Benevolent Messages

Benevolent Messages

• Realizing God is the aim of our human existence. One needs to make it one’s life’s utmost goal. There is no realization of God without firm determination. This world has never belonged to anyone, nor will it in the future. Yes, we do need materialistic things in life, but these should not become our prime source of existence.
• Having the Lord Almighty as your goal, you may perform any kind of worship; God will accept it.
• It is of the greatest importance to have humanity within us. Any amount of devotional practice—singing of devotional songs, performing yagya, penance, etc.—done without humanity, may only turn man into a demon, such as Ravana, Kumbhakaran, and Meghanaad. They practiced extreme penance, but they lacked humanity.
• Indulging in alcoholic beverages, non-vegetarian food, etc., is against the norms of humanity. If the vessel is profane, whatever you may put in that vessel will also become contaminated.
• If we live just for ourselves, what level of humanity would remain? We must aspire to live for the upliftment of ourselves as well as for others. Even the insects, which dwell in the drain, live for themselves. They also eat, drink, give birth to their young ones, and fight amongst themselves for survival. If we restrict and confine ourselves only to these types of acts, then where is our humanity? We are humans! We should respect our existence and do acts that denote humanity. For the realization of the Almighty, it is imperative to have as well as develop the attributes of humanity.
• Benevolence leads to happiness in this life and eternal bliss in the afterlife.
• Any heart that does not derive happiness from others’ joys and that does not grieve with others’ pains is a maculated heart. A defiled heart leads the being to hell.
• People accumulate wealth through unfair means and by committing fraud; when they die, everything accumulated is left behind, but the sins committed by them go along, dragging them to hell.
• A human body is the best physical form. One must perform the highest level of acts with this gifted form. What is the use of performing the same deeds only, which are done by other living beings, in spite of getting this human form? This human body has been given to us for the sole purpose of God realization. If we lose this golden opportunity, we do not know when we will next be graced with this human form.
• Being happy with one’s own joys and sad in one’s own sorrows is an animal instinct. Humanity is reveling in the happiness of others’ joys and being plaintive in the adversities of others’ suffering.
• The gist of eighteen Puranas is: ‘Be benevolent and do not cause pain to anyone.’ Benevolence can be of many kinds—physical (Tan), mental (Mann), financial (Daan), and verbal (Vachan).
• Those who show benevolence do not repent later.
• One should take a vow of following the aspects of humanity. Discontentment and adversities keep coming and going; never give up humanity under any circumstances.
• Giving up one’s own desires, one must try to fulfill the wishes of others, provided they are just, in accordance with the scriptures, and within our limits.
• We have ordained everything from our precious nature; we must in return serve nature by protecting, conserving, and treasuring all its valuable resources in the most respectable way.
• If we serve others but do not take their services, we would be liberated. Taking services from others results in bondage.
• Serve all but depend only on God.
• Develop zeal to work for the welfare and upliftment of all.
• In the performance of service, the sentiment is primary while the action is secondary.
• No other person can ever become the source of our own pains and pleasures; we live with the consequences of our own actions.

Kahu na kou sukh dukh kar data,
Nij krit karma bhog sab bhrata

No one else is the giver of joy or sorrow to anyone.
Everyone, my brother, reaps the fruits of their own actions

• One who torments others can never revel in happiness.
• There should be no deceit, treachery, conceit, or falsehood in one’s behavior.
• Do not see others’ shortcomings. It is only God who is without any vice. Man’s biggest shortcoming is that he considers himself to be perfect without any flaw.
• Discussing the shortcomings of a person who is not present amounts to reproach. Anybody who indulges in reprehension goes to hell.
• The real impediment in the process of God Realization is that man wants his wishes to be fulfilled, while the actual sentiment should be in fulfilling the wishes of others in the aspect of their welfare.

1. God’s wishes may be fulfilled—this is Bhakti yoga.
2. The world’s wishes may be fulfilled by doing righteous acts—this is Karma yoga.
3. The mind is not me, nor is it mine; therefore, deeds done by it to discern between the real and the unreal are not mine—this is Gyana yoga.

Whichever of the above seems easier, adopt it!

