Table of
Contents
'The Living Master'
is a 110 pages booklet, holding 23 pictures of Maharaji.
Its text only has been reproduced here.
Introduction
Where it all Begins
Knowledge
Guru Maharaj Ji
The Practice - Satsang, Service
and Meditation
Devotion
One Foundation
Introduction
You need someone to reveal the Truth to you. When you
want to learn math, you need a math master. When you want
to learn physics, you need a physics master. And when you
want to learn perfection, you need a Perfect Master. When
you approach this Master, he reveals to you one secret,
the Truth that is within us.
- Guru Maharaj Ji
Guru Maharaj Ji once explained that although so many
books and philosophies have been written about the
subject of Truth, in essence, Truth is very simple. Truth
is not a theory or a belief, but is the energy which
keeps us alive. This life energy is within us and when
experienced directly, it brings that satisfaction and
sense of fulfillment that we seek in the world around us.
Guru Maharaj Ji comes to us in the full awareness of that
Truth to enable us to be aware of it as well.
This book is a compilation of excerpts from discourses,
known as satsangs, of Guru Maharaj Ji. Guru Maharaj Ji
was born on December 10, 1957, in Hardwar, India, the
youngest of four sons. He was declared Perfect Master at
the age of eight by his father, Param Hans Satgurudev
Shri Hans Ji Maharaj, the living Perfect Master of his
time. Guru Maharaj Ji left India in 1971, at the age of
thirteen, to begin his first tour of the West, and has
since traveled world wide.
There is no way that the subject covered in this book can
ever be captured in words, because it is a matter of a
person's own individual experience. But Guru Maharaj Ji
speaks about this internal experience to tell us that it
exists and that it is the most profound experience that a
human being can ever have. This experience is what Guru
Maharaj Ji calls Knowledge.
Guru Maharaj Ji has dedicated his life to spreading this
Knowledge throughout the world. This book is intended as
a simple introduction to his message. Many books have
been written throughout history about this same message:
the purpose of life, the Knowledge, the Perfect Master,
his guidance towards the realization of Knowledge, and
the devotion between the Master and disciple. But here
are the words of the living Master. And what he is
offering is more than just words; he can reveal the
practical experience of what our existence is all
about.
Where
it All Begins
There is this everlasting thing...
Sometimes when you are sitting in a room, your whole
perspective sort of folds in, seems small. But you go
outside, say at nighttime, and you see all these stars;
they're completely incredible. You start to look up, and
you see these stars, and you just say, "Wow! Those are
far, far away. And there's a whole galaxy out there. And
who knows what's beyond even that, and what this whole
universe is made of?" And yet, you still know that the
whole universe which is within our reach is completely
finite.
But there exists a thing that's completely infinite. Past
all universes, past all the stars, all the galaxies, all
the Milky Ways, all the moons, all the suns, lies an
incredible experience, lies this incredible energy. And
the experience of that energy, by Guru Maharaj Ji's
Grace, is possible now. And that is what's being given to
us: to be able to experience that perfection, to be able
to experience that Knowledge, that incredible beauty,
that lies within all of us.
(Malaga, Spain; March 26, 1978.)
The Creator - so beautiful - made beautiful oceans, and
then gave them waves, movement, and put so many lives
into that ocean, so many beautiful lives. The Creator
made the Earth, made man, made the whole world, made the
whole universe. And that's a lot! That's a lot to do. I
mean, man just goes to the moon and goes, "Yay!" After
every kind of trouble they can possibly imagine. And the
Creator just made it, you know; manufactured the whole
thing. There is some purpose. There is some reason.
There's such a perfection of that Creator. It wasn't just
perfect enough to have an ocean; it also had to have
waves. It wasn't just enough to make the sun and water,
but to put a rainbow on it. Such immaculate
perfection.
And just look at us. It wasn't enough to make human
beings. It wasn't enough, but then to put life inside of
us, to give us a shape, to give us that opportunity to be
able to come into the world. And that wasn't enough. To
be able to live at that time when Guru Maharaj Ji is
here. To be able to experience that Knowledge. And that's
beyond every speck of perfection that we can possibly
perceive-to give us that opportunity.
I mean, who knows? That Creator could have made the smell
in that rose stink like crazy, like a stink bomb. But,
no. The sweetest, the most gracious, the most beautiful
smell had to come out of it. It wasn't enough to make a
white flower, but to make a gardenia so beautiful and put
such an immaculate smell in it. For whom? For His
children. For His creation.
Here we are, but our pursuit has been constantly
persuaded by mind to pursue what it wanted: a great
dissatisfaction. One of the times we have to just stop.
At some point in this whole journey we have to stop in
our lifetime and say, "Well, what is happening? What is
this all about? Why is the world here? Why is the ocean
here? Why is the whole universe there? And who is that
Lord? Who is that Creator? And why is this thing inside
of me, somewhere, so longing, so devotedly longing to
become one with it? What is it?" I mean, at some point in
our lives we have to just say, "Okay, hurrah and great.
But what about me? The true me?"
(Miami Beach, Florida; July 31, 1977.)
To me, there is always a constant search going on within
inside of man. If a person actually found the true
meaning of his life and then that search stopped, I think
there would be incredible things happening. But that
eagerness, that anxiousness to always go on, to look for
that answer, to look for that Truth, brings us to a point
in our lives where we really see that "I'm missing
something."
(Miami Beach, Florida; July 29, 1977.)
Once in a while, it just so happens that a question pops
up. Once in a while, it just so happens that somehow we
end up questioning one fact: Are we really happy? Is
happiness just owning a car, or having a nice family? Is
that happiness? Is that Truth? Or, in fact, is it
something else?
You can see that if somebody has a Cadillac, then he has
something, because he can't just go and pick a Cadillac
from a tree. But then again, does he have Peace? Once in
a while, all the material things that we base our
happiness upon are bound to break, are bound to crack,
are bound to break down. And that happens.
But we want a constant happiness. We all want a very,
very constant happiness. And that is why we have to look
towards something that is, in fact, more stable in our
life; that is, in fact, something which is constant.
Then the search begins. Then it really all starts
happening. It's like, "Yes, I want to receive something.
I want something. I realize that I'm missing a part of my
life."
(Paris, France; June 8, 1976.)
You have to understand what this life really is, who you
really are. You have to look at an overall picture, and
say, "Who am I? I'm a doctor, or I'm an engineer, or I'm
a pilot, but who am 'I'? Who is that real thing? What is
that real thing that is within inside of me, that I am
here for?" Because, by no means are you here to become a
doctor. You become a doctor because that's what you want
to do. But does that mean that whatever you want to do in
this life is the purpose of your life? Certainly not.
There is just one set purpose to life. Everybody comes
into the world for one purpose, and every Perfect Master
that has come into the world so far has pointed out that
purpose of life. And it's bean exactly the same, again
and again and again and again. I mean, theories and words
can only take you so far. But the experience of this
Knowledge takes you miles beyond. That experience takes
you even further and further and further and further.
