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Part 1: The Grace of the Guru: Lessons in Obedience and Prayer This is a reading from Līlā Amṛt: The Divine Life of Śrī Rām Mahāprabhujī. Mahāprabhujī heals me. Several times, Mahāprabhujī cured me of serious ailments. One night, after a satsaṅg I had held in the village of Kāṭhū, I suddenly felt quite ill and fainted from unbearable pain. Immediately, everyone took great care of me, but without success, and it became apparent that my life was in danger. The next morning, Mahāprabhujī was informed of my condition, that I was near to death. But with his usual gentle smile, he told the concerned devotees, "Don’t worry, he will get better. Without my permission, death has no power over him. Twice already, death has tried to take Mādhavānanda but had to relent. Mādhavānanda is under my protection." So, how can the Lord of Death [prevail]? Only half-conscious, I was taken to Mahāprabhujī, who put his blessed hand on my head. "The duty I have assigned to you must be fulfilled by you. Don’t worry, you will soon be healthy." From this moment, I began to recover quickly and was soon restored to normal health. Another time, I had a guinea worm, a dangerous parasite that causes great pain. The worm had penetrated the skin of my leg. While trying to pull it out, I broke it, causing myself even greater distress. I was lying on a mattress on the terrace of the ashram, hardly able to bear the pain. I overheard a conversation between Mahāprabhujī and Paṇḍitjī Sāhabhachandri Vandhanu. Paṇḍitjī Sāhabhachandri was leaving the ashram to say goodbye, as he was going to a village to arrange something. Mahāprabhujī tried to hold Paṇḍitjī, saying it would be dark. He could get lost, and if it rained… The village was only a few kilometres away from the ashram, but it was not improbable that one could get lost, for there were no streets to lead the way, and at night one was only guided by the stars. However, Paṇḍitjī didn’t listen to the warning of Gurudeva. "Master, I know exactly the way and surely won’t get lost. Also, it’s unlikely that we will have rain, because it almost never rains in winter and the sky is without a cloud." "All right then, but hurry up." Paṇḍitjī left the ashram and went to Kāṭhū village to arrange his affairs, but this took him longer than expected, and he was only able to start back after sunset. About halfway to the ashram, it began to rain, and just as Mahāprabhujī had warned, Paṇḍitjī became lost. [Later, Paṇḍitjī asked Mahāprabhujī,] "…to know what happens to those who don’t follow your words. I believe in you, but sometimes what you say sounds so incredible or unlikely. But how can I know what to take seriously and what not?" Mahāprabhujī smiled at him. "Take heed of all words from saints and wise men. Always search for the truth in them, regardless of how casual they may sound." Paṇḍitjī entered my room while I was still lying in great agony. He told me his experience, but I could hardly follow the story because of my pain. Mahāprabhujī then entered the room. "Mādhav, why do you lament? Everyone must bear the fruits of their karma. You will not liberate yourself by complaining." "Master, I know that you can liberate me from my karma," I cried. But Mahāprabhujī was dismissive. "I am not your servant, always available, nor am I your doctor." "You are the doctor who can cure the whole universe," I insisted. "You have liberated me from several karmas. Why does this particular painful one remain?" Mahāprabhujī took a piece of turmeric root from his pocket and gave it to me. "Here you are, take it and eat it, and your pain will disappear." As I ate the root, the pain immediately diminished, and that same evening the worm and my pain had completely gone, and I was healthy again. Unfortunately, it was only a short time later that I didn’t fare much better than Paṇḍitjī. Often we make the mistake of listening only superficially to the words of others. But the Sadguru is not like most people who just talk for fun. The words of Gurudev always come true, as he knows the future. The greatest error is to mistake the guru for a normal person. He may look, talk, and act, and [we may have] no imagination of who he truly is. The guru doesn’t make much sensation, nor does he raise his voice to emphasize he has something. It is up to us to be attentive so that we don’t miss the wisdom warnings in his words. Mostly the guru will only make a single remark without any direct warning, to teach the disciple to improve his awareness and decision-making abilities in realizing these hints. If we make the mistake of ignoring his words, we will be taught a lesson. The following story is exactly about this: the blind journey. I asked Mahāprabhujī’s permission to make a satsaṅg journey. He permitted it on the condition that I remain within the state of Rajasthan. "He who travels blind will become blind." I didn’t pay careful attention to his words and