Spiritual development is the path of evolution of a human being simultaneously in all possible spheres of being. Only the harmonious participation of all layers of the soul: physical (body), mental (mind), sensual (astral projection) and causal (true self) in the evolutionary process can be called spiritual development. Otherwise, such a process turns into an emphasis on particulars.

Imagine that you have made a decision to bring your figure into perfect shape. You go to gym... But the place is that in order to follow the classic program for an even load on all muscle groups, you take exclusively the biceps, ignoring the work with other parts of the body. The result of such exercises is unlikely to be remarkable: you will get perfectly designed arms, which, however, will stick out awkwardly from a disproportionately thin or flabby torso. The same happens when, making a decision to take the path of spiritual development, we tend to only one particular, forgetting that the desired result is always hidden in the general and integral.

Thus, the strengthening of the will by itself through physical improvement, or intellectual formation through the acquisition of knowledge, or even "pumping" of sensory perception through meditative exercises and techniques is not yet evidence of the spiritual development of the practitioner. And only everything listed in the complex, as itself arising from the emerging worldview of individuality, can be called such.

The soil in which the root of the spiritual development of the individual rests is his dynamic picture of the world, the changeable nature of which is justified by the aspiration of consciousness to open all the puzzles of the world order in order to achieve the full completeness of the unattainable truth. Therefore, the process of evolution is eternal. Therefore, from time to time, life from walking along this difficult path will demand to tear down the old walls, and then re-erect them.

Destruction is an inevitable aspect of spiritual development. Strengthening of will always occurs through overcoming the old conditional boundaries of one's own "can". Intellectual growth requires us to ruthlessly destroy old beliefs in the name of accepting new information into the picture of the world. Improvement of subtle sensory channels of perception is impossible without abandoning conventions, stereotypes and expectations. And finally, going into the depths of our being, we are inevitably overtaken by a meeting with our own past, without recapitulation of which spiritual evolution mutates into a chimera, giving rise to a great discrepancy between the outer shell of the personality and its inner world of ethical principles.

Working with the past is perhaps one of the most important tasks on the path of spiritual development. This, like other mandatory points, is fraught with destruction, and therefore pain. Removing the defense mechanisms of the psyche, exposing sharp memories, we expose the nerves inflamed by an unsettled conscience. And in order to give them peace and harmony, it is necessary to recognize, accept, forgive and let go. What we destroy in the process of such work, the answer is known: a piece of our own Ego - pride - is the main obstacle on the path of improvement. And this is the most obvious and frequent example on this path of how failure brings liberation and healing. Therefore, a spiritually seeker does not fear any loss.

In conclusion, let us summarize and briefly list the main areas and tasks on the path of spiritual development:

• • Matter: maintaining the tone of the physical body, strengthening the will, healthy eating, work, striving for material well-being;
  • Intellect: broadening horizons, learning, cognition;
  • Emotions and feelings: getting impressions, developing intuition, meditative practices, acquiring the ability to manage your emotional state, cultivating benefactors - mercy, kindness, gratitude;
  • The causal world: awareness of cause-and-effect relationships, cognition of the metaphysical laws of the Universe, working out the past, working out karmic knots, working with the worldview.

Hello,

But have you ever wondered what is the spiritual path of a person? How to choose it? How to understand that the chosen spiritual path is yours?

Such a delicate topic. Maybe not even for a broad discussion. Nevertheless, let's try to approach it carefully. With some basic recommendations that everyone should keep in mind.

Most important and simple. We need to seek a spiritual path with our hearts... There is one creator, there is one supreme source and there are different ways to it. You just need to find yours.

If, for example, you have chosen Christianity as a spiritual practice for yourself, then you must establish yourself in it and follow this path. But at the same time, there is one interesting point.

The spiritual path of man is the path of a pure heart

Pride is very cunning. Pride, selfishness are manifested as appreciation, disregard for others, a sense of superiority. Often people, when embarking on the spiritual path, begin to look down on other people. Who, for example, practice the same spiritual path differently. From a certain position of superiority, neglect. And this is extremely dangerous.

Because the spiritual path is the path purehearts.

The path of a respectful, loving, humble heart. Can you imagine, for example, Jesus Christ and Muhammad fighting each other? Blaming each other? It's impossible. And this happens among their followers ...

Therefore, it is sometimes very important, no matter what spiritual tradition you belong to, to try other traditions.

Why is it important?

Of course, not in the sense that you change your heart's choice. In general, think about how the choice of the heart can be changed. This is strange. If your heart has already chosen, if it has already responded to a certain spiritual path, how can it be confused? Everything, it has already been established. But it makes sense to try other practices in order to expand this awareness that there is a single creator. And - different paths to it.

That is, just feel this mood from within. Practice, research, feel God through other practices.

So we will remove these manifestations of selfishness and. Let's remove the templates for evaluation and superiority.

And then - again to return to their tradition and become very serious there. But - already without a feeling of disdain for all others.

How do you perceive this?

P. S. This article opens new series materials about the spiritual path of a person, false and true spirituality, the difference between real humility and dull patience. We will continue in a few days.

P. P. S... If this is your first time here, you can subscribe now by clicking here. If you know someone who might benefit from this article, please send them a link to this page (social buttons - just below).

