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This evening, our topic is this: how to develop spirituality while living a normal or a family life and working in offices. What should we renounce, and what do we not need to renounce? What is renunciation? That is very important to know for many people, especially in this century, in such a modern life, in this Kali Yuga. Is there hope for us to achieve the highest goal, which is spoken of, described, and guided by the great saints of the world? Are these only empty words? Are these only fairy tales, or is it reality? Yes, it is a reality. It is a reality, and those saints who achieved self-realization, who achieved God-realization, who saw God in different forms, those saints will not lie. If Jesus speaks about the Holy Father, or a Hindu saint speaks about Īśvara, Parameśvara, Brahman, or a Muslim speaks of Allāh, this is not a fairy tale; it is reality. And therefore, how to realize that highest truth in this world? Our beloved Holy Gurujī, His Holiness Śrī Swāmī Mādhavānandajī of Rajasthan, India, he said, "Enter the kingdom of the Lord through the gate of sacrifice." Now, tyāga. Mahātmā Gandhījī said, "Renounce and enjoy." What does it mean to enjoy? Not this worldly life. All worldly enjoyment is temporary. These are the empty bubbles on the water. That enjoyment has little joy and more suffering. Then they enjoy what you think is enjoyable. But a great personality like Mahātmā Gandhījī said, "Enjoy." What is the best that you can enjoy? It is very hard to find out what you can enjoy. Think over what brings you the joy which you can call, "I enjoy that joy." That enjoyment we are searching for throughout our whole life. And that enjoyment is called contentment. "Gaj dhan, bhaj dhan, aur ratan dhan khān, jab āī santosh dhan, sab dhan dhūl samān." You may have thousands of elephants as your property. Now in Kali Yuga, we are not capable of keeping even one elephant, but there were rich people who could take care of thousands of elephants, gajdhana, bajdhana, and they had golden birds or ratanadhana khana, and they were the owners of the mines of diamonds and precious stones. But they had no peace in their heart; they had no joy from that. When contentment comes, satisfaction, then that happiness, that joy is indescribable. Many are searching for joy. What is the best to enjoy? There is one little story, which you would laugh at, what I bring, what kind of story. Or should I leave it? Should I tell it? Okay. There was an emperor, we call him Bahādur Shāh, the Turk, who came to India and ruled India. They were called, known as Bahādur Shāh. So one of the Badshah's secretaries, he was very clever, very wise, and very good, a best advisor. His name was Bīrbal, not in German "Wirbel," so then Bīrbal, not a beer. Bīrbal always used his viveka, and he was very, very sharp, just like a knife. And the Badshah sometimes didn't like it, and many times the Badshah told him, "Go away from me, I will not see you anymore, you lost your position, go." He said, "Okay," and he went away. And after a few days or months, the Badshah needed him so much, nobody could help him, then he said, "Please come back," many, many times. So the Badshah asked a question to Bīrbal. "Bīrbal, what is the best that we can enjoy? I would like to enjoy something. What is the best?" Bīrbal said, "Go to the toilet." Oh my God. The Badshah became so angry. "Always you put such things in front of me. You insult me. You should have said something, dancing and let the dance and music and drinking or something, enjoying, eat something good and that, play some games, swimming, this, that, going toilet, go out." Bīrbal said, "Okay, sir, truth is truth. You want to enjoy, and that's what I want to tell you, but where do you enjoy?" Okay, after some time, again the Badshah invited Bīrbal to work. After three years passed, one day Bīrbal organized a beautiful evening with some dance and many, many things. And before going to this program, they invited many other guests. Bīrbal offered the Badshah some little bite, means you call finger bite, you know, something to eat. They always like nice things, pakodas or this and that. And Bīrbal put in those pakodas, sonāmukhī. You know all the sonāmukhī. Yes? Say it a little loud. That's it, because we are on the internet, so people should know there is someone who is sponsoring. Now, they went; there was a beautiful hall, a very beautiful audience, and many VIPs sitting, and someone was playing sitar and tablas, and someone was dancing. Well, after two hours or one and a half hours, Bhasa said, "Birbal, where is the nearest toilet?" Birbal didn't listen. "Birbal, yes, your highness, where is the nearest toilet?" He said, "Ah, wait, enjoy, your highness, enjoy." "I have such a spasm in the stomach; I must go." Birbal said, "That is not enjoying; this is enjoying." He said, "Doesn't matter, I must go." He went and came back. Birbal said, "Why did you leave this enjoyment?" He said, "Now I agree; to go to the toilet is more enjoyable than this joy, you know?" So, when we speak about enjoyment, what do we mean by "enjoy"? Āyurveda says the first enjoyment, the first happiness, is a healthy life. The second is that you have some kind of material means, so that you can welcome the guest and offer them something to eat and things. If you have nothing, you can't do it. The third happiness is that you have your own milk cow, your own