Love and devotion of children

We, as adults, should have the same single minded devotion and love for God as our children have for us (as parents).  When a child cries out for his mother, he will not rest nor find any comfort in the presence of others.  The child can only find solace and comfort in the arms of his mother.  We must keep this thought in our minds every day so that we can continue to strive throughout our lives to also reach the arms of God.

When a child cries loudly and longingly for his mother, the mother soon comes to appease the child.  If we also cry longingly for God, He will also come to us.

Once children are able to recognize their parents, they are able to call out to them and find them wherever they may be located.  Once we recognize God as part of our lives, we should continually seek Him until we ultimately come into His presence.

Children continually repeat the names of their parents--Mommy and Daddy--in a manner similar to a chant.  God constitutes our entire lives and therefore we should remember to chant His name every day as well.

Children have no ties to the materialistic world in their lives.  Their wants are simple--food, water and the love of their parents.  We should also follow the ways of children and keep our needs simple and the love of God central to our lives.

By loving and nurturing our children as baby Krishna or baby Radha, we can also learn to grow in our love and devotion towards God.

Children can often be immensely overjoyed by performing some act that brings happiness or joy to their parents.  By offering ourselves as the humble servants and instruments of God, we can provide joy to God as well as bring happiness into our own lives.

Ideals of the Aspirant Entangled in the World

There is necessity of money, no doubt, in worldly life; but do not ponder much over it and other material gains.  Contentment with what comes of its own accord is the best attitude.  Do not be anxious to hoard.  Those who dedicate their very life and soul to Him, those who are His devotees and have taken refuge in Him, can never think of such worldly matters.  With them, expenditure is commensurate with income.  As money comes into their hands in one way, it is spent in another.

Question: How can I go through my devotional practices when I have always to think of my daily bread?
Answer: He for whom you work will supply you with your necessaries.  God made provisions for your support before He sent you into this world.

We possess home, family and children for a short time, but these are all ephemeral.  The palm tree itself is real, but when one or two of its fruits fall to the ground, why should we regret it?

Live in the world, but be not worldly.  As the saying goes, make the frog dance before the snake, but let not the snake swallow the frog.

A boat may stay in water, but water should not stay in the boat.  An aspirant may live in the world, but the world should not live within him.

It matters not if you live the life of a house-holder, only you must fix your mind on God.  Do your work with one hand, and hold the feet of the Lord with the other.  When you have no work in the world to do hold His feet fast to your heart with both your hands.

What is the state of a man who is in the world but is free from its attachments?  He is like a lotus-leaf in water, or like a mud-fish in the marsh.  Neither of these is polluted by the element in which it lives.  The water wets not the leaf, nor does the mud stain the glossy coat of the fish.

It does not matter much whether you are a family man or not.  Always perform your duties unattached, with your mind fixed on God.  As for instance, the man who has got a carbuncle on his back talks with his friends and others, and even carries out undertakings, but his mind is all the while on his pain.

Living in the world one is safe, if one has Viveka (discrimination of the Real from the unreal), and Vairagya (dispassion for worldly things), and along with these intense devotion to God.

What are you to do when you are placed in this world?  Give up everything to Him, resign yourself to Him, and there will be no more trouble for you.  Then you will come to know that everything is done by His will.

If you desire to live in the world unattached, you should first practice devotion in solitude for some time--a year, six months, a month, or at least twelve days.  During this period of retirement, you should constantly meditate upon God and pray to Him for Divine love.  You should think that there is nothing in the world which you may call your own, that those whom you consider as your own are sure to pass away some day or other. God alone is really your own.  He is your all-in-all.  How to obtain Him?--this should be your only concern.

If you first smear your palms with oil and then cut open the jack fruit the milky exudation of the fruit will not stick to your hands and inconvenience you.  If you first fortify yourself with the true knowledge of the Universal Self, and then live in the midst of wealth and worldliness, surely they will in no way affect you.

As a boy holding to a post of pillar whirls about it with headlong speed without any fear of falling, so perform your worldly duties, fixing your hold firmly upon God, and you will be free from danger.

