My master
The name of the merciful saint, who brought the light of the Divine touch in my life is Bhakti Kamala Tirtha Maharadj, a Hungarian, a Hindu monk from the Gaudiya Math, the Vaishnava line of Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakur - a great Indian spiritual leader from 19th century. I call him "my Gurudev" - my Divine Master.
Why do we need a spiritual master? Why do we need a mediator between us and God? Is not God closer to us than the blood in our veins?
God is close to us, but we are far from Him. And if Guru stands between us and God, it is not to separate, but to connect us. Guru is a spreaded friendly hand, a bridge over an abyss. Guru is light in the darkness, Guru is the boatman, who can lead the fragile boat over the foaming waters.
Do not we need such a gentle friend? Do not we need an enlightener when the road is dark? Do not we seek a ford over the stormy waters? Do not we cry, when we are drowning in desperation: "For God's sake, where are you, Boatman!?"
Guru is not someone who tells us how to live our life, who thinks and feels instead of us. He does not wish to rule over us, but to show us our wings. If we follow his advice, miracles can happen.
Every person, if not always, at least in critical situations can distinctively hear his or her inner voice. Some call it "conscience", others "internal leader". The Indians call it "chetya guru" - the teacher in the heart. And it is such a blessing to be able to hear this internal voice speaking to you from the outside and in the light of his smiling eyes your conscience to whisper only "Yes! Yes! Yes!... "
I bow down in the feet of my saint!
Please allow me to offer you a small part of the words of my master, carefully gathered by his disciples, and also some of his inspired songs for God.
- Throw away the attachments! Than you'll be free! People have only two legs. But the birds have two wings. If you leave the attachment to your feet, you'll be able to fly on your wings. Don't think you have only legs. Believe that you have also wings! That you can fly over the difficulties. It is possible! Only your mind is limiting you. And your body. But your soul is ever free! This is the goal - the free motion of Divine Love!
- When we are ready to share with our brothers our happiness, it increaces, and when we share our distress, it deminishes.
- There is a principle higher than justice - this is mercy.
- Our egotism is a desert. It might be crowded with people and yet it is void! But by changing our mentality we could enter the land of hope.
- Permanent happiness is not only feeling, but vision, state of consciousness, deeply rooted understanding.
- No matter how good microscope we have, we cannot see the soul. And the telescopes would not help us to see God. Same other scope we need, other vision, the divine vision. That is faith - the ability to see beyond matter.
- We are in the world of experience only to get better understanding. This is not a punishment!
- There is a big difference between religiosity and faith - ever-growing, living faith. Religious people have desires and needs. Spiritual people are also filled with desires, but not out of need, but of longing to share what they have.
- To do all the nonsense you wish is not called freedom, but deep illusion.
- If you make one step towards God, He makes hundred steps towards you. You give Him a little, He is giving to you everything.
- If you are to much limited by rules and regulations, you forget to be a human. And "human" means "to take care". There is something beyond rules, regulations and truth and that is mercy.
- In Divine Love there is no reason for fear. If you put your cheek in the palm of God - how can you receive a slap?
- Philosophy stays on the surface. But Mercy is going down in the subways to the most fallen.
- Faith is that conviction, to which we come through love.
- Be very strict and strong with yourself and very soft and tolerant with others.
- Liberation is not the highest goal. Don't run after liberation, run after God!
- Let help each-other to grow. Don't judge others, rather be their advocates.
- Let dedicate ourselves to the Divinity; then everything that is material, turns to spiritual.
- Always consult with your conscience and your inner feelings. I wouldn't advice anyone to follow something, to what he cannot say YES deep in his heart.
- Differentiate between the people and their evil actions. Hate the action, not the person.
- A real connection could never end. Whatever you can lose must have been material. What is left is spiritual.
- Simple definition for "love" is "service, care".
- Love and affection overpass all the rules and regulations.
- For the human relations the ultimate principle is: don't try to dominate, try to serve.
- Whatever we do we should not forget it is not us, who are doing it. We are but an instruments in His hands. He is acting through us. We should have this fine tuning to the Divine Will.
- To have doubts is quite human. But instead of doubts to have firm faith - this is divine.
- Sacrifice is not a death-experience, this is a life-experience! What we should sacrifice is our shortcomings. And through giving we shall receive.
- If somebody can understand through his own fate something about the Absolute Truth, whether he pass through suffering of through ecstasy is a question of secondary importance. If you attain God, in a moment you will forget about the steps, you've made.
- To appreciate the beauty of the nature is a high level. But the real achievement is to perceive the beauty of the supernatural.
- There is a big difference between following and imitation. To follow means - not to imitate the life of a saint, but to live YOUR life with the same intensity and honesty, as he did.
- If we come to the level of the soul, there is only eternity there. And eternity cannot be bad! Only perfect! Only beautiful! In these simple words: "We are not the bodies" is invested the whole idea of the beauty and the infinity of the existence.
- For those, who believe in the eternity of the soul and God, there is no death!
- The revolutionary aspect of the Lord is that He is not a Creator, nor Punisher, but He is sharing happiness with His devotees.
- The way to purify our hearts, deeds and thoughts is to have warm feeling towards the living beings, to serve them and to love God.
- Diving deep in our original nature, we can touch the eternity.
- Wisdom, they say, is the ability to be amazed.
- Never stare at one bad quality among many good ones. See the good! See the beauty! See the flower!
- Our goal of life is to attain Love of Godhead (Krisnaprema) and to help the others to attain it, but meanwhile we should serve everyone around us to the best of our abilities.
- The Absolute Truth is ever-existing, not limited by the time or space. It could be revealed always, if you search desperately enough.
- Life - these are our feelings.
- We cannot dedicate to God our freedom, because we don't have any. Freedom should be achieved, it's not that we have it. But we do have the FREE potency to love.
- The stronger the desire is, the bigger is the satisfaction. Necessity means separation.
- We believe in the eternal existence of the Absolute truth, that cannot be limited to ink and paper. This is a level of consciousness. The spiritual life is living
- Pure love for God depends only on the soul and not on the formal position of the body.
- You should not be fanatic. But to respect everybody and to agree with everything are different things.
- In the spiritual realm there is diversity - one Krisna and many different ways to see Him.
- Krisna is giving the initial impulse and we are resonating, vibrating in it. This is our freedom - whether we want to answer His call or not.
- Where all your means are finished - there the Divine Mercy starts to act. Don't depend on yourselves - try to depend on His Mercy.
- Purity will make you transparent so that the light could pass through you with a divine power.
- If we criticize, we should never forget the goal of criticism - and
that is to help. Never use your power to humiliate people, never! We
should always keep the high ideal written on our foreheads.
- If you live for yourself you live for nobody, if you live for God you live for everyone.
- If we can see the Divine Arrangement behind everything - we see the essence.
- Life is difficult.
But help is close.
Not everything is revolving around you.
Divine Arrangement exists.
Divine Love is the Way.
Songs
of Gurudev: