Dedicated to Swamiji Ajay Jain ji

Swamiji says …

“The physical form; our outer being; the body that we love and cherish, means everything to us, as it enables us to experience life in all its glory; enjoy its enthralling, giving nature one day; and question its unpredictable, mystifying element the very next. At the same time we also get busy and involved with our routine activities, from which we try to take out some time to serve God – ‘Hum ‘Narayan’ seva mein aur doosron ki seva mein ‘tan, mann aur dhan’ laga dete hain …’ and are filled with a sense of satisfaction – ‘ Achche, nek karam kar ke, rituals kar ke, punya kar ke! ‘ – as we feel that we have done all that is possibly required to serve , both, God and man, in this lifetime.”

“It is excellent to have such noble and pure intentions, but at the same time, wouldn’t it be wonderful if we were to understand the deeper and divine purpose for which we have been blessed with this life and body – which is to attain ‘moksha’. ‘Jab tak insaan, spiritual marg mein nahi chalta hai , tab tak usey ‘moksha’, ‘mukti ‘ nahi mil sakti!’ We have to understand that the body not only serves as a robe and encasement for the ‘soul’ that resides in it, but should also be utilised to make an earnest, honest endeavour so that – ‘Insaan – apne shareer aur atma, dono mein, parmatma ki lau jalaye! Aur aisa karne ke liye, woh apne shareer ka upyog, atma ko ‘bhagwan’ mein leen honay ke liye karay ! ‘Bhakti’ hi woh marg hai joh insaan ko ‘moksha’ dilwa sakti hai !’

” Very often we hear people talk about their good karma …’ Log apne kiye huey bahut achche, aur nek karmon ke baarey mein batatey hain … ‘ and undoubtedly they must have selflessly served God, observed the required rituals with great piety, donated large amounts in charity and extended a helping hand to those suffering from disease and poverty. The good ‘karma’ accumulated by them for their selfless service to God and innumerable acts of charity will not go unnoticed by Him, and they will most certainly be awarded by Him for their commendable and praiseworthy acts. One can most certainly take birth in a wealthy, reputed family – ‘Woh achche kul mein paida ho sakta hai! Raja, maharaja ya samrat ban sakta hai, apne pichley janam ke achche karmon ki vajeh se …’ He could be born with a silver spoon in his mouth, taste success of an unprecedented level, enjoy a position of power and status – but attaining ‘moksha’ purely, by having done such noble deeds alone, is not possible !”

“All saints and great religious Teachers – whether they were kings or ordinary individuals – had to walk the path of ‘bhakti’ – deep devotion, unswerving faith and implicit trust in God, by leaving the comfort and confinement of their palace and home and spending hours in ‘tapasya , dhyan aur sadhna mein… Unn sab ko ‘bhakti’ ke raastey pay hi jaana pada !’ Their fervent desire to seek the Truth made them oblivious to the rigors that their body had to bear as they chanted ‘mantras’ while in ‘tapasya’, with their minds fixed on God. Their material, gross body did not mean anything to them. Their yearning and unsuccessful attempts for the divine darshan of the Omnipresent brought tears to their eyes, but they shed not a single tear when they turned their back on their kith and kin, as they considered them to be the greatest distractions during their ‘dhyan’, and thus they renounced them… and the valuable time spent in loving ‘sadhna’ of God…created ‘nek vichar aur unki shareer aur atma ki shuddhi hui.’ What mattered to them was ‘bhakti’ of the highest level ! We too must strive to devote, at least, half an hour, out of the twenty four hours that we have in a day in ‘tap, jap, dhyan aur sadhna … joh ki saare nek kaarya hain…’ which will give us an opportunity to be completely immersed in God and experience spiritual bliss – pure and divine.”

“Similar to the joy that we experience on seeing a once parched area of land – green and replete with a yield of golden crop, later…the soul, too, dances with glee on seeing its bearer, put in his time and energy in purifying it, cleansing it of the layers of impurities, ignorance and darkness in which it was enmeshed … by reaching a point when ‘parmatma’ allows it to merge with Him. When one meditates on Him and repeats His name, he should do so reverentially, with humility and without a trace of pride and arrogance in his being …’Bhagwaan ka naam lete samay abhimaan aur ahankaar nahi hona chahiye ! Apne andar jhanko …and look beyond your body. You are much more than the body… Apne shareer aur atma dono ko jhukao … aur sampoorna tarah se samarpit kar do unhey, bhakti aur spirituality ke marg par!’ There has to come a point in time when after having comprehended the significance of rituals, one needs to find a way out of this cycle of life and death that can only be discovered by walking the spiritual path.”

