Purposefully Direct the Power Potential Within

Divine Life Society Publication: Seek The Beyond by Sri Swami Chidananda

Worshipful homage to the supreme, eternal, infinite Cosmic Spirit Divine. Worshipful homage to the supreme Cosmic Power of the Divine which is both a transcendental divine force and the first manifestation of the Unmanifest. Therefore, it is different from the Unmanifest, but at the same time integrally one with the Unmanifest. Because the supreme, ultimate, transcendental Reality is one alone and non-dual, ekameva’ dvitiyam, there cannot be any question of manifestation being apart from It, because whatever is must be Its expression.

Non-dual means that there is nothing other than That. There is no second factor. Manifestation cannot be something created out of a second factor because there is no second factor. Therefore, all manifestation is another aspect, facet, of the Great Reality. Thus, even when it shines as another aspect, distinct from the transcendental Reality, yet nevertheless, it is at the same time essentially one with that Being whose aspect it is.

Therefore, the supreme Cosmic Force, transcendental Cosmic Force, para sakti, is a transformed aspect of the one non-dual Reality. Thus it is said that para sakti and parabrahman are one, a distinction without a difference, an apparent appearance that does not in any way affect or alter the absolute non-duality of the Reality. It follows, therefore, that in this variegated phenomenal appearance, this infinite multifariousness, that the infinite pairs of opposites—light and darkness, beginning and end, liberty and bondage, peace and restlessness—are manifestations of the same one, non-dual, transcendental Being.

And that supreme Cosmic Force resides within you as numerous types of forces—physical force of the body, thought force of the mind and the force of rationality, logic and analysis of the intellect. It is also the force to recollect and bring back into present remembrance long-forgotten things. It is the force to project into the future as well, through planning, scheming and imagination. Whatever you possess through which you move, act, function, carry on some purposeful work, you do through the grace of the supreme Cosmic Power, para sakti, dwelling within you as an integral part of yourself. She is thought, She is intellect, She is analysis, She is concentration, She is meditation, She is memory, She is imagination. She is the original, primal blueprint for all that we produce in the form of work—good or bad.

So within you, you have all these forces, and you have the choice of moving in so many different ways. You can push someone into a pit, or if someone has unfortunately fallen into a pit and cannot get up, you can bend down, grasp hold of their hands and pull them out. With the selfsame force you can either push or pull.

Therefore, we have to be very cautious, circumspect, thoughtful, discriminating and careful in what way we make the forces within us manifest themselves in this world of living beings and in this world of human affairs. What exactly you will be in the midst of this set-up of your global human family entirely depends upon you and your carefully, well-chosen decision in what manner you direct the innumerable forces that are within you.

Therefore, think well in what way you utilise and manifest this inner force. This force is amoral. It can also remain within you as a potential, as static, not manifest. You have the potential to do ever so many things, but unless you actually put it forth into motion, it remains there as potential, as a deposit in a bank. If you so decide, it is instantly at your disposal. The moment it is called forth, it is there in the form of activity. When it is directed, it becomes a certain power—the power of thought, the power of the Spirit, the power of love, the power of a selfless desire to serve.

Therefore, be constantly alert in discrimination, and at each moment go on directing this great potential of cosmic power that resides within each one of you. For it is sacred, for it is divine, for it is spiritual. It is not meant to be frittered away. It is not meant to be wrongly used, to be misused. It is meant to be purposefully, powerfully directed and used for progress, to bring into being better and better states of existence.

This potential is meant to be put forth and used, in the words of Lord Buddha, "for the happiness and welfare of all creatures in God’s creation." And if you want to put it in the words of our lawgivers: "This power potential within you has to be carefully and wisely manifested and brought forth in order to achieve the four great objectives, values, of human life—the ethical value, the economic value, the vital, emotional, value, and the ultimate, supreme highest spiritual value.

You have not come here to merely bear the brunt of karma, to suffer and then one day to be extinguished. No, not at all! You have come here with a great destiny; you have come here with a supreme purpose, with the highest objective to attain. You have been sent here. You have come here to fulfil God’s plan for you. To that end you must work. See that His wish prevails and manifests Itself in and through you.

God’s plan for you, His will for you, is ultimate divine perfection—which is already within you. Through Yoga and Vedanta attain Self-realisation! Through working for the attainment of the fourfold supreme values, purushartha chatushtaya, make your life a grand success in achievement, in ultimate attainment!

Excerpts from: Purposefully Direct the Power Potential Within - Seek The Beyond by Sri Swami Chidananda