The Sri Yantra - Reflection

When asking my beloved Gurudev what I should do to protect myself from lower energies, he suggested that I wear a pendent of a deity.

I decided to wear a pendent of a Sri Yantra, which is simply the energy pattern of a deity.

And so Gurudev blessed the Sri Yantra pendent which I wear every day for the protection offered by his holy blessing and also by the energy pattern created by the nine triangles.

Every Monday evening I perform a ritual in which I bath the pendent. I bathe the pendent in Water, Milk, Honey, Ghee, Yogart and Sugar. I offer fruit and flowers and perfume to it. And at the very end, I sing special, heartfelt prayers to it.

The other day, not so long ago, my friend looked at the pendent and said wow, that’s a lovely OM around your neck. I chuckled and said, “No, that is a Sri Yantra”.

When next in front of a mirror, I noticed that inside the Sri Yantra pendent, the condensation of water (remaining from the Monday ritual) had formed the sign of the OM.

My friend had been correct!

This happens now on a regular basis. The water (remaining from the Monday ritual) dries up inside the pendent. And then, the following week after the next bathing ritual, the sign of the OM reappears when the remaining water condenses inside the pendent.

I have treated this pendent as a living spiritual organism with the love and respect it deserves and in so doing, it revealed itself to me when I least expected it.

Sri Yantra: Meditation

Yantra’s are visual tools that serve in meditation either as centering devices or as symbolic compositions of the energy pattern of a deity.

Using Yantra’s in meditation connects to the Divine energies inside yourself.      

The Sri Yantra

The Sri Yantra - Introduction

Yantra’s come from the more than 2000 years old tantric tradition. A Yantra is the yogic equivalent of the Buddhist mandala.

The Sri Yantra is called the mother of all Yantra’s because all other Yantra’s derive from it.

The Sri Yantra is a configuration of nine interlacing triangles centred around the Bindu (the central point of the Yantra), drawn by the super imposition of five downward pointing triangles, representing Shakti ; the female principle and four upright triangles, representing Shiva ; the male principle.

Together the nine triangles are interlaced in such a way as to form 43 smaller triangles in a web symbolic of the entire cosmos or a womb symbolic of creation. Together they express Advaita or non-duality

Man's spiritual journey from the stage of material existence to ultimate enlightenment is mapped on the Sri Yantra. The spiritual journey is taken as a pilgrimage in which every step is an ascent to the centre, a movement beyond one's limited existence, and every level is nearer to the goal.

Each of the circuits of the Sri Yantra, from the outer plane to the Bindu (the center), corresponds with one of the stages of the spiritual journey.

The goal of contemplating the Sri Yantra is that the adept can rediscover his primordial sources. The circuits symbolically indicate the successive phases in the process of becoming.

Marriage - Reflection

Seek not another to complete you,

Seek rather another with whom you can share in your completeness

Marriage: Meditation

Every decision you make—every decision—is not a decision about what to do. It’s a decision about Who You Are. When you see this, when you understand it, everything changes. You begin to see life in a new way. All events, occurrences, and situations turn into opportunities to do what you came here to do.”

-       Neale Donald Walsch

Marriage: Introduction

On Marriage-  Kahlil Gibran

You were born together, and together you shall be forevermore.
You shall be together when the white wings of death scatter your days.
Ay, you shall be together even in the silent memory of God.
But let there be spaces in your togetherness,
And let the winds of the heavens dance between you.


Love one another, but make not a bond of love:
Let it rather be a moving sea between the shores of your souls.
Fill each other's cup but drink not from one cup.
Give one another of your bread but eat not from the same loaf
Sing and dance together and be joyous, but let each one of you be alone,
Even as the strings of a lute are alone though they quiver with the same music.


Give your hearts, but not into each other's keeping.
For only the hand of Life can contain your hearts.
And stand together yet not too near together:
For the pillars of the temple stand apart,
And the oak tree and the cypress grow not in each other's shadow.

Heaven - Reflection

In conclusion, it is so important to know that Death itself is not enough to reunite the Soul with God. It is only when all desires have been fulfilled that the Soul is deemed eligible for the ultimate goal of ALL life:  To merge back into the Divine!

