Tag: devotee

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Love

Hijacked

Hijacked

HijackedReal protection is an expression of real affection and respect – Radhanath Swami.

In the middle of nowhere, guns staring at my face, masked men sneering me, with no escape route, helpless. I was held hostage, because the flight I boarded got, yes, hijacked! Thank God, the alarm clock rescued me. Getting married is like boarding a plane to spiritual perfection. If we sincerely practice spiritual principles like chanting the names of God, and if we surround ourselves with the association of advanced devotees of God, then it’s certain that we would be able to continue our journey to spiritual perfection. The association of devotees, their prayers for us, and the chanting of the Holy Names of God provide us super-tight security for our married journey through life.

If we truly love each other, we must protect one another. Real protection is an expression of real affection and respect, Radhanath Swami remarks. Real protection is protection not only of the body and mind, but of the soul as well. No doubt that a certain amount of enjoyment and comforts are natural to married life. But the relationship must be seen as a facilitator for serving God. With such a purposeful existence, married couples can bring about astonishingly significant positive changes not only in their own lives, but also in the lives of those they interact with.

But such a life is possible only if we have the association of devotees. The illusory temporary pleasures of this world are always trying to hijack our propensity for devotion. If we are not strict in following the spiritual principles and regulations, hijackers will surely board our plane. They will board through our uncontrolled mind and senses. And they will force this airship of human life to go to forbidden places – where all we do is try to enjoy material life and become attached to such illusory enjoyment. As long as we are thus held captive by our material attachments, we are helpless hostages.

Radhanath Swami spurs us on: Make your homes and lives beautiful temples where together you can serve the Lord. Come together in the spirit of cooperation. Try to serve each other and help others come in touch with devotees. Thus, have a very safe and comfortable spiritual flight to perfection.

The holy sound of the chanting of the Holy Names every day, along with regular hearing from the Holy Scriptures in the association of pure souls, is the only way to awaken from the nightmare of being hijacked by gross materialism.

Categories
Tolerate

The Mirror House

The Mirror HouseSpoilt children get everything they want and therefore expect that for the rest of their life everything will go their way. Of course, they don’t get what they want all the time and so they become irritable grown-ups – Radhanath Swami.

Once a happy little dog entered the House of 1000 Mirrors. When he arrived, he bounced happily up the stairs to the doorway of the house. He looked through the doorway with his ears lifted high and his tail wagging fast. To his great surprise, he found himself staring at 1000 other happy little dogs with their tails wagging just as fast. He smiled, and was answered with 1000 smiles just as warm and friendly. As he left the House, he thought to himself, “This is a wonderful place. I’ll visit it often.” Another little dog, who was not quite as happy as the first one, also decided to visit the house to cheer himself up. He slowly climbed the stairs and hung his head low as he looked into the door. When he saw the 1000 unfriendly looking dogs staring back at him, he growled at them and was horrified to see them all growling back at him. As he left, he thought to himself, “That is a horrible place, I will never come here again.”

After a busy day’s work, with all the physical exhaustion and mental stress, we return back to our homes. How welcome home feels depends on the mood in which we enter it. If we enter disgruntled and irritable, the spouse will catch our mood at least to some extent and home will no longer offer the rest and peace we are looking for. If this happens regularly enough, the thought of home will repel both husband and wife. What a sorry state of affairs would that be! On the other hand, despite the day-long toil, if we enter the house consciously garnering all our jolliness, how admiring would the spouse be? In today’s world, both husband and wife know that the other has busy work schedules. Knowing this well, if even one of the spouses proactively tries to garner the extra strength to be especially nice, what a profound influence would that be on the relationship.

Radhanath Swami explains that a devotee of God is never disheartened by the environment. The temporary environment around us is always changing. Sometimes everything is very favorable at work and home, and sometimes it’s not. We can translate whatever happens in our life into a positive opportunity to make steady spiritual advancement and come closer to God. Whoever we are, things will not always go our way. A true devotee is one who doesn’t complain even when put in the most trying circumstances. Instead, the true devotee moves forward with a grateful heart irrespective of the circumstances.

If we expect that our spouse will tolerate whatever tantrums we throw, then we will suffer. Instead, if we learn to be grateful in all situations, the unwelcome situations in the world would not disturb us too much. We will thus be able to remain joyful. And this joy will nourish the relationship between husband and wife.

Categories
Tolerate

The Shoemaker’s Son

The Shoemaker’s SonTo remain inspired, positive, faithful, and optimistic even in the most trying situations is the substance of our sincerity. The Lord puts the greatest souls through tough situations and even failures just to show us how they remain positive and inspired to carry on. – Radhanath Swami.

 

As President Abraham Lincoln entered to give his inaugural address, one rich aristocrat stood up and condescendingly said, “Mr. Lincoln, you should not forget that your father used to make shoes for my family.” The whole Senate laughed thinking that they had made a fool of Abraham Lincoln. Lincoln reacted in the most unexpected way. He replied, “Sir, I know that my father used to make shoes in your house for your family, and there will be many others here for whom he made shoes. Because nobody else could make shoes the way he could. He was a creator. His shoes were not just shoes; he poured his whole soul into them. I have learnt from my father how to make shoes. If you have any complaint, I can make another pair of shoes for you. But as far as I know, nobody has ever complained about shoes my father made. He was a genius, a great creator, and I am proud of my father”. The whole Senate was dumbstruck. Instead of feeling insulted by the nasty remark, Lincoln felt proud about his genius father.

 

“One’s greatness has to be estimated by how one is able to be tolerate provoking situations,” Radhanath Swami emphasizes. Provoking situations are an inevitable part of life, whoever we are. Depending on how we respond to them is really what determines how close we become to God. While being crucified, Lord Jesus was praying to the Lord to forgive those who were torturing him. It’s not what happens to us that hurts us; it’s our response that hurts. Contemplating on such examples of great devotees of God, we can find inspiration to tolerate the relatively minor inconveniences that inevitably arise when spouses stay together. Everyone is unique; disagreements and difference of opinions are bound to arise. Instead of responding rashly, one must learn to tolerate such inconveniences and remain united based on the higher principle of coming together and serving God.

 

Remember. No one can hurt you without your consent.