FROM ALL WALKS OF LIFE …
FROM ALL CORNERS OF THE EARTH …
people just like you come to hear his words.

wigm_cover_icon (12K) wigm_backcover_icon (12K)
WHO IS GURU MAHARAJ JI?

"The sun comes and goes away but we don't look for the light of day which has just gone. We look for the new rising sun. The sun is there, but it rises in a new beautiful way, and we look for that. In the same way, God is the same, but now we look for Him to come, in a new way, to give His Knowledge. Jesus gave this Knowledge, Krishna gave this Knowledge, but now we must look again for a new Master to show us the light.

"I have not come to establish a new religion or sect, but I have come to give you Knowledge of Truth. If you come to me with a guileless heart you will surely receive this most ancient spiritual Knowledge, which, if practiced upon, will give us perfect peace of mind."

Who Is
Guru Maharaj Ji?

Edited by Charles Cameron
Introduction by Rennie Davis

A Bantam Book / Published November 1973
© 1973 by Shri Hans Productions

How beautiful upon the mountains
are the feet of him who brings good tidings,
who publishes peace …
Isaiah 52:7

Contents

Preface
Introduction by Rennie Davis

Part I: THE EVENT (Page 3 - 40)

1. The Prophecies
2. Who Is Guru Maharaj Ji?
3. What Is Knowledge?
4. Did Jesus Give This Knowledge?
5. His Planetary Harvest

Part II: THE CONTEXT (Page 41 - 80)

Foreword by Mahatma Saphlanand
1. The Ultimate Science
2. The Consciousness Wave
3. You Have Three Eyes
4. A Cure for All Addictions
5. Prescription for Medicine
6. Sociology for Sceptics

Part III: THE QUESTIONS (Page 83 - 99)

Part IV: THE PEOPLE: (Page 101 - 193) Personal Experiences of the Knowledge
1. His Yoke Is Light
2. A Worried Parent
3. "This Girl Will Die"
4. A Mountain in Wales
5. Mahatma Saphlanand
6. John Horton, MD.
7. One Heart on a Stalk in Sand
8. A Babe's Devotion
9. Wisdom's Child
10. Subversive
Pictures of Guru Maharaj Ji
11. A Free Policeman
12. A Free Prisoner
13. England's Oldest Premie
14. Before I Was Born
15. Attain This Knowledge
16. Diplomacy
17. Trotsky, Therapy, and Truth
18. Disenchantment
19. Grace Advertising
20. Sight for the Blind (I)
21. Sight for the Blind (II)
22. The Stabbing of Randy Lamont

Part V: THE TRUTH (Page 199 - 294)
1. Search the Scriptures
2. Satsangs of Guru Maharaj Ji

Little Drops of Mercy
The Perfect One Is Here
Central Hall Satsang
The Philosophy of Consciousness
Colorado Satsang
Piñata Satsang

3. Satsangs of Guru Maharaj Ji's Family

This Immortal Energy
To See God
The Goal of Human Life
The Lovers
A Little More Effort
No Light Without Master

Afterword by Charles Cameron (Page 301)

Preface

Guru Maharaj Ji is remarkable. A fifteen-year-old who comes from the foothills of the Himalayas, he already has a group of doctors working to organize a hospital along lines which he has suggested. He is learning to fly a jet. Thousands of drug users have kicked their habits as a result of his teachings. Senators congratulate him. The blind tell us that he has given them inner sight. And he proclaims that he will feed the hungry and bring peace to all who ask.

Christ taught us that we can know a man by what be gives to the world. Mozart was a genius at music. Maharaj Ji is a genius at the practical applications of unselfish love. Putting it mildly, Guru Maharaj Ji was a child prodigy. He is a phenomenon.

In this book, two people describe being alive before they were born. Scriptures and prophecies from all times and places are found to agree with one another. Science admits to the existence of God. And Guru Maharaj Ji unveils his Perfect Master Plan.

It has been an incredible privilege to work on this book. It is always an incredible privilege to serve Guru Maharaj Ii. Everything he touches turns to love.

ix

Introduction

Across this sprawling city from the seventh floor of a modern office building, I can see a full yellow moon. I almost expect it to explode into a million rainbow comets to announce what is happening tonight. It's strange that the sky would be still on such an occasion. Guru Maharaj Ji has just arrived in Los Angeles. For the third time, the master soul has walked in America, virtually unknown to the public.

He is the greatest event in history and we sleep through it. Every part of me wants to shake this country awake. I feel like shouting in the streets. If we knew who he was, we would crawl across America on our hands and knees to rest our head at his feet.

This book, Who Is Guru Maharaj Ji, carries my deepest hope that in these pages some words will trigger the heart and mind of every reader to appreciate that this may be the most important question in the land - who is Guru Maharaj Ji? And there should be no rest until each and everyone of you knows.

Most of my life has been spent with young people trying to dig America out of the threat of nuclear annihilation, urban war and an all-consuming corruption of human values. I always thought that if enough of us could pick up the shovels we could dig ourselves out of this mess. I know that's still the right idea, but the question is how to get everyone digging together

xi

xii    Introduction

and in the right direction? We never had leadership that could really unite America. And now with the very foundations of the established order sinking in scandal, with people really crying out for new direction, there is no alternative leadership anywhere, not in the women's movement or peace movement or black movement, not in the Democratic Party or trade unions or reform organizations or churches. Really, who can save this sinking ship?

The timing of Guru Maharaj Ji's arrival in this world is very far out. Even he admits that he came at the last possible moment. When people finally discover who Guru Maharaj Ji is, they'll feel a nice smile inside thinking about how he slipped in the back door just in the nick of time.

But I want to talk to the people who don't know who he is. Because the idea of a fifteen-year-old Indian dressed in a business suit coming to America as the savior of the world must seem like a bad joke. Some people really get angry when you try to tell them who Guru Maharaj Ji is. I remember last spring when I traveled around the country announcing to old friends the joyous news. Many of them thought I bad lost my mind or was secretly working for the CIA. I spoke in Berkeley and New York and said "the Creator has come to help us pull the world back together again," and tomatoes and cherry pies were hurled at me. When you tell someone that Guru Maharaj Ji is the power of creation, they may punch you in the face instead of shake your hand. I go on the radio and say that Guru Maharaj Ji is revealing the same Knowledge of life that Jesus taught and the most devoted Christians call the station sounding like they'd rather crucify him instead of rejoice.

It's sad when people won't even investigate a promise to bring peace to the world. Perhaps it's because there have been so many promises that no one wants to hear visions or social plans or dreams anymore. The world is littered with smashed hopes and

Introduction    xiii

dreams. It seems easier to end our troubles in a bottle of Quaaludes or Seconal, than evaluate the proclamation of a fifteen-year-old boy to end poverty, war and human misery on a global basis when no one before him could do it. All I can say to the skeptic is that I was a skeptic, too. I was never a believer in any religion. 'When I went to Guru Maharaj Ji, it was not to embrace God, but to see what he could show me. And all I can do now is be honest about what happened. Guru Maharaj Ji showed me God. And it's really okay if you have a good laugh at such a statement, but it doesn't change the truth. And I know that if you go to this Perfect Master, he'll clear away life's mystery and show you the light that is keeping you alive as well. There are no words to tell anyone what this experience is. But I can promise you that once a human being has received this Knowledge, he can understand there is a practical way to save the planet.

Guru Maharaj Ji says, "If everyone really knew that God is omnipresent, God is omniscient and God is omnipotent, there would be no need of sheriffs; no need of policemen. Everyone would mind everyone. But a man believes and never knows. And that is why there is this crazy, crazy feeling around the world."

People who wonder what has happened to me since meeting Guru Maharaj Ji should know that I spend every joyous, waking moment trying to create the conditions that will help America get into an all-out investigation of Guru Maharaj Ji. Because I know that if we even begin to wonder who this boy is who says, "I have come so that you may know God," the answer will come. When a devotee makes the outrageous statement that Guru Maharaj Ji is the Lord of the Universe, it's cause enough for a chuckle. But it also happens to be true. Guru Maharaj Ji is the Lord of the Universe and anyone can find out who sincerely wants to know. Every fiber in me says that America is going to find out. It's too big a secret to

xiv    Introduction

keep quiet. And I'm starting to feel that America is going to be the most fantastic place on the planet because America is going to be the first country to realize Guru Maharaj Ji is here. America will teach the whole world the Perfect One has come, and that now there is a way to end the craziness of this century and wipe away the tears of its victims and teach us all how to be human beings again.

Rennie Davis
Houston, Texas
June, 1973

Part 1

THE EVENT

1

The Prophecies

In 1898, Morgan Robertson's novel, The Wreck of the Titan, was published by McClure's of New York. Robertson's book dealt with the sinking of a reputedly unsinkable ocean liner, the Titan, when it hit an iceberg during one of its early voyages. It also describes the death-toll that resulted because no one had taken safety precautions seriously, being certain that the ship could not sink. The story was set in April.

Fourteen years later, on April 14, 1912, the great Titanic struck an iceberg during her maiden voyage, and sank with the loss of more than 1,500 lives. She was carrying only twenty lifeboats, and her builders considered her 'unsinkable'. History imitated fiction.

Man has always been fascinated by the idea of delving into the future, and today we are witnessing a boom in all forms of prediction. The government runs computerized scenarios of events that could lead to a third World War, and calculates the chances of our surviving another few years. And on the other hand, a thousand diviners attempt to chart the future by the use of palm and crystal, star and tea stain, Tarot and yarrow stalk. So ready are people to listen to prophets at this time, that it is even possible to be a prophet with honor in one's own country.

3

4    Who Is Guru Maharaj Ji?

To predict the winner of the Kentucky Derby is one thing. But to announce in advance a major portion of the Divine Plan for this planet is quite another. The greatest prophets of every religion have spoken to us again and again: and always, they bring the same message. Consider this prophecy, from the Book of Isaiah:

The wolf also
shall dwell with the lamb,
and the leopard
shall lie down with the kid;
and the calf and the young lion
and the fatling together;
and a little child shall lead them.
They shall not hurt nor destroy
in all my holy mountain:
for the earth shall be full
of the Knowledge of the Lord,
as the waters cover the sea.

Or this one, from a poem by Marpa the Translator, a great Tibetan sage:

The sun and the moon dance
and blow the trumpets,
and a little child shall turn
the Wheel of the Law.
Secret of the body,
of the Word and Heart of God,
His innermost breath
is the steed of the Bodhisattvas.

Or this prediction, made by Deganawida, the prophet of the Iroquois, and passed down by word of mouth:

A great message
will come to the Indians
and make them ever so humble,
and when they became that humble,
they will be waiting

The Event    5

for a young leader,
an Indian boy,
possibly in his teens,
who will be a choice Seer.
And he will be tire accepted leader.

Thrice daily, the Orthodox Jew recites the "Alenu" prayer, asking that soon this world "will be perfected under the kingdom of the Almighty, and all the children of flesh will call upon Thy Name." For he knows the Messiah will come on earth, and will establish a reign of peace in accordance with the will of God. And every Christian asks for the same, when he recites the "Our Father": "Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth, as it is in heaven."

When will the Messiah come? The texts are many, and we cannot quote them all. Isaiah speaks of a time when "the Lord shall comfort Zion: He will comfort all her waste places; and He will make her wilderness like Eden, and her deserts like the garden of the Lord." And he predicts that there arise a new thing, "a way in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert." In the garden of Israel, these predictions are coming to pass. And for those who have never visited Israel, nor seen roses blossoming in her deserts, perhaps this text will seem to deal with familiar events:

"The cars shall rage in the streets, they shall justle one against another in the broad ways." Not a bad description of today, considering it was written by the Old Testament prophet Nahum.

Jesus himself spoke of the coming of the Messiah in a parable which he told to the people of his own time, and which was recorded in the gospels. He suggests that after the Son has been rejected and killed by men, the next step is for the Father to come. In Matthew 21:33, Mark 12:1, and Luke 209, the story is told:

There was once a man who planted a vineyard, and he built a hedge around it, and set up a winepress, and

6    Who Is Guru Maharaj Ji?

a tower, and he rented the property out to some sharecroppers, and left for foreign lands. In due season, he sent his men to the sharecroppers, to collect his share. But the tenants beat up his men unmercifully, killing some, and driving others away with stones. The owner sent in more of his trusted servants, who were similarly beaten. At last, he sent his son, thinking that he at least would instill some respect into the tenants. But they rubbed their hands together when they saw him, and said, come on, this is the old man's son and heir. If we kill him, the whole property will be completely in our hands. So they killed him. Now the question is, what will the owner do, when he comes himself? He will descend upon those tenants, and he will wipe them out, and hand the vineyard over to the people who will serve his interests better.

In other words, we would do better to look for the first coming of the Father, rather than for the Second Coming of the Son.

The blind medieval poet, Surdas, is quite certain that this time in history is the great turning point, the start of a new age. In one of his songs, he tells himself:

You'd best be patient, mind, until the middle
twentieth century resolves this riddle:
The corners of the world will catch their breath
to witness such a spate of sudden death.
Acts of God and man will hide earth's face
in mourning: then a thousand years of Grace
will start, Truth triumph, and earth bloom
with golden flowers. They shall escape this doom
alone, who follow Hans. Let Surdas say
this much. We cannot avoid His perfect Play.

He was writing from within the Indian tradition. In India, Lord Krishna's words are well known. In the Bhagavad Gita he tells his disciple Arjuna:

Whenever righteousness is in decline, and unrigh-

The Event    7

teousness is in the ascendant, I come in human form. To protect the virtuous, to destroy the evildoers and to establish righteousness on a firm footing, I am born age after age.

And Buddha echoes this teaching. Buddhist scriptures tell us that shortly before the Buddha was to leave this world, he called his disciple Ananda to his side, and asked Ananda why he was weeping. Ananda replied that he was weeping because he would be plunged by the Buddha's passing back into that very darkness from which the Buddha's kindness had saved him. Buddha told Ananda to wipe away his tears and reminded him that all fleshly bodies must pass away, while the body of the excellent law endures.

Ananda asked the Buddha to whom his disciples should look for teaching when the Buddha was gone, and the Buddha replied:

I am not the first Buddha who has come upon the earth, nor shall I be the last. In due time another Buddha will arise in the world, a holy One, a supremely enlightened One, endowed with wisdom, auspicious, embracing the universe, an incomparable leader of men, a ruler of angels and mortals. He will reveal to you the same eternal, truths, which I have taught you. He will establish his law, glorious in its origin, glorious at the climax and glorious at the goal in the spirit and in the letter. He will proclaim a righteous life, wholly perfect and pure, such as I now proclaim. His disciples will number many thousands while mine number hundreds.

On a more divine light-hearted note, let's mention the old tradition that King Arthur of England will someday return. Not for nothing is he called the "once and future King." Sir Richard Blakemore wrote a poem about King Arthur's return, and published it in 1695. Speaking of Arthur, he says:

8    Who Is Guru Maharaj Ji?

This great deliverer shall Europa save,
Which haughty Monarchs labour to enslave.
Then shall Religion rear her starry head,
And Light Divine through all the nation spread.

There are so many prophecies. And isn't it strange how many of them speak about a child? The Inga Indians live in one small village of thirty houses, in the heart of the Amazon River Basin, between Colombia and Brazil. Their culture is entirely concerned with a child called the Nino de Oro, the Golden Boy. According to their legend, this Golden Boy has come before, and will return again. And when he returns, it is said that all those whom he touches will never leave him, because the gift he gives them is the highest gift of all.

2

Who is Guru Maharaj Ji?

Who is Guru Maharaj Ji? Why do more than six million people around the world claim he is the greatest incarnation of God that ever trod the face of this planet? Why do Christian priests claim that he taught them the way to love? Why do Hindus refer to him as the Swan Avatar? Why does revolutionary Rennie Davis claim that at the age of fifteen, Guru Maharaj Ji is "already the brightest event in the history of the planet"? Why have more than two hundred eighty centers of Guru Maharaj Ji's Divine Light Mission sprung up in America in the last two years? Why was the festival held for Guru Maharaj Ji in Colorado in July 1972 described as "perfect" by the Denver Post?

How has a staff of amateurs managed to turn out the magazine And It Is Divine, making it one of the finest magazines in the country, under the supreme editorship of a fifteen-year-old boy living in India? Who is it that inspires the beautiful music of the London Anand Band? Of the American Bliss Band? Of the London Bhole Bhagwan Big Band? Of the Swiss Pranam Band? And so many other groups across the world? Who is this Guru Maharaj Ji, whose face can be seen on a thousand posters in any one of the great

9

10    Who Is Guru Maharaj Ji?

capital cities of the world? Who is this Guru Maharaj Ji, who has promised to bring peace to the whole world? And will he?

Guru Maharaj Ji has been opening the hearts of men with his discourse since the age of two, when he would wake up the mahatmas who lived in his father's house at four in the morning and tell them he would beat them if they did not meditate on the experience of God within. At the age of eight, be became Perfect Master, he who alone can reveal the highest human experience. Now, at the age of fifteen, his work for humanity has been applauded by civic leaders and state legislatures, not to mention the estimated six million disciples who thank him for opening their hearts to the unlimited love that was within them.

The gift which Guru Maharaj Ji makes to his disciples is revelation: he does not teach any religious formula or ritual, but rather causes the disciple to feel unmistakably within himself that very fountain of peace of which Christ, Krishna, and Buddha also spoke. His disciples experience a blinding light within - much as Saint Paul did on the road to Damascus - not a mild elevation of mood or clarity, but the direct and repeatable experience of divinity, transcending time and space. His disciples have a continual experience of inner peace available to them, and they are overwhelmed by gratitude.

Great is the gift that Maharaj Ji gives, for it allows his followers such joy that they no longer depend on circumstances for their happiness, and are thus free to work for the welfare of others without consideration of their personal likings. Their happiness is infectious, for its source is clearly known, and can be communicated. They are untiring in good works. Programs presently undertaken by disciples of Guru Maharaj Ji include the foundation of schools and hospitals, the setting up of worldwide organization to end

The Event    11

poverty and hunger, and the building of a model city where pollution and suffering will not exist.

Guru Maharaj Ji was born in Hardwar, India on December 10, 1957. His father, Param Sant Satgurudev Shri Hans Ji Maharaj, was recognized by thousands of Indian devotees as Satguru: the one living master who reveals the ancient Knowledge of the inner self. Walking from village to village, he illumined the hearts of all seekers with the experience of divine Light and the holy Name of God - the essence of all religions. Yet in time this Perfect Master was to offer his full prostration to the Lotus Feet of his youngest son.

At two years of age, Guru Maharaj Ji had astonished his family by giving holy discourses, speaking simply but directly to members of his father's household about the importance of realizing God. He soon joined his mother, Shri Mata Ji, and his three elder brothers, Shri Bal Bhagwan Ji, Shri Bhole Ji, and Shri Raja Ji, at public programs where his father was addressing his disciples. Taking the microphone himself, the young Maharaj Ji began giving satsang (holy discourse), speaking in Hindi.

"When I was six," Guru Maharaj Ji said, "my Father gave me Knowledge with my brothers in the same room. I was given Knowledge and didn't realize it right away. I knew it was my duty, and l began to meditate, and in about a month I realized it." He then delivered his first English discourse, speaking for over thirty minutes with a strength and authority that moved his audience to tears. His father declared that although Guru Maharaj Ji was small in age, he was great in wisdom and enlightenment, and would one day shine over the whole world as brightly as the sun shines in the sky.

Later his father wrote a letter in Kashmir, sending it to his wife in Hardwar: "Give my blessings to Shri Bal Bhagwan Ji, Shri Bhole Ji, and Shri Raja Ji Maharaj, and give my pranams (prostration) to Shri Sant

12    Who Is Guru Maharaj Ji?

Ji Maharaj." It was his first declaration that in fact Maharaj Ji was the chosen descendent of Satguru. On July 19, 1966, after a lifetime devoted to bringing the Knowledge of God to his followers, Guru Maharaj Ji's father left his mortal, body in perfect peace.

"I didn't want to be Satguru. I didn't understand why it is me. I would have been satisfied to be the humblest servant of the Satguru and not to be one myself. It was not my desire. That (my father) sent his love to his oldest three sons and complete prostrations to his youngest. So they crowned me with the crown of Rama and Krishna and put the tilak on my forehead, and again the voice came: '... You are he. You must take this Knowledge out to the world.'"

This is the way Satguru Maharaj Ji describes the experience of realizing the task that was before him at the age of eight.

On the day Shri Maharaj Ji left his body, a disciple tearfully begged to speak once more with his master. The young Guru Maharaj Ji had replied, "Shri Maharaj Ji has only left his body, but his spiritual body is still here, and he will appear again after a few days." At the time, he did not fully realize that this power was within him.

"I went home (from school) and everyone was, weeping. I was just sitting there not weeping and something began to happen to me. I began to feel that I am not this body; that I could not move these lips. I always thought that the soul would leave by the mouth, but my mouth was shut. Still I felt like I was leaving my body and my soul was everywhere going out. And this voice came to me saying, 'You are he, you are the one to continue.'

"Then I puzzled over the voice. Thirteen days later, I was doing pranam to my Father's ashes and bones. You know, in India they burn the bodies and thirteen days later you go and collect the ashes. I bent

The Event    13

down to touch the ashes, the voice came: 'You are he. You are the one to go and give this to the world."'

On August 1st, Guru Maharaj Ji, eight years old, stood in front of the thousands of devotees present at his father's funeral. The voice came again, saying:

"This is the last I will tell you. You are he. You must take this Knowledge out to the world."

"For the first time," says Guru Maharaj Ji, "I did not give satsang. The satsang just came and I began to speak: Dear children of God, why are you weeping? Haven't you learned the lesson that your master taught you? The Perfect Master never dies. Maharaj Ji is here, amongst you now."

Immediately his mother, three elder brothers and all the mahatmas present, prostrated at the feet of the Perfect Master and received his blessings.

A few months later, Guru Maharaj Ji delivered his first satsang as Satguru before hundreds of thousands of people in Delhi, India. He announced: "I have not come to establish a new religion. I have come to reveal the truth, knowing which you will be free. If you come to me with a guileless heart and sincere desire, I will give you eternal peace."

In one of his early discourses, Satguru Maharaj Ji promised to spread the Knowledge of God to the entire world in his lifetime. Before a million devotees in New Delhi, he revealed his plan for a great "Peace Bomb." After weeping for some moments, he said:

"These tears are not because I am remembering my Father, but because I am feeling so much power in me. They are tears of strength. I have come so powerful. I have come for the world. Whenever the great come, the worldly oppose them. Again I have come and you are not listening. Every ear should hear that the savior of humanity has come. There should be no chance for anyone to say they haven't heard of Guru Maharaj Ji. Those who come to me are already saved. Now it's your duty to save others. Shout it on the streets. Why be shy?

14    Who Is Guru Maharaj Ji?

Give me your love, I will give you peace. Come to me, I will relieve you of your suffering. I am the source of peace in this world. All I ask of you is your love. All I ask is your trust. And what l can give you is such peace as will never die. I declare I will establish peace in this world. But what can I do unless men come to me with love in their heart and a keen wish to know peace and Truth?"

Guru Maharaj Ji hasn't only been acclaimed by his own followers, numerous civic leaders, parliamentarians, professional people and others have praised the work which he has already accomplished at so young an age.

Guru Maharaj Ji has been presented with the keys to the cities of New York, New Orleans, Oakland, and Monterey in the United States, and Kyoto in Japan. And the Mayor of Albany, New York, Erastus Coming II, wrote Guru Maharaj Ji:

While I do not have a formal Official Key to the City, your inspiration will unlock the hearts of the people of Albany so that no other key will be needed.

Mayor Yorty of Los Angeles proclaimed June 22nd to be International Meditation Day in honor of Guru Maharaj Ji's work.

In a speech given on the floor of the Connecticut General Assembly, State Representative John Fabrizio said it was "wonderful to see" Guru Maharaj Ji's Knowledge exert "such a tremendous positive influence" over so many lives. Hon. Paul Priolo, Assemblyman from Los Angeles, commended Guru Maharaj Ji for his "constructive effort to alleviate inward suffering." The General Assembly of the State of Rhode Island resolved that Guru Maharaj Ji "is imparting the true, spiritual experience and Knowledge of God ... bestowing on all, secrets of truth and direct experiences of God by revealing the primordial vibrations of all life."

The Event    15

The Rev. Daniel Berrigan, S.J., wrote Guru Maharaj Ji:

You are undoubtedly aware that our need of spiritual sustenance is great. Many of our young people are without direction or hope, and our own churches are able to offer very little, being themselves complicit in many of our social crimes. In the opinion of many of us, it would be a great blessing if you could at some time in the near future visit the United States.

And the press? The Toronto Star of May 2nd, 1972 writes "The Guru of the minute is unquestionably Shri Satgurudev Maharaj Ji, Savior of Mankind, Perfect Master, Lord of the Universe, revealer of Light, love, peace, unity and everything eternal. Even in photographs, He has the luminosity of a Buddha or a Christ."

Perhaps the reporter glimpsed what the Connecticut General Assembly and the Wisconsin State Legislature both call Maharaj Ji's "radiant personality."

3

What is Knowledge?

How many times have you asked yourself, Where did I come from? Why am I here? Where will I go?' How many answers have you found?

With all the facts we've come to know, we're still in awe of the great mystery of life. There aren't that many basic questions to ask but the ones we do ask are - so universal, so timeless, that all others seem pointless in comparison. Our minds can theorize some answers, but how satisfying is a theory-especially when we're getting older every minute? We want to know, really know, and there's no reason at all why we shouldn't be able to find out.

Any science book will tell you that energy is the source and substance of all life on this planet. That's O.K., but not very helpful-unless we can somehow tap that energy, feel it keeping us alive, grow with it, live with it, and get some peace and love out of it. Brothers and sisters, we can.

The force sustaining the entire universe is closer to you than your own breath. For proof, look at the atomic bomb. The poetry expressed in the explosion of the bomb was incredible. The message was that within every atom in the entire physical world lies a power beyond imagination.

16

The Event    17

Your body is made of atoms.
The hands you're using to hold this book: atoms. The eyes you're reading with: atoms. Every object you see, feel, taste, and smell is made of atoms. Billions of atoms-hundreds of billions-and every single one contains energy greater than anything you can imagine. You are a living package of awesome energy. A walking, talking, breathing-and sometimes loving-atomic bomb. We all are.

Two more facts about energy. One: It's the only thing that's the same in every single human being. We are all composed of it; it keeps us going. Two: if you could be consciously aware of this creative energy every moment of your life, you'd have the answer to every question you ever waited to ask.

At some point you're going to have to give up your Apollos... because that's the highest point you can reach.
Guru Maharaj Ji

We've been looking around in outer space for only a decade or so, but instinctively each man has always had feelings about space and infinity and their relation to life. Somehow, watching an eclipse or shooting stars brings up feelings from deep within ourselves.

These feelings arise in us because the infinity of the universe - the energy of the entire universe - is contained within every human body. And the continuous, joyous, completely blissful experience of this truth is what the Knowledge of Guru Maharaj Ji about.

He proves to us that we can experience infinity with our bodies. He shows us how the "goal beyond all goals" - realization of God - can be reached by looking Within. His Knowledge is the ultimate understanding of the source of all life.

Guru Maharaj Ji can give you a practical way to experience the light, sound, taste, and vibration of the

18    Who Is Guru Maharaj Ji?

energy that is keeping you alive. This experience is real it's practical. It never ends. It's available to every human being on the face of the earth.

The Knowledge is completely free. No amount of money or power can buy it. It's so precious and simple that the only requirement to get it is a sincere desire to know the truth of your own personal experience-the meaning of your life.

It's not a Knowledge of the mind, but of the soul. In fact, our minds can't understand it.

And nobody will ask you to believe one word of this before experiencing it.

First you have to see, then believe. People do the opposite of that: first they believe and then see. In comics - you have seen comics? There are many, many things. But when those things come the people are disappointed. First they believed, and then they wanted to see it. First see it and then believe it.
Guru Maharaj Ji

Receiving Knowledge

- Guru Maharaj Ji, are you God?
- No. My Knowledge is God.

Knowledge is not a religion; it's the direct experience of God, or eternal energy, that all religions talk about. It establishes beyond a doubt the intrinsic unity between all living things.

Over thirty thousand Americans have received this experience of light and love by attending Knowledge sessions where mahatmas - highly-realized souls who are disciples of Guru Maharaj Ji - transmitted to them the same experience attained by earnest seekers of truth throughout the ages. Although four very practical meditation techniques are given, the techniques alone are incomplete, and cannot account for

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the total experience. The full meaning of the inner grace, love and overwhelming peace a person experiences when he receives Knowledge cannot be described. Does the full experience of love lie in a kiss?

People who have received Knowledge, called "premies" ("lovers of truth"), praise Guru Maharaj Ji as the greatest living soul and holiest human being on the planet, simply because he has given them the experience of Knowledge. This experience has the capacity to release every one of us from all frustration and anxiety, and return us to our natural states of being; instruments of love, compassion and understanding.

The Techniques

From the moment of our birth, we perceive this world through our senses. Yet in one second we can experience more than we have in all our years of sensing. Although we've been looking, we have never been taught how to see; although we've been listening, we've never been shown what to listen for. Convinced that food brings total nourishment, we've never bothered to experience the pure and simple taste that exists within our own bodies. And we even taken our breath for granted, never stopping to realize the subtle and perfect vibration that sustains it All our lives, our senses have been so conditioned to concentrate upon the world outside our bodies, that we've neglected to experience the perfect energy flowing through us and sustaining us.

Receiving Knowledge shows a person bow to meditate on the perfect life experience. The true reality. There are many different ideas about what meditation is and perhaps a vague idea that any meditation is a way to concentrate the mind. However, there's only one true meditation. In true meditation, the mind concentrates solely upon the fundamental activities of

20    Who Is Guru Maharaj Ji?

the consciousness: the four inner phenomena always present inside human beings, but so subtle and difficult to perceive without Knowledge, that they go unnoticed. It's not just a matter of looking within and experiencing a word. There's really something to see, hear, taste and feel.

Divine Light

There is a glorious sun, not the sun you see in the sky, but a sun which is within ourselves which is much brighter than the sun you see in the sky. When the sun comes out, it only dispels the darkness, but when this sun comes out, it dispels the darkness and ignorance both. It is much brighter than the sun that shines out. It is all within us, just within us.
Guru Maharaj Ji

That really says it all. When a devotee of Guru Maharaj Ji claims he sees the divine light of creation inside his head because his "third eye" was opened in the Knowledge session, be is not speaking in symbols. This light is a very real, very intense, and very bright. He sees it with his eyes closed, and sees it every day. A blind man can see this light.

But it's more than a "light show." The entire electromagnetic field propagates at the speed of light. Astrophysicist Kim Malville of Colorado University says: "The amount of matter in the universe is minute in comparison to the amount of light. For every particle of matter there are a billion photons of light. So, really we are still in a universe of light." This is what keeps the universe from being formless "chaos" and gives every living thing the energy to grow. Within the human body, it sustains every function of our living. It is released to us by the grace of Guru Maharaj Ji, for the purification of our mind and body. By meditating on it, we merge with the infinite, loving energy that created us. We become one with God. As

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Shri Bal Bhagwan Ji, Guru Maharaj Ji's eldest brother, says, "There are two televisions. One you purchase in a shop, and the other you have inside you. That is Tele-vision."

Music

There is music going on inside of yourselves, and God plays that music. It is so symmetrical so beautiful, that on the first strike, man's mind is concentrated.
Guru Maharaj Ji

As there is light in everything, so there is music that plays throughout creation. It is the sound of life moving through otherwise lifeless matter, rustling the "deadness" in its path. Unlike ordinary music that is dependent upon an instrument to be played and heard, the divine music is always playing, and always in perfect harmony. The only tuning that is required is the tuning of the heart. The music heard in meditation is incredibly more beautiful and subtle than the greatest pieces of music composed by man, because it is given by the composer of man.

"I think you see different green in every leaf on a free?"

"Yes, Mahatma Ji"

"By Guru Maharaj Ji's grace I am able to hear, from each leaf, a different musical note. You understand me? But I do not listen much to the trees. I prefer that divine harmony."

Again; these are not metaphors. In the Knowledge session, we are shown how to turn our hearing sense inward to experience an actual music, the essence of every sound in the universe.

The music is analogous to the light in that it is an interior sound which is not perceived through the ears. A deaf man can hear this interior harmony. By concentrating their minds on initial sounds, premies

22    Who Is Guru Maharaj Ji?

grow to hear sounds which can resemble thunder, waterfalls, or "rushing waters", gongs, flutes, choirs, bells, and so on to infinity.

Nectar

People drink wine and they say 'cheers'. When you share this divine wine, this divine nectar, it is really a cheer.
Guru Maharaj Ji

Sociologists are astounded by the statistics: Drug users and abusers, smokers and drinkers from all walks of life are giving up their habits at an amazing and unparalleled rate. More than one premie, when questioned, has laughed and told the interviewer about nectar.

Nectar is a spiritual experience yet it defies all conceptions of a "spiritual experience." The taste of nectar is so delightful that it surpasses all other attempts to satisfy the senses. Old habits and even addictions lose their appeal once the nectar flows. In the Knowledge session, we are shown how to taste this real, purifying fluid from the brain, which flows to the throat. It has been described by premies as having a honey taste ... but this is an injustice. Nectar is the "ambrosia" or "Fountain of Youth" explorers have traveled to find, not knowing it lay right inside them. It has a strong cleansing and nourishing effect upon the body. Advanced saints and yogis can live on nectar alone, as Jesus did during his forty days in the wilderness.

The Word

The world thinks, people think, God is a man. People think God has ears, nose, teeth, and he rises early in the morning, brushes his teeth, washes out his mouth and he is an old man so he brushes out his

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beard also. But no, God is energy. God is perfect and pure energy, and that is why scientists say that energy cannot be created and cannot be destroyed ... This is the Word. This is God.
Guru Maharaj Ji

The Word moves. It is the simplest and most poetic movement in the universe. For in moving through a living being, the miracle of life takes place. The Word is the primordial vibration that underlies everything in existence. It is not a word we can speak, for it existed before language, before man, before life as we know it.

When scientists speak of energy that can neither be created nor destroyed, they're using different terms. When this vibration is given the term "the Word", it does not change the actual meaning. It is the source and foundation of the entire universe. It is not "energy," the Word," "the Name," or "the holy breath, or any of the thousands of other terms which have been used to describe it. In and of itself this one Word is the one reality, the illogical yet undeniable "first cause" of the universe. The universe itself.

And although the Word is far subtler than the entire perceived universe, it may be experienced: an experience of the fact that we are alive. The striking realization that we can feel, "Yes, I am alive!" every minute, every second, is the great gift of the Knowledge session. From the moment the Word is revealed, every breath a person takes has the potential of being the happiest moment of his life. The "happiest" moment can be achieved again and again, because the Word is infinite.

Devotees are advised to meditate upon the light, harmony, nectar, and holy Word in a quiet place for an hour in the evening and an hour in the morning. More important, since this vibration of the Word is always present in one's body, even while sleeping, we are instructed to focus the mind upon it at all times,

24    Who Is Guru Maharaj Ji?

during any and every activity. While working reading, eating, driving a car, even talking, we can be consciously aware of the Word. In this way, we experience a constant merging with that perfect and pure energy which is God. The result is a complete feeling of inner peace all day every day, no matter what we do, where we go, or who we're with. Guru Maharaj Ji has led us home, where everything is in perfect order.

Grace

Of all things received when a person takes Knowledge, grace is considered the most important. It is the grace behind the four experiences described above that brings complete inner peace. When the Knowledge is one day "exposed," and the techniques are "revealed" on the evening news, grace is the one secret that won't be lost. The deep inner feeling that makes a human being unflinchingly devoted to ending all selfishness and hypocrisy that exists in the world is the effect of grace. Like all manifestations of the Knowledge of Guru Maharaj Ji, it can only be experienced, not fully described. Grace comes to us from the infinite mercy of God, revealed only by Satguru. Those who receive Knowledge are truly, supremely, eternally blessed.

4

Did Jesus Give This Knowledge?

Who was Jesus? For two thousand years people have called themselves his followers, but how many of them could answer that question? People have fought crusades on behalf of one who taught men to turn the other cheek, and set themselves up as inquisitors on behalf of one who said, "Judge not, that ye be not judged." Isn't it the ultimate folly that Northern Ireland is now ravaged by a battle between Catholics and Protestants, two religions which grew from different interpretations of a Lord whose only commandment was love?

There are lots of people who think that the answer to Jesus' identity is preserved between the covers of the Bible. Yet hundreds and hundreds of Christian splinter groups have formed, all basing their beliefs on the same Bible, even though that very Bible declares, "There is one body, and one Spirit, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all." (Ephesians 4:4-6.)

Did Jesus ever mean us to understand him through words? It's more than a little eye-opening to realize that he didn't write anything. But what's even more revealing

25

26    Who Is Guru Maharaj Ji?

is what Jesus himself says about the scriptures:

Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me. And ye will not come to me, that ye might have life.
John 5:39-40.

In other words, sure, look into the scriptures, find out what they're saying. They're telling you that everyone needs a living Master. And that the best a scripture can hope to do is to point the way to one. If I'm on my way to Boston, and I come across a sign that says, "Boston," I don't throw down my luggage and say, "Well, I've made it to Boston." The scriptures can lead the way to eternal life, but they don't give that life itself; only the living Master can do that.

According to the Essene Gospel, Jesus said, "Seek not the law in your scriptures, for the law is life, whereas the scripture is dead. I tell you truly, Moses did not receive his laws from God in writing, but through the living Word The law is living Word of living God to living prophets for living men."

Even while Jesus was alive, people who hadn't received the "Mysteries of the Kingdom" couldn't understand him:

And the disciples came, and said unto him, Why speakest thou unto them in parables?
He answered and said unto them, Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given.
For whosoever hath, to him shall be given, and he shall have more abundance: but whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken away even that he hath.
Therefore speak I to them in parables: because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand.
Matthew 13:10-13.

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Our whole ability to grasp what Jesus was depends upon our knowing those "Mysteries of the Kingdom." But what are they? We all know that pie is supposed to be in the sky, and angels are supposed to live on clouds, but Jesus never told anyone that heaven was somewhere up there. Instead, he taught his disciples that "the kingdom of God is within you." (Luke 17:21.) How do we get in?

The Kingdom

"This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all." I John 1:5.

Guru Maharaj Ji's Knowledge is the Knowledge of divine Light.

The light of the body is the eye: if therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light.
Matthew 6:22.

Guru Maharaj Ji can open this inner eye, and anyone who takes Knowledge has the vision of what shines inside. But if we don't look with the single eye, how can we know God, who is light?

And I heard a voice from heaven, as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of a great thunder: and I heard the voice of harpers harping with their harps.
Revelation 14:2.

Guru Maharaj Ji's Knowledge is the Knowledge of celestial music. By bathing in its perfect harmonies, the static of our restless mind is cleansed away. Can we fully know the peace of God without having heard that inner music?

Jesus told the woman of Samaria:

28    Who Is Guru Maharaj Ji?

Whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst, but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.
John 4:10-4:14.

Guru Maharaj Ji's Knowledge is the Knowledge of divine nectar. He can show us the well inside us, overflowing with milk and honey. Can we claim to know the sweetness of God if we've never tasted that nectar?

In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. John 1:1.

Many interpret this Word to mean the gospels; but how could they exist before Matthew, Mark, Luke, or John were ever born? And how could the Bible be God Himself? So this Word must be something else, through which we can be:

born again, not of corruptible seed, but of the incorruptible, by the Word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.
I Peter 1:23.

The Bible tells us to call upon the name of the Lord for salvation (Rom. 10:13.), but is that name "J-e-s-u-s?" Hadn't Jesus made it known that

Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven ...
Matthew 7:21.

What is the Lord's Name? "His name is called the Word of God," (Revelation 19:13). It's the same Word which was in the beginning. Only with this Word can we pray without ceasing. Only with this Word can we worship the Father in spirit and in truth. Only with this Word can we be saved. Guru Maharaj Ji's Knowledge is the Knowledge of that Word.

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Without that constant lifeline to our Father, without constantly feeling the power of God moving within us, without bowing the eternal Vitality that is this Word, how can we know God?

As long as I am in the world...

Many claim that Jesus is the only way to salvation, but look at this statement St. Augustine once made. (Later he felt obliged to withdraw it)

The thing itself which is now called the Christian religion was with the ancients, and it was with the human race from the beginning to the time when Christ appeared in the flesh: from then on the true religion which already existed began to be called Christian.

And Meister Eckhardt, the Christian mystic of medieval Germany, wrote:

Everything that the Holy Scriptures say about Christ is equally true of every good and divine man.

Jesus said, "As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world." (John 9:5.) But only as long as he was in the world. He promised that when he left, he would send a comforter, and that comforter would be the Holy Spirit. (John 14:26.)

Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the spirit of God dwelleth in you?
I Corinthians 3:16.

Guru Maharaj Ji gives his disciples direct intimacy with the in-dwelling spirit

When Jesus came, the Pharisees refused to accept him. Their scriptures had promised them a king and they found only a carpenter's son. They found fault with his eating habits, with the company he kept.

30    Who Is Guru Maharaj Ji?

They couldn't see that the real king was the one who ruled the soul, that the real concern was with what we are fed from the spirit, that the best company was the company of those who know God. And so, for all their talk about God, they missed the chance to know Him. If we allow our preconceptions to keep us from Guru Maharaj Ji's gift of Knowledge, aren't we running the same risk?

When you take Knowledge, you won't be losing your Christianity. When you see divine light, hear celestial music, taste divine nectar, and keep the Word, you'll know the core of the Bible. You'll possess that "mustard seed" which opens into the kingdom of heaven. And then grace and peace will be multiplied unto you through the Knowledge of God," (II Peter 1:2.), the same Knowledge that was given by Jesus.

Will you take what he gave?

5

His Planetary Harvest

The DUO Proclamation

Whereas, the one universal belief all people hold to be true, is the belief in life itself; and yet due to ignorance of the aim of human life, the world continues to be filled with misery; and

Whereas, even with the advancements of the technologically expanding twentieth century, humanity has continually failed in all efforts to find a solution to misery and suffering; and

Whereas, Knowledge of the aim of human life is being revealed to all people of the world by the living Perfect Master and spiritual head of Divine Light Mission, Paramhans Satgurudev Shri Sant Ji Maharaj, thus eliminating the cause of ignorance and misery,

Therefore, the people who have experienced the Knowledge of Shri Sant Ji Maharaj, with full awareness of the difficulties of living without knowing the aim of human life, are compelled to reach out to the rest of the struggling humanity to spread the solution to strife and suffering by a commitment to work in all fields of endeavor for the elevation of humanity, manifesting an exemplary alternative to be known as the Divine United Organization or D.U.O.
Guru Maharaj Ji

31

32    Who Is Guru Maharaj Ji?

Joan Apter, one of Guru Maharaj Ji's first American disciples, recalls the early days of Divine Light Mission:

The Divine Light Mission in America was born in Los Angeles, in a small house atop a fine Spanish colony in Alta Loma Terrace, right next to the Hollywood Bowl. Gary and Will staked the claim, and I joined them a few days after they had moved in. From the window of Guru Maharaj Ji's room we could see a cross on a hill, lit at night with a statue of Christ blessing the city.

The place was small, but full of grace. Every night people came to hear satsang and to sing with us. There was Guru Maharaj Ji's presence there, so though people could not understand the means through which we expressed our love, they felt the feeling of truth being expressed and came closer to be warmed by it.

We knew nothing of what to do. We were dressed in Eastern dress, Gary and Will with dhotis; Will had long hair and a beard. I wore a sari, and we all painted red dots on our foreheads. But the grace was so strong, and Guru Maharaj Ji's vibration so new and fresh, that no one paid too much attention to our appearance.

One time Gary and Will gave satsang at a university in Los Angeles. They spoke for hours - and finally, when the satsang was over and the feeling was high, they asked the audience if there were any questions. A boy raised his hand and said, "What are you talking about?" Everyone had stayed and listened, no one had left his seat, but nobody knew exactly what Gary was saying.

But Guru Maharaj Ji was entering people's hearts. A feeling had been re-captured, and now their souls were stirring again because at last in America the message of the Perfect Lord was being delivered. No one ever understands; the soul only feels that at last, my time has come.

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We had dinners at the ashram to attract people and raise money. We had no money at all, but Guru Maharaj Ji always provided for us. We gave satsang and did service, and others would always provide vegetables and money, cars and helping hands. Sometimes our food ran out, sometimes we wondered how we would pay the rent, but we never worried. We lived in the feeling of Guru Maharaj Ji's presence. Sometimes we would enter another world, when Gary would sing and play guitar and I would play harmonium - we entered Guru Maharaj Ji and knew such bliss. When there were problems between us, we would sit down together and talk. We knew we had to work together perfectly, that the ashram must be pure and perfect, and we were always aware of how Guru Maharaj Ji was showing us the way, teaching us how to behave.

We gave satsang everywhere - but more and more people were coming to the ashram now, and satsang was 24 hours a day. I was always in contact with Mahatma Ashokanand in England and writing to the Holy Family in India and all the devotees there I loved and felt so close to.

One day Mahatma Ji phoned me with the news. Guru Maharaj Ji would arrive in London in June. There is no way to explain how we felt. He had said that he would not be coming for many years, and now it was only a matter of weeks. How we longed for him to come here! We determined to prepare for Guru Maharaj Ji and then request from our hearts that he come to us.

The next month passed in a flurry of excitement. We got Alan Watts to sponsor Guru Maharaj Ji, and he gave us a thousand dollars for preparations. We Wrote all the societies and organizations to tell them of Guru Maharaj Ji and his arrival in the West. We made visa preparations. It was difficult to get Guru Maharaj Ji's visa. Gary and I were going to the officer every day to see how things were going. Our minds

34    Who Is Guru Maharaj Ji?

were fixed that nothing would stand in the way of his arrival, and soon even the visa officer was helping us.

Guru Maharaj Ji was to arrive in London on June 17, 1971. That night Gary typed, I paced up and down. I typed, Gary paced up and down. Sleep was impossible. Our hearts were in London. I sent a telegram to England welcoming him and begging him to come. It was so funny to hear the telegram operator repeat the message. She said at the end, "Oh, that's wonderful!" Everyone felt the divine love, the pun desire of the devotee wanting to be near his physical presence. We phoned Mahatma Ji in London who by now was completely out of his body with anticipation. Sandy and Ron also comforted us, saying "Guru Maharaj Ji will come to you and then we will be the ones who will weep."

