Notes to Sadhakas: How Dharma Works in Everyday Life

We all may wonder about the marvellous Sanskrit word Dharma, or life purpose, it has become a common term in the English language. But what does it really mean? In this small compendium, Yogacharaya David outlines, in short easy-to-read Dharma-lessons, how each of us can find a path towards a steadfast connection with our inner truth or sacred soul-force.

The teachings bring forward the holy science that describes the creation of the cosmos and explains how the microcosm of humankind-each one of us-is a reflection of the macrocosm of all creation. We come to understand what a wonderful body temple we have and learn methods for activating our full potential.

The search for the sacred has been with humankind since the beginning of time as shared in the earliest transcriptions from ancient sculpture, cave art, and writing. Yogacharya David (1954-2019), a Western man born in Washington State, USA, dedicated his adult life to the search inward; constantly seeking to reawaken the highest order of sacred, spiritual-universal connection with the cosmic Divine.

Yogacharya David Hickenbottom (1954-2019) met his guru Yogacharya Mother Hamilton, a disciple of Paramhansa Yogananda, when he was a youth of 20. Yogacharya David became a Reverend in 1984, and Mother Hamilton bestowed the Yogacharya title to David in 1989.The great Kriya Yoga lineage of India that came through Jesus, Babaji, Lahiri Mahasaya, and Sri Yukteswar to Yogananda, and then to Mother Hamilton, provides pathways to: an appreciation of, and a faith in, the everyday sacred, an understanding of higher dimensional wisdom, an integral intuitive knowing of spiritual truths, and the vibratory realms that permeate all that is, was, and will be.Yogacharya David says: "An inner pain brought me to the path most unwillingly, and this inner pain kept me on the path. I put my shoulder to the wheel." He faced the crux of the spiritual dilemma-how to shift from the ego-driven lower or smaller human nature to a larger and luminous existence, intuitively attuned to our deeper and broader-vast-spiritual nature, thereby discovering the Living Truth. With this intense striving for Truth and Bliss, and with his Guru's Grace, David was carried through many years of Mystical Crucifixion spiritual experiences. His year in silence (2000-2001) established an inner state of stillness that never left him-and finally led him to his full Self-realization.

Ruth M. Lamb, BA, MSN, PhD., health care professional, author, and editor began her career as a critical care nurse. Following this, she became a corporate Director of Nursing and then moved from conventional Western medicine to study other healing modalities. She completed programs addressing the mind-body epigenetic connection and the electromagnetic-light body bioelectric mechanisms of health and healing. She then joined an academic institution where she was hired to develop and teach integrative healing programs, taught in Canada and led internships to India. Adult participants in the foundational three-year program completed clinical practice hours and internships in numerous conventional medicine settings under academic-hospital arrangements. Shorter retreat-based strategic resilience programs were developed specifically for First Nations groups and for First Responders.In addition to writing numerous curriculums, Standards of Practice documents, and articles, Ruth has written two books: The Sadhana of Healing: A Subtle Energy Approach to Addiction Treatment and Human Becoming: A Guide to Soul-Centered Living. Ruth is a wife, mother, and grandmother. She has made many trips to India to study the Vedic system of living and healing. She continues to study the integral, multidimensional relationship that leads to vibrant health and a well-lived life.She is currently editing the life work of Yogacharya David Hickenbottom, a Western yogi of the Kriya Yoga tradition, at the invitation of David's wife, Carla. Yogacharya David left a legacy of accessible teachings, he reminds us that our sacred connection bridges physical to energy-body, mental, intuitive/transpersonal and spiritual, all in one unique human being. Ruth sees Yogacharya David's legacy writings to be capable of nurturing us back to our true origin in spirit; they can assist us to re-remember our unique purpose-the purpose that brought us to this realm of physical matter.