Because then you really start to experience: "Okay! So,
great! I'm a doctor. I'm a pilot. I'm an engineer." Or
whatever your career is, or whatever you're pursuing.
"I'm a tractor-trailer man." Or a bus driver. "That's my
career! But first thing is first: what am I here
for?"
(Malaga, Spain; March 26, 1978.)
KNOWLEDGE
Everything is a vibration. My hand is a
vibration of something. Me, myself - I am a vibration of
something. Everything is a vibration. And then there is a
primordial vibration, which is of course, the highest and
the most beautiful vibration of all. One vibration is
vibrating; that's why all the vibrations are
vibrating.
There is something functioning in me, and if that stops,
I'll stop. A doctor would say "your heart," or "your
lungs." "If your lungs stop breathing, you will stop
breathing." But what is the one thing which, if that
goes, everything stops? We don't understand that now.
Today we think we live, we survive, because our heart
pumps, blood circulates, we breathe, oxygen goes in, and
so on, and we function. No! If we take a dead body and
dissect it, we will find its heart is there, its blood is
there, the lungs are there, everything is there, just
fine. What is missing? That's the clue - what is missing?
This is it: for man to understand this Knowledge, to
understand this secret.'
(New Delhi, India; November, 1972.)
How many people see sunsets? It's fantastic, you
know-people go out, and that's the big thing. Every
Sunday night, if the sky is clear and beautiful, people
go out and watch sunsets. So they have a nice time. But
there's a lot of difference when I see a sunset, because
I don't just see a sunset. I understand that what is
making everything go up and down is that energy, is that
Knowledge, and when I look all around me, look
everywhere, it is that energy that is making it happen. I
don't see that energy in this mike, but I know that what
is making this mike exist right now is that energy. What
is making me talk-I don't see my talk come out, but I
know that what is making that sound is that energy. And I
see everything, and I know it is the energy; it is the
essence that I have got.
(Frankfurt, Germany; November 29, 1976.)
What is Knowledge? Knowledge is a stethoscope. Through
this stethoscope we can tap into the inner being of who
we really are. We can motivate ourselves inside, we can
go deep inside and experience what we really consist
of.
(Denver, Colorado; February20, 1977.)
Knowledge is itself the path and also the destination. It
is what it is and it is what it should be. Knowledge is
the path to itself and takes us into itself, for it is
that vibration we are seeking. It is everything. It is
merged with everything. It is the Knowledge. It is the
primordial vibration. It is the path to it. And it is it
itself. This is Knowledge.
(London, England; October, 1971.)
I can give you a lot of philosophical theories. I can
tell you how an automobile works, or I can tell you how a
camera works, or I can tell you a lot of different
things. But that's not what you need in your life. All
you need in your life is one thing you already have: your
life. That's energy. And you don't need that; that's
already there.
And you don't have to do anything to keep it there,
either. When you go to sleep, it's still going. What you
have to do is to tap into that energy, to completely
submerge into that energy, to completely merge with that
energy, so that you can be one with that energy. And
there is a process to do that. There is a path to do
that. And that is the path that I want to reveal to you.
I want to bridge the gap that is between that infinite
thing and you, who are so finite, so that you can come to
the point where you can actually be one with that
infinite thing.
(London, England; April 20, 1977.)
Remember this: Knowledge does not seek us; we seek
Knowledge. That is the seed that is going to bring us-if
we call it liberation, then it's liberation; satisfaction
of mind, then it's satisfaction of mind; Peace, Peace.
You name it, and it's going to bring it to you.
What I talk about, that Light I talk about, is not the
light you see because you happen to be most fortunate to
have two eyes. I'm talking about that Light that even a
blind person can see and experience. I'm not talking
about the music that your two ears experience; I'm
talking about the Music that even a person who does not
hear can listen to. I'm talking about something that's a
little more-well, let's say, serious. I'm talking about
something that's a little more beautiful, something a
little more within inside of us, a little more subtle,
and a little more gracious, than everything else that we
do in our lifetime.
(Denver, Colorado; February 20, 1977.)
When you take this Light of Knowledge away, there's
nothing there. And with Knowledge there, it makes the
existence of everything else a hundred thousand times
better.
It brings the life into a dead body.
It brings leaves; it brings spring to the flowers, to the
trees that are barren.
It brings people into the valleys.
It brings the air in the flute that makes it sound so
beautiful.
It makes the drums beat within inside Of us.
It makes the clouds come so that rain can fall.
It makes the sun come bright.
That is the beauty of this Knowledge; that is the beauty
of this Love; that is the beauty of this understanding.
And without the experience of this Knowledge I know
material things can never provide me with happiness. And
even now, I look at them- I'm not happy because of them,
and I'm not sad because of them either. But people think
that by having all this materialism, they will be
happy.
(Atlantic City, New Jersey; December 19,
1976.)
Guru
Maharaj Ji
Guru Maharaj Ji, how do we realize Truth? Is it really
possible?
You must ask the Master how to do it. That is why that
power manifests itself into a body into the Perfect
Master. The Perfect Master comes and removes all the
darkness, and brings the supreme Light into the world. If
you find him, you will get it; if you don't find him, you
won't get it. He is not in caves or mountains. Search and
you will find him.
So God cannot teach anything, except through a
Master?
What is God? You don't know what God is. God cannot
be a human being. God is Light; God is power. God cannot
talk. Electricity cannot give light. Only the bulb gives
light, but electricity has to be put through the wires
for the bulb to give light. It's power. Power cannot do
anything; it has to be put through a medium. Yes?
Guru Maharaj Ji, where did you receive this
Knowledge?
From my Guru. It's not like an apple that comes out of o
tree. I received from my Guru. He was my father, and he
gave me this Knowledge. He gave me this Knowledge, and he
ordered me to give it to other people, which is what I am
doing now.
Guru Maharaj Ji, are you permanently in
God-consciousness?
Yes. I am permanently in God-consciousness.
Some people say you are a divine incarnation, and some
people say other things about you. What's the
truth?
You yourself must realize the truth.
How can you help us through this game we play on this
planet?
I'm going to supervise you, and stop you wherever you
play wrong. That is all. I'm going to give you this
Knowledge; I'm going to make you perfect in this game.
And it won't be a qualifying game anymore; it will be the
final game. Now people are about to play a real game, and
this is the final game. So I'm going to make you perfect
for that.
Just have some patience and see what happens! Just see,
how far out this game is going to be, how far out will be
the things that happen! Have some patience in your head,
and you'll see how this little room is going to be on the
other side of the river, how the world is going to float
over this ocean of materialism and inhumanity and all
that is here. The world is going to float over it, and go
to the other side, where there is purity, purity, purity
all the time. And you're going to see how it goes. Like a
hovercraft, but faster.
(Various excerpts: Toronto, Canada; September, 1971 -
Johannesburg, South Africa; May 3, 1972 - London,
England; February 28, 1972 - London, England; November
1971.)