The night wore on and we were still pacing. Then at 4 a.m. the phone rang. Gary picked it up, saying "Divine Light Mission." Then his face went white and he handed me the phone open-mouthed. I didn't know what was going on. We didn't know what time it was or where we were. There was just this phone call. I picked up the phone and said, "Divine Light Mission." It was Guru Maharaj Ji. He said loudly, "Joan, when are you coming to London?"

It was too much for my heart to handle. The whole week I had been thinking of flying there, scheming of how I could escape to greet him. I had stayed only because there was so much work to be done in Los Angeles. And now he asked me this! I burst into tears and said over and over, "Oh, Guru Maharaj Ji, I am here. We are trying to prepare for you. What should I do?" And Guru Maharaj Ji said, "I will come there," and hung up the phone.

Gary and I left the world. We jumped, screamed, laughed, cried, over and over. As it turned out, we had only one month before Guru Maharaj Ji came to Los Angeles. Things started happening very quickly. Three more premies came - Suzy, Arthur, John - and

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Sharon Keller, who didn't have Knowledge yet, dropped everything and came from Philadelphia. It was so blissful. We arranged programs. We made leaflets, brochures, pamphlets, posters. We rented the Wilshire Ebell Theater, arranged press conferences, fought the time barriers and won Guru Maharaj Ji's visa.

And finally that day came. July 17, 1971. Newsweek printed a story of his arrival. All the television cameras were there. Hundreds flocked to see him at the airport. There were so many flowers everywhere. Children, incense, bells, reporters, cameras, tape recorders, songs. The Lard had come.

* * * *

Divine Light Mission began in India in 1960. The organization flourished until, in 1966, the membership numbered several million. And when Guru Maharaj Ji's father left his body on July 19, 1966, the leadership of the Mission passed to his youngest son, the new Perfect Master.

The eight-year-old Guru Maharaj Ji acted with the wisdom and discretion of a man far beyond his years. He provided clear insight for all his devotees, and Divine Light Mission grew by leaps and bounds. Under his direction, a hospital and school were opened to provide for the health and education of his followers. The World Peace Corps was organized to care for the sick and the needy, especially in times of national disaster.

When Guru Maharaj Ji was eleven, the first Western travelers found their way to Prem Nagar, the City of Love built by devotees on the banks of the river Ganges. They were caught by that omnipresent love; they had little resistance - and when at last they received Knowledge, Guru Maharaj Ji began speaking to them of how the West, like the East urgently needed a solution for the problem of human suffering.

Mahatma Guru Charnanand was the first disciple

36    Who Is Guru Maharaj Ji?

sent by Guru Maharaj Ji to give Knowledge outside India; he arrived in London in October 1969. The Western devotees returned home as they were ready.

In London, devotees opened Divine Light Mission's first Western branch in a tiny city apartment.

In November 1970, one-and-a-half million people - the largest number ever gathered for a purpose other than war - assembled at India Gate in New Delhi to pay homage to the Perfect Master. Speaking before them, Guru Maharaj Ji exploded the Peace Bomb: "I declare that I will establish peace in this world." Six months later he left India at last, for Great Britain, Canada, and the United States.

Everywhere he went, thousands flocked to hear him. Hundreds stayed to receive his Knowledge. In Los Angeles, San Francisco, Denver, Boulder, Washington D.C., Toronto, and New York, Divine Light Mission centers sprang up. The Mission, newly incorporated as a non-profit spiritual, religious, educational, and charitable organization, chartered a jumbo jet so that five hundred devotees might return with their Perfect Master to India for the Hans Jayanti Festival that November.

Guru Maharaj Ji returned to the United States in 1972 for a second summer tour, the highlight of which was the Guru Puja Festival held in Montrose, Colorado that July. Six thousand persons attended, and the normally august Denver Post celebrated the event with a full-page article headlined, "Guru's Festival 'Perfect'." And it had been perfect - no drinking, drugs, tobacco, sex, rioting, scalpers or nudity. Divine Light Mission was becoming organized - it had 45 centers, 15,000 members, and a national headquarters in Denver.

By now, Guru Maharaj Ji had traveled throughout all the non-Communist world. His World Peace Tour of 1972 climaxed when eight 747 jumbo jets were chartered to ferry all the western pilgrims to Hans

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Jayanti. The Americans alone filled five planes. It was a first in aviation history.

June of 1973: Divine Light Mission paused to take stock of itself. There were 480 centers now operating in 38 countries - including nearly all of western Europe; the United States and Canada; the West Indies, Colombia, and Peru; Kenya and South Africa; Yugoslavia, Lebanon, and Israel; India and Ceylon; Australia, Hong Kong, and Japan. Its membership in the United States alone was 35,000, where it operated 284 centers linked by Telex and united as a family. Divine Light Mission had become far more: a divine civilization in its infancy.

Shri Hans Productions was Divine Light Mission's first subsidiary in America. Its focus is on the media, to communicate Gum Maharaj Ji's message of peace. Shri Hans Films has produced two color documentary films, Lord of the Universe and Satguru Has Come, and will soon release several more, including the story of Hans Jayanti '72 and a feature entitled Who Is Guru Maharaj Ji? Shri Hans Records has released two stereo records, including the LP album The Lord of the Universe.

Shri Hans Publications produces a newspaper, The Divine Times, and a full-color monthly magazine called And It Is Divine with a current circulation of more than 130,000. The magazine, which features articles on politics, science, religion, industry, and the arts, has won worldwide acclaim; it is supervised - and frequently edited - by Guru Maharaj Ji himself.

The doctors, psychiatrists, psychologists, nutritionists and other specialists of Shri Hans Humanitarian Services have made prevention their top priority. Spurred by the understanding that physical illness is Closely linked to the mental, emotional, and spiritual needs of people in modern society, their treatment and prevention is based on love and understanding.

38    Who Is Guru Maharaj Ji?

Meditation on the Knowledge gives each physician a profound sense Of the bond between doctor and patient; he is able to devote his efforts selflessly, taking enough time with each patient to respond to all his needs. These professionals, who volunteer their services full-time, operate a fully staffed clinic in New York City and a farm retreat in Rhode Island.

Recognizing that Western education is unable to prepare our children for real life, Guru Maharaj Ji directed the teachers of Shri Hans Educational to find a solution as soon as possible. Since then the teachers have been rediscovering how a child can receive a balanced and completely human education, rather than suffering a spiritless and deadening routine. Their efforts will bear fruit this fall when their first school opens in Denver.

Divine Sales International takes from the rich and gives to the poor - but everything it sells is donated rather than stolen. Visitors are astonished to see working television sets on sale for a few dollars, shirts and pants going for twenty-five cents. The first American branch opened in New York in the fall of 1972; by now, branches have been opened in the largest American cities. All profits return to Divine Light Mission to pay for the solutions to the problems of mankind. Premies and non-premies work side by side far into the night, repairing damaged merchandise, sorting gifts and making every store as beautiful as possible. Working for divine business isn't a job - it's a privilege and even a delight.

Divine Services offers painting, carpentry, plumbing, housecleaning, lawn care, auto repair, and many other services throughout the country. As the newest branch of the divine economy, its prices have made it so popular that it cannot keep up with demand. A Divine Food Co-op Service may soon be on the way.

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That's only the beginning. There's also Shri Hans Aviation, a divine airline; Divine Travel Services and Divine Travel International, organized to ferry devotees by the tens of thousands to festivals and special projects throughout the world; Shri Hans Engineering and Divine Electronics, wholesale marketers of electronics equipment and designers of everything from inventions to new cities. The Players of the Living Arts are the musicians, actors, dancers, artists and singers of the new age.

Guru Maharaj Ji knew this would happen from the start. In December, 1972, and January, 1973, he designed the Divine United Organization, or DUO, as a master plan for the rediscovery of humanity, an organization capable of meeting global needs with total solutions. DUO coordinates the entire divine community, and under the guidance of Guru Maharaj Ji works through purely constructive means to remold this world as a humanistic society where people base their lives upon service rather than selfishness. For the members of DUO, work is worship.

The stated purpose of DUO might seem like an idle dream except for the incredible growth of Divine Light Mission. The Mission is different from all other organizations in that all of its members have received Knowledge. They have scrapped every ulterior motive and rededicated their lives. They are well on their way to total selflessness. Taking only what they need, giving all of themselves to the task, they are tackling the most massive job that men have ever faced - out of love for their Perfect Master, Guru Maharaj Ji.

Part II

THE CONTEXT

Forward

Who among us has not at some time stood on a hillside, looking out over a valley, heard the song of birds, and the wind in the trees, and felt some mysterious emotion welling up within the heart? For a moment we were at one with everything, for a moment the routine of our life was broken and we found ourselves wondering at the beauty of existence.

There is something strangely beautiful in this all too rare moment, when for once life is seen in a little more depth. We sense that life is a very wonderful, a blessed experience. What intangible essence lying beyond our conscious recognition is responsible for our life? We only feel a kind of tingle, exciting freshness, somewhere within, a sense of rightness, of belonging to everything.

In search of this brief instant, men Climb Mountains, soar on the winds, dive to the ocean depths and attempt impossible feats of bravado. We search for affinity with nature, which we can glimpse within us something as perfect as the sun and the bird's song, as the sky and the wind, and as the flowers of springtime. A glimpse of unity, a oneness with all things only faintly hinted at from around the edge of the mind.

Most of our lives we seem destined to experience separation from each other, from nature, from the

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pure powers of life, and from God. Why, we are even cut off from our own self, and the members of our families. Yet, strange though it may seem, this body, the human form, is created to allow the soul to experience the end of all separateness, the final coming together: the union of the soul with God. Only in this way can we live together on earth in perfect harmony.

The soul which was once a part of God is in its true nature perfect oneness; yet due to the influence of the millions of forms all around us, the soul's attention becomes divided, and unified experience is lost.

Perhaps our experiences of nature recall some distant memory of the soul to us, and this is the cause of our awareness of deeper joys; for in the soul waiting to be realized, there lies a reservoir of peaceful happiness. All of the power and beauty that has gone into this creation lies in seed form at the center of our being.

The realization of this perfection within is an inborn desire in every human being, and whichever way man may try to achieve this realization by external means, this desire will not be fulfilled. The purpose for which this human body was created is just this, that we may know that higher bliss which frees us from suffering, and allows us to enjoy our lives from moment to moment. It is the will of the divine that every human being should know this. It rests with us to find this perfect peace and happiness; when we l have found it, automatically our hearts will wish to tell others of the new joy in our lives.

In the beginning of time, when space and time first separated and space opened out into three dimensions, before the creation of universe, before the first pair of opposites was formed, there was a perfect essence, aware, possessing all divine qualities, a supreme intelligence.

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Far more empty than space, more eternal than time itself, is the absolute, so marvelously empty that it is completely full. It contains all that has been, all that is, and all that shall be. Its divine qualities cannot be described, yet still we name them: imperishable truth, eternal consciousness, incomparable bliss.

Words cannot do justice to that immaculate perfection who is at once our creator and compassionate Father, the very soul of our life, the primal energy, mother of the whole universe of nature. While she cares for every single creature, sustaining the ideal environment, he dwells within as the very consciousness itself. Formed and formless they are one energy, one perfect vibration.

Now this vibration is the invisible force sustaining the life within this body and in all creatures, maintaining the motion of all the systems even down to the last atom.

From time immemorial there have been Masters who revealed this energy, and disciples who experienced it within themselves through the Master's grace. They referred to it as the Word. It is the simplest and subtlest vibration in the whole universe the pure, pristine state of unmanifested consciousness. All beings are endowed with this consciousness and are thus potentially divine, but only the human being is able to recognize and manifest this divinity. The Word is the true form of the self, our true identity. It is also the true form of God. Yet only in the Perfect Master is it totally manifested, and in the normal human being it is obscured. The true Master in this age is Guru Maharaj Ji, and he has been born to reveal this eternal reality Within US, to return us to that eternal state which is beyond suffering, fear, and delusion. When this Knowledge is given, it is shown practically. The Word, the pure wave of being, is clearly revealed, and its pure energy is clearly seen as radiant

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light. The space enshrouded in mystery where it dwells is filled with sweet music, and perfumed by the delicious nectar of bliss. It is an experience transcending time and space, yet of great significance to our lives, here and now. The Word, in reality, is all there is all we are. In terms of true existence, it is the only one thing in the universe. Atoms, molecules, cells, life forms, worlds, stars and galaxies are in essence this Word: clothed in illusion for a limited time only, these forms appear as different. The outer shell will disappear in time, but the Word will remain forever. The great cycle of the entire universe is simply one manifestation of the Word, from beginning to end. Life is the finest manifestation of the Word, and in human life the Word is manifested most clearly, provided we make ourselves disciples of the Master. His power can pierce the obscuring veil of ignorance which surrounds the Word and permit us to see that pure energy in our hearts: it is possible for every member of the human race to know God and to see his radiance in everyone we meet.

The whole universe is a play where his life can assume countless forms; and in the final act of the play, his life finds its original form again, the pure love of the father.

Dear sisters, brothers, fathers, mothers and children, the final and most blissful part of God's plan for the universe can only be enacted with your cooperation, When you receive this Knowledge, you'll wish to thank with every fiber of your body the mother who gave you birth, you will wish to worship God with every second, every breath of your life. To every human being you will smile the smile of self recognition and extend the hand of brotherhood and unity, and you will welcome all life forms and all nature as if part of your own body. Until that time, we are dreaming an uncomfortable nightmare, trapped

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in illusion, blinded, deluded by the world around us, unaware that our fears are for nothing and that the key to eternal peace and happy contentment is in the hands of fifteen-year-old Guru Maharaj Ji. The door to that everlasting bliss is within our own heart.

Many times your soul has cried out in pain and confusion, it has longed for this opportunity to disentangle itself from a never ending dream punctuated by birth and death. Many times the soul, in birth, in death and through life, imagines itself released, but there is only a transformation: the shedding of one skin to be replaced by another. The illusion goes on until, in the human form, we hear this message, telling us how we may find the divine teacher who will open the door from illusion into reality, from death to eternal life, and from suffering to blissful joy. All who hear this, please take heed. Whether you realize it or not, you are searching only for this. This is the great gift which God bestows upon us, with great love and hope that we do not waste it. Your own soul will be most disappointed if it comes to the end of this short span as a human being no nearer to knowing the bliss of its own reality. Not knowing when we may obtain another such opportunity, the disappointment of our soul may become a long and bitter agony. Do not concern yourself with intellectual questioning, you cannot weigh this urgent message with the concepts of your past, you can only feel its sincerity in your heart. There is never as much time as we imagine, the world itself is in political instability and in this special time we, as Divine United Organization, disciples of Guru Maharaj Ji, Perfect Master of the Aquarian Age, call upon you to take responsibility for the future of our world and of our race. You may not know it, but by knowing the oneness within you, you are making a great step towards the oneness of mankind, and we urge you to take this message seriously, hear

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it with your heart and to avail yourself of the perfect Knowledge; being given at this very time out of the infinite mercy and compassion of Guru Maharaj Ji.

Mahatma Saphlanand

1

The Ultimate Science

The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious. It is the source of all true art and science ... To know that what is impenetrable to us really exists, manifesting itself as the highest wisdom and the most radiant beauty which our dull faculties can comprehend ... This knowledge, this feeling is at the center of true righteousness. In this sense, and this sense only, I belong to the ranks of devoutly religious men.
Albert Einstein

Ever since Einstein, Michelson, and Morley demolished some of the basic assumptions of science, small schools of scientists have been plumbing the limits of scientific knowledge-from sub-atomic physics to evolution to the heat death of the universe and the origins of the cosmos-seeking for an unshakable scientific reality as comforting as the myths they were leaving behind.

They tested the ultimate nature of matter, with cyclotrons, atomic bombs, electron microscopes, and radio-astronomy, in the hopes of finding the ultimate building block of the material world.

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They examined genetic matter, DNA and RNA, in hopes of finding what makes matter come alive. They bred and irradiated plants and animals, dug up fossils, and collected specimens, to see if evolution might be said to have a purpose.

They calculated the mass and speed of the receding galaxies, worked out the mathematics of diffusion and entropy, and plumbed the limits of space with radio telescopes and cameras in satellites to see if the universe would have to die some day-and if it did, whether it would ever begin again. To see if galaxies would fall away from us forever. To know if, when the last star burned out, a light would ever be re-kindled. To know if life was doomed.

And they tried to find out how it all began. Michelson and Morley were only able to upset established science because established science had made assumptions that it thought were common-sense facts. Established science had assumed, for instance, that space was full of an ocean of stuff called ether, and that light travels through ether at a constant speed. Just as, when you drive through a steady downpour; the rain seems to fall toward your windshield no matter which way you turn. In the same way, scientists thought, since the earth travels through space, light ought to be hitting its forward side travelling at a faster speed than the light that hits the rear of the earth.

So Michelson and Morley decided to find which way the earth was going, and how fast, building a gadget that would measure the speed light and taking measurements with the gadget pointing in different directions. It was a nice idea, but didn't work. No matter which way they pointed t machine, light always seems to be travelling at precisely the same speed.

A little while later, Einstein came up with his revolutionary Special Theory of Relativity. One of the things this theory showed was that the speed of light

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is an absolute. No matter how fast you are travelling, light always' leaves you and reaches YOU at a single speed. Another thing this theory proved is that nobody can travel faster than light, no matter how hard he tries.

Einstein also proved that when you travel at the speed of light, time stops. And that all matter can be converted to and from light energy, according to the formula E=MC2. This formula is usually translated as "Energy equals mass times the speed of light squared." But this translation misses the point. E =MC2 expresses a vision of the clear unity of matter and energy, a vision that Einstein undoubtedly saw. Imagine an atom exploding into light, the light flashing through space at an incredible 186,300 miles per second, and hitting every point in space it passes through with a force that itself is pure energy, pure speed, the essence of power, a force so powerful that it seems ready to leap away from the light at the speed of light redoubled. The flash of an atomic bomb from a pinhead of matter liberated into energy. The speed of light squared.

The schools of scientists who followed Einstein were unable to come up with any vision as brilliant as that, but they began to turn up some tantalizing cities. They found that the universe bad begun as a vast cosmic egg of light, which in one timeless moment had exploded into the universe. They found that there was at least the possibility that the universe might fall back into that cosmic egg of light at some far-off future time. In such an egg, matter could not exist All matter would be liberated into pure light, and all light would be merged into one.

The atom defeated its investigators, the seekers for the tiniest particle from which everything else could be built. They found that, when you get that small, it's not even clear that particles are particles. Under some conditions they behave like droplets of water or mercury - except that these were droplets of electrical

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charge, or even droplets made of two or three different charges linked somehow together. Under other conditions they behaved like fuzzy clouds of something, clouds that were very very thick in one small area and thinned out, without any sort of edge to them, all the way to the farthest galaxies. There is a little bit of every atom in your body beyond the farthest galaxies.

Scientists had entered the realm of things so small that matter was very little different from energy. They worked out the shapes of the electron shells that surround an atom's nucleus. The shells look like different sorts of energy forms bent back on them until they start going around and around the atom in a loop. But one mathematician describes them as the shapes of the places where different styles of energy feel most comfortable.

This was the land of the Heisenberg Uncertainty Principle. Scientists found that the very light they used to see these particles (or clouds, or whatever they were) was so very nearly as solid as the particles (if that's what they were) that it would knock them around all over the place. And this made it impossible to see what was going on-especially when the light started to look like it was part of the particle. In fact, the experiment seemed to be embarrassed in the presence of the experimenter. The scientists who studied light found that it would act like either a wave or a particle, depending on how they asked their questions. If they asked it to be a wave, it would be a wave ... if they asked it to be a particle, that show it would act.

Physicists had moments when it was almost too much to believe what their eyes and their instruments revealed. If there was so little difference between the smallest bits of matter and pure light, then obviously there was a very little difference between all the things that were made of matter, and the pure light that matter was convertible into. Perhaps human beings

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were just energy forms bent into very complicated closed loops. Perhaps when we look at each other we are only seeing the plates where the light of which we are made feels most comfortable Except that in this ease the words "most comfortable" are a colossal understatement, because the light energy of which we are made is bound with incredible strength into the form it has taken.

Scientists grappled with the question of whether the universe was only a clock which, once wound up and left to run, was slowly winding down to an irrevocable halt. They defined the concept of entropy, which is the degree to which the universe has fallen into decay and disorder, and found that entropy must always increase. It was an awful vision, when they put it that way. But other scientists who were studying the subatomic particles and the photon/waves of light recalled how agreeable these particles and waves had been to the influence of any outside force - how easily they could be made to go anywhere, do anything, be anything that tie researcher, asked. These other scientists suggested that entropy on the subatomic scale might not be the spread of disorder and decay at all, but rather a process of everything falling into place - an expression of how willing the minutest bits of matter and energy were to bow to circumstance and accept their fate - a growth of harmony in the universe. And if this is what entropy was at the smallest scale, why shouldn't we believe that this is what entropy is at every scale? That entropy is the natural growth of the most comfortable and harmonious arrangement of the universe. The only reason we were having trouble seeing that was that we were afraid of dying...

Still other scientists were grappling with the ultimate nature of life. Watson and Crick, in a furious rush, deduced the structure of the DNA molecule and the way in which it reproduced. It was almost an anti-climax - the thing seemed to run like clockwork.

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Watson and Crick turned to other things. But more perceptive scientists asked what kept this magnificent piece of clockwork ticking - what had caused it to evolve from simpler chemicals in the first place. Obviously it was the way in which the chemical properties in all the various atoms of the molecule combined, which gave the DNA molecule its living nature. Other scientists had already found that chemical properties of atoms were actually electrical in nature - the ways in which the electron shells of different atoms reacted to one another. So the living qualities of living matter derived from the fact that the energy it was made of was always taking the most comfortable shape, falling into place. In a way, life seemed to be powered by the force that powered entropy, which was also the force that governed the behavior of light - a single unified law governed a single unified stuff that was sometimes energy and sometimes matter. All this law had to do was to define the forms and the properties of the subatomic wave-particles, and everything else followed naturally - the color of a sunrise, the scent of a violet, the properties of human life.

"Mechanical determinism!" the skeptics declared- but the new visionaries of science already had their answer ready. Consider the Heisenberg Uncertainty Principle, which made it impossible to see what the fundamental nature of the subatomic particles could be. Consider the fact that every event on the atomic scale and smaller had to be expressed in terms of probabilities, and probabilities could very well mean that the wave-particle might decide to do anything, but it would probably decide to do this. Electrons and photons are very agreeable, very obedient, very eager to please-but there's a very small chance that in the next ten minutes every particle in your body will suddenly get up and move to the far side of Aldebaran. A very small chance, but it's there.

So maybe there are constant miracles going on down there at the subatomic scale. Maybe all the bil-

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lions of billions of billions of billions of subatomic particles are alive; possessed of a very charming, agreeable and sometimes playful nature. Maybe that's why you're alive.

Everything seemed to be reducible to light Matter is simply light locked in a form. Electricity, magnetism, beat, sound-these are light affecting matter. Life is light- playing with matter. Anything that travels at the speed of light is beyond time; and matter is the only form of energy that travels any slower so time exists because light becomes matter. Space is the relationship between bits of matter connected by light Gravity is matter stretching space. (This last discovery was predicted by Einstein and verified during a solar eclipse.)

The only unsolved part of the puzzle (apart from a few minor details) was consciousness. Was this also light? If it was, it was eternal, since physics proved the light cannot be destroyed-and this would mean the whole universe is conscious, which has marvelous, marvelous implications. Or was consciousness only an arrangement of matter and energy, in which case it was mortal and transient, and the universe a tragedy...

The question was still unsettled when Guru Maharaj Ji arrived in America, offering experimental evidence that consciousness was light, and the universe eternally wakeful, playful, and wise...

2

The Consciousness Wave

What is a wave in the ocean? Scientists say that actually the water in the waves is only going around in circles. Six inches up, six inches forward, six inches down, six inches back - the water moves like a roller heaping to let the wind pass over it; and though a six-inch wave seems to be going somewhere, the water isn't really going anywhere at all.

The actual wave is the circular motion of water stirred by the wind.

A sine Wave is the purest wave there is. It is pure mathematics, nothing but the large circular motion making a wave out of a straight line. Mathematicians use a tool called Fourier Analysis to show that any wave, regardless of the shape, is just that pure sine wave superimposed on itself again and again like the complicated patterns of waves in a harbor.

Somehow a wind stirs an ocean of something that fills all of space ... and a wave like a sine wave rises and slaps back and forth across the harbor of the universe and becomes the complicated wave force of which everything is made ...

Physicists say that everything is made of light and light moves in waves.

And it's all just a sine wave, a circular motion, stir-

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ring through the universe, visible as light. The wind blows and the universe dances, round and round a center that is very hard to see.

The most special wave of all is within us. It is the carrier wave that runs up and down our nervous system, connecting our brain through the nerves of our body, to our eyes, ears, nose, mouth, and skin, like the subtle current flowing through a telephone wire.

If nothing were to disturb that carrier wave, it would take the pure sine wave shape of primordial energy, but as soon as we start to dream, think, or wake to experience the world through our senses, the wave shape gets far more complicated. The nerves of our senses double and re-double it, superimposing it on itself to make a multiple sine wave that describes the sensations they are having.

When the multiple sine wave arrives at the brain, our brain equipment sorts it out with a kind of Fourier Analysis to figure out what's going on. These sine waves mean there's a tree over there; that wave tells the shade of green of its leaves; all the sine waves are in harmony. And that (perhaps) means the tree is beautiful. All these sine waves are actually one, but it's like the one you see standing between two mirrors when you can see a reflection behind a reflection behind a reflection.

These multiple sine waves are hard on our nerves. It tires our senses to make them. It tires our brain to decipher them. And it tires our nerve cells just to let them pass through. This is only too evident after a long harrowing day when we collapse from nervous exhaustion. We feel that all our senses have been tried to the limit and the only thing we want to do is rest.

Actually what wears us out about these multiple sine waves is not that they are a more powerful current than the natural carrier wave; the natural single sine-wave-shaped carrier wave is just as powerful but so natural to us that it doesn't Burt a bit. But the mul-

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tiple sine waves come from outside our body and so they are not in tune with us. Their energy disrupts the chemical balance of every cell they travel through. They get on our nerves.

Why can't we pay attention to everything at once? After all, we have five senses and an enormous brain. Why can't we use them all, all the time? Why don't we have total awareness?

When scientists first asked these questions a few years ago, they stumbled on a scientific breakthrough. They saw that there must be filters built into our nervous system that screen out most of what we see, hear, feel, taste, and smell, so that only the most important things catch our attention. The filters are our bodies' defense against total nervous exhaustion.

Researchers found that filters play favorites. If we're paying attention to something, its waves pass through the filter. If we want to be distracted, the filters let those waves through. And when we get completely absorbed, it takes something quite dramatic to pass through the filter.

Our filters make us able to concentrate our attention, and they prolong our lives by protecting our nerves. Each of the multiple sine waves that make up a moment of our waking experience is a part of the original sine wave. The filters are cutting out most of the parts. They are subtracting from our awareness of the world. They are taking a part of the sparkle out of life.

Can you remember how wonderful it was to be just a kid having a good time? (It's okay to have trouble remembering if your childhood was tough.) As infants we led an unfiltered life. Everything was vivid. Tears and laughter and wonderment came easily. The whole world was bright and beautiful - just begging to be played with. But as we got older the filters took over. The subtle and the beautiful faded slowly away.

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We'll do almost anything to open our filters up again. We'll attack them with alcohol and drugs. We'll relax them with vacations, massages, sex, comforting thoughts, money in the bank, people to depend on. We'll take part of the burden off our filters by moving to a penthouse, the suburbs, the country, or a monastery. We'll see psychiatrists, we'll try hypnotism, we'll sleep ten hours a day.

These things make a difference, but only a little. The multiple sine waves that tell us what country living is hike may be very much in harmony, but they're still multiple and we still need filters to cope. We still get tired, irritable, depressed, and confused. We still have crises, fights, and divorces; the filters keep closing in, life gets less fun, and so do we. Our kids still prefer to play with other kids.

Fading awareness turns us into pleasure seekers. We pursue laughter, glamor, loud music, passion, and sex because those things are loud and bright, and get a little bit of the glorious childhood past our filters. "Yes," we say furiously, "this is real! This is what life is all about!" And then the wear and tear is too much. The filters close in and we start feeling jaded. We've lost it again.

There's a cure, of course. Just as the multiple sine waves are the problem, the unified sine wave, the pure carrier wave, is the cure.

The multiple sine wave reflects the world our senses experience. So to give our nerves a real chance to recover, we've got to give our senses the chance to take a total break from experiencing that world. Just blanking our mind is no, solution. Not only can't we do anything in that state, but we're not experiencing anything at all. We're actually getting further from a child's bright awareness.

But we can consciously experience the unified wave itself. We can see it, feel it, hear it, taste and smell it. If we are busy using our eyes for other things we can

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feel it and still benefit. The conscious experience of that natural wave pulls every nerve cell that travels through it back to chemical normalcy. It tells every filter, it's all right, you can let go now.

This is the most peaceful, refreshing, reassuring thing we can ever hope to experience. It's like taking a deep long drink at the Fountain of Youth. Incomparable. Fantastic.

But experiencing that unified wave isn't as easy as it seems. We rely on our brain to pick out a feeling, or a memory, or experience--we know no other way. But our brain can only work with multiple sine waves; that's the way it's built. In other words, this is one experience we can't come to on our own. We need help.

What an amazing situation! Every moment in our life is written in that carrier wave. Leave all the body in perfect condition but take away the carrier wave flowing from our senses to our brain and through our brain and down again to our muscles and organs, our hearts and lungs, and experiences stop. We can't see or hear or taste or feel or smell a thing. We can't think, our heart stops, we can't breathe. What's the carrier wave? It's life itself. Without it we're nothing; it is our awareness. We're always aware in it, but we don't know how to be aware of it-no matter how hard we try.

We see patterns of light, we hear patterns of sound, we don't see things or hear things, we see and hear the light and sound coming from those things. And light and sound are energy. We don't taste things, we taste patterns of energy. We don't feel things, we feel vibrations. One sine wave for each part of the pattern, for each multiple sine wave. If we experience this sine wave with our senses we will see light, hear sound, experience unified energy with every sense. White light, because white is the unified whole. Full harmonious sound, for the same reason; a totally satisfying experience naturally.

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This unified wave Guru Maharaj Ji reveals. Those who know the science involved, who have taken this Knowledge and have seen that he actually reveals this unified wave, know there is only one way to do this. They have realized that Guru Maharaj Ji is not only experiencing this unified wave, the pure light of which the whole universe arid our consciousness too, is made, but he is totally in control of this wave and can therefore reveal it to others.

The implications of this are even more incredible than the implications of the Michelson-Morley experiment. It's a scientific revolution in the making.

You can prove to yourself that the patterns, multiple sine waves, are what tire your senses by staring at a colored piece of paper fixedly for a few minutes and then looking quickly away to a piece of white paper on a bare white wall. You will see something of the same shape and size but of the opposite color because the color you were looking at was tiring to your optic nerve. The shape will have fuzzy edges because your eyes are also tired of the edges. It's colors and edges that are the essence of the pattern.

You can prove to yourself that blanking your mind is no better by reading up on experiments with sensory deprivation. Scientists have found that people who spend too much time in total darkness start to hallucinate as their nervous system seeks release from the strain.

And you can prove to yourself the benefits of the carrier wave by experiencing it for yourself. Just take Guru Maharaj Ji's Knowledge and give it a try.

3

You Have Three Eyes

Recent experiments are forcing scientists to wonder why they were so quick to dismiss the pineal gland - the gland stimulated by meditation on divine light.

The Greeks called the pineal the thought-controlling center of the brain; Descartes said it was the "seat of the soul." Why? Because the pineal is the only gland in the brain without a duplicate - and knowing God is an experience of unity.

"That's not scientific," researchers have said. But imagine how startled they were when Doctors Drew and Blatt of the Department of Psychiatry, University of Kentucky Medical Center, released their findings: The pineal gland is responsible for maintaining the integrity and wholeness of the entire human organism.

Only recently did modern scientists dare to speculate upon the functions of this gland, and now look what they are saying: One, the stimulated pineal causes energy to flow throughout the entire body so that we can experience higher levels of consciousness. Two, it causes a maturation of the central nervous system and conceptual processes, lending grace and precision to our movements and allowing us to think more clearly on an abstract level. Three, it allows for a discharge of all drives; that is, it releases us from

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the domination of hunger, fear, thirst, lust, anger, and pride. Four, it helps us find quick solutions to the most difficult practical problems.

In the lamprey eel and the tuatara lizard of New Zealand, the pineal gland functions as a third eye, highly sensitive to light. These animals have three eyes: two on their face and a third atop their head. All three are connected to the brain. In higher animals, layers of skin cover the pineal gland, but this does not eliminate its ability to sense light. If an animal is active during the day and sleeps at night, the pineal will detect the change in light and adjust its metabolism accordingly. In the daytime it makes sure the animal has plenty of energy to run, hunt, build a home, or whatever; at night the energy level decreases for sleep.

These same mechanisms are operating in man, but who ever thinks of them? And who gives the pineal credit? When was the last time someone said to you, "Oh, my metabolic rate seems a bit high today," or "My pineal gland must not be working properly because ... "? Only when something goes wrong - when we're ill and our body cycles are disrupted - do we become aware of the perfect biological harmony which is going non-stop all our lives.

If you are outside and it suddenly gets cold, your metabolic rate will immediately speed up, your glucose will burn more quickly, and more internal heat will be generated. If that's not sufficient, your body will begin to shiver, your hairs will stand up in goose pimples and you will probably begin to move faster. Even more, you'll begin to think, "Wouldn't it be nice to be in a warm house?" or, "I need a fisherman's sweater." On the other hand, if the sun comes out from behind a cloud, you'll begin to sweat and decide to walk in the shade. You'll probably find a soda vendor on the comer or an air-conditioned store. The body has a thermostat which is always set at 98.6° F. and unless we have fever or chills, that's where our

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temperature stays. The endocrine system is in charge of all this, keeping the body in harmony with a massive communication network. Thus it takes care of all the things we never stop to think about, from our heart beat and blood pressure to the amount of water in our body.

Within this endocrine system, the hypothalamus and pituitary control the lower glands such as the adrenals, the thyroid, the gonads, and the pancreas. This is universally accepted as fact. But mounting evidence suggests that all of these highly-developed body controls have one master in the brain: the pineal gland.

For a long time little was known about the pineal gland in man beyond the fact that it is a small, greyish organ-resembling a third eye-which lay deep within the brain. Some scientists considered it a useless left-over from some earlier stage of man's development, like the appendix. Others suspected it had some influence over bodily growth and sexuality, but until quite recently, little research was done. After all, what could possibly be the use of a light-sensitive organ in the center of the head?

Studies by Barberosa (1959), Quay (1967), and Reiter (1969) incline one to believe that the pineal gland may exercise control over all the lower endocrine glands. Other studies suggest that if the pineal gland is removed by surgery or cut so that it will no longer function, the other glands no longer secrete hormones appropriately. This is the reason why young boys with damaged pineal glands frequently develop secondary sex characteristics long before the normal age. The lower endocrine glands have no guide to tell them when to stop.

In its position as head of the endocrine system, the pineal gland may control our daily health and bodily growth, and signal the time for the development of secondary sex characteristics. Beyond that, it is implicated with our conceptions of reality, because the

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pineal is the only endocrine gland which secretes its hormones directly into the brain and cerebral spinal fluid; thus it affects the chemical make-up of the brain -which influences our emotions and awareness. What continues to mystify the vast majority of scientists is how a light-sensitive organ can be stimulated when it is so far from any external source of light.

Those scientists, however, who have received the Knowledge of Guru Maharaj Ji recognize that meditation upon the inner, self-effulgent light has a direct effect upon the pineal gland. They say, in fact, that it is the physical receptor within man for the divine light of ultimate reality. It is technically impossible at this time to measure the amount of pineal hormone in the body. In time we may be able to set up an experiment in which people who have not received Knowledge are tested for the amount of this hormone; they might then be divided into two groups, one of which receives the Knowledge and meditates upon it regularly, the other serving as a control group. At set intervals, the subjects could be re-tested to detect changes in the amount of pineal hormone.

However, we can compare the observed behavior among disciples of Guru Maharaj Ji to the results scientists expect when a person's pineal gland is stimulated. Since the pineal gland secretes directly into the brain fluid, any chemical change would immediately be noticed as a shift in consciousness. Indeed, many people who have just received Knowledge speak of a rebirth; they recognize something which is so joyful and fulfilling that they can immediately quit such habits as smoking, drinking, drug taking, and compulsive sex.

Good food, sunshine, and plenty of sleep all contribute to health by providing nourishment to the body, but meditation changes an infinite source of light-energy into chemical hormones which benefit the entire organism. Some disciples of Guru Maharaj Ji report they need less food and sleep when they

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meditate consistently. The ability of the pineal gland to harness energy and convert it into a form which is accessible to all human beings remains unmatched by any technological invention.

Without the pineal's restraining influence, the adrenal gland produces adrenalin in response to every petty aggravation, and the body suffers in a constant state of alarm. Likewise, smaller amounts of free, floating sexual hormones produce additional anxieties and tensions. But as the pineal gland is stimulated through meditation, it inhibits these lower endocrine glands and tunes them down. Meditators as a group have found inner peace and are rarely irritated, despite hectic and crowded living conditions within Divine Light Mission. And as these lower bodily activities are tuned down, higher ones are awakened. Meditators have an intensely practical and positive outlook on life, and are dedicated to finding simple solutions to a wide range of social problems. Even younger and sometimes uneducated disciples exhibit an ability to readily grasp very sophisticated theological, astrophysical, and psychological concepts.

Through stimulation of the pineal gland and meditation upon the Knowledge, man has the ability to go through a biological transformation as dramatic as the change of an earth-ridden caterpillar into an airborne butterfly. Animalistic tendencies are chemically decreased and replaced by spiritual growth. Science bears out what all Perfect Masters have taught: Man's consciousness can shift from the grosser, finite entities toward pure thought and the awareness of infinity.

1

A Cure for All Addictions

The Knowledge of Guru Maharaj Ji is an experience of the eternal life-force within every human being. By meditating on this energy, anyone can attain a natural and complete state of peace. In less than two years, more than 35,000 Americans have responded to this promise. Many have overcome the need for outside stimulation to find security-including their physical and emotional dependency on cigarettes, alcohol, and other drugs.

While today the Knowledge has been received by people of every age, social, and behavioral background (many of whom never took drugs at all), its immediate appeal prior to 1971 was to the youth of America: those of the "counter-culture" who were united in their feelings of alienation from society. In rejecting traditional values, many of these young people opened themselves to esoteric teachings, primarily those of the East, from Tibetan mysticism and macrobiotics to Yoga, Sufism, and various forms of meditation. On the largest scale, their efforts to expand consciousness past the realities of the modem world led them to drug abuse.

The Knowledge of Guru Maharaj Ji is natural and suitable for every human being, but it has had strik-

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ing effect in eliminating drug dependency because the drug abuser often recognizes that his mind is the source of his suffering, and seeks a means to control it. Meditation on this Knowledge does not bring a suppression of the desire to take drugs; rather it brings a transcendence of these needs as one becomes fulfilled by the highest consciousness of peace available to man. Physically, the body releases its drives towards temporary sensual fulfillment as biochemical changes occur through activation of the pineal gland during meditation on divine Light.

Guru Maharaj Ji has said: "If you take this Knowledge, you have no need of drugs. It is internal, very internal, much more beautiful than any outside drugs. Today everyone says, "Sonny, don't take drugs," but see, they have to have an alternative, and the alternative is the Knowledge. So those who have this Knowledge enjoy the normal and natural human experience within them, instead of trying to glean some excitement or happiness from occasional entertainment or pill popping. Taking drugs is not the infinite stage, it's a very finite stage, it has a beginning, it has an end. But this Knowledge does not have an end. What I have is like a built-in LSD which God provided you when you were born. There's no need to come down from it."

To have these words reach one of the neediest segments of society, the Shri Hans Humanitarian Services recently applied for a Federal grant to establish a comprehensive drug-rehabilitation program, based on the proven conviction that meditation on the Knowledge of Guru Maharaj Ji is the final step in freeing even "hard-drug" addicts from their dependency. Included in their preliminary proposal is a study conducted early this year with 875 premies, the majority of whom were between the ages of 15 and 29. Its purpose was to get a preliminary idea of the impact of the Knowledge on drug abuse.

In response to the question "Have you ever used

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drugs, other than prescription or patent medicines?" 840 out of 875 respondents said "yes." Here is a breakdown of the effects of meditation in the lives of these drug users:

Marijuana: 97% of those replying had used marijuana at least once, with 87% using it more than 40 times. 50% were using marijuana more than 20 times per month before receiving Knowledge; 8% used it at this frequency afterwards.

Hallucinogens: Before receiving Knowledge, 62% were using hallucinogens at least once per month, and 6% used them more than 13 times per month. After Knowledge, 10% were using hallucinogens at least once per month, and only one of the 826 respondents continued to use them more than 13 times per month.

Stimulants (amphetamines, cocaine, etc.): Half of the respondents used stimulants at least once per month before Knowledge; only 7% did so afterwards. Eleven percent used stimulants at least eight times per' month before Knowledge, and 0.5% afterwards.

Barbituates, Hypnotics, and Tranquilizers: 43% used these drugs at least once per month before Knowledge, 6% afterwards. 10.5% used them more than eight times per month before Knowledge, 1% afterwards.

Opiates: Before Knowledge, 21% used opiates once per month, or more often. The figure was reduced to 3% after Knowledge. Alcohol: Out of 450 respondents, 18.5% did not drink alcohol at all before Knowledge; the figure rose to 54% after Knowledge. Of the 16.5% who drank alcohol at least 20 times per month before Knowledge, 3% continued to do so afterwards.

Respondents were asked: "Before you received Knowledge, to what extent did drugs and drug use influence your life?" Their response: "Very much"34%; "Quite a lot"-23%; "Somewhat"-20%; "Not much"-17%; "None"-6%. They were then asked: "To what extent has receiving Knowledge altered the

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role of drugs and drug use in your life?" Among those who had responded "Very much" to the previous question, the responses were: "Completely changed it"-72%; "Changed it significantly"-17%; "Changed it somewhat"-7%; "No change"-4%. Among those who had responded "Quite a lot" to the previous question, the responses were: "Completely changed it"-61%; "Changed it significantly"-30%; "Changed it somewhat"-7%; "No change"-2%.

Thus 90% of those who said that drugs had, at one time, significantly influenced their lives, replied that the Knowledge had completely or significantly altered that influence. This figure is impressive considering that 76% of the respondents had been meditating on the Knowledge less than a year, and none for more than 22 months.

The preliminary study clearly demonstrates the impact of this meditation on the use of drugs and alcohol. Regardless of age, sex, or personal history, drug abusers can be profoundly changed by a comprehensive drug rehabilitation program, the final step of which is direct meditation upon the source of inner peace.

5

Prescription for Medicine

Meditation on the spiritual center of life can have a profound effect on the practice of medicine. With a thorough knowledge of body, mind, and soul, both doctor and patient are in a better position to understand and prevent illness.

The diseases of modern Western man are mainly caused by tension, fear, and anxiety, plus the toxic effects of pollutants, drugs, and poor diet. Medicine looks to biochemistry and physiology to understand and remedy these problems. However, it is impossible to cure our body if our mind remains full of negative thoughts, or if our whole being lacks inner harmony.

The external events of our time - wars, famines, racial unrest, political corruption, corporate greed are one with the unrest and impurity within us. Today we have the diseases of civilization: heart diseases, cancers, digestive disorders, diabetes, drug addiction, mental disorders, venereal disease. For "disease" arises from some abuse of natural law, and the ultimate natural law is harmony.

Fifty to seventy percent of people who come to doctors are ravaged by feelings, thoughts, and actions that are out of control. To find peace, the housewife takes tranquilizers or sleeping pills, the worker drinks his beer at lunch, the executive downs his martinis.

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Others saturate themselves with food, drugs, compulsive sex. But they don't find peace; they find frustration and turmoil, and the disorders those things cause: digestive disorder, degenerative diseases, mental illness, high blood pressure, heart disease.

Medical science is beginning to recognize the power of mind over matter. Experience with advanced yogis, studies of biofeedback, and conditioning in man and animals, have shown that supposedly involuntary processes like heart rate or blood pressure can be consciously controlled. To recognize the power of the mind to cause all manner of temporary disharmony - from changes in cellular growth (cancer), to changes in energy metabolism (diabetes, depression), to constrictions of organs (heart attacks) - is to realize the possibility of cure. But the power of the soul is necessary to bring the mind back to harmony. Since the soul is always in a state of perfection, a conscious experience of it will bring perfection. Then the body can heal.

Without Knowledge of the soul, a doctor may be powerless. He may offer tranquilizers or other medications, but these don't always reach the source. Physicians generally approach their patients with physical diagnosis, constant tests, X-rays, blood studies and medications. This course is misleading but most doctors are suffering from inner misery similar to their patients'. The rate of narcotics addiction among doctors is estimated somewhere between one in 40 and one in 400 - about 25 to 75 times the rate in the general population. Furthermore, suicide among physicians is estimated at three to seven times the rate for the general population, according to a study in Medical Insight magazine.

Today many doctors lack a deep human wisdom, compassion and insight. Medical training is geared for the manipulation of physical symptoms and the rearrangement of biochemistry. Today's doctor may

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achieve some relief of the physical problem, but the underlying emotional, mental, and spiritual causes may remain.

The doctor is in a unique position. He is the "high priest" of science. He seems to preside over life and death; to him we bring our miseries and our confidences. Some might say that "people problems" are not medical, but religious. However, science is the religion of the day. Religion has power when people experience and love the glory of God; otherwise it is ritual and rules for morality. In contrast, the power of medical science today is experienced very directly, very practically by most people.

Doctors are unprepared for these responsibilities. They may have the capacity to understand emotional problems, but won't have the time to listen, or may be afraid of becoming emotionally drained. And without true Knowledge of self, without the constant experience of love, warmth, compassion, and insight, the physician is in a similar state to his early colleagues who tried to treat pneumonia without penicillin.

By receiving the Knowledge of Guru Maharaj Ji, doctor and patient can help themselves and each other. Within the meditative experience, deep insight into the mind and heart of another becomes possible. The doctor can give the inner support and help that the patient is seeking, and can experience the joy of truly giving. Knowing the joy of service, he goes beyond the desire for profit, prestige, or intellectual stimulation.

The patient gives his trust when he is assured of love. He can come to know the source of his problem and tap his own resources to solve it. Neither patient nor physician is misled by the constantly changing array of symptoms. A balance between science and heart, investigation and compassion, meditation and prescription, can be reached when the nature of mind

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and soul is known. With the recognition of the full human problem comes recognition of the solution.

