Giving & Helping

By Dr. Stewart Bitkoff

Q:        Why is it important to give to others?  Some religions request a percent of your wage as regular donation.

The universe as we know it could not exist without giving.  Giving is natural and is another aspect of the Divine.  Just as a mother gives life to her child, freely offers milk and guidance through the years, so, we must learn to give of ourselves.  In giving to others, without expectation, we are living our higher destiny.

On the spiritual level, when the higher comes forward, we are in tune with Truth.  This occurs so we can be of service and give whatever is needed.  For an example, look at the lives of the Servants of God.  Each had a vocation and their life involved helping others reach higher.  Some helped with sickness, others with guidance, or providing spiritual light to those who were in darkness.

Give to others, without expectation or indebtedness and you will discover who you are. (more…)

Spiritual Understanding

By Dr. Stewart Bitkoff

Q:       Until I achieve inner, spiritual understanding, what am I to do?

Try to live a good, balanced life.  Achieve excellence in something.  Seek to help others and develop the many aspects of yourself.  Make time to listen to your inner song. Stay away from that which is destructive.  Do things in moderation and try not to hurt someone.  Be kind to yourself and others.  Be a good loving person that is an asset to their family, community and world.

If you do these things, in time, the missing ingredient will appear.  Then you will be a King/Queen in this world and the next. (more…)

Staying Sane

By Dr. Stewart Bitkoff

How deep the stillness, when I call the Name. Going inward frees me from myself and I am home again. Into that realm that is truly me and has been me since the souls were created.  Ancient and deep, travels this current through my soul; it is the place where I join with the Light and we dance together again.

Long have I been in this world; although it seems that I arrived just last week. All these opposites reconcile and are washed away in the ocean of my soul; for deep within, my soul dances with the Infinite. All I need do is go inward and recognize myself; that part which has always been, and has always been with the Light. Then I am still, at peace with myself and the Source. (more…)

A Diamond

By Dr. Stewart Bitkoff

Over millions of years the elements combine; heating and cooling, being tossed and weighed down. Then, one day, miracle of miracles- an extraordinary, rare and beautiful stone appears.

Still waiting, covered in the earth, the stone needs to be discovered and brought to a gifted jeweler for cleaning and polishing. Finally completing the preparation and setting the magnificent, shining gem into a fine ring which will adorn the finger of a King/Queen.

O spiritual traveler, do you believe the process of completion is any different for you and I?

-SB

Check-out my two books: Sufism for Western Seekers: Path of the Spiritual Traveler in Everyday Life and The Ferryman’s Dream.  Both books are available through Amazon.com or local bookstore.

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Spiritual Traveler: Need for a Teacher?

By Dr. Stewart Bitkoff

Each spiritual traveler’s journey is both individual and collective.  With the sequence of learning experiences varying according to the person, the time, and their higher as opposed to emotional need.  This sequence is established by the Teaching, the teacher, and the path.  It is a sequence that originates from another dimension, has baraka or grace attached to it, and operates within its own rules. (more…)

Seeing What is Present

By Dr. Stewart Bitkoff

That which is permanent is seldom known to the 5 senses. It must be perceived by another capacity. Until this capacity or organ of perception is awakened, we are like heedless children playing with fire. Sooner or later, our actions will cause problems for us.

The complete individual, or enlightened person, is able to temper their expectations with reality. Often it is our reaction to daily events and not the events themselves which pose the more lasting problem.

We must learn to view and accept what is present, not what we want to be present. By clouding reality with expectation and personal desire, for a time, we become off center. This lack of balance, in turn, prevents us from perceiving what is before us. (more…)

Living in the present is real living

By Lt Col R K Langar

Many of us do not realize the value of living in the present. They feel that present will not give them the happiness they are looking for. Happiness for them lies in remembering some happy moments of the past. They also hope that the future will give them thrilling moments which the present has eluded them thus far. Not only that they also have some regrets of the past and anxieties for the future due to which they do not understand the value of living in the present moment.   Living in present is the real living because the good doings of the present will not only neutralize ill doings of the past but shall also make your future an affair to remember. What we are now are the effects of our past deeds and what we do now shall have a direct bearing on the quality of our future life. Time wasted now in remembering the past or imagining the future can be usefully invested in living in the present. (more…)

Going Home

By Dr. Stewart Bitkoff

“If you wish to know how something ends
Look at its beginning.”
-Traditional

The acorn goes deep into the earth
And as the seasons pass,
Grows into a mighty oak.
Spreading its limbs for many years;
Giving shade and nourishment to the countryside.
One day, only to decay and return back to the ground.

O spiritual traveler, when you close your eyes
For the last time, where will you go?

The twin sparks of energy
That joined and exploded
Inside your mother’s womb,
Carry you through your days.
Then one day this energy too
Must journey forward to someplace else.

Where will this energy take you?

Remember, it was Love
That brought you here,
And it is Love that will carry you
From world to world.

One day, to return Home.
-SB

Check-out my two books: Sufism for Western Seekers: Path of the Spiritual Traveler in Everyday Life and The Ferryman’s Dream.  Both books are available through Amazon.com or local bookstore.

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Bird Cage

By Dr. Stewart Bitkoff

Like a captive bird
The soul sings,
Remembering its home.

It is precisely
For this song,
The bird is caged.

Check-out my two books: Sufism for Western Seekers: Path of the Spiritual Traveler in Everyday Life and The Ferryman’s Dream.  Both books are available through Amazon.com or local bookstore.

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Living inside out and not outside in

By Lt Col R K Langar

Introduction

The title of this write up says that a human being who is potentially divine has a wealth of values and beauties inside him which give him strength. Therefore he should live in this world as per his inner strength which should influence the outer world. And at the same time man should be so strong internally that nothing from outer world should influence him which is not in line with his belief system. When I say man is potentially divine it means that the soul or Atma is a ray of God Almighty, the one without a second, and the Atma has all the Divine virtues which need to be manifested to their pristine glory by human effort by yoga and by thinking about them and by imbibing them. (more…)