milky cow, so that you have your fresh and good milk. The fourth happiness, Caturtha Sukha, is a good neighbor. A good neighbor is a neighbor, but it is like your family member. Otherwise, many of you know how your neighbors are, upstairs or downstairs or to the side. You want to sleep, and they play loud music; you want to play, and with the high heels, ladies walking in the kitchen, "tuck, tuck," midnight, so high heels must have rubber down. Often we hear in the corridor they go like this, no ahiṁsā; you should write on the door, "No high-heel shoes, please." The fifth happiness is "strī ājñākārī," your wife or your husband, an obedient, obedient partner, that your partner has a mutual understanding towards you and is not quarreling every day. Many times, the man comes home late from the office, and he makes overtime because he doesn't want to come home and see who is waiting for him. So, ladies, when your husband is coming late home, then you should know who is guilty, he or you. And there are some who are longing, looking forward to coming home, and someone is waiting with a warm heart. Obedience, or a partner who has a mutual understanding. And the next happiness is the children who are also obedient, also follow you, understand you, and love you. Many of you have children, but you don't have that happiness because children went to the "kuśāṅga." In this Kali Yuga, it's a big plus point if your children have a good education and they love you and you love them. So, what is happiness? Mahātmā Gāndhījī said, "Renounce and enjoy." What can you enjoy? Enjoy your inner peace. If you have a lot of properties and monies and things, you cannot enjoy the peace; always you think somebody will take away, this will happen, that will happen, this will happen. When you have nothing, you are happy; you walk through the street in a new city, you go as a tourist, and you know how you hold your bag because there is a passport, there is money, there is this. And if you have nothing, you walk finally nicely; no one can—there is no pickpocket—one has a chance. That's it. So, "enjoy" means the inner contentment; that is the biggest enjoyment, the biggest happiness in our life. And how to get this? To renounce, tyāga. Now, tyāga means not that you just throw away or that you say, "I don't like it"; no, no, no. Tyāga: you give also to others. That happiness which you will receive from thyself and from others to whom you give something, that's indescribable happiness; that is a joy. Giving is a joy, giving without expectation, without waiting for "thank you." If you give someone, one takes and even doesn't say "thank you" and walks away, you say, "My God, what kind of person is this?" It means you are expecting; no expectation. Otherwise, that which you give becomes selfish; that is not a tyāga. And the person to whom you give money, eating, cloth, anything, don't demand anything from that person. Don't judge what he or she will do with this; it's not anymore your property. See, you gave it, and therefore giving is not easy. So, while leading a normal life, while leading a household life, while working in the offices or business life and this, you should have inside detachment, not attachment. And it is said, if you give, you will get back more than you gave, but still don't expect like that. Okay, Swāmījī said, "Give, I will get double." And that is your mantra, repetition, and your meditation. If you say that you don't have the time, Gurujī said often, an alcoholic person, no matter how busy he or she is, will find time to drink alcohol. A smoker, no matter how busy he or she is, will find time to smoke. Whoever drinks coffee at a particular hour of the day, no matter how busy, will drink their coffee. So we are addicted to many things. Let's have one addiction more, and that is God's name. Therefore it is said, Gurujī's beautiful bhajan, "Now I am divine, intoxicated while drinking the nectar of God's name." Rasa means the juice of the fruit. And that is the name of God. Compared with that juice of God's name, the nectar of God's name, all other juices of this world are tasteless, that's it. Only that one knows who tasted the divine nectar. Lucky are they, blessed are they, fortunate ones are they. And they who will get the realization, or God-realization, are those who tasted that nectar of God's name. So, it doesn't matter how busy you are. Nowadays, special technology has come, that's called the computer, and many, many, ... many people are working in the office, at home, in the airplane, in the train, in the bus with computers, but while working with the computer, let it go, what we call the ajapa mantra, repeat your mantra, and I can tell you your computer work will become much easier, and if there is a complication, you will say "Dīp Nirañjan śabda bhañjan," and suddenly everything is there, yes. Try, my computer didn't function, and I said, "My God, it was very important things to find out," and you know, I don't know what to press, I don't know which computer point I should press, I belong to this generation which is three sensory behind, so I said, "Dīp Nirañjan śabda bhañjan," and I just touched something and it interfered. I said, "Thank you, Mahāprabhujī. Gurudev, Gurudev sab kuś kartā hai." Therefore Holy Gurujī said, "Don't worry. Sab kuś deva dātā dī padāyā. Sab kuś deva dātā dī padāyā." Janam Jai Namah, Jai Namah, Jai Namah. --- Recording location: Czech Republic, Strilky, Seminar