The following extract from “Autobiography of a Yogi” by Sri Paramahansa will give an insight into this aspect of the journey of the Soul…

A Soul, being invisible by nature, can be distinguished only by the presence of its body or bodies. The mere presence of a body signifies that its existence is made possible by unfulfilled desires.

So long as the soul of man is encased in one, two or three body containers, sealed tightly with the corks of ignorance and desires, he cannot merge with the sea of Spirit. When the gross physical receptacle is destroyed by the hammer of death, the other two coverings – astral and causal – still remain to prevent the soul from consciously joining the Omnipresent Life.

When desirelessness is attained through wisdom, its power disintegrates the two remaining vessels. The tiny human soul emerges, free at last; it is one with the Measureless Amplitude.

Heaven – Meditation

Jesus said: “In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you” (John 14.2).

Heaven – Introduction

Jesus said: “In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you” (John 14.2).

These mansions may be interpreted as the different planes which I mentioned in my blog of 30 September 2011: Death – Reflection.  These planes of existence are the physical plane; the astral plane and the causal planes.

The following extracts from “Autobiography of a Yogi” by Sri Paramahansa Yogananda will give insight into the many mansions which Jesus spoke of. What a

joy and privilege to share this with you.

Extracts from Chapter 43: The resurrection of Sri Yukteswar:

God encased the human soul successively in three bodies – the idea, or casual body; the subtle astral body, seat of man’s mental and emotional nature; and the gross physical body.

On earth man is equipped with his physical senses. As astral being works with his feelings and a body made of lifetrons/ prana/energy. A causal- bodied being remains in the blissful realm of ideas.

The astral universe, made of various subtle vibrations of light and colour, is hundreds of times larger than the material cosmos. The entire physical creation hands like a little solid basket under the huge luminous balloon of the astral sphere. Just as many physical suns and stars roam in space, so there are also countless astral solar and stellar systems.

The astral world is infinitely beautiful, clean, pure and orderly. There are no dead plants or barren lands. The terrestrial blemishes - weeds, bacteria, insects, snakes – are absent. Unlike the variable climates and seasons of the earth, the astral planets maintain the even temperature of an eternal spring with occasional luminous white snow and rain of many-coloured lights. Astral planets abound in opal lakes and bright seas and rainbow rivers.

The ordinary astral universe is peopled with millions of astral beings who have come from the earth, and also with myriads of fairies, mermaids, fishes, animals, goblins, gnomes, demigods and spirits, all residing on different astral planets in accordance with karmic qualifications. Various spheric mansions or vibratory regions are provided for good and evil spirits. Good ones can travel freely, but the evil spirits are confined to limited zones.

Among the fallen dark angels, expelled from other worlds, friction and war take place with lifetronic bombs or mental mantric vibratory rays. These beings dwell in the gloom-drenched regions of the lower astral cosmos, working out their evil karma.

In the vast realms above the dark astral prison, all is shining and beautiful. The astral cosmos is more naturally attuned than the earth to the divine will and plan of perfection.

Every astral object is manifested primarily by the will of God and partially by the will of astral beings. They possess the power of modifying or enhancing the grace and form of anything already created by the Lord. On earth a solid must be transformed into liquid or other form through natural or chemical process, but astral solids are changed into astral liquids, gasses or energy solely and instantly by the will of the inhabitants.

The earth is dark with warfare and murder in the sea, land and air, but the astral realms know a happy harmony and equality. Astral beings can dematerialize their forms at will. All astral beings are free to assume and form and can easily commune together. Everything is vibrant with God’s creative light.

No one is born of woman. The recent physically disembodied being arrives in an astral family through invitation, drawn by similar mental and spiritual tendencies.

In most cases the astral body is an exact counterpart of the last physical form. The face and figure of an astral person resemble those of his youth in his previous earthly journey.

Unlike the special, three dimensional physical world cognized only by the five senses, the astral spheres are visible to the all-inclusive sixth sense – intuition. By sheer intuitional feeling, all astral beings see, hear, smell, taste and touch. They possess three eyes, two of which are partly closed. The third and chief astral eye, vertically placed on the forehead, is open.

Beauty in the astral world is known to be a spiritual quality and not an outward conformation. Astral beings therefore attach little importance to facial features. They have the privilege, however of costuming themselves at will with new, colourful, astrally materialized bodies.