Always consider that your family concerns are not yours; they are God's and you are His servant come here to obey His commands.  When this idea becomes firm, there remains nothing indeed that a man may call his own.

He is a true hero who performs all the duties of the world with his mind fixed on God.  None but a strong man can, while carrying a load of two maunds (more than a hundredweight) on his head, stop to admire a bridal procession passing his way.

Those who live in the world and still try to gain salvation are like the soldiers that fight from behind the ramparts of a fort, while the ascetics who renounce the world in search of God are like the soldiers fighting in the open field.  To fight the enemy from within the fort is more convenient and far safer than to fight in the open field.

Before soldiers go out to meet the enemy, they learn the art of fighting in their barracks, where they do not have to put up with the hardships incidental to action in the open field.  So avail yourselves of the conveniences of your home-life to raise your spiritual condition before you take to the austerities of an ascetic life.

Some types of Aspirants

Butter churned early in the morning is the best; that churned after sunrise is not so good.  Addressing his young disciples who became sannyasins later on, the Master used to say, "You are like butter churned early in the morning while my householder disciples are like butter churned late in the day."

The young bamboo can be easily bent, but the full grown bamboo breaks when it is bent with force.  It is easy to bend the young heart towards God, but the untrained heart of the old escapes the hold whenever it is so drawn.

The parrot cannot be taught to sing when the vibrating membrane in its throat has hardened too much because of age.  It must be taught to sing while young, before the collar line appears on its neck.  So in old age it is difficult to learn how to fix the mind on God, but it can be easily learnt in youth.

A ripe mango may be offered to God, or used for some other purpose; but if it is pecked by a crow even once, it is unfit for any use.  It can neither be offered to the Deity, nor presented to a Brahmana, nor may it be eaten by the pure.  So boys and girls should be dedicated to the service of God before the impurities of worldly desires taint their hearts.  Once worldly desires enter their minds, or the demon of sensual pleasures casts his baneful shadow over them, it is very difficult indeed to make them tread the path of virtue.

The love in the heart of a boy is whole and undivided.  When he gets married in time, half of his heart, if not more, is given away to his wife, and when children are born to him, he loses another quarter, thereof, while the remaining quarter is divided among father, mother, honour, fame, pride, dress and the rest; therefore he has no love left to offer to God.  Hence if the undivided mind of a boy is directed early enough to God, he may gain His love, and realize Him easily.  But it is not quite so easy for grown-up people to do so.

To someone the Master said: "Well, you have now come to seek God when you have spent the best part of your life in the world.  Had you entered the world after realizing God, what peace and joy you would have found!"

Characteristics of True Aspirants

The flint may remain for myriads of years under water and still not lose its inner finer.  Strike it with steel whenever you like, and out flashes the glowing spark.  So is the true devotee firm in his faith.  Though he may remain surrounded by all the impurities of the world, he never loses his faith in, and love of God.  He warms up with devout enthusiasm as soon as he hears the 'name' of the Lord.

The railway engine easily drags with it a train of heavily loaded carriages.  So the loving children of God, firm in their faith and devotion, feel no trouble in passing through life in spite of all troubles and anxieties, and at the same time they lead many to God along with them.

When does the attraction of the pleasures of the senses die away?  When one realizes the consummation of all happiness and of all the pleasures in God--the indivisible, eternal ocean of bliss.  Those who enjoy Him can find no attraction in the cheap, worthless pleasures of the world.

The water of a rapid stream moves round and round in eddies and whirlpools in some places; but passing these it resumes again a straight and swift course.  So the heart of the devotee is caught every now and then in the whirlpool of despondency, grief and unbelief, but this is only a momentary aberration and does not last long.

Wherein is the strength of a devotee?  He is a child of God, and his devotional tears are his mightiest weapon.

The more you scratch the part affected by ringworm, the greater grows the itching, and the more the pleasure you derive from scratching.  So the worshippers of God never get tired of singing His praise.

The man whose hair stands on end at the mere mention of the 'name' of God, and from whose eyes flow tears of love--he has indeed reached his last birth.

