Reflections on Peace, Philosophy, and Life
I have read and researched a lot of different texts on the subject of past spiritual teachers and have come to the conclusion that there are two distinct groups; Living Masters and Prophets. So what is the difference, in my view?
Key Distinctions:
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Role and Function:
- Living Masters: Primarily focus on guiding individuals toward inner peace and self-realization, offering practical methods like meditation, self-inquiry, or devotion to achieve a direct experience of the divine. They encourage personal spiritual transformation without reliance on intermediaries or strict external doctrines.
- Prophets: Serve as divine messengers, often delivering God’s law, prophecy, or warnings to a nation or group. Their focus is more on guiding communities through external commandments, prophecy, and legal or moral instructions, often tied to specific historical events.
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Focus on Inner vs. Outer Guidance:
- Living Masters: Encourage individuals to look within for the divine, often downplaying external rituals or social hierarchies. They teach that peace and fulfilment come from internal spiritual awakening and direct experience of God or truth.
- Prophets: Primarily provide external guidance in the form of laws, commandments, or moral teachings, often emphasizing obedience to divine authority. Their teachings are typically directed at the behaviour of the community or nation, with a focus on collective morality and divine judgment.
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Teaching Methods:
- Living Masters: Use meditation, contemplation, and direct spiritual practice to guide individuals to their own spiritual realization.
- Prophets: Use revelations, miracles, and divine visions to communicate their message, often with a focus on societal change or guiding a nation back to righteousness.
This comparison highlights the different roles played by "Living Masters" and "Prophets." While both groups provided crucial spiritual guidance, their methods and focuses diverge: Living Masters primarily lead people toward personal spiritual awakening, while Prophets often act as intermediaries between God and the people, offering moral, legal, or prophetic guidance to communities or nations. Both have played essential roles in spiritual history, but their approach to teaching and guiding humanity reflects different priorities—inner peace and personal realization for Masters, and external law and communal guidance for Prophets.
Jesus of Nazareth
This historical person is seen as offering both aspects:
- Living Master: Jesus taught about the "Kingdom of God within" and focused on personal transformation, love, forgiveness, and direct connection with the divine. His emphasis on inner transformation and spiritual rebirth fits the Living Master tradition.
- Prophet: Jesus is also traditionally regarded as a prophet, especially in the Abrahamic religions, delivering divine messages and guiding communities. His role as a messenger of God and the "Son of God" places him in the prophetic category as well.
Jesus’ teachings embody aspects of both Living Master and Prophet roles, so he can be placed in either column depending on interpretation. His message, emphasizing both inner transformation and external divine guidance, spans the two categories, making him a unique figure in this comparison. For his disciples (excluding Saul/Paul, who came along later), Jesus was seen as a Living Master. The role of Prophet was assigned to the later interpreters.
Examples:
Living Masters |
Prophets |
| Lao Tzu (c. 6th century BCE) - Taught living in harmony with the Tao (The Way), emphasizing inner simplicity and alignment with nature. - Focus on internal spiritual realization. |
Abraham (c. 2000–1800 BCE) - Considered the father of monotheism, guided by God's commands and promises, a central figure in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. - Focus on covenant with God and the outward journey of faith and obedience. |
| Buddha (Siddhartha Gautama) (c. 563–483 BCE) - Taught the path to enlightenment through the Middle Way, meditation, and self-realization. - Focus on inner transformation and ending suffering through personal effort. |
Moses (c. 13th century BCE) - Delivered the Ten Commandments, led the Israelites out of Egypt, and provided external divine law. - Focus on external guidance and divine commandments. |
| Rumi (1207–1273 CE) - Sufi mystic who taught about divine love and union with God through inner devotion. - Emphasis on ecstatic devotion and inner connection to God through love. |
David (c. 1040–970 BCE) |
| Kabir (1440–1518 CE) - Mystic poet who emphasized the direct experience of God, rejecting religious formalities. - Focus on personal realization and inner devotion. |