In the astral world, friends of other lives easily recognise one another in the astral world. Rejoicing at the immortality of friendship, they realise the indestructibility of love, often doubted at the time of the sad, delusive partings of earthly life.

The intuition of astral beings pierces through the veil and observes human activities on earth, but man cannot view the astral world unless his sixth sense is somewhat developed. Thousand of earth dwellers have momentarily glimpsed and astral being, or an astral world. (On earth, pure minded children are able to see the graceful astral bodies of fairies. Through drugs or intoxicating drink, whose use is forbidden by all scriptures, a man may so derange his consciousness, that he perceives the hideous forms in astral hells.)

Communication among the astral inhabitants is held entirely by astral telepathy and television, there is none of the confusion and misunderstanding of the written and spoken word which earth dwellers must endure.

Man depends upon solids, liquid, gasses and energy for sustenance; astral beings sustain themselves principally by cosmic light. Astral beings consume vegetables and drink a nectar flowing from glorious fountains of light and from astral brooks and rivers.

In today’s blog, I have covered some of the basics which shed LIGHT on this glorious subject. Knowing that one day, I will again experience this plane gives me great hope, comfort and reassurance.

Death – Reflection

Over the past few days, family and friends have asked me a few questions about death.  I would like to answer three of them below:

“What happens when we die?”

 From my limited understanding, I answer: “There are three planes of existence: the Physical; the Astral; and the Casual planes. In each of these the soul is encased in a body. At this present time, our souls are encased in a physical body. When the physical body “dies”, the soul then takes its place in an astral body, or a body of light.

The astral body bears similarity to the physical body; and so highly sensitive people (also known as psychics) are able to see the resemblance of our loved ones who have “passed away” and are now in their new form.

The astral plane is best described as a world of light, beauty and harmony. Soon, I will blog about the Astral plane and give and account of it as per the teachings of Sri Sri Paramhansa Yogananda.

 “Why must we reincarnate? If we all came from God, then, after death, why don’t we simply go back into Him?”

Paramhansa Yogananda answered this: “If our individuality were dissolved by death, we would do so indeed. But the ego forms the physical body. It is the cause, not the effect of physical birth.

The ego is an element of the astral body which is retained after physical death. The physical body is merely the ego’s projection into the material world.

“God cannot be attained by so simple an act as merely dying. To die is easy, but it is very difficult to attain that high level of consciousness in which the soul can merge back into Infinity.

“What indeed, would worldly people do if they found themselves confronted with such a possibility? What would they do in heaven? They would complain about everything and go on arguing and fighting amount themselves, just as they did on earth. And in the process, they’d only turn heaven itself into another kind of hell.

“After death, the basic tendencies of a person’s nature remain just what they were on earth. Al Capone, the gangster, didn’t suddenly become an angel by departing this plane of existence. Criminals retain their evil tendencies until they themselves work them out, perhaps after incarnations and after many hard lessons: until their avarice, for example, has been transformed into a desire to help others; their lawlessness into a desire to uphold the law; and their cruelty into kindness to all.

“What causes the ego to reincarnate?”

Paramhansa Yogananda again: “Desire. Desire directs energy. As long as a person desires the things of the earth, he must come back here, where his desires can be fulfilled.  If he longs for cigarettes, cars or money, the astral world can’t provide those things. He will have to return to earth where such things can be obtained”.

A disciple asked Yogananda: “Must every desire conceived on earth be fulfilled here also?”

Yogananda: “Not pure desires – not, for example, beautiful music or harmonious relationships. Such desires can be fulfilled better in the astral world than on this imperfect material plane.

In many cases, the desire to create beauty here on earth is due to the deeper- than- conscious memories of the beauty and harmony experiences in the astral world.

Death - Meditation

Miss me and let me go

When I come to the end of the road

and the sun has set for me,

I want no rites in a gloom-filled room

why cry for a soul set free?

Miss me a little, but not too long

and not with your head bowed low,

remember the love that we once shared,

Miss me and let me go.

For this is a journey that each must take,

and each must go alone,

it is all a step in the Master’s Plan,

a step on the road home.

When you are lonely and sick of heart,

go to the friends we know

and bury your sorrows in doing good

Miss me - but let me go

Death - Introduction

My beloved and dear grandfather, Adri, passed away last week.

