Vedanta is Very Easy to Practise (Alternative Translation)

31 July 1996, Prasanthi Nilayam

Published English.

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You may master the and , You may be an expert composer of beautiful poems and prose, But if you lack purity of heart, You will ruin yourself. Never forget these good words. (Telugu Poem)

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Embodiments divine !

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Since ancient times, Indian culture has been propagating the principles of four objectives of life (), namely righteousness, wealth, desire, and liberation (, , , and ), and also the principles of the and their auxiliary sciences. The word Veda is derived from the root , which means knowledge. This knowledge teaches one how to lead a meaningful and noble life in this world by performing good deeds to attain the four main objectives of life.

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The are infinite Sages and seers, in their state of deep contemplation, received the knowledge of the directly from . Initially, the Veda was one.

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Veda is one

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Veda is infinite

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Later, Sage classified this knowledge into three , namely, the , , and , with the objective of establishing great ideals in human life through the teachings of the .

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Thereafter, was divided into two parts: and . The fourth Veda, , was added later. These four are now being practised and propagated.

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The have nine names. The first one is . What does it mean? Because the were received by sages () through hearing in a state of deep meditation, they are called , meaning orally transmitted sacred knowledge.

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In those days, there was no paper, no books, and no printing machines. Vedic knowledge was imparted to disciples by the , by word of mouth. Hence, the were called (that which is heard repeatedly).

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The third name is (meaning three), the fourth is (sacred tradition handed down by repetition), the fifth (similar), the sixth (hymns, guide), the seventh (self-learning), the eighth , and the ninth . They are called and because the are nothing but the inhalation and exhalation of the Divine.

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The are related to man's life in this phenomenal world. They deal with duality. Every Veda has three divisions: , , and .

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are compilations of used for the performance of rituals and sacrifices ( and ).

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The name Aranyaka signifies that one is supposed to study this part of the when living in the forest as a recluse (), along with one's wife, after completing the householder stage (). The rules that govern this stage are very hard. Only when one adheres to these rules steadfastly as a recluse will one earn eligibility for the renunciant () stage.

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There is a stage called , which is beyond these four stages. It is called supreme devotion ().

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The essence and goal of Then comes (the doctrine of nonduality), which is the ultimate goal of spirituality. In fact, the beginning and end of spirituality is contained in . leads to three types of , which has immense importance for everyone. Even students should listen to this with full attention.

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The first type is , the second is , and the third is . These three are the essence and also the goal of .

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What is ? consists of understanding and experiencing the principles of subtle yogic postures () like , then going beyond these postures and, concentrating on the centre of the eyebrows () and the I-am-God () principle, and ultimately experiencing Existence-Knowledge-Bliss ().

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essentially means the merging of one's mind in the supreme principle of Absolute and attaining total wisdom.

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The second type of is . Since it deals with numbers (), it is called .

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five sheaths of the soul, five senses, five elements (earth, water, fire, air and ether), five airs (life breath, downward air, diffused throughout the body, upward through the throat, digestive air), mind, intellect, subconscious mind, ego, and individual soul. , , , (, , , , ), , , , , , which together are 25 in number.

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consists of understanding that you are none of these and, going beyond them, thereby realising that you are the , which is the embodiment of .

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The third type of is (blissful state of realization). What does it mean? There is nothing else in this visible world made of five elements except . That is why the say:

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is one without a second

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The entire creation is the manifestation of . There is no second entity.

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Once this truth is realised, the mind ceases to exist. You see diversity in this world only due to the thoughts and counter thoughts of your mind. When unity is realised in this diversity, then there is no mind. Everything is .

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Whatever you see, hear, think, speak, and do and wherever you go, everything is . Only when there is a second entity, is there scope for thoughts and counter thoughts. But when there is only unity, and that is , there is no scope for thoughts and counter thoughts. This is the state of , meaning a state devoid of mind.

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There is only love in this state. That love is the truth. In fact, truth and love are one and the same. When truth and love unite, the world loses its identity for you and you see everywhere.

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's love for Here is a small example. Once, searched for , "Where is , where has He gone?" She was searching for because she identified Him with His physical form. Once you realise that is everywhere, then you don't need to search for Him.

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While was searching for , came. asked , "Oh ! Have you seen my child? Did my come to your house? I searched in all streets and have gone to all houses, but I couldn't find Him. Did you see Him anywhere?"

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closed her eyes and chanted the name of with heart full of love. At that very moment, appeared there.