The truly religious man is he who does not commit any sin even when he is alone, and when no man observes him, because he feels that God sees him even then. (Edited for brevity)  He who finds a bag full of gold in a lonely and uninhabited house, and resists the temptation of appropriating it, he is a truly religious man.  But he who practices religion for the sake of show, through fear of public opinion, cannot be called truly religious.  The religion of silence and secrecy is the true religion, but it is all sham and mockery when attended with vaunting and vanity.

The True End of Learning

Only two kinds of people can attain self-knowledge: those who are encumbered at all with learning, that is to say, whose minds are not over-crowded with thoughts borrowed from others; and those who, after studying all the scriptures and sciences, have come to realize that they know nothing.

People talk of errors and superstitions, and feel proud of their book-learning; but the sincere devotee finds the loving Lord every ready to lend him a helping hand.  It matters not if he had been walking along a wrong path for a time.  The Lord knows what he wants and in the end fulfills his heart's desires.

Utter the word Gita, in quick succession, a number of times-Git-ta-gi-ta-gi-tagi.  It is then virtually pronounced as "Tagi", "Tagi", which means one who has renounced the world for the sake of God.  Thus, in one word, the Gita teaches, "Renounce, ye world-bound men!  Renounce everything, and fix the mind on the Lord."

Faith

A boy named Jatila used to walk to school through the woods, and the journey frightened him.  One day he told his mother of his fear.  She replied: "Why should you be afraid?  Call Madhusudana."  "Mother," asked the boy, "Who is Madhusudana?"  The mother said, "He is your Elder Brother."  One day after this, when the boy again felt afraid in the woods, he cried out, "O Brother Madhusudana!"  But there was no response.  He began to weep aloud:  "Where are You, Brother, Madhusudana?  Come to me.  I am afraid."  Then God could no longer stay away.  He appeared before the boy and said: "Here I am.  Why are you frightened?"  And so saying He took the boy out of the woods and showed him the way to school.  When He took leave of the boy, God said: "I will come whenever you call me.  Do not be afraid."
One must have this faith of a child, this yearning.

A brahman used to worship his family Deity with food offerings.  One day he had to go away on business. As he was about to leave the house, he said to his son: "Give the offering to the Deity today.  See that God is fed."  The boy offered food in the shrine, but the image remained silent on the altar.  It would neither eat nor talk.  The boy waited a long time, but still the image did not move.  But the boy firmly believed that God would come down from His throne, sit on the floor, and partake of his food.  Again and again he prayed to the Deity, saying: "O Lord, come down and eat the food.  It is already very late.  I cannot sit here any longer."  But the image did not utter a word.  The boy burst into tears and cried: "O Lord, my father asked me to feed you.  Why won't you come down?  Why won't you eat from my hands?"  The boy wept for some time with a longing soul.  At last the Deity, smiling, came down from the altar and sat before the meal and ate it.  After feeding the Deity, the boy came out of the shrine room.  His relative said: "The worship is over.  Now bring away the offering."  "Yes," said the boy, "the worship is over.  But God has eaten everything."  "How is that?" asked the relatives.  The boy replied innocently, "Why, God has eaten the food."  They entered the shrine and were speechless with wonder to see that the Deity had really eaten every bit of the offering.

God can be realized through child-like faith and guilelessness.
  A certain person, on coming across a sadhu, humbly begged him for instruction.  The sadhu's advice was, "Love God with all your heart and soul."  The enquirer replied, "I have never seen God, nor do I know anything about Him; how is it possible that I should love Him?"  The holy man enquired whom the other loved most.  The answer was, "I have nobody to care for.  I have a sheep and that is the only creature I love."  The sadhu said: "Then tend the creature and love it with all your heart and soul, and always remember that the Lord abides in it."  Having given this advice the sadhu left the place.  The enquirer now began to tend the sheep with loving care, fully believing that the Lord abode in the creature.  After a long time the sadhu, during his return journey, sought out the person he had advised and enquired how he was getting on.  The latter saluted the sadhu and said, "Master, I am all right, thanks to your kind instructions.  Much good has come to me by following the line of thought prescribed by you.  Time and again I see a beautiful figure with four hands within my sheep and I find supreme bliss in that."

