Everything in its own good time, they say; the fruit has to
grow and ripen before the sourness is turned to sweetness. I have
been coming to this town since ten years but it is only this
evening that you, in this vast multitudinous gathering, have been
able to derive this bliss of hearing Me discoursing! I am happy to
meet all of you in one auspicious hour collected all in one place.
All that I can tell you about the spiritual disciplines have been
told often before; man's capacity, his nature, his talents, are
all ancient possessions and so the advice regarding how to use
them is also very ancient.
The only new thing is man's perverse behaviour - the directions
in which he has been wasting his talents, misusing his capacity
and playing false to his own nature. He has been forgetting the
path prescribed in the scriptures for the cultivation of his
nature, and hence all this suffering; hence also My advent.
Man is essentially a discriminating animal, endowed with
Viveka. He is not content with the satisfaction of mere animal
needs; he feels some void, some deep discontent, some unslaked
thirst, for he is a child of immortality and he feels that death
is not and should not be the end. This Viveka urges man to
discover answers to the problems that haunt him: "Where did I come
from, whither am I journeying, which is the journey's end?" So,
Buddhi (intellect) has to be kept sharp and clear.
There are three types of Buddhi, according to the predominance
of one or other of the three Gunas: the Thamas, which confuses
Sathyam (truth) as the Asathyam (untruth) and takes the Asathyam
as the Sathyam; the Rajas which like a pendulum swings from one to
the other, hovering between the two, unable to distinguish between
them; and the Sathwa, which knows which is Sathyam and which is
Asathyam.
Poised State is essential to reach the Goal
The world today is suffering from Rajobuddhi (passionate
intellect) rather than Thamas (inertia); people have violent likes
and dislikes; they have become fanatical and factious. They are
carried away by pomp and noise, show and propaganda; that is why
discrimination has become necessary. To reach the goal,
Sathwabuddhi (equanimous intellect) is essential; it will seek the
truth calmly and stick to it whatever the consequence.
I have come to help all to acquire this Saathwik (serene)
nature. You might have heard people talk about the miracles; of My
'making' this and 'giving' that, of My fulfilling all your wants,
of My curing your illness. But they are not so important as the
Saathwaguna (poised state) I appreciate, promote and instil. Of
course, I confer on you these boons of health and prosperity but
only so that you might, with greater enthusiasm and with less
interruption, proceed with spiritual Saadhana.
Eat well, so that your physical faculties might grow and the
good physique will in turn develop your intelligence more fully.
Bhakthi (devotion) leads to Shakthi (power) and Shakthi will grant
Yukthi (skill). The Yukthi will help you to fix your Rakthi
(attachment) on the proper objects and your Bhakthi thus promoted
finally results in Mukthi (liberation).
A certain amount of attention has to be paid to the body and
its care, as well as to escape the overpowering handicaps of
poverty; but you must ever be cautious that you are not caught in
the coils and forget the transitoriness of all this. Bring your
thoughts constantly back to the Aathma, which is the substance of
all the objective world, the basic reality behind all this
appearance.
Finding Fault with others comes out of Egoism
The first step in Aathma vichaara (enquiring about the self) is
the practice of the truth that whatever gives you pain gives pain
to others and whatever gives you joy, gives joy to others. So do
unto others as you would like them to do unto you; desist from any
act in relation to others which if done by them will give you
pain. Thus, a kind of reciprocal relationship will grow between
you and others and gradually you reach the stage when your heart
thrills with joy when others are joyful and shudders in pain when
others are sad. This is not the kind of affection towards those
who are dear to you or those who are your kith and kin. That is a
sign of delusion; but this sharing of joy and grief is automatic,
immediate, universal. It is a sign of great spiritual advance;
then the wave knows that it is part of the ocean and that all
waves are but temporary manifestations of the self-same sea having
the same taste as the ocean itself.
The others are part of yourself; you need not worry about them;
worry about yourself; that is enough; when you become all right,
they too will be all right, for you will no longer be aware of
them as separate from you. Criticising others, finding fault with
them, all this comes out of egoism. Search for your own faults
instead; the faults you see in others are but reflections of your
own personality traits; pay no heed to little worries; attach your
mind to the Lord. Then you will be led on to the company of good
men and your talents will be transmuted.
When you love, you will have no Fear
Be a bee, drinking the nectar of every flower; not the mosquito
drinking blood and distributing disease in return. First, consider
all as children of the Lord, as your own brothers and sisters;
develop the quality of love, seek always the welfare of humanity.
