The Bowl of Saki

[guest587]

   One who has spent has used; one who has collected has lost; but one who has given has saved his treasure forever.

    Bowl of Saki, August 31, by Hazrat Inayat Khan

Commentary by Pir-o-Murshid Inayat Khan:

The tendency to doubt, to be depressed, the tendency towards fear, suspicion and confusion, the tendency to puzzle -- where does it all come from? It all comes from the thought of getting something in return: 'will another give me back what I have given him? Shall I get the just portion back, or less?' if that is the thought behind one's acts there will be fear, doubt, suspicion, puzzle and confusion. For what is doubt? Doubt is a cloud that stands before the sun, keeping it from shining its light. So is doubt: gathering around the soul it keeps its light from shining out, and man becomes confused and perplexed. Once selflessness is developed, it breaks through the cloud saying, 'What do I care whether anyone appreciates it; I only know to give my service, and that is all my satisfaction. I do not look forward to get it back. I have given and it is finished; this is where my duty ends.' That person is blessed, because he has conquered, he has won.

[guest587]

Love is the divine Mother's arms; when those arms are spread, every soul falls into them.

    Bowl of Saki, September 9, by Hazrat Inayat Khan

Commentary by Pir-o-Murshid Inayat Khan:

The Sufis of all ages have been known for their beautiful personality. It does not mean that among them there have not been people with great powers, wonderful powers and wisdom. But beyond all that, what is most known of the Sufis is the human side of their nature: that tact which attuned them to wise and foolish, to poor and rich, to strong and weak -- to all. They met everyone on his own plane, they spoke to everyone in his own language. What did Jesus teach when he said to the fishermen, 'Come hither, I will make you fishers of men?' It did not mean, 'I will teach you ways by which you get the best of man.' It only meant: your tact, your sympathy will spread its arms before every soul who comes, as mother's arms are spread out for her little ones.

   from  https://wahiduddin.net/mv2/VIII/VIII_2_15.htm


Mystics of all ages have not been known for their miraculous powers or for the doctrines they have taught, but for the devotion they have shown throughout their lives. The Sufi in the East says to himself, Ishq Allah Ma'bud Allah, which means 'God is Love, God is the Beloved', in other words it is God who is Love, Lover, and Beloved. When we hear the stories of the miraculous powers of mystics, of their great insight into the hidden laws of nature, of the qualities which they manifested through their beautiful personalities, we realize that these have all come from one and the same source, whether one calls it devotion or whether one calls it love.

   from  https://wahiduddin.net/mv2/XI/XI_III_11.htm


Once four little girls were disputing. One said, 'My mother is better than yours.' The second girl said, 'My mother is better than your mother.' So, they were arguing and being quite disagreeable to one another. But someone who was passing by said to them, 'It is not your mother or their mother, it is the mother who is always the best. It is the mother quality, her love and affection for her children.' This is the point of view of the mystic in regard to the divine ideal.

The moral principle of the mystic is the love principle. He says, 'The greater your love, the greater your moral. If we are forced to be virtuous according to a certain principle, a certain regulation, certain laws or rules, then that is not real virtue. It must come from the depths of our heart; our own heart must teach us the true moral.' Thus the mystic leaves morality to the deepening of the heart quality. The mystic says that the more loving someone's heart is, the greater is his morality.

There is no greater teacher of morals than love itself, for the first lesson that one learns from love is, 'I am not, you are.' This is self-denial, self-abnegation, without which we cannot take the first step on love's path. One may claim to be a great lover, to be a great admirer, to be very affectionate, but it all means nothing as long as the thought of self is there, for there is no love. But when the thought of self is removed then every action, every deed that one performs in life, becomes a virtue. It cannot be otherwise. A loving person cannot be unjust, a loving person cannot be cruel. Even if what he does seems wrong in the eyes of a thousand people, it cannot be wrong in reality. In reality, it will be right, for it is inspired by love.

