The Real Communion

The following discourse was given by Shri Bal Bhagwan Ji, brother of Guru Maharaj Ji, April 8, 1973, in Denver, Colorado.

Dear premies, How fortunate we are to come together today! For 2000 years many Christians have been saying a daily prayer. The prayer is, "Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy Name. Thy kingdom come." So many people have been saying this prayer for such a long, long time, and today many people still say this prayer. It says that the kingdom of God will come on earth. But what is that kingdom? Jesus Christ says that kingdom is, the kingdom of heaven. And he says the kingdom of heaven is within you. If we want to search for God, we should look inside our hearts. Our body is a temple in which God dwells, but only one who is pure enough, who is holy enough, and who goes inside, can actually find God there. That is why Jesus says, "the kingdom of heaven is within you." It is not outside. People go to so many places, they get into so many things, but until now nobody has had the final answer. Why? Because their search is outside, and the object is lying inside.

So if we really want to find that object, the search must be directed inward. And for that, we need something to reflect us inside. Everybody knows that with these two eyes we can see the wonders of the world, but we cannot see our own faces. To see our own faces we have to have a mirror. Similarly, we need a reflector, we need a mirror, which in the Hindu scriptures is defined as a Guru, and the Guru reflects the Truth which is inside us. It is through the Guru that one realizes spiritual Knowledge.

We all know about Vivekananda who was a great saint. His Guru was Swami Ramakrishna Paramahansa. Now, Vivekananda was such a great scholar, but even for him a Guru was necessary because actually, that spiritual Knowledge, that Truth, is not taught in schools. It is only taught by the Perfect Master.

That is why the role of the Satguru is very, very important in this world, and also it is very, very important in the life of a devotee. All the devotees now have a very wonderful opportunity to serve their Guru Maharaj Ji, because every time the Perfect Master comes, he has a role to play. Devotees also have a role to play, and that is to act as an instrument of the Perfect Master, who comes to establish peace.

Once there was a total blackout in New York. And at that time the black people were helping the white people; the white people were helping the black people. Everybody was cooperative because everybody was having a common experience. Why do we only have that bond of unity when there is danger, or when there is fear? Why don't we have it when we are living peacefully? The reason is that our minds are working in different directions.

Everybody works for money, because money is a common thing. But what if everybody really understood that in their heart of hearts there is one energy dwelling, and that energy is a common thing? If people understand this soul, if people understand this spirit inside them, then they can understand the universal bond. That spirit acts like a string. If you remove the string, all the flowers will fall. If you remove that energy which is inside you, you will be dead. So that energy is making us alive, it is making us talk, it is making us listen. Some of our actions must be devoted, must be dedicated to that energy. That is why the devotees of Guru Maharaj Ji work selflessly.

So many people have cows. You don't pay a cow for the milk she gives, because the cow is doing a selfless duty. Similarly, a man should also dedicate some moments, some hours of his life for peace, for the betterment of mankind so that everybody has that common feeling. And only if we have that feeling can the entire world become a safe place to live in. This is why Guru Maharaj Ji wants all the devotees to work together.

I think I'll give you a question, and at night you can try to solve it. The question is a very, very reasonable question. How many communions do you want to have before you have the real communion? I'll repeat the question. How many communions do you want to have before you have the real communion? So many people go to church every Sunday and they have communion, but it seems that one communion is not enough. They must have a series of communions.

Actually, communion means to unite with God and the real communion is, in the words of Jesus Christ, that I am with the Father and the Father is with me. I am in the Father and the Father is in me. That is real communion.

When you put a sugar cube in water, the water goes into the sugar and the sugar goes into the water. It is such a bond that it can never be separated. So how many communions do we have to have before that communion which nobody can separate, in which we are completely merged with God? Try to answer this question, because this is a very, very important question. If we are not one with God now, in this world, there is no hope after death. After death we are dead; how can we unite with God then?

So this is the only opportunity we have, where we can be one with God and know God. That is why Jesus Christ says in the Bible that God is a spirit, and they who worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in Truth. God is only to be worshipped in your spirit, which, is inside you. That is why he says the kingdom of heaven is within you. I'm not speaking about something new. I'm speaking from the Bible.

You can take this Knowledge and understand the Bible more clearly. That is why so many devotees often refer to the Bible. They understand the Bible, that is why they relate to it, why they quote from it. Guru Maharaj Ji is giving that experience to us. That is why he once said, "People think that they are receiving me, but they are not receiving me, they are receiving my Knowledge." So you must receive that Knowledge.

One man came to Guru Maharaj Ji in India and asked, "Are you God?" Guru Maharaj Ji said, "No, I'm not God. My Knowledge is God." Because the Knowledge of Divinity, that spirit itself, is God. So we must accept that Godly Knowledge in our lives, and that Knowledge is given to us by our Guru Maharaj Ji. We have got that Knowledge, and if you want that Knowledge also, come with us and you can have it.

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Bal Bhagwan Ji elder broether of Prem Rawat