The Buddha Within and Without
Apr 04, 2022by Nayaswami Narayan
As he sat under the Bodhi tree, an inspiration came over his being unlike any he had experienced. This was the moment of enlightenment of the great compassionate Buddha. Bliss upon bliss, waves of divine love conquered his consciousness as he was transported to an ineffable realm of Spirit.
The Divine experience so transfigured the Buddha that he could not speak for several hours. As he rose from his sacred seated spot, his bodily movements were like a singing bowl emanating healing sounds from some deep reservoir of consciousness within. Swaying, almost swooning he began walking as if on air. (an interesting aside: Avatars, Paramhansa Yogananda states in Autobiography of a Yogi, make no footprints when they walk).
If you were not open to his exalted state, you would have thought he was a mad man. But his disciples knew something was different about him. His unique gait spoke a sermon of liquid peace. His silent eyes engulfed them with compassion beyond description. And his soft smile entranced them with the unbroken joy of God.
Wouldn’t we all like to become little Buddhas? When will Buddha consciousness come to us? When will the Buddha visit our hearts?
Recently the Buddha came to us in a most unexpected manner. At the end of our recent Ananda Temecula retreat with Dr. Shanti, one of the guests received a divine inspiration. He and his wife had downsized during the pandemic. They moved many valuables into storage including a massive three-ton, six-foot-tall hand-carved Java stone statue of Buddha. He had been looking for a suitable home for the Buddha. During one of his meditations at the retreat it dawned on him that he found the perfect spot here at Ananda Temecula.
He asked a bit timidly would we want the Buddha murti? We said, “YES! By all means!” Or Bamen (a “By All Means” Amen)! He was thrilled that his Buddha statue was finding a home as were we for his homecoming.
What amazed us all was the sweetness of the inner experience from the retreat weekend with Dr. Shanti expressed itself outwardly through the gift of the Buddha statue. Much like the Buddha’s enlightenment and then his walk afterwards which his disciples witnessed, we experienced God within and then saw Him manifest outwardly through the gift of the Buddha statue. The Buddha came literally and figuratively to bless the land of our consciousness.
This week the Buddha statue will be delivered and find its new home at the Ananda Retreat and Farm in Temecula. Now every time we see the Buddha statue we will be reminded of the deeper meaning of Swami Kriyananda’s affirmation on “Positive Thinking”:
“My outer life is a reflection of my inner thoughts. Filled with the joy of God, I express His joy and harmony in everything I do.”
