God-Realization
The
human life of yours is certainly not for gathering a crop of sin, nay, not even
for being frittered away in vain. Every single moment of it is a blessed
opportunity for God-realization, and therefore invaluable and for this very
reason every moment should be employed in an endeavour for God-Realization. Worldly
enjoyments of sense can be held in all states of existence, while endeavors for
God-Realization is possible only with the human body. Hence devote it to this
work alone.
If
you continue to fritter away your life in idle pursuits, predispositions of an
skin nature will collect in your mind and in conformity with them you will be
put in mind of vain pursuits alone. God-remembrance will cease and in case you
breathe your last in a moment bereft of God-remembrance, this very life of
yours, which is a supreme means to God-Realization, will be wasted. This
constitutes a major loss which it will not be possible to retrieve. Therefore,
remembering God, perform every small and big work of your life as an offering
to God by way of service to Him for His pleasure. By this very means your minds
will constantly remains absorbed in his thought. After that, whenever death
comes to you, you will be found engaged in His remembrance and in consequence
you will surely attain God-Realization, which alone is the supreme and ultimate
end of human existence.
A
moment that has passed never returns. If, forgetting the gracelessness of human
life, you keep it employed in vain and harmful pursuits, there will be no
greater fool than you; for you are wasting the time of supreme gain vouchsafed
to you and are indulging in pursuits which will result not only in the wastage
of this precious time and the loss of a golden opportunity but also in your
being hurled into demoniac wombs from birth to birth and in undergoing terrible
tortures in hell. No amount of weeping and wailing will then avail. Therefore
wake up this very moment and fulfil your life by spending every moment of it in
an endeavour for God-Realization.
You
are in possession mainly of three instruments with which you operate—the body,
mind and speech. With these three alone you are able to perform good and evil
deeds. Therefore, withdrawing from evil pursuits, you should keep them
constantly engaged in noble deeds. The noblest and the only supremely holy
pursuit is service to God. Therefore keep all these three engaged in the
service of God. When actions begin to be performed with your body for the sake
of service to God alone all evils will automatically disappear and your actions
will turn out to be supremely holy acts. Contemplate and reflect on noble ideas
in the form of virtues like veracity, non violence, compassion, love,
selflessness and service for the sake of service to God alone; nay, think of
your pure spiritual nature or of the divine essence, the comeliness, sweetness
and the ideal pastimes and excellences of the Lord, and with your tongue utter
words comprising the names and praises of the Lord alone. Do not tell a lie nor
speak impolite or pungent words; neither slander or backbite another nor
indulge in self-praise; neither indulge in idle gossip nor utter anything
harmful to another; ever speak the truth; speak words which are agreeable and
wholesome and at the same time truthful and speak solely with a view to the
gratification of the Lord. In this way when your body, mind and speech continue
to render service to the Lord alone every moment, remaining ever united with
Him, your life will be fulfilled and having attained your highest objective you
will become sated.
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| Shri Jagannath puri temple of west bengal |