only heard him grant approval for my trip. I had visited a couple of villages on my journey when I came to the road that led to Abu, and then decided to pay a short visit to Palanpur in the state of Gujarat. I had simply forgotten that Mahāprabhujī had told me to remain in Rajasthan. Immediately upon my arrival in Palanpur, my eyes began to burn and hurt. The next day I visited a doctor, but his treatment was without effect. I went to Gandhidham to Dr. Iyengar, a disciple of mine, who cared for me with much love and professional attention. His treatment lasted for more than one month, but the pain only increased and my eyesight continued to deteriorate. I decided to go to Dr. Arjun Singh, the eye specialist in Sivagunj, Rajasthan. He took me to his hospital in Mawar Junction, but still my eyes did not respond to the medication. So I went to Ajmer, where I was cared for by Dr. Manāhasimhi and his father, who were both disciples of Mahāprabhujī. But they also were unable to heal me, and losing all hope, told me that probably there was no cure for my pain. By this time, I had a constant, almost unbearable burning pain in both eyes. I could hardly see, and the pain prevented me from sleeping. During the night, I prayed to Mahāprabhujī, "Lord, I can’t bear such painful living anymore. Rather, allow me to die." I repeated my prayer several times, and sometime later I dreamed, and in my dream I saw the beloved face of my master. "I told you only to travel within the state of Rajasthan, but blindly you disregarded my order. This pain is the result, but now I shall tell you how to improve. Tomorrow morning, soak some chapati bread. In two days, you will be cured and return to me." As soon as possible, I followed these instructions, and the next day I was almost free from pain. I repeated the treatment, and like Mahāprabhujī had said, I was cured within two days. Dr. Manohar Singh and his father were deeply impressed with my recovery and Mahāprabhujī’s infinite mercy. They accompanied me to where Mahāprabhujī was waiting at the door of the Shiva Ashram. He smiled when he saw us. "Now, Mādhav, will you again travel so blindly?" I bowed at his feet and asked for forgiveness, and he blessed me. Mahā Bābājī invited Dr. Manohar Singh and his father to stay for dinner at the ashram and told me to prepare halvā for the evening. Halva is a dessert made of semolina, ghee, sugar, almonds, and raisins. Unfortunately, I burnt the halva, so it became much darker than usual, and I was afraid that nobody would like it. After the evening prayer, I served the halvā, giving a portion to everyone. To my great surprise, it tasted delicious. Never before had I eaten such wonderful halvā. Everyone else also liked it, and this to me was a sign that Mahāprabhujī had really forgiven me. Later, whenever I met Dr. Manohar Singh or his father, we talked about this blessed evening, and the wonderful halva, which by the mercy of Mahāprabhujī tasted like divine ambrosia. So welcome everybody, Hari Om, good evening. Just now you heard our dear Pūrṇimā from Adelaide read the holy book, Līlā Amṛt, the divine life of our beloved Gurudev, Bhagavān Siddhip Nārāyaṇa Mahāprabhujī. In the middle, you see a picture standing. This book will give you the picture of the simplicity and divinity of the Master. It is said, what is not possible, Gurudev can make possible. What’s going to happen? He may, or he can, remove it. Because Par Brahma Gurudev is, he is the Brahma. Sab kuch detā banāī, he can make possible, impossible, he can make it possible. And so were Mahāprabhujī’s words, Mathodayī Gurujī’s writing. What was the truth in Guru Vakya? Prayer, yesterday we spoke about prayer. Prayer has immense power. Whenever Jesus had a difficulty—we know very little about his life, only what is written in the Bible—he had to go through many difficulties. But his remedy, his only hope, his only savior was his prayer to the Holy Father. Prayer gives us peace, both kinds of peace, external as well as inner. External peace may be there, but if the inner peace is not there, then we are [lost]. If someone has depression or certain problems, that one has lost inner peace, it doesn’t matter what we will tell, it will not help. Inner contentment, peace, love, joy, happiness. These are the universal principles. And no one has a right over it, only God. God gave to all creatures free of taxes, free of charge. God gave us life to be happy, but if we can’t realize it, it’s our own mistake. God gave us joy in our heart, but if we don’t utilize it, it’s our own mistake. God gave us contentment. Whatever you have, be happy with this. But we are not following these words, and we are searching more and more. All this can only be realized through prayer. There is one poem written by the great Guru Nānak, Nānakjī, on his teaching, the entire Sikh tradition and religion following. Sikhs are those who have the turban and beard. One day, Nānak Sāhib was a little