Based on the training by Oleg Gadetsky “Freedom and Self-Realization. Transformation of negative beliefs "

Spiritual development - this is the study of the device of INTELLIGENT LIFE, through the knowledge of YOURSELF, your feelings and thoughts, from where and how they are born, how they affect us, on a personal and general level.

The true Spiritual path of development (growth of the Soul) is not possible without real knowledge of oneself (one's inner world of feelings and thoughts).

Not everyone is capable of reaching this Path. Someone is busy getting their daily bread, someone needs to arrange their personal life, that is, most people are immersed in “everyday life” and they simply have no time to stop to think about something else. Fear also has a place to be. Indeed, even realizing the meaninglessness of the “race” for new acquisitions and the growth of one's social significance, it takes a lot of courage to boldly look into oneself and try to change the usual way of life, and at the same time transform oneself.

To leave the “comfort zone” of such people can only be forced by some out of the ordinary event that can shake a person - it can be stress, sudden inspiration caused by shock, death of loved ones, etc. The event should make him understand all the illusory nature of such a life, where values \u200b\u200bare coming, and human life, by and large, has no meaning.

When understanding comes and the familiar world collapses, a person has a choice - how to live now, what to believe, what or whom to serve? What can stimulate a person to believe in himself and think about the values \u200b\u200bthat are eternal and unshakable? At this moment, a difficult path of changes and transformation of his spirit opens up before him, an opportunity opens up to touch his Divine beginning.

Evolution of Spirit and Soul

Spiritual development is the Path of the evolution of spirit and soul, which distinguishes people from animals, and for which we all incarnated here on Earth. After all, the meaning of life lies in the fact that by moral victories over one's shortcomings, character traits and habits, cleanse the mirror of one's soul from dirt, strengthen the spirit and continue improvement already outside our reality, in the higher worlds and in more subtle matters.

Real Spiritual development is possible only under these conditions, when a person goes beyond the boundaries of the Destructive Mind, in which there is the creativity of illness, death, doubt ...

Our body is the seat of the soul and through the spirit is connected with the Creator (God or Creator). You can also say that each person, animal, insect, plant, mineral or atom in the aggregate constitutes the body of God, or it manifests itself through everything that surrounds us and this all evolves and develops according to cosmic laws and cycles.

Having reached human nature, the soul and body are subjected to severe trials. On their way, obstacles arise in the form of an ego, doubtful desires, negative emotions, a sense of self-importance, etc. In the struggle with these factors, a person sometimes lives many lives until conditions are ripe and formed in which a person can no longer continue to live like this without changing yourself.

The essence of Spiritual development

The most important thing on the path of Spiritual development is to find the integrity of your views and aspirations with the desires of the soul, and then it is possible to become like God not only in image, but also in content. Love is the key to discovering limitless possibilities in yourself. Love is the language of God. Learning to love truly is not easy, and many do not even have an idea of \u200b\u200bwhat it is. Their understanding does not extend beyond carnal friction with each other and a possessive attitude towards loved ones.

We must learn to give love to the entire world around us, without expecting anything in return, because God has already rewarded a person with everything that could only be dreamed of at birth. However, this is not enough for some and they rush from one extreme to another. Hence wars, rivalry, and fornication ... This is the path of suffering and dissatisfaction, which destroys the body and destroys the soul.

But how, by what means and methods to come to an agreement with oneself? Perhaps prayer for someone will be a consolation, but it is not able to give an impulse for evolutionary growth. Religion is an unnecessary mediator between man and God. Nowadays, it increasingly serves as a tool for manipulating people, a means of profit and dirty machinations on the part of the church or higher authorities.

Only evolution matters now. Therefore, by choosing a voluntary, firm and conscious intention to know and change oneself, one can come to the desired result. As they say, there are many who seek the Creator, but not many find him. The Creator lives in each of us, but without engaging in his awakening, we turn away from ourselves. He does not hear the voice of our desires, requests or laudatory odes - he reacts only to the manifestations of the spirit expressed in actions.

Doubts in their abilities and fear of an unknown future and, most importantly, an unconscious choice of the Spiritual path will very quickly return an immature person to a familiar and comfortable way of life. To stay true to your choice, especially at the initial stage, you need to be vigilant, listen to yourself and pull back whenever the ego begins to dictate its conditions - complete control of thoughts and actions.

• You need to accept yourself, having understood your delusions, mistakes, grievances, even if not immediately, but over time. First of all, you should learn to always remain honest and be yourself under any circumstances. There is no need to blame anyone for the current situation, and even yourself - after all, this is a school where we all study and grow our souls with each class.

Freed from the burden of past mistakes and resentments, a person gains lightness and self-confidence. The world around us begins to create favorable conditions for a person, fills the space with guiding signs, life becomes joyful and transforms right before our eyes. Feeling inner peace and desire to live, a person in the future will never be able to repeat the mistakes of the past and will not commit new ones.

Reading philosophical literature, spiritual practices, meditation will help accelerate evolution. Religious literature contains too many conjectures and falsehoods, so a person who is ignorant of such matters can easily take anything on faith. There are a lot of ancient and modern literary artifacts that can acquaint the traveler with the structure of the universe, with cosmic and spiritual laws, with concepts that reveal the very essence of a human being and much more.