It is through meditation upon the source of love that the physician can heal. While in the state of natural, flowing calm and compassion, he is free to fully experience the patient's problems without becoming drained.

Illness is merely temporary disharmony. We study viruses, bacteria, allergies, and feel we are seeing the problems. Yet all these physical things are being moved within a spiritual-mental energy field. All manner of therapies can be brought into use once the nature of the mind-spirit continuum is known. Scientists do recognize the existence of subtle energy systems of the mind and body as being more powerful than the gross systems. Yet without understanding the soul-energy, which is more subtle and powerful than the mind, they cannot effect changes at these subtle levels. The laws of spiritual awareness are simple and fundamental to human well-being. As they are recognized through inner revelation, the mind can be quieted and the body healed.

6

Sociology for Sceptics

In a cloud chamber an invisible subatomic particle streaks through water vapor leaving a cloudy trail to show where it has been. The casual observer might dream up many theories to explain the little trail, but the scientist knows its true cause is the tiny particle long since gone. When a Perfect Master appears, he can leave a trail of followers millenniums long and continents wide. A sociologist will seek to explain such a rapidly growing spiritual teaching by surrounding circumstances: war, declining empires, technology, moral decay, catastrophe - but he'll be missing the point. At any time, the explosive spread of spiritual awareness is caused, only by the nature of the spiritual experience being given.

Thus sociological explanations of spiritual phenomena reflect only one part of what is going on, while the spiritual explanations show events in the context of a broader reality. Explanations of some aspects of Guru Maharaj Ji's Knowledge will illustrate this point.

Beyond Similarities

Social scientists have long wondered why the same symbols and motifs appear in myths, legends, and

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scriptures from all over the world. "Cultural diffusion" is the answer of the anthropologist. He delves deep into history to construct an elaborate scheme of migrations and questionable trade routes to show how widely scattered civilizations must at one time or another have had enough contact to communicate symbols and stories to one another. Other observers suggest that perhaps universal life experiences give rise to similar symbols. After all, all people everywhere experience nature, the sun, movement of heavenly bodies, changing of seasons, growth and death of plants and animals, wind, the movement of water. In all societies there is birth, death, marriage, language, leadership, and family role-playing. And we all have human bodies: we breathe, eat, drink, sleep, and eliminate. Finally, psychologists have understood that humans share not only outer, but also inner experience. Minds and emotions work the same everywhere.

The "collective unconscious" theory of Carl G. Jung, the Swiss psychologist, comes close to explaining spiritual reality. He states that human psyches have similar tendencies because not only are they similarly structured, but they also merge into unity on the deepest level of the unconscious, as the roots of separate trees burrow down into the same earth. But still he does not take the final step to the complete spiritual explanation. For while bodies and minds have structural resemblance and psyches which are ultimately connected, it is further true that every human is a manifestation of the same energy vibration with the same consciousness. Once the consciousness in a person is connected to the universal energy, he experiences the same things-light, music, nectar, and vibration-no matter when, how, or where he lives on this planet, and he knows that others can experience the same. Perfect Masters have appeared on the earth throughout history to establish this connection in humans between consciousness and primordial energy. Because this is the most profound of human ex-

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periences, it appears frequently in the myths, legends, and scriptures of every society. In other words, mystics and spiritual teachers talk and write about light because they do see a light within their own bodies "a thousand times brighter than the sun." Any social scientist having this experience would immediately abandon all his complex theories for this simple, immediate, and universal truth.

Secret Initiation

Sociologists explain secret initiation as a tool of mystic cults. Through secrecy, they say, an aura of mystery and power inspires curiosity, awe, and even fear in non-initiates which makes them easily controllable.

Though observers are not allowed at a Knowledge session and initiates vow never to repeat what is revealed to them, experience of the initiation shows the above explanations of secrecy to be irrelevant. Even if an observer were to film and tape-record a session, he would still not have any record of the experience being imparted. For the essence of a Knowledge session does not involve what is said, or even the demonstration of the four techniques of meditation. Rather, the initiation is a profound spiritual event in which an indefinable essence, or energy, is transferred between human beings. The initiate knows this, not only because a brilliant light has been revealed to him within his own body, but also because many irrevocable changes begin to take place in his life. He discovers new confidence and motivation, the crumbling of fears and limitations, a completely true sense of who he is, increased sensitivity to others, heightened sense perceptions, renewed physical vitality, more frequent experience of "luck" and "coincidence", and finally, more and more, that feeling of "The peace which passeth all understanding." Far from using secret initiation to promote exclusiveness, it is a constant plea of

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Guru Maharaj Ji and his followers that people should come test his Knowledge, free-of-charge.

We must recognize that secrecy of initiation prevents adulteration of the teaching. Sociologists may think that secrecy helps to maintain a politically useful dogma, but publication of the techniques in a Knowledge session would only lead true seekers into confusion. They might delay receiving Knowledge, thinking that merely by knowing the techniques or commandments they will have received the essence. But the essence of the experience - the grace of Satguru - cannot be written, explained, or captured on film. Loss of this essence of the teaching of Perfect Masters has always left an empty, brittle religious structure, committed to words and rituals, subject to outside manipulations, and rendered inflexible through social and historical change. Only when the real energy and grace of Knowledge is personally transmitted do devotees feel the pure spiritual experience which guides them to truth.

Effectiveness of the Meditation

Sociologists focus on the social circumstances surrounding the practise of meditation. They theorize that the new seeker is surrounded by people telling him what he is to experience through meditation, inundating his mind with expectations. Not wanting to admit to himself or to others that he cannot be spiritual, he convinces himself that he feels what has been described. This delusion is reinforced by praise from others, until it becomes a spiritual version of "the Emperor's new clothes."

But the main thing told to seekers of Knowledge is that the experience cannot be described, that there is no way to begin to communicate what will happen through meditation. In fact, preconceived expectation of any of the divine experiences may prevent their

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fullest realization. For in meditation only when the mind is stilled can we become consciously aware of unity. Reality beyond the mind is totally new; its perception is unpredictable and spontaneous. If the attention of the meditator is preoccupied with hopes or expectations of what he will experience, his mind is not calm enough to experience the meditation.

Spiritual Discourse

Devotees are encouraged to listen to and to give spiritual discourses, or "satsang." Sociologists see this as an attempt to build up enthusiasm and reinforce beliefs. Students of "collective behavior" observe that gatherings of any enthusiasts tend to break down inhibitions and rekindle interest in the activity. Their theory of "positive reinforcement" says that when a person is accepted and praised by others, he is more likely to continue the accepted actions.

But while "positive reinforcement" may play some role in the effectiveness of satsang - certainly experience of the Knowledge is more likely to be understood by devotees than by non-initiates - it remains a very limited explanation. Just as the essence of Knowledge is not the meditation techniques, the essence of satsang is not the spoken word. The point of satsang is that the same energy or vibration moves both speaker and listener. The devotee knows satsang will often tell him something he has heard over and over; he attends in order to feel and share the energy. Even falling asleep during satsang or hearing it in another language is effective, for one is still exposed to the experience of the vibration.

Serving the Perfect Master

Devotees are urged to do service for Guru Maharaj Ji. According to sociologists, service could have

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several functions. It can give direction and purpose in life to the disoriented. It can help the more well-adjusted person become more committed to his cause. Finally, sociologists point out that organizations of volunteers cannot possibly maintain and finance themselves, let alone spread their message without the dedicated aid of many members. They suggest that the real reason for service is not to help the member, but to benefit the organization and whoever runs it.

But after beginning to serve Guru Maharaj Ji, the devotees experience service differently. They are not serving an organization or just one person; through dedicated action they help all humanity. In the speech which launched the Divine United Organization, Guru Maharaj Ji said, "And I hope that you understand me perfectly. It's very seldom you get the chance to do this type of service, beautiful service, not for one man, not for two, not for America, not for England, not for India, but for the whole world, for the whole world."

And in doing service the individual experiences direct benefits. It allows the devotee to keep his mind in meditation much more easily: one comes to experience more and more the grace of Guru Maharaj Ji. And with the mind at rest in meditation, he finds that once back in active service, he can cease to identify himself with what he does. Students can function as businessmen, factory workers as artists - just as we all become poets when we are in love. As one becomes an instrument of selfless action, the full force of the energy of creation flows through one until one is able to see the divine hand at work everywhere.

These parallels between sociological and spiritual explanations of the Knowledge could be multiplied many times. But as our sociologist listens a little closer to the satsang he is receiving, he will begin to feel it in his heart. And at that point, the sociologist becomes a devotee.

PART III

THE QUESTIONS

Guru Maharaj Ji, who are you?
Who am I? I'm just an ordinary humble servant of God, preaching the gospel of peace in the world, preaching the Knowledge of peace. Am I anything else? You are seeing my body, but I am not my body. What I am is something else inside me. What are you? You are not your body, you are something else. What I am seeing when I look at you is a perishable object, a case in which that power, that soul, is being carried. Understand? When you see a camera, what you are seeing is not the camera, it is a tin case. The machine is inside it. Right? The case is not taking the picture, it is the machine inside that is taking the picture. And what is me is inside me. And if you want to know what that is, then look inside yourself, and once you realize that, you can realize what is inside me. Because that's the one common factor among all of us. It's not your body, because you can't operate on it. Doctors can do operations but they don't see that light inside us. Not by these eyes can you see that light. It is the divine thing, and to see that you need the divine thing.

Do you regard yourself as being a teacher of a new

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religion, or do you regard yourself as God or the Son of God?
A rose does not say that I am a rose. People who see it say it is a rose. This is the question I always get on television and on all the news programs, "Why do people say you are God?" And I say, "I don't say I am God. People see something in me and they think I am God." Right?

What is your mission in the world?
Our mission is to bring peace, love, and truth into this world. Man is supposed to be human, but actually he has lost his humanity. That's why there is so much frustration, so much jealousy, and so much hatred between human beings. We have started this mission, and it's working very, very successfully distributing love, truth, and peace so that the idea of brotherhood can come into the world.

Is it against the will of God that more than a handful of humanity will ever become enlightened? Is it possible that the whole human race will ever become enlightened?
It is possible. This is possible. It is His nature. What He decides, He can do. There are no laws for Him. There are no regulations for Him. There is no limit for Him. He is Perfect. No laws can put Him into limitations. He is not bound by laws. He has made certain laws for humanity, but not for Himself.

Maharaj Ji, is it necessary to take Knowledge before you can follow that path, or do you find the Knowledge by following the path?
You have received Knowledge? No. You don't know what Knowledge is. You are guessing. Knowledge is itself the path and also the destination. It is

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what it is and it is what it should be. Knowledge is the path to itself and takes us into itself, for it is that vibration we are seeking. It is everything. It is merged with everything. It is the Knowledge. It is the primordial vibration. It is the path to it. And it is it itself. This is Knowledge.

Some people must be born with Knowledge?
Everybody has got Knowledge in him. Everybody is born with Knowledge. The children which are not born with Knowledge are dead. Everybody is born with Knowledge. But what happens? Years come and layers start building themselves up over that Knowledge. So now there is a thick layer and when you are again in search of that Knowledge you go to Guru and Guru takes a knife and cuts through. He performs the surgery. Then you can meditate.

Is seeing divine light the end goal of your Knowledge or just the beginning?
When I say "light," you at once think of the light you see daily. We always compare everything with whatever practical experience we have of life. In talking of light we just use the terminology `light" because there isn't any other terminology, and we don't want to just sit here and not talk about the experience we have gained. But actually this is an infinite experience and not at all like the light you see.

Why does a Perfect Master have to have a living body to give Knowledge? Why is it necessary?
Are you feeling thirsty? Can you see that photo of Lord Shiva? You see the water coming out from the top of his head? Drink that water. Drink, drink! Can You? You can't drink that water. It is a picture. You need everything living. If you have doubts, you cannot ask Lord Krishna questions. That's why you need

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a living Master, for the circumstances of the world today. When Jesus was here there were no nuclear bombs. But now there are nuclear bombs, and the Perfect Master, the Perfect Savior, has come to save you from nuclear bombs.

How do I know about the Master? Will the Knowledge show me that the Master....
There are two trees, there are two trees, okay? One tree has got a red but sweet thing, one tree has got a small but very sour thing. You can only understand whether this is a lemon tree or apple tree by eating the fruit. Eat the apple and eat the lemon and you will know the taste. That is how it is for that Knowledge and for that Guru-one who is giving that true Knowledge is Satguru, is a Guru. He's a Master. Know him by his fruit, what fruit he will give you, see? Don't judge him by his body or face, or anything like that.

Is yours the only way?
I don't say that.

I know.
See, you must realize that there is only one way, there is only one way to God. God is one, He has got one address, not two or three or four or five addresses. When you say "Allah" in Urdu, "Bhagwan" in Hindi, or "God" in English, you are indicating one power, not three powers. So to realize God, there is only one way.

Guru Maharaj Ji, I was carrying a billboard with the poster about the ant and elephant, and this guy came

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up and said, "I see God in everything," and I didn't know what to say.
You should have congratulated him. Just congratulate him, and he'd have walked two steps away and would have said, "Well, I wanted to make a fool of him and he made a fool of me." He would just think and come back to you again.

I didn't want to make a fool of him.
You don't want to make a fool of him, but actually you are making a fool of him. Because he is telling a lie.

Making a fool of himself.
Himself, right. He is telling a lie and you are congratulating him on this lie, so he says, "I tried to fool him but he has fooled me. I should go back and probably I should apologize." Then he comes and listens to you and he's a very subdued man now and he's very open! Nothing is wrong anymore.

Guru Maharaj Ji, have there ever been any women Perfect Masters?
Very good question, but I don't understand it because you are limiting Masters in their bodies. Why?

It's just been that all the famous Perfect Masters have always been men.
What do you mean "a famous Perfect Master"? You see, God gives women a great thing, because He takes birth from women. And to equalize this, by being in the human frame of a man, and that's what we don't understand. But in my heart, personally I have great respect for women because even God has to come through a woman.

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Guru Maharaj Ji, both the Buddha and Jesus Christ spoke of coming again, I don't know if other gurus did as well. What did they mean?
The thing is this, did the man who was writing the Bible talk about coming again or did Jesus Christ himself say it? Jesus Christ has written no Bible. Try to remember that. Jesus Christ wrote no Bible. But he will come again. The thing is, people make mistakes about the words.

What does that mean?
He will come again! It really means that He will again come to this western world, and he'll be laughing. He'll again come to this western world with the bright light and he will shower this upon humanity. He means it.

Do you hold that Knowledge can only be given by an external guru?
If you want to drink water you have the key first-the glass.

Suppose one gives up thirst?
He will die. He won't be existing in this world too long. Talk what is practical. Talk what is practical, not theoretical, not ideas. Talk what can be possible. Many people are just interested in imagining something. Nobody can give up thirst.

Guru Maharaj Ji, yesterday you said that different people see God in different ways. Some people think He is an old man in the sky and some people think it's infinity. How do you ...
There is nothing to picture. People only think of pictures because they don't realize that. God is perfect

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and pure energy and light. Right? He hasn't got two eyes, one nose, two ears, and a mouth. He is energy.

For every effect there is a cause, so what was the first cause?
The first cause is the absolute one, the absolute state, and from that absolute a second absolute was created, only it was not so absolute. Remember in the beginning it was pure energy. And there was a purpose for it. This was creation. We are all little parts of that energy. That energy hasn't actually been scattered, but what happens is that so many parts drop out of it and those little drops of that energy are in us and they are our souls.

If I call myself a Christian and I believe in the things Jesus taught, would I want to receive Knowledge from you?
Jesus taught this Knowledge.

It wouldn't be like denying Jesus then?
Jesus taught this Knowledge. Yes! Jesus taught this Knowledge. You won't be denying, you will be going further on the path, you'll be realizing who Jesus was. People think Jesus was a human being, but then they realize who Jesus was when they receive this Knowledge. We are looking at Jesus the same way as those crucifiers saw him, the same way, because we don't have what he was giving, we just have a memory of him, that's all. But when we receive that Knowledge, we really know what he gave to those twelve disciples.

Guru Maharaj Ji, what do you owe to your father?
I won't tell you what I owe. If I took all the birds, the sun, moon, and everything that exists in trying to

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repay my father, I wouldn't even be able to repay a single pennyworth. I regard Him as my father because He is my real father, and He is my Real Father. Real father and Real Father, real to Real. He is my real father because He has given me birth, and He is my Real Father because He has shown me the path. How can I repay Him for this real thing He has given me? I can't even imagine repaying Him for it, but He says that if I can just do meditation it will be much more than He has given me. I don't think so. I don't think it is true.

How do we meditate?
Start meditating on something, start knowing something, and then you will know how to meditate. Do you know something on which you can meditate? Do you see anything on which you can concentrate your mind? Go into a desert and try to concentrate on sand. Everything is sand there. But how can you concentrate your mind on it? No, you need the Knowledge. Until you know the Knowledge you cannot meditate. Meditation means concentrating one's mind into that supreme Knowledge.

Can meditation also bring the Knowledge?
What is meditation? What is eating? Meditation is like eating food. First of all you must have the food to be able to eat it, right? Imagining that you are eating will not bring food, will it? Same with meditation.

What part does a mantra play in meditation?
Nothing, nothing. It just makes your tongue in gears, that's all. Makes your mind flicker into some other way, that's all. But mind is still flickering. When I say "Ram, Rrrr-Aaaa-Ma," three times my mind flickers in one word: "Ram." More flickering of your

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mind - no good, no help. That is the question I place before people: "You say Ram today, but what were the people saying before Ram was born?" Chanting is an external thing. See?

So how can you meditate if you don't know the Knowledge?
You can't meditate. That's what I'm telling you.

Does meditating on the Knowledge help in the worship of God?
What is meditation? Perfect concentration upon a perfect thing is called meditation. Just remember that. For then you are making your soul and God into one, at that time you are receiving perfect communion with God.

Does evil come from our mind?
Right! Exactly. Do you know, the devil is the son of man that comes to mind, through mind, from mind.

Then it is not real?
Not at all. The thing which is real is so glorious, it cannot be explained. After all it is real, that is why it cannot be explained.

Does questioning produce suffering?
If you can't understand me, if you can't understand the answer, it creates terrible suffering in your mind. You cannot sleep at night because of the illusive question.

Sometimes when I try to do things it makes me upset, but when I try not to think of anything except the

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Name and try not to do a certain thing, then it seems much more peaceful.
Yes, because you are doing nothing there. You are just idly sitting down there. You like to rest, so don't do anything, just sit down and try to remember the Word, it is really comfortable! But the thing is this, a man has to get into practice with this thing. And then it becomes more comfortable than sitting around. There are many people who can't sit idle. If they sit idle they get sick. So, just try to remember the holy Word, no don't try to remember it, just remember it. It is the most essential thing. You should be always with the Word. There is no question of trying. It must be there. It is a must. And once you are remembering that holy Word all your work will be carrying on very nicely, you know, very beautifully.

Is it possible to have total self-satisfaction in this lifetime?
Maybe in five seconds, maybe in five months, maybe in five years, maybe in five centuries, maybe in five births. Or maybe in one-fifth of a second. It's up to you how much you meditate. How much you get elevated.

What do you want us to do if we don't have any Knowledge and we're not enlightened and we don't know what the Word is? How do we prepare ourselves?
See, when you go to buy a thing, you say, "Please give me the instruction booklet for this thing." You receive the booklet, and you read it, and then you understand what that thing is-how many compact systems are there in this thing, what it costs, how it has been made, and what its circuit is like. When you go to receive Knowledge, first you need the introduction, which is the discourse, which is satsang. Until you lis-

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ten to that you won't be able to understand what this Knowledge is. And what you have to do is listen until you think you are ready to receive Knowledge, and when you are ready to receive it, you will get it. These are the preparations.

How do you get this Knowledge? Ask and it shall be given. Are there many ways of asking?
The method of asking is asking. Ask.
All saints have said that before you go to Satguru to ask for and receive this Knowledge, you must have a guileless heart, a heart filled with devotion and love for this Knowledge. Ask, request, and if he is pleased with you, he will shower his grace upon you and give you the Knowledge, and if not, he will not.

Have you ever had a fear of death?
Me, fear about death? Why should I?

Why not? Why don't you have fear?
Because I have realized what death is. Man comes, and man has to go. So why should he be afraid of it? Is anyone afraid of being born? Why should anyone be afraid of dying?

If the truth was there in the beginning, how did we lose it in the first place?
It's not that we lost it, it's just that we became frustrated. You know it's there, it's just the frustration of not being able to hold it.

What made us leave our Father?
Nothing made us leave our Father. Our Father sent us here.

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Our Father sent us?
Yes. And there is a purpose for it.

But if we were with the Father in the beginning...
We are with the Father now, we are with perfect peace, everyone is, but we just don't realize it. It's a question of realization again.

But why did we leave the realization in the first place?
How are rocks formed? Rocks are formed by one layer, then another layer, so many layers, and all these layers were sand and yet they come out as rock. Sand is rock, and rock is ... ?

Sand!

Guru Maharaj Ji, I have often wondered: What is the relationship between man and God after death?
Die and see.

Maharaj Ji, can you get Knowledge from smoking pot?
See, suppose I am living on the moon. I am not getting any hashish, I am not getting any drugs, not even a cigarette. So suppose God comes to me at that time, and says, "You must receive Knowledge." Do I say, "God, I haven't got any hashish to smoke, so how am I going to get this Knowledge?" There is only one way to receive this Knowledge, and it isn't by hashish or anything like that. Why? I'll tell you. Because hashish is a physical thing. You smoke it into your body and you smoke it out of your body. Its effect is a physical effect. It affects your mind after affecting your body. And any process that must be ap-

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plied through the body will not take you there. You can't find yourself with hashish, you can only lose yourself.

No, man, you're wrong.
Let me tell you. This hashish smoking has only started here recently. In India they have been smoking it for a long time. These sadhus, if you ever see them, they completely lose themselves. They think about different things, things come into their mind, but all these things are external, it is not the Knowledge. Of course you get an experience, but if your car is going at 90 m.p.h. and it has a power brake and you put it on suddenly, so that you hit your head and you see light and hear music, you might think, "Oh, this is divine light." That's just a physical experience.

But when I have a good smoke, I think of love. That's all I think of.
Then continue to smoke if that is what you want. But thinking of love is not experiencing love.

But everybody who smokes, they love, you know? Those who don't smoke, they cannot love.
Maybe, but I don't smoke.

You don't smoke and you still love? Maybe you're special.
It would be far-out when you get this Knowledge, because it will take you higher than hashish. These plants come from nature, but this Knowledge is nature. By smoking you can experience something, but with this Knowledge you will experience everything, and you don't have to smoke anything.

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Guru Maharaj ji, why do I find nature so beautiful?
Nature is beautiful, that's why. Nature is beautiful, there is no doubt about it.

Maharaj Ji, is there any limit to our spiritual development?
When you become perfect, that's the limit. The question is, how to become perfect.

What is perfection?
Perfection has no definition, because definitions are incomplete and perfection is complete.

Why are we not living in such a state now, where everything is perfect?
Servants of God are living in such a state.

Guru Maharaj Ji, will you tell us the story of love?
Story of love? There is no story of love. Love is something which cannot be put into stories. Love is not a story. Love is such a thing that it can enable you to communicate with anything in the world. It is the most perfect communication. If you want to communicate with God you will have to have this love. But what is love? Today mankind loves only that thing which can satisfy his selfish purposes completely. A man will only love those things which can give him something in return. If a cow is giving milk the man will say "Oh my cow, oh my cow." But if the next day the cow stops giving milk, because of his selfishness he will kill the cow. So all these loves that man transmits through his body are selfish loves. But the love towards God should not be selfish. Real love should be permanent and consistent. It should not descend, it

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should ascend. It should be non-selfish love. This is the main story of love.

Maharaj Ji, why did you choose us?
So, whom should I choose? Donkeys? If I choose you it is your opportunity. What is the harm? Is there any harm in it? So be glad about it. Why be bothered about it?

If you reach a level where you are beyond your mind, people will start calling you mad.
The people! The people are mad! That's why they call others mad. If everyone is wearing green glasses, and one person takes his glasses off and sees the world as it really is, he can tell the others, "This world is not green, everything has got a special color." But they'll call him crazy. Because if the majority of the people are crazy and not clever, they will automatically think they are the clever ones and the rest are crazy.

Maharaj Ji, what is being done about getting Knowledge into politics?
We are trying our best for the politicians to know the Knowledge. They'll get it, because politics is what keeps them busy, but if they stop thinking with a political mind for a second, they'll need Knowledge. Politics are not bad, it's only when they are used in a bad way that they're bad.

Right. Well actually, Guru Maharaj Ji, there are many problems in the world. How can you bring us world peace out of all this turmoil?
I can show you the cause of these problems, and the way to dissolve them. America was fighting in Vietnam, and Vietnam, you know, it's so far away. Why

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destroy Vietnam? Vietnam was not eating America, but America wanted to finish it. Just abolish it, just finish it right off. This is the result of our ego. This is our mind. It is mind that makes us do all these things. Hitler wanted to conquer the world. Why conquer the world? Mind. If we can conquer this mind the world will be safe. You see what has happened today, we have got accelerators in our cars. We can accelerate but we cannot stop our cars and this is very dangerous. Our desires grow and grow and grow, but we cannot stop them. There comes a point where man becomes frustrated, and ultimately he fights. He wages wars, international wars, and civil wars. If we can control these desires, if we can control this mind, we can control war, because we don't need it, you know. This Knowledge can control desire, it can even control the mind because it is truth. Truth is one, it is like an ocean, a big beautiful ocean which is calm. A man goes and becomes one with that. He becomes infinite. We want to be one with infinity. Infinity is calm. Infinity is peace, and there our mind settles.

What is society? You can't erase society.
Suppose a man is naked, what will he wash and what will he wear? There is no society, that is why you can't erase it. It's just people's confusion that there is a society. What is society, tell me? Society is always wrong. Tell me, which society has cured humanity till now? Till now we have been listening to people who have bombed and killed to get peace, and so many terrible things have happened. It is not a natural thing. Society is a way of ideas combining people into one way, that's all. But it is not the true way. Countries are in war. That is society, that is society's doing. But is it good? No. What is the use of society, check it out from there; what has it taught you? That's why they are useless, that's why I don't

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believe in societies. I believe in what God has created, not societies.

I want to ask you your main message.
Well, the main message is that all around the world people are suffering. No matter if they are in America, the so-called richest country of the world; in India, the so-called spiritual country of the world; or in Britain, the so-called traditional country of the world, people are still suffering. Anywhere we go, people are suffering, right? Suffering is no good. We must get out of it. The only way to get out of suffering is by this Knowledge. If we want to get off the ground and fly in the air, what is the means? Airplane, right? Because it takes us high. So if we want to leave suffering behind, then we need to fly with this Knowledge, because it takes us high, not into the air, but into our consciousness, okay? By receiving this Knowledge, we can be in complete peace, we can be in complete truth.

Maharaj ji, I have heard that you said something about the bombs falling. Can you speak about that?
Why should I speak about this? I am not the man who will let the bombs fall. I am only here to show the illusion of the world.

Can we save everyone in this world?
Yes, we can.

Will it be in this lifetime, Guru Maharaj Ji, in the next twenty years maybe, or will it be in thousands of years?
No, no, no, no, no, very soon, very soon. All that is needed is for some idea of peace to get into the leaders of the world, and there will be peace. Nothing more.

Part IV

THE PEOPLE

Personal Experiences of the Knowledge

1

His Yoke Is Light

Rev. Paul Fueter is the General Secretary of the Swiss Bible Society, pastor of a Swiss church, and father of several premies.

When the first devotees came to our city to speak to us about Guru Maharaj Ji's Knowledge, I immediately felt deeply stirred. Many questions were raised in my mind, but I was struck by two facts: first, the wonderful changes taking place in the lives of these disciples, and second, the evangelical simplicity of so much that was said during their spiritual discourses.

As to the first fact, most of the young people who became the first disciples here had been desperately searching for God, and the religious instruction they had received had left them with a thirst that neither the words nor the deeds of their pastors and priests had quenched. But once they had been taught what they said were the simple techniques of meditation, they suddenly started reading the Bible with me, explaining certain key passages of the Gospels and of the Epistles in a way that revealed a new spiritual insight. I saw that they had gone through a new birth and that the spiritual world had become as real to

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them as it had become to me when I was converted thirty-seven years ago.

But these changes could have been due to a superficial enthusiasm - perhaps these young people were easily "taken in." I was therefore keen to know what was really said during satsang. I discovered that the essence of Guru Maharaj Ji's message was not "oriental religion," as many of my colleagues supposed, but the corroboration of my own discoveries as to the nature of spiritual experience.

After many years as a missionary in Africa, I had come to the conclusion that our words had become a screen, preventing the deep relationship with God experienced by the Christian saints whom we were given as examples. So when the mahatmas spoke of the Word of God as not accessible to the mind, but planted in us by God; when they described our vain search for truth and life through our intellect, I felt very much at home. Here was a message corresponding to my own intuition. As a missionary I had tried to communicate spiritual experience; but had only taught words. When Africans had really lived a new life through becoming Christians, they were telling us how God Himself had filled them with His Spirit. They were speaking of Christ in a very concrete and practical way. For them, our dogmatic statements were but shadows of a divine reality which I had also experienced many years ago. I was also impressed by those premies who had been drug addicts and whom I had met in very sore plights. Suddenly, they began to show what the Apostle Paul calls, "the fruits of the spirit, love, peace, joy, temperance." Finally, those who went to live in ashrams and dedicated their lives to meditation, satsang, and service, confirmed my first impression: they had found what Jesus called "the treasure hidden in the field" or the "precious pearl."

Many of them suggested that I too should take this Knowledge, but I hesitated. Could I accept something from the disciples of Guru Maharaj Ji, who were

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speaking of him as if he were the reincarnated Christ? Was this not denying my "living Master"? I spoke to many premies, trying to understand, and the answer was always the same: "Those who have taken this Knowledge understand what Jesus taught. But this Knowledge is practical, not theoretical. Once you see divine light, hear the divine music, taste the nectar, and live with the holy Name of God you will really be closer to God, to Christ, to the Holy Spirit."

"Do you mean that I shall be closer to Christ than I am now?" I asked. "Try it," they said. And I did, because I felt that if my devotion to Jesus was not at least as real as the devotion to Guru Maharaj Ji, I had better pack up.

Receiving Knowledge has been for me, an amazing experience. I am older than most premies: for them this was a completely new beginning. For me it was the recapture of the first love which I had experienced in my youth and which years of study and life had atrophied. I discovered that what Guru Maharaj Ji said is true: "We devote tons of energy to develop our minds and our bodies and not even five grams to develop the light which is within us and which is the source of our life."

Suddenly, meditation was not a "must" anymore, but a deep longing. Whereas before I had to pinch myself to think of God, now at any moment-in my bed, at the wheel of my car, walking through the streets-I can enjoy perfect bliss. I learned to sense aggression in myself and in others and to overcome it; my children had said that my devotion was still sealing with words, images, and not with realities, ad they had been right. How extraordinary and deep the grace of God!

I can only say that I have never been as close to Christ as now, that the Bible has become so much clearer to me. When I read the words of Saint Augustine, Luther, Teilhard de Chardin and of the other great Christians, I discovered that they experienced

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something which is accessible to all those who give first place to the Kingdom of God and to what He requires, and who do not worry so much about tomorrow.

This is what those who live in ashrams are actually putting into practice. This is what a life of meditation, satsang and service can mean to all who long for it.

Paul Fueter

2

A Worried Parent

I think there may be other parents who find it very difficult to begin to understand why their son or daughter has become attracted to Divine Light Mission, bowing to the feet of Guru Maharaj Ji. Some of these parents may be suffering great anxiety because, after trying to the best of their ability to give their children a good start in life, they are now at a loss to comprehend this "strange behavior" of the younger generation. Perhaps some may think, as I originally did, that something terrible and very strong is leading their loved ones away from the family and from the "normal" way of life to which we have been accustomed.

At the age of twenty-four, my son, having had a mixture of success and failure in the modern educational system, and after failing to find satisfaction in various jobs, became interested in Divine Light Mission. He left his home and job to seek Knowledge from this Indian boy. Why did he have to choose an Indian in his search for God? Why couldn't he have stuck to the Church of England, the chapel down the road or the Salvation Army-something which we knew about and could understand? What was this Indian movement all about?

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What about that note which was lying on the floor after he returned from one of his earlier weekends with his new friends - "Just a few sandwiches for your journey home. Jai Satchitanand." Who is this Jai Satchitanand? Would Jai be male or female? Would our son marry an Indian? Away went the parental mind on a nightmare trip of fears and self-pity. Why did it have to happen to our son, whom we loved so much and whom we were prepared to let live life in his own way, as long as it happened to be our way!

In those early days I just didn't want to know about Guru Maharaj Ji, who was claimed by his followers to be an incarnation of God, and although I did read a little of the magazine called And It Is Divine which my son begged me to study, I was unable to feel drawn to it, to be sympathetic towards it, and sought only to make criticisms. I just didn't want to stray from my own thoughts on religion. I didn't want to change my ideas, I didn't want to bother!

However, after four or five months I felt impelled to visit London to see my son again and to find out more about Divine Light Mission, to try to set my mind at ease. What I found was amazing.

Instead of a group of hippies and young eccentrics, I met young men and women from many walks of life who did not smoke, drink alcohol, or take drugs; all had open smiling faces and quiet voices, giving an instant impression of stability, and all were dedicated to spreading the word of peace and love throughout the world.

All doubts about this strange way of life were dispelled as I spent a day in the company of premies, visiting the Divine Sales shop, a divine jumble sale, the divine residence and finally the evening satsang program at Imperial College. At one time in my life I spent some years in the Forces and learned something about discipline, but I have never experienced a higher degree of self-discipline than that achieved by the disciples of Guru Maharaj Ji - not for material

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riches, fame, or power, but for humility and universal love.

My daughter accompanied me on this tour and each evening during the following week we recounted our experiences to my wife. I had arrived in London with a prejudice against Divine Light Mission, but now had to admit that these premies who had "dropped out" of society to live in an ashram had in fact chosen a life which demands nothing less than the highest qualities of human behavior. I was filled with admiration for these people, who, at the end of a long day's work, were grateful to Guru Maharaj Ji for the opportunity to do this service, and glowed as they sang devotional songs during the informal satsang program. This is something I would not have believed had I not experienced it myself, and although the most convenient ashram is some ninety miles from my home in Grimsby, the following weekend my wife, daughter, and I made the first of many visits to Leicester.

In between these visits we have again been to London and enjoyed the Darshan of Shri Guru Maharaj Ji and Shri Bal Bhagwan Ji. I have been so fortunate as to be able to thank Guru Maharaj Ji for bringing our small family together into the vast family of Universal Spirit. By his grace I received this Knowledge of divine light a week ago; my wife and daughter are listening to satsang in preparation for the time when Knowledge will also be theirs.

Meanwhile we carry on with our normal jobs and home life. Perhaps the image we present is little different from before, but inside ourselves doubt and anxiety are giving way to tranquility and calmness in the knowledge that God's love is supreme. My son once said that there is so much love in our family, so much love locked up, and that we should take the Knowledge which Guru Maharaj Ji is offering and release this love to the Lord so that we can share it with our brothers and sisters throughout the world. So

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he taught us something. Of love, I had only known affection and compassion; now I am learning devotion.

So to all those who are sitting in darkness or despair I would say, "Don't be afraid and pull the shutters down as I did for so long, pay a visit to Divine Light Mission with an open mind, share my experience, and return to home and industry with renewed vigor and a sense of purpose. Just open your heart."

Ian's Father

3

This Girl Will Die

I met Guru Maharaj Ji in India three years ago. I was travelling for four years, in search, only knowing the constant taste of discontent which made me move. I was so restless. I met many teachers and lived in many ashrams; many practices and rituals I gladly practiced, believing that those whose teachings I accepted knew what I needed to know. But when the restlessness returned, I moved on, and after some time, my heart reached a level of such grave disappointment that I began to lose all my natural optimism, and thought finally, that no one knew we were all poor seekers for some happiness that did not exist. This is called death, the death of our hope, the hope for which man has been born, without attaining which there is no reason to live.

At this time I reached Bageshwar, a village high north in the Almora district of India. I had been walking from ashram to ashram, weeping quite a lot, reading scriptures and mourning. My eyes were clearly telling me where I was heading, and rather than rejecting that black pit of nothingness as I had usually done, I finally accepted, that yes, this is where I am going. In Bageshwar, I stopped. My body was

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tired, my mind and spirit were tired, and physically I could go no farther, as I was at the Chinese border area. So I stayed in the ashram with the rituals and the chillums and wept and danced and generally waited. For the pit. Or whatever. I felt I had really had it, and there was nothing else I wanted to try, or any other place I wanted to go.

This is a testimony. But really, without exaggerating, it is a scripture, for I have been graced and the Living Lord has found me, and so my experiences with Guru Maharaj Ji are the eternal experiences written by every soul in the past and will be written by every soul in the future who meets the embodiment of truth, pure consciousness, and bliss, receives his Knowledge, and lives under his universal shelter.

So there in Bageshwar, I experienced that blessing of being ready to receive. I was truly empty. There fore I qualified. The native people accepted me as another crazy "sadhu"; thank the Lord I was in India, where spiritual bereavement is not considered at all abnormal.

Then a young sadhu came to the temple. He was very outstanding. His ankles didn't move, so he hobbled in from the northern trail carrying a large tin suitcase which was rather strange for mountain travel.

He wore the traditional two pieces of cloth, but his eyes were like a six-month-old infant, and he was followed by a large crowd. He set up his home under a tree in the ashram and began delivering a discourse in Hindi. I saw him, watched him, and then went in to my own room and wept.

That night it rained, and he came into the main room where I was also sleeping. He saw my scene of candles and incense and flowers and Bible and we began to talk. In due course I collapsed and cried for a long time, telling him in tears of all that I hoped for and was trying for and had not found. He smiled and opened his suitcase. He took out a picture of a very

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young boy and said, "Joan, if you want practical Knowledge of God, you'd better go to Dehra Dun."

This shocked me awake from a long dream. About a year before, I had met two English people coming back from India in a restaurant in Afghanistan. We spoke together for less than an hour. They told me they had met a twelve-year-old boy who had revealed to them the Name of God and shown them the divine light. They showed me his pictures and gave me his name and address in Dehra Dun. I went my way and they theirs.

Some eight months later I arrived in India, and in due course lived in Rajasthan, in the caves of Mount Abu, where I had decided to try to enter the kingdom of heaven by my own means and I was living in the forest in a very ancient split-level cave. I would visit a swami about two miles away at Lal Mundir, who was full of joy. One day he told me that I would not find what I wanted living in a cave, that I should go to Dehra Dun. I asked why. He just said I should go there. Then I went back to my cave, and in due course got very ill and was unable to move in the cave for ten days, when the villagers came and put me on a bus for Delhi.

After three days in the hospital I was released perfectly O.K. I met a friend from Afghanistan in the street and he invited me back to Afghanistan. It was then I computed everything and decided to head for Dehra Dun. There was something. And so I started in that northernly direction.

But not before hitting the Almora district, the land of the ancient temples and all the India we always read about and imagine, the wise old men, the constant chillum smoking around the sacred fire, the rites and rituals, very much like a photo essay on India, and I got into it. Walking from temple to temple, but now the emotional crisis, the weeping, the darkness and finally to Bageshwar, where the young sadhu showed me the picture of Guru Maharaj Ji.

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The young sadhu was actually a mahatma of Guru Maharaj Ji, an apostle who has been given the command to impart this Knowledge of light and Name to sincere aspirants who request it. Guru Maharaj Ji has over 2,000 mahatmas all over the world who are showing by his grace the Light of God to millions of people.

He wrote me a letter of introduction to Guru Maharaj Ji, which I only recently found out from the Holy Mother read, "This girl will die without Knowledge," and sent me to Dehra Dun on a bus.

I arrived at Guru Maharaj Ji's home, a beautiful white house with so many trees and flowers, a paradise, and I huddled on the front lawn, fearing. A car drove up and a figure came out of it. Everyone fell to the ground and prostrated. I felt it was Guru Maharaj Ji. Still I waited, and then they gave me some tea which made me feel more like a human being, I was so totally insecure. Finally, Guru Maharaj Ji came out to see me. He asked, "What do you want?" I wept for twenty minutes, and he very gently said, "O.K., O.K., you can go to your room upstairs, you can go upstairs now."

For one month he gave me so much love, and never saw the bad in me, only drew out the good and made me able to see some good again, and laugh and feel his enormous love. His divine brother, Shri Bal Bhagwan Ji, who is the incarnation of divine intelligence, and much more, spoke to me every evening on the sacred science of the soul. He answered every question of my mind, and my heart began to open up. Holy Mother and the divine brothers of Guru Maharaj Ji gave me so much love that I knew only one thing, that I had found my destination, and that I wanted only to be with them forever.

Guru Maharaj Ji is pure and perfect. We can experience this purity and this perfection only from the divine manifestation of the soul, the Perfect Master.

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When I understood that Knowledge was the way that I could be constantly connected to him, internally and externally, I begged for Knowledge. And he gave me that entrance into the kingdom of heaven.

Joan Apter

4

A Mountain in Wales

We were living together as a settled family of freaks on a farm in the middle of nowhere in Wales. My last few weeks there seemed to spin around faster and faster. Like a ball on a string being spun around someone's finger, I was spiraling in and accelerating so fast that there was no time to even think about it.

I could feel a desire in my heart, in meditating alone, to grow out of the lifeless love I felt for the girl and the others with whom I lived. My friend had died. I desired to feel a love that would connect not only living souls more joyfully but even the dead as well. Life felt so continuous, but there seemed to be no way to really recognize that unbroken continuity. On the farm we had lived out the twelve month span of that fragile flower of love we so carefully tended; it was undeniably beginning to wilt.

Only a month to go before September 21st, the Autumn Equinox. I looked in Raphael's 1972 to see what was in store for the heavens for that date and I began to tremble with a fearful excitement. There was to be a full moon on that very night, when all the planets were to arrange themselves into a rare and litteral formation called the Grand Cross. There was something I already knew that was to happen on that

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date, and I automatically began to prepare - even as the swallows begin to jitter together in speckled rows upon the telegraph wires.

The time was ripe. The day of initiation into some long lost secret was at hand. On the 14th of September I was ready, knowing that I had to go alone. I carried the smallest tent and smallest bag of simply cracked wheat. The bewildered members of the family saw me off, standing together in silence and looking after me as I headed for the mountains where lay the center of an enormous and ancient holy area.

I climbed and rested and climbed under the hot afternoon sun; but whenever I thirsted, there was a trickling stream of the purest water at my feet. There was soft heather and moss underfoot. I stepped out of my shoes and left them in their tracks.

Eventually, I could climb no higher. The sun was blood-red. Little lights twinkled far below and far above. It was cool, and I gratefully slid into the tent, the sleeping-bag and sleep.

I was suddenly awake. It was dark and I remembered where I was. There was a beautiful laughing of a child in my ears singing "Lex! Lex! Lex!" My chest was tingling and something within my body that was not my body was tugging me, rippling like a blanket. My fear was soothed before it had a chance to scream. I was instantly asleep and awake as a crimson beam of sunrise pierced through the tent flaps into my eves. Below, a sea of pink mist lapped this island and others scattered around like black ships. I knew I was here, I was home. I had only to wait, to prepare, to fast and meditate for seven days.

I had not even the desire to eat; and the sampa was gradually scattered to the little finches and sparrows that gathered round when they remembered that food really was to be found up here. By the sixth day, my body was empty and light. I felt very peaceful, but a little apprehensive. I had a strong urge to gather wood for a fire I could light that night. But there

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were no trees, so I climbed up and down the mountain that day, gathering what wood I could find until a bier had been built upon the topmost rock. I bathed, drank much water and then slept.

On awakening, it was already dark; but the full moon had risen above some distant rocks like a brilliant ball. Before long, all the mountains around had become luminous with a silver light. The rocks upon which I sat with a blanket were arranged like a stairway to the sky. I suddenly felt very over-awed and small, and all the stars in the sky turned into eyes as they looked down upon me. I felt the heavy formation of that heavenly cross bearing down. I was feeling a change overcoming me and in the air all around and I became very frightened, as though I had come to challenge a power too great for me to ever dare think about. I longed to crawl into the safety of the sleeping bag, but I decided to pray instead as I meditated by this ancient circle of rocks called "Bedd Arthur" meaning Arthur's Grave. I was so alone, waiting for the feeling of dread to crawl away from my spine.

And there before me was seated a thin figure, smiling at me. I felt surprise and an overwhelming feeling of pleasure. He shone in the moonlight, radiating love and warmth which brought tears into my eyes. Then I was up in the sky, seeing the moonlit rocks and mountains below, even the little tent. And then I was shown what I always had wished to see.

Before the night was through I managed to light the bier, that it could be seen for miles around. The flames soared with light and warmth up into the heavens like my heart. I was rapturous with joy! And as the sun rose in flames I bundled up the tent and leaped from rock to rock down the mountain, singing as wildly as I could. And then I ran straight into the arms of some long-lost friends of mine over whom I spilled my joy about God, whom I knew was here. "He is!" they said. "So let us take you to Him!"

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Before long, in my tattered robes and unwashed hair and miles away from the peaceful farm in a hostile city, I was listening to satsang, the only satsang before I received the Knowledge. And a week later, a beautiful girl said to me, "Here, take my ticket for a flight to India. I went there last year, and no more seats are left with still so many wanting to go." The next day I was in India seeing my Lord at his home with three thousand others. With him was his brother Bal Bhagwan Ji. I recognized him from the mountain top. That day, the 21st of September, had been his birthday I later heard.

Lex Neale

5

Mahatma Saphlanand

At school I showed a markedly practical bent. My main interests were airplanes and science. But a time came when I suddenly became aware that problems existed. Everybody seemed at some time to fall into the trap of thinking they knew the answer. We used to sit around and philosophize in the school library, because we were determined we weren't going to make the mistakes our parents had made. We weren't going to get so involved that we lost our compassion.

My interest in aerodynamics and science began to fall off, and I started figuring out some way I could be of use to humanity. I desperately wanted to find some way of improving the human situation. So I started thinking, studying books on Zen Buddhism, ordinary Buddhism, Taoism, all different kinds of religion, trying to pull it together. And in school I started to write poetry. I got into art, poetry, dope, the spirit, the quest. The search for truth didn't really leave me, though it was hidden after a while. Somewhere there was an answer I hadn't found. I thought dope was the answer, I thought acid was the answer, I saw the whole "head" scene as the answer. But eventually I realized things weren't working out.

