Month: August 2023

Swami ji said…

‘Have faith in God.’ ‘Everything will be fine !’ These are words – said to us – whenever we are in times of difficulty. Are these comforting, soothing words said – superficially – just because they are supposed to be said ? Or are they said from a heart that sincerely believes in the truth of these words ? Do all those people who try to apply balm on our agitated nerves – themselves believe in the deep significance underlying these words ? Have they practiced and experienced the ‘true’ effect of these words in real life situations ? Is it their unshakeable faith in these words – ‘ Have faith !’ – that makes them say it, or, do they say it because they’ve grown up hearing these words being said around them all the time? Do their voices have conviction when they say so, or , is there a tinge of doubt , uncertainty in their voice when they say – ‘ Have faith’. But, if , this is the case – then why is it so?

If we look at our personal experiences, we will understand ‘why’. In moments of darkness, when life is seemingly difficult – it might be extremely difficult for most of us to have faith in someone , or , in something that we have not experienced ever before . For most of us, blinded by ‘maya’, it is very difficult to believe that there is someone – who we have never met physically ; never had a conversation with face to face – is ‘the’ only one who ‘can’ and ‘will’ make things right. It is only during such moments that – our belief in God – to whatever extent it might be – is severely questioned and tested by the ‘logical mind’.

Many a times, whatever little faith, belief one has developed in God – breaks away in times of severe distress. But, the statements still stand – ‘Have faith in God.’ ‘In God we Trust.’ To start having faith in God, right in the middle of a crisis, could be next to impossible and could also be laughable to the sages of old. But, to be truly able to have such faith, and, to gain strength from it – we must start somewhere.Thus, for the non – enlightened souls, the best way forward is to muster up courage and strength. They must battle with the mind and ignore its alarming, chaotic thoughts.They must, if needed, forcefully, submit themselves to God. Even if they cannot feel His presence, they must place their trust in Him and wait patiently.

Just like in every other field – mastering the art of having complete faith in God – also needs practice. Ironically, our past ‘karma’ does ensure that we run into deep, troubled waters time and time again – and thus gives us ample opportunities – to repose our faith in God repeatedly – which we must do with firm conviction. Many attempts will have to be made to perfect this skill.
It is bound to be challenging in the beginning. The mind will be restless and fearful. It will tell us that prayer is a waste of time and that our doom is near. In fact, the mind will only recommend hasty, unplanned action – one after another – making us behave like a crazy person. But we must resist. We must first tell ourselves – ‘ Since God has brought us into these circumstances; He will guide us away from these too.’ We must patiently wait for His guidance. We must pray to Him for guidance. Only then will we be able to think straight, and , do what is best for us, keeping in mind the conditions in which we find ourselves.

Gradually, with time, we will begin to be less and less fearful. The mind will gradually cease to panic in times of ‘uncertainty’. When the road ahead is unclear, we can simply meditate on God – with a mind and heart filled with faith and devotion – and ask Him for guidance, and, it will most certainly emerge in some form or another.

We will then realise that we can also do the same with the smallest of our worries. Complete surrender to God will put to sleep the smallest of niggles in the mind. We will realise that faith must be placed in God – not just in troubled times, but, also in those that seem good. Yes, undoubtedly, we will face losses in life.There will be setbacks for sure. We will lose loved ones, and, will also have to leave loved ones behind. But, how we emerge from these – whether with God or without Him – believing completely in His divine will or by losing faith in Him at unexpected losses, tragedies – depends completely on how deep rooted is our devotion to God and Guru ; our implicit belief in His teachings and Him…’ ईश्वर’ पे हम कितना भरोसा और विश्वास रखते है …’