bit disturbed, unhappy, because in his family there were some problems. Family, if you have a family or you are more than one, there are always some problems. So, in the evening, he just went on the roof of his house to be alone, looking at nature. He was sitting on the roof, and then he sees the neighbors, wife is fighting with her husband, other side husband is fighting with the wife, other side children are quarreling with parents, other side parents are screaming on the children, so Nānak Sāhib said, "I came to find peace here." So he said, "Nānaka Dukhīyā Sab Sansār. Nānaka Dukhīyā Sab Sansār. Chad Kothī Dekhā Gargar Yehi Hāl." True? You understand Hindi, yes? "Gargar Yehi Hāl. Nānaka Dukhīyā Sab Sansār." Gurū Nānak Sāhib Jī said, "O Nānak," he said to himself, "the whole world is troublesome." All are in trouble. Chad kothī dekhā, kothī means house. I climbed up on my roof to sit there and find my peace. But what I see in every house is the same condition. If you go to search for peace outside, you may not find it. Every creature is against each other, everywhere. So he said again, "Bura dekhan ko main chala." I went to go and see who is the bad person. Who is the bad person? Who are all these trouble creators? Bura dekhan ko main chala. Bura ne mila koi. But I didn’t find any bad person. When I searched my heart, nobody is better than myself. So all that we are projecting—happiness, unhappiness, problems, this, that—this is our mind creating. And this is not reality. This world is like a dream. What you experienced at noon is gone. Maybe it was good, but it will never come back. It was bad; it will never come back. That was, and that’s gone. Now it remains in your memory. So you may recall from your memory. If it was good, then enjoy your happiness, good. If it was bad, then suffer about that. But the wise one said, "Past is past, delete it. Future will be like that as my present." And therefore, in presence, in present time, our benefit is in that, as much as we can pray. Every great thinker, every artist, every person makes a certain kind of thought when they see some view. Because we used to say, "Jai Śrī Draṣṭi, Jai Śrī Śṛṣṭi." Through which eye you see the world, see like that, the world will be for you. Now it is sunset. Aghor is imagining: the sun is unhappy, the sun is making his thoughts, "My time is over." And this world will be swallowed by darkness, with no one here who can prevent it. In that minute, there was a small, beautiful Śiva temple, and for prayer, the bell was ringing. Tagore had long been a priest, prepared for the prayer, a nice ghee lamp. Tagore didn’t see anything. He saw that small, tiny flame. What he saw in the flame was saying something to Tagore. These are the thoughts of the great people, how they create history. Otherwise, we don’t create history, we call history. Huh? Hysterical. Tiny flame said to the sun, I cannot be like you as a sun, but I will try to give the light. I will try to give the light. Confucius said, when the day is dark and dreary, the way is hard to find. Don’t let your heart be worried. Just keep one thought in mind. It’s better to light a candle than to stand in the dark. Even a small, tiny candle flame can show us the path, and so we can’t replace God. We are all human beings, but still God gave us that flame, and we should be that flame of the altar of God’s name to bring the light. Holy Saint Assisi said, "Lord, make me that I can bring peace where there is quarreling. I can bring happiness where there is suffering." Many things through prayers you can achieve, which you cannot achieve through your material means. Ultimately, we have to surrender everything. Doesn’t matter what you have, what you own, everything, your property, your money, all that you own, even this body, your emotion, your intellect, your mind, your senses, all you have to surrender. Sabhi chhod kar chala, musāfir, fir bās kiyā ban kā. Jagat mein jīvan do din kā. Traveller gave up everything, have to give up, renounce. Either you renounce and will be taken, or you are taken. And Saul is gone, who knows in which part. Which part? It is said, someone is gone, someone is going, and someone is packing his suitcase. Someone has packed his suitcase and is standing alone on the platform. Only two days in life we have, no more. One was yesterday, and the second is today. Tomorrow you will never see. In the morning, when the sun rises, it will be today. So tomorrow is always tomorrow. This is the game of these creatures: coming, going, coming, going. So in this, there is one story Gurujī used to tell many times. And all stories of Gurujī are written in one nice book. It’s called From Darkness to the Light. 