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One must simply be, be present, and act in this world according to one's Dharma. However, the Dharma of a human being is something distinct. People have been given a very important tool that one must use to fulfill their Dharma. One must use this tool. This tool is Buddhi, the intellect or discerning mind. Buddhi, or intellect, is a very important and powerful tool to recognize our Dharma and to carry it out. This means our actions in this world, our deeds or our work, should be in accordance with our Dharma. Here, Dharma means duty, the task. With what task, with what duty, has dear God—or as said, our Destiny or cosmic will—brought us here? One person believes in God, another believes in other principles, and another believes that he believes in nothing. He who does not believe also believes that he does not believe. But he believes one thing: that he lives, that he exists in this world. And so, human Dharma is very clear. Since the saint Tulsidāsa said the roots, the foundation of our Dharma, is compassion or kindness, all living beings have been given Dharmas by God so that, according to their feelings and nature, they should or can act. Animals do not know the gods, except for their own offspring for a while. There are even some animals that do not recognize their young; as soon as the babies hatch from the eggs, they eat the mother because they do not know these Deities. On one hand, they protect the babies; on the other hand, they do not know the eggs. When something moves before their eyes, they devour it—reptiles, for instance. Therefore, a person should not consume or eat what moves before their eyes, but should reflect and use Dayā, compassion. Some animals know Dayā, but that is not Dayā again; rather, it is loyalty, a feeling. A watchdog has great love and feelings for its master or family, but for a stranger, there is no Dayā. That is again animal consciousness. But for human beings, as Tulsidāsa said, Daya-Dharmaka-Mūla hai—that is, the basis, foundation, root of Dharma. What is my personal Dharma? The root of our Dharma lies in the foundation, in the earth, and this earth is Dayā. When Dayā no longer exists, it means there is no more moisture or nourishment in the earth, and the plants will die. So it is in the hearts of people: when this love, this compassion, grace, and abundance are absent, then the plant, the beautiful human existence, dies. Then it is only a kappa, like a machine, constantly consuming petrol and oil as well as food and drink, sleep, and that is all. Compassion is the root of Dharma, while the root of sin is ego. The opposite of compassion is sin, sinfulness. So, Pāpa means sin. Where there is Dayā, there is no sin, and where there is sin, there is no Dayā. Sin has many forms; many, many forms of sin exist, including killing other living beings, killing humans. The telling thing is that one also eats meat. If you had not eaten meat, this living being would neither have to die nor be killed. Dharma is a duty, a task. The God who created nature and humans intended, first and foremost, for one to be a protector, not a destroyer. So, be a protector, an owner of many situations. Protect the situation, protect the person, protect the animals. When one mentions a situation, many situations in life arise. Whether from yourself or from others, for your selfishness, you should not do anything that goes against your Dharma. There is a little story. A hunter wished to chase a deer and ran after it through the forest. The deer was faster than the hunter, that’s clear anyway. The hunter had a bow and an arrow in his hand. He walked through the forest and suddenly saw a small hut where a yogi was meditating. The hunter stopped and asked if he had seen the deer and in which direction it had run. The deer had run past this hut. Now, the yogi was in a conflict, in a situation. In this situation, you must immediately apply Viveka, discernment. When you say yes or no, apart from emotion and nervousness, it is already too late. Sometimes to say no, you need several lifetimes. And sometimes, to say yes, you need many centuries, thousands, just to say yes. Use Viveka. Now, using only your Viveka, you must say: if I say yes, then I am doing something against my Dharma because my Dharma is to protect, to betray no one. If I say yes and tell him in which direction the deer ran, then he will kill it. This means I am the cause that the deer must die, must suffer from