With all that,my troubles and difficulties are multiplying. I have lost my job. I am starving now. What
shall I do? Is this the Grace of the Lord? How can I continue my Sadhana when I have
nothing to eat?
It is said that the Lord gives food even to the frog that lives between the strata of rocks.
Why has He failed in your case alone? This is a great wonder! Has He failed in His duty? This
cannot be. He is all-merciful, all benevolent! Is it because He wants to develop in you the
constructive qualitie
daily (516)
and that though he has ceased to be the
former’s disciple, he should have respect for him also. What is your view?
The vast majority of people do not enjoy the good fortune of coming into contact with a
God-realized saint. What happens in their case is this. Traditionally, each family has a Guru-
Parampara. Each sect has its own sectional Guru. The aspirant born in a particular sect has, by
that mere fact, to accept the Guru of the sect as his own Guru. This Guru is by no means fit to be
called so, a
Prarabdha can be overcome by the grace of the Lord. The Lord’s grace descends when
there is sincere devotion and when man does Purushartha. Purushartha is possible when the
mind is pure. The mind becomes pure when one does acts of kindness and charity. The laws of
nature do not operate when there is the grace of the Lord. His grace is all-powerful. We have the
instance of Markandeya who conquered death by his Purushartha, by sincere devotion to the
Lord. He was destined to die young, but when the Lo
Now I have no money and I do not like to beg from door to
door, but I am very anxious to take Sannyasa. Will you kindly suggest a method to quench
my thirst?
There are beautiful Ashrams throughout India where Nishkamya Seva is carried out.
They are always in need of sincere and energetic workers. You can remain in any one of the
Ashrams and help in the Ashram’s activities. They will take care of your material wants. Do not
be changing from one Ashram to another. Select the best that suits you and sti
Karma is likened to the wheel. It has to work out; because the force that set it in motion
has to be spent. It is a cycle of action and reaction. Just as the arrow once discharged from the
bow cannot be withdrawn, even if the hunter feels that he has aimed at a wrong target, Prarabdha
Karma, the fruit of those Karmas performed in previous births that have come up for experience
in this present birth, cannot be annulled.
How then does God help His devotee? The all-merciful God does help His devotee b
Why must I be bound by the laws of Prakriti and be limited by the phenomena of time,
space, causation and substance, and above all, why must I get involved in this process of
evolution and involution?
The eye cannot perceive itself. A man cannot stand on his own shoulders. Even so, all
enquiry into the Ultimate Cause, the causeless Cause of all creation, is first confronted with a
formidable wall of primordial ignorance. He who annihilates his ego to nothing at this point, and
who thus obtains the gr
Your mind will waver.
Run, run, run quickly to solitary places like Rishikesh. You will be safe in the spiritual
path”. May I come to you and lead the life of a Sannyasin?
Do not be hasty. Think well. Look before you leap. Mere emotion will not do in the
spiritual line. The above instructions are for those who were already doing some kind of
Sadhana. They will have to go in for seclusion for advanced practices. It will be better for
beginners like you to perform Nishkama Karma Yoga for three years in
This question has to be answered by each pilgrim for himself. The spiritual benefit
always depends entirely upon the heart’s faith. Faith is the life-breath of the spirit in man. No
spiritual endeavour can be fruitful without it. With it, no spiritual achievement is impossible. If
a pilgrim heartily believed, was convinced, and was certain-at-heart that all his sins would be
washed away, that he would attain Moksha and get beyond the wheel of Samsara, there is
absolutely no reason why it should not
Truth is truth and falsehood is falsehood. They are as wide apart as the terminals of a
diameter of a circle or the north and the south poles. He who wants ethical perfection, who loves
Dharma for the sake of the Supreme, ought to stick to truth however crucial be the
circumstances, however tense be the situation. Think of Harischandra ... how he stuck to truth
even in the face of trials. How his name is to stand, for all time to come, for truth undimmed!
Harischandra was truth personified. That is
Observe strict continence in thought, word and deed. Give up thinking useless and vain
thoughts. Keep balance of mind in all conditions and circumstances, contemplating the Divine.
Practice Sirshasan, Sarvangasan and Oordhva Padmasan, besides Viparitakarani Mudra.
