PREMA JYOTHI - Newsletter of the Prema Trust and Sacred Earth Community July 2025

1 Jul

Namaste – Kia Ora Koutou. Welcome to our July Newsletter.

The theme Practice and Presence evokes a sense of going inwards to draw closer to our own true being, our own nature. To integrate these two concepts, we will explore the facets of practice and how our practise of these leads us into presence.

Spiritual practice is inherent within everyone. It can be said to be the conscious turning inward to focus on something, or somewhere, larger than the limited body-mind complex that our awareness is usually fixated upon. Paradoxically, it is not simply a focus (implying stillness and attention), but a journey (implying movement). Our stillness can be dynamic, having many facets and movements within its presence. Our more outward practices can contain the essence of stillness within them, bringing peace to our being and quietness of mind.

This newsletter will encompass the practices of prayer, meditation, yoga, self-inquiry and devotional practices such as ritual and song, to explore how these bring us into being, into the heart of stillness, into presence. - Satyavan

The Power of Prayer

Amidst the symphony of existence, let my heart resonate with a melody of profound gratitude. I raise my voice to acknowledge the countless miracles that grace my journey: the laughter shared with cherished souls, the gentle touch of nature’s beauty, and the mere gift of breath that animates my being. In this chorus of thankfulness, may I find a deeper connection to the tapestry of life.

Prayer of Gratitude

A prayer is a voice or a cry from the heart. It can ask for a certain outcome or simply be a ‘conversation with the Divine’. Even when there is a gathering of persons (in a church, mosque or temple) true prayer is an intimate experience, beyond the crowd and into a space that is uniquely our own.

The outer forms of prayer may be quite different, but the inner purpose remains remarkably similar across the world’s faiths. For instance, Namaz or Salah, the form of prayer that Muslims practise, one of Islam’s Five Pillars of Wisdom, allows each person to connect with Allah (the Divine) and come into inner peace and tranquillity. Namaz also contains the words “Allah Ho Akbar”, the Lord is King. This is similar to the Lord’s Prayer that Christians use regularly, containing the words, “hallowed be thy name”. Both these refer to the higher aspect, the more expansive aspect of the Divine.

We find ourselves acknowledging that there is a something greater than our limited perception. Yogananda beautifully puts it like this, “O Heavenly Father, Mother, Friend, Beloved God! May our ceaseless silent utterance of Thy Holy Name transform us to Thy likeness.” Both Islamic and Christian prayer seek to divinise our humanity, though purification (shedding of egotism). Yogananda calls this transforming us into the ’likeness’ of God. Buddhism and Vedanta also pray to come closer to the wholeness of Divinity. Buddhists pray:

Emerging from the Vedas we have the Gaytri Mantra, where the last line refers to the radiance of the One, praying that “May it illumine our intellect”.

However, all forms of prayer begin with a sense of separateness between ourselves and the Divine. But all lead to a coming closer, if not complete union, with the Divine. The prayer is the practice. But the result is to deepen the presence, the removal of separation.

Sai, talking of Jesus, puts it like this:

“Jesus pointed to three stages. The first one is “I am the Messenger of God.” He wanted to propagate the message of God. The second one is, “I am the Son of God.” The son has a claim to father’s property. What is the property of God? Truth, love, forbearance, peace, and righteousness are the properties of God. So, man has to strive to attain these qualities. He has to practice, experience, and propagate these virtues. Only then does man deserve to be called Son of God.

The third one is “I and My Father are one.” This stage is attained when the principle of unity is realised. When Jesus reached this stage, He had no suffering at all. He was always blissful and was prepared for anything. Even at the time of crucifixion, he was smiling, because he realised that He was not the body. Body is bound to perish, but the indweller has no birth and death. Truly speaking, the indweller is God Himself. Jesus understood that the body was merely a vesture, and He was the indweller.” Sathya Sai Baba

Prayer can also be a conversation with the Inner Self. This form of prayer will bring us closer to the presence of the Self within the heart. As I said in the last newsletter, after realising who Sathya Sai is, I began to have a conversation with the inner Sai. At first, it was like prayer, as I was the one doing the talking. Later, the inner Sai began to answer and talk to me. I could hear Him teaching me, showing me within the heart. Being a slow learner, this situation went on for many years. However, lately the heart ‘speaks’ in silence. I find that presence is more potent than words.

