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Part 1: Destiny and the Divine: Trust, the Holy Name, and the Power of Sañjīvanī Does God have a destiny? Yes, at times the cosmic light must descend and play out a role within the world. Consider the life of Jesus. Whether people believe it or not, we do. Jesus had to pass through many ordeals, as we all know. Was that his destiny, or was it a task given to him? He had to demonstrate that such things can happen. He was in a physical body — that much is certain — yet, as a great divine cosmic being, he could endure what his body underwent. Imagine receiving an injection. We are not afraid, yet at that moment the heart pulse quickens. So when someone’s heart is already beating fast, let a doctor approach with a large syringe, and you will see how the heart muscle is exercised at once. Similarly, there was a great incarnation in Islam: a Sufi whose name was Mansur. He was self-realized, divine, cosmic. He began to preach, “I am Aham Divine” — meaning you, he, she, everyone — that is all. We call this Aham Brahmāsmi, “I am Brahman,” or So’ham, “I am Ātmā, I am that Ātmā,” and in that, according to Islam, Anā al-Ḥaqq. He had to proclaim it. They asked him to stop, but he said that this is the reality, it is God, and it is in me and in you too. They gave him great trouble, torturing him, but he did not give up. Wherever he was, a resonance continued. Then they crucified him, hanging him with thorns and nails. Still, the sound remained. Though his body died, it was constantly present. They buried him, but then they thought that was not enough. In Islam, the dead body is not normally burned, yet exceptionally they burned his body. As the sound came again, calling on Allah, they surrendered. When they surrendered, many grand and glorious stories arose about him. Yet, though he was such an exalted being, was this his destiny? Or was it to show us that even at the cost of one’s life, this realization endures? Jesus said, “Why, Father?” And it is said, “Because I trust you.” So this is a dialogue between master and disciple: how far do you trust? “I trust you.” Where is the limitation of your trust? If there is a limitation, it is not trust at all. That means you cannot separate Rāma and Sītā. Every saint has said, and some people thought that devotees may come and go. “But my Lord, I will be there, because I am not the devotee who comes, goes away, disappears, and returns. I trust I am yours, and I am yours forever. I may go far, farther than the stars, still, my Lord, I will be there.” It means that, beyond this physical body, even after death, my ātmā is melted in your ātmā. Even if I die, you may not see me alive. May I die? Even if I die, look into my eyes — mutely they will speak. When there is such trust, such love, such devotion, such unity, then you cannot separate; you fall into the ocean. The drop is gone. That happens between master and disciple, God and bhakta, or between a couple. There is no question of divorce or the like. On both sides, you must have devotion. Devotion means respect. The husband must have endless devotion to his wife, and the wife must have endless devotion to her husband. This means respect, love, and respect. When that is present, God Rāma looks upon his life. His stepbrother Lakṣmaṇa — Rāma’s own mother — when the battlefield was in Sri Lanka, they sought him out as he lay near death. They found a doctor. At that time, there was no naturopath. A vaidya came and said, “Well, Lakṣmaṇa, as soon as the sun rises, he will die.” Rāma and Hanumānjī were great — is there any way, anything, that we can save the life of Lakṣmaṇa? In the entire universe, is there anything? The Vedas said, “Yes, there is one. It is called Sañjīvanī Bhūti.” You know the Vedas — many of you know. Bhūti, also called jaḍī, bhūtti. Jaḍī means the roots. Bhūtti means the small herbs — those that give seed and die, like wheat, for instance. That is called bhūtti. There is also another kind of booti that you take: there are two kinds. With some, you can take all the branches and the roots will grow again; with others, the roots will not regrow. The vaidya should know which root to take and which not. And what we do is take everything we want and leave the rest. In reality, in Āyurveda, the vaidya can go into the forest and find that herb. He will pray to nature for that person: “May I take a little, offering a yearly prayer to nature?” Then he will bring and prepare it. Vaidyas will never ask for money. It is said that on the day a vaidya asks