I thought well, somebody ought to go and find

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someone who can help - maybe there's a Buddha somewhere, an enlightened soul, roaming around on the earth - somebody ought to go and find him, to go tell him that everybody's really in need of help. This went on for a while until a little voice came right back at me saying, "Well, if you keep thinking somebody ought to go, why don't you go?" So eventually I got it together and got those things I needed and started out for India.

As soon as I got there I thought I was just going to walk over the border, and some yogi was going to come straight up to me and say, "Oh great, I've been expecting you, come on," and it would all be put together. But the India I found was a gigantic continent, and every village and every town had a dozen or two saffron-clad sadhus and monks roaming about, and I realized this was a much bigger task than I thought. I asked where was the holiest man they knew. Who was the greatest guru around. I was already skeptical of popular ones that had come to the West, the Maharishi, the Hare Krishna people, and so on. I sort of felt that if there was a true guru, he would be pretty busy in India, he wouldn't have time to go running around the West till he'd turned on quite a few people in India. So I thought he'd be pretty well known in India, and then come to the West. I went to the southernmost part of India, and started to work my way back up. If I didn't find him in India, or Nepal, or Tibet, I would go to Siam, to Burma, Japan; I had a whole thing worked out. And so my disap-

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pointment got worse and worse, disappointed with all these people that I kept hanging my hopes on. I'd been given addresses, names of towns, names of gurus, I'd go and I'd look them up, I'd spend some time, weeks, trying to find them-some of them right out in the middle of the desert, and I'd go way off out in the middle of the desert trying to find this guru. And I'd stay with him, and I'd put up with all kinds of sickness, and eventually the disappointment would come, I would realize he wasn't telling me anything I hadn't already read in books. I figured that the living guru should be able to tell you more than a book can.

Just after I'd left the guru in the desert, I had a dream in which Lord Vishnu appeared. In India there are great color pictures of Vishnu in every shop. His picture was always around me, so now I was dreaming that he appeared before me. I was all in awe and amazed, I said, "I'm lost, please show me the way to Satguru." I had never heard of the word Satguru, I just wanted to find the right guru. And he just pointed at the rising sun and disappeared. Then suddenly, in a flash, I realized that the sun rises in the East, and I should go East. I had a little map, and I drew a line from where I was, East, and it went through the Hardwar-Rishikesh area. I immediately caught a train and went there.

I went to the village square and I sat there. It was a great day, it was a festival day, and there were about fifty other sadhus all gathered together. They were all sitting there in various colors of yellow and orange, and to an outsider it must have looked very holy, but I was thinking, "If I'd seen all these people together in one place a few months ago I would have thought it is so holy,"-but I wasn't impressed. I sat down with a whole lot of other people and started to beg, all these people in orange robes on the roadside, begging for pennies. I was really beginning to feel depressed actually, and I began to pray. I closed my eyes, "None of them really know God. I don't know where to go, I'm just kind of stuck here, you know, being drawn this way and that." I must have looked pretty sad because someone was tapping my shoulder, and I said, "I'm trying to meditate." He said, "I know, you look as if you're trying, but I know you aren't." This little nineteen-year-old boy was telling me that he could see that I didn't know how to meditate. And I was offended because I'd been trying for

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about three years, but when he started to tell me what meditating was, I could tell that he really knew. "What we really need is Satguru. Satguru means true revealer of light," he said, and he asked me if I'd ever been shown light, and gradually I realized what he was saying. He told me the whole story of Shri Hans Ji Maharaj and the new Perfect Master, and I was fascinated. It was an incredible story. This was the first time I had come across something that was still happening. I said, "Is the guru still here, can I find him," and he said sure, and I begged him to take me. He wasn't sure whether it would be possible, but he said he would try. I was praying.

When I got there, I was kind of clumsy, I really didn't know how to approach a Satguru. But I knew there was something perfect there, a feeling of completion, like there was no more search, no more traveling and roaming about. And I didn't even know all the intricacies of Satguru or his Knowledge, all I knew was that I'd really found somebody holy, some-body with real spiritual power. I had no idea Guru Maharaj Ji was going to give me Knowledge, I just knew that he was radiating a clarity, and a purity of consciousness, that I hadn't found anywhere else. When you look into his eyes, it's like looking down a long, long corridor. Time and distance disappear.

But by that time I had read so many books, and had so many answers to everything, intellectual answers, that they must have wondered whether I was going to take the Knowledge or not. Sooner or later, I think it was Mahatma Satyanand, who asked, "Can you tell the difference between a real papaya and a stone one?" I said yes. And he said, "How will you tell the difference?" And I said, "Well, I'd probably taste one, I'd try eating one and soon notice if it was made of stone," and he said, "Yes, but how can you tell whether this is true Knowledge or not?" And I thought, "Oh, forget all the answers, forget all the thoughts," and I just folded.

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Guru Maharaj Ji gave me satsang, but because he was getting school exams at that time, he didn't have a lot of time. Then they were going to a program. I thought it was going to be a small gathering with a few hundred people. I just couldn't believe it-there must have been several hundred thousand people. It was in Saharanpur, and I couldn't believe it, I couldn't figure out where they all came from. Everybody was like a saint, you know, I thought these must be all saints from all over India, they've all come to one place. Everybody had a shining face, I just couldn't figure out, you know, I thought, "Who are they all waiting for?" Then Guru Maharaj Ji arrived, got up on the stage, and sat on his great throne. I suddenly realized how lucky I'd been, that these people had come for miles just to see Guru Maharaj Ji from a distance, just to hear him on a microphone, and I'd been staying at his house for several days, talking to him from just a few feet away. I had no idea that it was already so propagated, that so much work had been done to spread this Knowledge. I guess then I started to see Guru Maharaj Ji in a new light. I was afraid to go see him the next day, I was really very graced.

It was a very beautiful moment one day when Guru Maharaj Ji asked me what I wanted. And I didn't even know that I should ask for Knowledge. I just said, "Well, I just want you to be my guru, and I want to be your disciple, will you accept me? Please accept me as your disciple." And he said, "Okay, okay," and I felt a stone drop out of my heart; somethink like a hand came up from underneath me and took care of me. It didn't occur to me to ask for Knowledge, I was just going to stay with him and follow him around, and work and do service. I was prepared to wait for ten years to be worthy. Eventually though, people would say, "You should ask for Knowledge, you should want Knowledge," and he said "Who told you to say that?" I said, "They told

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me to say it." He said, "No, no you should wait until you feel the desire." So I waited about three months, and when the desire really came from within, I received Knowledge.

After a while, a few other Westerners started getting Knowledge, and eventually we got the feeling that the time had come to start bringing the Knowledge to the West. We started asking Maharaj Ji to please send a mahatma to England and he would say, "Oh yes, maybe in a few years' time."

At the end of that summer, the arrangements were being made to send Mahatma Guru Charnanand. We had all kinds of problems with passports. Many times it seemed like we'd never get things together, because there were so many things to overcome, you know, passports and records; but eventually it all worked out and Mahatma Ji flew out, and I started hitchhiking. When I got back to the West, I found Mahatma Guru Charnanand staying at a very nice house. There was Mahatma Ji sitting in this little room, giving satsang. I think there were about two Western people who had taken Knowledge. So then I asked Mahatma Ji if we could do a program somewhere. I had the feeling that maybe we could do one in Chelsea, and that was our first program. I feel very graced that Guru Maharaj Ji has let me see the growth of spreading Knowledge from such a little seed ...

About seven or eight people came to this program. Well, that gave us something to get us on our way. These people would come every day and sit and hear satsang. We'd just live in this tiny little ashram, a place that cost us four pounds a week. It was just one little room, very small, and we'd cook our food there, too. The Mahatma Ji and I were living in this one little room giving satsang, eating, everything went on in this room. We really wanted to get something bigger but we had no money at all. All the people who came and wanted to hear satsang were students or weren't working. We didn't want to demand anything from

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them, so we would devise all these ways to get money for food. We were just waiting and we'd say, "Guru Maharaj Ji will provide everything." We were very, very short of food. We had to wait for the first person to come to satsang. We'd wait and someone would come and we'd give him satsang and we'd say, "Well, we haven't any money for food for breakfast, could you help us?"

Gradually we started to show God. Slowly, slowly. By the end of the summer things were working out better. We had our first program and forty people came. That was unbelievable-forty people at our first public program. At the end of the summer of 1970, two vanloads of people went across land to India to the Hans Jayanti Festival. So for the first Hans Jayanti there were, maybe, twenty-five people.

The Peace Bomb was something. Again, by Guru Maharaj Ji's grace, I was sitting right up in front, in front of his chair, and I was looking straight at him. I just never felt so much emotion-it was unbelievable. Guru Maharaj Ji really had hold of my heart, just like a father, so I started to sing praises for this father, filled with so much love, so much devotion for Guru Maharaj Ji, who is also the supreme devotee. That's why we have the Satguru. Because he is the supreme devotee of the times. He was shining like a jewel. The whole ground would shake, you could feel it. It felt like he was rearranging the molecules of the world or something. One thing he said was that we were very, very special people because we showed our souls to God.

Mahatma Saphlanand

6

John Horton M.D.

I was considered a good doctor. I was the president of my class at medical school, and I graduated with honors. But in spite of the confidence this gave me, I knew I was missing the point. In medicine I found that sometimes I lacked compassion, I lacked a purity of love and intention; I was aware of the pride and anger within myself. Even though in my life I'd had many good experiences of love, I still wasn't feeling completely fulfilled inside.

So in the summer of 1971 I had left the beginnings of a very promising medical career and I began travelling around the Southwest, looking for a place to settle down and grow spiritually. I looked into all the so-called spiritual communes, and I met people who were high and good, people who were wise. But still none of them had anything that was really consistent. I had begun to think about going to India or the Far East, when I met a devotee of Guru Maharaj Ji. I thought he was pretty crazy! He just said, "Look, there's this God in Denver. He's just a little kid, but he shows you God and I've had the highest experience I've ever had, even after taking LSD for years." This was in New Mexico, so I figured I might as well to Denver to see what was happening there.

When I arrived at the ashram on Race Street, Guru

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Maharaj Ji wasn't there, but there was a house full of people who had recently received the Knowledge and it was impressive. As a doctor you have to be able to analyze people and size them up, and when I looked at these people, it really struck me that they all had a fundamental grasp of reality. Both their words and their feelings rang true. I just couldn't understand it; my feeling was that when you entered into spiritual development it was a long, arduous experience. I thought that if I did good works and meditation and was politically active, and if I kept up with my reading, I'd gradually grow into some realization. But this was instant. Something was happening to me. Guru Maharaj Ji was in Toronto at the time. I was trying to decide whether I should go to Toronto or go back to San Francisco, and that night I had a powerful dream, very vivid, unlike the ones I usually have. The dream was that I was lying down and incredible angelic beings were floating above me. I wanted to move towards them but I couldn't move at all. When I woke up I thought, "Wow, that's really to the point! That's my spiritual paralysis! Maybe I should go to Toronto after all."

I decided to throw the I Ching to see what it advised. I turned to it because I'd had meetings with experts in both religion and psychology, scientifically trained people who agreed that it was the irrational mind that really determines our decisions, that we had this deep unconscious which really more than our conscious thoughts determines what's happening. So I thought that even if the I Ching were not a precise oracle, at least it would provide a wiser scope of information. I asked it if I should go to Toronto, or go back to San Francisco, where I had some good opportunities ahead of me, where I was very active in the medical community and where I was probably going to do zen meditation. Usually the I Ching would give me general advice like, "Perseverance furthers," nothing too precise, so I was extremely surprised

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when it answered point blank: GO TO THE EMPTY CITY, SEE THE GREAT MAN. I went to Toronto.

When I first saw Guru Maharaj Ji, I looked at him as I would at a very good psychotherapist, or a sage. Everything he said was crystal clear and so simple; once more I was really impressed. He was precise and seemed very, very joyful. Around him was a hurricane of energy that I'd never experienced before. I'd seen spiritual leaders and so-called holy men, but the people around Guru Maharaj Ji were having all kinds of intense personal experiences. The rhetoric that surrounded him, though, really turned me off: people were saying that he's the Lord of the Universe, that he's the Messiah. Because of my training that the spiritual path is a gradually ascending one, in which one goes within oneself to discover what's there, I believed that certain people could be helpful on the path. But the whole idea of divinity was foreign to me. Yet the phenomenon was incredible enough that I stayed around for five or six days.

At that time Maharaj Ji had question and answer periods two times a day. At first I just observed, and I was astounded. Every time someone asked him a question, I saw him giving them an answer, while at the same time giving them what they were really looking for on an unconscious level. In a sense, he gave everyone a shot of love and understanding with such precision that it seemed impossible for him to be doing it consciously. It was like feeding and nourishing a whole roomful of people. That's when I began seriously thinking, "Maybe what these people are saying really is true. Maybe this is an incarnation." The more I listened, the more I began to feel that there was an experience beyond just the philosophy he was giving. When I asked him a couple of questions and he spoke to me, I felt an actual pain in my heart because I realized just how many layers of anger and depression I had built up there. Now there were moments in the room when everything was very

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quiet, when Guru Maharaj Ji had nourished and taken care of everyone and he would be free to manifest something. Those were really the high moments and in one of them he looked around and said, "All of you have many layers around your heart." Right then I felt that he knew, that he really knows us, because what he said penetrated so deeply into the essence of what I was feeling.

So I received Knowledge there, and when Guru Maharaj Ji went to New York, I followed him. Again I was impressed by the power he had to attract very sincere spiritual seekers, and it was in New York that I decided to go spend two months in India at Guru Maharaj Ji's ashram there. Still, my mind was very critical of those who were comparing him to Christ or Buddha.

When we got to India, I was so exhausted and tired that all I wanted to do was meditate. But it soon became clear that there were five hundred Westerners there and they were all getting sick and I was the only medical doctor around. The medical facilities in India were too backward to really depend on, so I was forced into service. The pace of the service was much more than I reckoned on. People were really sick and I started working twelve hours a day. There were many people freaking out because of the intensity of the spiritual experience at the ashram. Many times I felt like leaving.

It was hard and I was always thinking about going off into the mountains and meditating. When I'd go into town to get drugs, I'd see all these sadhus, all these saffroned holy men, walking along the streets and they all looked very beautiful, very mellow and lovely. Then I'd look at people in the ashram and none of the premies struck me as very together. I'd wonder, if this guy was supposed to be Satguru, then what are these freaky people doing here? Why aren't the beautiful sadhus here? I'd listen to satsang and hear that the Lord comes for the average people, for

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those who don't have it together. If that was the case, these freaky people were very important, they were his disciples. It would be a good thing to help them. Once I got to that point, I just threw myself into doing the service and really astounding things happened.

At times I would just become transported. People would come in to see me, and somehow I would just know what was wrong with them. I found that I could see exactly what it was in the person's mind that was causing the illness. Even though I'd always had a theory of psychosomatic illness, it was incredible to have this practical experience of it. It was like being elevated to a whole other level that I'd believed in intellectually but had never experienced directly before. I could exist in this state for hours, but the minute I stopped doing service and walked outside, my mind would come back and I would be totally critical. When I returned to work, I'd just experience in myself an infinite love, an intelligence. I knew 'I was really hooked up to something infinite that wasn't just myself.

After a couple of months of being in India, I talked to Guru Maharaj Ji about what I should do, because I was really in conflict about whether I should do propagation in the States or stay in India and do service as a doctor. We went to Europe and I helped in programs there, but it wasn't until we got to Switzerland that I realized that there was something missing in my relationship with him. I would go into his room, and we would talk, I would experience something, for sure, but it wasn't as deep as I wanted it to be. Then he became ill and people told me, "Guru Maharaj Ji's ill for your benefit, so that you could attend to him." Then I realized that every single person is entirely worthwhile to Guru Maharaj Ji, and that he'll do anything for his devotees. If you want to be close to him, he'll manifest a situation where your desire is fulfilled. Since he was ill, I was

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able to be with him and serve him, though I was quite aware I wasn't really doing anything for him. At one point I really felt terrible: I was happy that he was sick because he really wasn't so bad off, he was simply giving me a chance to be with him a lot. One day I stirred up all my courage and told him so. He just looked at me and said, "Well, that's very natural." It was perfect.

Shortly after that, we went back to England. I saw very, very clearly the fantastic experience I'd had in India treating all of these people in terms of their tension, their psychological problems and their emotions-the real causes of illness in most cases for Western people. The Knowledge was far, far more powerful than anything I had ever seen, and so clearly the way to bring the end of suffering to the world. When I returned to the States I just wanted to tell people about Knowledge.

Over the last year and a half he has taught me that any role that a person is in, if he is fulfilling it, people will be attracted to Guru Maharaj Ji by the energy that comes through. I'm able to be the doctor that I wanted to be; I'm able to have the patience and understanding and the ability to give a true love to the people I treat.

John Horton, M.D.

7

One Heart on a Stalk in Sand

Separation leads to greater love. Pain whets the appetite for perfect joy. Beast becomes Beauty at a kiss. When a rose has stalked the truth past many thorns, it flowers its glory forth. "Seek Me, and ye shall find," is the happy ending to "I hide, that ye may seek."

Creation delights in bringing marvelous endings out of hopeless and helpless beginnings. In the marriage at Cana in Galilee, was not the best wine kept till last?

There are incidents which occur in poetry and fairy tale, which seem too good to be true. Their form is so perfect as to appear miraculous. This perfection of form, we call art. But when such events happen in an actual human life, life surpasses art. Tolkien, the father of Hobbits, writes that the life of Christ is full of incidents "peculiarly artistic, beautiful, and moving," but that "the art is here in the story itself rather than in the telling: for the author of the story was not the evangelist."

Such a poetic order of truth is commonly found in nature, where man's folly has not yet defiled it; and in imagination, if man accurately copies down the dicta-

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tions from above. But in man's fallen state, perfection is not found, but sought.

In the life Christ lived, however, poetry takes shape in actions, as it does in words. As his Father is perfect, so are his deeds. Perhaps this phrase, once uttered by a young Indian, on seeing the Pacific Ocean, may explain: "What a man could imagine to be a fairy tale, to be a magical thing, he brought it to be the natural thing."

This is the tale of a magical thing, of a goodness which came to pass.

I received a gift from my Guru Maharaj Ji. By the laying on of hands, his disciple, Mahatma Guru Charnanand showed me the clear light of self inside me, a pure and living light, calm by nature, unselfish, loving, radiant, wise. At first this light was as small as a seed in me. Now it is as small as a tiny plant.

Christ said that he who had a pure eye would find his body was filled with light. Hazrat Mohammed said that the light of the Most High was to be found in these human temples. Bhagwan Shri Krishna, by his divine touch, revealed to King Muchukunda the Knowledge and love of God. Lord Buddha gave his disciples a transmission above the scriptures, not dependent on words or language, which directly revealed the nature of the self, shining.

Guru Maharaj Ji, like all these saints before him, graces his disciple with the faculty of perfect love, in the form of a seed of light. But as those who read the Gospels know, if the field where the seed is planted is dry, the hopes of the seed are slight.

Only a perfect tree gives perfect seed. So I knew that Guru Maharaj Ji was a tree of perfection. But seed cannot grow in too shallow a heart. And I had a most dry and calculating heart.

It was fifteen years since I had cried. Fifteen dry years.

If the seed could not grow, how could I ever love? It became a matter of desperation with me, to reach

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the sower of this perfect seed, and to beg him to teach me to love.

And so I set out for India.

Six months before, I had been too absent minded even to cross London streets, and here I was, crossing Istanbul, and the Turkish desert. Desert. That was me, and so I noted my condition:

One heart on a stalk in a desert, one heart on a stalk in sand ...

I knew that the seed was a perfect seed, but the heart was rock hard.

Across Persia, and across Afghanistan, where I left my favorite manuscript and my favorite person in a van on the way up the world's highest mountain pass, across Pakistan, and into India. All I wanted was the sight of the promised land.

And so, after six thousand miles, I arrived at Guru Maharaj Ji's home, and asked if I might see my Lord. When he came out, I was on my knees, and he asked me, rapid fire,

Have you received my Knowledge?
Yes, Guru Maharaj Ji. (Cannot he who made all things, see?)
What is your name?
Charles.
Why have you come here?
To see you, Guru Maharaj Ji.
Why weren't you here in November?
(This completely shattered me. For years, it had been obvious to me that man followed a timetable set by providence, rather than one set by man. But then, Guru Maharaj Ji had asked his disciples to be there for the November Festival.) I am sorry, Guru Maharaj Ji. I was late.
Then you can see me in April ... here, have you a pencil, I'll give you the address and date.
(It is January, and I doubt I can stay till April.

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Silence. Trembling fingers search for a pencil in my pack.)
That's all. You can stay in my ashram at Hardwar, Prem Nagar.
I was completely dumbfounded. For a start, I had felt no love. And then, I had been hoping to stay some time with Guru Maharaj Ji. But no. Would I ever learn to love? Or had Guru Maharaj Ji written me off as a hopeless case?

I had tried to escape from the house, but one of Maharaj Ji's brothers caught me. And he asks me, have I had lunch. I am not feeling so very hungry, so I say, no thanks, it's all right. Have you had lunch? No, really, it's all right. Then Guru Maharaj Ji asks, have you had lunch? No, Guru Maharaj Ji. Then go and eat.

Lunch was served to me by Guru Maharaj Ji's brother Bhole Ji. So I tried weakly to smile at him. He did not smile back.

As soon as lunch was over I tried to escape again. This time, Shri Raja Ji spoke to me. I shouldn't go that way, there's a mad dog. Tear you apart. At last, I got away from the house, and onto the road. I was going back into the town of Dehra Dun, to catch the train for Hardwar and Prem Nagar. And as I was walking, I overtook a Mahatma, who told me in Hindi something about Mata Ji and Shri Guru Maharaj Ji, while pointing back to the house.

Now either that meant that Mata Ji and Guru Maharaj Ji wanted to see me, or (and this is a very farfetched translation) they were telling me to go back past the house, and hitch hike to Prem Nagar. I could not face the idea of seeing Shri Guru Maharaj Ji again, so I chose the second translation, and walked back past the house.

It was then, by Guru Maharaj Ji's grace, that I shed the first two tears that I had shed in fifteen years. Those two tears were shouting, fantastic, two tears.

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D'you see that? Tears! I must have a heart after all. Oh, Guru Maharaj Ji, that is much the most wonderful gift you could possibly give. And then two thousand more tears were chiming in, we are here inside you too, you know, and you don't imagine your mind is going to let us all out at once, do you? Because it's not.

And then there was my mind saying, please, be rational, both of you, one of you is very excited, and the other is far too depressed. How can you expect cars to stop, when you're giving off vibes like that?

So I arrived at Prem Nagar, and went to see my friends, who had been there some time already. I just saw Guru Maharaj Ji, and I couldn't love him at all, I said. He felt like a pocket Napoleon. (Never have I said anything that describes me so accurately.)

And all my friends said, that's all right. He's often like that the first time, so that you discover how quite unable you are to love on your own. And then he lots you fall in love, the next time you see him.

I stayed several weeks in the ashram, but still Guru Maharaj Ji did not come. I was spending a lot of time folding pamphlets in the print room, and getting very little sun, considering that I was a pale Englishman who had never been in such a favorable climate. And one day, I went for a walk. I was walking down a small path that leads to the Ganges when I saw something that made me stop:

One butterfly and flower God had made
lime yellow, both the same in shade,
another flower and butterfly sky blue,
both butterfly and flower the same in hue,
and set them out in pairs before my eyes,
two flowers, with twin butterflies.

Normally, my poems were about events in language, not events on country walks. I would write something complex, like

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Christ, a rose in Jerusalem, dies.

I mean, the point here is that a rose is also arose, so you get the resurrection as well as the crucifixion. Only, this sort of thing can only happen in the words. But this butterfly poem was about real butterflies, and it had no clever word plays in it. It was simple. I was astonished. Two days later Shri Guru Maharaj Ji turned up at the ashram, and gave satsang about automatic and manual gears in cars. Only I know nothing about cars, so the whole thing was above my head. After satsang, I decided to try to express my heart in a poem, and so I found the cleanest envelope in India, and put a letter into it which said:

My heart is open like a tulip,
still I fear my heart may close.
My heart is open like a tulip,
may it open like a rose.
My heart is open like a tulip,
please make sure that my heart grows.

I thought that was rather simple too. And I drew a rose and a tulip, in case there weren't any tulips in India, to show that a tulip wasn't as wide open as a rose.

I took my envelope up to Shri Guru Maharaj Ji, and he came out of his room, took the envelope, and scrumpled it into his pocket. And I felt scrumpled too.

At least, I thought, Guru Maharaj Ji will still be here in the morning, and I can try again.

When I woke, Guru Maharaj Ji was already in his car on the drive, ready for Dehra Dun. I ran up to the car window, and desperately pleaded, Guru Maharaj Ji, please teach me how to love!

He looked at me as if he was infinitely weary of

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giving me the same answer to the same question, and said those who truly want to love learn very quickly. But those who don't really want to learn it takes an awful long time. And then he touched the accelerator, and I was left standing in the drive, with dust in my face.

I went back to the center of the ashram like a funeral, certain now that Guru Maharaj Ji had given me up for lost. And as I got to the farm yard, I saw Shri Guru Maharaj Ji standing on top of a sand dune at the far end of the ashram grounds, down by the Ganges. He must have driven right around the perimeter. I started running. I cannot explain how I felt. Every encounter with him up until then had been the death of me: but he was beyond death, the all-attractive. I ran. I was running down the path where I had seen the butterflies, and I picked a wild flower. I found myself ahead of all the other devotees, who had now seen him also. I reached his feet, and shoved, the flower into the sand. I was trembling. It went in at ten degrees to the horizontal. I picked it up and packed it in, upright, I was quivering with fear. I could not look at Guru Maharaj Ji's feet, much less at his face. And he said, I think this flower will grow.

My heart exploded with joy. All right, mind, that's enough from you. Guru Maharaj Ji says I will be able to love. You hear me? I shall love!

Slowly, I began to realize things. That Guru Maharaj Ji had said the flower would grow, but I knew he meant my heart. That he had driven round to the very spot where I would have to take the butterfly path to reach him. That my poem had said my heart was like a flower, but he had spoken of an actual flower, and my actual heart had opened. That what I could, at best, connect prettily in words, he connected in real life, changing me from a loveless to a loving state. That he was thirteen, and had so far seen me all told for twenty-five minutes. That he had opened my heart, which I had been unable to find. That when I

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came six thousand miles overland to see him, he hid his love. That when I asked him in poetry, that he would open my heart, he held his peace. That when I begged him with my voice breaking, he turned a cold shoulder. And when at last, I could find no more words, but simply ran to him, he loved me, more than I have ever been loved.

I have had no problems since that day, about my heart. It is a fine story, particularly when one remembers that Guru Maharaj Ji has already given the gift of illumination which Lord Buddha gave, to five million people, though he is no more than fifteen years old. And that he teaches each one as personally as he taught me. One heart, on a stalk, in sand.

I find accounts of Guru Maharaj Ji's doings are usually full of the grace of wonder. They have that organic symmetry which indicates the direct hand of God. They delight in bringing joyful endings out of despairing and selfish beginnings. For he is calling us out of darkness and into his marvelous light.

Charles Cameron

8

A Babe's Devotion

Eli was strong from birth. He was born at home by natural childbirth. Before his birth a Christian mystic told my husband, Jack, and I about the baby in my womb. She said he was a boy, a very old soul, an ancient Hindu. She told me further that he would have a strong will and a gentle spirit for he had a great work to do for God.

All this happened before I met Guru Maharaj Ji and received Knowledge. I received Knowledge when Eli was eighteen months old. The first thing Eli did was give Mahatma Fakiranand a flower. Although mahatmas, Knowledge, and Divine Light Mission were new to me, Eli seemed to fit right in as if he already knew what was going on.

Guru Maharaj Ji later came to Irvington, New York, around Easter. Eli and I gathered up diapers, bottles, and Eli's favorite toy to give to Guru Maharaj Ji. We waited for what seemed like eons to give him this toy. Finally, after giving up all hope of ever seeing Him, Guru Maharaj Ji opened his door and was standing in front of us, all aglow like the noonday sun. I stood there and shook with a feeling I had never known before. Eli stood motionless and expressionless. Eli gave him the toy, and Guru Maharaj Ji

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laughed. I knew then that I always wanted to make him laugh. In a flash he was gone, but appeared again with a huge Easter basket about as big as Eli. It was stocked full of goodies and a crazy bunny. Eli ate jelly beans for weeks afterward, giving thanks each day to Maharaj Ji, remembering with a smile and wide eyes.

Since our first meeting with Guru Maharaj Ji to our most recent one in India, Eli has grown tremendously. He thinks Guru Maharaj Ji is the ultimate giver of candy, that his supply is never ending. Sometimes Eli is silent and, when asked, says he is thinking about "Raji." He loves Maharaj Ji completely, with the beautiful purity and innocence of childhood.

At Guru Puja Eli saw Maharaj Ji drive by in a jeep. Eli left his father, and ran after the jeep as fast as his little legs could take him, calling, "Raji, Raji." At the satsang program that night, Eli and I were in the front row. Maharaj Ji was seated up on the platform; Eli shouted "Raji high, Raji high." Then as the Mahatma said "Bolie Shri Satgurudev . . ." Eli reverently bowed three times, his hands clasped to his third eye in the attitude of prayer.

One morning after we returned home from Colorado, Eli woke up shining, fresh from his dreams. I asked him about his dreams, as I usually do, and he said he was dreaming about "Raji." I asked Eli if Maharaj Ji had given him toys and he said, "No, me give Raji toys." Then he was off like quicksilver into his room. We could hear crash, bang as his toys hit the side of his toy box. Eli came running back with his brand new wooden train that he had gotten in Colorado. He took that toy train and tried to give it to Guru Maharaj Ji's picture.

In the Bhagavad Gita it says, "Whosoever offers to Me with love a leaf, a flower, a fruit, or even water, I appear in person before that disinterested devotee of purified intellect, and delightfully partake of that article offered by him with love."

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In 1972, Eli and I were at the Ram Lila grounds in India. We were both sick, and it was very hot. Guru Maharaj Ji drove up in his car. Many premies ran to greet him but I was carrying Eli and could only walk very slowly. Eli said, "Run Mom!" But I could not. Guru Maharaj Ji was about to drive away. My heart was filled with hope, but I feared he would be gone before we got there. I gave up, but kept on walking. Just as we approached the car Guru Maharaj Ji rolled down his window and said, "Is this the boy who offered me his toy to my picture?" I said yes; he smiled at Eli and then drove on.

India was the most wonderful trip we have ever taken. All my dreams came true, all my prayers were answered. Eli was totally blissed out. He never wanted to leave Guru Maharaj Ji's side. Even after Guru Maharaj Ji left for Delhi, Eli waited by his room. I found Eli playing there and told him Guru Maharaj Ji wasn't coming back (everyone thought he was leaving India at that point), but Eli said, "Raji will be back," and sure enough he came back.

In Prem Nagar Guru Maharaj Ji's doors were always open to children. He was so playful with them and gave them loads of candy. Eli loved to pass out his stash of candy to all the waiting premies. He ate enough himself, that's for sure. He told me one night Maharaj Ji stuffed his pajamas chuck full of candy and Eli ate every piece.

Eli loved making Maharaj Ji laugh, just as everyone does. One day Eli put on a Frankenstein mask and walked into Maharaj Ji's room. There he stood, a three-foot-tall monster. Maharaj Ji loved it. And so did Eli.

Maharaj Ji has said that Eli is a very ancient devotee of the Lord, and that someday he will be giving satsang to lots of people. Since we have returned home Eli has been playing a game where he pretends to give light with his hand, saying, "Bong!" Darshan

144    Who Is Guru Maharaj Ji?

is a forefinger to the third eye, and when asked to give satsang about the Word he shook his leg!

Eli sings songs about Guru Maharaj Ji, does service to Maharaj Ji around the house, pranams, tries to meditate, and generally loves him with his whole heart. Eli is now two-and-a-half years old.

Eli's Mother

9

Wisdom's Child

God is light of the soul. All of us have God or light in us. This light is energy. Energy makes flowers grow. Energy makes the sun shine. Energy gives us life. Energy is light.

This is the light of God, which is inside everything in the universe. Mahatma Rajeshwar showed me this intense light of God, and now I am a premie of Guru Maharaj Ji.

I gave satsang in school, and my friend Deirdre, who did not believe in God, now knows what God is.

And I hope everyone gets this intense light (Knowledge).

Bolie Shri Satguru Dev Maharaj Ki Jai.

Kirsten Marie Sheehy, age nine.

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10

Subversive

Anti-war, anti-draft, anti-establishment.

I used to be active politically in the Midwest with a group called the "Beaver 55". We destroyed draft files and computer tapes for Dow Chemical: in return I did fourteen months in prison before they let me out on parole. After I got out, I went to Berkeley.

I first heard about Guru Maharaj Ji about six or seven months before I received Knowledge. The people I was running with were revolutionaries, except a close friend, Jack, who was saying the most incredible thing in the world was happening: the Lord was here. I didn't take it too seriously. I was into what I was doing-living in Berkeley, working as a typesetter in a print shop we set up; a collectively-owned operation that was supposed to serve the movement and, through that, serve the world.

After Jack received Knowledge, he just glowed about it every day and became more and more mellow. He and I had been into tripping out on acid together and going off by ourselves. We'd get into trying to figure out what was going on, how we fit in, how we could plug in better, things like that. We were both becoming very frustrated with the Movement, but we were still feeling very idealistic inside about

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what should be done, about the need to find a way, and how we had to somehow establish a sense of brotherhood.

After he got Knowledge, Jack gave me satsang and told me about this vibration, this holy Word you get with Knowledge. He'd tell me about how high it was and how it changed your head, but he was very vague. Actually it was the vagueness that captured my attention more than anything, because I couldn't comprehend what he was saying. I just couldn't understand what was coming down, so I decided I should really check this out myself. My best friend couldn't tell me about it, yet he was going through changes that I really couldn't ignore.

I went to the ashram in San Francisco but as far as I was concerned, it was just a weird trip. People were bowing and taking off their shoes: it just seemed really out of the world to me, and didn't relate to anything I was into. They weren't doing anything in the world, they seemed like they were on some constant drug trip. Escapists; no better than someone who shot heroin every day.

Still, the next Sunday I was back for the pot-luck dinner, I can't explain why. I was just really looking inside and following my impulses. After all, I couldn't drop acid every day. Something kept drawing me back.

My friend kept giving me satsang. There was a time when I reached a point where I didn't want to hear any more. But Jack would keep catching me with a little bit here and a little bit there, because he loved me a lot.

Then one day I heard there was a mahatma coming to town and he was going to give a program. So I went and really got off on what he was saying. He was holding out a ray of hope that there really was an actual experience that anyone could have, that I'd always wanted to have.

After the program I decided to take the next day

148    Who Is Guru Maharaj Ji?

off to go and check this Knowledge out, to go get this thing and see how it was. So I told my friend, "Now I'm not going to go bowing to any pictures or say this boy is God or anything, I'm just going to check this Knowledge out because Guru Maharaj Ji says that if you come with a guileless heart you don't have to believe until you have this experience." I was using Guru Maharaj Ji's rhetoric to reinforce my own, so that I could get Knowledge without having to believe. I had worked out everything I would say to Mahatma Ji.

When we got to the ashram there was a lot of satsang. People were asking questions and waiting for Mahatma Ji to wake up. It got to be eleven o'clock and he was still asleep. The satsang still sounded good, but the room was really filling up with people. It got very hot and muggy. I took my coat off; I took my shirt off. Finally the mahatma came. A few people had to leave and there were about thirty-five of left for the Knowledge session. We sat there all day It grew hotter every minute, but I stayed and I received Knowledge. I saw light and tasted nectar right away, but I hardly heard any music, except something that sounded like crickets. It wasn't very impressive. I walked home afterwards just drained, not blown away by the experience, just very tired. I ate and went to bed.

Later I spoke with my friends, "Look, I didn't make any promises to Mahatma Ji or to Guru Maharaj Ji." I couldn't relate to either one; they weren't real in my life. The only person who was real was this friend who had brought me to Knowledge. I promised to him that I would give the meditation a chance. It was this bond of friendship between us that kept me meditating.

The first morning I meditated I just flipped out. I saw incredible colors and when I came out of it the walls were melting; it was like being on an acid trip. I couldn't believe it. I was way off the ground, very very high. As I walked the long walk from Oakland

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to where I worked in Berkeley, I went into meditation to see if it really was something you could do constantly. I was off the ground the whole time. Every day this would happen. I began to test the Knowledge, to really check it out. At work, if a situation arose that was filled with tension, I would make sure I was in meditation to see if it was going to help me, and every time it would. The meditation became an island in my life: like a very strong rock I'd never experienced before. I would stand on it for a while to see how sturdy it was, and then I'd go back to what I was into: politics and smoking dope. Each day I would test it for a little longer and then go back, and every day it would get better.

Then came the second Cambodian invasion and the riots raged in Berkeley and I was right there with all my old political friends. From there on I could see that I was going to have to make a choice between this Knowledge, which now pretty much encompassed my whole life, and the political thing I'd been into for so many years. It was a painful choice. After I gave satsang to the people in my collective, they got together and said, "We can't trust you anymore. You're going to have to leave the collective because you believe in this Guru Maharaj Ji and that's where your loyalty is." These were people I really respected; at the time they were the only people who were manifesting something that was real. Ultimately, I got more and more into the Knowledge. I quit smoking dope but still I'd go around to the collectives in Berkeley and smoke with them. I'd get so blown away that the only thing that would come out of me would be satsang. So I got more and more alienated from them; they were just turning me out. It was my good fortune that I didn't really have to make the choice; they made it for me. They threw me out.

Since I was out in the cold, I decided to take a trip around the U.S. to tell all my friends about Guru Maharaj Ji. I was on the road when Guru Maharaj Ji

150    Who Is Guru Maharaj Ji?

came to Philadelphia and I went to see him. The first reaction I had was that he was a fraud and a mouthpiece for his mother who wanted to take over the world. I was still skeptical of my experiences since Knowledge, because I hadn't really grown in the Knowledge. I experienced the high that Knowledge can bring, but I was looking for something more than a high, I was looking for something practical, the practical solution to the situation that was facing the world. That was more important to me.

The program that night was very high and we were singing and dancing and generally the scene had a lot of impact. But when Guru Maharaj Ji came, it just brought me down because of where I was coming from. They say Guru Maharaj Ji is a mirror; wherever you're at will be reflected back to you. It was true. Instantly I perceived Guru Maharaj Ji as a fraud, but as I watched him, that feeling went away. The whole night was this constant mind play of in and out for me. I would sort of stand back and analyze it from a perspective of where I'd been. I wasn't really getting involved fully in the experience; I wasn't jumping into the river that was flowing by me, I was standing on the banks watching and analyzing how it relates to this river here and that stream there.

After nine days of hitch-hiking around, I returned home to Oakland, hot and tired. As far as the people in the house were concerned though, I was an agent of Divine Light Mission, and they didn't want any part of it. I was thrown out that very night. The whole scene just blew me apart. I walked out of the house with a smile on my face but then I cried, I just cried and wandered around the streets of Oakland for hours. It was crazy. So I split to Oregon. I was totally confused. I didn't have my feet in either world, or in any world for that matter. I wasn't into politics any more; I wasn't fully into Divine Light Mission. wasn't even experiencing the Knowledge. I was just wandering individual who was really confused an

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wanting to understand what was happening to me and to the world.

In Oregon I gathered up all these scriptures like the Vedas and the Upanishads and the Koran and the Bible so I could read about Guru Maharaj Ji from different points of view. The people I was living with were really fantastic; at that point they were the only people who could accept me. It was in Oregon that I realized that my whole life was preoccupied with Guru Maharaj Ji and had been for three or four months. The day I received Knowledge was the beginning of a process that got me out of politics and into a preoccupation, day in and day out, with Guru Maharaj Ji and the Knowledge. "What is it? What's happening?" As I stood outside and watched my own preoccupation it really freaked me out because I saw that there was nothing I could really do about it, I was caught up in this power. Then the whole cycle began where I thought that this power was evil and that Guru Maharaj Ji was an anti-Christ.

At this point I started to get into the Bible, but the Bible took me full circle. The more I tried to understand it, the more it showed me that the Knowledge was the right thing. I saw that my clinging to Jesus was just self-deception, that I never really knew Jesus. As I looked into other scriptures too, I saw that what the mahatma had said had been right; the Knowledge is described everywhere. So I thought, "Maybe this boy has something." Still, the important thing for me was not Guru Maharaj Ji, but the Knowledge and how it was going to manifest to help the world.

Then I started to go hang out by the ashram in Portland, doing some service. The first day I just laid out all my doubts to these people and they were really, really open. I was accepted for where I was at by other premies. Soon the mahatma came and gave a program. I went to it and still felt away from the scene. I felt I couldn't get caught up. Yet I did; I

152    Who Is Guru Maharaj Ji?

found myself clapping and standing up and singing. I couldn't help it. The energy would always get to me in spite of myself and my efforts to control it.

Mahatma Ji asked me, "Why aren't you going to India?" That blew me out because I didn't know how he knew me or how he knew that I wasn't going to India. He told me to make plans to go, which I did even though I was on parole from prison and shouldn't have even considered going. A day or two before I left for India I was released from parole - another "coincidence" that blew my mind.

In India I realized I wanted to become fully involved, but there was a tremendous block I had built up during my life. I never let myself become truly involved in anything. I always wanted to be in control and be responsible. Finally I was so desperate that I went up to a mahatma and asked him how I could become more involved in the Knowledge. How could I meditate better? He told me, "Oh, you must surrender." Now that sounded very good so I asked him how I could surrender. He said I should meditate. I said to him, "Wait a minute. I can't meditate, and you're saying that in order to meditate better I should surrender, but to surrender I should meditate. Now what is this?" And he went away laughing, which didn't seem like much help to me at the time. I went ahead and tried to meditate, and tried and tried and tried. It got to the point where it was so frustrating that I just cried and cried. I said, "Wow, help me. Take this from me. Let me meditate." Right after this, in a way I can't ever explain, Guru Maharaj Ji graced me with the involvement I'd been seeking. On a different level every day, in different ways, I would experience more of the Knowledge. Even when I was sick I was higher and feeling more in touch with reality and what was going on in the universe than ever in my life.

When I returned to this country, I decided to move into an ashram in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Knowl-

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edge is really the most revolutionary thing happening. It's developing into everything that all of the idealistic people in the world have been wanting to happen: to bring people together communally, economically, socially, and spiritually. In politics I realized that you couldn't change the structures of society until you changed the hearts of people. Otherwise, whatever power changes are made just lead to more oppression. At the end of every revolution people have always gotten thrown into prison. If somehow the people's hearts could be taken out and reworked and returned, they would be changed people. Of course, that's what Guru Maharaj Ji does. In this way he is creating a really strong foundation for change. Really, just look around, you see a perfect revolutionary movement. There are cadres in every town, with centers of activities working around them, coordination and lines of communications; the people are willing to be disciplined and orderly in their lives-it's perfect.

The Knowledge has given me the clarity to see myself, what I'm doing, what my imbalances are. If you can't see yourself, you can't really begin to do anything, begin to be an instrument. It is also opening my heart, which was like a rock. For the first time I'm beginning to feel love. The love that I experience now is much more refined because there are fewer times when my ego slips into it. It takes me down to the foundation of what I am and allows me to touch and communicate on that level, to manifest it by serving humanity and ending confusion.

Mike Donner

11

A Free Policeman

Some people get the impression that all of Guru Maharaj Ji's disciples live in ashrams or premie houses and devote all of their time to service. Many premies are living like that, but others have found that the Knowledge allows you to be and do anything in this world. I'm the only disciple of Guru Maharaj Ji in my town, and I'm a policeman.

Many people in town don't know I'm a premie, and have no idea who Guru Maharaj Ji is. But I have experienced no trouble relating to them as a police officer and have no moral conflict when I'm called on to do something.

I'm continually coming in contact with people who have been unable to resolve certain aspects of their lives, and are in constant trouble with the law. The amazing thing about handling criminal charges is that it seems to be the same people over and over again who cannot manage to get along with their fellow human beings and the law. A person who writes bad checks never seems to learn, even if he has spent time in prison, that he should stop. The same people who get in fights every Friday and Saturday night get locked up for a day to "cool off." The same kids get picked up for possession of beer as a minor, or distur-

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bance of the peace. Obviously, being in jail is not what these people need, because it doesn't change them.

But it also makes me sad to see people who don't get in trouble with the law, and are still unable to resolve the question of "Why am I here on earth?" Their minds are preoccupied with everyday things like finding someone to lend them a pump to pump the water out of their basement, or having a garage sale to get rid of some of the outgrown baby clothes. There never seems to be enough time to sit down and try to reason through life's mysteries. It's too easy to turn on the television or go downtown for a cup of coffee.

During the month I was in India with 3,600 Western devotees of Guru Maharaj Ji, I never saw one fight, one drunk, or anything that would be considered criminal. I know that many of these premies had been involved in many ways on the wrong side of the law before they received Guru Maharaj Ji's Knowledge, but here they were, in a group almost as big as my town, with no problems. It was obviously the Knowledge which allowed these premies to live peacefully and ask the deepest questions about life. I suppose if everybody was a premie, I'd have to find another job, because there would be no need for policemen anymore.

Richard Stewart

12

A Free Prisoner

I used to be a prisoner but now I am free.

I was arrested for burglary in 1971 and went to jail from January to November. In the beginning of July my sister smuggled in some acid for me. I didn't think I was hallucinating; the trip was just very real. As I closed my eyes, I was being given what I later came to know as satsang. I was actually hearing a voice explain all the things that I was experiencing. It got to the point where I was completely satisfied, perfectly happy. I had the thought that I could stay here forever. Then the voice spoke to me: "You are here forever. This is not religion: you will not find this in religions, but you must seek this."

I later found out that this was exactly the same time that Guru Maharaj Ji first set foot on this continent.

The next few months in jail, I was reading the Bible, the Tibetan Book of the Dead, and all the scriptures. When I got out of jail, I was very confused. I knew exactly what I wanted, but I bad no idea how to get it. So I started shooting dope like crazy. I started doing a bag a day. At that time I'd been doing junk for about five years.

