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Swami ji said …

” ‘How is that person doing better than me? Why did he get that promotion? Where did I go wrong in managing my finances? ‘ – are some of the questions that haunt us, make us toss and turn, as they plague our ‘mind’, night and day. The human mind – touched, created and gifted by God- should have retained the qualities of happiness, bliss and contentment – that ‘He’ had gifted it with. ‘He’ must have been convinced that the mind blessed by Him would always be at peace – with itself and with the happenings around it, but, unfortunately each one of us had a ‘mind’ of our own and begged to differ from God’s plan. The mind was meant to love, to care, to empathise, to create, but, we, being the way we are refused to accept the mind in its existential state, and, behaved in a manner which was a far cry from what was expected of us.”

“We refused to allow our minds to rest and relax in the cradle of calmness, love, compassion, care, empathy and other beautiful, pure and positive emotions that God had placed it in; and, instead, turned it into a boiling cauldron of envy, rage, restlessness and allowed it to run amok in a thousand directions at the same time.”

” We pay the price for this monumental mistake on a daily basis as our mind seems to draw some morbid pleasure by behaving in a manner that is poles apart from its inherent nature – by making us lose our peace of mind. ‘Peace of mind’ – which cannot be bought at any price , and , yet the easiest thing to lose. Just about anyone and anything can cause a flurry of turbulent emotions to rise in our mind and disrupt its peace.The worst part is that we surrender to the onslaught of these unwarranted emotions that cause unrest and turbulence in our mind.”

” The mind would love to function in a simple, uncomplicated manner, but, we have fine tuned our ‘mind’ to run on a frequency that is complex and greatly disturbing ; in which it loves to ‘fret’ about the future ; ‘fears’ the unknown and is ‘filled’ with ‘anxiety’ and ‘stress’ about the present. It only sees problems around it and tires itself by pondering over them incessantly, so much so, that it is unable to find a solution to these problems. Gradually it begins to lose confidence in its ability to deal with various day to day issues, which results in losing its most precious quality – that of being at peace, tranquil and serene – a quality which is priceless.”

” Why does the mind persist in stirring the dust from issues that should be long forgotten, done with and dusted is known only to it ! Our aim should be to ‘seek’ and ‘see’ a moment, frozen in time; when all is calm and peaceful within us…in our mind. Remember , the ‘Truth’ can be heard only in a peaceful, well rested mind.”

“A meditative mind, untouched by bias and impure thoughts, alone can understand the true role that God has planned for it in a particular lifetime. We need to keep our mind happy, healthy and at peace by understanding that irrespective of what ‘it’ wants, ‘it’ will get only that what God wills to give ‘it’. All the time that is wasted in harbouring negativity, hatred and jealousy in our mind will only make it unhealthy. Remember, we can’t live with hate in our mind. Hate harms us, devours us. Rather, let the mind enrich itself with knowledge from the ‘Holy scriptures’ and bloom with love, gratitude and positivity that will help it attain peace and lead us to live a disciplined, purposeful life.”

Swamiji said …

“Do we take the moments of ‘life’ that we are blessed with for granted, without valuing them the way they should be ? Do we realise how fortunate we are to be alive, to breathe for that every precious second of the lifetime that we are granted by Him ? Has the hectic pace of today’s demanding life, which makes us run from pillar to post, to fulfil the obligations that we have drawn, as the larger picture for ourselves, to remain in a celebratory mode, is preventing us from seeing the beauty of the miracle called – ‘life’. We plan and wait impatiently to celebrate birthdays, festivals promotions, anniversaries, but, in this long wait to celebrate specific dates and occasions, have we forgotten to celebrate – the value and significance of every second, minute, hour and day, which once lived by us, will never be seen and breathed again by us… ‘Humari zindagi, humara jivan ek maha utsav hai, jis ke har kshann ka humein ‘bhavya jashn’ manana chahiye !’ – in a state of thankfulness and gratitude to God.”

” Remember – ‘Life’ is God’s greatest gift to us and, thus, it would be wrong on our part to waste it away in worry and despair. We simply have to, must endeavour to find a reason to smile and laugh often. After all, happiness is not contingent on one’s achievements ; rather, it is a state of being. If one truly begins to seek joy in nooks and corners, in small happenings of life, one wouldn’t need to look far; as, believe me joy will find us. But, if we make the mistake of pinning happiness with the fruition of only our major endeavours and achievements, then it is possible, some of us , might have to wait an entire lifetime to celebrate that hoped for successful moment. The true value, love, positivity and gratitude that we hold for life is recognised by ‘it’ and ‘it’ too responds in a manner most benign. After all, the Moon stays bright when it doesn’t avoid the night ! Doesn’t it !”

” Emulating this quality from the moon, why can’t we celebrate life the way it is served to us – sweet or sour, dark or bright? If life can be a buoyant ride, replete with triumphs and trophies – then, it has an equal right to ‘balance’ us – by creating an occasional speed breaker, packed with trials, turmoil and tribulations! All the accolades and appraisals are celebrated with gusto, but, why are we in comparison, so greatly affected by fears, anxiety, grief, heart break that we easily allow permanent furrows of worry to settle on our face, so much so, that even a distant, faint glimmer of hope, refuses to bring a smile and glow of happiness on our face. None of us know what awaits us the very next moment, so, live the present moment as if it were your last.”

