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This is a beautiful, symbolic bhajan composed by Mahāprabhujī. It depicts a dialogue between a pair of parrots, a couple living in a magnificent park akin to the one at Strilky Āshram. The park spanned over two thousand hectares, with a climate like that of Australia or Ireland—warm and pleasant, with rain and sunshine year-round. Trees and bushes bore fruit in different seasons, and there were lovely ponds and waterfalls. The landscape was colorful and filled with many creatures: various birds, parrots, cockatoos, kookaburras, peacocks, and swans on the lake. It was truly beautiful. This particular couple was very spiritual. They lived peacefully in a beautiful nest within an old, large tree trunk. Each night before sleep, they held satsaṅg, sharing their daily experiences—what they did, whom they met, and the situations they encountered. Sometimes he felt jealous of her, and sometimes she felt jealous of him. That is family life; one should expect such things. Despite it all, life is beautiful. There is another story within this story. A human couple lived where the husband was an easy-going person with a very big heart. Upon seeing a poor person, he would give away a lot of money. If he saw someone with an old or broken bicycle, he would go to the market, buy a new one, and give it to them. When a neighbor's washing machine was too noisy, he bought them a new one. His wife disliked all this and was constantly angry. Every third day he would do something similar, and the wife would say, "Why are you doing this? You are crazy." He, a very calm man, would reply, "It doesn't matter." She would retort, "It does matter for me." The situation became so bad that I suggested he get a divorce. He said, "Well, it doesn't matter." She responded, "You see, I knew you would say it doesn't matter. Even I am not a matter for you." He said, "That's not right, but as you like." For nearly three months, she did not speak a single word to him and sometimes refused to cook. He said, "It doesn't matter. I will go to a restaurant to eat." She said, "No, you cannot do that until we have divided our property and gotten a divorce. You have no right to go to a restaurant. Whatever you spend is half my money." She locked the door and put the key in her pocket. So he went to the kitchen, cooked whatever he found, and said, "It doesn't matter." She grew angrier. The situation became unbearable. She said, "I don't even want to see your face." He replied, "It doesn't matter." One day, he had a minor accident and was taken to the hospital. She went to see him. He was lying there in serious condition. The doctor said it was a serious case. She began to cry, held his hand, and told the doctor, "Whatever it costs, please make my husband well. I can't live without him." He opened his eyes and said, "It doesn't matter what happened. I can't live without you." They embraced, laughed, and went home. You see, family quarreling is a part of life. When a person goes away or dies, you realize what they meant to you. So, family quarreling can be healthy, though it is best if they do not quarrel at all. And of course, perfection is having no one to quarrel with. That was a story within the story. The parrots were happy and held their satsaṅgs. One day, as they sat on a beautiful branch of a nice tree, she flew to a lower tree laden with fruits during their satsaṅg. She perched on a branch with a ripe mango and began to suck its juice, then returned, exclaiming, "This is fantastic, delicious, tasteful." The parrot then said to her, "Listen, Meṇā." (Meṇā is the female parrot, and Sūā is the male. Meṇā also means 'dear one.') He said, "Sunori Meṇā, oh my Meṇā, listen. Find joy in prayers, in bhakti, in repeating the names of God. There is joy in spirituality. This is the essence of life. Jag kar bar sabhjot. The rest of all this, the parpaṇcha of this world, is unreality." She looked at him, listening carefully. He continued, "You are flying from one branch to another, wandering here and there, eating poisonous fruits. This joy of saṃsāra is a poison. Who knows what will happen in one second? No one knows. And Kāla, death, will take you away. You will be death's victim, and you do not know when. So, give thanks to God for every happy second, every happy minute. Things pass so quickly you cannot imagine. When an accident happens, it happens so swiftly you hardly have time to notice. And when you do notice, it is too late. This can occur in any field of life, even while sitting comfortably at home. Kāla, death, Yama, the king of death, moves above our heads. Kāla Chakra, the wheel of time and death, is searching. 'Ek palak ki kya khabar hai? Kāla lega loot.' Death will take you away." She made a gesture as if to say, "Oh no, you are just reacting like this." "You are enjoying the fruits, blown about by your ignorance and pride, wandering here and there. But these fruits and this joy are nothing but disappointment and unreality. It is like a Fata Morgana. Very soon it will be finished. This youth, this youngness you possess, is like morning dew on the grass before sunrise. When dawn comes, drops of water appear on the grass. But as soon as the sun rises, this life and its energy vanish like the morning dew. That is all. If you think that is everything, then you are ignorant. You do not know how the whole day will be. You do not know how hot it will get, how many sandstorms will come. You do not know. Therefore, do not think only of these two morning hours; think of the