Prepare the Field to get to the right Conclusion

To realize the truth of an Advent (Avatar), the aspirant must culture the mind as the farmer prepares the field. The farmer clears thorny undergrowth, wild creepers and tenuous roots from the field. Then, he ploughs the land, waters it and the seeds are sown. The seedlings and tender plants are then guarded from pests. To prevent destructions by goats and cattle, he erects a fence. So too, the aspirant must remove egoism, pride and greed from the heart.

Truth, Repetition of the Lord's Name and Meditation refer to ploughing and levelling.

Love is the water that must flow into the field of your heart to make it fertile, soft and rich. Lord's Name is the seed and devotion is the sprout. Protect the seeds from the cattle of Kama and Krodha (desire and anger) with the fence of discipline. Then you will reap bliss as the harvest.

Baba (thought for the day)

 

We can compare it to culturing the mind as the farmer prepares the field. We follow insights, as Baba said he is the insight and the following step and in doing it, we get aware that everything looks quite different than we thought it was? We get aware that it looks different if we see our real parents as divine and we realize that we belong to the divine parents and in that sense we get a feeling for the truth of an Advent. 

How do we otherwise realize the truth of an Advent? 

We culture the mind as the farmer prepares the field, we plough the land, water it. My father was a gardener and it felt already like that years ago writing my dairy. It was like the cultivation of flowers in the heart and getting rid of the bad and egoistic tendencies, because they are like weeds taking over.

When I began with meditation I thought it was easy, because meditation took care of it and it was like that, it did take care of it.

It just didn't take care of the insights and the right understanding of it.

The insight was there since the beginning, focused on the observer in writing, watching feelings, thoughts, emotions.

TM didn't tell that the teaching is in dreams and in the inner view. And because it said that everything was stress only and mind, we concluded that it was possible to think a mantra and meditate to go beyond the mind and that took care of it.

The conclusion was not right, because we stopped thinking and it resulted in only meditating. We were not used to ask questions anymore, because we thought that all questions were answered by that meditation. It was a good experience, the mind did settle down, but it didn't tell us how to understand insights and how to see it in the light of meditation or wisdom and even less in the light of technique, it didn't make any sense. If the insights would have made sense, it would have been perfect, but they didn't make sense.

How to destroy the mind? - White Light I am

How to destroy the mind? It is easy once you know what it is. The mind is stuffed with desire, similar to a football filled with air. Puncture it and it will not move from place to place. In a square field filled with water from an irrigation canal, water appears in the form of a square. If the field is circular or triangular, then the sheet of water will match the geometric shape. The mind too takes on the form of one's desires. Take another example - the mind is like a piece of cloth, the warp and woof being the yarn of desire. The texture, the color, the durability, the feel, and the shine of the cloth will depend upon the desire that constitutes the warp and the woof. Remove the yarn strand by strand, and the cloth automatically disappears. This is the technique of destroying the mind (Mano Nasanam). A wise person will wipe out all traces of the mind.

Baba (thought for the day)

Over thirty years ago I began with a simple mantra and we didn't know the meaning, it was called a vehicle with the aim to carry our thoughts and attention, the mind, and to go inside. Later it was said that those mantras a special seed mantras and they are not used with the Pranava, the Om and used with the Patanjali sutras and they have to be given by a master and with puja, everything else was secret and we had the feeling to know nothing about it and most of all people thought that the OM was only for people who wanted to become monks. 

After I went to Baba one morning we meditated and after that meditation he took the whole group in the interview room. He talked about mantras and Soham and he said, 'all mantras are okay'. It was only that way I got aware that there was doubt about it, because we had not enough instruction with those Bija mantras we used with TM. 

It was by a TM-teacher we got initiated into that mantra and I had during that time, eight years of my life, about three or four advanced techniques and every time the mantra got longer. 

I liked it, because I noticed that it relaxed my mind. I saw myself as a watcher and I just observed and didn't change things, it means things should not change, but out of the inner self. And I noticed, when that inner self was there, it had to be done, there was no other way but to do it. 

Later Baba was in my dream and he was two Babas, one was the insight and one was the next step.

Source of Bliss and the Individual Experience

Just as underground water is the sustenance of all trees, the Atma is the underlying source of all the bliss that the individual experiences. The process of digging a borewell to bring the underground water to surface level involves steady hitting, digging, and thumping through a pipe which holds and directs the drill. The people who do the boring take a lot of care to ensure that air does not go into the pipe, for then the drilling process becomes unsuccessful. 

Finally through a lot of effort, you bring the subterranean water to the surface level for human consumption. So too, you must undertake the repetition of the Lord's Name (Japam) very intensely taking care that you do not allow the attachment to worldly objects (Vishaya vasana) to enter and interfere with the process.

Baba (thought for the day)

If we talk about inner view our 'mind' thinks that it is like seeing with the eyes. If it would be like with the eyes, we just could close the eyes and it would be inner view, but it is not like that.

Thinking about dreams, we know that our subconscious is awake in it and that we don't just understand it with the mind, but it needs lots of skill to know the meaning of our dreams. 

The inner view is our subconscious awakening, it is the inner master and we have to learn to understand it and for that reason we need discrimination. 

The process of digging a borewell to bring the underground water to surface level involves steady hitting, digging, and thumping through a pipe which holds and directs the drill. The people who do the boring take a lot of care to ensure that air does not go into the pipe, for then the drilling process becomes unsuccessful. Finally through a lot of effort, you bring the subterranean water to the surface level for human consumption.

Fit in the Divine Plan

Every one of you must fit in with the Divine Plan. 

Strive to know its main principles and be equipped for the tasks He allots to you. Give your heart completely to the duty assigned to you in life. Be ever vigilant of your own nature and duty (swadharma) and engage in the tasks that your role demands. To attain the Divine, you have to climb from the animal state to the human state and from human level to Divinity. This climb is hard given the several forces that are always around you, ready to pull you downward. The engine in the car if clogged and worn out, will whine and groan when it has to ascend a steep hill. On the other hand if it is well-maintained, free from the dust and dirt of sensory yearning, then it will ascend heights very easily. Baba (thought for the day)

 

How do we know the task that is allotted to us?

I have no idea, of course it is to my daughter, that is clear, but why her father doesn't get it? Why he doesn't ask that type of question? 

We were focus on knowing the main principles and I thought we did that together, until we left and at once we faced something else, as it seems he just said yes to it and took advantage of it as long as it lasted. 

At my birthday he sent greetings and said, just be happy. 

