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Good morning to everybody, and to all friends around the world watching through the internet. Many blessings and good wishes from Vienna, Austria. We have very fine weather; it is 10 o'clock and 11 degrees warm, which is unusual. Keep thinking cool, and it will be more pleasant. Yesterday we spoke about three differences: what it means to be born, what it means to be born and attain liberation or mokṣa (self-realization), and what it means to be incarnated. After these three differences, we proceed further, as the subject is spiritual festivals, spirituality, and wisdom. Wisdom, the knowledge, is something incomparable. Knowledge is the blessing of God, and this knowledge which you possess—whether you give it to your disciples, friends, or students—will otherwise disappear with you. When you die, your abilities and knowledge vanish. What a great pity that such beautiful knowledge and talents disappear from this world forever before you die. Therefore, great saints and wise men have always sought a successor to whom they could give this divine heritage. There is a story about Emperor Aśoka Samrāṭ, a close disciple of the Buddha. At the time of his death, he was unhappy and could not leave his body. He had only one daughter, named Saṅgmitrā. She asked her father, "Dear father, what can I do for you so that you can die peacefully? What bothers you? You had a wonderful life as an emperor. What makes you unhappy?" He replied, "There are hundreds of thousands of people waiting for my material heritage, but no one is ready to take the spiritual heritage of my master, the Buddha." She said, "Father, I will try." The father told her, "Being a woman, you are independent now, but you will become dependent; you will be married and gone." She promised, "I will not marry. I will carry on your spiritual message, the teaching of the Buddha." The father then died. She began to spread the Buddha's message to China, Japan, and other islands. When she spoke, thousands came to listen, but no one accepted the teachings. She asked her advisors, "Why do people not accept the teachings? They come to my programs but do not practice." The advisor said, "We have information. People do not come for your wisdom; they come for your beauty, to see how beautiful you are." She realized, "My beauty is an obstacle to my spiritual path and my father's wish." She then took spirit and threw it on her face, burning it. Her face changed, and she was no longer as beautiful as before. Then people began to follow her, and Buddhism spread throughout China, Japan, and other islands. This illustrates that knowledge, if not given to someone, will disappear. If you are a good musician but have no disciples to take this knowledge, your musical talent will disappear. If you have knowledge of poetry but cannot teach someone, it disappears. If you are an artist but cannot impart your knowledge, it disappears. Similarly, a spiritual saint, even God Himself, when He incarnates, cannot remain forever in this form on this planet. He comes as if for holidays and then goes to a different part of the universe. Look at Kṛṣṇa, who gave His entire teaching to Arjuna. Look at Jesus, who gave His knowledge to His twelve disciples—not to His mother, father, or brother. Every spiritual master seeks someone who can receive this wisdom. Many want to take your beauty, money, house, prosperity, and everything. But very few can dedicate and renounce everything, understand you, and comprehend your teachings, knowledge, or abilities. Without that, it cannot come to you. There is a beautiful story Gurujī once told. A master came to a village where a king lived. The master had a siddhi, and the king wanted to learn it. The king told the master, "I am the king. You live in my kingdom. Your siddhis and knowledge are my property because you are a citizen. All your talents and knowledge belong to me. You must give me the siddhi." The master said, "You will not get this siddhi." The king insisted, "You must teach me." The master replied, "Even if you hang or crucify me, you will not get the siddhi by force." At night, the king would go to the master disguised as a guard. He brought good food, warm water for bathing, oil for massage, and performed seva, saying, "Master, I am so unhappy. How terrible is our king; he is such a stupid man." The master said, "Well, it is his way." At four in the morning, the king would leave and resume his role as king, threatening the master. This continued for a year. Finally, the king sent a message: "Tomorrow, the master will be crucified." That night, the king, disguised as the soldier, went to the master crying, "My lord, tomorrow is the most terrible day of my life. I was privileged to serve you. Should I open the doors so you can escape?" The master said, "No, that is not my way. But my child, I bless you with this siddhi so it will not disappear. After I am gone, in 21 days, the siddhi will come to you." The disciple was overjoyed. He brought good food and warm water for the master's final hours, saying, "I cannot attend the crucifixion; my eyes cannot see it. You will always be in my heart." At 10 o'clock, the king called the master and gave him a final chance: "Will you give me the