Dealing with Criticism

Posted on March 13, 2021 by George Boyd

Q: I have someone who says they want to help me, but they continually criticize me and find fault with what I do. What is motivating this criticism?

A: Criticism is the first step on the helping spectrum. These steps of this spectrum are briefly described below:

Destructive criticism – This attempts to undermine someone’s credibility, reputation, and self-confidence. This aims to hurt or demean the other person, even destroy them. It is from experiencing this negative, egoic platform of destructive criticism from parents, siblings, relatives, romantic partners, bullying schoolmates, teachers, bosses, or misguided clergy that originally wounds someone, and leads them to heal themselves. Those who undergo this healing process successfully often feel an urge to help others, who are experiencing similar abuse and trauma, to also heal.
Neutral criticism – This identifies flaws, errors, or omissions, or someone’s attempts to exaggerate, lie, or deceive. Style editors, media fact checkers, or movie reviewers, for example, offer this level of critique. They do not offer suggestions to improve; they just point out the errors.
Constructive criticism – This identifies flaws, error, or omissions as in step two, but offers suggestions at improvement. In group therapy, this sharing of constructive criticism is called feedback. Sports coaches, drama coaches, teachers, and trainers offer feedback to their students to help them improve their performance.
Advisement or consulting – The consultant listens to their client’s concerns, and then offers them potential solutions. This ability to visualize a potential solution is founded upon the consultant’s knowledge, experience, or expertise working on similar problems.
Counselor – A professional counselor listens to someone’s painful emotions and problems, and empathizes with their experience. The counselor allows the client to be heard and known. The counselor assists the client to identify viable options for solutions, explores their pros and cons, and then allows the client to make a congruent choice. The focus of a counselor is on the client’s present time concerns.
Psychotherapist or Hypnotherapist – Like a counselor, a professional psychotherapist listens to someone’s painful emotions and problems, and empathizes with their experience. The psychotherapist will use a variety of evocative methods to help the client explore these painful emotions, work out the underlying issue, and find a way to integrate the insight so the client can live with greater serenity. A hypnotherapist aims to accomplish similar objectives, but does so through working directly with the Subconscious mind. A psychotherapist aims to assist the client to deal with lingering issues from the past.
Life coach or transformational coach – A coach looks to the client’s potential to actualize his or her dreams for a better future. The coach supports and facilitates the client’s movement towards making that vision real—of actually doing, being, and having what he or she desires. A transformative coach is future oriented, and seeks to help the client move past obstacles to reach his or her goals.
Meditation teacher – A meditation teacher trains students to meditate, to gain insight, transformation, and enlightenment. A meditation teacher shows students how to transcend their personality and touch the Eternal.
Thaumaturge – Highly advanced meditation teachers are anointed with the Divine Fire and Light, and can make attunements to purify, heal, comfort, enlighten, and transform their spiritual evolutionary potentials. A Thaumaturge has the ability to work on the structure of mind and consciousness to facilitate spiritual development.
Avatar – This most highly advanced spiritual Initiate is able to work with humanity at the collective level though sending forth tides of Omnific Spiritual Grace and Love, and progressively uplifts all humanity.

When we review these stages on the spectrum, we find:

Level one on this spectrum is the profile of someone fully established in the ego. Someone operating at this level needs to win at all costs, and dominate and control others. If others are injured in obtaining desires, it is not this person’s concerns.

Levels two and three are based on comparison to established criteria. This uses the analytical ability of reason; the standards of conscience; and the problem solving skills of the intellect. In level three, there is the added element of caring about the person receiving the criticism, so they can improve their performance.

Level four is founded on the ability to intuitively grasp the reasons for the problem the client presents, and to frame an elegant solution that solves the problem and allows the client to move to the next level of productivity and prosperity.

Levels five through seven are personal helping modalities. These work to empower the Self to resolve issues and move forward to attain desired goals.

Levels eight through ten are transpersonal helping modalities. They work with the three immortal principles within others—the attentional principle, the spirit, and the Soul—to enable the meditation student to work on the issues of the personality, and to actualize spiritual potentials.

Negative criticism can arise from a variety of motivations. For example:

Dissatisfaction with a product or service that the helper offers
Jealousy that the helper is successful and gifted
Narcissism, needing to be superior or better than the helper
Anger and resentment at not succeeding, not being chosen, or not getting the good things in life

When criticism is shared as feedback, the helper can learn to provide a better service or deliver a better product.

