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This is our first day of this beautiful program in nature, at the Strelki Āśram. Yesterday, many bhaktas were phoning and sending messages about the evening lecture, wanting to know how beautiful Strelki is and how the nature is. So today we are sitting in this āśram. This is a kind of tennis place that has now become a space for our group from this seminar to practice. I would like to say a few words about this. There is an old saying: ekānta nivāsa or ekānta vāsa. Ekānta vāsa. Ekānta means a solitary place, a lonely place, an environment free from the disturbances of civilization. In those times, of course, there were no cars, airplanes, or motorcycles creating noise pollution and sound pollution. But still, there were disturbances. We humans, wherever we are, make a lot of noise. We humans mostly create a lot of pollution. We humans produce a lot of garbage. There is no creature on this planet that generates so much noise, pollution, garbage, restlessness, and fighting as a human. Now the population has grown immensely. In the times when yogīs or holy saints would go to the forest to stay, there was abundant forest and jungle. It is said the forest offered many fruits from which one could nourish oneself. There were many herbs; by eating a little, one received all necessary nutrition and did not feel hungry. They had knowledge of different herbs, called kaṇḍa—the roots, bhūkaṇḍa. Those roots were very healthy. It is said that eating about 200 grams of a certain root would leave one without hunger for several days, providing enough energy to meditate for long periods without laziness, leaving one feeling very fresh. Unfortunately, in this Kali Yuga, many of those roots, herbs, fruit trees, and bushes have disappeared. What remains is polluted by the pollution of the human mind. There was a time you could drink water from any lake, creek, river, or waterfall. Now, we question whether we should drink river water, not only because of bacteria but also because of many chemicals. What is to be done? It is not your mistake, nor mine, nor theirs, but our collective mistakes. Where there is a will, there is a way. If we all make a saṅkalpa, a vow, that from today onward we will no longer fight against each other—we cannot speak for others, only for ourselves in this matter—do you have that much strength? Will you not fight anymore? If you believe in what Jesus said, or what is written in the Bible—if someone slaps your cheek, offer the other—are you ready to do this? No, we are ready to give a slap; we are experts at that. But we are not ready to offer the second cheek. So now you can test how far you are a Christian. You say, "I am a Christian." How many Christian principles do you follow? It is easy to say I am a Christian, a Hindu, Jewish, and so on. But we all, as humans, do not follow spiritual principles 100%, and that is the problem. So let us begin now: we will not fight, we will not be angry with each other, and we will not create too much waste. We will not use too many plastic bags. If we have plastic bags, we will use them until they are no longer usable, until they are broken. If a bag is in good condition, you buy something, take your items out, and throw the bag away—that is a problem. There are things we can use many times, for multiple purposes, and that is good for our planet. Also, when you cook, look in your kitchen at how much garbage or waste you throw away daily. It means you utilize only half of vegetables, fruits, and other items. When you cut, I think we throw away 10-15 percent, which is not good for our planet, our nature, or our ecological environment. Unfortunately, those fruits have disappeared completely, and then the grains, the seeds. In the last century, human beings began to manipulate seeds for business purposes. They engineered seeds to grow only once, so you must buy new seeds. Previously, seeds lasted generation after generation. You had wheat, and the same wheat would grow the next year, and the next, for several generations. Corn, rice, and so on—all were very healthy. Now, nutrition has been destroyed through genetic techniques and so on. This has greatly influenced the human body, mind, and spirituality. Unfortunately, genetic manipulation, as well as chemicals in dairy products—where animals, cows, and milk-giving creatures are given injections and artificial feed—affects us. You know that now many humans are suffering and struggling with weight; kilograms are increasing. A 10-year-old child looks like an 18 or 19-year-old, yet they lack strength. This is all due to artificial substances and chemicals in our nourishment. It is very hard for us to protect ourselves. If you live in the countryside with your own land, house, and milk animals, then you may try to be healthy. We are living in a critical time in the yugas of this planet. But still, we follow what is called a canvas to protect ourselves from the problems civilization causes. That is the system. Consider how holidays began, or taking a free weekend to go to a country house. Why? Because you find peace there. Nowadays, holiday places are also attacked by so-called business people. There is so much noise—radios, televisions, open-air music so loud you cannot be peaceful. Once, a few years ago near the Adriatic coast at the end of June or beginning of July, it was impossible to sleep. It is not that humans like noise, but some people create noise for money or greed, and others suffer. So ekāntavāsa means a place without the noise of artificial instruments and technologies, with very nice, clean air. Such is this āśram in Strelki. If you are here for one weekend, you will gain so much energy. You will like it. Then you will have a kind of discourse from the birds. They will sing a beautiful, natural song and are so disciplined. Within five minutes, all become peaceful, go to sleep, and let you sleep peacefully all night. You do not need a morning alarm; the birds will wake you at the right time. That is called brahmamuhūrta. So ekāntavāsa means to be silent and alone, to