an arrow wound. When one is hit in a vital spot, one does not die immediately; it torments itself. And then they begin with cruelty and kill it. The deer has beautiful eyes, like a human eye. It looks at the person who is killing it and says, please do not do that anymore. At this moment, the hunter who kills this animal, or anyone, has no compassion in their heart at all. Compassion is gone. It is a jungle—not even a jungle, it is a desert. Nothing grows. Nothing at all. That is only him. Only Pāpa. It is Pāpa in his thoughts: killing, devouring. Dharma is absent. As soon as I say in which direction it went, I become the cause. And if I say no, I saw nothing, then I make a mistake again, also a sin. That means I lie; I have seen. It seems my eyes have wandered off, and I say no—that would not be in accordance with my Dharma either. Then I will torment myself for a lifetime because I once lied. Either do not speak at all, and if you speak, then speak with Viveka. So the Yogi said, "My dear, whoever has seen cannot speak. And whoever can speak cannot see. What can I tell you?" The hunter said, "This is madness," and left. That means the eyes have seen, but the eyes cannot speak. The mouth can speak, but the mouth cannot see. That is so. It is always very important to sit in Dharma. We are supposed to defend ourselves from many situations—your situation, as well as other situations—using your Viveka, higher intellect, with Dayā. Compassion is the foundation of Dharma. Sin, its root, is ego. Ego is the foundation of sin. Pāpa means sin. So it’s better that every morning you say "your father," not "Pāpa," okay? When you say "Papa," the poor man, he did not become a Pāpa. He has done well that you have come into the world. Tulsidāsa gave up Dayā. The reason Tulsidāsa said, do not give up Dayā. Prāṇa in the heart center: as long as you have prāṇa in this body, it means there is life. This is the first Dharma of human beings. Make that movement. When we learn to protect the situation in life, then our life is saved. The second Dharma is Self-realization. God has given us a golden opportunity to liberate ourselves on this earth through our actions and karmas. For our liberation, we need to practice a lot. That is where our Dharma lies. It is not so simple that we can attain Mokṣa immediately. Perhaps I have a little understanding. It is life, life’s work. Because it would be so quick—that would be nice. In Satyayuga, there were thousands and thousands of years. That is where meditation takes place. Now in Kaliyuga, we have very short lives. In Kaliyuga, the average lifespan is supposed to be 100 years, but it has become even less. Now it is on average 50. It has become half. Why? Because people have forgotten that they possess this nature. We have not followed our Dharma, and we have disturbed all of nature. In Yoga, there is a very important part. The best part is that you can continue Self-Inquiry Meditation, according to meditation, Self-Inquiry Meditation from Yoga, in your daily life. That would be one of the best ways. This is a Kriyā-Yoga. This Kriyā-Yoga is to be practiced for 24 hours, not just for 10 minutes and then adiom. I know many people who practice meditation, pray, and do Kriyā, and afterwards they go somewhere completely opposite. That doesn’t help at all. In Kriyā, in Yoga, that is called Ekāntavāsa. Ekānta-nivāsa, yes, Ekāntavāsa. Ekānta means private, separate, isolated. Not as one thinks, a prison or anything like that. But I can go into the forest where you are with your own Self, that is all. The natural bird and the bird ask you a question. They even make beautiful music so that you don’t get bored. Nivāsa means to dwell there. That is why many have withdrawn. Now there is a question: do you want to fall into Parapañca? Parapañca means all this work in the world, everything, stress, what one does, all this and that... that is Parapañca. But perhaps this Parapañca should also have a meaning; it should have some meaning, significance, then it is no longer Parapañca. Or you think, according to the highest will, what is God’s will, why He sent me here as a human: to liberate this world. That is what I want to realize. Otherwise, the end of this life will come too late. You can do whatever you want; it is already too late. You arrive at the airport and a little later, a flight has already taken off. Now you can do whatever you wish; what has passed is past. The days will come when you say, "My God, I have done so