श्री ब्रह्मचैतन्य महाराज यांची प्रवचन
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Friday, July 26, 2019
Sri Brahmachaithanya Pravachan-July.26
The Four Aspects of Sadhana
The shastras describe four aspects of sadhana. The first is, discrimination between the eternal and the terminable. One should be apathetic toward the terminable, and solicitous about the eternal, that is, God. Next, one should empty the mind of all desire for enjoyment of sensuous pleasures of the world or even of heaven. The mind has a vagrant nature and seeks one worldly pleasure after another; it should be forcibly restrained and applied to God. We should bear with patience even undeserved trouble, trust in the word of the sadguru, keep calm contentment towards both pleasant and unpleasant happenings in life; this is the third aspect of sadhana. Lastly, there should be an intense yearning for God. If a seeker is equipped with this fourfold approach, then and then alone can he realize the Ultimate Truth. What is required is complete detachment from all expectation, complete apathy, passionless, non-expectant outlook on existence. Avarice for money, lust and temptation of any kind, should be foreign to the mind.
To lead worldly life with efficiency and success is not the goal of human life; this is, after all, what animals, too, may achieve. The true goal is to realize God, the Ultimate Reality. All the toilsome labours of life can only be called truly fructified if man succeeds in realizing God. In the present times no means are so practicable and effective as nama-smarana. Nama, indeed, is all-powerful, and one who has it at heart, while he may not always succeed materially, will ever find himself backed by God. Success and failure in worldly life have only passing value and effect; what really matters is the extent and continuity of awareness of God.
The pleasure and pain that comes to one's lot are, in the ultimate analysis, apportioned to us by Rama; we, however, realize this only at the end, after having gone through and been affected by the vicissitudes of life. Let us bear this in mind right from the start; this can be achieved by nama-smarana.
It is the way of life that, even as we are heaving a sigh of relief at a pleasing occurrence, the moment of despair is in the formation. A wise man should therefore keep his mind engrossed in nama-smarana and equably accept the thick with the thin. Remember that Rama never fails to back one who keeps himself engrossed in nama-smarana.
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Thursday, July 25, 2019
Sri Brahmachaithanya Pravachan-July.25.
Never Relinquish the Divine Name
Will-power can be so strong that it can even physically attract the desired thing. In the same way, the Lord is definitely accessible to one who really strongly yearns for Him. One may acquire an abundance of material things, but they will all fail to give lasting satisfaction because they are all imperfect, impermanent. As against these, the Lord Himself being the pinnacle of perfection, when He is attained, all mundane desires wane and eventually perish, leaving only pure contentment and bliss. So always aspire to attain Him. To chant nama ceaselessly is equivalent to saying repeatedly," I want You; it is You that I yearn for." If we leave everything in life to Rama, we shall find that He gives us far more than what can be normally expected or even imagined. We should go about in life in the faith that our body, our life, are all under the direction and control of Rama; if our conviction to that effect is unshakable, we shall never feel want.
One particular feature of nama-smarana should be noted. Even if it is done with a mundane objective, which may even be achieved, it gradually attenuates desire and finally the mind becomes entirely free from it. Therefore, take to nama-smarana, no matter with what object. Of course, if the objective itself is to become desireless, the purpose will be achieved much sooner. Nama-smarana is not only the means, it is also the object. We should have the conviction that nama is Ultimate Reality itself.
When we undertake any act, we constantly bear the desired result in mind; similarly, when we chant nama we should always be aware of the objective, namely, realising God. To keep so aware without break constitutes anusandhan.
As a matter of fact, we are part and parcel of God, the Ultimate Reality. We are deluded into believing that sensory pleasure is the objective, the end and aim of human life. The saints remind us that sense-pleasures are not the true goal, but the realisation of our true nature is the goal of our life. Repeatedly chanting nama is constantly to remind ourselves of this fact.
So, repeatedly chant nama, pray to God from the bottom of your heart, and God will absolve you of all past sins of commission and omission; for this I give you my word.
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