Swami ji said… ‘ They just don’t understand me !’ ‘ Why can’t they understand me?’ – is a cry straight from the heart – when we feel that we have been misunderstood by those, in particular , who matter the most to us, and, who – we, assume, should be the first ones to understand us. We are left wondering as to why are they unable to understand us at all – our temperament ; our habits ; our shortcomings ; our perspective. There are bound to be differences between each one of us, and , it is these differences that should be accepted and understood by all. We blame others for not understanding us but, then, don’t we wear an identical hat of – lack of understanding others. In all honesty, if we want to be understood by others ; we need to understand them first. All of us bear a typical characteristic of being judgemental – and that perhaps explains the root cause of unhappiness in many of us. All relationships that we share and have with others – rest on the pillars of understanding and acceptance of others. The minute there is a tremor in these pillars – cracks develop in relationships due to our inability to accept people the way they are ; in our failure to distinguish the differences between them and us and by putting an end to drawing unnecessary comparisons all the time between people. Only then could there be some scope for improved and increased understanding between all of us. Parents are heard complaining, very often, about the difficulties they face in comprehending their children and vice versa.They admit , sadly , that all attempts made by them, to make their child see perceived wisdom and goodness in the world – is mostly met with stiff resistance from their child’s end. Children at the same time infer that their parents have little understanding of them. Whatever be the provocation – for causing such an unfortunate sequence of events between parents and children – and in many other relationships – ‘ जब लोग एक दूसरे को ना समझ पाते हैं ,और ना ही समझा पाते हैं …’ – whether it is due to lack of respect , lack of trust – it ends up causing great distress for the concerned people equally. Wouldn’t life be wonderful if this wide rift of – mistrust – could be bridged by giving a patient hearing and trying to understand one another – for harmonious relationships between all ? However , among all the relationships that we live through in this lifetime – one relationship in which – we seem to fare better than all other relationships is – the divine relationship that develops between – a ‘सद्गुरु and His ‘शिष्य. The divine, pure love that a ‘saccha sant ‘ bears in his heart for a ‘सच्चा भक्त – on being experienced by the devotee – not only makes him lay his heart out in the open before his ‘guru’ – but he is also willing to listen, obey and adhere to his ‘guru’s’ instructions. The reason for doing so is plain and simple. The devotee begins to understand , over a period of time , that there is nothing that he will be able to hide – about himself – from his ‘सद्गुरु’s divine sight. No thought, no sin , no desire – nothing about the devotee – can remain hidden from the ‘सद्गुरु’.The ‘गुरू’ has no material expectations from his devotee and from the moment ‘He’ sets His eyes on him – He accepts him the way he is – with all his attributes and weaknesses – and from that moment the ‘गुरू’ takes his devotee’s responsibility on himself. Much like a mother who loves her child unconditionally, the ‘गुरू ‘ too loves his devotees equally , and , once ‘he’ has placed his hand on his devotee’s head…’ और जब एक बार अपने शिष्य का हाथ थाम लेते हैं…’ never does ‘he’ forsake him after that. The weaker the devotee ; more resolute is the ‘गुरू’ to lift him from the depths of darkness. ‘He’ is well aware of the past and present ‘कर्म of his devotees – which have made them the way they are in this lifetime. ‘He’ understands the complexes they suffer from and guides them to overcome, not only, their complexes, but also, their shortcomings. A devotee, who in the past had assumed, that all roads of life led only to material pleasures – is willing to be introduced and being led to the beauty of the spiritual path – on being directed by his ‘गुरु to do so. Wasn’t Guru Dronacharya aware of Eklavya’s desire to make ‘him’ – his ‘guru’ and learn archery from ‘him’ ? Guru Dronacharya had committed ‘himself’ to Arjun, and, thus, asked Eklavya for his thumb as ‘गुरू dakshina’. Didn’t Shri Krishna eradicate the confusion ; the dilemma that raged in Arjun’s mind, at the thought of raising his weapons against his cousins, at the Battle of Kurukshetra by imparting ‘ गीता ज्ञान ‘ to him ? ” ‘गुरु’ से बड़ा हितेषी हमारा कोई नहीं हो सकता – क्यूंकि वह हमें ‘समझते’ भी है और ‘समझाते’ भी हैं…”

Swami ji said… Many a times, one can hear people complain that life is harsh, life is cruel. They complain about the never – ending drudgery of work; backstabbing by people they meet in their lives; cruel twists of fate and a multitude of other ‘offences’ that life has committed on them. Agreed ! All these things do happen. And, while we may not really believe this to be true – instances and incidents which do not bring happiness – do happen to ‘all’ of us and with all of ‘us’. Even kings and saints suffer at the hands of life. Whether it was Ram or Krishna – even God had to ‘suffer’ on this Earth. Such is the law of ‘life’ in this world. But does that make life ‘cruel’? Does it make ‘life’ itself unworthy of our respect , appreciation and love ? Should we constantly be sulking, bear a glum face and complain loudly about the way life has treated us – in an unfair and unjust manner – from our perspective ? Life can be difficult and challenging. Yes, that is true ! But it is not cruel. It only reflects the ‘truth’ about us – clearly. What we experience on a moment to moment basis in our daily lives – is nothing but a reflection of our past ‘karma’. Every little slip, every little dip, every little bump – all are our own doing. There are no two ways about it. Yes, if we have hardships today, it is the result of our bad ‘karma’ of the past. And, if , we are in ‘luck’ today, it , too , is because of our ‘good actions’ of the past. Accepting this, surrendering to the theory of ‘karma’ might seem very difficult for quite a many of us to relate with and comprehend. To concede to this would mean admitting – that perhaps we were not ‘that good’ in our past lives – and, we, who refuse to see any wrong being done by us in the present lifetime – will most certainly find it difficult to swallow, that we could have done anything wrong, in our previous lifetimes. It would be frustrating for us too. It is possible that at a certain moment – just for an instant – we might feel – that we could have been a ‘dacoit ’ in our past life – when we come across some confounding and complicated situations. But , gradually, such flashes of the past, will also enable us to handle ourselves better in the present moment. We will be more accepting of our situation, and , that in itself will help us to overcome the feeling of helplessness and despair in alarming circumstances. And, we should also not forget that while our present condition is due to the result of our past actions – how we react to them today is solely in our control. Heroes are remembered not for the ‘good times’ that they had, but, for how they handled the ‘bad’. When alone and in pain, be it physical or mental – even then – we must not give up. Because, always remember – God is watching us. And for His admiration alone, we must stay valiant and brave. We must find a reason to smile and cheer up.That is how life must be lived. Life can be cruel – only when we want to make it cruel for ourselves – by being over ambitious, impractical and stubborn. Our never ending desires and our inability to realise them can cause a lot of misery in our lives. Our habit of refusing to see good in others ; letting ‘doubt’ replace ‘faith’ in us ; being unreasonable and arrogant in relationships – all of the above can make us undergo a lot of mental stress unnecessarily. But, we are willing to lose our peace of mind over things that are truly of no consequence to us – as we have made these inconsequential issues the focal points of our life. We openly express dissatisfaction at the state of things and people around us at random – causing ourselves unnecessary frustration and despair to ourselves.The earlier we accept the fact – that things don’t change – and, instead, it is, we, who should change the way we look at them – the better it will be for us – as we will feel much at ease and experience mental peace. At times we wish that life was not a struggle and that we could remain untouched by grief, sorrow and suffering. What we fail to understand is that – ‘ ‘दुःख’और ‘परिश्रम’ जीवन के लिए अत्यंत आवश्यक है , क्योंकि ‘दुःख’ के बिना हृदय निर्मल नहीं हो सकता और ‘परिश्रम’ के बिना मनुष्य का विकास नहीं हो सकता…’ Life is not cruel. It is just the way it was meant to be.