We suggest that the element of caring—love and compassion—is at the root of the motivation to help others. The greatest love, which the Avatar and Thaumaturge express, is the deepest level of this caring for others—even beyond personal caring, or unconditional positive regard, as Carl Rogers called it—but it is suffused with the Divine Love that fills and enfolds all life, and drives personal growth and spiritual evolution.

What Is the Antakarana?

Posted on October 5, 2019 by

Q: I’ve heard many spiritual teachers speak about the Antakarana. What is this? What does it consist of?

A: We describe what the Antakarana is in one of our articles in our book about the Psychic Realm. Here’s an excerpt from the book:

Building the Antakarana

Excerpted from The Psychic Realm: Finding Safe Passage through the Worlds of Illusion

The Antakarana is the bridge between the intellect of the Metaconscious mind and the wisdom faculty of the Superconscious mind. It is a progressive recording of reflection, contemplation, and spiritual experiences ultimately forming a link between self and Soul. It consists of the following faculties:

Speculation about the nature of the Cosmos – this questioning process leads to scientific curiosity. It is a quest for answers and evokes a sense of awe, reverence, and wonder at the majesty and mystery of the universe.
Discovery of stable laws or principles – with further study and inquiry, the individual learns about stable laws that underlie the apparent diversity of phenomena. The law of gravity, the electromagnetic spectrum, the subatomic field, and the metaphysical principles of the Universal Mind Subplane of the Abstract Mind Plane are examples of some of these universal principles underlying both physics and metaphysics.
Encounter with the essential principles of consciousness, sentience, and existence – with deeper self-exploration, the individual encounters the attentional principle, the spirit, and the Soul. This confers inner awakening and illumination.
Deposition of progressive spiritual experiences – as the individual begins to meditate on the structures of the vehicles of consciousness, a progressive laying down of meditative insights are anchored on this inner thread connecting Self and Soul.
Core inquiry – as the individual begins to have rudimentary spiritual experiences, poignant and heartfelt questions arise in the mind, such as “Who am I?” What is my purpose? [See the article, “The 14 Questions of the Seeker,” which is in our book, A Mudrashram® Reader: Understanding Integral Meditation. You may also find this article in our online Library.]
Ontological and Theological insight – when the essential questions are answered, the individual forms the foundation of a coherent and integrated philosophy about the nature of existence and the origin of all things, which is the understanding of the Nature of the Divine. This initial insight and understanding is augmented by the study of philosophy, scriptures, and insightful commentary on those scriptures.
Revelation of the still small voice – when the Antakarana has been fully purified, the vortex of the Soul’s intuitive wisdom can speak directly to the personality:

To provide guidance and direction to make wiser decisions
To clarify moral dilemmas
To discern the meaning of symbols or archetypes
To dispel confusion over conflicting ideas or values
To grant discernment and understanding of abstract ideas
To give a rationale for faith
To identify a purpose for living

Q: What is the composition of the Antakarana?

A: The Antakarana has seven layers. The inmost core of the Antakarana comprises layers six and seven: we call this the Wordless Knowledge of the Heart. The next three layers—three through five—comprise the Soul Expression component of the Antakarana. The outermost two layers—one and two—are the Personality Linking component. These layers are described below:

Layer one (Intellectual communication) – This is the translation of layers two to seven into words, speech, symbols, and images. This substands the ability to give spiritual discourse, to write down received intuitive guidance, and to explain spiritual ideas.

Layer two (Memory of spiritual experiences) – This is the recording on the Akashic Records of each meditation’s insights, revelations, realizations, and perceptions of the spirit and attentional principle. This is the aspect of your meditation experiences that you can recall.

Layer three (Practical Wisdom) – This enables you to give practical guidance to the personality via psychic readings, verbally channeling the Soul’s wisdom, and sharing the realized truths of your heart wisdom. Those who have a psychic ministry build this layer to a high degree. This is the level you access with the meditations of the Fourth Chord of Jnana Yoga—we teach you how to tap this layer in the Jnana Yoga modules of our intermediate mediation programs, the in-person Mudrashram® Master Course in Meditation and the by-mail and the online Accelerated Meditation Program.

Layer four (Empowerment) – These are the manifestation of your Soul’s gifts that are related to spiritual development. These include:

Thaumaturge – This ability uses the Divine Fire to purify the mind’s dross, and bestow a variety of attunements
Spiritual teacher – This ability enables you to share your spiritual knowledge and realizations with others in a way they can understand them.
Spiritual guide – This ability lets you manifest a inner, radiant form to the attentional principle and/or the spirit of others, and to show them the structures of consciousness, the strata of the mind, and the landmarks of the inner Planes
Healer – This permits you to send the Light of Healing to the etheric body, the emotional body, and mental bodies of others.
Counselor – This ability helps you facilitate personal and spiritual decision-making in others. You explain the options available to them, and let them decide which option they choose.
Coach – Those of you who develop a life coaching ministry assist others to change, to transform their lives into the next step of their personal growth; the spiritual coach helps others overcome obstacles they experience moving to the next level in their spiritual development.
Psychotherapist or hypnotherapist – You assist others to work with issues in their unconscious mind to promote integration, to overcome limiting or self-sabotaging patterns, and to clarify values, and to discover their authentic Self.
Awakener – You awaken the Kundalini Shakti of others to help them realize their Soul.