siddhi, or are you ready to be crucified?" The master said, "I am Satchidānanda Svarūpa Ātmā. No weapon can kill me; death cannot take me away; I am immortal. I cannot be forced into slavery. You will not get the siddhi." The king rose from his chair and fell at the master's lotus feet. "Master, excuse my stupid words. But you have already given me the siddhi." The master asked, "What? I did not give it to you." The king said, "I am that soldier who served you for a year. I was the luckiest person in the universe to serve you, and you blessed me with the siddhi. You are now the rājaguru, the kingdom's master." The king built a beautiful ashram for the master and did not crucify him. This means you cannot obtain wisdom by force or through threats. In German, this is called oppression. Such actions bring karma back to you. Wisdom flows through love, humbleness, and kindness. There is another story about a king and a siddhi involving a mango, which you can read in the book "Meeting with the Yogi." The king wanted the siddhi before punishing a man, but the man began to teach. The master could not obtain anything. The prince said, "Father, water always flows from up to down. Wisdom also flows where there is humbleness and devotion. You are sitting up as a king, and this man is sitting down. How do you think the siddhi will function?" The king asked, "What should I do?" The prince replied, "You sit down, and let him sit up." The king's ego resisted, but he finally sat down while the man sat on the king's chair. The man then blessed and began to preach, giving knowledge. Suddenly, the king attained enlightenment and the siddhi. Thus, water flows from up to down; similarly, wisdom, knowledge, siddhi, and perfections flow to the disciple who is humble, pure in heart, and free from tricks and bad intentions. Otherwise, the knowledge disappears. Holy Gurujī said, "If a king is alive, he can give his kingdom to anyone he wishes. But when he dies, he cannot give it to anyone; he is only a picture hanging on the wall. A doctor, if alive, can give treatment. But when the doctor dies, he cannot give treatment." Similarly, a master in physical form can give inspiration, guidance, direction, and blessing. After he is gone physically, he cannot. This is why it is called sanātana paramparā, the tradition. Sanātana Dharma is known as a living dharma, meaning there is a tradition of master and disciple. Anyone who teaches you something is your master. A driving teacher is your driving master; in English, you call them a master or teacher, and in Hindi and Sanskrit, we call them a guru. Without a professor or school teacher, you cannot learn, become perfect, or get a diploma. Without practice in a hospital under a professor, you cannot become a surgeon. The entire modern system and the whole world depend on the master principle, the guru principle. Similarly, spirituality that flows from master to disciple is called living religion, Sanātana Dharma. It cannot stop. Your mother is your first master; this cannot stop. Even animal mothers teach their babies how to live, eat, fly, swim, and walk. Any talents you have that others do not—do not hesitate to find someone to give these talents to. It is the heritage of this world, the heritage of the cosmic self, brought through you to this planet. You must find someone, but please do not give your negative talents. Take them with you: jealousy, greed, anger, hate, criticism—we do not need these. We need something different. Āyurveda is getting lost; it remains only in books. There are very few Vaidyas who can read the Nāḍī, the pulses. Very few are left, like our dear Professor Sadeshmukh. He can diagnose everything in your body and mind in half a minute. To diagnose the same, we need machines costing millions of dollars, which can fail due to lack of electricity or malfunction. Learn talents, even cooking talents. We have lost many people who buy good Christmas chocolates and cakes from shops because they lost the talent to make them. They have recipes, but it does not function perfectly. In India, during winter, they should eat good kinds of laddus, but people have lost the knowledge. They used to prepare everything at home with fresh spices and good ingredients. That knowledge is lost. Knowledge means not only spiritual knowledge but many different kinds. That knowledge needs the right pātra, a vessel, a disciple. It is said in family life, if you have children, you will have access from Pitṛ Loka to Svarga Loka or other Lokas. Otherwise, you are stuck in Pitṛ Loka, the realm of ancestors. Your children will perform ceremonies for you to proceed further. Similarly, a master searches for a disciple to whom he can give his power. This is called a mental child, jñāna putra, to whom he can impart knowledge. There is a precious stone called pāraśa. When you touch iron to pāraśa, the iron becomes gold. But the master does not make the disciple into gold; the master makes the disciple a master. This spiritual knowledge, this spiritual heritage, cannot be obtained through protection or force. It comes only through devotion and faithfulness. The master observes the disciple for years and years, noting weaknesses and leaks. If the pot is unfit, it is discarded. It is a years-long trial to find