Ruach, breath of God, experienced daily as cool breeze/wind by SYs


Judith Coney: Sahaja Yoga><BR CLEAR=
Judith Coney

"This book is my attempt, as a sociologist of religion, to answer the question raised by my friend that day. It is about Sahaja Yoga, the new religious movement (NRM) whose member was responsible for the 'cool breezes' which he felt.”- Judith Coney

"One spring afternoon in 1992, a Norwegian friend who was living in my village for a year whilst he completed a Master of Business Administration at Bath University dropped over for coffee. After exchanging the usual set of pleasantries about the weather and a few comments about the local primary school, he introduced a new topic into the conversation. Knowing my interest in new religions, he said, was I aware that some people in the next village were 'giving cool breezes'? I confessed my ignorance and pressed him for details. One, a woman called Jane, he continued, had given him a sort of massage and as a result he had felt a cool breeze on the top of his head.”I really did, you know!"he went on, looking slightly uncomfortable, as he did not quite believe it himself.”What's it all about?”

This book is my attempt, as a sociologist of religion, to answer the question raised by my friend that day. It is about Sahaja Yoga, the new religious movement (NRM) whose member was responsible for the 'cool breezes' which he felt.”

Judith Coney, Sahaja Yoga (Introduction page)
Hardcover: 269 pages
Publisher: RoutledgeCurzon; 1 edition (May 24 1999)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0700710612
ISBN-13: 978-0700710614

About the Author (www.amazon.com)
Judith Coney is a lecturer in the Department of Study of Religions at the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London.

Book Description
The first full-length examination of Sahaja Yoga, a new religious movement led by Sri Mataji Nirmala Devi, which claims up to one hundred thousand members from around the world.

Synopsis
This is the first full-length examination of Sahaja Yoga, a new religious movement led by Sri Mataji Nirmala Devi, which claims up to one hundred thousand members from around the world. The study on which it is founded began as a result of the author's curiosity being aroused when she heard followers of the guru claiming to feel 'cool breezes' on the tops of their heads and on the palms of their hands. Basing her account largely on participant observation with devotees, Judith Coney sets out the experiences of western members of the movement, from the point of first contact to departure. She examines how newcomers adopt new practices and allegiances on becoming full-time members, and how most develop a radically new awareness of 'spiritual vibrations' as a result of the regular meditation suggested by Sri Mataji. To do so, she reflects upon current theories of socialisation, in particular building up understandings about new social worlds than has so far been appreciated. This accessible and informative account is of particular value to scholars working in the study of religions and new religious movements, and of interest to those working on theories of socialisation. However, the book is required reading for anyone who wants to know more about the contemporary religious landscape.




Ruach, the breath of God, experienced daily as cool breeze/wind by SYs

Hebrew name for God - Ruach Elohim

Introduction

"The Spirit of God hath made me, and the breath of the Almighty hath given me life.” (Job 33:4)

The Spirit of YHVH is YHVH Himself...

In the Tanakh, the word ruach generally means wind, breath, mind, spirit. In a living creature (nephesh chayah), the ruach is the breath, whether of animals (Gen 7:15; Psa 104:25, 29) or mankind (Isa 42:5; Ezek 37:5). God is the creator of ruach: "The ruach of God (from God) is in my nostrils" (Job 27:3). In God's hand is the ruach of all mankind (Job 12:10; Isa 42:5). In mankind, ruach further denotes the principle of life that possesses reason, will, and conscience. The ruach imparts the divine image to man, and constitutes the animating dynamic which results in man's nephesh as the subject of personal life.

When applied to God, the word Ruach indicates creative activity (Gen 1:2) and active power (Isa 40:13). The Spirit of God also works in providence (Job 33:4; Psa 104:30), in redemption (Ezek 11:19; Ezek 36:26-27), in upholding and guiding his chosen ones (Neh 9:20; Psa 143:10; Hag 2:5), and in the empowering of the Messiah (Isa 11:2; Isa 42:1; Isa 61:1).

In short, as the ruach is to the created nephesh, so the Ruach Elohim is to God Himself, part of God and identified with God. Ruach may be understood as the Author of the animating dynamic of the created order, the underlying Principle of creation, and the One that imparts the nephesh to the entire universe.

The Spirit of God
Ruach Elohim.
The Spirit of God.
References: Gen. 1:2; Gen. 41:38; Exod. 31:3; 35:31; Num. 24:2; 1 Sam. 10:10; 11:6; 16:15f, 23; 18:10; 19:20, 23; 2 Chr. 15:1; 2 Chr. 24:20. In many of these references note that the Spirit of God"came upon"An individual and enabled him to speak or act on behalf of YHVH.

The Spirit of the LORD
Ruach Adonai.
References: Jdg. 3:10; 6:34; 11:29; 13:25; 14:6, 19; 15:14; 1 Sam. 10:6; 16:13,4; 19:9; 2 Sam. 23:2; 1 Ki. 18:12; 22:24; 2 Ki. 2:16; 2 Chr. 18:23; 20:14; Isa. 11:2; 40:7, 13; 59:19; 63:14; Ezek. 11:5; Hos. 13:15; Mic. 2:7; 3:8.
Note: A distinction was made by ancient Jewish authorities between the"Spirit of the Lord"And the Shekhinah, or the (tangible) presence of God. This distinction is made in the Talmud, which gives a list of things found in the first Temple in Jerusalem, but missing in the second Temple. The Shekhinah may have referred to God's actual dwelling within the Holy of Holies, and God's presence emanating outward from it in a special way, though this is speculative and not based on the scriptures found directly in the Tanakh.

The Holy Spirit
Ruach Hakkodesh.
The Holy Spirit.
Reference: Psalm 51:11

The Spirit of the LORD God
Ruach Adonai Adonai.
The Spirit of the LORD God.
Reference: Isaiah 61:1

The Spirit of God
Ruach-El.
The Spirit of God.
Reference: Job 33:4

"The Spirit of God hath made me, and the breath of the Almighty hath given me life.” (Job 33:4)

Ruach: Hebrew word for God

"One ancient Hebrew word for God, for example, was ruach. Literally, that word meant"Wind," a natural and even an impersonal concept. The wind or ruach was observed not as a being, but as a vitalizing force. It had no boundaries and no recognizing destination. Among the Hebrews the ruach or wind of God was said to have brooded over the chaos in the story of creation in order to bring forth life. Slowly this ruach then evolved and became personalized and was called Spirit. But it is important to note that at its origin ruach was an impersonal life force, an experienced"What," not a"Who.”The ruach or wind of God was not external. It rather emerged from within the world and was understood as its very ground, its life-giving reality....

The wind was also assumed by the Jewish mind to have come from God.”Thou didst blow with thy wind," said the book of Exodus (15:10), and"There went forth a wind from the Lord," said the book of Numbers (11:31). God might have been defined by these ancient people as a distant, theistic, personal power who lived beyond the sky, but in the very mysterious wind, which the Jews felt on their own faces, they believed they found themselves touched by God here and now.”

Bishop J. S. Spong
Why Christianity Must Change or Die


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