Preserve the energy by constantly repeating the Name of the Lord, doing intense Japa and
meditation, and study of the Gita, the Bhagavata, the Ramayana and the like. Develop Viveka,
Vairagya and Vichara. As dispassion increases, so is the
The question assumes that the teacher has attachment for his disciple in preference to
others. If he had that, he would not be a spiritual teacher, because the first qualification for a
spiritual man is conquest of attachment. The fact is that out of millions, one is found to have the
qualification and it is he who comes up as ‘the great’—the superman. Each such great man is
surrounded by men who are attracted by his inherent charm. But those who are so surrounding
are not the people who are qualifi
Yes. There is no doubt about the Gita having been recited by Lord Krishna in the
battlefield. It is not a mere composition of Chiranjivi (eternally living) Vyasa. Recall to mind
the following two Slokas which can be found in the Gita Mahatmya:
Gita Sugeeta Kartavya Kimanyaih Sastravistaraih
Ya Svayam Padmanabhasya Mukhapadmadvinissruta
Bharatamritasarvasvam Vishnorvaktradvinissrutam
Gitagangodakam Peetva Punarjanma Na Vidyate
The Gita is not a human composition at all. Have the conviction as such, wit
May I take theliberty to ask you whether you have realized Brahman?
The queries you have asked are quite common to all sincere aspirants in the spiritual path.
Suppose I tell you that a certain “X” is a realized soul, how can you verify my statement
and how far will you be benefited by him?
Realized souls are not rare. Ordinary ignorant-minded persons cannot easily recognize
them. Only a few persons who are pure and are embodiments of all virtuous qualities can
understand realized souls and they only
Never. If there is any thought of the body or the disease or the bodily affliction or
something that cannot be tolerated by the fleshy frame, remember that he is no advanced Yogi or
saint or Sannyasin. He who has no thought of himself or the surroundings or the world, he who
is centered in his own Self or his beloved Ishta Devata or gracious Guru, and he who is entirely
oblivious of limitations of any sort, and identifies himself with the limitless, diseaseless,
unconditioned, all-pervasive Brahman,
Fast. Do Japa of a Mantra for three hours daily. Read the Gita, one chapter daily. Sleep
in a separate room. Keep the mind fully occupied. Divert the mind. Entertain noble, sublime
thoughts. Have Satsang. Do simple Pranayam with mild Kumbhaks twenty times daily. Do a lot
of physical work also. Take simple food. Think that there is neither sex nor sexual Vasana in
Atma. Meditate on Atma.
From "May I answer that" by Swami Sivananda (1987-1963). More Informations on Swami Sivananda: on the Website of D
Whether a wrong is done on some basis or not, it is not to be retaliated against in any way
if one wants real moral and spiritual strength and the Lord’s grace. Calmly bear the wrong done
to you without the slightest mental upset or loss of psychic equilibrium. Do good to the man that
does harm. Bless that man that curses you. Pray for the well-being of the man that beleaguers
you. Study the lives of Jaya Deva, Shams Tabriez, Jesus Christ, Gauranga and other saints. The
Lord Himself protects His dev
Spiritual pursuits, and practice of Yoga are really sweet, but appear to be bitter; sensual
pursuits, which are really bitter, appear to be sweet. This is due to the perversion of intellect caused
by Avidya.
Select some good songs or Dhwanis and repeat them during night along with your friends
and relatives. Even during day while working, you can sing the select Dhwanis of your Ishta
Mantra. By this you will have continuity of Divine thoughts.
May you always shine with the divine splendour and inexha
After a sumptuous meal, generally, people feel drowsy. You may imagine that you are
meditating, but it may be purely sleep in a sitting posture. If you follow the rules of Mitahara and
take meals before 7 p.m., you can sit and meditate from 9 p.m. to 10 p.m.
Meditation at night, a second sitting, is absolutely necessary. If you do not have sufficient
time at night, you can meditate even for a few minutes, say, ten or fifteen, before going to bed.
By so doing, the spiritual Samskaras will increase. T
Nadi Suddhi means purification of the nerves (Nadis). Nerve is not the correct English
term for Nadi. There is no appropriate word for Nadi in English.
Complete fast, preferably without any liquid or solid food, practice of Asans and
Pranayam, and intense physical exercise¾all go a long way in the elimination of fat and other
unwanted matters and in the overhauling of the system to confer the benefit of Nadi Suddhi.
Asans and Pranayam can purify the nerves, if done with the correct technique.
When on
Know things in their proper light. Do not be deluded. Emotion is mistaken for devotion;
violent jumping in the air during Sankirtan for Divine ecstasy; Rajasic restlessness and motion for
divine activities and Karma Yoga; a Tamasic man for a Sattvic man; Tandri and deep sleep for
Samadhi; Manorajya or building castles in the air for meditation; physical nudity for the Jivanmukti
state.
Understand the laws of the universe. Move tactfully in this world. Learn the secrets of
Nature. Learn to discriminat