Spiritual development is possible only if a person sincerely wants to know his inner world, really change the structure of his feelings, give himself the opportunity to learn how to actually live, breathe, love, without feelings of fear.

Literature:

H.P. Blavatskaya, D.L.Andreev, Roerichs, Sri Aurobindo, Osho, ancient Indian epics - "Mahabharata" and "Ramayana", Bhagavad Gita, Vedas, Philosophy, AllatRa and many other books that are recommended for deep study for those who chose the path of the spirit.

How to be, how to live, what to do and what to do, if there is a clear inner conviction that it is not enough to live the ordinary life of most people, that life goes on in daily worries and worries, more and more household, family direction ... Thanks to you, it is now clear that you can have time to do at least something for life, people and the Earth, but what about some personal, voluntarily assumed obligations in the person of family, spouse, children, work? The path of discipleship, the path of Service is the path of self-denial of everything personal; will he not be a betrayal to them? How long can the formation and preparation period take? Will there be time and will there even be a chance to bring your help to this world, because only the study of Agni Yoga can take a number of years ..

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A family

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Every person who decides to devote himself to the Spiritual Path sooner or later asks the question: how to combine this Path with obligations to family, children, work? And is this even possible, if the Spiritual Path is the path of self-denial and escape from everything personal? Let's try to answer these questions.

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Let's start with the family, but for this we will return to the article. In it, we agreed to distinguish between two concepts: the Path to Light and the Spiritual Path. If we talk specifically about the Spiritual Path, then we can assert that this Path is currently incompatible with personal (family) life. We are talking about the present tense, since today's conditions and requirements are strikingly different from the conditions and requirements of fifty years ago, when the writing of Agni Yoga was completed. Moreover, we can only judge on the basis of our experience, since we know almost nothing about other spiritual organizations of our time.

Initially, our position on this issue was not so categorical. When our Society was forming, people of different ages and marital status came to us. Some came with their couple or children, several couples were already created in the Society. We sincerely rejoiced at their creation, knowing that it is a man and a woman who created a family and united by a spiritual goal, who, during spiritual work, are able to maximally unite and mutually reinforce the common energy of their auras - provided that each one goes to the limit in his movement. However, now, to our great regret, we are forced to state the fact that none of the attempts to combine spiritual development with personal life have been crowned with success. And this despite the fact that over the seventeen years of our organization's existence, such attempts have been made by dozens, if not hundreds of people, including some active members of our Community.

Analyzing this bad experience, we looked at the issue of human relations and spiritual development from the standpoint of psychic energy - and everything fell into place. Let's share here our reasoning and conclusions.

It is known that the man and woman who created a couple are connected with each other through a large number of channels. This means that they have many identical energies, which merge to form a common energy field. The closer and warmer the relationship is, the denser it is; its energies are averaged in strength. Children are also in this common field. In addition, a child under seven years of age, whose chakras are not yet fully formed, is energetically dependent on the mother and has a strong connection with her. After seven years, this connection persists, but with age it gradually weakens as the child acquires independence.

We come to the conclusion that any person connected by family ties can in no way avoid the mutual influence of the energy of all members of his family. Moreover, by family, we mean not only a husband, wife and children, but also other relatives living with them under the same roof, since living together contributes to the averaging of energy. What happens if a family member starts to develop spiritually?

We have already said that in the process of spiritual ascent, the energy of a person is purified, refined and gains strength. If his family does not develop spiritually with him, then gradually the difference in vibrations and levels of consciousness begins to increase between them, which manifests itself in all sorts of misunderstandings and cooling of relations. Moreover, the greater the difference in the levels of development, the less remains in common between people, to the extent that at some point they become absolutely strangers to each other. Both sides suffer from this distance. One, the one that develops, suffers from a misunderstanding of loved ones and the home atmosphere that is becoming more and more painful for him, which hinders his development, and for other family members it is no less painful to live in his too high, and therefore uncomfortable vibrations for them, which simply annoy them and provoke uncontrollable outbursts of negative emotions.

The point here is that spiritual development cannot only touch the inner world of a person, it inevitably affects his entire way of life. Rare people who purposefully do not work on themselves happily accept these changes in their environment, which inevitably affect themselves. And the reason is not necessarily that they are against the development of their loved one, although this is often the case. It's just that people are inert by nature, and any changes, even for the better, cause them discomfort, as they violate their usual way of life. In addition, everything incomprehensible often alarms and frightens them, especially if it concerns a loved one, and sometimes they are simply afraid of losing their control over him. Of course, at first, when he refuses the most rude bad habitsit might even be welcome. But it is very rare to find those who know how to respect the right to choose another and are ready to put up with everything. big amount time and attention, which in the process of movement he begins to devote not to the family, not to its interests, but to the Spiritual Path, ephemeral for them. Sometimes such family members who resist the development of their loved one, in an effort to avoid change or out of selfish love for him, become involuntary accomplices of darkness. A similar case is well illustrated in K. Antarova's book "Two Lives" by the example of the pastor's family.

Some are not convinced by these arguments, which speak of the impossibility of spiritual development in the family, and we are faced with statements like: "In my case, everything will work out, my family will understand and support me." Of course, the family may well not interfere and even support. But do not overlook the energetic side of the issue.