physical, emotional, intellectual, and spiritual perfection. When the disciple is perfect, the inner channel opens automatically, and wisdom flows. No protection, money, or influence can alter this. Even if the master wishes to give to someone else, he cannot. It is beyond physical and intellectual protections. For years and years, there are rare disciples who are fit. When once it is broken, there is a beautiful poem. A bell or a pot made from special metal, like a Klangschale (sound bowl), has a beautiful sound. But if there is a crack, there is no more sound, and you cannot unite it; you must throw it away. When the Kāśī gets a crack, where does the resonance disappear? Everything is there; not a milligram has disappeared from the body. Why is the resonance gone? Because there is a crack—the crack between the master and the disciple's confidence. Maybe in the next life. When milk is spoiled, where does the butter disappear? You bring fresh milk from the cow; there is cream and butter inside. Put lemon in, and the butter disappears. You cannot churn ghee or butter from spoiled milk. These are the drops of lemon, the sour kuṣaṅgas—your bad ambitions and doubts. When you have doubt, you are on a question mark, not even a waiting list. The waiting list is different. You were on the waiting list, but now you have doubt, so you are on the question mark: should we take you on the waiting list or not? Mīrā Dāsī said, "Janam Janam Kī Hari Tumhāre Pāsa"—I am your servant, my Lord, for many, many lives. When will you come to me, O Lord Kṛṣṇa? Where has the butter disappeared? Dīpak bujhā gayā, lo kahāṁ chalī gaī? The lamp went out. Where has the flame disappeared? The room is closed; windows are sealed; there is no hole for the flame to escape. But it is finished by gentle air from your mouth. You stand in darkness. This flame of hope, love, spiritual light, and wisdom is blown out by wrong steps, thoughts, desires, and feelings. Dīpak bujhā gayā, lo kahāṁ chalī gaī? Now, where has the flame gone? Man phaṭā kahāṁ gaī prīti? Similarly, your mind and heart are broken; where has love gone? This is a modern life problem, leading to more divorces. In the beginning, there was great love; your friend was everything. But one day, like spoiled milk, that friend becomes unpleasant, and you want to leave. Therefore, the wise say: with great yatnā, effort and practice, keep this tenderness, keep this inner part untouched by the outer world. Then knowledge will come. There is an instrument called sitār. If you give it to me, I will hold it, touch some wires, and you will say, "Thank you, Swāmījī, enough." But when the great sitār master Pandit Ravi Śaṅkar takes it, just one touch creates a resonance; the room becomes pin-silent with thousands of people. All ears turn to the instrument and the master. Wisdom is there; siddhi is there; the master is there. The master gives you the instrument, but if you are lazy and do not practice, you cannot become the best sitār player. Look at their fingertips—the skin is raw and hard from pain and practice, day and night. The master says, "Play only these notes," and the disciple strictly plays only those notes. If I give you a book to practice the first part, and you skip to the last, you cannot become a disciple or master. Practice makes the master. The master's knowledge and wisdom come through seva: guru-vākya, guru-sevā, guru-kṛpā. Sevā means practicing, trying, keeping the origins. Everyone would like to be Pandit Ravi Śaṅkarjī. If he comes to Vienna, the biggest hall will be full; people will come from far distances in Europe. If I go, only you will come. So, my dear, it is a great pity if wisdom is lost, if knowledge and perfection disappear. Therefore, find a good disciple. Even if you cannot give it to your own child—you love your child and want to give everything, but you cannot give your talent or wisdom if the child is not worthy or ready. Mahātmā Gandhi was a great personality who gave to the whole world, but his own children were not capable of receiving his wisdom. Spirituality and spiritual festivals come after masters, holy incarnations, or events. Anything related to wisdom is spiritual. Knowledge is spiritual; it depends on how you use it. If used for negative things, it is negative; if for good, it is good. The person who discovered the atom had good intentions but later regretted it, realizing humans would misuse it. Now there is a world threat of atom bombs. Material knowledge based on intellect can be harmful or good. But pure spiritual, divine knowledge can only be good; however, we need someone ready to receive and transmit it. For example, the Vedas, holy scriptures (Vedas means knowledge), were given from master to disciple: Śruti and Smṛti. Śruti means spoken; what you hear becomes Smṛti (memory). You speak from memory, which is Smṛti. It depends on your capacity to digest, retain, or lose memory. Thanks to God, when Vedavyāsa incarnated and dictated the Vedas, they were put into written form; otherwise, they would have been lost. We cannot even remember telephone numbers of friends or our own if we do not use them often. Similarly, knowledge from the master must be utilized and transmitted exactly, but few can receive it. When a master, learned