In plain words
Do not waste time like this. If you cannot manage japa or dhyāna, do service. You must enquire in another way. Some have a doubt: how must we pray to God? When you yourself are God, why this praying of yours? But until you recognise the truth ‘I myself am God’, you must practise some kinds of good deeds. Then do every action with the feeling, ‘Every action I do, I am offering to God.’ The people of Bhārata called precisely this ‘Sarvakarma bhagavatprītyarthaṃ’. Whatever we do, we must regard it as God's work. When you do so, all actions become God's work. At the start there may be a little strain. Some troubles may come. But gradually that very thing becomes sādhana. Everything must be achieved through practice alone. If you want to sing a song, you cannot sing it on the spot. You must practise. Walking is not possible all at once. You must take a few tottering steps and then walk. Eating, talking, reading are nothing but practice. In the same way, you must take up service too as a practice. You must take up the thought of God as a practice. Taking them up in that way, in the very end you must do them for the pleasure of God.
Among living beings, a human birth is hard to gain
A boy: ‘Swami! Give us strength,’ he asked. What strength do you want? Do you want strength to watch films? Do you want strength to watch TV? Do you want strength to watch videos? Which strength do you want? Today's young have all the strength they need. They waste three parts of their strength. But for you, waste has become taste. No, no. That is a great mistake. Nothing has the power that is in us. When asked, ‘What has value in the world?’, people say gold has value, diamonds have value, land has value. If you enquire rightly, man alone has value. man is more valuable than all the wealth of the world. Who buys a diamond? Man himself buys it. Who buys gold? Man himself buys it. That is only what is bought; the buyer is man himself. Without a buyer, what is bought has no value. But you must foster the faith, ‘I have that power.’ Among living beings, a human birth is hard to gain. We have taken this human birth, so hard to gain. We must make our human birth worthwhile and set it to good deeds. Only then will this humanity gain a value. If at some time you go on merely thinking of Rāma, saying Rām Rām Rām, without doing service, it is of no use.
Human values are the lights of our life
In search of Sītā, Hanumān entered Laṅkā. In Laṅkā, Vibhīṣaṇa and Hanumān became friends. Vibhīṣaṇa grieved before Hanumān. ‘Hanumān! You have reached Rāma's presence. You think of Rāma. Every hair of your body is filled with Rāma's Name. How fortunate you are! For so many years I have been remembering Rāma's Name. But I have not been granted Rāma's darśan,’ he said. Hanumān says, ‘Vibhīṣaṇa! You say Rām Rām like a tape recorder. But have you taken any part in Rāma's service? It is ten months since Mother Sītā came to this Laṅkā. Have you seen her even once? Have you made any effort to free her from bondage? Is this not Rāma's work? If you repeat Rāma's Name without doing Rāma's work, how can you attain the principle of Rāma?’ So, along with Rāma's Name, there must be service too. The Name is negative, service is positive. Only when negative and positive both come together is the current of use. That itself is our will power. We must use that will power well. Now this bulb is shining. For light to come here, what is the basis? The basis for this is the bulb. For current to reach the bulb, what is the basis? The wire is the basis. Just because the wire is there, will the bulb give light? There must be current in it as well. The current called Satya joins the wire called Dharma, enters the bulb called Śānti, and the light called Prema comes to us. That is precisely Prema. That radiance called Prema emerges within us. Satya, Dharma, Śānti and Prema give light to our life.
Control of the senses, thought of God
Young men! Young women!
To light a lamp, you need oil. Oil lights the lamp. God's Prema lights life itself. Not mere worldly love. Divine Prema makes our life shine. But people cannot understand what divine Prema is and what worldly love is. The sacred Prema of God has no bounds.