First I thought great, Baba's words, but in the mean time it has changed and remembering what it means really to him, he is telling me just think about your own self, as Baba tells, self gets and forgets and he had another dream where he said, give, give, give, I will not give, you lived a dream and that is your problem not mine. You need a psyche I will give. 

I don't think he ever reflected on the dream or tried to understand it, so what it means when he is telling me, 'just be happy', he is telling me that he is just thinking about himself and as he thinks he is happier that way, even if it is not true, he goes the path of least effort. 

Sathva begins bitter ends sweet and Rajas begins sweet ends bitter and Tamas is upside down. 

It makes out of a vice a virtue and vice versa. 

It means he goes for all that what seems sweet in the beginning and it will turn out bitter. And how often for my feeling we spoke about it that duty is that which is usually first bitter and ends sweet. 

 

He doesn't know what he is doing in going the path of least effort, therefore, when he tells me, just be happy, it feels like a joke or an insult, but now I got more distance to it and I see why that is so.

 

Give your heart completely to the duty assigned to you in life. Be ever vigilant of your own nature and duty (swadharma) and engage in the tasks that your role demands. To attain the Divine, you have to climb from the animal state to the human state and from human level to Divinity. This climb is hard given the several forces that are always around you, ready to pull you downward. 

The Subtle Effect of Mantras

The subtle effect of mantras (mystic formulae) mentioned in the Vedas cannot be seen or heard by the senses; they have to be experienced in and through the inner consciousness, the Anthahkarana.

The sound of these mantras has the power to transform the impulses and tendencies. The word mantra means 'that which saves when turned over in the mind'. Repeating the mantra constantly in the mind will keep off wild talk, purposeless conversation, aimless gossip and scandal. Talk only when the talk is most essential and talk only as little as is necessary. Talk sweetly and without any reservations or circumvention. I want all to be convinced of the excellence of these teachings of the Vedas and Shasthras(scriptures).

Baba (thought for the day)

 

We were initiated in a TM Bija mantra, seed mantra and they were not used with the Pranava, the OM and had to be given with Puja by a master. We had to memorize that Puja during the teacher's training.

It was beautiful, but afterwards I noticed that it was a program, which never changed. The teaching said with a mantra we will use more of the unlimited potential of the mind as life is progressing in direction of more and more, we will be more creative and find it easier to go on with the changing lessons of our life. It also said that life is always changing and we have to be able to go with those changes and as meditation makes us more creative, it is possible to Keep up with the changes of our time and to adapt easier to it. That sounded convincing until the inner view showed changes ahead and it didn't make sense and it was impossible with TM to realize it and to get right answers, we had to get it with another master.

Cleanliness of the Mind takes care of Bad Thoughts

External cleanliness, devoid of internal cleanliness is nothing short of deceitfulness. Internal cleanliness is more essential than external cleanliness. 

Though a cup may be clean and attractive outside, we cannot drink water from it, if it is unclean inside. Food cooked in copper vessels turns poisonous, if the vessel does not have a silver coating inside. Hence, observe internal cleanliness with meticulous care. Strive to remain free from the diseases of hatred, bad thoughts and vicious practices. God has gifted you this human body for achieving excellence in your daily life and attaining proximity with Divinity. Cultivate spirituality, acquire spiritual traits, attain proximity to the Divine and merge in Him. This must be your firm resolve. You can achieve this by sanctifying your body with sacred actions, until your last breath.Baba (thought for the day)

The best internal cleanliness we know is meditation, it takes care of the mind. If our mind is full of rubbish and past impressions and we cannot forget it or are tired because of that reason, we need to meditate. But also if we think we are in good shape and everything is okay, we should meditate to be able to get to know our mind and to develop discrimination.
If we have often headache, it mostly has to do with strain and stress in the mind, it is a sign of pressure, all of that we can get rid of with meditation, we deal with the source of psychosomatic diseases.

Meditation is like a clean bath for the mind, after the meditation, body and mind should be relaxed and past impressions in the mind should not load anymore on our present consciousness.
It is not possible in our thoughts to control those subtle processes and we don't know why past impressions stick to our mind, it is usually a sign that the mind is not relaxed enough. Therefore, cleanliness of the mind is the A and O of spirituality and mental health. In today fast living time it is even more important, because we cannot relax anymore only with sleep, not enough because the expectation of our time is high and therefore, it leads to burnout and constant tiredness. If we meditate regularly we have more strength and can deal with it on a better way. We have to go with the pace of our time and if it is fast changing, our health depends on how we are able to keep that pace. Time is constantly changing and we should be flexible enough to go along with it, if we are not, we get old and sick.

Actions done to the Satisfaction of our Conscience

For a person living in the materialistic world, the sensual pleasures are a source of extreme delight. However, the senses themselves are temporary, and hence grant only transitory joy. To a person suffering from jaundice, everything looks yellow and tastes bitter. So too senses fraught with illness cannot give true happiness.

As there is no person without desire, and it is difficult to live without desire in this world, Lord Krishna came out with an excellent solution. He said, "Perform all actions for the pleasure of the Lord without an eye on the fruits of the action." Pay your respect to duty and dedicate all actions to the Divine. Ensure you do all actions to the satisfaction of your conscience and then your heart is free from all blemishes.

Such an action qualifies to become an act of Anapeksha, not tainted by desire.

Baba (thought for the day)

 

If we live in a spiritual world all that seems to make somehow sense and it seems to be easy, because we are carried by that spiritual energy which is around a master, some call it a field, which is created when spiritual people live together on one place like an ashram.

But as we have to live in the world and around that materialistic world, which sees in sensual pleasure extreme delight, it is not that easy. Even if the senses are only temporary and grant only transitory joy, at least there is some joy and not only frustration.

Sathva begins bitter and ends sweet and Rajas begins sweet and ends bitter and Tamas turns it upside down, it makes out of that extreme sensual pleasure a delight and holds it high. 

And fact is, there is no person without desire and therefore, we got that excellent solution, perform all actions for the pleasure of the Lord, without an eye on the fruit of action'.

 

Pay your respect to duty and dedicate all actions to the Divine.

Installed in our Hearts, He will Redeem our Lives.

Mantra means that which saves, when meditated upon. The Name of God, any one of His countless ones, can serve the purpose. The Name is like the goad that can tame the elephant in rut, make it bend its knees and lift the log on to its tusks. 

Liberation (Moksha) is not a five-star hotel, or a deluxe tourist home. It is just the awareness of your reality and the rejection of all contrary conceptions. You can recognize your Self quickly and clearly, if you purify your heart with a mantra or by the singing of the glory of God. Both will grant you that boon. Sing from the heart, conscious of the layers of meaning that each word has. These are the surest ways to have God firmly installed in the throne of your hearts and it will redeem your lives. 