250 stories of someone telling this story. So precious story. So Gurujī often told stories, and someone came to Gurujī and said, "Gurudev, I have no time to meditate and pray, and there is so much quarreling in the world, and this and that, and many things, but I cannot do this and that." Guruji used to say one story: one horse horseman. Always he used to ride on the back of the horse and go far distances, 20 kilometers, 50 kilometers. That time, 50 kilometers was very far through the desert. So he was riding his horse 10-15 kilometers, or 20, and then he was tired and the horse was very thirsty. So he came to some desert, and there was a farmer, and he had an old system to take water out. They had a very big wooden wheel. On that was a rope, and on the rope were small buckets. Oxen were going round and round, and so water was going down to the well and filled the bucket automatically, and came and was emptying, and again going down. We have enjoyed an ashram. We kept the culture, the old tradition. There is automatic breaking, because if the ox goes back suddenly, then everything will roll back. So there is a piece of wood. It is beating always, coming to the end, coming to the end. So it rolls back, and it breaks. And that makes sound. Now the ox is going round and round, water is coming, but it is making sound. And the horse wants to drink, and that wooden sound, and the horse is frightened, is scared. So the horseman tells, "Please, can you stop for a while?" He stops. There is no water. The horse is drinking, but there is only a little, nothing more. Please, can you move a little more? So he again started to go. Water is coming, but the horse is scared and doesn’t come to drink. Please stop again. When the third time the horseman asked the farmer, "Move or start," the farmer said, "My dear, in this noisy situation, if you want to give water to your horse, your thirsty horse, do it. Otherwise, take it. Your horse is as thirsty as you." Now, this horse is our mind, and water is this prayer, the name of God, spiritual life. And noise are in the world, many, many problems, talking, this, that, this kleśa, vikṣepa, business life, this life, that life. And suddenly you are so frightened inside, you give up your meditation, you give up your prayers, and your jīvātmā is the farmer or the horse rider who is riding. If you want to give water and gain it, then do it. Otherwise, die as thirsty as you came. God sent us into this world to drink the nectar of that wisdom, of that spirituality, and that is through the channel of prayer. In prayers, everything goes. All you think that you will do, asanas and prānāyāma, a little concentration and a little meditation, you are on the surface, you are nowhere. Go deeper, more deeper, more deeper. And more deeply you can go only through mantra and prayers. The best meditation is that you just make yourself comfortable, practice your mantra, and feel the presence of the Buddha. You will see, on that day you will have one of the best meditations. It means we surrender our senses, our emotions, our intellect, our body, our entire being. Part 2: The Gentle Flame of Faith I am Thay. That is all. Just you take care of it. There is a beautiful bhajan many Indians sing in the temples: Hāthome yor har tumhāre, Hāthome hai jīt tumhāre, Hāthome Prabhu har tumhāre, Hāthome ab sāp diyā is, Jīvan kā sab bhar tumhāre. It means: "Oh Lord, now I give all the responsibilities, burdens, and troubles of my life into your hands. I did all I could; my strength and my limitations only go this far, Lord. But you are almighty, and I give all into your hands. Whether I will be the winner or loser of this life, it is in your hands, Lord." My Lord, if I have to live in this māyā, this world, then let me be like a lotus above the dirty, muddy water. Similarly, be the lotus. If you go deep, everything is dust. The world is full of all this dirt. Gurujī used to sing a beautiful bhajan and tell a nice story. He used to say, "Be like a honey bee." The honey bee brings nectar even from poisonous cactus blossoms. It first eats the nectar itself, digests it, and tests if it is good or not. Then it gives back. The honey is digested by the bees. That is why honey is easier to digest than sugar—because the bee has already worked on it, like a mother. Everyone has good sides and some weak sides. Everyone’s hands are not so clean, but it does not mean they are bad. If your hands are in dirt and you fall into a swimming pool and cannot swim, and you call for help to someone whose hands are also dirty, you would say, "Please help!" If he says, "Okay, I will go and wash my hands first," you would say, "No, no, it does not matter, please take it." Correct? That is it. So, like that, we should see. Otherwise, on the middle way, you are lost. Again, I will quote Gurudev Nānak. He said the name of the Gurudev is a boat. If you sit in it with your confidence, it will cross the ocean and come to the mainland. Be sure the captain, Gurudev, will let you cross the ocean. If you jump in the middle of the ocean because you do not like your captain, no problem. There are sharks; they need you. Sometimes they like a different kind of breakfast or