much preparation and no one, no one, no one is there. Once again, I am alone, lonely. What will become of me, oh Lord? I have known nothing of your will, nor have I followed it." A saint said: a leaf from the tree has fallen and the wind has taken it away. Now, if the leaf thinks and gives hope, "Will I return to the same place, to my original place? Will this leaf beautifully return to this branch again?" Gone. Oh my darling, it’s gone and lost forever. If it were reality, then the leaf would return there again. Perhaps in some form, recycling comes about, according to the principles of the recycling system. And so, in some way or another, this vessel returns to this world, according to the principles of reincarnation. But it forgets the same. Therefore, this is the unique opportunity to be human in this world and to realize the goal. Do not let yourself be disturbed by any conflicts of mentality, religious conflicts, cultural conflicts, national conflicts, and so on. It is not about stopping, nor is it about anyone, not about your culture, your nation, or anything else. It is about your own Divine Self. "O Lord, O God, please, may your will now be such that my life passes with no meaning lost, with life thriving." This is important. All criticism, all your jealousy, all your envy, all your fears, all your complications, all your selfishness—everything will vanish completely. Nothing will remain with you. For whom you fight day and night, or for whom you weep day and night, or for whom you are jealous day and night, all of it is meaningless. They are soap bubbles, gone. "What will I be with myself alone, my Lord?" And so, this is the second Dharma that a person has: as protector, protector of the environment, protector of our creatures, and protector of our society, and so on. When Dharma speaks, it is a path of life. Dharma means the path of life. For the way of life, you have to use your Viveka if you want your life not to become complicated, if you want your life not to cause unnecessary difficulties and problems. Then use what dear God has given you between your two ears. Between two ears, God has given us a precious brain. For other animals, between two ears, God has given two ears. What can it do? It can hear. But not man. Man does not just hear. Man takes to heart. "No matter what you have done, I console you exclusively in my heart. It does not matter what you have done, I forgive you in my heart. Forget it, because the oceans of oceans of oceans of oceans all have space within them. When the hundreds of thousands of rivers flow in, the ocean does not overflow. And when much water goes away with the clouds, the little seed does not sink deeply." Always Pūrṇa. Pūrṇamadaḥ, Pūrṇamidaṃ, Pūrṇāt pūrṇamudacyate, Pūrṇasya pūrṇamādāya, Pūrṇamevāvaśiṣyate. Pūrṇamevāvaśiṣyate means that what is taken from the Pūrṇa is also Pūrṇa. And no matter how much of the Pūrṇa is taken away, what remains is still Pūrṇa. This is Pūrṇa. Pūrṇa means completeness. And perfection here means full resonance. We say perfection. When perfection is in your heart, your love flows. From your lips, your mouth, you will only say, "I love you." Not "I hate you." Whether it is your enemy or someone else, you will not say, "I hate you." You will say, "I love you." While Dayā, the ocean, is filled with mercy. Dharma rakṣita, rakṣita: If you can protect your Dharma, then Dharma can protect you. If you cannot protect your Dharma, then Dharma cannot protect you either. And what is our Dharma? Dayā, mercy. And when this longing, this ocean—the ocean of mercy and fountain of joy, the ocean of bliss... Swāmījī Śivānanda has written a beautiful bhajan: "Within you is the fountain of joy. You only need to say one thing. It is beautiful. The water spring in your hearts. Within you is the fountain of joy. Within you is the ocean of mercy or bliss. And within you is the immortal Ātman. Just kill this little 'I,' this tiny ego, and live the divine life. That is all." Just this ego, because the ego is the root of all sins and mistakes. So, Dayā and ego. Dayā is the root of Dharma. The foundation, the root of Dharma, is mercy. Pāpa, its root, is Abhimāna, ego. And when there is ego, then your Viveka is clouded or obscured. Then your Viveka is completely shrouded in fog. Totally fogged. So heavy a fog that you can’t even drive 10 meters. Because the ego is there, and this is it. And then, no matter whether it is your own things, your own emotions, your greediness, your