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This incident was an eye-opener for . She said to , "All along, I thought was my son and I was His mother. I have been thinking that no one else has more love for than me. I had this pride that none other in this world gave such unlimited love to as I do. But, so far, I never realised that your love for is much superior and is endowed with great power. There is so much power in your love that the moment you remembered Him with love, He manifested before you."

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What was the type of 's love for ? It was pure, unsullied, and totally devoid of ego. That is why manifested before her then and there. If there is even a small trace of impurity and ego in your heart, God will never manifest before you, no matter how many hours, days, and even eons () you may pray to Him.

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caught hold of 's hand and said, "I was under the influence of ego and ignorance. You removed them and opened my eyes. Many in this world love more than I do. But due to my ignorance, I thought my love for was the greatest. This was my mistake. Kindly teach me the path of love that you follow."

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replied, "Mother, this is not something that someone can teach you or give you. Once you realise your true Self and have total faith in , this love will automatically develop in you."

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Once when returned home, complained to Him:

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Oh ! You don't eat what I serve You at home. But You go to the houses of the and steal their butter. Oh dear ! It spoils our good name. (Telugu Poem)

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said, ", there is so much butter in our house, but You don't eat it. On the other hand, You go to other houses and steal their butter even when they try to chase You away. What is the inner meaning of this?"

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The inner meaning is that does not steal butter; He steals the hearts of cowherd maidens (), which are full of love. If you develop pure, selfless, and egoless love, God will manifest before you immediately. You don't need to wait even for a moment. Only due to their delusion arising out of body attachment do people undergo suffering.

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Here is a small example. Cow is the name of an animal. Even after the death of the cow, the word cow remains. Similarly, after the death of an individual, their name remains. When assumes a form, the form may disappear with the passage of time but remains forever.

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Similarly, the principle of is eternal and changeless. is present everywhere in the form of sound, light, vibration, conscience, consciousness, etc. How is it possible to attribute a specific form to it? Truth is immanent in all forms. This is the reality that is propounded by the .

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A great yogi named , belonging to , explained the principle of thus:

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Without coming under the veil of forgetfulness, Always in the waking, dream, and deep sleep states, One should constantly be aware of the mantra that will enable one to realise the Principle. (Telugu Poem)

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is not associated with the five sheaths, five senses, or five airs. All these are related to the physical body. The principle of has nothing to do with these.

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is all-pervasive and is present in all forms and in all matter. Everything is matter. Even the physical body is matter. How can we explain this? You may even verify this truth by enquiring from doctors.

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The human body is made up of constituents such as water, iron, phosphorous, lead, zinc, etc. The value of these materials put together is only a few . With material of such meagre value, the priceless human body is made. However, it assumes value only when there is vibration in it.

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Where does the vibration come from? It comes from . When the foetus is four months and nine days old in the mother's womb, vibration enters it.

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The human body is formed by the combination of matter and energy. It means to say that and , both are present in the body. Here, should not be referred to as illusion. It is only. This is the secret of the .

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We consider this body as human but, in fact, it is not human but . Here is a microphone. When I speak into it, all of you are able to hear My voice. But if there is no electricity, you will not be able to hear anything even when I speak into it.

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This mike is the matter, the electric current is the energy. When these two combine, all of you can hear My voice. In the same way, and combine to assume the form of , which means the ever-expansive energy.

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He is a fool who sees yet does not recognise the reality

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Most precious gems like , , and are present within you, but you are not aware of them. What is the reason? You haven't established a relationship with the owner. You can see all these precious things only when you develop relationship with the owner.

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Who is the owner? God is the owner. What should you do to develop friendship with God? This is thoroughly explained in . However, in order to make the children understand this, I am coming down to your level to explain this.

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Consider that the owner of the house, God, stays at the upper story of His mansion. You want to meet the owner of the house. But there is Illusion () in the form of a big Alsatian dog at the entrance, which does not allow you to enter the house. What should you do?

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There are two alternatives. Either befriend the Alsatian dog of to gain entry into the house or loudly call out the name of the owner, who will come down to take you with Him, saying, "Hello, you have come." When the owner Himself takes you inside the house, the dog will not bother you. When you go alone, it will not allow you to go inside.

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God is at a higher place and has kept as the watchdog at the entrance of His mansion. To befriend is wisdom ().

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How can this be done? Who has kept at the entrance? God has kept it. Once you realise your identity with God, the owner of the mansion, then cannot stop you from entering the mansion.

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The realisation of your identity with God is the state of non-dualism (). That is why it is said:

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Experience of non-dualism is wisdom

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On the other hand, if you call out the names, , , , from below, the owner will come down and take you inside with Him. When you are with God, will not trouble you. Therefore, you should have either the wisdom () or devotion () to enter the mansion of liberation and be with God.

