Sant Mat Basic Principles

Sant Mat Basic Principles Although Sant Mat was born centuries ago in India, it is in many ways an ideal spiritual path for the modern seeker. Sant Mat couples a powerful meditation practice with a dynamic, inclusive, positive way of living. People new to Sant Mat often say they were attracted by its simplicity, integrity, and effectiveness in fostering real spiritual growth. The heart of Sant Mat are these simple principles: 

There is one God of all creation. Sant Mat views the world's great spiritual traditions as so many branches of the same divine tree rooted in one Divinity. That's why Sant Mat encourages us to remain in our own religions. But while Sant Mat respects all faiths, it stresses that religion has two dimensions - outer and inner. Sant Mat focuses on the inner - the deep spiritual essence known as mysticism. Mysticism looks beyond rites, rituals, and scriptural knowledge to pursue spiritual realization as a matter of first-hand inner experience.

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Our true self is soul. Within each of us is a soul, a great spiritual potential created in God's image and likeness. This soul - not the body and mind with which we now identify - is our real self.

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The true purpose of life is to reconnect with our soul. Life's supreme goal - the achievement to which all saints, prophets, and mystics summon us - is to regain our lost identity as soul. From this experience flows a peace that is not dependent on life's circumstances - a profound peace that is eternal. This experience is the true source of the happiness that we all crave.

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Meditation is the surest way to spiritual growth. This goal is not metaphorical or based on feelings or suppositions. It is as a matter of personal, verifiable experience. The meditation technique taught by Sant Mat leads to a progressive unfolding of the higher self, with concrete goals and milestones along the way. The practice does not require rigorous physical postures, special breathing exercises, or an extreme way of life. It is a natural method that can be practiced by anyone, regardless of age, health, education, or religion.

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A competent teacher speeds our progress. It's a common sense principle of life: studying with one who has mastered that subject we wish to learn accelerates our learning. We believe spirituality is no different. That's why seekers throughout history have turned to spiritual Masters like Christ, Buddha, and so many others. By virtue of their own inner awakening, these Masters awakened others. But as much as we revere Masters of the past, Sant Mat stresses the importance of a living guide.

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Spirituality is life-affirming. Spirituality does not demand that we renounce our families or societies. Just the opposite. Our inner lives, after all, are not separate from our outer lives. Sant Mat asks that we lead normal lives, striving for excellence in our careers, families, and communities. While doing so, however, it asks that we not lose sight of our spiritual goals. We call this balancing of outer and inner lives positive mysticism. As we advance within through meditation and behold God's Light within us, we see that same light shining in others. As a consequence of that realization, a natural spirit of love and compassion becomes the hallmark of our outer lives.

We believe that Sant Mat expresses the deepest values of every great spiritual tradition: love for God, compassion and service for God's creation, and a daily life imbued with ethical values. Haven't these always been the aspiration of every spiritual seeker - ancient or modern? Sant Mat's contribution is to distill these noble ideals into a simple, universal spiritual path, and then provide the tools and techniques to make them a reality for each of us.