longings, your feelings, all of these are the reinforcement for your ego. "Kill this little 'I,' this little ego, remove it and live the divine life. Then live as a divine or sacred life." That is what Swami Śivānanda writes; he composed a beautiful bhajan, sometimes half English, half German, Hindi, very beautifully written. And so is Yoga, Ekānta-nivāsa. The Yogi already moves toward Ekānta, one side. Why? Because the saṃsāra, Parapañca, Parapañca in saṃsāra is so much that he withdraws. But where is his Dharma? That is again his counter-Dharma. Now it sounds very beautiful. Hari Om, we take our backpack and we go to the snow mountain. We stay there. That is not so easy either. Dharma. What about your children? What about your wife or your husband? What about your parents? What about your family dog? You also have a pet. You have a strong Dharma towards this animal. This is it. And so the system, the Vedic system, has described four Āśramas. There are four stages in life. According to the principles of the Āśrama, one lives accordingly; then one can achieve everything. Normally, the Kaliyuga has divided these four Āśramas into periods of 25 years each. The first Āśrama is called Brahmacarya-Āśrama. Brahmacarya means the life of a student. From the first day of birth until 25 years old, no other interest except only studying and securing a future. Back then there was no cinema, but now it’s all cinema and pino and cinema and cinema, all gone. Only 25: you have 25 years to attain that wisdom, that knowledge in your Vivekā, in your intellect, in this human mind. Therefore, follow this Dharma of the student life, Brahmacārī. After 25 years, marriage, wedding: this is your highest, most supreme time, so that you do not become confused back and forth. From 25 to 50 years is your time when you can have children and should raise them, as well as practice your professions and everything else. From 50 to 75 is the time to prepare, to withdraw. Give everything to your children. All rights to them. And Ekānta-nivāsa, withdrawal. Practice Vairāgya. This is no longer attachment. Attachment is the second problem: attachment to the offspring, grandchildren, attachment to your house, attachment to your eating. Many, many attachments. I heard a joke, an Austrian one, from a Viennese. Do you want to hear? One could say the same about anyone else. Why should the poor Viennese always be so? But the Viennese offer themselves for everything. Viennese are such kind-hearted people. They take everything upon themselves. Like a Viennese who has ascended to heaven. And everything was beautiful. Anyway, a Viennese always goes to heaven, that is not a question. And so he ascended to heaven, and in the morning there was meditation and beautiful walks and Brahmamuhūrta, and he did not understand what it was. But please, he said, that was his pattern. But he was hungry. And for breakfast, there were some sprouted soybeans and so on. Only in small pieces, not for eating, yes. It was just the smell, because heaven provides no solid food. And now he has been waiting for his lunch. And lunch was also something entirely with Pañcāmṛta and the fragrance of flowers and so on. And he said, "Where is my schnitzel?" He was told, "Heaven does not serve schnitzel." So he said, "I renounce heaven." And he returns to Vienna. So it is. Just because of his schnitzel, he renounced heaven and came back again. That is called attachment. Attachment also relates to the Indriyas. "You, O Manas, Indriyaka Rāja. You are the king of this state. And Manas, Indriya Terī Prajā." Palisanti promised me yesterday, solemnly, that he would personally bring the book, but he has not brought it yet. What am I to do? It is as it is. And so I can continue my lecture even without this book. But that is how it is. How am I supposed to trust the students? And so, the second problem is our attachment. You cannot withdraw. There is another beautiful bhajan. I don’t know all of it by heart, but this bhajan is like this: you can run away from everything, but you cannot run away from your mind. You can run away from everyone, from anywhere, but you cannot run away from your mind. And in your mind, there is attachment, feelings. You cannot recognize what you have. You sit there and have other desires: "I can have this, I can have this, I can have this." So it is, a second insight comes. A traveler through the desert, wilderness, tar desert, no trees, only sand and sand and sand. Sun, hot sand. Stars, moon, cool