Namaskar. There are times in the world where difficulty and turmoil abound in people’s lives. So, there is not only your individual Samskara and the reaction to your individual experiences at play, but you are part of a collective, of a group. You are part of Mother Earth; you are part of the family that you are in; you are part of the community that you are in; you are part of the region that you live in; and you are part of the world community as well, of humans and of nonhumans.
So there can be both the play of your individual Samskara and the collective psychology comes into play as well. When there are wars, when there are times of political turbulence, when there is persecution and oppression, human beings suffer. The suffering that happens is not merely individual Samskara, but the collective Samskara of the society, which is impacted by the situation.
In the world today, many people are suffering. And many species are going extinct. The population of human beings appears to be too large to be supported by the environment, with ramifications of pollution and environmental destruction leading to climate instability, changes in the air, the water, the landmasses, and the extinction of many species.
Human beings find themselves in a situation of stress. There has been stress throughout human history, wars and turbulence, for human beings have been very territorial and fixed in their desires to conquer, to secure themselves, their desires for dominance. And so the turbulent, painful history of humanity, with so many wars, with so many ill deeds of human beings towards other human beings and towards animals, is due to the psychology of developing humans.
There has been in the race of humanity on this planet a lack of spiritual understanding, a lack of connection to Dharma. In many simple societies, that connection is natural, as it is natural to the animals that surround you, who are naturally connected to nature.
In simple societies that have lived in natural settings, they share that natural connectedness to the whole, but as societies become sophisticated and there is dominance, submission, and fear of losing position and power, the societies have become more disconnected. As they’ve grown larger, they’re disconnected from the natural world and from Mother Nature.
And so that natural harmony is not there. People have to think with their minds, to connect spiritually, to find love and compassion for all beings. But much of humanity has been concerned with its own survival and its own dominance, acquisition of territory, and other variables that lead to aggression and oppression, in order to secure a particular group, a particular class, the people who want to be on top.
This tendency has dominated human psychology and human society for a very long time. Powers have risen in society: conquerors, winners. And eventually they have fallen and disappeared. Even the greatest societies have had their day and have fallen.
So, power, acquisition of territory, collective dominance—they only last for a short time. They can only secure a short period in time, because they are not solutions connected to Dharma. Lovingkindness; compassion for all beings; desire to see others as one’s own self; to have empathy, love; to practice kindness; to foster one’s inner connection to the whole; this brings spiritual freedom. And this is a freedom which fosters truth and is lasting.
When the world is in turbulence, when there are wars, when you see people mistreated, when dramatic changes are occurring, always stand for Dharma, for love between people, for truth, compassion, and kindness. Stand up where you can, but don’t allow your mind to become absorbed in hatred, anger, or fear. For those are the very sentiments that cause the disruptions in society and the cruelties and lies.
So if you want to be part of the solution rather than the problem, you will have to act out of love, understanding, and kindness. Stand up for Dharma, but not with hate in your heart, not with anger, and not with fear. Love is the strongest force in this world, and if you maintain your connection to the divine, to the whole, that love will carry you.
In your life, do what is Dharmic. To the best of your ability, treat others with kindness and compassion. Bring the love in your heart, bring the love for Parama Purusha, let that love of the divine flow through you and into the world, and where there is turmoil and harm, bring the love to it. Stand up for truth, but don’t fill your heart with hatred.
For even those who act the most cruelly, and do the most harm, have their own burdens, their own perspective, their own intentions. Based on the pain that they hold within themselves, they create pain outside of themselves. Have compassion for the human condition, not to foster it, but to understand it and to have empathy and compassion while standing for that which you believe to be true—but with love, wisdom, and understanding.
For all beings are part of the infinite one. The victims and the perpetrators are both part of the infinite one. The divine being plays out the dance of creation in the world of dualities, the world of contrasts. And you, you are but a part of this play in the mind of the infinite.
So there can be both the play of your individual Samskara and the collective psychology comes into play as well. When there are wars, when there are times of political turbulence, when there is persecution and oppression, human beings suffer. The suffering that happens is not merely individual Samskara, but the collective Samskara of the society, which is impacted by the situation.
In the world today, many people are suffering. And many species are going extinct. The population of human beings appears to be too large to be supported by the environment, with ramifications of pollution and environmental destruction leading to climate instability, changes in the air, the water, the landmasses, and the extinction of many species.
Human beings find themselves in a situation of stress. There has been stress throughout human history, wars and turbulence, for human beings have been very territorial and fixed in their desires to conquer, to secure themselves, their desires for dominance. And so the turbulent, painful history of humanity, with so many wars, with so many ill deeds of human beings towards other human beings and towards animals, is due to the psychology of developing humans.
There has been in the race of humanity on this planet a lack of spiritual understanding, a lack of connection to Dharma. In many simple societies, that connection is natural, as it is natural to the animals that surround you, who are naturally connected to nature.
In simple societies that have lived in natural settings, they share that natural connectedness to the whole, but as societies become sophisticated and there is dominance, submission, and fear of losing position and power, the societies have become more disconnected. As they’ve grown larger, they’re disconnected from the natural world and from Mother Nature.
