On Sadhana (Spiritual Practices)

"If you think you will jump in the sea only after the waves subside, you will never be able to go in the water. Don't think you can pray and communicate with God only when your mind is pure. Don't delay starting spiritual practices."

"God in us is like the tree within the seed. How will it sound if the seed claims, "I am a tree!" The seed has to go under the soil, sprout and the seedling has to grow up. This is why spiritual practices are performed. When the seed becomes a tree we can chain an elephant to it; but if we don't protect it in the early stages, birds will peck it."

"When you sow a seed, it needs to be protected from the sun. But once it has grown into a tree, it will have the strength to withstand the sun. Similarly, a sadhak should eat simple sattvic (pure) food in the beginning."

Environment

"Apple trees need a suitable climate to grow. The ashram is the most appropriate environment for spiritual practice."

"Going to an ashram or a temple is fine, but our main aim should be to purify our mind. Countless trips to holy places won't do us any good if we cannot remove the selfishness in us and our hatred towards others."

"There is wind everywhere. Still we use fans, don't we? Isn't the comfort we get in the shade of a tree something special? Temples are places where God is remembered constantly. There is a special peace and coolness in the temple environment."

Discipline

"Those who have the habit of drinking tea at a regular time will get a headache if they don't get their tea. If we make a schedule for all our activities and strictly observe it, it will develop into a habit. It is highly beneficial to follow such a routine in one's sadhana."

"Don't you take sick leave when you are not well, even if there is a lot of unfinished work in the office? In the same way, even when you have responsibilities and work to do, try to set aside one day for sadhana."

Japa

"Children, when your mind is restless try to chant your mantra. Don't seek solace in anything else. Like children repeating songs while sitting, walking or going to the bathroom, always keep repeating your mantra."

"Don't be disheartened if you don't see any results in spite of all your effort. Each repetition of the mantra has an effect, you are just not aware of it."

"To constantly remember God is not your habit; to cultivate it, japa is the prescription."

"It is not possible for everybody to fix his or her mind on the Supreme Principal just through meditation on the Self. But Japa and singing devotional songs are a way that suits everyone."

"A doctor will prescribe medicine and tell the patient to take rest and avoid certain foods for the disease to be cured. Similarly, the Rishis have taught that if a mantra is chanted in a prescribed way, then certain results will accrue. If we follow their instructions meticulously, we will definitely get the fruit of it."

Meditation

"If a person who doesn't have the strength to lift more than forty kilos suddenly lifts a hundred kilos, he will stagger and fall. Similarly if you meditate more than the body is able to bear, it can lead you to problems."

"Any work you do while keeping constant remembrance of God is of the same value as meditation. When fishermen put a boat out to sea, they close their eyes and with loud cries push hard to get past the waves. Everyone rows hard without stopping until they get beyond the waves. After that they can set the oars aside and rest. It is the same with meditation. In the beginning stages one shouldn't even rest for an instant."

Tapas (Austerities)

"An ordinary person can be compared to a small candle, while a person doing tapas is like a power transformer, capable of distributing power over a wide area."

"To pass an exam you have to study. To drive a car you have to learn driving. Tapas is the training you undergo to transform the impure mind into a divine mind."

"The result of doing tapas can be compared to the sun acquiring a wonderful fragrance."

Solitude

"We have to prepare the field before sowing seeds; we have to get rid of weeds and plough the earth. As the crop begins to grow we have to keep removing the weeds. But after the plants are fully-grown we don't need to worry about the weeds. The plants are strong enough to resist them. Similarly, in the beginning stages a sadhak has to do Sadhana in solitude."

"When you pump water to a higher level, you won't succeed if there is a leak at the bottom of the system. In the same way we need to give up our external interests by doing Sadhana in solitude."

"We go to an open field to learn how to drive. Likewise a sadhak should do his practice in solitude."

"A student cannot sit and study in a noisy crowded railway station, can he? Similarly a sadhak needs solitude in the beginning. After a certain amount of practice he will be able to meditate under any condition."

"There may be waves in the water of a dam, but no water is lost. But if the dam breaks, all the water will go away. There may be thought disturbances in solitude but a sadhak loses his subtle energy when he talks and associates with others while doing his practice."

Effect

"If you turn on the main switch, electricity is available everywhere in the house. But if you want light in your own room, you have to turn on the switches in that particular room. Turning on the light in one room doesn't automatically light up all the rooms. Everything is the same Self, but only the person who purifies his mind through Sadhana realises that Self."

"You are like a small table lamp that gives just enough light to read a book, if the book is held close to the lamp. But if you do Sadhana with strong intent and eliminate the ego, you will shine like the sun."

"Chanting a mantra, meditation with concentration and other spiritual practices performed sincerely can remove the bad astrological effects of planets more effectively than anything else."

"Think of a pool with brackish water. If you pour a little water into one side of the pool, you reduce the amount of salt in that area for a while. But if it rains heavily for a while, the entire pool will be affected. In the same way, from doing spiritual practices with an expansive mind, an infinite power awakens in the seeker. This doesn't happen to a scientist, because his object of meditation is limited."

"Doing good deeds, going to temples and ashrams and engaging in thoughts of God; all spiritual practices make our prarabdha (present's life karma) lighter. Destiny can be changed through tapas (austerities) and Sadhana. Even death can be averted."

Siddhis

"Realisation is beyond all siddhis (spiritual powers). If you ask God only for siddhis, it is like struggling to reach the royal court and asking for a few gooseberries when you get to meet the king."

Forms

"Children need some beads or marbles to learn how to count. Once they have learnt, they no longer need them. With the help of a floating log, you can easily learn to swim. Once you know how to swim, you don't need the log. Similarly, once you imbibe the essence of Spirituality, you don't need temples and rituals."

"If you look at a painting of your father, is it your father or the painter that you see? God is everywhere, but still when you see the image in a temple, you remember Him."

"It is easier to catch a chicken by offering it food than by chasing it. Through name and form the mind can be brought under control."

"When a policeman appears in his uniform, people around him follow order and discipline. But when he comes in off-duty clothes, the people's attitude is different. This is the importance of the outside form."

"When we get on a bus, we are not planning to live in it, are we? Our aim is to reach home. It is the same with the worship of forms."

"A flag is more than a piece of material. It symbolises an ideal. That's why people won't tolerate any disrespect shown towards it. In the same way a temple is a symbol of God."

"The form of the chosen deity is like a ladder. Just as all shadows disappear at high noon, all forms will equally merge in the formless."

General

"You can take birth in a temple, but don't die there. That is to say that, in the beginning, a seeker can do temple worship as stepping stone, but the final and real goal is beyond all these things."

"Sadhana should become part of our nature, like brushing our teeth and taking a bath."

"Asking how many times one should chant the mantra is like asking how much water should be given to a plant for it to yield fruit. Watering is required, but the amount of water depends on the nature of the plant, climate, quality of the soil and so on. Water alone is not enough. The plant needs sunlight, fertiliser, air, protection from pests, etc. Similarly on the spiritual path, chanting the mantra is only one facet. Good deeds, good thoughts and association with virtuous people are also necessary."

"We may have a musical talent, but only if we practice regularly can we become a good singer."

"Travel can be done by water, air and land, but the destination will be the same. Similarly, all the different methods of sadhana will lead to the same goal."

"If you do spiritual practices and still get involved in a variety of worldly things, all the power gained through concentration will be lost."

"A pot that has contained something sour has to be cleaned thoroughly before you can put milk in it. Otherwise the milk will go bad."

"If you have an examination or a job interview, will you say you were late because there was no water or electricity? You should do your sadhana with the same attitude."