Friday, August 9, 2019
Sri Brahmachaithanya Pravachan-Aug.9
Fortunate is He who is ever ContentedA person who has minimum wants is really rich; while one who always wants this, that, and the other, is in reality poor. The spiritual seeker is never a beggar, though his possessions may be few; contentment bespeaks immeasurable riches in the true sense. We treat money as our mainstay; it is, actually, so volatile, so undependable. How can we raise a durable edifice on shaky footings?
The financially rich should always remember that one cannot be truly rich without faith in God, and that contentment of soul is true wealth, true good fortune. The more stable the contentment, the more fortunate the person. Contentment cannot be given by one person to another, it has to be cultivated by each one himself. When one eschews all anxiety, one automatically gets peace of mind, contentment, and bliss.
The splendour obtained by the possession of mere money is only apparent, like the plumpness of a diabetic. True contentment can only come from complete trust in God. It cannot exist in a royal palace, nor may it be found in every hovel. The disease of dissatisfaction is so universal that it does not even figure in the list of diseases. There has undoubtedly been a tremendous advance in the amenities of life, and yet human life continues to suffer from the pestering of mental dissatisfaction. What is the good of all this, 'advancement' if it cannot make man contented? Peace and steadiness of mind should be the objective of all advancement, and this can only be attained by faith in the Divine. The present way of thinking is only speculative, not based on true experience, and is sterile in imparting contentment to society and the individual.
Every person should yearn to rediscover and recover his true self. Anyone who lives without faith in God is bound to be caught in the maelstrom of pain and so-called pleasure; for, what we term "pleasure" is not genuine happiness but only a small and temporary lessening of pain. From pauper to prince, every person seeks gratification of one desire or another; that is to say, everyone is in want of one thing or another. No one stops to recall that what he has today is something that yesterday he was hankering for to complete his happiness. The only thing that guarantees contentment and genuine happiness is surrender to God and nama-smarana.
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Thursday, August 8, 2019
Sri Brahmachaithanya Pravachan-Aug.8
Contentment Signifies Spiritual Advancement
Always keep awake the conviction that Rama is the doer of everything. It will automatically nullify grief, anxiety, fear, hope, greed, and all things that upset the mind. That they still exist is a sure sign that the basic ill persists. To eradicate the trouble resolve from this day, this very moment, to live in nama, and make up your mind that Rama is the doer. We feel gratified when someone says a good word about us; that, however, cannot be termed true contentment. Contentment really is a state of mind which is devoid of desire for anything or any situation other than what it pleases God to grant. It is a symbol of spiritual advancement.
To acquire that contentment does not call for relinquishing or renouncing worldly life. What good is that renunciation if memories of past life persist in cropping up? Worldly life cannot, in fact, be "renounced", it has to drop off. This can easily come about by continuously repeating nama. So go about your worldly duties and activities in ceaseless nama-smarana. It will bring you true contentment, and save you from the torments of all duality like pleasure and pain. True knowledge is that which leads to self-elevation, absolution from all bondage. One who connives at this self-betterment is a truly ignorant person.
Our so-called intelligence is but the fully mature form of desire. If it works within certain restrictions it is wholesome, while if it defies limits and restrictions it is wanton and unwholesome. The end of desire is coincident with the ouster of the "body-am-I" feeling. A common person is unable to subdue all worldly interests. Their noxious effect pervades our entire being, and cannot be eradicated but by subtle means. Nama is that subtle means, and it can skilfully and completely achieve the nullification of desire.
I exhort you to resolve to live in nama. God the merciful will, I assure you, not fail to back you up in moments of discouragement. God is merciful beyond imagination; his mercy knows no bounds, and will readily overlook the defects and weaknesses of the supplicant, provided only that the supplicant is sincere. Living in nama we will gradually mitigate the attachment for the body and, consequently, for worldly life in general. We shall then see Rama in everything, everywhere.
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