You must have heard about the tremendous power of faith.  It is said in the Purana that Rama, who was God Himself--the embodiment of Absolute Brahman--had to build a bridge to cross the sea to Ceylon (Sri Lanka).  But Hanuman, trusting in Rama's name, cleared the sea in one jump and reached the other side.  He had no need of a bridge.

Once the son of a certain man lay at the point of death, and it seemed that none could save his life.  A sadhu, however, said to the father of the dying son: "There is but one hope.  If you can get in a human skull the venom of a cobra mixed with a few drops of rain-water under the constellation of the Svati star, your son's life can be saved."  The father looked up the almanac and found that the constellation of the Svati would be in the ascendant on the morrow.  So he prayed, saying, "O Lord, do Thou make possible all these conditions, and the spare the life of my son."  With extreme earnestness and longing in his heart, he set out on the following evening and diligently searched in a deserted spot for a human skull.  At last he found one under a tree, held it in the hand, and waited for the rain, praying.  Suddenly, a shower came, and a few drops of rain were deposited in the upturned skull.  the man said to himself, "Now I have the water in the skull under the right constellation."  Then he prayed earnestly, "Grant, O Lord, that the rest may also be obtained."  In a short time he discovered, not far from there, a toad, and a cobra springing to catch it.  In a moment the toad jumped over the skull, followed by the cobra whose venom fell into the skull.  With overwhelming gratitude the anxious father cried out: "Lord, by Thy grace even impossible things are made possible.  Now I know that my son's life will be saved."
  Therefore, I say, if you have true faith and earnest longing, you will get everything by the grace of the Lord.

A Milk-Maid used to supply milk to a brahmana priest living on the other side of a river.  Owing to the irregularities of the boat service, she could not supply him milk punctually every day.  Once, being rebuked for her going late, the poor woman said, "What can I do?  I start early from my house, but have to wait for a long time at the river bank for the boatman and the passengers."  The priest said, "Woman!  They cross the ocean of life by uttering the name of God, and can't you cross this little river?"  The simple-hearted woman became very glad at heart on learning this easy means of crossing the river.  From the next day the milk was being supplied early in the morning.  One day the priest said to the woman, "How is it that you are no longer late nowadays?"  She said, "I cross the river by uttering the name of the Lord as you told me to do, and don't stand now in need of a boatman."  The priest could not believe this and said, "Can you show me how you cross the river?"  The woman took him with her and began to walk over the water.  Looking behind, the woman saw the priest in a sad plight and said, "How is it, sir, that you are uttering the name of God with your mouth, but at the same time with your hands you are trying to keep your cloth untouched by water?  You do not fully rely on Him."
  Entire resignation and absolute faith in God are at the root of all miraculous deeds.

Devotion

In a certain village there lived a weaver.  He was a very pious soul.  Everyone trusted him and loved him.  He used to sell his goods in the market-place.  When a customer asked him the price of a cloth, the weaver would say: "By the will of Rama the price of the yarn is one rupee and the labour four annas; by the will of Rama the profit is two annas.  The price of the cloth, by the will of Rama, is one rupee and six annas."  Such was the people's faith in the weaver that the customer would at once pay the price and take the cloth.  The weaver was a real devotee of God.  After finishing his supper in the evening, he would spend long hours in the worship hall meditating on God and chanting His name and glories.  Now, late one night the weaver couldn't sleep.  He was sitting in the worship hall, smoking, now and then, when a band of robbers happened to pass that way.  They wanted a man to carry their goods and said to the weaver, "Come with us." So saying, they led him off by the hand.  After committing a robbery in a house, they put a load of things on the weaver's head commanding him to carry them.  Suddenly the police arrived and the robbers ran away.  But the weaver, with his load, was arrested.  He was kept in the lock-up for the night.  Next day he was brought before the magistrate for trial.  The villagers learnt what had happened and came to the court.  They said to the magistrate, "Your Honour, this man could never commit robbery."  Thereupon the magistrate asked the weaver to make his statement.
  The weaver said: "Your Honour, by the will of Rama I finished my meal at night.  Then by the will of Rama I was sitting in the worship hall.  It was quite late at night by the will of Rama.  By the will of Rama I had been thinking of God and chanting His name and glories, when by the will of Rama a band of robbers passed that way.  By the will of Rama they dragged me with them; by the will of Rama they committed a robbery in a house; and by the will of Rama they put a load on my head.  Just then, by the will of Rama the police arrived and by the will of Rama I was arrested.  Then by the will of Rama the police kept me in the lock-up for the night, and this morning by the will of Rama I have been brought before Your Honour."  The magistrate realized that the weaver was a pious man and ordered his release.  On his way home the weaver said to his friends, "By the will of Rama I have been released."
  Whether you live in the world or renounce it, everything depends upon the will of Rama.  Throwing your whole responsibility upon God, do your work in the world.