   from  https://wahiduddin.net/mv2/X/X_1.htm



   ~~~ Love is the divine Mother's arms; when those arms are spread, every soul falls into them.

[guest587]

This story about fighting over whose Mother is better is the same as fighting over whose God is the true God.

[guest587]

The only way to live in the midst of inharmonious influences is to strengthen the will power and endure all things, yet keeping fineness of character and nobility of manner together with an everlasting heart full of love.

    Bowl of Saki, September 13, by Hazrat Inayat Khan

Commentary by Pir-o-Murshid Inayat Khan:

Many seek protection from all hurting influences by building some wall around themselves. But the canopy over the earth is so high that a wall cannot be built high enough, and the only thing one can do is to live in the midst of all inharmonious influences, to strengthen his will power and to bear all things, yet keeping the fineness of character and a nobleness of manner together with an ever-living heart.

   from  https://wahiduddin.net/mv2/XIII/XIII_14.htm


To say, 'You are different and I am different, your religion is different and my religion is different, your belief is different and my belief is different,' will not unite, it will only divide humanity. Those who, with the excuse of their great faith in their own religion, hurt the feelings of another and divide humanity which has the same source and goal, abuse religion, whatever be their faith. The message, at whatever period it came to the world, did not come just to a certain section of humanity; it did not come to raise only some few people who perhaps accepted the faith, the message, or a particular organized Church. No, all these things came afterwards. The rain does not fall in a certain land only; the sun does not shine only on a particular country. All that comes from God is for all souls. If they are worthy, they deserve it; it is their reward; if they are unworthy, they are the more entitled to it. Verily, blessing is for every soul; for every soul, whatever be his faith or belief, belongs to God.

   from  https://wahiduddin.net/mv2/IX/IX_2.htm


When a person begins to see all goodness as being the goodness of God, all the beauty that surrounds him as the divine beauty, he begins by worshipping a visible God, and as his heart constantly loves and admires the divine beauty in all that he sees, he begins to see in all that is visible one single vision; all becomes for him the vision of the beauty of God. His love of beauty increases his capacity to such a degree that great virtues such as tolerance and forgiveness spring naturally from his heart. Even things that people mostly look upon with contempt, he views with tolerance.

   from  https://wahiduddin.net/mv2/IX/IX_9.htm

[guest587]

Can we forgive ourselves for our downfalls? Maybe our relationships are here solely to address our inner world. And maybe the world around us is the state of our consciousness

Todays message:

Love has its limitations when it is directed towards limited beings, but love directed to God has no limitations.

    Bowl of Saki, September 18, by Hazrat Inayat Khan

Commentary by Pir-o-Murshid Inayat Khan:

If someone limits his love to a single object, saying, 'I only love this and there is nothing else I need', surely he has not the right kind of love either. True love is limitless. Though it begins by being limited in such a way, yet it progresses and some day breaks out. ... To speak of the jealous God means that the unlimited force of love cannot allow its expression to be directed towards one limited object. That is why the love of God alone is the culmination of love, for love is as vast as God. Verily, love itself is God.

   from  https://wahiduddin.net/mv2/VII/VII_9.htm


The individual soul is a shoot that springs from the all-pervading Spirit, its goal being its origin; and every attachment it has on its way is, no doubt, a detaining on the journey. The soul is never fully satisfied so long as it has not reached its destination. The love of the external world is a rehearsal before the performance, which is the love of God, the Inner Being.

   ~~~ "Sangatha II, 1 - Tasawwuf", by Hazrat Inayat Khan (unpublished)


Man can love another human being, but by the very fact of his loving another human being he has not got the full scope. To express all the love that is there, he must love the unlimited God. One admires all that is beautiful in color, tone, or form; but everything beautiful has its limitations; it is only when one rises above limitations that one finds that perfection which is God alone.

   from  https://wahiduddin.net/mv2/IX/IX_9.htm


As we give all things they come back to us through Love. The more we give, the more comes back. Love has its limitations when it is directed to limited beings, but love that is directed to God has no limitations, God alone deserves all love, and the freedom of Love is in giving it to God.