In my life I have endured the deaths of a number people who have been active participants in my life and, who I have loved very, very dearly. And so - although juxtaposed to one other - Death has taught me much about Life itself.  

Over the last few days I have heard people say that “Death is a part of Life”. This is true. And true also, is that Life continues after Death. Through my faith, and spirituality, I am assured that death is not the end. It is merely the changing of form. This gives me great hope, comfort and reassurance.

There is much to do and many emotions still to face. The words of Kahlil Gibran sum up perfectly what I feel needs to be said today.

On Death - Kahlil Gibran

You would know the secret of death.
But how shall you find it unless you seek it in the heart of life?
The owl whose night-bound eyes are blind unto the day cannot unveil the mystery of light.
If you would indeed behold the spirit of death, open your heart wide unto the body of life.
For life and death are one, even as the river and the sea are one.


In the depth of your hopes and desires lies your silent knowledge of the beyond;
And like seeds dreaming beneath the snow your heart dreams of spring.
Trust the dreams, for in them is hidden the gate to eternity.
Your fear of death is but the trembling of the shepherd when he stands before the king whose hand is to be laid upon him in honour.
Is the shepherd not joyful beneath his trembling, that he shall wear the mark of the king?
Yet is he not more mindful of his trembling?


For what is it to die but to stand naked in the wind and to melt into the sun?
And what is it to cease breathing, but to free the breath from its restless tides, that it may rise and expand and seek God unencumbered?


Only when you drink from the river of silence shall you indeed sing.
And when you have reached the mountain top, then you shall begin to climb.
And when the earth shall claim your limbs, then shall you truly dance.

Everyone Is a Genius

Einstein's quote reminds us to think twice before measuring ourselves and others against inappropriate standards.

Everyone has a different ability or particular "genius." Often, comparing ourselves to someone else's abilities might mean overlooking what it is that we are naturally more suited towards doing. In other words, stop being a fish-trying-to-climb-a-tree and embrace our own fishiness.

We are not all made to be theoretical physicists and so we should always aim for what we are good at, work hard for what we desire in our lives, and we must never beat ourselves up when we can't do everything perfectly….

I am often reminded that every person has something special about them, including the most difficult, impossible people that we may know. If we are able to find that something special, that genius, fishiness within them, and nurture it - rather than measure the person against inappropriate standards - we could make an enormous difference in the lives of those we meet and give each person the gift of embracing their own fishiness.  

If we embrace and nurture our own fishiness - and then the fishiness within others - we can change the face of the world, forever.

The Kali Yuga - The Patriarchal Dark Age

Last week I introduced the theme of the Kali Yuga. Yuga literally means “age”. While the Kali Yuga is a difficult time for mankind on earth, my Guru has said (on many occasions) that it is because of these difficulties that God runs toward us! Thus, it is a time in which it is easy to gain liberation or enlightenment.

And so, although today’s blog is one which sums up the reasons for the sad state of mankind and the world at large, do not despair: let’s rather keep a picture in our mind’s eye of God running toward us in our every action.

Kali Yuga is the age of the male demon, Kali" or the "age of vice". This is the last of the four stages that the world goes through as part of the cycle of yuga’s described in the Indian scriptures. According to the Surya Siddhanta, the other ages are Satya Yuga, Treta Yuga and Dvapara Yuga.

Most interpreters of Hindu scriptures believe that earth is currently in Kali Yuga. Some, such as Swami Sri Yukteswar and Paramhansa Yogananda believe that it is now near the beginning of Dvapara Yuga.

Hindus believe that human civilization degenerates spiritually during the Kali Yuga, which is referred to as the Dark Age because in it people are as far removed as possible from God. (Note: this does not mean that God is far removed from us, but rather that man is far removed from God!)

Hinduism often symbolically represents morality (dharma) as a bull. In Satya Yuga, the first stage of development, the bull has four legs, but in each age morality is reduced by one quarter. By the age of Kali, morality is reduced to only a quarter of that of the golden age, so that the bull of Dharma has only one leg.

Kali Yuga is associated with the apocalyptic demon Kali, not to be confused with the goddess Kālī (read as Kaalee) (these are unrelated words in the Sanskrit language). The "Kali" of Kali Yuga means "strife, discord, quarrel, or contention."

