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Long ago, there was a farmer who owned many cows and buffaloes. Centuries ago, wealth was measured by one's cattle—elephants, cows, and horses. They were not for eating but for milk and as property. When arranging a daughter's marriage, people would ask how many cows you had. "How many cows will you give with your daughter? A thousand? Five thousand?" For five daughters, you would have to give five thousand cows. But the poor man who received five thousand cows and elephants faced a problem: what does one do with an elephant? Keeping an elephant is not easy; it eats a big tree every day. Where would you keep it? How would you ride it? We humans have lost the ability to keep such animals. There was a farmer in a small village. A master came to that village and gave satsaṅgs for about ten days. The farmer did not understand anything—what is a master? What is a satsaṅg?—but he came every day. He liked listening to the master, though he comprehended nothing. The master spoke daily of mantra, Guru Kṛpā, and God. On the final day, the farmer approached the master. "Sir, I don't understand anything. You talk so nicely, and I like listening, but after half a minute I forget what you said. However, you taught something: mantra, Guru, mantra, Guru, mantra—this I remember. Master, do you think I am ready to receive the Guru Mantra?" The master said, "Yes." The farmer said, "Then please give it to me." The master gave him a mantra, speaking it aloud. The farmer was disappointed. "Master, I thought a mantra would be something to eat or something big, like chocolate. You only said something, and that's all. I don't even remember: Oṃ Namaḥ Śivāya or Śivāya Namaḥ or Namaḥ Śivāya, I don't know." The master said, "Well, then say only Oṃ." The farmer replied, "I don't understand anything, but I will say Oṃ. When I go with my cows, I will say to them, 'Oṃ, Oṃ, Oṃ, Oṃ.'" The master asked him, "Anyhow, did you get your mantra?" He said, "Well, I didn't get it; you didn't give me anything, not in my pocket." The master said, "But I gave you Oṃ." He said, "You didn't give me; you just said 'Oṃ,' that's all. Okay, and Guru Kṛpā? Master, at least you can give me this, so I can always have it with me and show everybody that my Guru gave me this Kṛpā." The master said, "I will give it to you after some time." "Okay, good." Then the master asked him a question. "Tell me, what do you think about me?" The farmer said, "Master, should I be honest?" He said, "Of course, you have to be honest." "Yes, Master, I think of you; you look like a bull in my cows. That's all. Whenever I see you, you are so many kilos and so heavy; it looks like a bull." The master said, "Thank you. Repeat your mantra, and sometime I will come back." Such people are very innocent but very disciplined. They promise and keep their promise. They are not tricky like humans are now; business people are very tricky. We are too materialistic, and we always change our opinions. The farmer began to repeat, "Oṃ, Oṃ, Oṃ." After one year, the master returned. The farmer was very happy to meet him and was the first to come. After one week, as the master was leaving, he asked the farmer, "What do you think about me now?" "Should I be honest?" "Yes." "Yes, Master, we are working very hard to earn our bread and butter, and you are earning your bread and butter while talking." "Keep on repeating the mantra. I will come next year again." The farmer was very happy that he had made big progress, so he repeated "Oṃ, Oṃ, Oṃ" more. In another year, the master came and asked, "What do you think of me again?" He said, "Well, we worldly people are innocent and ignorant, and you are a wise man. You have a lot of wisdom." The master said, "You made big progress." "Master, how big? I don't see it. When will you show me this big? You always said 'big,' but where is that?" The master said, "You may keep on practicing." The farmer thought, "Now at least he made me a wise man." He thought of his master all the time and repeated the mantra constantly. The master came again after a year. After ten days of satsaṅg, he asked the farmer, "What do you think about me now?" He said, "We are mortal beings in this world, but you are a holy man, immortal." The master said, "You made immense progress." "How many kilometers, Master?" He said, "Many, many kilometers." The master thought, "Now from the wise man, he has made me the holy man. Keep on practicing your mantra." After another year, the master came again. Before the master could ask him what he thought, the farmer stood before the master with folded hands and said, "Gurū Brahmā, Gurū Viṣṇu, Gurū Devo Maheśvara." The master got his answer. He said, "Now you have that consciousness, the consciousness which I want to give you." The farmer said, "Dear Master, it was only possible through your kṛpā." The master asked him, "Have you got my kṛpā?" He said, "Yes, sir. My life is your kṛpā. Everything is your kṛpā. Not a leaf of the tree can move without your kṛpā." That is called God-realization. That consciousness has to be developed. Unless you have this consciousness, you cannot come out of this ignorance, and you will fall again into that darkness. Therefore, Kabīr Dās was saying in a beautiful bhajan, "Māyā mahatāgniham janire." The great cheater is the māyā. She has the net of the triguṇas in her hand. Anytime she can hand you up. He speaks the madhurī bānī, a very sweet language, and it is a beautiful long bhajan. At a holy place, she becomes holy water. In the temple, a statue; a queen for a king, and a disciple for a yogī. This māyā is very tricky and a great cheater. So Kabīr Dās said, "Rare are they who can come out of this māyā." You need to develop this God-consciousness. We have to stay in this world, work in this world, eat, drink, sleep, move, and do everything as all people do, but our inner destination, our inner imagination, should be different. We are in this physical body, and this body is bound to nature. The dharma of the body is to be born, grow, and die. The condition of the body depends on nourishment, but no matter how well you nourish your body, one day you have to leave it. Therefore, time—what we call time—is bound more, applied more to this planet. And we celebrate time every day: a birthday. What does that mean? Again, one year less in your life, again one day less, one hour less. Day by day, every hour and minute, our life is decreasing. It is getting shorter and shorter. Do not think that better time will come and you will do it then. Such thinking is only the thinking of a fool, not a wise one. The Merciful One has given us the opportunity to be human on this planet, and we do understand what life, birth, and death mean. This chance, once gone, is gone. When you blow off a flame, you cannot catch it anywhere. You sit and look; the flame has disappeared. Where did that flame go? Which window did it go out? Through which door? How does the flame disappear? In the same way, you will disappear. Even if our dear one is sitting near and holding hands, it does not help. You came alone, and you will go alone. You have to go alone on your journey. Only destiny can be achieved through your destiny. Destiny is created by our own karma, our own actions. God helps us only if we help ourselves. Therefore, you can only see God if you have God-consciousness. You can only see your lover if you have loving consciousness. You can only see your enemy when you have enemy consciousness. You can remember someone only when you have that memory, that consciousness, and so it is with God-consciousness. Recording location: Slovakia, Banska Bystrica, Weekend seminar