"Guru" is a Sanskrit word, and I agree that bringing
that word into the West might be an extremely odd thing.
But then why even call it "West" and "East" and "North"
and "South", when the whole universe is one? Let the
language be just a factor of communication, so that we
can communicate between each other. "Guru Maharaj Ji", or
"Guru", represents something, means something. It's not a
meaningless word.
Rather than being a noun, it's a verb. What that really
means is, it shows action. "Guru" is not a noun; it's not
a name. It's a function of a person, of somebody who
comes into the world to save us. And the particular
meaning of the word "Guru" is that "gu" means darkness,
and "ru" means Light. The one who takes us away from the
darkness that we are in, and puts us into the Light, is
called "Guru."
And when we go and surrender, when we go and dedicate
ourselves to Guru Maharaj Ji, that is when something
happens, something clicks. I don't think anybody can
define what really happens and what really takes place,
but something happens, something so beautiful, and that
puts us in the place where we wanted to be all our
lives.
(Orlando, Florida; November 8, 1975.)
People need to understand what Guru Maharaj Ji is. A lot
of people have had a lot of concepts about Guru Maharaj
Ji: "Okay, Guru Maharaj Ji is this certain person who
comes and sits on the stage, and speaks to us". Or, "Guru
Maharaj Ji is that person who flies the kite." Or, "Guru
Maharaj Ji is this person," or "Guru Maharaj Ji is that
person." "Guru Maharaj Ji is this, and Guru Maharaj Ji is
that." No! Guru Maharaj Ji is beyond all that, because
Guru Maharaj Ji is a part of that realization that you
want.
Listen! It doesn't matter how great the boat is, if it
hasn't got a skipper, it's no good. And that's the way it
comes. If it hasn't got a skipper, it's just no good. It
doesn't matter how fantastic everything is. It doesn't
matter if you are leading, according to your concepts, a
perfect life. But if you haven't got that skipper, you
have had it.
Why? What is Guru Maharaj Ji? Who is Guru Maharaj Ji? It
is not a question. It is a request. It is a thirst that
you want to quench, to find out what is Guru Maharaj Ji.
You cannot put that in questions.
Guru Maharaj Ji is an experience. You tell me: What is
the experience of drinking water? The experience of
drinking water doesn't exist! The experience is of
quenching your thirst. That is the experience. If you
say, "What is the experience of drinking water," that is
a wrong question altogether. It's not the matter of
drinking water; it is the matter of quenching your
thirst. And that is the real question: how to quench your
thirst. What is Guru Maharaj Ji? Not conceptualized by
his activities, but what is Guru Maharaj Ji? What is it
that makes him so potent, so powerful, that he can reveal
this Knowledge? And to find that out, if you want to know
that little trick of how to find that out, you have to
find out who you are.
Understand why Guru Maharaj Ji is here in the world.
Understand - why is a Perfect Master supposed to come in
the world? What is the purpose? Understand - why are we
here? Why are we put here, and then the Perfect Master
comes in the world? What is the purpose? It isn't to sell
oranges; believe me, it isn't. It is to reveal you
Peace!
And obviously, every time the Perfect Master has come,
what has he done? Revealed people Peace, given people
Peace. Therefore, at least by now we should understand -
speaking humbly as I can - that the purpose of our life
is to really experience that physically unsmiled but
always-smiling smile. How many Perfect Masters do you
want to wait out? How many scriptures are you going to
read? What are you going to do before you can enter it in
your head that that is the purpose of this life, and that
this is what we have to do?
(Portland, Oregon; January 30, 1977.)
Why does Guru Maharaj Ji have to manifest himself in
a human life and come into the world, and be here, and
stay here, and try to guide us? Because there is an
incredible necessity of guidance.
(Atlantic City, New Jersey; December 19, 1976.)
Guru Maharaj Ji's purpose in life is to make sure
that you hear satsang, get interested in Knowledge,
receive Knowledge, and after you have received Knowledge,
to see you through to your destination.
(Rome, Italy; November 12, 1979.)
This life - try to understand. You are
there, and the whole world is there, and then there is
the universe. This is how far we have gone in putting it
into words. And who knows what's after the universe? I
mean, those trillion-dollar telescopes can only go so
far, and that's it. That's their limit. Who knows what's
after that? Who knows what's infinity? But in that giant,
giant space that we don't even know of, here we are,
holding our own values and trying to figure out our
way.
For a man to try by himself, forget it. Just forget it.
But somebody who already knows - all he has to do is say,
"Listen, here is the chart. Go with it, and it'll be
right there." And you will be right there.
It's been said that Guru Maharaj Ji comes, or God comes
into the world, when there is a decline in religion. God
comes, Guru Maharaj Ji comes, and helps the world. Why?
Realize how much importance there is to it when Guru
Maharaj Ji comes and tries to help you through; how much
importance there is to it; how small you are compared to
the whole world, and the whole world to the whole
universe, and that whole universe to something called
infinity. We have no idea how big it is, and how small it
is.
(Denver, Colorado; October 12, 1974.)
Knowledge is infinite, and we are finite. So we
need a bridge, we need a translator, who is infinite and
finite at the same time, who can really bring us
together. And that is Guru Maharaj Ji. In my realization
of Knowledge, I know that if it hadn't been for my Guru
Maharaj Ji, Knowledge alone wouldn't have done wonders
for me, because the wonders that Knowledge was doing
already existed: I was alive! I was alive, I was
breathing, playing around and so on, but when Guru
Maharaj Ji came into my life, everything became
different; it became real. I couldn't lose the importance
of Guru Maharaj Ji at that point and say, "Well, maybe I
can just do it on my own." Because it's literally
impossible to do it.
A lot of people have tried to do it the other way around,
without going through Guru Maharaj Ji at all, just going
back to nature, trying to be tuned with Knowledge in
their lives. But I can tell you one thing: It doesn't
work. They have wasted their lives completely. And that's
not just blunt advice, because Guru Maharaj Ji is here.
That's what makes it real for all of US.
(Malibu, California; December 10, 1976.)
Guru Maharaj Ji is a physical focal point where we
can really concentrate, where we can really focus. And
through that, through Guru Maharaj Ji, everything can
manifest for us. That is the only reason why Guru Maharaj
Ji even comes in this world. Knowledge is always there,
but Guru Maharaj Ji comes for us, because he provides
that focal point in our lives. That is something we can
communicate with; that is something we can see, something
we can perceive, something we can experience. And through
that, Guru Maharaj Ji then weaves us into the experience
of Knowledge, gently and slowly and beautifully, and then
helps us. As we, by our ignorance, untie ourselves from
that weaving, Guru Maharaj Ji sews us back again - if we
surrender to him, if we really let ourselves go. This has
been a thing of time immemorial.
(Denver, Colorado; February 20, 1977)
The
Practice - Satsang, Service and Meditation
Do satsang, service and meditation.
