Sadhana

“Mental purity will come through constant chanting of the divine name. This is the simplest way.”

“All sadhanas (spiritual practices) are methods to decrease the thoughts and to increase peace and thus slowly man can become God. Not only does one enjoy peace oneself but can give peace to others as well.”

“We are like pure rainwater that has become impure by falling in the gutter. The water in the gutter needs to be cleaned by connecting it to a river, and this is what sadhana does. Even though we are, in reality, the untainted Atman, because we are bound to the gross, physical world, there are impure vasanas (tendencies) present within us. We have to purify our minds by discriminating between the eternal and the ephemeral, and through meditation. And as we are purified by meditating, we grow strong.”

“Until yesterday we were living thinking, 'I am the body.' In the beginning, there will be some waves in the mind. Through practice they will go. It is to control these waves that sadhana should be done sitting steadfastly in one place. The waves will not subside simply if you read some books. Instead, they will only increase. In the deep sea there are no waves. It is on the shore that the waves strongly break because there is little depth. Peace can be experienced when the mind becomes expansive and deep through sadhana.”

“Only through sadhana can we avoid being enslaved by circumstances and incorporate what we have learned into our lives. We should learn the spiritual principles by listening to satsangs, and then live according to those principles. We should free ourselves from all desires and worship God, without any desires or expectations.”

“The goal of sadhana is to eliminate the mind, which consists of thoughts and desires. The Self is beyond all these. To know the Self, the mind should be eradicated.”

“Spiritual practice reminds you, 'I am not just a part, but the part of the whole --- indeed, I am one with the whole.' All prayers and remembrance of God or Guru remind you of the great truth that you are not a separate entity, that you are not just a limited individual, but that you are His, that you are He. When this loving remembrance arises within, you can never be away from Amma, nor can Amma ever be away from you.”

“Everything will be known spontaneously if you do sadhana. Understand who you are. Know the Self. Then you can lead a life without attachment to anything. Such a state of mind will come if you do sadhana sincerely.”

“Meditation and spiritual practices give you the power and the courage to smile at death.”

“Spirituality can be experienced only in stillness and silence.”

“Children, concentration of the mind devoid of ego is the bridge towards God. Samsara (the ocean of transmigration) is a vast ocean. The waves of this ocean (the vasanas) are huge and gigantic. The bridge of concentration is the only means to cross the ocean of transmigration. Only if we set foot on the bridge and cross over can we reach God. There is no external bridge to reach God. It is an internal bridge of concentration, which we ourselves have to build and cross over. It is God's or the Guru's grace which always supports and protects us from falling down during this ‘transoceanic’ crossing.”