Spirituality in the New Age has tended to reflect our technological obsessions. It is, usually, verbose, complicated and complex. The problem with this approach is that it works with the mind, even perhaps the emotions, but does not speak to the essential self. So much modern spiritual literature works to compete in the world with secular and mainstream writing, hence rather than really reaching us it simply presents another theory, another technique, a new form of yoga or meditation. This penchant for novelty may fill a consumer need, but does not necessarily feed the soul.
"Merging with Siva" is a very different sort of book. Its heart is comprised of 365 short sections which can be read in a year, spending around 10 minutes a day. Each section is very easy to read, simple and written in a direct style. It is only throughout the next day as you think over what you have read that you begin to realize the strength of each message. "Merging with Siva" embodies the concept that there is immense power in simplicity. Each section while flowing effortlessly seems to bypass emotions, intellect and body and touch something much deeper. While it may only take 10 minutes to read, one wonders if there is not a lifetime of meaning condensed into each passage. Condensing and distilling--each of these words describe "Merging with Siva." It is as though through a unique alchemical process the secrets of life have been condensed into simple but poignant and powerful expressions. The beauty of teaching in bite sized packages is the way in which quite complex subjects can be slowly unveiled.
"Merging with Siva" is like building a house, each brick is placed onto another until the whole edifice is revealed. This allows us to contemplate individual concepts which interconnect as the whole picture is unveiled. Accordingly, difficult and complex matters are taught with an ease which would make many school teachers jealous!
I personally find the Self God, which is included at the start of the book very meaningful. I first came across it many, many years ago in a small booklet I found at a second hand store. It was an ecstatic experience as I read what seemed to be like nectar, juice squeezed from the fruit of spiritual experience. This one booklet led me on a journey that culminated in my personal contact with the Himalayan Academy. It is included at the start of "Merging with Siva," printed in the handwriting of Subramuniyaswami. At first this seems annoying, even a nuisance. It cannot be quickly read or glossed over. Here, then, is the importance and power of the text. As you work to read each work, phrase and paragraph its message and vision begins to unfold. It is a great way to begin your journey through Merging with Siva.
There is so much more in this book that it is hard to summarize. There is, of course, good solid background information on the tradition of Saiva Siddhanta: its theology and practise and certainly more than enough to provide one of the better introductions to Shaivism as a living spiritual tradition. But what makes Merging with Siva so unique is its ability to bring that living tradition within reach of the seeker. It slowly draws the reader into a deep understanding of themselves, the universe and the great "spiritual chain of being" of which we are part. It does so simply, succinctly and yet with great erudition and wisdom.
Merging with Siva is a modest text. There is no new age hype, no outrageous claims, no UFO abductions nor calls to the bizarre or garish. There is a simple and honest presentation of the distilled wisdom of a lifetime and this makes Merging with Siva very rare and quite unique. In my personal collection I consider it one of the most important books I have. Its presentation matches its content. Superb. It is beautifully illustrated, easy on the eye and professionally presented. I commend Merging with Siva to you. Whether you are simply curious or a deep seeker, you will find something of great value here.
Merging with Siva is among the richest, most soul-touching statements on meditation and God Realization written. Yet, it's down-to-earth, nonacademic, user-friendly, easy to follow! This book is the essence of Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami's fifty years of yogic realizations and inspired teaching. Merging with Siva is a huge volume: 1,408 pages, beautifully illustrated, containing 365 lessons, one for each day of the year, plus 99 aphorisms. In Merging with Siva Gurudeva's speaks directly to you about your soul and God, the mystical realm of 21 chakras, the human aura, karma, force fields, meditation, the two paths, samadhi and so much more. Lavishly illustrated.
From the Author
It is of the greatest importance to note from what state of consciousness an author has written his works. This is an easy task for the "old timer," but exceedingly difficult for the beginner, who finds himself faced with an array of books to choose from.
Merging with Siva is a collection of a lifetime of realization. Realization is knowing, the aftermath of experience, having proven to oneself from the inside of oneself the deeper knowing. It also means "what has been seen." This no one can take away, change or alter. If you are as I am, liking to peruse a book from the back to the front, Merging with Siva is just that book for you. The end is the beginning, and the beginning is the end.
Merging with Siva is a book that has your potential woven into it. It is not the typical book expounding the techniques of yoga or various methods of improving the physical body. It does not offer six dozen kinds of breath control or 108 postures. Instead, it reveals the yoga of life, jnana yoga, of self-understanding and relationship, of who you are deep inside. This is the yoga of change, of unfolding new perspectives. It is, indeed, the discovery of your own true, divine identity—the I Am, the Being within, the Watcher, the Seer. Discover various areas of your inner and outer mind through carefully observing your reactions to intuitive flashes as you read. You may find yourself thinking, "I have always known that," or "Yes, that is truly what I have experienced." Then mentally build on the acknowledgment of these tiny realizations, and the bigger ones will naturally come at the right time and in the right way.
