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We are all sitting here on the bank of the holy mother Gaṅgā River. The whole world knows about the holy Gaṅgā. There are many major rivers, flowing for thousands of kilometers through India, and each river has its own dignity, its own quality, and its own history. Many rivers were created and blessed by great saints. The river itself is feminine—Nadī—and very few rivers have masculine names. Along these rivers, the names are mostly those of great divine holy mothers. This makes it very clear that for spiritual development, achievement, practice, and realization, there is no duality of genders. The body is known as the mortal body; it is not immortal. It does not matter who one is—a small creature, a human, a holy saint, or a holy incarnation. The soul that enters the atmosphere of this planet, Mother Earth, can only manifest through the five elements. There is no other way to enter this body of five elements. That is why the body is mortal, and this planet is also known as Mṛtyuloka, the mortal world. Whoever comes must go, regardless of whether it is painful, unpleasant, or pitiful. One day, you have to go. Among all the 84 lakh (8.4 million) different creatures, it is the human who invents, realizes, and creates what we call knowledge. This knowledge, which humans have realized, is a universal heritage; it does not belong to anyone. All the Śāstras, holy books, Vedas, Upaniṣads, and other books can only be written once. They cannot be written again and again. Therefore, we shall protect, reprint, and preserve these holy books. Similarly, the knowledge you possess, you should pass on. If you have no chance to give it, or you do not find anyone to receive it, that knowledge will disappear with you. The day you depart from this world—this consciousness, spirit, mind, and soul—everything will go. After so-called death, you cannot write anymore; you cannot give your knowledge further. So knowledge is above everything. In this Kali Yuga, it is very hard to find a real aspirant, a Jijñāsu. In this materialistic, technological world, there are so many temptations and comforts that people are lost in them and think that is all. From childhood nowadays, there is a challenge for young people and kids to decide what to do, where to go. Parents have lost the quality of being parents; they have lost the dignity of being a father and a mother. When a father and mother are not capable of being together, understanding each other, and leading a peaceful, happy life as a couple, what can you expect from your children? What will you teach them? If you try to teach them something, children will laugh at you. They will say, "That is not right. Father, what did you do? You left my mother. Mother, what did you do? You left my father." So, has life changed, or have humans changed themselves? Not in the right way, but in a very complicated, painful way, and the direction is towards darkness. Yet, through this darkness, it is a great blessing. It is fortunate for one who can awaken spirituality in their heart and consciousness, but such individuals are very rare. There are thousands of ways of distraction, but there is a very rare, narrow street somewhere that leads toward achievement. Many become Sādhus, but they have no proper guidance from a Guru, a master. So do not think that all who wear an orange robe are Jīvan Muktas or something like that. No. That is why it is the time—not the Dharma, but the people—who are suffering. Duality, ego, and comfort have spoiled people. When disturbances come to your comfort, even a little, you become angry and febrile. Therefore, you are fortunate ones, sitting here at the bank of the holy mother Gaṅgā, where millions upon millions of holy saints, including all the divine incarnations from Śiva, Brahmā, Viṣṇu, Gaṇeśa, Hanumānjī, Rāmjī, Kṛṣṇa, and many others, have come. It is the blessing of Brahmā, who brought the holy Gaṅgā here to liberate and purify sin. Brahmā sent Gaṅgā here to take away the sin of the people, of any creature. It is said that anyone who touches this water of the Gaṅgā will receive benefit. Merely through Darśan, seeing the Gaṅgā, you receive blessings. Some say it is enough only to see, not necessary to bathe. But if you can bathe in it, then you are even