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Blessings to all of you, dear devotees of Mahāprabhujī and Devpurījī. I am happy to see you again in our āshram. The whole year we await this beautiful evening in this natural hall under the open sky. There is an example: if dry grass falls on a fire, the grass burns; or if fire falls on the grass, the grass also burns. Similarly, if a devotee is thinking of the Gurudeva, the devotee's bad karmas are burned. Or if the Gurudeva is thinking of the devotees, the bad karmas of the devotees also burn. Mahāprabhujī said, "If you are a hundred meters far from me, then I am also a hundred meters far from you." That distance means the inner distance. If you keep the distance, then you will always be at a distance. Therefore, you and I are constantly thinking of each other. And definitely, some negative karmas are constantly being cleared up. To clear up karmas, there are different ways. If there is a water pond or a tank and you have to remove all the dirt without losing the water, you must take out all the silt and impurity from the bottom so that eventually the whole water becomes clear. Similarly, when karmic cleansing occurs, certain emotional feelings arise according to the karma. In the mind, saṅkalpa and vikalpa are constantly changing. Saṅkalpa means a wish, some desire to fulfill, and vikalpa means changing: "I don't want this, I want this, I don't want this." Deciding to practice, deciding to give up—this is a karmic process. This is not only with you; all of humanity suffers from this, and especially all aspirants on the spiritual path. So what should we do? We must observe our saṅkalpa and vikalpa. For this, from time to time, we have to clean that tank. That tank is the antaḥkaraṇa. Mana (mind), buddhi (intellect), citta (consciousness/memory), and ahaṅkāra (ego) are the contents of the antaḥkaraṇa. When you touch them, they begin to react. Therefore, mantra anuṣṭhāna (ritual recitation) is the best way to clean that tank, the antaḥkaraṇa. Holy Gurujī always gives a beautiful definition of what mantra means. "Man" means mind and "tra" means satisfaction, tṛpti—mental satisfaction. When a hungry and thirsty person gets good food and drink, one is completely satisfied. Similarly, this mind is hungry, searching all the time for some nourishment, always searching for some joy here and there, but it is not satisfied. You will never be happy in material things because they are changeable. Whatever is changing is temporary, and we do not want temporary joy; we search for everlasting joy. That is what mantra gives. So mantra is mantra tṛpti—the mind is satisfied. Second, "man" means mind and "tra" means liberation, tāraṇa. So, liberate your mind from those material things which give you trouble again and again. Thus, mana, buddhi, citta, and ahaṅkāra—these four principles within our antaḥkaraṇa—must be purified. Mana, the mind. "Man maran mamatā marī, marmar gayā śarīra, aisī tṛṣṇā nahīṁ marī, kāge dāsa Kabīra." It is very hard to kill the mind. It is very hard to win the mind, to control the mind. Why can we not control the mind? Because of mamatā, we have longing. "Mamatvahi bandhanakā kāraṇahe"—attachment. Attachment is the cause of all bonds. A mighty tiger, a very strong tiger, is closed in a cage. It can do nothing. Similarly, we humans are very mighty, but we are bound by mamatva, mamatā—attachment. That is why you cannot control the mind. Only when you liberate yourself from that prison of attachment will you be happy. But the body will die many times in between and will change many times. Recording location: Czech Republic, Strilky, Weekend seminar