Baba (thought for the day) 

Being with TM thinking we got a so called personal mantra, but it was given by age and it said because we use it, it becomes personal and it was said that it should solve all problems. That made it that we were not careful, didn't know anymore how and when to finish things right, because we thought meditation would take care of it. We went into stuff and relationships, we probably would not have otherwise, because we would have thought it over twice before doing it. 

If we think that all problems can be solved by a method or technique, we are not very careful, go ahead, certain nothing can happen and our life gets in no time upside down. It was taught like that and inside we were convinced in doing TM we could do nothing wrong as long as we went on with meditation, which took care of everything, that means we didn't finish anything properly and if we noticed it was not as we would like it to be, we again thought meditation would take care of it. It was moving with the wind, no character and no idea what was done really. 

It was also a kind of take off, only it was about everything and just going beyond everything we would use common sense usually. 

It had to lead into troubles, if it didn't work and it was all based on the believe that it would work, but what if it didn't work and it doesn't work as we know in the mean time. It just lead to the blind believe people were evolved spiritually and better than others, they didn't see problems anymore and for everything it was the standard answer, TM will take care of it. 

Yesterday I went to Amma's Darshan. She is here until tomorrow. This morning I woke up and noticed it was great. And I wondered, what has happened? 

Merging in the Divine

The ascend to a human form has been made possible for you all; but you will truly be deserving of this high status among the animals, only by finally merging in the Divine.
That is the goal which the pilgrimage of evolution has in view since life began on earth as the amoeba on the waters. Faith in that goal and steady march towards it, are the signs of one being aware of the responsibility of being a human. The Call of the Divine echoes in every heart; it provokes the reaction of awe, reverence, affection, love and sacrifice - all ingredients of devotion (bhakti). It translates itself into acts of worship, of praise, of adoration and of rituals. The mind through these means gets saturated with divine thoughts and is recast in the divine mould, until the flow of bliss (Ananda) is unabated.
(Baba (thought for the day)

To reach that, we have to realize that we are the higher self and not the body. The higher self is beyond time and space, but somehow, even after seeing it in the inner view, it was very difficult to understand.
First the higher self was as a vision present during sleep state. It was just great, it was very white light und very beautiful, it was love and beauty and I felt totally amazed by it and somehow from inside transformed, but after waking up the situation outside was still the same.
But I knew 'that's it', it was love, yet the mind felt confused about it and I didn't know what to do with it, because it had not substance, it was a transcendental entity.

Shining in mental Health, Happiness and Wholesomeness

Prayer is the very breath of religion; for, it brings man and God nearer and nearer to each other. Meditation (dhyana) is the process of listening to the Song Celestial, the flute of Krishna, with the mental ears alert on the melody. Just as every day you engage in exercises and consume tonics, calculating the intake of calories and vitamins, paying meticulous attention to the nutritional value of the food, pay attention also to the intake of impressions into the mind, whether they debilitate or strengthen, whether they add to the power of resistance of the mind against the viruses - greed, envy, hatred, pride, malice, etc. 

Have a meal of good acts of service, divine thoughts, and drink the juice of Love (Prema rasa), so that they may be washed down, and digested well. Then, you can be shining in mental health, happiness and wholesomeness.

Baba (thought for the day)

 

If you meditate regularly you will find it that easy to understand why it brings us nearer to each other, even if it feels sometimes like the opposite. 

Meditation is a wonderful tool to calm down, to get rid of headache and mental stuff. We improve our health and get rid or all kinds of mind problems, before they become a problem for us. There are impressions in the mind they stick to the mind and why, we don't know usually, because it is just activity created by the restlessness of the mind. 

Once I was not meditating regularly and I noticed that I woke up in the morning and had the impression of the past day at work and a person I don't like very much and just that was still on my mind. 

Not the person felt disturbing, because I have to work with her, but my mind and why in the heck was it still present, I wondered? After all I had past a good night sleep and didn't think of yesterday anymore, but the mind was not at rest as I thought. 

Dive Deep into the Sea to get the Pearls

You must dive deep into the sea to get the pearls. What good is it to dabble among the waves near the shore and swear that the sea has no pearls in it and all tales of its existence are false?

So too, if you are determined to get the full benefit from the Sathya Sai Avatar (or any form of the Divine), dive deep and get immersed in full. Half-heartedness, hesitation, doubt, cynicism, listening to tales, etc. is of no avail.

Concentrated complete faith alone can bring victory. This is true of any worldly activity, is it not? 

How much more true must it be in the spiritual field? A hundred people might come to your house and even treat you with affection, but you do not address them as, "Papa or Daddy!" So too, remain attached to the one Name and Form that is dear to you. Have your mind fixed on that form at all times.

Baba (thougth for the day)
 

How do we dive deep into the sea to get the pearls? 

Getting aware that 'I am light', 'we are light' and 'all are light' is diving deep into the see to get the pearls, if I am light there is also love. 

I know some who would like to dive deep into that sea to get those pearls, but they just don't know how? 

They are singing once a week and it feels not deep enough, not for them and there was a time it felt like that to me as well, there were many reasons why, but it has changed. 

I meditated twice a day and it kept me busy, but it didn't give me the answers I needed. 

Baba was in the dream holding up a book after we came back here, and we had to dive deep into that sea to just find about what to write, it was kind of difficult in the beginning, there were only lots of picture, but it was not possible to put the puzzle together. 

What exactly is Truth?

What exactly is Truth? Is it the description of a 'thing seen' as one has seen it, without exaggeration or under-statement? No. 

Or, the narration of an incident in the same word as one has heard it narrated? No. Truth elevates; it holds forth ideals; it inspires the individual and society. It is the Light that illumines one's path to God. A life inspired by Truth will enable man to live as man - not degrade oneself to the status of a lower species. There is God everywhere and there is no second entity. God is the Truth, the only Truth. God is in every article or thing, as the basis, as understanding and understandability, as the source of Divine light, as Atma. 

Truth is the One Awareness, the One Divine Energy that activates every living being, nay, every particle of matter.

Baba (thought for the day)

If I am reminding myself that 'I am light' or 'love', it is true, even if we have not yet realized it. 

What is truth? It is a non-changing, eternal, permanent value. For me it was easier to relate to 'light', because I had that experience. 

I still had to realize that it was not different from God and in the beginning it seems that far away, we could hardly grasp it, therefore, I always repeated the mantra in the hope to be somehow closer to him, because he said in my first interview, I should think about God only. But that made the question come up, how do we think about God? 