Layer five (Illumination) – You activate this layer when you open your Buddhic capsule or Illumined mind, which grants understanding of spiritual ideas, awakens discernment, and expresses your Soul’s compassion. You tap this layer when you access the fifth and sixth Chords of Jnana Yoga, which we teach you in our intermediate classes. We teach the deeper level of Chord Six in our advanced meditation class, the Mudrashram® Advanced Course in Meditation.

Layer six (The Mirror-like wisdom) – You can access this aspect of your Antakarana when you contemplate the mandala-like knowledge for each nodal point the Soul has opened in the brain center of the Soul’s essential vehicle. This appears like a series of concentric circles or concentric spheres.

Layer seven (Soul Realization) – You experience this as Gnosis, the Soul’s realization of its own essential nature. The practice called Gnosis, in which you penetrate to this level, we teach in our advanced meditation class, the Mudrashram® Advanced Course in Meditation.

Most people are aware of the Antakarana through the Personality Linking component. They have spontaneous knowledge that comes to them when they are asked spiritual questions and they are able to explain spiritual ideas (layer one). They also are able to remember their spiritual experiences (layer two).

Those who journey through the Psychic Realm through the top of the Third Planetary Initiation begin to open layers three and four. As layer three dawns, you may be able to do psychic readings, communicate inspired messages, receive intuitive guidance from your spiritual guide or the Holy Spirit, and share your Soul’s realizations.

Level four marks the dawning of your Soul’s gifts. You are able to channel these abilities through your personality. You use them to help others. You start to uncover these extraordinary abilities in the Psychic Realm; you can access the full complement of these abilities when you reach the Third Planetary Initiation.

Layer five begins to fully blossom when your Soul—or White Lotus of Immortality, a center that awakens in those whose Soul is established in its Crown of Purpose—purifies the Planes of the Fourth Initiation.

Layers six and seven unfold as your Soul undergoes the process of Initiation. Layer six, which is the scope of your Soul’s knowledge mediated through the brain center of its essential vehicle, greatly expands as you take progressively higher Initiations. With sustained meditation on the Soul, you experience Gnosis—this is the awakening of level seven.

For certain disciples who accelerate the unfolding of their Soul and its vehicles of consciousness through transformational techniques and reception of the Light of Spiritual Translation, they may not immediately develop the elements of their Soul Expression component. During this frustrating period of their spiritual development, they experience a Sphinx-like silence within, as if their Soul’s Wisdom was locked up in an inner vault. In this stage:

Their questions to their Soul go unanswered.
They have the experience of opening and inner movement, but they have no understanding of what has occurred to them.
Further, they do not discern where they are on the Path.

With the brooding of the Light upon the latent abilities of their Manasic Vortex—the vehicle of consciousness that the Soul awakens and inhabits during the Third Planetary Initiation—the Soul’s abilities gradually mature, and they become able to express their Soul’s gifts and ministry to others.

While this inner transformation and awakening is occurring, Mudrashram® students will benefit from studying the Mudrashram® Correspondence Course, and reading the books of the Initiate’s Library. This will stimulate their inner discernment and activate their Illumined Mind.

We also recommend that Mudrashram® students attend Light Sittings, as this immerses you in the Illumined Stream from the Masters. During Light Sittings, the Masters directly send the Light to your Buddhic capsule and activate each of your Soul’s budding gifts through your Manasic Vortex.

Through this ongoing process, you begin to construct your Antakarana.

Q: As you mention the Soul’s gifts that awaken during layer four of the Antakarana, you mentioned the term, Thaumaturge. I’ve never heard this term before. Can you shed some light on this?

A: Thaumaturgy is the ability to access the Inner Light Fire to make attunements. Certain disciples, who have a robust connection with the Agni Yoga lineage, powerfully develop these abilities. Certain teachers on the First Ray will also train their disciples in these techniques.

[We introduce the rudiments of Agni Yoga in our intermediate meditation courses. In our Teacher Training One (Form of the Disciple Stage) and Two (Mahatma Stage), we introduce and empower our spiritual teachers to use many of the higher order attunements that Thaumaturges employ.]