Kali Yuga In relation to rulers

·         Rulers will no longer see it as their duty to promote spirituality, or to protect their subjects: they will become a danger to the world.

Kali Yuga In human relationships

·         Wrath will be common and Humans will openly display animosity towards each other.

·         Ignorance of dharma (life purpose) will occur.

·         Lust will be viewed as socially acceptable and sexual intercourse will be seen as the central requirement of life.

·         Sin will increase exponentially, whilst virtue will fade and cease to flourish.

·         People will take vows and break them soon after.

·         People will become addicted to intoxicating drinks and drugs.

·         Gurus will no longer be respected and their students will attempt to injure them.

Kali Yuga - Personification

Kali is the reigning lord of Kali Yuga and the nemesis of Sri Kalki, who is the tenth and final Avatar of Lord Vishnu. According to the Vishnu Purana, Kali is a negative manifestation of Vishnu who perpetually operates in this world as a cause of destruction, along with his evil extended family.

Kali also serves as an antagonistic force in the Kalki Purana. It is said that towards the end of this yuga, Kalki will return riding on a white horse to do battle with Kali and his dark forces. The world will suffer a fiery end which will destroy all evil, and a new age, Satya Yuga, will begin

Krishna Janma Ashtami : Reflection

The birth of Lord Krishna, some 50 centuries ago, signified the beginning of this present age of Kali – the Kali Yuga: a time of disintegration and moral depravity

The Age of Kali for the Hindu is the natural ending of the world in the fourth age . It is one of a series of changes, each of which marks the end of one cycle and the beginning of another creation.

The central figure in the story is Vishnu, the preserver God, into whose self the world is absorbed before being born again. Vishnu has already saved humanity on a number of occasions, symbolically appearing as a “saviour” in many different forms. Vishnu incarnates in 10 avatars, of which there have been 9, the last three have been: 7- Rama, 8- Krishna and 9- Buddha

It is said that He will appear again , as Kalki 'the avenger', riding a white horse , destined to destroy the present world (the corrupt age of the goddess Kali) and to take humanity to a different, higher plane (the golden age of Krita).

Kalki 'the avenger'

Krishna Janma Ashtami : Meditation

Mantra meditation is what the Vedas prescribe for this day and age. A highly recommended mantra—with a great ability to uplift our consciousness—is:

Hare Krishna Hare Krishna

Krishna Krishna Hare Hare

Hare Rama Hare Rama

Rama Rama Hare Hare

This ties in beautifully with this week's theme. Sit quietly, chant this mantra and be happy

Krishna Janma Ashtami : Introduction

Today is Krishna Janma Ashtami, or the Appearance day of Lord Krishna.

The Lord Krishna, the eighth avatar of Vishnu. His birthday falls on the Ashtami of Krishna Paksha or the 8^th day of the dark fortnight of the month of Shravan Masa. Popularly known as Janam Ashtami or Krishna Jayanthi.

This festival is celebrated on two days, once on the actual day ( Janam Ashtami) of his birth in prison at Mathura, and the next day (Krishna Jayanthi) on his being discovered in the house of Nand and Yashoda at Gokul. According to the Mythology and scriptures Krishna plays an enlightening role in the Mahabharatha (Great epic) giving us the life enduring message from the Bhagavat Gita.

This is the festival of sweets and revives the childhood stages of Krishna. The Lord is worshipped with offerings – milk, curd, butter, cream, honey and avvalakki (all are Krishna’s favourites), variety of fruits and flowers along with lots and lots of sweets and savouries. People decorate the idols of God with flowers and decorate the Lord with silk and jewelery. They arrange dolls/idols depicting the childhood of Krishna in the cradle, stealing butter, playing with the Gopikas, Mother Yashodha viewing the Vishwa Roopa Darshana, Krishna with Radha etc.

Krishna is a central figure of Hinduism and is traditionally attributed the authorship of the Bhagavad Gita. He is an Avatar of Vishnu and considered in some monotheistic traditions as the Supreme Being. Krishna is identified as a historical individual who participated in the events of the Mahābhārata.