Solomon (c. 970–931 BCE) - Known for his wisdom and teachings on justice, wrote Proverbs, and governed Israel as a king. - Focus on divine wisdom and governance, but less on inner spiritual experience. |
| Guru Nanak (1469–1539 CE) - Founder of Sikhism, taught the oneness of God and inner divine light present in everyone. - Focus on equality, devotion, and meditation on God’s name. |
Isaiah (c. 8th century BCE) - Old Testament prophet who warned Israel and Judah of judgment, emphasizing repentance and God's law. - External guidance, often warning of societal consequences rather than focusing on personal, inner transformation. |
| Sri Ramakrishna (1836–1886 CE) - Taught that all religions lead to the same divine realization, focusing on inner experience of God. - Emphasis on inner unity of all spiritual paths. |
Jeremiah (c. 7th–6th century BCE) - Known as the "Weeping Prophet," foretold the fall of Jerusalem and urged people to return to God. - Emphasized divine law and prophecy related to external events and moral behaviours. |
| Shri Swarupanand Ji (1884–1936 CE) - Part of the Sant Mat tradition, taught meditation techniques for self-realization. - Focus on inner spiritual practice and personal realization of the divine. |
Elijah (c. 9th century BCE) - Old Testament prophet known for performing miracles and confronting corrupt leaders, acting as a divine intermediary. - External messenger of God’s will, delivering warnings and performing acts to guide a nation. |
| Prem Rawat (1957–present) - Teaches techniques of inner peace and self-realization through the Knowledge, emphasizing personal experience of fulfilment. - Focus on practical techniques to access inner peace and direct experience of the divine. |
Prophet Muhammad (570–632 CE) - The final prophet in Islam, delivered the Qur’an, providing moral and legal guidance for the Muslim community. - Emphasis on divine law (Sharia) and external worship, while also teaching about personal connection to God. |
Of course, this list is not to be understood as exhaustive. It is a selection to make the comparison.
The title "Living Master" emphasises that the role is directed towards those who are also alive at the same time. So we speak of disciples or followers. A dead Master is hard to follow, as he is not around to correct and advices. The classical example of what I mean is this: if you are ill, you will not go to the grave of a great doctor to find help. You want one who can check you out now and is alive to offer a diagnosis and possible solutions. A prophet, on the other hand, leaves commandments and rules, which are valid after his/her death.
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Who am I? This is a question I’ve been reflecting on more deeply since starting a course to become a prison visitor. As part of the course, we explore the concept of identity, and it’s sparked some fascinating conversations among the diverse group of participants. It’s interesting to hear the variety of views on such a fundamental topic.
We were introduced to a framework that attempts to explain identity through several components: "Corporeality," or our physical body; "Social Relationships," which encompass our connections to others; "Work and Performance," how we view ourselves in relation to what we do; "Values and Ideals," and how we shape them; and finally, "Material Security," or our sense of stability. While these aspects play a significant role in our lives, they don’t define who I am.
When I came into this world, I had no name and no awareness of these aspects. But I was alive. Over time, I began to experience life—first through my body, and then through relationships with others: parents, siblings, and eventually society’s labels of gender, race, and other distinctions. Work, values, and security came later. But does all of that add up to who I am?
Throughout my 77 years, each of these elements has evolved. My body has changed, my relationships have transformed, and I’ve lived in different places and held various jobs. There have been times of material abundance and times of scarcity. My values have developed over time as well. But the constant has always been me—something beyond the ever-shifting aspects of life.
For many, there’s a tendency to hold onto an image of themselves when they felt they were at their best, but I focus on a deeper understanding of who I am. I’ve come to see myself as an unfolding miracle. It all comes back to breath. My first breath signified my entry into life, and each breath since has sustained me. It’s an effortless, miraculous process that happens in the present moment. I can’t store it or control how many I have, and without it, I wouldn’t be here.
For me, the key to understanding who I am lies in that breath. I don’t rely on what others say or believe—I focus on knowing, based on my own experience. Becoming aware of my breath generates a feeling of deep gratitude. Everything I’ve lived, all the changes in relationships, work, and material security, are secondary to that simple, yet profound fact of being alive.
