Meditation On The Lord's Name And Form

23 February 1958, Chithravathi River Bed, Prasanthi Nilayam

Professor Kasturi's English.

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The devotee who spoke first here now was, let me tell you, denying God for 25 years, and it is only since five years, after seeing Me, that he has changed. Of course, many people have had no experience that could change them, so they are not to be blamed for their want of faith. So too, this here was finding fault with his son and daughters for coming to , and himself for long refusing to come! One day at , there was a function in the house opposite his, for I had gone there. During (group singing of devotional songs), this man hesitantly crossed the road and peeped into the hall, and I went forward and called him and made him sit near Me. I asked him to come to and invited him to “examine” and “experience”. He has been with Me ever since; it is now 18 years since he first came here. This is just the reason I came to sow the seeds of faith, in religion and in God. You might have heard some people say that I became when a scorpion stung me! Well, I challenge any one of you to get stung by scorpions and transform yourself into . No, the scorpion had nothing to do with it! In fact, there was no scorpion at all! I came in response to the prayers of sages, saints, and spiritual aspirants for the restoration of (righteousness).

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The root cause of all this restlessness When there is a sign of a little unrest, the police constable appears on the scene; if the mob gets unruly, the Inspector rushes in; and if it becomes violent, the Superintendent of Police has to be personally present on the scene to quell it. If, however, the situation waxes hot, the Inspector General has to make himself available, is it not? This is a situation in which the I-G is taking over-all charge of the situation. The sages, savants, saints, , and divine personalities have had their try, and they will all be cooperating in the task of reestablishing righteousness and clearing the path for the world attaining absolute peace (). The greatest defect today is the absence of inquiry into the nature of the Self. That is the root cause of all this restlessness. If you are eager to know the truth about yourself, then, even if you do not believe in God, you will not go astray. The pots are all of mud, the ornaments are all of gold, the clothes are all of yarn. There is unity where one saw only diversity; the basic substance is one and indivisible. That is (Supreme Reality), that is the , which is your own basic substance too. This inquiry into the nature of the Self is best found in the . Just as a river’s flow is regulated by bunds and the flood waters are directed to the sea, so too the regulate and restrict the senses, the mind, and the intellect and help one to reach the sea and merge individuality in the Absolute. Study the with a view to act accordingly, to put the advice into practice. Scanning a map or turning over a guide-book will not give you the thrill of the actual visit, nor will it give you a fraction of the joy and knowledge of a journey through that land. The and the are only maps and guide-books, remember.

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Call upon the Lord in your own heart There is the story of a rustic who sat among a gathering of devotees and listened to the exposition of the by a great scholar. All were wonder-struck by the scholarly commentary the learned disquisition on each word and phrase. The rustic, though the exposition was very much over his head, seemed to attend very closely for he was all the time in tears! When at last the scholar asked him why he was weeping, he surprised everybody by the sincerity of his devotion. He said that he wept at the predicament of the Lord, who had to sit at the head of the chariot and, half turning his neck, hold forth so long to convince the dull-witted . “How much pain must He be suffering in His neck?,” he asked and wept.

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That was real devotion, a sure passport to spiritual victory. He had identified himself with the participants in the episode, and the whole setting had become alive for him. You need not even read the or the . You will hear a specially designed for you if you call upon the Lord in your own heart. He is there, installed as your own charioteer. Ask Him and He will answer.

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Stick to the Name and Form you like the most The secret is: you should “be”, but not be as in sleep, when you are aware deep down within you, that you are. Sleep is enveloped in delusion (). Awake from that delusion, but immerse yourself in this sleep that is the real super-conscious state of bliss (). Repetition of the Name and meditation are means by which you can compel even the concretisation of the divine Grace, in the Form and with the Name you yearn for. The Lord has to assume the Form you choose, the Name you fancy; in fact, you shape Him so. Therefore, do not change these two, but stick to the ones that please you most, whatever the delay or the difficulty. Do not get discouraged that you are not able to concentrate for long from the very beginning. When you learn to ride a bicycle, you do not get the skill of keeping the balance immediately. You push the cycle along to an open and hop and skip, leaning now to one side and now to the other and even fall with the cycle upon you on many an attempt, before you are able to ride with skill and never again to worry about the balance. Automatically, you are able to make the necessary adjustments to correct the balance, is it not? After getting this skill, you can ride through the narrow streets and lanes, and you do not need an open road. You can negotiate your vehicle through the most crowded thoroughfares. So, too, practice will equip you with a concentration that will sustain you in the densest of surroundings and the most difficult situations.

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Flying hither and thither, higher and higher, the bird has at last to perch on a tree for rest. So too, even the richest and the most powerful man seeks rest, peace (). Peace can be got only in one shop, in inner reality. The senses will drag you along into a mire, which submerges you deeper and deeper in alternate joy and grief, that is to say, prolonged discontent. Only contemplation of unity can remove fear, rivalry, envy, greed, desire - all feelings that prompt discontent. Every other avenue can give only pseudo-contentment, and a day will come when you will throw away all these playthings and toys and cry, “Lord! Grant Me unruffled peace.” The bandit prayed so; the confirmed atheist too has one day to pray for peace and rest.

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Engage yourselves in good deeds, good company, and good thoughts. Fix your attention on the goal. You have not realised yet the secret of this Advent. You are indeed lucky, more fortunate than many others. It is only when found every length of rope a little short to go round His belly that she discovered that He was the Lord. So to, you will realise every description of My Divine Glory a little too short of the actuality, and then you will get convinced. Meanwhile if you study the spiritual texts and know the characteristics of the of the Lord, you might get a glimpse of the Truth regarding Me.

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