Saints Remind us that We Belong to God
When doing anything, the purpose for which we do it is clearly in the mind. Similarly, while meditating on nama we should ever be alive to the object of doing it. To remember at all times that we really belong to God, and neither to the body nor to sensual, worldly matters, is to maintain His awareness constantly. We actually belong to Him, but lapse into the illusion that we are of the palpable world. The saints reawaken us to the reality, and this, indeed, is their true mission. The panacea they prescribe is meditating on nama, which, in effect, is a persistent reminder that we belong to God and not to worldly pleasures.
You say that you want to see Rama, but how would you recognize Him even if He were to present Himself to you? To that purpose, you must annihilate the present distance between Him and yourself, and must be able to identify Him. This needs absolute purity of heart, that is, of feeling. One may perform different types of devotional disciplines and exercises, but they will all come to nought in the absence of genuine, loving devotion for Him. These disciplines will undoubtedly create devotion in course of time, but spiritual efforts performed with devotion will expedite the attainment of the goal. Of the nine kinds of devotional-disciplines, complete dedication is the simplest and the most important. If we completely surrender ourselves to God, whatever we do automatically gets dedicated to Him.
It is necessary for everyone to see wherein lies his weal. Others can advise about the path, but it is upto the person himself to act. The real cause of our "bondage" is not the environment but our own mental attitude. It is only nama that can be practised irrespective of time, state, or circumstances. To be able to preserve one's contentment under any condition is really God's total grace.
By devout contemplation of God one automatically acquires occult powers which, however, are considered despicable. So we should meditate on God, but ignore these powers and never use them. Our meditation should be for God's sake only, without adulteration by desire. The saints never put their powers to use; being merged in the Supreme Being, they completely resign everything to Its will. When they do appear to be performing miracles, they are only prompted by that Supreme Being.
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