It is the Light that illumines one's path to God.

And he goes on explaining it to us. There is God everywhere and there is no second entity. God is the Truth, the only Truth.

It means if I think 'I am light' and not darkness and that is truth, I get in touch with the reality which alone is real. It is called truth and even the only truth. It is not a relative truth, as we know it from science, it is an absolute truth and therefore, there is only one and it is non-changing.

Truth elevates; it holds forth ideals; it inspires the individual and society. It is the Light that illumines one's path to God. A life inspired by Truth will enable man to live as man - not degrade oneself to the status of a lower species.

Develop Faith and Stand like a Rock

Develop faith in yourselves, so that you can stand like a rock braving the rushing waters of the flood of negation. 

That faith will make you overcome the changing circumstances of the outer world. Keep the flame of detachment (vairagya) burning with tiny sticks until it grows into a big bonfire; welcome all chances to develop discrimination (viveka). 

Take the Name of the Lord and repeat it always. Sing to the Lord with faith and enthusiasm. Let the whole environment reverberate with the devotion you put into every Name that you sing. The Lord's Name promotes comradeship and establishes concord; it stills all storms and grants peace. Become a blossom, exude the fragrance of seva (selfless service) and prema (love); then you will find a place in the garland that adorns the Lord.

Baba (thought for the day)

It is a good way to get aware of God as half awake and as a dream, he is both and in our dreams we get insights we never had before. 
And that God feels this universe, also that is a great way to get aware of it, because it is always about how we feel and if we are not used to watch feelings, we have to get used to it.

Out of watching my feelings I got aware that my family didn't do that and that it was challenging them beyond measures, when I began to express my feelings, actually they couldn't take it. 

In Blame Forgivness is not Possible

No manifestation of the Lord needs any publicity. What do you know about God? Is your faith unshakable?

You praise Him when things go well, and blame when things go wrong. Even before your devotion ripens, you strive to lead others, and plan for subscriptions and associations; all this is mere show which brings more spiritual loss than gain. When you start publicity you descend to the level of those who compete in collecting clientele, decrying others and extolling themselves.

Remember, where money is calculated, garnered and exhibited to demonstrate one's achievements, God will not be present.

God comes only where sincerity, faith and surrender are valued. Sing with yearning for Him. Hours of shouting do not count; a moment of concentrated prayer from the heart is enough to melt and move God.

Baba (thought for the day)

 

It was kind of special to get inside aware of how the Lord is present and tells us that it is the right level. It was about light only, it was a beautiful light blue and he said inside, if it is light blue you can go on. That was the only indication we had.  

 

No manifestation of the Lord needs any publicity. What do you know about God? Is your faith unshakable?

 

And Baba said in the interview, just think about God, but how do we think about God if we don't know the Lord?

I began to repeat my mantra or Soham to somehow be in touch with 'that', because I didn't know how to get otherwise in touch with the Lord and even less how to think of him, because he is bigger than the biggest and smaller than the smallest.

But I knew it had to do with the higher self and light.
It had been in my dream as an inner vision, quite some time ago and I was on the way and also with Baba to get answers, because I didn't understand, why it was possible that the higher self was reflected as white light in the dream as vision and it seemed very important, the most important thing we could think about and we had never heard of it before. It was white light and beauty and love.

What do we know about God?

God delights in Watching

" You must be the solution. It is that simple. You must be the solution.  

When I come to your planet, I am sitting in a human body, and a woman's body.  But the presence of My Self is so certain that I am unchanged.

Do you know what I do when I come here?   

Because this is what you must do in your life. When I come upon you, can you imagine how incredibly boring it must be for a being like myself to come to a planet like this and chit chat about 'Why won't you focus on God instead of problems'?  

Do you know why I am not bored?  Because in my experience of Me there is nothing I Love more than being me in the presence of anything and watching it squirm, or watching it grow, watching it die, watching it live, watching what My presence does to anything.   

That is what God does.  God brings the rain and watches what the rain gives to the flowers.  God brings laughter and watches what laughter does.  God brings everything, for God is everything it brings, and then delights in the watching."

Mafu 

We are the solution and that is what we need to get it, the awareness that we watch and it is not about that we like what we watch, but that we realize that we are just observing and we have to be able to get there. 

It needs that type of detached focus, but I warn you it will be hard to get there.

We are the solution.

It means in my own inner view, is not about what I am watching, but that we are watching, whatever that is, but we have to get there.

I don't like what I watch or I forget what we got.

Performing Duty without any Expectation of Results

The jeevi (individual soul) has come to this birth in order to reveal the splendour of the spark of Godhead which It is.

A rat is attracted by strong smelling cheap little stuff inside the trap; it neglects all other articles of food in the granary, and thus falls a prey to its own foolishness. Similarly people disregard and waste their life in the pursuit of mortal riches.

Be aware and alert. Live in the world but develop the skills to wonder and discriminate between the eternal and temporary. Learn to see through this drama and discover the Director behind the scenes, who is none else than God. You can easily develop these skills through devotion (Bhakthi), based on performing duty without any expectation of results (Nishkama Karma).
Baba (thought for the day)

 

How can we reveal the splendour of Godhead which we are?

Tonight in my dream it said that there is only one and one alone cleaning up here.

If we don't develop skills to wonder and discriminate between the eternal and temporary, how can we know who we are?

If someone tells, I am divine or even some think they are able to give Darshan, what I read some time ago, we should first think if we do the right work. Because how can we be the light, if we go in direction and the pursuit of mortal riches?   

How can we think of ourselves as being a light being and behave like that rat attracted by strong smelling cheap little stuff inside the trap and become like the rat prey of its own foolishness?   

Why does he tell us to be aware and alert?

 

Be aware and alert. Live in the world but develop the skills to wonder and discriminate between the eternal and temporary. Learn to see through this drama and discover the Director behind the scenes, who is none else than God. You can easily develop these skills through devotion (Bhakthi), based on performing duty without any expectation of results (Nishkama Karma).

 

How do we discriminate between the eternal and temporary and learn to see through his drama and how do we discover the director behind the scene?

Listen, think it over and absorb.

Meditation - Soham

                   

 

Listen more, Listen to your Path

God is an incredible thing.  For you are God.  Listen more, you know, to your Path. Listen more to your Way. The quotes from the great Masters, they are not meant to be followed. They are meant to inspire you and remind you of your freedom to your Path. 