In the course of his pilgrimage through the southern parts of India, Sri Chaitanya Deva came across a certain devotee who was in tears all the while a pundit was reading from the Gita.  Now this devotee knew not even a single word of the Gita.  On being asked why he shed tears, he replied, "It is indeed true that I do not know a word of the Gita.  But all the while it was being read, I could not help seeing with my inner eye the beautiful form of my Lord Sri Krishna seated before Arjuna in a chariot in the field of Kurukshetra, and giving out all those sublime thoughts embodied in the Gita.  This it was that filled my eyes with tears of joy and love."
  This man who knew not letters, had the highest Knowledge, for he had pure love for God and could realize Him.

Once upon a time conceit entered into the heart of Narada, and he thought there was no greater devotee than himself.  Reading his heart, the Lord said: "Narada, go to such and such a place.  A great devotee of mine is living there.  Cultivate his acquaintance; for he is truly devoted to Me."  Narada went there and found an agriculturist who rose early in the morning, pronounced the name of Hari (God) only once, and taking his plough, went out and tilled the ground all day long.  At night he went to bed after pronouncing the name of Hari once more.  Narada said to himself: "How can this rustic be a lover of God?  I see him busily engaged in worldly duties, and he has no signs of a pious man about him."  Then Narada went back to the Lord and spoke what he thought of his new acquaintance.  Thereupon the Lord said: "Narada, take this cup of oil and go round this city and come back with it.  But take care that you do not spill even a single drop of it."  Narada did as he was told, and on his return the Lord asked him, "Well, Narada, how many times did you remember Me in the course of your walk round the city?"  "Not once, my Lord," said Narada, "and how could I, when I had to watch this cup brimming over with oil?"  The Lord then said: "This one cup of oil did so divert your attention that even you did forget Me altogether.  But look at that rustic, who, though carrying the heavy burden of a family, still remembers Me twice every day."

Faith, Devotion and Resignation

Once a washerman was beating a devotee severely and the devotee was crying, "Narayana! Narayana!"  Lord Narayana was in Sri Vaikuntha, sitting near Lakshmi.  As soon as He heard the cry of the devotee, He got up and proceeded to protect the man.  But He returned to His seat after going only a few steps.  Seeing this, Lakshmi asked the Lord why He had returned so quickly.  Lord Narayana replied, "Because I found no need of my going there.  That fellow too has become a Dhobi (washerman).  He has begun to protect himself; he is now giving blows in return to the man who has been beating him before.  So where is the necessity of my going there?"  The Lord saves one only if one surrenders oneself completely to Him.

Worldly position of devotees

As Bhishma lay dying on his bed of arrows, he was found shedding tears.  Sri Krishna and the Pandavas were standing by.  Arjuna exclaimed, "How strange, brother!  Our grandfather Bhishma himself--so truthful and wise, the master of his self, and one amongst the eight Vasus (a class of deities)--even he is overcome by Maya in his dying hour and is shedding tears!" When this was communicated to Bhishma he replied: "O Krishna, you know full well that I am not crying for that.  But when I think that even the Pandavas, whom the Lord Himself is serving as charioteer, have to pass through endless troubles and tribulations, I am overpowered with the thought that the ways of God cannot in the least be comprehended, and I cannot restrain my tears."