entire day. That is life. We do not know when we will go." Sūā says to her, "Sua kai sun seleriji, 'Yiras Janu Jut The Sua.'" He tells her, "Listen, Seleriji, darling, my dear one. This juice you are enjoying is unreal. It is not real. Enjoy the real juice, and that is God's name." There are different kinds of milk. One milk is cow milk, "Je kravské mléko." Here, 'cow' signifies all animals. "Kravské mléko" means milk from all animals—perhaps cow, buffalo, goat, sheep, horse, and so on. The second is a mother's milk. The third is vegetable milk. But there are four kinds of milk. This is a question: one milk is from the cow, the second from the mother, the third from vegetables. From what is the fourth milk? The fourth milk is wisdom, the name of God, which makes you immortal and makes you grow younger day by day. That is called Amṛt. Therefore, Holy Gurujī said, "Prakash punj Amṛt ke shagar, Śrī Dīpa Hari Mahādānī." He, Prakash punj, an immense light, the ocean of nectar, Siddipa Hari Mahādānī, the great giver of blessings, is Mahāprabhujī. So, "Oh my dear Meṇā Seleriji, all this juice you are enjoying is unreal, my dear. Listen, how nice it is to be with you, to have satsaṅg. But you know, one day we will separate from this forest—meaning one of us will die, and that is true." Who knows who will go first? We have to go. My dear, we do not know if we will come together again, when, where, or how we will meet again. She is his very dear one, and he is hers, and neither wants to lose the other. But there are stories like that poem I have told you many times: "o kterouh sem vám říkal mnohokrát, Pata tuta dál se legají pavn udaj, Ab ke bičre kab milengi, důr padengi džaj." A leaf falls from a branch, and the wind, the storm, takes it away, and it will fall somewhere far off. This separation will come. Will they be together again? That leaf will not return to hang on that branch. The branch is alone, and the leaf is somewhere alone. That is the condition. We do not know if we will be here together again. "Pir bishre in bag se fir milna ho ki na ho." Oh my dear, when we separate from this park, will we come together again or not? Therefore, let us do something so that we may be together forever. That can only happen if we lead a spiritual life, if we unite in oneness, if our ātmā becomes one. We all have karma we must still work through. We cannot lie, and we cannot vanish our karmas through tricks. So, let us do something so that we depart together, or you wait for me as I come hurrying, or I will wait for you as you hurry. It will be. Therefore, repeat the mantra. Always say, "I am that, that I am." Lage tere nahī kasūdam—it does not cost you any money. So, Oṁ Śoham, Oṁ my dear, you should also repeat Śoham. Śoham kočka smṛti khājav se—she will eat you, kar sī kam tamām—she will finish all your purposes in this world. So, death is the cat waiting behind the door. "Little mouse, come out," and it will finish everything. In no time, it will destroy this cage. You will see it chew your skin and your flesh. Therefore, do not wait for anything; say Śoham, Śoham. Man śuva tan pinjarare, ātmā Śoham nām. Here is the answer of the whole bhajan: your mind is the śuva (the parrot), our body is the cage in which this mind resides, and ātmā Śoham nām—your ātmā is the Śoham. Mehar kare Gurū Devajī. Jad pāve viśrām—when the Guru's grace is there, then you will realize perfect rest and happiness. Therefore, my dear Śuva, meditate on God. You have this chance; this life is a chance for us. It is a golden chance; do not miss it. Many things happen in our life, good and bad, but the most terrible tragedy would be to die without realization. We would miss the chance, and now we do not know if we will meet again in human life. This chance is very, very valuable. Hari bhajale avasara milare uta subha āruṣyam—therefore, get up early in the morning, and sit and meditate in the evening as well. Suno re śuva tū ratale Śoham nām—O my dear śuva, listen. Repeat Śoham. Jīva tere ghar kī pyāre, lagat nahī kasūda—my dear, it is your own tongue. It does not cost you money. Jagyat bagyicha sukha sīre—you know this worldly park will dry out. You should know that all this is unreality. There will be nothing left for you. Śrī Dīpa Kahī Satya Mahāprabhujī said, believe me, it is true. Santa śaraṇa sukha dhāma—in the presence of the holy saint is the abode of happiness, eternal happiness. Veda santa upadeśa batāve—even the Vedas, saints, and all teachings proclaim this. All who explain agree that everyone's destination is to find that peace, that immortality, and that oneness. So they said, "Let's go to the market and buy a mālā." Both obtained a mālā, with Sumaraṇī hanging from their beaks, repeating the mantra. One day, a beautiful time came at the Brahmamuhūrta dawn. Both decided to fly, to fly straight upward, and they both merged into oneness within the light, becoming one forever. Therefore, it is said: when I was here, he was not here; and now he is here, but I am not here. For the street of love is so narrow that two cannot walk together; two must become one. And that one is Ekobrahma Dvitīyā Nāsti—there is only one reality; where there are two, there is non-reality. This was the essence of this bhajan about the śuva. So, man śuva tan pinjara—this mind is the śuva, this bhakti is the meṇā, and the body is the cage in which they are enclosed. And the ātmā is the Paramātmā Śoham nām. It is beautiful, is it not? Dīptal Bhagavān, Dev Puruṣa Mahādeva. Recording location: Czech Republic, Strilky, Summer seminar