The Spiritual Path is the path of cooperation with the Hierarchy, the path of Service, which at least presupposes the readiness of a person to be a constant conductor of spatial energies. In order to perform even such a simple spiritual work for the Earth, it is necessary to have vibrations corresponding to the vibrations of space (you must admit that it is simply impossible to transfer to others what you have not achieved yourself). In our time, the time of Armageddon, the streams of fiery energies pouring down to the Earth from space have reached great strength and have become incredibly refined, continuing to intensify and refine every day. It is they who set the minimum level, having reached which a person can become a collaborator of the Hierarchy. And now - simple arithmetic: is it possible to reach such a level, living in a family, if in its common energy field the vibrations of all its members are averaged? Even if a married couple is ready to develop together, there are still children who will inevitably lower the general energy and pull back on themselves until they completely stand on their feet and separate from their parents or begin to develop with them.
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The question concerning children is generally quite complex. Having and raising a child is a big responsibility that parents take on voluntarily. This obligation can be considered fulfilled when the child attains full independence. From the standpoint of energy, a person is fully formed as an independent person by the age of twenty-one, but many become independent sooner or later than this period - this already depends on upbringing. Until that time, he remains connected with his parents, exerting his influence on the general energy field of the family.

Now let's see what happens if parents with minor children take the Spiritual Path. (Here we will clarify that in the first years of the existence of our Society, the level of spatial energies was much lower than today's and, accordingly, the requirements for spiritually walking were also not so high, allowing them to move in families - at least to a certain level. This is our experience we are here and describe).

We know that a child comes to earth with certain karmic accumulations, both dark and light, which naturally manifest (or do not manifest) in the process of life. Spiritual vibrations of his parents, who have embarked on the Path, involuntarily affect his Spirit, activating the accumulations sleeping in him, lying closer to the surface, which by themselves could not have manifested in this life. Of course, the child is not aware of this process and cannot control it - this is sometimes beyond the power of a prepared adult. And this is where the problems begin, which at one time several married couples from our Society faced.

Some kind, sympathetic and docile children suddenly, for no apparent reason, changed for the worse, becoming withdrawn and aggressive, and some began to steal and enjoy the suffering of others. All of these changes could not be attributed to adolescence, because they happened between the ages of five and nine. Of course, possible mistakes in upbringing cannot be disregarded here, but the depth and suddenness of the changes speaks in favor of the dark accumulations caused by the spiritual vibrations of the parents. Of course, the further spiritual development of the parents in this case becomes impossible, because the family's aura is burdened by the child's negative vibrations, and all forces are rushed to resolve the situation in the family.

Another example is when the vibrations of the parents touch the light accumulations in the child and awaken in him the desire to embark on the Spiritual Path. In our practice, there were similar cases when children over ten years old, developing in the auras of spiritually walking mothers, in a very short time reached a level that allows them to receive rather high vibrations. Our joy for them was short-lived: a fast takeoff was soon replaced by an equally rapid fall, which was, in general, natural. After all, only due to the sudden rise of high accumulations, not supported by either knowledge, or mental and physical correspondence to the level occupied, or even an understanding of what is happening, it is impossible to hold onto the achieved positions for a long time. For some of these children, a sharp drop in vibrations did not pass without leaving a trace, knocking out the body and nervous system for some time.

These situations allowed us to conclude: the high vibrations of spiritually walking parents can affect their children in the most unpredictable and, based on our experience, not the best way. Therefore, we consider it reasonable to first fulfill our duty towards children, and only after that think about becoming on the path of Service. Moreover, everyday problems, worries and troubles associated with the upbringing of a child will still make spiritual ascent physically impossible, since they will take a lot of time and effort and constantly divert attention to resolving issues of the earthly plan.

In our practice, there were also such cases when it was children who showed a strong desire for the Spiritual Path. Since the parents, not going spiritually themselves, did not interfere with their efforts, but on the contrary, supported them in every possible way, we began to conduct classes with these children, in which we passed on to them the knowledge available at their level. Children are open to new things and, being free from the frameworks and limitations inherent in adults, they very easily perceive information. Having accepted the foundations of the Path of Light that were in tune with them and following them, they began to quickly break away from their families in terms of vibrations and at some stage began to feel like strangers in them. In addition, in contact with the outside world, in which completely different principles reign, faced with incomprehension and cruelty of their peers, they began to feel like strangers in this world, the rules of which were unacceptable to them. As a result, there is an internal conflict, accompanied by a deep feeling of loneliness and hopelessness: it turns out that everything that they consider to be right, that is so close to their hearts, matters only for themselves, and those around them live according to completely different laws? And how is it possible to live in such a world? Imagine what mental suffering such experiences can deliver to a child who has lost support in life and does not understand the reasons for what is happening to him. Therefore, in order not to aggravate the situation, we were forced to stop all communication with such children, after which their vibrations gradually returned to their natural level and, as a result, the internal state returned to normal.

What happened has become an invaluable lesson for us: you cannot pull a child out of the environment in which he grows up. His primary task is to adapt to life in society, whatever it may be. Of course, it is great if a child is brought up in the aura of a family striving for the Light, absorbing the correct understanding from birth. But at the same time, it is important for parents to remember that their child will have to live in this world with all its imperfections, and for this it is necessary to temper his psyche and teach him to defend himself so that he does not break down when faced with evil, injustice and principles of others alien to his conscience.

