About satsang

 

About Satsang

Summary:

 

The word satsang, which is of Sanskrit origin*, is broken down into two syllables, Sat: «perfection», «truth» and «blood»: «company», which gives: «company of truth». Satsang is part of the practice of The Path, with meditation, service (meditation in action) and angas. The practice of The Path is composed of the four pillars of agya. Satsang is given orally, ideally or in writing if it is impossible to hear. Orally shared satsang is a kind of monologue, a sermon.

 

*Sanskrit: ancient language of India, equivalent, for the West, to Latin.

 

Only the Guide and certain consecrated disciples (monks and nuns) can give satsang. The person giving satsang meditates a few moments before speaking. When she feels this «inner smile», in the upper chest, she opens her eyes and improvises.

 

The most important thing in satsang is not the concepts that are said, but the content of the words, the feeling. The word satsang is not deposited by The Path and all spiritual movements of Indian origin use it to designate the discourses they hold.

 

The guide’s satsangs, Sri Hans Yoganand ji in this case, published on the blog «Company of the Wises», were given orally, recorded and transcribed. The satsang of the guide is at the same time his teaching. What makes The Path is his teaching, his practice or Observance and the living guide.

 

 

The word satsang is a Sanskrit word. In the word satsang there is «sat»: perfection, truth and «blood»: company, which gives «company of truth». Satsang is one of the four pillars of The Path, with meditation, service and angas. These pillars form sadhana, agya or dharma, in the Buddhist sense.

 

On The Path, we translate the word “Upanishad” by the word “satsang”. Upanishad means: «to sit respectfully at the feet of the master to listen to his teaching». This is what satsang is, or "words of truth" or "the company of the wise".

 

Each of the pillars of agya is important, to live this spirituality in the right way. The practice of satsang consists in listening to and/or reading the words inspired by the Holy-Name. The satsang of the guide also conveys his teaching.

 

We know what we hope to find in meditation: a strong, transcendent experience. This is the most attractive side of The Path, even if often the experience is limited to a refocusing, which is already a lot, when we realize what it brings us in our daily life.

 

Meditation in action, or “service” (the inaction of Lao-Tzu), is practiced as often and as long as possible throughout the day, in order to remain the master of his emotions. The purpose, the realization, the goal of The Path is not to dive into nirvikalpa-samadhi, or «ecstasy», but to make deep spirituality, a daily reality.

 

“Service is the hallway to meditation, the door is the satsang” (Bhaktimàrga 264).

 

An rendez-vous

 

Satsang is also an essential event in the life of the practitioner. The purpose of satsang is to inspire practice, constancy and fair understanding. In service, there is the notion of doing all the daily tasks while keeping the mind centered and seeking excellence, without expecting reward, without being attached to the result. Some then speak of inaction (as in the Dao-De-Jing).

 

"Satsang is service when it leads to The Path" (Bhaktimàrga 300).

 

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Without giving satsang, it is possible to speak of The Path to those who do not know it, it is also service, it is a sharing of its experience, without trying to convince. More than the verbal content, what counts is the feeling of truth that touches the listener, or the reader, a rope that no longer vibrates and that requires to vibrate again.

 

Jesus said to his disciples: " Whatever you hear in your ear, proclaim it on the roofs in the ear of others. No one lights a lamp to put it under the bushel, nor in a hidden place; but on the contrary, he places it on a lamppost, so that anyone who enters and leaves can see his light." (Luke 12:3)

 

Satsang is never a dialogue: when the guide gives satsang we listen to it without interrupting it from beginning to end. If we want to have a dialogue, if we want to ask questions, we can, but we’ll do it before or after.

 

In satsang, the important thing is not mainly the words, the sentences that are said, but the invisible content that they convey. Words are like bubbles, what they contain is satsang, a manifestation of the Holy-Name.

 

Lao-Tzu is said to have said «the Dao». Speaking of emptiness, the Dao-De-Jing says: «Without the hole of the hub, the tank would be useless. It is the emptiness that justifies the vase, not the clay. A house, without the emptiness of doors and windows, would be useless. How do you get in, how do you get out and how can the sun light it? Unity is made of being and nonbeing, matter and emptiness.” (Dao-De-Jing 1:11)

 

Satsang is for the soul, not the mind. For some, the satsang will be only simplistic imaginings, for others, words of truth or even revelation. Everything depends on the consciousness of the one who listens or reads the satsang.

 

For most of those who practice spirituality, satsang is a word that speaks of true spirituality. Also, everyone, provided that he expresses himself about their spirituality, which obviously they consider as accurate, said satsang. The word is not deposited. So you will find a lot of “satsang” online.

 

Satsang is not a discourse about the truth, it is the truth expressed through the mouth and words of a person whose consciousness is in Unity and who disappears to let it pass.

 

Jesus said, "If you are at least two in my name, I will be among you." (Matthew 18:20) what Jesus meant by "I would be among you" is that the Holy-Name, or the word will be there, as physically, in them and outside them. The Holy-Name, the Word, is the one that was at the beginning, with God and was God. (John 1:1). “To be in his name” means to meditate on the Holy-Name, to be aware of it. Then a sort of egregore of the Holy-Name is created.

 

 

 

 

 

This satsang may help you in your spiritual research, I hope, but I must say this: it was said at the house where I live, recorded and then transcribed for the initiates who received the Revelation. The full 'benefit' of this satsang can only be achieved if you have had this Revelation and practice the four pillars. For more information, contact lavoie.eu@gmail.com