   ~~~ "Sangatha III, 30 - Ta'lim", by Hazrat Inayat Khan (unpublished)


Love for one person, to whatever depth it may have reached, is limited. Perfection of love lies in its vastness. 'The tendency of love is to expand, even from one atom to the whole universe, from a single earthly beloved to God.' When love is for the human being it is primitive and incomplete, and yet it is needed to begin with. He can never say, 'I love God,' who has no love for his fellow man. But when love attains its culmination in God, it reaches its perfection.

   from  https://wahiduddin.net/mv2/V/V_22.htm

[guest587]

It is when one has lost the idea of separateness and feels himself at one with all creation that his eyes are opened and he sees the cause of all things.

    Bowl of Saki, September 27, by Hazrat Inayat Khan

Commentary by Pir-o-Murshid Inayat Khan:

Every being and object which is distinctly separate may be called an entity, but what one calls an individual is a conception of our imagination; and the true meaning of that conception will be realized on the day when the ultimate truth throws its light upon life. On that day no one will speak about individuality; one will say 'God' and no more.

There are many beings, but at the same time there is one, the only Being. Therefore objects such as streams and mountains are also living, but they only exist separately to our outer vision. When our inner vision opens then the separation is shown as a veil; then there is one vision alone, and that is the immanence of God.

   from  https://wahiduddin.net/mv2/V/V_12.htm


As soon as the soul begins to say 'I' he is exiled from heaven, for all blessings belong to the state which the soul experienced before he claimed to be 'I', a separate entity, separate from others. It is because of this that man, whatever his position, whatever his situation in life, is not fully happy. The trouble of one may perhaps be greater than that of another, but both he who resides in heavenly palaces and the inhabitant of a grass hut have their troubles; both have their pain. But man finds the reason for all afflictions in the life outside him. The Sufi finds it in that one sin: that of having claimed to be 'I'. With this claim came all the trouble, it continued, and it will always continue. This sin has such a hold upon the soul that it is just like the eclipse of the sun, when its light is covered and cannot shine.

   from  https://wahiduddin.net/mv2/XII/XII_I_5.htm


There is an innate desire in every human being for knowledge. ... With man this desire is never satisfied. He always wants to know more. There is ever a restless craving within him for knowledge. This is because he does not look for the cause in the right way. He only sees the external causes, and not the cause underlying the cause, and below that, the primal cause. For example, a man who has become estranged from his friend only sees perhaps the superficial cause, and calls his friend unkind; or he may even admit that he himself is at fault, or he may go still deeper and say that owing to a certain planetary influence they cannot be friendly. Yet he has not probed the cause of this cause. ...

For this reason the religions taught the God-ideal, that the primal cause might be sought through the pursuit of God. It is when man has lost the idea of duality and feels himself at one with all creation, that his eyes are opened and he sees the cause of everything.

   from  https://wahiduddin.net/mv2/V/V_30.htm



   ~~~ It is when man has lost the idea of separateness and feels himself at one with all creation that his eyes are opened and he sees the cause of all things.

[guest587]

God is within you; you are His instrument, and through you He expresses Himself to the external world.

    Bowl of Saki, November 24, by Hazrat Inayat Khan

Commentary by Pir-o-Murshid Inayat Khan:

In reality God is within man; man is the instrument of God and through him God experiences the external world. Prayer is the way of conveying the God within to the God without; and thought, speech and gesture make the prayer complete.

   from  https://wahiduddin.net/mv2/archives/prayer.htm


The words 'within oneself' might confuse some people. They might think 'within oneself' means inside one's body; but that is because man is ignorant of himself. Man has a very poor idea of himself, and this keeps him in ignorance of his real self. If man only knew how large, how wide, how deep, how high is his being, he would think, act, and feel differently; but with all his width, depth, and height, if man is not conscious of them he is as small as he thinks himself to be. The essence of milk is butter, the essence of the flower is honey, the essence of grapes is wine, and the essence of life is wisdom.

