vivid reminder to wake up. Krishna is modern enough to be wearing earrings, and his choice of styles would qualify for Vogue. But these superbly wrought gold circlets have a fascinating message. If you look closely, you see they are not just rings; they are little crocodiles. "Love the Lord with all your heart," the mystics explain, "and he will come like a crocodile to snap up all your selfishness and swallow your self-will. Eknath Easwaran, from The Constant Companion

Visit this week's Wednesdays With the BMCM to get a sneak peek of the upcoming audiobook recording of The Bhagavad Gita for Daily Living.

Once a student from the University at Berkeley came to me at our meditation class and said, I have a roommate who used to be a pain in the neck for a long time. Now I kind of like him, and I’m even beginning to wish I could be like him. I want to see what is happening here to turn him from a person I disliked into a person I want to be like. My comment was, That’s about the best description of meditation I have ever heard. So if in your home people refer to your meditatio...n by saying, Oh, he is still out on that Indian trip, do not get agitated or try to defend yourself. There is no need to defend yourself; when you are meditating you have got a good defense lawyer in the Lord, who not only knows the law but wrote it. At first it is only natural that people will have misgivings about your moving away from the normal ways of life. But if you can show by your life that you are becoming less selfish, less self-willed, and increasingly able to love others, it is only a matter of time before everybody will benefit from your meditation. Eknath Easwaran, from vol. 1 of "The Bhagavad Gita for Daily Living: The End of Sorrow"