joy
Sugar cane in flower
I received my realisation in 2005 and the joy and the love have been steadily growing ever since. I was fortunate to be in Sydney when Sri Mataji visited Australia in both 2006 and 2007, to feel the vibrations and share the joy with many yogis from around the world. However, now that I have listened to Mother’s talks over the years, I find my attention is focused more and more on the spirit and that Mother is always with me.
The other morning I woke at dawn with the sun just rising – and Mother is there. I had my morning meditation – and Mother is there. I look into the brown eyes of innocence in my brown dog, waiting patiently for the moment we go for our walk – and Mother is there. We walk across the paddock with the 360 degree view, and I as I look up to the sky, a bird flies overhead – Mother is there. When we arrive at the beach, the sun is about a metre above the sea – Mother is there. I feel the warmth of the sun, the caress of the sea breeze – Mother is there. The sea is glistening as the sun spreads over it – Mother is there.
On my way to work I ask Mother to keep me in the centre and become the detached witness. On the drive home I notice a sugar cane field in flower, the afternoon sun dancing on the shimmering flower tips – Mother is there. A traffic jam – the heavenly strains of a Mozart concerto plays on the radio – Mother is there. Time is just a concept and I always get where I’m going on Time – Mother is there. Life can be such a joy when we keep our attention on the spirit.
Mary Cabrall
(Photograph: portal.unesco.org)
The problem is this greed. It is some sort of a inner defect in a human being. He becomes greedy – greedy because he has deviated from dharma [right conduct]. He thinks he can get pleasure out of things. He cannot and goes on accumulating and buying….
Just think of it. What is all this for? What pleasure does it give us? I can understand if you want to give somebody a present or you want to give somebody some happiness, joy. You should do it, but just for yourself … how much can you digest it? You cannot.
Joy is much more in giving to others. It’s not a thing that gives you any understanding of the fundamentals. And the fundamentals are that you are dharma. Within you is that. That is your valency and this materialism is absolutely against it because it creates all kinds of people – mafia, the Swiss banks, cheats…. They have no spititual sense….
In the nature it’s so matching – nothing gross, nothing loud. It’s so beautiful. This is red, but it has green to match it. This Mother Earth knows everything. She does everything, but what do we do for the Mother Earth…?
Anything that you want to use also should have its maryadas [boundaries]. Don’t go beyond it. If you take to swimming, you’ll go on swimming until you get sick. If you are horse riding, you’ll go on horse riding until you fall down. You see, this is also a kind of a life which has no maryadas, like greed has no maryadas….
What is the solution to get rid of this greed? It is to try and give it to others and see the joy. Give something to others, share and see the joy you feel by giving something…. These small, small things can give you great joy in giving to other people, not yourself….
If you don’t have greed, you get what you want…. But if you have greed, then God makes you dance…. Whatever you want, you can get it, if you don’t have greed about it. That’s such an enslaving thing within us, that we have greed… If you don’t ask for anything, you don’t desire for anything, you get what you need. Whatever you need, you get. But if you go on desiring, then go mad after it. Go there, get this and get lost. And then the thing also gets lost. That’s why it is said better try to develop a detachment. It’s all right. If it is there, well and good. If it is not there, it doesn’t matter. Then you’ll be surprised. your attention will be so subtle….
So you should go in for solutions and not for problems. Greed is a problem. How to get rid of the greed is the point. And to get rid of the greed is that if I buy something … for whom should I buy…? If you train your mind on these lines – not for yourself, but for others – then you’ll be amazed. This greed will run away and you’ll have joy…. If giving is there, then this greed goes away and you get what you want. It’s a very simple mantra.
Shri Mataji, 1997
There is joy before Realisation and after Realisation, but before Realisation there is no capacity to enjoy. That capacity to enjoy comes to you after Realisation and the main thing that happens to you is the discretion. Then, like the swan, you just take the milk of eveything. Your attitude towards everything becomes very different. You start seeing things from a different angle.
Once we had to go to a very ancient temple to see some art. I, My son-in-law and My daughter were walking about. We had to walk for miles up the hill and then, when we were very tired, we went into a temple and just lay down. They were so tired.
At that time I said, “See these elephants here, how beautiful they are. Every one has a different type of a tail and a different type of a trunk. All the poses are different. So many of them are like that.”
My son-in-law said, “We are so tired. How can we look at these things?”
Because My attention didn’t go to My tiredness, but to these beautiful things, same thing – you start sucking in the milk. There is joy, but you cannot feel the joy because the power – that subtle power of divine discretion – is not there. Once that comes in, you start enjoying everything.
Things are just the same. Life is just the same. Nothing has changed. Same house, same family, same city, same environment, but you start enjoying because the sensitivity of your Hamsa chakra is now only for divine discretion and you immediately know and then you don’t want to do anything with the thorns. You only want to gather flowers and you know how to gather flowers and you are in joy.
Shri Mataji, 1992
I would like to be like You,
Bright and clear as a Spring sky
Pure and soft as a sunset
Strong and firm as a tree
Delicate and silent as a reed
Powerful and peaceful as the Earth
Light and joyful as the song of a bird
My only way to thank You
is to become like You.
Meenakshi Pujari
(Photograph courtesy of astrogems.com)