for money, he will lose his power. He may retain intellectual knowledge, but no longer any effect on the person. Similarly, if a guru asks the devotee-disciples, “I give you blessings and this and that, and you give me money,” that is not allowed. Yes, a devotee may give a donation — that is your concern, your decision — but a master should not charge anything from a disciple. The master is a father and the disciple a child. A father cannot charge the child: “I gave you ice cream, now you must give me something.” These are the ethical principles of the divine teachings, and unfortunately, we have lost them. Vanashpakti refers to the big trees. Their leaves fall, but the tree does not die; it remains and gives fruit again. So we may use some part of the bark, some leaves, or pluck them, but we should not chip off the trees or destroy them. In Āyurveda, there is a very strict principle about this. So, the Veda says there is a bhūti called Sañjīvanī Bhūti. What does Sañjīvanī mean? Sañjīvanī means that if there is a dead body and you place a drop of the Sañjīvanī herb juice in its mouth, it will come back to life. If you put one drop of the juice of that Sañjīvanī extract on a dry piece of wood — perhaps a twenty-year-old dry piece of wood — it will begin to sprout again. That is Sañjīvanī. And where is it? There are two kinds of Sañjīvanī. One is the blessing from your mother, from your father, from your grandfather, from your great-grandfather. The older the person, the more powerful the blessing — the blessing of a holy saint. It is said that even the blessing of an enemy is very good. If your enemy says, “Okay, I bless you,” it is still a blessing. Hanumānjī asked, “Where is that Sañjīvanī Bhūti?” The vaidya replied, “It is in the Himalayas, on some particular hills.” But where is Sri Lanka, and where are the Himalayas — a thousand kilometers distant? Before sunrise, you must be back; otherwise, you cannot help. Hanumānjī said, “No.” He possessed a siddhi to fly, as Jasarājī told us yesterday evening in the satsaṅg. Before taking off, Hanumānjī paused: “Vaidya, how does Sañjīvanī Bhūti look?” The vaidya said, “That is a very good question.” On that particular hill of the Himalayas, there are small plants. At night, they sparkle and shine — all these light flies, no problem. But at that time, even then, there were positive and negative energies, Rākṣasas and Devas, and both had their secret services with high telepathic technology. We no longer have it; we function in a very deranged way. Rāvaṇa’s secret service informed him that some Rākṣasas had turned the whole hill into singing plants. When Hanumānjī arrived, he was surprised. All different kinds of plants were there. It is said that Hanumānjī took the whole hill. As he was returning to the birthplace of God Rāma, some people sitting there thought, “Oh, Rāma’s enemy is going with a big, big mounted throne.” So they shot him with an arrow. Hanumānjī descended for a moment to the earth and said, “Śrī Rām Jai Rām.” He is a devotee of our Lord. He came and excused himself: “I have made a great mistake. Please rest, and we will give you some remedy.” But Hanumānjī said, “Rām kāj kīnhe binu mohi kahā̃ viśrām.” O my dear brother Bharat, before fulfilling duty to my Lord, I cannot rest. And so, I too feel that until I fulfill my wish to bring Gurudev’s light into the world, I cannot rest. That is why I am traveling. He took off again and came. That half-hour conversation was lost. Meanwhile, Rāma — God Rāma, incarnation of Viṣṇu — was watching the moon as it was setting. He said: Śaśī ḍhala rahā, śamā tala rahā, Lakṣmaṇa ke prāṇa jā rahā. Hanuman, tum kab āogī? Na jaane kis janam ke mere karma phal rahe. Śaśī means the moon. Now the moon is going down — that means morning is coming. “Śaśī ḍhala rahā, śamā tala rahā” — the moon is waning, the night is passing, time is slipping away. “Lakṣmaṇa ke prāṇa jā rahe” — Lakṣmaṇa’s life is ebbing. Who said this? God Rāma. “Hanuman, tum kab āogī?” — O Hanuman, when are you coming? “Na jaane kis janam ke mere karma phal rahe” — this very God is saying, “Who knows from which life, from past lives, my karma is now active.” Even the holy saints of the world, or God incarnations — look at the holy saint from Assisi, in France. You know how hard his life was; people threw things at him. Today, we enter his church. Look at the Holy Mother Mary. Did she have an easy life? Such is destiny, my dear. Even they are affected by destiny. Who are we? In India we say, from which field are you — a carrot? We are