Prem Rawat: Lockdown Day 1 Broadcast

Hello everyone Prem Rawat here. I just thought I'd take this time and address everyone. We're in the midst of coronavirus and um it's very hard and very trying times for a lot of people and if some way I can alleviate the load, the burden, the concern, of course we all need to be concerned but if I can somehow alleviate the burden that people feel on their shoulders then they would be wonderful. So what's going on? Well, it's a little little virus that's taking over and there are so many commentaries. There are so many ideas that people have. There's so much misinformation. There's good information, there's bad information. And somehow there is very little clarity. There's very little understanding of what really its all about. Now, has anything changed? Well, in one way, everything has changed. But every human being wants to feel secure. Everyone wants to feel good. Everyone wants to feel free. So in that sense, nothing has really changed because this is when everything was fine. When coronavirus was not an issue, people wanted to feel that too. But today, because this burden is upon us and it's like the fear. The fear comes in. And of course, you can let the fear take over. And fear would love to take over.

But let me just remind you of something. There's something really wonderful inside of you and it's called courage. In these dark times, n these very concerning times, we need to be using courage, not fear, to live through this. We need the light that shines from within our hearts to illuminate this very dark jungle out there. We need to live every day with a sense of purpose, a sense of clarity, a sense of understanding a sense of just not doubt, but clarity. And this is what I talk about all the time. But in these times, these elements that we have inside of us really need to shine. Every day, it's not a question of, you know, today is not important. No. Today is important. And all of a sudden the world being in pretty much a lockdown, just locked down everywhere just about. What do you do? What do you think about? And there's so much misinformation on television, on social media and so on and so forth. But there is a truth inside of you and you need to let that truth come out. There is a reality inside of you and you need to let that reality come out.

So the contrast I would say is immense right now because there is so much that is well, real concerning stuff that is going on, this coronavirus that we need to isolate ourselves and that we need to make sure that we are healthy but we have to be healthy not only physically but we have to be healthy here too in our minds. So all of these issues really come into play, its like OK how do we do this? how do we take the good and make the good really come out how do we enjoy ourselves in these dire circumstances? So sometimes you know you really have to just step back and say to yourself well what is this all about? I am here, I am a little part in this puzzle. Of course you don't want to hurt other people so you don't want to g, the guidelines are being provided and some of it makes complete sense. What do you rely on? Well, for once you also have to look at inside of you.

You have to rely on yourself too. Your heart, your understanding, your desire for clarity, your desire to be happy. You have, you have to rely on that. You have to accept that that this is a very basic thing, not just be drowned in fear, drowning in like, "Oh my God, what's going to happen to me?" You should be concerned. But at the same token, there is something very beautiful that is being said from your heart, from yourself. And you need to, you need to include yourself in this one. Don't exclude yourself. You need to include yourself in this one. You need to include that beauty that you have inside of your heart on this one. Because what's going to happen? Well, you know, we saw, we see the numbers from China and this is where the epidemic started. But at the same token they they clamped down and they were able to manage it to the point where at this moment anyways the the numbers of people dying and new cases have significantly dropped down. Can we do this, can we can we win this war? Um yes we can win this war. The only thing is it would be nice if we didn't have such high numbers or you know these enormous numbers were not there for people dying. But we human beings have to bind together, we have to come together and we have to come together in a very funny way and we have to come together by being together ourselves even in isolation. We have to be complete, we have to be whole and not do silly and stupid things but at the same time will human beings win this? win this race? win this war? and yes you know, yes we have to, we have to, we have to go andthe way we can win it is to be sensible, to be clear, not be in doubt, not be in anger, not be in frustration, not be finger pointing at each other. It is time, this little virus which is not a living thing. It's just some RNA wrapped around in some fat. It has done for this world something really amazing. It is calling upon us in its very unfortunate and harmful way to come together. All of us helping each other around the world, spreading good news, not rumours, not wrong information but spreading the news that use courage, use clarity, use that good stuff that you have in you and then and only then I really feel that not only can we win this but we can really win this war, really really win and not be shortchanged by it, not be smacked by it, not be hurt by it but come together and this is time to rely on yourself to do not silly things.

That's the guidelines are you know, isolate, stay home. Don't spread this to other peoples, maintain your distance. To follow these simple guidelines but at the same token also be visiting our heart, visiting ourselves, visiting our understanding and just from clarity, coming out from clarity to to to be able to see that, yes, I'm still alive and my aspirations have not changed. So whatever it may be, and people, you know, have their ideas of how this is gonna happen and how that should happen. And doctors are coming together. Medical staff is coming together to help people. And we need to be helpful towards them. We need to be helpful towards each other. This is time for humanity to really kick in and for us humans to really take on those super nice attributes that we have as human beings and offer that to each other. Offer each other kindness. Offer each other understanding. This is the time for empathy. This is the time for clear thinking. This is the time for courage. And if we can have that, then I think we can make a huge difference for ourselves, for every single day that we are alive.

Ah, even without the coronavirus, because our world needs to be with or without coronavirus. We need to be in that clarity. So I hope all the things that I have said something makes sense to you. And you take that to heart and and and no reason for fear, because fear doesn't do anything, you know, except just clamps you down. What you need is courage. Understand the complexity of the problem. Understand the severity of the problem. But instead of giving fear the rise, give clarity the rise. Give courage the rise. Give understanding the rise, not the doubt. And these are the things that can make a difference in in in every single day that we have. Now I'm going to try to communicate with you as much as I can. And this is the first attempt at it. I'm doing this, you know, in a very simple, very simple way. I set up my little tripod. I set up my little iphone and this is what it's recorded on. I don't have extra lights. I'm just in in in this room. And it's a pretty plain background. So to me, background doesn't matter. You know, the lighting doesn't matter. Just so far I can reach and give you some comfort, give you some understanding, give you some clarity so that you can have a better time of this, you know, because these are trying times. There's no question about that.

And not have to be living in fear, but come from courage. Come from clarity. Come from understanding and and and and yes we will win, we will win, we will win I have been affected by this very much just like everyone else I had gone to Europe, I had done a few uh few events and then uh Europe was coming into a lockdown so I decided well I've got some time and may as well go to S America because not much in terms of coronavirus was happening there. So I flew to Brazil and then when I was in Brazil amazingly then the the next day or so I was supposed to go to Argentina and Argentina went into lockdown, no more, no more meetings, no more this is. Okay and I didn't really want to go to Uruguay because again I didn't want to be doing meetings and spread this thing so a lot of these things have been happening and finally not too long ago I got to United States. I haven't yet been home so I'm still few thousand miles away from home but I am in America and I hope I can get home soon and of course, of course I'm going to isolate myself but that doesn't mean that I can't talk to you. That doesn't mean that I can't send this message out to you wherever you are and uh maybe, maybe I can make a difference and I will certainly make as much time as I can available to you and I hope that these broadcasts get get to you and and and and and you can enjoy them, like them and have a good time with them. So thank you. I'll see you later.

Prem Rawat: Lockdown Day 2 Broadcast

Hello everyone. Prem Rawat here. So you know the whole idea of these videos is really to just help you out in any which way I can because of the lock downs with the coronavirus virtually all over the world. I thought it would be a great opportunity just to exchange some ideas, some thoughts that I have had and when you look at the situation I mean to say that it's a calamity. I don't think that would be too far fetched and this coronavirus just rising and rising and rising and rising. Well where it started from in China they've got it more or less under control but in the other places its still making a beeline for his peak and where that is going to be nobody knows. In a sense what can I say that would help? So I was thinking about it last night and the only thing that comes to mind at first, at least anyways, is that you know this isn't the first time and calamities have hit mankind before and when you think about it, things have happened that are just amazingly bad but somehow we gather, we gather our strength and and so this is this is the point that I want to make. It is not what we are faced with but how we handle it that makes the difference. Whether it is something good that we are given as a gift or something terrible like now this coronavirus.

So in a way you've got two things happening. One is your life your existence and that's a gift that you've been given and of course the second thing is whatever, why ever, I'm not gonna get into that. But you've got this virus that you know whatever people talk about it, however they put it, it really scares people. In a way it's justified, that yes, they are scared but it's not what you have in front of you but how do you react to it? how how do you handle it? So just you know off the top of my head comes the story of Ram and on the day of his coronation and everybody is very excited. He's excited, his wife is excited, his father is excited, his mother is excited and it's gonna be this coronation and all the all the citizens of Ayodhya, this this place in India. They're all extremely excited that Ram is going to be the king. He's gonna be a just king. He's very learned. He's young, he's he's got, he's got everything and that very day that he's going to be crowned the king, his second mother, his step mother had gotten some boons that she hadn't used. So Kaikeyi, more or less I'm paraphrasing this, she goes over to the king and says "Look remember those boons I had asked you for? well what I want you to do is I want you to stop this coronation. I want you to have not Ram be the king but my son Bharat be the king and um I want you to exile Ram 14 years in the jungle, just exile." And you can just imagine you know everybody's so excited.

Everybody's so like "yes this is gonna happen" and then all of a sudden instead of all that excitement and all that anticipation something totally different is gonna take place and the father didn't take it well because he really wanted Ram to be the king. Ram's mother didn't take it very well. But how did Ram take it? How did Sita take it? How did Lakshman take it? That was another from the 3rd wife Lakshman and Satyagandha Twins Bharat from Kaikeyi and then Ram the eldest, the eldest son. So Lakshman just told Ram. He said, look, you know, "we are inseparable. I'm coming with you. Whether you like it or not." Sita said, "I'm your wife. I don't. care. You know, my place is with you. Not not particularly in a palace. I didn't marry a palace. I married you. So I'm coming with you." And just for even a minute, if you can think like, Oh my God. You know, here's everybody so excited about something so wonderful. And then this entire calamity happens. This, this, this really weird thing happened. So the king calls around and says, "look, you know, this is what you gotta do." And Ram says, "no problem Not an issue. It's ok. I was going to be king because you wanted me to be king, and now you want me to go to exile and not be king. Fine. I'll be ok. You know, whatever you want." So not without getting into the nitty gritty of the story, because story is very beautiful.

The whole issue really becomes not what you're handed, but how you take it. What do you do with it? What do you do with your life? What do you do with this human existence that you have? What do you do with this earth that you have? What do you do with the trees? What do you do with the rivers? What do you do with the oceans? What do you do with the air? What do you do with the nature? What do you do with all that we have access to, that that we have been given? What do we do with it? We can destroy it. We can destroy our time because you know one of the, one of the big things becomes the boredom of nothing, you know, people who are so into socialising in this and that and go out there and party, do all that now you can't do that. You can't go out and you're basically in your room, in your in your apartment in your house, in wherever you live. So long time ago, I used to talk about solitary confinement. I used to say people why is that like the worst punishment you can have? Because people really don't know themselves.

You know here is this, here is this incredible opportunity and this is what I talk about the three things that we need to do and the three things that we need to do is one: know yourself because if you don't know yourself don't understand who you are what you are about, all the other trappings that you get used to. you know go out there and do this and do that and my job and my this and my that and you know everyday grind and all of a sudden it's like well you get a holiday in a way you get a holiday but it's with yourself, now can you take that? can you actually say hey I can actually enjoy this because I do know who I am and what a wonderful time for me to really get in touch with me. With, with who I am, try to understand, try to have sympathy for myself, empathy for myself, understanding of myself so one thing you got to do is know yourself. Without knowing yourself its basically you are a stranger, a stranger that you don't know who you are and then all of a sudden with some virus you know from somewhere comes along and and and and it's affecting the world.

I mean it this this this is like you know a horror movie in a way and then next thing you know it's really affecting the whole world and the world has to really - the governments are coming down saying well you got to isolate you know you got to lock down and and and and and you can't go out there and you can't do all this and when you look at all the lists of everything you cannot do amazingly enough in that list there is one thing you can do and that is that you end up with yourself and you can get in touch with yourself. You can know yourself a little bit better, you can understand yourself because those are those are the basics and other things I'd like to talk about, the other two things I'd like to talk about that in future videos we're in lockdown may as well talk about that in great detail but here's the one about you and so given this situation, given this set of circumstances in which there you are and you have to be with yourself. What are you gonna do with it? How are you gonna, how are you gonna spend that time? Are you gonna be frustrated? Are you gonna be saying "Oh this is terrible and blame somebody, play the blame game you know that's what people love to do. Play the blame game but the the the thing is that on one side, Internet is a wonderful thing, can be but on the other side there's so much misinformation out there so a lot of people are just like "well should we do this? should we do this? should we do this? should we do this?"

So very very interesting times but you can definitely make it worth your while by trying to understand yourself, by trying to say "ok. it's not the situation, its what I do with it. do I come with courage? do I come with clarity?" When you read Ramayan or when you Ramayan you know everything is like perfect, the day that has been chosen uh for him to get to be crowned is like the perfect day and and and and all the stars all line up and everything else and there's quite a bit of talk about that and to me it's like well you know I was then I was listening to this it was just like well the star said this was great but it didn't quite pan out that way because on that very day that he was supposed to be crowned he's being exiled for not for 1 year or 2 years or three years this is 14 years he's going to be out. He's not gonna be a prince. He's not gonna be you know somebody that the, somebody looks up to but he's going to be in the jungle, he's in exile, he's eating whatever he can find. Its not like he you know he's got a chef and he just says okay I want this for dinner tonight. Very difficult and he's got a wife and he's got a beautiful wife and he's just gotten married to her and and this is a killer and he realises he can't have sex with her because if he does that she gets pregnant and there they are for 14 years he's gonna take take um that baby and and and the baby will also be in exile for 14 years and wouldn't be in very comfortable situation and it would be so much more difficult for Sita so there they are they love each other but they haven't consummated their marriage and it's it's like unbelievable but what does he do with it?

He comes with courage. He goes forward and he actually ends up slaying so many people that are bad that that that that interfere and he goes forward and he protects, he protects Sita, he protects the good and and and of course, of course he is the incarnation of Vishnu. So, in that sense he is, he is there for a purpose. And so one way or the other way, you can, of course, legitimise everything. So this happened. This was preordained. This is this way. This is this way but not so much that. But look at him as a human being, because he is. He is. He's got a wife. He has a brother that dearly loves him. And he loves his father, and he is very much duty bound to whatever his father wants. So anyway, this is what I thought would be worth thinking about, at least for a day, not think about your calamity, not about thinking about your problem, but how you are going to react to the problem. So I hope this helps in some way, and I will see you again. Have a good day. Have a good day. Have a good evening. Have a good night. Have a good day. And again, whatever you.can do to make it worth your while. Do it.

Prem Rawat: Lockdown Day 3 Broadcast

Hello everyone. It's Prem Rawat again and today I'd like to talk to you about being conscious, having that consciousness and this is what I had talked about yesterday. The two points. Know yourself. Live this life consciously and have gratitude. Of course I'll talk about gratitude later, but to live this life consciously to know that what you have been given is something very, very precious. I'm not talking about your problems. I'm talking about this life, this breath that you have. That means so much. And look around you. You know, sometimes we forget what we have been given. This life is so powerful. This life is so good. This life is so real. And it's not going to be there all the time. Interestingly enough in these days, whilst we are in lockdown with this coronavirus. It's very interesting because you look around you and always the world has been this you know bubbling and going going going and all of a sudden it's not going anywhere and everybody's being asked to just go home and you know isolate themselves and not contaminate other people. Good advice. But what does that mean for you?

So all of a sudden you find yourself at home and maybe your home is what it is. You have your family. Maybe you don't have too many people. But all of a sudden you find yourself in this situation. What do you do? It's a very interesting question. What do you do? Because more than ever now that you are at home and you are kinda in a quote unquote lockdown. You need to be more conscious, not less. You need to be actually more conscious of what's going on, what's going on in here? What's brewing here? What's being cooked? What's being concocted here? Are you getting bored? You have no reason to get bored. Know yourself and you will understand that this is not about boredom. This is not about that. This is about truly opening your eyes and looking at things the way they really are. And to me, that's that's all that it takes living your life consciously isn't some, you know, journey onto a top of a mountain as people would have you believe it, you know, or to the bottom of the ocean or whatever it is. But it's really quite simple. It is to open your eyes and realise that what you have been given is incredibly, is incredibly, incredibly precious. What you have been given is incredibly incredibly beautiful.

Do you know the value of this breath? You know, you have to realise one thing. You're in the middle of making history here. This is a very historic time. I mean, here we are. We're in 2020. I mean, we're at the such a bleeding leading edge of technology and we have our phones and we have our this and we have our aeroplanes and we have our fast train, super fast trains. We have our cruise ships and I mean my God we you know we live in technology you wouldn't believe. I mean when Titanic first came out it was like an incredible wonder because of how big it was. Well the new cruise ships are much much bigger than the Titanic. Yet here we are and this little virus has got the whole world clamped, it's got the whole world in its fear, it's got the whole world in like, well locked up and there's nothing you can do about it and the leaders some of the leaders are not so leadery pardon the pun but you know that's just the way it is you can see what they're doing with it is just everything is a knee jerk reaction. Some leaders are very good and they're taking the precautions and and and truly leading people but otherwise it's just like you know you're on your own and sorry we don't have any advice for you just go home and then I'll just do whatever it is and of course people have expectations and people have expectations that in these times of trouble somebody will come up and say "hey you know this is what you should do."

And that's leadership to help people, channel people towards a positive a good goal but what about you and your leadership because you're a leader too you, lead your life nobody else leads your life you lead your life and so in you leading your life, in you managing your life. How are you gonna do this? Are you gonna take yourself and bore yourself? Are you gonna take yourself and make yourself be afraid? Are you gonna allow all the misinformation to come in and scare you? You're the leader. You are the door keeper of your doors. Your doors of sanity. Your doors of understanding, your doors of clarity. And so this is where really really, you have to begin to understand how important it is to live your life consciously, that eyes open, look around, appreciate what you can appreciate. What you don't like, what you don't want, make sure it doesn't come in because you are the door keeper and you have to understand the value in these moments when you have that quiet time because this one part of you that doesn't want anything else except joy, except to be happy, except to be content, except to be, if I may say so "blissed out," but that's good. That's good.

And then there's another part of you that wants to rip you apart, that wants to weaken you, that wants to take away your serenity, that wants to take away your clarity, that wants to take away your understanding. Well, one will win and here's the big important part. Who will win? Who will win? The one you allow to win. The one you feed. I'd like to tell you that story again where once this kid in this camp comes up to the chief and he says "chief I have a question" and the chief said "what?" He said that" I see that in people, the same people there is good and there is bad, how can that be?"And the chief said, "well, it's very simple. In each one of us, there is a good wolf and there is a bad wolf, and they fight." The kid thought for a little while, and he said, "so chief, which one wins?" And the chief looked at the little boy and said, "the one you feed, that's the one that gets strong. That's the wolf then." Now, some of you have heard this story. It's the same thing. Who wins? Well, who wins? The one you feed. Are you feeding the bad wolf? Or are you feeding the good wolf? What does it mean if the bad wolf wins? Well, you would have wasted your time.

An incredible opportunity, because this is what I talked about yesterday. It's not what's thrown at you. Its how you react to it. So this could be a fantastic opportunity to quieten down, to understand the value of how things should be, not how things you find yourself in, all the noise and all the crazy stuff. But it's like, no, this is how it should be. This is, this is good. And I need to focus on myself. I need to focus on my heart. I need to focus on the good that I have. I need to focus on all that, that is beautiful about this life. I need to focus on the consciousness that I have to be aware. I need to focus on the beauty that I carry. I need to focus on that light that I carry inside. I need to focus and bring my attention to it, that beauty that dwells in me. And if I can do that, then the good wolf wins. Its simple as that. Then the good wolf wins. Otherwise torn apart, scared, Oh my Gd. You know this is this way. This is this way because there's a very big difference in being concerned and being scared. Concern means you take the appropriate step. Scared means you just go hide. Close your eyes and go I'm scared. I'm scared. I'm scared. Up to you. But what do you want it to be? And, living this life consciously? More important now because now you are with yourself, not with other people. Now you're less distracted so before you know, this distraction, that distraction, this is happening, that's happening, this is wrong, that's wrong, now you're with yourself and think, understand, clarify, beautiful time to do that.

Take it in. Take in life. My God take in life. Take in the value of each breath. Take in what it means to be, to exist. Take in what it means. You know it's like a cloud. A beautiful cloud. You see it? And it's like, oh, yeah, it's a cloud. But look at it. It's moving. It's it's it's changing. It's never the same and appreciate that your life in the sense is is a cloud. You came through one, one wall and you're going to hit the other wall and you'll be gone and you think everything is so slow sometimes because between these two walls the time that is there is, is relative when your bored is like it's moving ever so slow and when you're having fun its moving ever too fast. Well it shouldn't be ever too fast and it should never be too slow. It should be what it is and that's appreciation. Not manipulation, not manipulation of life, not manipulation of beauty. Let me manipulate the beauty to fit my ideas but acceptance, seeing, understanding. That's what life is all aboutb and what a beautiful time to go inside and really feel, feel the joy, feel the beauty, feel the heart that is still bubbling in the middle of all this that is going on There is a lamp in this, in the in the middle of all this darkness, there is a lamp that is lit inside your heart. Look at it. See, how much illumination. Illuminate your world and enjoy what's there. So today this is what I want to talk, live your life consciously. Well make the most of this time if you by the way have any questions that you would like to ask me please send them to PremRawat.com and they'll get to me. So thank you and stay healthy, stay well.

Prem Rawat: Lockdown Day 4 Broadcast

Hello everyone. Prem Rawat here again and can't believe it. It's already day 4 of these broadcasts and I really hope everybody is enjoying them for whatever they're worth. So today I'd like to talk to you about gratitude. So I can imagine people going. What? What are you talking about gratitude for? I mean, look at this, you know, world uncertainty the economics of it, you know, don't know what's going to happen tomorrow. The leaders in turmoil, the countries in turmoil, societies in turmoil. So what possibly could there be to be thankful about. Well, let's begin with this. First of all, yesterday, uh, you may have noticed that yesterday's broadcast had no video of me, just pictures, stills. So what happened? Well, I thought, you know, I'd try doing something better and so I don't know if you know this but I'm just using my phone to do this and really don't have a big setup or anything like that. It just got a little tripod, my phone, cleared the picture behind me and I'm just standing there. There's no lights. This is the morning light that you see so what happened well this is what happened is that to use the better lenses which are on the backside of them I flipped the phone around so I couldn't see myself and of course you know whatever software they've got in there it doesn't recognise a face and say O. K. I'll focus on that. So after I'm finished. I looked at the footage and it was like whoa what happened and it was all out of focus, didn't look good but what I was saying and it was very spontaneous, it was good. So at first it was just that same thing, terrible. It was something wants to come and rip you apart, you know, it's like how could you do that? you know that was the dumbest thing and then I thought about it and it's like look it's already done and you said something that was very good. It came from your heart and you know make the most of it. So I sent it anyways then I said just put some stills on it, send it out because I couldn't repeat it.

It's not like I'm reading from a script it's all it's all very spontaneous and it always reminds me of that story that after the Mahabharata, the Great War, Mahabharat was over, Krishna went to say hi to Arjun and said you know how is it going and he said it's going pretty good, sure beats being in exile you know living in the jungle and all of that now I'm and living in this palace and everything's good. Krishna just said "well is there anything I can do for you?" and Arjun says "well actually you know all those all that wisdom you imparted to me on the battlefield I've pretty much forgotten what that was, you know, it was pretty intense time so could you, could you just run that by me again and Krishna said "geez you know that was spontaneous. I I I don't know if I can remember what it is but anyways he did run a very small compressed version of it for Arjun and it's called Anugita, Little Gita, so it was one of those things. Its like "do I throw away this footage or what I did say was good, it came from my heart, it was very genuine, it was very spontaneous, do I save it some way? and I'm very thankful that that happened. I'm not particularly thankful that I've goofed and you know camera goofed and phone goofed and this happened and that happened but I'm very thankful that not for what should have happened and it didn't happen. I'm not thankful for that, I'm thankful for what came out of my heart, what I felt and talked to you about living consciously because that's what living consciously is about, is, is is to see, to to look around, to to have some cognizance of what's going on in this world as it relates to you, as it as it relates to your existence because what you see, you see from your eyes, what you see, you see from your perspective, from everything that's happened to you the sum of all those things tunes in your vision.

Now somebody who who sees mountains all the time, they see a mountain, its no big deal. Somebody who doesn't see mountains, who lives by the ocean they see a mountain and it's a big deal. It's like well look there's a mountain there and vice versa somebody who lives by the ocean, looks at the ocean, its like well there's the ocean and somebody who doesn't live by the ocean, maybe lives by the desert and they see the ocean its like wow there is the ocean. So everybody has a different perspective, everybody is slightly different in the way they take in and so this life is not objective. It's very, very subjective. How you proceed, how you look at that. So you know easy enough is like one time I went to the prison and it was in Australia, the Walston prison and the inmate there, one of the inmates when the time came for question and answers he goes "but how do you know what it's like? you know, you you you don't live here, you don't you're not in the gaol" but I think about that quite a bit and it's like yeah his perspective of what life is, what freedom is, what all these things are, is totally different than mine but that's the way it is and I'm not trying to make everything objective.

I'm not saying you know it should be the the experience that you can have of your life should be the same for everybody. No, it's different and therefore because that is different, gratitude will be different for everybody. Every single person will express their thanks in a different way because your experience is different so if you live your life consciously, you will recognise the need for knowing yourself and then when you get to know yourself and you then live your life consciously it will be different and your gratitude would be different because you're looking at it from a different perspective. You're not looking at it from the same way and that gratitude is like a fruit that you as a healthy tree put forward living life consciously is like a flower and this is your this this existence is this magnificent tree and it flowers and then when you live your life consciously there is, there is a quest to to be fulfilled, to do, want to know yourself and then when you know yourself, most amazing gratitude swells forth and that's that's the fruit and you can share that fruit, you can share that gratitude, what you are thankful for.

So can you be thankful for coronavirus? I don't think so. I don't think anybody can be thankful for coronavirus but you can be thankful for something else and that is that you have this chance, that you have this opportunity to think, to contemplate, to understand, to express, to to to feel, to see and this, see that's that's what's important that that you can do that and how important is that gratitude because you look at what gratitude means and gratitude means that you are putting out that fruit, you your heart is full. You can express that, you can feel that, you can understand that and that is why gratitude is so important because without that gratitude - gratitude is almost the scale of health if you will. If you're putting out that fruit, wow! Good! Good! you're healthy and if you're not, maybe something is amiss, something is not quite right. Maybe there isn't the appreciation. Maybe you don't understand what it means to know yourself.

Maybe you don't know yourself and the value of knowing yourself because I can see how being locked up at home, you know, and you're not going out you're trying to minimise contact, you know, social beings, social beings and okay you can watch television, you can only watch so much of it and sooner or later, it's going to be you and you and just you, you know, and I I I was uh looking at, looking at the television and somebody said "Oh there was this guy in this one particular country and he was locked up for 3 days with his wife and child and 4th day he ran away, he just couldn't stand it but when you can't stand that really what you can't stand is something inside of you otherwise if you can, if you are comfortable with yourself, you can be comfortable pretty much in any situation but when you're not comfortable with yourself, it doesn't matter what situation you are in, you are going to be uncomfortable and knowing yourself is just that, living this life consciously is because it is important to see, to perceive, to to to to acknowledge the gifts, to receive the gifts that you have been given. That's what consciousness is all about.

The way I speak of it anyway is, you have to take in all that you have so you maximise this existence, this being alive and if you can do that then wow! you really have captured what it is all about. You know you see that sometimes it's like oh this is a wonderful photographer and why is this, why is this person a wonderful photographer because they can capture what really happens, they can really capture the story. Have you captured your story? Have you captured your existence? Have you captured you being you and maybe in day to day activities all the things that go around in our lives we don't get all that, you know, because we're too busy to even think like that but here you have this opportunity to just not do be those busy things that you know you're constantly doing and instead give it some time to think, to contemplate, to meditate, to understand, to to to to reflect on the importance of existence, on the importance of having joy in your life. The importance of having clarity in your life. The importance of having a heart that is full. The importance of having serenity in your life. The importance of having that feeling that that you are complete, that every moment that you are living you're taking and making the most of it, the most of the existence and that's when all that comes together, when all those puzzles, little pieces all over the place, when they click, then gratitude comes forth and for you to be thankful for your existence, for you to be thankful for your life. Wow! What can be greater than that? For you to be thankful for every day that comes by, what can be greater than that? For you to be thankful for every hour that comes by, what can be greater than that? For you to be feeling that completeness with every breath, fulfilled, what can be greater than that? Well, I can't think of anything else that can be greater than that.

Because the magnificence, appreciated, becomes more magnificent. Magnificence, unappreciated, remains hidden. Remains unfulfilled even though it's beautiful. Even though it's incredible, it always will be. Every star, every grain of sand, everything in this world. Every every every day. The sun shines. The clouds come, the rain comes, sunshine happens. The summer comes, the winter goes, the winter comes, fall comes, all the seasons. Everything. And then your seasons that you understand the microcosm, that you understand that there is a universe in you too. And you appreciate that universe. You you you look at that universe. You you look at the stars. You look at, you look at the moon. You look at the sun and you look at your sun. The light in your heart. You see your moon. You see your stars. You see your universe. You see the joy that, that dances in your heart. The symphony that plays within you. The the the the dance that goes on in you. The play that goes on in you. The movie that is you, in which you are the star. Wow. Just like it is outside and we've got these cameras and we've got you know stereo equipment and we want to capture everything and wow this is an incredible recording and we want to hear it again and again and again and yet you are your camera. You are the only camera of your inner universe and if you capture it, if you appreciate it, then gratitude will come just like when you listen to a beautiful music and you want to dance do it and you like it and you smile and you get lost in it and you, it feels so good.

Well when you capture your inner universe then that's what happens. That's what gratitude is all about. That's that's that's that's then it all comes alive and I can ramble on I guess but the point is if you have experienced it, if you have ever ever experienced it, even the tiniest bit you know what I'm talking about. If you haven't it's not gonna make much sense. It's just a rambling. Anyways, I hope you send some questions to premrawat.com and of course if you wanna send questions to timeless today that's that's perfectly OK too. They will, they will get to me. I'm looking forward to those questions. I have a lot of questions that have already been sent to me but I thought you know again this is a unique circumstance and in these circumstances people may have a different, different set of questions. So I wanna I wanna answer those questions to the best of my ability and the most important thing is folks be healthy and be well and be safe and most important be be. So thank you very much. I'll see you soon.

Prem Rawat: Lockdown Day 5 Broadcast

Hello everyone. I hope you're doing well in this whole drama and trauma. This is Prem Rawat here and another day, another opportunity to talk to you about in this strange situation where indecision and and and ideas and fear and everything else is being just kicked around and kicked around and kicked around and kicked around. But I would like to talk about in the midst of all is that clarity, you having this gift of breath in your life. You being alive. You being here on this beautiful planet. You know the sun hasn't changed. It's there. Of course we hear about the news. Coronavirus concentrated news, focused news. This is wrong. That's wrong. This isn't happening this way. That's not happening that way. Every day, the amount of cases just increasing and increasing and increasing in the world. Then I was reading this whole little bit about New Orleans where they have this Mardi Gras and all the people came out and now a lot of people are getting sick. There's a lot of people out there, young ones who are like, I don't care if I get coronavirus. I just want to have a good time and the demographics of people who are getting sick in the United States is very, very different. Believe me, there's a lot more younger people getting sick in the United States than other regions. So you sometimes wonder what exactly, are we capable. It's a simple thing. You have to have to isolate. If you isolate, don't get contamination. Sooner or later, this thing will move along. You don't have to get sick. You just have to have your social distance. Keep your distance. That's so difficult for people. That is so difficult for people to try to keep their social distance. They they want to just be, you know, we got to do this and we got to do this. And this is what they're used to. This is what they're used to. And all of a sudden something happens and all what you think is normal is no longer normal and you can't do it. And in fact, if you do it, it's detrimental to you. So it reminds me of this story.

Which one is real So there was Once Upon a Time there was a king and he was quite well off and had a beautiful kingdom. Things were good. And one day he has this dream and in this dream he dreams that he has fighting with his neighbour. And they're having a war this, this is a frantic war and all of a sudden he loses the war and he has to flee the battleground and he has to get away as far away as he can to save his life. And he's running and he's running and he's running and he's running and he finally goes to the jungle and in the midst of the jungle there he finds himself and he's really tired. He's wounded. He's been running for a really long time. He's hungry. It's it's just not a good scene. All of a sudden he sees a little hut he goes over to that hut and in there in that hut is the old woman, he goes to her and he says "could you give me something to eat please" and she says "look I don't have any food to give you that's already prepared but here is a little bit of rice and here is a little bit of lentils, you could cook them together make a khichdi and satisfy your hunger." So the king says "thank you" takes the rice, takes the lentils, gets a little pot, he has to get the wood. It's raining and so the wood is all wet, smoky tries to start a fire, takes him a long time but he finally gets the fire going. He's really hungry, he's really tired, he's devastated, he's lost his Kingdom. I mean everything is just you know piling up on him and then he finally gets the rice done, the lentils done but they're too hot for him to eat so he finds a leaf and he spreads the lentils and and and the rice on the leaf just to cool it down. In meanwhile there's these two bulls and they're fighting with each other and they come towards where he's cooling his food and the next thing you know they take what he has made with great difficulty and just mix it into the mud, just destroyed. This is like too much for him so finally just ends up crying, tears rolling down his eyes and he wakes up the, the wetness on his face, the tears on his face wakes him up and he wakes up and he's like, looks around and all of a sudden, he sees he's in bedroom. He's got this beautiful velvet, you know, bed and beautiful ornate pillars and and and lamp and the bodyguards there and he's bewildered. This dream was so real for him. He's really bewildered. And he finally gets up and he goes, "Oh my God, which one is the dream? That losing the war, being in jungle, cooking that food, was that the dream? And this is real. Or is it the other way? This is all a dream that I am a king, that everything is fin. and that was really me losing the war, me being nobody, mean you know being in that dire situation that that was real and this just puzzles him to no end so next day he gets up and his gets in his court and he immediately makes an announcement. I wanna know. I wanna know. I had this dream and I wanna know which one is real. This is real or that is real. That I'm in dire straits, that's real or that I'm a king. That's real. And of course, a lot of people, and I'm going to cut the story short. There's a lot of people are like, oh, yes, sire, that was a dream. This is real. You're a king. You're a good king. Everything is good. But somehow he's not satisfied. Finally, this kid, his name was Ashtavakra and which literally means he was all, you know, twisted and everything in his body was all twisted. He he sets it straight right. And this is what he says to him because I guess it's a little bit of a drama. He comes and when he comes, everybody sees him walking into the court that he has the answer and everybody just starts laughing. It's like, how could this person who's all, you know, twisted and everything, how is he going to answer the question?

And all of a sudden he turns to the king and he says King, why have you called me in the company of these people who only can tell me, about me, from looking at leather, leather meaning the skin. That's all they look at and they have already made up their mind. Who I am. They don't, theyhaven't even talked to me. They haven't even looked at what is inside of me and they're judging me from what they see. Anyways, the king realizes this is somebody not you know, ordinary, extraordinary and he gives him the the throne and he says please sit here and and and and welcomes him and then he begins after the king asks the question then he begins then he says "King, that that where you lost your war and you were in the jungle, that was a dream and your question that you see your kingdom. you see your, you know, palace you see your bed is that a dream?" He said "that's a dream too king. The reality is beyond those two, the reality is, the reality that is in you. Not in what you see, what you perceive, all this will change and so in these times I can't help but think about that story, that all that that we perceive to be is the dream. It's a very realistic dream and it's a dream because of the two walls, the wall we came through and the wall we're going to hit and disappear on the other side. That makes all of this a dream. A very realistic dream. But many, many saints over the period of their time have said "this is just a dream because one day you'll wake up and this won't be like this. This would be something else. Everything keeps changing, every everything keeps changing and the nightmares keep coming and this keeps happening and that keeps happening and so what do you do?" Well you must somehow get in touch with that real reality and that real reality happens to be the reality that is inside of you. Not some concept, not some idea and maybe maybe during this time, during, because of the circumstances the story rings a little bit truer than on a wonderful normal, everything going your way kind of day. Where everything isn't so going your way but you just have to say "okay, I'm here the most important thing is breath is coming and going inside. I am. I exist, the miracle of miracles is taking place. I am here. I am here and because I am here and because I want to know who I am I will enjoy that process of going inside and feeling who truly I am."

This will all change. Things will go back to being the routine and when life becomes a routine, when life becomes drab like that, you're not in touch with your life anymore because there's something exciting about every single day. There is something exciting about every single moment. There is something exciting about every breath that comes into you. And that's your reality. That's your reality, all this that you see, all this that you perceive. It wasn't. It is and it won't be. That is its reality and then there is something that was, that is and that will be. I mean after all the creation of Earth and and all of this isn't that old. We haven't been relatively speaking, we haven't been on this earth for such that long of a time. Yes we have made huge advances but those advances. what do they do for us? All of a sudden we find the basic human needs and necessities have to kick in, the basics the basics that absolutely fundamentally the basics and where are you in those basics? Do you like it? Can you live with it? Can you enjoy your day today? Can you be? Can you exist? Can you still court clarity? Can you still feel gratitude for today? Or it's like bewildered and oh my God. You know we got this problem and we got this problem and did you hear bad news and da da da that it's a buzz. You know everybody's like a buzz, you know when one negative news, one negative this, one negative that and you realise it's ok. It's ok. You exist, be thankful, be positive, be real. Understand the reality and you are a part, you are a component of, of all that is around you. You are a part of it. And when you can shine, when you keep darkness at bay and that's so important. And that's important every single day with or without this corona virus. Every single day, to keep that darkness at bay, to keep the confusion at bay, to allow clarity to come and feel the thankfulness every single day for being alive. Is that simple? My God, that's simple. You know, of course it is simple. That is incredibly simple. And yet I know that it is incredibly difficult. It's profound when it is difficult, every moment to be able to be with that relaity. So not like that king who gets confused, but with that clarity move forward every day and be in that beautiful place. So I'll talk to you soon. Take care. Be well. Be healthy. Be safe and be.

Prem Rawat: Lockdown Day 6 Broadcast

Hello. Hello. Hello everyone. I hope all of you are well and I know these are very trying times and even though I have addressed some of these issues as I have the questions are starting to come in, they're getting compiled, but people are still a little bit afraid of of of whatever is going on and I would like to just take this time to just say look the rules are very simple. Don't give the virus. Don't get the virus. Simple as that. However you need to do it. Isolation is the best. But then the question comes what do you do in this isolation? Well, it's very unfortunate. First of all, that we have to even address this issue. Because being with yourself should be second nature. Being with yourself should be great. Should be wonderful. Should be not an issue, but unfortunately that's not the way it is. It's like, "Oh my God, what am I going to do? You know, people are going stir crazy and and this is happening and that's happening." But believe me, the issue really is about first of all what do you need to do at this time? Very simple. Come with courage not with fear. Not with "Oh my God. What's going to happen? What's going to happen? What's going to happen? What's going to happen?" Come with courage. Two things you need. If you want to make this time go by nicely, quickly, whatever. Two things you need.

Patience. You thought you had it right. Here's your test. Patience. Second one. Courage. That's all you need And this time will fly by. Clarity is always in you. Reach in for it. Not reach out. Reach in for it. Joy is in you, reach in for joy. Your beautiful treasures that are buried. Now you need them. See. Now you need them before I know I would come. I would sit down. I would talk to people. You know you have this in you and people could go. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Now you need them because without this what do you do? What do you do? This can be crazy. And so reach in, reach in for that patience. Reach in for that courage. The joy is still in you and you can make this a wonderful time in isolation. Yes, you can make this a wonderful time. It always reminds me of this one thing where there was this person and he was incarcerated in prison and he had been listening and doing the peace education programme and I keep talking about the breath and that how the peace you know and breath ??? is so beautiful and so one day he went and he lay down in his cell on his bed and he was describing this experience to somebody and he said "Prem keeps talking about the breath so I started focusing on my breath and as I focused more and more and more on my breath I started to fill with peace. How beautiful, how wonderful, how incredible and he said all of a sudden "so much peace. I started feeling so much peace that I have never felt before" and to me it's always like "my God this person can experience peace incarcerated in a prison?"

What about those people who are not incarcerated? Can they? Of course they. I'm looking forward to doing something and I'm we're looking at the possibility of this that all those people who are in lockdown maybe we could all just go through peace education programme with me and I could be the facilitator and we could all do the peace education programme. I mean I think that was just would be brilliant because it works so well of people who are incarcerated in it in a way we are all incarcerated it just happens to be we are incarcerated at home but we're incarcerated so we're looking at the possibility of doing that. I mean that would just be great that would be wonderful. but until that time please don't be scared. Don't be afraid, come from courage, have patience, have understanding, this too will pass, of course it'll pass and so far your family members are concerned in spending time with them and you know, whether you like it or not, understand they're part of you. and it's OK it's OK to accept them to ove them. You don't have to try to have a sense of responsibility towards them. Oh, I have to do this. I have to do this. I have to you know greet them this way. I have to greet them that way. No. just be, just be who you are and let them be who they are. Many many wonderful ways to engage. What do you think people used to do in old days? I mean you know we have forgotten those things, come gather around. Let's let's let's hear a story. Let's read a story. Let's talk about a story. Let's be fascinated by that. I was fortunate enough. I feel that when I was growing up there was no television. It is not like it hadn't been invented. It just didn't get to India. And what did I do? Listen to stories. I was fascinated by stories. Anybody I could find who would tell me a story. They had my undivided attention. How wonderful is that? There was a time. No television and in in India at that time when the radio came on, it came on sporadically. It came on from just, you know, one hour or hour and 1/2 or two hours and then it would go off nothing So what do you do in that time? You understand something, you discover. There's so much constant bombardment now that we have forgotten how to be without the use of all this technology and without the use of that phone and without the use of that social media . We have forgotten what it is like and once upon a time this is the way people were and they lived fine. I mean you know some unpleasantaries because maybe there wasn't a sewage system and everything stank a little bit but regardless of that my God you know people are like "oh I'm going stir crazy." How can you go stir crazy? You're alive. There's something incredible taking place and then there are people who are completely locked up in expectations of what their expectations are and what expectations of each other and then they can't come together because these expectations get in the way. This is not time for expectations. This is time to just be. Can you be? Of course you can. You're a human being. First thing you are is you are a human being. About having to say that sounds ridiculous but I have to because that's what you've forgotten, that you are a human being and and and if we forget that we are a human being then what have we become? You know, yeah, there is all these companies and they keep you know making all the technology and more technology and more technology.

In fact one of the, this is, this is the thing. We don't know the difference between need and want. We have become such slaves to want that we have forgotten what we need and there is a company and it's a huge is one of the biggest companies in the world and they manufacture a lot of things and not one single thing that they manufacture do we need, and they are huge, they're big I mean I'm talking about financially and people just like go crazy over them. and not one single thing that they make do you need? How mind boggling and so many things that we are completely attracted by. You see we don't understand that those things that we call attractions are really distractions because if they take you away from you that's a distraction. That should be the definition of a distraction, that which takes you away from you. You need to come back home to yourself, you need to to start feeling that goodness that is in your heart, the joy that is in your heart, the clarity that dances in you, the serenity that is in you, the patience that is in you, the courage that is in you. You need to get in touch with those things and this is the opportunity to do this. This is the opportunity to do, you know when I when I look at it, it's like oh my God how can this coronavirus be good. It's not good, believe me it's not good but then I saw this footage and these porpoises in Venice, Italy, the pollution has gone down so much that these porpoises are there. You can see the bottom of the the the the water, you can see bottom of the ocean, the bay, you can see fish, you can see swans that's like hmm then I saw like all the pollution in China disappear, it's like hmm.

What have we done? what have we created? We have created a monster out of our wants and it is destroying this planet. It is destroying us and if nothing else and you know when you look at some of the numbers of even, even this coronavirus, thousands and thousands and thousands of people have recovered without a problem and most of the people report very mild symptoms. Some of the places where people are dying, they're dying because of the lack of hospitalisation and the lack of you know even the uh medica equipment that they need. But whatever is happening, maybe, it's an incredible reminder that we as human beings need to get back to this wonderful thing called humanity. We need to become human again. We need to understand who we are and what our needs are. Not wants, needs are. Maybe this can be an incredible reset to get back to the basics. To get back to that that we already have inside of us. So my friends. You know, whatever happens, just remember. Be patient. Come with courage. You have amazing stuff inside of you. The joy. The serenity. Time to share. Time to bring it out. Time to dig in. Dig into the treasures and this is that possibility. So be well. Be safe. Be healthy. And most importantly, be in joy.

Prem Rawat: Lockdown Day 7 Broadcast

Well, hello, hello, hello, everyone. I hope you're faring well. And over the weekend, I figured this would be a good time to answer some questions - so I've got some questions here.

And the first question we are going to deal with is from Sanjay, from, (I don't know where he exactly is; he doesn't say). But he says, "I would like to thank you for sharing your thoughts and ideas on lockdown situations. It has really helped me understand the reality" - well, that's good - "given strength and hope." That's exactly what I want - you to have strength, and I want you to have hope.

"Government officials, people are giving so many directives and suggestions for being physically safe from coronavirus. It would be very nice to hear from you for the same. Sanjay."

Well, thank you for writing, Sanjay. And what I'd like to tell you is this. Look, I'm no doctor - and I'm not a virus expert by any stretch of the imagination - and I don't do that.

But I can tell you one thing. Of everything that I have heard and I have gathered, two things: "Don't give it to anyone - and don't get it from anyone." That's it. Don't give it to someone if you're a carrier - and don't get it from someone if they are a carrier.

Whatever that takes, very, very simple. Wash your hands. You go out; you wash your hands. Take it easy. Feel good; feel hope; feel safe. Have patience. You're going to need patience. Patience is required. And have patience; feel good. And deal with this from courage. Not from weakness, but from courage.

So, I hope, you know - and again, you know, what I'm talking about here is for you to have a good time even in this situation. Because the "good time" that I'm talking about is inside of you. And tap into it.

So, you know, have a good time! Be coming from that place of patience and having courage - and having two goals, "Don't give it to someone - and don't get it from someone." Whatever that takes. So, that's it.

"What about those people who are essential workers; do you have any words for those, this time?" From Casey. Well, thank you for writing, again. They're doing an incredible job; they're really risking their lives so that the rest of us can go on and have some sense of normalcy in this situation.

So, one, I would like to thank all of those people around the world who are doing this. And two, I think - and like I said for Sanjay, [sp] we really all need to come from courage and patience. And those two things, we need to all exercise as human beings on the face of this earth, especially in regards to coronavirus.

That's what it takes. You know, it takes approximately fourteen days for the quarantine to go on. And to spend that time, not go stir-crazy. And it takes patience.

So, I really - well, one, again, I would like to thank all those people who are doing this and providing that. Be safe. Obviously, you have a lot of courage. And please, be patient - and keep doing what you're doing, so that the rest of us can go on being and having some form of normalcy in our lives. And, again, "thank you" from me.

"Thank you for the lifeline of wisdom you are sharing. I have a question. Although for many, this is a time of forced isolation, for many others it means being cooped up indoors with an active child, children, and no time to yourself and increased stress and irritability. Children don't understand what's going on and want to see their friends and go out and play.

"I hugely appreciate your parenting advice and perspective. Do you have any advice during this time? With love and thanks, Wendy."

Well, my advice is, children will pick up on your irritation. Don't be irritated. If you are irritated, something is wrong. When they start to smell the "wrong," it's over. Believe me, it's over. At that point, it's like a frustrated parent, you know, picking up a child and going, "Do not cry!" I mean, that child's going to cry.

So, calm down. It's okay. They're your children; you're around them, whatever. Engage with them. They have the sweetest way of seeing this whole thing. They don't see the problem; they see much more of a solution; the solution is, "Why can't we have a good time?"

You can have a good time. Coronavirus has no - you know, it doesn't attack "good time" by any stretch of the imagination. You just have to discover what that good time is. And we have gotten so used to these routines of "good time" that we have forgotten how to tap into "good time."

There was a time when there was no television. There was a time when there was no form of these "entertainment," quote-unquote. There was a time, there were no iPads; there were no iPhones; there were no, you know, cellular phones; there weren't these super-computers, nothing!

And so, what did people do? Well, people took it upon themselves - and even "time of silence" was great, was wonderful. But now that's looked at as a punishment.

I mean, it's really, really bizarre but a child, you know, will do something wrong and it's like, "Well, go to your room and sit down and think about it!" Excuse me. That's a good thing. You're using it as punishment, but that's a good thing, for somebody to sit down and think, think it out, think out your day because you're going - everything is going so fast.

So, you may have to reinvent what once you and everybody knew - but now you have forgotten it, so it's a question of actually reinventing that time with a child and having a good time!

And maybe taking a story and looking at it different ways and understanding different things, sparking the imagination - that's all that a child needs. So far their imagination stays sparked, so then, that's really good. But that's what I think, anyways.

You know, so - but it's not like I am a parenting expert or anything like that. So, I hope you understand where I'm coming from. And thank you, thank you for writing.

Here's another question, "How can I choose clarity more? How can I choose serenity, kindness, compassion, love more? How can I afford to live a well-cared-for life of security, peace, joy and happiness that focuses on what is real, more and more?"

Look - well, whoever you are, thank you. Your name isn't here, but - it's a good question. And the most important thing is that these things that you talk about, "kindness, compassion," they are in you. They are in you.

You know, you know exactly what anger is and what does anger look like. This is this emotion; it comes in and it explodes; you turn red; your blood pressure goes up; your heart is pounding; you're mad; you're - you know! You know exactly what anger is like. And after that anger is past, you can, of course, look back and say, "Yeah, that made me angry."

Are you that familiar with kindness? You know what hate is like - but are you that familiar (as you are familiar with hate) - are you that familiar with kindness? Are you that familiar with compassion? Are you that familiar with peace? Are you that familiar with joy? Are you that familiar with happiness?

If you're not, therein lies the problem because you should be. Those things are in you at any given moment. Those things exist in you at any given moment; it's not like you leave your happiness behind. It is not like you leave your compassion behind. It's not like you leave your joy behind. Wherever you go and whatever you do, it's right then and there.

Just like anger, just like hate, just like confusion, we truly need to understand theseattributes. And when we begin to really understand these attributes, then there is something inside of us that will begin to choose those attributes over the attributes that we, by default, choose now, which are anger and fear and everything else.

With so many people with this coronavirus, the biggest thing - people are afraid. And why are people afraid? "Oh, what's going to happen to me?" And when you look at the numbers - and I was looking at them this morning - it's far more people who have died of natural death than from this coronavirus.

But it's not right; it's not good - I'm not saying that. But when you look at the numbers in terms of just what happens every day, it's not a huge thing! The numbers are not that big - even though they're exponentially growing and growing and growing. And this is, again - a lot of the world leaders are not doing such a good job of leading people.

But regardless of that, what do you think being scared of this thing, of coronavirus, will do - absolutely nothing. All you need to do, like I said, is have that goal, "Don't give it to someone; don't get it from someone."

So, we are very familiar with some attributes that we have - but we are not familiar with the other attributes we have. Knowing yourself then truly becomes knowing those attributes as well! Saying, "Yes, I have anger - and I don't like anger. But I have compassion. I have joy." And more familiar you get, easier it becomes to choose those.

Understanding that that's who you are, your value - and this is an example that I give, is "What is the value of a box, of a small box?" And maybe all it has, that box, you know, all it holds is a ring - and the value of the ring is like 200,000 dollars. Then what is the value of the box?

Well, maybe the value of the box is fifty dollars. (Ten dollars, twenty dollars, whatever.) But so far that ring is in that box, the value of that box is also 200,000 dollars.

This is what you have to understand. Take out the ring from the box - and the value of the box is fifty dollars, (five dollars, ten dollars, whatever). So far that ring is in that box, the value of that box is equivalent to that.

And then? That's the same thing that's happening to you. So far in you, there is that thing called "life," your value is infinite. Take that away - and of course, nothing; this is just a box. And this is what happens.

So, be more familiar with those attributes that you have; fall in love with those attributes. And then you can enjoy this life more and more and more.

Another question. "Thank you, Prem. Might you say something to those who have the virus? I have been texting the lockdown clips to many people who don't know you. So fantastic for everyone."

Well, all I can say is, look, again, the same thing. Do this - you have the virus; they've told you you have the virus - be patient. Feel good. Get good sleep. And face this thing with courage. Face this thing with courage. Not with fear. Face this thing with courage.

You will get better. People want you to get better. But you need to have that hope coming from inside of you.

Do this with courage; do thiswith patience. Let it run its course. Take the steps that are necessary. Feel well! Take those steps that are necessary. And I hope that you have an incredible, speedy recovery. And that would be wonderful.

Here's somebody who writes, "Hi, Prem; I'd like to thank you for everything that you have shown me and for helping me.

"My daughter asked me a couple of years ago when she was seven or eight, 'Dad, when I die will I remember you? And when you die, will you remember me?' I didn't want to BS her, so I replied, 'Good question but I really don't know.' I've been thinking a lot ever since. So, the question for me became, 'Does the heart have a memory? Or is it only aware of the moment now?'"

When you love someone and you are with that person, what exactly do you get out of them? What do they bring you? When you see that person, you love that person, they bring you joy. So what does that mean, "joy; they bring you joy?"

Well, what does joy look like? Has it got their name stamped on it? Or does that just make you feel good, being with that person, thinking of that person?

And that's what the heart knows about, that feeling, that goodness, that joy that that other person might bring. Maybe the catalyst; they're just the catalyst for it.

