Shri Maharaj Ji in a general conversation with devotees (2)

Developing Desire for God

They who have a natural desire for God have worked on it in previous lifetimes. If you were not born with a longing for God, you will have to develop it in this life. Ask yourself, “Why do I have such a strong desire for worldly people and material goods?” Your answer will be, “Because they will give me satisfaction and happiness.” So, it is happiness that you really want; it is satisfaction that you desire. Well, you should know that Lord Krishna is the source of unlimited happiness, and He is the one who can give you the ultimate satisfaction.

First understand from the innermost core of your mind that Lord Krishna is the only one who is yours. He says in the Gita, “The individual soul is an eternal fraction of Myself.” Because you are the soul, the material world cannot be yours, nor can you be of the world. Moreover, the material world cannot satisfy the hunger of your soul, which is divine by nature.

Realise that God alone can fulfill your selfish motive. Then you will accept Krishna to be your only Shelter and Beloved of the soul. Longing for Him will follow automatically.



Tears

Tears are an absolutely essential part of Sadhana. Saint Kabir says, "No one can reach the Divine Beloved without shedding tears for Him." By shedding tears for God & Guru, we wash our sins away. Then, God & Guru, for whom tears are shed, enters the heart and makes it pure.

Tears must not be wasted on the world. It is not because of the lack of worldly goods or desire for a person that an aspiring devotee cries, but because he wishes to see Krishna, hear the sweet sound of His flute, taste His divine nectar, attain His touch and inhale His divine fragrance. The devotee cries to the Lord, "My Beloved! Stop playing hide-and-seek with me. I have been living without You for too long now. Enough of the world; now You are my only desire."

In a desperate attempt to cry for the Lord, a devotee once rubbed pepper on his eyes. Instantly, tears were produced. Another devotee, who happened to witness this bizarre happening, thought the devotee to be a hypocrite and complained about him to their Guru, Gaurang Mahaprabhu. Rather than scolding the devotee and finding him guilty of insincerity, Mahaprabhu expressed pleasure instead and said to him, "You have truly understood the importance of tears."

Ramkrishna Paramhansa used to say, "People shed buckets upon buckets of tears for the world, but very few cry for God."

Aspire to be one of those few.



The Truth behind Our Sins

The main reason people commit sins and become lax in their principles is their privacy. When an individual thinks that he is being watched, he stays on the right path. But when he thinks no one is watching, his tendency to digress from the right path gets magnified. After all thieves, pick pockets commit their sins away from judging eyes.

We have a similar tendency. When we think some one is watching, we act honest, straight, kind, generous and devoted. We tend to slip easily when we think no one is watching. We act most naturally when we are in the bathroom because we think no one is watching. We are never that free and open in fron of our family, even our spouses. However, this privacy is far from the truth. Shri Krishna, in the 'Paramatma' form is always with us in our hearts. He notes everything we think (not do) and subsequently uses this ledger to judge us and decide our fate for the next lifetime.

If we just realize that Shri Krishna and Guru are with us all the time, we will not have a tendency to do anything wrong. We will realize that they are watching. And if we do not think the right things, They will not be happy with us. And we definitely want to please them... don't we?

Therefore, realize the truth that God and Guru are with us ALL the time, keeping a watchful and loving eye on us. This realization will help you progress towards them at exponential speeds.


Jagadguru Shri Kripalu Ji Maharaj
Excerpted from His discourse and general conversations