Conquering Desire
A person may have a lot of knowledge, but wisdom comes only with experience. A book on philosophy can truly be said to have been read only if its dicta are put into practice. Philosophy that cannot be put into practice is not worth the name. Actual first-hand experience is true realization. One who surrenders himself to God and desires nothing, has the true knowledge even if he is illiterate. One who is after pedantic knowledge only pampers his personal pride. That does not mean, however, that one who is devoid of learning is free from pride; he, too, may have it, but he can be more easily cured of it. If an ignoramus is enjoined to surrender himself to a sadguru, he may obey without protest, without entertaining doubts and reservations.
There are numerous roads leading to Kashi; but if you want to go there you cannot do so without leaving home. Similarly, if you set out to attain God you cannot entertain desire of any kind except attainment of God. To eradicate or 'divinize' desire, one must maintain constant remembrance of God. One must keenly realize that attainment of God is the prime, the sole, aim of human life. Ponder day and night on this aim. You can belong to God if you resolve to belong to nothing else. We experience reverses if the mind surrenders to desire and seeks gratification in sense-pleasures;
It is not really so difficult to conquer desire. A pathologist takes the patient's blood and tests to find out what disease germs have affected it. Similarly we should, by introspection, find out what entices the mind. It is evidently foolish to desire for something that we cannot be sure of obtaining. So seek to conquer desire with proper thinking reinforced by nama. Pride of doership will then automatically vanish.
The flakes of snow as they fall are soft and crumbly; but in course of time they harden and become like rock. So also desire is basically soft and crumbly; with the aid of the 'body-am-I' feeling, it gradually hardens and becomes entrenched, difficult to dislodge.
The aspiration for God cannot be termed desire in the usual sense as it is not harmful in effect. Desire for God is beneficial; it is what remains after repeated sublimation of mundane desire. The only way to achieve this is by keeping God as the goal of life.
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