March 25, 2020

Dear readers,

Namaste. Buongiorno. 你們 好 Salut. Здравствуйте. こんにちは

Are you continuing your celebration of the year 2020 with the same gusto with which you anticipated its arrival?

On January 1, during the live video stream of Sweet Surprise, Gurumayi imparted her Message for the year 2020. We received Gurumayi’s Message in the Hindi language, and in the days that followed, Gurumayi explained why she had imparted the Message first in Hindi and then in English. This was because the two main words of Gurumayi’s Message have so many complex, intricate, and profound meanings that they are nearly untranslatable! The only way to understand and come to appreciate these words is by learning their different qualities, their different layers of meaning, and their scriptural basis as they relate to our Siddha Yoga sadhana.

We are also fortunate to receive Gurumayi’s perception of her Message in the form of her Message Artwork. In this way, we are able to study the words of Gurumayi’s Message—and we have the opportunity to receive darshan of the Message.

Each year, Siddha Yogis and those who wish to begin their journey on the Siddha Yoga path make Gurumayi’s Message Artwork an integral part of their study. When we study the Message Artwork, learning takes place in the four bodies. We cultivate knowledge through the physical body; the emotional body; the intellect; and the spiritual body, by the agency of Kundalini Shakti.

Please accept my invitation to have darshan of Gurumayi’s Message Artwork for 2020. Darshan is the exquisite Sanskrit word that means “to see,” “to have the vision of the sacred,” “to perceive the Divine.”

• Please ensure that you set aside plenty of time—at least 15 minutes—to be with Gurumayi’s Message Artwork.
• Sit in a comfortable posture.
• Feel the natural flow of your breath.
• Look at the Message Artwork. Once you have taken in the entire Message Artwork, look at a specific part of it. Then let your gaze soften, allowing the Artwork to blur slightly before your eyes.
• Next, look at another part of the Artwork and repeat this process. Let the Artwork come in and out of focus; your eyes will behold it first with great concentration and then with more relaxed attention.
• As you will soon see, the Artwork depicts a portion of the cosmos. The bigger, brighter points of light in the foreground are stars in our galaxy, the Milky Way. The smaller, softer points of light are in fact entire galaxies, containing 100 to 300 billion stars, some of them more than 25 billion light years away. When you gaze at the Artwork with a combination of intensity and gentleness, it expands your ability to take in all that the Artwork contains and conveys. You better intuit its subtleties, its infinite depth, its many dimensions of meaning. You bypass the mind and allow the Consciousness in the Artwork to dance before you.
• To have darshan of the Message Artwork is to enter into communion with it. Take note of the impressions, insights, and feelings that arise when you first have darshan of the Artwork.

Many Siddha Yogis—both those who are professional artists and those who might not consider themselves to be artists—draw, take photographs, make crafts, and write poetry to express what they learn from having darshan of, and studying, the Message Artwork. I encourage you to go for it as well! Find your own creative expression of what the Artwork means to you.

May the darshan of the Message Artwork for 2020 permeate your day-to-day life all throughout this year.

Warm regards,

Swami Ishwarananda
Siddha Yoga Meditation Teacher