” Never forget that it is the small things in life that give us the greatest pleasure. Simple things that do not cost us anything.The delight on seeing a flower bloom is incalculable. The fragrance of the soil of Mother Earth when its thirst is quenched by the first shower of the monsoon is incomparable. The list is endless. And, the happiness derived is divine.Why then do we think that we are allowed ‘happiness’ and a reason to celebrate only when we ‘achieve’ something grand ? Will we spend the rest of the time stressed about hitting the next target ? Some might even question – ‘What is there to celebrate ?’- as life defined by them is an incessant uphill struggle. Right from our birth, they say, our struggle begins. As newborns, we gasp for air as we come into this world, learning to breathe. In childhood, we repeatedly fall before learning to walk. And, once we learn to walk, we are constantly moving at a hectic pace – school, college, career, family…. never-ending societal obligations and pressures to be successful in these various spheres of life.”

“While there is nothing wrong in being ambitious and hard-working, the journey of life is not meant to be one akin to that of a weary and thirsty traveller, in a desert, who finds some solace only at the occasional oasis. The journey enroute should also be enjoyed.
Celebrate life. Give it a meaning, a direction. Live life to the fullest as this is the only one we have.”

Swamiji said …

“The words ‘Thank God!’ ‘Thank heavens!’ are often heard in a tone that is part relief and part exasperation. God is rarely the actual recipient of the ‘Thanks’ in question in such cases. Yet, we often find ourselves thanking God repeatedly in different settings. We bow our heads, cross our hearts, touch our foreheads, when we pass a place of worship, end a journey safely, find something we thought we had lost etc. But what is the purpose of these gestures? Are they not a result of conditioning by society? Are not all these various ‘Thank yous’ to God not just a part of a quid pro quo, where thanks is offered in return for a favor or fulfillment of a desire?”

” How many of us truly ‘Thank’ God from the bottom of our heart for giving us much more than we deserve and for taking care of us every single day of our lives? How many of us truly acknowledge His Grace in enabling us to bring food to our table ; fulfilling the desires of the family that is dependent on us or having a loved one return home at the end of the day and look upon it as a blessing from God? We instinctively ‘thank’ God when we escape a turmoil, but do we ever ‘thank’ God after reflecting over all that He has blessed us with? We thank God eagerly on a big payday, but, do we ‘thank’ God for giving us another day to try and earn a living, achieve our dreams, or pursue our goals.”

” It is only when we reflect deeply and acknowledge the various things that we are blessed with and fortunate to have in our life, that we will truly be thankful to God. True gratitude and thankfulness emerges when we thank God not only after eating a hearty and healthy meal , but, also, when we see that we are spared the hunger that millions of other people die of everyday.
True gratitude arises in our heart when we learn to appreciate the supposedly ‘small’ things in life and are not put off by the lack of ‘wordly riches and spoils’. The world of ‘maya’ ensures that we are never happy after acquiring the best of possessions and titles.
Alexander conquered and plundered land after land, people after people, yet, could not bring happiness to himself or those that accompanied him on his conquests. Yet, the ‘yogis’ and saints he encountered were more than content with only the earth beneath their feet and the sky above their heads. This was because unlike Alexander, who thanked God only for his mighty victories and grand achievements, the sages and ‘yogis’ were filled with gratitude for whatever little they had, and , thus found no reason to remain discontented and unhappy.”

” Being truly thankful to God, from the heart and soul, is thus not a duty, but, actually the only way to contentment, happiness and a stress-free life. A heart filled with gratitude does not ‘seek’ but rather looks to ‘give’. And, this, would be the best way to live a truly meaningful and wonderful life.”

Swamiji said …

“It is said that God made us in his own image and likeness. Yet, He continues to ensure that none of us are exactly the same. We all are unique in this world – numerous yet singular masterpieces of the Creator.Thus, the best way to show our faith in God; in His plans for us – is by accepting ourselves the way we are – be it our looks, physical abilities, mental prowess, the strata of society we are born into, our family background or financial stability. God takes painstaking effort to ensure that each one of us retains a unique and different identity. He could have saved His precious time by making all of us the same, but, He did exactly the opposite. But, do we ever reflect on His amazing feat of ensuring that no two creations of His are alike? God opted for the path most challenging, most interesting by creating a new individual, each time he crafted us lovingly with His divine clay; giving us a particular form and role to play in our lifetime. He not only saved Himself from the monotony of creating billions of identical individuals, but us also, from interacting with similar looking and similar minded people all the time.”

“But what have we done! Rather than marvelling at the masterpiece that He has made of each one of us, we look at others around us, compare ourselves with them,and, not surprisingly, are more than shocked and distraught, by all that life has given them and not us. We allow devious discontentment to bemoan our fate and envy the other person’s good fortune. Another person’s success makes our heart burn; so much so that we curse the day we were born. His gain is straightaway associated as a personal loss and failure. Seeing someone’s meteoric rise to fame makes us chew our nails in envy. Sadly, some of us are so disturbed on seeing the grass greener, on the other side, that the darkness of doubts, despair and disenchantment with life, takes over us completely and life becomes a living hell for us. Our habit of constantly comparing ourselves,with others, is the root cause of our unhappiness.”