person, artist, musician, or singer leaves this world with no successors, it is sad. As the sun sets, Rabīndranāth Ṭhākur said, "The setting sun was sad that my time is over, and the world is swallowed by darkness. There is no one to take my place or function." A small lamp burning at a Śiva temple said to the setting sun, "I will try to give light in darkness." We, the disciples, are like tiny flames. We say to Gurudev, "We will try to carry on this beautiful light so it is not blown out." Everyone helps the strong; no one helps the weak or meek. Like the wind: when it blows, a small spark is supported to become a strong fire, burning the whole forest. But the same wind blows out a flame. A tiny spark is stronger than a flame. We are gentle flames with little kuṣaṅgas, little bad words; our flame is blown out, and we are in darkness. Protect the flame. When wind blows, you must protect a candle flame. We must protect and preserve the light within us. Mahāprabhujī said, "One tiger is stronger than a thousand sheep." If you have one successor who receives your complete wisdom and understands, it is like a tiger; others are hundreds of sheep who will run away. Jñāna, the knowledge and wisdom within you, is born in you as spiritual heritage; everyone has it. When you come to a football field with 22 players and one ball in the middle, no one can say, "This ball belongs only to me." Everyone has a right; who will kick the ball into the goal? We are all sitting here; who will be the sākṣāra of Mahāprabhujī's light? I hope I will be; you hope you will be. Let us have a competition. I cannot say Mahāprabhujī is only my holy Gurujī; he is yours too. We all hope to have this. It need not be only one person; it can be all. Try to be ready to receive spiritual heritage and overcome stupid things—mine, yours, hers, theirs. All these rabbi's things will not go with you; everything will remain in the rabbi's sariyom. No one will remember what you did, what someone said, or what you shouted. How many people fought for Austria in the past—"my land, my motherland, my fatherland"? How many soldiers suffered day and night in snow and cold during the First World War, Second World War, and wars with kings and Turks? Where are they now? Nobody remembers. Similarly, if we fight for dualities, after some time, no one will remember. Hari Om, and gone. Therefore, preserve that spiritual light. Do not be the cause of blowing it out, and do not let go of the light of spiritual wisdom. That light will show the path to all. Spiritual heritage comes through two things: either through practice and the master's blessing, or brought from past life's good deeds. Both are good. It is with you to utilize for good, not for bad. Now, let us speak about spiritual festivals. Christmas—you Europeans know about it. Two thousand years ago, your religion and festivals existed; there were Romans, cults, Celtic religion, natural religion. Nobody remembers them now. Now it is less than 2,000 years of the Christian era. You know about Christianity and Jesus. It does not matter who says what about Jesus; there are many films, stories, and theaters. For us, Jesus is Jesus. Some say Jesus was not born or that his story was made up—it does not matter. For us, Jesus exists; he was incarnated or born for us, lived for us, suffered on the cross for us, and spoke beautiful teachings we should accept. Whether Jesus was born through Mother Mary or from someone's ideas, he was born—not only his body but that quality, power, energy, words, and wisdom were born for us. When we remember this, that energy comes to us, inspiring us. We do not know the exact date of his birth, but we say, "Now is Christmas time, end of December, he was born." Some say he was just born and quickly brought presents. A child in Jordan asked me, "Jesus was just born, and already he brought presents to every house. How was that so quick?" I said it was a miracle. So, this festival is celebrated with many connections. Now are dark days—short days and long nights. The sun has moved south; cold season has come. We have harvested crops. Nature is withdrawing, having given everything to us. If you have the capacity, take it; if not, apples lie on the street, fruits lie somewhere, with no one to collect them. We have harvested everything. Psychologically, when humans have nothing to do, they turn to drugs, alcohol, opium, or fight. Now is the time to fight, talk badly about neighbors, speak angrily to wives. In summer, they escape to the fields. What to do? You have enough now, so give to neighbors and friends. Light candles or lights, express spiritual feelings. Give love to others, understand others. This is the time to understand friends, forgive anyone who did something to you. Come with a present and say, "Excuse me for my stupidity; accept my friendship." This is the spiritual festival of Christmas, bringing love from humans to humans, and love for all creatures. Only what I do not like is that people kill so many animals and eat them on Christmas Day. It is a time to remember God more, to be happy that God came for us on this planet. We remember the whole story of Lord Jesus, from birth to crucifixion. Is this not wonderful? If we go deeper, he had a more difficult life than ours. Despite