BMCM Video Study Guides
Satsang Coordinators Curriculum for
The Mystic Vision
Lesson One
Read the first Practical Exercise from the Mystic Vision Study Guide:
Practical Exercise: Praying Without Ceasing
Sri Easwaran quotes a passage by the tenth-century Sufi teacher Hasan of Basra, in which God
says: "When my servant becomes altogether occupied with Me, then I make his happiness and
delight consist in remembering Me." We can practice this, Sri Easwaran says, by means of all
the points of the Eight Point Program but especially by means of the mantram. "Wherever I get
time, even now," he says, "I keep repeating the mantram." With long practice, the mind becomes
free from all negative thinking because, Sri Easwaran says, "the mind is repeating the mantram
all the time."
This state when one repeats the mantram so constantly that it starts repeating itself is known in
India as ajapajapa, or in the Christian tradition as "praying without ceasing." Sometime this
week, try to use the mantram continuously, without a single break, for a full half hour. It may be
while doing a repetitive chore like housecleaning, or while exercising, or before bed. But really
make the effort to keep the mantram going and not let your mind wander away.
You may want to note the results in your journal. If you find it useful, you might consider making
this special ajapajapa time a regular feature of your week.
Then, ask the group: "Take a few minutes to reflect on your day today (or yesterday - if the
group meets in the morning). What opportunities for repeating the mantram did you act on?
Were there opportunities you missed? Think of a few ways that you can increase your
mantram repetition time tomorrow."
Give the group a few minutes for silent reflection, then ask them to share their thoughts. If your
Satsang is focusing on a particular one of the Eight Points this week or this month, ask the group
if they have any ideas of how to use that particular point in remembering the mantram more often.
Read the introduction from the Mystic Vision Study Guide and watch Only God I Saw, the first
of the two talks on the tape. (This talk is 38 minutes long.)
Or, read the passage "Only God I Saw" from God Makes the Rivers to Flow; and from The
Bhagavad Gita for Daily Living, Volume Two, read the commentaries on Chapter 11, verses 35
onward, until it is time for meditation.
Finish with thirty minutes of meditation.
Lesson Two
Ask the group: "Did anyone try the Practical Exercise from last week on trying to use the
mantram continuously for a full half hour? Do you have any observations to report? Did
anyone find a new time to repeat the mantram?"
Then, if time remains, repeat the exercise from last week: "Take a few minutes to reflect on
your day today (or yesterday - if the group meets in the morning). What opportunities for
repeating the mantram did you act on? Were there opportunities you missed? Think of a
few ways that you can increase your mantram repetition time tomorrow."
Then read from The Bhagavad Gita for Daily Living:
Volume 2: commentary on Chapter 12, verse 20.
Volume 3: commentary on Chapter 14, verse 24.
Finish with thirty minutes of meditation.
Lesson Three
Start by asking if anyone has any observations or comments on mantram use.
Then, ask a member to read the second Practical Exercise from the Mystic Vision Study Guide:
Practical Exercise: The Stuff Life Is Made Of
This talk is permeated with Sri Easwaran's marvelous sense of urgency. We must take care, he
says, not only to use our free time for activities that contribute to our spiritual growth. It is
equally important to avoid misusing our time. He quotes Benjamin Franklin: "Dost thou love
life? Then do not squander your time, for that is the stuff life is made of." We should always be
on the lookout for time that we can spend in "discovering the Self, and going beyond death here
on this earth." Making a lot of money, or enjoying a great deal of pleasure, are not our true job
in life. Our job is to realize the Self.
Take some time this week to reflect on how you spent your time during the past year and how you
would like to spend your time during the coming year. Make two lists:
1. Personal activities that do not benefit others, and on which you might easily spend less time
(some examples: watching TV, browsing magazines or newspapers, surfing the internet).
2. Activities that would contribute to your spiritual practice (some examples: taking a mantram
walk, spending time with your family, giving some extra time to co-workers, spiritual reading).