Yearning for God

If you must be mad, be it not for the things of the world.  Be mad with the love of God.

Some men shed streams of tears because sons are not born to them, others eat away their hearts in sorrow because they cannot get riches.  But alas! how many are there who sorrow and weep for not having seen the Lord!  Very few indeed!  Verily, he who seeks the Lord, who weeps for Him, attains Him.

Let your heart pan for Him as a miser longs for gold.

As the drowning man pants hard for breath, so must one's heart yearn for the Lord, before one can find Him.

Do you know how intense our love of God should be?  The love that a devoted wife possesses for her beloved husband, the attachment that a miser feels for his hoarded wealth, and the clinging desire that the worldly-minded people foster for the things of the world--when the intensity of your heart's longing for the Lord is equal to the sum of these three, then you will attain Him.

'I must attain God in this very life; yea, in three days I must find Him; nay with a single utterance of His name I will draw Him to me'--with such violent Love the devotee can attract and realize Him quickly.  But devotees who are lukewarm in their Love take ages to find Him if indeed they find Him at all.

Why this attitude of an idler, that if realization is not possible in this birth, it will come in the next?  There should not be such sluggishness in devotion.  The goal never be reached unless a man makes his mind strong, and firmly resolves that the must realize God in this very birth, nay, this very moment.  In the countryside, when cultivators go to purchase bullocks, they first touch the tails of the animals.  Some of the bullocks do not make any response to this.  Rather, they relax all their limbs and lie down on the ground. At once the cultivators understand them to be worthless.  There are some others that jump about and behave violently the moment their tails are touched; and the peasants immediately know that these will be very useful to them.  Their choice is then made from among this active type.  Slothfulness is not at all desirable.  Gather strength, firm faith, and say that you must realize God this very moment.  Then only can you succeed.

A devotee asked the Master, "By what means can He be seen?" and the Master replied: "Can you weep for Him with intense longing?  Men weep jugfuls of tears for children, wife, money, etc.; but who weeps for God?  So long as a child is engrossed in play with its toys, the mother engages herself in cooking and other household works.  But when the little one finds no more satisfaction in toys, throws them aside and loudly cries for its mother, she can no longer remain in the kitchen.  She perhaps drops down the rice pot from the hearth, and runs in hot haste to the child and takes it up in her arms."

Wherein does the strength of an aspirant lie?  He is a child of God, and tears are his greatest strength.  As a mother fulfills the desires of a child who weeps and importunes her, so does the Lord grant to His weeping child whatever he is crying for.

As a child beseeches it mother for toys and pice, weeping and teasing her, so he who weeps inwardly, intensely longing to see Him, like an innocent child, and knowing Him to be his nearest and dearest, is rewarded at last with the vision Divine.  God can no longer remain hidden from such an earnest and importunate seeker.

Karma Yoga

Work is a means, if done unattached; but the end of life is to see God.  Let me repeat that the means should not be confounded with the end--that the first stage on a road should not be taken for the goal.  No, do not regard work as the be-all and the end-all, the ideal of human existence.  Pray for devotion to God.  Suppose you are fortunate enough to see God.  Then what would you pray for?  Would you pray for dispensaries and hospitals, tanks and wells, roads and alms-houses?  No, these are realities to us so long as we do not see God.  But once brought face to face with the Divine vision, we see them as they are--transitory things no better than dreams.  And then we would pray for more light--more knowledge in the highest sense, more Divine love--the love which lifts us up from man to God, the love which makes us realize that we are really sons of the Supreme Being of Whom all that can be said is that He exists, that He is Knowledge itself in highest sense, and that He is the eternal fountain of love and bliss.

Bhakti and Jnana

A devotee: How can one know that one has attained Jnana, even while leading a family life?
The Master: By the tears and the thrill of the hair at the name of Hari.  When at the very mention of the sweet 'name' of the Lord, tears trickle down from a person's eyes and his hairs stand on end, he has attained Jnana.