You are a Christed One. You are Ordained. For your birth, just as the butterfly is once a crawling, and then it is a flying, so you are ordained naturally. The Path of a butterfly, it is not taught. The Path of a Christed One cannot be taught. Meditate, and Pray, and Chant to fall in Love, with You. Dance, and laugh, and sing to your crazy music, to fall in Love with that feeling of You.  And give that to your world. Give it freely. Give it, and give it, and give it, and give it, and you will never find the enemy. For you have the access forever to Love, and you will forever be Loved. "

Mafu

This daily quote tells us a lot about listening. It is more than just listening to words, it is listening to our path. It is not only listening to one, but it is listening to all the great masters. How do we listen to our own way and by that get aware of it? We listen to your own way and we should listen to the quotes of the great masters. 

They are meant to inspire you and remind you of your freedom to your Path.

Baba was in my inner view during that time in the ashram and it was an inside personal interview, he mentioned those interviews, but as we were not used to listen, it was not possible to realize it. He had opened the door to the interview room, there was a golden light and he was all in white. He asked, why I was so old and not yet married and he said, don't worry I will take care of it. For Indian standards I was very old, in the West we see it a bit different, but it felt good to know that he cared, even though I must have understood it all wrong.

Baba tells, without enthusiasm, courage, devotion, energy, readiness and sincerity can nothing be achieved. 

Joy is in Doing, not in the Result

Your duty (Karma) has to be done righteously (in dharma). Those dominated by ignorance (Thamas) do their duty solely for the sake of the fruits thereof and they resort to all sorts of subterfuges in order to gain the results they desire. For this category of people, the end justifies the means. 

Those dominated by passion (Rajas) are proud and pompous, and boast that they are the doers, the benefactors and the experiencers. Those dominated by qualities of calm serenity (Sathwa) do their duties regardless of the fruits thereof and leave the result to the Lord. They will not worry whether it leads to success or failure, ever conscious of their duties and never of their rights. As a matter of fact, there is more joy in the actual doing, than in the result that accrues. This attitude must be the experience of every true seeker.

Baba (thought for the day)
 

If we listen carefully to Baba's words, what is needed to understand it, he tells us, if we are fruit directed or work for a result, we are dominated by ignorance (Tamas). We do the duty only for the sake to gain the result we desire. 

It means to understand it we have to think about the difference between Tamas, darkness, ignorance and Rajas, movement, activity and passion and Sathva, light, purity and knowledge. 

Your duty (Karma) has to be done righteously (in dharma). Those dominated by ignorance (Thamas) do their duty solely for the sake of the fruits thereof and they resort to all sorts of subterfuges in order to gain the results they desire. For this category of people, the end justifies the means.

Remove the Thorn with another Thorn

Treading the Spiritual Path (Sadhana) is very essential because the effects of karma have to be removed by karma alone, as a thorn can be removed only by another thorn. You cannot remove a thorn by a knife, or a hammer or even a sword.

The knowledge that the world is unreal was spread by great saints and noble souls, who realised the Divine. But great saints like Shankaracharya persisted in activity in the unreal world, through the establishments of mutts, writing of books and participating in difficult debates. This is to illustrate that you cannot desist from doing karma. However, you must take care that it is saturated with love and promotes the welfare of the world. Soak yourself in Love and purify your thoughts and deeds with Love, then the Lord Himself will awaken your higher consciousness!

Baba (thought for the day)

 

I had translated that story of Shankara and it was amazing and uplifting and he went into all those difficult debates and always out of it as the best.

To see it as an example how we have to go on doing activity in the unreal world, I hear today also for the first time. That is why we are writing, trying to understand it and we have to do Karma, it means action, but it should be right action, saturated with love. 

Distribute Love from One to All

Intellectual scholarship is not very essential for a spiritual aspirant. Develop bliss not by merely mastering difficult scriptures but by cultivating love which begins in your very own home and family, and spreads to all creatures in the Universe.

Put down the sharp edged weapon that seeks to analyse and chop the arguments of the opponent, cutting the other's point of view to pieces. Take the delicacy of love and distribute it to one and all; win over recalcitrant hearts and give joy to all.
That is the path of love, along which I shall lead you and guide you. God knows your name, your degrees, profession, status and past, and reveals Himself to you many times, only to satisfy you and give you a glimpse of His love, so that you can mix it with a little of your own and make your life joyful.

Baba (thought for the day)

 

Develop bliss by cultivating love in our own home and family. It sounds easy if it would not be difficult. 

Maybe it is only in the beginning difficult, we remember that the Devas and the Assuras (demons) were churning the milk ocean of the universe and first was not nectar, but poison emerging from it and Lord Shiva was drinking that poison. Therefore, I guess in the beginning we just have to go through that stage of poison, whatever, we don't lose hope at least we did our best, we hope, even if that beginning stage never seems to end.

Love and the cultivation of it. 

Love-Incarnate, will Reveal Himself

The Dual or Non-dual approach to Divinity (Dwaitha or Adwaitha) are not distinct; they are stages of mental transformation. The fruit is the same; the sun and soil make it ripen through the intermediate stages of raw, tender and mature fruit. The day you realise that the Lord's address is as specified in the Gita: "Ishwarah sarva bhutanam, hriddese, Arjuna Thishthati (O Arjuna, the Lord is in the heart of every being)", that day you would have truly attained Him! 

To realize the Lord in every being, you must cultivate love and drive out the bats of hate, envy and malice that infest the dark caverns of your heart. Let the light of Love illumine your thoughts, your words, your activities, your movements and your judgements. When you are transmuted into love in this manner, the Lord, who is Love-Incarnate, will reveal Himself to you.

Baba (thought for the day)

In fact in my experience total non-dualism is not understood at all, at least not here. 

Dwaita or duality is the first step to get to the experience of oneness. In our every day life we live in multiplicity and we first have to get to the concept of duality to be able to merge and therefore, he calls it here the same.

If we do not have had an experience of unity experience, we don't know what it is.

The mind cannot grasp it, because it is the experience of the heart. 

I wonder what I imagined when I met in the ashram a so called devotee who said I belonged to him. 

Today knowing that it was the wrong answer and it had nothing to do with him at all, I wonder how he could just stand there and tell me, he knew, because that it the way he could take advantage of it. 

But I know what I hoped for and that feels kind of funny. I hoped for a friend or a man, whatever. 

I hoped for someone who would try to get the answers with me, I had to get, because I had to get answers. 

Disperse the Clouds in Training the Mind

The Sun is up in the sky during the day. It is the passing clouds that hide it from your vision sometimes, is it not?