Krishna is often described as an infant or young boy playing a flute as in the Bhagavata Purana, or as a youthful prince giving direction and guidance as in the Bhagavad Gita The stories of Krishna appear across a broad spectrum of Hindu philosophical and theological traditions They portray him in various perspectives: a god-child, a prankster, a model lover, a divine hero and the Supreme Being. The principal scriptures discussing Krishna's story are the Mahabharata, the Harivamsa, the Bhagavata Purana and the Vishnu Purana.

Mary – Mother of the World: Reflection

The Fifth Glorious mystery: Mary is Crowned Queen of Heaven & Earth

A great sign appeared in heaven:
a woman clothed with the sun,
the moon beneath her feet,
and a crown of twelve stars on her head
(Revelation 12:1)

Mary was taken up body and soul into Heaven: there is even room in God for the body. Heaven is no longer a very remote sphere unknown to us. We have a Mother in Heaven…. Heaven is open, Heaven has a heart…. Mary is taken up body and soul into the glory of Heaven, and with God and in God she is Queen of Heaven and earth. And is she really so remote from us? The contrary is true…. Being in God and with God, she is close to each one of us, knows our hearts, can hear our prayers, can help us with her motherly kindness and has been given to us, as the Lord said, precisely as a "mother" to whom we can turn at every moment. She always listens to us, she is always close to us, and being Mother of the Son, participates in the power of the Son and in his goodness. We can always entrust the whole of our lives to this Mother, who is not far from any one of us.

-–Pope Benedict XVI,

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Mary – Mother of the World: Meditation

Hail Mary, Full of Grace

The Lord is with Thee

Blessed are Thou among women

And blessed is the fruit of Thy womb, Jesus

Holy Mary, Mother of God

Be with us your children

Now and forever

AMEN

Mary - Mother of the World: Introduction

It is with deep reverence that I shall blog about the Assumption of our blessed mother Mary into Heaven. I am in constant awe of Mother Mary and love her with all my heart. As the mother of the world, Mary remains for me a source of purity, strength and unfading hope.

I have seen and touched a piece of the Holy veil which once belonged to our spiritual Mother. On that day, I remember my Guru saying to me “A mere speck of dust from the feet of Mary, would be sufficient to grant you full enlightenment”.

The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary into Heaven at the end of her earthly life is celebrated every year on August 15. It is a very old feast of the Church and has been celebrated universally since the sixth century. It commemorates the death of Mary and her bodily assumption into Heaven, before her body could begin to decay--a foretaste of our own bodily resurrection at the end of time. Because it signifies the Blessed Virgin's passing into eternal life, it is the most important of all Marian feasts

The assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary is one of the most popular feasts in the Catholic Church worldwide. In many Catholic countries in Europe, this feast is a holy day of obligation.
The feast is based on a belief of the early Church that since Mary was sinless, she was rewarded by the Lord with assumption to heaven body and soul.

This belief was formalized into a doctrine on November 1, 1950, by Pope Pius XII who, in a decree, declared: “We pronounce, declare, and define it to be a divinely revealed dogma that the immaculate Mother of God, the ever Virgin Mary, having completed the course of her earthly life, was assumed body and soul to heavenly glory.”

Although there is no scriptural basis for this belief, the Church believes, that through Mary’s obedience and fidelity to the will of God, she was rewarded with this special privilege of being united with God in such a special way.

Reflecting on the Assumption of Mary, one will be led to reflect on the life and works of Mary, our mother and model, especially on her “fiat” to God and her service to her fellowmen. While it is true that she was glorified by God, her glorification only reflects the original glory that belongs only to God.

Her solidarity with the poor is in fact reflective of God’s love and concern for them. Indeed, Mary’s Magnificat becomes a reality in her life through her witnessing to the values of the Kingdom.

As we celebrate Monday her feast, we call to mind the words of the Second Vatican Council: “In the bodily and spiritual glory which she possesses in heaven, the Mother of Jesus continues in this present world as the image and first flowering of the Church as she is to be perfected in the world to come.

Likewise, Mary shines forth on earth, until the day of the Lord shall come (cf. 2 Peter 3:10), as a sign of certain hope and comfort for the pilgrim People of God”.

The Assumption of Mary gives us hope that one day, we, too, shall enjoy the glory of God in heaven. May Mary continue to guide us in this journey of faith and life. May she show us the true path that will lead us to God our loving Father. Amen