"Joy is you at the deepest level, and your joy is one with the infinite timeless Joy of this unbound universe."~Robert Ellwood
Recently, I was invited by a friend to attend a darshan by Mother Meera in Boone, NC. She made it seem like a big deal and a privilege that Mother Meera had chosen Boone as the location of her first US visit. I didn't know anything about her or what a darshan was so I searched the Internet. Mother Meera is Indian and considered a Divine Mother by her culture and followers. A darshan is a ceremony whereby she bestows a blessing on the attendees. She states very clearly that she is not here to convert anyone to her religion but to open your hearts to the Light. Although still somewhat hesitant and skeptical, I was very curious. "What could it hurt?" I asked myself.
Once I was nestled in my chair with about 200 other people in a conference room at a hotel in Boone and watched the staff demonstrate how the darshan would be done, I knew then just what it could hurt. My knees! During the darshan there is a continuous line of about a dozen people kneeling in front of the stage where Mother Meera is seated. The line keeps moving until it's your turn to kneel in front of Mother Meera and receive the blessing. Of course, for those of us who have bad knees there's an option to stand while in line and to sit in a chair in front of her instead of kneeling. But given I am about twenty years younger than those who actually took that option, I decided to endure the pain of kneeling. Nothing like your own prevailing pride at your first darshan!
Once Mother Meera entered the room, you could have heard a pin drop and it remained that way the entire two hours while she blessed all 200 people. I heard no coughing, sneezing, whispers, fidgeting in chairs, not anything. Unbelievable silence! My turn arrived and I was placed in the line with the other dozen people and I bent to my knees. Cursing myself as I walked on my knees to the stage because I did not take the standing option, I was suddenly knelt before Mother Meera. She placed her fingers at my temples for about 15 seconds then lifted my head and gazed into my eyes for about another 15 seconds. It seemed much longer or as if time stood still. I do not know how my experience compares to others, in general, but here is mine:
I saw her big brown eyes as transparent. It was as if I climbed right into them! I felt my essence completely merged with hers and knew I was connected to her spirit. I felt complete Oneness. In that Oneness, I felt unadulterated Joy! In an instant I knew that I , my spirit, was the same Joy as her spirit! I saw and felt the radiance of Light and unconditional Love with complete acceptance and non- judgment. I've had many beautiful spiritual experiences in my life, from my baptismal as a young girl to Reiki attunements, prayer and meditation, but nothing quite like this.
Conceptually and experientially, I've known our true nature is joy and love. I've had many experiences of God's/Christ's unconditional Love and have experienced His/Her Joy. I've believed and known that we are created in the likeness of God and that all the same attributes of Him/Her lie within us. But experiencing the darhsan of Mother Meera has brought my knowing to a higher level. Any doubts that my ego places in front of me about who I truly am, are shattered by choosing to remember the Joy, the Universal Light, that I saw and felt that day; to remember and most importantly FEEL - I AM... Joy! You are Joy! We are the Joy we seek!
Gem #3, I AM... Joy video clip with upbeat music and joyful affirmations. Digital downloads or DVDs of TwentyGems series available at http://www.twentygems.com/.
MINI GEMS ON JOY... http://bit.ly/cbvgCg