Similarly, the sensory world is the cloud that hides the Divine (Atma), ever shining in the firmament of your heart. The same mind that gathers the clouds also has the capability to disperse them in an instant! The wind gathers the clouds from all quarters and renders the sky dark. Sometimes, in a few moments, the same wind can change the direction and send the clouds in a scurry to wherever they came from! Then, the Sun becomes visible. So your mind is all powerful. Train it to disperse the clouds, not to gather them. Every aspirant must accomplish this training of their minds by following rigorous and systematic discipline.

Baba (thought for the day)
 

The metaphor of the sun is the light of the higher self and the clouds are related to everything passing by. Mind is all what is relative, what has not lasting value and it is about desires, because they have no lasting value and that includes thoughts of money and riches and rich friends. It is hiding the sun from our vision, if we focus on that, we cannot see the sun.

The sun is the higher self and everything else is passing by. It is the screen. Without that light we are not be able to see anything. 

Everything around us is the sensory world and we cannot see the Divine, it is what we don't see. We can see it shine in the heart, but only if we live focused on the heart qualities and not the mind.

Doubt leads to Perdition, Spiritual Ruin

There are two very important statements in the Bhagavad Gita, which you must take to heart and profit from: Shraddhavan Labhate Jnanam (The one steady in faith gains wisdom and liberation) and Samshayaathma Vinashyathi (Doubt leads to perdition, spiritual ruin). Dwell on these axioms and practice the spiritual disciplines of repetition of the Lord's name and meditation on His form. Gopis of Brindavan yearned for the Lord with purity in their hearts and attained union with Him. 

You too must fill your mind with His beautiful form and contemplate on the glory of the Lord. Then you can attain Divinity.This is the pursuit that is worthy, not the pursuit of fame, nor the friendship of the famous.

Baba (thought for the day)

Steady faith gains wisdom and liberation. Doubt leads to perdition, spiritual ruin. 

To practice that and to inside aware of it, that was quite some work. 

Yesterday we had a relaxed study circle and finally I enjoyed it very much. 

As had as it seems to get aware that my worldly family is not on the right level, and it was kind of painful to get aware of it, I looked at our circle in the light of, 'here are my real brothers and sisters'. 

It means spiritual level. 

It was great and it is always different, but this morning waking up was like new born. I woke up this morning in joy. It felt great, like something very great had happened and it reminded me when we woke up and went to Baba's Darshan and how simple and beautiful my life felt at that time and how we were waiting for Baba and sitting in the rows and finally when he was standing there looking at us before he came to see people, taking here or there a letter or he gave some vibuthi to someone and all were streching out their hands and wanted als some. 

And after Darshan I sat usually there and waited until Bhajans began, during that time I was mostly in meditation and only after Bhajans I went for breakfast. Or we went to have a coke or an ice cream and usually we met others at that place, we sat and talked and enjoyed being in the ashram. It was such a beautiful time. 

It Lies in the Vision you Command

In the present times, it is impossible to find virtuous people or virtues holding sway over people's minds. People have lost the fear of a fall and become worse than animals. 

During previous centuries, Rajput women immolated themselves rather than fall into the hands of wicked foes. When Hanuman offered to take Sita back to Rama, the virtue of Sita would not allow her to accept the offer. She said that it would best suit her husband's fame if he himself avenges the wrong and rescues her. Hanuman's taking her, would be a repetition of what Ravana did, for he too stole her secretly while Rama was away. She did not consider her immediate relief as more important than the implications of that step to her virtue and her husband's fair name. It all lies in the vision that you command, that you have equipped yourselves with.

Baba (thought for the day)

 

Now virtue issue was a real challenge in my life. I was writing a diary and it felt like self realization and what was required was self-control. At that time I was sixteen. 

I was very sure that I wanted that. And I hoped to find a way to keep that direction and I was hoping I would be able to write. 

That was during the time I waited for the neighbor and we went for long walks together, is was mixed between adventure and attraction, but we had ideals. For me it was a question if that relationship could be seen as serious or not. That fact that there was a feeling of self-realization made it holy and sacred. 

And while I was still hoping that it would go on, something changed. He told me that he wanted to marry a school teacher, probably he knew her already or had understood that she was a and I don't know if he knew her already, but she lived in the same village, only three years older. Until then my life seemed quite normal and okay, but he left from one day to the next and was never seen again, but he still was in the neighborhood. What seemed to be just a nice relationship and friendship until then, was gone. 

That is when nightmares began and I didn't know why, but I stopped writing my diary. 

Be warned! Do not run after Devious Desires

Be careful to not engage yourself in Iccha Krishi (the cultivation of wants and desires).
This is a never ending process of sowing and reaping, you will never reach contentment. For, one desire, when satisfied will fan the thirst for ten more. Be warned! Do not run after devious desires or crooked satisfactions. All roads leading to the realm of the senses are tortuous and blind.
Only the road that leads to God is straight. Cultivate straightforwardness (Neethi) in your every act. That will reveal the Divine in due course. It will also enable you to overcome your three Gunas (Rajas, Sathwa and Tamo). Just as you grind chilly, salt and tamarind to get a tasty dish, you must grind all the three Gunas so that the taste of Ananda (bliss) emerges.
Baba

If we cultivate wants and desires, it feels all familiar to read it, that was the level I had met with my ex and unaware of it.

I talked about truth and thought that the ideal mattered a lot and he would help me to find that or we would do it together, but I guess that was all not possible, because I was not aware of the background and that is abuse and violence in my family.
We had met in the ashram and he agreed to everything, because it had to look ideal as he only took advantage of it, what Baba said in the inner view.

How to get Unaffected and to Bliss

It is the internal bliss that should matter to any person, not the external, sensory, objective and the worldly temporary joys.

If you can develop the inner poise or equilibrium that is undisturbed by the ups and downs every day presents to you, that is a sure sign of real success! Everyday is similar to the previous days, with the rising and setting of the Sun and the waxing and the waning of the Moon. However, when 365 days are over, we call it a New Year and give it a new name and number. The Sun and the Moon mark ascend and descend of the day. They are however, unaffected by the name or the number for the day or the year. Be like the Sun and the Moon.

Do not care about the new name or the number, but do care about your duties, your inner poise and bliss derived from within yourself!

Baba (thought for the day)

 

We can develop the inner poise or equilibrium only and get undisturbed by the ups and downs every day if we know what this is all about.

Once Baba asked me how I felt and I said, 'fine, Swami' and he answered, that is not true and because I looked at him surprised, he said 'up and down, up and down' and he told me that I had a naughty mind.

I tried in vain to get beyond the ups and downs, even though I meditated always more and more.

In the mean time I know that it is not possible to keep that level of equilibrium and undisturbed being, if we are not aware of what happens to us.

