Maharaji in Seattle 2006

Maharaji in Seattle, A Gift of Understanding, 10th September, 2006

Maharaji, as Prem Rawat is widely known, speaks to people around the world about the possibility of finding inner peace and contentment. He started addressing audiences when he was only three years old. At the age of 13, he was invited to address audiences in London and Los Angeles. Since then, he has presented his message to over six and a half million people in more than 50 countries. Speaking at the United Nations Conference Centre in Bangkok, Thailand, he recently said, the peace that we are looking for is already in the heart. It needs to be felt and I can help you get in touch with it. Maharaji's message is more than words. People who listen to him express finding profound inspiration, a fresh perspective on life and peace within themselves.

Do you know that this life comes as just one moment? You know that? That's how it comes. That's how it comes. Even if you live to be a hundred years old, it only comes in moments. You actually get to live for a hundred years. It just comes in moments. Moment, moment, moment, moment, moment, moment, moment. Well, we're here really for a very simple purpose, a very simple reason. And our reason for being here is to take the spotlight of everything else. And for a few moments, let the spotlight shine on something that is very precious to all of us. All our lives, every day, we're always busy thinking about other things. From the morning till evening, we think. We think about our family, we think about our kids. We think about our job, we think about our friends. We think about our responsibilities. So the spotlight is on everything else. Everything else is being remembered. Everything else is being catered to. And for a few moments, to take that spotlight and say, wait a minute, wait a second. There is something going on here that is fundamentally very powerful.

Very beautiful. Something that should be appreciated, listened to, catered to, understood, believed in, accepted. It's a lot of words, but that's what needs to happen. Because you have been given this life. And you know, for people who are not having a good time with it, for them it's too long. Just too long. For people who are having a ball, this party and that party, and I've got to do this, and I've got to do that, and this and that. Perhaps it's too short. But those who have looked at this life and have focused and have zeroed in on having it fulfilled, for them it is neither too long nor is it too short. It's just right. It's just right for what it is. For what has to be done. For those people who have truly understood the agenda of existence. Existence has an agenda. You think that that agenda is to do this and do that, and you have to do this, and you have to do that, and that, that, that, that, that, that, that.

Today, flying here. And I remember always flying to Seattle, somewhere you get turbulence. It's the topography, I think, the way the jet stream comes pouring in. And at first we took off, and by the way, I must tell you this, it was a beautiful sunny day. Just a few clouds here and there. A little bit of fog, haze, but it was burning off very rapidly. It was a beautiful sunny day. There was a very cool freshness in the air. But if you stood out in the sun, it was very warm and very beautiful. (laughter about weather)

I just wanted to let you know that. You may have forgotten what the sun looks like, but it's still there. And I remember, you know, I'm sitting there, and we're flying along, and I'm thinking, okay, we better start getting our approach plates out, and do this, and do that, and getting ready to land. Still an hour and 40 minutes out, but just making preparations. And all of a sudden, and we were pretty high, 47,000 feet, and all of a sudden we start hitting some turbulence. And I remember there was a whole conversation going on, I even remember about what, in the cockpit. But all of a sudden that conversation stopped. And the idea of landing was not an issue anymore. It zeroed in into something very simple, right now. Got to take care of things right now. It wasn't terribly bad turbulence. But then when I fly, my motto is, why be in turbulence? I mean, why? You know, there's got to be nicer, smoother air somewhere. Find it. So immediately called the controller, asked for a block altitude, started the descent, found something smooth, leveled off, stayed smooth for as long as it did, and then it got bumpy, so found another level, and then by that time it was time to start down anyways. But I was thinking about that.

So, when there is the luxury to be able to contemplate, to be able to think, to be able to go, well, you know, that would be nice, or this is what might happen, or that would be really nice. When we have the luxury to dream, because that is a luxury, what do we dream of? Do we dream of fulfilling this life? Do we dream of being content? Do we dream that our heart is filled with joy? Do we dream about being in that tranquility? Do we dream about being in that serenity, of being one in harmony, in that bliss, in that focus? And I need to say the other part of this, because that's not what we dream about. When we have the luxury to dream, ah, it'd be nice to be, you know, and especially, they're very cruel on TV. The wintertime comes and they start showing you all that crystal clear water. Today I turned on the TV, and they were showing this guy in a balloon, you know, a personal balloon, dunking himself in this beautiful water off of Tahiti. It's like, yeah.

Because so much in our lives you see has been defined for us, and we had no part in it. We had no part in it. Somebody came along and said, you know, there's this thing called truth. And we said, yeah. And it didn't stop there. It didn't go, and you should experience it. But it was like, and let me tell you what truth is. Reality. Do you remember the first time you heard that word? I. Slipped into the vocabulary. Some teacher might have said it, and you wondered what it was, and might have raised your hand and said, what is reality? And got a definition, something real. And you went, good enough.

