How to Maintain Unbroken Awareness of God
God has gifted us with intellect and we use it for our work; this means that God himself gets the work done by us. With the faith that everything happens only by His inspiration, you develop love for God. Do everything for God and you will not be affected with sin or merit.
Once Kabeer had some guests. There was nothing in the house. Tradition requires guests to be regarded as God. So Kabeer stole just enough grain to feed them. Stealing is a crime; but, in stealing for God, there is no sin. Remembering God, at least after a deed and dedicating it to Him, will reduce pride and develop love for God.
Resolve firmly, 'I belong to God and not to the world.' This resolution should be as firm as the conviction that, I am a human being. This, however, may be difficult to achieve. The next, simpler way is to maintain the faith in the heart that whatever is happening is according to the inspiration, power, and will of God. If this also is not possible, maintain unbroken remembrance of God by chanting nama aloud by tongue. In this process of awareness the mind is constantly attached to God. At present we are going in the opposite direction. We physically worship God, go for pilgrimages, etc; but our mind is attached to prapancha.
A daughter-in-law labours hard for everybody in the family, but in her heart she is for her husband alone. Similarly, we should do everything required for everybody in the family, but in the mind constantly maintain the awareness, 'I belong to Rama'. When we enter a train, various things may happen, we may have to stand, we meet a variety of people; but later, we forget all this in the happiness of reaching our destination. Similarly, our aim is God, and we remain in His awareness; the difficulties in the worldly life get only transitory importance. Nama should be chanted for His grace, and not for fulfillment of worldly desires. Nama alone will help us attain the aim.
Like God, we should be aloof from prapancha while being in it. Learn to look at the body as a detached spectator. If this is not possible, while attending to the worldly affairs, maintain constant awareness of God. You may forget what you have read, seen, or done, but the awareness of God firmly held in the heart will never be forgotten.
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