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Oṁ param sukharam kevalaṁ jñāna-mūrtiṁ dvandātītaṁ gagana-sadṛśyaṁ tasmāsyādi lakṣyaṁ ekaṁ nityaṁ vimalāchalaṁ sarvādhiṣakṣibhūtaṁ bhāvātītaṁ triguṇarahitaṁ satgurutvaṁ namāmy aham. Oṁ śāntiḥ. Śāntiḥ, śāntiḥ. Deep Nārāyaṇa Bhagavān kī jai. Good evening. A very nice good evening. Welcome, Guru Scott. A heartfelt welcome to all. I am very happy to see you all here. Our topic for this weekend seminar here in the beautiful land of Carinthia is one I chose freely. A few minutes ago we spoke about the Peace Park, and I believe that is precisely the right topic for us all. On the 2nd of October, the United Nations Organization will declare a World Non-Violence Day in honour of Mahātmā Gandhi. Mahātmā Gandhījī worked for peace and non-violence his whole life. So now is the time for us to reflect and feel what is happening in the world. Thank God, there is peace in Europe at the moment. Austria is an example of that; its citizens live in harmony and peace. Like many other countries, Austria is a beautiful, peaceful land where one can live in harmony with others. We pray to God that it always stays this way, as well as in the whole world. We know that after the Second World War, peace was not yet established. How many people suffered from civil war? Millions of people lost their lives. Millions of women became widows, and millions of children lost their parents. How many people still live in uncertainty and fear, counting the days, wondering how many more days they can live? Such situations around the world are unbearable. And who is responsible for that? People. People should learn to live together and understand one another. People try to awaken aggression in the thoughts and feelings of others in the name of religion, culture, and nationalism. We know what is happening in Syria, in the Middle East at the moment. They are also our brothers and sisters. They are also people, and they would also like to live in peace. Everybody wants their rights and to live in peace. We think and talk about human rights. If we want to protect human rights, we should not wage wars. They also have their rights. Peace. Mahātmā Gandhi said there is no way to peace; peace itself is the way. You cannot buy peace, and you cannot borrow it. It comes from the inside; it doesn't come from outside. It comes from our heart. God created all living beings. God loves all living beings; they are all God's children. It doesn't matter how small a creature is. It is said in India, in the four Vedas and six philosophies, that the essence of these teachings is that you will get what you cause someone else to suffer. If you give pain to another being, you will get it back. If you give happiness, you will get it back. All living beings want to be happy. None want to lead a sad or painful life. Here in this part of the world, many are Christians and know the Bible. The essence of the entire Bible and Christianity is just two things: to pray for God's grace and forgiveness for our sins, and to love thy neighbour. Who is that? Not only your wife, husband, children, or parents. Thy neighbour means all living beings. So, love all. Do you understand? When this love awakens in our hearts, it is like a mother's love. Which mother? We pray to Mother Mary for her grace. We know she is such a form, such a being, an incarnation of Śakti, we could say, an incarnation of mercy and love. As a mother, how much pain did she have to bear for what happened to her child? But she never said anything unkind. She carried this pain on her own. And it was she who said, "Lord, please liberate everybody from sin." Do not do to others what you would not have done to yourself. Do good, and you get good. Do bad, and you get bad. This applies to all living beings. In Hinduism, in Sanātana Dharma, it is considered a great blessing, a boon, to be born as a human being. In Christianity, it is said you are born in sin and must pray for sins to be taken away. This is the difference between the two beliefs. But in the end, they come together. They come to oneness with the same opinion. God gave us something special that other living beings do not have: our intellect, our knowledge. With this, God gave us the responsibility to use this knowledge for good, not for bad things. We are very lucky to have this mind, this intellect, this human knowledge. But when we look at this world, we see how much pain is caused to living beings. And this is what is meant by being born in sin. Because in this Kali Yuga, this dark time, it is like a coal mine. We have to go a few kilometres through it. No matter how careful and attentive we are, still somewhere a black spot of coal will come upon us. That is why we should always pray that God liberates us from our sins, from our mistakes. Yes, someone said that as long as there are slaughterhouses, there will be battlefields. Think about it: we humans have so much love, so much grace, so much pity for others. Our heart is very sensitive. Our hearts feel everything through sight, sound, touch, and thought. And we have the choice to protect ourselves and others as well. But as it is said in the Bible, there is this sin, and this sin is too big in us. Sin comes in the form of our habits, our anger, our jealousy, our hate, and greed, etc. It is very hard to let go of our habits. Gurujī has always said it is easier to let go of an enemy than of bad habits. When you see old European books from 200 or 300 years ago, books about cooking, like grandmother's kitchen, the recipes are all vegetarian. Meat was not eaten