In an Ecstasy State of Mind
I resisted this mantra for years. It was the one that I grew up with, the one I heard at temples on the weekends, the one my mum would continuously natter on about getting me to recite if I ever wanted inner peace. It was pretty unforgettable.
So when I was in Chaing Mai at a silent nature retreat, when my teacher mentioned I needed to go back to my roots and remember that very mantra in order to bring my mind at peace, I couldn’t help but have resistance again.
‘It’s the one that resonates with you the most — it doesn’t have to be that which you grew up with. Make it your own….Maybe you’re here to teach this in your own way and move away from the method that was taught to you. You were taught that way because that’s the only way they knew and so it was passed down to you. But you can change that.’
That Trikuti mantra is known as ‘Wahe-Guru’, meaning ‘The Divine Teacher Lies Within You’. And when pronounced ‘Wha-hay guroo’ is a mantra of realisation and ecstasy. To read more about this mantra in detail, you can see this article here
‘In ecstasy, the self is lost. The ego is lost. One is merged with the One in every ONE. One sees the expression of the Universal Order in every event, person and thing’.
She’s right, it reminded me of religion and rules and strict, silly ‘should’s’.
‘Cover your head, you’re in the temple now’
‘Don’t show your arms — be respectful’
‘You can’t wear that, you’re in a holy place’
‘You mustn’t cut your hair — it’s a gift from God’
‘Come here so we can give you a blessing and now please leave us a gift’
Any temple or holy place gives me the strangest triggers whether it’s a Buddhist temple in Thailand or the Mandirs and Gurdwaras in India. It’s not the place where I feel the most free or connected.
Nature gives me more peace than any other temple ever will. That’s our true temple or home, where we can be in our most original and natural state without guilt, judgement or shame.
Nature doesn’t judge you if you sit naked, half clothed or full while you sit silently and observe, meditate and connect within.
Nature doesn’t care what I wear or ask me to cover my arms and legs, while I sit and sing mantras to quieten down those noises outside and heighten the ones within.
Nature is my temple, my home and Intuition is the only religion I’ll ever follow.
