Dear Friends,
During the years that Swamiji was with Master, he often heard him speak with great power and intensity about impending world disasters. As we know, Swamiji took this to heart, and it was one of the prime motivators for him in creating communities and urging us to organize emergency preparation. At this point, we’ve made such preparations throughout the Ananda communities.
Recently we received an email from our friend and gifted astrologer, Drupada, which we, in turn, have taken to heart. We’ve included his letter at the end of ours, in case you want to read it in its entirety.
Essentially what he shared was that in studying the astrological configurations for 2016, he feels that worldwide this will be a very challenging year. In February, Mars will enter Scorpio and join Saturn, which is already in that sign. This conjunction will last for seven months, which is very unusual.
The aggressive energy of Mars and potentially negative energy of Saturn will both be strengthened by the intensity of Scorpio. Drupada said the indications are that January and February will remain relatively calm, but that conflicts could start in March and be especially acute in July, August, and the first part of September. After that, globally things should return to a calmer state.
He concluded by saying that the higher aspect of Saturn is concentration, and of Mars, energy, so for yogis this can be a time of focused spiritual practices. Drupada is not an alarmist, and Swamiji had great respect for his perspective, so we are taking his words seriously.
With all this in mind, we would like to launch a united campaign throughout Ananda based on Master’s “peace and harmony” prayer. It goes like this:
Visualize the person in question in the divine light, and then pray from your heart, “Lord, fill [him/her/a situation] with peace and harmony, peace and harmony.” Repeat this for about a minute. Then visualize yourself in divine light, and say, “Lord, fill me with peace and harmony, peace and harmony” for fifteen seconds. For maximum effect it’s recommended to say this prayer (both parts) five times daily.
We want to use this prayer now by saying, “Lord, fill this world with peace and harmony, peace and harmony” (for about ten repetitions), followed by, “Lord, fill me with peace and harmony, peace and harmony” (for three repetitions).
In discussing this with the Spiritual Life Council at the Village, we generated some ideas of how we can start using this prayer in groups and individually. Here are some opportunities for group practice of the prayer that are already happening, or are in the process of being introduced:
1) At morning sadhanas at Hansa and for different departments.
2) At The Expanding Light during one of the daily sadhanas.
3) At the conclusion of the Festival of Light during Sunday service, before the chanting of AUM.
4) During various community sadhanas: the Men’s and Women’s Kriyaban meditations, Sunday evening meditations, the monks’ meditation, and others.
5) During the Study Groups satsangs.
6) During the quarterly Attunement Ceremony.
7) During noon meditations that will be organized at Hansa.
8) We will be coordinating with colony leaders worldwide to select a time when we can practice this together globally.
As individuals, we urge you to add this prayer to your daily sadhana. To do it five times a day, someone suggested that you could repeat it at your morning and evening meditations and before each meal. Another approach would be to repeat it at the beginning and end of your meditations, and then before you go to sleep.
Soon we will be distributing cards with the prayer on it, as well as cards with excerpts from Swamiji’s book, Secrets for Bringing Peace on Earth.
During Inner Renewal Week on Wednesday, Feb. 3 at noon in the Expanding Light temple, we will have an opportunity to get together to discuss this, and you can ask questions or offer ideas.
We want to conclude by sharing some words from Swamiji’s article, “What Do We Pray For?” (see the full article at www.jyotishanddevi.org/whatdoweprayfor) that he wrote following the 9/11 attacks in 2001:
“What should I pray for? I pray that I become an ever truer channel for God’s grace. I pray for my fellow human beings, too, that they become stronger in God’s light.
“The real war today is not military. It is a conflict between faith and the repudiation of all faith, between love and hatred. What will win this war is if millions of people offer themselves up as channels of God’s truth and justice. This offering is one each of us has the power to make. . . .
“An ocean consists of innumerable drops. Although one raindrop adds but little moisture to the earth, when it unites with many other drops, they flow as a mighty river to the sea. We too, united with God’s will, can help mightily in the struggle between the forces of light and of darkness. By praying and acting rightly , we may be instrumental in ushering in a period of international and inter-religious peace and understanding.”
United with you in Master’s cause,
Jyotish and Devi
~
December 18, 2015
Hi Jyotish and Devi,
I pray this note finds you both well.
As you most likely know, often people ask me to look for auspicious dates for marriage, and now and then, for other important beginnings. Every year I’ll take some time and look through the next year or so to get an idea of how the energy will be during these times. As I was doing this for next year, it became clear that there will be some challenging energy for a good bit of 2016. I’m not an astrologer who fears the planets, or checks the horoscope all the time. Even when there is challenging energy, we can transcend and find the gift. Still, if we are going surfing, it is good to have an idea of the condition of the Surf. What I see looking forward is that in February Mars will enter Scorpio and join Saturn, who is already there. Usually Mars will pass through an astrological sign in 6 weeks. Every couple of years, Mars will go retrograde (appear to move backward) for many months. This will happen in 2016. Mars will be in Scorpio, which he rules and thus makes him very strong, from 2/18 to 9/18. Since Saturn is already in Scorpio, it means these two energies will be mingling for 7 months. The higher side of Saturn is detachment and wisdom. The lower side is fear based and can be very negative. Mars, who can be aggressive, and Saturn, who can be negative, will be mingling their energies, in Scorpio, an intense sign, for these seven months. Well, in the past six weeks, we’ve already had some Mars fireworks, as he passed through Virgo and conjuncted Rahu. It seems things will not calm down, generally in the world, for a while, most likely in later September and after. Although, I think we’ll have a lull in January and February. At first, this influence will be general, not acute. In July, August, and the first part of September, it will be quite strong.
Like I said, my attitude is that in such times we need to keep God and Guru in mind and heart even more, and we’ll be protected. I don’t like to put out reports such as the one above. But, because I’ve told many couples looking for wedding dates next year to avoid this February to September time, the word has gotten out about my view of 2016. Of course there will be many good days. But, there is also likely to be a background tension. For a wedding, why not just wait until this time passes? But, for other things of life, I’d just say people should be careful and aware during this time. OM TAT SAT!
A friend suggested that I let you know my thoughts about this. Maybe we could respond by having some special ceremony or special meditations, to send positive energy, not only to the world, but to our country. This astrological combo suggests the Trump experience isn’t going to go away soon. He is whipping up a lot of prejudice and negativity. From a yogic perspective, the higher side of Saturn is concentration; Mars represents energy; for the few, this combination can be very focused, spiritual energy. Vedic astrology considers this energy powerful for tapas – focused spiritual practice. Maybe a good idea would be to mobilize Ananda Worldwide, to up the ante with sadhana and healing prayers, to help counteract the conflict “in the air”
If you have any questions about this, don’t hesitate to contact me.
In Divine Friendship,
Drupada
Download this letter as a PDF: Peace-Harmony-letter-from-Jyotish-and-Devi.pdf