Satsang, service and meditation are like this - there's
this gap in our lives, in the whole system. There's
Knowledge, and there is us, and there's a vast gap
between. And this gap is because Knowledge is infinite
and we are finite. The two things just can't go together
so well, because one is perfect and one imperfect. So
there's a vast gap, and a bridge has to be built over it.
And this bridge has to be built with this cement, which
consists of satsang, service and meditation.
Meditation itself is the cement; without that you can't
do anything. All you'll have is water and a stir stick,
and about all you can do with that is just stir a lot of
water. Nothing's going to happen. And then satsang is the
water, and service is the stick. And the better the
proportion of those three, and the better they are mixed,
the better the base will be to build the bridge with.
When the bridge is completed, then the gap is completed,
the gap is finished.
(Paris, France; June 8, 1976)
What is satsang?
Satsang means the company of Truth, and Truth is
something you cannot see, but you can realize. Satsang is
also something you cannot see, but you can feel. This
feeling, when it is expressed outwardly, is satsang. I
have realized the Truth, and when I tell you the feelings
I have got inside me, when I express my experience in
words, then that is what is called satsang, for my
experience has come from Truth.
(London, England; March 29, 1972)
"Talking" is not the point. Verbally explaining something
is not the point. Oh yeah, maybe somebody who is
higher-educated can do a better job of doing that. And
yet, the experience is what we are pursuing. Experience
is what we have to really come to. And that comes by our
own elevation of service and meditation. And yet, to
inspire, to be able to come to the point of being able to
do service and meditation, we have to come to the point
of actually being open to satsang.
You know, there are two parts. There's receiving, and
there is giving. And the giver has to have experience of
that Knowledge, to talk about it. And the receiver has to
be open to be able to listen to it. Because if you are
completely full of other stuff, then what are you going
to grab? How is it going to filter within inside of you?
Because it's really hard; what we are trying to do here
is to communicate! It is to transfer an experience from
one person to all the people who are listening.
Now that's what has to manifest: a transfer of
experience. What I have experienced, what I know, and
what I am talking about - I want you to experience that.
And yet, it's not verbal. And yet, the only channel we
have right here is verbal. So I mean, you have to try to
take one experience, convert it into something that it
really isn't, and then try to transfer it that way. And
yet, if you are open, if that channel is open, that
experience will flow through it, that experience will
come - the actual experience of that Knowledge, what that
Knowledge really is, what that satsang, service and
meditation really do, and what Guru Maharaj Ji really is.
That experience. That has to flow; that has to come
through.
(Kansas City, Missouri; January 21, 1978)
I wish, I really wish, that we could all come together
and beat the great drums of this satsang, so that all
brothers and sisters in this world could hear the voice
of these drums beating. And then they would dance to it,
just like you and I have. Every one of them. Every soul
in the universe would dance to it. And it would be a
beautiful experience. That is my wish. That is my
greatest desire. It's even beyond desire; that is my
life.
Every Perfect Master has come into the world and tried to
beat those drums. They got somewhere close to it, but
they didn't quite beat them loud enough, not loud enough
for everybody to hear. And it didn't pierce the tons and
tons and miles and miles of barriers that people have
between them. But for some reason, I have this hope. I
have this dream. I have this... It's not an idea, it is
not an idealism, but as a service, as the aim of my life:
to beat these drums so hard, so hard, that it might break
down those barriers that people have placed between them,
and that there might be Peace in the world.
(Atlantic City, New Jersey; December 19, 1976)
What is service?
Service is an experience that you get, via Knowledge,
when you perform an act for Guru Maharaj Ji in any way -
even if it's in Australia, if it's in the North Pole, if
it's in the South Pole, if Guru Maharaj Ji is there or
not there, but your heart is there.
(Rome Italy; March 28, 1977)
And Guru Maharaj Ji invites the people who have received
this Knowledge to accompany him in the adventure of
revealing this Truth, revealing this Knowledge, to the
whole world. And that's his mission. I have invited
premies to join me, to give me their love, to give me
their devotion, to give me their strength, so that people
can understand, and this Knowledge can be spread to
thousands and millions of people who are just confused,
who are just going around in circles and will keep on
going. For generations and generations before them,
people have been going around in circles, and have not
been given a fair opportunity to get out of there and to
realize the simple aim of human life.
(Lima, Peru; November 18, 1976)
What is meditation?
Perfect concentration upon a perfect thing is called
meditation. Just remember that. For then you are making
your soul and God into one, and at that time you are
receiving perfect communion with God. Because you have
put all your mind into the Knowledge, into that Peace,
which is God.
(Toronto, Canada; October 1971)
The only real thing in the world is energy, and it is
this energy that we call God. This energy is a Light
within us which we have to realize. And we cannot see
anything within us until there is a mirror before us. We
need the internal mirror of Guru Maharaj Ji, and through
it we will see that Light. The mirror is given by Guru
Maharaj Ji. I should not actually use the word "give,"
because it is shown by Guru Maharaj Ji. Only Guru Maharaj
Ji can open that box, has the key to that mirror box,
which is within you. When that box is open and the glass
is taken out, then we will see that Light and hear that
primordial vibration, feeling which we can have inner
satisfaction in our souls.
(Exeter, England; June 29, 1971)
Man can only realize God when his mind is stilled. When
the movement of mind has stopped, then he has realized
God. It's like when we switch the switch on to light the
bulb, we have not touched the bulb or the electricity. We
have only touched the switch, and by that action the bulb
is lighted. In the same way, we have to do nothing but
stop our mind from going in different directions, and we
will experience God.
(London, England; June 19, 1971)
If you take a rope by which you would tie an elephant,
and if you try to tie a little ant by that big, thick
rope, can you tie it? You can't. There would be such a
gap left that thousands and thousands can pass at a time.
And if you try to tie the elephant by a string by which
you would tie an ant, can you tie it? The elephant would
move, and the string will break. So, how then? You need
the little string for this ant, and the huge rope for the
elephant. And if you use them symmetrically, they can
solve your purpose.
So, your mind is so small. You know, it is the smallest
thing in the world. And it flows very quickly; it has got
more speed than electricity, more speed than
anything.
Today I see that a Jumbo Jet, a 747, has got a speed of
580 miles per hour. Let's say I am going to India, and
this jet has to fly and go to India, and it will take
much time. And here I am standing before the jet, and
already my mind has reached India! The jet hasn't started
yet, I haven't boarded, my luggage has not been taken, my
tickets have not been checked in. But still my mind has
gone to India, it has landed in Palam Airport, New Delhi,
and now my mind is trying to find a taxi back to my home.
This is my mind!
So how to control this mind? By a rope thick like an
elephant's rope? This small mind - can you tie it? No.
You need a Knowledge, something to control your mind, to
tie your mind up. Because this mind is so small, so tiny,
so invisible. And thus you need this Knowledge.
