I am pleased to be among you. In this world, if we find the son of a king, a president, a great minister, or some (other) high personality, we feel privileged that we have found someone who is from a great one. Generally it is easy to approach the child of a king (but) it may be impossible to approach the king. [Master invites the translator to sit closer. Laughter]

      There was a very poor person who was living by the side of a very rich person who had a very big house.

      Generally it is our feeling that our neighbours should be known to us because a neighbour is just next to our family. The family is to help us but sometimes the neighbour is also required (to help). It was impossible for that poor person to reach his very, very rich neighbour but his (the rich man's) children were playing outside in the open. Now he started a friendship with the children.

      Sometimes he was playing with them, sometimes he was giving some sweets to them. He went along lovingly with the children of that great, rich person. Then those children went to their father and their mother and were telling them about their good friend, the neighbour.

      The first few days he (the rich man) did not mind because he was very haughty. (But) when there was some continuous information from the children about the good, nice neighbour, then he had to think. At last he had to open his heart and called that poor person to thank him for the loving (care) and for having an affectionate friendship with his children.

      We naturally feel like asking suchlike person, "If there is any difficulty or problem, you can come to me. I will try to help you." This is the main reason that in all scriptures it has been told that we are to serve all humanity - service before self. "Love thy neighbour as thyself!" and "Love thy enemies!" "Neighbour" means a very near neighbour or maybe a faraway neighbour. Anybody, who may live thousands of miles away but is near to us for some time, at that time that person becomes our neighbour.

      So in this way we are to deal with everybody who comes to us, or to whom we go, or with whom we are together by chance, like (we deal with) our own self. We are not to do it for the purpose of getting something from the other person or because he may be great or useful. There is no mental purpose in loving our fellow beings but there is a heavenly relation which is very important and which we cannot ignore.

      In this world it is easy to live without brothers or sisters, even without husband or wife but it is impossible to live without the relationship of God in human beings because the same God which is in you is in everybody, and if you love God, you have to love whole God, not a part of God. If your friend comes to your home, you (will) have to take care of his whole body, not only one part of his body. It doesn't look good and it doesn't mean anything.

      When we love somebody, then we have to love the whole person. If we love God and He is in everybody, then we have to love everybody because we are not loving everybody but we are loving God in everyone.

      That is why all the saints and Masters have given such great respect and (done such) service to all humanity - all of them being God present and children of God.

      There is also sense in it! If we serve someone at the level of body, then God is not served. That is the reason (why) we love our children and our near relatives, friends, or family members - because we love our own purposes. We have some give-and-take. We serve the other one and the other one serves us. Where we get services for ourselves, there our love is awakened.

      Due to our lack of knowledge and very much ignorance (put) upon us, we do not know what great relations and benefits are there if we love God where He is in His creation. If we are raised up in our knowledge and wisdom, then we will see God in everybody and then we will love and serve everybody.

      God is not to be served because it is not possible for us. He is so far away, so high, and fully perfect in His own self. He is never hungry, never thirsty and never having any disease or any problem. He doesn't need anything; He is overflowing with all good things.

      How can you serve suchlike person? We can only serve a person who needs our services, who is having shortage of something and is needing something. So it is good for us that we can serve God when He is (in) human beings. (Then) He is in need, having difficulty and problems, (and) we can serve Him.

      But we are not to serve any person. We are to know that, "If I am loving this person, if I am feeding this person, if I am respecting this person, I am feeding God, I am loving God, I am respectful to God." This is the awakening of our knowledge. When we are raised as soul, then this kind of real knowledge and wisdom will awaken in us.

      In the Indian culture there was a saint whose name was Nam Dev. He was preparing his chapatis and putting them aside into some pot. When he was looking to the other side, a dog came and took away two chapatis out of that pot.

      That person did not go after that dog with a stick, but he took the pot of butter, was running after the dog, (and was shouting), "My dear God, my dear God, don't take them without butter!" [Laughter] Then the dog was not running, was standing (still), and was appearing in the form of a human being. "(Do) you also see me in dogs?" Then that saintly person replied, "By your grace."

      It is so that God is there in everybody but our misunderstanding is there - that it (our understanding) doesn't work properly because we do not awaken our soul. If we are awakened as soul, then that is our greatness. So we have been sent in this world to serve God, to love God, and to be with God always. This development of our relation with God will continue forever.

      It is very clear that if you love your mother, you do not only love her clothes but you love your mother - that (which) is the real mother. You know very well that if the mother throws away her clothes, you do not go to the clothes because you have no love or affection for the clothes. You still go to the body of your mother. You also leave the love for the body of your mother if your mother leaves the physical body. Then you dispose of the body of your mother, maybe through cremation.

      If your mother comes to you in your dreams or your meditations, then you say, "I have seen my mother", and you love your mother over there. Everybody in this world is not the clothes, not even the body, but the soul which is the higher self. That real self, eternal self, great self is our subject and (our) object is God from whom everybody has come in that big, high, and wonderful state.

      In olden days this was a general understanding in almost all the people. I know very well, in my childhood I could see it, that there were no restaurants, no hotels, no tea shops even anywhere. In every village, not to talk of the cities, there were some centers where the people could go and were given lodging and food.

      At least a simple lifestyle was given for a night or two or three. You were not to carry your bed or any foodstuff with you; wherever you went, the arrangements were there. It was all free of cost and served quite lovingly. In my service and at some other times also I myself have also enjoyed suchlike services.

