Be present in yourself – be centered in yourself.

Today begins the New Year, and worldwide it is being celebrated as the New Millennium.

New Year, New Millennium…

Today is the New Year – it is like being in the movies, the director starts and then says ‘Cut!’ – And then starts all over again.  A dab of make-up here… (Laughter) (Mockingly): One feels like a prime minister giving a New Year speech!

So in a way it is a very special day.  Beginnings are always very special – but so also the continuity of the beginning.

It is New Year, New Millennium worldwide. Whether one accepts or not, it is being celebrated as the beginning of the New Millennium.

So New Year, New Millennium…

Quite special to be present at the turn of the New Millennium. I do not know how many of you were up at midnight. I was.

Let there be something new. For us, let it be the opening of new vistas, new realms in and of our consciousness – the awakening of our Being, the awakening of our Being to the process of enlightenment, the march of humanity to a greater enlightenment each time.

And each one of us forms a part of that collective whole. In that way there are responsibilities to ourselves and to the whole globe.

For no individual can live in isolation. There are always inter-dependencies, inter-exchanges, inter-relationships.

To be centered in the self, yes.  But to be self-centered, that is another thing!

So through the center of the Being, you arrive at the center of the Universe.

Your body, your life is the universe on a smaller scale, and the universe is your body extended. The whole of creation is your larger body.

So new vistas, new realms, new windows and doors into yourself, new commitments to yourself and to the Reality.

Of course, we will soon find out how many doors and windows closed, and if, in the computers worldwide because of Y2K!!!

Yet for the seeker every moment is new, every moment is full of energy, every moment is a step towards a greater enlightenment. So in that let there be joy; let every moment be joyful.

Let it be a building of greater and greater awareness in the way we do things, in the way we remember, in the way we consider things important or unimportant.

New perspective, new perception. Life is ever modifying itself; life is ever reaching out to a greater fulfillment.

And of course, worldwide, plenty of speeches, lectures…

I mean it is a big thing, this Millennium…

In thousand years, you have thousand New Years. But Millennium comes once in a thousand years!

We seek renewal; we seek rejuvenation – renewal and rejuvenation of all that which opens us out to greater awareness. So, for us, let it be a discovery of greater and greater freedom within our own being.

Let it be a freedom filled with compassion and love.

Let it be a freedom that opens us out to a greater and greater vision that takes us beyond all limitations – which are not really obstacles but steps to the discovery of a greater and greater Self.

Let it be an adventure – a profound one at that.

Let it be the beginning of the manifestation of latent potentialities – power, great power from within our own beings – a power that is devoid of all arrogance; a power that lives in compassion.

So let us be responsive rather than reactive. Through our interactions let us learn and grow in our understanding, and therefore, in life.

In the silence and solitude of ourselves, of our deeper selves, of our deeper Being – to seek and find each time a greater profundity, for there is no end to the depth of your Being and what it can contain.  There is no end to the height of your Being and what it can reach.

And in that is your dignity and dignity of all life.

So – New Year, New Millennium…

Let this year be a year of joyful discoveries, and the opening of greater and greater vision – a vision that reaches to Infinity.

So how do you feel at the beginning of the new millennium, F?

F:  Feels good – beginning of new millennium with Giridharji, so rest of thousand years also. Thank you so much for being with us.

After all you cannot avoid the destiny…

V: Is it your destiny or ours?

Both, mine and yours – it is our common destiny.

Arya Vihar

1 January 2000