Sri Brahmachaitanya Pravachan-Dec.29

Abandon Your Ego to Transgress Pleasure and Pain

If we try to propitiate God with worldly betterment in view, it can by no means be termed devotion to God; it constitutes devotion to worldly matters. Ego, that is, the "body-am-I" feeling, invariably gives rise to desire, or expectation, related to worldly matters. Serving God with the ego intact, amounts to smugness or hypocrisy. A person quit family life to become a 'bairagi,' and established a hermitage; if the interest in the hermitage again ties him down, what is the good of quitting the home? If we make ornaments for an idol so that we may enjoy the enhanced beauty of the idol, is it not an instance of how ego may spoil an outwardly good act? It is the presence or absence of egoism that determines whether an action is spiritually harmful or beneficial. In brief, ego must be ousted.
The saints ascribe all doership to God. Indeed, we cannot assume doership at all. If we claim doership, can we guarantee success in all our actions? Assuming doership in the circumstances, man invites pleasure and pain. We should assign doership to God, to whom it really belongs. We shall thereby rid ourselves of both pleasure and pain. The vedas say, "all this belongs to God"; the saints say, "All this belongs to Rama and He is the doer of everything." Both amount to the same thing. True upasana is to foster the conviction that Rama is the real doer, not I. I am but a tool, a puppet in His hands. Say repeatedly that God alone is mine.
Attachment for worldly things will definitely be attenuated, if not completely annihilated, by association with a saint. So always try to live in the company of the saintly. Association and close study are two things which always influence thought and action. I carry a stick in hand, and the only toying I can have with it, is to twirl it in the hand or strike somebody or something with it. I carry a rosary, and I cannot think of hitting with it, I may only pray with it. In our dress, behaviour, talk, we are influenced by the company we keep. We should therefore make it a point to live in the company of the good, the saintly.



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Sri Maharaj's Pravachan in Marathi-Dec.29

Sri Maharaj's Pravachan in Kannada-Dec.29

Sri Brahmachaithanya Pravachan-Dec.28

Add Nama to Vedic Rituals
Those who study and master the vedas are certainly laudable for their erudition and for their assistance in preserving this precious treasure for the world. The vedas have shown great reverence for the Gayatri mantra. It should be borne in mind, however, that, to be fruitful, the sacredness of the mantra should be matched by unimpeachable vairagya, and by utmost purity in thought and behaviour. These are very difficult to find in the present degenerate times. The sages of the hoary past lived in the forest, far from the crowd and its life of strife. They subsisted on a simple diet consisting of roots, bulbs, and such other natural things. They exercised austere control over the senses and over passions like wild desires, anger, and covetousness. They never uttered an untruth. Leading such simple, undefiled lives, they were fit persons to pursue the cult of the sacred and potent Gayatri mantra. With the strength of such austere penance to back them, their blessings and their wrath were equally potent.
Times have, however, radically changed. We can no longer lead a life which is in the least like that of these past sages. Circumstances do not permit performance of vedic rites with adherence to their rules; nor have the people at large faith in them. Therefore, if they are undertaken at all, they should be supplemented by earnest nama-smarana. Self-control being virtually absent these days, the saints advocate recourse to nama, so that the common man may, even in the present conditions, succeed in attaining God.
Constant, determined nama-smarana, will eventually produce love for God, for, association produces love. A trader, for instance, always has thoughts of trading activities, and will even have dreams concerning them. We come to feel attachment for the house we have long lived in. A resident of a large city like Bombay becomes so used to its bustle, noise, crowd, even its filth, that he feels uneasy if he has to live a comparatively placid life of the countryside. If we teach our heart to feel the presence of Rama, we shall always be aware of His presence. Reinforce this conviction by telling yourself repeatedly: "I am not different, distinct from Rama; He resides in my heart."
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Sri Maharaj's Pravachan in Marathi-Dec.28

Sri Maharaj's Pravachan in Kannada-Dec.28

Sri Brahmachaithanya Pravachan-Dec.27

Find the Way to Create Love for God
The devotees and other people around a saint are often seen to be as morally depraved as the common run of people. This need not surprise us. If we visit a hospital, we are only likely to come across patients, not healthy people. Similarly, most people come to a saint to get relief from some worldly difficulty or other. What likelihood is there of getting such help from a saint in worldly matters who has renounced worldly life? It would evidently be advisable to consult a practical man than to refer to a saint. It is quite another matter, though, that chanting of nama, even if resorted to for relief in sickness, will not go unrewarded spiritually.
The saints deserve the world's gratitude for having discovered the root-cause of misery, and pin-pointed it to be the desire, to have or not to have a particular thing or situation. It is this desire that deprives us of steady satisfaction. There are only a few who aspire for God, and most of them want Him, not for His own sake but as a strong support for their worldly affairs. One who really wants God for His own sake will undoubtedly find permanent satisfaction, irrespective of age, education, intelligence, or wealth. All that is needed is earnest desire, yearning.
Paramartha is by no means a matter of conjecture. We feel it is beyond our capacity because we only talk about it, and never act. For our inaction we can always advance excuses galore. Even Arjuna, the great warrior, started giving excuses when Lord Krishna asked him to stand and fight the opponents on the battlefield; this made the Lord feel sorry. Ego, the "body-am-I" delusion, leads one to citing excuses to by-pass even the Lord's behests. If a man's daughter falls ill in a distant place, he will rush to that place, out of anxiety; but he advances all kinds of excuses if asked to go to Varanashi on pilgrimage. It is a great sin to give excuses.
A rich man may, under his guru's orders, give away all he possesses, but he will be unable to forget that act. He does not realise that the one who advises the gift is the real donor. Today, prapancha claims all our attention, our love; we must divert it and apply it solely to God.


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