You see, this is where it gets very interesting. Because if you started doing that with your food, you wouldn't survive very long. If you went to a place and they placed in front of you, you know, some mud and rocks on a plate, and you said, what is this? And you said, and the person said, oh, it's food. You wouldn't go, thank you. You would go, no, it's not. This is rock. This is mud. I can't eat this. But so much we have taken on in our lives.

So much we have simply just accepted without ever questioning. It's like thirst and non-thirst. If there is a team of people, and they're on an expedition to look for water. They're searching for water. That does not mean that they're thirsty. They're looking for water. And they may say to themselves, you know, let's look at some satellite pictures. Let's look at this topography and let's see, you know, there's green trees there. So there must be some water. There's some dry riverbeds. If we go along the dry riverbed, maybe we'll come along a little pool and so on and so forth. You cannot draw a parallel between a team of people who are on an expedition looking for water and a person who is thirsty. Because for a person who is thirsty, he will not be asking you for satellite maps. He will not be asking you for coordinates. He will not be asking you for topographical maps. He will not be asking you anything else except one question. Water. Can I have? And that's how it is.

People search for truth. They're not hungry for truth. They're on an expedition looking for it. So they have their standard formulas. Where will you find it? Oh yeah, maybe on a mountain somewhere. Why is it that those things that are extremely precious to you are always placed away from you? You look for love. In your life, you look for love and you look at someone else. Why? Why is the love that you are looking for dependent on someone else? When the love that you're really looking for is inside of you and always has been inside of you. When you look for truth, why is it? How convenient, huh? Not in you, somewhere else. And so you must search. When historically, every time someone comes with a beautiful message, the message says, and this is what's so wonderful. It's so attractive and it always has been. And the message says, that which you are looking for is within you. End of discussion. End of debate. End of everything else. Fall silent for a minute. And just contemplate what that means. The most precious and the most important thing that you need is within you. Then you lack nothing. Then you lack nothing. There are people in this world who will tell you, this is what you're missing. This is what you're missing. You need to change. You need to do this. You need to do that. You know, there are people who are, that's what they are. They're the pundits of today. In the old days, the pundits used to do exactly the same thing. You know, you should speak to people like this. This is, you should say this instead of saying this. The problem is, there is a rock in my shoe. All the band-aids in the universe aren't going to help. The problem is the rock. And even if I take painkillers, it'll only be temporary because every time I take a step, that rock is going to hurt my foot even worse and worse and worse. And worse.

People in this world feel they are lacking something. They're missing something. This is what people say. And I felt like, you know, there was something missing in my life. On the contrary, on the contrary, you accepted this fact that that which you are looking for is not within you. You accepted this fact that that peace that you need in your life is everywhere else except in you. And if these are the assumptions made by the person who will be searching, now you tell me, what is it that they will find? They will find anything but peace. Because here's my watch. I'm wearing it. If I start looking for this watch and I look where it is, and my assumption is I'm I have it, I've lost it. This is all I have to assume. And I start looking for it. And I start searching for it. And I go here and I look in that drawer and I look in this place and I think, well, where was where was the last time I was wearing it? And what should I do? And ask people, oh, do you know where my watch is? Have you seen this watch? Now you tell me, what will I find? And if by some coincidence I did manage to find the watch, it would have to be an incredible accident. Something like my hand fell off and there was the watch in front of me, still tied to my wrist. So think about that. This is where the spotlight in your life needs to be is shining deeply within you and saying, OK, let me be fulfilled. Let me make an attempt every day, every moment to be fulfilled. This is why I am here. This is why I exist. This is why I have this opportunity to be.

Somebody, in fact, said to me, Maharaji, you think it's really possible to be, to remember every breath? And my answer to them was, you can try. You can try. Can't you? Can't you? Who's stopping you? What power is there on the face of this earth that is stopping you from trying? None. Day and night, there it is. The one thing that you possibly cannot be far from. Because then the be comes in question. If you were removed from your breath, then be may not work. Wherever you go, to which corner of the earth you go, day, night, in sadness, in happiness, good and bad, right and wrong, in rejection, in acceptance, in day, in night, whether it is sunny, wish, or it's raining. Either it's warm, we all wish, or it's cold. There it is. There it is. And it is one thing. And the only thing that you will have the most of in your life. Talk about abundance. It is the most abundant. It is also crucial. It is also unwavering. And it is the most unchanging.