Love and you will be loved in return. Hate will never be your lot
if you promote love and look upon all with love. That is the one
lesson I teach always; that is My secret too. If you want to
attain Me, cultivate love, give up hatred, envy, anger, cynicism
and falsehood. I do not ask that you should be a scholar or a
recluse or an ascetic skilled in Japa (recitation of holy name)
and Dhyaana (meditation). "Is your heart full of Prema (love)?"
that is all I examine.
Believe that love is God, truth is God. Love is truth, truth is
love; for it is only when you love that you have no fear, for fear
is the mother of falsehood. If you have no fear, you will adhere
to truth. The mirror of Prema reflects the Aathma in you and
reveals to you that the Aathma is universal, immanent in every
being.
Parents have to be respected and worshipped
I shall not tell you very complex matters; I shall give only
simple remedies for the ills you are suffering from. I find here a
large number of students. Well, what are they studying for? What
is the goal? How are we to judge that they have studied well? By
the salary they are able to get, or the cadre they are able to
secure? No. Education must result in the development of Viveka
(wisdom) and Vinaya (humility). The educated man must be able to
distinguish between the momentary and the momentous, the lasting
and effervescent. He must not run after glitter and glamour but he
must seek instead the good and golden.
He must know how to keep the body in good trim, the senses
under strict control, the mind well within check, the intellect
sharp and clear, unhampered by prejudices and hatreds, and the
feelings untouched by egoism. He must know the Aathma too, for
that is his very care; that is the effulgence which illumines his
inner and outer selves. This knowledge will ensure joy and peace
and courage for him throughout life. Students also must cultivate
Vinaya (the art of avoiding the infliction of pain on others).
I must also tell the students that hey must be grateful to the
parents who give them all the facilities they now enjoy at great
sacrifice. In fact, the parents have be worshipped as visible
representatives of the God-head; they are responsible for your
very existence and for all this joy and adventure in the physical
and spiritual spheres. For this reason they have to be tended and
respected and worshipped.
There was a boy who was begging in the streets for food so that
he could keep his bedridden mother and two little sisters alive.
One night when he clamoured in front of a rich man's house, the
master got enraged at his piteous cries. The boy was very unlucky
that day and he had collected only a few morsels; the hour was
nearing nine, so he cried most pathetically and it aroused the ire
of the rich man inside the mansion. He came out and kicked the boy
into the gutter; he was already very weak, for he was starving
himself to feed his mother and sisters; so when he fell, he
breathed his last, wailing, "Mother here is a little food for
you." His hand held the bowl firm, even when it had become
lifeless!
Parents must set good Examples to Children
Such is the devotion that the mother invokes and which she
deserves, for all the pain she endured and all the sacrifice she
bore in order that the son might be healthy, happy and good. Show
that gratitude, boys, to the parents; remember them and pay them
the tribute of at least a tear on the anniversary of their passing
away. Do it with Shraddha (faith), that is why it is called
Shraddha (religious ceremonial offering to the dead); not that the
offerings you make reach them or that they are waiting for them in
some other world; it is a tribute that you should offer in
gratitude for the great chance they gave you for this sojourn in
this world with all the wonderful opportunities it offers for
self-realisation.
Parents too must encourage children when they evince any
interest in spiritual advance and study; they must also set them
good examples. Among the children who are before Me here, there
may be many a Vivekaanandha and many a Thyaagaraaja. Children must
be given every facility to develop the divine talents that are in
them. Parents must feel that they are servants appointed by the
Lord to tend the little souls that are born in their households,
as the gardener tends the trees in the garden of the master. They
must arouse the latent goodness in these tiny hearts by telling
stories about the saints and sages of the past. They must see that
children do not develop fear and become cowards afraid of walking
straight.
Give up the Delusion you are this physical Body
You are all the indestructible Aathma, believe Me; nothing
needs discourage you. In dreams you suffer so much; loss of money,
fire, food, insult, etc., but you are not affected at all. When
these things happen during the waking stage, you feel afflicted;
really, it is not the real 'you' that suffers all that. Give up
the delusion that you are this physical entity and you become
really free.
And lastly, about Myself. No one can understand My Mystery. The
best you can do is to get immersed in it. It is no use your
arguing about pros and cons; dive and know the depth; eat and know
the taste! Then you can discuss Me to your heart's content.
Develop Sathya (truth) and Prema (love) and then you need not even
pray to Me to grant you this and that. Everything will be added
unto you, unasked. Nara (man) and Naaraayana (God) are the two
wires, the positive and the negative, which combine to bring
electricity through. Nara will co-operate with Naaraayana and
become the vehicle of divine power, if he has acquired the two
qualities, Sathya and Prema.