MASTER

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 travelled 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.

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. ¹

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 devoutedly 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?" ²

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." ³

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." ⁴

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 been 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?" ⁵

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. ¹

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. ²

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. ³

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. ⁴

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. ⁵

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. ⁶

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. ⁷

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 wire for the bulb to give light. It's power. Power cannot do anything; it has to be put through a medium. Yes?

Guru MaharajJi, where did you receive this Knowledge?

From my Guru. It's not like an apple that comes out of a tree. I received it 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. ¹

"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. ²

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? ³

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. ⁴

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. ⁵

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. ⁶

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. ⁷

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. ⁸

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.'

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.'

"Talking" is not the point. Verbally explaining something is not the point. Oh yeah, maybe somebody who is highereducated 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. ³

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. ⁴

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. ⁵

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. ⁶

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. ⁷

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. ⁸

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. ¹⁰

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. ¹¹

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. ¹²

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. ¹³

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. ¹⁴

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. ¹

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. ²

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 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. ³

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! ⁴

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 your 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 it's 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 innoculations? 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 something happening 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.