Property and Fame are but for a Fleeting Moment

An old grandfather of seventy was asked by his seven-year old grandchild, "Grandpa! How old are you?" and the old man replied, "Two!" The child was struck with wonder and looked a picture of doubt. The old man replied, "I have spent only the last two years in the company of the Lord, until then I was plunged in the marshland of pleasure seeking." 

Only the years that you have lived with the Lord have to be counted as life, the rest are not worth counting. Know that all this wealth, property and fame are but for a fleeting moment. Develop attachment for the Lord, who will be with you wherever you go.

Baba (thought for the day)

 

How do we spend in company of the Lord? Are you constantly in meditation repeating a mantra in your thoughts, what is actually not possible? 

After my first interview with Sai Baba and after he said that TM was not the right path and that I should only think about God, I wondered how to think always about God and I tried to never forget the OM. My first reaction was, I repeated the mantra in my thoughts, but of course, that didn't work.

Even if we meditate with Soham, the sound of the mantra is OM and that is what remains during deep sleep if we wake up in consciousness. Always thinking of God means we have to wake up in our consciousness, it is not on thought level. 

If we are constantly with the Lord we live in the present.

We have to discriminate between passing by values and reality which is always the same. The present is always present, we are constantly living in the present every moment new. If we think about the past and go for future projects we are not in the present, but in the mind. 

Past and future go together and reflect the state of duality, unity or total non-duality is a state of presence.

If we live in that state, our past is just a reflection and our future we don't know, we just do the best now.

Perverted - Reason, if it comes in the Way of that Love

Scriptures are only road-maps; at best they are guide-books that give directions for the destination. It is the actual journey that will reveal the hardships, the delays, the land-slips, the potholes as well as the beauty of the scenic route on the way, and the magnificence of the destination. No secondhand account can equal the firsthand experience! The symbols on the map are interpreted differently by different scholars according to their preconceived notions, predilections and pet theories. 

If you acquire Love, then you can dispense with the Scriptures; for the purpose of all the Scriptures is just that: to create the feeling of Sarvajana samaana prema (equal love for all), and to negate egoism which stands in the way. Reason too, if it comes in the way of this love, is to be discarded as 'perverted'.
Baba (thought for the day)

Years ago I went with my old mother for a visit to the younger brother. He was in hospital, had always problems and he was kind of chaotic. He was talking about strange stuff. I wondered why mother wanted me to come with her, probably she didn't want to drive there alone. 

After that visit in my dream the inner master said, that he does the worst he can do. As usually situations reflect later on, every object has its own refection and if we don't get it, it takes some time, but somehow it will be there later on.

I got worried and spontaneously asked, what he did? 

But he didn't like it when I was asking. I don't remember what he answered, but for sure not what I had in mind. Anyhow, I wanted an answer or a feedback and usually it takes time to get there. 

I guess I mentioned Baba and he didn't like it, even though he had been married years ago to a lady who was spiritually inclined or maybe be cause of that he has totally changed and turned into the opposite. 

My concern was to understand it, to get some kind of feeling for it. 

Baba also said years ago in my dream, that I should take care of my brother. And as he had begun with TM many years ago, he didn't do it, I don't remember, I have probably even initiated him. That is how it went on and I tried to talk to him and noticed, there was no use, every word I said was turned upside down and it got only worse and not better. 

Illumined by Devotion and Intution, but no Peace

Intellect loves to revel in discussions and disputations. Once you yield to this temptation, it takes a long while for you to escape from its shackles and move on to enjoy the bliss, which you can attain only from its nullification.

Your feelings and emotions warp your thought process, and convert reason into an untamed bull. Always be aware of the limitations of reason and logic. They must give way and yield to devotion.

After a point in time, your spiritual path must be illumined by devotion and intuition. Hence, be aware – your intellect can help you only for some distance along the Godward path. Very often, egoism tends to encourage and justify one's actions, for a person is led along the wrong path by one's own reason, if that is the path the person likes! You often come to the conclusion you want to reach! So make a careful choice on the path you tread!

Baba

 

What is the difference between discrimination, which is the first step on the path and discussions and disputations?
He calls it the first step, discrimination. The second step is to see it in our own life and the third step we have to go on no matter what obstacles are there, that is called Tapas, spiritual work.

It has nothing to do with discussion and disputation. Baba calls the posititive side of the intellect devotion and the ill intended logic which puts everything in question is here meant with intellect.
For us in the West as we work mostly with the intellect and not the heart, that is difficult to understand. We think discrimination has only to do with the intellect, but it has to do with heart as well, it is the heart that leads to that discrimination between the eternal and the ephemeral, it means we accept that 'God' exists and develop love for God, pure love.

We think with the heart and discriminate between the real and the not real.
We cannot discuss about it, because discussion creates doubts.

The fact that I couldn't understand it right and use my intellect without feeling bad, resulted in trying to find answers on a place I finally couldn't find any. I went into a relationship and trusted someone who said, he knew, because I knew that I don't know.

Essence and Food

There is no point in distributing the essence of spirituality (adhyatma rasa) to underfed and weak people; give them food (anna rasa) first, make them strong enough to entertain strong beliefs and contain strong ideals. Physical hunger must first be appeased by simple and pure (sathvic) food.

Then the repetition of the Name of the Lord must be undertaken; it can be any name that appeals to you the most. Do not treat the Name lightly. Respect it even if you hear it from the lips of a beggar, who uses it to procure alms. Though the person who utters the Name is bad or though his motive in uttering it may not be noble, do not ill treat the Name for its purity can never be harmed. Thank them for reminding you of the Lord and go your way.
Baba (thought for the day)

 

We discriminate between food and sathvic food, that is vegetarian food and food for the mind and meditation in mental purification. If we meditate, the mind is purified. That happens when we repeat the name of the Lord or a mantra, as any divine name is okay, so is every mantra okay.

But there had been a doubt about it, therefore, Baba mentioned it that all mantras are okay after a group meditation in the ashram. We met and meditated before Darshan and he took the group in the interview room. He talked about 'Soham', we watch the breath and listen to its sound, inhaling it is So ... and exhaling it is Ham ... It is the sound of the universe, the OM and if realized it is always present, also during sleep, it is the inner awareness that is not lost.

Meditation should be like cleaning teeth, we just do it to purify the mind. As we take a shower to keep the body clean, we meditate to keep the mind clean. If we don't do that we get entangled in the mind game.

After I began with dynamic meditation for a while I didn't sit anymore silently and I guess I got the reaction later on as loss of strength and energy. With dynamic meditation the body became more important, I also was careless about food and I guess it was not replacing the quality of silent meditation and after it hit it said, stop dancing. There was a time I also didn't silently meditated, but I began with Qigong and that was also not great and finally it was Amma in my dream, she said that I was travelling over China back to India. That was clear enough, I began again to sit and meditate.

