Bringing Forth The Light

Our soul is pure light. Being human, and experiencing difficulty and suffering, our light gets covered and obscured by the defense mechanisms and the hardening of the ego. As we soften into our true nature, our conditioned patterns begin to dissolve. The light of our true nature shines forth and creates an atmosphere of light within and around us. As the light increases, the darkness vanishes. This is a 20-minute talk followed by a 20-minute guided meditation.

Transcript

In the class last week,

We spoke a bit about the atmosphere that we energetically all create,

Based on our thoughts and emotions and state of consciousness.

And we focused on the idea of creating an atmosphere of peace.

In the last week,

Several of the bowl of sakhi messages from Hazrat and Ayat Khan have talked about this idea of an atmosphere.

So I'll start with one of his quotes.

Every soul radiates an influence which charges the atmosphere all around.

The more powerful the influence,

The wider it spreads,

Forcing its way even through walls.

There is no barrier of water or space which can keep that influence from spreading.

The stronger the influence,

The longer it lasts.

Atmosphere is a silent music.

It has its effect upon the listener,

Exciting or peaceful,

Whatever it may be.

This idea of atmosphere is something that we bring into the world,

That affects those around us,

And we are affected by others' atmospheres.

At our core,

At our source,

Our true nature is light.

And so when we relax into that space of light within us,

Into our true nature,

We bring forth an atmosphere of light,

Of peace,

Of kindness,

Of compassion,

Of wisdom.

As we become more enlightened ourselves by bringing forth more light,

We help to enlighten others and the world around us,

Because that light of consciousness clears away all of the darkness,

Of the obscurations,

Of the fears,

Of the misunderstandings of reality.

That light is the light of love,

Of connection.

It's part of the unity of the all.

What is it that prevents us from bringing forth this light?

In Buddhism,

They might say it's the obscurations.

Ultimately,

It is the attachments and aversions,

The fears,

The judgments that we have,

The conditioned and habituated ways of being in the world,

That create this shell of ego that covers and obscures the light,

Both from ourselves as well as from allowing it to expand beyond us into the atmosphere.

When we are hard on ourselves,

When we create a lot of guilt or self-judgment,

It ends up hardening us physically,

Emotionally,

Mentally.

And that hardening is this shell of ego that over time,

If we are not careful as we experience more difficulties and challenges,

Losses and traumas,

That shell can become thicker and thicker and obscure the light even more.

This is why I so often focus on softening,

Because as we soften,

How we relate to ourselves and our experiences,

As we humble ourselves,

We begin to soften those edges,

To soften that shell,

To let it dissolve a little bit,

To let go of some of those attachments and aversions of how we think we are supposed to be,

Or others or the world are supposed to be.

And as we soften and that shell begins to become thinner,

As we let go of those accumulations of the obscurations,

More light begins to come through,

Begins to break through,

And it fills us and it fills the atmosphere around us,

We become more light.

As we do so,

We let go of this attachment to self.

We begin to act more skillfully in our interactions with the world around us,

In our communications with others.

We bring forth that true nature of wisdom and compassion and love.

The funny thing is that so many of us want to experience love.

We want to get that light and that love from others.

But ultimately that's still focusing on the self and what we want.

And the more we try to get that from others or the world around us,

The more we're actually shutting down our own light.

And the more we shut down our own light and are harder on ourselves,

It actually makes us harder to be around.

When people create an atmosphere of peace and light that radiates from within to without,

They're very enjoyable to be around.

It's easy to be in their presence.

Because they are gentle with themselves,

They are gentle with others.

Because they are compassionate with themselves,

They are compassionate towards others.

When we're hard on ourselves,

We tend to be hard on others.

So I'll share another quote from the bowl of sake.

If one studies one's surroundings,

One finds that those who are happy are so because they have less thought of self.

If they are unhappy,

It is because they think of themselves too much.

A person is more bearable when he thinks less of himself.

And a person is unbearable when he was always thinking of himself.