Swami ji said… Through out history, man’s depiction of God, has mostly been of one – who is perfect ; who is almighty ; all-conquering; ever capable. It is so, because we with our imperfections, would have found it very difficult to put our faith in anything that would have been short of perfection. Lord Ram was ‘मर्यादा पुरूषोत्तम ‘ – unwavering in his ways, resolute and dedicated to His ‘dharma’. Lord Hanuman was a depiction of strength and purity – like none other. Even Lord Krishna, who was soft in appearance, relentlessly pursued the ‘truth’ – something which we humans find very difficult to do. Such perfection, is something that man can only dream of. It is almost impossible for him to be anywhere close to the way God appeared on this Earth. Thus, it is no wonder that man always feels inferior to God. One is bound to feel small and fearful in the presence of the infinite and source of all power. But we must ask ourselves. When has God ever asked us to fear Him? When has God ever threatened us? Yes, He is all powerful and perfect, but, isn’t He all loving and caring too ? Why then, do we not look at Him as our companion? The only one who is constantly by our side. Why don’t we try and have conversations with Him like we do with our friends? It is ironic, that despite there being so many of us, society is afflicted with loneliness. We are unable to ‘connect’ with people because we are too busy ‘judging’ others or are being ‘judged’ ourselves. There are no such problems with God. He knows us better than we know ourselves, and, yet , He is the last one to shun us for our imperfections. Why then, do we not try to befriend Him? God is not just to be prayed to for forgiveness or for boons. He is, most importantly, there to guide us. If there is anyone who would like to give us honest , sincere advise ; if there is anyone who would want to stop us from taking wrong steps – it is God. Doesn’t a true friend not do this? Why then do we not try to befriend Him ? We spend so much time with our own thoughts. Struggling with decisions, struggling with thoughts of the future. Perhaps we should try and have ‘internal’ discussions with God. Admit to Him why we seek something ; what our fears are. Yes, the conversations
would not be like those that we are used to, but, trust me, we will hear answers, we will feel distinct nudges. If we want to complain about how hard our life is, complain to Him. Tell Him why it has been a rough day, and why we feel we were treated in an unfair manner. He will make us see the reason behind it ; the main cause. He will make us feel better with His words. If we are happy ; we must tell Him how good we feel and why. If we feel that we are doing something bad, let us tell Him of our struggle and He will tell us what should be done by us and show us the way out of the situation in which we find ourselves. There should be absolutely nothing going in our mind that should not be revealed to Him. He knows who we are and we should not be afraid of revealing our true colours to Him ; rather should be brave to openly admit our weaknesses to Him and seek His help to overcome them. Such a friendship will liberate us. We will be more accepting of who we are and only then will we be able to take control of ourselves and improve ourselves – just the way any good friend would want us to. We need to remember that the true nature of certain things can be experienced – automatically – just by going close to them – ‘ Jaise ki गुलाब से सुगंध, अग्नि से गर्माहट और बर्फ से शीतलता…’ In a similar manner – ‘ईश्वर से निकटता बढ़ाने से, हमें हमारा सबसे अच्छा मित्र मिल जाएग…’