Reminiscences

If one asks God for the love of Nama, He gives it readily and gladly

The ruler of the erstwhile State of Sangli had great rogard for Madhavrao Apte. Once, while Madhavrao was visiting ShriMaharaj, the latter said to him, "Let us as­sume you own some land in the state, and adjoining it is privately-owned land of the ruler. It occurs to you to pur­chase it. If you were to request His Highness accordingly, then in view of the regard he has for you, he will be im­mediately ready to sell it to you at a concessional price. He will immediately call his personal secretary and in­struct him about it, and the deal will be quickly concluded. But if the land belongs to the State, His Highness will refer the matter to the Prime Minister, and seek his ad­vice about how it can be given to you. The Prime Minister will, in his turn, enquire with the concerned subodinate officers. Only after receiving assent from all these can His Highness sell the land to you. Similarly, if you were to submit yourself before God and make him a request 'Give me love for Nama', it being His personal matter there will be no necessity of asking anyone else about it, and he will immediately grant your prayer. But if you ask him for something mundane, because of its not being his personal matter, he will have to ask Brahmadeva, Chitragupta, and others. If they all accord their permis­sion, then alone He will be able to grant it to you. That is, there are so many hurdles in His granting of a mundane thing. If the thing gets stuck in any of these hurdles, God will not be able to grant it to you. For this reason, never put God in a difficulty by asking for a mundane thing. Instead, merely ask, 'Give love for your Nama'. He is ready to grant it immediately."

Sri Maharaj's Pravachan in Marathi -Aug.8

Reminiscences

Chanting Nama with resoluteness leads to love for Nama

Madhavrao Apte's wife said 'ShriBrahmanandamaharaj used to visit Sangli frequently. We used to invite him to our house. On one such occasion, he said to me. 'Madam, will you do as I tell you ?' I immediately said, 'Certainly'. He said, 'From tomorrow, sit in front of a picture of ShriMaharaj in an immaculately clean condition, and re­peat Nama thirteen thousand times every day.' When he was asked, 'What is an immaculately clean condition?' he said, 'Get up in the early morning and wash yourself pouring water over the head and body, and while still Wearing the dripping saree, sit in front of the picture of ShriMaharaj and chant Nama.' I chanted Nama in this fashion for two years. After that he happened to visit our house and said, 'You may discontinue the practice now.' That practice of two years made my body very hardy, and developed in me an unusual love for chanting Nama. Now 1 can easily spend five or six hours at one sitting chanting Nama."

Sri Maharaj's Pravachan in Marathi-Aug.7

Reminiscences

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ShriMaharaj once said, "He who has subjugated his tongue is already on the way to attainment of God," When a Sadhaka asked what this meant, ShriMaharaj replied, "The tongue has two functions: To taste food, and to give vocal form to the word. To gain control over one's speech, one should practise chanting of Nama. Chant Nama as much as possible. When the number of repetitions ofNama reaches   one   to   two   crores,   there   is   a   natural reduction in the desire for food. The body can do with a smaller amount of food. Eating only limited food brings contentment. In later stages, the urge to speak itself weak­ens. It is a pity that no one wants to experience the truth of this."

Sri Maharaj's Pravachan in Kannada-Aug.6

Sri Maharaj's Pravachan in Marathi-Aug.6