A few weeks ago, I was in my Prius stopped at a red light on my way to teach class at the studio. It was warm, my window was rolled down, and I was chanting the Hanuman Chalisa along with Krishna Das (like I most always do when driving). Suddenly, I heard someone say, “Excuse me?” I kept chanting. The voice repeated, more loudly this time, “Excuse me? Miss?” I glanced over, and realizing someone had pulled up next to me and was talking to me, I turned down the Chalisa and said, “Yes?”
“What does ‘All One’ mean?” he asked. Expecting him to ask for directions or to tell me I had a burned out tail light, I was momentarily thrown. Then I remembered the “All One” bumper sticker on my car, which I had picked up at the gift shop at the Neem Karoli Baba Ashram and Temple in Taos. My Guru, Neem Karoli Baba (aka Maharaji) often said “Sub Ek” or “All One.” It was one of his main teachings. I quickly shifted mental gears.
“Well,” I said, “it means that most of the time most people see only separation, rather than Oneness or Unity. In small ‘r’ reality, we see division, separation. But in Truth, in Ultimate Reality, it’s All One. Everything and everybody is All One. There is no separation. Separation is an illusion.”
I was trying to say it quickly and clearly (before the light changed). As I was saying it, I was also thinking, “How delightful and bizarre to be giving a little dharma talk out my car window at a red light—to be sharing Maharaji’s #1 teaching in this unusual way while the Hanuman Chalisa is playing in the background.”
The man seemed interested in what I was saying, and when I finished, he nodded and said, “Thank you.” The light turned green. I said, “My pleasure,” and drove away. Turning the Hanuman Chalisa back up I smiled at the picture of Maharaji that hangs from my rear view mirror.
Maharaji advised those who are interested in realizing the state of Oneness to, “Love everyone, serve everyone, remember God, and tell the Truth.” In a similar teaching, Jivamukti Yoga co-founder Sharon Gannon says the best thing we can do to uplift our own lives is to do all we can to uplift the lives of others. She recommends that the spiritual seeker to become less selfish and more selfless.
In this month’s Jivamukti Yoga Focus of the Month essay “The Importance of Community — All for One,” Šárka Vojáčková writes, “Ask yourself: ‘What can I do for others?’ We are here for each other. Despite our differences, our strength lies in nurturing and caring for each other. But include everyone! Every being. Human being, animal being, tree being. Remember: ‘The way you treat others determines the way others treat you; the way others treat you determines the way you see yourself; the way you see yourself determines who you are.’ (Sharon Gannon).”
It’s All One. What we do to harm another (any other -- not just human others) ultimately harms the One, including ourselves. What we do to serve another ultimately serves the Whole, including ourselves. Thich Nhat Hanh said that “Enlightenment is when a wave realizes it is the ocean.” All beings are part of the One ocean of being, with each individual being a wave. Thus any service we offer to another is also service to the One.
With great gratitude for each of you who helps to make our little yoga studio the beautiful community it is, I offer Thanksgiving blessings and love! Like Ram Dass said, "We're all just walking each other home."
--Namaste, Sharada Devi