When is prosperity, simplicity; and when is simplicity, prosperity?
by Michael Ketterhagen
“Meditation is an inward journey—
the mind’s journey from the complex reality of the physical world
to the simple, undistorted world of consciousness.”
--Pandit Rajmani Tigunait, “Vishoka Meditation: The Yoga of Inner Radiance”
“Simplicity means that we live close enough to the limits of our resources
so that we can rely on God’s providence and appreciate the beauty of life….
It requires serious reflection to sort out what is necessary and what is luxury….
Only conscious and consistent meditation, prayer, and [contemplation]
can help us live the simplicity of Jesus [Christ].”
--Audrey Gibson and Kieran Kneaves, “Praying with Louise de Marillac”
Christians and Yogis agree again—this time in reference to meditation and the simple life!
The key element of their agreement is the faithful practice of meditation—the “conscious and consistent” “inward journey.” This practice in Christianity, called Christian Mantra Meditation, and in the Sri Vidya Yoga Tradition, called Vishoka Meditation, leads us to each tradition’s understanding of and connection with the Source of Life. Yoga calls this Divine Creator, Brahman or Consciousness; Christianity calls it God or Christ.
In either case, whenever we are connected to that Source of Life (to that Divine Creator), we are connected to the greatest abundance of life. We truly know, as Louise de Marillac, a Christian mystic, how to live our life in this complicated, consumer-oriented, socially complicated life of distraction and dramatic confusion. We begin to live prosperously because we know all that we need to make us happy. We don’t accumulate multiple pairs of shoes or other personal property or temporarily attractive things. We have all we need and nothing more.
The same happens as a result of the Yoga Tradition’s meditation practices and all the preparatory practices moving us to that world of Consciousness. Christian meditation, prayer and contemplative practices do the same. They bring us to the life and world of Consciousness/Brahman, the life and world of the Christian Trinity (God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit).
This world is a world of prosperity because it is a world that moves us away from superfluous physical trappings and all the worries and concerns connected with those material aspects of life. This world of Consciousness/God moves us to the knowledge of what we must do to complete our purpose on earth, to nurture and feed our body and mind, so that we live a joyous, peaceful, and loving life.
We now understand that prosperity (both material and spiritual) is the life of simplicity and that simplicity (both material and spiritual) is the prosperous life!
I pray to the Divinity (Consciousness/God) within You!
Namaste’