dinner. So, satsaṅg. This is the boat where we are sitting now. Satsaṅg. Satguru nām jāj hai, chade sotāre pār; jo śraddhākar sevde guru, pār utāran har. At the same time, you should read this holy book, the Guru Granth Sāhib. Nānakjī also said, I think it is in the Granth: Sau sau canda ugve, aur suraj chade hajar. Clear? No translation? Should I translate? Sau sau canda ugve—hundreds and hundreds of moons rise, aur suraj chade hajar—and thousands of suns rise in the sky. It ta chandan o nah karsake—all these hundreds of moons and thousands of suns are not capable of making that much light; they cannot remove the darkness of the heart. Without Gurudev, there will always be darkness. So Guru Vākya, Gurudev’s teaching, what they said, is that light for all of us, and we shall keep that light. And that light is so fragile. That light is so gentle. There is another beautiful poem. It is said: Sabhe sahayak sabal ke. Or kohun nirbala sahay. Sabhe sahayak sabal ke. Everyone is helping the strong one. When you support a football team, a cricket team, a hockey team, or boxers, you support the stronger one, no? Or some rich man—everybody goes and says, "Yes, sir, come here, sir." And to some poor one they say, "Oh, okay, just sit where you are, do not come inside." How selfish we are. So sabhe sahayak sabal ke—everyone supports the stronger one. Or kohun nirbalasai—no one is a helper of the meek. Like pavan jagavat aṅko—there is a small spark of fire, tiny, and the wind blows and makes that fire so strong that half of the Australian bush burns down. A small spark of fire, but that wind has supported it to become stronger and bigger. Or, kohun nirbal sahay—or, like deepahi deta bujay—but the same wind will blow off this tiny, gentle flame. So as long as you have this tiny, gentle faith in you, do not fail in the kuśaṅgas. When you get the blackmailing, kuṣāṅgas, this and that, then the flame is blown off. Where are you? One poet said, "This is made out of brass. Have good resonance." If there is a little crack, the sound will be like this, not like this. Kāṅsī, brass. Kāṅsī phuṭī. A crack is there. Jinkar kahā gayī? Where has the resonance gone? One little small crack. That is a doubt. A small doubt. Kāṅsī phūṭī. Jinkar kahā gayī. Doodh phaṭā kahā gayā. Grit. Milk is spoiled with lemon. Now where is the butter gone? Where is the ghee gone? From the spoiled milk, you cannot gain butter or ghee. Where did it disappear? You put one drop of lemon in milk, and suddenly the milk separates into a solid part and a liquid part. Now it does not matter how much you churn, no butter comes, no fat comes. Kāṅsī phūṭī jinkar kahā gayī? Aur dūdh milk? Doodh phaṭā kahā̃ gayā ghṛta? Where is the ghee? It is gone. This flame is blown off or gone off. Loh kaha chali gayi? Now where has this flame disappeared? The window is closed. Everything is closed. It is airtight. But where? We cannot find it. This visible flame which gives us light is blown off. Again doubt. Man phaṭā kā gayī, pṛth. Similarly, when in your mind, in your heart, there is doubt, the love is gone. Gone. Rahīmān dhagā prem kā, mat toḍo, chitakāyī. Tuta phir jode nahi, aur jode to ghat pad jayi. The great poet Rahimdāzī said, "Therefore, the thread of love is so gentle, so fragile, do not break it with a little misunderstanding." When it is broken, you cannot join it, and if you join it, there will always be a knot. It does not matter if you go to your husband and say, "I am sorry," and so on, and your husband also says to you, "Okay," and this and that. But the knot will always be there in the human. It is a very complicated brain situation. Therefore, avoid that and always have that light and that joy. So this tiny flame is what we are, and that is why we are disciples. That is why we are there as parents. That is why we are practitioners. On the day when this flame becomes a big flame or a big volcano, then no one has the capacity to blow it off. And therefore, prayers, mantra, gurubhākya, sevā—this is our path. And therefore Mahāprabhujī said: Humme hai kaam, satsaṅg se jagat bakke to bakne de. Humme hai kaam, satsaṅg se jagat bakke to bakne de. "I have to do with the satsaṅg. Let the world gush up." Bakne ko yeh keda? What do you say, Bakke? How will you translate? Gossip, because maybe they think Swamiji does not translate properly. So, you go to a bunch more to be checked. Exactly. So, what do I have personally to do with myself? Was I born for this saṃsāra, this kleśa, vikṣepa, all this to suffer? Or was I born to be peaceful and happy, and through my practice and prayer, to achieve the goal of my life? I would like to utilize the time of our interval. Many of you know, and many do not know, that from the 17th of April till the 27th of April, we... Are you going to make a peace tour through Australia? The Śrī Svāmī Madhavānand World Peace Council welcomes you to join us on the peace tour through Australia, honoring the ancient culture and