Spiritual Meaning of Christmas

Christmas is traditionally celebrated as the birth of Jesus Christ, the Saviour. For millions of people around the world, it is a sacred time of prayer, remembrance, family and celebration. Yet Christmas can also be understood in another way: as a reminder of the possibility of a divine birth within each human being.

The story of Christ is not only the story of a historical person. For a spiritual seeker, it can also be contemplated as a symbol of the awakening of Divine Consciousness within the human heart. The birth of Christ may therefore be understood as an invitation to recognise the divine potential that already exists within us.

In this sense, Christmas has a meaning that extends beyond any particular religion. It becomes a time to ask ourselves a simple but profound question: Has the divine truly been born within me?

The Birth of the Divine Within

The world into which Christ was born was filled, as every age has been, with ignorance, fear, conflict, greed, hatred, hypocrisy and the struggle for power. These conditions are not limited to history. They continue to appear within human consciousness in different forms.

Yoga asks us to look at these tendencies not merely as problems in the world outside, but also as tendencies that can exist within ourselves.

Anger, jealousy, pride, attachment, fear, greed and excessive desire create darkness in the mind. When awareness begins to awaken, we start to recognise these tendencies instead of being completely controlled by them. This recognition is itself the beginning of spiritual life.

The birth of Christ can therefore be contemplated as the birth of a higher awareness within us. The Christ spirit must take birth within the heart of the seeker. It is the awakening of purity, compassion, love, humility, faith and selflessness.

This is one of the deeper meanings of spiritual rebirth.

The Spiritual Seeker

A spiritual life does not begin because a person has become perfect. It begins because something within the person has awakened and begins to seek something beyond ordinary experience.

The seeker may still have desires, fears and weaknesses. The mind may still be restless. There may still be attachment to possessions, relationships, recognition and security. But alongside all this, there is now another movement within: the desire to understand, to become free, and to know one's deeper nature.

This is also the beginning of Yoga.

Yoga is not simply a collection of physical postures. Its deeper purpose is to bring awareness to the body, breath, mind and consciousness. Through practices such as Hatha Yoga, pranayama, meditation, Yoga Nidra, mantra and self enquiry, the seeker gradually becomes more aware of what is taking place within.

The spiritual journey is therefore not about becoming somebody else. It is about removing the layers that prevent us from recognising what is already present.

The Meaning of Being Born Again

In the Christian tradition, the teaching of being born again points towards a profound inner transformation. It suggests that physical birth is not the only birth that matters. There can also be a spiritual birth, a renewal of consciousness.

This idea has a close resonance with Yoga.

In Yoga, spiritual awakening is not simply the acquisition of more information. Reading books and collecting knowledge can be useful, but they do not by themselves bring freedom. Something deeper has to change in the way we experience ourselves and the world.

The seeker begins to move from unconscious reaction towards awareness. From desire towards understanding. From ego towards humility. From dependence upon external circumstances towards an increasing recognition of the inner source of peace.

This is a kind of rebirth.

The Kingdom of Heaven can therefore be contemplated not merely as a distant place to be reached after death, but as a state of consciousness that can begin to reveal itself within. The spiritual traditions of India similarly point us towards the inner reality rather than asking us to search only in the external world.

Why Was Christ Born in a Stable?

The circumstances surrounding the birth of Christ contain powerful symbolism.

Christ was not born in a palace surrounded by wealth and power. He was born in humble surroundings, among ordinary people, and his birth was not initially recognised by the world.

For the spiritual seeker, this humility has a significant message.

The divine does not require outward grandeur. Spiritual awakening does not depend upon wealth, social position, intellectual achievement or worldly recognition. In fact, excessive pride in these things can become an obstacle.

The heart has to become simple and receptive.

There is a beautiful spiritual idea expressed in the words, “Empty thyself and I shall fill thee.” When the mind is completely occupied with its own importance, desires and opinions, there is little space for anything deeper to enter our awareness.

Humility creates space.

This does not mean rejecting life or becoming weak. It means becoming free from the constant need to establish ourselves, prove ourselves and possess everything around us.

The Darkness of the Night

The birth of Christ is traditionally associated with the darkness of night. From a spiritual perspective, darkness can be understood as a symbol of ignorance, while light represents awareness.