humans, still with limited knowledge, limited experiences, limited faith. What can we do? We have no strength to face our destiny, and we cannot change it. But it is said again, because there are yugas — Satyuga, Dvāpara Yuga, Tretā Yuga — in those times people lived long lives. It is said that in Satyuga they lived thousands of years. Now it is Kali Yuga, and we have very little time, and we have a 99.8 percent possibility of falling into kuṣāṅga, into destruction. Only two percent — that is, if we have satsaṅg or a good friend. A friend should be a friend. And so in the Rāmāyaṇa, Tulsīdāsjī said that in this Kali Yuga, O humans, for us there is only one source, one shelter, one thing to hold onto, and that is simply the name: Kīrtan, Bhajan. Śumiranā means repeat your mantra, repeat the name of God. I am not telling you to repeat a particular mantra. You are free. All gods are one. Forms are different. And if all would realize this — what we call interfaith — but it is very hard to enter into that faith. That is why there are different faiths. They say “my faith,” “your faith,” “their faith.” But God did not say “the perfect faith,” “the super faith,” “the lace faith” — God did not say this; we say it. Faith means one without a second, pure, crystal clear, with no spots inside. When your faith is like that, then you and God are one. And if still not, then we are like a piece of metal. If we throw this piece of metal into the water, what will happen? It will sink. But if we tie that same piece of metal to a piece of wood and throw it into the water, what will happen? God is that wood. We are this metal — we are iron — but still, if we hold on to God’s name, surely, my dear, sooner or later we will cross the ocean to the shore of happiness and mastery over destiny. Destiny is a production of deeds, and many deeds we do out of ignorance, out of fear, out of anxiety, out of greed, and so on. Human life is not an easy life; it is a great struggle. Though it is said that the human being is a very great creature, as great as we are, we have many problems. Kīrtan. Kīrtan means repetition of God’s name again and again. Śrīmān. Śrīmān. The resonance awakens in your body. The seat of sound is in the Maṇipūra Cakra, in Paśyantī and Bākharī. Para, the seat of sound, is in Harseṅg. Someone told me that the navel of the earth — they believe this Aries rock is the source of energy. We call prāṇa Maṇipadme, Maṇipadme. So sound awakens from here, and it comes to manifest, manifesting here in the vocal — this is Viśuddhi Cakra, Viśuddha. “Viṣ” means poison, and “śuddhi” means purification. So Hanumānjī came. I didn’t finish the story. Hanumānjī arrived at the right time, and a vaidya was waiting there. Part 2: The Power of Kīrtan, Bhajan, and Guru Vākya When they made the juice from this herb and put it into Lakṣmaṇa’s mouth, he became very energetic and woke up again. Why do we call it a wish? Psychologically, how many things do we swallow down every day—not liquid or food, but the circumstances of life? How many times do we swallow down every situation: school situations, examinations, driving tests, walking on the road, traffic lights, neighbors, this and that, all of it? The Viśuddhi Cakra works in this way: when you meditate and sing bhajans and kīrtans, whatever you have swallowed down awakens with those vibrations, rises to the Viśuddhi Cakra, and is neutralized. When you use positive words, you purify the negative energy. If you bring a positive word, a positive sentence from the navel, it will purify all the negative energy and create a beautiful, harmonious energy in the body. The tongue and lips then formulate the sound. Para, Paśyantī, Paśyantī, Vaikharī—these are the three levels of the word. People who have speech problems: if they concentrate on the Maṇipūra Cakra and practice Aśvara Sañcalana Āsana from the Yoga and Deadline book—there are four exercises for this—within three months it will repair them. It is very, very good for children with this problem. If someone has to give a jug, it is a reparation of the Maṇipūra Cakra here. Of course, it is also connected with certain brain centers, but the brain center is also connected. If this cakra does not send energy to the brain, the brain will be starving, hungry, and thirsty. The heart says to the brain, “Have a good connection with me. If you are only intellectual, blah blah… and you do not take care of me, I will not supply the blood, nourishment, and oxygen. I will stop my pump.” And when the pump stops, it is Hari Om. At that time, feel