A small story:
There were two guys digging a ditch on a very hot day. The first guy said to the second, 'Why are we down in this hole digging a ditch when our boss is standing up there under the shade of a tree?'
'I don't know,' responded the other, 'I'll go and ask him.' He climbed out of the hole and went to his boss. 'Why are we digging in this hot sun and you are simply standing in the shade?' He asked.
'Intelligence,' the boss said.
"What do you mean intelligence?"
The boss said, 'Well, I'll show you. I'll put my hand on this tree and I want you to hit it with your fist as hard as you can'. The ditch digger took a mighty swing and tried to hit his hand. The boss removed his hand and the ditch digger hit the tree. The boss said, "That's intelligence!"
The ditch digger went back to his hole. His friend asked, 'So, what did he say?'
'He said that we are down here because of intelligence.'
'What's intelligence?' asked the friend.
The ditch digger put his hand on his face and said, "Take your shovel and hit my hand."
This is exactly the way in which you are living! You catch the words and miss the truth! You always understand the truth as something else. When you misunderstand, you miss the whole thing. The Master's job is to keep on trying to make you understand the exact meaning of the truth.
You see, I am preparing the people who are living around me for many things. The experience will come, it has to come, but it will be too much for them to handle it when it comes, unless they start surrendering now to me. Their bodies will not be able to handle whatever is to come unless the surrendering starts now. And I am not saying that the experience will only come to those who are around me. No! I am only saying that when you are around a Master, the experiencing starts happening and you need to get prepared for it. And that is the only reason why I talk so much on surrender.
If a person can surrender, then whatsoever happens, he will be able to handle. Even if the whole world falls apart, he will remain centered in himself because he has surrendered everything. There is nothing, no investment in the inner world or outer world to lose. When I say outer world, I mean the attachment to the outer world things. You always fear losing outer world things only because of your attachment to them. When you don't have the attachment, you are not disturbed when you lose anything in the outer world.
- Let go of it All -
A brahmacharini confesses to swamiji Ifeel like I am doing the complete opposite of what You tell me to do, she says, 'and then I feel uneasy.'
You see, it sometimes happens like this. If you feel happy doing the opposite, simply do the opposite; what else can be done? I give you some instruction for you to find bliss. The whole focus is on finding your inner bliss. If you are feeling blissful by doing the opposite of what I say, then continue!
The problem starts when you begin to feel some tension. Tension is followed by anxiety. Tension is the trigger; anxiety is the state that follows. Tension serves as an indicator for anxiety to come. So if you are feeling some tension, then be clear that you are moving in the wrong direction. As long as you are happy, you continue to do the opposite. Once tension starts, know for yourself that you are moving in the wrong direction.
I don't mean that you will only feel tension when you do not follow me. See, when I give you some instruction, I sense your energy and based on that, I give you the instruction. I see what will move you from where you are stuck and give an instruction for that. That is why for the same situation, for the same question, for the same problem, I give different instructions to different people; because the instruction is for the individual to move from where he is stuck and different people are stuck in different places. So when I give you an instruction, it is the best for you. You don't wish to follow it because your ego tells you something different. Then, a time comes when you start feeling uneasy. Then you start thinking that maybe you should have followed what I said! So it is alright; just take your time.
So, be clear, I am not here to force any ideology on you. I am here to take all the ideology you know away from you! And when you have given up everything, you will find yourself. Understand one thing: the very nature of the mind is to put you in confusion. Its very nature is dilemma. So if you simply run behind whatever it says, you will now understand what will happen!
Listen with your being. Do not bring in the mind at all. The mind is not in any way connected to the heart. The mind revolves around logic. But the heart is completely different. It revolves around love. It has nothing to do with logic, only emotion. That is why when I say listen to the heart, do only that; do not bring in your mind at all.
To tell you honestly, listening to your heart is the greatest obedience. Whenever your mind tells you to do something, simply look within yourself and see if your heart is open to the idea. When you are doing something, listen to your heart; do not bring in the mind at all. When you need to use the mind, use it only then. When you need to plan something, see if you have to use your logic, and only then listen to the mind. Use it like a tool.
And one more thing, you should learn the art of listening. Now you will be thinking, Then what am I doing here now? I am sitting and listening to you for such a long time!' No! You are simply hearing my words. Hearing is different from listening. They may have the same meaning in the dictionaries, but in actuality, they are complete opposites. Hearing is of the mind. It is totally intellectual. You will hear my words; you will follow them. But there is no juice in it; you miss the whole thing. There is no deep feeling involved here. But listening is different. If you are listening to me, you are not merely listening to the words which are uttered. You are allowing the sounds to penetrate your being. My words penetrate you like energy. When this happens, the words do not simply enter the head and stay there. They reach your very being. They reach your inner space. And I talk to your being, not to
- Let go of it All -
your head. So, you simply cannot listen with your head. When a Master talks, listen with your very being. His words are sheer energy that can penetrate you at the being level and transform you in ways you cannot even imagine!
Another thing: as I told you earlier, I will tell people different things at different times. What I say to you and what I say to someone else may be completely different from one another. But what do you fellows do? You sit and discuss what I have said to each of you and confuse yourselves! I will tell you to go left and the other guy to go right, and somehow the work will get done. But what happens when you discuss it? Only confusion! So understand, it is better you don't analyze or discuss the instructions given to you.