more fortunate. So, it is Brahmā—what in English they call the "Holy Father"—who sent Gaṅgā to take sins away. Brahmā gave her time. She asked him, "Must I go here?" and he gave her ten thousand years, or maybe a little more; the exact number I do not know, sorry. Now, the time is coming. It is said that this Gaṅgā will disappear from this planet. She will go again to Brahmaloka. We see pollution, global warming, and many other natural disasters: earthquakes, fires, floods, storms, hurricanes. This is a sign. The great Ṛṣis who said this, everything is coming true, because they were great seers, knowers of the past, present, and future. Kumbh Melā is the time when, even if you do not bathe in the river, just sitting here on the bank, you are sitting in the lap of that holy Gaṅgā, holy mother, divine mother. You are breathing; you touch this dust of the Gaṅgā. But only those who know, who really have a pure heart, understand this. Others will say, "Oh, this is so dirty now." Why dirty? You made it dirty, humans. Gaṅgā is never dirty. She purifies everything. But nowadays, humans have lost their faith and devotion. Many come only for social reasons, not in reality to pray and bathe. Many think they are Brahmajñānīs. One who thinks he is a Brahmajñānī is not a Brahmajñānī but an Ajñānī—the most foolish one. A diamond never says, "I am a diamond." So there are many, but it is not easy to become a great saint or disciple. Even a diamond has to go under a file to be polished before it shines. So, meditation, Guru Mantra, and Satguru Kṛpā, Satguru Sevā, following Guru Vākya—then you have achieved everything. You cannot do Sevā as long as you do not understand the words, the Vākya. Mantra Mūlaṁ Guru Vākyaṁ, and Sevā, Pūjā Mūlaṁ Guru Padam. If you do not understand the words of the Master, why? Then you cannot do the Sevā. If you follow, then you can do the Sevā. Then you have only one: Dhyāna Mūlaṁ Gurumūrtim. You give up all other imagination and everything, only Dhyāna Mūlaṁ Gurumūrtim—only the divine form of the Gurudev. Then automatically, Mokṣa Mūlaṁ Gurur Kṛpā. There is then the Mokṣa. So even Gaṅgā, Yamunā, Sarasvatī, Narabdha, Godāvarī—all these holy rivers, many, many holy rivers—they are all directed again finally to Guru Caraṇam. That means the ocean. Gaṅgā begins from the high hills of the Himālaya and makes its way back to the origin, back again to the Gaṅgā Sāgar ocean, the Indian Ocean. Similarly, all devotees, their concentration, their striving, everything is directed to the Guru Caraṇam. Therefore, it is said: Voh Ved Purāṇam gāte, guru caraṇam yad satat. They sing in Vedas and Purāṇas, "The Guru is at the feet of Yad Sat." There comes the ultimate Jijñāsā. They dance in Jñāna Gaṅgā. There comes the ultimate Jijñāsā. Voh Gyāna Gaṅgā mein āte, vaha Anubhava banī āte, voh Satya Sarūpā lakṣyate, vaha Anubhava banī āte hai, voh Satya Sarūpā kāṭe hai, Guru Caraṇom me yad satat, voh Veda Purāṇom me gāte hai, Guru Caraṇom yad satat hī ratā hai, vo Veda Purāṇom. Bolo veda purāṇam ghaṭ he vo veda purāṇam. Therefore, even in the Vedas, there is a glory of the Master. The Vedas come, the Purāṇas. Purāṇas are those stories, those tales which tell about all this creation and the saints and incarnations. If you have not read the Purāṇas, you do not know. Everyone, at least once in life, should go through the Purāṇas first. After that, come to the Upaniṣads. When you read and understand the Upaniṣad, then you come to the Vedānta. When you come to Vedānta, then there are two things. After learning, listening, and mastering the Vedānta, either you become a pure Brahmajñānī—which means you have devotion and respect—or you have that devotion called the dry plastic apple. You lost your devotion. You lost this and that belief. You are just saying, "I am only Ātmā, nothing else." Then why are you eating purī? Why are you eating paratha? Bus? Do not eat, do not drink. Say, "I am only Ātmā." Hari Om Tat Sat. Therefore, there is a difference. The final point, the station when it will come, then you will be completely different. Therefore, Holy Gurujī said, Mahāprabhujī said to Gurujī once: Sāch binā sudhre nahī, Ādam racho anek. Chahe tum gṛhastha meṁ raho, chahe parivrājaka bheg. Without that Satya, without that truth, you cannot become a great saint or anything. It