sand. Far and wide, no trees, perhaps only small bushes. So, the people always walked at night because they were looking in the direction of the cardinal points. In the past, they traveled on foot and then stayed wherever they wished to go. There was a lot of distance back then. Such a man rose early, at 3 o’clock, and set out on his path. He set out on his way, and from half past three, he kept walking and walking and walking. He walked until ten o’clock, and the sun was so strong and hot. It was already 33, 34 degrees, even 35 degrees, 10 o’clock in the morning. And suddenly he saw a beautiful tree, a green, beautiful tree. And his legs forgot that they were tired. Already quickly, it smells, smells, and so, the tree has gone. And he sits beneath the beautiful tree, lush and dense with greenery. It indicated 44 degrees. Among the satiated, there is perhaps only a half-degree difference. But that is something as well. And he says, "It would be nice, cool, to drink water." What words? Not even in the eyes. And suddenly beside him lies a beautiful water pit with a lovely glass. A ton of water, cool water. The water is about 30 degrees. You can imagine, water from 44 to 38 degrees is almost too cold. He takes a glass, drinks a second glass. He is a bit relaxed. And then he thinks it would also be good to have a good meal. He suggested that he would share his own food, and suddenly, because he had imagined it, the food was already there, whole plates served, everything. He says, "Wherever food comes from, no matter where, it is good." He eats. After the meal he wished for a good coffee, and suddenly he comes across a beautiful ceramic, a wonderful coffee. There he notices it is a white foam—what is it called? Because the cows do not want to drink calf’s milk, all of that falls away, and it depends on the coffee. When a calf drinks milk and then many come from, it falls under, it then takes that onto the coffee. That has more energy in time, you know. And then he says, "Now I am so full, so content, I want to lie down; it would be good in a nice bed." And suddenly, a beautiful bed stands there, as if we had bought it from a beautiful furniture store. Oh, with a good pillow, a little bed. But it is a bit too hot; it would be good if it were a bit cooler. And then an air conditioner started. Then he thinks, "Am I crazy? Is this just my imagination or is it reality?" And because it is reality, who brings all of this? "I wish the bed were here, I wish the food were here, I wish the coffee were here, I wish the water were here." He looks all around; no one is there. He says, "My God, perhaps a spirit dwells in this tree." And he looks up, and there is Spirit. "He will kill me." And he came and killed it. This tree is called Kalpavṛkṣa. Kalpavṛkṣa, Kalpataru. Kalpataru means what you desire. May all your wishes be fulfilled. Whatever you think, every thought is realized under this tree. So the human body is this wish-fulfilling tree. He stands in the desert upon this entire creation. And the soul comes under the human tree. He can realize everything with his intellect—even foolishness. So it is the human mind that will destroy the human. And you cannot run away from this mind. If the eyes run away, the mind does not run away. You can walk away from this worldly path, but you cannot run away from your mind. From your mind, you cannot run away. The mind is with you. And so Vānaprasthāśrama, the third Āśrama, sounds easier, but it is difficult. This attachment, this clinging attachment, is too strong. When you spin a cheese, soft cheese pizza, or sweet cheese pizza, the pizza keeps going longer and longer. And that is attachment—from your home to the forest where you wish to retreat—a gentle bridge, a connection. You are sitting there, but the thought is there in your attachment. This is just a Praṣṭhāśrama. Ekānta-nivāsa is not something simple. For that, we need practice—about 25 years at Ekānta-nivāsa, a Praṣṭhāśrama. And there it is important, very important, that you observe your Vṛttis, your thoughts. And then it comes automatically. When no one is there, then comes a supreme technique: the Kriyā, the 24-hour Kriyā. What I have said from the very beginning is Mauna, silence. Silence is the best, strongest practice. Silence awakens all your emotions. Silence dissolves and purifies your depressions. Silence will answer your many questions that have not been answered until now. And through this Mauna, you then prepare for Sannyāsa.