Most disciples who receive training in these advanced components of Agni Yoga will not develop all of these powers, but will rather be trained and empowered to manifest a subset of the abilities listed here. Some of abilities that a Thaumaturge develops include:

The ability to burn away karmic impressions from the helix of the mind
The ability to burn off entities clinging to the aura.
The ability to purify and awaken the abilities of the vehicles of consciousness of the Superconscious mind
The ability to bestow the Holy Spirit and bring about the awakening of heart wisdom; to anchor the Comforter in the core of human suffering
The ability to anchor the Divine Light upon the tracks of the Manasic Vortex, and awaken and unfold the seeds of the latent skills of the Soul
The ability to purify the veil of ignorance over the Soul and awaken the Buddhic capsule
The ability to transform a nucleus of identity along its track of development; some of those anointed with the ability to bestow translating attunements can also unfold selected ensouling entities.

Adept Masters can unfold and liberate the nuclei of identity of the Planetary Sphere—the Moon Soul, the Solar Angel, the Manasic Vortex, and the Augoiedes. Some Adept Masters also develop the ability unfold the spiritual evolutionary potentials of the Soul Spark, Soul, and Monad up to the level they have attained in the Planetary Hierarchy.
Yogi Preceptors can unfold the nucleus of identity of the First Cosmic Initiation, cosmic consciousness.
Light Masters can unfold the nucleus of identity of the Second Cosmic Initiation, cosmic soul awareness.
Cosmic Masters can unfold and liberate the nuclei of identity of all five Cosmic Initiations—cosmic consciousness, cosmic soul awareness, the triune center, Avataric consciousness, and God consciousness. Selected Cosmic Masters have been anointed to unfold the Astral Soul throughout the Cosmic Sphere [George’s first spiritual teacher, Maha Genii Turriziani, had this ability.]
Supracosmic Masters can unfold and liberate the Supracosmic Seed Atom of the Supracosmic Path in which they have attained Mastery. Some Supracosmic Masters can also unfold the Supracosmic Soul through Translation, and raise it up to the seat of the Guru of that Path.
Sat Gurus of Transcendental Paths one through five can purify the capsule of the Illumined mind of the ensouling entity of their Path and awaken it. They can also purify the impressions of the unconscious mind at that level, and cleanse the coverings surrounding the spirit on that Path.
Adi Sat Gurus of the Bridge Path, and Transcendental Paths six and seven can purify the inmost impressions of the mind that hold ensouling entities back from Liberation at each band of the Continuum—Subtle, Planetary, Transplanetary, Cosmic, Supracosmic, and Transcendental Paths one through five. They can also return each vehicle of consciousness and each nucleus of identity to its origin, purifying the stored karma layered behind it on its track.

Light Masters, Sat Gurus of Transcendental Paths one through five, and the Adi Sat Gurus of the Bridge Path and Transcendental Paths six and seven also gain the ability to yield the fiery power of Translation upon the Second Pole of Being. These Masters have the ability to move the spirit(s) over which they have aegis along the tracks of the Nada and purify the karmic impressions embedded in that track, to lead the spirit to Liberation in the Light from which it was born.

If you develop a form of Mastery on the Continuum, you will be trained in the arts of Thaumaturgy for that level of the Path. Because even the most rudimentary of these applications of Agni Yoga have benefit to aspirants and disciples, we include an introduction to Agni Yoga in our intermediate classes.

We teach several additional introductory applications of Agni Yoga in our Agni Yoga Workshop, which is available to those who complete one of our intermediate classes. [Level One completers can access this workshop through their dashboard.] Those who complete one of these courses can also read about these methods in one of the books of our Level One Initiate’s Library, The Fundamentals of Meditation.

Those who have developed the fourth and fifth abilities of Thaumaturgy can assist you develop your Antakarana. You are exposed to these enlivening energies during Light Sittings.

Types of Spiritual Expression of Initiates

Posted on July 5, 2019 by

Q: I saw a movie about a great Buddhist saint, the Dalai Lama. Do all genuine spiritual Masters also function as saints?

A: Not necessarily. There are seven major spiritual expressions of Initiates: Masters may function in one or more of these types—they do not always function as a saint. These expressions are briefly described below.

