In plain words
No, no. We must not long for such things. Once you have chosen Me, you must not ask for anything else,’ He said.
All the wealth, grain, gold, goods and vehicles in this world come to nothing. Conquering many countries of the world, Alexander came to India with a great army. He tried to cross the river Sindhu beside Kashmir. At that time he had a ‘heart attack’. The doctors examined him and said there was no chance of his living any longer. Alexander called together his ministers and his other officers. ‘I have no worry at all that I am dying. I am happy as I am. But I have one small wish. When I die, wrap my body in a white cloth with only the hands placed upward, and carry it in procession through every street of my village. All the people will ask, ‘Why have the Mahārāja's hands been placed upward?’ ‘Alexander was very great. He had thousands of soldiers. He had all the kinsmen and friends he could want. He conquered many countries and gained great riches. But when his time came to go, he left everything and went with nothing but empty hands’: tell them so,’ he said.
Hariścandra, who ruled the earth in the unfailing strength of Satya, did he not leave this earth and go! Śrī Nala the king, who ruled all the worlds in splendour, did he take the earth with him when he went! Māndhātā, who adorned the Kṛta Yuga, did he depart with his riches tied up in a bundle! Śrī Rāma of old, who bridged the ocean, is He on the earth now! How many, many kings have gone! Not one of them takes the earth along with him; will you alone carry your kingdom and its pleasures tied up on your head, O heart of Dharma!
When you go, you cannot take even a single naya paisa with you. You cannot take even this much earth. Man thinks himself very great, a lord of crores. The other day in Hyderabad a man paid forty crore rupees and bought an acre of land. He went and had the land registered, and while he was still on his way home, his life left him. What use is it, however many crores one earns! For us character alone matters, not wealth. The strength of God alone is what matters to us. If we develop the feeling for God, everything comes to us. Money too is needed! We must have food to eat, mustn't we! But wealth beyond measure is very bad. At times it takes even life. We must have money enough with us to support our family. We must help society too, to some extent. We live within society itself. Without society we are nothing. So we must show gratitude to society. First ‘self’, then ‘help’ to society. When these two are there, humanness lives. We must not be ‘selfish’ (self-seeking). We must go on through life happily, staying selfless.
I am always happy. What sorrow is, what pain is, I do not know at all. The President of India came: ‘Have You too any desires? Swami!’ he asked. ‘What I desire is one thing alone,’ I said. ‘I must be as I am. I must not depend on others. I must make everyone happy. Only when everyone is happy am I happy too. What more could I want than this!’ Everyone asks for Śānti. But where is Śānti? It is within us. All that is outside is ‘pieces’. We have no need of that. We must make Śānti arise from within ourselves. Only when we lead such a life is our birth fulfilled. However many sādhanas one does, however many books one reads, however many Ph.D.s one takes, in the end everyone departs leaving everything behind. So everyone must lead a life of tranquillity. Desire Śānti. My one wish is this: that you desire Śānti. Though one has wealth and grain, what use is it if one lacks the quality of Dharma?
Vedanārāyaṇa of this place is here. And his very name is Vedanārāyaṇa. He is highly accomplished in the Veda. Last year he won the President's award. The President asked, ‘Where will you go with your award?’ ‘I am going to Puttaparthi. I have settled in Puttaparthi itself. I will not go anywhere,’ he said. Then the President said, ‘You are a very good boy. Stay right there, my son!’ The President is a Muslim. Even so, he has great devotion to Swami. Many elders like him come here, see our children and praise them highly.
In our college there are five hundred children every year. We do not put it in the papers, but every one of them gets a first class! Two children who studied at Alike got first ranks in the medical and the engineering entrance tests.