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What we practice every day is generally called sādhanā, but the whole life is a sādhanā. However, practices alone will not help us. They can only be fruitful if we follow physical and mental principles. These are called Śayamit and Niyamit. Śayamit means controlled. We should be able to endure certain life conditions. To follow śayama, very often we have to say to ourselves, "No." It is easy to say no to others, but it is difficult to say no to oneself. Imagine when you tell your child, "No," or, "Don't do this." When you tell your child no, what philosophy is behind it? Definitely, as a parent, you have the opinion that it is not good, and that's why you say no. Even when you have a dog and you go walking, you say no. A philosophy is hidden behind this. Similarly, to say for oneself whether certain things are yes or no, there is a philosophy. When we have to say no to ourselves, we also need some kind of philosophy. There, we need vivekā. We divide certain mental or subtle principles, which we don't see. Three are very important: mana, buddhi, and viveka. Mana is the mind. The principle of the mana is making saṅkalpa and vikalpa—creating a wish and then again giving up that wish. The mind is very much influenced by the senses, the feelings. Actions very much follow the decisions of the mind and senses. In Jñāna Yoga, there is Sām and Dhām. Sām means to withdraw your senses or your vṛttis from the external world. It does not mean that you detest, nor that you run away. But carefully, you avoid certain things. When you are driving a car and another car is coming opposite, carefully, you just pass by. You avoid hitting that car. You don't go away from the road. Similarly, in this saṃsāra, in this world, there are numerous things existing. They must not all be experienced by us, or we should not take all into consideration. You should be able to say, "No, I don't want." This means to withdraw, to become introvert. But introvert does not mean you become dull, depressed, or that you don't talk to anybody. That is an unhealthy state of mind where you are not able to coordinate the three: your body, your mind, and the outer world. That is not the state of a yogī. So, sām means you withdraw yourself. And dhām means you observe that control, so that it doesn't run away. You tell your dog, "Sit down." He sits there, but still you observe that he will not run away or attack someone. You still have a chain. Similarly, you told your senses to come back, and you observe that occasionally they don't run out. Those who are able to do this are the happiest people, the yogic people. So śayamit means that carefully, every day, you are observing. Śayamit says that you should be simita. Simit means border. Everything should have its border. Do not let your feelings and your senses go out of the border, out of control. Simit means limited speech, not too much gossiping. You lose your energy. Through the Vāk Śakti, through the word-speaking Śakti, you lose immense amounts of energy and you influence your consciousness very much. So speak less, eat less, make some simple things, but think beyond everything. Let your thoughts be endless. That's called simple life, living in higher thinking. Who has the higher thinking? Noble thinking, a noble way of life. It doesn't get caught up in quarreling things. Always see above everything. Then, discipline every day. This is not only for one weekend or for one week, but it is forever. That's called niyamit. If you get up in the morning at six o'clock, then every day get up at six o'clock. If you go to the bathroom, wash every day first, then, as a rule, wash yourself. Maybe one day there is only cold water; then put water in a bucket and leave it overnight; you will have room temperature. So, niyamit is discipline. Śayamit and niyamit. The third is called sandhyā: sandhyā vandanā. Morning and evening, about sunrise and sunset time, you should make prayer and think of God. When darkness appears as the sun goes down, we put on light. It doesn't matter where—the first light you see in your house, in your neighbor's house, in the street—this is the first light in this darkness, the darkness of the night which is coming. That light you should greet automatically, even if it is a candlelight, you should greet. Tamaso mā jyotir gamaya—lead us from darkness to the light. Light is something indescribable. We don't know what the light means, and to see. A blind person knows what the light means, and to see, or one who lost the eyes knows what one has lost. So many things we should take care of. But I tell you, our eyes are the most precious things that God has given us in this body. Protect your eyes and your ears. And always, whenever you see the first light, be thankful to God. In India, you will see hundreds of people sitting, and if someone makes light, everybody will say, "Hari Om." The Europeans who are with me are surprised. "What? Why do they say 'Hari Om' suddenly?" Because this is put in their subconsciousness. In European culture, when you see a dead body, automatically people make like this. And the Indian never knows why he is doing like this. But when you explain it—the Holy Father, Holy Spirit, and Holy Son, what it means—then, of course, there will be respect. So there are certain things which should not be taken only as a religion. To say "Holy Father, Spirit, and Son" may be connected to the religion. But there is one Sanātana Dharma, universal religion, and that belongs to our eyesight. This is called the dharma of the eyes. All creatures need eyesight. So it doesn't matter if you are a Jewish or Islamic believer, Hindu or Buddhist, or Sufi or Christian. Healthy and good eyes, we all need. Light, we all need. Clarity, we all need. That is called the eternal principle, eternal dharma, sanātana. To protect sanātana dharma