And so letting go of this attachment to self into what we think we want or need,

And focusing on softening and learning to move towards accepting ourselves as we are in each moment and our experience as it is with trust and faith that we always have what we need in each moment,

That softens us and it lets that light begin to come through.

And we find the joy and happiness and love that we have always been seeking.

When that light is covered up with these accressions and obscurations of the ego,

It's hiding that light from us and the world around us.

And this is what Jesus was referring to when he said,

Do not hide your light under a bushel.

Do not hide it under a container that blocks it.

The whole purpose of light is it is meant to shine.

It is meant to illuminate the space around it.

Light is meant to be revealed,

Not hidden.

When there is light,

Darkness vanishes.

So often we try to get rid of or reduce the darkness by focusing on it,

By pointing at it and saying that's what's wrong and that's what needs to change.

And yet the more we focus on the darkness,

That actually gives it more power.

We get rid of darkness by increasing the light.

And so we need to shift our focus to bring awareness into that light that is always here.

And as we do so,

That allows the light to grow brighter and the darkness will automatically fall away.

This idea is present in so many different traditions,

And it's amazing how many similarities there are that focus on this idea of the light within.

You know,

Even the Buddha said,

Be your own light.

And this is the light of self-realization.

I mean,

Even the word enlightenment is to enlighten,

To bring greater light,

And thereby remove the darkness or dimness that prevents us from perceiving ourselves in reality clearly.

And we all have this light within.

It is our true nature.

It is our natural state.

We simply forget.

I'll share another quote from Hazrat An-Nayakan.

The heart of man is like a globe over the light of the soul.

When the globe is dusty,

Naturally the light is dim.

When it is cleaned,

The light increases.

In fact,

The light is always the same.

It is the fault of the globe when it is not clear.

When this radiant shines out,

It shows itself not only through the countenance and expression of a man,

But even in the man's atmosphere.

The soul power,

So to speak,

Freely projects outward,

And the surroundings feel it.

So the heart is the globe that encapsulates this light of the soul.

And when our heart,

The globe,

Is dusty,

I.

E.

When it's hardened with the obscurations and ego,

The light is dim.

It's not allowed to shine out from the heart.

When the globe is cleaned,

The light increases.

So as we purify our hearts,

As we move towards purity of intention in our actions,

In our words,

That begins to clear and clean the globe so that the light can shine more freely.

As he said,

The light is always the same.

So when we perceive people,

Individuals we know,

Or teachers,

That have that light that radiates out from them,

Sometimes we think that that's something that they have cultivated,

That they've grown the light within them.

But in fact,

It's not about growing the light,

It's about cleaning the container of the heart of our minds so that the light can shine freely,

Because the light is always the same.

And we all have that same amount of light.

What changes is how freely that light is able to shine out from us.

This is why purity of intention is so important in monitoring our thoughts and the underlying motivation for any words or action.

And as we still the mind,

And we move beyond the attachment and aversion and fear,

That stillness is what brings the purification.

In Taoism,

They'll talk about the silt settling.

So when the water is stirred up,

And there's silt,

We can't see clearly into the water,

It obscures it.

But as the water of the mind begins to still,

The silt,

The impurities,

Naturally settle,

And the water becomes clear.

This is the process of purification of the mind and the heart that then allows this light to radiate forth.

And as it does,

It radiates out from the heart and fills us,

And we become filled with light.

We experience that light and love that we've always craved and desired.

And as it continues to spill forth,

Without obscuration,

Through clarity,

It begins to expand beyond us and affect the world around us.

This is the soul power,

The light and power of the soul that fills us and fills our atmosphere.

As I said,

It's often the hardening of the heart that obscures this light.

And usually,

It's fear that creates this hardening.

Being human,

We're all going to experience times of suffering and pain and difficulty,

Physical,

Emotional,

Mental,

Spiritual,

Social,

Professional.

And those traumas affect us.

And it's natural for us to close down at times when we experience those kinds of pains and difficulties.

It's a defense mechanism.