living wisdom of the Aboriginal people of Australia, Kora. From Adelaide to the sacred rock Uluru, sitting with the desert communities along the way. This means these local communities, all the Aboriginal people with their leaders, will, at every spot where we camp, come to welcome us. They do not like meetings, so they call it sitting, like we are sitting now here in satsaṅg. It is very interesting—in India we also have a sitting, sitting together on one platform. At every spot, we will plant with them a peace tree. The tour is more than 2,000 kilometers. Then we come to this holy rock, and we will have a parikramā around it. Then, one day, the message of this tour will be like this: it is beautiful. It is called the Śrī Svāmī Madhavānand World Peace Council Peace Tour through Australia, with the message of Mahātmā Gandhījī and Śrī Svāmī Madhavānandjī. As Gandhiji said, renounce and enjoy. Adopt non-violence, Gandhiji said. And Gurujī said, "One in all and all in one." We are honoring the Aboriginal people, inspired by my name, and so on. So this is a beautiful tour, and you are all welcome to join. We will have a higher caravan. There are some mini buses with 37-seaters and 18-seaters. Until now, there are already more than 50 people, because people were informed a little later. It was my wish for the last 15 years to tour through the desert of Australia. But my nature is like this: I do not want to just waste time in emptiness. Whatever I do, there should be some meaning in it. So this tour has been prepared for long, long years. It is not only that we drive through the desert, but to bring a message to the people and bring a message to the world from the people. So, you are all welcome to come. If you cannot join the complete tour, come for half of it. Take your small four-seater, come and say hello, Swamiji, and then come back again. The program began already one hour and twenty minutes ago, but I did not greet you. We just began with something and continued, so welcome all of you here. It is a beautiful day, a beautiful evening. We are very fortunate ones that we can be here in satsaṅg, in this house of the ṛṣis in Pūrṇimā. The yoga is guided by Atul Siddhavi. Welcome to those from different parts of the Sunshine Coast, and also from Brisbane and the Gold Coast, and my God, many coasts. There are many, many. And also from New Zealand and from Europe, welcome. Also, I would like to send my humble and best wishes, regards, and greetings to all brothers and sisters around the world who are with us now through this webcast. This divine blessing of our Gurudev, Bhagavān Śrī Dīp Nārāyaṇa Mahāprabhujī, Devpurījī and Nolī Gurujī, is coming to you from one of the most beautiful Gold Coasts in Australia. So welcome to be with us. The people in Australia are very health conscious, with a healthy and natural way of life, and they are very spiritual thinkers. One of the presidents of the Australian Yoga Union in Melbourne introduced me and gave some information from his research work in Australia. There are some thousand teachers, and he said, "How many percentage of the people are practicing yoga?" Of them, 60% practice yoga only for physical condition and health, and the rest are interested in philosophy, spirituality, meditation, mantras, and so on. So it means a large number of people are interested in spirituality. It means consciousness is turning towards spirituality. The consciousness of the youth is awakening more and more towards love for Mother Nature, love for the creatures, and love for the cosmic Self. That is beautiful, and that is what you also would like to have now: meditation. So we will have meditation for a little while, okay? We will have today a very beautiful, simple, but real meditation—how most saints in ashrams, caves, and monasteries meditate. There are many techniques, of course, for imagination, and I could take you to different planets. But then you are out of yourself, so be with yourself. So, close your eyes and make yourself comfortable. It is not necessary to sit in lotus or some other posture. The best one is where you feel relaxed. Close your eyes. Withdraw yourself from the external world. Feel your presence in this meditation hall. Try to be aware of your being here, physically and mentally. Take a few deep inhales and exhales. Chant "Om" once, and while chanting "Om," try to become... Complete awareness of thyself. Send into the world the divine resonance of the deep inhale. Once we will change the whole body, from the toes till the top of the head, from the top of the head till... the toes, chest. Relax your elbows, relax your shoulders, relax your face muscles, relax your jaw, chest, relax your trunk of the body, your stomach muscles. If you have a mantra, then mentally relax and repeat your mantra. If you have no mantra, you may repeat "so hum." While inhaling, "so." "So" means "that." "Hum" means "I am." That means, "I am cosmic." And that cosmic