   from  https://wahiduddin.net/mv2/VII/VII_34.htm


For the secret of all knowledge that one acquires in the world, whether worldly knowledge or spiritual knowledge, is the knowledge of the self. For instance, music is played outside, but where is it realized? It is realized within. A good word or a bad word is spoken outside, but where is it realized? It is realized within. Then where is the realization of this whole manifestation, all this creation that stands before us in all its aspects? Its realization is within. And at the same time the error of man always continues. Instead of finding it within he always wants to find it without. It is just like a man who wants to see the moon and looks for it on the ground. And if a man sought for thousands of years for the moon by looking on the earth, he will never see it. He will have to lift up his head and look at the sky. And so with the man who is in search of the mystery of life outside; he will never find it. For the mystery of life is to be found within.

   from  https://wahiduddin.net/mv2/II/II_24.htm

[guest587]

As long as in love there is "you" and "me", love is not fully kindled.

    Bowl of Saki, November 27, by Hazrat Inayat Khan

Commentary by Pir-o-Murshid Inayat Khan:

There are three stages of morals. The first stage is the moral of reciprocity. This moral is natural to the one who sees the difference between himself and another, who recognizes every man as such and such.

The second stage is the law of beneficence, where man, recognizing himself as an entity separate from others and recognizing others as distinct entities themselves, yet sees a cord of connection running through himself and all, and finds himself as a dome in which rises an echo of good and evil; and in order to have a good echo he gives good for good and good for evil.

But the third stage is the moral of renunciation, where the difference of 'mine' and 'thine' and the distinction of 'I' and 'you' fade away in the realization of the one Life that is within and without, beneath and beyond; and that is the meaning of the verse in the Bible, 'In Him we live, and move, and have our being.'

   from  https://wahiduddin.net/mv2/III/III_III_5.htm

After an honest assessment, I believe I am entering the second stage described above. Still the beginning stages of the second, where I struggle with Ego and with doing what's right. What stage do you find yourself in?

[Jitendra Hydonus]

In my case I often think my morals do not reflect those of ‘higher’ morals so I struggle to understand what to me seem arbitrary rules or laws established by others or a higher being. Im not sure 🤔 that even gives me a place on the scale established above. In some ways though I feel an affinity for all the conditions Inayat Khan established above also though.

It is interesting Eric when I was really young I separated people and ideas into black and white categories; what was right was right and what was wrong was wrong; but over the years I have found there are not so easily defined categories for people and conditions.

I think it would be more correct to say; I have an amoral view about morality, although when the Masters have something to say about it, I do listen and it does influence many of my decisions on how to behave, even though I may not agree or want to behave they way I’m required.

[guest587]

Thanks Steve.

I admire your willingness to provide a thoughtful reply.

I'm at a stage where I have to shut my self up and recognize the greater good. I really like this second stage where he says giving good for good and good for evil. Not evil for evil. Having such challenging dynamics in my family house hold, it's easy to call ugly behavior evil. But it isn't. It's easy to hold on to a spiteful attitude towards those who behave disrespectfully or cold heartedly towards you. But I have witnessed first hand, just shortly after sharing this, the benefit of giving good for evil.

The effects are so liberating... Not just for parties directly involved, but for the environment too. It's like a widening effect on my soul, a deeper understanding and a lightening ones load.

What attracts me to HIK as a Master, or masters in general- is their ability to remain nestled in divine realization no matter the circumstance. To be in a crowd, amongst your peers, sharing your living space with someone, your family- strangers, in personal and intimate relationships.

It's one thing to be a hermit and believe you are a zen master, it's another thing to be in a city or among all the different attitudes- through joy and suffering, able to see the true self no matter the challenges.

Usually the challenges are because we are identified with the ego, whereas the Masters are identified with the Soul.

[guest587]

Once you have given up your limited self willingly to the Unlimited, you will rejoice so much in that consciousness that you will not care to be small again.