And so with maturity,

With growth,

With development,

We begin to recognize how those defense mechanisms are affecting us,

How they're closing down our heart.

And we can make the decision to consciously work towards softening and releasing them.

And we can be grateful for them that they serve their purpose when they were needed.

Because it's not about some ideal where we should never have had defense mechanisms against difficulty and pain.

There is a place for that,

Especially when we're young.

We don't have the wisdom and the maturity to know how to stay open to the difficulty of life.

And so we need to protect ourselves.

But as we grow,

We can move into a place of strength within ourselves where we can begin to let go of those defense mechanisms that are no longer needed.

We can move beyond fear,

Even while acknowledging that fear still arises at times.

But we no longer have to allow the fear to dictate our choices.

This is the nature of courage.

To be courageous does not mean not having fear.

It means that we do what we know is right,

What is skillful,

What is compassionate and wise,

Even though we are afraid.

As we move towards this level of purity of intention,

We become clear channels.

Because we are all always connected within ourselves and to the world around us.

We are always connected to that divine light of consciousness.

But it's that hardening and closing off that makes us feel separate.

So as we release those fears and obscurations,

We become clear channels for that light to move through us.

And that also helps us to heal at deeper levels and to become more strongly grounded within the truth of our being.

Within our natural state.

As I said,

The light is always there and it's always shining.

It's just that sometimes we don't see it or perceive it.

In Buddhism,

They'll often use the analogy of the sun being obscured by clouds.

And we know that even on a very cloudy day,

When we might not be able to see the sun,

We know that the sun is still there shining.

It's just obscured.

And so similarly,

The light of consciousness,

The divine light of love,

Is always there shining within our hearts.

It's just that it gets obscured sometimes.

And so we have to have that faith and trust that it is there.

And then do the inner work to purify the vessel of our being,

To allow those clouds to clear so that we can perceive that light.

I'll draw in on a quote from Rumi.

That's also very fitting.

Your task is not to seek for love,

But merely to seek and find all the barriers within yourself that you have built against it.

Again,

We often think that to find the love that we want,

That we truly desire,

We have to find it from somewhere else.

That someone else has to give it to us.

But that's not the way.

Our task is not to seek for love,

But rather to seek and find all of those barriers within us that we have built against it.

To purify our hearts and our intentions,

To find the stillness of our minds that allows those obscurations to clear and the light and love to shine forth.

It's a practice.

And it's not black and white or one or the other.

It's a spectrum.

From having very deeply ingrained obscurations that make us feel completely cut off,

Isolated and alone,

And suffering within ourselves.

All the way to the other side where we reach a state of more complete enlightenment,

Where the obscurations are cleared and that light and love within us shines freely.

Most of us are somewhere in between those two poles.

And with dedication and commitment,

We can slowly work towards clearing more and more of those obscurations.

To finding that light.

And that does not mean that we're not going to still have experiences of suffering and pain.

But we can shift our perspective and how we stand in relationship to those experiences so that they don't shut us down further.

And in fact,

Can actually help to break open that shell of the heart and help the light to come forth more strongly.

Those same experiences of suffering that shut us down can actually become the tools that break us open.

What matters is how we relate to them and how we work with them.

As Rumi says,

The wound is where the light enters.

Often it's those difficult experiences that can break open the heart and let that light shine forth.

And it's not necessarily a pleasant process.

And yet with the proper perspective,

We can still learn to appreciate and even cherish some of those difficult moments,

Knowing that they are moving us towards our natural state.

The more consistently we set aside time each day to practice,

To sit and meditate,

To work towards stilling the mind,

The easier it becomes to access that ability when those difficult moments occur.

You don't wait until you're thirsty to start digging a well.

You start digging the well well ahead of time before that necessity is there.

And similarly,

When we have moments of relative calm and peace or of things going well,

It can be all the more of an opportune time to practice,

To build up that strength and grounding within ourselves.

So when those storms of life occur,

We are prepared and we have the ability to deal with them more skillfully.