After what happened, it became finally clear that a child with a fragile body and psyche, with an unformed energy, cannot be in high vibrations of great strength without damage to himself - at least in our time, when there are so many manifestations of darkness around. Most likely, it is the contrast between Light and darkness, Truth and its distortions that becomes the destructive factor that the child's consciousness is unable to cope with. Perhaps in the future, when human society learns to live in harmony with the Cosmic Laws, everything will be different and the spiritual potential of a person will be able to unfold unhindered from childhood. But now, when the atmosphere for this is so unfavorable, he should make a decision to become on the Spiritual Path only after he has achieved complete independence in all respects. This choice must be made independently and consciously, since a person must fully understand what he will have to give up, having embarked on the Spiritual Path, what difficulties he may face on it and what responsibility he takes on.
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Now - about spiritual ascent in pairs and why we abandoned this path in our practice.

As already mentioned, a man and a woman, united by a common energy field and going spiritually, are able to work most effectively for space, since the joint energies can ideally be amplified up to seven times, and it is in a pair that the unification occurs along the maximum possible number of channels (again , perfectly). At the dawn of the creation of our Society, this knowledge was for us the main reason for moving in pairs. But for this movement to take place, two conditions must be met. First, a complete rejection of the personal on the part of both partners. That is, their relationship should be based on the principles of self-giving in the name of a goal (spiritual work for the good of all mankind), and everything that does not agree with this goal should be put aside without regret. Secondly, partners must be on the same level. As it turned out, to comply with these conditions constantly is an almost impossible task. People either imperceptibly for themselves switch to personal relationships, forgetting about the goal, or between them there is a too large gap in the levels of development, making further movement in a pair impossible.

There are no personal questions. But why movement in a pair is possible only at the same levels should be explained.

In general, the discrepancy in the levels of development is a completely natural phenomenon, because each person has many individual characteristics that affect the speed of his movement. Two can start the path together and go through some part of it together, but in our practice there was not a single case that the normal joint movement lasted more than three or four months (and these are the rare cases when the couple was not captured by the personal at the very beginning relations). The higher the level, the stronger these individual characteristics are felt - from hard work, the strength of aspiration and the ability to learn to the amount of spiritual accumulations with which a person came to this incarnation. From here a gradual divergence in vibrations begins, and the larger this gap, the more painful the joint movement becomes for both partners, whose energies are averaged in the common field. At the same time, one, the one who goes in front, feels the impossibility of moving in full force and realizing his full potential, as he pulls the weaker one behind him. And the second, being in unnaturally high vibrations for himself, is in constant tension due to the need to move at a pace that is too fast for him, which becomes the cause of frequent failures and disruptions. Moreover, in more strong energy partner's own individuality is involuntarily suppressed, which contributes to the development of insecurity and loss of independence. Of course, in this state of affairs, there is no question of full-fledged spiritual work - the couple is only engaged in settling their internal problems. The inevitable disintegration of such a couple leads to an even deeper downfall: not only is the breakdown of relations not complete without emotions and mental suffering, so the former partners are burdening their karma, not fulfilling their obligation to the Hierarchy to multiply their strength in working together... The burden of this karma in some cases is so heavy that it is no longer possible for such people to move on. It is for these reasons that the Teacher always warns those striving to join our Community about the inadmissibility of movement in pairs. Indeed, in the Community, any failures inevitably affect the well-coordinated work of the entire team, and therefore the responsibility for them increases many times over.
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Many people ask us about the necessity of abstinence for the members of the Community. Let's answer with the words of A.Klizovsky from the "Foundations of the Worldview of the New Era".

“Speaking of abstinence and moderation, it should be clarified that when a person practically studies the occult, when certain missions are assigned to him, when he enters the accelerated path of his development, then complete abstinence is necessary. But here the person is faced with a rather difficult dilemma. The striving to achieve higher capabilities and higher powers, requiring abstinence, brings a surge of higher spiritual forces, which not all go to the development of spirituality, but most of which are absorbed by the physical nature of a person, and in particular increases those opportunities from which a person must abstain ... The wisdom of the law acting in this case is that everyone striving for perfection must inevitably overcome his lower nature and transmute the lower creative power into a higher one. If a person copes with this task successfully, he successfully moves on. If he gets stuck here, it shows that he is not ready for his further advance. "

We, on the basis of experience, can add that the one who has overcome this step no longer feels the need for the energies of the opposite principle, receiving the necessary amount of them along the spiritual ray.
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With regard to obligations in the form of work, we can only talk about our experience.

In the early years of our Society, each of us worked or studied. At first, this did not hinder us in spiritual work - on the contrary, in these circumstances we saw opportunities for improvement. At a certain stage, we all began to feel that these obligations begin to oppress us, practically not bringing new experience, but taking away a lot of time and effort. We saw that we can do much more for humanity if we free ourselves from them and join forces, focusing on spiritual work. This is how the idea of \u200b\u200bcreating a Community was born. To begin with, we broke off labor relations with state and private structures and tried to organize our own business, tried our hand at different types of activities. Many of our attempts have been unsuccessful. However, now, obviously, when inner readiness has come and all the necessary qualities have been developed, our Community has become financially independent with our minimal participation. Thanks to the help of the Forces of Light, we now have the opportunity to focus on our task and do what we have gathered for. It seems to us that such opportunities for material independence opened up precisely due to the fact that we were aware of the incommensurability of obligations to the employer or the collective and the responsibility that we assumed by creating the Community. It is thanks to the fact that we were not afraid of hardships and difficulties, were not afraid to break many social ties and, as one of our friends put it, “to die a social death”, that we were able to establish such a channel of communication with the Hierarchy, through which the Forces of Light have the ability to influence the physical plane and help our endeavors. Of course, this would be impossible if in our improvement we did not give all our best to the end and even to a small extent possessed such qualities as laziness, disorganization and lack of independence, inability to plan and foresee the consequences of our actions.
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Now let's summarize all of the above and answer the question posed at the beginning of the article.

