The Power of Words
by Shanti Harkness
Audio Version of This Blog Post
All words are mantras and all mantras have power. Every word (mantra) has the power to direct our awareness– every word we read, speak or reach for impacts the contraction or expansion of our Consciousness. All mantras also have a host of understandings connected to them that cause various experiences in our mind.
This is one of the reasons why Kedarji tells us that, for those wanting permanent transformation that leads to Liberation, whenever there is a difference in our understandings and the Guru’s understandings, that we must always take the Guru’s understandings over our own. It is through the Grace of the Guru and our own self-effort that we are able to rise above the power of words.
Kedarji also reminds us that there is no outer world, that everything takes place within our own Consciousness. He tells us that our experience in Consciousness, in our own being, is dictated by our allowing letters and syllables to conjoin into the mantras that form our thinking, behavior and language.
Not long ago, I began riding my bicycle for exercise. To be a safe and responsible cyclist, I make sure to wear my helmet, a bright yellow visibility jacket, and a bright flashing taillight on my bike. I’ve also developed the habit of performing Japa, mantra repetition, as I’m cycling. This helps to turn my focus from the perceived outer effort of exercising, back inside, to the joy of the Self.
Recently, I went for a bike ride and pushed myself to go further than I had previously. I find the practice of pushing myself further daunting due to the self-effort required. But then those thoughts and feelings are replaced with thoughts of joy in performing Japa and following my Guru’s instruction to get healthier.
My bike ride on this day was very vigorous, with several stops along the way to catch my breath before continuing on. I was having a great ride, working extremely hard, and repeating my mantra. As I was coming up to an intersection to make a right-hand turn, someone in a passing vehicle yelled “fat ass” out their window as they sped past me. Unfortunately, this was not the first time I’ve experienced something like this.
I could immediately feel my inner state contract as my heart rate increased even faster than it already was. I could feel the lump forming in my throat and the tears beginning to form in my eyes. In an instant, I was angry that I went from being pleased with how hard I was pushing myself, to being angry, hurt, and in disbelief that some stranger in a car could ruin my entire bike ride, and most likely, the rest of my day– with two simple words.
They didn’t know how hard I worked to drop almost 40 pounds over the last three months, or how hard I was working on this bike ride. And excuse me– but I was the one being physically active while they were riding in a car! It didn’t matter. All I could hear in my head was their taunt as I tried to hold back the tears.
Kedarji tells us that all we have is the present moment and that it’s the only time in which any change can occur. He also reminds us to examine and remember that the meaning of mantras is to raise our spiritual awareness, to direct our mind back inside to deliver us to our own Bliss and Joy. Kedarji says, “No one can cause a change in your state without your permission. It’s only ever between you and God. It is never between you and others. No one else is responsible for your inner state– only you have that power.”
A few moments after the insult was yelled at me, I chose to reach for something different. Instead of reaching for mantras and understandings that reinforced what was yelled at me, I chose to reach for something different, something Higher. I decided to take my Guru’s understandings over my own.
I remembered Kedarji’s words– that words only have power because I give them power. So, I decided in that moment, not to give power to the mantra “fat ass.” I remembered in the moment that I could stop contracted thinking by feeding those contracted notions to my mantra, and so I did. Om Namah Shivaya. Om Namah Shivaya. Om Namah Shivaya.
I also reminded myself that I was working hard to make a difference in the health of my body, and I was following my Guru’s instructions to get healthier. I reminded myself that I had already dropped a significant amount of weight so far, and that I wasn’t going to let some stranger’s comment influence my mental state and derail the progress I was making (like I have in the past).
By refusing to give power to that particular set of mantras, and by turning my mind back within by continuing to repeat my mantra, I replaced any negative emotions or feelings with the joy of the mantra and my Guru’s Grace. In a few short seconds, my inner state shifted completely. The lump that had initially formed in my throat quickly went away, and the tears that had begun to form in my eyes never fell and dried up. In this way, I refused to allow my inner state to be impacted by someone else.
I continued repeating my mantra, my inner worship and devotion to the Self, to my Guru. I reminded myself that God alone exists here, so any interaction or circumstance that I perceived was only there to drive me back to oneness with God. It always amazes me how quickly my inner and outer states can change by reaching for different understandings and mantras– Higher understandings and mantras.
In one of Kedarji’s lessons, he reminded us to not keep our awareness focused solely on the Immanent aspect of God, that we needed to also look at the Transcendental aspect. He tells us that we can only know the Transcendental aspect by not judging the circumstances or situations in the Immanent aspect, and that there is likely a message in the situation to make us stronger. Instead of fault-finding, I needed to fact-find within myself in order to see what useless karmic tendency I needed to face in order to go Higher.
With this understanding in mind, I contemplated my experience. This fact-finding mission led me to realize that, while I was engaged in Japa and thinking about my Guru and God while cycling, that this experience with the passerby wasn’t random or out-of-the-blue. It was just like what I do in judging my Sadhana, my spiritual practices, and judging myself, thinking I’m unworthy of my Guru’s Grace, Blessings and Love. Unfortunately, what was yelled at me pales in comparison to the judgments, criticisms and abuses that I’ve hurled on myself throughout my entire life.
This experience brings to the forefront of my awareness the fact that I can arrest my own negative self-talk in the moment, by refusing to give it power and by feeding those false notions and beliefs to the Power of my mantra. This not only destroys the negative thoughts and notions in an instant, but also allows me to become immersed in Peace, Joy and Bliss.
Ultimately, the Guru doesn’t exist to end my suffering. The Guru exists to show me the root cause of my suffering so that I stop reaching for it– so that it can be destroyed in the fire of my Guru’s Love. Like anything else we’re taught here, we’re told never to simply take Kedarji’s word for it, that we have the responsibility and duty to apply what we’ve been taught in order to test it for ourselves, in the laboratory of our own existence.
It was this very testing that showed me how quickly and effortlessly my state can change from being steeped in contraction, anger and judgment, to being awash in Grace, Love, and Peace. It is through the Grace of the Guru and my own self-effort in reaching Higher that allowed me to rise above the power of words.
Om Guru Om!
Shanti Harkness volunteers as the Secretary of The Bhakta School of Transformation. She sits on our Board of Directors and also volunteers as a certified staff teacher and program leader for Nityananda Shaktipat Yoga. She works in the marketing field.
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