means to protect yourself. To protect yourself means to protect your eyes, to protect your ears, your speaking, all your limbs. Lord, all my limbs should be healthy. Every limb has its dharma, its duty, its principle, and we should take care of them. To take care of them, we have to do some sādhanā: śayamit and niyamit. That sādhanā means a healthy, sāttvic, balanced diet; clean, fresh, good water. When you are thirsty, then the body requires water, not juice, not coffee, not beer. When the body is thirsty and you put beer inside, the body is disappointed. Washing yourself and prayer—sandhyā vandanā, prayer and adoration. The human aim is to gain Ātmā Jñāna. And that is only possible through a sādhanā-filled life. Niyamit sādhanā will make your spirituality grow more and more. Always look in the inner mirror. What are you thinking? The saint Achal Ramjī said in his bhajan: Purity is that which you can wonder how pure it is. And impurity is that which creates negative thinking in you. Get up and think positive. Greet God. Prayer, maybe only two sentences—not quantity, but quality. Where your attention goes first, don't say, "Oh God, again I must get up. Now all is dark. Ah, yesterday I had terrible people. Again, I have to go to these people." This means there is a lot of garbage within you. You are not above this. Where are your wise thoughts? Where is your wisdom? Wake up. Come out of all this dirt. These are spots on our mind, oily spots, and they are so oily that we have to wash them many, many lives, not only one life. It is said: on the stone of jñāna, water of bhakti, and the soap of vairāgya. Then this spot can be removed. So Jñāna, Bhakti, and Vairāgya—these three should be balanced. So never think, "I will not achieve what I want to achieve." It is never late; it is just a matter of your own decision. In the beginning, a little more willpower will bring your car, or bring your train, onto the railways. Then it will run. Śayam and niyam you can do anywhere throughout the world. So protect your body. Observe your thoughts. Indriya nigraha: keep your eyes on your senses. Ātmā cintan: always think, "Who am I? What is ātmā?" Higher thinking: tapa, tyāga—it's very important. Have the ability to endure something. A couple, husband and wife, when they don't have power or endurance in them, they don't understand, and they separate themselves. What a great pity that they separated. They didn't understand, and they don't know what they are losing again. You had only one friend in life, and you lost that also. Why? Where is the cause? Don't search in others; it is in you. Don't tell your wife that you are the guilty one, no. Your wife is the holiest person for you, or your husband is the holiest person for you. You should have a respectful, devotional respect for your partner. Suddenly, the heart of the partner will melt for you. God is merciful; similarly, your partner will be merciful to you. So there are many, many things, but you have to first correct yourself through Śayamit and Niyamit. Put your life in order. Then comes the buddhi, the intellect. Intellect is that which gives the judgment: what is the red and what is the green, making the differences to give you the information that your line is on the road, this side to drive, and beside this line is for the other one who is coming opposite. Because only your intellect can inform you, as your intellect is informed, trained, and educated. Giving the judgment—that is the intellect. What is what? And the cream, the best part of intellect, is your viveka. And therefore, it is said: Satya, satya karo, nyāra nyāra. Satya, satya karo, sādhanā chāro. Sādhanā chāro, jīna se hove mokṣa, tuma se ho mokṣa, tuma chāro sādhanā chāro. Beloved of the Lord, bhaktas of God, do the four sādhanās. The first sādhanā, the first step: Allah sādhanā viveka vichārut—viveka, think with viveka. What you are doing, what you are talking—don't do it without viveka. Otherwise, you will be sorry. Viveka is satya asatya kā nyārā nyārā. Viveka is that which will divide truth and untruth completely, like a lemon will spoil the milk, separating the paneer on one side and the water on the other side. Viveka—who has viveka all the time is the happiest and safest person. Viveka is not a victim of emotion, but the senses, mind, and intellect could also be victims of emotion. As a human, we begin with divine thinking, with pure thinking, and God blessed us with that. We should not make it dirty again. We should not make it impure. A human can wait. A human can endure. A human uses the viveka. To say to the indriyas, "Wait a minute, wait." Not all in this life. Janam, janam—many, many lives. Then you will see that within you is the divine. Within you is a fountain of joy. The joy which we are searching for is called Param Ānanda. Param Ānanda Deo Mere Datta. In the Holy Gurujī's bhajans: "Param Ānanda Deo Veda," and that Param Ānanda is within you. Within you is the fountain of joy. And as long as you will not discover that fountain, there will be desires. And that is also joy. But I used to say this: the joy of the joy will be less joy than the sorrow of that joy, because vivekā is not used. When viveka appears, then it's the fountain of the joy within you. Within you is the bliss, the ocean of bliss. Can you measure the water of that ocean? You can measure the water of any swimming pool, any part, but not from the oceans. Similarly, your blissfulness is immeasurable. So within you is the ocean of bliss. All divine blessings are there because you used Viveka, Sandhyā, and Vandana. If it was only done through the senses, intellect, and mind, then it is not endless. Measurable, but endless is miserable, unbearable. Many, many lives you will suffer that. And within you is the immortal Ātmā. But kill this little "I," this little ego, this proud "I." And then enjoy the divine life.