Based on our experience, we believe that only a person who is completely independent morally and materially, free from any obligations to other people can embark on the Spiritual Path. By obligations, we mean obligations to the family (husband / wife, minor children, relatives requiring care), to the employer, as well as the existence of material debts that require payment. In addition, if a person is not able to ensure his material and moral independence, this indicates that he does not possess even the elementary basic qualities necessary for becoming on the Spiritual Path. And, of course, he cannot be of value to the Hierarchy who shirks the duty he has voluntarily assumed (meaning the upbringing of children and ensuring their well-being). From time immemorial, this is the position that those who strive to embark on the Spiritual Path have adhered to in India: only those who have not yet burdened themselves with earthly obligations, or those who have completely paid off all material debts (that is, put their children on their feet and provided for their families, so that it can exist on its own).

To be specific, let us point out that in our Community there are people whose children have already become independent and do not need care. One of the members of the Community has minor children, but since he divorced their mother long before he met us, he provided them material well-being and has no complaints from former family, we saw no reason why he could not be our employee.

And yet, what about the one who, being bound by earthly obligations, seeks to devote himself to the Spiritual Path? It would be unfair if a person who sincerely strives to benefit this world did not have the opportunity to be useful to the cause of Light.

It is not for nothing that we distinguished between these two concepts: the Spiritual Path and the Path to Light. If not everyone can enter the Spiritual Path, that is, the path of Service and self-denial, then the path to the Light is open for everyone. Developing and improving, man is already making his contribution to the acceleration of the evolution of all mankind. Cleansing his aura and expanding his consciousness, he also influences his immediate environment, as far as he can, he cleans the space around him. If at least around himself he manages to create a harmonious atmosphere, correctly educates children, investing in them the foundations of spirituality, unites other people around the ideas of the Teaching or any good goal, he will already be an assistant to the Brotherhood. If a person does not lose his burning until the moment when he is free from all obligations, uses this time wisely and with benefit, sooner or later he will have a chance to become a collaborator of the Hierarchy. In the Brotherhood, this is always perceived as a holiday, but one must be ready for this. We have devoted our lives to ensuring that such people have as many opportunities as possible to develop and bring ideas of good to the world. Therefore, a helping hand is always extended by us.
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As for the terms required for becoming on the Spiritual Path, they are determined based on the level of the aspirant's readiness, his ability to learn, openness and freedom of consciousness, the readiness of his physical vehicle and, of course, the presence of the necessary spiritual accumulations. It can take from several months to several years to prepare, and many, following their own weaknesses, cannot approach the Spiritual Path throughout their lives. In any case, everything depends only on the person himself. In conclusion, we can say with confidence: with an open consciousness, uncompromising with oneself and the ability to go all the way to the end, nothing is impossible.

In this article you will be able to understand in detail how to start spiritual development and what it really is. This article is written based on the experience and research of many people who follow different paths of spiritual growth: within and outside traditional religions. You will definitely find here all the information you need to start self-realization.

First, you need to understand the basic concepts, especially in what the concept of "spiritual development" means.

What is spiritual development really?

First, you need to understand the clear difference between spiritual development and cultural or moral development. For example, some people sincerely believe that going to museums and theaters uplifts them spiritually. But this is a massive misconception, especially considering the direction in which contemporary art is heading today.

A person can do certain things for decades and think that he is progressing spiritually. But in fact, he will not make any progress on the path of self-realization.

True, there is one nuance: if a person has a God-given talent in the field of art and he, for example, is an artist. Then, visiting exhibitions and other events related to this area can help a person in spiritual development.

Why? Because:

Spiritual development implies that a person will go his own way in accordance with the talents, which are the manifestation of God in him.

There is a certain Divine plan for the life of every living creature, which is also called the destination. And if a person does not follow this, then there can be no question of spiritual growth.

Details about the concept of "spiritual development" are described in the video:

Also, before engaging in spiritual development, you need to clearly understand why it needs to be done.

The main goal of spiritual self-development

It is no secret that many of those who embarked on the path of spiritual self-improvement experienced certain difficulties before that. It could be a tough money situation, a relationship breakdown, or a health problem.

One way or another, life's difficulties push a person to a more conscious life. The whole the world waiting for us to get out of the influence of the illusion of the material world and begin to develop in the spiritual direction.

The main goal of spiritual development is the realization of your spiritual nature, God in your heart and life on the basis of this.

Understand that the goal of spiritual development is NOT attending temples on a schedule or unconsciously repeating prayers because some priest said so. We must learn to build a relationship with God in our hearts without any intermediaries.

