Sri Brahmachaithanya Pravachan-April.8.

Meditate on Nama with a Doubt-free Mind

When asked to practise nama people usually advance excuses. In point of fact, however, there is no real impediment. Stray thoughts throng the mind even when we are doing any other action; why, then, should we feel upset if such thoughts crowd the mind during meditation? As soon as you find time, take to chanting nama with faith.
Two pedestrian travellers saw a grove of mango trees. They asked the keeper if they could have some mangoes. He replied, "Yes, you may eat as many mangoes as you can in fifteen minutes." One of the travellers started eating the mangoes, while the other plied the keeper with questions about the owner of the grove, the tax paid on the grove, and so on. At the end of fifteen minutes, the keeper said, "Time for you to go". The first traveller had his fill, while the other had to depart without tasting a mango. This parable teaches us that instead of wasting time on idle inquiries we should start practising nama with implicit faith. We should go on with the practice whether or not we have understood its significance, as Dhruva did on being enjoined by Narada. He raised no doubts and queries, stuck to nama as the sole abiding truth, and thereby propitiated God. The saints are selfless souls and guide us with great sincerity; therefore, we should practise nama with trust in their word, and simply get saturated with it.
How long should we repeat nama? Until we get lost in it; for, once that happens nama will remain with us for ever. Nama is the highest truth. Spiritual knowledge, worship of deities, performance of rituals, etc., are undertaken to attain God and emancipation; but nama-smarana is the simplest and easiest path to it.
A large fortress was absolutely impregnable. It had a large gate secured by a strong lock. One person, however, managed to get hold of the key. Then entrance became absolutely easy. Nama is the key to emancipation. It makes attainment of God a simple matter. People complain that love for and faith in nama do not come easily. However, we may trust in what the saints preach, and take to nama wholeheartedly, incessantly. This is bound to lead to contentment. If we repeatedly chant nama we can certainly shake off the shackles of 'the body-am-I ' feeling.
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Sri Maharaj's Pravachan in Marathi-April-8

Sri Maharaj's Pravachan in Kannada-April 8

Sri Brsahmachaithanya Pravachan-April.7

We Fail to Achieve Real Self-interest

Neither reading nor listening, however profuse, is really useful unless translated into action. An abstract thing will not yield satisfaction unless put into actual practice. The saints have told us so much, all to no purpose because we do not ponder over their preaching. They have with one voice affirmed that this human body is transient. And yet we continue to be attached to it; isn't this truly strange? If we do not believe in the saints' words, we should at least see what our own experience teaches us. The mundane-minded believe that all pleasure pertains to the body and the senses; but what does experience show? It is common knowledge that the young and the old, the pauper and the prince, everyone is struggling constantly to obtain happiness and peace of mind. We grow from childhood to youth, acquire education, find a job, earn money, marry and have a family; in other words, we strive for and usually get almost everything which we thought would make for happy contentedness; have we succeeded in the goal? It is true that leading family and, worldly life does need a certain degree of attachment to the body; but that does not mean that the entire life should be devoted to toiling for sensuous pleasures alone. This is not true self-interest; it is only catering to what, in reality, we are not for; what good can it bring to our Real Self when the body dies?
Those who only talk glibly but never act accordingly, come to ruin. It is necessary to abstain from talking so long as we feel we must talk. We should distinguish between liberty and licence. 'Liberty' has a sanctity, while 'licence' is ugly and profane. Strictly speaking, man has liberty only in respect of spiritual progress. In all other matters and those concerning the body, he is under various obligations and constraints; for instance, he has duties as a father, a husband, a son, etc. However, his supreme duty as a human is to attain Godhead. While attending to their respective duties most diligently at home or in their spheres of work, people should devote all the rest of their time to meditating on nama. In business, it is the net profit that we look for; similarly, the net profit of human life is the degree to which our attention is turned to God.

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Sri Maharaj's Pravachan in Marathi-April-7

Sri Maharaj's Pravachan in Kannada-April 7

Sri Brahmachaithanya Pravachan.April.6

Saints are the Visible Embodiments of God

One who cannot conduct his worldly life properly will neither do well by way of spiritual life. One should resolve not to let the mind be ruffled by worldly events, and carry out the resolution with faith in the sadguru. Practise the sadhana assiduously, and get to know who you are in reality. When you realise that God is the only Reality, then only you will realise who you are. Do not abandon saguna even when you understand nirguna. To have a liking for the name of Rama is the greatest of good fortunes. Speech is the result of inspiration in the heart; if, then, we utter the name of Rama, He must be present in our heart.
Implicit obedience to my guru was my sole sadhana; what else, then, can I ask you to do? Association with a saint puts us on the right path. Saints do not cure us of disease, but they dislodge from the mind all fear of it. Saints are the visible embodiments of God. It is their mission in life to direct the minds of thousands towards God. It is impossible that a saint will advocate anything that contravenes the teaching of the vedas and the shastras.
Our feelings of pity are aroused on seeing an offspring of rich parents begging in the street. The saints similarly feel unhappy to see us forget our heritage and grieve, despite the rare good fortune of being born as a human, after the great cycle of rebirth in myriads of lower species. It is a very serious loss for the soul not to be able to attain God even in this unique human life. We should, therefore, manage to remain in the company of saints with the utmost perseverance, and earn their grace. Let us follow unquestioningly the path chalked out by them; then there is no fear of stumbling, falling, or failing. We get ourselves involved head over heels in mundane matters, so that we fail even to notice the rousing call of the saints. Let us keep at least within earshot of that call. Let us put our faith in the teaching of the saints; this will create in us love for God which, in turn, will reduce our attachment to worldly pleasures. Thus, if we maintain association with saints it will eventually lead us to our ultimate good.



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