” A spiritual ‘guru’, a ‘saccha sant – ek maadhyam hota hai, apne shishya ko ‘parmatma’ ki lau se milwane ke liye … un mein merge karwane ke liye ! ‘Guru’ ek raasta hota hai janam maran se chhutkara dilwane ke liye ! Once we develop a spiritual bent of mind we understand clearly that the body has to be used by us for our spiritual growth and mundane issues like ‘dukh aur sukh’ humarey liye ek saman ho jatey hain!’ ‘Ek ‘sadguru’ apne devotees ki adhyatmik unnati ko khoob badhava detey jaatey hain…’ and makes us aware that once we have fulfilled our ‘kartavya’ and major responsibilities towards our family, etc.we owe it to ourselves to give topmost priority – ‘ apni ‘ruh’ ko pure karne ke liye aur sampoorna roop se aagey badhtey badhtey, ek samay aaye jab hum uss sey hi jud jaain…’ and we finally realise that the sole purpose of our ‘janam uss sey lau laganey ke liye mila hai !”

Swamiji says …

” We derive great pleasure and joy in whiling away time in non-stop gossip, catching up on the neighbourhood and office grapevine, indulging in some completely undesirable, scandalous talk – ‘ Vyarth ki baatein kartein hain !’ – as we are not only curious and consumed with the desire of knowing about the personal affairs of others, but also, for some inexplicable reason, experience a strange sense of gratification in watching time pass by, as it slips through our fingers, without any feeling of remorse or regret …’aur samay ko nasht kartein hain! ‘

“All that we need is the slightest of distractions to divert our attention from the task at hand, and draw us towards anything that is worthless and meaningless. We are so besotted with all the insignificant trivia around us that it appears to be as rejuvenating as fresh oxygen for a few of us, and brings a whiff of fresh air to our otherwise self-proclaimed ‘ever so boring lives!’ Thus we try to escape to this world of nonsensical rubbish that is fabricated by us – as often as we can – by losing the required perspective of what should be done by us at the right time, forgetting completely that time is in a constant state of motion, and every second lost by us – is time, that is lost forever. But do we give time its due ? Do we value time and give it the respect it should be accorded ? ”

“The irresistible temptation of spending a few hours extra, now and then, in an absolutely futile, meaningless manner can be so strong and enticing, that one could develop an attitude of laxity and lethargy towards his work – result – oriented and concrete work, and tend to forget about the commitment that we need to put into the work that we do – as it plays a major role in building our lives. Work that should be attended to immediately or completed by a certain period of time takes a backseat, as one’s priorities begin to get misplaced and he/she starts resorting to the oldest trick in the book by pushing things forward for either the later part of the day, or for the next day, or for the day after next … ‘Woh aaj ka kal kar deta hai, aur phir kal ka parson!’ The process of postponing, procrastinating, and delaying begins from thereon. He begins displaying traits of his foolhardy behaviour and tries to oversimplify things by reassuring himself … ‘If not today, I will definitely complete the task tomorrow!’ But when, and if that day will ever dawn finally, is known only to him!”

“One can literally see him trying to feel desperately sure and secure with the insincerity of those hopelessly deceptive words, ringing clearly in his ears, even as he says them to himself ; and then he accepts them as honest, truthful words – but by then it is too late, as before long – postponing things becomes a regular habit with him. He is ready to handle the pressure of the incomplete work, hang above his head like the Damocles’ sword, but will not miss out on an opportunity to while away time in needless ways.”

” ‘Time flies’ are words with which we are very familiar, but it seems that some of us, unfortunately, are under the misconception that time is at our beck and call , and that clocks will stop chiming at our command, and start ticking again at the snap of our fingers. The case, in fact, is reverse. It is we who are governed by time. But are we willing to accept this reality, or will we continue to treat time with apathy and arrogance by taking it for granted? The choice is ours to make.”

“We must make an attempt to catch every fleeting second – the way we used to catch butterflies as children – lest they fly away, and convert them into colourful moments of creativity and optimal utility. Time is precious. The moment that has passed by, is lost in eternity, never to return, nor to be relived by us ever again as it has registered itself in the echelons of time, that is now our past. A fruitful, rich, worthy past – could make ‘time’ itself feel proud of us, as we had utilised it in the most rewarding manner ! ”

“ We all are participants in the race against time because of which…’Samay ka sadupyog kar na bahut zaroori hai… Har kshann ka mahatva samjho…Sirf baatein karney mein samay nikal jaata hai !’ While many of us are petrified at the prospect of running out of money one day – what could be truly terrifying is when one needs and requires time, he finds himself in want of it , and has none left to invest in meaningful activities that can help him in his overall growth – personal, as well as, professional. At times, parents are unable to devote enough time to their children, as they are busy socialising. Some students do not give enough time to their academics, as they are distracted with their friends and gadgets. Some officegoers could be spending more time chatting with their colleagues, pushing deadlines further ; rather than finishing their work early and spending more time with their family at home or pursue a hobby. Time is passing by faster than we think it is, but we are yet to awaken to the reality of this truth in our lives. If there is one thing that is truly limited in life – it is time, and we must thus invest every moment of it wisely.”