Yoga – Creating Union within Presence

Contrary to how it is often portrayed, yoga uses methods and techniques that facilitate the inner journey. But yoga is much more than that. It allows us to integrate all the facets of physical, emotional, energetic and spiritual being. Through yoga practices we come into ourselves, we come into that space where we come face to face with ourselves – we come into presence.

The word yoga comes from the Sanskrit yuk (from which the English word yoke is derived). Yuk means union, and the goal of yoga practices is union of all the facets of being. Yoga practices are often presented in the eight-fold ashtanga yoga that was initially propounded by Patanjali. He was a great sage and siddha who lived in South India many thousands of years ago (no one is exactly sure of when he lived). He classified the steps of yoga into eight limbs. These are depicted in the graphic on this page. Each of these limbs is enhanced by presence.

Yama and Niyama (ethics and good habits)

are practised through conscious living. Awareness of how we relate to others and how we are present with ourselves, our own peculiarities and tendencies, help us to develop ethical and transformative behaviours. Deep presence underpins such awareness.

Asana (posture)

does not simply mean performing yoga poses. It relates to where we sit in life. The original meaning of asana in Sanskrit is seat. The inner seat of awareness is the place where we create our own stability. Just as a teacher of hatha yoga will talk of stability within the yoga pose, so too we need stability in our being. It is when we develop this that a deep presence reveals itself.

Pranayama (often translated as breath control but better described as breath awareness)

allows us to modulate our activities and our thoughts. Slowing and even stilling the breath takes us to a place where we experience the deep silence and tranquillity in the Heart. Within the silence we encounter presence.

Pratyahara (withdrawal from awareness of the senses) and Dharana (inward concentration)

often occur simultaneously. Again, it is a process of reversing the constant outward flow of senses and mind to centre ourselves. Presence reveals itself through the practices.

Meditation Opens Us to a Deeper Sense of Presence

There are countless meditation techniques and methods. Meditation has become very popular in recent times. As people living lives filled with stress and anxiety, and desire for material gains increasing, some are turning inward for answers. There is a perception that the major benefit of meditation is stress release or the gaining of inner peace. What is often overlooked is meditation’s purpose that was laid down by the ancient sages, and avatars.

The best means for following liberating actions is meditation (dhyana). Today, people with newfangled ideas argue how meditation is to be done and even why it should be done. But they know neither its taste nor its pu- rity. That is why there is so much criticism and cynical laughter. My present intention is to instruct such people…

… Therefore, intelligence and mind have to be taught the art of pulling the cart (the inner consciousness) and moving steadily along the road. This has to be done by repetition of the Lord’s name (japa) and meditation (dhyana). - Sathya Sai

Sai reminds us that the ultimate purpose of meditation is liberation. But liberation from what? We live our lives in thrall to desires and conceptions of a limited universe. In a sense, this attitude to life binds us to seeing ourselves in a restricted perception of our own nature. Through the power of meditation, we can come to a different understanding, through an experience of something greater than our limitations. That experience is perceived as presence. The presence of what? you may ask. Within that consciousness there is no outer, there is no other. Therefore, the question can be phrased differently, what is this presence? Or rather who is this presence? Or even, where is this presence? The Self-inquiry that is prevalent in advaita (non-dual teaching), made well-known by Ramana Maharshi, is actually more fruitful is practised when we are in a state of presence. In this state, the answer that comes does not arise from mind, but from the silent heart.

Samadhi is nothing but Presence

There are various translations of the word samadhi. One that I feel is highly descriptive of this state has a beautiful relationship with the Gayatri Mantra.

Om Bhur Bhuvah Svaha

Tat Savitur Varenyam

Bhargo Devasya Dhimahi

Dhiyo Yonah Prachodayat

This mantra promotes the development of the intelligence. Not an ordinary intelligence that is measured by IQ tests, but the intelligence that is able to discriminate between the apparent reality and the underlying truth that supports all creation. Sama means ‘same’ or ‘integrated’; dhi relates to the buddhi the inner intelligence. Loosely translated the word samadhi can be said to mean the state where one perceives everything as One. The eyes may be open or closed – it is all the same, it is all Oneness.

