Life Without Conflict - Dada Bhagwan (13 ebook reader .txt) 📗

create mental projections of their so-called sufferings.

In reality it is not the material things that are needed; people’s miseries stem purely from ignorance of the Self. Once I give you the knowledge of the Self, all miseries disappear. After that all you have to do is to know where you have not been able to remain within the five Agnas that I have given you. That is all you have to do. Even your daily meals are destined and will come at the precise time; that is the force of scientific circumstantial evidences (vyavasthit). When the hair on your face grows even against your wish, will the food not arrive without your wish? Your beard will grow even though you do not want it to. What more do you need besides your basic necessities? The more possessions you have, the more difficulties you experience. Before becoming Self-realized were you not getting lost in thoughtful fantasies? Do you recognize fantasies?

Questioner : Yes, I used to have many fantasies.

Dadashri : These thoughts and imaginations are like waves that continue to flow. God has referred to these fantasies as building castles in the air. They are imaginary. People are so caught up in these fantasies. If a person wants to slap someone, he will not do it directly. It would be much better if he did, but instead he makes the subtle inner cardinal mistake of saying, “I will slap him one,” and binds karma for another life. The haunting of the ‘ghosts of imagination’ traps everyone in the world. They haunt people in worrying: ‘this is going to happen and if that happens, then this will happen’ and on and on.

Materialism and Suffering

The entire world has sunk in the ocean of accumulation and hoarding of unnecessary materialistic things. God has no objection to your accumulation of things that are necessary for life. One should decide on his necessities in life. What are the

basic necessities for this body? First and foremost, is air which is available every second, free of cost. Then one needs water and food. The fire of hunger can be doused with simple food, but nowadays people want gourmet food. Clothing and shelter fall under secondary requirements. Is getting respect from others a necessity for living? People go around searching for respect, and become completely veiled in the illusion of life. Should you not learn all this from the Gnani Purush?

People would eventually become fed up if sweet water continued to come out of their taps, even if it was only for a day. If you ask them why, they will tell you they prefer plain water. True value of something is not realized until it is no longer available. People go around looking for Coca-Cola and Fanta. Why do you not figure out what your necessities are? Would this body of yours complain if it got fresh air to breath, pure water to drink and some simple food to eat at night? It would not. Therefore decide on the basic necessities for the body. People instead look for a specific flavor of ice cream. Kabir Sahib said:

“No one is your enemy; your enemy is your unnecessary materialism…

Rid yourself of all your needs for unnecessary things, and then you are free to roam about.”

Running after unnecessary things in itself is your real enemy.

What are the necessities of this body? If you ask for water for a bath, it is a necessity. The body requires pure ghee and milk, but instead you stuff it with garbage. What good is all the junk food? What do people use to wash their hair? They use shampoo; it looks just like water and soap. These ‘sacks of intellect’ (Dada referring to people) have discovered things

that are not necessary and because of that one’s inner happiness has diminished. The Lord had said it is acceptable if there is a difference of five to ten percent between their inner happiness and external happiness, but here we have a difference of ninety percent and that will not do. This big a difference is unnecessary and will eventually kill you, but you will have to suffer in the process. Today so many necessities have been created.

People get worried if the shops were to close for an hour. If you ask them what they need and why they worry, they will say they want some ice cream and cigarettes. Is this not increasing one’s dependency on unnecessary things? It is because people do not have internal happiness that, they go searching for it in material things. Whatever internal happiness there once was, is now gone. Do not destroy your inner happiness. People have squandered away this inner happiness, so how can it express? Which is better, to live a natural life or a pretentious one? Youngsters imitate each other. Why should we imitate others? We should be ourselves; people from other countries should imitate us. But a few hippies came to our country and we now imitate them. How can you call this living?

People complain when there is a shortage of refined sugar and brown sugar. Why must you complain about food? As long as you have a stomach, you will manage to find food to eat. You will find enough food to satisfy each tooth. What kind of teeth do you have? There are teeth for tearing, cutting and chewing; nature provides you with everything. And how wonderful are your eyes? Could you find such eyes even if you paid millions of dollars? No, you could not. Some people complain even when they have a million dollars. They do not realize the worth of all the precious things that nature has given them. A person can be content if he simply learned to value just his eyes.

Your own teeth will let you down some day. You give this body food and drink and yet it dies. Death is nature’s act of confiscation and repossession. When you die, you will leave everything behind except the entanglements (karmic causes) you created with family, clients, and business associates. God has cautioned, “You mortals! Understand the reality. The possibility of another human birth is extremely rare.”

The art of living cannot be found in the current era of this time cycle. Leave aside the path to liberation. Should one not at least know how to live life?

One Must Understand the Beneficial Path

I have a constant awareness of worldly interactions. No watch or radio company has made money off me. I have never purchased such items. What is the use of such things? They are meaningless. Of what use is a watch that causes problems and internal unrest every time it is looked at? There are some children who become very uncomfortable the moment they see their father. If they are playing when they are supposed to be studying, they get nervous when their father walks in; that is how it is with a watch. It unsettles you whenever you look at it, so why not get rid of it? T.V. and radio are direct and present madness.

Questioner : There is a radio in every home.

Dadashri : That is different. What happens where there is no awareness of the Self (Gnan)? Attachment (moha) prevails. It is attachment when you acquire what is not necessary and economize on what is.

It’s like this. It is like bringing home an onion dipped in sugar syrup. You must first decide whether you want to eat the onion or the sugar icing. The onion should be eaten plain otherwise there is no point in eating it. This is all madness. People lack awareness and direction in their decision-making.

If a person sees another person eating an onion dipped in sugar syrup, he will do the same. Onions are such that they become useless when dipped in sugar. People have no awareness; nothing but absolute ignorance prevails within them. They go around with a belief of “I am something.” Who are we to tell them otherwise? Even a simple shepherd has this same belief because he owns two cows and two bulls. He believes that he is their superior. He can treat the animals however he wants to. Even if man does not have anyone to control, he ends up being the boss of his wife. How can you deal with someone who has no discretion or awareness of what is appropriate and what is not? Liberation aside, one should at least have some awareness as to what is beneficial and what is harmful in daily living.

You are better off using a cotton bed sheet, which you have paid for rather than using a silk bed sheet, that has been given to you for free. You may question the benefit in doing such a thing. The reason behind this is, if you use things for which you do no have to pay, you become accustomed to it and then when things no longer come free, you have difficulties. Old habits die hard! Everyone in this world is using things without awareness. If we ask prominent religious heads to sleep on a luxurious mattress, they will find it very uncomfortable and will not be able to sleep at night. Some people become accustomed to sleeping on a mat and others on a mattress. God does not accept either the penance of an ascetic or the luxuries of a householder person. God says that only when things are done with an inner awareness, is it correct. If there is no awareness, and you develop a habit, then it is meaningless.

First you must understand what is involved in each path and then you must decide which one you want to follow. If you do not understand, ask ‘Dada’, he will tell you which paths are hazardous, and which one is the right one. You can then follow that path with his blessings.

You Will Experience Happiness through Such Adjustments

One man came to me asking for my blessing because he did not understand things. I placed my hand

Text: Dada Bhagwan Aradhana Trust
Images: Dada Bhagwan Aradhana Trust
Publication Date: 07-06-2017

All Rights Reserved