Choose one item from the first list and spend one hour less time (total not daily!) on it during the
next two weeks. Instead, devote that time to an item on the second list. At the end of the two
weeks, stop to reflect on how this experiment affected your life and your outlook on yourself.
Keep the list in mind as you go through the coming months and look for any opportunity to
reduce the time spent on the first and increase the time on the second.
It is important to proceed slowly and gradually with this exercise. Don't try to change everything
at once. Small changes for the better, made regularly, add up to a tremendous force over time.
Tell the group: "Let's take a few minutes to reflect on these two categories and think of
some small change that we might want to make during the coming week."
After a few minutes, if there is time left, ask for any initial responses the group might have. Keep
in mind there will be more time for in-depth discussion on this exercise next week.
Read the introduction from the Mystic Vision Study Guide and watch A New Year's Message, the
second of the two talks on the tape. (This talk is 34 minutes long.)
Or read from The Constant Companion (also published as Thousand Names of Vishnu) the
following sections (most of which are adapted from the commentaries in this videotaped talk):
"Immortal," "Free from Craving," "The Supreme Magician," "Whose Work is Complete," "Lovable."
Finish with thirty minutes of meditation.
Lesson Four
Ask for reflections on the Practical Exercise from Lesson Three. If needed, read parts of the
exercise again, and ask the group: "What thoughts do you have about how you might change
the ways you spend your time during the coming year? Did the video (or reading) last week
give you any ideas?"
If time remains in the fellowship portion of the program, ask someone to read the following quote
from Epictetus:
"Remember to behave in life as you would behave at a banquet. When something is being passed
around, as it comes to you, stretch out your hand and take a portion of it gently. When it passes
on, do not try to hold on to it; when it has not yet come to you, do not reach out for it with your
desire but wait until it presents itself. So act toward children, toward spouse, toward office,
toward wealth."
Ask the group: "How can we use the Eight Points to implement this outlook in our lives?"
For inspiration, read aloud from:
Take Your Time: Chapter Two, "Ask 'What is Important?'"
and
The Bhagavad Gita for Daily Living: Volume 3, commentary on Chapter 18, Verses 57 58.
Finish with thirty minutes of meditation.
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How to Use This Curriculum
The BMCM monthly video series presents a special opportunity for BMCM Satsangs to enrich
the content of their meetings and coordinate their program with the Center and with other
Satsangs. Each month many of our Satsangs will be following this program, which has been
created by workshop presenters at the BMCM, based on programs at our Tuesday night Satsangs
in Petaluma and Berkeley.
This video curriculum is not required. The choice of which of our approved formats to follow is
up to you and your Satsang. We understand that not all groups have access to a TV and VCR for
showing video tapes. While the videos are a great aid in using this curriculum, it is also possible to
follow it without the videos, using the questions for reflection and readings that are contained in
this curriculum.
We do recommend this curriculum (and especially the videos) as an ideal way for a new group (or
a "Satsang of One") to get well grounded in Sri Easwaran's core teachings and to feel more "in
touch" with the Center. If you would like assistance in deciding on a format, please feel free to
contact us at the address below.
The choice of when to start using the curriculum is also up to you. But we do suggest that you
follow the order of the lessons as they appear here. For groups that meet monthly, you may want
to use only the lesson sections that include videos, or to cover two lesson sections if your meeting
is longer.
We have tried to make this Satsang curriculum flexible enough that it can be used completely
within the Eight Point Format, as outlined in the Satsang Guidelines. For your "Eight Point
Focus" you can continue to cycle through the Eight Points weekly or monthly as it suits your
group, and use this curriculum to deepen your study of Sri Easwaran's teachings.
For those of you who distribute messages via email to your Satsang, feel free to forward parts of
this email to members as a preview of the coming month's program.
We are eager to hear about your experiences with this curriculum, and welcome your feedback.
Please send it to:
satsang@nilgiri.org
Robbie Nichols
BMCM
P O Box 256
Tomales, CA 94971
Copyright (c) 2003, Blue Mountain Center of Meditation