recover yourself and gain energy. That is what we have here in our āśram. Now you are here. If you are angry and looking to see who is doing what, then you have not understood why you came. Did you come to be angry with someone? Did you come to talk to everyone? Or to look and see who is beautiful and be jealous? No one is beautiful; the most beautiful one is yourself. If you pursue physical beauty, you are mistaken. Beauty is in the ātmā, in the soul. Beauty is in the person who always has kind words and a smile, if you have it within. Awaken your inner peace, joy, and happiness; then you will always smile. If within you is anger, hate, pain, disappointment, then you are a wounded person, and all the time you are angry; your mouth is like this. Analyze yourself. Feel this atmosphere and be happy that hundreds of your guru brothers and sisters are here. Within one or two weeks, you will see thousands of your guru brothers and sisters, practitioners of yoga and daily life, coming here. The whole area will be full of the vibration of mantra. Almost everyone repeats their mantra before sleeping, upon waking, while walking, and during meditation. Many, many are constantly repeating mantra. The divine vibration is here, and it influences your being to develop your spirituality. That is very important for us here. So it does not matter if you can perform a posture or not. That is not the main thing. The main thing is you are here. It does not matter if you could not come to your class today because you were tired and sleeping. How beautiful that you can sleep. It must not be that every day at five in the morning you have to be in class. Today, sleep and come nicely relaxed to breakfast—but not every day. If you all think, "Swamiji, five is too late or too early," we can adjust it; no problem. You should feel comfortable here—relaxed and happy. If you have to get up so early but are used to sleeping at one or two at home and waking at ten, then just sleep and relax. The energy radiating here, this environment and atmosphere, is a healing process whether you are aware or not. We breathe here. Our lungs are so faithful; you may forget them, but they will not forget you, constantly breathing for you. Your heart—sometimes you forget it, sometimes you are aware. Your sweet heart—I do not know if it is really sweet or bitter—but your heart is very faithful, correct, and disciplined in its pumping. It is one of your best servants, friends, colleagues, and organs, constantly and rhythmically pumping. So whether you are aware or not, your heart is here, so happy. Your breath is deep, and what you breathe here influences your heart, liver, intestines, blood, brain, vision, ears—everything is so beautiful. So what we are doing here for one week or ten days is ekāntavāsa. We all have the same aim, the same spirituality, the same master, the same path. Therefore, we are all in the same boat, on the same ship on the ocean, going toward our destination. We will all arrive at the same time. As someone said, whether you sit in first class or economy class on a plane, you will not land earlier. The first-class passenger will not land earlier. If you want them to jump earlier, they will not. So all will come. It is our way of thinking that if I am more spiritually developed, or another is more developed... we are all spiritually developed. Here, you are receiving a lot of spiritual energy. I told those people standing there, "Please send the people this side," and none of them came; all sat there. You see, they do not follow the master's words, the Guru Vākyas, and therefore there are so many mosquitoes in that corner. I hope the mosquitoes are not full of malaria. In that corner are malaria mosquitoes, and this corner has other mosquitoes. So, ekāntavāsa and happiness. It does not matter which program you are attending—Karma Yoga, children's program, the first program for seniors and beginners, another program practicing only meditations and Haṭha Yoga, āsanas, prāṇāyāmas, relaxation, or the spiritual anuṣṭhāna. When one person is doing an anuṣṭhāna, we all gain energy from that person. If one person has a nice perfume here—someone, before coming, was making chit-chit—now we all have this beautiful smell. Is it not true? How does it multiply? If you think so many cannot get it from one, consider the example of perfume. It multiplies throughout the air over thousands of square meters. When the wind takes it, it travels kilometers. Snow bears, ice bears, can smell an animal from 50 kilometers away. Thankfully, we do not smell that much nowadays—it is not good. But what I want to say is that when one person has a particular perfume, everyone smells it. Similarly, when one person is doing yoga, meditation, and prayers nicely, we all feel it; it is for all of us. Even if he or she does not want to give you that spiritual energy, it goes without control. So be happy that you are here, relaxed. We still have four or five days more, with many good lectures, examples, and tales from great ṛṣis and techniques. This is ekāntavāsa. From ekāntavāsa, you gain immense peace, harmony, and understanding. This is Mother Nature. We are in the lap of Mother Nature, and she is happy we are here. We are happy to be here with Mother Nature. So relax, enjoy, and practice your mantra. If you cannot do many āsanas, do your mantras. Practice, help each other, do not be angry. Analyze yourself today, until the satsaṅg. After this lecture, until the satsaṅg, find out: How many positive thoughts did you have? How many negative thoughts did you have? It does not matter toward whom or what. Third, how much fear did you have today? Fourth, how much happiness did you have within? Next, how do you feel today? Analyze your thoughts. Jealousy is negative, doubt is negative, anger is negative, pain is negative, and so on. Make a self-analysis. You need not tell anybody. Then, come to the satsaṅg, and before you come, put all these negative thoughts and feelings away. Leave them in your bedroom, and come with positive feelings. Then you will see how the satsaṅg will be very, very nice.