Who sets the Example of Discrimination and Detachment?

For the wisdom of discrimination to dawn on people, elders must first set an example in discrimination and detachment. If they run after sensory pleasures with feverish excitement, how can the youth be blamed for their selfishness and greed?

The elders must practise what they preach, show how a divine life confers mental poise, joy, contentment and harmony. They must spend at least some time everyday in the recital of the Lord's Name or on Meditation. Then, children too, will imbibe that atmosphere and acquire peace for sure. Today, many speak with full passion that there is nothing as sweet as the Name of the Lord, but they do not repeat it at all. Children will easily discover the hoax, if one neglects their own spiritual progress on the path, but preaches it. The accountability of those who profess the spiritual path is great and must not be undermined.

Baba (thought for the day)

 

It makes sense that elders should set an example in discrimination and detachment, but we have to look for those elders in the West.

I have not found one until now who fits in that picture. We think elders to have more experience and we need experience to develop discrimination.

They do run after pleasures with feverish excitement, not only the youth, but also the elders seem to go for selfishness and greed. It was like that in my own family and it is like that all around us. We don't have that knowledge and nobody is preaching it.

The elders should practice what they preach.

I was with TM and the national leader was just an actor, and he was personal staff of the yogi and all the others are puppets and the master is not present, therefore, the source got lost, the West took over and changed the knowledge in the end it is not okay anymore.

Baba talks about the elders, but not even the yogis do it.
The West seems that corrupt it changes the mind of people, but not for the better, but for the worse.

I have been with Osho and did an inner child course with probably the most successful sannyas in that movement. They seemed close to the master, also American, chaining people to his work, there have been chains in the inner view and she came and told me even in the dream that they earned millions with that work, with chains and the inner child work, choosing people to do that work.

He belongs to the elders and something like close to the master. 

And isn't it the same with devotees? Is having interviews a sign of devotion and being close to him? Yes great, until we meet death inside and notice that it is nothing but the ego and greed. In the inner view was a whirlpool, that is greed and there was death, an empty hooded black guy, the inner master said that he did that, not only once, but twofold, I guess mind and body, that is not divinity, that is not light, but it is the opposite. 

That are the elders of the West, the devotees, the sannyasins, the meditators, not one was until now real of all those people I have met.

He will reveal Himself to You

Many of you often come to Puttaparthi or visit other holy places. You hear scholars expounding the scriptures. You have observed great and noble souls. What is the benefit? How have you improved by all this? Have you succeeded in at least recognising your rajasic (passionate) and tamasic (dark) habits and tendencies? Recognizing them as deleterious is the first step in removing them. Have you become more and more serene and poised (Sathvic) as the years go by, or are you the same dull or perhaps fiery individual?
If you must know the Lord, you must love the Lord and lead your life with good conduct. Hatred or even indifference will result only in misunderstanding. Develop close association with the Lord and He will reveal Himself to you.

Baba (thought for the day)

 

In our last study circle there was the question about 'sathva' and it was kind of surprising to notice that it was not known or understood. There was the question, what is meant with 'sathva'. Is it a good question?
Certainly, because we cannot get aware of it if we don't inquire about it. But if we have no idea about 'Sathva', we also do not know the difference between 'Rajas' and 'Tamas'.

We observed great souls? The first step is discrimination and that means to get aware of the difference between Sathva, Rajas and Tamas, the great souls are established in sathva. 

If we are not aware of the tamasic and rajasic tendencies, we cannot remove them. 

But looking around here, it feels like they talk about God and love and after there is nothing anymore and not even the knowing where to begin with. They try to feel love, mind level. If we try to feel it - that is not permanent and not based on truth. And as we looked at discrimination first, one said, 'discrimination for sure not, it is about unity' and it sounded convinced, she said it loud in the circle and it was not her turn. We get to wrong conclusions, if we do not enough thinking it over. 

It feels like people try to understand it, but they stop when they hear God and love and afterwards they try to feel love and unity and that feels to them like the opposite, as they relate discrimination only to the head and intellect, that we can know the difference with the heart, that seems kind of far away, but it is seen with the heart. We are just not aware that the heart has the quality of discrimination.

That means there is also no feeling for the difference between mind and no mind or Atman, because they try to feel love. It has to be a permanent state and that has nothing to do with trying to feel love. And they are that uncertain that most of them do not go for meditation. But there is development in singing and Bhajans, some are playing instruments and we have great singers, that is developing the heart, but it seemes understanding it is far behind.

And as it is in the heart, we have to know the influence on the heart level. 

The Art of Enjoyment - Dance into Freedom

Parents and teachers must see that children learn good habits and attitudes in their formative years. What is read from books must be contemplated upon and reflected upon in silence and quietness. This is a very good exercise in intellectual development and in the acquisition of mental peace. The instinct to quarrel and fight over any and all misunderstandings must be regulated and sublimated. You should not cause children to suffer mental anguish or physical pain! Children also should not enjoy the infliction of pain on any being. They must be brought up with a sense of responsibility. They should be taught not to take delight in showing off their dress, ornaments, status or wealth before the less fortunate. They must be taught from early on, habits of personal cleanliness and most importantly, the habit of prayer at regular hours.

Baba

(thought for the day)

Bhajans is a wonderful way to make the experience to be in the present, to get out of the mind and to not allow the mind to take over during the singing. 

Knowing that Atman is only presence and if we notice during singing that our mind is still preoccupied in our projects or thoughts, we can let go and flow with the sound, it is also a way to get into the feeling. If the focus is not on the voice, but on the self, realizing we are all the same, we also don't get tired, we can start at any point new again, because it is all the same. It is a great experience of good energy to stay in the presence and as there are people singing together, we really can get energized by that. 

We usually feel the presence of Baba. If I close my eyes, it is like the beautiful times of Darshan, in my minds eye I see him walk around and giving Darshan to people, the sweet center of it or he is sitting in his chair and is listening to the Bhajans and it is a great feeling realizing that if two or three are in his name together, he is in the midst of us. 

Whatever disturbance in the mind which is always preoccupied with thinking about something, the future projects and the past, we can just let go and just be in the present. That is a very good exercise and being aware that Atman is in the present only and that the mind is constantly keeping us inside busy thinking about something, preventing that we can live fully in that present, if we know that and realize it, we of course can help the mind to calm down. I usually notice when I am not enough in the sound, when I begin to get bored. I am not enough into singing but in the mind.