And so that natural harmony is not there. People have to think with their minds, to connect spiritually, to find love and compassion for all beings. But much of humanity has been concerned with its own survival and its own dominance, acquisition of territory, and other variables that lead to aggression and oppression, in order to secure a particular group, a particular class, the people who want to be on top.
This tendency has dominated human psychology and human society for a very long time. Powers have risen in society: conquerors, winners. And eventually they have fallen and disappeared. Even the greatest societies have had their day and have fallen.
So, power, acquisition of territory, collective dominance—they only last for a short time. They can only secure a short period in time, because they are not solutions connected to Dharma. Lovingkindness; compassion for all beings; desire to see others as one’s own self; to have empathy, love; to practice kindness; to foster one’s inner connection to the whole; this brings spiritual freedom. And this is a freedom which fosters truth and is lasting.
When the world is in turbulence, when there are wars, when you see people mistreated, when dramatic changes are occurring, always stand for Dharma, for love between people, for truth, compassion, and kindness. Stand up where you can, but don’t allow your mind to become absorbed in hatred, anger, or fear. For those are the very sentiments that cause the disruptions in society and the cruelties and lies.
So if you want to be part of the solution rather than the problem, you will have to act out of love, understanding, and kindness. Stand up for Dharma, but not with hate in your heart, not with anger, and not with fear. Love is the strongest force in this world, and if you maintain your connection to the divine, to the whole, that love will carry you.
In your life, do what is Dharmic. To the best of your ability, treat others with kindness and compassion. Bring the love in your heart, bring the love for Parama Purusha, let that love of the divine flow through you and into the world, and where there is turmoil and harm, bring the love to it. Stand up for truth, but don’t fill your heart with hatred.
For even those who act the most cruelly, and do the most harm, have their own burdens, their own perspective, their own intentions. Based on the pain that they hold within themselves, they create pain outside of themselves. Have compassion for the human condition, not to foster it, but to understand it and to have empathy and compassion while standing for that which you believe to be true—but with love, wisdom, and understanding.
For all beings are part of the infinite one. The victims and the perpetrators are both part of the infinite one. The divine being plays out the dance of creation in the world of dualities, the world of contrasts. And you, you are but a part of this play in the mind of the infinite.
You are not separate; you are not isolated. You are part of this whole, the whole of being. And this whole of being includes the light, the bliss, the love, and the darkness, the pain, the selfishness, the anger, the hatred, the fear that underlies all of that, the need to survive, and the atrocities done in the name of being right, being holy, in the name of God, in the name of country, patriotism, the atrocities being done in the name of religion.
It cannot be fought with fear or with hatred and anger. It can be fought with a clear mind, clear understanding, and love for all beings. Be a part of the solution. Do your part where you can. And if that means taking action, take action in the world. But in your mind, keep your mind clear of hatred, anger, and fear. Let love and care for all beings be the motive of your actions. To do the least harm and to bring the greatest love to all.
So as a Sadhaka, as a spiritual man, a spiritual woman, you have a duty to give love to humanity, to lead by example, lead others to move out of love, not out of hatred or fear, to act out of love for the welfare of all living beings, not out of fear, anger. Those who harm do so because of their own pain, their misunderstanding. They are still part of the pattern, still part of the infinite one; the divine is in all beings and in all things.
Understand. Act out of compassion and for the welfare of living beings, not out of fear or anger. Stand for Dharma and do what you can in little ways or larger. It doesn’t matter; it can be the smallest action, just a little something to bring truth and love into this world, to mitigate the suffering of another, to practice kindness. Keep your mind free of these tendencies by staying connected to the one who is the source of everything.
In this world of contrasts, there is dark and light, there is birth and death, and there is pain and joy. That is the nature of this life. This is one small relative existence in the sea of eternity. A wave rising and cresting on the ocean of infinity.
The wave is real, the experience of uniqueness is real. But its reality is relative, and when you look deeply into the uniqueness of your individual self, you find that there is a deeper self, that there is universal being within you, appearing to be the personality and experiences of the individual self, but when looked deeply into that individual self, you discover there is no self; there is no separate self. There is only the larger Self, the one eternal infinite presence, embodying in the play of creation, embodying as you, embodying as those who do dark acts, embodying as those who are victims of those actions, embodying in those who protest.
The infinite is everywhere. Never lose sight of the infinite and the love that underlies everything. Bringing that is the greatest gift you can give to humanity. Acting on behalf of that infinite love is the greatest action you can do, keeping your heart immersed in that love despite what you see around you.
It is not to be passive and ignore the troubles that are in this relative world, but at the same time, do not allow those troubles to cover your heart and feed bitterness, anger, and hatred. Do not allow them to feed fear and a sense of your own inadequacy, no, no, no. Let the love that is the radiant joy of infinite being flow through you.