A junkie will do anything for a bag of dope. He's

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very devoted because what junk gives is perfect contentment, complete satisfaction, perfect peace - but only for an instant. The drug is so strong and so potent, that it wipes out all your physical senses, and in a flash you experience a little bit of your true self, a little bit of higher consciousness, because you can't perceive any of the physical world. You perceive reality. And you experience a little bit of bliss. So the junkie gets into dope: the stronger the dope, the better the feeling.

Somebody once asked me what I think of when. I'm nodding. Well, I never had any conscious thoughts; I could never consciously remember anything when I went into a nod. I would just come back up from a nod, and it was very beautiful. After I received Knowledge, I realized that the reason I loved it was because then I could really bathe in this light. But in taking dope, I couldn't have any conscious remembrance of this. I knew I loved this state, but with dope this feeling of perfect peace lasts only for an instant. This world has nothing to offer most junkies; they see right through it. They know that there's nothing here that can satisfy them. This is the reason why dope fiends are dope fiends. This is why they're always after dope, just to get this feeling for an instant. Dope is like a false prophet that way.

I tried to trip again even though in jail the voice had told me that if I did I could never have the same experience. Of course, it was nothing close to it, but it helped to wake me up. It was like a slap in the face, saying there is more, don't get hung up here. Go out and seek it; you will find it. It was like a bucket of ice water.

I didn't want to do dope, but I wanted to be high. I loved to be high. I didn't want to be part of all the hassles I knew were waiting for humanity. When I was high, I felt completely united with everything, like when I had that trip in jail. I'd always been into bringing about brotherhood, but I could never really

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feel it, because I didn't know what it was. So I went through a crazy time, unlike I'd ever felt before. I'd feel really bad, then clean up, then get strung out on junk, clean up, then get strung out bad. I went through this about five or six times in a period between November and May. May was the last time I cleaned up and I cleaned up on my own. I'd just freaked out of a de-tox (methadone) program and I started to get strung out again, so I decided to just cut loose. By then I knew that as long as I continued to shoot dope I would never be able to even seek this state of perfection. Just as I was about to leave for a time in the mountains, my sister, who is a nun, told me to go to a house of prayer, a charismatic renewal "how to pray" sort of thing.

The people there were pretty high, but still there was something lacking, though I didn't know what. All I knew was that I had once experienced a state of perfection, and I was willing to try anything to get it back, anything at all. So I stayed there for five days, and on the fifth day the house burnt down completely in a flash fire at five o'clock in the morning. Something told me I wasn't supposed to be there.

I decided again to go up into the mountains. Just as I was about to leave this time, another person I met told me to come out to New Jersey. There was a political seminar going on, with the theme of contemplation and resistance.

I went there and stayed for most of the summer. It was a beautiful setting with a thousand acres of land and a lake in the middle. The people were pretty nice. Before I left they told me they were going to start a soup kitchen in Washington, D.C. as part of a community project for creative non-violence. They told me I could come and work there if I wanted to, but work was the furthest thing from my mind. I couldn't even think about it; all I wanted to do was to find my way back to that infinite state. So right before the end of the summer I decided to completely dedicate my-

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self to that. I was going to go up into the mountains to decide what move to make. I was thinking very seriously of moving into a Trappist monastery or something like that. I went up into the mountains planning to stay there for the rest of the summer.

I went with three other people but we were only there for a day before we got freaked out really bad. People up there were eating raw deer meat and saying how much fun it is to shoot a deer and let the blood drip down your face. I said, "Yeah, sounds like a lot of fun, see you later." So there I was, alone again.

What's happening? Everything was just falling through. About a week later, while I was at my parents' house, I got a letter from Washington asking me to come down. At that point I decided that things were pointing to Washington, so I went knowing that I wasn't going there just to work in the soup kitchen. That was an excuse for going, but there was something much stronger pulling me there. Towards the end of September I was walking my dog and I saw a poster saying that Mahatma Rajeshwar was going to be attending at the Sylvan Theatre at Monument. I thought, "That sounds pretty good, I think I'll go to that."

The next day I went to the program, and everybody was telling me about this very blissful thing I could get, a very blissful experience. Then a sister got up and gave satsang: "This is not a religion, you will not find this in religion." And that just completely blew me away because right away I was reminded of my incredible jail experience and I had this feeling rush over me like I was going home.

The next day I went to receive Knowledge, but Mahatma Ji didn't give Knowledge that day. The day after that I went to receive Knowledge, and Mahatma Ji told me to get my hair cut. So I went and got my hair cut. By then Mahatma Ji had gone to Virginia, so I waited for him to come back. Finally when he got back I received Knowledge.

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Since then, I've been very, very happy. Very happy. The scene has changed so much since then. I've come to know that I don't want anything else in the world. There is nothing else in the whole universe. This Knowledge bathes you in such clarity, and this is what everybody wants, whether they're conscious of it or not; it's guaranteed to fulfill every desire, every single thirst. All I can say is, it's been taken and tested and proved. And it's beautiful.

People should take this Knowledge so they can know who they really are. So they can know permanent peace, so they can know permanent happiness. Most people get very happy for a while, they then get very down for a while, then they get very happy for a while, then they get very depressed. Drugs are just an amplified state of everyday life: high and low, high and low. People get happy, they get sad, they get happy, they get sad. The only way I see that we can be happy, is to hook up to the source which is the essence of happiness and the essence of joy. This is what everybody wants, but nobody can seem to find.

This is what Guru Maharaj Ji gives.

Paul Williams

13

England's Oldest Premie

Mary is England's oldest premie; she is 86.

For so many years I looked for truth. I tried everything: the Theosophical Society, Rudolph Steiner, New Thought, and anything else that was going on. They all gave the promise of Knowledge, but nobody could give it. So I was very discontented and felt that in my old age I would have to die without anything. It was terrible.

I first heard about Guru Maharaj Ji when someone came to me and said that there are meetings with a young rishi in Brighton. When I first went, I thought, "Aren't they young? How wonderful!" There they were, all young people, all singing, and I thought, "How gorgeous!" They looked so happy and so calm. Everyone said something and it was quite spontaneous. I was especially struck by the way each one spoke, and when another started speaking, he was listened to just as eagerly. It wasn't like when people prepare a speech and say, "Go on, your turn." It was so brotherly; each one was absorbed with what the other was saying. It was lovely, so smooth.

So I went to meetings three times a week to get "well soaked" about this Knowledge. Everybody gave

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me satsang, and filled me up all they could. I was promised Knowledge, but it didn't come right away. All the time I felt it was too good for words, it'll pass me by, it can't be possible. But it didn't pass me by. Suddenly, I ended up going to London. It was so tremendous.

We went for Guru Maharaj Ji's birthday celebration-it was December, 1972. The next day, I received Knowledge from Mahatma Prakash Bai. I saw the light straight away, which was a magnificent experience because I didn't know what I was going to see. I didn't hear the music at first, but I tasted the nectar, and that was wonderful. I'd been waiting for this so long. I thought I should never, never, never get this Knowledge.

As I was returning home by car that night, I thought, "Yes, I've received Knowledge. I mustn't forget that." And I've gone on ever since. Instead of looking around and being dismayed and sad and preoccupied with nothing at all, I'm full of calm and joy and I can look forward to my meditation. It's made a wonderful difference in my life. I'm just beginning, but I know I can keep on with it.

Why so few people of my generation have taken this opportunity is puzzling. I think they've gone crusty; they've surrounded themselves with such barriers. Perhaps they're contented, perhaps they can't be bothered. They think, "We've tried so much, we don't want anything more." But once it gets going, it'll gather momentum even among my generation because inwardly people are searching for the truth. They want something, but they've been disappointed. Once they know that other people of their age are taking Knowledge and making progress, it'll get going.

I think people of my generation are very, very lucky to have the Knowledge, because I don't think we deserve it. We brought the world to what it is now. It is my generation who is responsible. This is the century where everything happened. I remember

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when the first motor car was going on the road; when we had those gramophones with horns so huge; when electricity was first in the houses. Yes, I remember all that. There has been great progress, but we've overdone it. We're in such a rush. It's the rush of the century that is pushing people, and they overdo it; they think they want everything quickly-and more and more and more of it. So when you receive Knowledge, it's priceless, especially for anyone of my age.

Of course, all the promises were true. This isn't just something that you advertise: you might be the lucky one, and then you might not. It's for everyone the same. And after receiving Knowledge, it's up to the person to keep on and do meditation, and then you'll accelerate the power given to you. This is a new life for me.

Mary Richards

14

Before I Was Born

I am personal secretary to the president of a manufacturing corporation. Throughout my life, I have been searching for one person to give my life to. I imagined him as a small boy, and I used to dream that I might find him.

When I first heard about Guru Maharaj Ji, I was eighteen. A friend had just met a mahatma on the street, and came to tell me about the Guru. I asked my friend what the Guru's name was, and he said "Guru Maharaj Ji." When he said this name something happened inside. It was as if my whole being was filled with love and my heart felt as if it was about to overflow. Suddenly I said, "This is him."

I left to receive Knowledge right away. I knew nothing about it at all, only that he was to reveal an experience that most people call "God." When I got there I found out that a Knowledge session was already going on and that I would have to come back another day. A few days later I received the Knowledge of Guru Maharaj Ji.

One day as I was meditating, I found myself thinking about my childhood and an experience I had had in a hospital. All of a sudden I got a glimpse of what I had experienced when I was born. I realized that

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the light I had been meditating on, the light of Guru Maharaj Ji's Knowledge, was the same light I had experienced before birth.

I remembered a bright white light in my mother's womb. There was music playing and a vibration that was so strong it vibrated my whole being. As I started to come out of the womb, I felt different. Things started to change and that beautiful white light started to fade and become more and more distant.

I don't remember what happened after that, until I was going down the hospital corridor. It seemed as if we were moving down the corridor at a fast pace. It was as if someone were walking fast, or as if I was in a wheel chair with someone holding me in their arms. I was feeling a very subtle vibration. I knew what everything was and what I was doing in this situation. I saw two nuns crossing the hall and both had gold crosses hanging from their clothes. I knew that they were nuns even though I did not associate their image with the word "nun" because at that time I did not know that such a word existed.

I had not experienced the full intensity of this light since but I knew that this light was the reality I had been desperately trying to get back to my whole life. When I realized that I was now able to see that same light, I knew I had found the true path that would eventually lead me back to that state beyond birth I had always been so thirsty for.

Sheila Ruderfer

15

Attain this Knowledge

Actually my life was very, very happy. Even though my parents had split up and there was a lot of chaos inside the family, my life was always very good. I had friends and I always had money and everything was wonderful. But when I graduated from high school, in 1968, I felt the need to go somewhere, and I started traveling. I went to Australia, the South Pacific islands, New Zealand, and traveled around and everything was very beautiful. Everywhere I went people liked me, I had jobs, I had money. I could have stayed anywhere, but there was something inside of me that wouldn't let me stop. I'd go into a place and I'd like it and then one day I'd say, "Well I think I'll go to another place." In this way, I just started traveling and traveling until I got very tired and I didn't want to travel. So then I came back to America and got involved in some drugs and all kinds of insane things. And then again I started traveling and I went around the world. I went to Japan, Hong Kong, India, and Europe.

When I was in India it was really wonderful. For some reason I felt very comfortable there. Somehow when I got back to the States again I decided that I would go back to India.

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This was in 1970. At that time India hadn't really been invaded by western people, and the hippie European scene hadn't really begun. So many Indian people would come and it was really friendly. But still there was something inside saying, "Go," telling me to move on.

So I went to another place, where I got involved in drugs, and I was trafficking, dealing drugs. When I came back to America I had all this money, I had made a lot of money, really thousands and thousands of dollars, maybe hundreds of thousands of dollars. In fact, maybe all together, a million dollars in the many years of doing this. I had a car, and a place in the mountains, and there were some good people around and I always had a stash of something to smoke. But still, there was something inside, telling me to go.

I remember I used to sit outside on this porch and overlook this whole redwood forest and say to myself, "Wow, here I have this whole forest and all these things, but it's not satisfying me. I think I'll go somewhere else." So again I left everything, I left the car, the cabin, the money, everything. I said, "Well, there's only one thing to do and that's to completely get away." I thought I would renounce the world.

So there I was in India again, and I was traveling around on foot and going here and there. And I ran into a friend and we started traveling together. We were both fed up with this world, we had experienced so much, we'd experienced working in factories, we'd experienced being with younger people, being with older people, being involved in a big money making circuit, in the underground world and in traveling and in all different kinds. of situations throughout the world. We had seen Denmark, Afghanistan, Japan, Hong Kong, Australia, Bali, Singapore, South America, North America, everywhere. So we figured we'd just walk 'till we came together because we weren't

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being good people in this world, we didn't have any understanding of what was happening. Sometimes we could give really good advice to other people, but we could never give good advice to ourselves.

So we were just walking in India, just walking and walking. We'd walk in a certain direction and then some guy would point in another direction, or we'd come to a fork in the road and decide that the road we were supposed to take didn't look good.

One day we were walking on this road and we were on our way to this big festival where all these sadhus and holy men were supposed to go. We were never religious-minded, but we wanted to do the right thing, go by the good book, and become very beautiful people. We figured if we walked in India and spent a lot of time with Indian people, we'd eventually get to the place where we could come back to the West and turn everybody on to being beautiful. But we had to be beautiful first. We had this concept of how to be beautiful; and according to our concept we'd try to act beautiful. It was very unsuccessful. We were having a fantastic time though, many people were coming, thinking we were saints because we had long hair and beards and were walking in India with no suitcases and no money. People always took care of us, and treated us like kings.

One day, while we were walking to this festival, we stopped at this place where the people offered us some tea, so we said okay and they started making it. It took such a long time and though we weren't really getting impatient we knew we had a long ways to go. So as soon as we had the tea, we got up to leave. They said, "No, we just made food for you." And it was the kind of thing where if you don't do it they get really upset. So thinking that we had to do this, we just waited and waited while they made food. As I was waiting, I saw this sadhu come along. He was very strange, and seeing me, he came over. When I

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asked him if he wanted to sit down, he just shook his head, and I didn't think anything of it. He just walked around and checked us out. It was pretty strange. So when my friend woke up I said, "There's this really weird character who just came over here." Then this sadhu made a motion with his hand and somebody gave him a pen, and then he made another motion, and someone gave him a piece of paper. And then he started writing. He wrote three questions down in English in the middle of nowhere, in a place where there were no English speaking people at all, only sugar cane farms and villages.

The first question he wrote was, "What is the aim of your wandering?" And we stood there and we couldn't believe it. We said we're just wandering around on our way to the festival, and even though we might have said more we were so blown out we couldn't speak. Then he said, "How you came and stay here?" We told him we walked there. And then he wrote, "Have you eager to go ahead?" And we said yes, but we really didn't know what he meant. So He wrote, "Okay, eat you food.", and he just watched us while we ate. Then he motioned to come with him. So we walked across the road to this sugar cane juice that they extract from sugar cane stalks before they make brown sugar out of it. Then he wrote one thing: "You must stay here tonight, then leave in the morning." So we said okay. Then he wrote: "Go now and pray to God or go now and perform your prayers." So we walked around and we said to ourselves, "What's going on? What about this guy? Isn't he strange? He doesn't talk at all. He knows English."

The next morning, as we were taking food, he started writing in the dirt. He started writing things like: "Have you peace?" And we said, "Of course, of course we have peace, what do you mean?" Then he'd start in the middle of things, "Why did you leave America?" We said, "Well, you know America's re-

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ally a bad place and we didn't really like America, we didn't like the West."

Then he started to give us satsang in writing, asking us, "Is peace God?" And we said, "Of course, God is love and love is God." He wrote, "Then why did you leave America? Peace is there as much as peace is here."

"Well, but..." We had nothing to say.

Then every once in a while, he would write, "Have you seen divine light?" We said, "Of course, of course we've seen divine light. Hasn't everyone seen divine light?" So he writes: "What is divine light?" We said, "Divine light is that light of complete understanding." So we'd just go on and on, and he would call all the people from the village, and we would give them discourses, and tell them about how God is one and how man is one, and how we have to love God, and we have to love each other. Then, when people would leave, he would write: "How do you know this? How do you know these things? How do you know God is one?"

He would write all these things and we would say, "Well, everybody knows that" And he would write: "What has been your experience?" And we would just freak out.

Every morning for a week, we'd get up, roll up our bags, get ready to go, and then we'd start having satsang. He would write things like: "Why did America kill Kennedy? Why America makes bombs? Why did people kill Jesus Christ? Why did people kill Rama, Krishna?" And he would write all the time, "The mind is the tool of the devil." But we never understood.

After about two or three weeks with him, we were feeling pretty strange. We couldn't leave because we really felt that he had something. He was so blissful. We used to roll in the dirt and play. It was really strange.

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One morning he pointed to a part in the scriptures, in the Bhagavad Gita, and I read, "Attain this Knowledge by all means. Prostrate yourself at the feet of the wise. Render them all forms of service. Question them with a guileless heart again and again. And when those wise seers of truth are pleased with your actions then they will reveal this Knowledge to you."

All of a sudden, we thought, "Wow, we've really stumbled upon something incredible." We thought he was the saint, that we would go and prostrate to him and he would give us the Knowledge. We went to him and said, "Please give us this Knowledge, tell us about this secret." And then he wrote: "I can't." Then we said, "Aren't you a guru?" And he wrote: "Even a guru has a guru. There is one pair of Lotus Feet that stand on my head. I am completely controlled by the Satguru."

"Who is Satguru?"

"Balyogeshwar Paramhans Satgurudev Shri Sant Ji Maharaj."

And even though we had heard Maharaj Ji's name many times before in India we never connected it.

We went to Prem Nagar ashram. After about two or three weeks there, after doing service and realizing more and more what was happening, we received Knowledge from Guru Maharaj Ji on February 9, 1971. At that time, all traveling inside stopped. There was no need to travel, or go anywhere, or do anything. The most natural thing for us to do was to prostrate at the Lotus Feet of Guru Maharaj Ji and say, "Now, what have you in store for us?" We had to serve Guru Maharaj Ji because this Knowledge was so fantastic. People were saying, "You're going to receive Knowledge. You're going to see the light," but when we actually received Knowledge, it was as if we were reborn. We just felt like babies. We were completely ready to do whatever we had to do. Having lived in the world, we still knew how to live in this

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world and how to talk to people, do things, and handle ourselves. Only now, our consciousness, our minds, were reborn. There was a whole new thing taking place.

We came to Guru Maharaj Ji and we prostrated, and I said to Guru Maharaj Ji, "I'd like to dedicate my whole life to you." He said, "Go away from me. First go away and realize something, meditate and realize something."

We decided to go away for a month, until a festival called Holi. I went down to Calcutta for about three weeks and my friend went to Rajasthan.

When I got there, I met all these people, and even though I was giving them satsang, I was still in the world. I was susceptible to whatever they were doing. If people were smoking, I was smoking. If people were eating, I was eating. I had no desire of my own to eat at those times of the day, or smoke, but I was just very susceptible to the people. Whatever they wanted to do, whatever they were doing, I would do it too. One day I was walking down the street and I said, "Why am I doing all these things?" And as I was about to say to myself, "Because I have nothing better to do," I suddenly discovered that I did have something better to do, and that was to meditate. That's when I realized I had Knowledge, that I had received Knowledge, because then I knew. I actually knew, I was very aware of the fact that I had something that was the best thing to do, and I wasn't doing it.

I came back to Prem Nagar ashram for Holi and it was at that time that we came and prostrated ourselves to Guru Maharaj Ji and said, "Guru Maharaj Ji, we want to dedicate our lives to you. We are ready to do anything you say but you must give us agya, you must give us your command, your instructions."

Maharaj Ji said, "I think you'd better go back to the West." This was the one thing that we really

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weren't prepared to do because this is where we had run from, this is where all the obstacles and aches were for us. And all during this time I had been thinking about Mauni Baba, the silent sadhu, because it was through him that I had come to Maharaj Ji.

One day we had walked from sun-up to sundown and although he never spoke, on this day he never even wrote anything. As we walked around, he pointed with his cane at everything. He'd point down at a certain plant growing out of the ground, in a field, and I'd look at it. And as we walked he'd point at a bird, he'd point at the sky, flowers, barbed-wire fences, sugar cane, insects, all these things. And we walked all day non-stop, not eating or anything. And then as we were sitting on a hill as the sun was setting he went like this with his cane: he moved it all the way around in a circle, and as he did this with his stick, he indicated with his finger the figure one. And it was very clear to me that all things are one, that's what he was trying to say. All day he was pointing this out, that I should look at this and this, and I was becoming so aware of everything, and he was saying that all things are one.

Remembering that really gave me confidence. Yes, I must do what Guru Maharaj Ji says. And Maharaj Ji gave us his blessings. Maharaj Ji said, "I'll come in a couple of years. Go and give satsang, inspire people to receive Knowledge." So we said, "Wow, only a couple of years!" and we took off, and went back to America.

We started giving satsang, we started telling people about Guru Maharaj Ji, but then people would say, "Well, how do I receive Knowledge?" We were in a real dilemma, because there were no mahatmas here. So it was really strange.

Then all of a sudden we got a phone call from Mahatma Ashokanand, in London, saying Guru Maharaj Ji was arriving in London in two weeks. And then we said, "Wow, this is our chance, our chance to bring

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him to America!" And from that point on there were three of us working day and night to prepare; to get tickets, to get visas, to prepare the people, the press, and everything; to publicize, and arrange programs for Guru Maharaj Ji. And then Guru Maharaj Ji came to America.

Garry Girard

16

Diplomacy

As the daughter of a high-ranking official in the U.S. State Department, I have always had to be sure that everything I did and said was right. I was representing the United States and was brought up knowing that in a very small way I was affecting the relations between my home country and the country I was living in. So, when at age one, I was placed in the arms of a foreign official and my mother forgot to put rubber pants on me, I simply had to restrain myself. Diplomatic language was the language of our household. My father taught me that there is even a diplomatic answer to, "Have you brushed your teeth this morning?" A lesson particularly useful when you have not. And even more useful later on, when it was, "what time did you get in last night," after your date. At home we knew that my father's career was dependent on how we, his family, behaved.

I quickly learned that diplomacy is an art. There are no ABC books written on how to be diplomatic, even for five-year-olds, because true diplomacy can only grow out of an understanding of the purpose behind guarding actions and words. My purpose was simple: to keep from getting damaged. I learned to weasel my way out of anything. My first great test

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was at age five. I fed a mothball to my younger sister to find out if such things were really poisonous. Facts from others never did satisfy me. And when it came time to explain my action to my mother, I coolly said, "Oh, Mary ate a mothball." As if I had had nothing to do with it. But the classified information concerning the truth leaked through a hole in my sister's mouth which had been made somewhat larger by her just having had her stomach pumped out.

When I think about it, my life was really somewhat strange. My family was constantly moving from one place to another. From continent to continent, not just country to country. Every three years or so everything I had built up for myself in the outside world started all over again. New friends, new school, often a new language. It was with our arrival in France at age six that I developed the technique of being diplomatic about the fact that you don't know more than two words of your neighbor's language. And those two words are "Yes" and "No." I would have long conversations with the plumber or the coal man in which my sister and I would simply arbitrarily nod and shake our heads, "Non," and "Oui," at any appropriate moment, having absolutely no idea what we were saying yes or no about.

It was just as I would be settling in to one place that we would be off again in a cloud of suitcases and diapers. Each move was like riding in a time tunnel and getting off at a different stop. In my U.S. history book I had read about the thatched roofed houses the pilgrims lived in: I lived in one in England. I read about the horse and cart transportation in the old West: I saw such carts in Iran. I read about the steam engine, coal-fed trains of the nineteenth century, and watched them roll past in India, people popping out of the windows and sitting on the tops for a free ride. I would fly from the super highway and supermarket of supermodern America, and the next day arrive in the delightful French countryside. My young mind

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had trouble keeping up with my body. Many times I would wake up in the night thinking myself to be in the city I had last left behind; thinking the bathroom to be where the closet was, I would search at length in the dark to find the toilet in it.

So reality was not what my mind thought it to be, and neither was time. Very early I had to throw out the nice, neat little belief that your mind knows what is happening and is in control. I was forced against my will to realize that my mind did not, and never would, have the answers for me; that it was not always to be believed.

My family had been living in India for six years when the tension that had been building up between India and Pakistan found its limit. We knew the Indians and they knew us, but one day at the breakfast table I discovered that our relations were not very warm anymore. In fact, we even had war ships just off the Indian coast. Really, I was very lucky. I certainly had a wonderful overview of the situation in the world. It gave me no answers, but I knew that my first responsibility to help shape the world was to shape up myself.

In college, I had been an intellectual observer during the years of the radical, rebellious students. I had a wonderful time watching demonstrations on television, seeing Rennie Davis stir up the crowds of long hairs, and really wishing that I was in there, too, with my blue jeans and denim jacket. But I couldn't because I kept saying to myself that all the demonstrations weren't going to change anything. I was a psychology major, which made things a lot worse. I decided to do a long study on apathy, to develop a definition for it and use various kinds of research techniques to find out just who is and who isn't apathetic and why. Really, all that I wanted to know was why was I not able to get out there and demonstrate, like all the other college students. I knew that man didn't need to be in the situation he was in, but I just

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couldn't figure out the way that he could get out of it. Skinner had his way, and the Utopians theirs, and even an MIT professor or two, but they just didn't look realistic to me. Through explosion of my own tightly-controlled feelings as a diplomat's daughter, I had learned that what man is on the inside he will be on the outside.

By the time I first heard about Guru Maharaj Ji, I had already begun to do some meditation. It just seemed like the only thing I hadn't tried and it made sense to try to gain control of my mind-it would at least help me to be apathetic more efficiently. When I first heard about him, about his age, I pushed him aside as being much too fantastic. But then I ran into a follower who told me a little about the sort of things Guru Maharaj Ji could do for people. And I thought that the least I could do was to find out a little bit more about him, investigate the whole situation in the way that any proper scientist should. And also, some where in my mind, was the desire to make a big breakthrough in psychology by finding out about new ways that man can find peace through spiritual development.

When I did investigate more, I was very amazed by the people around Maharaj Ji. I could relate to them as I did to my closest friends. I could feel a complete openness from them. Their eyes didn't have dark shades rolled down over them so that no one could see what they had inside.

I received Knowledge very quickly, really before I had much understanding of what it was all about, but I knew that if I didn't receive it now, it would just be a question of time before I did. And certainly I was, as always, diplomatic about it. I had carefully looked under my foot, around it, and investigated the direction in which I wanted to go to make sure that I was aimed correctly before I had taken the step.

It didn't take long before all of the diplomats in New Delhi knew that the daughter of the charge d'af-

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faires was into some young guru. An Italian told me, "Everyone knows about Diana." And even the ambassador from Mongolia indicated to me in passing one day that he had been keeping up to date on my activities. It showed that their intelligence officers were in good working order.

As I practiced the Knowledge more and more, it became visibly clear to me that this was the way I would be able to answer all the questions I had been living with for so long. I was learning what in fact was the one reality, what was the right role for my mind to play, what kind of action would be the best for my body if I wanted to use it to its fullest potentiality. And most important, I learned how the poor tired leaders all over the world could stop playing their games of chess with us.

My parents were asked about me, and they stated what they saw: that this organization had put on a very impressive festival in New Delhi, well-controlled by respectable young people from around the world calling themselves the World Peace Corps, and were very impressed by the dedication, energy, love, and joy of Maharaj Ji's followers.

Now I am again being diplomatic, but the job has been immensely simplified, because all I have to do is to be honest. Diplomacy is now to open doors rather than shut them, to speak the language that people can understand, so that the fine world of devotion, of trust and openness, can become a home for humanity.

Diana Stone

17

Trotsky, Therapy, and Truth

On February 11, 1973, I received Knowledge in New York from Mahatma Rajeswaranand. Two months before, I had heard of Guru Maharaj Ji from a young patient of mine in primal-type therapy. He told me that his best friend had been "blissed out" by Guru Maharaj Ji at a meeting held at Hunter College and then had gone on to India. My patient was critical and hurt by his friend's actions and said that what he really needed was primal therapy instead of this "self-hypnosis." He wanted me to agree with this characterization, but I merely shrugged my shoulders and said, "I don't know."

My answer was an honest one. I was going through certain experiences which were hitting hard at my "rational" and atheistic convictions and putting me a more open frame of mind. I was involved in Arica, a program that promised to bring higher levels consciousness. I had also read Castaneda's account of his extraordinary experiences with the Yaqui Indian sorcerer, Don Juan. John Lilly's description of high levels of consciousness in Center of the Cyclone also made an impression on me, as did my readings in parapsychology and of Edgar Cayce. As a result, I had come to the conclusion that phenomena existed

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for which the rational mind had as yet no answers, and I felt that at my age (66) I could not afford to close my mind to any experiences, as unusual as they might seem.

About a month later, my wife and I went to a meeting at which Mahatma Rajeswaranand spoke. I listened very carefully; what impressed me most was his statement that the Knowledge was something that one can actually experience. I felt that only by experiencing God could I let go of my atheistic beliefs. I needed the experience of knowing that I could identify my individual self with the cosmic self. I needed to actually visualize the divine light within.

I had been an atheist as long as I could remember. Forty-five years ago, as a young man of twenty-one, I embraced the Marxist doctrine of which atheism was an essential part. Marxism rested on supposedly scientific and rational grounds. In the sphere of religion, it concluded that it was only out of ignorance and fear of the world around him that man turned to the invention of gods and God. Trotsky, in whose movement I spent over fifteen years and whom I knew personally, wrote with pride shortly before his death that he still held unwaveringly to the beliefs and hopes of his lifetime and that he would die an atheist. When, in my personal evolution, I went from Trotskyism to psychotherapy, I noted that Freud, too, believed that man, out of his own neurotic needs, invented a God to believe in. It seemed to me self-evident at the time that these were true thoughts.

Yet, it was my observation through the years that people who believed in God seemed happier and more at peace with themselves than those who did not. As a psychotherapist, I noted that those patients who believed that they were in control, and who were unable to let go and to trust a high power, made the least progress in therapy because what they held on to desperately was their own neurosis. In that connection, I remember Dr. Jacob S. List, one of the

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great therapists in his time, telling his patients that could work with them successfully only if they believed in God. I believe I understood what he meant translated in therapeutic terms but, try as I would, I was not able to come to a belief in God by any logical means. I always felt that people who really believe had either received this belief from loving parents had or had some profound religious experience which led to peace.

I had tried to find this peace for myself in political, social, psychological, and personal solutions. It was 1928 that I first became interested in communism. The Russian Revolution, the event that was to change our world, was then only 11 years old. What big hopes we held at that time! Capitalism, the citadel of exploitation of man by man, had been breached. Nothing less than world revolution was on the agenda.

My role in the movement was largely journalistic. I wrote regularly for their publications, Labor Action and The New International. It was in that capacity that I went to Spain when the revolution there broke out in the summer of 1936. But involvements gave me a first-hand and painful realization that the supposed carriers of ideals were so imperfect, so attached to power, to egotism and privilege-in short so up to their necks in materialism, that they could only twist these ideals into their opposites. Trotsky, for all his great gifts and brilliance as a thinker and man of a action, was also imperfect. He was a human being capable of great feeling, sensitivity, and consideration, yet he was so enamored of the power of his idea, you could be close to him only if you agreed with him.

By 1946 I had become thoroughly disillusioned, as were many of us who had been in the Trotsky movement. Everybody went their separate ways, and I realized that we had never formed close personal relationships. My concern for brotherhood and humanity had been an abstraction. All at once, New

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York City became a constricting, lonely, and banal place to be. I left, making the first of several long trips to Europe. After the last of these, years later, I returned to the States with plenty of evidence of personal failure all along the line. My plan to live abroad and to be economically independent and secure had collapsed. I had failed as a husband and a father. I was faced with a second divorce and could no longer live in the same apartment as my children. I also had to return to an occupation that I had no interest nor heart for. I soon fell into a depression such as I had never before experienced in my life. When I was in one of those moods, my son, who was then only three years old, looked at me with such love and need for me that I decided that I must get help and get well. I entered psychotherapy, where I found encouragement to go back to college to get my liberal arts degree. Several years-and jobs-later, I began doing professional psychotherapy, and finally heard the name, Guru Maharaj Ji, from my young patient.

My experience as a psychotherapist is that it is not an end in itself. It can lead to greater openness and self-understanding. It can make one a more feeling person and put him in touch with his great need for love, but it cannot provide that love. I believe that in order for one to be truly complete and self-realized and at peace with himself, he must satisfy the spiritual part of himself. It is the part that sees the divine light within and that feels the primordial vibrations connecting one to the cosmic vibration of God. I have found such an experience to be possible. It has been only the Knowledge of Guru Maharaj Ji, the direct experience of that primordial vibration, which has enabled me to shed my egotism and material attachments and find a peaceful end to the path that covered so many years, so many personal, political and professional involvements.

Mark Sharron

18

Disenchantment

In early September of this year, I was living in Santa Cruz, California as a monk, the president of the Santa Cruz-Monterey chapter of a large, very well known yoga society. Most of my days were spent in a purificatory life style of mantra chanting, rising before sunrise, studying the Vedas and preaching the eternal truths. We would also distribute various scriptures which our guru had translated from Sanskrit and hold vegetarian feasts. I had a simple, fulfilling life-style, enjoyed some respect from my peers and was living in a beautiful, wooded community with a lovely climate in southern California.

Santa Cruz is an area filled with many young people who have rejected certain aspects of the materialistic society. Our philosophy interested them enough to attend our meetings in large groups on Sundays. We would all chant and get high. In the course of our street preachings, we began to meet more and more young people who said they were premies and followed a fourteen-year-old spiritual master called Guru Maharaj Ji. This seemed foolish to us; we had an old, wise guru with a weatherbeaten face lined with age. He even carried a cane and had translated

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many books and started many temples. "How could a little boy be a guru?" we asked.

But the premies who followed this boy had good vibrations (a nice friendly attitude), so we went to their meetings and expounded our philosophy. We explained we were all parts of God, but the Godhead was beyond the white light and lived on a lotus flower planet where He played His flute and danced. We thought that we could eventually see Him if we chanted this mantra we had been given. (By inclination I am a mystical sort of person and I had a few visions while I was chanting this mantra, so I was always trying to get people to chant this mantra because I thought it brought their minds out of illusion.)

When Mahatma Rajeshwaranand Ji came to Santa Cruz, we went to a meeting to "put him straight" on a few things. Our main point of conflict was that he gave the impression you could merge with God, and our guru said the soul was an eternal individual.

We had gone to a house on the beach for this pro gram, and while I was waiting to talk to this mahatma, who was lecturing in the next room, I had a vision of Krishna and Arjuna standing by a chariot. (Krishna was an incarnation of God who appeared many years ago and Arjuna was his disciple.) This impressed me very much and I could feel the high vibrations around.

The mahatma came and I still had preconceived ideas in my mind, so we got into an argument on how to experience God and the nature of the soul, and the soul's position after liberation. By this time another monk arrived, John, and he got furious at the mahatma for saying that God wasn't in this statue that we worshipped, and for saying that chanting wouldn't get us anywhere. So we yelled back and forth at the mahatma and we felt we had to maintain our position, our own ideology. We started to walk out in a huff but the mahatma called us back to listen to some chanting he had on tape about Krishna's flute.

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We stayed around for the lecture and did a little philosophical dueling with our Bhagavad Gitas against his meditation experiences. We began to be impressed with his energy, and the premies were talking about things they had experienced in their meditation which were in our scriptures. After I left the mahatma I felt a drop in energy; I felt I had left the spiritual flow and I had to go and give my own lectures about how God was in this picture we worshipped. I just didn't feel right, I didn't believe it anymore. My brother, John, decided to follow the mahatma north to Oakland and in a few days he came back. He had taken Knowledge. He was so impressed that he immediately told me, "Take the Knowledge. Guru Maharaj Ji is Satguru. He has come."

I was still suspicious, but I was attracted to the Guru and to the energy that was flowing around his devotees. So I stayed at the Carmel ashram where the mahatma was speaking, then followed him to Los Angeles, where I received Knowledge. After meditating on the Knowledge I can see how this common experience of God can unite all men and bring peace on earth. Guru Maharaj Ji will awaken your sleeping soul and give you peace. Many prophets have come, and by their fruits you should judge them. I became a disciple of Guru Maharaj Ji because I know he has the power of God behind him. Since he opened my third eye I have access to eternal peace and can see into the world of the living Master. The time is coming very shortly when the ways of ignorance and darkness, the way of industrial militarism, will be swept away like dust under the feet of the Satguru.

A Devotee

19

Grace Advertising

Before I met Guru Maharaj Ji, I already had my own advertising agency, an import boutique, a good steady income, and loyal employees. Fortune has been on my side most of my life as far as worldly pleasures are involved, having given me a loving family, fine children, success in business, decent looks, the right car, choice of male companionship from an enviable list of 'eligibles' on my terms, and adequate money. If there was a basic emptiness in my life, I was far too busy building the business and working to provide for my children to afford the luxury of seeking fulfillment. That meant either spiritually on a mountain top, or psychologically on a psychiatrist's couch.

Yet the observant person could see that four packs of Parliaments a day, extra dry vodka martinis to excess, and a frenetic race to obliterate thought did not point to a satisfied, happy person. I've been asked countless times, "What is it you're looking for in life, Gaie?" "What do you really enjoy?"

My want was so basic I'd never dare ask out loud, never dared risk ridicule from "with it" friends to see their snickering skepticism if I replied, "A reason for

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living." A reason far more justifying than to be provider and tutor (even a wolf was able to do that).

But a trap had been laid-the perfect trap for game like me. And I stepped right in. I'd received a request to help on an advertising campaign from a young man who appeared to be caught up in some far Eastern religious movement. Their target audience was the world.

That's right, without batting any one of his "three" sets of eyelids-you see, among other things he'd been given a "third eye"-he announced in a very steady voice that their market encompassed every living man, woman, and child.

Apparently they also had a "Knowledge" which was "universally relevant," and there was all the more immediacy to their message because of the "darkness of our age." But this group didn't just have the answers to the scriptures, hadn't just found the way ... they had a means for practical realization of God! Yes, and a fifteen-year-old Indian boy was the Perfect Master who had shown them!

Well, the communications industry is all-encompassing, and kooks, wild claims, and creative geniuses are an every day part of business life. The role of an agency is not to judge, but to test. Without testing there is no assurance of finding the most expeditious means of matching clients' product to proper market.

Therein lay the noose: I tested the product.

The clean-cut young man who came into my office that day for a program of outdoor advertising has since become my brother. I've met and recognized the perfection of this age's Perfect Master; see the universal relevance to his Knowledge, it's potential for bringing light and peace to our world, and have been blessed with the practical awareness of God.

This Knowledge, to an adult life, is as ammonia to a grease and nicotine coated glass pane. It cuts through that dulling coat of grime which stifles our

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awareness, opens the windows to light and meaning for our souls to once again breathe.

My two boys and I have never experienced such a sense of unity, of closeness. In fact we've even been blessed with the addition of a feminine touch to the family, the ten year old daughter of a friend separated from his wife. Without any prompting, all three children are dying for the next mahatma to arrive so they can receive Knowledge. Our family has suddenly become part of a very large, warm family with many brothers and sisters full of love and light; and Grace Advertising has the most graced account in the universe.

Gaie Bruer

20

Sight for the Blind (I)

I am twenty-three years old and have been blind for twenty years. Being blind hasn't been that frustrating. It's an inconvenience at times, but it was never the preoccupation of my life. I always felt that there were more important things than eyesight, something more than just seeing the physical world.

There was a lot of uncertainty about my life, but I knew that everyone else was that way, too. I never thought that it was because I was blind that I was searching. I almost never felt that I would gain real peace of mind and contentment by regaining my eyesight.

In the middle of August, 1972, I heard that there was a fourteen-year-old boy from India who could show me a light shining between my eyes. It sounded like something worth checking out, but I was afraid that I would find just one more group of religious fanatics who felt that if I had the faith that they had, I could have my eyesight restored. However, a few months and a number of strange coincidences later, I found myself hearing satsang for the first time. I knew after those first two hours that this was what I had been searching for all along. I could feel a little of that "energy flow" that the premies were talking

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about and I wanted to experience for myself just what Knowledge was all about.

When I went to receive Knowledge, I didn't want to receive it to get my sight back. I wanted to try to make some order out of the complication that was in my head. The point that impressed me when I was first told about the Knowledge was that I would see something that was infinite. It was going to be something better than eyesight; I was going to see light. But I was feeling exactly the same way about seeing light as I was about hearing music-no more, no less.

The sight that I now have is every bit of sight anyone would ever want to receive. I have been shown the meaning of true sight by Guru Maharaj Ji and now I see exactly what Jesus was showing people in his time. This is sight. The brightness of this light is incredible.

Blind people, like everybody else, need this Knowledge. It is something which is the same for everybody. If you don't want things that pass overnight, if you want things that last forever, then you should receive Knowledge. My experience as a blind person completely confirms that Guru Maharaj Ji is doing in this time what Jesus Christ was doing when he was alive. Now that I've seen, I believe.

Richard Briggs

21

Sight for the Blind (II)

I was blind from birth, and with the exception of some visions, I didn't see anything till Guru Maharaj Ji gave me Knowledge. Since then I have enjoyed continual experiences of the divine sight inside me.

Soon after receiving Knowledge, I had a flashback to the time when I was in my mother's womb. I was almost like total light then, and I was hearing incredible music. It's something I can't describe, because I only had this experience for about a minute, and then I broke out crying, it was so intense. It was just enough to let me know that I was definitely once in that state of existence.

I want to say that the wonderful thing about this inner light which Maharaj Ji showed me, is that it comes from the very source of love inside me. I never knew this until Guru Maharaj Ji gave me Knowledge.

Paula Buntele

192

22

The Stabbing of Randy Lamont

One night I was working in a grocery store and this guy came in. I had never seen him before and he asked me for some assistance in the back of the store. I went to help him and he stuck an eight-inch blade in my back.

Now the neighborhood I worked in was a very peaceful neighborhood, and to experience something like that completely caught me off guard. For just a brief instant I freaked out, but the Knowledge of Guru Maharaj Ji brought me right down. I took the knife out of my back, then collapsed. I realized then that I was in serious trouble. And I had better start getting into the Word that Guru Maharaj Ji gave me.

He gave me Knowledge a month before, so I had this gift. Now I got into this gift because I knew that it was the only thing that could save me. It was the only thing that could make me understand what was happening at that time, instead of totally freaking out. I just closed my eyes and started experiencing the Word, and when I closed my eyes I saw this beautiful, beautiful light - the light that I see in meditation. And the Word was so forceful, so forceful that it just took me right out of this place, out of this world, out of this environment, and out of that situation. And

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the music I was experiencing was so beautiful that I could focus all my attention on this Word and on the music and on the light. I was oblivious to the situation that was happening.

I made my way toward the telephone to call for assistance, to get somebody to take care of this body that was in such a helpless state. I got to the telephone and the next thing I heard was a voice in back of me saying to lay down, that everything was all right. The police came right away, then the ambulance. All the time I was experiencing the Word. The police came and did their thing and the ambulance came and did their thing, but I had no idea what they were doing. I knew that they were there but they really weren't there. They were just carrying my body away, you know, just doing their thing with my body, and my consciousness was in a completely different place; it was looking at this whole thing very objectively and I knew that I was dying.

It was a very, very strange thing to look at yourself dying from an objective point of view, set yourself completely away in a "third person" and see yourself die. They took me to the hospital, and when I got there I knew what was happening inside the room. I heard all these voices and I heard the doctors freaking out, I heard all the people in there hustling and telling everybody that they needed more blood, they didn't have as much in the hospital as they thought they did. All these weird things were happening, and I was just completely oblivious to it all. I still didn't know what they were so upset about, because I knew where I was and I knew that what I was experiencing was home. I was experiencing the same thing that I experienced in meditation; I was totally home, I had nothing to worry about, because everything was being taken care of for me. The mother of a friend came to give blood for me. While she was waiting in line, she was asked to sit down. Later a doctor notified her that she had a coronary disease and that if she had

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waited any longer she would have died within a couple of weeks. We can never know the full effect on others of the games that Guru Maharaj Ji plays with us.

They finally got me down for the operation and by Guru Maharaj Ji's grace there was another premie who had just started working at the hospital two weeks before. He knew all the things that were happening there and he was very objective, able to understand the doctor's plights and to know that their minds were freaking out. All the knowledge that they had built up in their years of being doctors was being put to a test. And Guru Maharaj Ji was guiding these skilled surgeons, using them as a tool to save this body. They operated on me for eight hours, and the Knowledge kept me from going into shock. And if I had gone into shock, it would have been fatal.

I don't know why Guru Maharaj Ji was trying to save this body, but I woke up after surgery and I was completely in another world. I was in the world of my meditation, a world that was so beautiful, just so beautiful. I didn't have to use the formal techniques of meditation to understand that Word, to see that Light, and to listen to the music.

And Guru Maharaj Ji showed me what death was; he showed me that when I leave this body there is something so much more beautiful, so much more powerful, and that this world really doesn't exist. It really doesn't exist. We all know this world is an illusion, but he showed me for a fact because he showed me the same thing that I experience every night when I meditate. And it wasn't any more powerful, it wasn't anything out of the ordinary. It was just that beautiful, beautiful thing: that when we need Guru Maharaj Ji's assistance, he's there, willing to give it to us. All we have to do is ask him for it. And Guru Maharaj Ji will give it to us, he'll give it to us with all the love of the universe, 'cause he saved my life with this Knowledge and he brought me back to give this message

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and to do service. But mostly he showed me that I'm nothing without Guru Maharaj Ji and allowed me to devote my whole life to him.

Randy Lamont

Part V

THE TRUTH

1

Search The Scriptures

A Quick Quiz About the Blind Receiving Sight

One of these sayings was written by a Jewish prophet, another by one of the four evangelists of Christianity, one was spoken by a poet who grew up in the Islamic faith, one by a Tibetan Buddhist, and one by a Hindu. The thing is, can you tell which one comes from which religion? Or does it look as though each of these wise men was talking about the same thing?

Blind people get back their sight,
and the lame walk.

I have learned from my Teacher how to
walk without feet, to see without eyes,
to hear without ears, and to drink
without a mouth.

Listen, you deaf people, and look,
you blind men, so you may see.

Dumb, he speaks, blind, he sees.
Deaf, he hears, and crippled, he can run.

A cripple climbs up to heaven and drinks.
A deaf man is overjoyed to hear music.

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A blind man is very happy to see the light.
It takes a wise man to understand this riddle.

Blind your eyes, so you may behold My beauty.
Stop up your ears,
so you may hear the sweet melody of My voice,
empty your self of all learning,
so you may partake of My Knowledge.

