Prasang A Day

How Can a Devotee Remain Eternally Happy? Thereupon Shriji Mahãrãj asked the munis, “How can a devotee of God remain eternally happy?” The senior sãdhus replied according to their understanding, but then Shriji Maharaj Himself said, 'The answer is that a devotee of God who, firstly, has firm vairagya; who, secondly, has extremely firm swadharma; who has gained control over all of his indriyas by these two means; who has intense love for God and His Bhakta; who has a close friendship with God and His Bhakta; who never becomes indifferent towards God and His Bhakta; and who is pleased only by the company of God and His Bhakta, but does not like the company of a non-believer - remains eternally happy in this realm and beyond.'  [Gadhadã III-8]

Not Desiring Anything but the Service of God “So what are the characteristics of such a devotee of God? Well, except for the service of God, if he does not wish for even the four types of liberation, how can he desire anything else? Such a person should be known as an ekãntik bhakta because he has no desire for anything. A person who is not like this, at times, enjoys engaging in the bhakti of God; but if he encounters evil company, he will forget bhakti and begin to behave immorally. Such a person should be known to be a fake devotee and a person who believes his self to be the body. He is not a true devotee and cannot be trusted.” [Gadhadã III-33]

Suffering of Other Devotees Distresses a True Devotee “… Thus, only an outcast or a non-believer would not feel hurt when a devotee of God encounters some sort of misery, but a devotee of God would definitely become distressed by the suffering of other devotees.” [Gadhadã II-60]

Vital Inclinations “If, however, one does not have intense love for God, one should strengthen only ãtmã-realisation by thought. Why? Because a devotee of God should either possess resolute ãtmã-realisation or extremely profound love for God. If a person is not firm in either one of these two inclinations, he should strictly abide by the niyams of this Satsang; only then will he be able to remain a satsangi, otherwise he will fall from Satsang.” [Gadhadã II-62]

Receding From the Spiritual Path Pains the Satpurush After the singing concluded, Shriji Mahãrãj said, “A Satpurush living in this world is not pleased or pained upon seeing the worldly progress or regress of a person. However, when someone’s mind recedes from the path of God, he does become grieved. After all, life is so short; and if a person’s afterlife is ruined, it would indeed be a great loss for that person.” [Gadhadã II-46]

Taking Advice Positively “… Therefore, regardless of how much God or the Satpurush insults him for the purpose of eradicating his swabhãvs, and regardless of the harsh words they may utter – a person who wishes to eradicate his innate natures should not feel hurt in any way and should consider only the virtues of the person advising him. If one behaves in this manner, then that nature, which otherwise could not be eradicated in any way, is eradicated.” [Gadhadã II-37]

Great amongst all Renunciates “… Moreover, a renunciant who, despite encountering wealth and women in his travels to other regions, remains unaffected and continues to firmly adhere to all of his niyams, is considered to be great amongst all renunciants.” [Gadhadã II-61]

God's Wish is our Wish, His Will is our Destiny “It is that very God who is the sole controller of this body. If He wishes, He may oblige the body with an honourable ride on an elephant; or if He wishes, He may have it thrown in prison; or if He so wishes, He may even place some serious illness in the body. Despite this, one should never pray before God in the following manner: ‘Mahãrãj! Please relieve me of my misery.’ Why? Because we want this body to behave in accordance with the wishes of God; after all, God’s wish is our wish. We do not want our preferences to differ from the preferences of God even in the slightest way. Moreover, since we have offered our body, mind and wealth to God, then now, only the will of God is our prãrabdha; besides that, there is no other prãrabdha for us. Therefore, regardless of whatever pain or pleasure we may encounter by the wish of God, we should not become disturbed in any way; we should be pleased with whatever pleases God.” [Gadhadã III-13]

My Principle “From the Vedas, the Purãns, the Itihãs and the Smrutis, I have formed the principle that jiva, mãyã, ishwar, Brahma and Parabrahma are all eternal. Consider it as follows: Mãyã represents the soil; the jivas represent the seeds in the soil; and ishwar, the rain. By the will of God, an ishwar – in the form of Purush – unites with mãyã. Subsequently, just as the seeds in the soil sprout by the association of rainwater, similarly, the jivas, which are eternal, arise from within mãyã; but new jivas are not created. Therefore, just as ishwar is eternal, mãyã is also eternal. The jivas residing in mãyã are also eternal, and they are not components of God; they are always jivas.' [Gadhadã III-10]

A Demonic Person “On the other hand, a person who is demonic never perceives even a single flaw within himself; instead, he perceives only flaws in other devotees…” [Gadhadã II-44]