Melt back into that love. Let that love live in your heart, in your body, in your mind, in your words, and in your actions. And when you take action in the world, do it out of that love. Surrender to that love. Let that love move through you. Be a hand of God by letting go, letting go, and allowing the infinite to flow into you, permeate you, as it already does; but when you are aware, it changes. No longer does the ego stand fighting to assert your personal will, your personal power. That is the problem in today’s society.
So when you stay in wisdom and in love, yet you act in the world following Dharma, you become a spiritual warrior. One who stands for truth, for Dharma, who has the polestar of the infinite one, not any dogmas, not, “God is on my side and I’m right; you’re wrong.” That is not Dharma.
Dharma is a humble love. It approaches all with humility, not arrogance. So when the times are troubling around you, hold to Dharma and hold to the feet of the infinite one; hold to that one and let that one move through you with compassion and love for all living beings. All right?
Difficult times do not have to bring you down, nor do you have to hide your head like an ostrich and pretend it isn’t happening and just pursue your own spirituality without care for the world around you. No, that is not the way. Neither of those will work.
For the reality is in this relative world, there are things to face. There is learning to walk in truth, to walk in love amid the darkness of anger and fear that is being thrown around in societies, in wars. You be the harbingers, you be the ones, you, each of you.
Bring love to this world by standing in truth, standing in infinite love, not in judgment, not in anger, not in fear, but in lovingkindness. For love is stronger than any of those. Let it be your shield.
It cannot be fought with fear or with hatred and anger. It can be fought with a clear mind, clear understanding, and love for all beings. Be a part of the solution. Do your part where you can. And if that means taking action, take action in the world. But in your mind, keep your mind clear of hatred, anger, and fear. Let love and care for all beings be the motive of your actions. To do the least harm and to bring the greatest love to all.
So as a Sadhaka, as a spiritual man, a spiritual woman, you have a duty to give love to humanity, to lead by example, lead others to move out of love, not out of hatred or fear, to act out of love for the welfare of all living beings, not out of fear, anger. Those who harm do so because of their own pain, their misunderstanding. They are still part of the pattern, still part of the infinite one; the divine is in all beings and in all things.
Understand. Act out of compassion and for the welfare of living beings, not out of fear or anger. Stand for Dharma and do what you can in little ways or larger. It doesn’t matter; it can be the smallest action, just a little something to bring truth and love into this world, to mitigate the suffering of another, to practice kindness. Keep your mind free of these tendencies by staying connected to the one who is the source of everything.
In this world of contrasts, there is dark and light, there is birth and death, and there is pain and joy. That is the nature of this life. This is one small relative existence in the sea of eternity. A wave rising and cresting on the ocean of infinity.
The wave is real, the experience of uniqueness is real. But its reality is relative, and when you look deeply into the uniqueness of your individual self, you find that there is a deeper self, that there is universal being within you, appearing to be the personality and experiences of the individual self, but when looked deeply into that individual self, you discover there is no self; there is no separate self. There is only the larger Self, the one eternal infinite presence, embodying in the play of creation, embodying as you, embodying as those who do dark acts, embodying as those who are victims of those actions, embodying in those who protest.
The infinite is everywhere. Never lose sight of the infinite and the love that underlies everything. Bringing that is the greatest gift you can give to humanity. Acting on behalf of that infinite love is the greatest action you can do, keeping your heart immersed in that love despite what you see around you.
It is not to be passive and ignore the troubles that are in this relative world, but at the same time, do not allow those troubles to cover your heart and feed bitterness, anger, and hatred. Do not allow them to feed fear and a sense of your own inadequacy, no, no, no. Let the love that is the radiant joy of infinite being flow through you.
Melt back into that love. Let that love live in your heart, in your body, in your mind, in your words, and in your actions. And when you take action in the world, do it out of that love. Surrender to that love. Let that love move through you. Be a hand of God by letting go, letting go, and allowing the infinite to flow into you, permeate you, as it already does; but when you are aware, it changes. No longer does the ego stand fighting to assert your personal will, your personal power. That is the problem in today’s society.
So when you stay in wisdom and in love, yet you act in the world following Dharma, you become a spiritual warrior. One who stands for truth, for Dharma, who has the polestar of the infinite one, not any dogmas, not, “God is on my side and I’m right; you’re wrong.” That is not Dharma.
Dharma is a humble love. It approaches all with humility, not arrogance. So when the times are troubling around you, hold to Dharma and hold to the feet of the infinite one; hold to that one and let that one move through you with compassion and love for all living beings. All right?
Difficult times do not have to bring you down, nor do you have to hide your head like an ostrich and pretend it isn’t happening and just pursue your own spirituality without care for the world around you. No, that is not the way. Neither of those will work.
For the reality is in this relative world, there are things to face. There is learning to walk in truth, to walk in love amid the darkness of anger and fear that is being thrown around in societies, in wars. You be the harbingers, you be the ones, you, each of you.
Bring love to this world by standing in truth, standing in infinite love, not in judgment, not in anger, not in fear, but in lovingkindness. For love is stronger than any of those. Let it be your shield.