Unchanging. Eyesight goes. It does. Hearing starts to wane. Slowly and slowly. Huh? Huh? Taste, not as sharp. Smell, not as sharp. Things. This is it. This is the nature of this body. It has a very definite curve to it. Incredibly definite curve. No plateau. No plateau. You get a plateau. Starts off very hard to do things. Then it gets a little better, and a little better, and a little better, and a little better, and a little better. And then it gets quite good. Quite good. And about that time, it begins to wane. And slowly and slowly. And it is so slow. Doesn't happen overnight. Hard to perceive. It's a nice, round curve on the graph. And it just goes on till it goes back to zero. Like an arc. Perfectly smooth. And one day, that's it. That gets everybody.

That gets everybody. Oh my god. I want to talk about that day.. Yesterday, I was listening to the radio. Somebody said, the death came as a surprise. And I said, what? What are you talking about? Because it's obvious. It is so incredible. There's those two most important days. One has already taken place. Other one remains. Thank god. And between these two, that's it. It's called existence. Here you are. Here you are. And unlike a medication, there is no expiration date planted on you. Somewhere right about the belt area, you look and there's a nice little expiration. That would be nice. But there isn't. Because I think when you begin to feel this heart, when you begin to look at simplicity in your life, simplicity, I love simplicity. I love it. I adore simplicity. Wherever I look, it's not simple. Questions, questions, questions, questions, questions, questions, questions. People want to ask me questions from morning till evening. The thing is, I have answers.

I was thinking about it. This is what's funny. I have answers. In fact, I have answers and I could give you answers from morning till evening and through the night. And the next day and on and on and on and on. But there are not answers to your questions. But there are answers. And they're beautiful answers. They're incredible answers. But they're not to your question. In my life, somebody had the kindness to turn the spotlight and say, here, look at this. I love that. The kindness, it's all it is. This is all it is. Now here, kindness takes on proportions that are unbelievable. True. Kindness, that you may be fulfilled, that the opportunity, that the possibility, that you may be fulfilled, that every moment in your life is filled with unparalleled joy. This is what you must try to achieve. I know, I can see in some faces going, how am I gonna do that? Well, let me put it this way. What choice have you got? What choice have you? What else? When a possibility like that exists, when such an opportunity exists, when such a wealth exists, when I am surrounded, when I am surrounded with beautiful, sweet, clear, cool, drinking water, how can I afford to be thirsty? How? When the thirst has been placed inside of me and the water has been placed inside of me, who do I go to complain? Everything I need has been placed. See, life is not a philosophy. Ah, I'm so glad. You can't discuss it. Can't.

You wake up in the morning and there it is, staring you in the face. It's on. It's on. Game is afoot. People are pretending. There's five minutes to game. So let's talk about what we're gonna do. That's philosophers. The boat of life has been untied from the dock. You, as the Helms person, cannot afford to say, well, let's see, you know. Let me see, where do I have to go now? What do I have to do? Let's talk about this. No. You put your car in drive and push the accelerator and say, everybody in. Because by that time, you're moving. A little too late. To be wondering, life is afoot. Breath is a coming. And breath is a going. And a breath is a coming. And a breath is a going. And I see. Some are like a child on that swing of the breath, going, no, no, I'm not ready. I'm not ready. Wait, wait, stop. And some are going, ah, I know. Mommy. And yet there are those who are giggling and having a ball.

It is so simple. The day you begin to accept your life, everything becomes really simple. Then you seek importance by chaos. This is what we do. We like little chaoses so we can be the hero of the chaos. Becomes simple. Because it's not dependent on other people and other things. Now, you begin to accept people for who they are without wanting to change them. Because you have understood life's simplicity. You have understood the simplicity of that breath. You have understood the simplicity that your heart desires. You know, I really feel, I really feel that the demand comes from the heart. We end up hiring the mind to make sure that that demand gets fulfilled. Wrong party. Wrong party. Find somebody who can fulfill that demand triggered by the heart. To be happy is in every fiber of your being. You can't help it. And how incredible that is? When you turn at night. Because maybe your arm has fallen asleep or you've been too long. So you turn. No discussions. No big plans. Or when you're lying there and the room gets a little cold and you take that blanket and you go, ah, this is how finely tuned you are.

Or when you're sitting in that chair, which is probably not very comfortable, and you go, ah. You are heavily driven on the outside by wanting and seeking that comfort. Radio, eh, I like it. Next station. Scan, seek. If you notice the nomenclature on that stupid little radio, seek. And if you know how to operate that radio, you reach for that little button. Let's see, let's find something. Keep looking till you find that one station which is good. Now, if you could only apply the same principles within you, within, in the world within, that'd be cool. That'd be nice. That'd be wonderful. Inside, it's like, well, I'm busy. I'm busy. Of course you are. Of course you are. You're busy day and night you are busy. You even know how busy you are. You are so busy. You have no idea how busy you are. Yeah, I realized one day.