That recognition influences how I live now. I do my best to be conscious of this miracle, and it allows me to appreciate life fully. It’s a truth shared by everyone, and I try to recognize it in the people I meet. Understanding that we all share this experience shapes how I engage with others, particularly as I embark on this journey of becoming a prison visitor.
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It’s fascinating to reflect on the concept of action and reaction. Einstein once pointed out that every action has consequences, and I’ve noticed how we, as humans, often miss the crucial point. When something goes wrong, we tend to focus on the consequences rather than on the original action that set the chain of events in motion. In doing so, we rarely draw the right conclusions, and instead of changing the actions that led to negative outcomes, we scramble to alter or fix the consequences.
A perfect example of this can be seen wherever "blame" takes place. Take a workplace scenario: there’s a missed deadline, and immediately fingers start pointing. One person might blame another for not delivering their part on time, while someone else might point to external factors, like a client’s last-minute changes. Rarely does anyone stop to think about how their own actions might have contributed to the problem. Maybe I didn’t communicate clearly, or perhaps I overlooked a potential issue that I could have resolved earlier. It’s always easier to shift responsibility outward, but the truth is, no problem exists in isolation. It's part of a larger sequence of actions and reactions, where I often play a role as the originator.
I think back to a time in my own life when I found myself struggling in a relationship. There were frequent misunderstandings, which led to escalating arguments. Initially, I blamed the other person for not listening or for being unreasonable. Yet, as time passed, I began to notice a pattern: I was often the one starting the arguments. My insecurities or frustrations with myself were fuelling the conflicts, but instead of acknowledging that, I directed my energy toward trying to fix the relationship through external means. I focused on changing the reaction, whether through improving communication or seeking compromise, when the real issue was with my own actions. It took time to recognize that the change had to come from within me first—how I responded to my emotions, how I expressed myself, and how I interacted with the other person.
That kind of self-reflection is hard. We don't like to admit that our actions might be the root cause of our problems. It’s far easier to blame external factors or others around us. In fact, it’s almost ingrained in us to do so. As I’ve observed, society rarely encourages us to take responsibility for our own actions. Instead, we are pressured to avoid mistakes at all costs, which is unrealistic because mistakes are an inevitable part of being human. Society holds up this impossible standard of what it means to be a “perfect” person. We're supposed to be flawless workers, loving partners, diligent parents, and model citizens. But in striving for perfection, we often end up ignoring our own uniqueness and fallibility, leading us further away from honest self-assessment.
Looking back, I can see how indoctrination from childhood plays a big role in this. Growing up, I was taught to strive for success, to aim for perfection in everything I did. There was little room for error, and making a mistake felt like failure. Over time, I began to internalize the belief that I couldn’t afford to admit when I was wrong or had made an error in judgment. But the reality is, perfection doesn’t exist, and those societal standards of success are arbitrary at best. As a result, being honest with myself and admitting when I’ve made a mistake has always been difficult. It’s uncomfortable to say, “Yes, this is my fault,” and even more challenging to ensure that I don’t repeat the same actions in the future.
Take another example: health and fitness. There was a time when I was struggling with my health, and I kept blaming the food industry, my busy schedule, and even genetics. But the truth was, I wasn’t taking proper care of myself. I wasn’t being mindful of what I ate or how little I exercised. I was reacting to the negative consequences of poor health by looking for external solutions—new diets, supplements, or excuses—when I should have focused on the original action: my own habits. When I finally shifted my focus and took responsibility, I could see where change needed to happen. It wasn’t easy, but it was the only way forward.
In the end, I’ve come to realize that action is far more important than reaction. If I can be more aware of the actions I take in the first place, I won’t need to spend as much time trying to fix the consequences. It’s about learning to be honest with myself, recognizing where I went wrong, and making a conscious effort to change those actions before they snowball into problems. The truth is, that’s much harder to do than it sounds, but it’s essential for growth. Blame and avoidance won’t get me anywhere. Real change only happens when I look at myself as the originator.
By focusing on action rather than reaction, I’ve learned to take more responsibility for the consequences in my life, and that has been the key to real, lasting change.