how the sound is coloured in the Anāhata Cakra and filtered in the Maṇipūra Cakra, and then it touches your Sahasrāra Cakra here. From the Sahasrāra Cakra, the tenth door, Brahmanandhra, the sound divides in two ways. One part goes into space. That means we have to pay the tax to the space; we have to send the sound. The rest goes through the nāḍī, suṣumṇā, and this iḍā nāḍī goes directly to the anāhat. And anahad means endless. Anahad ānanda, the ānandaka. That is why when you sing kīrtan, no one can sing kīrtan like this. Śrīman Nārāyaṇa’s body moves, begins to move—does it not? It moves entirely. So now, please, with closed eyes or open eyes—it is your choice—sing. … Śrīman Nārā, your body, close your eyes. … Śrīman Nārā. This was Om Kīrtan, a great favourite of Śrī Svāmī Śivānandajī Mahārāj of Ṛṣikeśa. He used to sing this bhajan, this kīrtan, very beautifully. Everything is Om. Now, bhajan. Bhajan is longer than kīrtan. Kīrtan is the name of God repeated again and again. But both awaken a beautiful vibration in the body; each and every cell recharges with positive, divine energy—whether you believe it or not. In this glass body there is feeling; in this glass there is a fire. Believing or not believing does not change that reality. Poison has poison’s effect, and nectar has nectar’s effect. So what does it matter which God, which holy saint? Their holy name, their memory, thinking on that one automatically recharges a beautiful energy, a light, in our body. Kīrtan, bhakti—and therefore Gurujī sings a bhajan to Mahāprabhujī, a very beautiful bhajan: Bhagatīro, Bhagatīro, Daṇḍata, Bhagatīsa—Lord, bless me with that devotion, so that even if I must be born in many, many lives, I do not lose that devotion, that love, that faith. Bhajan is similar to kīrtan, but in bhajan there are two additional elements: questions and answers. Bhajan is a teaching; it contains more explanation. In kīrtan, it is just the name of God, and you let it go. Both have the same effect—divine, spiritual. But bhajan removes our doubts, gives clarity, and offers teaching. In this Kali Yuga, through bhajan—meaning kīrtan, bhajans, devotion, prayers, repeating mantras—they are all one. That is why Guru Nānak Jī said, “Terī Bītī Umar Hari Nām Binā, Sumiran Karle Mere Manā.” Until now, your life has passed without God’s name. O my dear mind, at least now begin to meditate and sing of God. So going to satsaṅg is also like a kīrtan, singing bhajans and listening to them. Nowadays we have one more thing through modern technology: you can put cassettes or CDs in your car while driving, nice bhajans. But please do not sing bhajans while driving in such a way that your car swerves and you meet a red light. Then you will have to show your driving license and blow blue. Do you have that in Australia also, blow blue? You have to blow and sing, closing your eyes. So we must use our viveka. Better to have some spiritual bhajans, spiritual kīrtans, spiritual talks that give motivation and happiness, so that at that time we are away from worldly sorrow. Bhajan, kīrtan, satsaṅg, mantra—repeating or listening to spiritual talks—has a positive effect on our body, mind, and soul, and that will influence our destiny. How? Because destiny you cannot change. Jasraj is sitting here—he is some government officer, a big officer. And you have some urgent plans at your house to attend to, so you bring your application to him. Every application normally takes its turn, but certain applications are put on the top—perhaps an application with some different paper, signed with the fish. Nareesh from the small fish. What does Gurudev do? He prays for the destiny of the devotees, and he will put it very deep among other destiny papers. Before this number comes, you may already be in enlightenment. Once you are in enlightenment, all your destiny is deleted because you are not here anymore. That is it: “O Lord, try to postpone my destiny, and let a good one come, and if there is no good one, then let me be with You—that is all.” Sing bhajan, have devotion. This is how Gurudev can try, through his teaching, through his Guru Tattva, through his wisdom—not the physical body of the Guru, but the light—to postpone or arrange things a little differently. He will tell you, “Don’t go just now; wait five minutes,” and after five minutes you leave and avoid the deadly accident that happened five minutes earlier. Many times I do not know anything, but I simply speak because Mahāprabhujī may speak. I tell people, “Sit down, have a cup of tea, then go.” They say