And of course, through whatever, if you have brought joy to each other, (she to you and you to her), then you will carry that joy, without any labels of names, forever! Because the heart is about being full.

And you may not be taking…. You know, when you to somebody's house and you have a wonderful dinner, you don't take that dinner with you wherever you go after one week, two weeks, three weeks. But you will remember that good time that you had at that dinner. And life is like that.

So, I hope that that answers your question - so, yeah, I'm not being very specific, I know. But the heart is about being full. And if she brings joy to you and you bring joy to her….

And this is what's so important in the relationships, that we really understand that that's what it is about, you know, "How can I bring joy to that other person and how can I receive the joy that that other person brings to me?"

Then, it's really just that. Just that. And that's a gift that you give to her - that has no value. Monetarily, you could never fix a value to it. The value of it is infinite. And the joy that she brings to you, the value of that is infinite; there's no limit to it.

So, I hope that helps. So, thank you very much - and I'll see you all very soon. There are quite a few more questions, by the way - but we're going to keep the time about the same.

So, I'll see you tomorrow! Thank you.

Prem Rawat: Lockdown Day 8 Broadcast

Well, hello, hello, hello everyone. I hope you're faring well and over this weekend I figured this would be a good time to answer some questions. So I've got some questions here. The first question we are gonna deal with is from Sanjay from I don't know where he exactly is, he doesn't say but he says "I would like to thank you for sharing your thoughts and ideas on lockdown situations. It has really helped me understand the reality." Well, that's good "given strength and hope. "That's exactly what I want you to you to have strength and I want you to have hope. "Government officials, people.are giving so many directives and suggestions for being physically safe from coronavirus. It would be very nice to hear from you for the same, Sanjay." Well, thank you for writing, Sanjay and what I'd like to tell you is this, look, I'm no doctor and I'm not a virus expert by any stretch of the imagination. And now I I don't do that but I can tell you one thing of everything that I have heard and I have gathered two things. Don't give it to anyone and don't get it from anyone. That's it.

Don't give it to someone. If you are a carrier and don't get it from someone, if they are a carrier. Whatever that takes very, very simple. Wash your hands. You go out. Wash your hands. Take it easy. Feel good. Feel hope. Feel safe. Have patience. You're going to need patience. Patience is required and have patience. Feel good and deal with this with from courage, not from weakness, but from courage. So I hope you know and again, you know what I'm talking about here is for you to have a good time even in this situation because the good time that I'm talking about is inside of you and tap into it. So you know, have a good time be be coming from that place of patience and having courage and having two goals, don't give it to someone and don't get it from someone. Whatever that takes, so that's it.

"What about those people who are essential workers? Do you have any words for those this time?" from Casey Well, thank you for writing, again they're doing an incredible job. They're really risking their lives so that the rest of us can go on and have some sense of normalcy in this situation. So one, I would like to thank all of those people around the world who are doing this and two I think and like I uh said for Sanjay we really all need to come from courage and patience and those two things we need to all exercise as human beings on the face of this earth especially in regards to coronavirus. That's what it takes, you know, it takes approximately 14 days for the quarantine to go on and to spend that time not go stir crazy and it takes, it takes patience so I really well one again I would like to thank all those people who are doing this and and and providing that. Be safe. Obviously you have a lot of courage and please be patient and uh keep doing what you're doing so that the rest of us can go on being and having some form of normalcy in our lives. And again, thank you from me.

"Thank you for the lifeline of wisdom you are sharing. I have a question. Although for many this is a time of forced isolation and for many others, it means being cooped up indoors with an active child, children and no time to yourself and increase stress and irritability. Children don't understand what's going on and want to see their friends and go out and play. I hugely appreciate you parenting advice and perspective. Do you have any advice during this time with love and thanks, Wendy" Well, my advice is children will pick up on your irritation. Don't be irritated. If you are irritated something is wrong. When they start to smell the wrong. It's over. Believe me, it's over. At that point it's like a frustrated parent, you know, picking up a child and going "DO NOT CRY." I mean, that child's going to cry. So calm down. It's okay. They're your children. You're around them. Whatever, engage with them. They have the sweetest way of seeing this whole thing. They don't see the problem. They see much more of a solution. The solution is, why can't we have a good time?

You can have a good time. Coronavirus has no, you know, it doesn't attack good time by any stretch of the imagination. You just have to discover what that good time is and we have gotten so used to these routines of good time that we have forgotten how to tap into good time. There was a time when there was no television. There was a time when there was no form of these entertainment quote unquote. It was a time there was no ipads. There was no iphones. There was no you know cellular phones, there were no these supercomputers, nothing And so what did people do? Well people took it upon themselves and even time of silence was great, was wonderful but now that's looked at as a punishment. I mean it's really, really bizarre but a child you know will do something wrong and it's like we'll go to your room and sit down and think about it. Excuse me, that's a good thing, you're using it as punishment but that's a good thing for somebody to sit down and think think it out think out your day because you're going everything is going so fast. So you may have to reinvent what it what once you and everybody knew but now you have forgotten it, so it's a question of actually reinventing that time with a child and and and and having a good time and and and maybe taking a story and looking at it different ways and understanding different things, sparking the imagine, that's all that a child needs so far their imagination stays sparked, now that's really good but that's what I think anyways now. So it's not like I'm a parenting expert or anything like that so I hope you understand but where I'm coming from and thank you. Thank you for writing.

Here's another question "how can I choose clarity more? how can I choose serenity, kindness, compassion, love more? how can I afford to live a well cared for life of security, peace, joy and happiness that focuses on what is real more and more?" Look, well whoever you are. Thank you. Your name isn't here but that's a good question and the most important thing is that these things that you talk about kindness, compassion, they are in you, they are in you. You know exactly what anger is and what does anger look like? This is this emotion. It comes in and explodes, you turn red, your blood pressure goes up, your heart is pounding, you're mad, you you know, you know exactly what anger is like and after that anger is past you can of course look back and say "yeah that made me angry." Are you that familiar with kindness? You know what hate is like but are you that familiar as you are familiar with hate, are you that familiar with kindness. Are you that familiar with compassion? Are you that familiar with peace? Are you that familiar with joy? Are you that familiar with happiness? If you're not, therein lies the problem. Because you should be. Those things are in you at any given moment. Those things exist in you at any given moment. It's not like you leave your happiness behind. It is not like you leave your compassion behind. It's not like you leave your joy behind wherever you go and whatever you do its right then and there, just like anger. Just like hate, just like confusion. We truly need to understand these other attributes. And when we begin to really understand these attributes then there is something inside of us that will begin to choose those attributes over the attributes that we by default choose now which is anger and fear and everything else.

With so many people with this coronavirus thing, the biggest thing people are afraid, and why are people afraid? Oh what's going to happen to me? when you look at the numbers and I was looking at them this morning, as far more people who have died of natural death than from this coronavirus. Its not right its not good. I'm not saying that but when you look at the numbers in terms of just what happens every day, it's not a huge thing. The numbers are not that big even though they're exponentially growing and growing and growing and this is again a lot of the world leaders are not doing such a good job of leading people but regardless of that what do you think being scared of this thing of coronavirus will do? Absolutely nothing, all you need to do like I said is have that goal: don't give it to someone, don't get it from someone.

So we are very familiar with some attributes that we have but we are not familiar with the other attributes we have. Knowing yourself then truly becomes knowing those attributes as well saying "yes I have anger and I don't like anger but I have compassion. I have joy" and more familiar you get easier it becomes to choose those. Understanding that that's who you are, your value and and and this is an example that I give is: what is the value of a box, of a small box and maybe all that has that box you know all it holds is a ring and the value of the ring is like $200,000 then what is then what is the value of the box? Well maybe the value of the box is $50, $10, $20 whatever but so far that ring is in that box the value of that box is also $200,000. This is what you have to understand. Take out the ring from the box and the value of the box is $50, $5, $10, whatever. So far that ring is in that box. The value of that box is equal to that and then that's the same thing that's happening to you. So far in you there is that thing called life, your value is infinite. Take that away and of course nothing. This is just a box and this is what happens. So be more familiar with those attributes that you have, fall in love with those attributes and then you can enjoy this life more and more and more

Another question. "Thank you Prem. Might you say something to those who have the virus. I have been texting the lockdown clips to many people who don't know you, so fantastic for everyone." Well all I can say is look again the same thing, do this you have the virus ,they've told you you have the virus, be patient, feel good, get good sleep and face this thing with courage. Face this thing with courage, not with fear. Face this thing with courage. You will get better. People want you to get better. But you need to have that hope coming from inside of you. Do this with courage. Do this with patience. Let it run its course. Take the steps that are necessary. Feel well. Take those steps that are necessary and I hope that you have an incredible speedy recovery and that would be wonderful.

Here's somebody who writes uh "Hi Prem, I'd like to thank you for everything that you have shown me and for helping me. My daughter asked me a couple of years ago when she was 7 or 8 dad when I die will I remember you and when you die will you remember me? I didn't want to be a sir(??) so I replied good question but I really don't know. I've been thinking a lot ever since. So the question for me became does the heart have a memory or is it only aware of the moment now?" Um when you love someone and you are with that person, what exactly do you get out of them? What did they bring you when? When? When do you see that person? You love that person. They bring you joy. So what does that mean? Joy. They bring you joy. Well, what does joy look like? Has it got their name stamped on it? or does that just make you feel good? Being with that person, thinking of that person and that's what the heart knows about that feeling, that goodness, that that joy, that that other person might bring. Maybe the catalyst. They're just a catalyst for it. And of course, through whatever. If you have brought joy to each other. She to you and you to her then you will carry that joy without any labels of names, forever. Because the heart is about being full and you may not be taking when you go to somebody's house and you have a wonderful dinner. You don't take that dinner with you wherever you go. After one week, two weeks, three weeks. But you will remember that good time that you had at that dinner and life is like that. So I hope that that answers your question. So I'm not being very specific I know, but the heart is about being full and if she brings joy to you and you bring joy to her and this is what's so important in the relationships that we really understand that that's what it is about you know how can I bring joy to that other person and how can I receive the joy that that other person brings to me? Then it's really just that, just that and that's a gift that you give to her that has no value. Monetarily you could never fix a value to it. The value of it is infinite and the joy that she brings to you, the value of that is infinite. There is no limit to it so I I hope that that helps. So thank you very much and I'll see you all very soon. There's quite a few more questions by the way but we're going to keep the time about the same so I'll see you tomorrow. Thank you.

Lockdown Broadcast Day 8

Hello, everyone. I hope this video finds you all well. And again, just continuing with the questions today.

Another question is, "I'm confined with my wife, my mother-in-law and my daughter, eight-year-old Laura. Laura and me try to get the best of this time and I share with her your thoughts and guidance and she likes it. But my wife and my mother-in-law are quite afraid with anxiety. I would like to help them but I do not know how. Can you help me? Thanks." And this is a question from Pedro.

Good question, Pedro-because I think a lot of people are very afraid of this thing, of what's going to happen. And it's not a big deal. When it really comes down to it, you have to take a few precautions.

Now, this virus is a common-cold virus, from what I have understood. And it really has very mild symptoms, unless you have problems, underlying problems; then it can get quite complicated. This is my understanding of what I have heard from various different doctors.

But basically, if you keep your hands clean and don't touch your face, stay away from the person who possibly is a carrier for this disease, not be in an environment where their sneeze or something like that could be hanging around for a long time, then you really don't have much to worry about.

So it's, if you're in isolation and you're not going out there and you're maintaining your distance, keeping your hands clean and not touching your nose and mouth and eyes, you have very little to be afraid of.

That may be a fact that goes in and makes a difference for a person or doesn't. But really, what they need to understand is "There is still life. And the appreciation that they can have for this life is still important." They'll be okay. If they take precautions, they'll be okay.

But, you know, and maybe in this particular set of circumstances, people get very confused-but hey, you've got to take those precautions when you cross the street!

You know, and a lot of times, when Americans go to England-and they drive on the other side of the road-and, you know, it's quite easy to look the wrong way to see if the traffic is coming. And that's, you know, they see, "Oh, yeah, it's clear," and they step out and they could be stepping out right in front of an oncoming car.

So, precautions, we have to always take. If we don't take those precautions, we don't manage to do or get our job done that we have to do.

So, it really is a question of setting the priorities straight. The priority cannot be to get scared. Because what that does is it'll drag your body down. It wears on you.

And when that happens-I mean, anxiety, people are anxious about something-and they don't sleep well. And that's the worst thing you can do for your immune system. You need to get good sleep for your immune system to be at its peak, so you don't have to.

See, the good news is, you can take precautions-and these precautions will assure you that you won't get it. It's as simple as that. And so there's no reason to be afraid.

"Dear Prem, I have a question. Please, what can we offer, especially our children and grandchildren in times like these, apart from each other, kindness, love and empathy?" This is from Barbara, from Vienna.

Hello, Barbara. Good question. "What can we offer them?" The first thing-our family that we are maybe in lockdown with, one thing I wanted to tell you is, "Give everybody elbow room. Give everybody some space." This is one of those things that, if we don't do that, (especially if we are locked up in a house or a relatively small space), it can truly, truly drive everybody crazy.

So, please, take that kindness and make it mean something. And not just, "Oh, yeah, I'm going to be kind to you." But make it mean something. And the way you can make it mean something is to give each other empathy, give each other that space that is very, very, very, very important.

So, I just, you know-and truly enjoy each other's company, instead of sitting there and trying to find faults with each other. Because families have a way of doing that spectacularly. They just sit there and, "No, now that's not how you do it. That's wrong; this is that," dah-dat-dat-dat, dah…. And this just drives everybody crazy.

Instead of doing that, give everybody space; give everybody respect. You know, we're so eager to respect everybody outside of our family circle-but this is really a good time to give each other some respect, give each other some space, give each other some empathy, give each other some sympathy when it's necessary.

Give each other an understanding. And appreciate each other's company. When you appreciate something, something beautiful actually takes place.

And you need to appreciate each other's company because, in fact, you do like each other. You don't express it, but you do like each other. So, it's a wonderful time to really do that, when you are in that situation, when it's a lockdown situation.

"My question is, I am on some chat groups and people are having a difficult time and coming from a place of 'doom and gloom.' I want to share my thoughts with them about the beauty that we have-but I am a bit concerned that, because they have a very different perspective than me, they will not appreciate it. I don't want to offend anybody by seemingly making light of the current situation.

"Do I share my thoughts and feelings only with those who I know share my perspective-or do I try to share with those who don't?" And this is from David. I don't know where you are from, David, but, great question.

And the reason why it's a good question is because, you know, "Do you let people know the good news?" You don't have to make light of it; it's a serious situation for a lot of people.

And it is a serious situation. Because this is one of those viruses that, even though it's in the family of viruses we get as a common cold-but this is one that we had never experienced before. This one hadn't made that jump-and this one has made that jump.

And this is not the time for blaming each other or, you know, getting into that kind of stuff. But this is the time to really take everything one step at a time!

And the "doom and gloom" situation, people always want to paint that. You know, my suggestion to you would be, "Try; see how it goes." Maybe you don't get one hundred percent; maybe you get ten percent; maybe you get five percent, people who appreciate the message which is positive.

That would be wonderful. Because this is not the time of doom and gloom. I mean, there is no point in sitting there and lamenting, "My boat is sinking; my boat is sinking; my boat is sinking; my boat is sinking." That's not going to stop the boat from sinking! Do something; for God's sake, do something.

And one of the most important things is to have a realistic perspective on this situation; weigh out all the bits and pieces, not just one thing.

Because, look, I say this many times. It's like, you're driving a car-and you see a sign and it says, "Speed limit," you know, "fifty miles an hour" or whatever. What do you do?

Do you take your head and stick it on top of the speedometer and say, "Well, that's the limit-and it didn't talk about limit of 'left' and 'right' and this and that or, you know, hitting another car. No, I'm just going to make sure that I'm driving exactly fifty miles an hour-and hone in on that."

Well, that's going to definitely get you into an accident. And that's what happens sometimes; people just zoom in on one thing.

And, you know, it's like, I always question this one thing, "Why is it that people love to watch horror movies?" I mean, some of them are really grotesque. But some people enjoy that-they enjoy getting scared. And it's like a "safe scary" thing, but they love being scared.

And so, maybe it's another thing that's just playing out for people, "Oh, it's like, yeah, the doom and the gloom of it all. And it's like, terrible and this is horrible and-we're all going to die and, you know, I…."

But the thing is, human beings have gone through a lot. There have been plagues; there have been things that the medical science wasn't there to even help out with. We are in a much, much better situation. At least, we can understand this. And we have a way to be able to understand this.

Now, are all the governments doing what they're supposed to be doing? I don't think so. And that-I'm not here to criticize them. We need to just get through this period. And that's what's important.

And so, yeah, "doom and gloom" is not what it's about. I know there are people; I come across them all the time-you pull over to a stoplight and there's, music is playing. And it's not coming from my car; it's coming from another car.

They certainly are upbeat about their music and they want the whole world to hear it! I mean, they've got their windows rolled down; they're just going at it. And it's like, "Look what I've got. And I'm playing this song…."

You enjoy. You enjoy yourself, first of all. You enjoy this message; great, enjoy it. You don't want to be part of the "doom and gloom," then don't be.

And, you know, if you want to help people, sure, help them out. Maybe they will appreciate it; maybe they won't. If they don't, shut up. And if they do, keep going. It's as simple as that. (Maybe I made it sound too simple.) So, I hope that helps.

Another one is, "My question is, 'how to recognize that you are slipping back into unconsciousness before it takes hold-and you're swept away into the drama and emotions?' Thank you." From Karen.

Hello, Karen. A great question. It's a great question; this-and I'm telling you, this is relative to the situation that we are facing today. And this is very relevant in terms of every day that we live.

So, question is, "How do we recognize-you are slipping back into unconsciousness?" Because you're going too fast. Things are happening too fast; slow down. Slow down. Take it one step at a time. That's how life is meant to be lived.

Just because the world has gone on this tweak of, "Let's see how much you can do, how advanced you can be, how much you can accomplish…." You know, look, I used to be one of those people who used to advocate 150 percent, 200 percent. The reality is, there is no such thing as 200 percent.

My understanding since then is, "Take it easy, one step at a time. What are you doing? What are you about to do?" Give it some thought. That's what consciousness is about. "What am I experiencing? What am I feeling? Where am I headed? What are the consequences of what I am about to do?"

If people could do that, my God, all of a sudden, you wouldn't have a need for prisons. You wouldn't have a need for all these, you know, guns coming out and all these things that keep on happening.

If people could just have that in their life, very simple: "Slow down. Take it easy. Do things eyes wide open, not eyes closed. Understand what you are about to do." And these are the ways. Because when that speed comes, that's what speed does; it makes you blind to the obviousness of what you are about to do.

What a great way to practice this-what a great way to practice this every day that you are in the lockdown, because you can afford to slow down. You don't have to-well, what are you going to speed up for? You know, there's no reason to.

So, great question; "Slow down." And look at it and assess what you're doing, assess what's going on. Be cognizant of things that you are about to do-instead of just doing them and then looking at the consequences later. So, I hope that helps.

Okay, here is another one that has to do with "the consequences of unconsciousness is doom." "Is it possible the extent of the doom can make it impossible to experience the joy in the now? Needless to say, I found myself in a deep hole. Michelle."

Look, I'm sorry you found yourself in a deep hole. You shouldn't be. Because had you been conscious, you could have avoided it.

You know, the whole issue isn't-in life, the whole issue isn't about making things disappear, making your problems disappear. It's really about going around them, learning the art of going around your problem, around….

You know, you don't have to look at the mountain and say, "Well, I've got to go over that mountain." No, find a way around that problem. So much easier, so much nicer, so much more doable. And that's how it should be.

So, don't be unconscious-because that's not what life wants you to be! Life wants you to be very conscious-and appreciating, every day, everything that is happening around you.

I don't know if I've ever really said that "the consequences of unconsciousness is doom"-but I do agree that it's pretty darn close to it.

And always understand one thing. There is nothing that you cannot change. You have a choice. At any given moment, you can always come down from the mountain and say, "Okay, I'll find a way around this mountain; I'll find a way around my problems; I'll find a way around these issues."

This is a choice you can always make-always make. And would it be a waste of time? No, it actually may save you a lot more time than you realize.

So, I hope that helps. And please, don't be in a deep hole; don't be in a pickle. You can come out of it. And you figured out how to get into it; you can figure out how to get out of it. And then, once you do? Most important thing is, "avoid, avoid, avoid."

So, that's all the time we have for today. I'll talk to you tomorrow. Thank you.

Lockdown Broadcast Day 9

Hello, everyone. I hope you're doing well under the circumstances-I know that there are some people who are watching this video, who are going to be watching this video who are infected. I hope it's not too bad for you.

Serious times, serious issues-but the issues of feeling well are still relevant, of feeling good is still relevant, of feeling safe is still relevant, of feeling well is still relevant.

"So, isn't it just, shouldn't it be all about just this problem?" No, because this is a problem which can absolutely go out of proportion for us.

If we don't look at it in correct proportions-and the proportions are, "Yes, it's serious. But at the same time, there is something else going on. There's also another urgency besides this pandemic, this coronavirus pandemic. And that is your life, your existence. You."

This is a hiccup in your journey of life, your understanding, your road-and the destination that you have chosen for yourself. So the question, of course, becomes, "What is it that you have chosen?" There are many, many ideas; there are many, many issues-but right now, things that truly matter are things that you can do something about.

Because this is not…. You know, in a way, you can't do much about the disease itself and the way it spreads and so on and so forth. But you can, of course, take the precautions so it doesn't get you.

And that's something that can be very empowering-for yourself! Wash your hands; maintain that distance. You know, don't give it and don't get it from other people.

Of course, first, try not to get it-but if you do get it, well, still come with the sense of courage and clarity and understanding. That's still required. And those are the things that I want to talk about.

So, to me, it's not an issue of, "Can I stop the earthquake?" No, but I can help you strengthen the house. And that's what's important, so if the earthquake comes or the earthquake is there, at least, the house is strong enough, flexible enough that it'll take whatever comes its way.

And this is what we need to talk about; this is what we need to understand. Because, what have you got? Take a look at the basics-absolutely, the basics. You have life! You still, under the circumstances-you still have this wonderful thing called "existence."

You exist! You are! You can feel. You can understand. You have a heart. You still favor kindness over hate. You still favor joy over pain, over suffering. You still favor clarity over doubt-you still do that because of who you are, of you being a human being.

Maybe you didn't come with an instruction manual, but you sure came with a whole bunch of preferences. And you prefer that beautiful serenity over the turmoil of this world.

It is the sense: "Finally, we have to be in control of us!" And what do I mean by that? Because all day long we go around abdicating the responsibility of our wellbeing to somebody else. "Oh, the doctor will take of me. Oh, so-and-so will take care of me; the government will take care of me."

Right now, some of the leaders, (now, not all of them, of course), but some of the leaders are so twanged-out. I mean, they're just, they have checked out. It's incredible. It's unbelievable.

There are people who are working overtime-in the healthcare industry, people who are working-and they're being applauded and I applaud them. And they're having to bear the consequences of the decisions of some of these leaders who have no idea what they're talking about, no idea what they're doing.

But finally, here is the chance to understand one thing. And that this is not the time to blame-anybody. But it is time to take charge of your existence.

I have been saying that, not today-all along: "You need to take charge of your life. You are the angel that has come who's going to save you." But I've been saying that so many times. But now there is no question about it-and absolutely no question about it. Will your technology save you? Absolutely not.

You know, buying a new phone isn't going to save you anymore. Somebody introduces something different; that isn't going to make any difference.

Right now, you're back to simple basics. "What?" Maintain the six-feet distance; wash your hands. Isolate, isolate, isolate. "Wow. You mean, right now, no government can help me if I don't isolate?" No. "I need to wake up to the possibility of me?" Yes. "Do I need to get my program right?" Yes.

"And how am I going to make it tolerable, this isolating period, you know, and everything else?" Well, that's what you have to do!

So now, the question will come, "Oh, by the way, do you know who you are?" And this is why I say, you know, three things. If you could do three things: "Know yourself; live your life consciously…."

And this has become a big issue, "live your life consciously." Not only do you get to live your life, but you have to live it consciously. You have to be very aware of, "What am I touching; what am I doing? Oh, who is that; where is that and well, and what's going on?"

"Live your life consciously." And third, "Have gratitude in your life." Because that makes it possible to tolerate all this-to have gratitude. To feel thankful in this heart-even in the midst of all this, to feel, "Wow, I'm still alive." And every day that I am alive, to be thankful. To actually appreciate.

So, here is the whole essence of it-you! And you have to come-and yet, it's almost like you have to mature. And maybe for something like this, you know, we would-of course, we pass on the responsibility to somebody else. It's like, "It's, somebody else will take care of me."

You know, there are a lot of people-and they're just like, "Oh, yeah, well, I'll just, you know, I'll take care of all my problems if I just walk into the church." "And I'll take care of all my problems; I'll go to the temple and I will, you know, do prostration in front of the idol and everything will be fine." But now you can't go there. So what are you going to do?

How incredibly convenient that the one you need to pray to is right within inside of you. Brilliant. I mean, brilliant. So, come this kind of problem, not an issue. That the ocean of serenity is inside of you-brilliant, brilliant! That the ocean of clarity is inside of you, brilliant.

And this is the time to know and to understand and to feel that one thing: "That there is a drop in the ocean, everyone knows. But there is an ocean in the drop, only a few know." This is the time to find that ocean in the drop, because that drop that Kabir is talking about is you. Is you! Find that ocean in this drop.

And right now, all of the buzz that's going on, that's got to stop. You need to know facts. Not fiction. Every step that you take needs to be with facts, not fiction.

You need to be clear; you need to-really, this is the time to understand the value of clarity. This is the time to understand the value of being conscious. This is the time to understand the value of being complete-and this the time to understand the value of being and coming from strength, not weakness. Because you make those mistakes-and the coronavirus will have its field day with you.

The ideal situation? Yes, that's what would be the ideal situation, is that you could avoid the pandemic. And then, maintain your health till some solution is-they find a vaccine or something like that and then, you know, sort that out. That would be the ideal solution, but some people can't wait that long; they already have it.

But again, you have…. See, you know, you have to understand, there is a doctor in you too, by the way-of all the things you have in you, you have a doctor in you too-and a laboratory that's constantly performing the tests, saying, "Ah! I don't know that one. I don't know that coronavirus; I'm going to have to come up with antibodies for that coronavirus."

And that's the first doctor that comes in a first response. And what are they doing? In a lot of places where they see that, you know, you've got these, the symptoms, they send you, "Well, go home and isolate yourself." Well, this is so that your doctor can heal you.

But that doctor works the best when you're coming from strength, when you're coming from happiness, when you're coming from joy, when you're coming from clarity, even under the dire circumstances.

And this is so powerful; this is such a powerful time. Because everything that I have been saying kind of plays out.

And I'm not saying like, "I was right and you're wrong"-and that's not my point. But my point is, "Take heed of what I am saying. Take heed of what I'm saying, because what I have been saying is going to help you now." And those people who have been taking heed of that, they know what I am talking about.

So, that goodness in you has to get sparked. That goodness in you has to come out. Those two wolves that fight in you-the good wolf has to get fed. Now is not the thing of just, you know, doing the experimenting of, you know, "What happens if I feed the bad wolf?" Well, no, this is the time to feed the good wolf, period.

This is not the time for the questions; this is not the time for all the million different issues; this is the time to know. This is not the time for believing; this is the time for "Know; know the value of knowing."

This is the time for you to emerge, to mature within yourself. In your understanding, to grow. In your understanding-and finding yourself, knowing yourself, living your life consciously and having a heart full of gratitude. To me, this sounds like a winning formula, an incredibly good winning formula.

So, be safe; be well. Be. And I'll see you again. Thank you.

Lockdown Broadcast Day 10

"How fortunate you are that you're the caretaker of the most magnificent gift there ever can be-and it's called 'life.' It's called 'a human being'-that aspires to be free, to be content, to be in peace. Be in peace. Be in joy. Fulfill those aspirations of the heart. And you, too, will see the value of life." - Prem Rawat Audio

Prem Rawat:

Hello, hello, hello, everyone. I hope you're all well, safe-and healthy in this time of coronavirus.

So, I'd like to just talk a little bit about, you know, so much that I hear all day long that goes on-a lot of uncertainty, a lot of bad decisions being taken. On one hand, yes, all these things that are happening out there affect us; of course they do. And some of those bad decisions, of course, affect us.

Because you look at the United States; it's number one now. For the wrong reasons, it's number one. And when you look at the population of China versus the population of the United States, it's a lot less than China. And they actually did fare better. (And just, yeah, I'm just looking at numbers, okay; I'm not looking at political situations.)

So, we have to make some decisions for ourselves. And what decisions are those that we have to make? Well, under the circumstances, I cannot guarantee many things. But I can guarantee one thing to myself-that I will feel well within me. This I can guarantee.

Because I can do something about that. I may not be able to do anything about coronavirus; I may not be able to do anything about the testing; I may not be able to do anything about a million other things, the economy, the this, the that. But whatever happens, wherever I end up, wherever the situations end up….

Because, you know, it's not easy. And everybody would love to know; everybody would love to say, "Yeah, this is where it'll be." But it's very difficult, because it's just one mistake after another mistake after another mistake-and I'm sure they're going to keep on making the mistakes.

But a long time ago, when the Arab Spring began and I was meeting some political figures-I was in Italy-and this lady I remember, she was very touched by everything that was going on with the Arab Spring. And she said, "How are people going to survive? How are people going to be okay? This is so bad."

And I said, "That's the only thing, ultimately, that ends up being okay-are the people. We have continued to be. Many regimes, many kings, many emperors have come and gone; many civilizations have come and gone, but ultimately, we have survived."

And that's a pretty big statement. You know, when you look at these mighty empires that have fallen-but people have gone on. And they have morphed; they have allowed themselves to exist.

So, what can I do? Well, first of all, I have to come from strength, not weakness. Because weakness is not going to allow me to see the possibilities that might exist at that point in time. And the second, most important thing-you have to be flexible.

Last night, this is what I was thinking about-it's like, you see these trees. And there are trees that are very rigid; they don't flex-and they break! They're gone; they're done. And those trees that are flexible in the wind, in the storm, survive-because they can flex, because they can bend, because they can move.

Now, of course, you know, the way we see ourselves is like, "Well, I'm not mobile; I am this-and this is who I am." We want to see ourselves as a rock. But when that storm comes, that's not the best thing to be. The best thing to be is to be flexible. Now, I'll give you an example.

When I was in Brazil-of course, I left Spain and I flew to Brazil. And the reason why I left Spain is to go to Argentina-and then after Argentina, I was supposed to go to Uruguay. And everything was set-and we were going to do some events and, you know, "going to visit a prison and all that was going to be great."

So I was looking forward to that. And I flew from Barcelona, flew to Brazil. And I was in Brazil. And then all of a sudden, (it was like, I think, the second day), I was supposed to go. And all of a sudden, it was like, "No, nobody's coming into Argentina; it's a lockdown."

"Wow. What's going to happen now? Can we go to Uruguay? Naah, I don't want to go to Uruguay because I don't want to do an event and have all these people coming to see me…. And that could really, you know, trigger a coronavirus thing. And so, you know, I don't want that, the COVID-19; I don't want that."

So I decided not to go. "So, what am I going to do? Maybe they'll lift this; maybe something will happen."

And it was so frustrating. Because it was like, "Okay, let's go to Africa then; let's go to South Africa." "No, you can't go to South Africa," because by the time they found out that, you know, we could go to South Africa, then the next day it came out, "You can't go to South Africa because they're going into a lockdown."

And I was like, "Well, wait a minute. What am I going to do? What am I going to do?" And then all of a sudden, I realized that the situation was so fluid-it was like water. It was just changing, changing, changing, changing, changing, changing, changing….

And you know, change is one of those things. Most people are afraid of a change. They don't understand what that change is all about and so they're like, "I don't want to change. I don't want things to change."

Well, in that moment, believe me, I didn't want things to change; I had a plan. And, you know, my plan involved a lot of things. It wasn't just me. It was all the people in Argentina who were going to come and see me; it involved those people; it involved a whole crew that was going to go down there for the stage setup, for the microphone setup, for the audio, video, all that setup that needed to happen.

And then, all the permissions that had been gotten for the prison, for my visit there. So, it was just this huge preparation that was afoot. And they had been waiting for a very, very long time for me to come. But it's like, "Okay, stop. Look at the situation. It's not going according to your 'plan,' quote-unquote, 'plan.'" What is that plan?

You know, we have a camera-and the camera is here. And this camera makes pictures. I didn't say "takes" pictures, mind you; I said it "makes" pictures. So this camera up here makes pictures. And these pictures are very, very powerful. They are not to be underestimated-and they are the root reason why I have expectations, because of these pictures that are created here.

So, first, first, reaction, "Try to make it happen." It's not going to happen; it's out of your control. The situation is so fluid, you've got to become like water.

Now, you know, when you're packing and traveling, packing, you have to be very careful of liquids. Because even if you don't tighten a cap completely tight, it will leak out-because that is the nature of liquid. It requires so little space; it is so fluid that it'll take any opportunity that it gets and it'll escape. It'll go where it wants to go.

So, all of a sudden, it was like, "Wait a minute. Why am I fighting all this? Because what I really need to do is be as fluid as the situation requires. Then there is no problem." Then there is absolutely no problem.

Now, as a pilot, we do this all the time. I mean, if there is a thunderstorm sitting on your airway, you don't stress. You go, "I'm going to go around it." You take a look at your radar, take a look at your satellite picture and make a, you know, good, informed decision of which way best to go around that.

You'll take a look at the wind. And if the wind is blowing one way, you don't want to go downwind of that thunderstorm. If you can, go upwind. And if you go downwind, you may have to go for quite a while to get around it.

And you make a good, informed decision. You know, see if you're going to top it, not top it; "Do you need to go around?" And of course, it's not a good idea to try to top it.

If it's just a small thunderstorm, it doesn't matter. But if it's a big one, you know, and you lost an engine or something; you're on top of it-then you have to go down? And what are you going to do? Because down below is something you don't want to get into.

So, what you do is you go around, go around it. So, I realized, "I have to be fluid; I have to go-I have to work with this situation. The situation isn't going to work with me; I have to work with it." And then it just all started to make sense. It's like, "Yeah. In my life, that's the way it is. I have to be fluid."

Now, easy enough said under these circumstances. But when these circumstances are not there, do I understand that I have to be fluid then, too?

Or am I just sitting there making pictures-this camera up here is making pictures, not taking pictures, making pictures-and these pictures are pretty powerful pictures. I want things to be a certain way-and that's it! "If it doesn't work out that way, it's terrible."

And, you know, so, there are people who are going to say, "Well, you know, the rich and the powerful, they have that picture and they work for it." Yeah, some of the rich and powerful have destroyed their entire fortune because of that picture in their head. And it goes on every day. It goes on every day. The picture gets created. And then it's like, "I will try to make it happen the way this picture is."

But it's not about that. It's not about making that picture happen. There is something else that has already been created and taken-there is a picture that has already been taken. And that picture is your wellness, your safety, your strength, your courage. You see, that's the whole thing.

Everybody in this world knows about all the negatives that you have in you. You know about those; no questions asked, you know about the anger; you know about the fear; you know about the doubt; you know about the uncertainty. Nobody in this world has to explain those to you.

But you don't know about these other things that you have. And unfortunately, these other things are really, really powerful. Kindness-to yourself first. Because unless that kindness is working for you, you're not going to be able to be kind to others.

I know you want to be kind to others, because that's the doctrine that you have been preached. But the way it begins is first, that kindness has to be for you. First thing, the clarity, before you can put out any clarity for somebody else, that clarity has to be there for you!

Otherwise, if you are not able to see…. You know, what good does it do for a driver if everybody else can see fine, but the driver can't see? How long is that bus ride going to last; how long is that car ride going to last? How long is it going to be that that flight is going to be safe, if the pilot cannot see but everybody else can see just fine?

So, and you know, this is the caution that they have for the oxygen masks: "If you have a baby or if you have a child, first put your mask on. Because if you pass out because of the lack of oxygen, you will never be able to help that little child."

So, you have to have that clarity first-you have to have that kindness first; you have to have that understanding first-and then and then only will you be able to effect it for somebody else.

So, this is what it becomes; this is what it is all about. You, as a human being, have these traits; you have these strengths. But because, whatever-you know, maybe nobody taught you that you had these strengths. But you know you have them. Well, this is the time to use them.

And if you do, if you come with clarity, if you come with understanding, if you come, not with doubt, but just clear, then I don't see a problem. In the long run of it, I don't see a problem. You will be able to make steps-especially those pictures that get created in your mind, if you were to be able to put them aside.

It happens-I see it everywhere, everywhere! I mean, I give this as an example. And one time it was my grandson's birthday, and we had gotten him some presents that we were saving for the later part of his birthday party. And we had gotten him some presents that he got to open before.

He comes to me and he goes, "That's the worst birthday I have ever had." And I'm like, "Whoa." You know, and then when he opened his really neat presents, he was like, "Oh, no, okay, this is a good birthday."

Where did that come from? Because he had something in his brain, in his mind, of how his birthday should be-and it wasn't going according to that plan; it had changed.

You look at people who get married-and there used to be a whole show; it was called Bridezillas. And, you know, brides gone crazy because they have this idea of how the whole wedding should be-and it wasn't going according to the plan.

So this camera that you have up there, makes some pretty powerful pictures. And then you try to weigh everything against that: "How is that; how is that; how is that; how is that; how is that?" And that's how your world revolves.

So, even in these circumstances, it's kind of a little bit funny. Because right now, you didn't know what to expect, so this thing wasn't really producing any kind of pictures. But now it slowly, as time wears on, starts producing pictures: "This is how it should be; this is how it should be; this is how it should be."

You know, why can't families come together and tolerate each other-because of the pictures! "I expect this of you; I expect this of you and I expect this of you," and it's all about expectations.

Put those aside and all of a sudden, you have a very fluid human being and you have a very fluid situation-that can move, that can change, that can go with it. And that's who you are. This is your possibility. This is what you can be.

You don't have to be this other being that is confused all the time, that is wondering and puzzled and bewildered and, you know, looking at anything of "where is that planet and where is this and where is that? And how does that work and how does that work and how does that…?" No, you don't have to be that.

You can come from strength; you can come from clarity-and whatever the situation and whatever curveballs the situation throws at you, I want you to know that you have enough strength that you can tolerate any curveball coronavirus or anything throws at you. You can endure it; you can take care of yourself; you can be. You can be safe.

Of course, that's between the two walls-that's between the two walls, that's the possibility. And your life, your existence should mean everything to you, because it is. It is the most precious gift, most beautiful gift that has been given to you, that already has been given to you-and you're the caretaker.

How fortunate you are that you're the caretaker of the most magnificent gift there ever can be-and it's called "life." It's called "a human being"-that aspires to be free, that aspires to be content, that aspires to be in peace.

Be in peace. Be in joy. Fulfill those aspirations of the heart-and you too will see the value of life.

So, again, hope you feel good. Be safe and be well. And be. Thank you.

Lockdown Broadcast Day 11

Hello, everyone. I hope everyone is well, doing well. And what I want to talk about today is about feeling hope, feeling good.

Because that's something you can do. You don't have to feel victimized by this; you don't have to feel like "Oh my God, you know, this is the most horrible thing"-even though it is! It is the most horrible thing.

But you don't have to be victimized by it. You can understand that you are the source of your own treasure. And you have a tremendous amount of treasure in you. You have hope in you; you have clarity in you; you have understanding in you. And these are the things you have to dig up now-for real. I mean, what other option do you have?

So, something has to happen; something like reality has to hit. I mean, here it is! You know, so what are you going to do? Things are not looking that good. You know, we're almost, not quite-you know, we're at the 800,000-plus mark, very rapidly approaching a million people.

And a huge death rate-not that bad, but still, one is too many, in my opinion. And there's a lot of bad news out there, "Oh, this is terrible; that's terrible and everything…." And yeah, there is-you know, we rely so much on world leaders to see us out of these pickles and these….

And some of the, some leaders are good, no question about it. But some leaders are out to lunch and they have not come back and they're not coming back anytime soon. Because everything they do, they're just more confused and more confused-I mean, truly, there's no leadership in some places.

So, what happens next? You know, you have to stay isolated; the situation is not that good. "Where is the money going to come from? Where is the job security going to come from? Where are all these things going to come from?" Well, good questions. Truly, truly good questions.

And what can I do? I can't open up a factory somewhere and try to offer jobs to people-I wish I could. So, what do I do; what can I do? Well, maybe I can help you tap into a source of hope, a source of clarity, a source of understanding, a source of the light that is in you.

So, not that it's going to answer all your questions. But you, as a human being, will be far more fulfilled, better prepared to move forward, better prepared to take on this coronavirus, better prepared, in fact, to take on whatever might come your way.

And that would be a wonderful thing. That would be a wonderful thing. Because in life, bad things do happen. Things that are not wanted, things that we don't like, they do happen. And when they do happen, you know, we get stumped, where it's like, "Oh my God, now what's going to happen?"

And that's the obvious question, "Now what's going to happen? I'm ruined; I'm destroyed; I'm this; I'm that." And we can-it's so easy for us to take on the negative side of things. And maybe we say, "Well, but that's the reality."

But there is another reality. And I would like to point out that reality to you. Under this dismal situation, under this incredible darkness, what you really need is a beacon, is a light. And there is one. And that's the good news; there is one.

And that beacon, that light is in you. You are the source. You are that angel that has come, that can save-you, you! You are that beacon that you're looking for, that little hope, that little knowing, "Okay, there, there, there it is."

And, you know, when you go out in the ocean, when you can see the land it's a whole different feeling; it's a whole different feeling-you can see the land. You know exactly where you are: "Okay, there is that. And if something happens, that's the way we'll end up with; that's the way we'll go."

But then when you get out further-no land-and all you see is water, water, water, water everywhere. Water, water, water everywhere. And it all looks the same! Of course, it all looks the same. "So, where are we going?"

Well, at that moment, there is something that you have to look at. And if you don't have anything fancy or something like that, but if you have a compass-because that compass is always pointing to that magnetic north.

What is that magnetic north? That is telling you, "There, the north is that way. And if your course is east (090), then steer 090 and you will go east-180 and you'll go south, 270 and you'll go west. You want to go north? No problem; follow the compass."

Do you have a compass? Yes, you do. You have a compass within you. Not here. But here-the compass that always points to what the reality truly is. The reality? The reality is "You are alive." The reality is "You exist."

And so far you exist, you have incredible hope. You can accomplish anything you want! Anything that is not favorable to you, you can change it. This is the possibility.

And one of the examples I give-things didn't go very well for Ram. You know, a few thousand years ago-and things did not go well for him. He, the day-and you've already heard the story-the day he was supposed to be christened the king, he was instead told, "No, you're not going to be crowned the king-but you have to go and be exiled for fourteen years."

He'd recently just gotten married-and he said to his wife; he says, "Well, okay, I won't see you for fourteen years." And she said, "No way. I'm coming with you." Looked at his brother and his younger brother, he said, "Well, I'm coming with you too."

So, that's bad enough, right? So, you're not going to be king and you've got to go out into the jungle for fourteen years…. Okay, now you don't have any technology. You've got to go out in this jungle; where are you going? No, to no particular place. Just wandering around, finding food, literally, just from the trees, bushes-berries, fruits, vegetables, whatever he can get hold of. You're in exile!

Does it get worse? Well, of course it gets worse. Well, what happens? Well, what happens is, in the midst of all this, Sita gets stolen, kidnapped by Ravan and gets taken to Lanka. Now, Ram doesn't even know where he's taken her.

So, finally he meets some people who say, "Okay, you know, she's in Lanka; this is where Ravan has taken her, so why don't you go there?" So he goes.

And you think that's bad enough? No! Now, what's he going to do? This king, Ravan, the king of Lanka, he is mighty; he's powerful! How is he going to take him on? He's got an army; Ram doesn't have an army.

Ram doesn't have an army; Ravan has a huge army. And not only that; the army, Ravan's army is made up of monsters! And so, how is Ram going to even take this challenge on?

So, things get worse and worse and worse and worse and worse, but Ram doesn't lose that hope. He doesn't succumb to it. He keeps his head above the water-and he finally gets an army together.

And he-don't start laughing but it is hilarious-the army that Ram gets together is made of monkeys and bears. (Oh my.) And they don't have the technology to make a bridge, so they take rocks-and they get them to float so that they can walk across the barrier to Lanka, to this island.

Never losing hope becomes so important-and there is no reason to lose hope; that's why you need that compass, the compass that's always pointing to that one direction, saying, "There it is! There it is; there is your beacon; there is your light; there is; there it is." And you don't need to lose. You don't need to succumb; you don't need to give in to all of this negativity.

You know, and a lot of times, you know, we come across all that negativity, "Oh, this is a problem; that's a problem," people start to get scared. And now you realize that, you know, social media is no help, no help whatsoever for this. And you have to make those decisions; you have to figure out what is fake, what is real.

And I'm not here to tell you about the bad; I'm here to tell you about the good-always, to tell you that there is that possibility in your life that you can be fulfilled. There is the possibility in your life that you can go forward.

Always, always, so far this breath is in you, keep moving forward. How incredible is that? How amazing is that, that even in this time of where you would lose all hope….

And a lot of people, I'm sure, are sitting there going, "Oh my God, you know, this is the biggest fiasco that ever hit." Maybe it is the biggest fiasco. That just means, that much more, you have to push.

And talking about pushing, you know-you realize what you went through when you were born? Do you have any idea what you went through when you were born?

And somebody told me, it's like a rocket taking off, a huge rocket taking off; that much energy has to be put forth-you, the baby puts forth to get out of the mother's womb.

The transition that you have to make-literally, what maybe took millions of years, to go from totally being submerged in water to oxygen, has to happen in a matter of a few hours.

And the stakes are incredibly high. The stakes are incredibly high. And everything is against you. In a way, everything is against you; you are fragile; you're weak; you have never been in this world before.

And talk about unknown; you're stepping-are you stepping into a total unknown? Absolutely. You have no idea. Your brain isn't working yet, not the way it should be, where you can make decisions and so on and so forth. It's just a feeling and you go for it.

And it takes this incredible amount of energy. And you come out. And from having all that water and surviving on the mother, from the mother, from that, through that umbilical cord, you have to now do everything yourself. You have to now breathe for yourself.

So, the reason why I'm telling you this? You are no stranger to challenges. You are no stranger to challenges. And take on this challenge-and even in the midst of this incredible darkness, find your light. Find your joy; find your hope, find your understanding; find your clarity; find your heart.

And exist-and be! And not only be, but thrive! Feel good! Be. And be thankful. Three things-"Know yourself, live your life consciously-and have a heart full of gratitude." Don't forget those. Don't forget those. That's very, very important.

Know who you are-why? So that you know that these treasures are within you. That'll give you more power; that will empower you more to move forward. That's what you need to do.

You know, instead of going stir-crazy, like, "Oh my God, you know, where am I going to go…?" And the mind comes in and it's like, "Oh, yeah, I want to go there; I want to go there; I want to go there; I want to go there; I want to go there."

Hey, you are the creator of your circumstances. Either you create a heaven for yourself-or you can create a hell for yourself. It's up to you. My recommendation? Create a heaven for yourself. Whilst you're at it, create a heaven for yourself. Enjoy! Enjoy yourself, enjoy being! Enjoy existence.

Give it a thought; give it a thought-the earth is just cruising at thousands and thousands of miles an hour and there you are, totally protected. All is well.

Be. Understand. This breath is coming in you-your power, the mightiest of all things.

So, I hope you have a great day-a wonderful day. Be; be safe; be healthy; be well. And most importantly, be.

I'll see you again. Thank you.

Lockdown Broadcast Day 12

Hello, everyone. I hope you're all well. I hope you're, under the circumstances, enjoying yourself. Because the true enjoyment has not been locked out; that true enjoyment is always with you. The peace that you are looking for is always with you. And it's a question of truly understanding what is going on, what is happening.

So, you can look at it, "Well, gee, I'm locked down; I'm in lockdown; I have got this situation; you know, I've got this problem; we've got the coronavirus thing happening," and I mean, everything that, you know, comes with it.

And I can understand people getting angry and getting upset. Blaming-blame game: "That guy did that; that guy did that; that guy did that; that guy did that." And of course, easy to blame. And especially the world leaders, that the way they've been, so many of them-not all of all them, but most of them, the way they've been acting is of complete idiots, you know?

And so, what can you do? Whether they have to bear the brunt of it or not, but common people have to. And, you know, give a thought for the poor people; I mean, what have they got? Nothing. Nothing. The way this world is, poor people have got the worst deal you can possibly imagine.

And yet, this is who we are. Everything that we have got in this shopping center, we don't get to take with us. We came empty-handed-and empty-handed we have to go. None of these assets, none of these things, we will ever take. We don't think ourselves as poor-but just like a poor man, that's how we're going to go, not going to take anything with you.

And so, looking at this, understanding all this, what can you do; what is possible? So, what is possible, that's always been possible-it doesn't require money; it doesn't require assets; it doesn't require anything-but it just requires you. That you have these wonderful, wonderful, wonderful assets that are truly yours. Nobody can steal them or a thief cannot come into a room and steal.

There's a story-it's a Zen story and I really like it. Because one time this Master came to his little hut and he realized that a thief had been there and taken all his valuable things. Of course, he didn't say anything and he sat down by the chair by the window. He opened the window-and it was the most magnificent view. The moon was rising, the stars…. It was just gorgeous.

And he said, "Hah-hah! The thief forgot to take the most valuable possession I have."

And I really like that story. Because that, that the heart can appreciate, that you as a human being can truly appreciate, that's what's important; that's what's real. Everything else is in a constant flux of change. It's going to change because that's its nature.

What is our nature, in a way? And it's really not our nature; it's our misunderstanding-and our misunderstanding is, we don't want things to change. We want things to stay exactly as they are. I mean, just look at the industry-and this huge industry of, yeah, "anti-aging industry." They want to make you look exactly how you are not-young.

Young? When you're young, who cares? You know, you've got a face full of zits and it's like, "Okay, that's how it is." Then you get old and you see one wrinkle-and it's like, "Oh my God, oh! No, and my wrinkles are coming; I've got to…." And then you've got an "anti-wrinkle cream."

You know, in India, they have this cream; it's called "Fair and Lovely." So, I was doing an interview with a television station. They asked me; they said, "Oh, you walk in and you're so radiant. How, how come you're so radiant?" I said, (hah!), "Because I use that cream, 'Fair and Lovely.'" I didn't-but it was just a joke to break the ice.

And that's what it's all about-you know, we want to be who we are not! What is this fascination that we have of being something that we are not? Nobody tries to just be human. Can I be just human? Can I be a human being-who has the asset of patience? That's our asset-but see, well, you have to come into that circle of being a human being to understand this asset of being patient.

Because what else are you going to do? You've got to be patient. It's like, "Oh my God! You know, oh, and my God, I'm locked down; I can't do this; I can't do that; I can't-this is wrong; this is wrong; this is wrong; this is wrong." And the list just goes on and on and on and on and on and on and on.

But once you come into that circle of truly being a human being-and appreciating your valuable assets that you have-the patience, the understanding, the clarity, the power that you have, the light that you have inside of you. That even in this time of hopelessness, where the hopelessness starts to come in, to be hopeful.

Why? Because there is a clear, clear evidence every day that you wake up, every time, that, what is essential. You don't have to sit there and go, "Breathe in; breathe out; breathe in; breathe out." Some things happen automatically; there is a kindness; there is an incredible gentleness; there is an incredible kindness that goes on. You have to appreciate that.

And that kindness gives you hope, hope to go forward. Hope that, "Yes, whatever the situation may be, whatever the situation may be, I will be okay. I will be okay." You cannot let this, whatever is going on….

I mean, the worst part of it-I mean, let me tell you, the worst part of coronavirus is actually not the coronavirus; it's the misinformation that people have. And the misinformation that, (uh!), some of the leaders who've got….

I don't know what's going on with the leaderships, but, you know, just it's like, "Ah! We're going to do this. And no, we're not going to do anything. We're not going to do anything. And we're"-I mean, it's like, "Come on."

You know, and you look at the United States. And they, they knew it was coming. They could see what was happening in China. And people just, you know, going all over the place, traveling, traveling, traveling, traveling. And those things we thought that were so wonderful, all of a sudden, we're like, "Oh my God, this is dangerous!" And yeah.

But we are human; what is our forte? We thought our forte is to, you know, invent and to make these machines and "Look what we have accomplished and…." And will we get over this coronavirus thing-of course, we'll get over this coronavirus thing.

But how do we cope with it? What have we learned? It has become, not an epidemic, but a pandemic. What have we learned over the years, over the years and over the years and over the years? Have we learned that one death due to this is too much? If it could be avoided, it needs to be avoided. Where is, where was the preparedness? Nowhere.

But even in this circumstance-even in this circumstance, I want you to look at your self-and in looking at yourself, find the answers. Not the questions-find the answers that are in your heart, that are in your being-that is not a pile of misinformation.

You know, whatever social media is good for, one thing that it is definitely good for is spreading the wrong kind of news. And it-you know, I was reading about it and it's like, it's causing people anxiety. Well, what kind of "good news" is that, that causes anxiety? Freaking people out.

You know, depression comes in; all of these elements start to come in. See, and the only way you can stop it-the only way you can stop it is to turn within. All this garbage, the only way you can stop it is to turn within.

And somebody's like, "Oh, we have got to do this; we've got to do this; we've got to do tha…." Hang on. What do you have to really do? What is the most important thing? Get your priorities straight. Get your priorities straight. Get your priorities straight.

