SADGURU TUKARAMGood Company and Nama-smarana
A certain physician was so expert in diagnosis that he would say from a mere look at the face what the patient was suffering from. One day he saw a man going past his house; he stopped and told him, 'you are suffering from a pernicious disease, but you will definitely be cured if you take the medicine and observe the regimen I prescribe'. Just as the physician acted in sheer sincerity, so do the saints advise us in pure selflessness. If we listen to the guidance given by the guru, we shall certainly profit thereby. The saints caution us that we are unhealthfully immersed in worldly business and pleasures, and that we can safely emerge out of this by keeping company with the godly and by living in nama. Be sure that their behests are based on actual experience, not conjecture. Even if a medicine is simple to take, does that mean that it is not effective? Saint Tukaram vows by his upasana that no spiritual remedy is as simple and yet definitely effective as nama-smarana. What reason have we to doubt the truth of this assertion of his or of Shri Samartha? They have advocated this sadhana for you purely in your interest. If you do not follow their advice, it is you that stand to lose, not they. So give your earnest thought to this matter. When a man is convinced that he has a certain disease, he does not evade taking the medicine. Having seen for ourselves that this mundane life does not yield true and lasting happiness, it behoves us to seek other means to acquire such happiness. So, try to live in nama as much as possible, and you will find true contentment.
One devotee said, "I learnt how to perform puja and bhakti, from my thirty-year long service. There I had to accept orders from my superior, and go where he transferred me, despite personal or domestic difficulties. In other words, I had to surrender and forget my 'self'. On retirement, I merely replaced that superior by God. He is even better in that He has no selfish motive, and always acts for my good. So I am very happy now, " In a similar way, from our worldly life we should learn how to tread the spiritual path. This is the essence of human life.
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