August 1, 2025

Dear reader,

Have you ever thought about what influences your experience of time? Why one day might carry with it a particular feeling or association, while the next will evoke something entirely different? Do you think it’s a function of the choices you are making—what you are choosing to do with your time? Or is it a function of time itself, and of circumstance? In this year when we are studying Gurumayi’s Message for 2025, it can be worthwhile to ask such questions.

In their writings on the subject, the philosophers of ancient Greece articulated two main conceptions of time. One they called chronos, and the other, kairos.¹ Chronos is that aspect of time that can be quantified. It is the duration, frequency, or age of something—the number of days in a year, the number of hours it takes to complete a task, the dates on which some event occurred or recurred. It is the temporal structures within which we have collectively agreed to operate.

Kairos is more nuanced. One of the meanings of the word kairos in Greek is “right time.” It refers to what a given moment in time calls for, the idea being that within the context of chronos time there are opportune moments to do something, or for something to happen. What is kairos, or an opportune moment, can be determined by a number of factors—such as a precipitating event or some combination of our own personal circumstances and broader societal ones.

As such, kairos is considered to be a more “qualitative” conception of time. Metrics like date, hour, or duration—while useful and necessary—will not on their own indicate why a particular time is significant, or what needs to be done at that time. The concept of kairos presumes an active engagement with time, through which one acknowledges the dynamism of time and is attentive and responsive to its movements.

We find a good example of this in nature, with the changing of seasons. While we might mark certain days in the calendar as being the official start of spring or fall or summer, the natural world is not beholden to that structure. The flowers will bloom, the leaves will turn color, when the conditions are right for them to do so. The earth is profoundly adaptable and resilient, and she is always true to herself.

Learning about chronos and kairos has been valuable for me in my study of Gurumayi’s Message, and in my ongoing examination of how I relate to time. I’ve come to think of it like this. Time is—yes—the organized backdrop against which we live our lives. It helps us to impart order to our lives, and to measure progress and change. And time is also this active “being” that we—with our intuition, our intellect, our capacity for discernment—can and must be in regular dialogue with. As Gurumayi has said: “Time is God. Time is divine. Time is the lightning bolt. Time is the flow of Consciousness.”

During Sweet Surprise on January 1, Gurumayi spoke about Mahakala, the form of Lord Shiva who represents time. For me, this image of time as an embodied form of God is as instructive as it is awe-inspiring. It suggests that time is sentient. That time can communicate with us. That time sends us signals, tells us what is needed. We just need to be paying close enough attention.

Now, how do we do this? How do we pay attention to time? How do we hear the whispers of time, its murmurings, its occasional roar?

Gurumayi explained this during Sweet Surprise as well. Do you remember? Gurumayi gave us the teaching to “be in the center”—that is to say, the center of our being, our heart, the seat of God within. More recently, in a satsang during Gurupurnima month in Shree Muktananda Ashram, Gurumayi spoke again about this teaching.

Gurumayi said:

It is good for people to learn how to go to their center. People are so off-kilter, so off-center. They are just going with the wind, going with the storm, rather than being steady in their soul—in their center—and coming from there.

Rituals are very good for this, even though some people still don’t understand their power. Rituals help a person return to their center.

When Gurumayi was speaking about rituals, she was referring specifically to the offering of puja and to everything that is encompassed in this practice. Each step we take when offering puja is intended to lead us to the experience of our own center. How many times have you heard people say, “Deep within, I knew”? Wisdom abides in the depths of our being. It is this inner knowing that we access through ritual, through the offering of puja.

On the Siddha Yoga path, there is a wonderful convergence of date and occasion this month—when moments of import and opportunity correspond most intriguingly to specific days in the calendar.

What do I mean by this?

• On August 8, we will observe Bhagavan Nityananda’s Solar Punyatithi. This is the date on which Bade Baba left his body to become one with supreme Consciousness. It is a sacred day for us on the Siddha Yoga path—a day of prayer, remembrance, and gratitude. The scriptures and traditions of India tell us that even when a great being departs from this earth, devotees continue to experience their blessings.
• Also on August 8, we will celebrate Raksha Bandhan. For Siddha Yogis, this is a time to celebrate the bond of protection and love between the Guru and the disciple. Gurumayi has spoken of this bond as being akshata, which is Sanskrit for “that which is never destroyed.”
• On August 15, the anniversary of India’s independence from colonial rule, we will celebrate Baba Muktananda’s Divya Diksha. This is when Baba received shaktipat initiation from his Guru, Bhagavan Nityananda. It is an event of tremendous importance for all of us here today, as it set in motion Baba’s eventual establishment of the Siddha Yoga path.
• Also on August 15 is Krishna Janmashtami, the date on which Lord Krishna is said to have been born. The night of Krishna Janmashtami, which is called Moharatri, is one of the three most auspicious nights of the year according to the Indian calendar.

It’s a remarkable overlap of occasions, wouldn’t you say? August 8 and August 15 are always noteworthy on the Siddha Yoga path, given that Bade Baba’s Punyatithi and Baba’s Divya Diksha are solar holidays. But the other two holidays—Raksha Bandhan and Krishna Janmashtami—are determined by the lunar calendar. For this reason, the dates on which they are celebrated change from year to year. So it seems most serendipitous that these holidays are concentrated on the same days in 2025.

Or maybe it’s not so serendipitous. Maybe, in this year when Gurumayi’s Message is all about the relationship we have with time, it’s another instance of time trying to tell us something. It’s not always easy to identify what a given moment might call for. At least, this has been my experience. But there are certain times—like now, in August—when all signs seem to be pointing us in the same direction. There are times when it is abundantly clear what is prudent and beneficial for us to be doing.

In August, I feel that this means remembrance and worship of God and the Guru. Of course, on the Siddha Yoga path, we have learned from Gurumayi that any time is a good time to honor God. Any time is a good time to express our reverence for the Guru. We have, in fact, been doing just that this summer, with all the many delightful Siddha Yoga holidays we have been celebrating over the last few months. Still, Gurumayi teaches us that there’s no limit to the goodness and divinity we can experience within ourselves. In Siddha Yoga sadhana, we are always moving, as Gurumayi says, from “great to greater to the greatest.”

So it is in August, then.

August—the month in which we celebrate the unfathomable grace and protection we receive from God and the Guru. In so doing, we experience deep peace in our hearts.

August—the month in which we redouble our intention to make good use of our time. In so doing, we create a peaceful environment around us.

Here’s some food for thought, a question or two for your consideration. Would you like to possess a timepiece? Or would you prefer to have peaceful time, all throughout your day? Are the two so mutually exclusive? We worship God to have the experience of God. Similarly, we harness time so that we may come to know time. In so doing, we fortify our connection to the shrine within—to that hallowed space where peace abounds.

Sincerely,

Eesha Sardesai