Christmas, the Descent of Light
“The wait’s begun again…the long wait for the Angel, for that rare, random Descent.”
Sylvia Plath
In these cold, waning days of the winter, as we move into the season of Advent, it is worth reflecting on the meaning of Christmas in the light of the Yogic concept of the “Avatar”, “the One who descends”. This teaches that at low points in the cycles of history, when forces of darkness and ignorance gather, and Humanity has lost its way, then the Divine incarnates and descends to the world to restore righteousness (Dharma). We are said to be well advanced into the Kali Yuga (Age of Iron) at present- a time of particular darkness and increasing materialism at the end of four great cycles.
The concept of history and time is different in India and the West, one being cyclical and the other linear. Indian cosmology charts the passage of vast cycles of terrestrial life, called Yugas, interspersed by great cataclysms that end one phase of life on the planet and begin another (there are echoes of this in the mysterious myth of the Flood and Noah’s ark). Indian cosmology records a series of avatars, each with a role appropriate to a Yuga.
There is a pivotal moment in the Bhagavad Gita, significantly on the field of a great battle of cosmic significance, where Krishna reveals that he is such an Avatar:
“Whenever there is decline of Dharma and ascendency of Adharma, then, O Arjuna, I incarnate Myself in a body”.
Likewise, the Buddha, another Avatar, said:
“from time to time a Tathagata is born into the world, a fully enlightened one, blessed and worthy, abounding in wisdom and goodness, unsurpassed as a guide to mortals, a teacher of gods and men, a blessed Buddha”.
Christ often referred to the “end times”. The rapid pace of his destiny, and his apocalyptic statements, leave no doubt of his Avataric mission. He is described as “the Word made flesh”, the Logos in Christian theology. This is the Mantra OM of Yoga.
Swami Satyananda has said:
“In India we celebrate the birth of the divine baby on various occasions, on 25 December with the birth of Christ, in August with the birth of Krishna, and in April with the birth of Rama. We think of Rama, Krishna and Christ as representatives of the omnipresent, omniscient and omnipotent Spirit in each and everybody”.
Whether Christ is the sole Avatar, or one of a succession, including Krishna, Rama or the Buddha is a matter of personal belief. Nevertheless, there are fascinating similarities in the lives of Christ and Krishna, some of which follow:
Christ was born in a manger, and Krishna in a prison
Their names are similar
Both were reformers of their birth religions
Both were of Royal descent
Both had to be whisked off after nativity to a far-off place for fear of the rulers of their country
Both withdrew to the wilderness to fast and meditate
In a spirit of submission, Jesus was baptised by John and Krishna was taught by Sandeepany
Both washed the feet of their own disciples
One was associated with being a shepherd, the other a cowherd
Both healed the infirm and diseased
Both encouraged shraddha (faith)- Jesus said faith could lift mountains, and to prove this Krishna lifted a mountain with his little finger
Both were killed, and yet both forgave those who had injured them
Both were called the second person of the Trinity – in Krishna’s case he is considered an incarnation of the “preserving” deity, Vishnu
Krishna is the “Light of all lights which shines beyond all darkness”. Christ is the Light that shines in the darkness and the darkness comprehendeth it not”.
What is the message of Christ and Krishna for this Age of Kali, and those on the Yoga path? This is most explicitly communicated in the Bhagavad Gita, the Srimad Bhagavatam and the New Testament. While the Bhagavad Gita is obviously a supreme Yoga scripture, its paths (marga) are to be found in the teachings of Jesus.
Krishna and Christ were both supreme bhakti yogis, and emphasised love and devotion. They both advocated selfless service – karma yoga and the “Way of Martha”, whilst abiding in the Atman/Self/the Father. Krishna and Christ were “in the world and yet not of the world”, and advocated engaging in works with detachment.
They were also gyana yogis and encouraged the seeking of inner knowledge and understanding. Krishna encouraged “a constant yearning to know the inner spirit”; Christ said - “seek and ye shall find”. Both encouraged the practice of meditation (Raja Yoga). Krishna encouraged “the retirement to solitary places, and the avoiding of the noisy multitudes”. Christ recommended “going into thy room, and closing thy door, to pray to the Father in secret”.
In the words of Swami Niranjanananda,
“The Christ consciousness of Christianity and the Turiya (unified) consciousness of Yoga are the same”.
The great sages who have looked ahead to the Age of Kali were not fatalistic, and they observed that the descent of great avatars, and their precious teachings, is a tremendous grace (kripa) that comes in darkness. They also state that for such late periods in the human macrocosm there is a heavenly compensation, in that spiritual striving receives, proportionately, a greater reward.
This is one of the meanings behind Christ’s mysterious parable about the men who only laboured near evening in the vineyards, and yet were paid the same as those who had been there from dawn:” The first shall be last and the last first”. This is a great encouragement for all yoga practitioners and seekers to persevere with their sadhana (practice).
And so, the coming of an Avatar is truly a cause for celebration, because it is literally the restoration of Light. Let us reflect on all this, in the darkest days before the Solstice, when the sap sinks downwards, the birds lapse into silence, and Nature holds her breath in rapt expectation. As a mirror of the Divine, Nature herself (Maya/ Mulaprakriti) also reflects this truth.
I leave you with scriptural quotations on the avataric descent of the Word. One heralds the incarnation of Krishna, the other that of Christ. Both scriptures convey the silence, the pregnant darkness, and the anticipation of the marvelous. One is immanent, the other transcendent, in verses that pulse with the same mysterious and dramatic cadence.
“At midnight, in the thickest darkness, the Dweller in every heart revealed Himself in the Divine Devaki, for the Lord is the Self hidden in the hearts of all beings”.
“Whilst all things were in quiet silence and night was in the midst of her swift course, Thine Almighty Word leapt down from Heaven out of Thy royal throne. Alleluia.”.
May the Christ/Krishna Consciousness come to birth in all of us:
Om Tat Sat!
Yogacharya Michael McCann