very much back then. Increased meat consumption began around the First World War, then the time between the wars, and then after the Second World War. It is not that people had nothing to eat, but there was a kind of brainwashing in the human mind that only rich people could eat meat and drink alcohol—what today, in modern times, is called New Age high society. People who could afford meat and alcohol thought, "We are rich, and that's why we are great." And that is how it started. How many animals suffer because we have these thoughts that we like to eat meat? Two weeks ago, I flew from Croatia to Vienna. In the aeroplane next to me, a lady sat down with a basket. In the basket was a tiny little dog, like a little rabbit, maximum three kilos. So lovely. People walked past, stroking the dog. The lady and the dog each had their own seat. They served food and drinks on the aeroplane. The lady took mineral water. I had Indian chai in my flask—they kindly allowed me to take it. I asked the lady, "Would you like to try Indian chai?" She said, "Oh yes, please, I love Indian chai. I have been to India many times." She was a lady, perhaps a bit rich, with many gems and gold. I looked at my necklace and covered it with my shawl—I didn't want any competition. I gave her tea, and she enjoyed it. She asked, "Is there masala inside?" I said, "Yes, special masala." She was a very kind lady, and we talked a lot about her dog. She said she couldn't go anywhere without her dog because she loves him so much. She even bought a ticket for the dog. I wondered to myself: should I ask this lady if she is vegetarian or not? But I didn't want to be unfriendly. Yet I would like to know: could you ask this lady, "I would like to eat meat that comes from your dog today?" In no case. I don't think you would dare to ask that. It would mean the third world war. No way. She loves this dog more than her own child. So we love our pets because we know them. We should have this love for all living beings. Then we could not take meat into our mouth. How many animals suffer: the cows, the pigs, the horses, the chickens, the goats? They are mentally ill; they are afraid; they are in pain. They give such food to cows, for example, that their udders are so big they can't sit down, lie on their side, or stand up properly. They stand day and night. What is their condition? And then they slaughter them. The chicken farms—how much do they suffer there? We all know. When the meat comes on our plate, we should ask, "Where do you come from, darling? Do I dare to eat you?" So long as we do not awaken love for all living beings in our heart, the mercy of Mother Mary will not be with us. Like we love our parents, and they love us, such love also exists among animals. Mothers and fathers love their children, and the children love them. That is why Indian books say that non-violence is the highest principle—not only physical non-violence, but also mental and social. There is a lot we don't know, but we carry it in our subconsciousness. And so long as there is this darkness from sin, we cannot understand anything, and we cannot bring peace to the world. That is why it is said you are born in sin, and you should pray for the forgiveness of sins. But we pray for one sin and then cause hundreds of others. So peace does not mean only peace in human society. It is us, people, who have caused the wars and the lack of peace and everything that happens on the earth. It begins with all five elements. We have polluted the water. We have destroyed nature. We have destroyed the original seeds, the fruits, the trees, and so on. We have manipulated the animals. And that is the cause of why people are mostly ill: psychical illness, physical illness, mental illness, pain, hatred, restlessness. So what does peace mean for us? It is not just that I want to live in my own house in peace. It is not my problem if someone suffers? It is very important that we try to understand all living beings and also this beautiful planet, Mother Earth. So now is the time for prayer and to achieve peace. And not only for us; this also influences our ancestors. If we pray and do good deeds, it influences other dimensions as well, and also the generations that will come after us. There is a spiritual principle or law that a human being has a lot of responsibility and also five debts to resolve if he or she wants to leave the world. The first is our duty, our debt of gratitude, towards our mother. Our whole body was created in our mother's body. She carried us in her womb. She was the one who changed our nappies. The second is towards our father. It is the same duty as towards the mother. It is said in the Śāstras, the holy books, that a mother can never be a bad mother, except when she has a mental illness. The same for the father. And you become mentally ill also from drug addiction and alcohol. Alcohol was created as a medicine, not as a drink. Do you know how many people die on the streets, how many accidents happen, how many marriages break apart, how many people are in hospitals with various organs destroyed because of alcohol? It is said that alcohol came into this world as a devil and said, "People, I will possess you all." O human, use what God gave you between your two ears. How many sins are committed because of alcohol? Yes, wine is mentioned in the Bible, but what does that mean? It was freshly squeezed grape juice. But we take such words and use them to justify our own habits. The third duty is our debt to the elements: Deva Ṛṇa. Mātṛ Ṛṇa, Pitṛ Ṛṇa, Deva Ṛṇa. 