The Master and the 108 Lamps

I loved the story about the Master and the 108 Lamps, as it filled me with hope for my own sadhana, and love and tenderness for the immense stillness, patience, and love of the Master. I realised that it actually doesn't matter whether initiation is given immediately, over a night, or over a life-time. The fact that the disciple is really longing for it and the Master can give it is all that matters.

 

The apparent folly of my actions as I try and blow out lamps or run to a well to get water for an endeavour that will not go as planned, is all part of the wonderful play. In fact, the Master actually gave his permission to the disciple to extinguish the lamps if he so desired. I saw this too as an important teaching, as the Master's promise of initiation to the disciple in the morning was not conditional on whether the disciple agreed with the ritual or even whether he extinguished the lamps that had just been lit.

 

As I understood the disciple's predicament, I began to feel compassion towards myself and then acknowledged the powerful bond between Master and disciple – the longing for liberation in its initial form, and then a deep and abiding love for each other through the connection of the heart.

 

During the days after I read the story "The Master and the 108 Lamps," I kept returning to a beautiful experience inside again and again. When I took a moment to go inside, I experienced the 108 lamps as lights inside of me that the Guru has lit so carefully and lovingly. They blaze freely and abundantly, they have withstood many storms. They do not fade away as a result of circumstances. They shine brightly whether the sun is shining or the days are grey and foggy. They are ever so pure, ever so life-giving. The Guru lit them with great care and great intent.

I was touched by the Master’s response to the seeker’s statement, "I didn't come here to light lamps. I came here to know the Truth." The Master smiled and said, "I have lit each lamp for the love of God. The light with which I have lit these lamps is the light of my own heart."

This dialogue reminds me of the emptiness of ceremonies performed without your heart’s consent. It is a beautiful reminder to not become mechanical in your practices, but to always touch the light of the heart in every activity through love of God.

Before I started to read the story I looked at the golden mountains behind the title of the story, and my heart was touched by the beauty and the strength of the picture. What power! It is so alive! It is filled with Consciousness.

Then I started to read the story. When I read about how the seeker finally surrendered, I could experience the light, and tears ran down my cheeks. I could feel this light, this love, this amazing bright golden pure light. And I remembered my shaktipat experience. It was this same experience of light; only light exists.