Your priority, my friend, is to take this breath. Your priority, my friend, is to be in touch with your heart. Your priority, my friend, is to be content. Your priority, my friend, is to be in peace. Your priority, my friend, is to be in joy, regardless of the circumstances you are surrounded by.

To be in that beautiful, simple joy, to swim in that beautiful, beautiful ocean of serenity. To be content, to be calm, to be understanding-to look forward, without losing the sight of today, without losing the sight of now, without losing the sight of what is present.

That's the problem. We are so anxious to look at the future, we lose sight of today. And when we lose sight of today, then that future is not guaranteed. We get so enamored by yesterday, we lose sight of today. When we lose sight of today, then that past is not going to help us do anything. You have to, absolutely, maintain your situational awareness as it relates to what is happening in this moment.

Where you love, express that love. Once is not enough. Once is not enough. That love needs to be expressed again and again and again and again; that's how it is! That's how it is.

You know, it's like a potato chip. You eat one-and you can't just eat one; you have to eat another one and another one and another one and another one. It's like ice cream. You know, you put a little spoonful in your mouth and it tastes so good, and you put a little more and little more and little more and little more.

You see a little kid, you know, and they've got an ice cream cone and they're licking that ice cream-and the joy, I mean, the focus! The focus-is absolutely, absolutely determined focus to enjoy that ice cream. Doesn't matter what's going on around the world, the focus is right there.

And I need to be like that. I need to be like that; you need to be like that, so focused on extracting all the joy that today has, that "right now" has-the beauty that is dancing in your heart, that you are!

You know, do you judge yourself by the eyes of others? Well, you should first judge yourself by your own eyes. You should see yourself with your own eyes. But it is easier to look at yourself from other people's eyes: "I wonder what they're going to think?" And that's such a powerful thing. That's such a powerful thing.

And it's not about other people. Your life is yours. You're the one who came in; you're the one who made that effort, that monumental effort to make that transition from mother's womb to this earth. You made that effort.

And then the day that you go, you are the one who's going to transition beyond that wall. And that's why this is called "your life-your life, your existence." And to appreciate all this, to have that patience, it's truly understanding who you are. And when I say, you know, "Try to extract all that enjoyment that today has for you," it's a gift! It's a gift. Accept that gift; understand that gift.

Otherwise, life is-and like some people say, "Oh, this is terrible about it and that's terrible about it." And those who have understood that joy that is inside of them, they don't say "it's terrible." They say "It's beautiful. It's a gift. Be thankful." Those three things, "Know yourself. Live your life consciously. And have a heart full of gratitude."

So, thank you very much-and I'll see you tomorrow.

Lockdown Broadcast Day 13

Hello, everyone. I hope you're doing wonderfully. Besides all these crazy things happening with coronavirus and all that stuff, that you yourself are doing well-and that's what's important.

So, today, what do I want to talk about? And I was thinking about that last night-and I thought of something that would be really wonderful to, at least, talk about and consider, if nothing else. So, let me begin with this little story.

So, a man had graduated and he was going home, very happy he had graduated and that he knew that he's going to be now looking for a job and doing, you know, all the things that, once you have graduated, you want to do!

So, he's on his way going home and he sees an old man. And the old man has got a big, big, big, big load of wood on his shoulders, on his back, and he's hunched over and he's walking very slowly.

Upon seeing this, the man had an idea. He says, "Well, you know, I, I'm just starting off in life-and this man here, he has been traversing this road of life for a really long time. So why not ask him of how best to be in this world, how best to take advantage of all the things that would be wonderful? Because maybe I can learn something from this old man."

So, as he caught up to him, he tapped him and he said, "Hey, old man, tell me how to make the most out of life. Because I'm just starting off-and obviously, you have been doing this for a really long time; you must have something you can tell me."

The old man stopped. He took the big bundle, the load off his back. He stood up straight. Then he put the load back on his shoulders again, on his back again and he hunched over and he walked away.

Well, that's the end of the story. Did the old man give this man a message-oh, absolutely. And the message is that in life, we walk hunched with a heavy load on our back, really heavy load.

And load of things that, you know-that it's just like, "Oh, that person said that to me and that person said that to me. And he did that to me and I've got this problem with that person. And oh, that person doesn't like me because of this and that person does this," and all this weird stuff that we accumulate.

"Oh, you know, I am a failure." "I am a successful person." "I am a failure because of this; I am not good at this and I can't do this and I can't do that…." And I was thinking, "My God, you know, that is such a load that we carry on our shoulders."

And now, here we are in this situation of a lockdown, don't have too many places to go. What, what would it be like-and nothing else, to just consider resetting, resetting that button? What would it be like to just let go? And accept the beautiful, simple reality of existence. That, like a child, to wake up every day….

And I certainly remember waking up when I was a little child-and I was ready for the day; I was ready to accept the day. I was ready for the day's challenges. Nothing was a routine; nothing was "Oh, I have to do this and I have to do this and I have to do this," no. It didn't matter.

Whatever the day was going to throw at me, I was going to accept it; I was going to accept the challenges. And I was excited, excited to be alive, excited to have that morning, excited to have that beautiful opportunity-and to accept those opportunities from a very open and a clear heart and mind.

Not already pre-contaminated, "Oh my God, you know, the day is going to be really terrible; the, but this is going to be that; this is going to be that."

It's like, one day there was a king-and he came out to his balcony. And he was looking over and he saw this man. And he was walking away and the man saw the king and he acknowledged him and, you know…. And that day the king had a horrible day, absolutely horrible day.

So, the king called this guy over-in the evening, he called him over and he says, "Put him to death." And the guy says, "Well, why do you want to put me to death? Why are you killing me?" He goes, "Because-I just, this morning when I woke up, I saw your face. And I had such a terrible day that, you know, I'm putting you to death."

The guy looked at the king and he said, "Sire, you just had a terrible day; I'm about to lose my life! And I saw your face-and that was the first thing I saw in the morning. So, you are even more unfortunate than I am"-to look at, anyways.

And so that, you know, it's like, every day we get up-and already the tape recorder starts playing, "You've got to do this; you've got to do this; you are late; you are this; you are that. You know, that person doesn't like you. Oh, you have to tell this person that. And you have to do this and you have to do that."

And it goes from your family to your colleagues, to your friends, "Yeah, we've got to answer this; you've got to answer that. You've got to do this; you've got to do that. You, you, you know"-and I know there are people; they write a message and they need the reply right away. If they don't get their reply right away they start freaking out and it's like, "Oh my God, something is wrong."

And you've got to look at the world and then you've got to-you've got to say, "Okay, you know, what's going to happen here; what's happening there; what's happening? Oh my God, we've got to share this," and all of this tape recorder that's playing.

And, you know, in a way, should I blame anybody for this; should I think that that's wrong? In one way, I can completely understand there's nothing wrong with that. It's perfectly okay. But the only thing that I see remotely wrong with all that is that it distracts me from me!

Now, there is a call that I have too-and maybe I don't hear it every day. And certainly when I am mesmerized by all the problems of the world, maybe I don't pay attention to it. But there is a call. There is a call from within, 24/7, 365. And that call is saying, "Be fulfilled. Be real. Be true. Be. Understand. Court clarity. Make all the things that are good part of your life."

And that's the heart's call to action. And our call to action is, "Answer that; get the mail; get, look at the messages, you know; look at the news, the, do this and do that. And respond to this and respond to that." And these are-tons of responsibilities.

So, the question is, can we just hit a button that can reset us? And maybe there is no such button that can reset us. But maybe in here, we can start to appreciate that life is trying to tell me something. That I am trying to tell me something. That indeed, this universe is trying to tell me something.

And when I look at-I look at everything. When I look at dirt-and this is who I am. I am that dirt. From these elements, the very thing that I look at and call just "dirt," that's what made me. This is-this skin, these bones, this blood, these muscles, the organs, that's what they're made out of.

And then the day that I hit the other wall; I'm gone, that's what I'm going to become-dust. From dust we come and to dust we go. And yet, what about life?

Well, a lot of people go, "Well, what about life?" And the question comes up, "What about life," because nobody pays enough attention to it. Nobody is saying "That's what's important." Not all the other things that happen. What's important? What's important is the coming and going of this breath.

How sweet and powerful is this breath! How incredible is this breath-that it comes into you, and what does it bring you? No ordinary gift-an extraordinary gift. And it is the gift of life itself.

Sweetly, simply, to come into you, to fill you so that you can be alive, exist. You can think. And there is no limit to what you can think about; you can think about anything you want. And you should. You should be able to think about anything you want. But you should also think about your basic needs. And I'm calling them "needs." Not wants, needs.

You have a need in you to be fulfilled. You have a need in you to be content. You have a need in you to be in joy. These are your needs. Without them, the consequences are horrible. Without them there is sadness; there's depression; there is confusion.

And you know, it's one of those things; it's like, we talk about doubt. And doubt-fine. Well, should you have no doubt, ever? Well, no. Every chef, every cook, you will see them do one thing. After they make their dish, they'll taste it. Why are they tasting it? They're tasting it because they're doubting. They want to know; they want to know for certain, the salt is right; the taste is correct.

They doubt it. They doubt it-but they do something to get over the doubt. And all they have to do is taste it. Tasting it, now they have no question whether it is good, whether it tastes good, whether it tastes correct like it should, whether the salt is right, the chilies are right, whatever-the seasoning is right: "Everything is good."

So, doubt is not the issue. It is to get over that doubt. And when you're stuck on the other side and you're doubting, doubting, doubting, doubting, doubting, doubting, doubting, doubting…. I mean, right now, are you doubting? You shouldn't be. Get over it. Get over it, because here is the opportunity.

And we know, somebody, I'm sure, is sitting there going "Why is this happening to me?" Well, you can sit there and question yourself till the cows, you know, come home in the evening that, you know, wondering, wondering, wondering, "Why is this happening to me?" Or you can say, you know, "What can I do that would truly benefit me at this time? I have room for improvement. I mean…."

I mean, I am sure there are people who don't think they have any room for improvement, but take my word for it, everybody has room for improvement. And can you improve? Can you accept in your heart, in your mind, that you have a choice? And you can choose. You can choose all that that your needs are. You haven't paid attention to them.

And what an incredible way to be able to reset, by listening, simply listening-and then doing something about those needs that you have, the need for joy…. To go outside, that's not the need. That's a want. The need is, you need to be safe.

But there are other needs too; there's a need to be fulfilled. And that has nothing to do with "outside." For that, you have to turn inside. For that clarity, you have to turn inside. For that beautiful understanding, you have to turn inside. Because that's where you will find it. In you! In you-exists all those things that you think are so far away from you. And that's the irony.

How beautifully Kabir describes that. "That that deer, the musk deer is looking for the scent of the musk. And it searches the forest-but that scent is actually coming from the deer's own navel." That's where the musk is.

And it's a tragedy. And how? That Kabir says, "Like there is fire in the flint, like there is oil in the sesame…." Little seed, sesame seed. You don't think there is much oil in there but you squeeze a bunch of those seeds and there is a lot of oil, sesame seed oil. "And like in the flint, there is fire, so the divine is in you. And if you can awaken to that, awaken. If you can open your eyes to that, open."

And where there is the divine, there is the clarity; there is the serenity; there is the understanding-all that is good is in you. Always has been, always will be. You will look for it outside-because that's your habit. Now, nobody carries ice cream in their pocket. So when you want ice cream, you look for it outside-of course.

But the divine, you carry inside of you. The clarity, you carry inside of you. The understanding, you carry inside of you. The joy, you carry inside of you. Fulfillment, you carry inside of you-the true fulfillment. And that's where you have to look for it. That's where you have to see. That's where you have to understand.

It's not a question of "Oh, yeah, I know that." It's not a question of "Oh, yeah, I know that." It's a question of what are you doing with that-and if you know that the divine is inside of you, what are you doing about it?

Are you excited? I mean, how excited should you be? It should be no limits of how excited you should be that the divine is inside of you. You should be so excited that all those things that you look for, that you need, are inside of you. That that-that is another reality. We consider this world to be a reality-but there is another reality. And this is as real as it is. And sometimes it's not very real.

I mean, you know, I had the best-laid plans. If somebody would have said, "In 2020, you know, there's going to be a long period of time you're not going to be doing events," I would have said, "That's not true. I want to go do events." But the situation changed. I'm not going to invite people to a hall-open them up for contamination; I'm not going to do that.

So, here I am, trying to do my best, you know, to reach out to you, to talk to you through these videos. It's not like there's a ton of people in this room; there's nobody else except me. I come in; I turn on the lights; I turn on the camera; I shoot. Then I take the card and upload the file and it, off it goes.

I'm used to talking on video but usually, there are a lot of people around-you know, somebody's watching the camera; somebody's watching the lights; somebody's doing this; somebody's doing the audio. But this is all just set up and-I do my thing. So, which one is real; what is real?

In April of 2019, there was no hint, (at least, to us), of any coronavirus. Everything was good. Everything was great. And all of a sudden, come around December, we start to hear, "coronavirus, coronavirus, coronavirus." And everything starts to change. Then the next thing you know, lockdowns are happening. Lockdown here, lockdown there, lockdown everywhere.

But the reality of this breath has not changed. And because I was talking to somebody today on a phone call-and they said, "Oh, you know, everything has changed because of this." And I said, "No. No. This is an obstacle, perhaps, in our plans-but the reality, the true thing has not changed."

The breath still comes into you-and that's what was keeping you alive before, is keeping you alive now-and hopefully, if you take those precautions, it will be keeping you alive for a lot longer than you want to, maybe. That would be great.

So, your life, your existence-a great time to even think about resetting. Let go; let go of all that burden that you carry on your shoulders-and stand up straight for a change. And walk this life, learn from this time. And enjoy being alive, even in this weird circumstance.

Don't let it affect you. It doesn't need to; it doesn't need to affect you. It is what it is. All you need to do is take some precaution. And if you take those precautions, you'll be fine. You'll be fine.

So, take care of yourself. Be. Be safe. Be well. And most importantly, be.

I'll see you tomorrow. Thank you.

Lockdown Broadcast Day 14

Hello everyone; I hope everyone's doing well-and safe, feeling good.

Today I thought I would just read a few comments and questions that have come from people who are attending PEP.

Oh, and by the way, yes, we are working towards the PEP, so you'll just have to have some patience because usually when PEP is done-usually, you know, people come together and they all give their comments and thoughts, suggestions, ideas, obviously, but that's not a happening thing.

So, we're trying to do it so that I will do the lead on the-I'll be the facilitator, basically. And then people will be able to write and send their comments or their findings and so on, and then I could read some of those to you. So, there's a lot of prep that has to go on with it, but yes, we're working on it. And it's coming along nicely and I think it's going to be fun.

So, here's a question-and these are mostly from correctional facilities. And, "What does it mean to appreciate life, to savor each moment, to welcome each day as an opportunity for joy? There is love and kindness; there is hate and anger-but life is a gift. And I want to understand it as clearly as possible, to live every single day to its fullest.

"What grows in my garden of life will depend on what kind of life I live. Everyone has the power to transform, and this is my time."

That's what it means, actually-that you have answered your own question. Because to appreciate life, to savor each day, you have to start looking from a very different perspective. And, you know, this is-and this is going to be part of this training that I am putting together.

And one of the things that I came up with is called "un-change." So, what does "un-change" mean? Un-change means that there was a time that you were in touch with all the goodness in your heart. Things were good! You had that eye; you had that perspective; you had that eye to look for the good. You didn't look at things in a biased way; you looked at them from the eyes of reality.

Because we don't see reality from the eyes of reality; we see them through our eyes. And by the time we start looking for that reality, our eyes that we are looking through are incredibly contaminated. But when we start seeing the reality with the eyes of reality, everything really changes-everything. The whole perspective really changes.

So, one of the things that you have to do is un-change, meaning there have been a lot of ideas that have been brought forth. And these ideas, some of them are okay-and some of them are not okay-and you have to weed out through them, you have to sort out through them, how you want to be. You have to make the decisions.

So, one of the things that the training is going to talk about-and I may be giving entirely too much away here-is "You have to be in control." And you have to come from a clear perspective of "What do you want in your life?" What do you want; how do you want to be; how do you want to exist? Not how other people have told you, how other people would like it.

Because you see, it's really a very weird little situation-because a lot of the demands on us, "We should be a certain way; we should be like this; we should be like this," are actually made by society, so that we can fit into the society. Society wants to mold us.

But it actually backfires most of the time. Because in our molding, we start to lose ourselves and the more we lose ourselves, the more disoriented we become. And the more disoriented we become, then we start to go against what the society wants.

So, in fact, if you do know yourself, if you are in touch with that joy, if you are in touch with that beauty, you're going to be a far better participating member of the society than the way the society approaches you to be a part of itself.

So, I'm not here for society; I'm here for you. And I want you to become strong; I want you to understand what it means "to appreciate life, to savor each moment." And to do these things, you really have to develop, (or redevelop, I should say), because that's the part of un-changing.

Because I am saying that you in your life, you know. And you have these powers in you. You have forgotten how to evoke them. You have forgotten how to evoke them and-can we come together and re-evoke those powers, that the criteria becomes kindness? And, you know, I don't want to give more away of the training, but it looks like I can't help it.

You know, and-and of course, we're going to talk about this when the training happens, but to have patience with yourself, with your own understanding, because it takes a long time to walk out of that hole that we have put ourselves in. It takes a long time to start developing, redeveloping that perspective and start seeing reality with the eyes of reality.

So, that's what it takes. "To welcome each day as an opportunity for joy," you really have to become an opportunist. You have to really understand what this is all about. You really have to understand that concept of being in that shopping center-where you've got that limited amount of time and you're not allowed to take anything with you….

You're not allowed to take, physically, anything with you. So, this is the distinction you have to make; physically, you cannot take anything with you. You can have anything you want that's in the shopping center-and that shopping center has just about everything. The only thing you will be able to take away…. And here is the trick. And the trick is to enjoy yourself in that….

You know, and my premise is that it's like a lottery; you have won a lottery-and this award that you have won is that you get to spend an X amount of days in this shopping center. And this shopping center has shops that are just amazing. But you're not allowed to take anything-when your time ends, you're not allowed to take anything with you. So, what are you going to do?

Well, the strategy here is to enjoy every single day as much as you can-so that what you take with you when the time is over is that gratitude, is that thankfulness, is that enjoyment that you have had, "That, wow, that was wonderful; that was wonderful being there." That's the trick.

And it takes time. It takes time to come around to it, because it's taken a long time to deviate from what our true potential is.

Another question-and this is a women's correctional department, "Prem, how did you find peace?" Well, the same way you're going to find peace, within me! I mean, I had to start-and you know, again, it takes a long time to start focusing inside. And my father was kind enough to give me a way, a mirror, that when I had that mirror, I could then take a look and see the true me, the real me.

So, then, of course, the comment is, "This is my favorite class. I try never to miss it. Happiness is not what we have, is what we feel." You got it. That's it! "Happiness is not what you have-but what you feel," because happiness is about feeling.

Peace is not what you have. Peace is about what you feel. Joy is not about what you have-but joy is about what you feel. Love is not about what you have-but it is about what you feel. Clarity is not about what you have-but it is about what you feel. Brilliant. That's it; you've got it.

"We look outside for fulfillment when we need to look inside." Absolutely right. And this is from a university, adult education: "How can I separate myself from my worldly worries?"

Are you your worldly worries? The worries are-this is the point of it-the worries are always going to be there. It's not like, if you took a vacation from your worries for two minutes, that they would disappear and you would have to go looking for them. No, they will find you. Don't worry about losing your worries. They will always be there.

What you have to do is you have to be able to separate. It's exactly like when sleep comes. And so, there you are; you may be sitting in a bus. And so the bus is full; it's full of strangers. And of course, if you have ever seen a bus, you know, it is not exactly the most aerodynamic thing; it is not the most quietest thing.

And yeah, you know, bumps come; then it bumps up and down and a lot of times on the busses, the seats are not that comfortable….

Now comes sleep. So, you have noise-all the things that are going against you; you have noise; you are in the middle of the strangers, (not a very suited environment, well-suited environment to be falling asleep). You're sitting in a stupid little chair that is not very comfortable. Again, not inducive to sleep, because you should be lying down. But here comes sleep.

And what happens? Well, what happens is all those other things that are not suited for it go right out the window-and slowly and slowly and slowly and slowly your eyes start getting heavier and heavier and heavier and you fall asleep.

That's what has to happen here, too. The need, understanding the need, (not the want, the need), becomes so good; the thirst, (and I talk about it as "thirst"), thirst becomes so powerful that it supersedes all those other things. All those worries, all those, all the things that are not conducive for peace, it supersedes them. That's what it's all about.

Question is, "It's important to know what's going on in the world, but it's not as important as what's inside. How do I step back and do that?" Again, it's a matter of habit. Because at one point in time, you didn't care about what was going on in the world-because you were too young. You didn't care about the world; you didn't know what the world was. All you cared about was you.

Now you have learnt this behavior. And I would not say that, you know, you need to stop worrying about the world. No, it's nice to know what's going on in this world. But it's also nice to know what's going on inside of you. And this is, again, that un-change that has to happen.

Question, "He makes it sound so simple. The world is so un-peaceful. How do we go back? Is that even possible?" Well, yeah, of course, it is possible. If it isn't possible then I'm just wasting my time. But I know I'm not, because I know I make the difference.

And as, that was the questions, but here are some of the comments: "I thought this class would be a philosophy on how to bring peace to the world, but Prem talks about a peace that's already inside." Yes. "The more I find peace within myself, the more it spills out to others."

Yes, that's what I'm saying. That's that first thing that I talked about, you know, "where the society tries to mold you in a particular way…." But that's not necessary because when you become whole….

You see, the thing is, when you are lit as a lamp, when you are lit as a candle, a lit candle can light unlit candles. If you take an unlit candle and rub it or bring it right to that fire that is on a lit candle, that unlit candle is not going to extinguish the lit candle-but quite the contrary; the lit candle will light up the unlit candle.

That is the most powerful rule-and that is what I bank on to bring peace to people in this world.

"Prem said that, 'All you want is to be at peace,' which was very profound. You look and look and look-and it's in you." Yes, it's in you. "There is a song that goes, 'People who need people are the luckiest people in the world.' Prem would say, 'People who know themselves are the luckiest people in the world.'" Absolutely, you got that right.

"This Peace Education course has surprised me because it's not what I thought it would be. I look back at decades that went by when I wasn't that conscious. What Prem is saying is simple, that it's already here. It's a matter of looking inward and finding contentment." That's right. That's right; that's right; that's right; that's right! You got it. See, it's so simple. It's so simple.

"A lot of us have never asked these questions Prem poses. We may have started off being inquisitive about ourselves, but then life happens. Prem helps me to be more open and reflective. Everything he says directs me back to my heart." I hope so. I hope so.

This is, again-this is from a church, a Missionary Baptist Church. "I always pray for peace. Even with sexism, racism and other social ills, I want a peaceful nation." We all want-we all want a peaceful place to stay. Believe me, we all want that; it's not unique; this is your need! This is not a want; this is your need-and it's very important.

"Do you think the way we are raised brings us into conflict with others?"

It's not how we are raised; it's how we are indoctrinated that brings us conflict with others-and that's the indoctrination that has to get reversed. And that's why I call it, not "the change," but the "un-change" that needs to happen. And it's a very powerful thing, the un-change-and hopefully, if we do have that training, that'll come out.

And another question that was, "How can I better help teenagers?" Don't treat them as teenagers; treat them as human beings and you can help them. Believe me, teenagers don't want to be treated like a teenager. That's what it is all about; remember when you were a teenager? You didn't want to be a teenager; you wanted to be an adult!

You know, it's a child making the leap to be wanting to be an adult. Don't treat a teenager as a teenager and you will be their friend. Treat a teenager as a teenager and you will be their enemy. This is how simple it is. (Close to "enemy.")

This is the Metro Reentry Facility. "It matters what I understand and what I don't understand. My clarity is so important." (That's an expression.) "I can nurture kindness by treating others how I want to be treated." Yes, of course.

"My four-year-old son was describing his new friend to me, saying that he likes transformers and his favorite color is green. 'Anything else?' I asked. He said, 'His skin is darker than ours.' For me, that would have been the first thing. But for my son, it was the last." Absolutely. This difference of color, difference of this, difference of that, difference of language….

When the-but before you knew how to speak, what language was it? And you could communicate with anybody. You were communicating with your mother; you were letting her know, "I'm hungry." You were letting her know, "Something is uncomfortable." So, you know, this, of course, it's very, very powerful, very beautiful stuff.

"I had an eye-opening"-and this is from a transitional center for women-"I had an eye-opening moment when Prem said 'Your potential is a seed that lies dormant.' I always thought peace was something to grow into. I didn't realize it already exists in me."

Another one, "I'm thriving, not just existing. Then my life can be really something." Absolutely.

"Prem talked about 'the dance of life.' Sometimes the least little things can make us wobble. I want to stay strong with inner strength. Then I can say 'I've got it.'"

Absolutely, that's, the inner strength is what it's all about, that you have-you have all those things already inside of you; you need to evoke them; you need to know how to get in touch with them. And that's what knowing yourself is all about.

"If I know who I am on the inside, then forgiveness and joy never have to leave me. Everything else changes except who I truly am." Absolutely. And especially in these circumstances, this is very true. "If I know who I am on the inside, then forgiveness and joy never have to leave me. Everything else changes except who truly I am." That's right.

Other things change, not you. And that's why the un-changing. That's why the un-changing.

"I would do anything for love. I looked for it everywhere but inside. Until we started looking within, we don't know who we are." Absolutely. Absolutely. You nailed that one.

"I grew up"-this is another one-"I grew up with horrible things happening to me, and I can't forget. But it is my choice to forgive and to find out who I really am. I'm growing every day." Yes, whatever happens.

Because this is what I talk about: "forgiveness." What is forgiveness about? Forgiveness is not "accepting the other person's actions"-or forgiving them. Forgiveness is you cutting the cords so that you can be free, so that you can go on. That's what forgiveness is.

"Forgiveness is important. I am not doing it for the other person; I'm doing it for me." Exactly; that's what forgiveness is. You're doing it for you, not for other people. So, it's not about, "Oh, I will look, you know, great to the other people." It's really to cut those strings so that you can be free.

This is from Greece, (of all places), a women's prison. "I was curious about the Peace Education Program and decided to check it out. At first, I could not understand. But with time, the program felt very necessary. And I learnt to love and understand myself. Because of this, I speak better and behave with respect toward other people around me."

See, this is what I talk about-what the society wants you to do, they give you indoctrination to do that, but it doesn't work out that way because if you don't know yourself, it's not going to work. But as soon as you start knowing yourself, you become much more whole; you become much more complete.

"Because of this I speak better and behave with respect toward other people around me. I have been positively influenced by this program and what I have learnt is now part of my everyday life." Wonderful.

Another person saying, "Entering the prison's doors a few days after losing my favorite family member, I said to myself, 'Everything is finished.' I wondered 'Why her and not me?' My peace was covered by the black veil of sadness and my soul was mourning. Something inside said, 'Do something, my girl.' That's when I registered for the Peace Program.

"One day, I heard Prem say, 'Humans live an average of 25,550 days.' This is our time on earth. Then I realized that I still have time. He said not to be influenced by the worries, as long as the gift of breath is moving back and forth inside of me. I will persist, knowing peace is inside. I dream of a better tomorrow and try to remember that today is my reality."

If you can know today-and know that today is your reality, tomorrow will be great, believe me. Because tomorrow, when that "tomorrow" comes, it'll come as today-and what will you be busy doing? Looking at that tomorrow as "today," in the reality that exists inside of you. That's the way to do it.

"I attended the Peace Education Program and it has influenced me to do many good things in my life. I found peace deep inside. It might be a small seed but it is so beneficial. I can express it as love or as a hug because this is the way that it makes me feel inside. Every day I feel full from all I have been taught in this program and wish everyone could be influenced by peace."

"Listening to Prem, I found peace inside of me. When I started to take care of the seed of peace, it started influencing my everyday life. I now wake up with joy and gratitude for everything. As I thirst for water, in the same way, I long for the feeling of peace." Well, you know, what can I say? That's, that's the way to live. That's the way to live.

This is from North Carolina, a women's correctional facility. "The peace class was such an eye-opener. I really like learning about inner wealth and being content, no matter what the circumstances. Thank you."

Another one, "Just listening to Prem gives me a sense of peace." Thank you. And, "I learned from the Peace Education Program that I have peace inside and the power to make my own destiny." Yes.

"Coming to the peace class is the best part of my day; it's wonderful. During this time that our facility is on lockdown from the outside world, it is becoming especially evident how meaningful your service is to the women. This program, classes that you provide, are greatly missed during this time." And that's from the Correctional Program Supervisor.

So, I thought, you know, "Why not talk about that today with you," because these expressions come and we don't always get a chance to share that. So, I thought, you know, "Today, take a few moments and share that with you."

These are people that, in a way, have been in lockdown, are in lockdown. And, you know, maybe soon this coronavirus thing will be over and we'll be out and about, moving-but these people will still be in lockdown. And how important it is for them to feel peace.

So, I hope you feel peace. I hope you feel well. So, be well; be safe-but most importantly, be. Thank you.

Lockdown Broadcast Day 15

Prem Rawat reads from his new book "Hear Yourself," due to be released in English later this year.

All excerpts from this book are copyright protected by RawatCreations, LLC. Any unauthorized duplication or distribution of this content is prohibited.

Lockdown Broadcast Day 16

So, hello, everyone. I hope you're all well, feeling good. Weekend has come-and so we're going to be doing some question and answers.

"How can I find the beauty and peace when there is so much darkness in this world and in me? I can't seem to find a way to connect to this life inside of me. I know it exists, as I have felt it in your presence. I would like to chase away all the dark thoughts and the pain in me with love."

Well, it's very, very easy. There's this-it's uncanny but I just answered that same kind of question in Hindi, very, very similar.

So, it really is a matter of you understanding that "the darkness is there, but there is also the light." And it completely depends upon you, what you choose. The choice is yours. You can choose darkness-and the darkness will be there. You can choose light and the light will be there. Is it that easy? Is it that simple? Well, guess what; it is.

When we walk into that dark situation, most of the time we don't even realize we're walking into the darkness-but we're slowly, slowly but surely, walking towards that darkness. Conscious living goes out the window. We don't want to live consciously. That's too much trouble; that's too much. So, what do we start doing? Live unconsciously. We don't care!

"What happens here; what happens there; this is right; this wrong; this is this way; this is that way." And off we go. We're making these steps; we're taking these steps; we're going towards the darkness; we're going towards the darkness; we're going towards the darkness; we're going towards the darkness. We don't realize it.

You know, getting lost is not an abrupt condition. It's not an abrupt thing; it can happen very slowly. You think you're heading the right direction-and then all of a sudden, it's like, "Oh, we should be there by now. And we're not there." And then it's like, then the dawning of it can be very abrupt. Then the dawning of it can be, "How do I…? What happened? Where did I get lost?"

Wrong question: "How did I get lost?" The question should be, "How do I get back on track," not "How did I get lost?"

So, we go towards that darkness. Living our life unconsciously, this is-it's almost like you can call it: "That's what's going to happen."

But then, there is that possibility of living this life consciously-that I have a choice! Understanding that those things, the source of my light, is in me. The source of my understanding is in me. The source of my clarity is in me. And I don't have to go wandering, looking for it and wondering, "Where did it go?"

And a lot of people…. People say that. It's like, "Oh, that was such a nice time; then, where did it go?" Well, it didn't go anywhere. It's in you! It always was in you, always has been in you and always will be in you till your very last breath.

What happens is that our situation, whatever the situation may be, overwhelms us. It's got us. It's defeated us. It has taken over our free will, our choice, our understanding, our clarity-and it has to do that, because it can only get hold of you without those things.

And what you have to do is do exactly the opposite. You have to hang on to your clarity; you have to hang on to your hope; you have to hang on to your joy; you have to hang on to your understanding; you have to hang on to your peace. And then, just like a storm, the storm will be gone; the sun will shine again and all will be well.

So, this is what you have to understand, that this is how it works. And you have that beauty-and that beauty will always be within you.

Here's another question, "Many people are facing financial, job uncertainties. Would you have some words of strength for those facing the situation?" Yes. Again, the same thing. Whatever the outside situation, you have to have the strength to go forward, because you do.

Now, again, I'm just going to remind you of this example that I give quite often. When you came out of your mother's womb, when you were born, what you had to do was virtually impossible. At that point in your life, you were the most fragile. My God, you couldn't walk; you couldn't talk; you couldn't command people; you couldn't lift anything. You were extremely fragile.

And everything, literally, was stacked against you. You had to, at that point in time, change your world, literally-I mean, literally. All that sustenance that had been, up to that point, sustaining you was coming from the mother and now that was going to go away. You had to become independent.

The amount of force that you would have had to exert to be able to be born is nothing shy of a huge rocket accelerating away from earth. This was the situation. This was the situation.

You were, in the mother's womb, completely surrounded by water-and here you were going to come out in this world where you're going to breathe. And I'm just talking about "physical situation" and it was totally going to have to be totally, totally, totally different.

And so, what did you do? You looked at the enormity of the situation and obviously said, "No way," right? You wouldn't be born! You wouldn't be born. So, you took on that challenge. That urge was there and you took on that challenge. Of course, you didn't look at it as a challenge, you just found yourself in the midst of it-and that was it.

So, do you think any one of these challenges that you are thinking about facing is greater than that challenge that you already have been through? I can't imagine how they could be any bigger than what you have already been through.

I talk about "un-change." You know, people don't like the word "change," "I don't want to change." People say to themselves, "I don't want to change." So, I came up with this one: "un-change."

So that means that at one point in time in your life, you were incredibly strong; you were incredibly powerful. You were very clear about what your objectives were. You were very precise with them. And you had no hesitation whatsoever to accomplish them.

So, un-change. See, the change happened-and now, things are very different, so maybe you need to un-change and go back to that strength, go back to that clarity, go back to that understanding.

Not frailty, not sadness, not disappointment, not these arguments, "Oh, what's going to happen to me?" Take on any challenge that comes. And, believe me, this is, for a lot of people, just a long, long journey that has just begun. Isolation and everything else just is one part of it. After this, we will have to see what happens. Because I can tell you, it's not shaping up really well.

Some of the leaders that we have in this world, they are no leaders. And of course not, I'm not going to say who they are. But they're no leaders and you know it-and you can see them in action and they're like, out to lunch and never came back. And they're still having lunch for-I think, for the rest of their life, they're going to have lunch. They have no idea what's going on.

To them, death and numbers is a statistic; it's something to plot on a graph. And to me, one death that is unnecessary, that was not natural, is too much. We could have done something about it-yes, we could have done something about it.

Let's face it; we don't know how to say "help." We have forgotten how to say "help." We have forgotten to say "Let me help you." We have forgotten about humanity! Humanity has gone right out the window.

And so far humanity goes out the window, what do human beings have? Nothing. What can they rely on? Nothing. What can they keep on looking forward towards? Nothing. So, this is truly a very, very long journey.

So, here's another question that's very important, I think. "Dear Prem Rawat, I appreciate listening to you every morning. My ninety-five-year-old grandmother is in a home for old people. And the visit to the old people is forbidden. I'm scared she leaves this world without anybody holding her hand, and no possibility for us to say 'goodbye.'" (Oh, but actually it is a grandfather so, I'm sorry.)

"No possibility for us to say 'goodbye' or gather for the funeral. I know he had a long and good life but I find it sad to end like this. What could I write him to help him in this difficult situation?"

Only one thing-you love him. That's all you can say. "I love you. Please be. And please be well. And I love you and I will always love you. You are in my memories; you will dance in my memories; you will dance in my heart. And-I love you." What else can you-I mean, what else can you say? You know?

You have to accept the situation, sometimes, the way it is, not the way you have created your picture postcard. Accept it. There's nothing you can do about it. It is unfortunate; it is sad. And they don't want more of these transmissions to happen; that's why the isolation: "No, you can't go there."

I know you have your little picture postcard, but you're going to have to put that picture postcard to rest for a little while and look at the reality-and the reality is still beautiful. You love him; he loves you; that's the reality. Coronavirus or no coronavirus, you love him; he loves you. No walls, no great distances, not even those two walls can keep that love apart.

That's what love is. Love can go through the walls. Love can travel humongous distances. Love can reach down to the bottom of the ocean. Love can reach to the heavens above. Love is. And that's what makes love so special. It has no boundaries. It will never go away. So far you are alive, you can love him every single day of your life.

Now, how incredible is that? How wonderful is that? Accept the situation. And most importantly, accept the love that you have for your grandfather. That's how it should be.

Not trying to make our picture postcards that we create in our head, make them a reality-no, look at the reality that is. And maybe that will help you.

So, thank you very much-and that's all the time we have today. And we'll get back tomorrow for some more questions. Be safe; be well. Be.

Lockdown Broadcast Day 17

Hello, hello, everyone. I hope you're all well. And what I would like to just talk about today is very, very simple. Because that word "simplicity"-sometimes we forget what it really means, just to be simple.

Under the circumstances these days, being in isolation because of this coronavirus, that word seems so appropriate-because those people who really, truly understand the meaning of the word "simple" can adjust and adapt to this situation in the best possible way.

What is "simple?" Simple is that this breath comes into you, without any effort, without you having to think-and it brings you the gift of life. Simple is that you can look with your eyes, see the blue sky, see the clouds-and you can be content.

Simple is to be able to see your life and understand that you exist-and how profound that is, how beautiful it is; that is simple. Simple is that you have love in this heart-and that from this heart, you can love. And you carry the gift of this loving. Anybody-for anybody who can spark that love in you, you're willing to give.

Existence is so simple; life is so simple; being alive is so simple-and having a profound experience, even in the midst of all this, is really very simple.

Last night, I was trying to sleep-and a storm came by. And the winds were blowing; you could hear the rain. And we don't like storms; the metaphor of a storm is something not nice. But what is a storm?

Winds blow-well, we like wind-but not too much. You know, when the wind starts to ruffle our hair and starts to throw us around and throw around things, and we can't drive; we can't fly properly, then things get a little bit nasty.

Rain comes; we don't like rain. We don't like getting wet. Why don't we like getting wet? Well, when the evaporation happens-when we get wet the evaporation happens; it feels cold. We don't like to be cold. Our temperature margin is relatively very small.

Then it can be windy; it can be cold; it can be rainy; it can be snowy. It can just--storm. And yet, what can you do when a storm comes? And so, this is what I was thinking. So I'm lying there; it's like, "What can I do; what can one do when the storm comes?"

And in one sense, the storm is not under your control. That's not what you control. But what you do during that storm, how you react to that storm, that's under your control. You can do something about that.

This little leeway, this little passage that you have can make all the difference in the world. It may sound very trivial; it may sound very insignificant-but it is the most important thing. "I can't control the storm, but how can I just…?"

And, you know, though I was lying in my bed and I was very comfortable-and even though outside a storm is brewing, I'm comfortable-because that's where I am.

Similarly, when the storm brews between our ears, to find the place, to find the solace of the heart-and get comfortable, get warm. And all of a sudden, even though there is the storm, you have found a place that is so profound, that's so beautiful that is inside of you.

And in that place, in that place of the heart, you can be comfortable; you can enjoy-and you can hear and see the storm move by. And when the storm goes, the sun will shine again.

That metaphor--it's so important to understand-that yes, storms do come in life; situations do come in life. But we don't have to fall victim to the situation. We can actually still remember how important it is for us to know, to understand what the opportunity brings, what this opportunity is.

I mean, what is this opportunity? You know, and I was thinking about it. It's like, "Is there anything good about this?" Because I had so many plans; I was going to go to so many places, see so many people. I really miss doing events where I can see everyone's face. I really like looking into people's eyes-and be in front of them and do live talking.

I mean, this is okay-I mean, there are two black objects in front of me; that's what I'm looking at. And they have absolutely no emotion whatsoever; they do not concur with anything I say-they don't reject anything I say; they don't concur with anything I say. They're just there, these two dark holes which are the lenses.

And, yeah, I mean, I can just imagine people are watching and, you know, somebody's watching in their living room; somebody's watching somewhere, something, something, something, something.

But what is this opportunity-and I mean, it's a horrible situation. You know, world leaders lying to us, world leaders trying to now, all of a sudden, protect their position. If this is a train wreck, this was a long time coming.

I mean, there was so much leeway that was there for the whole world to prepare-and for the whole world to hunker down. And spectacular mistakes were made. And I'm sure that, you know, right now we're kind of getting in the midst of this. But later on, I hope that there are people who try to learn from this.

Because I was listening to this other documentary the other day and it was about the Spanish flu-and that happened quite a long time ago. And there were so many similarities between the Spanish flu and what's happening now.

I mean, people just disregarded-the world leaders just disregarded anything that was being said. It's like, nothing was learned. And when you look at everything that's happening today, compared to what was happening with Spanish flu, it's like not one iota of lesson was learned. Not one iota of lesson was learned.

And with all the information technology, with everything available, I mean, this horrible situation has been created. Because, for me, one death, one death that could have been prevented is too much-is too much.

So, in this horrible, horrible time, is there anything good? Is there anything good? I see one thing that can be good-and that is that you get to move a little closer to yourself, to understand your existence, to understand who you are all about, what you are all about-to understand the preciousness of your life. And to understand how powerful the noise between the ears is.

And when I talk about that noise, a lot of people are like, "Okay, you know, yeah, yeah, I guess so." But now it's like the amplifier has been cranked way, way, way, way up. And that noise is just so powerful, just comes knocking and "Bam, bam, bam!" day and night and day and night and day and night. It's there! How powerful it is? Huh, you know.

There are people who get into "This spiritual thing"; they get into that spiritual trip. They go, "It's like, you know, it's wonderful to do this kind of travel; You've got to try this thing; you've got to try that thing…." And people are trying everything.

But here you've got this noise that's driving you crazy-and just imagine this noise: twenty-four/seven it's on. And sometimes you don't actually hear it because you're distracted, but it's going on.

So you don't sit there and hear this noise because you're distracted with this; you're distracted with that-and sometimes I think people like to be distracted so that they don't have to sit there and hear that noise.

But now, the distractions have gone significantly down-and the noise is on. Now, what are you going to do? Now the volume is turned up, you have to now do the impossible-which is, you have to live with yourself. I know there are a lot of people who just can't do it; they can't stand it. They can't stand themselves.

Is that a tragedy? Hmm, I think so; I think that's a tragedy. If you cannot be by yourself, with yourself…. If you're not comfortable being you, then who are you comfortable being?

You know, a long time ago I'm sure it must have been very different-that you go out every day, most of the day-and you collect berries. And you collect berries; you collect whatever you can collect. Hunter-gatherers, that's who we were: "Collect, collect, collect"-and you eat, eat, eat.

And then in the evening, you lie down; you go to sleep-and hope no animal comes and eats you-but you go to sleep, wake up in the morning and start that cycle again. And I'm sure people must have been fed up with it: "We wish we had one place we could just go and we could eat."

From that time, we've actually created a system. And the system that we have created-the fact that you have to spend all day long doing it hasn't changed. So, now you don't go picking berries. Now, you go working so you can buy the berries; that's the change that we have made.

Before, we were just, we were not paying anybody; we were not trying to make money. We didn't have to make money; caves were free-and all you had to do was just go out all day long, pick berries, pick fruits, pick whatever came your way. Eat it-and that was it.

Now, one big problem, I can imagine, in those days would have been, "That can you guarantee food every single day?" So, there would be some days that you didn't have food and you were hungry.

In a way, now we have created a society in which we take pride in fasting. So, that's the same thing-but there it was happening naturally because you just couldn't find any food-and you had to keep moving. And now, you do it on purpose. You do it for some, you know, some reason.

And here you are-and you're working all day long; just like in the old days, you get up in the morning. And what do you do? You go out to work so you make some money-and you can buy the berries; you can buy all that food.

In the process of making sure that we always have food, we have created an overabundance of food. I mean, an unbelievable amount of food is grown-right down to the point where most of that food is wasted-that we can't even consume it. And when you look at all the animals that are raised for slaughter, it goes completely out of proportion.

So, when you look at this, we have created a system. But the problems, we have not been able to deal with-we've still got the problems.

So, we have overabundance of food. We don't have to go pick berries but we still have to pick something else, which is called "money"; you have to create money, make money-and that takes us all day long. And then we can use that money to buy the berries.

Well, I'm not going to be the judge to say whether that works or doesn't work; you can be the judge of that. But somehow it doesn't feel simple. And I'm talking about simplicity; I'm talking about that simplicity that is inside of you-the law of existence that is incredibly simple.

The needs that you have? Not the wants, the needs that you have? Air, water-a huge system to take that salty water and create fresh, distilled water with it, fresh water with it, make that water available-all the river systems, all the fountains, all the systems in the world…. Air, it's here; it's there, everywhere.

Simple, realistic, adorable: this is life. Simple fulfillment, simplest, simplest, simplest of needs for clarity, for understanding, to go forward, to be in joy, to enjoy every single day. And then one day everything packs up, circus is gone, everything is over. But till that day, every day, enjoying, enjoying, enjoying, not from here-but from here, the truest, most beautiful way.

Be well. Be safe. Be. I'll talk to you later. Thank you.

Lockdown Broadcast Day 18

"We're all in the same boat. We have to realize that. And that would be an incredible turning point if we could realize what humanity means." - Prem Rawat

If you have questions you would like Prem to respond to, please send them to PremRawat.com (www.premrawat.com/engage/contact) Audio

Prem Rawat:

Hello, everyone. I hope you're all well and safe.

So, today I'd like to just talk a little bit about this opportunity, really-a chance to be, to be happy-a chance to enjoy, to be simple, to have an understanding that your relationship between the two walls is with you.

It's about you-it's about your existence; it's about your being here. It's not about the coronavirus; it's not about this world; it's not about the world economy; it's not about all of this stuff.

The reason why I say that is, all the stuff that we are always concerned about is human-made. All this economy, all this stuff, this is just a play of the human beings. Somebody came up with these ideas: "This is what we should do; this is what we should do; this is what we should do."

There are policies; there is, "This happens; that that happens. There is this bank that controls that; there is a group of people that controls that." And you, you don't feel like a puppet in it; you don't want to be a puppet in it, but that's exactly what you are, whether you like it or not. Hence you have a desire to be free.

And when the word is mentioned, "freedom," there is such a strong feeling, "Yeah, yeah, yeah, I want to be free." But have you ever asked yourself, "What is it that enslaves you? Why do you want to feel free? Why don't you feel free?" And the reason why you don't feel free is because all this stuff that is on the outside is holding you back from being truly who you are and what you are.

You have this life. You have this existence. And for the most part, we know so little about it. We have not thoroughly explored it; we have not truly looked at it and said, "What does it mean; what does it mean to be alive; what does it mean to exist; what does it mean to be? What does it mean to have this?"

Is this an opportunity-or is this a kickback of some actions of a past lifetime and this and that-and you know, there's no shortage of people making it complicated. Oh, you just cannot believe how complicated people of this world have made existence to be.

"Oh, you are only here because you did something in your last lifetime; you did this; you did that," and on it goes. And those people who tell you all these things, they themselves have no idea what it all means. Why? Because it has all come from a book, not from them.

It's all about believing-believing, believing, believing, believing. And we are all happy to believe; we can just believe away our problems; we can just believe away all the complicated stuff. We can just believe away who the creator is. We can just believe away how we got here. We can just believe away all this, all this stuff.

I challenge the people to know! What can you know? To know, to understand, to have the awareness of the self. And that's what everything is about-to really feel what it means to be alive-and in this time.

So, what happened? Well, you heard some news; it was around December 2019, "Yeah, oh, there are some people who got sick in China." "Wow. Okay, hope they get better soon." Hmm, well, they may or may not get better soon-but they all started leaving. People realized that they had jumped.

And you see, when I say, "And this is all people's doing," it is. We human beings do these things. So, all of a sudden, we have airlines who are happily taking people away, wherever they want to go. And unbeknown to most people, they're carrying this virus. The next thing you know, all over the world….

Now, whoever came up with the idea of having unrestricted travel, it wasn't with a bad intention; it was like, "Yeah, that would be really good; people could go wherever they want to go."

There was a time that was not the case. When I was traveling a lot in the early seventies, 70, 71, it wasn't like that. It wasn't anything like what traveling is like now. People actually got dressed; it was an occasion. And you had to have a lot of money to be able to get on an airplane.

Then, it was around the Carter administration where they opened it all up. Before that, the major airlines had everything locked up. And they removed all those restrictions and now all competitive airlines could come-and all the airlines could come that wanted to come and start flying people around. And the quality, of course, disappeared, but yes, a lot of people were going all over the place.

And the next thing you know, something like this coronavirus, traveling, traveling, traveling-and there's quite a parallel to this, Spanish flu-that was all about traveling too. And that traveling made it possible for that stuff to spread.

So, anyways, besides the point that, yeah, whatever is going on…. That human beings have created for themselves, this issue-and it is human beings who have to try to figure out how to get out of it.

And there are people, I'm sure, it's like, "Oh, it's, but it's, this is complicated and that's complicated and this happened this way and that happened that way." It has nothing to do with it.

Don't ever forget what your business here between the two walls is. Please, don't be distracted by this stuff; this will go away. All you have to do-it's a pretty simple formula: "Isolate. Don't give it; don't get it. Wash your hands; maintain the distance"-fair enough.

They're working on viruses--the vaccines; they will have the vaccines, medication, whatever…. And then you can go on with your business of whatever that business was that you can't wait to get to, (which I can't imagine what that could be), fighting with each other? You know, all kinds of bizarre stuff, that's what we were doing.

Excuse me, that's what we were doing before-you could have picked up the newspaper and seen all that stuff that's going on. And now we have got coronavirus; that's got our undivided attention. And when this is over, I'm sure we're going to go back to the same old craziness.

But this is not why you're here. Neither you are here for coronavirus, nor you are here for that craziness that goes on every day. You're here for something else. You're here to be fulfilled.

Like many times, I give this example; it's like, you know, you bought a ticket and you won it. And the ticket is that, you know, for X amount of days, you're going to be in this most incredible shopping center.

And there are all kinds of shops in that shopping center, most magnificent shops in that shopping center. And you can have-you can go to any shop you want and get anything you want. There's only one caveat. And that one caveat is, you get to take nothing from that shopping center with you.

What is your strategy going to be? I know what my strategy will be. I will enjoy every minute of being in that shopping center. I may not be able to take anything with me, but one thing I can sneak away from there-I know I can-and that is my enjoyment.

So, that's my strategy; my strategy is to enjoy every minute of it that I can. And now, situations happen. People come up with ideas, situations, different things, "Oh, don't do this; don't do that, you know, I don't want you to do this and I don't want you to do that." And I'm like, "What? Why? What's your point?" But then you just like, understand, "Look. Fine, let it go."

It becomes very important-I can't control the situations, but I can control the way I react to them, for my sake-not for people's sake, for my sake. This is a big part of what the training that I am putting together for you is all about.

"What do you control?" You don't control the situation. Obviously, you want to control the situation-but you're not going to be able to control the situation all the time. But what you can control is how you react to that situation.

And if you can control that, not for other people's sake, not for the sake of looking good, but for yourself-whatever you do has to be for yourself first.

If you cannot be kind to yourself, you cannot be kind to other people. If you cannot be understanding of yourself, you cannot be understanding of other people. If you cannot be fulfilled, you cannot fulfill other people. If you cannot love you, you cannot love other people. If you cannot be clear, you cannot pass on clarity to the other people. First, it has to happen for you.

And if it can happen for you, then it's up to you, "What do you want to do with it?" It's up to you, how you want to unfold it. It's up to you, "What do you do with it?" Because you have just awakened and evoked those beautiful powers that reside inside of you, that are inside of you.

Will we never feel sad? Of course we will feel sad. Somebody asked me that question and I've been thinking about it-"You know, I've got my grandfather and I can't go and say goodbye to that person; I cannot take care of that person. What do I do?" And when I read that, you know, of course, I was sad too. This is not good. This is the sad part of it.

And what's going to happen with this virus thing; I mean, this thing has only begun. I mean, can you imagine all those poor people-the poor are the ones who are always going to get hit the hardest-really, really hard.

I mean, you know, most people have a house or have an apartment or have a place which has got proper walls and so on and so forth. Can you imagine how many people live in these shacks that are made out of those corrugated aluminum tins? That that's it, those aluminum sheets?

And the summer is upon them. You know, I mean, in California, of course, it's still cool outside-not a problem. But in places like India, places like Africa, I mean, the summer is here in the northern part. And my God, it just gets…. How do you quarantine yourself? Where do you quarantine yourself?

So, you know, give it a thought, of all that stuff. And yet, what did I come up with for that person who said, "You know, there's my grandfather…." It's like, "You can love. You can love that person."

Love is the only thing you've got that does not see walls, that does not see doors, that does not see time, that does not see situations, that does not see wealth, that does not see economy, that does not see anything. Love is! And it is one of the most powerful things you have.

Your love? Your love? Oh my God, it is the most powerful thing you have. It is more powerful than punching somebody with your fist in somebody's face.

Love! Love is one of those things, that when a person is touched by that, they will never forget. If you hurt somebody, they may, after the wounds healed and everything is good, they may forget it. But love will touch them in a place where they will never forget what it has been like.

You have that. You don't know how to use it; you don't know how to evoke it. Why, because you're always being shortchanged by these little picture postcards that this printer keeps putting out-what your vision of love is, what your vision, what your view of the perfect person is, who you should give this love to. This is what happens every single time.

These pictures, the more I think about them, how obnoxious are they? Every single time, they shortchange the people, my potential, my possibility of why I am here between those two walls, the time that I have….