difficulties, we accept him more; he who endured such pain must have extraordinary powers and special energy. Whether Jesus was or not, for us he is and was. Similarly, there is another festival when Jesus was crucified—Good Friday. In reality, one boy in Jordan asked me, and I asked someone why it is called Good Friday when Jesus was crucified. We looked into it; in reality, it is not Good Friday but God Friday. Slowly, it became "Good Friday." Anyway, that day reminds us of life's pain, end, suffering, and karmas, inspiring us to be better humans, to forgive, and never cause difficulties. They crucified Jesus, causing pain and suffering; we do not want this, even for animals. This inspires us differently. Similarly, in Islam, there are holy festivals like Eid, Ramzan, etc., reminding them of holy words from Prophet Muhammad and the beautiful message in the holy Quran. In small villages where Muslims live, how they love each other and how much spirituality flows there! There is conflict between religions, blaming each other—this is human stupidity. They fail to understand God and spirituality, making politics out of it. Consider the number of holy festivals in India: the incarnation day of God Rāma, Janmāṣṭamī (how Kṛṣṇa was born). Kṛṣṇa came, and what a destiny—his mother had to suffer in prison. Was it necessary for him to be born in prison with nothing? Yet, we feel happy and proud that God came for us, even in prison, to liberate us. Dear brothers and sisters, all spiritual festivals in the world remind us of God's miracles. They give us thought to reflect on our lives: what have we done? What have we achieved? They remind us that life is not forever. What is the sense of life? How to live? When someone dies and you carry the body to the graveyard, you do not see their mistakes but their good qualities. At that time, one thinks about oneself: what is the sense of life? So many years of hard work, possessions—all gone. My beautiful body, cared for with makeup, massage, etc., is simply under the earth. A poet said a potter making pots from clay squeezes and works the clay. The clay tells him, "You are torturing and squeezing me. One day, I will squeeze you in me." This beautiful body, teeth cared for by dentists, beautiful eyes—all under the earth. As a token of thankfulness, we put dust on it. That is life. At life's end, we count the final account. What is the sense of life? The sense is only to give love, earn spiritual wisdom and light, leave behind love and light, and go. Do not think you will leave much money and property; the more property and money left behind, the more complications left behind. Spiritual heritage reminds us through spiritual festivals. Secondly, great heroes, poets, artists, and scientists are remembered by societies, but only within limited groups. Spiritual figures are remembered even by God Himself, if you believe in the holy Father in heaven. He looks at you and says, "I am proud of you, my child. Now come back to my lap." Be that child whom your Father is proud of—Mother God, Mother Father, the Divine One. Of course, your physical father and mother will also be happy to see your success and spiritual energy. Your parents may not believe you; they think you are going somewhere, "the screws are loose." People bombard sects, drugs, etc. These are negative waves in the world, but one day they will say you were right and they were wrong. Keep working on your spirituality, give and give, and do not be a taker. There are many spiritual festivals remembered worldwide, and many we do not know. In Africa, South America (Native Americans), Australian Aborigines, China, Japan, India, the Middle East, Europe—everywhere, God is everywhere. He came, but we did not understand Him or Her. Do not think God comes only as male; who are we to say "he"? Who is he? There is no "he"; why not say "she"? Yes, it is she. From today, God is she. I will see the divine mother, divine Śakti. There is no attribute in God, in nirguṇa. Nirguṇa has no form, no liṅga, no gender. Therefore, who are we to always say "he"? We can say "she." God is beyond our imaginations in form. We must realize this body will disappear soon. Hari Om Tat Sat. It will come and go. Many came and went; we came and will go. Whether a fakir or a king, someone went with a big festival, someone as a prisoner. Dependence and decision will be life's end. The spiritual body suffers; the body has karma and will come and go. One day, you will find peace nowhere. Hari Om. But your spiritual energy, consciousness, and spirit will be everywhere. In the form of festivals, do good karma, realize something, so you will be remembered for centuries. Your birthday and mahāsamādhi will be remembered if you are a good disciple. Otherwise, Hari Om. With this, I wish you all the best. We will continue in the afternoon at about 4:30 or 5 o'clock. Until then, I wish you a good appetite, a good walk, good free time, good yoga nidrā, and blessings. I pray to Mahāprabhujī, Śrī Devapurījī, and Śrī Alagpurījī to bless you all. I am thankful to our holy spiritual lineage, called Oṁ Śrī Alakpurījī Siddhapeet Paramparā. Oṁ Śrī Alakpurījī Siddhapeet Paramparā—this is our holy lineage spirituality. Dīpa Nayana Bhagavān, Oṁ Śrī Alakpurījī Siddhapeet Paramparā.