does not matter if you have an orange or yellow dress, or if you are a householder. God never said that you should be a Sanyāsī, or you should be a Tyāgī, or you should be a householder, no. Therefore, decide where you will act. Do not put in your Citta Vṛttis; do not put in your inner pot the dirt every day. Do not play with your feelings; do not go here, there, this, that. Enough, you have your garbage. That is why Patañjali said, when once your Vṛtti goes a different side, it means your Citta is connected to the canalization of this one city—toilet and all water goes inside. That is it. So protect, make waterproof your Cittas, so that no Vṛttis go here and there: this desire, this anger, jealousy, greed, ego, position, and this and that, humbleness. Gurujī used to say, "As humble you are, that great you are. And as you play as great you are, the lower you are." There was a competition between an ant and an elephant. Who will be the winner? They put one sugar piece, or sugar corn, in the sand. The competition was this: who is able to bring only the sugar? The elephant put his trunk and tried to suck the sugar, but it all came in as dust. The ant, however, just picked up only the sugar, and the Mahāranī, the queen, came back with the diamond of the sugar. Because it is small, therefore simplicity, surrendering, excusing, opening the heart to your friends. Never say hard words. Speak such a sentence, such a word, that others are happy and you are also happy. Even do not say hard words to your dog. If you have a dog at home, you must tell your dog, "Please be peaceful," then he will sit down. Do not tell your husband, "Go do this, do this." Then very soon your husband will say, "Bye bye." You have to surrender. You must have devotion to your husband, and you must have devotion to your wife. Devotion means understanding, love, kindness. You do not lose anything when you say nice words: "Please, can you do this or that? Please, thank you." That is it. Whoever tries to become dominating, that person is lost. It does not matter in business, family life, partner's life, a disciple's life, or spiritual life. Where something is becoming hard, then it is lost. Take the example of a tree: a random big, strong wind comes, a storm comes, and the branches are bending and bending back. The branch which is very hard and does not want to bend, what happens? It breaks. So if you think you are correct and you are right, you will be broken, inwardly broken. Therefore, Rahiman says, this thread of love is so gentle. Do not break it with a little misunderstanding. If it is broken, then you cannot join it. If you join it, there will be a knot, and the knot means your pearls, your Mālās, cannot go through. That is it. So spirituality comes from practicing, and practicing means not only that you sit down in meditation and somebody says, "Please, can you help me?" and you reply, "I am practicing. Do not you see me? Oh my God." That is it. So one said, "Yes, I know what you are practicing." So practice, but also in action: meditation and action, active meditation, passive meditation, creative meditation—many meditations. Only closing eyes and sitting for four or five hours is laziness. I see all of you are meditating in the morning and doing like this, sleeping. So it is said: "Ye kyā hai rīt prīt karne kī? Prabhu jagat hai, tum sobat ho." What is the way of love? That the Lord is awakened and you are sleeping. If you feel tired, open your eyes and look to Mahāprabhujī. He is always awakened. He is always sitting and smiling at you. I sometimes tell him he should be angry, but he says, "No, no, no, he is very..." So take this smile, take this example, be like that always. So you are great, lucky, fortunate ones that you came to this Kumbh Melā of Haridwar 2010. We have 5067, also Vikram, Samād 2067. There is a different counting. Some people are counting now after Kṛṣṇa. Some are counting from Vikramāditya’s empire. But mostly it is about Yugas’ counting. All counting is from the Yuga. So, the right time is according to Yugas. This Gaṅgā will follow only according to Yugas, and when Kali Yuga is becoming very bad and complicated, then Gaṅgā will say to Brahmā, "Father, now call me back, please." So you are fortunate ones still, that you are here and having the Gaṅgā.