God’s Presence
“To say that there is no God is like saying ‘I have no tongue’ with your own tongue.”
“God is very close to you, that is why you cannot see Him. Is it possible to see our own face without the aid of a mirror? And will it be possible to see our image in a mirror if the mirror is completely covered with dust? Look after wiping away the dust particles and cleaning the mirror; then certainly you can see.”
“Searching for God outside ourselves is like trying to catch fish by emptying the ocean. Therefore, become introspective and look within.”
God’s Remembrance
“By remembering God constantly, just as a snake sheds its skin, we can free ourselves from all bonds and be reborn again. Even if you forget to eat, don’t forget to think of Him.”
“If there is a resting place nearby, the mere thought that the luggage which you are carrying can soon be unloaded lightens the burden. In the same way, when we think that God is near, all our burdens will diminish.”
“A mother bird will be thinking of the young ones in the nest even when she is out looking for food. Similarly you have to keep your mind on God while engaged in all worldly actions.”
“The moment you remember your parents, relatives, friends or your favourite food, you see them in your mind’s eye. You have to build a similar attachment to God. That is the purpose of japa, meditation and satsang.”
“Just as the colour of the ink disappears when a lot of water is added to it, by constant remembrance of God, the individual mind dissolves in the universal mind.”
“A bitter gourd looses its bitterness if it is soaked in sugar for some time. Likewise, a negative mind will be purified if one thinks of God ceaselessly.”
“We lose our strength through worldly pleasures, but by constant remembrance of God our mind becomes stronger.”
“If you keep pouring water into a bottle of ink, The colour slowly fades until finally you can’t tell whether there was any ink in it. In the same way as the mind expands with the constant remembrance of God, the sense of individuality will dissolve and finally disappear. The individual mind becomes the Universal mind.”
“An express bus stops only at a limited number of places and reaches its destination without delays. Constant remembrance of God is like travelling on an express bus.”
All Pervading
“The outside shapes and colours of the different wrappings on candies can differ, but all the candies have the same substance. Likewise, the supreme principle behind the various shapes and colours in the outside world is one.”
“The ring, the bracelet and the earrings are made of gold. If you look at their external shapes you only see these shapes, if you look deeper you can see the gold that is the substratum within all of them.”
“Remove the boundary between two fields, and there is only one field. Boundaries and divisions are artificial, and created by man. See the One in all.”
“When we stop fanning ourselves with a handheld fan, the flow of air stops. But it doesn’t mean there is no air. When a light bulb burns out or a fan stops turning, it doesn’t mean that there is no electricity. God is everywhere.”
“By whatever name you call it, the Divine Power is one and the same. God is not someone who responds only if He hears the sound of a certain call. He dwells in our hearts.”
“An actor takes many roles, but he remains the same. God is like this. Different are His names and forms, but He is the One behind all.”
“Is there any difference between the electric current which passes through the refrigerator, the lamp, and the fan? No, only the object differs. Similarly, each person understands God according to his culture and worships as such.”
“There is a dam in the middle of the lake. The lake is two, but if the dam is not there, then it is one. That dam is ignorance or maya. Duality is only seemingly real.”
“We have hands, legs, eyes, nose, etc., but are these different organs not part of our own body? Like this, see everything that is seen as God’s Limbs.”
God Experience
“Will you get any milk by pressing the ears of a cow? Can you say there is milk in all parts of her body? Only her udder contains milk for us to drink, and we will get that only if we milk her. It’s true that God is everywhere, but to actually experience Him we have to connect to Him through spiritual practices and sadhana.”
“Not everyone who plays the lottery wins the first prize. The prize goes to one among millions. God experience is like that; only one in a million will have it.”
“Worldly pleasures are like a candy that gives sweetness now, but ruins your teeth later. If you know God, you can enjoy sweetness all the time – and it is not bad for the teeth!”
Surrendering
“What will happen if the doctor tells the patient to come to him only after he gets well? God is the one who purifies the mind. Take refuge in Him and offer all the dirt of your mind. Only He can cleanse you.”
“Once we board a train, do we continue to carry our load and complain about how heavy it is? Take refuge in Him and surrender everything.”
God’s Grace
“Wouldn’t it be useless to blame others if we can’t watch the TV because we haven’t turned it on? God’s Grace is always flowing to us, but to benefit from it, we have to be tuned to His world.”
“What is the use of sitting inside a room with all the doors and windows closed and complain that it is dark, while the sun is shining brightly outside? If we just open the doors of our hearts, we can receive the grace that God is constantly showering upon us.”
Our Mistakes
“God has given discrimination to human beings to refrain from committing any errors. We have to make use of it. The field is there and the seed is there also. Cultivate carefully and reap the fruit.”
“A doctor prescribes for us a bodybuilding tonic. If we ignore his instruction and drink up the whole bottle at once, he is not responsible for our ruined health. In the same way God is not responsible for our mistakes.”
“If we drive carelessly and meet with an accident, can we blame the gasoline? How can God be blamed for our carelessness?”
Purity of Heart
“Do we need to give water to a river to quench its thirst? By taking refuge in God it is we who gain purity of heart, and with a pure heart we can constantly enjoy the state of bliss.”
” It is difficult to see the sun’s reflection in muddy water, but in clean water the image can be easily seen. Similarly, only those who are pure at heart can experience God.”
God’s Love
“No one loves anyone more than they love themselves. When we don’t get the happiness we expect from a friend, our friend becomes our enemy. Only God loves us selflessly.”
Love for God
“By filling a reservoir, you supply water to all the pipes connected to it. If you pour water at the root of a tree, it will reach all the branches. In the same way, by loving God, we love everyone. It is the same God dwelling within everyone.”
God’s Form
“Like the ocean that rises up in response to the attraction exerted by the moon, God can assume any form He wants depending on the needs of the devotees.”
God’s Light
“God needs nothing from us. Does the sun need the light of a candle? God is like the sun, shedding its light equally on all things in the world. We, living in the dark, need light.”
God’s Certificate
“If we wait for the certificate of approval from others, we won’t get a certificate from God. What we really need is God’s certificate.”