The annual occasion, the holy and auspicious occasion of the birth anniversary of our Adi-Guru, Samarth Guru Mahatma Shri Ram Chandraji Maharaj of Fatehgarh, is here again, to offer us the opportunity of renewal of our spiritual fervour and dedication to the cause of our own personal spiritual development to the highest goal ever offered to mankind. It is a golden opportunity to re-examine our attitude towards the life spiritual, as well as our sincerity and seriousness of purpose which are the guidelines and the landmarks for our perseverance, which alone can take us to the promised goal within our lifetime. I must remind you all of the frequent exhortation of my Master, Parampujya Babuji Maharaj, that we can be sure only of this one life. The past is gone forever, and nothing can ever bring it back or change it. The future-well who can confidently assert that there is a future life for anyone of us? It all depends upon human willingness to believe one philosophy or the other; one religion or the other; for there has been no direct proof of an afterlife. In any case, as my Master pointed out again and again, we can be sure that this life exists, because we live it and feel its joys and sorrows, and it is therefore wisdom to attempt to reach that exalted goal within this life itself. No one in his senses has ever said to himself that he would wait for promotion in his job, or for increment in his salary till the next life. No businessman would be willing to wait for a good profit till his next life. Anyone exhibiting this attitude of irrational patience-for that is what it is fit to be called-will be dubbed a mad person! Then why do abhyasis not exhibit a similar attitude of "here and now" for their spiritual achievements? I believe that it is due to lack of perception of the benefits of spiritual advancement, as well as to an exaggerated importance assigned to the temporal and material goals of human life. "A bird in hand is worth two in the bush," says the cynic, and his cynicism asks, "Why should we struggle to achieve a goal which cannot even be adequately described? Why should we strive for something which we cannot even feel?" Perhaps they may consider themselves to be right and wise in asking these questions, but as my Master pointed out again and again, there is no wisdom in asking what appear to be unanswerable questions. That is a mere fool's paradise. It is easy to ridicule another in such a way, but those who persevere will eventually find out that the person they have thus made a fool of, is themselves!! My Master repeatedly requested abhyasis to take interest in their own spiritual development, for without interest nothing can be done with a will. And where the will is lacking, the effort applied is inadequate, and therefore we fall short of the goal. Interest is therefore the main thing, and we should now strive to take an interest, a sincere and permanent interest, in our spiritual life, as we have been able to do in the case of our material pursuits. If we are able to do this, then our efforts will be solidly backed by a determined will, and then will open before us the wonderful and sublime vistas of spiritual stages which our own effort, coupled with the Master's love and generosity, blesses us with. The problem arises because people take interest, no doubt, but the interest does not last. That is, their interest is of very short duration, and as soon as they feel that their effort is not being blessed with success, they abandon their efforts. What then is really needed for sure success? I feel that unless the interest is a permanent interest, then all are doomed to this spasmodicity of effort, and therefore of failure. What I feel therefore is that we should now aim at a commitment, which I can probably define as a continuing interest-a dedicated interest, a prolonged interest-or to put it very simply, a permanent interest in one's spiritual evolution. If such a commitment can be made, remembering that after all it is for one's own spiritual welfare and growth that such a commitment is being made, then I may say that success in this endeavour can no longer elude the grasp of the aspiring and struggling sadhak. Commitment means committing oneself to the activity in hand, which one has after all undertaken willingly. It is the hunger or greed for quick results that clouds our understanding, and makes us abandon our venture before it has had time to mature into a result-yielding situation. Even rice takes time to cook. When we are churning for butter, we must remember that it takes some time for the butter to rise. The butter does not form bit by bit, so that we can see it forming, and can go on with the job of churning. It rises all together, so that at one moment there was no butter, and at the next there is a vessel full of butter. If one did not have the patience to wait for it, one could have abandoned the effort just a moment before the successful completion of the task. Spirituality is such a field. Success may or may not come in stages. I of course refer here to success as the abhyasi perceives it. The Master takes the abhyasis up stage by stage, but often the abhyasi experiences his evolution only when a substantial degree of advancement has been achieved. Then there is the more difficult problem that few are there who can experience the subtle condition that Master blesses us with. The abhyasi must not make the tragic mistake of assuming that what he does not feel, or perceive, does not therefore exist! This would be a tragic blunder, which unfortunately most abhyasis commit at least in the beginning stages of their sadhana. Faith is a very necessary ingredient. I venture to state that without faith there can be no patience, for after all only one who has faith can wait, forever if necessary! I believe that commitment to one's future alone can give us these twin attributes of faith and patience. This is what makes success a sure thing. It is therefore a total commitment, committing every thing to this magnificent adventure of the spiritual life, where the fruits of one's commitment may not be visible, but are surely there, as testified to by the great souls, the saints of the past, which can ensure our success. I may add here that commitment alone can make it possible for the human being to harness all his efforts and strengths in one direction-and this too is a most important factor for quick evolution. Commitment implies such a totality of approach-and I pray to my Beloved and Divine Master for their evolution. May it be so by His eternal love and Grace, which are the basic supports of our universe. Amen! (Message for Basant Panchami 1991; originally published in Constant Remembrance, January 1991 issue.)
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