So if you will,

Please find a comfortable posture for meditation.

You can be seated or lying down.

The most important thing is that you have a stable base beneath you,

Supporting you and holding you up so that you can let go of any unnecessary tension or guarding or hardening.

If you are seated,

Check to make sure that the knees are below the hips and that the spine is rising with its natural curves up towards heaven.

And relax the shoulders back and down,

Which helps to open the heart,

Make sure that the head is situated directly over the shoulders and spine.

Begin to bring awareness to the natural movement of the breath.

Simply observing as it moves in and out.

Maybe long or short,

Choppy or smooth,

Shallow or deep.

Simply observe the natural movement of the breath,

Allowing it to be as it is.

As you continue following the breath,

Begin abdominal breathing.

With each inhalation,

Allowing the abdomen to gently expand.

With each exhalation,

Allowing it to gently contract.

With each exhale,

Allowing it to contract.

With each exhale,

Allowing it to contract.

With each exhalation,

Consciously release any unnecessary tension or hardness within your body,

Your emotions,

And your mind.

Allow each exhalation to soften you.

You might start by softening the physical body from the outside,

Working your way inward.

Softening your posture,

Softening your face.

Working your way inward.

Softening the brain and softening the internal organs.

Softening the brain and the internal organs.

Eventually bringing the awareness to the physical heart.

And with each exhalation,

Allowing the heart to soften.

With each exhale,

Allowing the internal organs to soften.

Allow the center of the chest to relax and open.

And become aware of a point of light within the heart center.

Deep breath.

As you focus on this light,

Allow it to grow.

And as it expands,

It fills the heart center.

Focus on this ball of light,

Like a miniature sun,

Resting in the center of your chest.

With each inhalation,

Allow the light to become stronger and brighter.

And with each exhalation,

Allow the shell of the heart to soften.

And with each exhalation,

Allow the shell of the heart to soften.

As the shell of the heart softens,

And the light grows stronger,

Allow it to shine beyond the heart center,

Beginning to fill your chest and torso.

And as it expands throughout your body,

Use each inhalation to stoke and strengthen the light.

And each exhalation to soften and remove any barriers to it.

And with each exhalation to soften and remove any barriers to it.

Once the light has filled your entire body,

All the way down to the tips of the toes,

All the way out to the tips of the fingers,

All the way up to the top of the head.

Continue using each inhalation to strengthen and expand the light,

And each exhalation to let go of any resistance to it,

Allowing it to expand beyond your physical body,

Filling the atmosphere around you.

And with each exhalation to strengthen and remove any barriers to it.

And with each exhalation to strengthen and expand the light,

Allowing it to expand beyond your physical body.

Feel yourself as a body made of light,

Resting in the center of a sphere of light.

Notice the stillness.

And peacefulness within.

And with each exhalation to strengthen and expand the light,

Allowing it to expand beyond Bring awareness to the felt sense of the body as a whole.

Feel the solidity of your physical body while feeling the light within.

Feel the stability beneath you,

Supporting you and holding you up.

And the air around you in which you are immersed like a fish in water.

And when you are ready,

Maintain a connection to this stillness and light within and around you as you gently and slowly begin to open your eyes,

Taking in all that you perceive,

Allowing it to flow through you.

Realize that all that you perceive is light,

Form covering over light.

I'll end with a passage from Luke chapter 11,

Verses 33 through 36.

No one,

When he has lit a lamp,

Puts it in a cellar or under a basket,

But on a stand that those who come in may see the light.

The lamp of the body is the eye.

Therefore,

When your eye is good,

Your whole body is also full of light.

But when it is evil,

Your body is also full of darkness.

Therefore,

See whether the light that is in you is in darkness.

If therefore your whole body is full of light,

Having no part dark,

It will be wholly full of light,

As when the lamp with its bright shining gives you light.

The lamp of the body is the eye.

In other words,

It's how we perceive and see the world around us and how we see ourselves.