And they get shortchanged by this printer that just keeps putting out more and more and more and more prints-and I keep looking at those prints and going, "Oh, how wonderful that is; yes, yes, yes, that's what I want."

For me, this journey has been quite a journey. I mean, I left Spain-and the lockdown hadn't quite begun yet. They were just getting some talk about it and I left-and I arrived in Brazil. And at that point, when I arrived in Brazil, it was fine to go to South America; it was fine to go to Argentina; it was fine to go to Montevideo.

But I was going to be there for a couple of days, three days I believe, and just then they said, "No, no, nobody's coming to Argentina." And I decided, "Well, you know that we really shouldn't be holding gatherings and getting people in one room; this would be very bad." So I said, "I don't want to do that."

And so then, the day I left Brazil, the next day they were announcing that they were going to go under lockdown; they were going to stop. And I'd looked around where I was, and people were so poor! Being isolated wasn't going to work for them. And they just, and that just-they didn't know how to be isolated.

But this is what poor people do; they congregate; they go to a tea shop; they go to a coffee shop; they go somewhere, just, and they congregate and this is where they, you know, have their interaction and this is where they get their little news and this is where it happens.

Because a lot of them are migrant workers and they're there; they have come from different villages. And their families are in their villages and they've come to the cities to do and make a little bit of money. And I was like, "Oh my God, poor people are just going to get slaughtered by this."

And it's so important that the governments and all of us as human beings, try to help as much as possible. And I have some good news in that regard.

So, I asked TPRF and I asked RVK India to send me a report of what TPRF is doing and what RVK is doing and I would like to share that with you at some point in time. But it's really wonderful to just see what little effort we make, and it has such a profound impact.

And so, I know, whatever the difficult situation may be, have a heart and give a thought for everyone else. Because they're in the same boat; you're all in the same boat; we're all in the same boat. The boat isn't any different. Somebody may be by the bow; somebody may be by the stern; somebody may be starboard; somebody may be port-but it's the same boat.

So, somebody might say, "Yes, I am in the bow; I'll get there sooner." And then, you know, somebody might say, "Well, I'm in the stern and I might get there later," and somebody might say, "This is the port side; I'm going to dock first," and then somebody says, "And the starboard side; I'm going to dock…." And whatever. But it's the same boat. We have to realize that.

And that would be an incredible turning point if we could realize what humanity means-in these times, what humanity means. That, let this not be another repeat of the Spanish flu. And a world with all the technology, with all that information, forgot what that was all about.

So, I hope you stay well. Please, be safe; be well. And most importantly, be. Thank you very much.

Lockdown Broadcast Day 19

Hello, hello, hello, everyone. I hope you're all well. And, you know, under the circumstances, I hope you're taking this in stride, one day at a time. That's all you can do-one step at a time, one day at a time, one moment at a time. That's such a befitting pattern to life, to take things one step at a time.

Yes, we have the capacity to plan for tomorrow. Yes, we have the capacity to remember yesterday. But we also have a capacity to understand what today is all about. We also have the fantastic capacity to understand what now is all about.

And unless we bring that into play, that capacity that we have to understand what now is all about, what today is all about, the planning for tomorrow is going to be fairly pointless. And the yesterdays would have gone and will be gone.

But today, this moment carries a message for you. And that message is very profound; this message is very simple. And that message is very clear. And that message is all about "Be. Exist. Enjoy."

And not the enjoyment of this world, not the enjoyment that people usually talk about, "Yeah, let's go to the beach," or "let's go do this," or "let's go do that," but enjoyment that comes from within you-the enjoyment that is all about your existence, the enjoyment that is all about you being alive, the enjoyment that comes from understanding what it is that this moment brings to you.

Is this life, is this existence a gift? It's only a gift if you realize that it is a gift. If you realize, if you're willing to accept this gift, if you're willing to take this gift, if you're willing to open this gift, then it's a gift.

Otherwise, it means nothing. I mean, so many people before you and so many people after you would have come in this world and would have gone. And what difference would it make? Another person….

You know, these days everything is about statistics. And every morning that I wake up, I go to this one website and it's called "Worldometers." And I go to that website and it's just got all these numbers. It's got numbers for all the people that are born, all the people that are dying, all the people, everything. And then it's got all the information about coronavirus.

And I look at those numbers and it's like, "Yes, those numbers represent all these human lives. But are they truly representative of what really is going on, lives that are at stake?"

You know, you say, "Oh, yeah, so many people died and they, you know, they were above this age and they died." That's really sad. It is sad. Because there will be a whole generation that'll grow up without that wisdom and that knowledge that the grandparents impart to their children.

I mean, that's so valuable; that is so important, somebody to be there to tell them, "That's the way it is." That "It's okay." It's okay when something happens that they didn't plan on happening; it wasn't part of their little plan.

You know, a lot of times, the parents, they don't have the time. But the grandparents do have the time. And that wisdom gets passed on, generation to generation to generation to generation.

And this is the value-not the numbers, but the value of each person who is around, the life. Because one of those numbers, (maybe it's in thousands), but it represents a human being. It represents you; it represents me. It represents, truly, the meaning that this breath comes into that person-that they are given an opportunity to exist, they're given an opportunity to thrive.

And I'm saying all these things to you because I think, once in a while, we have got to get our head out of the sand, (like an ostrich), and look around us and look at the reality that exists, look at the beauty that exists.

Because, yeah-yeah, there are terrible things happening. Some world leaders really missed the boat. They really missed the boat; they saw the storm coming and they did nothing about it till it was too late. And terrible penalty, terrible chaos, terrible fiasco…. But even in that fiasco, you've got to pull your head out of the sand and look at what's real. What is real? What is beautiful; what is good.

Because you have those two wolves in you, a good wolf and the bad wolf, and they fight. Which wolf is going to win? It's obvious-the one you feed. If in this situation, you are feeding the bad wolf, the bad wolf is going to win. And believe me, when the bad wolf wins, it's going to make your life miserable. And that would be a tragedy on top of a tragedy.

But if you feed the good wolf…. What does the good wolf live on? The good wolf lives on kindness. The good wolf lives on clarity. The good wolf lives on joy, a fulfillment. And if these are the things that are fed to that wolf, it'll become strong. And then it wouldn't be a tragedy on top of a tragedy. It'll be something good. Something would have been learned; something would have been understood.

There's a saying, you know, "When you're down, pick something up. You're so close to it; pick something up." And I agree with that. When you're down, pick something up. Understand.

It's always been a case of, "When there's the time of the bad, you must have prepared for that bad time when the times are good." To prepare for the bad times, you must prepare for them when the times are good. And the question becomes, "Did you? Did you prepare when the times were good?"

Or were you just out there going, "Yes, you know, everything is great; nothing bad will ever happen. Look at our…." This is what happens so many times in civilizations. And this wouldn't be the first time that, at the apex of the civilization, at the crescendo…. And people lost. People got into, "H'oh my God, we are so powerful; we are this; we are that; I mean, nothing bad can happen…."

Everybody, about virtual reality. Well, try virtual reality now-I wish you could. Because this reality is not very good; some virtual reality might be good.

How is that going to help the human condition? That's why I keep pointing out to people; people always kept telling me, you know, "What about this; what about that?" And I'm like, "Wait-wait-wait-wait, wait-wait-wait-wait, wait, wait, you are a human being."

You know, relatively speaking, we haven't really, as this "modern man," this modern human being-we haven't been around for that long. We haven't even sorted things out yet. We're still living in a very antique world.

We-I mean, we may think we are living in this "modern," you know, at 2020 and all of these technologies and all that. But the reality of it is that women still don't, in our society, have equal space. And that's unimaginable.

Not so long ago, just a few years ago-and I know that there are countries like India which I'm sure that this is going on there right now, that they don't want mixed marriages. It has nothing to do with love-but it's like, "No, no, that person can't get married to that…." Even though the society has changed dramatically, but it has such a long way to change.

There are people of LGBT community-that are having to fend off so much hate. And we're not accepting them as who they are, as human beings.

And the society still remains dramatically divided-dramatically divided. I know there are shows on television where they show people hoarding things. And they've got so much, so many things; I mean, you can't walk into their living room and they've been hoarding and hoarding and hoarding and hoarding.

But what do you think some of these corporations have been doing? And when they hoard, (they hoard money), they're tapped on the back, "Oh, you are doing really good." But all they're doing is hoarding money.

When, "But, oh, look, look how that person became so successful." Maybe that person, what they have, they took from somebody. You know, when there's corruption, this is what happens. That it is taken away from some poor person's mouth; the food is taken. We produce so much and waste even more. This is the society that we have created for ourselves.

It is time, truly, to reflect on this; to understand, "What do we want? Do we want to be divided up or do we want to be united as human beings on the face of this earth? Do we want to have a world which feels safer and safer and safer or do we want a world that feels more dangerous and more dangerous and more dangerous?"

The answers to these questions, my friends, lie in your heart and the heart of all human beings. These are not some exceptional ideas that have come up in 2020; these are the ideas that have been around for a very, very long time-in fact, as long as there have been societies in this world. A desire to be free, a desire to move forward, a desire to be progressive and a desire to be united.

And working for the betterment of all mankind. The world we create today is the world which will reflect upon tomorrow and the day after that and the day after that and the day after that. Whether you like it or not, you are the architects of tomorrow.

But believe me, you will never be able to understand what tomorrow is all about if you have no idea what today is all about. You will not be able to understand the value of yesterday if you don't understand the value of today. Tomorrow will remain a mystery if today is a mystery to you.

And so this is the time; this is the time to take a step, to look inside. Not to ponder about the uncertainty, but to ponder about the certainty that we can bring. It is time to unite like we have never united before. And more importantly than the rest of the whole world, we need to be united with ourselves.

We cannot be two; we cannot be three; we cannot be four-we need to be one within ourselves, too. We need to know who we are. We need to understand who we are, so that we can move forward and make this world a better place for everyone-that we understand, we understand the meaning of "man kind, man kind," kindness for all human beings across the world.

So, thank you very much; I'll talk to you later. I hope you give this some thought. And most importantly, be safe; be well. And be

Lockdown Broadcast Day 20

Hello, everyone. I hope you're all doing well, safe, and feeling well. What I'd like to talk to you today about, again, is very simple. Because that's what we have to, in our lives, really come down to. Whatever the situation may be, simplicity will see you through it. Look at the simplicity of life; look at the simplicity of existence and you'll understand what I'm talking about.

In our lives, we sometimes don't understand how important it is to have harmony in our existence, to be harmonious with everything that is around us, to be harmonious with this nature, to be harmonious with the people that we are around.

And most importantly, to be in harmony with ourselves, the harmony of our existence, the harmony of this breath coming in, filling us with life-the simple things, the beautifully simple things in life-you, your existence. Your want, put aside-but look at your needs, the simple needs to be fulfilled, to be in peace, to be in joy, to understand.

To question, but then to have the answer, too. To understand that all those answers, the ocean of answers, is within you. To query, "What is this," but then to find the answer to what this is.

That understanding can only be if there is the profoundness of simplicity in your life, if you understand the rhythm of this joy, of this existence-that it comes, that you exist, that you want to thrive-you want to go beyond surviving; you want to thrive. That what it's going to take is just that simple thing of simply being. To be, to exist, to see the harmony, to see it in the simplest of ways.

Not the complicated. We like the complicated-oh, we love the complicated. Because when it's complicated, we feel challenged of, "What can we say; what can be the profound thing?"

You know, and one time I saw somebody who was talking about somebody's past lifetime, "Oh, you were an elephant. Oh, you were a this; oh, you were a that." Why are you going there? This is the life you have. Not that. That you had. This is the life you have. And what can you do in this life? What can you be in this life? Can you be simple? Can you see it with the eyes of a child?

What is that? And that is simply to see, to accept something without wondering, "What is it; what is it called? What is its function; what is its purpose?" That's going to happen later-but there is that one stage where the child merely looks at something and accepts.

Many times I have seen this. You show the child the moon. You bring them out. You show; the night is there; they look up; they see the moon-they don't know it's called "the moon." That's the parents who go, "Moon"-they give it the name.

But without giving it the name, without anything else, the child is looking at it and appreciating its beauty, appreciating what it is, without having to know "How far it is, what the diameter of the moon is, what the circumference of this thing is, what is a moon; where did it come from"-all that happens later.

But the issue is, "Fine, it happens all later; later we get into all this stuff"-but what about that simplicity? I always ask that one question, "What happened to that child?" You were once that child-that child that was incredibly simple.

And for a lot of people, you know, they don't see the profoundness of that. I do. To be able to see something for what it is, without having known its name, without having known its characteristics, without giving it a purpose, without giving it a this….

I mean, why does the moon look beautiful? Is it beautiful? Well, when it's shining up in the sky, it does look beautiful. Why does it look beautiful? It doesn't matter, so far it is.

Can that be me too? Do I have to give ten thousand different meanings to everything that happens in my life-or can I simply, simply accept, "I am. I exist"?

And can I accept my needs? I want to be in peace. I want to feel good. I want to be in joy. I want to be fulfilled. And a lot of people go, "You know, what is it that we're going to get fulfilled by?" Somebody just recently asked me a question, you know, "What is peace…? What is peace?" Somebody-actually, many times people have asked me, "What is peace?"

Wow. Really, you want to know what peace is? You don't want to feel it; you want to know what it is? What is sugar? What is chili; what is salt!? You know, you can give it a name: "Yes, it's this; it's this; it's this." Taste, taste it!

There is that story where there was this king-and he was sitting in his court and an ambassador came. And the ambassador said, "My king has sent you, as a gift, this fruit that comes from his kingdom." And so the king that was sitting there going, "What is it?" He goes, "It's a mango."

Now, it just so happened that in their kingdom, they didn't have this fruit. So he goes, "Well, what is a mango?" And somebody said, "Okay, let me go take a look at it." So they went and looked at a mango. And they said, "Oh, sire, it's this fruit and it looks like this," you know, "and that's what a mango is." "But I don't understand," the king said, "what a mango is."

So, then their man went and touched it and he goes, "Well, it feels like, you know, gooey-gooey." And the king said, "I still don't understand what a mango is." Then somebody took a bite of it and said, "Oh, it's really delicious; it's sweet; it's got this beautiful aroma," and the king said, "I still don't understand what a mango is."

And finally, this kept going on and on and on and on and everybody was getting sick and tired of it-and then one courtier got up; he took a slice of that mango, put it on a plate, brought to the king and said, "Sire, taste it." As soon as the king put it in his mouth, he said, "Now I know what the mango is. Thank you." That's the power of knowing.

And the power of believing? "More, more, more, believe in this; believe in this; believe in this; believe in this," because it's not knowing; it's "believe, believe, believe." Somebody is going to go out there and figure it out for you-and then put it in a pill and give it to you. And you're going to take that pill and say, "Now, I think I know it now."

But you don't know. "And I just believe; I believe more of this; I believe more of this; I believe more of this, but I believe more of this," and the belief goes on and on and on. And then there have to be people who will interpret that belief for you. And so there's no shortage of interpreters.

And what do they do? They get up and they, you know, open the books. And they, it's like, "Okay, let me tell you this as in this book, and it's true because it's written in this book and it's not true because it's written in that book, and it's true in this…." And it's like, on and on and on it goes.

But that's what belief is all about; what is the power of knowing? What do you want in your life, beliefs or knowing? You want to know. And that is being in harmony with the self-not at odds, but being in the harmony with the self, the true harmony, to be in that rhythm.

Otherwise, what is life like? And I can tell you this; it's like a band playing and one player is playing off beat. He's completely somewhere else, playing off-key and off beat. Does that sound like your life sometimes, where the music isn't making sense because somebody's playing something else? It's not in the same beat; it's not in the same harmony.

This life needs to be in that harmony every single day. Every moment that you can be, you need to be in that harmony. With the times right now, that is challenging.

Because this is going, "What's going to happen?" This is going, "What's going to happen; when is this going to end? What is this; what is this; what is this; what is this?" And the heart is more interested in what happens every day: "You're alive," your life, your existence.

Understand what it means to be in that harmony. Understand how important it is for you to be in that harmony. Harmonize with this existence, for the time you have-for the time you have. And when this is gone, you won't be able to harmonize. Will you want to? Yes, but would you be able to? No.

This is your chance; this is your opportunity to feel, to experience. And how beautiful that is, that you can do that; you can feel; you can feel peace; you can feel joy. You can feel the goodness of being alive, the goodness of who you are, the harmony, the understanding. And you know, that's what it has to be. Not the complicated, but the simple.

And when you understand what that simplicity is-and how precious that simplicity is, then everything begins to change. Everything takes on a new meaning: "Wow. How do I capture today? Just be me"-and you will capture it. This is what you want. It's always a good time, always a beautiful time because you understand what that means.

Not analytical, not through analysis, "Oh, there's…." We need analysis; I'm not saying we don't need analysis. We need analysis. And in this world, there are many things that need analysis.

But your existence is afoot. No point in analyzing "what this means, what that means." Accept. Accept and understand-that you need to be in that simple harmony, in the simplest synchronicity with your existence, with this breath. As simple is it is, you need to become that simple; you need to become that real.

What is real? Not some philosophy that bounces between these two ears. No, no, no, no, no. What is simple; what is real-to you? It's the coming and going of your breath, your existence. Your…. What is real is your desire for peace, your need for peace. What is real is your need to be fulfilled. What is real is your need to be in that simplicity.

What is real is to have that harmony in your life, your need to have that harmony in your life. To once again, see the world and to see yourself with the eyes of the child. I always say this, you know, "What happened to that child, do you think?" That child is still here. Each one of you, once upon a time, was a child. That child never died. That child is still there.

Get in touch with that child; get in touch with that simplicity; get in touch with that harmony; get in touch with that joy. And the reward for all that is fulfillment, is peace, is the beautiful stuff in life.

Be safe; be well. Be. Thank you.

Lockdown Broadcast Day 21

Hello, everyone. I hope you're all well.

So, last night I was thinking about, again, the training and the Peace Education Program-and I came across something in my head, and what I came across was a question-and actually, it turned out to be two questions. And the question is, "Are you, as a human being, comfortable with yourself?" It's a pretty important question, I think.

Because if we are not comfortable with who we are-again, that's a perceived point; that's a perceived thing. In reality, who you are, that's totally different; that's something to be realized; that's something to be discovered; that's something to be understood.

But in your perception of yourself, are you comfortable being you? Because if you are comfortable with being you, then this whole lockdown thing is not an issue. Because you're comfortable being you.

But if you're not comfortable with yourself, then this definitely becomes a very valid issue, because you now don't know who you are. And because you don't know who you are, you are with a stranger. Literally, you are with a stranger.

And there are people in this world who go through a whole lifetime living with a stranger, somebody you don't know-and they're there; they're there every day. And all there is is just expectations, expectations, expectations, expectations.

And you expect a lot from that stranger. What you actually expect from that stranger is what people have expected of you. The world puts a huge amount of expectations on you. You pass that on to this stranger that you live with.

So, what does that mean? It just means, very simply, "If you got to understand who you are, if you understood who you are, then you wouldn't be a stranger to the self." And if you're not a stranger to the self, then you can very easily say, "Yes, this is what I want in my life; this is how I want to be in my life. This is what is comfortable for me-and this is what is not comfortable for me."

Because, any stage of the game…. You know, when you were going to school, you started with kindergarten; then you went on to first grade. When did you go to second grade? After you had finished the first grade.

Now, it may seem pointless to go to the second grade because, by the time you're finished with first grade, you are so comfortable with the first grade. But then you have to stop-and you're ready to take on the next step.

It's just like climbing a ladder. You climb the first rung; you bring your feet up to it. Then, once you are there, then you take and you put your foot on the second rung-and the third rung and the fourth rung-and this is how you climb.

So, before you start to put expectations on yourself, (whether they are your expectations or whether they are expectations that are created by this world), you have to be very, very clear that "Yes, I'm comfortable at this level. Then I can go on to the second level."

The second level? A little bit more understanding of myself. Third level, a little bit more understanding of myself-and it's a discovery; it's a process of discovery for the rest of your life.

Because you are not static. You are constantly evolving; you're constantly changing. You want to be stationary; you want to not change. And that's what Socrates said, that if you get everything, (I'm paraphrasing here), if you get everything you want, you're not going to be happy. If you don't get what you want, you're not going to be happy.

And even if you get what you want you're not going to be happy because it's going to change. And change is the fact of life. You don't like that. You want to be stationary; you want everything to stop-and you can look at it that way; you can look at it being stationary. You want to appreciate everything from that way of being stationary.

So now, here comes this whole issue of reality. What is reality like? And I remember a question that somebody asked me and it was in Portugal. And they said, "If I were to find out who I am," (because this is what I was talking about to them), "that if I found out who I am and I didn't like who I am, then what would I do?"

And I gave an answer, whatever the answer was; I went back to my hotel-and I started thinking. It's like, "Wow, I have not considered somebody ever knowing themselves…."

And it's not anywhere. You know, you listen to Kabir or you read what so many other people had to say; nobody talks about, "Hey, you'd better be careful knowing yourself because if you got to know yourself…. And what if you didn't like what you saw?"

Pretty fascinating. It's amazing; it's like, "Wait a minute. That possibility may exist in this person's mind, in this person's head. But that possibility has not even, ever been brought up." Because it is a foregone conclusion that when you know yourself, you will like what you see.

And that's pretty fascinating. It is fascinating to understand that what is there, what is truly you, is beautiful-exceptionally.

Now, you know, it's like you have a wall-and there's a big gate. And the person says, "Okay, follow me." And that person steps through that gate and they're looking at something and it's absolutely spectacular. And they're telling you, "Don't be afraid; come on in!"

But they're not telling you what they're seeing. All they're saying is, "Come on in; it's okay. It's fine." And they're encouraging you to come in, but the encouragement isn't by, "I see this; I see this; I see this; I see this," so, I wonder why that is.

And in fact, one of the couplets that I had come across is "That when you talk about this experience, when you talk about that feeling of knowing yourself, that it is a bit like a person who is mute, who cannot speak, eating candy. They can taste it-and they are definitely enjoying it. But they cannot tell you how much they're enjoying it and what the taste is. All they can tell you is 'Umm, it's great; it's wonderful.'"

And this is what it boils down to. That the reality, by its very nature, is beautiful. This existence, by its very nature, is beautiful. (Now, pay attention here.) This existence, by its very nature, is beautiful. This reality, by its very nature, is beautiful. Your life, by its very nature, is beautiful. Your heart, by its very nature, is very beautiful.

So then, why are all these other issues hovering around you? Ah-hah, here is that point. Take that first question I asked, and that question is, "Are you comfortable with yourself?" Because if you're not, perhaps you're carrying a huge burden on your shoulders of the expectations that others have of you.

But it's time to understand who you are, not everything else. Your whole life has been spent, up to this point, understanding everything around you-all the things that go on, this is what we learn and learn and learn and learn and learn and learn.

And I'm not saying that that's wrong; it's not a question of right and wrong. And there are many things in this world that we learn-by their very nature they are bad. But the reality, by its very nature, is good. You, you, as a human being, by your very nature you are good.

And so there is this incredibly learnt behavior, incredibly heavy-duty learnt behavior that other people have, that you have, that is causing all the friction-causes all the friction, causes all the friction, causes all the friction in this world. Not the reality, not the sweet reality of who you are, that that breath comes into you, that you are alive, that you exist.

You exist for a very finite amount of time, but you exist. And in that, you bloom-you bloom. In that, you find that which you didn't pay attention to.

"Why is this reality hidden? Why is this beauty hidden?" Excuse me, it's not hidden. Not by any stretch of the imagination is this beauty hidden, is this joy hidden, is this clarity hidden, is this peace hidden. You just never did pay attention to it. You never thought it's there. Nobody told you it's there. Nobody said, "This-a-way, in here lies the most amazing thing that you are."

And so, is it that simple, is it that easy, that all we have to do is pay attention to it? And it will begin to manifest itself; we will begin to see it. And the idea is exactly that: "Get out of the way."

A lot of people say to me, "You know, I'm searching for peace." It's like, "Well, good luck. You're not going to find it that way." "Why not? Why shouldn't I be searching for peace?" Because you already have it. That's why you shouldn't be searching for it; you should be enjoying it; you should be paying attention to it; you already have it; it's there.

It's like somebody going, "Where are my glasses; where are my"-you know, a lot of people put up their glasses on top of their head. And it's like, "Where are my glasses; where are my glasses?" Obviously, your eyes can't see it because it's at the top of your head.

And, you know, somebody seeing you with the glasses on top of your head-and they're like, "Kkh, kkh, kkh, over there, you know, on top of your head are your glasses. Why are you searching for them; why are you looking for them when they're there?" And it's the same thing, that that beauty is inside of you.

Now, the second question that I'm going to ask you…. I hope the first question clarified itself for you somehow. But the second question is-so, right now we are in the middle of this lockdown. Not a nice situation. But it's not the situation, but how we react to it, right?

So, here is my question. "Pretty soon-relatively speaking, pretty soon this will be over. What would you have learnt?"

When I began, it was all about "resetting." What would you have reset? When you come out of this, will you be the same? Are you just waiting? Are you just waiting every day for this to be over-I mean, every single day? Are you scared of this thing? When I have told you that being scared doesn't do anybody any good? Absolutely not, it's, that never helps anybody.

But you have to do something. And that takes exceptional courage sometimes. And to say that it takes exceptional courage-would be pointless to say that if you didn't have it. You have that courage. You can take that step in your life; you can move forward.

And grab this challenge and say, "Okay. This isn't going to be a waste of my time. Because my goodness, if this is a waste of time, this is a real waste of time, times many, many, many, many times." This sounds weird but, yeah, "This is a waste of time times many, many times over."

But it can't be. It can't be. As a human race, mankind, human beings on the face of this earth, we're making history. We got faced by something that we weren't prepared for-and in a matter of a very short period of time, it has brought the whole world, "world" to its knees.

It is a thing you can't even see with your eyes, naked eyes; you'd need a microscope or something…. And here we are. And what are we doing?

The governments are talking about extending the lockdown, doing this, doing that. There'll be some countries that would have gone through it, some islands that would have gone through it and they would be releasing, saying, "Okay, it's clear-but don't come here." You know, the world isn't going to be the same for a long time.

But here is your opportunity. What do you see-the difference that you are going to make in your life, in this period of time? How will it be better for you, when you come out of this whole thing? (Ideally, everything being perfect-and they find a vaccine; you get inoculated and, you know, now you are resistant to it and you can go on and all's well, all's good.) Will you be the same?

Because if we'll be the same, with no change to the human beings that live on the face of this earth, who share this earth with everybody…. This is obvious! This is obvious, that we share this world with everybody. That we make a difference. We all make a difference.

There are those people who truly are in lockdown and not going out and contaminating people. Yes! You are playing your part; you're playing your role. You-you are not just one anymore.

When you stay in lockdown, you stop that contamination going from four, five people from you directly, and then four or five people for each one that you would have infected, and so on and so on and so on and so on. You're not one.

So, give it a thought, of how powerful this is. That what we are having to live through, what we are going through, how powerful this is-and that we can make a difference.

And every, every person that is making a difference, those people who are at the forefront of this, in the hospitals, who are making a difference, the nursing staff that's making a difference, the doctors that are making the difference, the people that are making the difference.

If we can make that big of a difference, imagine when I say-and you know, people used to always laugh at me; I'm sure that people laugh at me today when I say "Peace is possible." They're like, "Yeah, yeah, yeah…."

But here is an example. Peace is possible. We are more powerful than we realize. And come together, united? We can do some amazing things.

But I have always said that it is every individual; it is the strength of every individual that is ultimately going to make the difference. That it isn't a question of a big light bulb, but it is the little light bulbs that make the difference. A lot of little lamps that are lit can make the difference. You are actually seeing that whole understanding about the lit lamps in action. You're seeing it in action.

I'm just, pretty soon, in a day or so, I'm going to have a little report that TPRF, what they're doing-and what RVK is doing in India and what one of the Premsagar Foundations is doing-and people that are making that effort. And it's a fascinating report at this time of coronavirus, what is happening; I'll have that report for you shortly.

So, this is your opportunity to transform from a very deep place inside of you. And that's why I said, "Are you comfortable with yourself"-from a very deep place inside of you, to transform forever. Not just for this period of time, but to transform forever. And if you could transform forever, you could transform your world around you.

So, fascinating two questions, give it a thought. Give it a thought. Thank you very much.

Lockdown Broadcast Day 22

Hello, everyone. I hope you're all well. And so much is still happening around the world-but again, I would just like to focus on the simplicity of your existence, of you, me, us, being on the face of this earth.

And what does it mean? Well, it is. Is it a gift-of course. Because none of us put a quarter or a dime or money in a vending machine and said, "Okay, this is what I want," pushed a button and here we are. And how magnificent, because only through appreciation can you begin to understand what this is all about.

Now, whether you call it "enlightenment," whether you call it "know-it-all," whether you call it whatever people call it-but just a very simple appreciation, appreciation for existence, appreciation for life, appreciation for clarity, appreciation for joy….

Appreciation for being included in this beautiful, beautiful creation-of millions and millions and millions and millions of years of experimenting, from one species to another species to another species to another species, evolving. And every one of those species contributing something towards, ultimately, to what we are today as a human being.

So, this has allowed so much to happen. Just recently, not too long ago, they found that there were perhaps, other species, very much-Homo erectus, but other species living with us.

And that's mind-boggling, from that to where we have come today, all those changes over millions of years, thousands of years, hundreds of thousands of years, changing, changing, changing, striving for something better, striving for something better, striving for something better. And in that striving for something better, today we find ourselves at this crossroad.

And in this crossroad, there is an amazing amount of peril. One thing is obvious; we are incredibly fragile. And this is very obvious-as the lockdown happens: "Can't go here; can't go there," people getting very irritated. All of these things happening. And people, scared-human beings, scared what's going to happen to them.

So, all that that we have created around us does not guarantee anything. All of a sudden, here we are at two thousand twenty, twenty-twenty.

When you think of 20/20 as "vision," that's perfect vision, great vision. And in the midst of 2020, so much confusion, so much fear, so much misinformation, so much doubt-that you really have to wonder; it's like, "Wait a minute; did we, as a species, as human beings-did we actually make a difference? Did we evolve in any way?"

And yet, haven't we evolved-only if we can accept what that simple and beautiful reality is-that we do exist. And maybe on the outside, we try to create a perfect world. (Maybe we will; maybe we won't.)

You know, one of the things about this coronavirus-in no way does it seem like a blessing. But let me tell you, that's what it took to clean up the air. That's what it took to give a break to the whole nature.

All of a sudden, everything that was just clogged freeways, fumes, factories producing pollution, pollution, pollution, pollution, pollution, pollution, contamination, contamination, contamination, all of a sudden came to a grinding halt.

In our pursuit of the perfect world, we have actually ended up creating an incredibly imperfect world. Will we ever agree to that? Probably not. Because that takes a lot of guts; that takes a lot of strength; that takes a tremendous amount of courage to say, "Yes, maybe we were not on the right path for this perfect world." Because it's all about greed.

And yet, when you hunker down and start looking at some of the writings-of Kabir, for instance, of Nanak, of so many people who really took to heart that "being on the face of this earth was more than just the fulfillment of outer greed."

Then they start to turn inwards in such a beautiful way, to say "No, indeed, there is-if you want to be greedy, then be greedy for that clarity. If you want to be greedy, then be greedy for that fulfillment. If you want to be greedy, then be greedy for peace."

And you know, it really is a different mindset; it's a very different way of thinking, that "Inside of me I carry the most profound. I look for it on the outside; I try to create it on the outside."

Because when people talk to me about peace, they're not thinking about an internal peace; they're thinking about an external peace. "Can there be peace on the outside?" I don't know. Can there be peace on the inside; yes, I do know. And that peace that is inside of me is what makes me. That's what defines me: my peace. Not the peace outside.

If I went into a room and it was really, really quiet, will there be noise inside of me? Because that quietness of that room doesn't define me. What defines me is the peace that I carry inside of me. I could be in the most beautiful place-and yet I could be angry inside of me. What will define me, the beauty of the place I am in-or the anger that I carry inside of me?

Someway, I can't help but think that the time for all of us exists to really take in hand this idea of living consciously. That every day that we are in this situation of lockdown is a day to practice conscious living. To practice, to be conscious of "What is happening inside of me?" Of "Where am I at?"

You know, when anger comes-and I know when anger comes, it comes all too quickly. Before you can put the brakes on, it's already there-and it's already done the damage. How can I stop that? Well, you know, to get to that point where the anger can so quickly take over took a lot of practice, in little bits and little chunks and little chunks and little chunks and little chunks.

The time has come, perhaps, to really take this opportunity and practice something else, practice living consciously. To see, to know, "What is it-what is it that I want to accomplish? How will I use the tools that I have today? In this day that I have, how will I use the tools that are already inside of me? How will I summon peace inside of me?"

Because it's too easy to just, you know, put it on somebody else, "They are the ones who are disturbing my peace; they are the ones who need to be in peace." But it's not about them; it's about you. Living consciously is all about you, not about other people.

And that takes practice, just like everything else takes practice. If somebody is out of shape and they want to get in shape, one day is not enough. And that's not going to do…. If they went on an exercise bicycle and they went on a treadmill-and then they jogged, you know, tried to jog-well, the reality of it is, if they're not in shape, they're not even going to be able to do too much of that.

But everybody knows that every day, repetition, practice, practice, practice, repetition, practice, practice, practice, is what's going to, one day, take them to that level, to that threshold where they can accomplish some amazing things.

But it's going to take that patience; it's going to take that effort; it's going to take that want; it is going to take that conscious living every day-to say, "Okay, I want to summon peace in me; I want to feel peace in me today. How will I contribute to my peace today? How will I react to everything that happens today, from inside of me?" More importantly, in here.

Very, very simple, if we can look at it one little bit at a time. There is such a concept for peace; there's such a concept for being good that it can happen at an instant flash. It doesn't happen at an instant flash. Because even being bad takes training. Even being bad took time. Even being bad had to have a lot of practice behind it. The good is going to require at least that much amount of practice.

Is it possible? Yes, it's possible. But it's incumbent upon you. Can you summon those things that are inside of you? At one of these talks, I already talked about "You feeling comfortable with yourself." Do you feel comfortable with yourself?

Because if you're not in comfort with yourself, if you're not okay with yourself…. If you want to be somebody else, you see yourself as somebody else-if that is your goal, (not you as you, but you as somebody else), then there's a problem. Because you cannot be somebody else. You are you. And you have to be comfortable being you.

Not with your mistakes or this or that, but just in the most fundamental, most simplest way you can imagine, being comfortable with you. And that's what it takes. That's the kind of understanding you are going to have to garner.

You know, I really see that, of course, this is not a pleasant time for anybody-to be in lockdown, to be in this situation; it's like, you know, Groundhog Day, (which is, of course, a movie where the same day keeps repeating itself again and again and again in the…)

In this movie, actually, that day keeps repeating itself again and again-and he's so bored with that day. And he wished he could have another day. He tries bad things.

All of a sudden, then finally it starts to dawn on him that, "Okay," maybe it's going to be the same day again and again but he can make a difference. He can make a difference for himself. And when he starts to do that, he comes out of that "again, same day; again, same day; again, same day," and something wonderful transforms him in this movie, the Groundhog Day.

And sometimes, you know, when I-that's one of my favorite movies, so I watch it quite a bit. Because sometimes we get stuck-and then it's like, "Oh, yeah, it's the same day again and again and again and again and again."

But when you turn inside and you take on the challenge of transformation, you are willing to live your life consciously, you're willing to practice living that life consciously, then something amazing is going to happen; something amazing is going to transform, transform you, that peace will be so much more closer to you than you have ever realized.

The joy will dance at your door, will knock at your door. Your life will be pleasant-pleasant, rewarding. You will then understand why so many have said, "Life is a gift." You will understand their enthusiasm for that peace, for that joy, for that fulfillment of life, because you understand and finally you would have seen life like it is meant to be seen.

Not weighed against all your list of problems and list of desires and list of wants and list of failures and list of what you consider to be "success"-but against something else, a comparison against what it really, really is.

To see life through the eyes of life itself. To see this world that you live in, that world that has the sun, that has the moon, that has the oceans, that has the stars-to see all of them through the eyes of the creation itself.

To admire. To admire each day that you are alive. To admire each moment that you're alive. What if you were obsessed, obsessed with that admiration, that you were obsessed with that joy, that you were obsessed with that gratitude? What would it be like if you were obsessed with peace that resides and dances in your heart? Well, it would be a very different world for you, for me, for all of us.

Thank you. Be safe-be well. Be.

Lockdown broadcast Day 23

Hello, everyone. I hope all of you are well. Today I thought we would do something a little bit different. And what we're going to try to do today is just, I'd like to inform you about what TPRF has been doing since this coronavirus thing started.

A tremendous amount of help has been going out. And there is a little presentation I'd like to run by, that would give you some indication of what TPRF has been doing. I mean, of course, we partner with a lot of different organizations that are at the forefront of fighting this coronavirus.

You know, sometimes everything turns to become political-and we get caught in the drama, trauma, news, everything. And it is very easy to lose sight of just the basic human beings that are trying to make a difference.

And TPRF, of course, has always held a very special place. Because we don't try to look for publicity; we don't try to look for-you know, I mean, of course, publicity is nice and it's nice for people to know that such an organization exists.

But one of the things we try to do is get to the core issues, where people are really, really helped by whatever partnerships we forge with different organizations. I mean, when you look at it, there are just so many charities out there, so many organizations. But a lot of times, the help that's supposed to arrive doesn't arrive! Because something gets lost somewhere in translation.

And with TPRF, I have particularly made this point over and over again, that we really have to make sure that whatever our efforts are, they really are well-executed-and people do, at the end of the day, end up receiving the help that we set out for them to have.

So, here is the presentation. "The Prem Rawat Foundation, advancing dignity, peace, and prosperity."

Onscreen text:

The Prem Rawat Foundation

Advancing dignity, peace, and prosperity by addressing

the fundamental human needs of food, water, and peace.

Prem Rawat:

"Keeping in Touch. TPRF is providing regular social media posts, website articles, and emails with the latest updates on all activities and how people can participate.

"TPRF is introducing the 'Lockdown' videos to new audiences, reaching over 2.3 million people so far," and this was a few days ago. And these are some of the comments from people.

"'Thank you for your love and support and daily messages. Hugs!' 'I'm loving these broadcasts, thank you so much.' Another one, 'Thank you so much for showing us your wisdom, clarity and love in this trying time.'" So, TPRF is making sure that this message is reaching out to people.

"Humanitarian Aid. TPRF is giving initial grants of over $200,000 to provide care, medical supplies and food in areas that are overwhelmed with the coronavirus. $100,000 is going to Doctors Without Borders and International Medical Corps to help people in South Africa, France, Spain, Mexico, the U.S. and various other countries.

"'TPRF's support will help our medical teams launch a global response to the coronavirus pandemic and its consequences.'" This is a direct quote. "'-Thomas Kurmann, Director of Development, Doctors Without Borders,' the USA division.

"$50,000 for CESVI to help people in Northern Italy with care and supplies." And this is one of the responses. It's quite a long letter I received, but this is a little quote from the letter.

"'Thank you on behalf of everyone at the CESVI for your generous donation. It has given us the strength to move forward in this difficult situation. I would like to congratulate you on the aims pursued by TPRF. Roberto Vignola, CESVI, Deputy CEO.'" And we particularly wanted to help Italy because Italy has been hit very hard with this coronavirus.

"$5,000 for Street Peace and Respect, a group of former gang members who were inspired by the Peace Education Program to contribute positively to their community by bringing food to elderly neighbors in need in Alpachaca, Ecuador.

"$25,000 is going to Family Promise to provide shelter and meals to homeless families in the U.S." A lot of this stuff gets overlooked, and at TPRF we really don't want that to happen.

"$25,000 is going to the World Central Kitchen to provide fresh packaged meals to thousands of U.S. children, families and seniors in the most vulnerable communities.

"An initial grant of $25,000 is going to help people in Fiji recover from Cyclone Harold, which left people without shelter, food or medical care." The thing in Fiji is, people are very poor. There is one island, one main island where there are Suva and Nadi. And then there is the big island and a lot of other little islands.

And when natural calamities happen, (and this is a double hit for them, not only the threat of coronavirus but also this cyclone), it's really, really hard. It's hard enough on an everyday basis. And then when something like this happens it actually makes it really, really hard.

And I have been to Fiji many times. People are beautiful; people are very simple. And it really is a community effort in Fiji. "The severe tropical cyclone hit as the area was already struggling to treat patients and stem the spread of the coronavirus," like I said.

"Supporters have donated over $60,000 for coronavirus relief effort. TPRF will continue to provide aid to those in need. And you can contribute to the coronavirus relief effort at TPRF.org." Every bit helps, always-every bit helps.

"In 2019, over 36,000 people participated in the Peace Education Program worldwide. In 2020, there have been over 5,000 participants"-and that's the Peace Education Program initiative that TPRF heads.

"Most Peace Education Program courses have been temporarily paused to avoid spreading the virus. People in the U.S., Mexico, Colombia, Brazil, Italy, Germany, Austria, France, Switzerland, and other countries are starting to facilitate the course virtually"-that's a community effort that TPRF supports and it's a wonderful, wonderful thing that's happening.

And of course, we're looking forward to having the Peace Education Program virtually for us too, all of us who are not going through that particular program. I'm trying to still work on it and make a lightweight version of that.

"In Brazil," which is again-you know, I was just there and when you come out in the rural Brazil area, people are very, very poor. And wherever people are poor, they're going to get hit really, really hard.

"In Brazil, people from thirteen states are participating virtually. After only one week of conducting these courses from São Paulo, there are fifty participants per day. The participants keep inviting more people. 'This is the best part of my day, and I am learning a lot about myself.'" That's a quote.

This is another quote, "'Listening to Prem Rawat has been really helping me understand my life.' - Pisa Professor. Universities in Bogotá, Colombia and Pisa, Italy, have offered the program virtually." Again, that's a wonderful effort.

"In Colombia, the Secretary of Education invited teachers who had been implementing the program to watch 'the personal messages to humanity' in the 'Lockdown series,' encouraging them to take good care of themselves, and stay at home."

I mean, I've been to Colombia. And again, you know, the country just has been through so much, with the whole, drugs and the revolts and the this and the that. And there is a lot to be said about the power of the people, about the motivation that people have to move forward, to try to make a difference.

Because a lot of things just come and go-but people are there. And they need to bind together; they need to come together to truly make a change. And so it's really wonderful that the people take this one step further.

"Participants in prisons have been receiving written materials to continue their learning. 'We are very grateful and find the support very helpful.' This is from the Prison Director in Colombia."

Again, you know, in the middle of all this fiasco that is a fiasco to most of us, there are some people who have already gone through the fiasco and are in the midst of that fiasco, and they are the homeless.

"At a homeless shelter and two drug rehabilitation centers where the program has been flourishing, staff are learning to facilitate the program virtually." I mean, this is like a double hit for those people who are homeless. You know, they have to squeeze into tight spaces-that they cannot afford to have that distancing, the social distancing. I mean, what social distancing?

They're not part of the mainstream society; they're just there at the fringe, you know, because whatever bad things have happened to them, they've been shoved that way. And it's very, very thoughtful that the Foundation, TPRF is doing something about them and that they are included-that everybody is included, that everybody gets help. So, it's wonderful to see that.

"TPRF is providing support for those who want to learn virtual facilitation of the program." And if you want to get in touch about that, that's "Email to learn more." And that's the Peace Education Program effort.

"As regular Food for People," effort is concerned, "services are paused by government regulations; TPRF is exploring other ways of providing food and aid to people in dire need, including home delivery. Food for People has served over 3 million meals since 2006." And that's really wonderful.

And the amazing thing is that there is a sister organization in India that is going ahead and working with the police and with the local officials to provide food to the people, (which is called the Premsagar Foundation). And RVK has been helping in that and has been very, very effective of making sure the food distribution happens.

In fact, I have a presentation by those organizations exactly like this one-except that one is in Hindi, so I will have to have it translated into English. But that's really wonderful to hear that over three million meals since 2006, have been served.

Onscreen text:

Thank You

to all of the TPRF volunteers and supporters who are making a positive impact.

Learn more at tprf.org

Prem Rawat:

And the Prem Rawat Foundation again thanks everyone: "To all the TPRF volunteers and supporters who are making a positive impact." Because this is a positive impact for our society and the world that we all live in. So, it's really wonderful to see that TPRF is really shining at this moment in time.

So, thank you. Stay well; stay healthy. Be well. Be. I'll talk to you later.

Lockdown broadcast Day 24

Hello, everyone. I hope you're all well. And the days are slipping by, slowly and slowly. And I, of course, was thinking of, "What can I tell you that will, (well, I guess), enhance or make it easier somehow for you to be able to look at this time and take the most of this time?"

Because whatever the facts may be, certainly with this coronavirus, this period of time that we have with this, there's no rewind button on it. It is time-and it is just as precious when we're doing something else. It's just as precious when we were born; it is just as precious as it was a decade ago, a year ago. And indeed, now that we're in the midst of all this, it's still precious.

So my thinking is, "How can we make the most of it?"-not in terms of accomplishing something on the outside, not in terms of fulfilling some objective, but for ourselves, that we feel, we who are caught in this, we feel that we're making the most of it. That it's not just time that is being just dwindled away in some idea, some concept, some, (against our wishes), lockdown and so on and so forth.

So, you know, one side consequence of this coronavirus lockdown, globally, around the world, has been spectacular for nature. Even in the big parks in the United States and the beautiful parks like Yosemite, the creatures living there, the animals living there are taking over-because people aren't there-and they have the whole place to themselves.

The other day I was watching this beautiful documentary, (or a little segment), and it was showing how beautiful Delhi is. And certainly, I remember in Dehradun, the sky used to be a dark pitch blue sky that apparently, you can't see that anymore.

But due to this coronavirus, even in Delhi you can see a dark pitch blue sky, clear sky. And it's a boon for all the animals. And it's really a boon for all those things that we hold so special in our lives, a beautiful day, a sunny day, a warm day….

In fact, I sometimes wonder-you see me wearing a sweater-and it's like, you know, "Where am I?" Well, here I am in California, and in Southern California it's cold. It's not even-yeah, the temperature sometimes hovers around sixty-five, sixty-seven. So it's quite cold-and when the wind blows, it's really quite cold.

But anyways, getting back to the point, so it's been quite a boon-quite a boon. And somebody just sent me a picture from France, from Paris, where the river is just spectacular because there are no boats on it. It's just still, very still-and you can see the reflection of the clouds. And of course, he's a professional photographer and sent me this picture and it's beautiful. And it's something unique.

So, what's my point? Well, my point is this-that when we, as human beings, do what we do, what are whatever we consider our "natural, everyday activities," (and I'm not talking about going to the bathroom.)

But you've got to get transportation and get to your job, and then go to your job, find a parking spot. Then reverse the whole thing, come back home. And, you know, this whole shunt. And it's, "Go for lunch somewhere, go for this, go for that," all this stuff that we have to do.

And when you take a break from it, everything becomes very quiet; everything becomes very still. And as a consequence of that, (and maybe we don't even realize that), every day, all the things that we do have such a profound impact on the nature around us. But it does.

So if you look at this nature as the ecosystem-and look at us as this newcomer, relatively newcomer that's driving everything insane, that's disrupting everything-then that would be a fairly good assessment of what really is going on.

Because something is being disrupted. So, how does that relate to what I want to talk about? Well, this is how it relates to it-that in our life, in our existence, there's also a beautiful nature that wants to be, that wants to really come forth.

And whatever, up here, we have decided that we have to do, all our little routines, all our little understandings, all our little things that we think are important are nothing but this obnoxious noise….

That when that is quietened, something beautiful happens; something beautiful comes forth; something beautiful emerges; the birds come out; the creatures that are always so shy and so afraid, they start to come out. And you see the vibrance; you see what it really is like, that it's beautiful!

That, when I saw those pictures of Delhi, I was shocked. Because I haven't seen Delhi like that in years-actually, I've never seen Delhi like that.

And being a pilot, I've flown in India. And my goodness, you know, the visibilities are always horrible, whether you're coming in by airplane, whether you're flying with a helicopter. Unless you get way out of Delhi, you know, go east, way out of Delhi, then the visibilities start to come up a little bit.

But in the heart of Delhi, to see this beauty, that, "Wow, it is really beautiful. It is something that we do that is making it not so beautiful." And so, from a practical standpoint, from a very practical standpoint, so much disruption is caused by this. All the pollution in Delhi, you know, makes people die young and affects children seriously.

And if we were to take that and apply to us, that all these things that we are doing without thinking, without thinking of what the effect of these things is on our lives…. That, off we go-"And we'll do this and we will have this little thought and we will have that little thought, and we will have this little relief; we will have that little relief…."

But what are the consequences? What are the consequences for us of not knowing ourselves? It is like polluting this existence, polluting the purity of what can be, of what should be. And that understanding gets very confused, gets very twisted.

Because right now, because of this coronavirus, it is not a "do or die" symptom; it's like, no, you can't-you've got to stay in isolation, otherwise you're going to get sick. And all those explanations, "Oh, what about your job? What about going to your job; what…?" It's like, "Hey, no! No-no-no-no, no," you don't go to your job. Cool it. This is more important, for you to be alive.

And what can I add to that? I can add to it that it is more important for you to be healthy-not only physically, but mentally, within you, not be polluted by all this pollution that we create. But have the clarity of understanding, of knowing, of joy, of fulfillment.

So, sometimes we wonder, "Why is it like this; why is it like that; why, why is this happening to me; why is that happening to me?" But we never look that we have created such a pollutive environment for ourselves, inside of us-we have polluted ourselves with so many concepts.

You know, the concept could be very, very small. The idea could be very, very small. It's like that girl in Cambodia, (and it was quite a few years ago; she's probably a lady by now), but that girl, at that point she was going to school-and she's devastated because she lost her phone.

That's the kind of pollution I'm talking about. That's pollution. She didn't need to be devastated. She could have gone on. But the pollution of it, just contamination from all the different ideas. It's because "it's so important…." From her understanding, it is so important to have that channel of communications with her friends.

Where did that come from? Certainly, it didn't come from when she was born. She could care less about those friends; she didn't know about those friends.

But as we grow old, we allow all these things to come in. And they create an immense amount of pollution, but we are not aware of that, because every day we justify how "we need these things." Every day we justify "how this is important for us"-when what is really important for us is to be in that clarity, to be in that purity of being a human being.

You know, we live in a society-and believe me, I'm not trying to put down society; I know there are wonderful things that have been done in the society. I mean, after all, so many diseases have been overcome; so many technical marvels have been created; so many things have been done. I mean, you know, we could be, on a hundred-degree day, out in the desert and be cool inside.

I mean, all those things, I appreciate that. But alongside of it, we have allowed other things to come in which are actually harming us, which are actually hurting us. And we don't give that a thought, that "How are these things hurting us; how are these things actually affecting us?"

As a society, yes, we have accomplished these things, but we also have jails full of people-full of, not just people we found on Mars, not just people we found on the moon, but human beings from this earth. What is it?

There is a story about Solomon. One time a thief was brought in front of the king. And the king asked, "What is his offense?" He said, "He was stealing bread." The king turned to the man, to the thief and said, "Why were you stealing bread?" He says, "Well, I didn't have anything to eat. I was hungry-and I saw the bread and I couldn't resist it."

So the king said, "What you did was absolutely wrong. You have to be punished by being whipped a hundred times, a hundred whips." The man started crying. He said, "Don't cry; it's okay," Solomon said. "That whipping is not for you. That whipping is for those people in the society that allowed you to be hungry."

That's why Solomon is known to be the wise king-that whatever happens in our little world, we are part of it. And at no time…. At this point in time, you can see what the importance of just even one person is.

If one person in a household…. Say, if you have fifty people in a household, and everybody is in isolation and one person decides to break that isolation and go out there-and he could be contaminated-he could be; you don't know. He could be contaminated-everybody will be scared of that one person: "the power of one."

I tried to make that abundantly clear to people, but I think I have miserably failed to make the power of one-but this coronavirus has done that for me. The power of one is now very clearly understood.

And this is how it goes. Does it have to take tragedies like this for us to awaken? It shouldn't be-it shouldn't be that it takes tragedy for us to awaken, that it takes tragedy for us to learn; it takes tragedy for us to say, "Whoa, I take on the responsibility; I am responsible. And there is something that I can do." Yes, there is. There's always been something you can do.

I mean, you know, you look at this coronavirus thing and, you know, this is just a side observation. A long time ago I was in Lucknow-a long time ago; I was a little boy then. And I went to see this palace, and it was the palace of the landlord of Lucknow. And so I was told a story-and apparently, it's a true story.

So, the Nizam was watching in his palace; he was watching a dance-and all the music was playing and he was watching these girls dance…. And his security guys came and said, "Nizam, you know, you'd better get out of here-but we can see the British army is on the horizon; we can see the dust and everything else, so you'd better get out of here." He said, "Naah, don't worry about it. It's okay."

A few minutes later they said to Nizam, "You'd better get out of here. The British army is at your front door-of the city!" And he goes, "Ahh, don't worry about it. Not a problem. You know, it'll go away; everything will be fine."

A few minutes later they came and they said, "You'd better get out of here. They are at your front gate, at your palace's front gate." And he goes, "Ahh, don't worry about it." A few minutes later they said, "They're about to enter this room!" And that's when Nizam turned to his servant. And he called out to his servant and he says, "Bring me my shoes."

Well, the servant had fled-so there was no servant. So the Nizam started running. And the British caught up to him, arrested him. And he said to the British; he said, "If only I had my shoes, you would have never caught me." Apparently, this is a true story. This is how arrogant, arrogant, arrogant he was.