(London, England; November 2, 1971)
When you sit and meditate on this Knowledge, an
incredible experience flows into you. It's like standing
in a swimming pool, and suddenly somebody jumps in it.
There's a whole wave kind of thrown into the pool. And
you go with that wave, and it's so beautiful. Your body
is moving with the wave; you are just completely flowing,
floating on the water.
This is how it has to be. Just let ourselves relax into
that most holy, fantastic experience that we always
wanted. Let that experience just make us vibrate and
vibrate and vibrate. Because that's what it does.
(Amherst, Massachusetts; July 7, 1974)
There is a glorious sun, not the sun that you see in the
sky, but a sun which is within ourselves, and which is
much brighter, much, much, much brighter than the sun you
see in the sky.
Today, the guitar is played, and you love it. Rock and
roll is played; you love it. Classical music is played;
you love it. But there is a Music going on inside of us
also. God plays that Music, and it is such a far out
Music, so symmetrical and so beautiful, that after one
note, man's mind is concentrated upon it.
(London, England; November 2, 1971)
Really, in this world, there is something to realize
which is more beautiful, more fantastic than we think. In
this Knowledge, you can get to a point where you open
your eyes, and you see nothing but Light. At that time,
all you hear is Music; all you can feel is the Word
vibrating; all you can really drink is Nectar. It's so
beautiful, because everything that is inside our body,
all that energy, just comes together completely and fills
us up.
(Denver, Colorado; May 2, 1974)
A lot of people have huge concepts. They have this
extreme idea that maybe the realization of Knowledge is
that we'll be sitting down in meditation one day and -
whamo! - our spine will lift out of our head, and it'll
sunrise behind our head, and nobody will be able to see
us but we'll be able to see everybody.
To me, those people are on the right vehicle but on the
wrong flight. They're on the right plane - yes, it is a
747 that takes you there - but they're on the wrong
flight; they're going to the other part of the world.
They might be sincere, but it's going the wrong way. It's
going to an imagined experience; it is going towards that
experience that they have imagined. So what they are
fulfilling in their life by doing meditation this way is
the imagination; not the purpose that they actually want
- to experience Knowledge.Because the experience of
Knowledge is as intimate, as constant, and as flowing as
you are living right now, as your life goes on.
(Lima, Peru; November 9, 1976)
The day you receive Knowledge, and by your own effort of
doing satsang, service and meditation, you start to have
that experience of Knowledge, that experience of Guru
Maharaj Ji - it's just like the world's biggest, biggest
rose opening up all the petals. It's the worlds greatest
sunshine, where all the rays just completely come
blooming out golden into your lives. And you see the
Grace manifest. You can see, you can feel the Grace
happen in your life.
(Miami Beach, Florida; July 31, 1977)
Devotion
We're all here because of Love. And this Love that unites
us all together is different. It's different because it's
not physical. It's different because it's true. It's
different because it's sincere. It's unique in its own
way. And this is the reason why we all come here. And
because we are premies. And what does "premies" mean?
"Premie" means lover. Lover of what? What do we love in
our lives? We love satsang, service and meditation, and
the originator of it all, Guru Maharaj Ji.
(Miami Beach, Florida; March 19, 1977)
If somebody comes when you are drowning in the river,
and saves your life, now immediately there is a
relationship that's formed. And that relationship is not
of a brother, is not of a husband, is not of a sister, is
not of a wife. But the relationship is something else.
And it is greater than all the relationships that we have
formed and we have created.
This is the greatest relationship that ever can be
formed. And you call him your Savior. The love you have
towards him is greater than you have towards your
parents. It's greater than anything. And this
relationship is: the Knowledge which is within inside of
us has been revealed. And this is the reason why devotees
love their Lord so much. Because there has been a
relationship formed which is virtually unbreakable.
(Seattle, Washington; February 12, 1974)
One time, Marolyn was reading a book to the children, and
it was called The Ugly Duckling. While she was reading I
was looking over at the book, and I was flashing back and
forth, that that's really the true case. Because there is
this swan, which looks like an ugly duckling, trapped in
between not its own. And it's just like us, just like
human beings trapped in materialistic idealisms. And
because you want to be with something, you always pursue,
"Oh yes, yes, yes, this is what I want. Yes, yes, yes,
this is what I want."
And the way the whole story goes is that (well, I have
heard it a few ways, but according to this book) there
was this ugly duckling who went from house to house, and
went from one flock of chickens to another flock of
chickens, and everybody would just push him away, push
him away. Till one day he looked up, and he saw this
beautiful flock of swans just fly by. He just cried,
"Wait, wait; I want to come with you," and yet they just
kept on going. And he was very sad. He thought he was
really ugly, and he really didn't know. Because everybody
said "ugly," he thought he was ugly.
Then came the one time when he was on top of the water,
and because he saw these beautiful birds, beautiful swans
coming towards him, he thought, "Maybe they will reject
me; maybe they will want me to go away from here, from
their royal place, from their heaven, from their
kingdom." And so he bent down sort of like in disgrace,
sort of shy, sort of afraid, with fear, and he saw his
own reflection, ever so beautiful, the same reflection as
those swans. And then in his heart it became so clear
that that's where he wanted to stay, that that's what he
was. Not what the other things said. Not that ugly
duckling. But in fact, what he was the most beautiful
swan, to stay with the most beautiful swans in their
kingdom of joy and love and heaven.
So maybe that's what it takes, one bow down, and that one
surrender, to just look, to let go into that point and
just to see how beautiful you really are inside. How that
perfectness has made you in such a perfect, perfect,
perfect way.
A lot of people put wrong effort in wrong places. And
that's what my job is, to make sure - if you have
surrendered, if you want me to - to make sure that your
effort is put in the right place, that what you're trying
to pursue in terms of satsang, service and meditation, is
right, is correct. The only reason why I'm here is to
give you that Knowledge, to make sure that you get that
experience. Because it is a beautiful experience.
I want you to have the same experience as I have had. The
experience that I have had is beautiful, that I have is
beautiful, is incredible. It's constant. It's
everflowing. It's gracious. I guess there's really no
words to describe it. And I want you to have that same
experience.
So either you can take off, walk away from this whole
shazam; or let go, just let go. And it's just the Grace
of Guru Maharaj Ji. It's so beautiful, so amazing what he
really does. And yet we really never realize it; and yet
we never really give thanks. And we can never, of course,
never thank enough.
One of the saints in India, Brahmanand, had this one song
where he said, "Oh Guru Maharaj Ji, you have so much
Mercy, you have given me so much Mercy, you have given me
so much Grace that you have broken all my illusions. You
have broken all my doubts, my strings, my bonds, my
concepts " He goes on to say, "Some people go to one
place, some people go to the other place; they look for
the reality here, they look for the reality there." He
says that quite clearly. "People look for God here and
people look for God there. But you, Guru Maharaj Ji, have
shown me that that eternal thing that I was looking for,
that the people are looking for everywhere, is within
inside of me. I mean, just like that, you have shown me."