It's like, I was doing my music, you know, and the music is one of these things. To me, anyways, when I'm doing music, it has to move me. It really has to move something. I mean, if it's a tear that rolls down, fine. If it is this feeling of just like, yes, fine. To me, usually the standard is eyes get wet and a tear rolls down, this is good. The rest goes into the trash, literally. And when you get into it, when I get into it, I want anybody to disturb me. And to me, it's like, I was doing this and then I know I had to get ready for the event and all these people were kind of ready to come down. Oh, do you need this? Do you need this? Do you want this? And I was like, somehow, if I could tell them I'm busy and then I started thinking about being busy and it's like, you know, I want to lie to anybody but then I finally figured out, hey, I'm always busy. Let me come to it. What makes me so busy? And it's not flying airplanes or writing manuals for airplanes or collecting data or creating music or even going to the events. I'll tell you what I'm busy. I'm so busy, 24 hours a day, every second. I'm busy receiving my breath. I'm busy. I know it. It's subtle. Stealth. Gives stealth a new meaning. They're proud of airplanes with low radar signatures. Here is stealth. Here it comes. Most powerful thing. Sweet and gentle and kind. No pretense. No trumpets. No announcement. And here it comes and it brings the sweet gift of life and it leaves to be replaced by another. And talk about freshness. You know, that's one thing. Breath will never be stale. Anew. Anew. Anew. Anew. Anew. There is your mantra. There is your rosary. There's your life. There's your existence. Get with it. Get with it so that you can be fulfilled.

Yesterday I was going to the LA event. I came down, bottom of the hill, saw these two teenagers and turned to my wife and I said, yep, they're definitely teenagers. And I said, they've got that look. The teenager look. Then I defined what that look was. I defined it at the event too. A teenager look is basically total bewilderment with absolute certainty. It's like they look at the world like and yet there's nothing that they know. And yet I see that look on people who are definitely not teenagers. Total bewilderment with incredible certainty. I know what I'm doing. Headed off for a very long walk off an extremely short pier. But I know what I'm doing. Really? Then if you know what you're doing, why you begin to swing in that joy? Why you begin to swing in this life? Why you begin to see life's simplicity? And my God, I'm not talking about that there is a finishing line and one day you will receive an award. You will receive a cup. You will receive a certificate saying, here goes a human being who has accomplished this. No. No, no, no. You get to try. You get to try. This is a privilege that you get to try. It's not your right. It is a privilege that you get to try. It is a privilege that you get to have joy in your life. It is a privilege that you get to be fulfilled.

And it's about here and now. It's here and now. Here and now. Here because you exist and now because this is where you are. Tomorrow? Mysterious. Complicated. Mysterious. And I know. Never comes. Do you know tomorrow never comes? Today seems to come quite often. Tomorrow never comes. And then yesterday. And you realize that a person's life is either filled with yesterdays or tomorrows. There's some people in this life. They're waiting for tomorrow to come. Tomorrow everything will be okay. Tomorrow they will be vindicated. Tomorrow everything will fall into place. Tomorrow everybody will understand them. Or it's just a bunch of memories. And more memories and more memories and more memories. Isn't it amazing when your memory starts to slip? It's not the long term. That kind of stays. I mean you know the color of the door. You know where you parked your car and got a ticket a hundred years ago. I mean you know that. But what your home number and address is you have no clue. I love it. You forget. You forget. In the forgetfulness you forget about forgetting. Clever. And in the remembering distant. Distant. Only distant memories. Those which you cannot do anything about.

Don't be caught. be caught. Opportunity is here. be caught because the time is now. be caught because the breath is coming and going. The dance is afoot. So you either are going to decide to dance or not. Which one? What will it be? Will it be to recognize the voice of this heart? The rhythm of this heart? That sincere desire that you've carried since you were a little kid to be happy to be fulfilled. As simple as that. Or are you going for the incredible complex plans of the mind of how fulfillment will come to you? The heart's cry has always been be fulfilled. No plan. That's the plan.

That's been the plan. And yet the Masterminding by the mind is so incredibly complex. Drop a ball in the water. That'll create a wave. The wave will get to the beach. The beach will erode. The beach will erode. Then this house will get closer to the water. And then when the house gets closer to the water, it'll get cheaper. Then you'll be able to buy this house. And then you will be able to renovate this house. And then you can sell it for more money than you bought it for. And when you have more money than you bought it for, you will sell it. You will make all this profit. And then you will buy another house. Which will be even bigger. And you will renovate it even better. And then you will sell it. And you will make even more money.