• Perform only acts that enliven the body, maintain good health, and are in the interest of the world at large.
• Pleasures and pains are the result of our own karmas, but getting sad or happy amounts to fatuity. Satsang helps us get rid of this fatuousness.
• Neither am I the body, nor am I made for it. Have complete faith in this notion. The self-acclaimed relation between this body and the world as ‘me and mine’ is the basic cause of this cycle of life and death.
• The human body is God’s precious gift to us. We have been gifted this form so that we can settle and clear all our dues from previous births and, in the end, attain salvation.
• Make an endeavor to please God only and give up all efforts for pleasing this world.
• Profit and loss, pleasure and pain, honor and dishonor—are all the results of our karmas in previous births. The wise bear them with a smile, while the imprudent bear them clamantly.
• True penance done from within expiates our sins, cleansing our inner self.
• Serve others with your body, sing devotional songs with your tongue, and have unconditional love for the Almighty in your heart. This is the best way of living in this world. This makes both God and the world we live in happy. The world’s happiness gives materialistic pleasures, while God’s happiness gives us spiritual upliftment; it would put an end to the cycle of birth and death, and the very aim of human birth would be achieved.
• Have compassion for all but attachment to none.
• Make God or Satguru the charioteer of your life’s chariot. Never make your mind its charioteer.
• Disparagement and ill-speaking of others are virulent to our well-being.
• Finding faults with others is a big hurdle in the path of God Realization; without rectifying one’s own faults, God Realization becomes impossible.
• Consumption of poisonous substances kills a man, but contemplation of worldly and materialistic pleasures kills a man even faster. Materialistic endeavors are worse than poison.
• Most of the sins are committed by a disordered mind and not by the body.
• These days, people worship God a lot, but their devotion is incorrect as they consider God only as the means for materialistic achievements and worldly pleasures. That is the reason their devotion does not bear fruits, and they remain grief-stricken. One must have God as their supreme goal and not worldly pleasures.
• When man performs his duties for the sole purpose of God’s happiness, all his actions become part of Bhakti (reverence). Reverence has a special connection with our minds. Anybody who is unable to worship with their mind needs to do selfless physical service as a gesture of devotion.
• Worship your Isht devta (Lord of your heart) with full love and faith, accepting all other deities as an aspect of your own cherished and reverent Lord.
• Either let God or the world reside in your heart; for both cannot co-exist.

Kabira manwa eik hai; bhavein jahan lagaye
Bhavein Hari ki bhakti kar, bhavein vishay kamaye

Kabir says, the mind is one; it attaches wherever it pleases.
It can engage in devotion to Hari, or it can pursue worldly desires
Kabir

• Human birth is a ladder! Man may go to hell by committing sins or may go to heaven by doing virtuous deeds; he can also take the road to God’s abode (Narayan lok) by living his life fully devoted to God, putting an end to the cycle of birth and death. It solely depends on man himself which path he chooses, for God has given him the free will to choose his own path. Kabirdasji says, the human mind is one! You may choose to concentrate on either worshiping God or earning worldly pleasures. You cannot do both.
• Attachment to the world is the biggest cause of all our plights; this is the biggest hindrance in God Realization.
• God fulfills all our needs, but He has not made arrangements for satisfying our greed. We should perform all our duties in a carefree manner.
• Where is grief? Grief is in the attachment to the world. The basic reason for all the sorrows of a man is the concept of ‘mine’ and ‘yours’. Attachment and animosity cause misery.
• “This should be, and this should not be” – this is wishful thinking; uncertainty between desires and the true nature of things is the cause of all miseries. Without paying attention to these mental proliferations, we must perform all our duties and obligations with complete sincerity and intent.
• Discarding things does not give us liberation; it is the abandonment of mental proliferation that truly liberates us.
• Vanity and attachment are the main causes of miseries and the downfall of a man. These are great impediments in the path of God Realization. It is only God who is our protector, who takes care of us, and who decides when our time on earth is up.
• Wealth, position, and knowledge—all these can cause vanity, and God stays away from vanity.
• Those who possess wealth and position start considering themselves immortal. The lust for fame, wealth, and power brings arrogance with it. That is why it is said that man should always be vigilant and careful and should never avoid satsang.
• Satsang (Spiritual Discourses) is a must because over several births and through upbringing, lust, anger, attachment, greed, and vanity have become attached to us. We are unable to brush them aside! It is impossible for a human being to become pure without eliminating these vices.
• Do not make Lakshmi (wealth) your aim. You must strive to realize her consort, Lord Narayana, or both of them. If you do so, your wealth will not be spent on immoral deeds.
• The Almighty can be realized only with the true sentiment of unconditional love, while worldly things can be obtained through effort and destiny.
• Worldly pleasures have an enormous attraction, and this fatal attraction can only be vanquished when we surrender ourselves completely in devotion to the Almighty, constantly remembering Him day and night, and remaining engaged in selfless service and satsang.
• Keep yourself detached from your body. When you confine yourself as the body, you feel imprisoned, and the moment you realize the body is not you, you feel free. This is wisdom. Viewing them together is ignorance. I and the Almighty are one, whereas this human body and the world are one.
• Remember: “I am a spiritual Being having a Human experience.”
• Adopt non-violence. Non-violence means not causing any pain to anyone with our mind, intellect, words, or deeds.
• Kaliyuga is the best era for God Realization. There is no need for large-scale austerities in the form of japa, tapa, or yagya. All that is required is firm determination and unshakeable faith that, O God Almighty! I belong solely to you, and I am only for you.