“We must learn from the Sun and the Moon who have a silent understanding between them and shine in their resplendent glory at the appropriate time. Similarly, we need to remember that we too will shine at the right time – at the destined moment – in a particular lifetime. We tend to forget that the money and power that the person , with whom we are comparing ourselves, seems to be enjoying today, is due to his ‘prarabdha’, which is playing out in this lifetime. ‘Prarabdha’ – The result of one’s past ‘karma’ which enables one to enjoy various materialistic pleasures in his lifetime – becomes a sore point for us – as we compare.”

“But, if comparison with another person, inspires and motivates us to draw some positive life enriching changes, then one must certainly do so! Otherwise, open denouncement and outright rejection of our ‘natural selves’, implies a complete mistrust and lack of faith in God’s purpose of having created us. If we fail to appreciate and respect ourselves, others too will find us unworthy of respect and admiration.”

“We must appreciate and learn from the different value systems, qualities and habits that God has blessed each one of us with, while working on us with great concentration. If we need to, compare ourselves with others, then we must do it without a trace of jealousy or ill will. If our habit of comparing ourselves with others makes us morose and unhappy then, such an act is tantamount to disrespecting God’s divine plan for us. Does a mother draw comparisons between her children? An ‘adhyatmik Guru’ showers equal Grace on all His devotees without any discrimination or comparison. Why,then, do we compare and lose our peace of mind?”

Swamiji said…

“If someone were to ask us – ‘How well prepared are you to tread the spiritual path?’ – we would most likely give him a puzzled look and wonder about the peculiarity of such a question.
However, serious reflection on it, would reveal the sobering truth underlying this relevant, pertinent question. The never ending preparation for success in academics, jobs, business, health etc. barely leaves us with any time to prepare ourselves to know about God, to attain spiritual knowledge. Preparing for our so-called ‘life goals’ takes so much of our time, that we are not left with any to prepare ourselves to attain spiritual knowledge.”

“When we can spend a lifetime preparing for activities ranging from the mundane to the extraordinary; then an even greater initiative should be taken to prepare the mind to be in a state of readiness to acquire and absorb the light of the loftiest thoughts of God and Guru. We must be watchful and question ourselves – How much time are we able to devote to the study of our ancient scriptures and Holy Books? Do we direct our thoughts on knowing our Real Self? Does the paucity of time make it difficult for us to attend Satsang? Are we inclined towards spending time in ‘Swadhyaya’, ‘jap’, ‘tap’?”

“The choice is ours to make, and, once we make up our mind and begin to prepare ourselves to know about our Creator and who we are, we find a marked improvement in the quality of our life, as we begin to work on improving our nature and temperament. We begin to understand the importance of being pure in mind, body and heart. The essence of the word – ‘purity’ dawns on us in its true context and we endeavour to be pure – internally and externally. We not only ensure the cleanliness and purity of our physical body, but, also begin to steer the mind to stay focused on pure thoughts; draw it inwards; try to remain calm, unaffected by worldly distractions, so that while acquiring knowledge, from our self realised Guru, in an environment that is sanctified and sacred, we do not get restive, but remain focused on Him; His divinity.”

” All of us can access God’s word, spiritual knowledge through various means – at a Guru’s Darbar, by reading a Holy Scripture, hearing sermons etc. yet, not all of us receive, retain and imbibe the same essence of the knowledge imparted to us. Why? Because our minds are not alike. Not all are prepared to understand the holy knowledge that is imparted to them.”

” For those seeking spiritual knowledge – आध्यात्मिक ज्ञान – the mind is like a window.The dirtier it is, dimmer is the light of knowledge that seeps through. Thus, one must keep the mind clear – free from distractions, wants – to not in any way blemish, color or misunderstand the knowledge of the mind, heart and soul that one receives.
A mind preoccupied with making money will end up looking for ways to attain wealth even in the stories of great charity and sacrifice.A mind obsessed with familial relationships will see loneliness, and , not solitude in an ascetic’s life. Any spiritual knowledge is lost upon such souls.The seeds of spiritual knowledge will manifest into bliss, peace and success only for those whose minds are prepared, akin to the fertile soil that is made ready for the cultivation of crops.”

” Unfortunately many superstitions, inequality, and discrimination plaguing society , today, are often founded on the basis of misinterpretation of religious teachings – a result of ‘spiritual knowledge falling on unprepared minds’.”

“When seeking Knowledge, we must free our hearts from prejudice and let it overflow with love and thankfulness for God. But, are we willing to let love for God, Guru and every living being reign in our hearts? Are we ready to surrender and accept every decision that God makes for us? The impure, restless, agitated mind has to be controlled and calmed down, and, once we begin to do so, our ‘well prepared’ mind learns to be at peace, is filled with positive energy, stays focused, and concentrates on God’s and Guru’s teachings. Preparation matters the most.”