Sri Brahmachaithanya Pravachan-Nov.28

Purify Yourself Inwardly to See God.
If we investigate the root cause for birth, it can be traced to desire of one kind or another. We thus find ourselves trapped by desire in the maelstrom of birth and death. It is futile to seek arguments and try to probe whether desire came first or birth. It is like posing the question, which preceded, the tree or its seed. Whatever that may be, the fact remains that the cycle of birth and death goes on. We should, in brief, free ourselves of worldly desire.
When we see a shadow pass across, we conclude that someone has passed. The world is like a shadow, the basic fact being God. Let us try to recognize Him. Although He is all-pervading, we cannot see Him because our eye-sight is clouded by worldliness. We can only see Him when our eyesight, that is, our outlook, is cleansed of that worldliness. If, for instance, one looks on a woman, she will be seen as one's impulse may be; to a lustful man she will appear amorous, while a noble man will feel motherly regard for her. So, without a pure, selfless heart one will not notice the immanence of God in everything. While trying to perceive God everywhere, one should not overlook His presence in one's own self. Both kinds of awareness have to be practised simultaneously.
Obey the sadguru; this destroys ego. Saints somewhat deprecate rigid conformity to religious practices, for the possibility of a rise of self-righteousness; whereas, doing what the sadguru advises precludes that possibility. An objection may be raised here that the sadguru, too, advises nama-smarana, that is, some kind of action. A man suffering due to overeating went to a physician to seek relief. He was given three powders to be taken at stated intervals. 'But, doctor,' he protested,' on the one hand you advise me not to eat anything, and, in the same breath, you ask me to take these powders! How can we reconcile your instructions?' The doctor replied, 'These powders have to be taken to counteract the effect of previous overeating.' Similarly, the action of nama-smarana is advised for removing the effect of previous actions, which tended to create the rise of the sense of ego and doership. The sadguru reduces our love for sense-pleasures and creates relish for nama.

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Sri Maharaj's Pravachan in Marathi-Nov.28

Sri Maharaj's Pravachan in Kannada-Nov.28

Sri Brahmachaithanya Pravachan-Nov27.

Worship Saguna, Being Conscious of NirgunaSuppose we want to go to a certain place. We take the appropriate train, and alight when the proper station is reached. Similarly, although we remember that God is ultimately, abstract, without form or attributes, we have to assume Him to be saguna. When a man forgets himself in saguna devotion, the ego and the saguna form of God both disappear; and what remains is the true, abstract Ultimate Reality, the nirguna God. Therefore, one should understand the truth and yet practise devotion to saguna. If one forgets oneself while practising saguna devotion, is it not the same as nirguna upasana? A person who has fever loses taste for food, finds everything bitter; similarly, because our entire outlook is thoroughly vitiated by being oriented to the senses, we are not genuinely interested in either saguna or nirguna.
We have some funny ideas about paramartha. Complete ignorance is better than mistaken notions. The sun has been there before, is there today, and is going to be there in the time to come. Consequently we take him for granted, almost overlook him. A like attitude grows up about God. A non-believer may say, 'There is no God; show Him if you claim that He exists.' Actually, even he admits the existence of God, though he may call Him by different names, Nature, the powers that be, etc. Then whatever he accepts to exist, should be regarded as God.
A man cannot write down all that he knows; the reader cannot assimilate every word he reads, nor can he explain all that he has understood; nor again, can the listener grasp everything he hears. Therefore, there is no proof as perfect as personal experience. Experience teaches that all doership finally rests with God; so all that one can seek, is to stick to duty.
The saints observed that prapancha and paramartha are imagined to be in conflict with each other. They synthesized the two, and advised doing prapancha, while keeping aware of God by ceaseless nama-smarana. So, I say again, be in nama-smarana while you go through worldly life; keep firm faith in nama and, without deviating from it, you may do what practical life demands. Nirguna is not perceptible, not comprehensible, so it manifests itself either as divine incarnations or as saints.
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Sri Maharaj's Pravachan in Marathi-Nov.27

Sri Maharaj's Pravacha in Kannada-NOv.27

Sri Brahmachaithanya Pravachana-Nov 26

Relate Yourself Suitably to God
Set up some relationship with God. Imagine Him to be your master, yourself His willing slave; make Him your mother, be yourself the child; He the father, you the son; He the husband, yourself the dutiful wife; He the wire-puller, yourself the obedient puppet. When a child is adopted, do we not give him our parental love? A youth and a young girl marry and give each other conjugal duty, and love between them grows. Love begets love. So relate yourself to Him as you feel, as you please, and facilitate attachment for Him. Hanumanta took Rama for his master, and established Him in his heart. Guha had similar feelings. Ravana as an enemy, Bharata as a brother, Seeta as her husband, Bibheeshana as an ally, all these filled their heart with Him in one capacity or other.
Take Maruti for your model. Think it a sacrilege to live in a town or village that has no temple dedicated to Maruti; or at least have a Maruti idol at home. Sanctify your home with some upasana practices; let it be as holy as a temple. All food and drink you imbibe should be looked upon as a divine gift; never think otherwise, and never forget God, the giver. As His gift, we should have no special regard to taste. The main thing is to remember God in every act and in everything; whether it is eating, drinking, singing, playing, or walking. However, it is difficult to keep aware of God in singing, because the tune and the time-beats demand a lot of pointed attention. In any case, the singing should be so genuinely expressive of emotion that it should call forth tears even from God.
Rama never fails to provide enough to fill the needs of His people; conversely, we should learn to make do with what He provides. We think very earnestly of Him when there is a difficulty or calamity; we should have the same degree of earnestness at all times. Our faith in Him should be complete, then He takes over all anxiety for us.
The crux of upasana is to feel an earnest need for God. The individual soul is essentially the same as the Cosmic Soul, like a droplet of sea-water and the ocean. To recognize this, to unite with that Cosmic Soul, is the objective of the spiritual quest.

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