Yoga describes several stages of samadhi, where one moves from savikalpa: a level where we are in deep meditation, but aware of the outer world and aware of thought arising. Using the buddhi and inner knowledge we understand that these are simply stimuli from the outer and we continue with our peaceful stillness. Presence is there, but it has company (stimuli and thought).

Nirvikalpa is the state where there is presence only within the depth of meditation. Silence and stillness persist, with no awareness of the outer and the mind’s activity ceased.

Sahaja is considered the ultimate stage. We no need to be sitting in silence or in any form of meditation. We carry on our daily activity, but we are no longer affected by that activity, no longer affected by thought, we simply are. This is the ultimate state of being in presence.

The ones who are considered to awake to the reality of the Self, are always in a state of Sahaja. Nothing in this life can disturb that presence that beingness. In past newsletters, I have described watching Sai move among the crowds, totally in Oneness, not affected by the clamouring desires of the people to get something from Him, or their tears or smiles. Yet, Swami always was able to interact when required, vital and totally present to the given situation. This is a living example of Sahaja.

Ramana Maharshi was always in a state of bliss. Even when the cancer in His upper arm was rampant (and must have been incredibly painful) He smiled with the light of the One shining from His eyes. This is Sahaja.

Anandamayi Ma lived a life totally unaffected by the outer world, loving all equally, ever in bliss and harmony with herself and others. This is Sahaja. This is pure presence with nothing to impede the flow.

The awakened ones teach us so much, with most of the lessons appearing in the silence of our own presence. In the poem, To the Beloved, Alice Meynell reminds us that it is in silence that we awake. It is in the silence of our hearts that we come to know the truth of our being.

In that knowing, we arrive at a place where we meet life with presence only. Our preconceptions of what should be, our desires of how things everything needs to unfold, our projection of mind onto any situation, are not present. It is only we who are present in the fullness of our being. It is then that we truly begin to serve.ngl

Devotional Practices lead us into the Presence of the Beloved

The path of Bhakti (devotion) is often seen as a lesser spiritual practice than meditation or self-inquiry. In fact, devotion is at the core of our relationship with our own true nature. Bhakti is seen as dualistic, where we separate ourselves from the godhead, who is envisaged in a human (or modified human in the case of deities like Ganesha or many armed goddesses, etc.) form. Devotion can also be to a particular teacher or guru, who is a human representative (if you like) of the godhead. This separation allows for us to give our love and dedication to that form.

However, the outer practices: devotional singing, worship, prayer and praise, even dances, are simply the manifestations of a deeper urge to come near to the one we are devoted to. There is a yearning for that nearness, which becomes the sole purpose of existence for the devotee. As the devotee finds that nearness in the heart, the presence of the beloved on is felt deeply. There is often a fullness of bliss that overwhelms, and the sense of individuality is lost in the experience. This can be as profound as the deep sense of presence in the heart experienced in meditative states. The absorption of the individual ‘I’ into the Beloved, can dissolved the separate ego state, and the universal nature of the Beloved is experienced.

The most classic expression of this relationship is found in the Srimad Bhagavatham, where Radha (the devotee) and Krishna (the Beloved) are bound together in unity of Supreme Love. Sai has stated that Radha is the embodiment of prakrithi – nature, and Krishna is the embodiment of purusha – pure consciousness or Brahman. The relationship between Krishna and Radha was both an intimate love relationship of the heart, and a knowing that they were inseparable (just as the creator is inseparable from the creation). The players play out their parts, but they know in the utmost being that they are one with the director – the Self.

The Practice of Self-Inquiry

Atma Vichara (Self-Inquiry) is a practice that augments all other practices on the spiritual path. Whether we are of a devotional predisposition, follow the path of knowledge or whether we practise yoga, the inquiry into who we really are continues. As presence deepens in our various practices, the question of the true nature of our being naturally arises from the depth of being, the depths of the Heart.

To ask the question ‘Who am I?’, we have to go beyond mind. The fundamental question that answers all other questions cannot be answered by a merely mechanical, mental process. To let the stillness within reveal our totality of who really are is the ultimate sadhana (spiritual practice). By simply saying, ‘I am God’, ‘I am the One’ or ‘I am That’, does not bring us into the experience of being ‘That’. Once we move into the state of being present in the moment, the inquiry begins to deepen. Within the silence, we can find there is a simply being. It smiles and whispers, “I am Home – I am”.