This thing, this coronavirus was a long time coming. Nobody paid attention. It starts up in China; nobody pays attention. You know, it's not like this is the first one; there has been SARS; there has been the MERS, (which is amongst the camels); there has been the swine flu; there has been the bird flu. So, you know, a long time, "something, something like this can come."

There is the Ebola outbreak; you know, that has to be taken care of. So the possibility of this happening, there were ample, ample, ample warning signs that something like this could happen.

But in our arrogance, what do we do? We don't care. What do we care about? We care about going on every day, making two lousy bucks, two more lousy bucks that we're, none of us are going to take with us. Absolutely not. You think all this wealth that we are accumulating, we're going to take with us? Nobody can take anything with them.

Consequence? Consequence is we are losing so many people. It is absolutely astounding how many people have died needlessly, needlessly-needlessly, that those deaths could have been avoided. But it's the arrogance that does not allow you to see the obvious.

And that same arrogance that doesn't allow you to see something obvious on the outside, does not allow you to see something obvious on the inside. It does not allow you to see that 36,500 days is all you have, even if you live to be a hundred. It doesn't allow you to see that.

It doesn't allow you to see that you are vulnerable; you are fragile. That you're not, you know, made out of iron or steel. Indeed, you are a human being. And so far you are on the face of this earth, you will always be a human being.

It doesn't matter what you have in your hands, whether you have a machine gun, whether you have a bow and arrow, whether you have any-it doesn't matter. You are a human being and there should be no amount of arrogance that does not allow you to see your humanity, your frailty, your, you, as you truly are.

I hope, you know-I mean, it's something to think about. Because it's nothing like you have to go out and do and press a button. You know, there isn't a button, like, across the street that you have to go push. No, it's just some awakening; that's what awakenings are-they're little things that happen inside of us; the puzzle starts to fall in place.

There is a picture. And that picture is all divided up into little puzzles. What is it, you can't tell, not by looking at little pieces. You start to put pieces together; some pieces go together very easily; some pieces don't go together very easily.

There is a picture. When all this puzzle is put together properly, (not forced, properly), there is a picture. And you will see that picture and perhaps you will even enjoy that picture.

It's the little awakenings that need to happen for us to be fulfilled. That's what I'm talking about. I'm not talking about, you know, pain and torture; I'm talking about joy; I'm talking about fulfillment.

As a human being, all the things that we are trying to accomplish, we will not be able to accomplish. Look, in history, we will be chastised for our arrogance. We had so much going for us-and at the end of the day, what happened was this pandemic. Is that what we want? Is that how we want to be remembered in history?

Or do we want to be celebrated: "That these human beings were wonderful. They came together; they had made good preparations." It is in the time of plenty-it is in the time of plenty that you prepare for the times of the bad, of scarcity, of the famine, of the drought. It is in the time of plenty that you prepare for it.

But when the whole humanity is sunk in greed-and not looking at the obvious, then unfortunately it's going to be, "If I only had my shoes, you would have never caught me." I mean, I remember that story and it was like, "Is that guy for real," you know? But he was. That's the way people used to be; they were incredibly arrogant.

This arrogance isn't going to take us anywhere. This arrogance is-you know, this little, invisible little virus is rubbing our nose into it; it's like, "Yeah, well, what are you going to do about it?"

And, you know, we are at its mercy, of all the doctors and everything else out there-to the breaking point. The medical staff, to the breaking point. I mean, they're working so hard, to the breaking point. And all those resources that we were always proud of, to the breaking point-to the breaking point.

Is this what we have created, ultimately? Well, if this is what we have created, then let me tell you that there is another possibility. And that possibility is about being fulfilled, about kindly being looked down in history.

And said, "No, those human beings had learned something. They stood for something, something that was good. They understood their humanity. They understood themselves. They lived their lives consciously. And they had a heart full of gratitude." Maybe that's a possibility. Maybe that is a possibility.

Be well; be safe. Be. I'll talk to you later. Thank you.

Lockdown Broadcast Day 25

Hello, everyone. I hope you're all well, feeling well-and you know, somehow putting up with this coronavirus thing. Whether it's good times, bad times, that's completely dependent on you; it has nothing to do with the coronavirus.

You know, for the rest of nature, it's quite a boon to have everybody locked up in their homes-and nature is having a field day with it; it's like a vacation for nature.

So, last night I was thinking and I came across this word in my ideas, in my thoughts, that actually, I haven't used too much of. And the word is "purity."

So, when you look at the definition of purity, it's "something that is without contamination." Now, you know, of course, the definition goes on and on and on, but "something which is uncontaminated, something which is without anything else except for what it is."

So then I started thinking; it's like, "Hmm, that's very intriguing; 'something that is without contamination.'" Something that is what it is-and in its purest form.

So, when you start to think about that, so many things come to mind; it's like, "Whoa, is life pure? The way I experience my existence every day, is that pure? Or is that contaminated, contaminated from everybody's ideas, everybody's concepts and everything else?"

Somebody from Mumbai actually wrote me a question-and I came across that; I've got a lot of questions. So I'm getting ready to start answering them one by one, but-I usually reserve those for the weekend. But the question that came up was, "You know, why do people believe in the caste system?"

In the world, a lot of apartheid, in one way or the other way, is exercised-you know, like just even after people found out that this coronavirus came from China (or, you know, it came from where it came from; I don't think that, you know, China particularly needs a label on it).

But a lot of Americans of Chinese descent who were probably living here, born here, started buying guns! I mean, it's like they were threatened. Because there are people out there who, it's like, "Oh, you know, you're the one responsible for this." But this is completely crazy, of course.

But we segregate and we, you know, we look at the differences; we don't look at the similarity; we say, "Okay, that person is from China; that person is from Africa; that person is from India; this person is from, you know, this place, this place," and on it goes.

And so the question was, "Where does this come from?" And I was with a few people in the room, (my staff, basically), and we were talking. And I say, "Well, how would you answer that question," I said to them. And they said-nothing, actually. And I said, "Look, it's very simple. It's a learned behavior. We're not born that way; we learned this."

It's like, you can take two babies that are, you know, two-years-olds and put them in a room and they're not going to say "What's your caste" or "Which country do you come from," or "What is your origin," or "Are you Chinese or are you African or are you American; are you Australian?"

They will simply just play with each other. To them, you're a human being; you're a being. You're another person, "very similar to how I am."

So we learned these things. So, when, in our thoughts, these kinds of things come, is our thought at that point pure? And the answer is, "No, it's been contaminated by something."

Now, contamination is contamination, whether it is a positive contamination or it's a negative contamination; it is a contamination. It is no longer the pure thought, the pure understanding of being a human being. It is not the purity of how you can view your existence.

All these other filters are coming in: "This is important; that's important. I have to do this; I have to do that; I have this relationship with that person. I have that relationship with that person. That person is there; that person is there." And it gets contaminated.

Now, you can say "positive contamination" or "negative contamination." It doesn't really matter. It's a contamination; it's no longer that word, no longer what that word represents, which is purity.

So, purity of what? Well, purity of life. Purity of existence. Purity of thought. Purity of feeling. Purity of understanding. Purity of expression. Purity of enjoyment. Purity of fulfillment. Purity of clarity. Purity of you, as a human being.

So, what do all these things mean? That we feel. But do we really feel what the feeling is-how it should be felt? Should I give you an example? "Feeling of being alive."

And you know, when a tragedy happens it's like, "Oh my God, I'm so glad, you know, it didn't happen to me." Or, you know, it sets us back and we go, "Oh my God, I'm so fragile; I'm this; I'm that…."

Ten minutes later, we've forgotten it. We have forgotten it because we came across something more important: "We've got to do this; we've got to do this; we've got to do this; we've got to do this."

So, "feeling of being alive," feeling. Feeling of being alive. Do we keep feeling that feeling, consistently? Or does that get contaminated? How many things in our life actually get contaminated? When it comes to even, Knowledge of the self, it gets contaminated by other people's ideas.

So really, even understanding the word "purity," just, just for the sake of it, you know, not getting too deep into it and going, "Oh my God, you know, ahh…."

No, just for what it's worth. Yeah, I guess, understanding purity, purely purity, just purely. Not trying to give it meaning, not trying to give it twists, not trying to give it all these other things, but just, "What is it about, your existence, you being alive, you being able to feel? You being able to feel the reality? In a very pure way, the purity of it?" Your connection to your creator-pure.

And see, this is where it gets very, very tricky. Because for you to have that connection with your creator be pure, you have to have a very pure understanding of your creator. For you to be able to understand what is that pure feeling, you have to know what it is that you are feeling.

What does pure love look like?-that is not because of a reason, that doesn't have a season attached to it, that doesn't have circumstances attached to it-but something that is purely love? And that you can feel, without inhibition, without having conditions attached to it, circumstances attached to it: "I love you because…."

You know, and it's very funny because when children love, it's love; they love. And children are not the ones who carry a grudge too far. You know, pretty soon they forget and they go on. And of course, the older they get, they can carry that grudge much, much further.

But when they're really, really young and they want to punish you-they want to punish you as parents or they want to punish you; they want to say something nasty to you…. And you know, of course, they don't know all the nasty words and this and that, (well, these days I don't know), but usually, they don't know the nasty words.

So, one of the things they say is, "I don't love you anymore." And it is the cutest thing. It's like, this is like the worst possible punishment that this child can throw at you, that their love has been taken away. What must be their definition of what love is? That it is unconditional, because even after having said, "I don't love you anymore," two minutes later, ten minutes later, everything is fine.

And I remember that one day when my grandchild said to me, "This is the worst possible birthday I have ever had." And I mean, you know, he wasn't that old-so it wasn't like a long list of birthdays that he had been through; he wasn't like a big veteran that had fought many, many wars.

And then he got the good presents that he kind of wanted; his expectations were fulfilled. And everything was fine; it was the best birthday he had ever had.

So, you know, we go around in this world and every interaction we have, it really is about our expectations being fulfilled. If a loved one fulfills our expectations, "Oh, you're wonderful. I love you." But if that person does not fulfill your expectations; they do something really stupid or really weird, you no longer-you will question your love. This is strange; this is not pure love.

So, you know, can there be pure love in relationships? I don't know. I don't know. Should there be pure love in relationships? I don't know. That's up to you to decide.

My job here is just to point out the purity of love-that there must be some form of love that is absolutely pure. And that had better be used on you as well-and whatever else you want to use it on is one thing, but it had better be also used on you. That you have that love for you that is unconditional.

Because you're going to need that love. People start to sometimes hate themselves. They don't know the purpose of their life anymore. They question everything in a very weird way.

And yet, to have that purity of love for the self-and purity of understanding who you are, and purity of that self-Knowledge-for you. Not contaminated by somebody. And it doesn't matter who they were, you know, what title they wore; contamination is contamination; pure is pure.

So, having an understanding of your life, of your circumstances, the time you are in-and understanding it in a very pure way. Not "this is happening and that's happening and that's happening and that could happen and that could happen…."

Because believe me, when those things start to strike you, the possibilities-and especially the negative possibilities, when they start to strike you, they can eat you alive. And there is no cure for it; there's no pill you can take for it. There's no cure for it-and just, it can get worse and worse and worse and worse and worse and worse and worse. And this has a physical effect.

So, there is thought that has been contaminated by circumstances. So what is the pure thought like? What is that purity truly, truly like? And only the heart, I feel, can verify to the purity-not by definitions that "this is pure"-but the acid test, sort of to say, would truly be the heart-to say "Yes, I understand the purity of it."

And look, in this world, if things are contaminated, they're contaminated. You know, so, you get on with it.

A lot of people go to restaurants-and sometimes I go to restaurants. And I always wonder if that food is pure. You know, you don't know if whatever you have ordered, you know, your carrot halvah or carrot cake could have fallen on the ground and then the chef picked it up and put it on the plate; you don't know that. But, fine, you sit there and you eat it anyway, right?

But the heart, the purity of those things that matter to me, that are important to me, that carry a significance in my life-that the stronger, the more pure that is, my understanding is, my feeling is, my love is, my clarity is, that without an exception if I have the purity of these, that then I truly stand on mighty ground.

And I have the power of purity. I have the power of that light that shines in my heart, that shines-that repels the darkness of all that that affects me negatively. That that purity is real; that that purity is good-and I feel it. That's how it has to be, that I feel it.

If I don't feel that purity, then I have nothing. So, I have to, now, conjure up the definitions of purity in my head. And then I have to go around asking people, "Is this pure; is this pure; is this pure; is this pure; is this pure?" And then I hope somebody tells me, "Yeah, that's pure."

And then I have to-and then, I have to believe them. I don't have a choice. I have to believe them; I have to believe them. My goodness, if I don't believe them my boat is sunk.

But that's when you have to know to turn to your own heart. Not somebody else, but to your own heart-because that heart is where that divine is. And by that very definition, the purity resides there; the purity is there; the purity is in you. To be able to look and understand what that is, to be able to weed out all the contaminants to have something that is pure.

In India, they have these trays. And they put the wheat or rice that they're cleaning and they go like this. And because of that, they-and it's, I have done it-and the motion is not only up but slightly out, outward. And the rocks have a higher gravity or a higher density, so they go further by when you do this. And so they're weeded out-and what is good, (the rice, which is lighter), stays.

And they can do it very fast, "Chou, chou, chou, chou, chou, chou!" And the next thing you know, that rice is clean.

And of course, you know, when the chef cooks the rice, he also takes a look at it; he pours in a plate, whatever he's going to cook. And then he just goes through it very quickly and it's very easy to see if there's something dark, (because rice is white); if there's something dark, you take it and you throw it out; you pick it out.

The purity. We like purity. We don't like impure water; we like pure water. We like pure food. You know, we like that little label, "Pure olive oil." You know, "Pure coconut oil," pure this, pure that.

Anyways, give it a thought, about that purity, how it relates to your existence, to your life. So, be

Lockdown Broadcast Day 26

Hello, everybody. I hope you're all doing well, keeping safe, keeping well. And in the midst of all of this coronavirus fiasco and disaster and whatever is going on, I'm really here to tell you about something that's beautiful in life, that's beautiful in this existence.

There are many ways to put the same thing. But if we can have an understanding of who we are and what this life is all about-and it isn't just a question of this time; it isn't just a question of the gravity of the situation. And like I have said many times before, that, you know, being scared doesn't help anybody; it doesn't accomplish anything.

In fact, when a problem comes, whatever the source of the problem is, we disconnect from that source-and whatever the pain is, we connect to the pain. So we like….

You know, whatever the source of the problem is, okay, fine. And that it's creating this other thing; it's called "the pain, the sorrow, the suffering." And we like to bury our heads into that sorrow, into that suffering. And you know, not to make a heavy point of this by any stretch of the imagination….

But let me tell you a joke today. Because I think-I believe this is the twenty-sixth broadcast and it's about time we lighten up a little bit and look at the world from a lighter side of things.

So, there was a guy and he was sitting at the bar. And he was there, just very somber, very serious-and he was sitting there, about ready to have his drink when this most unfortunate bully, a big burly guy walks into the bar, grabs the little guy's drink and drinks it all down.

And at that point, the guy who was sitting at the bar just lost it. And he just started crying; he just started bawling. And the guy who had had his drink, he was, you know, like, "Okay, okay, okay, I'll buy you another one; don't worry, you know, I'm sorry. I didn't know this was so serious…."

And he goes, "No, no, you don't understand." He goes, "What-what-what are you talking about?" He says, "Look, today is possibly the worst day of my life. This morning I got up-and my wife walked out on me. I went after her, pleading and pleading and pleading, 'And please, you know, come back,'" don't leave him, everything-but she left anyway.

"Meanwhile," he said, "I realized that I was really late for my office. In fact, you know, I was like two hours late. And I had put some toast in the toaster for breakfast and the toaster had caught fire, so by the time I got home from pleading with my wife, you know, chasing her down the road, my house was on fire.

"Somehow I got to my office and my boss was so upset with me that he fired me. So I finally came to this bar, ordered this drink-and I poisoned it. I put poison in it so I could kill myself. And along you came and denied me even that possibility by you drinking all that poison."

When I came across this joke, it's a funny twist of fate. Because that guy who felt he had had enough, he got saved. Somebody did something really stupid by grabbing his drink and drinking it and now, that guy, that bully guy is about to have the worst day of his life, because he's going to die because he just drank a whole bunch of poison.

Sometimes it is like that-it is a comedy of errors; it's a comedy of situations that we bring upon ourselves. So, whatever the problem is, then come the consequences of that problem; we bury our head in the consequences of the problem and now we cannot see any light at the end of the tunnel. It gets dark; it gets severe; it gets dangerous and it's just like, "Oh my God, what am I going to do?"

But what was the problem to begin with? And nobody's looking at the problem. And when you, you know, detach yourself from that suffering, from that pain, and look at the problem, the problem is going to look like, "I can get around this; I can take care of this. I mean, it may be difficult; I might have to work extra hard; I might have to do something like that. But I can get over it."

And we forget that this life, its preciousness, the understanding that we should have of going forward, being that warrior that can move and move and move and move…. In fact, like I've said many times, it's not about the battles. Some battles you need to win; some battles you can lose, not a problem. It is the war that you should win; you have to win the war.

Battles come and go. Some you win, great, wonderful. Some you have to win; fine. But some you are going to lose-and no regrets, none whatsoever. Just to move forward, to take those steps that are necessary, that are important.

And to navigate, to navigate those situations that come in life by looking inside, by having a complete perspective, by knowing that it isn't just one, you know, fixation on one little issue-but you have to always remember the full scope of what existence means.

That yes, this breath is coming and going. Yes, you are alive. Yes, you exist. No judgment is being passed upon you by your breath; no judgment is being passed upon you by your life, by your existence. And that inside of you, still there is a want to be fulfilled, to be content. That there is an ocean of answers within you.

You know, you get a million questions. And if you don't get an answer to those million questions, (or even one), it can drive you crazy. That's not what life is about. There is an ocean of answers. You don't have to tie every answer that you have inside of you to a question. You don't. Let it be. Let the questions be. But understand that within you is an ocean of answers.

To know. To know that beautiful that is inside of you. And then to look at the beauty that is outside of you-and you can draw a frame; you can draw a reference. Because that's what it's all about.

That breath comes into us, brings us life. There is this whole universe, expanding, contracting. The waves that come on the beach, that motion of life is everywhere-is everywhere. It's bringing existence to everything. You happen to be a part of it.

You are alive, just like there are all these ants that are alive. And they're so focused; they're so incredibly focused. They may not be the brightest, you know, bulb on the Christmas tree-but they are focused.

Maybe they can't figure out what, you know, an algebraic expression is. Maybe they cannot work out a complicated formula. But they have worked out one little formula-their purpose of life in their existence. They stick to it.

They don't just go wandering off like, "Oh, yeah, let me take a look at this, and let me take a look at"-no, they're focused. They go; they go; they go; they go. And look at their endurance; it's fascinating.

Do I want to be like an ant-no, I don't want to be like an ant; I don't want to be like a fly; I don't want to be like a lion; I don't want to be like a tiger; I don't want to be like a whale. I don't want to be like a porpoise. I want to be me. I want to be a human being.

I am in awe of a whale. I am in awe of so many creatures on this planet Earth. And ultimately, I also need to turn within inside of me and be in awe of my existence, of my being on the face of this earth. That there is a respect that I need to give myself, an understanding that I need to have of myself.

Because I've been chasing "the outside, the outside, the outside," the focus of the outside, "what is that; what is that; what is that?" And someday I have to take that question of "what is that" and look at me and go, "Who am I?"

And when that transformation happens and the process of "Know thyself" begins, that is profound-when you're on your way to that one part of that realization of "Who am I?" And how is that going to ever be?

You know, the path to discovery of the self is not trying to discover yourself; it's all the other things that are between you and really, who you are-all those ideas that you have of "what it means to know yourself."

You know, when you learn how to draw, it's fascinating. Because, you know, people have drawn-and so it's like, "Oh, yeah, I'm going to go and somebody's going to teach me how to do this perfectly and do this perfectly and do this perfectly."

And lo and behold, that's not what they teach you. They're teaching you about what a perspective means, a line across a horizon, line this way, line that way, and the references and the lines that, you know, go back. And you have to learn all of that, because that perspective is involved.

In the same way, learning-and the only way you will be able to learn those things is if you can have the ability, the luxury of unlearning, of dropping, of letting go of all of those ideas that are just wrong, that are not how it works. And then when the bucket is empty, then you can begin to fill.

Once a man came to a teacher-and this is a Zen story, so a Zen Master-and he said, "I want to have, you know, questions with you; I want to ask you questions. I want to learn from you." And the Zen Master said, "Of course; come on in. Let's sit down and, you know, let me get you some tea."

So, he made a sign towards the guy who was standing there, his servant, and he said, "Bring some tea." He brought some tea and he took the tea and he started pouring it in his pot. And he kept pouring and he kept pouring and he kept pouring and he kept pouring and the cup filled and filled over and started overflowing and tea started getting everywhere….

And the Master is just very intentioned; he just keeps pouring in, pouring in, pouring in, pouring in. Finally, the guy just couldn't stand it anymore-and he looked at him and he said, "What are you doing? Don't you see that the cup is full? And no more tea will fit in there?" That's the Zen story.

And the Master, of course, turned to the person and said, "Well, same thing; your cup is really full. And don't you see, you want to learn from me but nothing will fit because your cup is already full; your bucket is already full."

There's another story, the Indian version of it, which is very interesting-which is one day, a man came to this Master and said, "Master, I want to learn from you."

The Master said, "Fine. I'd love to teach you. But this is what you have to do-is, I'm going to go draw some water from the well. And while I'm drawing that water, please don't say a word. It's going to take me a few tries to get the water, but don't you dare say a word. And if you can hold to that contract that you won't say a thing, I will be happy to teach you."

The guy was like, "Hey, that's easy; I can do that. That's really easy." So he walked out there with the Master and the Master took the rope, bucket tied to the rope, put it in the well, pulled it out-and he sees that the bucket comes out with water, but it's just got holes in it and all the water is just pouring out of the holes. By the time he gets the bucket in his hand, there's hardly any water left in it.

So, seeing this for the first time, he said, "Oh, well, this is strange-but all I have to do is be quiet. So, I'll just stay; I'll be quiet."

The Master takes that bucket, throws it back into the well, draws it, pulls it up-same thing. The man says, "This is really strange-and he's done this twice. I'm sure that he can see this; that this bucket is so full of holes that not a drop of water is going to be saved-and he won't be able to draw any. But my job is to just be quiet; I'll be quiet."

The Master throws the bucket in the third time-same thing. And by now the guy's going, "I don't know. You know, maybe this Master is not so sane; yeah, maybe he's crazy. But-maybe all I have to do is be quiet." So he stays quiet.

The fourth time, he throws the bucket in. Now the guy can't stand it. And he goes, "Excuse me, sir. Don't you see that this bucket is full of holes? This can't hold a drop of water in it."

And the Master said, "Listen, I had only asked you to observe, not to say a word. But you couldn't. Your bucket is truly full of holes. You have come to me to learn, but how are you going to learn if you are so full of holes?"

Same thing-we have so many preconceived ideas about "who you are." And I always say those three things now, "Know yourself; live your life consciously, and have your heart full of gratitude." In knowing yourself, what do you understand? What do you see?

Do you see only your ideas? Or do you see a question mark, "I don't know who I am"? Because for a lot of people it's like, "Oh, yeah, I know who I am." But who are you? Do you know it by definition-or do you know it by feeling? If you know it by definition, you don't know yourself. If you know it by feeling, then you know yourself. Because knowing yourself is not a defined point; it is a feeling.

How does that feeling go? When you are in love with someone-and you see their face, is it a definition, "Oh, there goes my lover," or is it a feeling? It's a feeling.

Is love a definition or is love a feeling? When the mother sees her baby first thing in the morning, is it like, "Oh, there is my offspring." Or is it a feeling?

Love is not a definition; love is a feeling. Knowing yourself is not a definition; it's a feeling. And unless you have that feeling, you truly don't know yourself.

So anyways, I hope you had a good laugh on that joke. If you didn't, at least you have something to think about with the rest of what I said.

Know yourself; be well; be safe. Be. Thank you.

Lockdown Broadcast Day 27

Hello, everyone. I hope, again, you're doing well. And, you know, I know that the announcements are coming; the lockdown will be delayed-but that's nothing to lose heart over or to get concerned about, a few more days. After all, the objective is to be safe, to be well. And take the opportunity to learn something, to understand something, something that is very, very important.

Because time is time; not a question of what's happening in that time, but time is time; that's one way to look at it. And you can either waste it-and that has nothing to do with coronavirus; that has nothing to do with any of the global events-or you can do something that will truly help you in this course of life.

Now, there are two things that I want to talk about. And one thing is, (which I mentioned earlier in one of these broadcasts), you know, we're so busy solving the problem; we've got our head shoved into this sand-and I want to just explain that a little bit.

So, you have two things. And one thing is essentially, your actions. You did something; (you did something unconsciously or you did something deliberately, it doesn't matter). But whatever you do in this world, it's going to have consequences. So you have the action and you have the reaction, the consequence.

Now, when I say "live your life consciously," I mean that you would take those actions that will have a very positive consequence. The result will be something you would like, something you would enjoy-that has something to do with peace, has something to do with fulfillment, has something to do with understanding, with clarity.

But what happens, (and this is what I've been thinking about), is that we get so obsessed with the consequence that we actually forget about the action. And therefore, if that action repeats itself, it's going to bear the same consequence again and again and again and again.

Now, how far does this stretch out-my goodness, in every realm you can possibly imagine. You can imagine this in family situations, in problems that families have, in domestic violence, (which is a huge thing), bullying, (that's a huge thing).

And so many more, murders, crimes, petty crimes to severe crimes, to everything. It's, again, you have the action and then you have the consequence. And everybody is so busy negating the consequences-the negative consequences-that they actually forget about the action.

Unless you change that action, repeatedly it's going to produce the same result again and again and again and again and again. And you're going to wonder, "Why in my life am I being punished? What have I done wrong?"

It's not that you did something wrong in your last lifetime or you're going to do something wrong or that you are cursed or somebody gave you the evil eye or this happened or that happened, you know, ten million excuses-or you happened to go under a ladder or whatever. But what are you doing? Whatever you do unconsciously, whatever you do….

Let me put it this way, whatever you do will produce a result. No question about it. Every action will produce a reaction. And of course, if it is unpleasant, you want to negate it; you want to get out of it; you want to…. You know, it's like the person who gets locked up and then, the only thing they're thinking about is "How do I get out of this? How do I get out of this consequence?"

If there is a person who is going to school and they get, the child gets really bad marks-and he's like, "Oh my God, you know, what do I do now; do I show this report card to my parents? Don't I? What excuse do I make? Oh…."

Instead of working on the action, which is, "I need to study-and I can do that. I need to study harder." To fundamentally look at what is causing me to repeat my actions-because I am not paying attention to those actions. And it is those actions which are causing the problem.

So it's very, very interesting. And we, in our lives, we live our lives; we go about our business all day long-and we're only paying attention to the consequences; we're not paying attention to what is causing this problem.

You know, it's like when you were young; you kept getting tickets. (I know what that's like. I know what that's like.) And why was I getting tickets? And I have told this story before; it's like, one day I was pulled over-and I realized that it was humiliating; it was not fun. And at that moment, whatever, you know, great time I was having driving fast, getting pulled over had negated all of that.

And of course, I didn't want to lie to the police officer; I was speeding. And so, right then and there I decided, "No more. I'm not going to speed."

So I drive with my cruise control wherever I can. And I set it, you know, three, four miles an hour over the speed limit. And it maintains it-and not that it's going to get me there quicker. It doesn't. I would have to drive like, insane.

And, you know, but you can always take a flight, if that's what the importance of getting there really quick is. But, give yourself enough time so you don't have to.

So, the whole thing is, yeah, when you're getting pulled over and it's like, "Oh my God, this is terrible," and, yeah, you know, ears turn red; your face turns red; your blood pressure goes up. You know, you're embarrassed and everybody's looking at you on the freeway….

And you want to get out of it. "Oh, ah, yes, officer, you know, I'm sorry; I won't do this again," and all that. But you're not paying attention to your actions. What you need to do in life is start paying attention to your actions, not just the reactions. Because reactions will just follow suit of whatever those actions are.

If you're not spending any time to sow the seeds of peace in your life-and then you will wonder, "Why don't I have peace," well, that's because you never did sow any seeds of peace. You never did anything to bring peace about. You just ran into this world, you know, like a dodo, just running and running and running and running and running and running and running.

You know, it's just like, I saw this quote in a newspaper once and it was very interesting. And the way the quote went is like, "You earn all this money-and then you work so hard for it. And then at the end of the day, what happens is you get old, get sick, and you take all that money that you have earned and you hand it over to a hospital," because you are now sick-instead of taking some of that time and doing something positive.

And this is-you know, again, I'm not trying to make any excuse for anybody; I'm not trying to, you know, point fingers at anybody or anything like that. It's very straightforward; there are leaders who are doing their job who are doing a great job.

And then there are the leaders that shouldn't-yeah, the "l" shouldn't even be a part of their, you know, title anywhere concerned. I mean, just, they have lost it; they have truly, truly lost it. And, okay, that's enough said.

But what about you? You are the leader of this domain of your life. How are you running the show? Forget about the world leaders; forget about the big organizations; forget about all that-how are you running your show? Are you being conscious? Are you trying to make an effort to understand yourself? Is your heart full of gratitude?

Or are you just pulling your hair out: "When is this, you know, lockdown going to be over? When is this going to be over; when, that's going to be, why is this happening; you know, I had plans; I had ideas of how I was going to spend, you know…?"

I'm sure there are people who had booked cruises, to go cruising. Not a smart idea at this point in time. What do you do? If you don't know who you are, what do you do?

And everywhere I turn, (and you watch this channel or you watch that channel), these are the issues. And there are some, you know, "fun-hearted" people, I would call them, with a good sense of humor, and they're trying to make something happen that may be funny or something like that.

Great, fine. But it's not just a question of something that will occupy your time. You should be occupying your time. Thoughts that matter to you are the ones you should be entertaining.

Do those things at this point in time that will bring about happiness and joy for you-this is what's important. This is what's important; not that you have to find a way to occupy your time. No, you are the one who should occupy your time, not something else and not somebody else-but you should occupy your time.

So that's one thing that I was thinking about. And the second thing is, you know, I keep saying that "This is the printer and it keeps printing these pictures." So, there's a story and I've told this story before.

So, there was a terrible flood-and this lady had this house and the floodwaters started coming and next thing you know, she moved a little bit higher. She was standing on her kitchen table-and floodwaters started coming to that point. So she went up the staircase and the floodwaters just kept following her; the waters just kept rising and rising and rising.

This kept on happening till she found herself on the roof. Now there's no place higher to go. And the floodwaters were rising. So, earnestly, she prayed to God. And she said, "God, come down and help me. I've been-I followed you; I have loved you. I think you're the greatest. And I am in trouble-and I would certainly appreciate if you could come down and help me."

So, the next thing you know, a boat comes by. And they're the rescue workers and they say, "Lady, come on; you know, the floodwaters are rising; we'd better get you out of here." And she goes, "No. No, I am waiting for my God to come and save me."

Well, the waters rose a little bit more. Now her feet are wet and she can't get any higher and she prays again and says, "Lord, save me. You know, I'm your greatest fan; I love you. I have prayed to you; I have been faithful to you-and I'm in trouble. And please come and save me."

A few minutes later, another boat comes by-the rescue workers, "Lady, come on; you know, it's time to go! It's, really, this is not a joke; come on." And she goes, "No. My God is going to save me."

A few minutes later, same thing again. Now the water is quite full; it's come up to, you know, her chest. And she prays again and says, "Lord, you know, this is the last chance. I mean, please, save me, you know, help me." Another boat zings by.

They say, "Come on, lady, this is it! This is it; this is it. You're not going to be able to stay here much longer." She goes, "No. My God is going to come and he's going to save me."

The next thing you know, the water rises high enough and she's swept away. She dies; she is in heaven. Peter is there; St. Peter is there to welcome her and she is furious. And she goes, "I want to talk to God."

And St. Peter says, "Well, can I help you in any way?" And she goes, "Help me? I want to talk to God!" St. Peter goes to God and says, "You know, there's somebody who's just come in who is really angry with you and wants to talk to you." And he says, "Okay, call her in."

She comes in and she says, "What kind of God are you? You know, three times I prayed to you. And-to save me, and not once did you come down and save me." And God said, "Lady, give me a break. I sent three boats to save you. And not once did you take one of those boats."

Printer-printed a picture of what she thought, how she would be saved. But that's not what was going to happen. Three boats did come-but she didn't take a single one and she ended up drowning.

Hmm! Well, it's a funny story-but it does deserve some attention about this printer. Because we follow this printer very closely. And it sits there all day long and prints more pictures and more pictures and more pictures.

Living your life consciously would definitely mean you really have to yank yourself away, pull yourself away when you find yourself chasing one of those pictures. You should be chasing your heart; you should be chasing that thirst in your life to be fulfilled, to be clear, to be in that serenity. That's what the thirst of your heart is.

Not the quest of the mind that just goes, "I want this; I want this; I want this." I mean, okay, you know, it's no big deal, you follow it once in a while. But if you're following it all the time and not following the heart all the time, that's going to be a little bit problematic.

So, be well. Be safe. Most importantly, be. Enjoy yourself; make the most of this time. I'll talk to you later. Thank you.

Lockdown Broadcast Day 28

Hello, everyone. I hope you're all doing well, safe and well.

So, today I get to answer some questions-and the first one is from Carme Montlleo. The question is, "You started talking about the authentic nature of the human being. You interrupted the explanation"-I probably got carried away and got into something else. "Since then, the longing in my heart remains to know what you would tell us. Would you tell us about it?"

So, the authentic nature of the human being-it's a very interesting question because, you know, we come across so much of what we consider, what we would consider "the nature" to be-mean, selfish, anger, you know, and all these things that taint what, how you see a human being.

But what if all that was to be removed and the only thing that remained was truly what the nature of a human being is? Now, am I talking in terms of "hypothetical" or "realistic?"

So, what is the possibility here; let's first understand that. Well, yes, there is anger-but then there is the opposite of anger. And does that reside in a human being? Compassion, love, understanding-and the answer to that is "yes, that resides in a human being too." And then, so what about fear? Well, the opposite of that also resides in the human being-which is courage.

And seeing-when you see a baby, a child that is uncontaminated, that hasn't learnt all these other behaviors, then that child is very much focused and very much in that beautiful space of wanting to be happy, of wanting to be content. And it only cries out when something isn't right. And when something is right, the child stops.

When the child wants to explore, when they come to that age where they will be exploring, they explore. And they show their delight in a tremendous amount of energy that they have to expend to try to grab something, to try to hold onto something. But yet, a joy in having accomplished it.

So, to me, when we start to look at those traits that naturally would be-then the behavior, you know, the nature, the authentic nature of a human being would very much be those things.

That a human being would strive, every moment that the human being could, to be fulfilled, to be in that simple place. To see, to admire everything. Because when you admire something, it gives you something in return.

When you sit down on a beach and you watch those waves rhythmically coming, going, coming, going…. the sets of them, too, and then it's kind of taking a break and then the next set comes. And then the dance of the sandpipers, that as they just come along, run with the wave, the timing of everything that exists….

And every time I get an opportunity to see this, I find it extremely hypnotic. Because it's like, "Wow, everything understands everything else's timing and yields to it." So then, this would be the human nature, yielding to what it cannot conquer. What it doesn't want to conquer, it yields, gives, lets it be-and it's fine.

You see the huge waves coming-especially in Northern California, huge sets of these waves come-and they're unimpeded; they've been traveling unimpeded and they slam across these sheer cliffs. And you're flying, you know, sometimes, two, three hundred feet high-and those waves want to touch you.

And it's like, wow, this incredible force-one unrelenting, very, very much so-and the water, the force of the water. And both just having a tussle. Eventually, the water will win. And we can see that in many places. But till it's there, it is there.

So, the authentic nature of a human being would be kindness, would be the search for joy. For a human being to recognize the beauty and the timing of everything else and yield to that which it cannot change. To know when to bend, and yet, know when to stay stiff-just like a tree.

It is there. But it also knows that when the wind starts to blow, it must yield to that wind if it is to stay there, if it wants to be there.

And this becomes an art; this becomes a real art in all of nature-in all of nature. Nothing overpowers anything.

You know, it goes back, this whole idea of conservation goes back-and even at the time of Mahabharat, where Arjun has a dream and all the creatures of the jungle come to say, "Listen, you're too good of a, you know, a hunter and you're wiping us out-please leave. Go somewhere else."

And this whole idea that "Yeah, human beings could wipe something out…." That's not in our nature; that wouldn't benefit us. What would benefit us is to take care of those things and make sure that those things keep on perpetuating.

So, basically, the authentic nature of a human being would be, one, very natural, full of kindness, full of understanding. And full of helping all that that could use the help-and yielding to that that doesn't need any help.

So I hope, (I have tried to put it as briefly as I can), I hope that helps. That that's the way I see the nature of a human being. Yes, I'm not, by any stretch of the imagination, not acknowledging the bad nature of the human being; that's there too. But what I am doing is, while I acknowledge the bad nature, I also acknowledge the good nature of a human being. And that is there.

And that needs to be accepted and that is the one that needs to be perpetuated, not the bad one. We know how to perpetuate the bad one. We're masters at it. We've been doing it for so many years, we've actually become very, very efficient and very, very good at taking the bad and perpetuating the bad. And we sometimes forget about the good.

And how is that good brought forth? It's really simple, you know-but how do you bring something good out in a child? Let that child participate with you in the process of discovery, rather than sitting there and trying to tell the child what it is that they should or should not be doing. Let them come up with the solutions; let them come up with the answers.

If you give them enough trust-it takes a little time-but once they understand that you do trust them, that their input is valuable, then they come up with valuable input for you, for themselves, a clearer understanding. So I hope-I hope that helps you.

Another question from Kala in New Zealand-and this is, "How do I stay in the present in my day-to-day activities? Is it something I have to work at or does it come naturally?" Well, here is the beauty of it.

If you would have made living consciously-and exercised it a long time ago, it would be coming to you naturally. But instead, what we have worked on-and maybe, maybe our world is such that we don't have a choice-but what we have actually worked on is to live unconsciously. And what comes as second nature is to live unconsciously.

If we want to live consciously, then we have to make it our second nature by practice, practice, practice, practice, and practice. It took us a long time, years and years of practice, of exercising unconsciousness. It's going to take some practice to live life consciously.

But obviously, to live life consciously there is a reward. And, you know, this is what it means. It's not like…. Every, every day, I think everybody has this target thing of, it's like, "I want to hit that level; I want to hit that threshold."

But there are certain things in life that don't have that threshold. You practice living consciously every day of your life, little, by little, by little and by little. You accept the success and you accept the failure. That is living consciously. It's not just about all success and no failure; it is about accepting both success and failure. And then that conscious living makes sense.

If somebody is trying to achieve this, you know, the "printer" thing, printing a picture saying, "Yeah, okay, you know, one day you will be perfect." No, you understand that you are perfect. And it is not some definition of perfectness that has been painted by somebody else that makes you perfect.

What makes you perfect is, with your shortcomings and with your fundamental desire to want to do good, to want to be happy, to want to be in peace, this is what makes you complete; this is what makes you perfect-with your imperfection. Not without your imperfection, but with your imperfection. And so, I hope that that helps, because that's just how it is in my experience.

Another one from Ana Rosales, "How to keep the peace within us if we are seeing how a few benefit from the destruction of others-we are the united ones that are destroyed."

Well, that's an interesting question-because it is true. A system has been created in which few have the power over many. This did not happen overnight; this happened slowly, slowly, slowly, slowly-we let people be empowered; we gave them that empowerment.

We gave officials that power. Then they used that power to want to get reelected again, so whoever could get them, could help them get reelected-a little more powerful than them, see?

So, there are those ones who are powerful because they are in the government; then there are those who are more powerful than them-and they help those people who want to come into power and they help those who want to be more powerful.

And so, all of a sudden, it's just like a race-and in that, you know, you have all these contestants who will be dropped out. And the only ones remaining at the very end are the ones that can help each other out. The rest of the population, forget it; they get dropped.

But-why not look at it, "How did it get to be that way?" Very easy. How did it get to be that way? Because we relinquished-we relinquished that power that we had and we gave it to them.

We said, "Run with it. I don't want to be bothered; I want to have my little life-I am too busy. I'm too busy, you know, taking care of my little family, taking care of my little situation; I don't want to be bothered with it-so you run with it; you go with it; you do whatever you want to do with it." Well, all that backfires. And when it backfires, you see what happens. Here is the world.

There are-you know, there are shows-and they show people; they become hoarders; they hoard. They just collect; they collect, collect, and it gets to be to the point where you can't even walk into their house, because it's just, they have collected so much junk and never got rid of it, just collected it and collected and collected and collected and collected.

Well, this is what some of the people do, except they do it with money; they hoard it. Every time there is graft, there is bribery, what is that bribery doing? That is taking money from a poor person's purse, (mouth), and giving it to somebody who doesn't need it, who doesn't even probably appreciate it.

So, what we see in this world…. You know, you cannot-I mean, especially now, if you look around in your city and you see clear blue skies and you see everything wonderful…. And next time, when things kind of go back to being normal, (if they ever do), and the sky is full of pollution, don't blame God for it. Okay, it's our doing. It's absolutely our doing.

You think that the earth produces too little food? No, the earth produces more than enough food to feed every person on the face of this earth. If anybody goes hungry, you know whose fault it is? It is our fault. I'm-and mind you, I'm saying "our." It is not their fault or their fault or their fault; it is our fault.

So, yes, what you're talking about is absolutely accurate. And we allowed this to happen. We allowed this to happen.

So, next time an opportunity raises itself, brings itself forward, think about it; think twice. How do we relinquish this? We sit down like idiots in front of a television-and consuming everything…. And I call them "brain diggers." So, they're brain diggers; they dig into your brain every single day-and they try to tell you, "This is this way; this is this way; this is this way; this is this way."

A long time ago there used to be one channel-and it was a channel that was used by news agencies and they were just transmitting over it-and there were no comments. And you just saw the drama, whatever the drama was. And it was the most boring thing you could watch.

The next thing you know, you're watching the same footage; it has been edited; it has been changed; it has been polished; it's been editorialized….

You know, every morning they sit down and they actually decide what's, what they consider to be news and what they don't consider to be news. If it has an element of tragedy, that will get you. So all of a sudden, you're sitting there and what are you being bombarded by-tragedy, tragedy, tragedy, tragedy.

Somebody actually sent me a link to somebody who has started a channel on YouTube or somewhere, where it's just all positive news. Well, positive news or negative news-I mean, you know, there are going to be tragedies. (That's because we make them.)

So you want true, honest opinion; you want to know the truth-and you look to a television and you say, "That's the truth." Well, that's a sad day. You're not going to get truth out of the tube. You're not going to get truth on some piece of paper that you are holding in front of you. It's been highly polished; it's been highly opinionized.

And more opinion there is and more digging there is and more, you know, taking the screws and doing things with it-makes for a better story, makes for better listening, makes for better watching.

And face it, you know, all that that is there is there to make money. That is their first criteria. And they do; they make money.

So, you know, again, it just really comes down to that the world that we live in, if you don't like something about it, it's not like it was handed to you. We have created that situation; we have created that situation. So, I hope that helps. (I don't know how), but, yeah, and I'm just telling you how I see it, so….

Here is one from Shubham, India, from Delhi, "Sometimes due to this lockdown, I get irritated and furious in small things. How should I manage it?"

I wonder if you get irritated when there wasn't a lockdown-because I have a sneaky suspicion that this irritation has been going on for a long time-now you're noticing it more, that you're in the lockdown because you're in the same situation again and again and again.

And managing irritation-you can be irritated. And this is living consciously; this is what that's all about-yes, you can be very irritated. And there are things that can irritate you. Except, what you have to ask yourself is, "Do you, do you want to be irritated?"

So if the things are irritating you, the things are in control, not you. You are not in control; the things are in control. If you don't want to be irritated, then you will have to be in control, not the things. So, you're going to have to take control of your life. And that's what it's going to take-take control of your life.

So, I hope you all will be safe, be healthy, be well-and most importantly, be. Thank you.

Lockdown Broadcast Day 29

Hello, everyone; I hope you're all well, healthy-and trying to enjoy yourself under these situations of the lockdown.

So again, continuing with the questions, "I can see where my children are in their lives; my 'picture' has been ripped apart by them." (Hmm.) "I have responsibility as their father to ensure they're on good tracks. How do I do this? Mukesh."

All right, interesting question. You are with your children in this lockdown and you're seeing that they're not what you thought you were raising. Okay, so let me just try to answer this question. Are your children a product of you telling them how they should be-or do you include them in the decisions that you make for them?

Do you solicit their help by posing what it is that should happen-and explaining to them why that should happen? And asking them for their solutions, for their help to accomplish it. And not only ask them for their solutions, but help them accomplish this; take their advice in stride; accept their advice.

So, so with your children, you tell them what to do-and you expect them to do it. With your friends, however, you do exactly what I told you before, which is you sit down with them; you explain your problem-and then ask them for advice of how you could possibly do it. And then you listen to them-of course, you listen to them, especially if it's good advice.

Now, it's going to take a little time. Your children are not going to come up with perfect answers the first day-because they don't know. They have to trust you. But do not underestimate your children. Don't think of them as idiots, because you are the father.

So, give them the respect-and they will give you the respect. It takes to give respect to get respect. It takes two to come to the same conclusion for something to move forward.

So, ask them for their advice: "How would this happen; how could this happen?" That's exactly what you do when you go to the hospital. You go to the doctor and you say, "Doctor, my arm is hurting. What could I do to help it?" And then the doctor gives you the advice and you accept the advice.

If the doctor tells you, "I'm going to cut off your arm," and you go, "Well, no, it's just a little scratch. And you know, why do you want to cut off my arm?" And he goes, "Well, I like cutting arms off; thank you," you would say, "No, I don't like you as a doctor; I'm going to go find somebody else."

It takes that trust that you have to form with your family, with your wife, with your children. You want to be the dictator of your family. But believe me, your empire is going to backfire.

You, right now, (I don't know how old your children are), but if you're talking about just ripping down the pictures, listen, your entire empire is going to get ripped apart-if you don't do things in a way where they're included in coming up with the solution….

I have seen kids come up with solutions, that cannot even talk properly yet, that young. You just have to ask them, "So, what do you think; how do you think we should do it?" And they will come up with it, you know, "What can we do."

Even if the child is not doing well in school, it's like, "Well, you know, what would it take to start helping you get better at school?" And take their advisement; they'll think about it. Are they not capable of thinking? They are absolutely capable of thinking-and believe me, you'll be surprised; you will be very, very surprised.

So, please, first of all, give some respect to your children-if you want some respect from them-and include them in your decision-making process.

You know, don't become like this, you know-not all politicians are bad but some politicians, you know, they show up-they'll bend over backwards when they want your vote. And then after that, they'll slap you (for I don't know, for whatever the reason is). So, don't become that; don't become that. Be a father. That's what a father means, fathering.

You're a father; you're not a dictator; you're not a slave-owner. You're not there to produce slaves for yourself. You're a father-and fathering means to help your children understand the process of decision-making, of all those things that it takes to be.

And I just see that so many people have created, you know, an impossible task in front of them-because they don't want to, you know, "include, include"-because when you do, then you have a team. When your family-not only then you have a family, but you have a family team.

And when you have that team, then you have teamwork that's going on. And it is wonderful; it's just great. And that teamwork can be so lovely, can be so beautiful. So, that's what you have to work on. So I hope this makes sense.

Here is one from Raffaele, "I would like nothing more than 'being there' in every moment of my life. Can we not exercise our roles by remaining with that love, even during the most banal daily actions of our existence? Is it possible to make them live together constantly, self-action and experience? Is it within our reach to become so capable?"

Yes, we can exercise our roles-but it all has to come with consciousness, not just…. You know, first of all, let me ask you one question: "Do you have a picture of this in your mind, of what this looks like?" Because if you do, you're setting yourself up; you're setting yourself up for failure.

Many people have that, you know, just like, "Well, but this is what's going to happen, you know, and everybody will be liberated and this and that," and there are plenty in this world that create these pictures. But these pictures are what trips us and makes these very simple, very simple things virtually impossible.

So, you know, please, first, get rid of that picture. And then, then whatever happens will happen, in that sense….

So, another question, "I came into this life with or learned to have a high level of anxiety," this is from Celeste; "I wonder if I can change my nature and leave it behind." Yes, you don't need to become anxious. I think the more you are in control of your life and what happens in this life, the more there would be less of a reason to be anxious.

You know, and of course, sometimes getting overanxious is a very physical thing and for that, you need to see a doctor or you need to see a psychologist who can help you. But definitely, more you are in control of your life, the less reason there is to be anxious. So, I hope that helps.

"Have you any words of inspiration"-this is from Victoria-"Have you any words of inspiration to help me take control of my day please?" Yes. Be confident. Understand what this control is.

It's not like, all of a sudden, you will become that Mickey Mouse, you know, wizard that just waves his finger and the broom comes out of the closet and starts washing the floor, and the bucket starts pouring water and all of that stuff; that's not what it's about.

It's you, you being full, you being-understanding of yourself, of saying, "Okay, if this doesn't work, I'm fine with it. I am fine. I am fine." Not, "If this doesn't work, that's it for me." No. "If this doesn't work, I'm still fine. I will be okay. I will be okay."

If you're boiling your beans; it's a disaster; the beans are all over the place-you know, don't freak; order a pizza. After all, what you need is food. It doesn't have to be beans that day; maybe you can cook beans the next day. Take what you have learned and apply it and make better beans the next day, not making it a disaster.

Sometimes it is as simple as that. Sometimes, of course, it's not as simple as that-but each day, understand its preciousness-and what you have control over. You must know what you have control over and what you don't have control over.

And a lot of people don't know what they don't have control over and they try to gain control over those things; it's going to be a disaster. You know, it is going to be a disaster.

What do you have control over? How you feel. It's not the situation; it is how you react to it. This is abundantly clear. So, in your life, each day, make that effort, be conscious and move forward.

"I realized recently that I'm stuck in my life, not because of COVID virus-because I work in the middle of it; I had the virus and I'm cured-a few symptoms left, but nothing serious. My trouble is I can't seem to digest what is happening.

"Courage I do have. That's why I wake up and go to work. But the old people dying alone and not given a fighting chance, being refused intensive care just because of a freaking number, their age-honestly, I know some people who are fresher at eighty-six or ninety-two years old than some fifty-year-olds.

"Plus, being a doctor, it's my responsibility to give the news, not only to the sick, but also to the family. It's really horrible. How do I deal with the guilt? I know it's out of my hands; but then why the guilt?"

No, you don't need to feel guilty. You do not need to feel guilty. You are in this precarious position, very much so.

Arjun says, in the middle of the battlefield-this is exactly what Arjun says; he says, "I'm not fighting. I know these people. You know, I don't want to be the one responsible for killing them. You know, that would be too much, so I'm not going to do it."

Krishna says, "Do-do what you have to do; do your duty. Don't worry about the consequences; do your duty." This is…. And this is a big thing in India-and the Gita opens up this whole chapter of "Duty, do it; don't worry about the consequences."

You're a doctor; you can help people. You have helped so many people. You can continue to help the people. Guilt does not need to come.

What is happening? Bad decisions. Maybe history will reflect itself, reflect on this, bad decisions that are being taken by some leaders, weird things, weird conclusions. And I think this is going to play out for a really, really, really long time.

Because people didn't have the resources to be able to express their anger or express their fear or express whatever they express-but now they do. And so I think this is going to play out for a really, really long time.

But I would encourage you not to feel guilty; you don't need to feel guilty. What you need to feel is the courage to move forward-and take that courage, shake it off; that's what I call it, "shake it off." This guilt is coming from here. It's not coming from the heart; it's coming from here. It's coming from reasonings.

But in the middle of this fire, it is not the right time to figure out how the fire got started; the best thing is to fight the fire. So, my, what I can say to you-you're a doctor-is, "Don't feel guilty; shake it off; move forward and help people, help people like you can. Give them the love; give them the care; give them that-give them that care that you alone can give." So, good luck to you.

This is from Malaysia, from Yashotha, "My question is, people who get this virus land up in a hospital ward and if they're bad they're moved to ICU. If they don't make it, they die. No family is allowed to visit or be with them.

"Is it really the case of you come alone and you die alone and are sent off or buried by the hospital staff? So sad, I feel for the patient; they want to see their loved ones before they go but are unable to. What is your take on this? If the heart is full, then they won't feel sad?"

Well, let me put this in some context. I'm not the one who came up with this rule, that they shouldn't see each other-but I know one thing; that love knows no boundaries; love knows no walls; love knows no distance; love knows no height; love knows no depth. There's nothing impossible for love. Love knows no barriers. You can love those who you love and you will always love them.

What happens-you are left here to feel the sadness of their loss. At least, they, who have moved on, they're not feeling the sadness. They don't know; they're gone. This is what "gone" means; they have left. They have left that brain behind that made all the reasonings, the eyes that recognized you, the eyes that saw you, the ears that heard you….

And so it's a different world, in that regard, in that sense. And you need to love them; this is your hope of what their legacy is going to be about. They live in you. Your parents, your grandparents, they live in you.

And yes, it is a terrible, terrible tragedy. But that is the nature of this beast. And the best thing is to love. What you can do-you always have to remember this: "In any situation, what is it that I can do?" Not, "What is it that I cannot do." That is a waste of time.

But in this situation, every day that this is happening, you must remember what you can do. What you can do is to love: love, love, and love.