they are very busy, but the tea turns out to be very miraculous. Had they gone, a terrible thing might have happened. It does not matter who died—the point is being protected. That is why it is said, “Mantra Mūlam Guru Vākya.” The root of the mantra, the essence of the mantra, the power of the mantra is to follow the Guru’s word. The words of the master are not physical. Guru Vākya is not physical; it is the wisdom given to you. If you miss the Guru Vākya, if you ignore the Guru Vākya, then you will have to face your destiny. You may be happy today, for a month, for a few years, but eventually it will come back. So Guru Vākya means following all the holy scriptures: the Bible, Quran, Rāmāyaṇa, Gītā, Bhagavad Gītā, Upaniṣads, Vedas, Līlā Amṛtam Prabhujī, Guru Granth Sāhib. All these holy books give a good guideline for our life, and that is how you can develop your spirituality. I am here only to tell you, but you have to follow and do. So that is what bhajan, kīrtan, mantra, and satsaṅg are in Kali Yuga—only, only, only that. Satsaṅg can be with only two persons; it need not be a crowd, or it can be with yourself alone. Sit down and meditate, and send your love and your blessings from the heart. You have blessings too; you can bless the whole world with good thoughts. As Jesus said on the cross, “Lord, forgive them. They don’t know.” So the person who wants to harm you does so out of his or her ignorance, emotion, anger. These are devilish energies that have occupied that person. But in the ātmā, that person is lying. Therefore, kṣamā madān ko hotī hai, choṭān ko utpāt. Kṣamā means to forgive and love. The great one can love you and forgive; the small one will make a big theatrical scene. Small knowledge makes more noise. Look, a big, nice car passes by and many of us do not hear it. But a small machine cutting wood—how noisy it is! Disturbing the camera and everyone. So a small, little-minded person who has only heard a little bit of knowledge can disturb everyone. Half-knowledge is more dangerous than no knowledge. You can make satsaṅg yourself. At home, sit down and think positively. There are many ways to do it. This is an instrument for many to relax; it is relaxing. So life should be joyful. That is what destiny and kīrtan and bhajan and satsaṅg are. A question came: “Yes, please.” Create something, because children’s minds and brains are developing. Mahāprabhujīp Karatā Mahāprabhujīp Karatā He Kevalam Purījī, Purījī… Does anyone have suggestions, answers? A story, yes. Before going to sleep, they want a story. Sister Soni Bhai said, “I will tell you a story. But don’t give me short stories; she said, ‘Very long.’” Then she said, “Close your eyes and imagine you have bees. And now one bird is coming, taking one grain of rice, and feeding the babies. And again coming and feeding.” And then I said, then there is nothing there. First, you count how many times the bird comes, how many babies it feeds. You imagine and watch. Every sister, every brother, grandmother, mother—these stories we remember forever. That is why the best teaching is a story, a poem, and a game. If you have problems with your examinations in school, college, or university, whichever subject you have, then put that subject into a story form. So you have a chapter; you put the main character as Potato, another as Feta Cheese, another as Olive; then you say Carrot was not soft enough for potatoes, but potatoes were good with something. Suddenly it becomes a story, and they ask you questions: who was where, with whom? You automatically remember. There are so many stories—mixing up vitamin C and vitamin A—and it becomes a story. So stories, singing, and poetry are the best way. That is why we have mudrās in dancing; mudrās are indications. Question: Posture doesn’t give us liberation because we want to sleep? Yes, and then in the subconscious, mantras are going on. I say posture does not give liberation. Suppose someone cannot cross their legs like this; maybe they have only one leg or a problem. You have to stretch the leg, so it does not matter in which posture you are. The main thing is that we remember our posture. If we sit, then all we have to do is practice like this. There is discrimination towards those who cannot sit perfectly. If you can sit like this, good; if you cannot, it does not matter. You can sit on the sofa, on a chair. This body will one day be finished. Do not force yourself. You are tired, and you think, “I must practice mantra, I must practice mantra… Śrī Śrī…” Agreed. Please, just be gentle.