Once in a while on this Earth there arises a soul who, by living his tradition rightly and wholly, perfects his path and becomes a light to the world. Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami was such a being, a living example of awakening and wisdom, a leader recognized worldwide as one of Hinduism's foremost ministers. In 1947, as a young man of 20, he journeyed to India and Sri Lanka and two years later was initiated into sannyasa by the renowned siddha yogi and worshiper of Siva, Jnanaguru Yogaswami of Sri Lanka, regarded as one of the 20th century's most remarkable mystics.
For over five decades Subramuniyaswami, affectionately known as Gurudeva, taught Hinduism to Hindus and seekers from all faiths. In the line of successorship, he was the 162nd Jagadacharya of the Nandinatha Sampradaya's Kailasa Parampara and Guru Mahasannidhanam of Kauai Aadheenam (also known as Kauai's Hindu Monastery), a 458-acre temple-monastery complex on Hawaii's Garden Island. From this verdant Polynesian ashram on a river bank near the foot of an extinct volcano, Gurudeva's successor, Satguru Bodhinatha Veylanswami, and the monastics live their cherished vision, following a contemplative and joyous existence, building a jewel-like white granite Siva temple, meditating together in the hours before dawn, then working, while rainbows fill the sky, to promote the Sanatana Dharma together through four areas of service:
Saiva Siddhanta Church Himalayan Academy Hindu Heritage Endowment Hinduism Today international quarterly magazine
Gurudeva was lauded as one of the strictest and most traditional gurus in the world. His Hindu Church nurtures its membership and local missions on five continents. The Academy serves, personally and through its magazine, books, courses and travel/study programs, serious seekers and Hindus of all denominations. Gurudeva's mission, received from his satguru, was to protect, preserve and promote the Saivite Hindu religion as expressed through its three pillars: temples, satgurus and scripture. That mission is now carried forward by his monastic and family communities. The congregation of Saiva Siddhanta Church is a disciplined, global fellowship of family initiates, monastics and students who follow the sadhana marga, the path of inner effort, yogic striving and personal transformation. Gurudeva was the hereditary guru of 2.5 million Sri Lankan Hindus. His various institutions form a Jaffna-Tamil-based organization which has branched out from his Sri Subramuniya Ashram in Alaveddy to meet the needs of the growing Hindu diaspora of this century. He also established a seven-acre monastery in Mauritius, which includes a public Spiritual Park. Gurudeva gently oversaw more than 50 independent temples worldwide. Missionaries and teachers within the family membership provide counseling and classes in Saivism for children, youth and adults.
Hinduism Today is the influential, award-winning, international monthly magazine founded by Gurudeva in 1979. It is a public service of his monastic order, created to strengthen all Hindu traditions by uplifting and informing followers of the Sanatana Dharma everywhere. Gurudeva was author of more than 30 books unfolding unique and practical insights on Hindu metaphysics, mysticism and yoga. His Master Course lessons on Saivism, taught in many schools, are preserving the teachings among thousands of youths.
Hindu Heritage Endowment is a public service trust founded by Gurudeva in 1995. It seeks to establish and maintain permanent sources of income for Hindu institutions worldwide. In 1986, New Delhi's World Religious Parliament named Gurudeva one of five modern-day Jagadacharyas, world teachers, for his international efforts in promoting and chronicling a Hindu renaissance.
Then in 1995 it bestowed on him the title of Dharmachakra for his remarkable publications.
The Global Forum of Spiritual and Parliamentary Leaders for Human Survival chose Subramuniyaswami as a Hindu representative at its unique conferences. Thus, at Oxford, England, in 1988, Moscow in 1990 and Rio de Janiero in 1992, he joined hundreds of religious, political and scientific leaders from all countries to discuss privately, for the first time, the future of human life on this planet. Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami At Chicago's historic centenary Parliament of the World's Religions in September, 1993, Gurudeva was elected one of three presidents, along with His Holiness Swami Chidananda Saraswati of the Rishikesh-based Divine Life Society and Kerala's Ammachi, Mata Amritanandamayi Ma, to represent Hinduism at the prestigious Presidents' Assembly, a core group of 25 men and women voicing the needs of world faiths.
In 1996 Gurudeva upgraded the newspaper Hinduism Today to a magazine, a quantum leap that placed it on newsstands everywhere, alongside Newsweek, Time and India Today. In 1997 he responded to the US President's call for religious opinions on the ethics of cloning from the Hindu point of view. Later that year, he spearheaded the 125th anniversary of Satguru Yogaswami and his golden icon's diaspora pilgrimage through many of the over 75 Sri Lanka temples and societies around the globe. In 1998, the Vishva Hindu Parishad of Kerala sent an envoy to Kauai to honor and recognize Gurudeva as the "Hindu Voice of the Century."