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I am frequently astounded by the superficiality of people. Every day, we hear reports of the increasing mental health problems among people of all ages. It's become a crisis. And yet, despite this alarming trend, very few people seem to make any real effort to understand where these problems originate. It’s as though we are all sleepwalking through life, accepting what we’re told, unaware of the deeper truths we could explore.
The thing is, if you have no idea who you are, you automatically assume that you are what others tell you. Ask a person, "Who are you?" and they will give you their name, their profession, their marital status, their nationality. But is that really who they are? Think about it. None of those things were in their control when they were born. You didn’t choose your name, your gender, your skin colour, or even where you were born. You didn’t know what these things even meant. All of that came later, as you were indoctrinated by your surroundings. Yet, we grow up and believe this collection of labels and roles define us.
We are not taught about the limitations of thought. Thought is always about the past or the future; it's never about the present moment. And because we can't truly understand the present except in terms of what we've been through or what's coming, we end up constructing a reality that is based on memories or anticipations, not what's actually here and now.
A classic example is what happens when we die. Think about how many theories there are. Some believe in paradise or hell. Others think we reincarnate and keep coming back, while still others hold onto bizarre ideas like moving to a purple planet in another galaxy. But where's the proof? Where is the real knowing? There are countless ideas, but the fact is, nobody knows. If we do come back, why don't we remember who we were before? What’s the point of coming back if you have no recollection of the past?
Some claim to know, but it's just that—a claim. Not proof. I’ve met a lot of people who believe they understand death, or claim to have seen something beyond, but as Carl Sagan pointed out in his "Pale Blue Dot" speech, we are but a speck in the grand scale of the cosmos. A tiny, invisible speck that we continue to insist is the centre of the universe. We’ve convinced ourselves that we are so important that the entire fabric of existence revolves around us. But the universe is vast, endless. Space itself is incomprehensible, so vast that we can’t even begin to grasp its boundaries. And yet, here we are, with our tiny brains, pretending we can understand the infinite, pretending we can explain everything through belief.
Look at the mess we've made because of our beliefs. Humans, over time, have tried to manage and control their world through belief systems. Religion, politics, economics—all are constructs that help us feel like we have a handle on things. But just look around. We’re killing ourselves and the planet because of these very beliefs. Environmental destruction, wars, hatred—what are these if not the product of deeply held but completely misguided beliefs? We cling to ideas about who we are, what we should be doing, and where we are going, without ever stopping to question the validity of those ideas.
This is where unlearning comes in. We have to stop assuming we know everything when, clearly, we don't. The place to start is with ourselves—back to basics. Strip away the labels, the titles, the professions, and the nationalities. Strip away the thoughts about the future and the past, and focus on the present moment.
What do we know for sure? We are alive. But what does that even mean? We believe we are alive because of our own efforts, our intelligence, our accomplishments. But that’s nonsense. The most fundamental aspect of life is breath, yet how many of us are conscious of that? We are being breathed by something far greater than ourselves. If we had to manage that, we’d all be dead in seconds. We do nothing for this breath, but without it, we are nothing.
Here’s where the divine comes in. Look in the mirror, and what do you see? You see a person who is alive—not through any effort of your own, but through a miraculous process that just *is.* That is the only real miracle in life. And what do we do with that miraculous gift? Nothing. We don’t even notice it. The breath is the first and last thing in life. Anyone who has witnessed a birth knows this: the first breath a baby takes is the moment of life. And anyone who has been present at a death knows this too: the last breath is the end. The cycle is so simple, yet so profound, and we ignore it every single day.
We spend our time chasing goals, living by labels, clinging to beliefs. But have we ever taken the time to understand who we really are? Most of us are living someone else’s idea of a life. So many people go through life in a haze, believing they are their job, their relationship status, their possessions. All of these things are temporary and external.
To truly understand life, we have to make the effort to know ourselves before it’s too late. The way we’re going, most of us will "pop our clogs," as the British say, never having figured out who we really are. But it doesn’t have to be that way. We have the power to unlearn all the lies, to shed the labels, and to return to the simplicity of being alive. That’s where the real miracle lies—not in the future, not in the past, but in the present, in the breath, in the experience of being alive.