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Be in constant communion with God in all the three states: waking, dream, and deep sleep (, , and ).

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What does awareness signify? Awareness is , which means knowledge. But due to excessive talking, students are not able to attain true knowledge. Not only that, the power of vibration and radiation is wasted by too much talking.

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Watching a sin being committed is also a sin You may say that the person next to you is committing a sin but that you are not doing anything wrong. But you are watching the other person commit the sin as a mute spectator. Therefore, you will get half the share of the sin. There are many such subtle secrets in .

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When tried to disgrace in the court, at that time she asked all the elders like , , to save her, but none of them came to her rescue. Later on, told , "You are one of great wisdom. is one of the greatest preceptors. But none of you opened your mouth to prevent from committing this great sin. Therefore, alone is not the sinner; you are also a party to it because you saw this sin being committed before your eyes."

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Therefore, all the elders like and were equally to be blamed for the sinful act of .

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What was their fate ultimately? had to lie on a bed of arrows for 56 days before he ultimately died. Why should a man of great wisdom meet such an end? Though he knew a sin was being committed, he did not try to prevent it. This was the cause of his suffering in the end.

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The great preceptor taught the art of using weapons to both and . But what happened to him ultimately? On hearing utter the words,

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An elephant by name is dead

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he was so overpowered by his attachment to his son that he thought his son had been killed. Consequently, he threw away his weapons and was killed in the battlefield.

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People suffer from three types of attachments: desire for money, wife, and progeny (, , and ). This has been explained in at great length. People commit many sins due to these three types of attachments. One has to get rid of these three to realise the principle of .

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Develop love and faith to attain God The divine principle of is immanent in all. When you contemplate on with the feeling of oneness, you will certainly realise .

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said to , "You may be wondering how you can think of Me in the midst of battle. Remember Me and fight the battle (). When you fight the battle while remembering Me, you will certainly attain victory. When you remember Me, I will take care of everything." One should have total faith in the words of God. Here is a small example. I have told this to My students many times.

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The war was to start on the new moon day (). was totally dejected and depressed on seeing the formations of and Pandava armies a day prior to , i.e. . Earlier, it was himself who had insisted that they were ready to fight the battle with the and said that should not go to the court on a peace mission. The same was very nervous when the war was actually to commence.

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wanted to impart the knowledge of the to to instil courage and enthusiasm in him. But before imparting this knowledge, wanted to test , to see whether he had total faith in Him.

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took to a forest. While returning, it became dark. pointed to a bird perched on a tree and said, ", see how beautiful this peacock is!" He started this conversation to see the state of 's mind.

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replied, "Yes, , the peacock in really beautiful." said, "Oh madcap, that is not a peacock. Don't you see it is an eagle?" replied, "Yes, , it is an eagle."

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slapped him on his back and said, "What a fool you are, , that you are unable to make out whether it is a peacock, an eagle, or some other bird. Look carefully. It is neither a peacock nor an eagle. It is a pigeon." replied, "Yes, , it is a pigeon."

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Pretending to be a little angry, said, "Don't you have common sense? Don't you have discrimination power? What are you thinking? You don't seem to enquire whether it is a peacock or an eagle or a pigeon. You are blindly saying yes to whatever I say."

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replied, "Oh , if I say it is not a peacock, You may change it into a peacock. Similarly, if I say it is not an eagle or a pigeon, You may turn it into any of them. You can do anything. Your word is important for me. What does it matter to me whether it is a pigeon or a peacock or an eagle?"

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was very happy that had so much faith in His words. He placed His hand on 's head and blessed him, saying, "Now you are My true devotee." Fix your mind on Me, be devoted to Me, offer obeisance to Me and worship Me.

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Truly, I promise that you will come to Me, for you are dear to Me. .

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Only after confirming 's full faith in His words did impart the knowledge of the to him. What is the use of imparting the knowledge of the to someone who has no faith?

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Similarly, you should have total faith in the teachings of . Only then can you conduct yourself accordingly. If you obey 's command with total faith and contemplate on Him incessantly, you will have the vision of in a moment. Truly, He will manifest before you instantly.

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In this manner, you have to enquire into the teachings of and understand their significance. In fact, it is very easy to understand .

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If you make real effort, it is easy to understand . It may be a little difficult to crush the petal of a flower or a ball of butter, but to understand and follow the teaching of is much simpler.

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Understand this clearly. Butter is very soft, but it does not melt unless you heat it a little. Similarly, God is very soft and sweet, but in order to experience Him, you need the fire of spiritual wisdom ().