In the last few years of his life Gurudeva was a key member of Vision Kauai 2020, a small group of community leaders that includes the Mayor, former Mayor and County Council members. They met monthly to fashion the island's future for twenty years ahead, based on moral and spiritual values. If you ask people who know Gurudeva what was so special about him, they may point to his great peace, presence and centeredness, to his incredible power to inspire others toward their highest Self, to change their lives in ways that are otherwise impossible, to be an unfailing light on their path, to be a voice of Indian spiritual life, to bring the best of the East and the best of the West together, to be a father and mother to all who draw near, a living example of the pure path taught by his guru and followed by his devoted shishyas.
In April of 1999 Gurudeva lead 45 spiritual aspirants on an Innersearch from Vancouver to Anchorage, Alaska. Their ship, the MS Noordam, journeyed for 7 days and nights as they studied meditation and the mystical life together, explored the glaciers and redefined the cruise experience along the way. In Anchorage, Gurudeva founded the first Hindu temple in that state, calling together the native American Indian leaders to participate in the event. He also initiated a powerful series of book signings in California, Washington and Alaska, introducing his newest legacy book, Merging with Siva, to thousands of seekers.
In August he traveled to Malaysia and Mauritius, where he met with the nation's leaders on several family-related topics, opened his Spiritual Park for 3,000 special guests, spent precious time with his Church members and continued the dynamic book signings, this time adding his newest book, Weaver's Wisdom, to the list.
In March and April of 2000 he lead another Innersearch Travel-Study program to the Caribbean, visiting six nations with 53 of his devotees and meeting the Hindu leadership in that remote part of the world, with special events among 4,500 Hindus who came to honor him in Trinidad.
On August 25, 2000, he received the prestigious United Nations U Thant Peace Award in New York (previously bestowed on the Dalai Lama, Nelson Mandela, Mikhail Gorbachev, Pope John Paul II and Mother Teresa). He addressed 1,200 spiritual leaders gathered for the UN Millennium Peace Summit, with the message, "For peace in the world, stop the war in the home." Upon his return to Kauai, 350 citizens and county and state officials gathered to herald his accomplishments on the island and beyond. Governor Benjamin Cayetano wrote: "I am especially grateful for your efforts to promote moral and spiritual values in Hawaii. May our people forever embrace the message of peace you have so eloquently supported in your gracious wisdom."
In August of 2001 Gurudeva took 72 devotees on an incredible journey through Northern Europe, founding new Hindu temples along the way and visiting the Tamil communities in a dozen nations. It was a fitting end to his remarkable life. Just before departing for the European Innersearch, he completed his last legacy book, ''Living with Siva.'' Only weeks after returning from that dynamic odyssey, he attained his Maha Samadhi. Gurudeva was known to the end for spending personal time with new members, island visitors who pilgrimaged to his sacred home on Kauai and new young monks who have come to the monastery to give their life in selfless service and the Great Search for God within man. All of his work and mission, his amazing vision and all-encompassing projects now go forward under the able guidance of his successor, Bodhinatha. Aum Namasivaya!
11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 starsA Very Compelling Book, October 29, 1999
By A Customer
This review is from: Merging With Siva: Hinduism's Contemporary Metaphysics (Paperback)
Merging With Siva is an excellent book that is understandable for both the spiritual adept and novice. Reading this book, I could tell the author has a deep compassion for others as well as tremendous wisdom and learning. I highly recommend this and Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami's other books.
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10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 starsSpiritual beauty at its peek, April 12, 1999
By A Customer
This review is from: Merging With Siva: Hinduism's Contemporary Metaphysics (Paperback)
A rare classics, the best presentation of raja yoga describe with a divine language and yet easily assimilable to the one on the Path. I just love this book , a jewel for those to whom it is intended . Read it as a piece of litterature or as a big big help in the understanding of the destiny of the Soul this book is just great if not the greatest spiritual book for the end of this millenium. Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami has once more time really succeeded in sharing to the world his love. Thank you Guru , I love you very much too .
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This review is from: Merging With Siva: Hinduism's Contemporary Metaphysics (Paperback)
This book is comprimised of sections to allow one to read a passage every day for a year, or at their own pace if they'd like. I read each passage a day for a year, and it helped me tremendously! Finding yourself, growing spiritualy, and apreading your wings to fly. Merging With Siva, does just what the title says, helps you merge with the almighty. Become at peace with yourself. Nice pictures, poeticly written. Not just for Hindus.
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