So, be safe; be well. Be.

Lockdown Broadcast Day 30

Hello, everyone; I hope you're all well, feeling well and doing well.

So, I was reading a question that had come up to me from a very close friend of mine-and one of the things that he wanted to know is like, "What would be the most appropriate story that would relate to this coronavirus thing, these current circumstances?"

So I started thinking about that, and one of the things that became very obvious to me, at least, was that we can make a big thing out of this and-we do. We…. You know, it's not like I'm trying to make this trivial; it's, I'm not. It's historic; it's huge; it's….

When you see some of the animations of how this spread and everything else, it's just this race, you know; it's like a train wreck-and you could see the train coming for a mile, you know.

But, nonetheless, you have to focus on what your needs are. And you have to understand what you are all about, because that hasn't changed. The circumstances have changed; the external circumstances have changed, but who you are and what you need hasn't changed by any stretch of the imagination.

And of course, it is our nature that when we are deprived of something, when something is taken away from us, we miss it more; we like it more; we want it more.

And so, you know, the fact that there are a lot of people I know that would rather sit in their living room and watch television-or, you know, play a video game or listen to music or read a book…. But now that you can't go outside, it's like we all want to go outside; we all want to be out on the beach; we all want to be doing these kinds of things. So, that's very, very interesting.

So, coming back to it, the main thing hasn't changed-which is your needs, your want, your day-to exist, to survive, to live. And that hasn't changed.

So, what would be the most appropriate story? Well, after giving it quite a bit of thought, this is a-you know, and I had to pull this one out of the hat, pretty deep. But it's a story that I used to tell a really long time ago. And I haven't told this story in a long, long time.

But the story is very short; it's very brief. And there was a king and one day he got drunk-and he got on top of his drunk elephant. And they were both going-wherever he wanted to go, wherever the elephant wanted to take him-and the elephant wanted to go wherever he wanted to go.

And they were in pretty bad shape; they were drunk and nobody was in control; nobody was really in charge, sort of to say; nobody knew what to do. And as they were going, the elephant tripped on something and the king, who was sitting on the back of the elephant, (on top of the elephant), fell from the elephant into a well.

And as he is falling, you know, for a moment he gets sober and he grabs this vine, this very strong vine-he grabs it-and he's alive; he's okay. And so, you know, in that moment, he definitely is thinking about "What's going on here" and he's getting-he's getting sober real quick. And all of a sudden, he wants to assess his situation.

So he's in the middle of this well; he holding on with this vine. And he looks up-and he sees two rats, (one is a black rat; one is a white rat), and they're very busy cutting this vine. And so he looks down to see what's there, and down below are all these snakes and scorpions hissing, deadly poisonous things-and it's not a pretty picture.

So, here he is; he's holding onto this vine; he is in this well. He looks up-and there are two rats that are just going at it, trying to cut the vine down, cut the vine off. He looks down, of where he's obviously going to fall when the vine is cut, and it's nothing but poisonous snakes and scorpions and dangerous things.

So, let's just stop there for a minute-and pretty much, the story ends right there. Because this is something to get you to reflect on, for you to think about. So, you are the king, obviously; you are the king-and everything you ride on, your little world, is the elephant. And the elephant is drunk-and so are you.

What are you drunk on? Well, unconsciousness. You're living-but you're not in charge of anything. Except you have no problem complaining about things, looking at things, going "Oh, I wonder why this is like that," blaming God, blaming this person, blaming that person. I mean, on and on and on and on and on it goes.

So, it's very-it's very metaphoric. The metaphor here really would be that, in this story, you're the king. Unconsciousness is what you are inebriated on.

We live every day-and we want to make it the same, pretty much: "I go; I get up at this time…." I mean, you know, how many people in the United States do you think have got their alarm clocks set to a particular time and that's where it stays? And the status is that on Saturday and Sunday, (if that's the day that they have off), they just turn it off, the alarm-but then starting Monday, same routine.

Some people have their coffee set up with the timer-because they know they have to get up every single day, the same time.

So, here we are; we're living in this pattern-and I'm not trying to be judgmental of whether that's right or whether that's wrong; I'm just presenting it parallel to the story-so, try to make some sense of it.

And then our little world that we have created-and that's got a lot of unconsciousness. It's not our decisions; the world presents us these pretty phones, these pretty things-and we look at those and we go, "Yeah, yeah, I want one of those; I want one of those; I want one of those."

We're driving along and we see, you know, a beautiful house on a billboard for sale or something like that-and it's like, "Yeah, I want that too." And we see a car and that's just really, really nice and it's like, "Yeah, I want that too…."

And so it's like this whole world that's just pushing us, pushing us, pushing us every day, "Want, want, want, want, want, you want this; you want this; you want this, want this."

Though again, a tremendous amount of unconsciousness on our part. Because those people, you know, they sit down in board rooms-believe me, and they sit down and they work out "How can we crack the code, that people will go for this? That what we're going to tell them…?"

I mean, they literally have to sit down and say, "Okay, we're going to tell them that this is the greatest car." It doesn't matter if the car is good. Right? It doesn't matter if "this soft drink that we're going to advertise to them is good." Even it could be harmful to them, but that's not the point of it.

The point of it is, "How can we crack the code? How can we get inside their head"-brain diggers-"How can we get inside their head and plant this idea that they really want this?" Not need-"want this?"

So, again, a tremendous amount of unconsciousness on our part, that we accept this and we say, "Oh, yeah, right, that's what I want."

So, we've got the elephant that's drunk; we've got the king that's sitting on the back of the elephant that's drunk. And nobody knows where they're going, very inebriated in unconsciousness, both of them. The elephant couldn't care less and the king could care less.

And the next thing you know, something happens, something takes place and the elephant trips; (coronavirus, COVID-19 happens) and the elephant trips. And all of a sudden, the king finds himself being de-seated from the elephant and going into the well, (the well of this world that we live in).

And hanging on. And there is a vine-and we hang onto that vine. We-he looks up and he sees two rats, (night and day; that's the black and the white rat), they're busy cutting that vine. What's underneath on the floor of that well? Snakes, (consequences of our decisions that we have made).

It goes on and on and on and on. And there he is in limbo. If he does nothing, he's going to fall because those two rats are definitely going to cut through that vine. If he does nothing, that is his fate; he is going to fall and he will succumb to the consequences, to the result of the consequences of his unconsciousness, his or her unconsciousness throughout their lives.

Because what's at the bottom of the well isn't one day's consequences; it is the consequences of every single day of living this life unconsciously, unconsciously, unconsciously, unconsciously, unconsciously, unconsciously. Bizarre scene.

The only hope really is if somebody can throw a rope-and you can switch. Because the game is set. Those rats are busy; they could care less. Day and night, the time is passing, (that's what the symbology there is). The symbology is of the time that is just nonstop, day and night….

You know, you buy a watch-you buy a watch to tell what? Well, to figure out "when I'm going to do this; when I'm going to do this; when I'm going to do this." But you haven't really sat down and looked at that watch and go, "Oh my God, this thing is telling me that I have this much less time to exist on the face of this earth."

So now, it's not a question of, you know, I'm painting a doomsday scenario. Because there is a possibility, at any given time, we realize that "Here I am; that I am so busy wanting to take care of not having the consequences that I have forgotten what it is that caused me to have these consequences in my life."

And I think there is another question from a person who could be, (I don't know), but who could be an inmate in prison. And basically what he's saying is that "Look, I did what I did, but I'm suffering the consequences every single day."

And what I would like to say to you is, "Right, you are suffering the consequences every day. But what is it that is making it so bad? Is it everybody else? Or is it you?"

How you perceive it? Because you can change that. You can look at this as another opportunity in your life to really make a transformation from deep within. So, not only do you take the best, wonderful advantage of that situation….

And see, this is the point-I deal with a lot of inmates and I go and I frequently visit prison. And prison is this thing-it's a lockdown. You know, you-"You're not going there; you're not going there; you're going to be in these confines and that's it."

Well, that's what coronavirus is doing, you know, with all this lockdown; that's what happening: "You can't go here; can't go there; can't go do this; can't do this." Your liberties are being taken away.

And so, because of that…. You know, and yesterday I saw people who were protesting against the lockdown. And I realized that a lot of those people, (not all of them), but a lot of those people, they just don't want to be told what to do. It's not what it is that they do or don't do-they just don't want to be told what not to do.

And so somebody comes along and tells them, "Oh, you have to stay in this room"-they hate that. They don't want to do that.

But in reality, to use a little bit of common sense and say, "Okay, according to the circumstances, it is really good not to give…." Until when? Well, you know, you hear a lot of things; you hear, "Oh, it might take two years to develop a vaccine; it might take twelve months to develop a vaccine." They're working on it.

They are working on it and let's hope that they can come up with a vaccine or some kind of a medication. It's not like people are sitting, you know, and doing absolutely nothing. There's a tremendous amount of very good people working on finding a cure for this thing, or some kind of a relief from this thing. Because economically it's a huge toll-but this is how it is.

So, getting back to the story, the only way out for this king really is for somebody to come along and rescue by providing another means of him being able to get out-and to understand the value of every single day that the king has.

And to understand that those consequences are going to be waiting for him unless he actually changes his ways-and one of the ways he has to change is not to become unconscious, not to become inebriated in the first place. And to make sure that his elephant also is not inebriated.

So, I think that I'm trying to put this thing together-and it is really all about how we are perceiving this. And what we need to see is the reality. The reality is simple-and the reality is beautiful. Because that's the nature, that's the nature of that reality.

It may seem like it's cruel; it may seem like it's odd; it may "seem like it, seem like it"-but in reality, it is beautiful. You are alive. The breath is coming into you. You exist. Listen to your needs. Your needs are to be fulfilled, to be in peace, very, very simple. And when you can be in sync with that, you will have a different life. And what I am talking about will make a lot more sense then.

Because, you know, what we consider to be normal-and yeah, just do all those things and waste our time. That's the only thing we cannot afford to waste, is time. Because that is one commodity that's not coming back. Girlfriends, you can get a new one. Wives, you can get a new one; children, well, you could try. But time, no way.

One job, two jobs, you could try this job; you could try that job. If this doesn't work out, you could try that. But time, nothing you can do about it. No rewind button, no stop button.

So, anyway, I hope that it puts it in some context for you. And the most important thing is to have a sense of relief, have a sense of comfort: "You're okay; you're okay." Go inside; understand who you are. See with your eyes yourself, not with the world's eyes-but see from your eyes what this is all about. And I think you'll find a pleasant surprise.

So, be safe; be well. Be. Thank you; I'll talk to you later.

Lockdown Broadcast Day 31

Well, hello, everyone. I hope you're doing well under the circumstances-and keeping well, keeping safe. So, today I'd like to talk to you a little bit about just this one thing that came to me. A long time ago I had come across this statement, (or quote or whatever you want to call it), and it went something like, "Question everything."

And so I started thinking like, "Well, that's very interesting: 'Question everything.' And do I agree with that?" And I do-I do agree that we should question. But at the same time, we do need the answers-because it would be pointless to keep on questioning without receiving any answer. And in which field, in which spectrum would you question?

So, here's the gist of it for me-that yes, we question everything. Now, even for some questions, even if I do get an answer, do I care? I mean, I may look up; I might see an airplane flying across the skies. And it is, it would be quite normal to say, "I wonder where that airplane is going?"

Somebody comes up to me and says, "Oh, that's, that airplane is going to Singapore." Well, it's like, "Okay, you know, what's the big deal? I mean"-yeah, or it's going to Delhi: "What's the big deal?"-or it's going to Mumbai; it's, "What's the big deal?"

But then there are those questions that, obviously, we need to ask, and need to get answers for-those questions: "Why am I here? Who am I? What am I?" I'm a human being. I need that answer; I need that answer again and again and again in my life: "I'm a human being."

What do I want? I have needs. My needs are very basic; my needs are very fundamental. "And what about this world?" I need to question everything in this world.

And the amazing thing is that most of the time we don't question the world; we question ourselves. We don't get any answer from the world; we don't even question it, but we don't even get any answer from the world. We have assumptions: "This is what this is for; this is what this is for; this is what this is for."

And all of a sudden, there is this disparity; there is this imbalance-of where the questions are being asked…. And is it good to ask questions; I think it's wonderful to ask questions. But you have to ask those questions so you can get an answer, especially when those questions relate to you, to your existence, to your fundamental being here on this earth.

I was born; I came out of one wall. I exist in this world; I exist in this time. I do not understand how little that time is. I don't understand my possibilities, how great those possibilities are for me.

One day I do know that I have to go-but I don't understand what that means, "go." Go where? Where am I going? Because that's already presupposed. "If you have been a good person, you're going to go to heaven." And it, you know, it completely depends on the religion that you are following.

The thing about religion is that a lot of times you're born into a religion. You don't choose a religion; you're born into a religion. And once you are born into a religion, off you go. What may seem different to somebody else will seem completely normal to you.

When a Christian looks at somebody following the rites of the Hindu religion, that looks very different to them. But for a Hindu, that's completely normal; it's completely correct; it's completely right.

And this is how it is. And they see the Christians following their religion-and it's like, "This is odd; this is odd; this is odd." But to a Christian who's been born in that, who has seen it from a very young age, everything seems normal.

So, off we go in our beliefs, in our ideas, in our thoughts-but we're truly not questioning.

And I'm not talking about questioning religion; I'm not talking about questioning those things. I'm talking about questioning, "Who am I? Why am I here? What are my needs? What is my understanding? What do I want in my life? What is important to me-today? What is the value of today for me? What is the value of tomorrow for me; what is the value of yesterday for me?"

Because if the value of tomorrow is greater than the value of today, then I truly don't understand what today, tomorrow and yesterday are all about. If the value of yesterday is greater than the value of today for me, then I really don't understand these three things, which are "today, yesterday and tomorrow." I don't get it; I don't understand the value of it.

Today is the most important for me-because I can do something today. Today is where my actions take place. Yesterday is memory, thinking thoughts. Tomorrow is contemplations, thoughts, ideas-but no action can actually take place in tomorrow, or no action can take place in yesterday. For the actions to happen-for the actions to happen it has to be today.

So, are my actions that I take the culmination of a well-processed thought? Or they're at random? (Some days are good; some days are not; some hours are good; some hours are not. Some minutes are good; some minutes are not.) Because if I haven't thought out what it is that I should do….

And I say the word "clarity"-but that's what clarity takes. Clarity takes to completely understand all ins and outs of what it means.

When I was flying from Recife to Miami, there was an area, (and it was indicated on the charts), of some thunderstorms. Of course, you realize, when you fly an airplane you have all this information-and you have your radar-but most importantly, you have your eyes.

So, you have your radar; you're looking at your radar. You're looking at the satellite picture on your instruments. On your display, you're looking at the satellite picture and it's, you're looking at how current it is. Of course, I had my iPad too, and I'm looking at that-and that's giving me a more current picture.

But then I have my eyes. And if, you know, everything says, "Oh, no, don't worry about it; everything is clear," and I am looking out the window and I'm heading into something that I know is a thunderstorm, that's it. That takes precedence.

So I made a deviation-and I deviated and I deviated quite a bit. But I didn't want to get into it, into those thunderstorms. And we had a nice smooth ride; got back. The whole thing, the deviation, probably didn't take more than twenty, twenty-five minutes-and we were back on route. And by the way, some of the directs we got, we made up some time as well.

So, when you fly, you look at all aspects of things; it's not just, you get in the airplane, crank the engines and go. No, you take a look at "Where am I going to be when this happens; where am I going to be when this happens? If I was to lose an engine, where am I going to be and where am I going to go? How much fuel will I have; will I make it? How much reserves will I have?"

So, you take a look at all of that information. And so the information is taken; it is processed. A picture is derived. And then it becomes a plan that you concur with. Whatever information has been sent, "Okay, yes, we can do this. This is the amount of fuel we need."

And I, when I order my fuel, I always look at the route-and if there are too many thunderstorms, a lot of deviation or turbulence or whatever and we may have to go lower, you order a little bit extra. It's always good to have a little bit extra. And of course, the rule of thumb in aviation is that "Runway behind you, fuel in the truck and the altitude above you, don't do you any good"-in an emergency.

You need as much altitude as you can have. You need that fuel that you left in the truck and you would rather have it in your wings. And the runway, the more you have, the better it is for whatever it is that you're doing.

So, does that not apply in life? Well, it should. Those principles are sound-that "Yes, be ready for any eventuality, any possibility."

But at the same time, we don't do that. Off we go. Off we go. We are launching, even before the rocket has taken off its pedestal. We are going. The idea is already there; you get up in the morning and "Off I go."

So, off you go-and you're waiting for the bus; you have left your house; you're doing this-and it's just like you're caught up in this storm. And you don't know what to do.

Now, why am I saying all this to you? It's because this is a grand time; this is a great time to start questioning some of those things-and most importantly, some of those important questions that you need to ask yourself, get the answers to them. Not just take somebody's word for it.

If people just asked those questions and have an answer that is satisfactory-not the answer that "Oh, yeah, God just works in mysterious ways and I accept that." No, no, "What's going on here?" Because here I am; this is my life! I am the one who has been given options, either to do or not to do.

I am that warrior that was at that great war in India, Mahabharat. And a choice has been made-and Krishna is saying, "Look, you have to look at everything-and then and then only should you make that choice." And when Arjun finally sees the whole side of it, he is then ready to fight.

So, you know, at first, I would have to say that there was one point in time in my life, I absolutely agreed with Arjun's choice: "I am not going to fight; I know all these people…. I ain't fighting." It's like, "Hey, that's a good choice; don't fight."

But look at the whole thing. Look at what the reasons are-that these people have taken upon themselves to go against what is correct, what is right.

Anyway, that was Mahabharat; that's yesterday. Tomorrow will be what will be. But today is what you have to work with, work with. This is where your actions will take place.

And because today is where the actions will take place, "now" is where the actions will take place, that's the importance of now. Two minutes before, only thoughts can take place. That's as far as you can go with your thoughts. But for actions, you're locked in the position of now.

So if you're locked in the position of now, shouldn't all your thinking be focused or take part and understand what now is all about-because that's where you're going to act. And the consequences of what you do in the now, (where you act), you will have to face in the future-and that will become your past. And more and more and more this process keeps happening, the more "today" is going to get muddled.

So, question everything; absolutely; no problem. Some questions you will never get answers to; who cares about those questions; maybe they're too trivial. But then there are those important questions that you must ask of yourself-and you must receive the answers. It's not a question of options; you must receive those answers.

And those answers have to be clear, have to be succinct, have to be correct. And it has to feel right, from your heart, accepting the answer to those questions.

Because inside of you there is an ocean, an ocean of answers. This is what I say: "Inside of you is an ocean of answers." And that answer that's going to feel right to you is going to come from that ocean that is within you.

So, I hope that, you know, things keep improving for you. Take it one day at a time. Don't look at, you know, "What's going to happen down the road; what's going to happen up the road," whatever the road is. But one day at a time, feel good. Be well; be safe. Understand the importance of now. That has not changed.

Coronavirus or not, lockdown or not, that doesn't mean anything in regards to that day that you were born and that day that you're going to go. In regards to that, this means nothing. That is still valid. And every moment that this breath comes into you is a celebration for you that you need to start celebrating every single day.

So, be well; be safe. And most importantly, be. Thank you-and I'll talk to you later.

Lockdown Broadcast Day 32

Hello, everyone; I hope you're all doing well, keeping fit, keeping healthy. I'd just like to take a little, few minutes and welcome everybody who is listening to these broadcasts and has been listening to these broadcasts.

There are 173 countries that are listening to these broadcasts-so, India and United States, Spain, United Kingdom, France, Argentina, Italy, Canada, Australia, Colombia. Germany, Brazil, Nepal, Switzerland, South Africa, Malaysia. Chile, Portugal, Greece, Mexico, Netherlands, Peru.

Uruguay, Ireland, New Zealand, Denmark, Sweden, Ecuador, Austria, Taiwan, Sri Lanka, Mauritius, Venezuela, Israel, (shalom), Japan, Slovenia, Côte d'Ivoire, Belgium, Finland, Singapore, Hong Kong, Morocco, Benin, Trinidad and Tobago, Norway, United Arab Emirates, Bolivia, Thailand, Ghana, Nicaragua.

South Korea, Réunion, Croatia, Indonesia, Cameroon, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Paraguay, Costa Rica, Ukraine, Guatemala, Philippines, Fiji, Poland, French Polynesia, Jersey, Saudi Arabia, Lebanon.

Panama, Vietnam, Cyprus, Laos, Madagascar, Guadalupe, Russia, Lithuania, Qatar, Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, Turkey, Kuwait, Oman, Uganda, Bulgaria, Pakistan, Senegal, El Salvador, Nigeria, Tunisia, China, Hungary, Kenya.

Cambodia, Romania, Bangladesh, Jamaica, Bahamas, Egypt, Montenegro, Malta, Niger, Togo, Andorra, Congo, Kinshasa, Jordan, Angola, Luxembourg, Bahrain, Iraq, Cook Islands, Gabon, Zambia, Barbados, Mali, Burkina Faso.

Cuba, Estonia, Iceland, Latvia, Malawi, Tanzania, New Caledonia, Cape Verde, Faroe Islands, San Marino, Kosovo, Zimbabwe, Armenia, Bhutan, Algeria, Honduras, Iran, Cayman Islands, Moldova, Martinique, Albania, Grenada, Gambia-a lot of countries.

North Macedonia, Slovakia, Timor-Leste, Aruba, Belarus, Curaçao, Georgia, French Guiana, Guernsey, Guinea, Sint Maarten, Maldives, Mozambique, Papua New Guinea, Palestine, Seychelles, Somalia, Syria, Samoa.

Saint Barthélemy, Belize, Congo, Brazil, Ethiopia, Guam. And Guyana, Kazakhstan, St. Kitts and Nevis, Liberia, Myanmar, Namibia, Rwanda and Sudan.

So, like to welcome-and South Sudan-and like to welcome all of you to these broadcasts. I hope you have been enjoying them as we continue forward in this situation of coronavirus, where I think a lot of the people are just, you know-it's too much for them.

And it's one thing, you know, somebody says "You're in lockdown"-and you actually feel locked down. So, that's, I think, the big disparity here-and just because somebody says it's a lockdown, do you feel locked down? Somebody says, you know, "We are unfortunate," and so do you feel unfortunate? And that's the main thing.

Because, you know, I know a lot of doctors and I talk to them. And I say, "You know, there's an obviousness. Somebody comes to you-and they're not sick; they don't feel sick; they are not sick…."

And I said, "You know, I know your job is to find out if there is anything wrong with them." But you have to look at the obviousness of the person, too. If they are sick, tell them they are sick. But if they're not sick, at least, begin from there. And vice-versa; if somebody comes to you and you think they're not sick but they are sick, then you have to begin from that point.

And sometimes we just forget the obviousness of something. The obvious thing is that we are alive; that whatever is very fortunate about being here on this face of this earth, every single day that this breath comes, it's beautiful. And it's important to accept that, to understand that. That every day, to make a little effort to be conscious.

Because, you know, when you look at this world…. And I've been working on the training, (which I hope I'll be able to, soon, delve into). Yeah, and it is-it is a bit of a watered-down, you know, Peace Education Program, is what I'll be bringing forth.

And because we have our limitations and, you know, one of the things that it requires in the Peace Education Program is that those people who are going to participate, send in their learnings, (what they have learnt or what they have understood), so we can share that….

I mean, I don't have to-you know, if you don't want, I won't say the name; you don't have to write the name-but at least, what it is that you have learnt. Because that is what then provides other people, so like, "Oh! That person got this out of this," or "this person got this out of this," and it's like, "Oh, maybe I should, I should try that; I should adapt that," so it really provides a wonderful pool.

But one of the main things is that we-we are trying to get away from the consequences. You know, whether the consequences are made by, from the actions that we do or from somebody else's actions, but we want-but we don't like consequences that are bad. We like consequences that are good.

So, everything-and so when bad comes, when terrible times come, when sad times come, we look at everything and we go, "Well, who's doing this, you know; why is this happening to me?" And I know a lot of people really feel that way; it's like they've been singled out.

And, you know, you haven't been singled out; nobody's trying to punish you. But what you have to realize is that other people's actions and the consequences of that are not in your control-but certainly, those actions that you take, you have to be in control. And those consequences, you can do something to mitigate.

And this is what it's all about. Living life to the fullest truly is living life consciously, being aware of what it is that you do. Because it is very action-oriented, whatever it is you do-not what you think.

See, thinking is different. And of course, we're going to, I'm going to talk about this in one of the trainings, (I don't know which one it's going to be). But it is, you know, it's an epiphany that I had which is like, "What is the importance of now?"

Because so many people talk about "now," you know: "This is important; that's important; now is important." But "today," the importance of today is, today is a carrier for a bunch of "nows," a whole bunch of nows. And what is the importance of now?

Now is the time when you act, when you do something. As soon as you do something, as soon as there is an action taken, it is out of the realm of thoughts. Thoughts, you can have as many as you want. With thoughts, you can visit tomorrow. With thoughts, you can visit yesterday. But with actions you cannot visit tomorrow-and with actions you cannot visit yesterday.

So, the importance of now really is that this is where your actions will take place-and that what you do will be directly responsible, which will create the consequences. And they can be negative consequences, (which you are not going to like; you're going to suffer). I'm not talking about karma; I'm not going there, you know-I'm talking about actions that we do now.

What kind of actions and how complex is that-it's huge! It's how you even look at somebody. You could look at your wife the wrong way-or your wife could look at you the wrong way, at the wrong time. And, you know, it's over. It's just like, it's no good.

So, you are responsible for your actions. Now you're responsible for your actions bringing good for you, good consequences-as well as bad consequences. You want, as much as possible, to do those things that would ultimately, (not at the expense of other people), bring you good consequences, bring you fulfillment, bring you joy, bring you understanding.

I mean, I see a lot of people-and some people I don't know; I see them on television, maybe it's an interview; maybe they're talking or whatever. And then you read about them, you know, "They're so-and-so and they are, you know, somebody very important and way up there."

But one thing that is uncanny is, some of these people, they're not very happy. I mean, certainly, there's one person who, people see a lot of this person on television-and he's a very powerful person, yeah, because he's, you know, associated with a very powerful country.

But he-he is not a happy camper. I mean, whenever you see him, he's just not a happy camper-even though, status-wise, he is on the top of the top of the top of the top of the top.

So, it has nothing to do with the formula that some people draw up, "That, you know, if you have this; if you have this; if you have this, then you're automatically happy-you're content; you're successful."

No, success is something that is felt. Somebody can't come and tell you you are successful if you are not feeling successful. Somebody cannot come along and tell you you are happy if you are not feeling happy. ("Oh, no, no, you are happy; you're happy.") So, these things are subjective; they're up to you! Not objective.

When society takes something that is very subjective and tries to turn it into something very objective, a whole bunch of stuff happens that is no good whatsoever.

So, this whole learning of the formula begins: "Oh, yeah, you have to learn this formula; you have to learn this formula; you know, this is what this is about. And this is what this is about. And if you want to be successful you have to do this, this, this, and this, and then you will be successful."

Well, in the United States, people have to take out a loan to finish college, to finish a certain school that they can then try to make money from. And right there, they haven't even yet started and they're already in debt. And for the rest of their life, they're going to stay in debt, and stay in debt, and stay in debt.

And the whole economy is based so that you can be in debt-so far you just keep working like a slave, just working like a slave and try to pay off that. And the thing is, you're never going to be able to pay it off because it just keeps getting more compounded and more compounded and more compounded. And this is what happens.

So, you're trying to take something that's very subjective, make it very objective-"And do this, this, this, this and this."

People come to me-and they want peace in their life; they want harmony; they want fulfillment; they want clarity; they want hope; they want all of this stuff. But they think that's objective: "That we will turn on a button; we will push a button and it'll happen." No, it's subjective. It's totally what you feel.

If you don't feel that joy in your life, you don't have that joy. That's it. You have to feel it; you have to understand it. That's what peace is. Peace is something you have to feel-not something you have to think about, "Do I have peace now? I have this; I have this; I have this; do I have peace now?"

And, you know, Kabir's sayings are full of this, that, you know, somebody tells you "This is it," and you just go, "Yeah, this is it; this is it; this is it; this is it"-that's not it. Unless you have that true realization, unless you have that true understanding in your life, nothing is going to make any difference. You're going to try-but it's not going to make any difference.

So, this is-the three things that I always talk about, you know, "Know yourself; live your life consciously." Because that is the only barrier you have-consciousness-between your actions and those consequences that you don't want.

To mitigate those actions, those consequences, the only way you can do it is if you start practicing consciousness, to be aware of what is happening: "What are you about to do; what are you about to say; what is going to be"-to give it a little thought, "What is going to be?"

"What is going to be the consequence of you telling your child 'You are late'?" Fine, this is what happened to you; that's how you got it. You see, you actually got it because that's exactly what happened to you; "You're late; you're late; you're late; you're late; you're late; you're late."

At some point in time, you have to ask yourself the question, "Who's in charge here?" Your parents might have gone; they may not be on this planet Earth-but they have certainly left a legacy in you. And you are just sitting there and perpetuating this. And people think that that's perfectly okay-because there's nothing wrong in that.

Well, think about it: "Is that what you want to do? Is that what you want to do?" What do you want to do? You know, and there are-it's true-there are the actions you have taken, and you may be, you know, going through the bad consequences of those actions.

But what do you want to do now? Do you want to change or do you want to keep repeating that? And repeating the sadness of those negative consequences? So, it's up to you. It's up to you-and it always will be up to you. And it is very subjective of what you feel, of what you understand in your life.

So, continue to be safe. Feel well; be well. And most importantly, be.

Lockdown Broadcast Day 33

Hello, everyone. I hope you're all well-and, you know, I know that the time is going on and it's, you know, it can become a little bit like, you know, you're dragging your feet and it's just trying to just slowly, slowly, slowly go somewhere….

Of course, you hear so much indecision from the leaders, (so-called "leaders"), and here, there, everywhere. But then it always has to come back to what's important, important to you, as it relates to your life, to your existence.

Because, you know, there have been things, you know, it's like, "This is bad. We have to go back to work; we have to do this; we have to do that." And there are, you know, there are many different thoughts about that; you know, "If there is no economy; what is that going to be like?" They're already talking about "If, you know, all the people who would not have food, the people who would go hungry, what would that be like?"

And you know, we can talk about all these things all day long. There's a lot of speculation-and of course, we don't need to go hungry in this world; there's plenty of food. And, you know, it has to be managed. You cannot have hoarders. You cannot have people who are just saying, "I want it; I want it; I want it."

And we saw that-we saw that with toilet paper. And people were hoarding toilet paper, toilet paper rolls. (Why would you want to hoard toilet paper roll, I don't know.) And I just recently did a podcast interview. And, you know, the Indians have definitely got the whole world beat on that issue. Because a lot of them don't use toilet paper; they don't need to use toilet paper.

So, what is the reality, at this point where you've got so much noise that's going on, and everywhere? Well, the reality is still inside of you. And it's just as beautiful. Regardless of the picture being painted, regardless of the picture being what it is, there is a reality that is very simple and that is very beautiful. And that reality is that you are.

You weren't-there was a time you weren't in this world. Now you are. And there will be a time that you won't be. And the reality says, "But right now you are. Do you know who you are; do you know why you are here; do you know what is going on with you?" Because, whatever happens outside in this world, if you can hang on; if you can be….

And I remember, it was quite a few years ago, (unfortunately), but there was a wonderful gentleman and he used to do survival training-in fact, he had done the survival training for the first crew that went to the moon.

And his whole thing was that "Somehow, you, you as a human being, ultimately have to keep it together. And then if you can, if you can be in that good shape, you can look around you and you can try to make sense of whatever there is around you."

And one of the examples that he used to give, quite a bit, was that there was a girl-and she was on an airplane along with a whole bunch of people. And the plane crashed-and she's the only one who made it out, out of the forest. Everybody else tried or whatever, but-you know, and a lot of people perished during the crash. But she survived-somehow she survived.

And this becomes the focus of our life; this has to be the focus of our life, understanding and working with those elements that we are all about, that truly define us.

Yes, they may be hard times-because of this coronavirus. You know, and that would be because of the way we have set it up. It wouldn't be the way nature has set it up; it is the way we have set it up. We want certain things to be a certain way; we are not willing to change.

And this is one of those things; you know, are we going to go back to being our old selves, you know, polluting everything and doing it the wrong way? And the answer to that is, unfortunately, yes, because we don't like to be different. We like to do the "same old, same old, same old, same old, same old, same old."

You know, when cars came, there were a lot of people who couldn't relate to the cars, who couldn't relate to what that was all about-and they were predicting that "This wouldn't last very long; that this is really bad. But, and you know, it makes horrible noises; it's, and, you know, but it's awkward. Horses are so much better," and so on.

So, you always have had this tussle between people who are the, you know, "Everything is going to be bad and, you know, we're all going to die and everything is going to be terrible"-and then, those people who can realistically take a look at it.

Because one of the things you have-what you have going for you is the human ingenuity to persevere, to persevere through the bad times.

We have been through World War I; many, many people, many millions of people got killed in it. Word War II, even more got killed in it. We have the Spanish flu, 1918, a lot of people got killed in it. And there are so many similarities between that story and what's unfolding with coronavirus now.

But what about you as a human being? What about your understanding? What are you bringing to the table; what are you bringing, first of all, to yourself? What are you offering to your being?

In the midst of all this, you know, when I finally got from Recife to Florida, and then-Florida was nice and warm-but when I got to Los Angeles, it was cold. And it has been cold; every day it has been cold. Some days it's been rainy, but even those days when the sun is shining, it's, the wind is very, very cold.

And just now, that "warm" is starting-and the temperatures are starting to inch up towards seventy-four, seventy-five, eighty, so on-and the spring is here. And there are all these little birds that are making their nests; they're singing.

There are all these flowers; there are all these plants; there's the greenery-and here, especially in this part of the country, where not too long ago, there was a horrible, horrible fire. And somehow nature is coming back and trying to erase every evidence of that fire, that that fire ever was.

And it's doing a really good job. Because when, after the fire, when I saw it, it was pretty desolate. It was, there was nothing there. And now it's just so much green, so much green that's just flourishing.

So, when I look around me and I see these birds-you know, and these birds that-but they don't, you know, they don't have a lot of education; their education is what their mom and dad have taught them and whatever little experience they have in their life-but they're going on. They're not caught up in these stupid debates; they're not caught up in these really, really weird ways of looking at things.

I mean, "Should there be debates," yes, there should be debates-but they should be of valid debates, they should be of valid reasons and valid things. Not somebody's fear. They shouldn't be based upon somebody's very dark way of looking at something-but realistic. Realistic is good.

And when you don't know, you don't know. And so maybe you put your best foot forward and it is not something that is a popular decision. I mean, coronavirus is not a popular virus; let's face it-and what it is doing is not very popular either. And so, the decisions that have to be taken to curtail it, (I am not surprised), are not very popular either.

But we have to do, collectively, all the people around the world, because this-it is, for the first time, that we are all tied together. Whether we are rich, whether we are poor, this coronavirus doesn't look at it. You know, whether we are educated, whether we are uneducated, it doesn't look at it. Whether we are powerful, whether we are weak, it doesn't look at it. You know, it, anybody….

And we're all one; all of a sudden, we're all one. And but all we want to do is divide and divide and divide and divide. And we have been dividing. We have taken land that had no boundaries-and we have drawn arbitrary boundaries and say, "That's mine. And that's yours. And that you are there, and you're this and you're that."

And when you fly, you know, there are no boundaries; it is the way it is. You fly from one area to another area-birds do it all the time. They don't go through, you know, "But here is my passport; can I come in; I'm going to be coming in for two months, three months, four months," no.

So, at some point in time, we have to take a look at "What are we up to?" Polluting the planet, abusing the planet, abusing the resources-and not leaving anything for the next generation. Because everything is "hoard, hoard, hoard, hoard"-everything is "mine, mine, mine, mine"-and nobody's looking at what the consequences of that, that's going to be.

And you as a human being have something really wonderful to offer, not only to yourself but to the whole mankind. And those things are kindness, your generosity-these things, your clarity, your hope, not only for yourself but for the whole mankind. You can give that; you can be that.

This is a gift; only when you have enough of it can you share. When that kindness is in your heart, then you can share that kindness with other people. And when you do, it doesn't deplete any kindness from you. It multiplies it; it gets more and more.

Hope, not only for yourself, but for all those who are around you. Understanding, understanding and empathizing with the world that is around you, so you can be a part of this world, so you can be a part of this, to contribute something to this world, not just take, take, take, take, take. Because that's what people do, is they just take; they take; they take; they take.

But to give. To give because you have enough of it, because it is overflowing from you. And then this can be a wonderful-this can be a wonderful place. We would have created a heaven, each one of us, not only for ourselves but for all mankind, regardless of their beliefs, regardless of what they think, regardless of how they think.

Create a little heaven for all of us, for as long as we are on this beautiful earth, that we have created a heaven, not only for us but for all the creatures, for all, all that are here.

And I don't know; maybe it's time to think like that. And the reason why-because this is a big reset. And how is it that we're going to be when we go back to being normal, to be in that normal situation? Because this is the time to ponder those things, time to think again. Not just because we were there does that make them right.

No, it is a great time to put the house back in order. It is a great time to come home and say, "Okay, let's do this right. Now we know how to do it wrong-now let's see if we can do this right."

I know that's asking a lot. I know that's asking a lot of this world. I know there are some people who will agree with me, some people who will disagree: "No, no, it's going to be this; it's going to be that."

But you know, after all, (and I have given this example many times), that when that challenge came-(and this was the country, America), that they had to go to the moon; they wanted to go to the moon-there were a lot of people who said, "It cannot be done. It cannot be done."

Did those missions-were they successful going to the moon because of those people who said "It cannot be done"-or were they successful because of those few people who said, "Yes, it can be done"?

If history has something to teach us, this world belongs to those who have the courage, who have the understanding, to make it go forward in a beautiful way, in a way that fulfills your heart-that truly, nobody is being, you know, taken advantage of.

But truly, to let everybody feel themselves, to feel what this life is all about, to feel the gratitude, to know yourself, to live this life consciously-and to have a heart full of gratitude. To go forward with those most powerful tools of understanding-and see what happens.

I mean, just to see what happens, even if it's-you know, maybe everybody just wants to see this world just totally unhealthy and destroyed and whatever. But to see how it can be, how beautiful it can be-that we respect each other because we know how to respect ourselves.

And it is not about "I," because you do share this planet with all those creatures and all those people. It really is about "we"-but as, only a strong "I" that can respect "we." A weak "I" cannot understand the concept of "we." And when we don't, it shows our weakness to ourselves.

So, I hope that, you know, you stay well and you stay healthy. And be. Be enjoying this life that you have. A lot of different things are being worked on-and at some point, I think we're going to need to regroup.

Because when I came to, through Florida, I just started making the first, (you know, using my iPhone), started making the first broadcasts. And I'd upload them to a person who is in Florida who does all the editing. And so nothing is set up.

And now we need to set up for the training, especially with the PEP, which I think is going to be very exciting, to-if we go that way, a lot of feedback has to come. And it's kind of like, I don't know what final shape it'll take.

But if you get the training one day, then you have the second day for reflection and writing to me, what you're thinking, what your reflections are. And then I take some of those reflections, (not all of them), some of those reflections that I think are important and share them with you.

So it's like, one day training-and then one day for the reflections to come in, and then one day to share those reflections. And then, again, the training-and then one day off to get all those materials. And so we'll have to set up virtually, all these places where, when the responses come, when the feedback comes, when the reflections come, they can be processed and sent virtually to me.

So, it's something that, you know, we haven't done in the past, but I think it could be a fun challenge to have. And training is-I think PEP training is just really wonderful. So, I'm looking forward to that, when that comes through. And it's going to take a few days to set it up, but we'll see when that time comes.

So, thank you very much and I'll see you soon.

Lockdown Broadcast Day 34

Hello, everyone. I hope you're all well. What I'd like to talk about today is a little bit different-because it has a lot to do with you, as in regards to everything else that happens in this world.

So, you know, from a very early age, we are told what to do and what not to do. Now, please, don't take this the wrong way; I'm not trying to say that that's right or wrong. I'm just saying there comes a point in one's life where you have to look at that, just look at it for whatever it's worth.

So, we go along and, you know, when we are very, very young we are told, "No, you can't do this; don't do that; that's not good"-and maybe we're taking our toy and ramming it against the wall and the parents say, "Don't do that"-and so we stop.

And in this whole process, it is important to listen to what people are telling us. And so, pretty soon, there is, of course, a want, a desire to do something-but then there is the outside influence which is saying whether you can or cannot do it. Now, this goes on. And every step of the phase of your life, things like that happen.

So you get a little bit older and you start going to school-and then a whole myriad of responsibilities are introduced to you. And you're told what you can do and you cannot do-again, this is what you're told. Then you get a little bit older; you also start getting a lot of friends-and it's the same thing; you're now again being told by a different group of people what it is that you can and cannot do.

Then you get older-and you get different kinds of friends. But again, there are rules; there are limitations; there's discipline. And whether that's good or bad, I'm not making that judgment at all. You know, some of it we do need because just how it is.

Then we keep on going-and maybe we get a job. Now we have a different group of people-and we have bosses; we have colleagues. And they tell us "what it is that I can do, or we can do or not do." And it keeps on going like that.

And the point of all this is that "Okay, why look at it"-because maybe at some point in time in that whole stretch that we have that we call "existence," we have to make some important decisions. I have been trying to please the world; we try to do that-and whatever the world says, "Yes, we'll do this; we will do this; we will do this; we will do this."

But there comes a time when I need to look at me as me and this existence as mine. Not somebody else's, not somebody else's idea of who I should be, but my idea of who I should be. I have to dig in and I have to understand what my reality is; who, who am I? What am I? What are my needs? These are the things that I want to flourish.

So, it's as though I have been this perfect little soldier-and the world has commanded me to "march, march, march, march," and I have marched. They've told me, "Go, do this; go, do that; think this way; think that way…."

But you know, before this life passes you by-and it's gone-and for you, never to have it again, it would be nice if you, the one who has this life, was to take a little time and look at you, not as the world, but look at you and look at your world. Look at what your needs are, look at what your heart is telling you. What that fundamental "you" really is.

Now, I know that there are people who are afraid; they're afraid to acknowledge themselves that way. Because what if they look at themselves and they find something ugly?

But you know how many chances you take; you take an awful lot of chances in this world. You get in your car and you head out; you go to a freeway. You're driving on a freeway-and you're taking a chance-that somebody isn't going to come and slam into you. Sometimes that happens.

You're taking a chance that those tires that you are riding on, those four tires will stay intact. You're taking a chance that your brakes won't fail.

If you go flying, you're taking a chance that somebody who was putting together the wing, you know, didn't try to beat the rivet into shape, because the rivet was being a little bit unruly-and beat it so hard that, you know, now the plane is unsafe and one thing happens and the plane just comes apart.

It's not like that would be the first time that that would have happened-no, it has happened before. Somebody maybe got a little bit too excited about, you know, that hammer in that engine and, you know, that engine starts to fall apart. That-that has happened.

So, we take chances. And we take a chance on everybody. We take a chance on our friends, that they're good. We take a chance on our job that that is good; we take a chance on our boss that he's good.

But we never take a chance on ourselves. And I think, sooner or later, that time is going to come when you have to take a chance on yourself. You're going to have to say, "Okay, I want to know; I want to experience my life as it is meant to be experienced." Not by people's definition of how it should be experienced, but how it really, really, really, really must be experienced.

That simplicity-the simplicity of life, the simplicity of existence, what is that simplicity really like? What is it like to awaken and have a longing and a thirst in your heart to be fulfilled?

And not to put that away, not to say, "Okay, I'll go do something and I'll cure this"-but to sit with it and feel, feel that thirst-of how beautiful and how important it is that that thirst exists as the great motivator, to motivate us to find that peace, to find that fulfillment in our lives.

To totally transform-from being just this little soldier, this wooden soldier that just marches and marches and marches-to sitting down and accepting that sea of serenity that exists inside of every single human being.

And what is it like to see you through your eyes? Not somebody else's eyes, not through somebody else's interpretation, but through your eyes? What is it like to welcome you from your heart, your existence, not judging it, not judging how it is, not judging "this is right and that's wrong."

And not splitting your world into just "right and wrong and right and wrong and right and wrong," even though that's the mantra that you've been taught. And that's the mantra you have been reciting since you were very, very young: "Right, wrong, right, wrong, right, wrong…."

But there is something beyond this right and wrong-and it is good, and it's beautiful, and it's simple-and it is your existence. It's about you. It's not about your fantasies, but it's about you, your fulfillment, not the fulfillment of other people's expectations.

Because, you know, you see a sign for a soft drink and it's like, "Yeah, oh, we should have this." Because-and they're telling you that "If you have this, you will be satisfied." The reality is, not you; it is the company that will be satisfied if you were to buy their soft drink.

And this is how it has been. You do certain things…. But before this life passes you by-because it is; it's passing by very, very quickly-and pretty soon, before you realize it, it'll be gone.

And I'm not talking about coronavirus or this situation today. But I'm talking about just how it is! It's all too short a period of time. And for you to realize that you came-and you maybe were not understood by this whole world-but you were understood by you. That you sought to be fulfilled amongst the vast emptiness of this, crazy thoughts that we have had.

It wasn't that long ago that human beings embarked on a very distinct path of existence-and it was with farming. Because with farming came this whole idea of protection-you had to be protected because you would work so hard; it takes time; it is up to nature that your crop comes up-and then somebody comes and steals it.

And all that food that had to be transported back and forth-the idea of roads, the idea of soldiers; the ideas of a king; the ideas of what the current society is, are very relatively starting from that time of when farming began. (Now, I could be wrong-but this is what I have read.)

Before that, we were different; we lived differently. We didn't exist for a particular thing; we weren't tied down to anywhere-because we could just go wherever we could go, find food-we lived for food. And whatever food we could find, we would bring it back….

But the farming gave us this opportunity to, you know-one person creates all the food-and then a whole bunch of us don't have to be occupied with that occupation; we can sit at home, do whatever we want to do and we'll get our food.

We have been trying to make the "land of milk and honey" everywhere, every household. But that's not the case. The case is, "Okay, you've been trying to do all this." And maybe someday we will succeed. So far, the track record is that we have not succeeded and there is no indication whatsoever that we will in the near future.

Because the drama that it would require for us to un-click out of that is incredible. It takes something like this coronavirus to bring home a point about us being human. This is what that coronavirus is telling us.

I mean, I know it's not-it can't speak; it's-but this is what has happened. There has been a stark reality; there has been the brakes that have been applied to this bus that was just going off a cliff somewhere.

And the brakes have been applied and people are like-the only thing, there are a certain group of people, the only thing they're interested in, "Get that bus going; get that bus going; get that bus going," even if it means the bus is going off the deep end-but they just want to get the bus going.

Whilst there needs to be an understanding of "What is this all about? How do we want to be? How do we want to live?" And I'm not-you know, I'm no doctor for society-but I am an advocate for understanding every individual that is on the face of this earth.

That I see that potential-that when every human being, (as many as possible), can be strong, then that strength will make us all strong-to go forward, to take those tough decisions that we have to take, make a better life for all of us. For all of us.

But it begins with truly looking at yourself as a human being. All the chances that we take with the world, to take a chance with us. To take a chance with this heart, to take a chance with the need that exists inside of you to be fulfilled.

You know, too many people, when you mention the word "peace," it all falls apart and people start to-you know, there are the yeasayers and there are the naysayers. And unequivocally, everywhere you go, anywhere around in the world you go, there are the naysayers and there are the yeasayers. "Yes, that's a great idea"-"No, that's never going to happen."

But to go beyond that-and say, "Why do I have a need in me for peace? Why, why is it that I want freedom?" I mean, after all, whenever the word "freedom" is said, it sounds so good. But what's binding you? I mean, unless you're incarcerated-but you're not, maybe not-what's binding you? Why do you like the idea of freedom?

Because maybe you don't physically see that you're incarcerated, but you are incarcerated from that true freedom, from that true feeling that you want to have in your heart, in yourself.

Now, you know, people say, "Well, where is the heart? I mean, is it here; is it here; is it here?" Well, what difference does it make? You know, is it that a person should be at a particular address-or wherever that person happens to be, that is what is of importance, not the address itself.

If that person is not at his house-you want to meet a person who is not at his house but he is at the corner post office, so be it! And you will meet him at the corner post office.

Because it is the connection with the person? Or is it the connection with the address? A lot of people want the connection with the address; they don't care about the person. They will never meet that person; they will never understand who you are.

Because you have to say, "It's not a question of where-but I do have a heart." There is one part of me that aspires to find peace, that aspires me to find joy, that aspires me to be happy, that aspires me to know, that aspires me towards clarity, that aspires me towards fulfillment-I call that the heart. By the way, that's what I call the heart.

That which inspires me to do strange things, weird things sometimes, that's another part of me. But there is a part of me that I welcome, that I want to know, that I want to understand more and more and more and as much as I can. Of course, before this life passes me by, to welcome it, to understand it, to find my strength in that part, because it's real.

I need to be real; you need to be real; the world needs to be real. And we need to be real to ourselves. We need to take a chance in us being alive, being fulfilled.

So, be well; be healthy; be safe; be-and I'll talk to you later. Thank you.

Lockdown Broadcast Day 35

Hello, everyone. I hope you're all doing well under the circumstances-and today, again, we're going to be going through some questions that you have written in. Now, these aren't all of the questions.

But one of the questions from Emmanuel is, "What solutions would you like to see for all humanity and this world within your lifetime?"-so, I see in my lifetime….

Well, I don't really have a long list. My list is rather simple; I would like to see a little bit less greed. I would like to see a little bit more kindness; I would like to see a little bit more generosity. I would like to see people first-then everything else.

I would like to see the hunger eliminated. There's no reason for it unless the person wants to be hungry. Now, of course, you know, eliminating hunger doesn't mean that you force-feed everybody. If somebody really wants to be hungry, fine; that's fine.

But, you know, those things that are just unnecessary-and are because of our bad behavior on the face of this earth. And if we can eliminate that, have a little more kindness all around, have a little bit better understanding of ourselves-which will help us understand other people, because they are just like us.

And less of these differences that people have, you know, "You're Chinese; you're this, you're that," but no, just look at the human beings as human beings. And the variety that we have, welcome it; welcome the differences.

You know, and people just pointing down at other groups that are different-to stop that. You know, that just to treat human beings as human beings, whatever their preferences might be, however they want to live, however they want to exist, however they want to be-to have a society that is tolerant of that-not intolerant, but tolerant of that.

And so, you know, that's, I guess, a pretty long list, but that's what I'd like to see, just a little bit less of that greed, you know, a little bit less of that anger, a little bit less of that macho, bully-on-the-block that every country wants to be. Just a little bit less-I think that would make a huge difference.

And sensitivity to the nature, the environment, to make things right with the environment, to make right things with all the creatures on the face of this earth, rather than seeing ourselves as the custodian of them and then doing nothing.

If we are going to see ourselves as the custodian, if we are going to see ourselves as the crown of creation, then we'd better act like one, like the crown of creation-and help all those creatures, rather than, you know, all that means is you have ownership of it. But that doesn't mean anything if you don't take care of it. So, that's what I'd like to see.

And then there is another question from Rita, "Thank you for, again for sharing beautiful and interesting insights into this lockdown period. I'm so happy you will be doing trainings with us"-and these are the PEP trainings. And that, yes, they will be for everybody, because they'll come out just like this. So, whoever wants to go through it….

Oh yeah, and talking about PEP-it was brought to my attention that a lot of people watching don't actually have any idea what PEP is. So, what is PEP? Well, PEP stands for Peace Education Program.

I have some statistics here. The Prem Rawat Foundation, (which is TPRF), started the program worldwide in 2012-and in 2013, began collecting meaningful statistics. The Peace Education Program is eight years old; it's working in six continents: Asia, Africa, North America, South America, Europe and Australia, (Oceania area).

There have been more than eighty-five countries since 2012-currently active in thirty-nine countries, translated into thirty-five languages, presented in 600 correctional facilities globally-and total attendees since inception is nearing 94,000. (So, that was as of March first, so some of that has changed, I'm sure.)

And in different areas, in South America, Australia/Oceania area, North America, Europe, Asia, Africa-so, adult learning center, (the type of facility), there have been forty of these PEP trainings, twenty-nine in the Australia/Oceania area, twenty-two in North America-and Europe, fifty; Asia, seven; Africa, nine.

Business organizations: sixty-four in South America and nothing in Oceania, nothing in North America. Europe, four; Asia, two; Africa, four. Civic and government: fifty-four of these trainings have happened in South America; eight in Oceania; twenty-three in North America; thirty-six in Europe; forty in Asia and ten in Africa.

So, it goes on like this-and you know, corporations and foundations: forty in South America; two in Australia; sixteen in North America-Europe is twenty-two; Asia is thirty; in Africa is fourteen. Educational: 355 in South America; Australia, twenty-three; North America, seventy-seven; Europe, 132.

Anyway, the grand total-so it covers veterans, special groups, senior centers, police and law enforcement, non-profit and NGOs, health and wellness, educational, correction and prison, corporations and foundations, community centers, libraries, civic and government, business organizations and adult learning centers….

All put together, 843 of these trainings have happened in South America; 244 in Pacific/Oceania area; 985 in North America; 910 in Europe; 360 in Asia; 722 in Africa. That's just a little introduction to PEP. It's a really, really, really simple program. Because of its simplicity; it's successful.