Saint – A Saint is involved in service and charity to others. He or she is involved in the affairs of humanity, and has a public face through which he or she interfaces with the world. The attributes of a saint are service to humanity, compassion, love, and practice of virtues in human life. In the Mudrashram® system of Integral meditation, this expression of an Initiate corresponds to living your Soul’s realized truths in daily life, which we call Dharma Yoga.
Siddha – A Siddha uses meditation to gain spiritual powers. His or her meditations may involve transforming a nucleus of identity or an ensouling entity with an aim to activate supernormal powers (siddhis), to contact selected gods or goddesses, or to ascend to the throne of Mastery. Many Siddhas engage in secret or esoteric practices. Some Siddhas withdraw from the world to do their meditation. Siddhas may use methods derived from Mantra Yoga, Kundalini Yoga, Kriya Yoga, or so-called Tantric practices to bring about inner transformation and to awaken the powers over Nature and Consciousness. In the Mudrashram® system of Integral meditation, this expression of an Initiate corresponds the work of awakening awareness to gain realization of the Soul (Kundalini Yoga) and unfolding the Soul through transformational (bija) mantra (Mantra Yoga).
Savior – A Savior leads the spirit to salvation, which occurs when the spirit has purified the stored karma that fills the channels of the Nada to the point where it opens into the origin of the spirit. Development of the spirit enhances purity, love of humanity, and devotion for God. In the Mudrashram® system of Integral meditation, this expression of an Initiate corresponds to the practices of opening the channels of the Nada and freeing the spirit (Nada Yoga).
Sage – A Sage develops highest insight, illumination, and enlightenment through meditation. At the highest stages of development along this Path, the Sage becomes capable of transmitting his or her illumination to others through teaching and attunement. In the Mudrashram® system of Integral meditation, this expression of an Initiate corresponds to progressive construction of the bridge of intuitive knowledge that culminates in Gnosis, which we call Jnana Yoga.
Thaumaturge – A Thaumaturge gains the ability to translate the Soul and its vehicles of consciousness, effectively unfolding the Soul along its track. This is variously known as the power of Shaktipat, the ability to grant Initiation, or to bestow the Light Fire of God. In the Mudrashram® system of Integral meditation, this expression of an Initiate corresponds the ability to make attunements (Agni Yoga) and bring about balanced spiritual development (Guru Kripa Yoga).
Bodhisattva or Lineage Holder – This being, who renounces entering final liberation to serve others, is called a Bodhisattva. He or she may serve in one of the Octaves of the Hierarchy of Light or as a lineage holder in a Supracosmic or Transcendental Path. The Bodhisattva engages in regular ministry to the spiritual essences of humanity.
Avatar or Divine Incarnation – He or she may incarnate the Divine in human life, or may anchor a new teaching for humanity in the Aethers of the Superconscious mind. The Avatar may function as the World Teacher in the Octaves of the Planetary Hierarchy, or may found a new lineage.

Most Initiates operate through one or more of these expressions. For example:

The Dalai Lama operates as a Saint (1); imparts secret teachings to develop powers (2); is a Sage promoting enlightenment, (3); and is established as the lineage holder for one of the Buddhist Paths (6).

Avatar Meher Baba functioned as a Saint (1); a Savior (3), opening the Path of the spirit on the third Transcendental Path; and an Avatar (7).

My first spiritual teacher, Maha Genii Turriziani, was a Thaumaturge (5); and Bodhisattva, functioning as an Office Holder in the Cosmic Hierarchy (6).

My second teacher, Sat Guru Balyogeshwar, was a Savior (3) imparting the methods to unfold the spirit on the seventh Transcendental Path; and a Sage (4), who taught others to realize Satchitananda, the ensouling entity of the seventh Transcendental Path: and a lineage holder of the seventh Transcendental Path (6)

My third teacher, Sant Darshan Singh, was both a Saint (1); and a Savior (3), who opened the Nadamic channels on the second Transcendental Path; and a lineage holder of the second Transcendental Path (6).

For more information about my spiritual teachers and my experiences with them, see the article, “My Spiritual Journey.”

In Mudrashram®, we teach methods that will enable you to develop aspects of expressions 1 to 5. You learn these techniques in our intermediate courses, the in-person Mudrashram® Master Course in Meditation and the by-mail and online Accelerated Meditation Program.

The Multiplane Masters of the Mudrashram® lineage primarily operate simultaneously as Saviors, Sages, and Thaumaturges. Several of these teachers also have forms in different Octaves of the Hierarchy of Light; all teachers of the Mudrashram® tradition appear in our lineage at the entrance to the highest Plane of the Bridge Path, Adi Sat Guru Desh.

We encourage you to become familiar these different expressions of Initiates, and learn to recognize these aspects in action. You will value from determining which of these expressions seems matched to your own spiritual development—this will enable you to identify techniques that will help you bring that aspect of your nature into full fruition.