    Bowl of Saki, November 28, by Hazrat Inayat Khan

Commentary by Pir-o-Murshid Inayat Khan:

If you ask someone to say where he is, he will point at his arm, his hand, his body. He knows little beyond that. There are many who if asked, 'But where do you think you are in your body?' will say, 'In my brain.' They limit themselves to that small physical region which is called body, thus making themselves much smaller than they really are. The truth is that man is one individual with two aspects, just like one line with two ends. If you look at the ends, it is two. If you look at the line, it is one. One end of the line is limited, the other end of the line is unlimited. One end is man, the other end is God. Man forgets that end, and knows only the end of which he is conscious. And it is the consciousness of limitation which makes him more limited. Otherwise he would have far greater means of approaching the Unlimited which is within himself, which is only the other end of the same line, the line which he calls, or which he considers to be, himself. And when a mystic speaks of self-knowledge this does not mean knowing how old one is or how good one is or how bad, or how right or how wrong. It means knowing the other part of one's being, that deeper, subtler aspect. It is upon the knowledge of that being that the fulfillment of life depends.

   from  https://wahiduddin.net/mv2/II/II_19.htm


When a man has a ragged coat he says, 'I am poor'. In reality his coat is poor, not he. What this capacity or accommodation contains is that which becomes his knowledge, his realization, and it is that which limits him. It forms that limitation which is the tragedy of every soul. Now, this capacity may be filled with self, or it may be filled with God. There is only room for one. Either we live with our limitation, or we let God reign there in His unlimited Being.

   from  https://wahiduddin.net/mv2/X/X_3_4.htm

[guest587]

Alex Jones shared a poem supposedly by Mother Teresa on his show today,

People are often unreasonable and self-centered.
Forgive them anyway.
If you are kind, people may accuse you of ulterior motives
Be kind anyway.
If you are honest, people may cheat you.
Be honest anyway.
If you find happiness, people may be jealous.
Be happy anyway.
The good you do today may be forgotten tomorrow.
Do good anyway.
Give the world the best you have and it may never be enough.
Give your best anyway.

For you see, in the end, it is between you and God.
It was never between you and them anyway.

~ Mother Theresa

I thought this was in alignment with todays Saki, wisdom shared by Pir-O-Mushird Inayat Khan:

A person is apt to think, 'Why should I perform actions that bring me no return? Why should I be kind, where no kindness is shown to me, where there is even no appreciation?' In this way he commercializes his kindness: he gives in order to receive. ... When one loves one must love for the sake of love, not for a return. When one serves one must serve for the sake of service, not for acknowledgement. In everything a person does, if he does not think of reciprocity or appreciation in any manner or form, he may perhaps seem a loser in the beginning, but in the end that person will be the gainer, for he has lived in the world and yet held himself above the world; it cannot touch him.

   from  https://wahiduddin.net/mv2/VIII/VIII_2_28.htm

[Jitendra Hydonus]

Thanks Eric your last post is thought provoking. Not sure how to respond or whether a response is necessary. It does incite reflection. The main thing I got out of it was; how do we respond to other people and their responses to us, or for that matter their lack of response to us? Sometimes we are not certain what the best response is. A simple illustration here:

My roommate always throws out things, and sometimes they are important. For instance I laid out a toll charge I got in the mail today so I could remember to pay it. An added $25 would be demanded for a late fee next time the bill was mailed. I spent nearly a half an hour trying to find it,  i was unsuccessful. I finally looked in the garbage and found it mixed with oil and grease. I have discussed my roommates throwing things out before, that are important. What if any should be my response to this?

[guest587]

Have you tried holding the item in your hand and saying, "this is important to me. I'm leaving it out as a reminder to my self, please don't throw it away."

In my work environment sometimes over communicating is necessary, even if it seems annoying. But what was once annoying becomes humbling when you realize why something needed communicated more than once.

You can also write on the object in question, "Steve's stuff." Or place it somewhere in you room that is usually considered off limits or a private space.

[guest587]

    With good will and trust in God, self-confidence, and a hopeful attitude towards life, a person can always win his battle, however difficult.

    Bowl of Saki, December 22, by Hazrat Inayat Khan