Could you tell which was which? It doesn't matter much, really. The important thing is that Guru Maharaj ji is doing today what all these people were talking about. You can read what a blind disciple of Guru Maharaj ji has to say, on page 190. Guru Maharaj ji is giving sight to the blind. Spiritual sight.

He is the wandering swan everlasting,
the soul of all in the universe
                              ... Svetasvatara Upanishad

Whenever the Perfect Master has walked among men, there have been some who were blessed to live within his radiance, and to receive the perfect gift which he bestows. The records which have come down to us from those who lived in this experience are known as scriptures. We preserve them and revere them, like children left searching the sky for sparks after the fireworks have ended.

Ninety-eight percent of what it means to be alive is common to all of us. Mother and father, night and day, birth and death. We all breathe air, we all drink the same water. We sing, or cry. We hope, fear and love. But because what we have in common is so obvious, so omnipresent, our minds have come to focus on the differences between us. What war would ever have been fought if people hadn't seen themselves as Us and Them? And when we apply this same habit of ours to the scriptures, we come up with a very foolish myth: that Ours are better than Theirs.

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The Bible, the Bhagavad Gita, the Koran, the Tao Te Ching, the Buddhist sutras: most people live by one of them, and disregard the others completely. Some people are familiar with several of them, but treat them merely as literature. Scholars specialize in one or another of them. A few people even take them to heart and are genuinely moved by them. But we need a Perfect Master to make the scriptures really come alive for us. Because only if our experience is the same as the experience of the disciples of old, will we really know what the scriptures mean.

If Guru Maharaj Ji really is a Perfect Master, then the Knowledge that he is giving now will also have been given by all the Perfect Masters of old. And if that's the case, then there will be traces of that Knowledge in all the great scriptures of the world. Let's take a look now at the scriptures of the world, and see whether mention is made of the same Knowledge which Guru Maharaj Ji is offering to people today.

Knowledge

The message has always been the same: you don't know everything there is to know! There is another kind of Knowledge you won't find in a book, nor even in everyday life. The Sufis are people who have long been on the track of this higher truth. Themselves great saints in the Islamic tradition, they have not feared to find evidence for the truth in the writings of Jew and Christian, Hindu and Moslem alike. Ibn Arabi was one of the great Sufi mystics of the Middle Ages. He said:

There are three forms of knowledge. The first is intellectual knowledge, which is in fact only information and the use of this to arrive at further intellectual concepts. This is intellectualism.

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Second comes the knowledge of states, which includes both emotional feeling and strange states of being in which man thinks that he has perceived something supreme but cannot avail himself of it.

Third comes real knowledge, which is called the Knowledge of Reality. In this form, man can perceive what is right, what is true, beyond the boundaries of thought and sense.

The people who attain to truth are those who know how to connect themselves with the reality which lies beyond.

The Upanishads (the name means "sitting at the feet of the Master") are to Hindus roughly what the New Testament is to Christians. The Mundaka Upanishad talks about two kinds of knowledge:

The lower is the knowledge of the scriptures and also of ceremonies, grammar, etymology, and astrology. The higher is Knowledge of that by which one knows the changeless Reality. By this is fully revealed to the wise that which transcends the senses, which is uncaused, which is undefinable, which has neither eyes nor ears, nor hands nor feet, which is all-pervading, subtler than the subtlest - the everlasting source of all.

So how can we get hold of this Knowledge? Not by thinking about it, says the Katha Upanishad. You have to be sincere about it, you have to ask for it with a pure heart.

Prostrate yourself at the feet of the wise, render them all forms of service, and question them with a guileless heart, again and again. Those wise seers of Truth will unfold that Knowledge to you.

Bhagavad Gita

The Knowledge will be transmitted to you the only way it can be - by touch. "Krishna by His divine

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touch gave Muchukunda freedom and knowledge," says the Shrimad Bhagavatam. "Through laying on of the apostles' hands, the Holy Ghost was given," says the Book of Acts. This is the way by which Knowledge is given. "Thou hast laid thine hand upon me. Such Knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high," complains the Psalmist.

The Bible stresses that God wishes "all men to be saved, and to come unto the Knowledge of the Truth." (I Timothy). And the Koran tells us that "those who have been given Knowledge see that what is revealed unto thee from the Lord is the truth."

The Four Techniques

1. Divine Light

Nobody remembers coming into this world, and no one is quite sure when their existence actually started. Our beginnings are lost in the mists of time. And yet the scriptures of the world all tell us that we are wayfarers upon earth, that this body is but temporary accommodation for our spirit.

What life exactly did we have before we were conceived in the womb? This is the question posed by the old Zen riddle, "What face did you have before your parents were bom?" And the answer, all the scriptures assure us, is that we are creatures of light. "Your own consciousness, shining, is inseparable from the Great Body of Radiance. It has no birth, nor death, and is the unchanging light," the Tibetan Book of the Dead tells us. This unchanging light we call divine light, and that is "the true light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world," as St. John has said.

But though it lights us, we've forgotten it. As the Isa Upanishad puts it:

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The face of truth remains hidden behind a circle of gold. Unveil it, 0 god of light, that I who love the true may see!

It's always through light, because he is light, that the everlasting one shows himself to us. The Psalms declare "God is the Lord which has showed us light." And the Koran agrees, "Allah guides to his light whomsoever he will."

Christ told his disciples, "If thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light." He was referring to the same eye which Lord Krishna speaks of in the Bhagavad Gita. Krishna tells his disciple Arjuna, "You cannot see me with these gross eyes of yours, so I give you a divine eye." The fifteenth century Moslem seer Al-Ghazzali explains further:

You have now realized that there are two kinds of eye, an external and an internal; that the former belongs to one world, 'the World of Sense, and that internal vision belongs to another world altogether, the World of the Realm Celestial; and that each of these two eyes has a sun and a light whereby its seeing is perfected.

Comments Lao-Tsu, the Chinese sage, "A sensible man prefers the inner to the outer eye."

2. Celestial Harmony

The divinity in us isn't limited to light. We can experience it in various ways. And so, from the source of light there flows a music, a harmony. The Tibetan Book of the Dead says, "Within these radiances, the natural sound of the truth will reverberate like a thousand thunders. Know them to be of thine own inner light." The Christian Book of Revelations also compares this music to thunder: "And I heard a voice from heaven, as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of a great thunder: and I heard the voice of harpers harping with their harps." It's all of this and

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more, the "delicate anklets that ring on the feet of an insect," as the Muslim poet Kabir says, "and a stampede of horses on the plain." It's the harmony of the spheres, the sound of the universe in tune with itself.

How is it produced? That's a mystery the Zen Master Bodhidharma tackled when he asked, "What is the sound of one hand clapping?" It's a more-than-human sound, though our own sound is in there. But we don't produce it. The Sikh Guru Nanak said, "His ears catch strains of celestial music when the lute strikes notes without being touched." The thing is, its source is far beyond us.

The object is to "bathe in the centre of sound, as in the continuous sound of a waterfall," as Lord Shiva told his wife. We can actually let perfection flow through us, carrying our disharmonies away with it. How could it help but be perfect for each of us? It bubbles up right from the heart, touching us wherever we happen to be, and leading us back to the place of calm. "Why don't you learn from yourself by listening to the sound of the natural law within you?" asks the Buddhist Surangama Sutra. And the Psalmist in the Old Testament, too, rejoices:

Blessed is the people that know the joyful sound: they shall walk in the light of thy countenance. In my name shall they rejoice all the day.

The Upanishads tell us that:

By the power of inner harmony, and by the grace of God, Svetasvatara had the vision of the Supreme. This is the music of eternity, the piping of the piper who is leading us home.

3. The River of Life

"There is a water that flows down from heaven," wrote the Persian poet Jelal al-Din Rumi: the elixir of

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immortality, which we call nectar. And even though it's undoubtedly heavenly, the Perfect Master can show us its hidden source right in our own bodies, our material connection with the infinite. "I have fully revealed the vessel of nectar juice," proclaims Buddha in The Sutra of the Golden Light. The point is, we can actually, physically drink of it. The Book of Proverbs in the Bible says, "Drink waters out of your own cistern, and running waters out of your own well."

It's no accident that the land we've been promised flows with milk and honey. This nectar is more than a sweet liquid, it's love itself in liquid form. St. John of the Cross says he felt as if

all the balms and perfumed spices and flowers in the world were mingled and shaken and revolved together to give that sweetness.

It's not so surprising that St. Kabir advises us to "drink the sweet honey that steeps the petals of the lotus of the heart."

We are all thirsty for love. And the Koran promises those who ask that "their Lord will give them to drink a pure drink." Says the Bhagavad Gita, "Those who fully partake of this nectar are extremely dear to me." So, "let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely." That's from the Book of Revelations.

4. The Word of God

All energy comes in waves: light waves, sound waves, shock waves, and so forth. And behind all these waves, underlying all these vibrations, is a fundamental vibration called the Word. But it isn't a word in any language, it's only a verb in the sense of reverberation.

This Word is the source of every breath we take. It is the life that God breathes into man, and the spirit that all religions speak of: the power pack that He has planted within us. And it is the energy from which this universe is woven.

This Word was there before time began. St. John opens his gospel by saying, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." The Hindu sages recorded in the Katha Upanishad, "This Word is the Supreme, the everlasting." And halfway around the world, the Uitoto Indians of Colombia came to the same conclusion: "In the beginning the Word gave origin to the father."

This Word really is the source of everything. The Psalmist has it,

By the Word of the Lord were the heavens made; and all the host of them by the breath of his mouth.

Guru Nanak, the great prophet of the Sikh religion, says, "With one Word He created the whole universe."

Many people who hear about this Word think it is something to be spoken. People chant, "Krishna, Krishna," or, "Lord Jesus, have mercy," "Amida Butsu," or "Allah, Allah." But this Word has nothing to do with language. It can't be spoken, because it is beginningless and endless. It is this Word which is God, and in this Word we live and move and have our being. Al Ghazzali, the Muslim mystic, has said, "His Word goes beyond all sounds and syllables," and Lao-Tsu warned us,

The name that can be pronounced
Is not the constant name.

No name that we can chant can be the energy that makes us live.

Yet there is a way to connect with it. Kabir tells us to "receive that Word from which the universe springeth: that Word is the teacher. I have heard it, and become the disciple." We can be put in touch with the life source within us. But we must become disciples in order for that to happen. In the Bhagavad Gita, Lord Krishna makes Arjuna his disciple, telling him, "Arjuna, listen once again to my supreme Word."

The Word of God is universal. It lives in all hearts. It is the subject of all scriptures. And it is the home to which we must return.

So read the scriptures, investigate them. Cross and re-cross the testimony to divine light, to the holy Name, to nectar and the divine harmonies. But something more. We all collect mementos of the ones we love, we store them and fondle them, seek some sort of presence in them. It never works. The scent evaporates from a pressed flower. A photograph doesn't breathe. And the melancholy they generate is at the opposite pole from living love.

So come to know the scriptures, put them in your heart, and feel sad. Why? Feel sad to know that others were enraptured by a Lover you have never known. But when you feel the desire to know this perfect love above all else, come to Guru Maharaj Ji. And sit like a child at his feet.

Another Quick Quiz

Here's another brain-teaser for you. One of these quotations comes from a Jewish source, two are from Hindu scriptures, one is Christian and one is from an Islamic poet. Can you match the sayings to their respective religions?

Neither sun, moon, nor fire shine there. Those who go thither never come back. For that is My Celestial Home.

There the sun shines not, nor the moon, nor the stars, lightnings shine not there, much less earthly fire. For by His light, all these give light, and His radiance illumines all creation.

The sun shall be no more thy light by day; neither for brightness shall the moon give light unto thee: but the Lord shall be unto thee an everlasting light, and thy God thy glory.

And the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it: for the glory of God did lighten it, and the lamb is the light thereof.

What a secret splendour is there, in the mansion of the skyl There no mention is made of the rising and the setting of the sun. In the light of love, day and night are felt to be one.

Once again, it doesn't matter how you score. What's important is that you can experience the heavenly city too. The doors of the city are being held wide open, light and love are patiently waiting, you are welcome to come and see ...

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Satsangs of Guru Maharaj Ji

Little Drops of Mercy

The following discourse was given by Guru Maharaj Ji on the 5th of August, 1971, by the Pacific Ocean.

The nature of sea is very calm. Very calm. But when the sea shore comes in front of the sea, it is hidden away back.

And you can see the great waves on seashore. That ocean is filled with mercy. Kindness is there. And truth is always there. It is so calm that when a drop mixes with that ... such satisfaction of mind, such peace, you can't even think of that. So fantastic.

And that ocean is endless. Endless. This ocean we can see in maps, but that ocean is endless. And what is this? When a wave rises and falls on human beings who are trying to bathe, mercy comes over them. Mercy comes. They feel the mercy of God, they feel the kindness of God.

When a man actually tries to read this nature, he'll find. The beautiful fruits, beautiful birds, kind green nature, nature, and beautiful sunset, beautiful sunrise and birds chirping, the blue heaven, with calm and quiet nature, and the whole thing, the whole atmosphere, so kind, so nice, nobody can experience that. But when a man just tries to enter ...

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Feel a leaf, so smooth, so soft, so kind. It is nature. Smell a eucalyptus tree. So nice. Smell a rose and try to enjoy the beauty of rose. So nice. These are the little drops of His mercy that He has filled with sweetness. Flowers filled with scent. So many. Jasmine, rose, and every one having a different, different, different. So many colors. Without a brush, without a tube, but beautiful colors. And changing colors. This is nature.

And, in a little seed, many apples and a huge tree. Hidden in a little seed. That is its nature. That is little drops of His mercy. And His little drops of mercy, we can't even imagine them. So how can we imagine that ocean where it is always mercy? But there are the little drops.

When we are eating an apple, we feel something very nice. Leave it, O.K. But when there is always mercy, and no end of mercy . . . and I, what am I? Many big, big saints even can't write His glory,, the glory of that ocean.

This ocean, big huge wave will come and overturn that ship. But in that ocean, if a ship is overturned, it will be made O.K. That is His kindness. A saint has said that He has done a very wonderful thing. I can't be a judge over it, I'm just writing my idea. But over a little idea, He wrote the whole story. And over the story He made it true. And what a man could imagine to be a fairy tale, to be a magical thing, He brought it to be the natural thing.

So this is His mercy. Many many books, big fat books are not able to describe His mercy or that ocean where the soul has to plunge. How can I describe that?

Have you seen beautiful birds? How beautiful they look. Have you seen that blue sky, blue heaven? How beautiful it looks. These are only little drops of that ocean.

Impressions.

But even then it looks so beautiful.

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The Perfect One is Here

The following discourse was given by Guru Maharaj Ji on the 29th of April, 1972, in Johannesburg, South Africa.

Every satsang is a discussion on one subject, and that is the true Knowledge which brings peace of mind. Many great saints got fantastic experiences from this wonderful Knowledge and just wanted to spread it to all people. In every age a great saint like Rama, Krishna, Buddha, Mohammed, and Christ has taken birth on earth for this purpose, to give this Knowledge to other people, because, in their time, the truth had declined, spiritual understanding had been lost. As far as spiritual matters go, they were ages of darkness.

Now in the same way, an age of darkness is again here and the perfect one has come on earth again to plant the seed of truth. His presence is most necessary because of the strength of the opposite forces which are working in the world, attracting man with his weak and fickle mind. Against truth there is always untruth. Against love there is hatred. Against peace there is war, and so on. There are also so many subtle forces working in a man's mind to make him search for satisfaction in places where it has never existed.

People today are so sophisticated they have become foolish. They cannot believe that the perfect one is here. Even if they have some religious feeling, some inner understanding of the truth, they cannot conceive of the living master. In other subjects they will not be satisfied with something that is dead, with something that is past. If in India we abandon the government of Indira Gandhi and start trying to follow Mahatma Gandhi's ideas, the result will be failure. If you read the scriptures properly you will see that they all talk about a living master. No scripture exists which does not talk about true Knowledge, or

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divine experience, being imparted to a disciple by a living master.

We read the scriptures without understanding what they are saying. Indian people read the Bhagavad Gita, and where Lord Krishna, the living master of his time, said clearly, "Don't recognize me by my external appearance for this is perishable. My true form has no beginning and no end. And you, Arjuna, cannot meditate with these external eyes. For how can you see the imperishable with that which must die? How can you behold the infinite through the finite? But I can open up your divine eye with which you can see my divine form."

So how are we going to recognize God as He comes on the earth? Are you going to ask to see His identity card or passport? See, if it says, "Name ... God. Occupation . . . Generator, Operator, Destroyer." That is foolish! Or are you going to recognize Him only if He fits in with your mental picture of Him, what you have picked up from the scriptures and other impressions, what you imagine Jesus or Krishna looked like? But even two Christians will have different impressions of what Jesus looked like. So what will be recognized by one will not be recognized by the other. But the test of the Perfect Master will be that which is undeniable to everybody and that is the experience of himself which he can give, and that is the true Knowledge.

All over the world people follow the same daily routine. They go to work in the morning and come home in the evening. That's O.K. You have to work to support yourself. But many people use their daily routine as an excuse for not realizing anything about spiritual truth. We don't work twenty-four hours every day. We can always spare a few hours for devotion, but people spend their spare time on worldly pleasures and when troubled they complain to God.

Believe it or not, the fact is that God is supreme and pure; people are lying on a bed of ignorance and

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dreams and doubts. They expect God Himself to come, they pray for it, they ask for it, they announce about it, but when He comes they fail to recognize Him. And not recognizing Him in His physical form, they cannot recognize Him within themselves. People have forgotten their Creator. What is the Name of your Father? Does anybody here know what He looks like? There's going to come a time when you are going to be asked, "Who is your Father?" What reply are you going to give? Nil? Born without a Father?

Every master has said that people should know the Holy Name. They advise everybody to become wise and to recognize how precious their life is. And that's what I am trying to make this world understand. Know how precious life is. Know how precious life is, and then know how precious is that which gives us life. Know that divine language which men did not create but which the soul always speaks. Every soul speaks the same language. Know that language of love which swells within the human temple.

It is said in the Vedas, the Indian scriptures, that when the dark age comes the only thing that can save man is constant meditation on the holy Name. So we are so lucky to know that holy Word and to have got it at a discount. I am prepared to reveal this Knowledge at any time so it is up to you to take this golden opportunity. If you don't seem to make progress with this Knowledge do not blame Guru Maharaj Ji. You have it in your power to conquer the egos and doubts in the mind. These are the thorns, but the Knowledge is the rose.

I don't mind the difficulties that are being put against me. Whenever he comes to the world the Perfect Master has to tolerate many difficulties. I have come to spread this Knowledge and that is what I am going to do. Understand this and believe it. Are you hesitating to receive this Knowledge? Why? It is very simple Knowledge. It will give you complete peace mind. It will give you infinite bliss. Do not complain

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later on that you were never told about this Knowledge. Again and again, I do nothing but to tell you all to take this Knowledge.

Thank you very much.

Central Hall Satsang

The following discourse was given by Guru Maharaj Ji on the 2nd of November, 1971, at the Central Hall, Westminster, England.

Dear brothers and sisters.

Today I am going to tell you a story about a great saint. He was walking along and he saw that a scorpion was getting drowned in a lake, and he was so kind that he tried to save him from that water. He took the scorpion in his hand, the scorpion took a bite. When the saint felt this pain he let the scorpion fall. But again he goes into the water and saves the scorpion. And again it bites and the saint lets him fall. And again he picks that scorpion up and again he is bitten.

There was a farmer who was observing this process for a long time, and he said, "Saint, why are you doing this? This scorpion is your enemy. He is trying to bite you, and every time he bites you, you let him go and then you go and pick him up again." The saint said, "Dear farmer, he is teaching me a lesson. It is his duty to bite. It is my duty to save him. He's teaching me a lesson that even when I am saving him he is not leaving his duty. Due to whatever you call it, due to love or affection, he's not forgetting his duty. He is always ready to do his duty, even when I am saving him. He is teaching me a lesson, and so how can I leave my duty? My duty is to protect him."

Today I can clearly see the pain of this world. This

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whole world is drowned in pain. And why? There is a very clear reason and practically everybody knows it. See, India cannot walk straight and the western countries cannot walk straight. Why? Because India has got a long, long spiritual foot but a very short materialistic foot. Western countries have got a very long materialistic foot but a very short spiritual foot. And when these two feet are equal, then there will be the Kingdom of Heaven. just imagine, America was able to send so many Apollos to the moon, but did she gain peace? Was America satisfied? If she is satisfied why is she fighting with Vietnam? She is not satisfied. Why? A rich man came to Christ and asked him, "Sir, can I know God?" and Jesus Christ told him that it is easy for a camel to pass through a needle but it is impossible for a rich man to know God. Why? Why is that? Can we say God is not a good judge? No. He is a perfect judge. Then why is that? Because as soon as a man gets proud he is completely immersed in pride. When he gets rich he is completely immersed in wealth. And he has no longer got time to think about his Father. About his Perfect Father.

We all have come into this world and we have got this beautiful body. And we are so lucky to be present in this world. We are the fortunate ones to be in this world now. But then the question arises, why are we so unsatisfied? What is the thing that is troubling us so much from inside? What is this mosquito who is biting our mind at every moment, every second? This is our ego, our ignorance of the holy Word of God.

But this Knowledge is so beautiful that if I am a Christian I can take this Knowledge and still be a Christian. If I am a Hindu I can take this Knowledge and still be a Hindu. If I am a Muslim I can take this Knowledge and still be a Muslim. If I am a Sikh I can still be a Sikh and take this Knowledge also. The Knowledge is like mercury. If you put mercury into

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dirty water and take it out, the mercury is still shiny. It won't get dirty. Put it in sand. It won't get dirty, it will shine. This Knowledge is like that. Wherever you take it, into any religion, into any way of life, wherever it goes it makes a man pure. You have to be pure in heart, pure in deed, and pure in thoughts. But remember friends, it is very easy to say this, it is very, very easy to say this-be pure in heart, be pure in deeds, be pure in thoughts. But how to be pure? Who is really pure in this world? What is the really pure thing in this world? The holy Word of God is really pure. So know it. We have to know that holy Word of God which is absolutely pure. And when we know this holy Word of God we will also be absolutely pure.

We have to be like a lotus flower. This lotus flower is found in India and in so many other countries also. This flower grows in water, dirty water, but it never touches this water. It is always away from this water. And if the water level rises the level of the lotus flower also rises. We all have to be like a lotus. Maybe this materialistic world is rising but we have to be even higher than this materialistic world. We haven't to touch this materialistic world, because as soon as we start touching it, the vibrations of imperfection start touching us, and make us imperfect.

I have brought something very beautiful, extremely beautiful. I cannot describe it as being from a place, because I haven't got the idea of duality, like east, west, south or north. India is not out of the world, England is not out of the world. They are in the world. I have not brought this thing from a part of this world, yet this thing is so fantastic, this thing is so beautiful, that it makes you realize the aim of your human life: your original aim, why you came into this world.

You must have seen my posters and these posters say "Know the aim of the human life." Now what is the aim of human life? Is it to eat, drink and be

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merry? Is it? No. Then what is the real aim of human life? Why does the human come here? Even if you believe in the theory of evolution, you will reach the point where man exists. But why does man exist? Only because he has got a certain aim. He has got a certain thing to do. He has got an aim in his life which he has to fulfill. And once he fulfills this aim he is a perfect man. Perfect. So what is this aim? This aim is to realize the holy Word of God.

If you take the Bible it is written, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God and the Word was God." If you take Guru Granth Sahib you will see it is written that there is a Word, and due to that Word, sky, earth, sun, moon, everything exists, and this Word is in ourselves. And then you can take the Koran and in the Koran it is called "Pak Nam," meaning holy Name. What is this holy Name? If you take Gita, this is written: "A Word which cannot be described, which cannot be spoken by mouth." Just because this mouth is imperfect. This mouth is not capable, this mouth is not perfect enough to pronounce that Name. So this Word cannot be spoken. Otherwise I would have been glad to speak this Word in front of everybody, on television, on radios, in movies, you know, and just in everything. But it cannot be spoken. So we all know that this Word is important. And due to this Word everything exists. Christ, Ram and just every saint describes the Word. So how to realize this Word then? Because this is the original thing. This Word is the original thing.

Now you can see that this was said in the Bible about the Word, in the Ramayana, in Gita, and in the Koran; and you can imagine about it, about how original and how ancient this Word is. You can just read the records and you can find out how ancient, how old, is this Word which is being talked of by all the saints, the galaxy of saints, and loved by them. But how to realize this Word? Today you can press a

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button and the elevator will come. The door will open. You stand in it. Press the button, the door will close, you go up, the door opens, you go out. You sit in a car, you push a brake, you put it in gear, you press the accelerator, your car goes. Today, you take cameras, push a button, and your film is taken. But this Knowledge is not like this. You do not put in a coin, press the button and Knowledge comes out.

So how to receive this Knowledge? This Knowledge is not available in subway stations or in bus stations as many cigarettes, biscuits and other types of things are available in boxes where you put in a coin, press a button, and the article comes out. And this Knowledge is not in books. It is described in books but it is not in books. Then where to find it? Should we say that this Knowledge has disappeared now? No. Gita says this Knowledge cannot disappear. As soon as this Knowledge disappears, the world won't exist. Then, how to find this Word? We have to find this Word by a teacher, by a guide. A guide who is perfect, and who can teach this perfect Knowledge to us. A perfect guide can guide us. You need a burning lamp to light other unlit lamps. So, in the same way, you need an enlightened Perfect Master to make you enlightened and perfect also. If the master himself is not perfect, how can he make you perfect? You need a Perfect Master.

Now, where to find the master? Where to find the master? You know, you can't find him in theatres. Where will you find him then? Where is he, this hidden man? Where is he? You have to find him out. And how to find him out? There is a very easy test. You have to test before you find him out, and the test is very simple. You have to take his Knowledge and test it. If this Knowledge gives you peace, well and good, go ahead. If not, immediately leave it and go out, don't follow it any more. If this Knowledge that he gives, if the Knowledge that he imparts is perfect, and it gives you perfect peace, well and good, go

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ahead. If not, leave it and try to find another way. People may think that I want to change their religion from Christian to Hindu but they will be surprised to know that I myself am not a Hindu. I am not a Hindu. I am not a Christian. I am not a Sikh. Then who am I? I believe in one reality and that is pure religion. Religion as a word started from the word realization and the realization of God is the pure and the perfect religion. There is a glorious sun, not the sun that you see in the sky, but a sun which is brighter, within ourselves. It is much brighter, much, much, much brighter than the sun you see in the sky. When the sun comes out it only dispels darkness, but when this sun comes out it dispels darkness and impurities as well. Both things. It is much brighter than the sun which shines outside, and it is completely within us.

In India people used to go out from their homes to earn money. So there was a man who went outside to foreign countries and he earned quite a lot, he had five hundred pounds. And he was going back to his home and a thief saw him, and saw that he had five hundred pounds. So he came up to him and said, "Sir, may I accompany you, where are you going?" And the man said: "Well, I am going back to my home," and he told the name of the place. The thief said, "Well sir, I am also going there. Would you mind if I accompany you?" And he said, "No, come along," and both these travelers started walking. They went to an inn and the man who possessed the money went down to take his dinner and this thief started searching. He started searching for the money. He searched in his pockets, he searched on his bed, under his pillow, but he couldn't get a single penny. He thought, this man is making a fool of me. He hasn't got a single penny, he just says he has got five hundred pounds. They were walking again and he said, "Sir, how many pounds have you got? " And he said, "Well I've got five hundred pounds." And again they went to an inn, and this man again went to take his dinner and

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this thief again searched. He searched under his pillow, under his sheet, under his clothes, but he couldn't find a single penny. Again he thought, no, no, he is making a fool of me.

Finally they came to their home and the man who possessed the money took out his purse, took out five pounds, and said, "Well, these are for you. You may have them." And the thief said, "No thank you, sir, I don't want a single pound. But can you answer my one question?" The man said, "Yes." "Sir, I am a thief," he said, "Now you are quite secure in your home and I am not going to steal from you any more. I am a thief and I was after your five hundred pounds and now I know that you have got five hundred pounds because you have shown me, but can you tell me where did you keep this five hundred pounds when you used to go to dinner?" The man said, "I used to keep this five hundred pounds under your pillow!" Before he used to go for his dinner he, used to take this amount of money and put it under the thief's pillow. But the thief kept searching under the other's pillow. And he couldn't get a single pound. So, that's the same condition with the world outside today. The world is searching for God outside. The world thinks, people think, God is a man. People think God has got ears, nose, teeth, and he rises daily in the morning, brushes his teeth and washes his mouth. And he is an old man and he has a beard. All these things, people think.

But no, God is energy. God is perfect and pure energy. As scientists say, energy cannot be created and cannot be destroyed. See how they say "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God" - now try to understand here - "And the Word was God." Isn't it a fantastic sentence! In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. Now this is that Word. It is that perfect and pure energy which has no creation and no destruction. And this Word, this is God. And He is

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under our pillow. And if we search for Him outside, can we get Him? God is inside.

Today people want love. I can truly and sincerely tell you this Knowledge is overbrimmed with love. I can't explain how much love it contains. There is so much love that if you take the water of all the seas, the love will still be more. If we take every human man's weight, add it, then we add the love of this love, this Knowledge will still be much bigger than any man's weight. And this Knowledge is love. This is it. This is the love. A thief cannot take it from you, this love is so much. Nobody can cut this love. You can experience it whenever you like. This holy Word of God, you can meditate upon this holy Word of God while you are sleeping also. You can sleep, you can eat, you can talk, but still your meditation will be going along.

You know, I have seen many people in India talk about the Gita and they talk about this Knowledge. They say, "This Knowledge is such a thing which goes on regularly. It cannot break." And then they take a garland and start counting it. Or they take their rosary and start counting. Then there is the businessman counting his rosary and a telephone call comes. He takes the telephone receiver, and the speed of his rosary slows down, because his mind has been diverted into the receiver. And then he asks, "Yes, what is the matter?" And his secretary tells him, "Sir, we have gained seventy thousand pounds!" And he is so overjoyed that he throws his rosary to one side and throws the receiver to one side and starts jumping. Now where did his devotion go? Where was his meditation? His meditation was broken. Is that meditation? No. That can be rosary meditation, I agree, or it can help you in some physical way, something like that. But is it the perfect or pure meditation?

I can do yoga, and I believe yoga can Help me to a limit, but is yoga the perfect and pure thing? Suppose that today I've got my legs, my hands, my body is

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perfect and I am doing yoga. And tomorrow I have an accident and my hand is broken, my leg is broken, then how will I be able to keep my leg on my neck? just imagine. And how will I be able to move my hand back? How will I do that? And you know the perfect meditation should be continuous. It shouldn't have a break in-between. How will I be able to do that? So realize such a Word, brothers, that it may regularly go, never stop. This should be non-stop meditation always going on in you.

Realize who you are, realize the aim of your human life. Today the guitar is played, we love it. Today, rock-and-roll music is played, you love it. Today, you know, jazz music is played, you love it. Classical music is played, you love it. But there is a music going on inside of us also. God plays that music, and it is such far-out music, so symmetrical and so beautiful that after one note, man's mind is concentrated upon it. No question arises that a mind should trickle a millionth part of a millimeter this side or a millionth part of a millimeter that side. A man cannot move from this meditation, so perfect is this meditation.

Take a rope by which you would tie an elephant. Now, suppose you try to tie a little ant by that big thick rope. So suppose you try to tie this little ant by this huge rope, can you do it? You can't. There would be such a gap left that thousands and thousands could pass at one time, and if you try to tie the elephant by the string which you use to tie an ant, can you do it? The elephant will move and the string will break. So how must you do it? Can you do it? You need the little string for the ant and the huge rope for the elephant. And if you use them symmetrically they can solve your purpose.

So, brothers and sisters, you need something to tie your mind down because it is so small. You know it is the smallest thing in the world, and it flows very quickly, it has got more speed than electricity, more

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speed than anything. You know a jumbo jet, a 747, has got a five hundred and eighty miles per hour speed. Now suppose this jet is standing before me. Suppose I am going to fly to India in it and it will take much time. But even though I am still standing before the jet, my mind has already reached Palam Airport, India. The jet hasn't even started yet. I haven't even boarded it, my luggage has not been taken into the plane. My tickets have not been checked in. But still my mind has gone to India. It has already landed at Palam Airport, and now my mind is trying to find a taxi to take me back to my home. This is mind. So how are you going to control it? Take a tank of water. Not a drop is leaking from it. Give a man an oxygen cylinder and put him in this tank. Weld it on all sides so that air is neither going in nor coming out, and neither is water going in or coming out. Now, from this tank water is not leaking, but man's mind is. It's still leaking. He is either thinking of the Eiffel Tower, or he's thinking of Disneyland in Los Angeles, or you know ... the water is not coming from the tank, not a drop, but his mind is still leaking.

So how to control the mind? Buy a rope thick as an elephant's rope, can you tie this small mind with it? No. You need Knowledge to control your mind, to tie your mind up. You know this mind is so small, so tiny, so invisible, and thus you need this Knowledge. And I am here, and I am ready to offer you this Knowledge without taking a single pence. Special discount! Absolute discount! You know not a single penny is being charged. And this Knowledge is so far out, so fantastic, so ..., how should I explain it? Even scriptures weren't able to explain this Knowledge. Because this Knowledge is beyond our minds. Away from our brains. The brain can work out how to drive Apollo, or how to drive a car, but it cannot work out how to explain this Knowledge. So this brain is very limited. The brain, the mind ... very, very limited. Very limited. And this Knowledge is unlimited, so

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you cannot, you just cannot make a contract between these two things, the limited and the unlimited. So just realize: here is this Knowledge, and it is free for you. No charge at all. And it's so peaceful that when you know it, when you realize this Knowledge, you'll say, "Oh this is fantastic!"

There was a king, and somebody came into his court and said, "King, I want to sow a mango seed in this country," and the king said, "What is this mango?" And the man said, "I have brought a whole box full of mangoes," but still the king said, "What is a mango?" So he said, "The mango is a little, or big, yellow thing, juicy, and it is like ..."-he made a picture- " . . it is like this, and this and this." But the king said, "I can't understand." And then the man gave some literature to the king, and the king read it and said, "Well, I still can't understand. What is a mango?" Then the secretary came and tried to explain, "Sir, I have also eaten a mango," he said, `the mango is sweet, and it has got color like this, and it tastes something like that, or something like that, and you have to leave the skin and you have to eat the flesh part of it, and it's very good to eat." But king said, "I can't understand what it is." The next secretary tried to explain, then the third secretary, then the fourth, then the fifth, then the sixth, but the king couldn't understand. The seventh one was clever. He went away, took a mango, washed it, cut it up, offered it to the king and said, "Sir, this is the mango." The king ate it and said, "Yes, now I have understood what a mango is, now I have realized it myself, so I have understood."

I'm describing the Knowledge. Knowledge is something like this and something like this, it is far out, it is this and it is that. But you can't understand until you personally receive it. So receive it and then you will see how good it is for yourself, how beneficial it is. Only then will you understand what is the real juice of this mango. Today, many scientists are trying

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to discover so many things, but are scientists happy? Are the scientists really happy? No. Why? Because they can't, they can't get that Knowledge. They can't get this Knowledge by scientific means. They are unhappy.

Today, suppose, Mahatma ji comes to me and begs me for food and I give him some. He'll go away, but tomorrow he again feels hungry, so he comes to me and begs for food. Again I give him some, and he goes away again because he has a full stomach, but the next day he will feel hungry again. And if I give him food again, again he will feel hungry later. But if I teach him a technique, he won't come back to me again. Today, if people see a beggar they will take out a penny from their pocket and give it to this beggar. But he will still beg. If today he is satisfied, tomorrow he will beg. And if for three days he is satisfied, the fourth day he will beg. So if you really want to help him teach him a technique, teach him a technique so that he is completely satisfied throughout his life. He needs to beg no more. That is really helping him. The mind is the same. It starts thinking and you say well, that is better than this, and that is even better, and then your mind says yes, and your mind is satisfied. But after a few seconds this process starts functioning again, because you know the mind is so subtle, it is so, you know, flickery. It flickers, flickers, flickers. And you say well, this is God and God is very holy and very high, and your mind says, "Yes, why not," and is satisfied for two seconds, and then again starts flickering. Flicker, flicker, flicker. And then after a few seconds you say again, well, God is very high, very holy, and he can kill the mind also, and mind say, "Yes, why not?" And the mind is satisfied for two seconds more, then it starts flickering again. It is like that man to whom you are giving two pence daily; is he being helped? No, not at all.

How to help him then? And how to help your mind? Completely satisfy your mind so that it rises no

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more. Because mind is the creation of man and not of God. Always remember this. The mind is a creation of man. Memory is a creation of God. Memory is a tape recorder which He has given us; it is a gift of God. Memory, but not mind. Not mind. Mind has been created because two things are hitting each other. Your soul tries to hit and come out, you know. Not come out really, but just to give off this spiritual spark. Your soul wants to give out this light, this peace inside which the soul has got. But outside it is very carefully covered with sins, egos, prides and so many things. So as soon as it tries to come out it hits against these coverings and something is produced. A holy thing hits against an unholy thing and another thing comes out, and that is ignorance. A complete vacuum. And that is your mind. This is it. For if you can once remove all your coverings of sins, egos, pride, doubts, remove them away from you completely, you will be satisfied. This Knowledge will, spark out of you.

If you take a stone and throw it up in the sky, it'll come back again. Why? Maybe because it is due to the center of gravity, but really it is because this stone is a piece of this earth. See, rivers flow from all over, then go into the sea. They merge into the sea and then it is completely finished. Nothing more to do. This river is part of the ocean. Until it again meets and merges with this ocean it is not satisfied. But when it mixes with the ocean it is completely satisfied. You bum a lamp and the fire goes upwards. You burn a fire and the fire goes upwards. Why? Because it is a part of the sun. Until it goes and meets its sun, fire is not satisfied. In the same way, soul is part of God, and wants to go and meet with God. It wants to have a perfect communication with God. But you are stopping it. Why? It is not because your body is stopping it, it is not your body, it is the ignorance of your mind. People are so unhappy today they go and commit suicide, because they think that their body is

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stopping their soul having that perfect communication. It is not true. Your body is not stopping your soul going there. It is your ignorance that is stopping it.

So just try to understand what I want to say. People may think that I am an Indian so they shouldn't receive the Knowledge. You know, you are not receiving me. If you are receiving me then yes, you can have a duality in your heart of black and white. But you're not receiving me, so no question arises of black and white. You are receiving my Knowledge. Knowledge hasn't any color. So receive my Knowledge, not me. And this Knowledge is so holy, so perfect; one spark coming out of this Knowledge is so perfect, so, so perfect, that whatever it hits against, it makes it perfect. Wherever one spark of this Knowledge shines up, there is absolute perfection. And I have got that Knowledge here.

I took this Knowledge from London to America. I passed through the customs, the customs people opened my suitcase, checked my clothes, you know, and all my luggage, everything, but I was laughing, you know. These customs people were very suspicious because I was laughing. I was laughing because they were checking my luggage but still I was smuggling. And what I was smuggling was this Knowledge. They were not checking me, they were not checking my Knowledge. They were checking inside my luggage, and thus I smuggled that Knowledge, and I distributed it amongst many people, many, many people. And everybody became satisfied. I have satisfaction. I have love. I have devotion to give to people, to scatter to people.

You may be surprised why this Knowledge is free of charge. Just try to understand, a man can live without gold but he cannot live without food. And food is much cheaper than gold. He can live without I food for a day or so, but he cannot live without water, which is even cheaper than food. He can live

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without water for hour or so, but he cannot live without air which is absolutely free. So just understand this. Air has been recommended for you, air is fuel for you. You require it and it is absolutely free. This Knowledge is also recommended for you. This Knowledge is for you and because you must understand it, because you must know this Knowledge, you must practice this Knowledge, it has been made absolutely free for you.

So don't think that it is a less valuable thing than your stereo or anything like that. This is still most valuable. Once you receive this Knowledge your heart leaps and is so much filled with devotion and love. Not love towards this materialistic world, but love towards God, who is your real father, who you've forgotten and whom you must realize. So don't look at my body and think that I'm a small boy and what can I tell you. There may be a small boy who can drive a car and there may be an old man who can't drive a car. So he has got a skill more than that old man. So don't say this. Our bodies are short, you know, some of less age, some of more age, but not our memory, not our skill. Our skill hasn't got any age. So just try to understand what I want to explain to you about that holy Word of God, about that Knowledge.

We have to be sincere, we have to be pure in heart, and how to be pure? You know purity is not such a thing where you go into a restaurant and say, "Please give me a cup of pure tea," and take the tea, drink it, and you are pure. Purity is not like a soap that you buy from the market, saying, "Please give me a cake of purity soap," and you take this purity soap and rub it on your body and you become pure. This purity is not like that. Purity is obtained through this Knowledge. Through this far-out thing, through this very high thing. Today, because we haven't got feet to keep us in balance, we are staggering. People think

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that we are drunk, but we aren't drunk. So what should we do about it? We should take Knowledge. And you won't stagger any more. You will be in perfection. Then you will be guided by God. Perfect guidance will be given to you. So just realize the perfect aim of your life, why you have come into this world.

You know, I can tell you, take my hair and put many types of cream into my hair, many types of oil, many types of scent, but does that bring purity or peace into my mind, into my hair even? No! Why, why? Because that is not it. It will do something else, but it will not do that.

I won't refuse to give you this Knowledge. I am always ready to give you this Knowledge. I am always happy to give you this Knowledge. I don't lose. I gain. I am a servant of God and I have completely devoted myself to God. How was I able to do this? Not by going to a place, putting my hand there, and saying, "Oh God, I am taking the oath that I am your servant," and so on and so on. And then come out and go to a restaurant and ... you know. I never did that. So how to become an instrument of God? Just experiment. Realize what is the thing which is stopping you from being an instrument of God. I experimented and I was able to realize that it was my mind. I said "O.K." I took this Knowledge and meditated till all this mind came out. And when it came out I felt that I was a completely different man. And to realize this Knowledge even I had to go to a Guru. Guru is a Hindi word and you may be surprised know that "gu" means darkness and "ru" means light. That is called Guru. And in English if you translate this it will come out as teacher, a guide. A guide s can bring us away from the darkness of this materialistic world into the bright light of the holy light.

Now may God bless you all and may He shower His divinity upon you all, to give all humanity an in-

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telligent mind to develop and to be able to erase illusion, delusion and pollution from this world. Thank you very much.

The Philosophy of Consciousness

The following discourse was given by Guru Maharaj Ji on the 3rd of September, 1972, at the Fulham Old Town Hall.

There are certain powers in the world. Now man has got one power, and of course you know how he is utilizing it, and the other power God has got. Now by God I mean capital 'G' and I also mean small 'g'. Two types of God: gods - small 'g', and God-capital 'G'. Now power is such a thing that cannot be created and cannot be destroyed. Everything we see, everything we feel, everything we touch must be created. We can't see air, but we can feel air so air has got creation, air is made. And you can make air artificially by chemicals. But the problem is, what is that thing, that energy that was not created? This is the question. This is the thing that scientists are trying to discover. Scientists know that energy can never be created and can never be destroyed, because they believe in practical things, and only in those things to which they can give definitions and names. So they define energy as never being created and never being destroyed. Energy is present, energy is always there. And one energy belongs to man, and one energy belongs to God. God utilizes His energy, sometimes He even utilizes it to destroy. But the difference is that we men constantly use our energy to destroy, and He doesn't.

So you see, there are two powers. One is the power that He activates for the good of the world, and one is the power we have created out of what He has given us. Out of those things that He has created, we

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have created a power which will destroy us, which will destroy the human race. So what is the difference between these powers? The difference is a very small one, but it is very important.

Now suppose the sun comes up, we wouldn't be able to see it because there are curtains between us and the outside. We are not able to see any stars because of those curtains, but the stars are still present. Now suppose there are no curtains; suppose it's an open-air satsang and we are sitting outside in a field and it's a cloudy day. We still wouldn't be able to see the sun or the stars. Or let's take the example of today. Some parts of London were sunny today and the other parts of London weren't sunny. Some people weren't able to see the sun, but that doesn't mean the sun is finished, it doesn't mean the sun is dead, it doesn't mean that the sun doesn't exist any more. No, the sun still exists, but to see the sun we have to go beyond the clouds; then we can see the sun. And the same thing is going on in the human race today. There are so many religions. Religion has become like a football for us. One man picks up a religion today, and tomorrow he throws it away. The next day he picks up another religion and throws it away again. Then He picks up a fourth religion and throws it away the next day.

This is what a man is doing today. But what is the real religion? Real religion is the realization of God through this Knowledge. This is the one point that I want to make everyone understand. These days it is my main point. People come to me and they talk about 'your' Knowledge, and I say, "It is not my Knowledge. It's God's Knowledge and it's your Knowledge, because it's in you, it's inside you. It's present within every soul, and it has to be understood." Why has it to be understood? Why have the lamps to be lighted? Because if the lamps aren't lit, we won't be able to see anything at all. Even though things are present here, we wouldn't be able to see them if the

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lamps weren't lit. If the wind didn't blow, then the clouds wouldn't disappear. And if the clouds didn't blow away, we wouldn't be able to see the sun, and the benefit of the sun would never come to us. Maybe we are farmers with crops on our farm which have to be dried up, or if there is any other reason why we need the direct rays of the sun, we won't be able to get any other benefit because those rays are not reaching us. And to get the other benefits of the sun, besides just light, we have to get the direct rays of the sun. So at this time, the farmer requests God to let the sun shine on his crops. The sun comes up, but the clouds come up with it, and the farmer doesn't like that. Why? The sun has come up every day, but the clouds come as well, and he doesn't want clouds.

So this is the difference. Some men have only got indirect experience of God, and we have got direct experience of God. We can see God without anything between.

To see God directly, there are appropriate techniques we can use. Now I am not criticising the indirect ways of experiencing God, I'm just telling you a direct way, because man is really losing himself in these other things. It's as if he's trying to connect the wiring in a car and you know how complicated that is, he just freaks out because he can't do it. Man today is like a small boy, a small kid who just knows that two wires run into a bulb and they make it light. He just knows that, nothing more. But then he takes a tape recorder, or even takes a computer, and starts disconnecting all the wires, and then tries to connect them again. Of course he doesn't know how to fix it. He doesn't know where the wires go, because the only thing he knows about electronics is that two wires are sticking into the bulb, and they make it light up. So in the same way, we are ourselves getting confused because there are so many questions coming before us which we can't answer, so that we just don't know what it's all about. Our own brains are filled with so many

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prophecies and ideas that we have just been jumbled up.