The Almighty is the closest friend and well-wisher, who is with us every second and waits for us to finally pay attention to him. But we ignore God in our hearts and replace Him with external, often meaningless things: religions, rituals, pseudo teachers, etc.

The process of realizing God in the heart is not as long as many priests tell us. We are told that we are still underdeveloped to communicate with God directly. But that's a lie. No additional conditions are required for communication with God. He is with us right here and now.

Don't believe me? Try to start living with an eye on your heart (voice of conscience, if you will). And you will see that real spiritual development has begun, and then miracles will begin.

In general, real spiritual progress is always accompanied by miracles. If a person is engaged in spiritual development a lot, pray for several hours a day, attends church every week, reads spiritual treatises, but miracles do not happen in his life and he does not really become happier, then he does NOT develop spiritually and, most likely, went in the wrong paths.

Often people fall for such a deception that religious leaders impose on them: now you need to be humble, endure and develop spiritually to the best of your ability, but after death everything will be fine. This is another monstrous lie that helps make people slaves.

You need to live here and now. You need to communicate with God today. You need to be happy in the present moment. This is what God expects of us. And for this you just need to start living according to your conscience, putting God on the altar of your heart.

God is not very interested in people who endure everything and are afraid of everything. He needs brave and decisive people who do not shake with fear and do not blindly believe non-humans who often dress in sacred clothes.

It is fair to say that there are also pure spiritual people within religions... There may not be as many of them as we would like, but they are. And only God in our hearts will help us to discern who is the real man of God and who is the "wolf in sheep's clothing."

If this main goal is not in the focus of a spiritually developing person, then whatever he does, everything will be devoid of deep meaning.

Where to start spiritual development: tools and their choice

If we talk about traditional religions, then in general the tools of spiritual development are the same there: choice of religion itself, prayer practices, spiritual treatises, communication with like-minded people, search for mentors and spiritual teachers... And it is believed that this is quite enough to AFTER death to go to the spiritual world (or to reach the Kingdom of God).

To a person who has been familiar with "religious cuisine" for several years, sooner or later it becomes obvious that there are quite a few unfortunate people among the followers of religions. Moreover, there is a wealth of information about what crimes are committed by the leaders of religions: fraud, theft, child abuse, drug dealing, murder, and more. All this raises many questions from adequate and sane people.

What to do?

To follow the path of any religion or outside of it is the choice of a particular person. The purpose of this article is to teach you to distinguish false spirituality from genuine one. Therefore, below we will discuss in more detail the tools for spiritual development that are used both in official religions and outside them.

These tools are:

• Life after heart;
• Choosing a spiritual path;
• Prayer practices;
• Scriptures;
• Sublime surroundings;
• Mentors and teachers;
• Altruism or selfless activity;
• Additional tools to help spiritual growth.

Life after heart or how to listen to the voice of conscience?

It has already been noted above that God, as one of his full aspects, is in the hearts of all living beings. This aspect is called Paramatma or Supersoul, or the voice of conscience.

Today it is becoming more and more obvious that living conscientiously, with an emphasis on God in the heart, the safest wayin which a person will not be deceived by pseudo-spiritual personalities. Relying on the Supersoul, one can fear nothing, since in this case he is under the direct protection of God. In one of the texts of the Bhagavad-gita, God says:

“Leave all religions and simply surrender to Me. I will deliver you from all the consequences of your sins. Do not be afraid of anything. "

And that says it all and everything is clear. The main thing in spiritual development is to completely surrender to the Almighty, and then everything will develop with His direct participation.

What is the easiest way to surrender to God? Start listening to your heart, where God is. He is with us always and at the moment too.

How to learn to listen to God in your heart? No one will give specific recommendations, since this process is different for everyone. Only He Himself knows how everything will happen with a specific person.

Therefore, you just need to sincerely turn to Him and say that you want to learn to listen to Him in your heart. God will certainly respond to such an appeal and begin to lead you through life.

And we are not talking about the fact that you were taken like a dog on a leash and led. Where God is always there are exciting adventures and miracles. Believe me, you will definitely not be bored.

In my opinion, this instrument on the path of spiritual development should become more important than religions, spiritual teachers, prayers, temples, etc.

How to Choose a Spiritual Tradition?

If you decide to follow the path of any religion, then you need to seriously approach its choice. And in this matter, everything is also individual. One person may be fit with one religion, another - another religion, a third - a third spiritual tradition. By the way, this does not mean that they should compete with each other - only fanatics do this.

Also, a person does not have to be exactly in the religious tradition in which he was born. It often happens that, having matured, a person chooses another spiritual tradition, which is “closer to his heart”.

Choose your religion (tradition) wisely using the following criteria:

• This tradition should lead to the Personality of Godhead (if in the tradition philosophy is that only their path and "their god" are the only correct ones, then this is either a false tradition, or deceitful and ignorant followers);
• In this religion there should be many truly Holy Personalities (not 2-5, but hundreds, thousands and more);
• The tradition should be based on authoritative scriptures that are many years old (at least 500 years old or more);
• A lot of people should follow the path of this religious tradition and achieve certain results on it (for example, people become to a higher standard of living, refuse violence, immorality and debauchery, etc.);
• In this religion there should be a spiritual (prayer) practice that every sincere follower is engaged in;
• You should be fine in this tradition; if you are experiencing constant discomfort, then perhaps this is not what you need;
• It's good if you like the customs and rules in this religion (at least at the initial stage, they are satisfied).