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The purpose of life, for me, is to do good. But that statement has evolved in meaning over time as I've come to understand what doing good really means, both outwardly and inwardly. It's not just about performing acts of kindness or generosity, though those certainly play a role. It’s about being in alignment with what truly matters, and from that space, helping others in a way that feels natural and effortless.
For years, I sought to make sense of the world around me, often feeling lost in the noise of modern life. But over time, and with the guidance of teachers like Prem Rawat, Guru Nanak, Ramakrishna and others, I've come to see that doing good starts within. How can we offer peace, love, or joy to others if we haven’t cultivated those qualities inside ourselves? This is where my journey has taken me—toward an inner peace that I practice every day. The more connected I am to that clarity, the more capable I feel of genuinely helping others.
Doing good, for me, doesn’t have to be dramatic. It’s in the small, meaningful actions: volunteering at a hospice, offering to help with someone’s groceries, or just sitting down to have a conversation with someone who needs it. Recently, I’ve been exploring opportunities to become a prison visitor and hope to bring the Peace Education Programme to people who might benefit from it. I don’t see these actions as obligations or duties, but as natural extensions of the gratitude I feel for being alive and in touch with what really matters.
It’s taken me a long time to understand that doing good isn’t about seeking recognition or trying to fulfil an external idea of what’s expected. It’s about tapping into that quiet space within, which I’ve been cultivating for almost 50 years now, and letting goodness flow from there. As I’ve let go of things like greed and the pursuit of material desires, I’ve found myself more able to share my time, my attention, and my resources with others. Life has become less about accumulating and more about giving back.
Ultimately, doing good is my way of honouring the gift of life. I have been fortunate enough to find peace and clarity, and it feels natural to want to share that with others.
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Over 22 years ago, I noticed that I was getting angrier and angrier at the incompetent drivers I encountered so frequently and decided that, as they were not going to change, I would have to change. I gave my car to my daughter, who had just passed her driving test. I have never regretted it. I have now decided to stop reading the news headlines for similar reasons - I don't like the effect it has on me. It distracts me from what I really want to focus on: my experience of peace and clarity.
Clarity has shown me what is truly meant by the term "Maya". The illusion that others follow have no attraction for me any more.
Yesterday I had a meeting with a person working in a small hospice, where the focus is on what really matters - people. Later I met an old lady who is suffering from initial memory loss, and she wanted to donate money to me as a present. I declined - I have everything I need. So my next steps are volunteering at the hospice and becoming a prison visitor. That makes sense to me as a human being.
I have to bridge the gap between now and when I can actually start these tasks.
I think I'll put some effort into music-making with the software I have. I'm looking for a suitable theme to inspire me. Currently, I am reading about the life and teachings of Guru Nanak, who clearly sees the world in the same way as me, but with a great deal more commitment and clarity than I have - just as Prem Rawat does. The more I read and the more I listen, the clearer things become. Letting go of all I know of this world is a lot tougher that I expected. Ramakrishna puts it succinctly by saying the problem is Lust and greed, in whatever form. And recently Lust has been less attractive than in the past and greed for things I have let go mostly, but there is always a remnant which isn't even noticed.
I describe this in the following way: here in Switzerland, many farms have the dung heap on a concrete base next to the house. Just as we have the crap inside of us. To get rid of that, I can take a pitchfork and get rid of the large heap fairly rapidly. Then there is a remnant, which can be swept up and removed, but then there are the deep brown stains on the base left to deal with. I can scour that with hot water and soap and more will be gone, but there are still some stains left, deep in the concrete and years old, and these are really hard to remove. What is that stain? They are the first bits of indoctrination we get as a baby, growing up: do this, don't do that, this is the right way, what will others think, etc. All these little bits of brainwashing we receive growing up, are so ingrained, that they are hard even to spot. And it is these that I expect the rest of my life to be concerned with.
Why bother? Because I treasure joy, peace and clarity far more than anything else.
“Enjoy this life; enjoy this time. Do not become alienated from the heart, from the joy, from the peace.” —Prem Rawat
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