And in the end he says, "What should I give to my Guru
Maharaj Ji for doing all that for me? What can I really
give to my Guru Maharaj Ji?" And he says, "Even if I take
everything in the world and just multiply it millions and
trillions of times and give it to him, it wouldn't even
mean a little speck of anything to him. Because what he
has really done for me is so incredible, is so beautiful,
that how can I ever repay him?"
And the song stops at that point. That's the last verse.
That is what we have to realize. But before we can even
do that, we have to feel our own experience of Knowledge.
And then we have to realize, "Well, wait a minute. Am I
really surrendering myself to Guru Maharaj Ji or
not?"
That is the key to this whole thing: to surrender. We try
to do it ourselves; it's just so hard. We can't do it.
It's rigged up that way. It's so conceptualized for us.
We can't get out of it. Even if we try to get out of it,
we can't get out of it.
I can give you one simple example. A child is born, and
that child grows up in a particular society. Some grow up
in high society; some grow up in low society. (I mean,
this is a flat example.) And that determines what kind of
valley you live in. It doesn't even matter what society
you come from; you're on the same grounds, with all the
same problems. At first, there's no questions, there's no
doubts; there is nothing happening. The child is there,
beautiful; plays, plays, plays, plays. Then he starts to
change at a certain age. Things are told to him. And I
remember things that were told to me a long, long time
ago. And I still remember them, just clear as a bell.
Sometimes I see that when a concept starts, it's easy
enough with Knowledge to just brush them off to the side.
But then, I can see how there was a whole circle of
concepts trying to be placed on top of my head. Some
other people's concepts. Not to put it in the way, "I
think" or "may be." No, no, that wasn't the case. At that
age, you don't tell a child things like that. You tell
them like it was as sure as the sun in the midday skies.
You just tell them as straight as you can: "Listen, kid,
that's the way it is." And not, "Maybe that's the way it
is, " but you just tell them straightaway.
And those little boundaries start growing slowly and
slowly and slowly. And there you are, in the middle of
this deep valley. So many concepts. So many ideas. So
many philosophies. So many ideologies. What you have
picked up yourself, what people have told you, or
something that happened when you were a child.
All these things just gather around you and just coop you
up in there. And so they become the whole purpose, the
whole meaning, the whole thing in your life. And then
that's the valley that we want to get out of. That's the
place we want to get out of, and come into the open, and
really see the reality in the world, really appreciate
that incredibleness, instead of sitting in that cooped-up
valley. Only by Guru Maharaj Ji's Grace is that possible,
to get out of that valley, to get out of that place.
Request Guru Maharaj Ji. If that's what you really want,
request Guru Maharaj Ji. Ask Guru Maharaj Ji. Pray to
Guru Maharaj Ji to get you out of that valley, so that
you can be clear, so that you can be open. And the rest,
I assure you, is incredible. Then everything is great.
You can see the whole Grace just taking over. It's just
like a big, huge gust of this whole Grace picking
everything up and bringing it closer and closer every
second, every moment, to the place where we really want
to be. Bringing us closer and closer to that most
beautiful Knowledge.
Knowledge is something that we really have to try to
practice, try to put our effort into it. If we don't do
that, then we're just going to get spaced out. And that's
not even giving a fair chance to Knowledge. But, if you
really try, if you sincerely try, if you give Knowledge a
chance, if you give Guru Maharaj Ji a chance, and let it
for one single time manifest in your life, I can assure
you it's going to work. It always has worked. It's just a
matter of giving Guru Maharaj Ji and giving Knowledge a
chance. Just one itty-bitty little chance, and it'll
work.
(Miami Beach, Florida; July 31, 1977)
Guru Maharaj Ji never shuts his door on anybody But
people shut their doors on Guru Maharaj Ji. And when that
happens, man, it's not worth it. Because the reason, the
only reason for this body, the reason why apples grow on
the trees, the reason why these flowers have bloomed, the
reason why we are all here, the reason why the Earth is
still rotating, or the reason why there is the ocean,
there are the stars, there is a universe, there is
everything, goes right down the drain when we shut our
door on Guru Maharaj Ji.
Who are we? Have we ever looked at ourselves in the
mirror? I'm not talking about the reflective mirror; I'm
talking about the true mirror. Have we ever looked at
ourselves in the true mirror? Really, really seen
ourselves? Oh, not our nose, I'm not talking about our
nose; our beauty spots, our eyelashes, our hairs, our
eyes. I'm not talking about when you take your aftershave
and you splash it around, or you stand by the mirror and
make sure you get all your hairs when you're shaving in
the morning. Or you get your lipstick together - for the
ones who use lipstick.
I'm talking about the mirror of life. The true mirror.
Have we ever looked at ourselves in that? No. We never
have. And when we will, someday, by Guru Maharaj Ji's
Grace, we will find that we are no more than just a tiny,
tiny, tiny, tiny, tiny, tiny, tiny, very, very tiny speck
of dust. Nothing.
But everything. Everything so beautiful. Everything. So
tiny that it doesn't even matter. So tiny that it doesn't
even exist in a ratio. And yet so big, and yet so
incredible, that even the Lord himself comes for that
tiny speck of dust. Maybe one, maybe a thousand, maybe
hundreds of thousands. And so that's how tiny, and that's
how great we are. But it all depends. If we slam our door
shut...
I mean, we can slam our little door shut any time we
want. But can you imagine if the Lord slams his door shut
on us? Of course, we would never be able to compare it.
Of course, we will never be able to know it. The only
reason is because we really don't know our size. If we
really knew our size, we would find that just the suction
of the door closing can devastate us. Just the suction.
You don't even have to get hit by the door, but just the
slamming and the movement can make us just - poof! -
disappear.
It's not now - not '78, not '74, not '82, this century:
Concorde, Rolls Royce, Mercedes - that brings Guru
Maharaj Ji into the world. It's you! It's premies that
bring Guru Maharaj Ji into the world. And does Guru
Maharaj Ji ever come into the world for himself? There is
no reason to, because there is no point to. And yet, the
only reason why Guru Maharaj Ji is Guru Maharaj Ji, is
because of you. And when you come, and when he comes, and
when we all come, we make the most beautiful garland.
Then people love each other! People know each other.
There is no hate, the genuine-hate. There is love. The
love fills, just completely fills everybody's heart every
speck there is.
And to imagine for even a moment such a world, such a
universe-maybe to some people, it's impossible. But to
me, it's almost like I've seen that, and I can see it
happening. But remember, it's your little effort that's
going to really bring it together for you; that's really
going to make Guru Maharaj Ji happy, because you'll be
happy. Because you will have then realized and fulfilled
your destiny. The speck, that little speck, then will
have become everything, because it will have merged with
infinity, it will have then merged with the most
incredible, most indescribable thing that there is!