What was the reason for Christ being crucified? One reason, of course, was that the Roman people did not like the ideas he was teaching. But what was the real reason? Why, even though there were so many spiritual people at that time, did only twelve people really follow him? What was the reason for this? The real reason was because people were so bound in prophecies and ideas. Jesus would stand there and some people would say, "Well, according to this prophecy we must believe in him" And others said, "No, he is not that, he cannot be. He is not Christ. He is not the Lord. He is not God." And others said, "No, here it is written that God is going to come like this, so we believe in him." But others said, "No, it can't be, it simply can't be." What happens is, it all becomes just a melting pot. Prophecies are in it, intellectual ideas come into it, and it becomes a melting pot, it becomes a pudding. It becomes a mixture of milk and custard powder, and then it becomes heated, because they are arguing, and it becomes so thick that it is impossible to pour it down through the small hole of their understanding, because understanding is very sensitive. A man's understanding is very, very sensitive. I have been studying algebra and to understand algebra, if you miss one line, if you miss one word of what the master is saying you won't understand it, you won't understand what he is doing. So you just have to pay your full attention and see how he solves all the problems. And I have seen that sometimes he explains once and many boys understand, but other times he explains for two or three days the same thing and they still don't understand. So our understanding is very sensitive, very, very sensitive and this pudding in the melting pot is impossible to pour out through a very small hole because it is so thick.

And that's why we need something practical. We have to see a practical light, we have to realize a

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practical thing. We have to get beyond this mind and practically experience what is there. This adventure is beyond our thoughts. So this is why we can think of God, and still do not experience Him, because God Himself is not God. The word God is not God. It might sound like God, it might pronounce like God, but God is something else beyond G and 0 and D. Because we ourselves created G and 0 and D, but we never created God; God created us. We created Rolls Royces and Mercedes, we created Toyotas and all these cars, but we didn't create God. So what is G-O-D? G-O-D is an adjective, it's not a noun. So still we have to find out what the noun actually is, because until and unless we know the noun, we can't define the man. If we go into a school and say, "Where is the master? Where is the teacher?" People will say, "Which teacher do you mean, which teacher do you want? There are so many teachers in this school." If you come into Divine Light Mission and you say, "Where is Mahatma Ji?" They'll say, "Which Mahatma Ji do you mean? There is Mahatma Guru Charnanand Ji, there is Mahatma Rajeshwaranand ji, there is Mahatma Adharanand Ji, there are so many mahatmas. Which mahatma do you need?" And he just says, "Oh, Mahatma Ji." Nobody understands him. If you go into a shop and say, "Where is the man?" "Which man?" they'll say, "Which man do you mean?" They won't understand you. You've got to have a noun. You need a noun. If you say Mr. Ashokanand Ji, then I'll say, "OK, there he is." Or I'll say, "He is not there." So you have to find out what is the noun. What and who is God? OK? What is His name? Find that out so you can define Him, so that you can understand Him, so that you can know who He is. You can really dig it, you know, who He is. But how to understand it, how to realize it. Not through chemicals, not through biological experiments, not through geology. What are the methods? What is the technique?

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One doctor came to me, he was from India. He was the director of the Indian Medical Institute. He came to me and said, "Maharaj Ji, I don't believe in God any more." And I said, "Why not?" And he said, "Because I haven't seen Him, and I operate daily and see so many X-rays of a man's chest, and I don't see God. Because if God is present, He is in our heart. And if anything is in our heart, even if a small pin is in our heart, it will shine out through an X-ray. So if God is in our ribs, if God is in our stomachs, if God is in our brains, we would see Him, the same as we would see a small pin if it was there. But I never see God there. I can only see darkness, and of course I can see those curliewurlie things, and they are ribs, they are not God. So who is God? That's why I don't believe." And I said, "Doctor, can you see water anywhere in this room?" And he said, "No, I can't see any water." And I said, "So go and tell people in the schools, go and tell everyone that water doesn't exist because you can't see water in this room." Could he do that? It was impossible for him to do that. He agreed; he said, "Well, water isn't in this room particularly." And I said, "Why not? Dig a hole right here and water will come out. If you start boring a hole in this room water will come out, because water is beneath the earth and after you've bored down a few feet you'll find water."

So you have to dig to find the water. And in the same way, you have to dig inside to find God, to understand God, to see God. And how to dig? You can't take a spade, you can't take your scissors. Because we're talking about the internal self, and only the internal self can look at the internal self. Externally somebody else can see us, but internally, no. Internally we must look on ourselves, because that's our own consciousness. We know what is in our heart, but other people don't know what is in our heart, because our consciousness lies within us, and their consciousness lies within themselves. So to look within, to

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be able to look inside, we have to look in ourselves first. We have to see what really is within ourselves, and so that we can see inside, we need an inside eye, and the inside eye is the third eye, and this is the Knowledge. This is the true, true Light. The Light that man has been searching for for years and centuries. That's the Knowledge, and people who've understood this Knowledge, they practice it, because practicing is the main thing.

This is the thing that people keep asking me, they say, "How have you experienced it at such a small age?" And I say, "It's quite easy. There is a city, right? It's four miles, right? Four miles long and four miles wide. Or let's say it's four square miles in area, all the way round. And one man is twenty-five years old and maybe I am only four years old. And if we are both taken to the top of the hill, really to the top, I mean to a really high altitude, I will also be able to see that city that is four miles in area. And the guy who is twenty-five years old will also be able to see the whole city. Our age does not matter." This is a very simple explanation. When we reach that high altitude we can see it, no matter who we are, no matter how old we are. We have to see it, no matter who we are, no matter how old we are. We have to see it because we have reached an altitude, and we have got the elevation of the whole set-up, of the whole thing. So no matter who we are, we can really have it. The question is of reaching the altitude. If we aren't at that altitude we won't be able to see it no matter how old we are.

So learn how to reach that altitude. It's in our own hands, because we have to take our ship and go up. We have to take our airplane and go up, and when we reach that certain altitude, we'll be able to see the whole thing, we'll be able to see the whole set-up, exactly how it is. And this ship is within us, it's inside us. It has been built in within us, it's factory built. It's not optional, it's standard. With every man it's stan-

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dard, it's within every man. It just has to be fueled. And what is this fueling? This fueling is the Knowledge. And when we are fueled we are ready to go, we are ready to take off. We've just got to switch on our engine. And who can guide us? That man is called a guru, that man is called a Perfect Master, because he teaches you perfection, he guides you into perfection. The man who teaches you math, you call him a math master. The man who teaches you physics, you call him a physics master, and the man who teaches you perfection, you call him a Perfect Master.

So go and understand what this is that I am talking about. It is not a religion I'm talking about, it is not a philosophy that's so hard to understand. No, it's the same thing that all the saints have given. It's the universal philosophy. It's the philosophy of consciousness. How to understand, how to feel that consciousness within us. It's not a thing that I have to pump into you. No, it's already within yourself. I have just to tell you because you have forgotten. Man has forgotten that something is existing within him that is making him alive right now.

We can't drive blindfolded for too long. We have to open our eyes and see where we are going, otherwise we're going to crash somewhere. A pilot who is driving his airplane in daytime doesn't need any meters because he can see whether his plane is unbalanced or not, or whether it is going in the right direction. But if he is blindfolded, how does he know what's going on until he crashes on the ground or falls off his seat? You have to understand these things and how important they are for you. It's important that you practically see them and test them. So this is for you, it's for your benefit. It's not for me. I've got my benefit. I meditate. I'm as happy as I can be. I'm extremely happy. Now you have to be happy too. And for your happiness you have to do the same thing I did, and that is to do meditation, and I can make other people realize this happiness also because I

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have mastered the subject. And how did I master it? It was when I practiced it more and more and more and more that I mastered it. So you practice it more and more and you will reach a very good level, a very far-out level.

And it's for the good, it's for the benefit of people. You see there have always been these times when there's been a downfall of the human race. It's very clear that in the history of civilization there is a time when it goes up, and there's a time when it goes down, and now we can see it's going down. Civilization is going down, understand? I read an article and it explained all these things, and it was a very beautiful explanation. It said when human man first came he was wearing skins, right? He used to wear skins, simply skins because he had nothing else to wear. And then what he used to eat was meat. Nothing else because that's all he used to get. And what happened? Man got quite civilized. And now something has happened again today, and we're back to the beginning again.

How did this happen? Man has been creating pollution and man has been destroying nature. Man has not been preserving nature. You can't call him a sustainer of nature. Man has always been a destroyer of nature. But there were times when the killing, when the destruction, was not as much as it is now. Now it is much more than it used to be. There are many police around now. Military police are there, and police police are there, and armies are there, and they are all fighting. All these things are going on and man has come to a downfall. Even man's language is all mixed up. He hardly speaks appropriate language as they used to speak in the olden days in England, in Britain. I know this because I have seen it in movies and on television, and the language that they used in those days, it was very good English. But now it's getting more and more

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slang, it's getting lower and lower, but in those days it was high.

So everything is going down and down and down and down. And it's going to go down more, because there's one time for going up and there's one time for going down. And now we're back to the beginning. But there is one thing that we can do. We can make it go up again. It has been going down like this, and now we can make it go up like this. We can make it go up again. Maybe we can put it up there and not let it come back. Maybe we can lock it up there. But how can we do this?

Again I come to the same point. We have to realize the realization. So if you want to understand this Knowledge, you meditate. And if you have not taken this Knowledge, then try to take it because this is something that's actually inside you now. There are so many fruits here on the stage, so many oranges, pineapples, apples and bananas, and which of them is sour and which of them is sweet? Can you tell me? It's very hard, isn't it? Because you haven't tasted them? Look at these oranges. Actually oranges are supposed to be quite sweet, but sometimes they turn out to be very sour. Apples too, sometimes they turn out to be very sour. So it is pretty difficult for us to say if they are sweet or sour until we taste them. And it's the same with this Knowledge. This Knowledge is lying down here, inside; you just can't imagine it. You have to practically realize it, and then you will know. When you practically realize it, then you will know what it is.

Why has God made you so able? It is because there is a particular purpose that you have to fulfill. You aren't just lying around. You're not just here to lie around. You have got a particular purpose to fulfill. That's why you are here.

So man is man, and I don't know what he is trying to do because he is all puzzled up. You see how man is?

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If this Knowledge was being preached, let's say forty years ago, people would have understood it much better. But today people don't want to change. Do you understand? It's as if they don't want to change gears, and that's why they made an automatic car. They don't want to open their windows, so they've made an automatic window. They don't want to go round locking all the four doors of the car, so they make an automatic lock. You just press it and all the locks go down and you press it again and all the locks go up. And now they don't want to go all the way back with their keys to open the trunk, so they press a button and the trunk opens. They don't want to open the side window, so they have ventilators. So that's what man is doing these days. He has become so lazy that it's just incredible.

So how idle man is going to become, I don't know. Because still he is automating everything. He doesn't even want to work. Peoples' philosophy nowadays is, "Why should you work? You should get money, but you shouldn't work." That is the theory nowadays. And everyone is believing in this theory. "Why should we work? Why shouldn't we just get money?" And so people are developing all kinds of things, and I just don't know what's going to happen. There's going to come a time when everything will be so freaky that it will just ... just incredible. It's getting very incredible these days and it's going to get more incredible, I guess.

But to control this is in our own hands, and we have to control it. So understand this, then broadcast this to people. You understand it first, really understand it, and then broadcast it.

So this is all I wanted to say. If you have received this Knowledge then go ahead and meditate and understand it more clearly. If you haven't received this Knowledge, come on, receive it and understand it. Because this is something that you ought to have. I am only a messenger and what I can do is simply

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bring two cords together and connect them. That's all I can do. I am just a switch. I am a switch in-between. I can switch on the line. I can connect the lines and switch them on. I just say, "OK, come on, look back." That's all. That's all I'll tell you. It's as if you people are Ali Baba and the forty thieves. Have you read this story? Ali Baba goes out and he says, well, he has to say, "Open Sesame!" But he forgets it, he forgets the word, and he says all types of things, and I just come out and shout at him, "Hey, it's Sesame!" And you just say, "Open Sesame!" And it opens up. And you get your gates open and you can just get out of there before you're killed.

We are progressing at a very high speed and I am very pleased about that. The Knowledge is spreading quite fast. And I guess we will be able to just make it, just make it before ... before ... you know, just before! OK, thank you very much.

Colorado Satsang

The following discourse was given by Guru Maharaj Ji on the 17th of September, 1971, at Boulder, Colorado.

Today people are trying to find peace in books and peace in nature. But nature itself is a part of peace, and so is your soul. Your soul is also natural, it is not artificial. Your body is also natural, it is not artificial. Ha! Maybe your way of living is artificial, but your body is not artificial. It is real, it is natural, like a tree. And you have to realize what is the mystery of that nature that is working within your body. Because God made that nature, He made so much nature, so much.

So realize that constant thing. Today we buy a certain thing - we love it. Tomorrow it is destroyed - where has our love gone? Where does our love go? We know that our love should be always constant.

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But it isn't. That's why there are so many opposites, that's why so many people are confused. They go into their churches and marry, and tomorrow they divorce each other. Because the love that we do externally is not constant. External things are not constant. But always when the true master has come, he has guided the people and shown them the true light and told them to follow this true light. Then only can you reach the true destination that you ought to reach.

I went to Aspen and I saw huge mountains. I was seeing the snow falling the whole day. From where does this snow come? Is there any refrigerator in God's heaven that is putting out snow? What is that thing that is making it snow? What is that nature? What is that thing that is making you alive? Is there any cell in your pocket, that is putting current into you and you are moving? This is the mystery of nature, that there is hidden light in everything, and you have to realize what is that hidden light, what is that hidden thing, what is that hidden current in you that is constant and can never die. These are the teachings of all the saints on record. That thing that is making things alive is the most constant thing in the world because it is the power of God, and this is making everything alive.

This is the body, this is a frame. One day something will go out of it and the whole body will become like a plank of wood. You can lift the body now by just holding the legs, but what is that thing that went into this form, and made it alive, and then went out of this form? That secret you should know.

People ask why did God create evil. If God did create evil, He also created the way to get rid of it. He created a pistol for it with four bullets and we have to shoot, and shoot, and shoot and shoot, and when we have shot all four bullets, we really have killed our ego, we really have killed it. Our pistol is meditation, and the bullets are the four noble truths which kill the devil in us. Buddha said that knowing

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the four noble truths, you will know something eternal. So what is that eternal thing? Know that. This is your aim in coming into the world. We haven't come into this world to eat, drink and be merry. Remember, the plant that you are loving today, to which you have given so much water, will finish one day. Why? Because the plant is not constant. In nature you see so many things coming up and so many things dying, like man. Nature is not constant. So what is the constant basis of all life, knowing which we are made constant?

Some people think that God is a human being, but He is not. God hasn't got ears like us, nose like us, eyes like us, mouth like us, teeth, tongue, lungs, chest, bones. He isn't like that. These eyes only see in a limited way, but God's eyes can see everything. His eyes are different from these.

Same way, His Word is a different word, a third eye. This is the mystery. Jesus Christ said, "People will be able to look into the Kingdom of Heaven with one eye." He never meant, "Take a stick and put out one eye and become a blind person or become half blind with only one eye." He never said that. So how to make one eye out of two eyes? The only way is to take a stick and put out one eye? Is that the way? Jesus said get one eye but he did not take a stick and put out eyes. There is some other way that is an internal way, it is the source of all nature and it is all the bliss that you can experience, all the bliss that you can experience. This is the cause of snow falling on this earth, this is the cause of everything you can see, feel, touch and think about. People try to think about God with their limited minds. I've told you so many times, you cannot think about God with your limited mind. God is unlimited and your mind is limited. It can only think about limited things. But when we enter nature, when we enter the heaven of God, then we realize what is the heaven of God.

I'll tell you a story. Once there was a queen.

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She went to take a bath, took off her necklace and hung it on a hook. A crow came and flew off with it. When he saw that it was not edible, that it was only a necklace, he let it drop down. The necklace fell from the sky and dropped onto a tree. Under that tree the river was flowing in which all the dirt of the city was flowing. Very dirty. When the queen came out of her bath she saw the necklace was missing. She cried, "A thief has taken my necklace." Was that crow a real thief? She never knew, but still she said, "A thief has taken my necklace and until I get it back I won't take food." So nobody could find the necklace and the king ordered that whoever would find that necklace and bring it to him, he would give half his kingdom. Some travelers were going by, and they stopped under that tree to take some shelter and looked into that dirty river. "Oh there is the necklace," they cried, "Now let us jump in the water and take out the necklace."

So they all jumped in the river and swam deep, but they could get nothing. They came out and again saw the necklace was there. So they again jumped in but again they got nothing. Again they came out and again they jumped in. When they came out they still saw it. When they jumped in the necklace disappeared and when they came out the necklace was there. And so they thought, "That thief is very clever. Whenever we come out he shows us the necklace but when we jump in he takes it and hides it. He is very clever." After some time a huge crowd gathered, and later the king was passing and said, "What is the matter, why are so many people there by that river?" The people said, "There is the necklace, king." The king said, "Yes, that is the necklace, I should go and jump in and take it." But his Prime Minister said, "O.K., king. I am going to jump in and get this necklace for you." Then the king thought, "If the Prime Minister gets the necklace for me, then half the kingdom will be his, so why should I lose my kingdom? These clothes are very fine, but they are not as expensive as

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half the kingdom." See, the king was very cunning. "I will jump in the water," he said. So he jumped into the river with all his clothes on, into that dirty river. He searched all around but he couldn't get that necklace. He came out and said, "Well, the necklace is there and as soon as I jump in it disappears. Why should this be?"

Just then a guru, a man who knew this Knowledge, was passing by, and he said, "This is neither a fasting day nor a holy day. What is the matter? Why are so many people gathered around here?" And they said, "Sir, this is the matter. The necklace is there and we want to take it out." He said, "Can't you find it in the water?" They said, "No." He said, "O.K. Wait." Then he climbed the tree, took the necklace down and gave it to the king. Because in that river there was not the real necklace. The necklace was up there all the time but they could only see the reflection.

Moths fly around bulbs and lamps and think, "This is the light." So they fly in there and what happens? There is fire inside, they burn and die. They fly in and they die. They thought something was there but nothing is there. So many people have come into this world and so many people have died, but what have they gained? Life, then death. They think there is a mystery of life that they must search for, but where to search? They think the mystery of life is in materialism, but it is not there. Materialism is the reflection. You can see the sun, the moon, so many beautiful things-they are the reflections of this mystery-and they think, "Oh yes, here it is." And they jump into that mystery, but they find nothing. There are some people, even in India, who don't want houses or possessions or anything materialistic. They just want to live with nothing. They just stay in caves and say, "We don't want to be near materialistic things." But can they find real truth there? Can they find real peace there? No, because they are only touching nature, they are not touching the mystery of nature.

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What is materialism? To have a beautiful car, to have so many things around you, this is materialism. Sometimes the car breaks down, then you pay money for it to be repaired. It is a fine. Sometimes a television breaks down and you pay money for it to be repaired. It is also a fine. Really it is a fine. You are being fined. So why do you have things for which you will be fined? We must put ourselves on the middle path in this world, not too low, not too high. Should the temperature of your body be 0 degrees centigrade or should it be 140 degrees centigrade? No, it should be 98.6, it should be normal. There are three levels. One is the most materialistic and one is the most natural, but neither materialistic living nor natural living can help you. The level that will help you is the middle one. And when you know this Knowledge you know the secret of being in the middle.

Today, people remember the name of Rama and say, "Ram, Ram, Ram." But what was his name before he was born? Was it baby? So why don't we say, "Baby, Baby, Baby?" What was the name Rama's father meditated upon? What was that secret? What was the mystery of the light? We have to know that mystery, because that is the main source, that is the spark plug. The white part of the spark plug is not beautiful. There are two things only which are useful in the spark plug. That little pin there and that little pin there. The spark goes between them, so they are the most useful, not the plug. The car is so expensive, but without this spark it is useless. Same way, this body is so big, but the thing that is making it go is so small, so very small. You cannot look at it through microscopes, not even through atomic microscopes. A microscope will not help you know that mystery. For that you need a third eye, you need to make both eves into one eye. When you have that one eye you see what is the mystery of mysteries. And you will say, "Yes, it is really far out." But you cannot see so you do not know.

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There are two toads. I think you understand the meaning of toad, they go, "Trrr, trrr, trrr," in the night, you know? And these two toads met. One toad belonged to the sea and one toad belonged to the well. And the sea toad said, "I am very far away from my ocean, so you had better give me shelter." He said, "O.K., come into my well," and he took him into his well. When they were there they both started talking. The toad who lived in the well said, "How big is the ocean?" And the other one said, "Huge big, big, big, huge." So the toad who lived in the well made a circle and said, "This big?" And the other said, "No, huge, much bigger." So he drew a bigger circle. He said, "Bigger than this?" "Yes, bigger than this." Ultimately, he reached the boundary of the well. He said, "Bigger than this?" The sea toad said, "Yes, bigger than this." He said, "It is impossible. Nothing can be bigger than my well. This is the biggest thing." The other said, "Brother, be patient, wait a little."

In the morning they both rose and the sea toad took the other one to the sea and all he could see was water, water, water and not an end to it. Maybe you think these are just bare words which you listen to with your ears. But there is something beyond them, there is something beyond that which you think is limited, it's like the toad.

There were two ants, and one ant loved salt and the other loved sugar. When they met, the salt ant said, "My salt is the sweetest thing, the most beautiful thing." And the other said, "No, my sugar is sweeter." They said, "O.K., we are both tired today, we will rest and in the morning we will meet." And the salt ant said, "I will come and taste your sugar in the morning."

Morning came, they both rose up, and the salt ant said, "Probably there won't be any salt near that sweet thing, so I had better take some along." So she took some salt in her mouth and went to where the other ant lived. "Yes, I have come," she said, "where

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is the sugar?" "Here it is, taste as much as you like." The salt ant tasted some and then she said, "Well, this is just like my salt, your sugar is just like my salt." She took another bite, "Yes, it's just like my salt." Because she had a piece of salt in her mouth, she could not taste the sugar.

The same thing is with us. In our minds there are egos, confusions, and so many things, so when we go to something we say, "Oh, this is just like our confusions." Because we are really confused, we get more confused. But once our confusion is removed we really will face the sweetness. And then the ant said, "Open your mouth," and the salt ant opened her mouth and, yes, there was a piece of salt there. The sugar ant said, "Take this out. Wash out your mouth and then come." So she did, and then she came and tasted the sugar and then said, "Oh, yes, this is beautiful. This is sweet."

Same thing with humans. People come to me, saying, "Oh, this is confusing." But when I say, "O.K., what are your questions, what are your doubts?" they tell me those questions. I give them the answers, and what happens? The salt, the confusion, comes out of their mouths. "O.K.," I say, "Now go and wash out your mouths, go and listen to satsang," and then I say, "O.K., now come and take the Knowledge," and I give the Knowledge to them and they are really satisfied.

You won't be able to understand my Knowledge by these bare words, because the Knowledge is a matter of practical experience and I think God will bless you to know this Knowledge. If you can't get this Knowledge outside, come to me and I will give it to you. I have got this Knowledge. I have given it to many people and they are all satisfied. So if you want it, come to me and I'll give you this Knowledge, because this Knowledge is a bank account I have got. It is not money that is in my bank account, it is the most precious jewel, it is a diamond which I am giving to everyone.

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There was a farmer in the desert and he saw this piece of glass shining so he picked it up. He said, "Oh this is not precious," and he threw it away and went on his way. And after some time a jeweler came and he took it, and he said, "Oh it is a diamond, how lucky I am." So he put it in his pocket. So they both came, they both picked up that diamond, but one was clever enough to know its value and the other was ignorant and left it. This is confusion. This Knowledge is supreme, just supreme, and you cannot take it with your mind, which is what you are wanting to do. I am very sorry, but you cannot have it like that. You cannot think this Knowledge in your mind. You cannot imagine this Knowledge. So if you have any doubts and confusions, ask me and I will remove them and I'll ask you to go and wash your mouth, and that means "listen to satsang." When you are ready I'll come and turn your battery on. When a car is ready, still one more thing is needed, and that single thing is the ignition. I can switch on your ignition. At this time you haven't even got an engine, you have only got a body, a chassis. But ultimately, satsang, by removing doubts, does many things and it will place an engine there, a big, huge, powerful engine. Everything will be fixed. You will become eager, but you have no battery and no ignition switch. You cannot turn yourself on. But when you are given this Knowledge you become ignited, and then to go forward you do your service and your meditation, and then you will go onto that highway that is the fastest highway in the world. It never goes crooked, it goes straight to God, straight to God, and it is a very short highway. Your car has got no steering wheel because there is just one direction, straight. It has got no tires because it flies, it flies straight to one point and that is God. Only then do you become a real part of God, only then are you a real human being. Up till now you are only human, not yet beings, but then you become

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beings, human beings. And then you become perfect, you become part of God and part of the Son of God.

So now I am here again, speaking to you, giving you my satsang. Some of you will be like a strainer, and all the precious water will drain out, and only the tea leaves will remain. But other people will be like combine harvesters. They will take out the hay and keep the grains inside them. So let's see who is like which. If you are like a tea strainer, the water will leak out and you will not be able to use the leaves again. But if you are sincere you will be like a combine harvester and you will really be part of God. So let's see which you are.

So now you know why you have come to this world. Look at your watches and you will see how fast the second hand is running; so fast, extremely fast, and your precious moments are being wasted. You know the proverb, time and tides wait for no one. Time and tides wait for no one. And time won't wait for you. It's passing by like anything and there is no certainty in your life. Suppose you are going out and your car slips on some ice and it crashes into a bridge or something and you die. So there is no certainty about your life and there is a heart-attack disease that is very popular. You are sitting there and you don't know when you will die and suddenly you die.

So know why you have come into this world. Take this full opportunity that you have got, that God has given you, take full opportunity of it, otherwise ...

Dogs bark but the elephant carries on. When an elephant passes in India, all the dogs come round and bark, bark, bark. The elephant never even sees them. The elephant isn't aware of what is happening around him. If you don't realize why you have come into this world, if you don't use every single moment, then you are like an elephant, having nothing to do with Knowledge and having nothing to do with time. Everything is saying, "Know, know, know, know me,"

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but you aren't interested. Realize why you have come into this world, why God placed you in this human frame, why God made you so handsome, why God graced you with that most intelligent brain. Why did he do that? Know. Only know.

And when you know it, meditate upon it, start walking on that way, start climbing up that ladder, and if you do not know the way, if you do not have that ladder, come to me and I will give you the Knowledge. You are always welcome. My Knowledge does not have any religion, it does not have any way of life. If you want to cut your hair, cut your hair, my Knowledge won't affect that. If you are growing your hair, grow your hair, my Knowledge won't affect that. My Knowledge is like a river. Let a lame man come, it is the same water, let a rich man come, it is the same water, let a beggar come, it is the same water, let a king come, it is the same water, let an enemy come, it is the same water, let a friend come, it is the same water. The same water is flowing for everybody. External things do not affect this Knowledge because it is internal. So know why you are following the crooked paths of this world, and turn away from them to the straight path of this Knowledge. In the mountains in India there is a leaf, and if you touch it it will give you an electric shock. Your fingers will feel tingling as if thousands of spiders are there; but nearby you will find a plant, a small plant, and if you take the leaf of that plant, you can rub it on your fingers and you will be cured. So where God has created evil he has created good also. But people who look at evil cannot look at good, they don't know where goodness is. The toads who live in the well don't know what the sea is and the toads who live in the sea don't need to know what a well is. So live in that ocean, live in that ocean of mercy, know where that ocean is and make your life a golden life, a precious life, a good life, a marvelous life. And I've got a way, I've got a technique ...

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People who have received Knowledge, my blessings are always with them and they should carry on and build an ashram here where many people can come and receive Knowledge. You are not building the ashram for my benefit, you are building the ashram for your benefit. You will reap what you have sown, everybody knows that. If you sow mangoes, you won't reap berries. You will reap mangoes. If you build an ashram, many people will come and take Knowledge and they will bless your soul. It will be a wonderful thing. I will come where there is love and unity for I love love and I love unity. I want this whole Universe to unite in the Name of God so that very soon the Kingdom of Heaven may come on this earth, so that very many people can take advantage of it. I am working for that, I am working very fast and I need your constant cooperation. What I want is to bring forth the Kingdom of Heaven quickly. And I can bring it forth by this grace.

Remember, Jesus prophesied that there will be famine and thunders before the Kingdom of Heaven comes; but remember at the same time that God is very merciful. He is complete mercy. And probably, if He has mercy on you, the world won't explode, and I am working for that. I am increasing this Knowledge like anything to stop the bombs from destroying the whole world and I need your cooperation. If you don't cooperate with me, O.K., then let the bombs explode. They won't wait for me, but if you want real peace, cooperate with me and really, I will bring it along, very fast, because God is merciful, all merciful. He is complete bliss and if you pray to Him, maybe He will protect us from the thunder, the famine and the bombs and change those bombs into flowers.

You don't think this can happen, but this can happen. Meera was a princess who devoted everything she had to spreading this Knowledge, and her husband and father both thought this is evil. So they took a basket and put a snake in it and gave Meera this

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basket. They said, "Meera, these are flowers, this is a garland for your Lord." So Meera took the basket to her Lord and placed her hand inside and what came out was a garland.

With this Knowledge, thieves and robbers are converted into peaceful men, so no one would think that once they were thieves and robbers. So I need your cooperation. God is cooperating with me from that side but you must cooperate with me from this side. You'll have to spread this Knowledge like lightning and you know what is the speed of lightning. Even faster than that. That's why you are devotees, that's why you were made disciples. Why are your names written as disciples of Guru Maharaj ji? To do something, and that is to spread this Knowledge. You don't kill the egos, you bring them to me and I will kill them. So cooperate with me, give people satsang and do what else you can. I have devoted my whole life. If I have done it you can also do it very easily, very easily. There are no problems. If I have devoted my whole life to this purpose, and I have, then so can you. Sow it now and then reap what you have sown. Sow apples and you will reap apples, sow thorns and you will reap thorns. That's all.

Piñata Satsang

On Guru Maharaj Ji's fourteenth birthday, the western premies held a fancy dress fantasy party for him. A Mexican tradition was copied, where a huge colored paper fly (called a Pinata is filled with sweets, suspended and moved around, wile the birthday child, blindfolded, chases it, then beats it with a stick until the sweets fall out. Guru Maharaj ji gave the following discourse on the 10th of December, 1971, at the Prem Nagar Ashram, India.

This fly was broken; in the same way, the mind has to be broken. First of all, man has to close his carnal

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outer doors so that he may concentrate his heart on his devotion. Devotion is the stick, and with his devotion and meditation he has to kill this crazy damn fly. In the same way, mind, too, is strong; it is very big. To a man it seems very pretty, but of course it is a fly.

In the same way, our minds in this age of darkness are very strong. The will of this world is so strong. Really it is something that you cannot bear. When the holy man leaves, you are lost. And then these evil powers start acting upon you, and this illusion, which is itself darkness, comes and puts a black sheet over you. Now, where to go? Where to go? Where is the path?

You light the torch, O.K. You light the torch, the torch is O.K. But you have got something tied on your eyes, you cannot see where the light of the torch is going. You are standing on the path, O.K. But you cannot see the path because your eyes have been tightly tied up. Where to go now?

In the same way, when Satguru comes, by his satsang this illusion is broken, and man is only attached to one thing. Now his destination is one, and that is to meet with the sea.

The rivers flow from all sides to merge with their source, and that is the sea. Sea was their source. And from the sea they were taken up by the sun into the clouds, and they eventually went to the mountains, then showered the rain, and now they are so great, so fast, they are running to meet and embrace their source. Nothing in the world can stop them. They topple over their edges, they go into the houses, with one purpose only - just to meet with the "whole" who was their source, who is their source and who will be their source; who exists, who was existing and who will exist; who never dies, who has never died, and will never die; who is forever, was forever, and who will be forever; who was complete, is complete and will be complete. He is perfect, He was perfect and He

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will be perfect. Nothing in the world can touch His personality and break it into pieces. Anything you take from the world- illusion, this darkness - is too thin for Him.

His personality is great. His rays are so strong, they cross bones, they cross skin, and they shine out. His light, which is His personality, is so powerful that it crosses the whole world, but it can't be broken. His divine divinity is so strong; His divinity is so strong that I've got no words to describe it. A devotee is sitting in America, Guru is sitting in India, but both have a very powerful connection.

So remember. We have to find that God, that person who is perfect; He is ours and we are His, and we have to find Him. To whom do we belong? We have to find Him, and get together and be one with Him, because if we are two we have got duality. Wherever there is duality there is darkness. Wherever there is darkness there is frustration. Wherever there is frustration there is ego. Man is completely surrounded by it and he is put into prison by the chains of his mind.

So remember: we are part of Him who Has manifested Himself as a Guru and who has come into this earth, and now we have to be one with Him. We have to completely merge and make our souls one with Him because He is perfect, and once we merge with Him we will also be perfect.

Nothing is in the world, whether it is our mind, or the darkness of illusion, that can stop it. We will be like the river Ganges. It flows, flows, and has no regard for its importance. The Ganges doesn't stop because cows are drinking its water.

Have you seen when men take the horses and put two leather strips before their eyes? On the side, they cannot see. They can just see their road, which is their destination. It is their path on which they have to run, run and run, till their master stops them. They are not allowed to see anywhere else. In the same way, we have to be tied into the one cord of love. Be-

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cause, you see, there are flowers in the garden, there is string to tie the flowers, there is everything, but there is no garland. But once the flowers come and are united on a string, they form a garland.

There is an autobiography of a flower written by Kalidasa, and this flower says, "0 Lord, ever since you made me I have had one wish. That is that you should please unite me with all my friends into one string of love and put me around your neck so that I may be most fortunate to feel your divine personality." This is the autobiography of that flower.

So remember, we have to be united in one string of love. Mind is so strong, but don't be frustrated by it because if the Lord is true and the Knowledge is true, then nothing is there. There is only a black shadow, cast by the moon, which itself is taking light from the sun-and only for six hours. After a little while it will go off and there'll be no darkness.

So remember, that we all have to unite in ore cord. Not two or three or four or five. And all the human beings that have been created and are living in this world, or on any other planet, have to be united in one cord, only one cord. This cord is of love, and that perfect love is only given by the Perfect Master of the time. No one else is able to give that love to you.

You think that your wife, your husband, your children will give you love? No. It is the love of selfishness. Baby loves mother because mother gives milk, not because they have a connection. No. Just because of selfish love. In the same way, you love everything because of selfishness. But we love guru without any selfishness. It is pure and perfect love, it is that love which cannot be disturbed by mind at all.

So be perfect, be in love, do meditation, run smoothly, have a good life, enjoy yourself, be one with Him who has created you, who had created you and who will create you. Because this is what you have to find in the world. There are many paths. Many, many paths. One is blue, one is red, one is

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green, all seem beautiful. But there is one path which we can hardly look at because it is so bright. People who are people, people who are really humans, walk on it. And people who are not humans walk on the green, red and yellow paths. But the man who walks on that bright, shining path always becomes brightness. And God touches him and he touches the Lotus Feet of Satgurudev.

Whenever the Lord comes, He is hungry for love. Nothing He wants. He has created diamonds, He has created the whole of nature. Nothing is a surprise to the Lord because He has created it. But the only thing that can be a surprise for Him is your love. Love that is sincere, that is from your heart, it comes right from the depths of your heart. It shows light, affection, devotion and real love. It is perfect. Perfect, and so it will last forever.

So that love God requires. Nothing else. God created love, no doubt. But He distributed it. And no love is left. And God is only hungry for one thing now. He wants to collect love, love, love, and love. That's the only thing He wants. But those people are only able to give love who are determined to shed their forehead on His Lotus Feet. Nobody else. People who have become proud go to that imperfection from where they never return. But the one who is determined to shed his forehead on the Lotus Feet goes to that perfection from where he never returns.

So brothers, unite into one love, be one, be perfect, be accurate. Accurate for the love, attentive for the satsang, active for the service, and this will make you perfect. Because perfection is what imperfection wants. Imperfect are you, and you need your Lord because He is perfect. Perfection never looks for imperfection, but imperfection looks for perfection every time.

So one devotee, he prays to the Lord and says, "Lord don't forget me. For you, we are many, but for me, you are only one. If I get lost, you have others who can give you that much love. But in my life, if

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you get lost, you are the only one who can give me love. So Lord, please attach me so firmly that the sun may break, fire may break in pieces and the sky may be disturbed, the earth may be moved from its orbit, but this cord of love may not be moved and may be strong forever and ever and ever. Even if the sun breaks, no matter. But this cord of love should be forever."

All the saints of India, Jesus Christ and Mohammed also, have emphasized love because love is the greatest cord in the world. It can unite you and communicate you with the Lord. And the Lord is perfect, perfect for all. To him who goes to Him and asks Him for His love, He never hesitates to give it. Maybe he is the lowest person in the world, maybe he is the highest person in the world. Because the Lord is the embodiment of love and you must realize Him. Not only realize Him, but be one with Him because He can create you as many times as you like.

So be careful about the golden opportunity He has given you. And don't be confused by the hypnotic shadows of the mind which are making you frustrated. Once you get frustrated, you will not be able to return again. Don't be frustrated. Don't look anywhere, just look at the destination which you have to reach. Don't look anywhere.

Don't be confused. Confusion is for those who don't know this Knowledge. But once a man has known this Knowledge, he has nothing to be confused about. Because this mind came, it can also go away, but only if the destination is there. The horse is hungry, the grass is on all sides, but he can only look at his destination. Maybe there is green grass filled with clover, but horse does not look at that, he looks only at his destination and runs there. He's hungry, but it doesn't matter.

So today, in the frustrated darkness of the world, only the Perfect Lord is the bright, shining sun. And if you have known Him, far out. Nothing can be

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more than that. It is the endless limit if you have known the Lord of the time. So what I have told you just now, I think it is important. Maybe it is not for you, but it is very important for me. And only through this principle, only by following this basic outline of how to be one, can you be one. For this solid thread of love has been carried over from centuries and centuries and ages and ages.

And my guru also taught me first of all this thread of love. And then I was able to realize the importance of guru, this embodiment of love. He is white, but if you wear blue glasses you won't be able to see Him. In this world, everywhere there is darkness. You can only get white glasses by knowing that white, bright, shining Light. So if you go to Him, ask. Ask and it shall be given, knock and it shall be opened unto you. So if you have asked for Knowledge, very good. Otherwise, if you know the Knowledge, go ahead and meditate. This is the only thing which increases your love. And love increases you and makes you one with whom you have to be. It is so beautiful, it is so fantastic to be one with one who is perfect, because you are your own no more, no more are there weights on your hands, no more are there weights on your shoulders, there is no burden to carry, no weight on your hands to carry, you are free.

When you have been united to the Lord, you are the most free person. Water cannot be in one place, it does not rest. It runs, runs, runs, and runs to be one with Him, one with the sea. Maybe the sea is salty, it does not matter. The water has to go and be united. So meditation is the only medium through which you increase your love, and love will spring forth, will make you one, and finally everything will be organized.

So I hope you will pay close attention to whatever I have been saying. It holds value for all devotees. Because, first of all, of any line of spiritualism, that spiritualism which opens Knowledge of God is the only

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thing. But if you don't know the topic of love, then it is like owning a car which is perfect, but without an engine. I want to find out if you know, if you are really eager to go towards the destination. But without love, you are a car without tires. So can you go?

So realize it and be one with it because this is the aim of human life which has to be completed. It has to be completed. This is it. This is the aim of human life. It should be there. It must be there. There can be no excuse for this. Because ultimately, if you don't get there, you'll find yourself living in great darkness, ignorance and suffering. But once you have realized it, then everything is good for you.

Thank you very much.

3

Satsangs of Guru Maharaj Ji Ji's Family

This Immortal Energy

The following discourse was given by Bal Bhagwan Ji, Guru Maharaj Ji's eldest brother in July, 1972, at Denver, Colorado.

I am here by the grace of Guru Maharaj Ji, and now I am speaking to you, giving satsang, the thing for which we have gathered together. Satsang has a very significant and a very great role to play in our lives.

I have come from such a long distance and you also have come here from very far places. The whole thing is just like a tributary. There is a tributary and there is a distributary. Now this tributary is where all small streams, canals, brooks, and rivers join with the main stream, so this is a meeting point for us. So all these small streams join with the main stream and flow towards the sea. Our efforts, our small services, are joining together and flowing towards Guru Maharaj Ji, our Source.

In India, Guru is said to be the highest manifestation of the Supreme Authority. He is said to be a manifestation of the Supreme One. He is the potential manifestation of the kinetic energy of the cosmos. I will explain these things to you.

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What is kinetic energy? The energy in motion, the energy which has no position. When a body is moving, when a body is falling, the body is said to be acquiring kinetic energy. In science, we study this. Similarly, when the ultimate reality is latent, it is said to be absolute and also in the kinetic form. But in the kinetic form, we cannot comprehend it. When that kinetic energy takes a potential form, it takes a position, and that position is called the Guru. For instance, take a coin and place that coin here just above the earth. When you leave that coin, that coin due to gravity will fall towards the earth. That falling is due to kinetic energy. When that coin just simply rests on the earth, simply stays on the earth, it is stationary there. Then that coin is said to be acquiring potential energy because it holds a position. Similarly, that supreme authority, omnipresent everywhere, is in ourselves also. When that supreme authority takes a manifestation, that manifestation is called a potent manifestation with all potential powers and is called Guru.

The fundamental idea of God and His Knowledge in Hinduism and in Christianity is the same. There is no difference.

Guru is everything, because Guru gives you spiritual birth, Guru gives Knowledge of the spirit. And how does he give it? Because he is the potent manifestation of the kinetic form. So by this Knowledge, by his wisdom, we realize him, we see him.

We have two eyes. Now these two eyes are connected with our optical nerve and they meet at a connection point. Those optical nerves join the retina and the brain at a single point. That is why when you see an image by these eyes, they are synchronized together. Now similarly, to see the worldly phenomena, you have got two material eyes; actually, they are not two, they are one, because the optical nerves meet at one point. And for seeing spiritual phenomena, we also have a single eye which is called the third eye. That is why in the Bible it says, "If thine eye be single, thy whole

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body shall be full of light." That means, if you single out, if you concentrate by Knowledge, by the technique of spiritual insight, then your body shall be full of light.

So, how to concentrate, how to synchronize the eyes? Now, that is called Knowledge. One thing I will tell you, concentration in meditation is a must. Like this man is taking my picture with the camera. Now, if the camera trembles in his hand, the picture will be blurred, won't it? Now, if your mind wavers, the spiritual experience will be blurred, giving no pure experience. So your mind should be as steady as the camera. If not, you can't have the spiritual experience. To have the spiritual experience one should have a steady mind.

For instance, I give you a gun and there is a target. Now one thing remains, and that's to shoot. You have to aim the gun at that target. If your gun shakes you miss the chance, you miss the target. So the gun should be held very steady and the bullet goes to the target and hits the target.

The mind is the bullet, and that mind from your self goes to the supreme self, cosmic consciousness, and stays there. So I mean that one must steady his mind so that it unites with truth.

People think the Divine Light Mission and Christianity are different. No, there is no difference. The Divine Light Mission is making Christianity universal. We are giving a universal appeal, a universal explanation to Christianity, to all religions. If the truth is in Christianity, very well. If it is in Buddhism, very well. If the truth is in any religion, any way of life, we have to worship that truth, and that's our aim.

Now for instance, I tell you there was a saint known as Saint John. He was the last apostle that witnessed Christ, and what he wrote is very, very important to us. If you read his gospel, you read, "In beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." Now you see, in beginning was the Word. There are many, many ex-

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planations given to this, but I will explain the whole thing to you by the grace of my Guru.

He says, "In the beginning was the Word, the Word was with God and the Word was God." Now, first of all, we take one sentence, "In the beginning was the Word." In the beginning of what? In your beginning? Before my beginning, before the beginning of the entire creation, there was the Word. Now remember before your beginning, before my beginning, there was the Word. Not words. It is singular. That means one unit. Each and every word is a vibration, the words I am speaking are also vibrations. So "In the beginning was the Word" means that in the beginning was the cosmic vibration. All the cosmic vibration, all of ourselves, our soul, which is part and parcel-all these consciousnesses have come out of that cosmic consciousness. So, in the beginning was the Word.

Now any vibration in action has energy, so it means, in the beginning was Word. That shows, that signifies, that in the beginning was the power to create the creation, and power was with God. Because God, without the power to create, cannot create anything. Like, this is a great hall. Without bricks, without mud, how can you make this hall? Impossible. Without colors, how can you make a painting? Impossible. Without the power to create, you cannot create. You have to have the power to create and God; there is no difference between the two. Like I have got power, I have got power to speak, I have got power to see, I have got power to understand. There is no difference between my power and my own self. They are one and the same. Similarly, God has the power to create and there is no difference between the power to create and Him. So the Word was God.

Our mother source is the Word, which was in the beginning. That soul, the Word, never had a beginning but was before the beginning. Lord Krishna says, and it is a universal fact, that anything which

266    Who Is Guru Maharaj Ji?

has a beginning has an end. You see, you see a film, and you see the beginning and you see the end. This body also has a beginning, and you will see the end.

But one thing for sure is this - that Word never had a beginning. What is that Word? We study chemistry and by the knowledge of chemistry we know that there is a law of conservation of energy which states that energy is neither created nor destroyed. Anything that is neither created nor destroyed is immortal. Now this energy is immortal. By the knowledge of science, we know the sum total of all energy remains the same - is constant. Scriptures call it "soul," scriptures call it "spirit," or the "at man," or the "Brahman," and say that "soul" is immortal. "Spirit" is immortal.

What is "soul?" Soul is a four letter word, s-o-u-l. Now, "S" stands for subject, "0" stands for of, "U" stands for universal, and "L" stands for life: "Subject Of Universal Life." And it is really the subject. It is really the subject that you have to perceive, that you have to know.

There is no difference between science and religion because religion is defined as realization, as experience. It is said that true religion begins where philosophy ends and it is very, very true. Like, if you are talking of water, you cannot drink water. If you are talking of food, you cannot eat food. And when you eat food, you cannot talk about it. You cannot do talking and eating together. Similarly, when you philosophize something, you cannot experience it. But when you stop philosophizing, when you stop the talking, then you come to the experience. It is said that the devils can quote the scriptures to you. But I say the devils cannot reveal the scriptures to you. Only a Satguru, a Perfect Master, can reveal the scriptures to you, and not the devils. Like a tape recorder. A tape recorder can also recite the scriptures. A tape recorder can also recite the Bible, but it cannot reveal the Bible to you. That is impossible. Only

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an enlightened soul, a perfect soul, can reveal the perfectness to you. I have also read the Bible, and one thing I read - that Jesus said in speaking to his disciples, "Blessed are those who are pure in heart, for they shall see God." That means we can see God. It is possible to see God. Jesus Christ is saying that we can see God. Now he said this because he himself saw God. He himself perceived, visualized God. He was enlightened. That is why he was talking of the possibility of seeing God. And he was telling people to be pure in their hearts. Be pure in heart and then you can see God.