Kaliyuga sam-jug aan nahin jo nar kar vishwas
Gai Ram gun gan vimal, bhav tar binahi prayas

There is no other era like Kaliyuga, where a person, with faith,
Sings the pure praises of Ram and crosses the ocean of existence without effort

• The source of happiness is dharma, not money.
• Just as food is for our body, similarly, satsang is for our soul. The mind cannot be purified without satsang.
• Power corrupts a man, and absolute power corrupts absolutely, making him blind. Beware!
• If a sin is committed with the pretext and intention of others’ welfare and betterment in mind, it is not considered a sin.
• Considering this world and this body as our own causes attachment. Attachment is the basic reason for all our sorrows.
• Where there is a desire for worldly pleasures, there cannot be any devotion. Worship done with the aim of seeking pleasure does not please God. Anybody who shows devotion with the sole aim of seeking pleasure is in love with this world, not with God.
• The mind has been accepted as the basic cause of a human being’s attachment as well as deliverance. When the mind gets involved with materialistic pleasures, it becomes a cause of attachment. But if the mind gets involved in true devotion to God Almighty, it becomes a catalyst for emancipation. The desire for worldly honor takes a man away from God.
• Love is superior to knowledge. God says, “I neither dwell in the hearts of sages nor do I reside in heaven; Wherever my devotee sings and revels in joy, glorifying my Name, I am present there.”
• God truly values the devotee’s sentiments of love, not the actions.
• A devotee who spreads the teachings of his Guru in the true spirit of selfless service and unconditional love strictly for the greatest good, welfare, and spiritual upliftment of others is the best disciple.
• Cultivate the consciousness of the permanent and perennial presence of the Satguru, for He has, is, and will always prevail!

Summary

Realizing God is the ultimate goal of human life, requiring firm determination and a focus beyond material possessions. While worldly needs are essential, they should not overshadow the spiritual aim of existence. True devotion to God must be coupled with humanity; otherwise, even rigorous religious practices may lead to demonic tendencies, as seen in figures like Ravana. Acts of benevolence, selflessness, and compassion are crucial for spiritual growth, and one must strive to live for the upliftment of others, not just oneself. Satsang (spiritual association) and selfless service are vital for purifying the mind and soul, enabling one to overcome the binding attractions of the material world.

God’s realization comes through unwavering devotion, detachment from worldly desires, and consistent remembrance of the Almighty. One’s life should be guided by the principles of non-violence, truthfulness, and selfless love. The human body, a precious gift, is meant for God-realization, and one must not waste this opportunity on transient worldly pleasures. In the current age of Kaliyuga, firm faith and simple devotion are sufficient for attaining salvation, as opposed to the elaborate rituals of previous eras. Ultimately, a life lived in devotion, benevolence, and spiritual awareness leads to happiness in this world and eternal bliss in the hereafter.

Important Points

1. Realizing God is the ultimate goal of human existence.
2. Material needs should not become the primary focus of life.
3. Humanity is essential in devotion; without it, religious practices can lead to demonic tendencies.
4. Benevolence and selflessness are key to spiritual growth.
5. Satsang and selfless service purify the mind and soul.
6. Detachment from worldly desires is crucial for spiritual progress.
7. Non-violence, truthfulness, and selfless love should guide one’s actions.
8. The human body is a precious gift meant for God-realization.
9. Simple devotion and firm faith are sufficient in Kaliyuga for salvation.
10. Attachment to the world is the root cause of all sorrows.
11. Worship should be for God’s happiness, not for worldly pleasures.
12. Love and devotion are superior to knowledge in the eyes of God.
13. Serving others without expecting anything in return leads to liberation.
14. One should always strive to uplift others and serve nature.
15. The Satguru’s presence is eternal and guiding.