When we see and perceive clearly,

Without selfishness,

Without ego,

The enclosure of the lamp becomes clear,

And the whole body becomes full of light.

Thank you all for joining me today.

Reviews

I loved this talk and guided meditation. It reminded me of times when I felt my light more than I do now. The talk opened up something familiar and It touched me deeply. I look forward to listening to this again and your other recordings. Thank you so very much for sharing your experience and wisdom. ✨✨✨💜💜💜✨✨✨🙏🏼

Hi Thomas, thanks for guiding me this morning to fill my heart, body and beyond with light. May we continue to shine today as we physically, emotionally and intellectually interact with everything and everyone around us.

As always, beautiful.
I am taking your suggestion and listening to your talks and meditations in the order that you gave them. Thank you.. see you in the gap. 🙏☀️💓

i continue to get so much from your talks. this talk reminded me of a friend that lost her husband six years ago. she makes the “grieving widow’ her identity, clinging to it. loss is still hard, but i’m determined to trust in the fact that there’s a bigger picture. 🙏

Absolutely beautiful, one I will come back to often, thank you so much ☀️✨🙏

Excellent meditation this morning with love and gratitude for your so many wonderful gifts .Blessings and thank you.🙏💕

Thank you for sharing your light and wisdom in this platform. Another brilliant lecture/ talk. Grateful for referring me to this one, can’t wait to listen to the others.
Cleaning our one inner lamp alllows our light to shine brighter, but what happens when you unconsciously dim your own light for the others to shine ?

Thank you again Thomas for all your precious offerings and your generosity 🙏🙏🙏 This talk gives hope to humanity 💖I have to listen that again and again to remember the love/light we have all inside of us, the importance to soften the ego to allow this light to shine and illuminate the world ☀️☀️☀️

Dear Thomas , what a gift you are! Thank you for sharing your light with the world. For the first time in my life I was as deeply moved by a Christian scripture as I am by Buddhist scriptures. 💖🙏

This talk was serendipitous and synchronicity for me. This topic of purification of heart has been foremost in my mind this week and this very day I was searching wahiduddin's web on purification of heart. It is a releif to remeber that it is not focusing will to overcome darkness and riding myself of evil throgh punishment and self hatred. The self focus in particular becoming problematic, rather allowing the internal light to shine out by softening the heart. I normally visulize well but had a hard time with light. Perhaps it is to do with a dark room and it being night or perhaps I have a dark shell that will need more careful cleaning. Most likely both. I will give it one more go before bed. Much gratitude and love to you brother. It is a gift to recieve the beauty of grace from God refracting brilliantly from your own heart and embodiment. I did imangine my heart as a beating burnt charcoal
flesh pumping with molten fire inside. Each breath deep cracks opening wider and the lava getting hotter. In aramaic (nura) means both fire and light. The second round with lights on helped, lots going on in the imagination, the ball ,the filling and even my body going crystaline and eminating rainbow spectrums of light. Weird night in the best of ways. As I listend to your first 20 min talk for a second time a worship song from years past came to mind. "Refiners Fire"
I lay down singing this beautiful song with tears streaming down my face while listening to the peace in your voice. Holy moments, 🙏🏻🤍❤️‍🔥✨🕯️. Much love and gratitude Thomas.

Superb!…Lets Be in the Light💫✨💖
By the sounds of this, it’s catching…And right now, the world is in need..
Beautiful insight and meditation.
Thankyou Thomas..🙏💙Bless you..✨💫

Beautiful, lighting & enlightening the atmosphere thru our very being 🥰

Thank you, Thomas, for reminding us of our true nature of light, peace and kindness and for suggesting the means to move beyond the ego. How beautiful would it be if we were all more gentle with ourselves and with others?! Then our light would really shine 🙏🌟✨

I really appreciate this! And as you were talking about the sun behind the clouds, the sun began to emerge in the forest!! Beautiful.

Great talk and beautiful meditation. Thank You!! 😌

So very beautiful, thank you.