The spiritual journey often begins in such darkness.

We may not know clearly who we are or what we are seeking. We may move through life according to habit, social conditioning and desire without questioning the deeper purpose of our existence.

Then, at some point, a small light appears.

It may come through suffering, contemplation, a meeting with a teacher, the experience of meditation, the study of scripture, or simply through a moment of deep questioning.

That small light is spiritual aspiration.

Once it appears, the seeker begins to look inward.

Emptying Ourselves

One of the greatest obstacles on the spiritual path is the constant preoccupation with “I” and “mine”.

We accumulate possessions, opinions, achievements, identities and experiences. We want to be recognised, respected and remembered. We compare ourselves with others and measure our worth through external circumstances.

Yoga does not ask us to reject life. It asks us to understand our relationship with life.

Through practices such as aparigraha, the yogic principle of non possession, and through the cultivation of vairagya, or non attachment, we gradually learn that freedom does not come from possessing more. It comes from becoming less dependent upon possession for our sense of identity and happiness.

To empty oneself is therefore not to become empty of love or responsibility. It is to become free from unnecessary self importance.

When the ego becomes quieter, awareness becomes clearer.

Christmas and Yoga

Christmas and Yoga may appear to belong to different traditions, yet the spiritual principles they can inspire are not necessarily separate.

Yoga teaches us to discipline the body, regulate the breath, observe the mind and awaken awareness. It encourages compassion, truthfulness, self discipline, contentment, non attachment and devotion.

The life of Christ is also remembered through qualities such as compassion, forgiveness, humility, service and love.

These qualities are not the property of any one religion. They are qualities of a refined human consciousness.

For this reason, Christmas can become a beautiful time for a Yoga retreat, meditation retreat or period of personal reflection. Rather than only celebrating externally, we can also create some space to become quiet and look within.

A residential Yoga retreat in Goa can provide exactly this kind of pause. Away from the usual demands of daily life, practices such as traditional Hatha Yoga, pranayama, meditation and Yoga Nidra can help us turn our attention inward.

The purpose is not to escape life. It is to return to life with greater awareness.

From Christmas to the New Year

Christmas is followed almost immediately by the beginning of a new year. There is a natural symbolism in this sequence.

The birth of Christ can represent the awakening of a new consciousness, while the New Year can represent a new beginning in our own lives.

Instead of making only external resolutions, we can ask deeper questions.

What would I like to change within myself?

Which habits keep me bound?

What am I holding on to unnecessarily?

Where can I become more compassionate?

Where can I become more truthful?

What can I simplify?

How can I live with greater awareness?

These questions are more meaningful than simply making promises that we will exercise more, work harder or acquire something new.

A new year becomes truly new when something within us begins to change.

The Real Christmas

The deeper meaning of Christmas is therefore not limited to a particular day on the calendar.

The real Christmas is the birth of the divine awareness within the human heart.

It is the birth of faith where there was fear, compassion where there was indifference, humility where there was pride, love where there was hatred, and awareness where there was unconsciousness.

This birth does not happen through intellectual understanding alone. It requires practice.

It requires Sadhana.

It requires self observation, prayer, meditation, Yoga, service and a willingness to look honestly at oneself.

The journey may be gradual. There may be many moments of weakness and doubt. Spiritual life is not a straight line. Yet every sincere effort creates an opportunity for greater awareness.

The story of Christ can therefore be contemplated as a story of spiritual possibility. The birth, the life, the suffering, the resurrection and the ascension can all be approached symbolically as stages in the awakening of consciousness.

The darkness gives way to light. The limited identity begins to open to something greater. The seeker gradually discovers that what was being sought outside has always had a deeper presence within.

This Christmas, perhaps we can celebrate not only the birth of Christ, but also the possibility of a new birth within ourselves.

Let us make the heart a little simpler, the mind a little quieter and our actions a little more selfless.

Let us create space for awareness.

And perhaps, in that space, something sacred may be born.

May Christmas bring peace, compassion and spiritual awakening to all beings. May the coming year become an opportunity for deeper Sadhana, greater awareness and a more conscious way of living.

Copyright 2016 SWAN Yoga Retreat, Assagao, Goa, India