light is ascending and descending. Breathe without concentration. Just let it be. Let it open the window of your heart. What you believe does not matter—which religion, which culture, which God in which form. The light, the divine sign in your heart—through that way, that light means joy, peace. God is only one, but has many names. He appears in many forms for us because we have different feelings, different imaginations. Feel the presence of that divine in this room, in this very gentle, fine air. That divine touches you gently, pervades through and through. The divine feeling, the presence of thy Lord. Just be in the presence. If you do not believe, or still you do not know what to believe, then just believe thyself that you are existing, and in these minutes, existing. If you do not believe this, believe in the divine presence in that oxygen which you are inhaling, the divine presence in that gentle wind which is moving. The Divine Presence like this being, the Divine Brahmāṇḍī Tathāpiṇḍī—what is in the universe exists within thyself. Feel the mercy of the Divine, the Divine Mercy. Param Kripa, Peace of the Inhalation, Hospice, Mother, sending this to the world, sent from your heart and your good wishes for the entire world, the heart is holy, peace and blessing. I am light, Lord. Make me the instrument that I can serve your holy creation. Deep inhale and long exhale, first breath, deep, and say mentally: I am light, I am peace, happiness, mercy of God, channel of the cosmic consciousness, one with the universe. Deep inhale. Three times we will chant. After me, put the palms on the face and gently massage a little the face muscles and eyes, then open your eyes. Practicing, practicing. Karatakād abhyāsa. Doing, doing. Jadmati hota sujan. Jad means a person who has no knowledge, ignorance. So mati means the intellect, of not-so-high development. If one will practice, jaḍavatī hot sujān—sujān means the wise—will become the... rāsī kī āvat jāvat śil par paḍat niśān. A rope, you know, here when there is a port, all the ships are arriving, and they throw a hook with a big, thick rope, and they pull. It goes in and out, in and out. After some time, one or two years, you will see the rope has cut through the stone. But the stone has the capacity, power, and strength to cut the rope within no time. But gently, every day. Gently, but every day. Going, passing, passing, it makes a hole or cuts the rope. Similarly, if we practice every day, even a little bit, it is said every step will be counted. If you practice every day, it will be counted as a step forward. If you do not practice one day, it will be counted as a step backward. So it is yours. If you practice, it is your benefit. If you do not practice, you are lost. Abhyāsa, Abhyāsa, O Kaunte, Abhyāsa. In the Bhagavad Gītā, it is said, O Kaunte, Kuntī Putra—the son of Kuntī, who was Arjuna—practice, practice, practice. Through his practice, Arjuna was one of the best in archery. The artist who works in the circus, you know how many hours they work, practicing every day. It is not easy to just jump and hold the rope, go there, turn and go up, and then fall down again. We can also do it, no problem. We can do it even twice: the first time and the last time. So, practicing. Anything that comes in the way in your life, where you stop your practicing or do something that keeps you back, then it is your loss. So, jis hāl mein, jis chāl mein raho, Rām kaho, Rām kaho. It does not matter in which condition you are—happy, unhappy, sad, nervous, in stress, tired—it does not matter. Repeat the name of God. That is Kali Yuga Kevala Nāma Ādhāra, sumira sumira nara hoi bhava pā. O humans, in this Kali Yuga, it is only the name of God that can help. You must be wind. It is your actus. With the hands you are working, but in the mouth you have the name of God. How beautiful! So, instead of stupid thinking, we should think positive; we should think about God. That makes us holy—not some initiation in some order, you know, this religion or that religion or that robe or that uniform, no. That holiness has to be in the heart. That will help. Will help? We have five minutes to change something. Okay, you can come in. Everyone can come and open the door. Yes, there was one gentleman who went out. Why did he go out? He should come in. Okay, I saw your cap. I thought some old man is coming in, and okay, so first I will chant five times, and the sixth time you will join me. Good. And just feel the resonance. Feel within you the resonance. Yeah? So when the children will be sitting peacefully, after we will get one chocolate in five minutes. Okay. I will chant five times, and then six times you join me. Just relax, be happy. Please silence your mobile phones. Thank you. They will never forgive me if I do not. If I will not do, is there any more chocolate somewhere? Okay, wish you a very good evening, a very pleasant evening. God bless you. It was nice to see you.