In plain words
They said that human birth is very hard to gain. Somewhere a dog heard this phrase, they say, poor thing. What? Jantūnāṃ narajanma durlabham! How is man so much greater than us animals? In what way is he greater? "No, no, we are the great ones," they said. The reason: for a fistful of food we guard their house, go round and round them, and whether they beat us or scold us, the moment they call we follow them wagging our tails. Does man have this gratitude? They eat God's food. They drink the water God gives. They breathe the cool air God gives. Everything is God's own gift. Enjoying it, they forget God, cruel as they are. To the very God who did them good, they plan harm. We at least have gratitude; you are becoming ungrateful. So how are you greater than us? Though our masters torment us in many ways, out of that gratitude, the moment my name is called, I wag my tail and offer him humility and obedience. But the moment man hears our name he drives us away with "chī, chī, chī". So man should be driven away with "chī, chī"; there is no reason to do it to us. We do not tell lies. We do not commit injustice. We do not enter into wrongdoing. Beyond that we have no greed. To look down on us, who live a life as full of sacrifice as ours, is a loss to humanity that cannot be made good, they thought. However much you study, what is the use? However many positions you hold, what is the use? However much cleverness you have, what is the use? The gratitude we have, you are without. So why say "jantūnāṃ narajanma durlabham"? Say "jantūnāṃ śunaka janma durlabham".
So today human beings are becoming lower than dogs. Selfishness and show. How do people like these become devotees, just by saying, "We are devotees, we are devotees"? You practise for your own selfish ends, for your own profit, but you do not practise for the grace of God, for the Ānanda of God. When you firmly believe the truth that you are a portion of God, you will give up this selfishness and self-interest. The body is a chariot. The Ātma is the one who rides in it. We must experience the oneness of these two. There may be many kinds of differences among human beings. In all this creation there are no two human beings who look the same. In some things or other, differences are always seen. Even in twins differences are seen. There are plenty in the world who foster these differences. But one who shows the oneness in everything: one such is enough for us. In food, sleep, fear, mating and the like, all are just the same.