And so, it is a series of lectures that are given by me in different environments-some are direct to camera; some are at different events that I did-and then the participants are just simply asked to reflect on what they have heard and pay attention.

And I guess it's just that "paying attention" business that makes all the difference. That if you could just closely look at what is being said and then give it some thought, that that's what makes a big difference. Anyways, so that's what PEP is and yes, it'll be open to everyone.

The question, the next one, (no name), but, "Whenever I do any work with full concentration, I do it once, twice, but after that, I lose my concentration and continuity. I easily forget to do right works, but not the wrong ones."

You know, I don't know what exactly your situation is. But wandering off, losing focus, losing concentration, that happens to a lot of people, so first of all, you're not alone. But secondly, most importantly, a little discipline goes a long ways into keeping you focused.

Because, you know, we become so easily adapted to, "Am I enjoying this or not?" Sometimes the enjoyment comes a little bit later-and you have to have patience for that. You know, not everything is instantly rewarding all the time. And in life, that's a lesson you have to learn.

So, a little bit of discipline, a little bit of patience, a little bit of those powers that you have-will go a long ways in helping you out in your situation.

"I have been to a lot of teachers"-somebody who's been searching. And the question is, "How will I know I've found the real one? How would I know?"

Well, it's not a question of real one or a fake one-but something that your heart will tell you. Somebody who touches your heart-that's what teaching about life, a teacher about life needs to be, that, somebody who touches your heart.

Not just your mind; not just engage your mind-but somebody that touches your heart, that has that encompassing feeling and sees you as a human being, not somebody who is searching for truth but just as a human being. And keeps looking at you as a human being for the rest of your life. That what that teacher offers is something from their heart to your heart. So, I hope that helps.

"Dear Prem, in your Lockdown talks about 'consequences from actions'"-I knew I was going to get something on that-"you say that it's in that moment called now…." And that, yeah, the moment called "now" is where all actions take place. That's it; that's the bottom end of that.

"Please help me understand, how can I make my life more successful and simpler by just choosing the right action and avoiding the wrong ones?" Look, your life is simple. This is how it is. Now, you have brought in all the little bits and pieces that make it complicated. The process of making this happen is taking away, is a process of subtraction, not addition.

What am I talking about? All right, so you've got a white shirt. You've got a white shirt-you realize it's dirty. How do you clean the white shirt? Do you go out and buy "cleanliness" in a bottle and pour it over the white shirt? No. You go and you buy detergent which removes the dirt.

The cleanliness is already there-but it is being masked by the dirt. When you take away the dirt, the cleanliness comes right back.

That's how it is in life, too. We make things very complicated; we like it. You know, "This is how it is; this is how it is; this is how it is." And the next thing you know, there is so much noise between the ears that you can't even hear yourself.

So the process of making life more enjoyable, making life more simple is a process of subtraction, not addition. It's not-but we're so used to adding things, you know; we're so used to adding things that we are like, "Okay, I have to add enjoyment to my life now." No, life is actually very enjoyable just as it is.

And if you don't find it enjoyable, it is because you have brought in all this dirt called "complication," all these ideas, all these pictures that you have in your little camera that are just pumping away, picture after picture after picture after picture. Take all that away-and there you have it.

How do you clean a window? You-it gets to a point where you can't see out the window-how do you clean a window? Whatever is making that window dirty, you take that away; you wash it away-and all of a sudden you can see.

And that's how it is. So, the "right thing, wrong thing"-give yourself a break; you know, give yourself a break. Do that, please. Take it easy. One step at a time: life, one day at a time.

Tackle life exactly as it comes to you-meaning "one day at a time." Keep things simple. Keep things fluid. Be that tree that knows how to sway in the wind and not break in the wind-and you will have a great time, believe me.

"My question is, 'How do you feel about lifting the lockdown regulations now or later?'" Well, I hope it happens. And it would be nice for it to happen, but it should happen when it is safe for it to happen.

Because there's a-look, you know, what I want? Yeah, I want it to be lifted right now. But that is not a wise thing. If, because of my stupidity-if I perpetuate this and end up giving it to people who had nothing to do with it, who may be a little bit older than me, who would certainly have a terrible time of it if they got it, why should I do that?

I mean, yeah, you know, taken for granted, there are problems with the lockdown-whatever. But my actions are not limited to just myself; my actions can affect other people too.

You know, this-I realized this when I was going to go to Argentina-and then after Argentina, I was supposed to go to Uruguay. So, I've already flown for almost seven hours, forty minutes from Spain to Brazil and I am supposed to go to Argentina. And this, you know, the lockdown happens.

So, naturally, the idea comes, "Well, let's just go to Uruguay. At least we will get something done there"-that Uruguay wasn't going into lockdown. But then I thought about it. And it's like, "Wow, you know, I could call all these people in a hall and get them all sick? I'm not going to do that."

So, if my actions have-you know, me, I can be responsible for me. But how can I be responsible for other people? And how can I give them something because of my stupidity?

And so that, to me, is the main issue here. And that it's not-it's not that lockdown is nice; it's not nice. It's not that it's wonderful; it's not wonderful. And, you know, as more and more days click on, it does get under your nail-understood. But at the same time, you have to look at the entire picture.

I don't know; you know, I fly a lot-and you're forced to take a look at the entire picture. You know, here we are-you're flying across the Atlantic, but you're looking at St. John's weather; you know, you're looking at Ireland's weather; you're looking at-and it depends where you're going, of course.

But you're looking at all these places-and it's like, "Okay," but you know, a lot of times I'll fly into Spain-and I'm looking at the weather, you know, across those, Santa Maria and Portugal. And it's like, you know, why we are doing that-it's just the whole picture. So, "In case there was a problem, where do we go?"

So this, it's an intelligent decision. And that's what it needs to be, it really, really needs to be. (Yeah, I mean, we'd like to all get out of here, but….)

And this is a very long one-"I just finished listening to Lockdown 33 and felt disturbed"-this is about Krishna and Mahabharat. And he is saying, you know, (and rightfully), he's saying that "Terrible things were done to a lot of the leaders like Martin Luther King, Medgar Evers, Malcolm X-towards the end of his life he started talking about peace….

"And I remember a march in Alabama where hundreds of African-Americans were beaten and some trampled by horses. And," (yeah), "they walked and talked of peace as did Gandhi, Yudhishthira and Vidura in Mahabharat, all trying to help guide the blind king, Dhritrashtra and his son Duryodhan from destruction.

"My African-American heroes were murdered in society, of sufficient numbers that would have stopped the violence by coming together in peace. We, as a society, haven't stood in agreement for peace. We have stood for greed and greed destroys dharma.

"Krishna begged the blind king and his foolish son to give the Pandavas back what was taken through deception, so as to avoid war. They were never listened to, Krishna, 'the black one'-it never happened because destruction had come, the invitation of their own actions." But he-so he is talking about the story and relating it to the injustices.

And, you know, you can take Mahabharat many different ways. It's a huge epic. But remember one thing of how, why Krishna, (who is Vishnu, and in the Hindu religion, the "boss-man" of the whole world across), why, why does he incarnate and come to earth?

Because the earth takes the form of a cow-and that's why, folks, you know, "holy cow," that's where it comes from. And so the Indians or the Hindus believe the cow is sacred.

Because she takes the form of a cow and goes to Vishnu and says, "Help me. I am-my udders have been milked so hard that they no longer give milk; they are bleeding. I am frail; I'm not given the food that I need and people are abusing me."

And so the symbology here is really that, injustice is being done to this earth-that greed is taking over at a huge pace. And Vishnu says, "Okay, I will come to put matters right. The injustice will be taken out."

And yes, these incredible injustices have been done on the face of this earth. And so far we understand that the biggest, biggest transformation we can bring about is to get rid of this weird thing that people have in their heads when they look at somebody, that they look at the color, that they look at the height, that they look at the shape, that they look at all these things and judge people by that.

They need to judge people by who they are as a human being-that in you runs the red blood; in me runs the red blood. I am not any different.

You know, there's a documentary I watched-and this lady, she had been brought up in a household where they absolutely hated, you know, everybody who wasn't of their type. And she ended up in prison. And when she ended up in prison, it was only these two ladies who were willing to help her. Of course, they happened to be those that she had been raised to hate.

But she slowly started working with them and realizing that there was no hate to be had. And she-and they were the only ones that would, that befriended her. And it's, to me that was like, "Yes!" You know, "Yes, you understood; you saw; you broke through."

That's what has to happen; that breakthrough needs to happen, so we can collectively all live in a harmonious, progressive, productive, full of peace, society, and go forward. We need to go forward.

We have a huge agenda. There has been years and years of disrespect, neglect of cultures, of people on the face of this earth, of the nature on the face of this earth. And there's so much homework to be done to put it back together the right way.

There are a whole bunch of people who are just racing off: "More, more, more, more, more," but they don't know "more of what." They keep inventing new things; they keep on bringing new things-but they're doing nothing-no technology is being utilized properly to bring people together.

When people are brought together, what is brought together sometimes is the worst form of those people, not the best. And we need to have stuff that brings the best of us together to move forward, to move progressively. And, you know, that is what is needed.

So, anyways, I mean, I'm not a politician by any stretch of the imagination, so I'm not even going to get into that. There are quite a few more questions….

But don't forget why Vishnu came to the earth in the first place was to make that "right," you know, truly right-the wrong that had been done to earth, to put it right; this is why Vishnu had come.

So, anyways, be safe; be well. And I'll talk to you later.

Lockdown Broadcast Day 36

Hello, everyone; I hope you're all well. Another Sunday today-and I'm going to be reading some questions and trying to answer them.

I hope that, you know, as things progress, (definitely in the United States, it's a little bit different) but I hope everything, at the end of the day, works out.

One other thing that I'd like to just talk a little bit about, one of the questions yesterday, I believe-and it was, you know, "Do you want to see a change in this world?" And then I was thinking about that.

And somebody had asked me that same question before; I believe it was in South Africa. And my answer was, "Yeah, I want to change me." And so I would like to reiterate that. Yeah, I have a list, you know, but really, the only thing I can really change is me-as is, for you, you. You can change yourself.

And that's what's going to make the difference. Because it's very easy to get caught up in that question, you know, "What would you like to see different?" It's like, "Well, yeah, I'd like to see this; I'd like to see this; I'd like to see this." And then, you know, that whole conversation.

Because, and see, look, I've been involved in answering people's questions and these kinds of questions when I was nine years old. And so that's a really long time.

And, been through it-and then a lot of people will put those questions forward, you know, "Well, but do you really think world peace is possible; do you want world peace to happen; do you think these things will work," so on and so forth.

And all throughout that period, one thing that I have seen is that we don't take the responsibility for ourselves; we don't take it upon ourselves that "I have to change." It's somehow, in the whole equation, in the whole chain of things, people are missing-one person, each person who's asking that question is missing.

So, how is the chain ever going to be-if that person, you know…? It's like a Three Stooges joke, you know; it's like, "Say, oh, how many of us are here? Well, there are only two of us and one is missing." And there's all three of them there, but and one goes, "One, two"-and never counts himself.

It's as comical as that. You know, we're counting everybody else; we're really hoping that everybody else is going to change-but not us: "We don't need to change."

And, you know, one person-I was watching a little bit of the news and he was saying that, you know, "We have to stop this; we have to stop this lockdown because our economy is going to be destroyed."

Well, the thing is, (well, I don't know if I should get into this, but), because I think it's a very, very strong question. And the point isn't economy; the point is, "You need food; you have some needs. And those needs can be met. The world will have to pool together."

And definitely, what the American lifestyle is and the country I was born in are completely different. What a person in America would spend for food on one day, just one day-and I'm not talking about big hotels or big restaurants or big this or that-just very simple, you know, all you can eat for five dollars. Well, somebody in India can eat for a whole week for that.

There are a lot of imbalances in this world. And, you know, again, the main issue really is, not economy, but life. Life is more important than the economy.

We have existed on the face of this earth without, quote-unquote, "modern economy" for hundreds of thousands of years. But we knew, at that point, what was important; we needed to live; we needed to sustain ourselves. Have those things completely changed? I don't think so. Those elements are still there.

Especially in the United States-and I think it's true for any country, the resilience of people is there to re-create, rebuild that country to something that is absolutely amazing. I have seen that. I mean, look at Japan. Japan, after World War II, was basically destroyed. But they had the resilience to rebuild that country to what it is today.

We have the resilience. We, we, if we came together-not fractioned-but if we came together, we can make anything happen that we want. I believe that; I have seen that.

But taking these very small focuses-of where you're not looking at the entire picture; you're just looking at one little picture-those are the things that have really made disharmonies in societies over thousands of years.

Oh, and you can look at the history, you know-it's there; it's telling you. If you don't know how to read the history, maybe somebody can read it to you, but that's, it's all historic-anyways, that's a lot of, you know, battling. But let me get to these questions.

Somebody asks-Jose-he says he's seventy-four years old. And what is the purpose of his life; "Do I have a goal to meet? Many times the thought comes to me if my life has had any meaning. Can you help me and give me some advice?"

Your life always has had meaning. Whether you concurred with it, whether you read it, whether you saw it, whether you felt it or not, that's an entirely different question-but your life has always had a meaning.

You write here that you have "the gift of writing." Write! If you have a gift of writing, write! Write about what? Whatever you feel like. Absolutely, whatever you feel like.

Next question, you're seventy-four years old-are you too old to write? Absolutely not. Write whatever you want to write. Another person expressing themselves can be a beautiful thing.

And so, "What is the purpose of your life," you asking that question-and then you asked the second part of that question which is very interesting, "Do I have a goal to meet?" Not from my side. The world will tell you you have a goal, "Have you achieved this; have you achieved this; have you achieved this?"

You know, there is this Egyptian, old thing of, when you die, what happens? And so you go through this whole journey-and in this journey, you have to, you know, be able to get through many, many, many obstacles. And finally, having gone through all those obstacles, you arrive at this gate where there is a guard-and that guard asks you a question before they can let you in.

And it's like, "Have you found peace? And if you've found peace, did you help others find peace?" And if you say "yes" to both those questions, then you can come in; otherwise, you can't come in.

So, do you have a goal to meet? Not from my end. But do you have a goal? And is that goal your goal, or is that goal a goal that the world has put inside your head, that "That's your goal"? Somebody making up a list?

Maybe your goal in life is as simple as finding the peace in yourself. Maybe the goal in your life is as simple as enjoying the true meaning of being alive. And I think it's worth thinking about.

"I still have doubts," this is another question, Nadir-"I still have doubts about the meaning of knowing myself, about how that includes some aspects of my personality or to get in contact with that peace and love inside of me."

No, knowing yourself is not about knowing your personality; it's not knowing all those things. It really is about knowing the self, the true self that you really, really are.

Too many times, you know, there is-it's like the cage. There's a cage and inside the cage is the bird. Without the bird, that cage has no meaning. That cage will go into storage; that cage has no purpose. But with that bird inside, that will definitely give that cage everything that cage is supposed to be.

This, on the outside, is the cage. That life inside of you is the bird. When that bird flies away, this cage has no longer any meaning and it's put in storage, (which is like, you know, buried or, you know, burnt or whatever it may be).

So, your value is that bird. The question is, do you know anything about that bird? Have you felt that bird? Have you experienced that bird? Have you understood that bird? Or has it-your whole lifelong attempt, has it only been about the cage?

Because if it is only about the cage, then you missed the point. The point isn't the cage; the point is the bird in the cage. That's what you should be attracted to. If you're attracted to the cage-and not the bird inside the cage, you don't get it; you don't get the relationship of the cage and the bird.

The cage is there so the bird can be in that cage-I know it's a terrible example, in that sense. But I think it gets to that point of that relationship of-you know, and the other way I put it is, you get a little diamond ring-and it comes in a little box.

Well, so far that diamond ring is in that box, that box is just as important as the diamond ring. Because if you lose the box, you will be just as stunned like, "Oh my God; where is that box; where is that box?"-so far that ring is in that box.

Once that ring has been taken out of that box, that box is only worth whatever it is worth, one dollar or two dollars, five dollars or whatever it is. The value is of the ring. And that value of the ring also then passes onto that box, so far that ring is in that box. Once that ring is taken away, that box means nothing.

Same thing. So, it's not about your personalities; it's not about your idiosyncrasies; it's not about the way you look at things-but it is about that bird, knowing that bird, understanding that bird, feeling that bird.

That's what I talk about: "How do you know that there is a bird?" Well, so far this breath comes into you, there is a bird in you. And if the breath doesn't come into you, it's, there's nothing there.

So, to me, it's really a question of being aware of what really is happening. We only see what is happening out there: "This is what's happening"-because this is what we see.

So it's like, you see a huge photograph-and it's, you know, a hundred people. Well, you know, but there is another person there. And that person is the photographer who's shooting that picture-but he's not in that picture. But he's shooting that picture.

And it's the same thing. That there is something else going on. The life, your existence on the face of this earth isn't about all this; it isn't about a rocket going to the moon. It isn't about a space station. It isn't about all the accomplishments that we technologically have been able to achieve.

There's something else going on. There's something else going on that perhaps we did not create-but it's here. And do we accept it? Do we understand it?

I enjoy the ocean. I like the ocean; I like looking at the ocean. Did I create the ocean? No, I didn't create the ocean. I like the beach. Do I like the beach-yes, I like the beach; I like to be on the beach. Did I create the beach? No, I did not create the beach.

I like mango quite a bit. A sweet mango is wonderful. Did I create that mango-no, I did not create that mango. Did I create the mango tree-I did not create the mango tree.

I know that they are there. I like them; I enjoy them and I want to be in touch with them, even though I had nothing…. It's not like, "Oh, I can't go to the beach; I didn't create that beach." No, I'll enjoy that beach, absolutely.

Same thing-there's something to be understood about you, about your existence, about your life. Not what happens in your life. What happens in your life is up to you; you can change things around; you can move things around.

You know, if somebody finds themselves, they're doing something they don't like, they can stop doing that. Something has changed. Maybe you like chilies and one day you decide you don't want to eat chilies anymore. Fine, you have changed that.

So there are things that happen in your life because you're alive-and then there is the issue of life itself-and I'm talking about the issue of existence itself, not what happens in the existence.

So, I hope-I mean, I don't know, but I hope that helps, (umm-hmm). Sometimes it does.

Here is a good one; this is from Cecile. It says, "Please can you tell us what it means to be in love with someone?" And this gets very interesting-"I am in love and I suffer from that-because the other person is not in love as much as me. He loves me, but is not ready in any way." (For what?)

"I'm trying to love without expectations"-absolutely not. You are not-you say you are-but you're not. "But every time I send a message and there is no reply, I get in that suffering again." There you go; you are expecting an answer. You're expecting that person to respond to you.

So, you know, please forgive me, but-I think that's hilarious to get…. Because, right, if you would have read your own question, you would have seen that you are expecting something from this person. You're comparing this person, "I love this person more than he loves me. I am expecting him-I send him a message and I'm expecting an answer and he doesn't send me an answer and I start suffering."

Let me tell you, how do you get a bird to come and sit on your hand? A lot of people would think the way to do that is to go grab a bird and get it to sit on your hand, you know, nail its claws, its feet to your hand. That's not the way to get a bird to sit on your hand.

Be still-be very, very still. Don't for a minute think it'll work. Just so, be still. Don't assume it's going to work; be still. Put some food there. And be very still.

And maybe when the bird feels not threatened by you-that's the key, "not threatened by you," because so far the bird feels threatened by you, it will maintain its distance. But when the bird feels not threatened by you, that bird will come and sit on your hands. When the bird comes and sits on your hands, don't flinch. Because if you do, the bird will fly away. Be still; be very, very still.

That's how you love. Be still. Not get wrapped up in your imagination, not get wrapped up in your expectations.

Love because you enjoy loving, not to make yourself suffer. That's not love; that's induced suffering. You don't want induced suffering; you want love. That's how you love.

You love because you want to love. Whether the other person responds that same way or not, it has nothing to do with it. You love-and not to hurt them, not to hurt yourself.

Love is a wonderful thing. Love is, again, one of those things that you have to experience; you have to feel-and not because of your expectations, not because of the grand printer that keeps printing pictures, seeing, "Oh, yes, I can imagine myself with this person. And we're holding hands and we're doing this and we're doing that."

Hey, it has-love has nothing to do with that. Love is. And you have to understand that love just is. It isn't something you create; it isn't something you shape; it isn't something you blend; it isn't something you beat. Love is.

Find that love-and then that other person will be attracted to you-because they don't feel threatened by you. They feel loved by you, because you're loving them-not loving them into a particular position, not loving them into a particular slot in a particular way.

So, I hope that helps. Thank you.

Well, that was a short time but anyways, that's how long we have. We have more questions, obviously-so we'll continue with those. Until then, be safe; be well. Most importantly, be-and enjoy yourself. Thank you.

Lockdown Broadcast Day 37

Hello, everyone; I hope you're all well. Sleeping well, I hope, and resting well, taking care of yourselves, being safe, being healthy. And then, of course, health isn't just about your muscles being good or your, you know, lungs being good or heart or kidney or liver or whatever-but there is this big thing that sits right on top and that needs to be well too.

It influences your whole body-and when it becomes scared, confused, (or it's not, you know, in top shape), it can stress your whole body out. And a lot of people have been expressing that-not a lot; I mean, a very small amount-but comparatively to all the expressions that have been coming in, where people have been making just, some comments about how much they are enjoying this….

And I certainly hope you're enjoying it-and that it's bringing you some clarity to go on in your life day to day, to see some clarity. Because that's what's important in life.

In life, you know, we think we are an arbitrator between our existence and all of this whole world-"And so we have to negotiate this and we have to negotiate this and we have to negotiate this."

But you really have to see the world from the eyes of the world. It's not really interested in you. It's interested in itself going on, perpetuating…. You're just one step in this huge ladder-and you will just get stepped on, and that's about it. And, you know, like so many before you, you will be forgotten too.

But when you look at it from your eyes, it's a little different story. You want this to be a meaningful time. You want this to be a time in which you prosper, not only externally but internally-that you are happy, that you are fulfilled.

And, you know, again, happiness isn't a bunch of little check-boxes-and at the bottom of it, says, "Yeah, if you marked, you know, more than five of those, you're happy-by the way." That's not happiness.

Success is one thing-and feeling success is another thing. There are a lot of people who have reached the very apex of what one would consider "success," but do they feel successful? People tell them that they are successful but do they feel, from inside-do they feel successful?

There are a lot of people, you know, who have finally got to a point where they have somebody that they love and everything else-but they just cannot make it work; they cannot make their marriage work; they cannot make it happen.

Because they are looking at it from the wrong set of eyes; they're not looking at it from the eyes of that simplicity, that "here is another human being." And all they're looking at is their expectations of that human being, but they're not looking at that human being.

So many questions that have come directly relate to that. People know what they want of themselves-but they do not know who they are, as they are. How they should be, they know. How they are, they don't know. And that's a big discrepancy. And so, how do we resolve this? How do we get rid of this?

So, you know, I have to begin from scratch-and this is what I say: "Relax. Take it easy. Understand one thing. Don't be in this, you know, 'rattling of the window' mode of things. Relax; you have everything you need.

"Inside of you, there is an ocean of answers. Do you need questions for them? Not necessarily. Answers will do fine. Inside of you, you have a huge ocean of serenity. You have understanding; you have kindness; you have forgiveness; you have the power to go forward.

"So, relax! You've got everything, everything that you need to truly be successful, to truly be fulfilled, to truly be in peace, to truly be happy in this world as long as you are alive. So, take a deep breath-clear your head. Understand-everything you need, you have.

"All you have to do is feel it, recognize it-not believe it, but actually know it. You have that. You have felt that before in your life. Maybe it was for a fleeting moment-but that's enough. That's enough to say, 'Yes, there is something there. Yes, there is something very powerful there.'"

Now, have I ever worked on inviting those things, evoking, (not provoking), evoking those things in my life? Anger is provoked. Uncertainty is provoked. Doubt is provoked. Clarity is evoked. Big difference between the two.

It's not something you can do with force that will trigger this; it has to be in the very simple way that really comes from understanding-and that really comes from thirst, thirst for clarity in your life, thirst for understanding in your life, thirst for peace in your life.

You know, everybody wants to be a better person. But I will ask a question, "Why, why do you want to be better? For other people-or for you?" For other people or for you? Now, you have to answer that properly-and more dishonestly you answer that, the worse the whole thing is going to get.

You have to be honest. If it is-look, you know, again, just relax. Understand one thing. It is not about getting lost; it's about getting found. So how many times should you get lost? It doesn't matter; so far you get found, so far you come back to your track, good. If you don't come back to the track and you keep getting lost, that's the worst thing you can possibly do.

So, why do you want clarity in your life; why do you want understanding in your life; why do you want these things in your life? Because of you? Because you feel thirst in you for these things? Or do you feel your indoctrination kicking in? And how you have to deal with this world-"You have to do this; you have to do this; you have to do this…."

It's just like, you know, so many times I stay at hotels. And so many times you come and the guy opens your door-and he says, "Good morning; welcome," and you smile at him. Now, the amount of interaction you're going to have with him is maybe, (if you're lucky), ten seconds, five seconds, something like that, and you just say "Good morning" and you walk through.

Why are you doing it? Do you do that to somebody you love? In the morning when you wake up and you see your wife or you see your husband or you see your child, do you say "Good morning" to them? "How are you? Welcome?" No. It's just like, "You're this. You're that." Because all this is sitting heavily on your head.

Remember my example of the young man who had, you know, gotten all his education; he was walking back home and he was going to get a job and everything-and he went up to the old man and he said, "Do you know, I'm going to start life; I'm going to be doing all these things. Tell me, what is it like; what should I do?"

And the old man took that load and put it down-stood up straight. Then took the load back on his shoulders again, on his neck again and bent over and kept walking.

So, and here is a question for you. "All those things you do in your life, do you do it with a burden of all those things that are on top of your head, all those? That burden you begin with, early in the morning?"

You know the burden I'm talking about: "Oh my God, I've got to do this. Oh my God, I've got to do this-and I've got to do this and I've got to do this and I've got to do this and I've got to do this." And then, "I've got to do this too. And I've got to do this too, and this too and this too and this too. And I forgot about this and I've got to remember this and ah-dah-dah…."

So, you begin your day with a horrendous, horrendous deficit of clarity, with a horrendous deficit of understanding, of a horrendous deficit of just, lightness, just lightness, you know, when that huge weight is taken off and there is a lightness.

So, you're beginning your day; you're beginning everything-and then you go on all day long with that weight. And it pushes on you. It pushes on you and your vision, which should be like this, starts to get narrower and narrower and narrower and narrower-and why, because of fear. That's what fear does.

So now you're afraid of everything; you're afraid of your future. You are actually afraid of your future, even though the future hasn't come yet-because when the future comes, it comes as today. You have no idea what's going on in today. "Now" means nothing to you. Yesterday? A bunch of memories.

And if this is the condition you are in, (already starting with a huge deficit, under pressure), then I am sure that those memories that I'm talking about are not pleasant.

So, you've got a nice pickle going on-no idea about today, bad memories of yesterday-and then, everything is banking on tomorrow-and tomorrow is never coming. So, this is wonderful. This is like, the perfect little setup. Everything is banking on tomorrow and tomorrow is never coming; today is all you get. Today is how it's going to come.

Today, you have no idea what this is all about, what "now" is all about. And you've got some nasty little memories tucked away called, you know, "yesterday." "This happened; this happened; this happened; this happened" and it can't be good.

So, the only way you can get out of this is, shake it, shake it off! This is what I tell people; I say, "Just shake it off!" (It works, believe me; it works.) Just shake it off. Whatever the situation is, whatever this fear you've got, whatever this may-it may be very real. It may be all those things.

But you as a human being, you have to go on, regardless of what happens. And the only way you will be able to go on-is if you shake it off, start fresh, just like today did. Everything went dark, stayed dark, stayed dark-we call it "night." Then in the dawn, a beautiful light came-and slowly that light became brighter and brighter and brighter.

And it began in such a humble way spreading across the horizon. And slowly, as that light came and became brighter and brighter and brighter, the whole world began to stir around that light. The birds started to chirp.

And then finally, the sun, the bringer of that light broke the line of the horizon and rose-and filled the world around you with the most magnificent light. And now you could see, and now you could feel the warmth of that sun.

There is a sun waiting for you to acknowledge it, for you to understand it, for you to welcome it in your life, so it can bring you that warmth, so that it can bring you that light, that beauty-so you can see; you can see that those obstacles that you're so afraid of are not that big as you had made them out to be.

That there is a life, and this life can go on. That happiness, your heart will still desire it, regardless of your circumstances on the outside.

And people get just fast and furious with it, you know, it's like, "Oh my God, this is terrible; this is terrible in my life; this is terrible in my life; this is terrible in my life."

There are a lot of people, you know, it's like, "My family-I don't get along with my family." Well, welcome to the world of family. A lot of people-you would not be the first one that doesn't get along.

But you can make amends-and you can get along with your family. That's what's really nice about a family-nobody has to be your enemy. You can; you can talk to them; you can make amends. They can tell you what they don't like; you can tell them what you don't like; you can communicate.

You know, then there is this like, "Oh, my family is falling apart." The husband needs to be understood and so does the wife. The husband comes; he's been banging his head against the table all day long. It is not easy for him.

Nobody who has their job-I mean, okay, there are some people who love their job, fine. But they are an extreme minority, not majority.

So, a lot of people are there-there they are; they're in an office situation or whatever. They're working, working, working, working, working; they get a short break, a lunch break-and working, working, working, working; they come home-and here is the perfect storm.

So, you think this guy's job is hard? You think it's easy to stay home? It's not like that the wife is staying home…. (Or, and sometimes it's the husband), and the situation is crossed where the wife works and the husband stays home.

But he has to clean. He has to cook; he has to clean the laundry; he has to clean the house; he has to vacuum the house…. There is a lot to be done; the bills come; this happens; that happens. You think it's easy? To make a household livable? It is an extremely difficult task. And it takes a lot.

So you've got two people-so in that first example, the husband comes home; the wife's been brewing on this all day long, "Wait till he comes home. I'm going to let him have a piece of my mind"-or the other way around. Unfair. Unfair.

Both of you, both of you need a break. Both of you need to chill out. Both of you need to sit down, not talk about your problems, but talk about each other. "How was your day?" "Oh, it wasn't so good. Glad to be home though."

That's exactly what you have to work on. The real-home isn't a physical place. So, you know, when somebody says, "Okay, stay home and lockdown," home isn't a physical place; home is a place inside of you. That's your true home.

This is your true home; this is the one you take when you go traveling. And when you can be here, when you can be comfortable with yourself, then, yeah, then you're at home. Because there are people who are in that physical place but they don't feel like they're home. They don't feel like, good about being there.

So, this is something to think about, anyways. And the reason why I'm saying these things is, in a way, getting ready for the PEP. So I already mentioned what PEP is, how many people have already taken it.

Now, here is what the whole thing is about. It's really, really simple. When I look at the PEP, what astonishes me every time is how simple it is. Most trainings that I have gone to, most trainings that I have conducted have been very complex and very complicated.

One of the things about PEP is it is not complicated; it is very, very simple. It is the message, my message that I give. The only thing is, instead of just listening and maybe passing it through, you know, letting it come through one ear and passing it through the other, you have to pay attention.

Because then you write down what you got out of it-not your questions, but what you got out of it. And that paying the attention to that message makes all the difference in the world.

So, is it for everybody? No, you have to want to do this PEP Education, Peace Education Program. If you don't want to, that's fine. If you want to, that's fine. But it is a serious thing. It's not like…. And the reason why I say it's serious is because you can get so much out of it. Everybody has been getting so much out of it and I know you can get so much out of it.

There have been people who have actually been released from the prison whilst they were in the middle of the Peace Education Program; they have approached the warden and said, "Can I stay an extra few days so I can finish the Peace Education Program?" And it wasn't just one instance; it was many instances.

I mean, you have got the guerrillas from Colombia, to, you know, the Sri Lankan Tigers; everybody going, "If I knew this before, I would not be in the pickle that I am in today."

Very powerful program-but who makes it powerful? You make it powerful; your desire, your want is what's going to make it powerful. And it's very simple; you just listen-and then after that, whatever you have listened, you reflect on it. You will send that reflection to me-and I will, somebody will collate that, all those reflections and then I will go through a few.

And by sharing that, we are taking care of what usually…. In an environment of five, ten people, they would share what they got-but we will share it with many, many, many thousands more.

So, it's perfectly okay if you want to stand on the side and just watch what happens-or if you are willing to take a chance, take a chance and try the Peace Education Program.

It's fun. You know, and look, this is all about fun. Why should you be fulfilled in this life-so you can have fun. Why do you need clarity-so you can have fun. Why should you be away from sadness, so you can have fun.

We want-all of us, we want to have fun. And you know, trying to have fun in the middle of this coronavirus thing, it's not easy-but is it possible? And the answer to that is "Yes." Yes, it is possible. So, thank you very much, and I am looking forward to, soon, do the PEP with you.

Thank you; take care of yourself. Be safe; be well. And most importantly, be.

Lockdown Broadcast Day 38

Hello, everyone. I hope you're all doing well. I'd like to tell you a story today, and maybe some of the things that are happening in the world may be reflected in this story.

So, obviously, this story is from India and so, it wasn't uncommon for a teacher who would lecture whoever wanted to hear him. And his follower, his student, they would go from village to village, from city to city and set up a place where they would, yeah, at least, the teacher would talk about what he wanted to talk about and people would come and listen to him.

So, one day, as this tour was going on, as they were traveling from town to town, city to city, they came across this fairly large-sized city-and they were at the outer skirts of the city and the teacher said, "You know, I think, let's set up shop here and you go and check out what this city is like and let me know-and then I'll make up my mind whether I want to stay here or I want to move on."

So, the student was delighted and he went into the city. And to his great delight, everything cost the same. So he could get dinner-and the dinner cost the same as a banana or one grape-or a kilo or, you know, twenty pounds of grapes cost the same as one grape.

You could buy a car for the same price as one grape. You could buy a house for the price of one banana or grape-and everything costs the same, exactly the same.

So, the student, he just couldn't get back to his teacher fast enough and he said, "We have hit the motherlode. This is the place to be; this is the place to stay; this is just the most wonderful place-everything costs the same as like, one banana, one grape." And the teacher asked, "How much is that?" He said, "Just one cent. Everything just costs one cent."

And so the teacher was like, "Hey, let's get out of here. That we-this is not a good sign; this is not a good place to be." And the student said, "No, no, this is the perfect place. I have very little money and for this little money, I can live here for as long as I want; I mean, this is just incredible."

So, the teacher said, "Look. I've got to-I can't stay here; I've got to move on. But if you ever get into a situation that is difficult for you to get out of; you get in a pickle; you get into trouble, just remember me-and I'll come and try to save you."

So, the student was ecstatic; I mean, it's like, "Great." The teacher left; he moved onto the next town-and the student was there and he was just like, "This is the way to go."

Well, he'd been there for about four or five days-and one Sunday morning, the town was pretty deserted and he's walking down the street early in the morning-and as he's walking down the street, he's arrested. And he goes, "Why have I been arrested?" And so they started to explain to him why he had been arrested.

And they said, "Look, what happened was there was this man and he was taking his goats for grazing-and as he was taking them along the street, this balcony fell and killed one of the goats." And so the goat keeper wanted to make sure that he got compensated for it.

So, this went to the king-and the king immediately instructed the owner of the house, whose balcony had fallen down, to give him money and make amends with him. But the owner of the house said, "Sire, it's not my fault; I didn't build the balcony. I paid for it; it's my balcony, but I didn't build the balcony. It's obviously the fault of the guy who built the balcony."

So, the king said, "Call him!" The mason was called-and he said, "You-either you give…." And by this time the king is getting pretty upset; he says, "Either you give this guy the money or we're going to kill you."

And the guy says, "But I can't! I don't have that kind of money. But then again, it's not my fault that the balcony fell. It is the fault of the guy who put too much water in the cement-and-water mixture. When I was telling him to put water in there, he accidentally put too much water in." So the king said, "Okay, call him."

So, he was brought in and he, the guy says-the king says to him; he says, "Okay, you have to be killed." He says, "Why do I have to be killed?"

He says, "Well, you put too much water in the mixture, which then made the balcony weak. The balcony fell on the goat and it killed the goat. And so, somehow that, you know, this person has to be taken care of. So, you-we're going to punish you and we're going to kill you."

And the guy said, "Well, it's not my fault. It is the fault of the guy who sold me too big of a goat. And from the skin of that goat, I have had the musk made," (which is how they used to carry water-and it was made out of skin), and he said, "It was too big-and that's what happened. So it's not my fault." "So, yeah, call that guy who sold you the goat."

They called that guy who sold him the goat and he says, "Well, you know, you have to be killed." He says, "Why do I have to be killed?" "So, well, you gave, you sold him too big of a goat, which ended up making too much water in the mixture, which made the balcony weak and the balcony fell on this guy's goat and killed his goat, so we are, we're making him right."

He says, "Well, it's not my fault. It's the fault of your general. Because the guy, this guy had picked out the goat he wanted, which was the right size. And then all of a sudden, your general came on his horse-and all the goats just started going all over the place and I ended up picking the wrong one. So, you should go ahead and, you know, kill your general; hang him."

So they call the general; the king called the general and said, "Well, you have to be hung." He says, "Sire, well, but I haven't done anything wrong."

He says, "Yeah, you have. You were riding your horse that day and, you know, you got all the goats all confused. And this guy ended up picking the wrong goat, which made too big of a musk, which put too much water in the mixture, which made the balcony weak. The balcony fell on this guy's goat, killed the goat, and so we're making him right."

So, the general looked at the king and he says, "But sire, but I'm your general. You can't kill me." "So what should we do?" He says, "Well, go out in the morning, on Sunday morning, and whoever you find, the first person walking down the street, kill him." Well, it happened to be the student.

The student was brought before the king, of course, and this whole story was explained to him and then he realized what his teacher has been, had been telling him-he says, "This is not a good place." And that's, you know, hindsight's twenty-twenty. So he, of course, at that point, had complete clarity. Before that, he didn't.

So, he had remembered to remember his teacher-so he did. He said, "Please, please, please," he prayed to him; he said, "Please help me. I am in a pickle; I am in trouble." So, somehow, his teacher came. And his teacher looked at him-and he said, "Just follow my cue. Don't disagree with me; just follow my cue and watch what I do."

So, they're getting ready; they have the whole bench ready where they're going to hang him. The stage is all set. Everybody is there; lots of-a big crowd is there; the king is there. And they are almost ready to take the student up to hang him when the teacher, who's there, he says, "I want to be hung. Hang me! Not, don't hang him; hang me!" And the king hears this commotion-and he can't believe his ears. He goes, "Are you-are you sane? I mean, you want to be hung instead of him?"

And the teacher said, "Right now, the gates to heaven are completely open. All the gates going to heaven are open. It happens to be the most auspicious time-and so if you hang me, I'll go straight to heaven."

The king said, "Really?" And the teacher said, "Oh, absolutely." The king looked at the hangman and he said, "Hang me! I want to go to heaven." And the king was hanged.

So, the point of this story is that, you know, when we live in an environment where the people are trying to take something totally out of context…. And you look at the craziness of it, where all these people, all these ideas of "How this should happen; how that should happen…."

I mean, just, the United States is number one-and inching towards a million people. I mean, outpaced just about everybody. And you wonder, "What is happening?" You wonder what's going on.

But the most important thing is, for any changes to be brought, those changes will have to be from you-from each one of us, each one of us on the face of this earth. Many times when I talk, I talk about the value of each person. And a lot of people I know just look at me like, "What are you talking about, 'value of each person'?"

Well, now that we have this coronavirus, you know what the value of each person is. One person can contaminate so many; one person isn't so innocent anymore; one person isn't so frail anymore; one person isn't so weak anymore. One person has a lot to do.

Well, if it can be in a negative way, it can also be in a positive way-of what a person can do. That, one person bringing out their clarity, one person bringing out their understanding, one person wanting to be in peace can have a huge effect on a lot of people.

And each one of those people then wanting that, there really can be a difference. And maybe this is the time to really look at that-that, you know, "What kind of a world do we want," to reflect on that.

And this is kind of like, you know, a lead-up to the Peace Education Program-but the Peace Education Program, it really is about you; "You can make a difference. You can, at least, make a difference in your life; you can make a difference in your existence"-which, believe you me, it's going to make a difference in a lot of people's life, more than you ever realize.

And it begins with you-as simple and as profound as that may sound; it begins with you. You understanding, you going forward, you taking that step in your life, you taking responsibility for your peace, for your clarity, for your appreciation of life-for you to understand your existence, you taking that-and it's an adventure. It's an adventure-but it's an adventure to go within.

The least-explored space that there is, is not out there; it's in here. We don't really know who we are, what is our potential, what is our possibility-and it's such a shame.

Because most of us walk around being just, you know, knocked over by all the problems and the issues, and this is all we want to deal with. I mean, it's just, if it comes to politics, of course-politics, the talks about politics and it's just, you pick up a newspaper in the morning and it's like, "This is happening and that's happening and that's happening and that's happening."

And nothing good. All just, you know, "Okay, that thing took a turn for the worse; that person took a turn for the worse. That person is saying this stupid thing; that person is saying that stupid thing." And it's enough to just go, you know, it's like, "Why am I reading this? You know, what has this got to do with me?"

I live in this world. I need to be informed-I agree with all that. But at the same time, do I understand how it affects me? Should it be that I don't care-of what happens in my world? Or should I care what happens in my world-my world? But my world doesn't begin with the newspaper; my world begins with me!

If I care what happens in my world, it has to be my world, me, understanding who I am, living my life consciously, and having this heart full of gratitude. This is what it has to be-otherwise we're going to be in this world that we would have created, in which it's like, "Oh, yes!"

You know, and it's almost like that. You know, you can go all day long; you can go shopping and not have spent one cent, one dime, one dollar, one pound-and it's all done on a credit card. So it's like, all you have to do is just sign-and you can buy, (pretty much), whatever you want, what the credit card will approve.

We almost live in that society. We live in this kind of time. I mean, it's like, okay, so, you know, in the old days, you started off-and you started off with ten dollars or twenty dollars in your wallet. And this is what you were going to spend and no more.

That's-that's sanity; that's sane. So, you go out there-and when you run out of your ten dollars, you run out of your five dollars, you run out of your twenty dollars, you're done. You're done; no more spending.

Now, you have no idea what you're spending it on. And away you "sign off, sign off, sign off"-and then what happens when those bills arrive? They give you a heartache; they give you a headache; they give you an "everything-ache."

Why? Because you did not, in that one moment-you just said, "Okay, I think I'll cover it somehow." And you just "sign it away, sign it away, sign it away, sign it away."

So, the craziness goes on. You know, and here, we are being given an opportunity to think-if nothing else, to think, think deeply, think with a clear head, think without the pressure, think without all those obligations, just think very clearly: "How do you want to be?"

Yes, there are economic issues. Yes, "What is going to happen to this?" Yes, "What is going to happen to that?" We already saw what happened-you know, the government releases a whole bunch of funds-and who does it end up with? All those people who don't need it. And all those people who need it? Financial institutions already taking all that, "No, you don't get it."

But excuse me, is this what it's all about? Is the bottom line not people anymore? What happened? What happened? It is human beings who started that system. And all of a sudden, the system has gone beyond the realm of human beings-and it says "Human beings don't mean anything to me anymore?" How can that be?

This is truly a-every single evidence here, every single finger is pointing that human beings have lost themselves, that they have lost what that humanity means. Because if that humanity was there, nobody should have to wonder….

And well, just hunker down-and somehow, the food-there's just plenty of it, plenty of it. And there are people who are willing to deliver it, that the food will be delivered.

There are billions and billions and billions earmarked to blow people off planet Earth-well, can some of that money be spent to save the people on this planet Earth, not looking at the boundaries, but looking at all of us as we are?

Things to think about. I'm not going one way or the other way with it-but some things to think about. Because what benefits, ultimately, those other people will ultimately benefit us too. When everybody is taken care of, we will be taken care of. This is how it should be: "Human beings first." In our systems, in our institutions: "Human beings first."

But you know, like I have said to many, many people, it's just like, organizations recognize organizations. They work very well with organizations; they don't work very well with people. Organizations work well with organizations.

And so, you know, when you make an organization to help people, it becomes an organization just like every other organization and people are shoved aside. When you think about billions and billions and billions and trillions of dollars that are earmarked to help people on the face of this earth, you wonder where it disappears to.

So, it's very, very important that we at least, think, think about the world we want, think about our world starting, truly, from us.

So, be well; be safe. And most importantly, be. I'll talk to you later. Thank you.

Lockdown Broadcast Day 39

Hello, everyone. I hope that you're all well-and taking it one step at a time, staying fluid. And basically, you know, the motto still is, "Don't give it to anyone and don't get it from anyone." And if you can do that, (figure out a way), then that's good.

So, today, what I want to talk about maybe is most appropriate, beginning with this story. But this is no ordinary story. And many of you might think this is not a story. Well, that's fine too.

But it is the impossible story; it is an impossible thing that has happened. And what is that? That is, defying all logic, and maybe even defying the laws of physics, something has happened; something has taken place.

And that is that the infinite, the most amazing, the endless, what cannot be created and what cannot be destroyed, has come and is residing inside of the very finite thing. So, the infinite has come to reside inside the finite. Wow. If that doesn't break every single rule, I don't know what does.

First of all, two things occupying the same space at the same time? Absolutely, absolutely. And then, the infinite that has no limit, that has no beginning and has no end, that was never created, will never be destroyed, that was, is and will be, is residing inside that that wasn't, is, and won't be. That's what's going on; that's the little story.

And that happened. And if you don't believe me that it happened, then look at yourself. You're the evidence that it happened, that it took place. And so far this breath comes into you, this is happening.

One day, it won't be like this. The two will separate. Infinite will be-and finite will drop out, go back to being the elements it came from-will not be able to talk, will not be able to love, will not be able to celebrate, will not be able to laugh, will not be able to be. Everything will stop.

So, this is what you could do-you could laugh; you could smile; you could be in peace; you could live your life consciously. You could know yourself. You could have a heart full of gratitude. You could have kindness; you could love; you could forgive; you could understand.

These are the things you can do. Each one of these, incredibly noble, incredibly noble, incredibly beautiful, not only enrichens your life but whoever you touch with this. This is the possibility that has come together in this little story, where the infinite-and the impossible finite, have come together, joined forces to make you. This is what's going on.

Now, I know you have your problems and sometimes you get buried in your problems; you have your issues; you have this; you have that; you know, you worry about things…. But please take a look at this possibility. Please take a look at what this is, the coming together of the two most impossible things, the infinite and the finite.

And while this happens, none lose their nature. The finite stays finite-and the infinite stays infinite. They don't lose their personalities; they don't lose who they are. They don't lose their meaningfulness; they stay intact-but they come together and they merge.

And one possibility that definitely opens up when this happens, when this takes place-and this possibility is that you can experience that infinite. What is that experience like-and obviously, this is a very inappropriate question-but what is that experience like? (And of course it's inappropriate but let's ask it anyways, right?)

And, of course, I'm not the first one saying this-but it is the experience of joy; it is the experience of bliss; it is the experience that is fulfilling; it is the experience, in fact, of peace. That's what it is about.

So, it really starts to now come down to, this impossible story has to be weaved-because this has happened, but now it has to be weaved. And it has to be weaved into something good-and that will be your story.

I'm not saying that people will remember that story-but you will. You will know that story. You know your story, up till now-whatever and however you have survived, however you have lived your life. What you worry about, what frightens you, you know those things. What wipes that smile off your face, what do you think about other people, what do you think about you, you know those things.

And how do you want the story to be woven? Do you want the story to be about joy; do you want the story to be about victory?

Or do you want the story to be about the lost war? Not the lost battle, lost war-the war against the darkness, the war against all those other things that distract me. You're fighting a war every day against those elements that distract you from what the possibility is.

And we sit here-and we try to legitimize those things. We try to legitimize our concern, our worrying, our sorrow, our pain, all those things. And for-I don't know for how long we have been doing it.

And, you know, people always say, "Well, let's be practical." Well, let's be practical. Would you use your car as a shovel? No, a car would make a terrible shovel. A car is meant to be a car, a thing that can transport you from point A to point B. That's what it was constructed for. That's what it was made for.

If you try to use an airplane as a car, it would make a terrible car-it does. It's awkward. A lot of airplanes, and you know, the tricycle configuration-ridiculously hard to taxi. And huge wings-you would be always clipping something. Visibility isn't all that great. And the engine, very unresponsive because, you know, it has to produce thrust, and that's the only way it's going to go forward.

But as a plane…? A car cannot be a plane-and a plane cannot be a car. (Even though they try to, you know-these days they make these airplanes that can kind of function), but they're awkward; they still are awkward.

So, what do you want this story to be? You have to give it some thought-"What do you want this story to be? What do you want the possibility to be? Do you want appreciation in your life? Do you want joy in your life; do you want peace in your life; do you want understanding in your life? Do you want these rich elements in your life that truly make anyone's life a pleasure, a joy?"

Or do you want all the things that you worry about every day-not that it does anything-but of course, you sit there and worry.

Because in this physical world that you live in, your actions count. And that's the only thing that-and not what you sit there and think. That doesn't count.

I mean, if you're driving a car and all of a sudden you slam into the back of somebody-and the police officer asks you, "What happened?" And you say, "Well, I thought about braking"-it doesn't count. "You thought about braking," that doesn't count-"Did you brake or not?" That counts. And if you didn't, then, of course, you're at fault.

So the question isn't what you're thinking; the question is, "What are you going to do about it? What are the things that are available to you-that you know, that you can count on, that you know will work?"

You know, and when I say this-look, Socrates said it such a long time ago: "Know thyself." It wasn't in the context of, "Yeah, you know you may as well get to know yourself-you're trying to know everybody else."

No, it was in the context of, "It's very, very important that you know yourself. That in fact, that's a big piece of the puzzle and if you don't know yourself, you're missing the picture."

So, today, the story we have weaved, in our story, we know everybody else; we know this person; we know that person-but when it comes to us, we don't know. We don't know. We don't know who we are. We don't know what this possibility is.

And looking at it from-it has always helped me-looking at it from the perspective of, "Wow, there's the infinite inside of me. And here is the finite. And I have the possibility that I can relate to that infinite inside of me."

Now, "infinite" is a huge word. And so what is infinite? Well, "Felt-but not defined. Something I can feel. And something that brings me a happiness that's so different than happiness that I experience in this world."

Of course, you know, I'm happy to see my puppies. I'm happy to see my children; I am happy to see my grandchildren; I'm happy to see my family. I have, you know-but there's another happiness, another kind of happiness-knowing me, knowing and feeling that infinite that is inside of me.

That's the possibility. And whatever story I have weaved up till this point in my life-and sometimes I feel like my life has just gone by like in a flash. I mean, I remember very clearly, (and uh-huh)-I am one of those people who has been photographed very well over the period of years, and so I've got a lot of pictures of me, and throughout all the periods of my life.

And I-there's one picture of me where I'm a little baby and I remember that picture being taken. And, you know, here I am. And what is this all about?

And I'm so grateful that I have that contact, to be able to reach in and experience that infinite. That was the big game-changer for me-to understand the beauty of everything, "That, wow, part of all that that is so wonderful, that is so incredible has also touched me."

And that's what counts. You know, it's not like I don't have problems; it's not like nasty things don't happen to me; of course they do. But the good things are always happening too.

And which one do I want to latch onto in my life? This is a decision I have to make every single day. "What do I want to latch onto; what is important to me?" And that's what this story is all about-and it has to be. And that's what your story should be. Not the other one.

Because all those things that you think count in your story-you know, you have accomplished this and you have accomplished this and you have accomplished this-it doesn't, it doesn't count. It doesn't count.

But what counts is that joy that you carry in your heart, that appreciation that you carry in your heart, that clarity that you carry in your heart, that peace that you carry with you wherever you go. That's what counts; that's what's important.

You know, I mean, looking at this thing…. So, today, this morning, I was just gathering some numbers. The world has-the coronavirus cases are well in the 3 million, ninety-nine thousand three hundred and ninety-five. The deaths around the world, two hundred and thirteen thousand, six hundred and twenty-one-and they're going up all the time.

"People recovered" is nearing almost a million-nine hundred and forty-three thousand, nine hundred and forty recovered. The U.S.A. alone is over a million people-yeah, a million, one million, sixteen thousand six hundred and ninety-two total cases. Total deaths, 57,132. And totally recovered, U.S.A., 39,834-of course, these figures are changing.

But then there was the Spanish flu. I looked up Wikipedia and-"The Spanish flu, also known as the 1918 flu pandemic"-this was a very deadly virus; it killed a lot of people. So, estimated that it killed "anywhere from 17 to 50 million" people, "and . . . as high as 100 million, making it one of the deadliest pandemics in human history."

And India was hit very, very hard with it-in fact, in India, it was "12-17 million people," they figure, alone, that died. There wasn't any wood to cremate people in India. And in fact, it was one of the things that-the whole thing was mishandled by the then, colonial rule-that gave, you know, the impetus to a lot of people to get independence.

So, you know, these things-it's not like this hasn't happened before; it has actually happened, but in much worse of an environment-much, much worse. I am just shocked at some of the countries who are not taking any action. And this is what happened back then.

So, again, and the main-but the main point of all of this is, "Please, stay sane; stay healthy; be well-and be."

This is your life, your existence. You need to be in joy because that is still a possibility. That marriage, that coming together of the infinite and the finite is taking place still in your life, whatever the outside circumstances-maybe they're not pleasant. But there is something very pleasant inside of you. Focus on that; focus on the good. This is the time to focus on the good.

So, thank you very much-and I'll talk to you later.

