Sri Maharaj's Pravachan in Marathi-Nov.18

Sri Maharaj's Pravachan in Kannada-Nov.18

Sri Maharaj's Pravachan-Nov.17

Faith is the Only Thing God Expects from Us
What should we pray God to grant us? You have come far to Gondavale; is it only to ask for worldly pleasures and transitory material matters? Not that He may not grant them, for His resources are limitless. Our resources being limited even if vast, we give something and the resources become less to that extent; it is not so with Him. But supposing my need today is fulfilled, does it satiate my desire for all time? No, fresh needs arise almost every moment. If, on the other hand, we decide to accept whatever it pleases Him to send us, whatever condition He pleases to keep us in, it will mean the end of all desire. So, let us approach Him in all humility, and ask for complete compliance with His desire, for the desire to ask nothing of Him. It is this that will give blemishless contentment.
All that God expects from us is utter, single-pointed loyalty. We should feel the same love for God that we feel for something we like most. This calls for spotless purity and holiness. All this comes when we go in unreserved, undivided surrender. That we cannot do unless we give up even traces of ego. The moment you become egoless, God will rush to shower His grace on you. So kill your ego and then approach Him. It is our experience that a person likes us to do what he likes. God, similarly, expects only wholehearted love from us. God can be propitiated by selfless love. Love is a divine thing, and can conquer the whole world.
Charity begins at home. Treat everyone with transparent, guileless, selfless love. Our talk should drip with love. The talk, nay, even the look, should ooze love. To give love needs no money, if you have little; nor does it call for enormous sums if you are rich. Nama is love incarnate, and give and take is a characteristic of love. If we utter nama, love for God will certainly arise. Love for nama is born of nama itself. Nama is the only worthwhile gift we can offer to God, or one that God can grant us; thereby He keeps us permanently in contentment. If you ask me the secret of secrets in the spiritual quest, I would unhesitatingly say, 'the love of nama is that secret.'



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Sri Maharaj's Pravachan in Marathi-Nov.17

Sri Maharaj's Pravachan in Kannada-Nov.17

Sri Maharaj's Pravachan - Nov.16

Divine Grace is Essential for Eradicating Conceit
To those who have come to Gondavale and are planning to return to their respective places, I would address a special word. Tradition expects a pilgrim to give up some of his defects at a holy place. Here, in Gondavale, you have been face to face with God, so I expect you to do something special. Leave a defect, conceit, here, and take God's grace with you in return. Now, conceit is not a material thing that could be handed by one person to another. It can, in fact, only be given up if God grants His grace, not otherwise.
Once it so happened that a sadhaka was performing some sadhana for three years. Gradually, as the sadhana advanced, there also grew in him conceit about his performance. His guru, as he happened to pass by, sensed this, approached him, and asked, 'What are you doing here?' The sadhaka, with conceit lurking in the heart, replied, 'I am performing this sadhana for close on three years.' The guru, divining his bloated conceit, only said, 'Very good; now carryon for only three days, and you will have achieved your goal.'
The sadhaka felt very happy at these encouraging words, and enthusiastically and with reinforced conceit, recommenced the sadhana, thinking lightly of mere three days. Curiously, though, he found himself unable to concentrate his mind even for three minutes. He felt pins and needles in the limbs, vague fear around him, a sensation of being thrown out of the body, and such other nondescript sensations, making concentration impossible.
Then it dawned on the sadhaka that all this while, he could go through sadhana by his guru's grace, and that the conceit that he had himself been doing it was entirely unjustified. He then went in surrender in complete humility to his guru, who then blessed his effort.
We should therefore realize that conceit, even for a good cause is harmful; indeed, conceit for a good deed is more subtle, more difficult to eradicate. Conceit for prapancha is, if at all, preferable, for it is more obvious, and therefore more likely to be detected.
In paramartha, it is easier to achieve than to consolidate what is gained. Let us pray to God and persevere in nama- smarana; He will then Himself assist in giving us joy in it.
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Sri Maharaj's Pravachan in Marathi-Nov.16