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This can be illustrated by the life of a couple living in a forest during the recluse () stage. The wife arranges three bricks in the form of a hearth and places a vessel on it. She pours rice and water in the pot and lights fire under the vessel.

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Her husband, always immersed in the contemplation of , sees this and gives a spiritual interpretation to it. He compares the three bricks to the three qualities (gunas) of serenity, passion, and sloth (sathwa, rajas, thamas), the vessel to human body, rice to desires, water to love, and fire to the fire of wisdom.

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Therefore, keep the body and mind near and dear to God. When you do this, all your worldly desires will disappear. This is the essence of .

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How simple it is to practise it in your daily life! You don't need to study any sacred texts. Nor is there a need for you to perform any spiritual practices. People in those days understood the essence of in such easy and simple ways.

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Many small words propound great truths of . One can write 300 books, taking three words from . How is it possible? There are only 26 letters in the English alphabet, with the help of which any number of books can be written. There are only four strings in the violin, which can produce any number of tunes.

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Jumsai said that, though each person looks different from the other, the same is present in everyone. All are one, be alike to everyone. He said, all are children of God. But according to Me, all are not children of God but are God Himself.

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When you become love, you will be loved by all. Then you will realise the principle of feeling of oneness (). The same principle of love is present in everyone. gives great importance to this principle of love.

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What type of love should one develop? This love is not related to the body or the mind. One should love God in every way. Then automatically all unwanted attachments will be dispelled. Only then will you experience the principle of non-duality ().

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God is in the form of essence

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Love is divine; it signifies the principle of . God is in the form of love, and love is the divine essence.

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Here does not mean (mercury) but (essence of love). Mercury does not mix with any element; it always maintains its distinctness. But is not like that; it mixes and gives sweetness to whatever it comes in contact with.

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One may be a highly accomplished scholar having mastered the , , and ,

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Today we have started teaching in a small way. Truly, each and every mantra of is pregnant with deep meaning. is easy to practise. It is not possible for anyone other than Divinity to explain the principle of in such simple terms.

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Seeing My physical form, you may be deluded into thinking that I am also a human being like you. You may love Me but may not attach due importance to My words because of this delusion. But I am neither the body nor the mind nor the intellect () nor the subconscious mind (). I am none of these. I have assumed this body only for your sake.

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There is knowledge and there is intelligence, but can you experience the knowledge unless there is a to impart the knowledge? Similarly, this body has come to demonstrate what is truth, what is unreal (), and what is .

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Realise your oneness with Embodiments of Love!

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Don't think I am speaking out of ego. I am only revealing the truth about Myself. You have not understood even a fraction of My Reality. None can describe My nature as this or that. I am a man among men, a woman among women, a child among children, and when I am alone, I am . This is My Reality (loud applause).

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When a householder comes to Me, I teach him the of a householder.

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Similarly, I teach everyone what they require. Why do I do all this? It is only to make you realise the ultimate reality of your oneness with . You have attained this opportunity out of your great good fortune.

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No other has provided this type of opportunity to human beings (loud applause). Having attained this golden opportunity, if you conduct yourself in accordance with My teachings, your life will be certainly sanctified and redeemed.

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You will see the rise of My glory with the passage of time when even the blind people and ignoramuses will say, " is God." God subjects human beings to tests every now and then. Do not become a victim of . Emerge victorious from God's tests. When you immerse yourself in love, you will relish God's tests.

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Nobody can describe love is like this or that. More than the , it is very essential to understand the teachings of . The path of love is much easier than the practice of soft repetition of the Name (), meditation, , etc.

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God is not interested in knowing how many bags of rice and how many you distributed to the poor. You may send this list of items to the income tax department. What I am interested in is only your feelings. Even if you perform a small act of charity, I see your feelings behind it. I am not interested in the number of and bags of rice that you distribute. values only quality.

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could earn the grace of by offering only a leaf of . could earn the grace and love of by offering Him a fistful of beaten rice. What did do when she had to feed Sage and his one thousand disciples when she had nothing with her? She offered a grain of rice left in the cooking pot to and prayed to Him, "You are our only refuge." When put that grain of rice in His mouth, immediately the hunger of and his disciples was satiated.

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In the times of every , there are such instances of devotees earning the infinite grace of the Lord by making small offerings with devotion and love. Therefore, get rid of the impurity of your mind. Destroy your ego. Learn to make offerings of love. Only then will you have the good fortune of experienceing Bliss ().

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( concluded His Discourse with the , " ...".)