Lockdown Broadcast Day 40

Hello, everyone; I hope you're all doing well. Very quickly approaching towards getting the Peace Education Program prepared, so we can go through it-and there are ten different chapters in the Peace Education Program and, of course, the first one is "Peace."

I think I've talked a lot about peace, but still, the understanding-because we live in a world that has defined so many things for us. And we take those definitions and we apply it to everything.

So, what does it mean when you see somebody on the street that is not from a certain place or a certain country? So, again, there are definitions that come in; there are ideas that come in; there are concepts that kick in. And you, when you look at that person, all those things are afoot; they are playing.

So, the same thing happens when it comes to "what is peace," what is "infinite," what is "clarity." Any one of these things actually triggers a whole plethora of ideas of what one is talking about.

But the peace that I'm talking about is not the peace that is created-or that is a consequence of something. (So, if two people have been fighting and all of a sudden they call it quits, you could say, "Well, they're in peace now; they're, 'cease-fire.'") That's not the peace I'm talking about.

So then, you know, you go to a nice place; it's wonderful, and a nice lake and the forest-and people go, and people go camping and so on and so forth, to these wonderful places.

And I know a lot of people step out and the first thing they say is, "Oh, how peaceful it is." But that's just absence of noise, the absence of all the noise that you heard when you were in the city. So, that's not the peace, what I'm talking about. So, what is that peace that I'm talking about?

Well, in you, you know, obviously, you know what your turmoil looks like-it's not fun. And you have been rattled by that turmoil at times. It has been severe.

I see it when things don't go your way-and you are tired, or you're, you know, something is already amiss-and then on top of that comes some kind of a bad news. And the feeling is, "Oh my God, this is too much to take, too much to handle, too much to have"-and off you go. Fair enough.

But then there is an opposite of that inside of you, something that is capable of looking at this whole world and its workings and everything else from a very disconnected way-and being able to observe it for what it is-not how it should be, but what it is.

Things happen-neither good nor bad. It's not a detached judgment. But it is just simply far enough away to see your existence, you being in this life, you being in this world, just the way it is-neither good nor bad.

Somebody actually wrote this to me; it's like, you know, "How come nature is so cruel? Today I saved, you know, some kind of a bug from the clutches of a spider-because of, you know, they were caught in a spider's nest." And I started thinking about that.

"And is it?" It is. It is. And I don't have to sit there and pass a judgment on it. It is what it is.

Bugs eat bugs; fish eat fish; animals eat animals. It happens. Is that good? Well, why do I have to bring my hat of "good" and "bad" to every party that I go to? Why is everything divided into that "good and bad"?

Because this is how I've been trained: "Either the things are good-or bad"-but I have lost the ability to admire something for what it is worth-for what it is. To look at the moon and admire it for what it is. Not what it isn't. Not what it could be. Not how it could have been-but just as it is. This is-not everybody has this ability.

To look at rain…. And we don't like rain; most of us don't like rain. We think that's, you know, a real bummer; "It's ruined your day," and da-da-da-da, da. But just to look at the rain for what it is.

It's a natural process; it has been happening on this planet Earth for a really long time. And thank God that it happens-and otherwise the distribution of that freshwater would not happen the way it should happen. To admire something the way it is.

Well, okay, so we have talked about, you know, fish and we've talked about animals and we've talked about spiderwebs.

But what happens when that "to just see something the way it is" comes to you? And you start to see, without judgment, a reality, a very simple reality? A reality that is about you, that, something that touches your heart, something that makes you feel fulfilled-makes you feel like, "Yes," that gratitude is touched, the thankfulness is touched.

That no more do you flounder between the answers and the questions-but you understand the answer, even if there isn't a question. That peace becomes, for you, a journey inside to that beautiful place where you are in that presence of the complete, of the whole, of the infinite.

That from thereon, it isn't "more" or "less"-but all that goes away. "Right and wrong," all that goes away-and it's not about time and it's not about your agendas and it's not about your definitions and it's not about that printer you carry here-but it is that you witness what is the true, beautiful reality.

Peace, then, is that one feeling which is not objective; it is subjective for every single person. It is what they feel. And when there is no need to want to describe it, when there is no need to say, "Hey, come here and look at this…."  It is beyond that threshold-that it is. And you accept.

You accept because it's so beautiful. You accept because it's within you. You accept because it is you. You accept because it is a gift that you have received. And no more dualities.

So, peace is that place, not full of definitions, but full of feeling. And that's what you have to understand about peace.

And of course, you know, this is discussed more in the Peace Education Program, but this time, it's not about words but you're going to have to pay attention. And that, that's the big difference. That's really the big difference. And all of this for appreciation, to be able to appreciate what it means that you're alive, that you have this life.

You know, we don't even understand what to appreciate. We think we should appreciate our dog; we should appreciate our cat; we should appreciate our donkey; we should appreciate…. (I'm not saying you shouldn't; of course you should.)

But in life, there are some deeper things that are inside of you that you should also appreciate. So, appreciate this breath that comes into you. Appreciate this existence that you have. Appreciate every day that you're alive.

Now, these may sound really, really simple things to you-but I tell you one thing; it's a real challenge to do so. It is a real challenge because our training is not for that. Our training is to appreciate, "Look outside."

From the very young age that we were babies, when the mother wanted to distract us because we were crying or something like that, a toy, something that made noise, or something-and it's like, "Lookey-lookey, look at this! Look at this! (Forget about what you're feeling; look at this.) Look at this. This is more important."

Has it stopped since then? Now we're not babies anymore, perhaps. We are adults; we do things-but, has that stopped? No, again-now it's not the mother bringing these things to us. But now we bring these things to us: distractions-from? Appreciation of what is.

This life is. And it is the most magnificent gift that you will ever have. Every breath is priceless. Every moment, every day, every today that you receive is priceless-and its value and its importance to you, now….

And as I explained, what is that "now"-now is where your actions are going to take place, which will then have consequences for you, either good consequences or bad consequences. This is what's going on. And if you have no appreciation for that, then you're missing out on a whole part of your existence-that you're just not even paying attention to it, because there is no appreciation of that.

So, appreciation, as simple as it sounds, it's not quite like drinking a milkshake-because you have to see those things. And those things are so hidden from us-not because they are-but we have hidden them from us because we have brought in other things that we are so used to looking at.

And now it's a question of refocusing and finding those things that we can truly appreciate in our lives, that mean something to us from within-not from a trained idea, not from a trained definition, not from a trained, you know, (again and again and again), "This is how you should be; this is how you should be…."

Not appreciation of that-but appreciation of those things that are simple, that are profound, and that are so yours that they're amazing.

So, anyways-and then, of course, we'll be talking about "inner strength"-and the inner strength, you know, the thing is, well, the only kind of strength we know is either the strength of thought-or muscles. And so it's like, "Yeah, that's, that's what I"-and people want to be powerful. And how do they want to be powerful? Power. "Power, power, power," and the world's gone crazy over power.

And so people think, "If you have money, you have power. If you have big muscles, you have power. If you have a big brain, you have power."

But what is your inner strength? Inner strength cannot be measured by muscles; it cannot be measured by thought. It cannot be measured by these things-but the inner strength is your strength of your clarity, of your understanding, of your feeling, of your joy, of you! Your strength, your true, true, true, true strength.

The strength that can take you forward, the strength and the courage that you need in your life to move forward when everything tells you, "No. No, it's over." You know, because the world will-will, and yeah, the world's very well defined when it comes to that: "You have done this-it's over."

But it takes an incredible amount of inner strength to say, "No, I'm going forward. I'm going to move forward regardless of all this that is coming my way to stop me."

So, these are the things that are going to be talked about. "Self-awareness," knowing who you are, becoming aware that you are not just this bubbling pot of ideas and thoughts in your head. But there is a lot more going on; you have a heart; you have feelings; you have understandings; you have thirsts; you have your needs that need to be fulfilled. And it really comes down to knowing yourself.

Other things that are going to be talked about are "clarity, understanding, dignity, choice, hope and contentment." And, you know, and briefly about hope-yeah, and but I'm not talking about the hope of "keep your fingers crossed," you know, "let's hope everything goes our way."

That's not hope. That's just "wishful thinking." That's like, you know, you buy a lottery ticket and then you sit there and you go, "I hope that lottery ticket comes; I hope that lottery ticket comes; I hope that lottery ticket comes." That's not the hope that I am talking about.

The hope that I am talking about is that those basic things that you need in your life, (which, of course, you need the recognition of), to have those things fulfilled. To have the hope to go forward. When everything isn't clear, when everything is a little bit foggy, when everything isn't there, something to come along and say, "Continue, continue-and you will feel your way to that reality."

So, I mean, anyways, I could talk about this more, but let's wait for the Peace Education Program. I think it's going to be a lot of fun. And that's coming closer and closer.

And I hope you continue to enjoy. And then, you know, of course, I've got to get ready for the PEP-so I just want to remind you again. And we have prepared some nice clips that'll be shown every day, so something will be shown every day up to the point that PEP comes back and I will return with PEP.

So, it's really a wonderful…. I, I don't know; for me, it's like, it's a little bit tiring, (actually, quite a bit tiring), but it's exciting; it's fun to be able to talk about this, to be able to just talk to you about these beautiful things that I always go and talk about.

But in these circumstances, we can go beyond these circumstances; we can go beyond the ugliness of coronavirus; we can go beyond the ugliness of these things and come to a beautiful place, which is really within us. You know, so, your journey goes all the way and then it comes back to you. And how beautiful it is that it comes back, comes back to you.

So, take care; be well; be safe-and most importantly, be. Thank you.

Lockdown Broadcast Day 41

Hello, everyone; I hope you're all doing well. So, we already have gone through and done forty broadcasts-and I just want to take a little bit of time and try to explain to you what I'm planning on. Of course, you know, being, whatever the situation is, we have to be pretty fluid, whatever happens.

But the whole idea is this; that we're developing the Peace Education Program. Now, at the onset of these broadcasts, I had mentioned that that would be a really great thing to do-which I still believe that would be a really wonderful thing to do.

And so we're pulling together different materials to make this happen. And the reason for that is that it hasn't really happened this way. And so, the way I'm planning on, (and it could change at any time, so don't hold me to it), is basically, you will see-one day you will see the PEP.

And it's not all day long or anything like that; it's roughly half an hour, a little over, (it could be if my introduction gets in there)-and then there will be at least a couple of days for you to be able to write to us, the learnings that you have had. So, particularly paying attention to what the PEP would be, each one of the segments.

And then I will take all those and will select the pertinent ones-and I'm sure we're going to get a few that are not quite, you know, the brightest bulb on the Christmas tree, type of situation, but just to be able to take the ones that will help everybody go forward.

And I'll read those-and we will discuss that, (or I'll discuss that). And then we will go on to the next episode of the Peace Education Program. So, this is the way it will keep happening-and we may increase the time in between; we may decrease the time in between, one way or the other way.

The broadcasts have served, I think, a wonderful purpose. Also, one of the other things that I am thinking about is to do events. Now, what kind of events? Well, under these circumstances, they would be "virtual events."

And these virtual events would take place, of course, wherever I am in the lockdown; that's where these events will happen from. And they will be made available to you to watch. They will, of course, be longer than the ones that, the broadcasts that you have been watching.

So, this is kind of the plan that I am working with or proceeding towards. There's also wonderful stuff out there-one of the ones is the new podcasts that have come out, called the "Life's Essentials" podcasts. They are available through Apple Podcast or through Spotify-and they're really good-and you may want to go and check them out.

So, in between, we are also going to have quite a few videos that we will be showing. So, all this isn't just going to go dark by any, yeah, stretch of the imagination; there'll be a lot of material that'll be pushed out. I mean, believe me, one thing we do have is a lot, and a lot, a lot of material.

Then, of course, I have been doing this parallel thing, which is the Hindi broadcast-for all the Hindi-speaking people around the world. And of course, they had that question, too, "Whether you're going to do PEP in Hindi?"

So then I found out that the PEP that we have currently, it's mostly the ones that are in English-but then they're translated and so on. So what I want to do is kind of, do something a little fresher for them.

We don't have the means-I don't have the means to create and edit all of the new PEP-but I can do whatever I can do. I do have the list of all the items that are in the PEP, so there's "Peace, appreciation, inner strength, self-awareness, clarity, understanding, dignity, choice, hope and contentment." These are the topics that are discussed in PEP.

So I can try to create something in Hindi-well, I'll have to see. The Hindi ones, they are on the thirty-seventh broadcast, so a few more to go for them-and then that'll give me enough time to then work on the Peace Education Program and get the Peace Education Program done.

Like I have said many times before, look-and this is true for everything in this universe-you're only going to get what you put into it. You know, what you don't put into it, you know, if-there are a lot of people who might be shy, who might be like, "I don't know what this is." It's all good stuff. It's all things to help you think, think about a whole different way of what it is to be human.

I mean, a viewpoint, a perspective being provided to you that is other than, "Do this, this, this, this, and this," all these formulas that have existed for years and years and years and years and years and years and years and years-(and add a few more), on the face of this earth-and have really done nobody any good.

And so, you know, the calamities keep happening. You know, there were kings that-a long, long time ago, there were kings that would be really mean, who were not good, who were not generous, who were not fair to the people-and then the revolts happened and they were thrown out; they were kicked out.

So, all of this drama that you and we all are, you know-the plagues have happened before…. Plagues happen in Africa; virtually every year, these locusts come and wipe out everything and people have to go hungry.

And so many diseases, somewhere this disease is rising; somewhere that disease is rising; we've already been through MERS and SARS and bird flu and Ebola and all of these, you know-and so, here comes coronavirus and, you know, we're like, "Aaaah."

Of course, we should be very concerned-and we should take all the precautions that are necessary, but at the same time, we need to use our intelligence and experience and courage. You know, not go around spreading bad rumors, false stories-and work together for a better conclusion to this, collectively around the world. But of course, that's too much to ask.

You know, it's like, "No-no-no, we don't want any help. We don't want this; we don't want that; we don't…." But it would have been wonderful to see cooperation by the world leaders-and some sanity by the world leaders, looking at those leaders who have been successful and in ways, emulating them. But, you know, of course, that's too much to ask. So, eh, because, and that can go on and on and on.

But to me, the whole idea is to just provide another perspective, a reality that deals with you. You know, instead of everything else that you can do, that deals with you. That's what the Peace Education Program is. These are the things, how you can achieve the peace, the appreciation, the appreciation for your life, the inner strength that you have.

These are things that are not created; you don't have to go out and try to create them. These are the things that already exist inside of you. And all you are doing is allowing them to come out, to manifest.

You know, you know of your anger-but did you know that you also have clarity inside of you, that you have appreciation inside of you-and these things can actually make your life incredibly beautiful if they're applied in the right way. And that's what they're there for. Everybody is born with them.

I mean, yes, we are born with our anger; we are born with our fear; we are born with all of this stuff. But we're also born with a tremendous amount of beauty-and that's what peace is. That's what appreciation is. And appreciation just takes that little bit of an eye-and says, "Look, there is other stuff you can appreciate; there's so much more that you can appreciate."

And then, the inner strength. The strength that you have-which will come in handy. When the world defeats you, what are you going to do? You know, and a lot of people sit there and feel devastated. But you don't have to feel devastated. You can move; you can march; you can go forward. That's what Peace Education is all about.

Self-awareness, being aware of who you are, what you are, what your positives are-this is so important in this life. And in everyday navigation, you need to know exactly where you are on that map-and in the map of life, being aware of yourself, which is incredibly, incredibly important.

Clarity, the power of clarity, to be able to see. Because when problems come, I can assure you, everybody, everybody, when they are inundated with the problems, everything goes foggy. It's not clear; it goes foggy.

In that moment, you have to have something that pierces that fog, and that's called "your clarity." This is what you need. You know, when…. And, for instance, I say this many times. When you turn on a light in a dark room, you don't create the objects that are in that room. You simply illuminate those objects that are in that room.

So, if you want to go from one end to the other end of the room-and maybe there are obstacles. You couldn't see those obstacles-and when it was dark, you, maybe you were tripping on those obstacles, getting hurt.

But if you turn on the light, now you can see those obstacles-and how does that help you? Now you can circumnavigate them; you can go around them and go to where you are going. That's so important in life. That's what that clarity is.

To have the understanding. Understanding, of course, the importance of every moment-but understanding "What's going on in this situation; what is really happening?" To have a view-but literally, to have a bird's-eye view of the situation.

It's like an understanding, to literally have a view that you are not caught emotionally in, but you can look at it-and say, "Ah, there is a problem; there is a problem; there is a problem."

You know, somebody, maybe, has a car and it's not running well. So, somebody can say, "Let's change the paint job." But if you have any understanding of that car, you'll say, "Well, the paint job isn't the problem."

You know, whatever the problem is, if the engine isn't starting, then there are certain things you can look to, why the engine isn't working. Maybe you're out of fuel; maybe the spark plugs are gone. If the vehicle isn't-when it's driving, it's not driving properly, maybe one of the tires is busted. Maybe the driveshaft fell off. These things can happen.

But it takes some kind of understanding. Same thing in life. It takes some kind of an understanding to say, "Look, I need to go forward, not be stuck in this place. I'm wasting my time being stuck."

So, understanding can be incredibly simple-but so profound. Even that little bit of understanding, "I don't want to be stuck; I want to go forward; I want to make the most of my life." So, that's your understanding.

Dignity! I mean, my God, the world works so hard to take a person's dignity away. You realize what I'm talking about here, the dignity that is so important, that every human being has that dignity in their life.

You-if you are just a normal, common human being, you are nobody. "Get in the line. Get in the back of the line." You're going to go-you're going to get no exceptions. You-if you are a normal human being, you will get no exceptions. Nothing. Nothing! A VIP, "Oh, yeah, cut in this line; do this; do this; do this; do this."

You know, dignity-people try to take your dignity away. But you have to hang onto your own dignity-to whatever you do in this world, that you do it from that place, not of…. I'm not talking about an egomaniac; I'm talking about dignity, that strength, that clarity, knowing-that, with that smile, knowing: "It's okay." That dignity.

The choice! The most important thing: choice. This is what makes everything valid in this crazy world; you have a choice. You always have a choice. This is your way out. This is how you can do what needs to get done, because you have a choice. You don't have to be the victim every single time. You have a choice-you can be making that choice in your life.

Hope. Not "hope" of the drama of the printer that keeps printing these pictures every fifteen minutes and saying "This is what you want; this is what you want; this is what you want."

But hope-"That, yes, things will get better; things will improve; that I can go forward." Hope that is actually built on a very solid foundation, not on a lot of beliefs-but is actually built on very, very solid foundations.

And then, contentment. Contentment, to be content inside, from inside. Instead of just constantly going, "I need this; I need this; I need this; I need this," no, understand your needs. Because you've got your needs so confused with your wants.

So many people in this world will never feel contentment in their life because they have got their wants and their needs all mixed up. You will be content if you understood what your needs are. And if your needs are taken care of, you will be content.

So, these are the topics of the Peace Education Program-and I look forward to joining you again with the Peace Education Program. If, in the meantime, I get some idea or some thought and I want to share with you, of course, I'm going to produce a broadcast and let you know what that is.

So, if you want to check out the "Life's Essentials" podcasts through Apple Podcasts or Spotify, they are available. And till then, keep enjoying; keep watching. There's so much to watch, just from these series alone-so many of them have been done. So, enjoy those-and all the new videos that'll be put up, enjoy those.

And till PEP is ready-I will see you then. Take care; be safe; be well. And most importantly, be-and enjoy yourself. Thank you.

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Lockdown Broadcast Day 50

Hello, everyone. I hope you're all doing well-and prospering somehow, even in these quite difficult circumstances of coronavirus, and a lot of this craziness going on here and there….

But I just want to take this time and tell you what I have been doing. First, I was quite tired, so I needed to take a little time off-which I did-and that felt really good. And the second is, as you may be able to see, I have changed the whole setup-so that took a few days to change everything around.

And most importantly, I've been working on, you know, like I had said, PEP. And it's going through some transformations and we'll see where it all ends up, but I'm excited about it and I'm looking forward to it.

So, you know, while I'm at it, I may as well say a few things that might help you. And one thing that did come to mind is, it's very interesting. You could, you know, not have had water for two days, three days, but just a little bit of water can quench your thirst. You could be hungry for quite a few days, and a little bit of food could satisfy your hunger.

The good in you, it's not an issue of quantity; it is whether you are in touch with that goodness that is inside of you or not. If you are, that's what it takes.

So, yes, you know, it's easy enough to look at all the confusing things that are going on in this world-and people are very confused. Some people don't see life as priority; they see economics as priority-and, you know, that's, of course, up to them, how they want to look at it. And they're probably thinking that even if we were to live, and we had nothing to eat, what would it be like?

So, certainly, one thing that is true-that this is a time of uncertainty. And in this uncertainty, the best thing you can do is just become fluid. So, go with it; go with the flow.

It's like, if you are swimming in the ocean and you get caught in the rip current, don't fight it. Just let it take you out-and then you can come around. And it's the same thing. In this time of uncertainty, there are a lot of ideas going on; there's a lot of fake news going around; there is a lot of "This will do it; this will do it; this will do it."

And most importantly, this incredible desire, I think, of so many people-that everything will go back to being where it was. Because for some reason, "everything was fine." Well, if everything was fine, how did we end up in this pickle?

So, really, this is an opportunity to go beyond just "everything is fine," and get to a point which is truly looking at a perspective that will benefit the whole humanity.

Right now, one thing that I see that is really, really important-is that we need to break down these virtual walls that we have created, and we need to look at the whole world as one unit, as one entity.

We need to look at all the human beings that are on the face of this earth, truly, as our family-and to recognize that every single human being has something to contribute positively to this world.

Now, there are some people who definitely are not like that. To them, it's like, you know, "More, more, more. Give me more; give me more." But there is a lot of good.

And this is what I was talking about-it is not the quantity…. A lot of people think, "Well, you know, it's like, scales and you have to have enough of it." No. You don't have to have more clarity than the total sum of confusion that you have-you don't.

All you have to have is enough clarity so that you can see clearly regardless of the amount of confusion that you have. It has nothing to do with quantity. It has to do with simply it being there.

Because, it's not like if you have a huge room, you know, that's maybe-and the room is 500 feet by 500 foot room, that you need a huge flashlight to light it up. No, you don't. You can still have a very small flashlight-and that flashlight can definitely illuminate a small room, and it can also help illuminate a large room.

And the same way, in our lives, it's not that-a lot of people get into it, it's like, "Oh, yes, I have to have this thing, you know, and it has to be this way and it has to be that way." Maybe in the outside world, this is true-but on the inside world, it's a matter of just having that focus, having that clarity, having that understanding, having that thirst in your life to go forward.

You know, and we are not always in touch with the thirst that we have. We need to be in touch with that thirst that we have-that at the base of it, the basics of it, it really has a lot to do with what my, or our, fundamental needs are. Because if we don't take care of those fundamental needs, that the whole equation isn't going to work.

You know, it's, so, okay, an analogy: you packed a wonderful picnic-you wanted to go for a picnic and, you know, that sounds like a great idea, so you pack a wonderful picnic. You go out-and you find the most wonderful spot-and I mean, it's just incredible.

And you have quite a spread and wonderful sandwiches, snacks, this, that-and of course, you have wonderful drinks. But you forgot the bottle opener. And now, all those drinks that you brought that are just wonderful, you have no access to them.

So, one thing, which is a bottle opener, has so much to do with giving you access to that liquid that you would so thoroughly enjoy, even though you would never eat or drink the bottle opener-ever-but it gives you access to that.

Your heart, your understanding is like that. Understanding, understanding, understanding, understanding-moving forward, moving forward, moving forward, moving forward.

You know, it's like a stepladder. "Okay, I've taken that step; I've taken the next step; I've taken that step; I've taken that step"-and next thing you know, you're gaining height and you are getting closer and closer to that, whatever it is that you want to reach. That's what it takes. That's what it takes.

In our lives, life is simple; we are simple. We have become very, very good at thinking. There are two parts to us. One part is the thinker, very good at thinking. We have honed that skill for many, many, many, many, many a generation, books we have written, and we have inspired other people to think.

Then there is another part. And it's just as important, if not more important-because we are human beings. What is that other part of us? And that part of us is the part that feels. We need to feel-this is a human trait.

We can think-but that's it. Unless we take those thoughts and convert it into action, it doesn't make any sense. You know, you could be thinking whatever you're thinking-but it's not going to do anything.

If there's a glass of water sitting in front of you and you're thirsty-and you're going, (in your thoughts), "It would be really great if I could have that glass of water; it would be really wonderful if I could have that glass of water," but you haven't taken your hand and reached for that glass and have that drink, your thirst isn't going to be quenched.

Not with thought, you can't do it-and people try to do it, where it's like, "Oh, think this," and "Think positive" and "Think this" and "Think that." Well, you know, whatever it's worth, thinking positive isn't bad-but sooner or later, you have to come across the positive in your life to really feel the positive.

And the beautiful thing is that that positive that you need to feel is actually inside of you. It's all there-the peace that you need to feel is inside of you. The appreciation that you need to feel is inside of you. The understanding that you need to feel is inside of you-and we're talking about "feel" now, see, not "think."

And here is the crux of what I talk about. A lot of people will come and they will get you to think-well, me too. But at the end of that thinking, I want you to think, think, and think-and maybe I'll inspire you to think a certain way. And that way is that "Goodness, I also need to feel." And that you would possibly take some actions that will lead you to that feeling.

This is what it is all about, that you need to feel the peace, not just talk about the peace, not have a list that says, "I have accomplished this; I have accomplished this; I have accomplished this, so I must be in peace." No. You have to feel the peace.

You have to feel love. You cannot just say, "Okay, I've done this; I have done this; I have done this; I have done this."

You know, there are a lot of people and they wonder why they're not successful in relationships. Well, the reason why they're not successful in relationships is because they think their relationship, instead of feeling the love in that relationship. If you don't have that love, it's going to stop-everything is going to stop. You can't think it, you know? It doesn't work that way.

Right now, there are people, you know, who are in lockdown-and, you know, for some people, the situation is quite difficult-because they are with people that really don't get along together very well. Well, this is not about thinking; it's about feeling. And you have to let go for that understanding to develop to say, "Okay, I really love this person."

And look at the good! Look at the good that is in your relationship-not the bad that's in your relationship, but the good that is in your relationship, the good that is in you. And it's not the amount of quantity.

Then, people want the quantity; they want "equal measure of this, equal measure of that…." This is all fine in your thinking, but in reality, that's never going to be that way. It's never going to be that way.

You'd think that there are these people who have billions and billions and billions and billions of dollars-I mean, there are people in this world who can't even imagine having that much money.

And you think that these people are happy, now that they have this much money? No, they work every day; they want more; they want more; they want more; they want more; they want more. This is the nature of that: "I want more. I want more." And this is in the thinking.

In the feeling, it is quite the reverse. In the feeling: "I feel. I feel love. I feel-I feel happy. I feel content.” And it's not a question of "more." It's, "I'm fine." It doesn't even go there, you know; it doesn't even go to "more or less." It never does. You feel content, you feel content. And it isn't like, "More…."

You are in love, you are in love-and it's like, "I can't"-it's, you don't talk about "more, I want to be more in love." No, you are in love, you are in love.

And this is the way it has to be-because it is that way-and it is beautiful that it is that way. These are the traits of what you can feel in your life.

So, you know, thinking is good-but so is feeling. And you cannot just have one in your life, one thing-it's, that would be like, you know, having your one eye closed all the time; that would be like not using one ear all the time; that's like not using half of your mouth all the time.

You know, that's not like breathing with both nostrils all the time. It's like only walking with one leg, and not with the other leg, you know-if you had both legs working, of course.

So it's, you know, yes, you have two legs but it's not like one is spare; you need those two legs. You have two arms; you need those two arms. You have two eyes and you need the two eyes to give you the perception, the depth perception. You have two ears; you need those to give you the sense of the hearing, the direction that you need.

And this, in your life, translates into a very beautiful thing-and that thing really happens to be that you need to feel-not only think, but you need to feel. To feel the joy in your life, that one thing that it isn't a question of "more"; it is "I feel it. I feel it."

You know, when-and I see this many times going through airports. And you see people standing and they're waiting for their loved ones to come from the airplane to, you know, walk down the aisle-way. And they're waiting for them there.

And when they see that face of that loved one that they have been waiting for-and you know, sometimes these stories are, of course, dramatically touching. Because they've been waiting and waiting and waiting, you know, maybe for years to see this person, and finally, they see that person.

And when they see that person, it isn't like, "Oh, wait, wait, I'm going to wait-because I want more of this person." No, that immediately their smile opens up; their eyes are laughing; their body is saying it and sometimes, you know, they can't help themselves and tears are rolling down the eyes….

"More, less," the scales on the ruler have gone-the scales are just gone! It's just reality; it's just "I got it. I got it. I got it."

And that's the way it is, you know-and it's the same thing when you're first, you learn how to ride a bicycle. You try and you fall and you try and you fall and you-you keep going. I mean, you, you know, you've got to keep up with it; you've got to keep on going.

And then all of a sudden, you got it. And when you got it, you got it. It's not like "I got more of it; I got less of it." No, you, of course you're going to fall, still-but you got it. You got it.

So, that feeling-and particularly, feeling for the joy, feeling for what is in you-is this wonderful, wonderful thing.

So, I hope you think about that a little bit, and do convert it into reality of feeling-feel, feel the joy; feel the peace. Feel the thirst; feel the need-and feel good! And feel the goodness that is in you. And let those things be the things that drive you forward. Because that's a wonderful thing, like, if you can drive yourself forward with that, that's just powerful, very, very powerful.

So, I hope that helps. And I will periodically keep checking back and letting you know where things are at. So, yes, working on the Peace Education Program.

Most likely, though, it's not going to be called "Peace Education Program." It's going to be called something else. And there is a reason why I have to have it that way, but I've got my, you know, logic to my madness, (or whatever you want to call it), but that's what it's going to be, most likely.

And it's going to be modified, quite a bit modified. The essence is not in the training, believe me. The essence is in you. The training is there as a tool to help you accomplish some of those things that would be wonderful in your life.

But the main thing is in you; it's not in the training. I mean, like you have just, you have always heard this expression, "You know, you can drag a horse to water but you can't make him drink it."

So, not that you are a horse or anything. But, you know, the best training, if you don't have a want in you to have a new threshold in your life, to better the possibility of who you are-already who you are, to discover that, that joy that resides in your heart, the understanding of that-then, you know, if you don't want to, no training is going to help you.

But if you want to, then the training is there. And it's a very simple training; it's a very beautiful training. And that's what it's all about.

And, I mean, I'm just-in a way, I'm shocked of how simple it is. Because it's just a matter of paying attention. It's just a matter of paying attention. It's not, you know, over the moon or some mysterious thing; no, it's not. It's just paying attention.

That when somebody says, you know, "What you're looking for is inside of you," instead of going, "Umm, that's interesting," and that's the end of it-but paying attention to it.

And again I just want to reiterate that, one of the things you're going to have to do is-so, the training will happen one day, and it's not very long-and then you will be given a couple of days to think about it and get the feedback.

And then I will go over those feedbacks and, (not every one of them, but some of them), and have a discussion-it'll be a one-way kind of discussion but, have a discussion-and then we will proceed.

I've never done it like this, virtually, so I am as much in that experimental mode, but I'm excited about it-as you might be. So, let's have fun! Let's-I mean, that's the whole point of it; it's not the seriousness of it; it's just to have fun, and to enjoy ourselves.

Along with this little message that I have for you today, I just want to wish all of the mothers in this world a Happy Mother's Day! This is what is coming too, and wonderful to take this opportunity and to wish everyone who is a mother, Happy Mother's Day. Thank you.

Lockdown Broadcast Day 61

It's been a while, but here I am again. And doing a lot of things, as you can see; this is all a new setup getting ready for the PEP. And, you know, taking care of things, and as slowly, things start opening up, the possibilities of starting off and going different places are looking better and better, whenever that happens….

The most important thing, of course, is to stay safe-for you, for me, for all of us. You know, and if it's two more weeks or four more weeks, or whatever it happens to be, it's okay. You know, just stay fluid like water. Remember that tree that knows how to bend, how to flex in the wind-and by that flexibility, it is actually assuring itself a long life-so that's really wonderful.

Anyways, so what inspired me to come out here and talk to you? Well, I was saving the questions-but there was one question that came up that got me thinking. And let me begin with a little story. So, I hope you're not bored with this, but this could be, you know, your mouth could start salivating-but let me talk to you about a samosa. And so, what is a samosa?

So, it's a thin dough-and it's whole wheat dough, but it's thin. And you make a filling. And one of the very popular fillings in India is potato. And you add, you know-everybody has their own version of samosa filling.

So, why am I talking about a samosa? Well, so it hit me that there was a time when I was a little boy-and I remember this particular day, because what happened was all my brothers and my mother and some other relatives, they all decided to go to the movies. And they weren't going to take me; I was too young, I guess.

So I stayed home-but I was devastated. I remember I was absolutely devastated that I wasn't going to get to go. And I was crying and it was terrible.

So, my father happened to be at home-which was rather rare, because he would always be traveling somewhere-but he happened to be home that day. And he was, you know, a little concerned that I was crying. And so he said, "Why are you crying?" And I said, "Well, you know, they didn't take me. So, I'm, I'm"-I was heartbroken. (I didn't tell him that, but I was.)

And he says, "Okay, you and I will go and have a good time." So I said, "All right." It wasn't going to be the good time that I had imagined-because it was a real suffering from my idea of how it should be-they didn't take me and I was, you know, I was devastated….

So, he took me, and we ended up going to this restaurant-and I was a little boy-and I remember this. And I remember he ordered-he looked at me and he says, "Would you like to eat something?" And I said "Yes," and he said, "Okay, how about a samosa?" And I said, "Oh, that sounds good." And I said, "I'm also going to have some ice cream."

So, believe me, I have had a lot of samosas and I do have ice cream-but that day, that particular day, that samosa and that ice cream, I remember.

Do I remember the filling of that samosa? Absolutely not. Do I remember what kind of ice cream was it that I had that day? Absolutely not. I don't know if it was vanilla, it was strawberry or it was chocolate. But, boy, I tell you, it was the best samosa and it was the best ice cream that I have ever had in my life.

Now, I had-another time I had samosa, and it was really delicious. And, you know, samosa having that thin dough and then it's deep-fried, the caramelization happens and it gets crispy. And it's just, the aroma, the-you know, it's just amazing. Umami is just amazing.

And this particular day, I was traveling-I was older-I was traveling. And the people where I was, where I had started from had forgotten to pack the lunch-they had packed the lunch but they had forgotten to give it to us.

So I was really, really hungry and so we pulled over, and there was a little place on the side of the road. And this samosa filling I remember-and it was this, just the simplest samosa filling-it was the potato, a little bit of black pepper, salt, little bit of chilies, (chopped green chilies and a little bit of red chilies), and coriander.

And so it was just, when you bit into it, that umami of the fried bread was there; the dough-and the potato, you could taste it, the coriander, the pepper-and the salt and the chilies. And all of these flavors and the smells were there. So, anyways, my mouth is watering; I don't know about yours…. But it was just something that really hit the spot.

So, now, why am I telling you about samosas? Well, you see, that other one, that other samosa I had that was the best samosa I've ever had-and the best ice cream I have ever had-had nothing to do with the flavor, had nothing to do with that particular stuffing. It had to do with the company that I had-and how much it meant to me.

And so, sometimes we don't understand what "good" is. So, anyways, now let me come back to what caused me to, you know, what-this question that I saw and it really got me going….

So, the question was, "What if the bad wolf ate the good wolf?" So for, (if some of you don't know this story), I'll just very quickly reiterate the story. A little boy traveling with the tribe came to the chief and said, "Chief, I have a question." Chief said, "What?" He goes, "Well, why is it that some people who are good sometimes are bad the other times?"

And the chief said, "Because there is a good wolf in us and there is a bad wolf in us, and they fight." And so the boy thought about it, and then a few minutes later he said to the chief; he says, "Which one wins?" And he said, "Well, the one you feed. So if you feed the bad wolf, it gets strong; if you feed the good wolf, it gets strong."

So, when I first read the question, I giggled-I mean, I'm sorry but I giggled, because it's like, well, you know, here I talk about these stories; I give these analogies-and here is somebody giving this analogy back to me, "What if the bad wolf ate the good wolf?" I mean, "Ate the good wolf?" And then I started thinking about it-"Is that even possible-the good and the bad?"

So, that's where the samosa example comes in-and by the way, samosa is not from India; it's from Persia, and it was developed at the court. A lot of people used to come and they would be standing all day long to hear the verdict of the king, you know, and in different cases, and so there was nothing for them to eat….

Somebody came up with the idea, "A little bit of bread, fry it; stuff it with something," and it became samosa. And of course, when-anything that makes it to India becomes Indian very quickly. And Indians have made it their own-and done a fabulous job of it.

So, good is much bigger than you realize. And the bad is much bigger than you realize-it is more than the sum of your life-it's huge; it's massive. This unsettled war of the good and the bad has played out on the face of this earth as far back as stories go-they are about the good and the bad. It is all about the good winning over the bad.

And how far does that go? (Not in terms of time), but how big is that good? Because if that good wasn't good-and that good wasn't big, then in this life, things become uncertain. If truly it was possible for the bad wolf to ever eat the good wolf, we're in trouble; we're in serious, serious trouble.

But then, if you remember what Krishna says, "That even in your darkest moment, I will not abandon you." There-that's about the good: "You will not be abandoned," even if it seemed to you that the bad wolf is eating the good wolf or has eaten the good wolf-as dark as it gets!

Because for me, that day when I didn't get to go with my family, (my brothers, my mother), I was devastated. You know, there wasn't the good wolf coming along and saying, "No, it's, you know, it's all right; you don't need to worry about it; you don't need to be bothered." I was very bothered; I was crying.

And it had such an impact on me, the bad-and then, going to the good, the most wonderful samosa and the most wonderful ice cream; I mean, my goodness, you know, that flavor…. That you've got that hot samosa, the crispy samosa, the salty samosa, and then you take a bite of that cold ice cream. I mean….

You know, and of course, the temperature of the ice cream has to be right. Because if it's too liquidy, it won't taste good. And if it's too cold and it's like a brick, it won't taste good-so, everything was just right. But more than that-it was the company.

So there is something that is good that goes beyond the scope of everyday activity that you're involved with. That everything that happens in your life, for whatever the period is, five years, six years, two years, one day, one minute, one second, whatever, there is a good that prevails. And it's much, much, much, much bigger than you realize.

Never underestimate the value of darkness; it's huge. It is very powerful; it's very potent. But for us human beings on the face of this earth, whatever our challenges may be, there is a good-and that good is more powerful, is backed up by more. There is a power behind it. There is a strength behind it. And this is the strength that we have to, in our lives, latch onto-the strength of the good.

To remember that even in my darkest hour, I am not abandoned. I may feel abandoned, but I'm not abandoned. Because I haven't latched on; I haven't made it my home, the goodness that is in me. I haven't made that good wolf my companion. Not just something that I feed, but that that goodness becomes my companion.

And that that other wolf is something that I stay away from. Not only is a question of feeding it, but I stay away from it-because that's something that I don't want a relationship…. I want my relationship with the good, with what is powerful. Because this is who I am.

You know, what is the difference between day and night? Not much. There are the stars; there is the planet Earth, still going around and round and round. But there is a huge difference. And that difference is that during that day, there is the light of the sun and I can see. And that seeing makes all the difference-that I can be, now, awake. It's not just that I can see, but I am awake too.

And that I have a fundamental need to sleep-and it works very well when the darkness comes because I need that darkness to be able to fall asleep in.

So, one great disadvantage is that when it is dark, I don't know what's out there. I need to know that. If somebody is challenged visually, they use a stick to figure out what's out there. But we need to know what is out there.

And the same thing about the good in our life. That is the beautiful, truly the beautiful, amazingly the beautiful that resides in the heart of every single person that is alive.

Now, you know, of course, there are people-I'm sure they're going off on this tangent of, "And this could have happened, and that could have happened and, you know, there are people out there that have done horrible things, that have done terrible things."

True. I'm not saying that that's not true. But as a human being, we always carry in us the possibility of a change-that we can go from darkness to light. That this war that we engage in can be won. That it isn't about winning every single battle, but it is about winning the war. And we can win that war. We can win.

I mean, I know that we're faced with this challenge-and, you know, seeing this, how governments are reacting to it-absolutely unbelievable.

I mean, here is a moment in which humanity needs to come first, not politics. Humanity needs to come first-that those people who are going off and harping on these politics and politics and making this a game and making this a terrible thing, really need in their lives to understand that they are, first of all, they are human beings.

And their decisions of how they handle things affect so many other human beings. So many people that die-and now, I read, so, and they want to manipulate the data! I mean, okay, they've been manipulating the data ever since, so it's not going to be a big shock to anybody.

Because, you know, one of the things is-and this is true, that not all politicians are like this-but I think they all take an oath, or most of them who are just, have got their head buried somewhere else, take an oath that-they take an oath of telling the truth all the time, that they will always lie. (And something like that.)

Because it seems to be so confusing, with "Do this and don't do this; do this; don't do this." And it's all about ego….

But here is a chance to do something good. And if-and here is my point of it. If they can't do it, you can-because you find the goodness in you. And you keep safe-and you keep your neighbors safe. And you keep the people around you safe-because the good is in you.

And what are you doing to do when this coronavirus is no more, and everything goes back to, quote-unquote, "being normal"? Are you going to remember this period? Are you going to bring out your best? Again, not measuring how much, but bringing out your best-because it is in you? Are you going to let that shine? Are you going to let that manifest?

Or are you going to be like, "Well, I don't have the time for it"-another excuse. You have time to make excuses-and as human beings, we are very good at excuses: "I don't have the time; I'm too busy; I'm this; I'm that." And yet, your life; you make the decision.

So, going back to my samosas and ice cream and everything else, just to remember how powerful this possibility is. And one thing that I have to say-and my father used to say this; I'm saying it-that the seed is never destroyed; the seed is always there.

So, yes, the seed of bad is never destroyed-but the seed of good is never destroyed. You can hold your head and go, "Oi, you know, it's all over," or "the seed of bad is never going be destroyed," but the good news here is not that-the good news here is that the seed of the good will never be destroyed. And you carry that good inside of you.

And it's much bigger. However long you're going to live, however, whatever is going on in your life, the seed and the cycle of the goodness is more, is bigger than you. It's huge; it's massive.

So, I don't know-I thought that there were so many questions being asked that are actually connected to this question. So, answering this particular question, (which, at first, I thought it was hilarious)-but then when I started thinking about it, I saw the depth of what it means.

This is the drama that's been playing out-again and again and again and again; this is what Mahabharat was all about; this is what Ramayan was all about-that the good won. The good was victorious.

And at the end of the day, we always, all of us, have to make that effort to make the good win in our lives every day. And if it can be boiled down to that, sure.

Now, when pain comes, when trouble comes, you know, that flattens us. It's like, pegged against the wall, "What are you going to do? Oh my God, oh, this is terrible; this is horrible."

But-there is something else too-and that "something else" is bigger than the sum of all the problems that are on the face of this earth. And there are a lot of problems on the face of this earth, a lot; I mean, from small problems to huge problems….

And just imagine what's happening in this world today. You know, whatever is happening in your little life is happening in your life, but imagine what is happening. Somebody was just born-just born. Another person was just born. Somebody just died. They're gone-they're gone forever. They're never going to come back.

Somebody just became really rich. Somebody just became really poor. Somebody just lost their way. Somebody just found their way. The dramas that are going on all the time out there, they're not trivial. They affect human beings deeply.

But the way that the good affects the human being is also very unique. And that goes back to "I don't remember the filling of the samosa but it was the most delicious samosa; I remember that. I don't know what kind of ice cream it was-but it was the most delicious ice cream I have ever had, bar none." And I have had some good ones, but nothing as delicious as that.

So, stay safe; be well. Stay fluid. This thing hasn't played out yet. You know, God knows-it's, what some of the politicians are doing just to make a name for themselves-they have no interest, human interest in sight. That it's just about their name, their fame, their two minutes of glory-at your expense. At your expense.

I don't want to talk about that so much-because I can talk about the good that is in you. And that is much bigger than all those trivial little things that still have to play out with this coronavirus thing-this coronavirus thing has got everybody-it's got everybody's attention like you wouldn't believe.

Now, if we give the attention to the good inside of us, we will have a different world, a beautiful world. So, again, be well; be safe. Take care of yourself. And I'll talk to you soon. Thank you.

Lockdown Broadcast Day 75

Prem Rawat:

Hello, everyone. I hope you're doing well. I've been busy trying to get things ready. Pretty soon we should be announcing the Peace Education Program-and that, I'm looking forward to it.

But we are coming very close to chapter three of this coronavirus thing. It's, I figured the chapter one was when it all started-and most countries were just gobsmacked of what's going on; didn't do anything.

And the second chapter was, you know, when they all jumped on it and started to finally take notice of it. And chapter three, kind of is coming out of it-and that's, of course, been very, very interesting. And I do realize that that will open up the possibility for me to travel….

Of course, it's going to provide its own challenges. I'm not going to have meetings in any way, shape, or form, where this coronavirus, COVID-19 could spread. So, that's, you know, just looking at what can be done and how things can be done-but we'll figure it out.

The main thing is for you to be focused on what really is happening. And what really is happening, by the way, is not this COVID-19 thing; it's not this virus taking over. What's really happening-that's unique-it's been happening for a while but it's still unique…. And that is that you exist, that you're alive.

What are you doing to address that? That's the issue; that's the question. Because in addressing that, a lot of things get put right. ("Get put right," like what?) Like an immense amount of joy, immense amount of clarity, immense amount of understanding, immense amount of focus.

Because this existence, this "being alive" is more than just doing what the world has told you to do. You realize that you do what you do, not because you want to do it-but these are the customs, traditions, rules that you simply grew up with, and when you were a little child, you simply accepted them.

Your mother, father, told you "Do this, otherwise, go to your room." And you decided after a while, "Room is no fun; I'll cave in; I'll do what my mom and dad want me to do."

So, is that a bad thing? Is that a bad thing to cave into these rules and regulations? Of course not. We have to have some rules-we're going to have rules. Even if your rule is not to follow those rules, that's a rule. So, we're going to-well, you're going to end up with a rule anyways.

But there is another kind of rule that you need to pay attention to-and it's not a rule, but it's an opportunity. And the opportunity is that you're alive. And that that means something. That that's the unique thing. All this other stuff, it's happened before. Nineteen-eighteen, Spanish flu, virus, Ebola. Many things, bird flu.

So, will there be more? Of course. Of course. Were there more before, that people didn't, you know, get savvy to-of course. But what's unique is, you are alive. And when is this going to happen again? Nobody knows. No one knows.

When are you going to come back? No one knows-could be millions of years, could be billions of years. But right now, here you are. You exist. And this is how it is.

The other day I came out and I was headed downstairs. And I looked up-and then I could see the stars, and I could see the moon-there was still a little bit of light; the sun was setting. It was beautiful.

And it just gave me a pause, just to think, "These heavenly bodies, these stars, these-the moon, everything out there, they have existed and seen…." And I don't know if I can use the word, "seen." Because I don't think there is, you know, anybody out there looking at it and going, "Yeah, well, there it is," so maybe "seen" isn't the right word.

But they've been there as all these dramas played out. And geologically speaking, this is just that. Just that-just a second. Just a bat of an eye-and it'll be over.

And in this "bat of an eye," there you are. And in your life, in your existence, it isn't about a "bat of an eye." It is about you wanting, wanting something, wanting to be happy.

You know, I'm not going to go into what happiness is-but wanting to be happy, wanting to be content. And if we just remove the word "happiness" and just say, "Basically, you want to feel good." That you don't want to be worried-worried about tomorrow, about the consequences.

But you just want to feel alive, feel good. You want to be able to look at the moon, and admire its beauty and take it in. You want to look at that beautiful sunset, admire its beauty and take it in. And feel a part of it-because that same dirt that that moon is made from, that that sun is made from, you are made from.

And you want to be free; you want to be free from all the encumbrances you feel, all the weight that you feel on you. And if somehow, this life could be, not about tomorrow, but about today-about where I give action to my thoughts…. And when I take those thoughts and convert them into actions, now they become irreversible, unchangeable.

And I just want to feel good-that I lived for contentment, that I lived for happiness, for joy-that I lived for those reasons that are worth living! And I understood why I am here. That it wasn't a mystery; that I didn't live in this mystery, but I lived in clarity.

And it was obvious. Huh? "Obvious," yeah, that's the keyword, obvious. Not that somebody told me-and so I believed it: "I read it in a book, so I believe it." No, it became obvious-clear. And then, living this life is (taah) so simple-becomes full of joy.

So, is that the way it is for me every day? No. All of those other things, all of those things of this: "What's going to happen here; what's going to happen here; who said that, person said that; oh, well, what's this; what's that…?"

But when I am not in that, and I have that moment of clarity…. You see, clarity isn't about hours, and clarity isn't about minutes, but a moment will do-because its consequences are long; the effects of that clarity are long.

That I can feel that I am alive, that I live. And I regard that feeling of being alive as the most precious feeling. That it's important to me. That I understand that my little world revolves around that, of being alive. Then I know. Then I understand. Then it's okay. Now I don't have to look…. And I don't have to drown in the sea of "why."

"Why, why this; why that; why that; why that; why…." Because "why," it-hey, when I was little, maybe it started off as "Why, why, why do I have to do this; why do I have to do that; why is the moon there, why is the sun there; why is the earth round; why is this; why the…."

Oh, no, no, no, no, no, and then by the time I get older, it-all that changes to "Why, why am I sad; why…?" See, it gets-from wondering what moon is like-and "why the moon…?"

Because somebody asked that-that's, somebody asked that question. And it's like, "The universe doesn't care. Why am I here?" Why are you here; you don't know? Because obviously, there is a reason. This much you must understand.

The person actually wrote, it's like, you know, "The universe doesn't care." It's not about the universe, my friend. It's about you looking at the universe that matters. This is what has been made possible-not the universe looking at you, you looking at the universe.

This is what it's about. Me being alive; you being alive. Us understanding our existence. This is the beautifulness, the beauty, the joy! Every day, to wake up to this possibility. Every day, wake up-to wake up! Because everything else that we associate with, everything else that we give as a "meaning to our lives" with, that's not it. That's not it.

Somebody once brought a very expensive car. And I said, "Oh, what a nice car you have." (And I, I'm into cars; I like cars.) And that person said to me, "So, should I be driving one of these?" (It was a, rather an expensive car.) And I said, "You look good in it. Why not? Absolutely, if that's what you want to do, do it."

But it's not about that. That's not the reason why your life is important. Because you run a big business, that's not the reason…. Is there a problem running a big business? No. It's all about all of that that you do-but also do that that has become a possibility because you are alive on the face of this earth.

So, what is that? That is you, (not your kin, not your friend), but you filled with joy.

Yeah, somebody, it's like, "Oh, yeah, you know…?" But I see people-and sometimes they're devastated because they've lost everything they had. This one guy, a long time ago, came to me and he says, "Oh, I've got a problem." And I said, just said, "But yes, what's your problem?" And he said, you know, "I lost my business."

I said, "Umm, tell me something. You were born with this business?" And he goes, "No, no, no, I built it up." And I said, "I bet you learnt a lot, building it up, huh?" He goes, "Oh, yeah, I learnt a lot; I made a lot of mistakes." So I said, "Good. You learnt a lot-now do it again. Do it again-build your business up-and make sure you don't make the same mistakes; you will do it quicker."

So, he looked at me like, you know, "Okay." And I said, "But there's something else. You think you are here for this business? That your happiness is associated with this business? It's not.

"Your happiness has something to do with you, with your resources that are within you. And if you can find them-and you can find the joy that resides in you, then you can run your business-and you will not be looking for that one thing that your business can never give you. You will not be looking at this world for what this world can never give you."

And that is, my friends, that clarity, that joy, that fulfillment. This world, there's nothing…. I mean, the world can give you a lot of good things. Umm-umm, you know, ice cream is pretty good. Oh, and yeah, samosas, those are good. Pecan pie, that's great.

But there's something greater than all of that. And it is buried in every breath that you take, in your existence. When you look up to this universe with bewilderment, with fascination, with "Wow," that's what it's all about. When you can turn to the universe within-and go, "Wow," then you got it. Then you have it. Then that's what it is all about.

That's what true freedom is. Free-because you know the source of you, of your joy. Now you're free to choose. Ah, you're free to choose. And choose wisely, my friend. Choose that which you are made for.

Live your life in that joy that has been made possible because you are alive-just that, because you're alive. Be fulfilled because you're alive. See that clarity because you're alive. Know that beauty because you are alive. And be free from the slavery of ignorance. Ignorance-that you don't know what you have buried within you, not knowing all the treasures you carry within you.

Pretty soon the Peace Education Program is going to be ready, so that's going to be coming on. Again, looking at all the countries that are going to start opening up, looking at the possibility of traveling….

And I want to-I want to come and see you all. And I want to look into your eyes-and I want to see your smile; I want to see your smiling eyes…. And that would be wonderful. And this is what I am looking forward to.

Of course, I have to do it judiciously; I don't want anybody to get sick from this. And not, certainly, from my actions-I mean, still it is the same thing: "Don't give it to anyone and don't get it from anyone," just to exercise that caution.

And, you know, and it's not a big deal. We can do things if we know where to look for that joy inside of us. And that you could be busy being happy. How's that; how's that? In this life, in this world, you should always, always, always be busy being happy.

So, thank you very much. And I'll talk to you soon. Take care; be well; be safe. Most importantly, be.