'Devas' here means the elements: Agni Dev (fire), Vāyu Dev (wind), water, Mother Earth, and space (Ākāśa). Our life exists and comes from these five elements. I don't know what God looks like or what I will say to Him when He comes to me in the last minute of my life. I need Him now, right now. So God says, "I am always with you as the element in the element." When our body has a fever over 40 degrees, 42, it's an alarm. We are nervous, fearful—my God, we are going to die. Such a high temperature is a red alert. Or when the temperature goes down and down, the body gets cold. We touch it and make the sign of the cross. Everything is cold, but the body is there. The fire element, Agni Dev, is not there anymore. Or there is too much fluid in the lungs, in the stomach. So people ask, why are there so many gods in India? India itself is a complete god. It means the whole world. All this is God. Everything is God. These flowers—humans can only make perfect plastic ones. God's world is perfect. The human world is not. God has eternal life. It is also said in Christianity: eternal life. And humans have also created eternal life, and that is plastic. Plastic never dies. You cannot kill plastic now. You can burn it, but it still lives on. So, respect is paid to the elements as the source of our life. That is why it is our duty to keep the waters pure—the oceans, rivers, and streams—and the air and the earth, and so on. The fourth is thankfulness towards those who have taught us something: our teachers. Religious teachers, priests, school teachers, university professors, even a teacher who taught us to ride a bike, a driving instructor, a swimming instructor. People who taught us something are our teachers. Without a teacher, you cannot learn. That is why we have so many gurus. "Guru" means master, and master means teacher: music teacher, painting teacher, many, many. In Austria, there are some powerful masters, like the chimney masters. Without their permission, you cannot make a fireplace in the house. They are called masters. And we have house masters. They are very important. We need them all, and we need to respect them. We shouldn't treat them as servants. The fifth duty is to your spiritual master. These are our five duties: to mother, father, teachers, elements, and to our spiritual master. Then we need to support this learning process. All educational institutions should function and remain. Also, our religious institutions should be supported and visited so that they may survive and continue to give us spiritual and ethical principles. This is very important. After we have fulfilled these five types of obligations, then a road will be clear for us. Now we have passed all security checks, check-in, everything. We made it. Now you can enter the aeroplane and take off. We can fly. If we have not achieved this, we will come back and suffer more and more. What is called hell is perhaps too strong a word, but it will be. That is why we should pray, no matter what faith we believe in. We should give our feelings and pray for His grace in our hearts and thoughts, for the sake of peace, harmony, love, and happiness of the entire creation on this planet. Only when we have fulfilled these five duties can we proceed, go through check-in and security, board the aeroplane, and continue on our way. Otherwise, we return into the circle of suffering again. People understand that there is a prayer, a prayer for forgiveness. We believe in mercy and grace, and that is why we pray. But we should not be against each other; we should not have conflict between my belief and your belief. That is a problem. We are like one human being, and there is only one God, and His name is God. Tomorrow we will learn a nice peace mantra from the Ṛg Veda for peace in the atmosphere, peace in us, and peace everywhere. So we will think more about peace in these two days. And we should try. What possibility do we have to share a little, to work together to bring peace into this world, not only for people but for all living beings? Love is not dualism. Love is for all. So we will think in these two days about peace and how we can bring it into the world. And peace is for everybody. God gave us love for free. We don't have to pay anything. And God gave us peace also for free. God gave us inner joy. Why are you unhappy? Why are you so contracted inside like a snail? God has given you beautiful richness. Be happy, that is all. This was God-given. God says, "My love, what you have today, it was yesterday from someone else. What you have now, maybe tomorrow someone else will have it. This you got from somebody else, and you will give it to somebody else." So what have you? What have you lost? Nothing at all. You have love, devotion, forgiveness, and you should pass it on, because it will disappear if you don't give it to others. God says, "My children, why are you unhappy and depressed? I gave you everything. I gave you my kingdom." We should be thankful to God and pray for forgiveness for our mistakes and errors. Let us all live together in peace, in bliss, and in love. We should be grateful, pray for forgiveness, and live in bliss and happiness together. Then peace has its value; otherwise, it has no value. So tonight and until tomorrow, please think: what more can we do than what I have spoken about? Awaken peace in yourselves and consider how you can pass it on to the world. Anger, jealousy, hatred—these are very easy to have. But to have valuable peace and understanding is very hard. With these words, I wish you a very pleasant evening, and I will see you again tomorrow morning.