(London, England; March 5, 1978)
One
Foundation
Excerpts from Guru Maharaji's Satsang - Montreal,
Canada - April 29, 1977
That one thing that we talk about is not a conversation,
is not a lecture; it's not a philosophy. Because already
there are too many philosophies in the world. There are
already too many theories in the world. Of course, there
is the disadvantage that you have three people and you'll
have three thoughts, three ideas. And everybody has taken
philosophies for such a long time, molded them, pounded
on them, changed them, converted them into their own
ways, whatever they felt like.
But what is happening, what we have been sharing - it's
not that somebody told us to feel it. Somebody just
didn't come along and say, "Yeah, when you go, and you
sit down, you should feel it." No! It just comes along
very naturally. Because what we talk about is our own
inner experience which is generated by Knowledge, not
generated by philosophies, not generated by different
things; though the scriptures, the philosophies, and
those saints who realized this Knowledge have described
this Knowledge in a very clear and very simple
manner.
This is why we are all here. That Love that we share is
not materialistic love. It is not the same love that you
have for wife. Of course, there's an incredible rate of
divorce. Where does that love go? It all goes down to
court, and it gets separated there. It's not that kind of
love.
It's not that kind of love that a person has with his
Rolls Royce. (A long time ago I used to give this
example.) Maybe he gets his Rolls Royce one day and he
becomes very happy. So, what does he do? He throws a
party. Well, what about the next day? Is he throwing a
party again? No! Because he, obviously, just doesn't seem
to think that there is a necessity to throw another
party. Well, maybe he's not as happy as he was the first
day when he got it, and so on and so forth. When this
love affair of his comes down to a certain point, he
says, "This is a bunch of junk. Sell it."
And so, this is not the kind of love we're talking about.
We're talking about the kind of Love that is far
superior, far more incredible, and far more unjustified.
And that's the word: unjustified. Because, yes, in this
world when a person loves something, he says, "I like it
because it's beautiful." "I love it because its nice."
But this is a little unjustified, because the reason for
this Love is within inside, not outside. You just cannot
come out and say, "Yeah, I like it because it's got the
right color." No. It's that Knowledge. It's that bond.
It's that wire. It's that thread that holds us all
together in that Love, in that one foundation, and in
that one tune that we all experience and that we want to
experience.
I mean, you look, you take newspapers, you take
magazines, you read articles, you do different things.
You talk to other people, you look around you. And maybe
people are going to the moon. Maybe, very soon, we'll all
be able to take a flight to the moon, or maybe that won't
be possible because of the economic situation. But all
around you it just feels like: Yes, you have a dream, and
all you see around you is land, land! land. And you're
sitting on this, little piece of land, and it all looks
like: land everywhere, so you want to build on it. And
when you start to build, you find out that it's more like
marsh than solid land, and there's a lot more to be done
if you want to build on it. And this is where the whole
situation comes and sort of collapses.
Because, here is man. He is in this century. So many
advanced things have been done. So many advanced
theories. But where is his satisfaction? Where is that
Truth for him? Where is that Love that he seeks in
physical materials, the Love that he tries to squeeze out
of different things? Where is that Love that he is really
looking for?
You know, you can't really go up to somebody and say,
"Listen, kid, this is the kind of Love you're lookin'
for." But it's just, within inside everybody has to feel,
"What am I looking for? Where is my thirst? Where am I
trying to go?" And man has taken his hobbies, man has
taken his projects, and that's the way he's going. And he
thinks that's the way he's supposed to go. And he's going
on and on and on, and that's it! That's it for man.
Listen! This whole humanity has to stop for a second and
look back, look at it properly.
There were Romans - the Romans were there, and what was
it all? Luxurious homes, power, rulers, chariots, do
this, do that, have this, have that, different types of
comforts. Those kinds of benches - of course, I wasn't
there, but the way you see them portrayed in pictures and
movies and so on - they were like this (indicates an
arched seat), and the guy sat there and there was a bunch
of grapes in front of him. That's what he was eating. And
there was a little kid sitting somewhere with a huge fan
suspended from the ceiling, and the kid was going like
this (fanning him).
Of course, that's changed. Now we've got canned grapes or
grape juice. Now we've got air conditioning rather than
having a little kid there. We've got a little gadget on
the wall that serves the purpose of that little kid; it's
called a thermostat. And it makes sure that you stay cool
or warm, whichever the case may be.
And they were never satisfied. Their quest just went on,
and continued. It wasn't like, "Let's just have a funky
little chariot." No. "Have it carved. Let's get into it.
Let's put a chair here. Make it a little bit bigger. Make
it a little more refined. Get two horses instead of one.
Get four horses instead of one. Let's put spikes in
there. "That constant quest was just going on and on and
on and on and on.
And today, there is man. For all of humanity, this whole
problem is just sitting there. And mankind, since that
time, has never looked at its own pendulum. It has never
looked at its own history and what is going on. It's
just: "Let it run wild. Let it go." From then on, so many
new discoveries; so many new things have been made.
As a matter of fact, the residence where I stayed in Rome
was in this Via Appia Antica, where supposedly people
were crucified! And you look at these halftorn monuments
here and there, here and there. It's the oldest road in
Rome, a small little road. We'd drive up and down, and it
was like, wow! You really felt something there. Can you
imagine people riding up and down in the chariots
killing, and people burning, and people getting
crucified, and riots happening? And then Peter walking
down the same way, and all of a sudden God saying to him,
"Where are you going? Go back! Do your mission. Don't be
turned" Incredible! But has man stopped? In fact, has
everything changed? Is everybody perfectly happy?
The thing is, look, you can sit down and close your eyes
and say, "I don't see anybody! I don't see anybody when I
close my eyes. Therefore, nobody exists!" You can make
your own little hole and sit in it, and imagine your own
little dreams, like people do. "Okay, this is the way
it's all going to be for me. I am happy. All I want is a
nice wife. I want a nice home, nice kids, nice job, nice
everything. Good friends, and a good neighbor."
I look at it, and by Guru Maharaj Ji's Grace, I have a
nice house that has been provided to me. I have a very
beautiful family, and I have all these things. But I can
clearly see that without Knowledge, for me at least, it
wouldn't be worth it. Yes, there would be an appreciation
for my wife, for my children. Yes, maybe there might be a
little bit of appreciation for a nice house. But without
Knowledge, I know that even that wouldn't exist. And
without Knowledge I know I wouldn't exist.
When you make a ring, you can have gold all around it,
white gold around it, silver around it; but when you put
diamond on it, it makes it sort of worthwhile. And that's
the way it is. Yes, there can be gold, there can be
silver. But Knowledge is there. And we know it, and we
realize it, and we feel it, and that makes the difference
in the whole world.
And so, this whole quest, this whole chase of humanity is
just going to go on. I mean, obviously, Jesus came, Ram
came, Mohammed came, Buddha came, and today we follow
their footsteps. Great. Fantastic! Do we also know what
happened at that time? People rejected. People refused.
Now, have we taken preventive measures? Have we been
quarantined against this? Have we had our inoculations?