And how to be pure? That is the question. Now this is a microphone. There is metal in it. If this metal is iron, and if this metal is one hundred per cent iron, no carbon, then it is pure. If this cloth is one hundred per cent cotton then it is pure cotton. If this pencil contains one hundred per cent carbon, then it is pure carbon. For anything, the sign of purity is one hundred per cent of what it is. If you know your soul one hundred per cent, then you are pure. Purity can be signified by total knowledge of anything that we are talking about. So that means, if you know your soul, you are completely, one hundred per cent pure.

I have talked to many, many priests, many, many fathers. Once I spoke to a father. I said, "Please tell me what is the Word that Saint John was talking about." He said that the Word is Jesus Christ. I said, "Very well." Jesus Christ said that I am the Son of God. And if you substitute Jesus Christ for the Word, then the whole thing reads as: "In the beginning was Jesus Christ, and Jesus Christ was the Father and Jesus Christ was God." So I said, "I have a doubt there." And he said, "What doubt?" I said, "How can the Son be born before the Father? It is impossible. The Father comes first, then the Son comes afterwards. So now, what we are saying according to you is that the Son comes first and the Father after him."

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He was puzzled, he said, "Then what do you say about it?" I said, "the Word is something else."

That Word is the Word of God. In China, that Word is called Tao. Tao also means holy Word. In the Upanishads, it is called the Brahmanic Word, the Manifestation of God. It is called a dumb word, d-u-m-b. Dumb means you cannot pronounce it, it is already being uttered in you. Unpronounced Word, for which you don't require a tongue, for which you don't require a vocal cord. It is actually - it is you, actually. So that is the empirical outline of life.

So one thing for sure is that we must have Knowledge of the Self, and that will be given to us by Satguru who knows everything, who knows what we are. Enlightenment is called "Buddhahood." There was a boy called Siddhartha and then he got wisdom. He was said to be Buddha. So, Siddhartha plus wisdom equals Buddha. What is that wisdom? If that wisdom is added to you, you also become Buddha, which is enlightened. So that wisdom will be given to us by the Wise One and that is Guru Maharaj Ji.

So we should go towards the Guru. One thing I will tell you, in the Indian philosophy, scriptures, they tell of the proper way to approach Satguru. Now they say if a devotee should go to a Satguru, he should humbly prostrate before the Lotus Feet of the Satguru. Now why is this? The Western mind can question about this. By the knowledge of science, we know that in order to magnetize an iron piece, we first of all put that iron piece horizontally. Now that iron piece is kept horizontally and a magnet is brought and that magnet is simply kept in touch with the iron piece by being revolved over it and thus kept in touch. By that movement that magnet induces magnetism into that iron and that piece also becomes a magnet. Now, when a devotee, behaving like an iron piece simply prostrates before the Satguru, the Satguru, like the magnet, induces spirituality into him, and he also becomes spiritually enlightened. That is a scientific phe-

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nomenon, a phenomenon which we can comprehend. A devotee also prostrates before the Guru because he knows that his life is a dust particle. He knows that he is from a very low level and only the Guru can elevate him.

The work of the Guru is to give salvation to the people. What is salvation? Salvation is a ladder which joins manhood to Godhood. You climb this ladder, you go to God. So this is the connecting ladder, and Satguru is the source. And another thing: in order to fill a bucket, will you put the bucket on top of the tap, or underneath the tap? Naturally, to fill the bucket, you place the bucket underneath the tap. Similarly, to get Knowledge from the Guru, you place yourself underneath the Guru, and this is the whole idea behind the Indian philosophy, explaining the way to approach the Satguru. That is why we prostrate before the Satguru, in order to be infused with spirituality.

We will discuss many things later on, because there are countless things to see. Guru Maharaj Ji has provided, has given, this opportunity, and I believe that the day will come when all of us will get this Knowledge and collect together, because, you know, the Spirit is One. "Soul," the "spirit," this "atman," is neither Christian nor Hindu nor Muslim nor Buddhist. Soul is soul. And God is neither Christian nor Hindu nor Muslim nor Buddhist. So our point is, our idea is, that we must connect this soul to God and to nothing else. The whole purpose of life is this.

God is omnipresent, but where do we connect? How do we connect? You have a Denver radio station. Now, this radio station at present is broadcasting a radio program. But can you hear it? No. Why can't you hear the program? Because you don't have a radio. Those radio waves are omnipresent, they are everywhere, but we cannot tune in without the proper receiver. That receiver is the Knowledge. It is the technique of spiritual insight. By that technique one

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hears the omnipresent harmony that is being sung by God. And that is God.

My idea is this, that we must know our essence. See, I'll give you a question. The question is this, "What is the difference between a living man and a dead man?" If you subtract a dead man from a living man, what is the difference? The difference is soul, and that difference is to be realized. Because the difference is the essence in us, so one thing for sure is this, you must have Knowledge of the Soul. That is why Socrates said, "Know Thyself." One must know that which we are.

I will tell you one thing, I saw a dollar note, and on the back of the note it was written, "In God we Trust." There are two persons, one man I know, the other man I don't know, and if you say, which man will you trust? I will choose the man I know. Without knowing a man, how can I trust a man? It is impossible to trust in a man without knowing him. So in the saying "In God we Trust," how can you trust in God without knowing God? The Knowledge of God is compulsory then, because without it you cannot speak about trusting. Trusting is a thing which you have to do in practice. It is not a talk. It is not a lecture. It is not a song. It is a practical thing. So similarly, if you trust in God, you must know who God is, and that you know by the Knowledge.

And I will tell you one thing: all the scientists are in quest of truth, and in the search they have taken an atom. An atom is a very small thing. Now this atom they took, and they disintegrated this atom, and what came out? Light. When they disintegrated the atom, light came out. This means the light was inside the atom, because only if light was inside the atom could it come out. Only if light is inside can it come out. So when you break the barrier of material limit, that light comes out.

Now, by the knowledge of science, I know that your body contains billions and billions of atoms.

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Now all these atoms must contain the light. So that is our actual form, our real form is light. And that is why all the scriptures say that God is light. That is why Moses, on top of the mountain, saw Jehovah, and Jehovah said, "Close your eyes;" lie closed his eyes and saw a huge flash of light before him. Mohammed Sahib, the prophet of the Muslims, also saw the light. You go to the Vedas, in the Vedas you find, "Light, 0 Light, I worship you." That is, all these things are pointing to one thing, that God is light.

Now one thing I tell you, if you take a particle and vibrate that particle, if the vibrations are between twenty cycles and two-thousand cycles, you have the audio range. After that you go to radio waves. After that you go to microwaves. After that you go to Xrays, where the particles are very fast in vibration. Then, after that there comes light. This vibration is from the cosmic vibration and it is the Word. "In the beginning was the Word."

In this creation the only difference between solid and liquid is that in solid the particles are jammed together and in liquid they are moving free. It is the vibration that is causing the difference. If you simply block the particles, jam the particles of water, the water will turn into ice, and it will become solid. It is the vibration that is causing the difference. If you understand this vibration and go in harmony with this vibration by the Knowledge of God, by the Knowledge of your Self, then you can tune yourself to God.

Now, if there is a house and a thief knows that there is a diamond kept in the house, a very precious diamond, then what happens to that thief? He will have no sleep day and night, for he will be thinking and planning how to steal that diamond. Each second he will be spending in order to plan how that diamond might be stolen. Similarly, if you know in your heart that you contain a very precious diamond, the divine Word of God, then, to know that Word you will be thinking day and night. There will be

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no sleep if you are a very, very true, very genuine seeker of this Knowledge. Because there is curiosity and there is sincerity, and there is a difference between the two. Any man who is passing by can see these lights lighted up in the church. He can come here, to see out of curiosity, but he has no sincerity. We want sincerity and not curiosity. God wants devotion, He never wants curiosity. He reveals Himself only to people who are sincere, people who are devotional.

There is action, meditation and satisfaction. Karma and Knowledge, "karma" and "gyana", are very, very important. "Karma" means action, "gyana" means Knowledge. Now both are very, very important. There is a bird, and a bird has wings. If you cut one wing the bird will not fly. Similarly, "gyana" and "karma," (Knowledge and action) like the two wings of a bird, are very important in life. We have to work together, because work is worship, and Knowledge is divine. And by applying those two wings, we can fly over this ocean of materialism. Not without the two wings. So we must do action, perform our worldly obligations, and at the same time, we must meditate.

A car running without a driver will crash. Our lives, unsecured, unguarded, uncontrolled by the Supreme Authority, will crash. We need somebody to guide us, somebody to guide our souls, to secure our soul. For that purpose, Guru Maharaj Ji has come to the western world.

Now the time is coming, the time is fast approaching when religion and science will come together. Einstein, who was a great scientist, said, "Religion without science is deaf, and science without religion is blind." You see, the blind man and the deaf man are together in worshipping the same truth, but without this Knowledge they cannot visualize, they cannot receive this ultimate reality.

So, one must do service, one must be humble and one must be devoted to the revealer of the ultimate reality. Once Jesus Christ was sitting at supper and a

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lady came to the Lord and she brought very good perfume. She took the perfume and by the perfume she was washing the holy feet of the Lord. And there were many, many persons who criticized and objected, "Why is she spending such a huge amount of money just washing the feet of the Lord?" Then the Lord said, "You can have money after I go, but now you can use the money in my service." Service to the present master is very, very important. That is why this is a beautiful opportunity for all of you. You must do your best to take the benefit of this opportunity to serve Guru Maharaj Ji.

Now I'll tell you, I'll give you one example. Have you seen the bees? If you study the bees, you will know there is a mother bee, called the queen mother, and there are her workers too. Now all these bees fly around and collect honey and store that honey in their hive. Bees are collecting, collecting, collecting, working day and night just to store that honey. And there is the queen mother bee in the hive controlling everything. We have to resemble nature. Maharaj Ji is the queen mother bee and we should, like bees, go on collecting, go on working for this mission, go on spreading Knowledge, clearing people's doubts, and encouraging the true meditation. That is our duty. So we must realize our position in this nature.

To See God

The following discourse was given by Bal Bhagwan Ji in private.

Why are we not united? It appears that people who claim to understand the Bible have not actually understood it. That is why today we find different denominations with their own versions of the Bible, each claiming to be the way, and believing in one God, or Jesus Christ. Our disunity reflects the fact that we

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have not the proper understanding to understand God. History tells us that great massacres have taken place under the name of holy crusades, and that the great churches have not remained as churches but have become political tools for the exercise of power and wealth. To sum up, there is no evil which has not befallen us in the name of religion.

Jesus, our Master, gave us the commandment to "love our neighbors as we love ourselves." Why then is there enmity and antagonism between Catholic and Protestant, and why today are they waging war in Belfast, shedding the blood of innocent people, who are like puppets dancing to the strings of religion? How would Jesus Christ feel today, to see his children piling up the same wealth which he himself told them to distribute to the poor?

Such deeds clearly show how much we understand Christ, and how much we have followed his way. But even in this desperate state, we have room for hope.

For there is nothing covered that shall not be revealed, neither hid that shall not be known. Luke 12:2.

Today we are in such illusion and darkness, but we still have the promise of Christ who will send us a comforter.

But when the comforter is come, who I will send unto you from the Father, He shall testify of me. John 15:26.

In this verse the word "He" shows the comforter is a person; and further on, Jesus Christ himself says,

Nevertheless I tell you the truth, it is expedient for you that I go away, for if I go not away, the comfort-

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er will not come unto you, but if I depart I will send Him unto you. John 16:7.

As Saint John the Baptist came as the predecessor of Jesus Christ, so will be the comforter of the second Christ. The whole world is waiting for the Christ to come, but the question is, once Christ came, he was crucified. If he comes a second time as he has promised, will there be a second crucifixion? The Jews and the Rabbis who were devoted to their scriptures, read from them that Christ would come. He came and he went, but the world didn't recognize him. The same cause (whatever it may be), will also keep the Christians, who read the Bible and the prophecies of the Second Coming, from the Christ who will appear again. Because if you put your attention to this verse you will understand a new meaning.

And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh, this is the spirit of Antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already it is in the world. John 4:3.

Have we accepted that Christ is come in the flesh? If we have, then we are of God, and if not then we ourselves are antichrist. Imagine how many antichrists believe that Christ is still not come in the flesh. Do we include our name in the list? And if we believe that Christ is already in the flesh, then where is he, and what is his address? And if we do not believe that he can come in the flesh, then the Bible condemns us as antichrist, and we ourselves are the Devil, no matter if we may imagine ourselves to be the most devoted Christians. And as the Bible declares, even now the world has antichrists, for there are people who still do not confess that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh.

Saint John writes of the Word turning into flesh,

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the Word which was in the beginning. That Word is God, and God is the one for whom Jesus Christ said, "Thou shalt serve the Lord thy God and Him only shalt thou serve." What is the Word which was in the beginning? Some say that it is Jesus Christ. But Jesus Christ declares himself to be the son of God, and if he is the son of God, then how can the son be born before the Father, who is God?

In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God. John 1:1.

Some people say the Word is the Bible, and if it is, then was Genesis an illusion? Because in Genesis there is no mention of the Bible being before the entire creation. Imagine: How could St. John, Matthew, Luke, and the people who wrote the Old Testament have existed before they were born!

So the Word is something else. It is a reality beyond the conception and imagination of the mind. And here Guru Maharaj Ji reveals the Knowledge of the Word to us. If someone helps and guides us to know and to love God, if someone reveals to us the holy Knowledge of the Word, and if someone shows us light in our hearts, do we not owe our reverence to him? What Guru Maharaj Ji is doing is not taking us away from our Lord Christ or the Bible; he is giving us a better understanding of the scriptures. To us he is hope in desperation, and light in the darkness. He is the Word turned to flesh which raises itself to speak about the glory of the Word. Who else can reveal the Word to us except that flesh which is the Word, or the Word which is turned into flesh?

The light of the body is the eye. Therefore, if thine eye be single thy whole body will be full of light. Matthew 6:22.

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This then is the message which we have heard of Him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in Him is no darkness at all. 1 John 1:5.

That was the true light that lighteth every man that cometh into the world. John 1:9.

We have all come into the world. What is the light that has lighted us? How can our eyes be single, so that our body shall be full of light? What is that light which is God, for in Him there is no darkness? Surely that light is not sunlight, for there is darkness in the night. How can we be true Christians without understanding the above quotations, which are the central theme of the Bible? Why can't we accept him, he who has come to give us the understanding to understand the Bible and answer all the questions above?

Nobody can deny the fact that life demands satisfaction. Whether we are atheists or orthodox, satisfaction is a must that we have to achieve. Satisfaction is God's gift to man. Life remains a vacuum without God, and thus remains a question. To people who know satisfaction, life is an answer.

Be ye therefore perfect even as your Father which is in Heaven. Matthew 5:48.

But seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things shall be added unto you. Matthew 6:33.

First of all one should have Knowledge from Guru Maharaj ji and afterwards all the accessories will be added to him.

I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac and

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the God of Jacob. God is not the God of the dead, but of the living. Matthew 22:32.

There are many prophecies about the Lord and daily we pray that Thy Kingdom will come on earth as it is in heaven. Jesus Christ himself makes it clear that the Kingdom of God never comes with observation.

Neither shall they say, Lo here! or lo there! for, behold, the Kingdom of God is within you. Luke 17:21.

In the Bible it is said that the kingdom of heaven is at hand, and when the time really comes we turn away our faces and reject him who comes to us and for us. Sincere and true seekers have the never ending desire to know God.

Ask and it shall be given you; seek and ye shall find; knock and it shall be opened unto you. Matthew 7:7.

But are we really finding? Are we really seeking? And above all, are we really asking? The reality is no. We are doubting. Is it good to start spiritual lessons with a doubt?

For everyone that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened. Matthew 7:8.

But what happens to a man who doubts? Nobody can even imagine. Many people who want to recognize Christ by signs should be aware of the fact that no signs will be given to this generation.

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And he sighed deeply in his spirit, and saith, Why doth this generation seek after a sign? Verily I say unto you, there shall be no sign given unto this generation. Mark 8:12.

It is written in Revelations that Jesus Christ will come as a thief.

I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I shall come upon thee. Revelation 3:3.

So we should prepare ourselves in advance to receive him when he comes as a thief.

Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. Matthew 5:5.

If we have seen God then we are pure in the heart. Seeing God is the sign of purity, and if we have not seen God, then how can we lay claim to purity of heart? We should at least try to find out how many of our Christian brothers who go to church daily have seen God. The question that troubles my heart is this. If these noble men have already seen God, then why do they confine themselves and the people to rituals? For there are many who believe that God cannot be seen, and the rest believe that if you see God then you cease to exist. Here comes the contradiction-for Jesus says, "Blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God."

Acquiring purity in heart and also living are both necessary if we are to see God, because we can only see while we are alive, and not when we are dead. And if it is true that we cannot see God, then why did Christ ever make this statement?

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That which is born of the flesh is flesh and that which is born of the spirit is spirit. John 3:6.

God is spirit and they that worship Him must worship Him in Spirit and in Truth. John 4:24.

The worship of God can only be done through the spirit, and Guru Maharaj Ji reveals the Knowledge of the spirit to us. For even Jesus says, "And who so shall receive one such little child in my name receiveth me." (Matthew 18:5.) People who receive Guru Maharaj Ji who is fifteen years old and is a little child, fulfill the above verse.

For ye shall know that truth and the truth shall make you free. John 8:32.

For 2,000 years we have been showing the Lord's death, but while we live, our Lord is of the living and not of the dead. He has come to give eyes to the blind, for it is his Knowledge which makes us know what he is. For it is his light which makes us see him. Let us now all join together to receive him and to understand him through his Knowledge. Think-he who comes as a thief and goes away will have nothing to lose. We will be the one who loses the golden opportunity, like the rabbis did 1,973 years ago. Let us remember our past to better our future, and receive the one who has come for us.

You know truth is bitter, very bitter when it comes to taste. But that's the way we have to accept things. People thought that Jesus Christ would come as a king and when he came as a carpenter's son, only those truly of him received him with love. Let us now see how many people stand up to receive him who has come for them. As the sun rises from the east to

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the west, may he bestow his grace on you and give you courage to accept the divine Knowledge.

The Goal of Human Life

The following discourse was given by Yogiraj Param Sant Satgurudev Shri Hans Ji Maharaj, Father of Guru Maharaj Ji, in June, 1961, at Prem Nagar, India.

On this whole planet, man is the only rational being. Because of this quality of rationality, human birth is superior to all other births. In all other bodies, instincts alone are working to guide actions. They are devoid of discrimination and do not have the power of invention. They can neither grow nor prepare any kind of food, but they can instinctively devour it when it is prepared and offered by man. Non-human births are bestowed to suffer the fruits of actions-good or bad-performed with egoism and ignorance of the true self during human life. Even the most laudable actions performed with egoism and in the darkness of ignorance, bestow at best the life of a lion to reign over the kingdom of the jungle or that of an elephant to adorn the palace of a king.

In human form on the other hand, a man not only enjoys or suffers the fruits of actions performed in egoism and without devotion in previous lives, but he is also free to choose his present line of actions by which he can direct his future life. But human birth itself is not obtained because of the merit of previous actions. It is due only to the extreme grace of the Almighty. Of the graces by which salvation is obtained, human birth is the first and primary. With extreme kindness, but without any consideration, God gives human life at His pleasure.

Only in human life can the individual soul throw off the veil of delusion and realize its true self. Only in human life can it lose its seemingly separate identity and become completely immersed in the Creator.

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Obtaining a human birth is the greatest fortune of the soul because here alone is self realization, or God realization, possible.

The great saint Kag Bhusundi, who attained Knowledge, immortality, and perfection because of his extreme devotion, said, "There is no life like human life. All souls in both movable and immovable bodies aspire to it. Human life is a staircase which leads to hell, heaven and salvation. Only in human life can one obtain Knowledge, detachment, and Bhakti (devotion)."

It is thus for man himself to discriminate and choose which path to tread on. The individual soul itself is nothing but a fragment of the cosmic soul, but having fallen under the influence of delusion it has lost control over the mind, and mind with its unsteady, turbulent, and tenacious nature has been causing untold suffering. But when through the grace of God, the soul obtains human life, a divine opportunity is opened to it to pierce the veil of delusion, to destroy the ignorance from which sprouts all sufferings, and to realize as a consequence its true self, which is satchitananda: its existence, its life-force, and its bliss.

Having realized its true self, it can fix its mind on the divine light and by constant meditation acquire unity and tranquility, from which come untainted joy and eternal bliss, the inherent qualities of the soul. When the individual soul reaches this stage it is called salvation, which means deliverance from all miseries and sufferings. So salvation is only obtainable during human life, and salvation cannot be obtained without God realization, which is the only goal of human life.

True wisdom, therefore, lies in taking full advantage of this divine opportunity to achieve salvation. It is the state of pure joy that a man is trying to achieve from birth to death. But because of delusion and ignorance, all his efforts are misdirected. The way to find pure or permanent joy is unknown to him. Usu-

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ally a man believes it might be found in material prosperity and therefore undergoes hardships in order to acquire immense wealth, position or fame. But lie soon becomes bewildered, as fear of losing these acquisitions becomes an obsession which robs his mind of peace and happiness, instead of bestowing them. In fact, instead of finding perpetual joy, he finds perpetual anxiety.

Material prosperity in its many forms can never provide constant satisfaction, for matter itself is subject to decay; hence any satisfaction it gives must inevitably be lost. Man is in reality divine, free, and one with the supreme, but he forgets his true nature and identifies himself with matter, which is only an illusory appearance. And this is the real cause of man's bondage and suffering.

There cannot be any liberation in a state of multiplicity. The state of complete oneness with God is the only goal to be aspired to, and towards which the entire creation is slowly moving.

Happiness is dependent on peace, which is a sublime faculty of mind, and peace comes from even-mindedness. This is only achieved through devotion, achieved by submersion of the mind into the ever-existent divine light within oneself and by constant meditation on the holy Name of God. This Name cannot be written or spoken, yet it provides life-force to all movable and immovable beings. Realization of this divine light and Knowledge of the holy Name brings love for God-and from love for God will come selfless service to Him and obedience to His commands. Hence the prerequisites for sublime devotion are first, God realization; then, supreme love for Him; and lastly, submersion of the mind into His Name, which automatically leads to selfless service and complete obedience.

God is both with form and without form. Butter still in milk can be said to be without form, and when it is churned out, with form. In the same way, the di-

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vine Light which is self-existent in all beings is God without physique, whereas the Satguru of the time, or the realized soul, is God with the physique. Submersion of the mind into the divine light; obedience and service to Satguru together with supreme love for Him; consecration of body, mind, and all activities to Him; together with a great anguish for the slightest forgetfulness of Him, constitute sublime devotion. Hence perpetual peace, eternal bliss and salvation within the lifetime are ensured. There is absolutely no other way to achieve them. This is universally substantiated and experienced by every saint, no matter where and when he lived. It is written in the scriptures, "One who desires to have happiness without Bhakti (devotion) is a great fool. To reach real happiness by other means is like trying to cross the ocean without a boat. Bhakti is a most precious diamond. One who has this diamond in his heart knows not even the slightest misery."

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Lord Krishna said, "He whose mind is detached from external enjoyments achieves through meditation that pure joy that is the inherent quality of the soul. Such a man who has realized God within himself, and has completely identified himself with the divine, enjoys eternal bliss."

Sublime devotion, however, comes from implicit faith and confidence in the Satguru of the time, and it must be clearly understood that only He who can bestow God-vision instantaneously within oneself is the Satguru of the time, and no one else. In reality, He is God incarnate. It is impossible to have unflinching confidence without personal experience of this divine light. All scriptures and all saints unequivocally proclaim that God is omnipresent: He is present in all places and at all times. He is Satchitananda: ever-existing life force and absolute bliss. He is existent as divine Light in all beings. Realization of this creates absolute confidence in Satguru, without whose kindness and help it is never realized.

Lord Krishna said to his disciple, "Arjuna, being pleased with you, through my own power I have shown you this supreme, primal, and infinite universal divine Light, which cannot be seen in any other way. Neither by reading scriptures nor by many acts of worship can I be seen in my immortal form as divine light."

Therefore, to realize the divine light within, the kindness of the Satguru of the time is absolutely indispensable. At this time only does it become possible to dedicate body, mind, speech, and all actions to the Satguru, which will then give rise to Bhakti, the devotional source of all happiness and peace. So this is like a circle. First, humility and service to the Satguru will obtain his pleasure, and only then will he bestow God-vision for realization of divine light. And after God realization, faith and confidence in Satguru will lead to service, dedication, and devotion. Hence is achieved eternal happiness and salvation which is the' ultimate goal of human life. It should therefore be the first endeavor of a human being to find the Satguru so that in the end this goal of human life can be achieved.

The Lovers

The following discourse was given by Mata Ji, Mother of Guru Maharaj ji, on the 19th of May, 1972, at Concord, Massachusetts.

When by our Lord's kindness we are brought into this world, He gives us four blessings. He doesn't send us into this world helpless, He gives us four great diamonds, so we can pass through this world rich and safe. First there is this human body. No one can obtain a body like this by any effort of his own. It comes to us by grace. And then He gives us the scriptures. He sends us all the scriptures of the

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world, books which open up the hidden treasures of reality, so that we can have guidance, a path to follow. His third gift is that He comes Himself as Satguru, and this is the greatest of blessings, that He Himself comes in person to lead us. And the fourth blessing is our own effort. When we have accepted the first three blessings, the benefits of our own efforts will be waiting for us.

The only thing He asks for in return is our mind, our wandering mind that is all over the place. He says, give me your mind, and all these things are for you. Why does He take back our minds? Because He wants to give them some discipline, He wants to put them in their right place. Maharaj Ji has given you so much, and you promised you would return your mind to Him. Are you resting your mind in the peace He has provided? Do you use the Knowledge He has given you, or are you just sitting around?

Flowers are so lovely. When they are growing, their life is full of fragrance and vigor and beauty, but when you cut them they start to wither. The flower is still there, but the life force has gone. The flowers begin to lose their fragrance, to fade, to fall apart. They become dead. In the same way, if we fall away from our Father we become dead. As long as we are in touch with Him, the life force flows and we get everything that a human being could possibly require, all the fragrance, the intelligence, all the power, all the beauty. But the moment we are cut off from the source, we wither. We die; we become lifeless; we become absolutely nothing.

Nature is there, and you can learn from watching it. The various plants and flowers come in their own seasons; the daffodils come up, they bloom, and then they fade. And we are the same way, we come and go, come and go, we bloom, and then we fade. That's the way of nature, life and death, life and death. But the people who never forget their connection with their Father, for them it isn't a matter of coming and

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going, for even when they die, even when they are born again, they remain alive forever in the eternal soul. And they become great souls, great teachers, so that people afterwards revere them, and build statues to them to worship them, because they can see the beauty of their ideals. Such people are immortal.

The seed never dies. People try to bring the universe crashing down, they often want to ruin the whole thing. The power of evil actually wants to be so strong that everything is ruined, you know. But the seed can't be harmed. No power can touch that seed. Evil comes like the coming of winter, of autumn. The petals and leaves fall, and then the flower grows again. Because the seed is there. If there was no seed, the new creation, the new revolution, the new life could not come. Everything would be finished. But nothing can touch the seed. It is always there. And that is the power and love of the Lord.

Diseases, tortures and disasters have come, and people are always suffering. Why? Because we forget. The moment that men forget the rules, the moment we forget our Father and His power, we suffer. And if you bear that in mind in your own life, you will avoid sufferings completely. The roots exist, but we forget to keep up our connection. When you pick a blossom off a large tree, a new flower appears the next day. It's because the roots are still there. As the roots are still there, they can produce a new flower. In the same way, we surrender our bodies at the moment of death, and the next moment we sprout up again. We keep on sprouting up because the roots are there.

Many times you have had this life and wasted it. Please understand this time, and return to your roots. Make your connection with the Lord, so this whole creation can be green, full of life and spring. Your mother and father will be closer to you. Your children will be more obedient. Your marriage will be deeper. Your friendships and relationships in society

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will all be nice and green. Everything will be full of new reality, if you only return to the truth.

Look back in your own life, and ask yourself if you have ever experienced such peace of mind. Never. Your mind was always restless. You may have had money, friends, or so-called security. But admit it, you never had any peace. Confess now, did you ever have such peace before? And why not? Because the mind didn't know how to rest itself. The mind is even more powerful and uncontrolled than the wind. The elements, the wind and nature you can control, but you cannot control your own mind. It takes something more powerful than the mind to control the mind, and that means the Lord. He is stronger than your mind because He built it. You weren't the one who created it. The mind is beyond your control. But the Lord can control it, and He does. It is by His grace that you are allowed to enjoy this peace of mind. Because His grace is what you are receiving.

When you are sick, you go to your family doctor, and he refers you to a specialist. And in schools the same thing happens. First you enter primary school, and then the next, until finally you rise to the top. In the spiritual life too, there are many knowledges that you pick up, but they are all there to help you climb up still higher. And when you reach the top, the highest Knowledge, you find the Lord, the Perfect Master. He is the topmost teacher in the whole of spiritual education, and His teaching is the most divine, the most supreme. You cannot find it in these other things. He's the unique one, the principal, the head, the perfect. He can give you that Knowledge. So when you finish all your other classes, you come to the head and say, "Here I am, now I'm ready for you." Those other teachings all help you to climb, but they cannot bring you up to the height where Maharaj Ji is standing.

What price is there for this most important, most valuable, most spiritual Knowledge? Divine love. That's

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the price. Absolutely perfect, undiluted, pure, honest, divine love.

There were two great lovers named Majnun and Laila, and they were both of royal birth. But Laila's father kept her locked up in his palace, and kept her from seeing Majnun. He suffered. And he just wandered around the streets like a beggar, because of their separation. Because his love was so genuine, so real. And one day Laila went to her father and said, "Father, if you wish to keep me from seeing Majnun, so be it. But think also of Majnun. I know he is unable to eat for love of me, and that he roams the streets, as one who has no home. At least for his sake, make free milk available to him at every milk stall, so that he may drink it and live." And the King said, "My daughter, for your sake I will do this." And there were many milk stalls all around the city, and it was announced that if Majnun came, he could drink freely of the milk.

The result was that everyone became a Majnun, just for the sake of the milk. Many thousands of Majnuns appeared, and at last the milk supply was exhausted. Finally the shopkeepers banded together and told the King, "0 King, we can't tell which is the true Majnun, for so many come, and now we have all run out of milk."

The King said he found the whole affair very difficult, but his daughter said she could find the true Majnun. "How?" asked the King. And Laila told him, "You should set him a test. You should build a very high pillar, and heat it, so that it becomes very difficult to climb. And then you should put a statue of his Laila on the top, and tell the real Majnun that he may marry his Laila if he manages to climb the pillar." So the King announced that he felt Majnun had suffered enough, and that all he had to do was to climb the pillar and he could take Laila for his bride.

The false Majnuns saw that the pillar was very dangerous to climb, and since they loved the free

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milk, and not Laila, they all faded away. But the true Majnun said to himself, "Even if death takes me, still I shall attempt this climb." And he climbed to the top. And so he proved that he was the real Majnun, the true lover.

Anyone can say, "O, I love God, I love Guru Maharaj Ji." But the question is, whose love is genuine, and not based on selfish motives? There will come a test, and we will have to prove that we are the true Majnun, that we love our Guru Maharaj ji, that our love is honest.

In any case, the father said, "Majnun, you have won. Your love is so genuine, so honest and so real that my heart has melted. You can marry Laila now, and you shall be the King in my place."

So reality and honesty have their proof. There are many marriages, many husbands and wives, many lovers and their beloveds. But Laila and Majnun became unique, immortal. Even in school, the children hear stories of Majnun and Laila, they are so beautiful. Because they loved each other so deeply that Laila used to see Majnun in every leaf, in every flower. And Majnun used to see Laila everywhere. They were one.

And if a human being can see and love another human being like that, why should we not be able to see and love God in the same way, Who has created us? We can. We can fall in love with God. We can see Maharaj ji everywhere. And Maharaj ji can see us everywhere. It's just like Laila and Majnun, we can love our Lord, He is our lover, and we are His beloved. We can be like Laila and Majnun, it is possible. God has made all things possible for us. That's why He gives us this ideal. Otherwise there would be no ideal to live up to, there would be no story.

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A Little More Effort

The following discourse was given by Mata Ji, Mother of Guru Maharaj Ji, on the 19th of May, 1972, at Concord, Massachusetts.

There was once a yogi who lived a very strict life in the forest, living on berries, and having no possessions of his own. He was just sitting there, hoping to find God. Forty years passed, and still he was sitting there, but still God didn't come. You see, there is a way to do everything, and this yogi didn't know the way to find God. And so God didn't come. The yogi had let his hair grow very long, and his fingernails too, and he had smeared himself all over with ashes, and he looked like nothing on earth. He had almost lost consciousness of his body altogether.

Finally he became tired of that way of life, because the birds used to come and nest in his hair year after year, because that was all he was good for. He was a fine place for birds to bring up their children. So finally he got bored of just sitting around, and said to himself, "This is no good. I'm going back, and I'm going to get married. Even if I can't see God, at least I can enjoy bringing up some children of my own."

He was on his way back from the forest to live in the world, when he ran across a famous dancer who was rather short of money. She said that she was going to dance in the palace of the king in a nearby town, although people told her that the king was a miser who wouldn't give her a penny. She told the yogi that she was sure he would give her something if she danced well enough and long enough.

So the yogi, the sadhu, thought that this would be a splendid way to be introduced to worldly life: he would go to court and watch this famous dancer dance before a king. And he went to the palace, and

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milk, and not Laila, they all faded away. But the true Majnun said to himself, "Even if death takes me, still I shall attempt this climb." And he climbed to the top. And so he proved that he was the real Majnun, the true lover.

She danced until the first light of dawn crept into the courtyard, but still the king threw her no gold coin, tossed her no purse: and at last she became tired of waiting, and sang to her husband,

"We won't grow rich by standing here.
I think we'd best be gone, my dear."
But her husband, who was playing the tabla, sang back to her,
"We've done so much,
there's not much more to do, let's not stop here,
let's see this business through."

Now this yogi was a naked yogi, and his blanket was the only cover he had. But he was so overwhelmed by this verse that the husband sang, that he forgot all about his nakedness, and took his blanket, and threw it across to the dancer. And the king's daughter threw her diamond earrings across to the woman, and the king's son took off his ring, and threw that.

The dancer was very satisfied, more than satisfied, by this unexpected turn of events. But the king was very angry about it. And his reason was this: in that part of the world it was the custom that the richest man present would be the first to give a gift. So the king was very angry, and he asked the sadhu, "Why did you do that? Why did you give her your blanket before I had made my contribution?" And the sadhu, the yogi, said, "0 King, I had nothing else to give her, so I gave her my blanket. If I were the emperor, I would have given her all my lands, my palaces and slaves, because she and her husband just saved my

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life. When her husband sang, "We've done so much, there's not much more to do, let's not stop here, let's see this business through," I suddenly realized that God was giving me one last chance. I have been meditating and trying to see God for forty years, but recently my mind has been beginning to trick me. It has been persuading me to give up my attempt to see God, and to go back into the world and get married instead. But when I heard that verse, I understood something. I saw that if I made a little more effort, my whole lifetime's search would be rewarded. But if I gave up now, I would have wasted my whole life. So I was simply overwhelmed that they should give me such good advice, especially as they didn't even intend it for me; and I gave them my blanket, because that was all I had to give them in return."

So the king turned to his daughter, and asked her why she had given her diamonds to the dancer, and she replied, "0 Father, what can I say? I was just going to commit a terrible sin. Every time I have asked you to arrange a marriage for me, you have said, "Okay, I will arrange it soon." But you were so stingy that it never occurred to you that I was slowly growing old, and you never did anything about it. So I finally got very impatient, and tonight I was going to run away with the Grand Minister's son. But when I heard that verse the dancer's husband sang, I realized that if I had managed to wait this long, I might as well be patient a little longer. And when I saw that that little ditty had saved the reputation of our whole family, I just gave them my earrings. It was the least I could do."

And then the king turned to his son, and asked him why he had given away his ring. And the son replied, "Tonight would have been the last night of your life, if it weren't for the dancer and her husband. Recently I have become completely fed up with your miserly ways. You refuse to marry my sister, although she keeps asking you to find her a husband,

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and you are completely reluctant to allow me any power, although I am your son and heir, and a grown man. Tonight I was going to kill you, and then I would have given my sister's hand to a worthy husband, and ruled the kingdom to the best of my ability, because everyone was getting completely tired of you and your hesitations. But when I heard that verse, I said to myself, "I have waited this long. Perhaps I should be patient a little longer." So that poem saved you from death at the hands of your son; it saved me from killing my own father; and it saved our land from the rule of a murderer. That little ditty worked wonders for us all. And that's why I gave my ring to the pair of them."

At this point, it dawned on the king that something marvelous had happened. He appointed his son to rule his kingdom, married his daughter off to a brave and gentle prince from a neighboring state, sent lavish presents to the dancer and her husband, and then went off himself with the yogi in search of God. And all because of a little poem that said, "let's not stop here, let's see this business through."

So this is the point that I'm trying to get across, dear people: have a little patience, practice this meditation, and you will all live happily ever after.

No Light Without Master

The following discourse was given by Mata Ji, Mother of Guru Maharaj Ji, on the 12th of March, 1972, at Panespo, Neuchatel, Switzerland.

A devotee of Satguru, of God, when he liquidates himself, or dissolves himself, or effaces himself on the Lotus Feet of the Lord, he makes the Lord agreeable in all respects. There is such a relationship between Lord and devotee that is so pious, that is so emotional, that when a devotee weeps he compels the

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Lord to weep. When a devotee cries for his Lord, the Lord is so kind that He is compelled to come before His devotee. The pleasure and pain, success and failure, sent by the Lord are just like gifts for the devotee.

Brothers and sisters, today is Sunday. Today you are free from your office and home, and each of you according to your faith and according to your belief goes either to the temple, or mosque or church. You pray there according to your belief, but the use and utility of religion is to give perfect peace and bliss to the mind. From your infant age, from your boyhood, you continue to go to temple, mosque, and church. You do prayers, but your mind is not controlled, your mind is not steady. You don't enjoy perfect peace and bliss. Why? You have to consider the reasons for this. The condition of your mind is the same as it was twenty years, thirty years before. If a boy goes to school, a primary school, and if he continues to go for twenty years, twenty-five years, staying in the same class, and if he does not progress, the parents would certainly say something to that boy. After so many years, after such a long time, he should have attained the highest qualifications, the highest degree in the university. So isn't it strange that a man, in the name of religion, goes to a temple, a mosque or a church, yet the condition of his mind continues to be the same? There is no change. Why? Today we have to consider this question.

When human beings forget the religion of humanity, the Supreme Lord incarnates. He takes a body and comes on this earth to teach us not a new religion, but one and the same religion that is the religion of humanity which is the same for all human beings. And what is the religion of all human beings? It is the religion of love. But how will we learn to love all human beings? Only when we come to know practically the one and only source of love. What is that one and

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only source of love? God is the only source of love. There is one God for the whole creation. This whole creation is created by one God, and the way to realize this one God is one and the same for all. And realization of God within oneself is the only religion, for all human beings. We should consider why human beings have become scattered in the name of religion, divided in the name of religion. What is the reason? It is because we don't know how to realize the divinity, how to realize that one God who is within all of us. This one and the same God is sustaining the whole world, He is sustaining the entire universe. Whether we are black or white, whether we are small or big, whether we are wealthy or poor, the God which is within us is one and the same for all. When human beings forget this one way, then our Lord, who is the Lord of the whole universe, comes in human body to give us practical Knowledge, the practical way of realizing Him, and that is called real religion.

So, my children, the Supreme Master does not create a new religion. Rather, He gives us the most ancient religion. This is the religion of humanity. And now the time has come when that realized God who is within us from the beginning of creation is here. The same Lord came as Vishnu, Ram, Krishna, Jesus Christ and Buddha. They preached and gave practical Knowledge of God. They spoke of one way. But, most ironically, we don't appreciate the Lord when He comes in His human body on this earth.

If you are a patient, only a living doctor can cure your disease. A photograph or statue of a doctor who is dead, who has passed away, cannot cure your disease. A king who is present and who is pleased with you can give you wealth or any position. A king who is dead, who has passed from this world, can give you nothing. Similarly, a Satguru, a Perfect Master, a Supreme Lord who is existing in the present time, can give you the practical Knowledge of the real thing,

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the true Knowledge of God, Knowledge of truth. Because truth is one, truth is eternal, truth is all-pervading, truth is indestructible, and truth is the same for the whole world. So, brothers and sisters, only a living master, only a living Perfect Master, is able to enlighten all human beings.

A practical Knowledge of divinity is Knowledge of one's own self. What is the form of God according to all Holy scriptures? The form of God, the form of the Master, is light, and that light is self-effulgent Light. From that light, this whole universe gets Light: the sun, moon, stars, and fire all get light from that supreme light that is called Divine Light. And that supreme light, the light of God, is within all of us. But we don't know that light, we don't know that divinity, and therefore our mind is unsteady, our mind is fickle. So when the Perfect Master comes on this earth, he gives us practical Knowledge of that light. The same light, the same Knowledge, has been referred to in the Bible as white stone. Jesus used to distribute this white stone. What is it? White stone is the same light, the self-effulgent light, which is within us. When that supreme power comes in human body He is called Satguru. And Satguru, only Satguru, is able to give practical Knowledge of that light. What is the meaning of Satguru? In Hindi, "gu" means dark and "ru" means light. One who dispels darkness by giving us practical Knowledge of light, is called Satguru.

So, my children, if you don't go before the Supreme Master, you can never get light, you can never get that supreme Knowledge. In India, there was a Satguru, a Perfect Master called Lord Kabir. In a poem he says, "Everyone knows it is good to have a purpose, a destination, and work towards fulfilling it. But man, do you know your destination? Do you know your goal? First, know your destination. And then walk. Then your life will be fulfilled." Similarly, human beings don't know that light, human beings don't know that soul, human beings don't know that

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spirit. They read of the spirit, they talk of God, they read of God, they hear of God, but they don't know God. So God Himself comes to give practical Knowledge of His divinity, of His inner self, which is self-effulgent light, eternal light, all-pervading light. That light of God has engulfed the entire universe and the same light, since that light is all-pervading, is within us. And the Supreme Master, the Satguru, gives practical Knowledge of that light, irrespective of caste, creed, color, religion or sex, to those human individuals who bow before him with reverence, with love, and with faith. May God bless you.

AFTERWORD

It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye.
Saint Exupéry

Plants need to flower. There's no getting away from it. If there was a strain of roses that just sent up thousands and thousands of yards of rose stalk, and never a bud, never a rose, then the army would buy it up, and use it as organic barbed wire. Roses are intended to flower.

The first stage of a plant's life is the stalk. And then comes rebirth. Something soft, unimaginably softer than the stalk, more colorful, full of the scents of rejoicing, takes over, bursts out. Something hidden in the heart of the stalk makes itself known, in the fullest flowering of that flower.

The saints say that man also must flower, that Fee must go through a second birth. They say that every man contains a secret chamber inside him, which is higher than the mind and the heart, and provides the mind with understanding and the heart with the feelings ings of love. This chamber has been called the Kingdom of Heaven, the Crest Jewel, the Pearl of Great Price. What must be understood is that the great saints open up this chamber in a man just like the sun opens up flowers.

That is why all great saints have had disciples. The job of a disciple is the most wonderful in all the

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world, just as the duty of being a petal is the highest good fortune in terms of plant life. A disciple experiences the nectar, the sweet delicious fragrance of his Perfect Master in the softest and purest part of his heart, a part which cannot even begin to open until he is ready to purify himself, refraining from building more and more defenses, more and more stalk.

To be a disciple, that is, to be truly fortunate, a man needs a Master. And the test of a True Master is the fact that in His presence, the marvelous realm known as purity of heart, deepness of love, undying life, opens up within a man. When a man has this part fully open, lie is portrayed with a halo around his head, a Christ, a Buddha, an illumined one. For the petals of this divine flower, of the flowering of man, are petals of what is called "divine light."

Let us make this clear. If anyone is not experiencing a bright light within him which actually and continually leads the breath up and down within the body, lie still does not know the purest, simplest source of all love which is inside him. He is still in the stalk stage as far as that is concerned.

Christ said, "If your eye is single, your whole bodv will be full of light." Mohammed said, "The light of Allah is found in the human temples." Krishna said, "I will give you divine sight, and you shall see my glory shining within." And Buddha said, "Every man possesses the Bright Mirror of Illumination, this is what all the Buddhas realized."

Buddha proclaimed that the way of the illumined ones is the growth of snowdrops behind the eyes, and when Christ came, it was as if a few crocuses opened their hearts to the winter sky. But now the time has come which Christ spoke of, when the meek shall inherit the earth. Springtime is upon us, there shall be more flowering saints than stars in the milky way, and it is the grace of Shri Guru Maharaj Ji which shall entirely open up this world to love. There shall be no

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war. We have tasted the thorns of civilization. Now we shall experience the flower.

The brilliance of stars in the sky is due to Shri Guru Maharaj Ji alone. There in none other upon earth who opens the heavens to men. There is none other enthroned in every heart. There is none other with power and great glory. We speak that which we have seen. Shri Guru Maharaj Ji is a tree whose seed is everlasting joyous life. He gives to those who ask him, a white stone, and upon that stone is written a Name which no man knows, unless he has received it. His is the glory of all truth and the liveliness of all life. He is bringing life to dead bodies. He is Life.

As petals are softer than stalk, so the reign of saints upon earth will be softer than the reign of politicians. And as the stalk gives way to the petals, so the warmongers shall give way to the Bringer of Peace.

Be not deceived. Peace is that which cannot be interrupted. To stand in a valley in Colorado with white doves circling overhead in a clear blue sky is not peace. It is a hint of peacefulness, but the arrival of vultures and armies can disrupt it. Peace is that which can never be interrupted, even by death. All else is merely a gap between wars.

My dear sisters and brothers, I clearly declare that the flower of peace grows at the Feet of my Lord, Satguru Maharaj.