There are more than enough criteria for choosing a spiritual tradition (religion) at the beginning of spiritual development. Consider them.

I would like to draw your attention to one point. Over the past 200 years, not the best things have happened in religions and it is my duty to inform you about this. Take the time and study the article:

For people who do not want or are not yet ready to choose a certain religious tradition, there is an opportunity to develop spiritually outside of religion. This is described in detail in the article:

Prayer practice: when, how and why?

Now about another important topic - prayers and mantras.

These practices are undoubtedly useful and important, but only when a person practices them consciously and sincerely. When this turns into an automatic process and a person prays simply because he must, then the effectiveness of prayer tends to zero.

At the initial stage of spiritual growth, the daily practice of prayer or mantra will be beneficial. She will purify the consciousness of a person and raise him up. Everything new in this world bears fruit, but for the time being.

Over time, when a person is "drawn" into the spiritual life, the effectiveness of prayer decreases and it often becomes automatic. And the following situation can be observed: a person seems to be actively engaged in spiritual development, prays, but no particular result is visible. This means that he is going the wrong way.

Prayer should be, as an addition, but not as the main goal of spiritual development. People who live by heart are often much happier and more powerful than those who, like a robot, pray for hours to no avail.

God only responds to sincere prayers, when a person consciously addresses him, and does not think during prayer about what he will do after prayer or how he was treated unfairly. Better than automatically repeating a prayer, to do some kind and selfless deed for people or other living beings. More on this in the video:

Study of the Scriptures

We know a lot of scriptures, but the question is, how much have they survived in their original form in our 21st century? As a result of various studies, I have learned that all major spiritual treatises are prone to distortion to one degree or another. By the way, this is mainly done by representatives of official religions. Why? Because they serve a single super-religious leadership.

The Bible, the Koran, the Bhagavad-gita, the Torah or something else - today it needs to be read carefully, with the mind turned on, and you can't take everything on blind faith.

Does this mean that spiritual treatises do not need to be read at all? Of course not. Even in distorted scriptures, many profound things remain. You just need to know what to choose for reading and what to be guided by when studying treatises.

When reading any scripture, one must be guided by the heart. The most important commentary on what we read comes from God within us. If a person lives according to his heart, then even rewritten books cannot lead him astray. The Almighty will always help to find something that will help a person in spiritual development.

You can learn about how spiritual treatises are distorted in the article:

About the sublime environment and mentors

It's hard for one to develop. It is impossible to progress spiritually outside of society. Therefore, a person must have relationships with other people. That is, he should not be locked in himself, considering this the height of renunciation. It is in interaction with other people that they "grind" us like a stone in order to give a beautiful and graceful shape - to make us truly spiritual people.

It is beneficial to have communication with like-minded people who are also involved in spiritual development. You can communicate with them, share experiences, discuss interesting topics, etc. It gives inspiration, energy, and can also give unexpected clues in situations that we do not understand. In a moment of difficulty and doubt, such an environment is very good helper and friend.

However, it is not always easy to find such an environment. But, as they say, a sincere person who lives by heart will never be left alone and God will definitely find him a company when needed.

It's even better if you find a mentor, which will suggest what and how to do, indicate errors, etc. Please note that a mentor for us can be any situation or any person, if we are able to perceive them in the right mindset.

But it is not so easy to become a true mentor who will give us advice and we will follow it. Such a person should himself lead an exalted and pure life for many years. The same goes for spiritual teachers.

One of the most important signs of a spiritual teacher is that he teaches the disciple to do without him, and does not try to become an intermediary between God and him. A real spiritual teacher helps a person to become himself, and not someone there. A true guru speaks about God in the heart of a disciple and teaches him to live on this basis.

Not all mentors and teachers meet the criteria described above. But what can you do, these are the times now ... Live according to your heart and God will definitely tell you where the teacher is, and where the swindler and the scoundrel.

Self-interest for spiritual growth

It is impossible to separate real spiritual progress and the commission of self-serving deeds. A spiritual person always lives on the basis of his talents, and it is in the talent assigned to us that one can be truly selfless.

At the initial stage, while we are not in our talent, we can and should look for ways to manifest self-interest. There are a lot of them these days. Details about the importance of this quality and its development are written in the article:

Important points at the beginning of spiritual development

In addition to the initial steps in spiritual development, you need to take certain actions in other directions.

First of all, these are:

• Daily regime;
• Cleanliness;
• Nutrition;
• Intoxication.

Without putting things in order in your everyday life, it is impossible to progress on the spiritual path. Therefore, you need to strive to eat right, sleep at the right time, maintain personal hygiene, get rid of bad habits and much more.

In day mode special attention pay attention to the early rise. You can learn about the basics of the daily routine from the video:

Cleanliness especially important for spiritual development and you must definitely strive for it. This is the purity of the body, linen, surrounding space, psyche, etc.

Start by taking a shower every morning. On the need for this in this entry:

Nutrition largely determines our level of consciousness, our character traits and even actions. For example, if a person loves to eat meat food, then he will have a tendency to violence and lust, and this will be a serious obstacle on the path of spiritual development. About the usefulness or harmfulness of meat.