So that when Lord comes this time everybody is going to
say, "Right on! I accept you. "No! Just simply, people
haven't.
Because at that time - and this is the example; it's very
interesting. John met Jesus. Before that he didn't sit
down and write anything. He didn't say, "In the beginning
was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was
God" Now, something happens. And this is the interesting
part: What happens? Nobody knows. It's described in very
subtle ways. But something happens, and all of a sudden,
John changes. Something happens in his life, some
experience manifests in his life where he sits down and
writes, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was
with God, and the Word was God."
Now simply, you can throw the whole situation away; just
say, "This doesn't mean anything." Or you can really
realize that, well, what was it? What was it that made
him have that one experience? And of course, the soldiers
met Jesus, there were so many other people who met Jesus,
but that turn in their lives simply didn't happen. But
it's the inner experience, something that happened that
made this whole thing turn around, where there was an
experience that John could then sit and write about. And
what happened with all the other people?
I mean, okay, man goes to moon. Did he find it? That was
it? Whammie! This guy is ready to punch this one guy, and
the Apollo lands on the moon, and all of a sudden he
goes, "Hello, brother! How are you?" Is that what
happened? Or this guy is ready to stab this one person,
and all of a sudden the Apollo touches down and it's just
like, "Wow, it's beautiful. Fantastic. Great!" Or this
guy shoots this other guy, and the Apollo touches down
and the bullet just drops. No! None of that happened. So
we definitely know that going to the moon is not the
answer. It didn't say so in Bible, it didn't say so in
Gita, and it didn't say so in Koran, and well, we
practically did it, and it didn't do it. So we know one
thing for sure, that it's not the moon!
And still in so many people's imaginations, in so many
children's imaginations, the Milky Way is made out of
milk. The moon's made out of cheese, or just made out of
this great stuff. And there's a woman sitting there, just
going around and around and around - the old woman with a
thread-maker. And so many fantastic imaginations. And the
craziness that we feel.
But within all that craziness we have realized something.
We feel something. And that is where we have to proceed.
This is where we have to go.
It's not the riches of the world. You know, a lot of
people think that's what it is. It's not. It's not the
world itself, and nothing in the world. It's within
us.
But there's so much craziness, and you can just fall
right into it. You can see practically that it's like a
blender. You're blending something, and all of a sudden
you drop a little piece of onion in there and it goes -
prrrt! - there's nothing left of it. And you can just see
how easy it is to drop into the craziness of the world.
Obviously, a lot of people say, "Well, the world is not
crazy. The world is fantastic; the world is great!" Yeah,
it is, so far as the Earth is concerned, and the life on
it. But there is somethinghappening that's not so great
about the world. And what that is, is mind.
By "mind," I do not mean brain. I mean this crazy thing
that just completely conceptualizes. It takes us from one
ride, to another ride, to another ride, to another
ride.
But we have to know what our goal is, where we are trying
to go, where we have to go. And when you don't even know
how to count zero, you can forget about starting from
one. When man doesn't even know what he wants in his
life, then in which way is he going to try to
proceed?
That's the most beautiful thing about this whole thing -
is that we have found that way. By Guru Maharaj Ji's
Grace, with the Grace of this Knowledge, we've found that
way through which we can not only proceed, but proceed to
our destination, to our goal. And believe me, it's not
like proceeding to a dead object: "Every day your legs
get weary but your spirit rises high, because you know
you're going to reach there some day." It's not that
dramatic! It's very simple. You live off that stuff;
that's always within you, within everything that is
alive.
When we try to rationalize . . . There are so many things
that man has not rationalized, and he has just taken his
good old book, stuck everything in there in the pages,
slapped it shut, and that's it!
Man has taken everything, sectioned it out in little
square pieces, and said, "Look. I have to go every day
and work. Now this is the way I'm going to live; this is
the lifestyle I'm going to lead. I have to get up every
morning at about seven o'clock. Then I have to eat my
breakfast, look at a little news, take a little more
time; then I've got to go to work, and it takes me time
to drive there. Then when I get to my work, I have to
start working, and man, I work so hard I need a break, so
I take a little lunch break. What's wrong with that?"
There's nothing wrong with that. So you get back to work.
Then you go home; you have got to drive home. Yes, you
should pay attention to the road; there's nothing wrong
with that. And then you are tired, you should rest. Well,
there's nothing wrong with that.
Then slowly, as man turns his pages, he comes to the
chapter of: "What about your own self? What about your
own realization? What about your own satisfaction of
mind? What about your happiness? What about God?" So he
says, "Well, I'll square that away somehow. It's
like-look, man. It's just fair and simple. I go to work
every day. I need a break. So, I take Saturday and Sunday
off; what's wrong with that? I work five days, I take two
days off; there's nothing wrong with that. So, what I'm
going to do is I'm going to take my little God and put
him in my little safe. I love you, God. And I trust you,
God. Will you protect me? I'll be right there whenever
you want me, and I'm completely yours. I surrender to
you. Good night!"
You click open the lock on your safe, put him in, and
it's all finished. That's it! You have taken the oath,
"Yes, God, I love you. I know you're there. And I am
always ready for you any time you want. I am your son;
you're my everything." That's it? You're right! That's
it! That's it.
And I mean, you look at it: What is man trying to pursue?
That food that man works so hard for - who makes it? Who
puts it up there? The Creator. And man has monopolized,
of course, and so on and so forth. But now to feed his
little stomach, he has to do something like that! He has
to go on and do this and do that, so that he can get his
wheat, so he can get his flour, he can get this and that.
But that is why man searches in a far-off direction.
It's not a matter of when you say, "Relax," we start to
jog! It's not a matter of "Pursue, pursue." It's a matter
of looking within inside. To stop. To wait for a second,
open up our little safes and say, "Well, let's come
out!"
It's a completely different story, because the answer is
right there. The answer is where we would never dream of
it being. The answer is very simple. But we are so
complicated that it is hard for us to understand. So that
complicated story has to be made simple. And the only way
to make it simple is to let go!
It's like the example of the boat that I've given,
because that is the way the whole story is. There is this
huge yacht, there is this huge boat, and what Guru
Maharaj Ji is saying is, "Look! Enjoy your ride." He's
not saying, "Row, row, row your boat. "He's saying,
"Enjoy yourself" He's saying, "Take it easy. Relax.
Surrender. Let me handle it. I'll take you there"
Let it go. Let it happen. Let it fly like a really
beautiful kite. The wind is there. And let it go to the
wind. Not fight it. Let it just fly so beautifully. And
let us all enjoy ourselves while we are here, and really
be in tune. Not in tune with our mind, not in tune with
what we are always in tune with, but be in tune with what
we really want to be in tune with, which is within inside
of us. And it can happen, and it has already happened. A
lot of times it has happened.
And so I hope you get the meaning of what I'm trying to
say. Because though maybe I've explained it in a lot of
different ways, it all comes down to the same thing. And
it's very simple; it's very simple to do.
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