      Even now there are some centers in each city, in each village where there are suchlike services. This is the real greatness of a man. Why have they provided suchlike things? Now they have only provided (it) as a custom. The general service to human beings (today is because people think) that, "Sometimes I may be travelling and may find food; sometimes the other traveller may come and stay for the night at my house or in my village, then I may be able to serve that person." This gives a great relief to the life of man.

      If there are two co-travellers and they are suspecting each other to be a pickpocket or a thief, then both will have to be very scared of each other and both will not be able to sleep in the night. But if they begin to understand each other as a friend, then they will not be having any difficulty from each other but they will feel help from each other.

      Let it be that when there was the suspicion of (the others) being thieves or pickpockets, they were spending the night in a very hard way. They also did not lose anything because they were very careful of each other.

      When they were friendly, they also did not share any food or any other thing with each other because they did not need (anything) from each other, but there was great relief to the soul, the mind, the body, and the intellect. They were all peaceful, all (in) harmony, and full of love for each other.

      In that great, wonderful situation they both were enjoying. But when there are tension, misunderstandings, and suspicious ideas about each other, then one is always just at the edge of life. So we have not understood the way of life.

      Generally we (go along in) our mental system. We only have the feeling that if somebody gives us one slap in the face, we will have to give three slaps to the other one. "A tit for a tat" and much more in quantity will satisfy us. But in the mythology of the saints it has been told that, "If somebody smites you on the right cheek, (then) offer your left (cheek) also." If somebody abuses you or misuses you, you are only to love that person and be devoted to that person, not to react according to the action of the other one.

      If the other one has sown the seed of hatred and I also sow the seed of hatred, then these seeds will increase and there will be only hatred from both of us. But if the other one has sown the seed of hatred in my heart and I have not reacted to it, I have only acted with my love, then that seed of his hatred has been nullified. If I do not act in the same way as the other one and I act in love, then the other person's hatred will go down and he will also begin to love.

      If you go to a dog which is a hot dog, it will begin to bark at you. (When) you begin to look at that dog and act in some way of love, (then) that dog will feel your love. No doubt it will continue to bark as per his habit but his tail will be moving on his backside because his heart is affected by your love and it has now started acting simultaneously. After a little while he will also stop barking and will try to come to you and lick your feet also.

      But if you throw a stone upon that dog or have a stick in your hand, he will be three or four times harder upon you because the hotness (aggression) of the dog has been multiplied with your hotness (aggression). So fire cannot be extinguished with fire but only with water.

      Anything which is hatred is also not to be handled with hatred but with love. To love and to serve is our basic criterion; this is not to be changed in any case. There is a story in the Asian countries.

      There was a country in which there was some kind of understanding that if your father has been killed by somebody, the soul of your father will not take rest until you take revenge for his death. The understanding was given that to give peace to the soul of your father, you have to kill that person who has killed your father.

      There was a boy whose father had been killed by someone. When he got older, then he was told by his mother to take revenge. So to give peace to the soul of his father, he set out to another country where the killer of his father was living. He went to that city and was searching for that person the whole day. He did not have any workable address, so he could not find (him) till the evening. At last it was evening and then he had to think about where to take rest and food in the night.

      Some people of that village told (him) that, "There is a very nice, hospitable man living here in this village. Go to him. Every stranger is accepted by him as a guest." So he went to that person and that person was there to greet him. He was given food, rest and (there was) peace and all comforts. He was taken (care of) by that man very lovingly. They were talking a long time in the night also. The generosity of that person was really felt in the heart of that boy.

      In the morning the man who had come for the purpose of killing his father's enemy was to leave the house. He was given food by his host and when he was ready to go, the host (asked) him, "My dear, you are a stranger in this country and you might have come for some purpose. Please let me know if there is anything (through which) I can help you (to fulfill) that purpose."

      Although he was ashamed of telling his idea which was not really good - his soul and heart were not feeling like telling this to somebody - he could feel in his heart that, "This man is trustworthy. If I tell this to him, he will not hate me, he will not be feeling bad. Perhaps he will be of some help because he is so generous." He told the story (why he had come).

      After hearing the story, that host showed his happiness to that man. He sat down in front of him with his head (bowed) down (saying) that, "My dear, I am very happy that your purpose is fulfilled. I am the same man whom you have been searching for.

      Due to some cause there was a fight between your father and me and he was killed. Now you can do as you like. I will be happy that I have fulfilled the duty of a host and that my guest is properly served."

      This was the real generosity of this host. He did not feel that a killer had come to him but he had felt, "This is my guest and I am to serve the guest."

      After hearing this story and the offer of the host for being killed, he could have done his purpose but he was confused because there was also another voice in his heart: "Let the custom as I have been told be true that I kill this person so that the soul of my father will take peace, but how many souls will I then deprive of the peace which they will find from this holy man?

      At least I have been given rest, peace, good food, good behaviour, and love, and my soul has really been benefitted. This is the sun of light, of life, from whom so many people will learn hospitality, generosity, love, and forgiveness. I will have to follow the example of this man. I will not kill him, and so many others also will have to follow."

      So rather he fell on the feet of his host and was asking for forgiveness that, "Now I could understand what you really are and will follow your lifestyle."

      In olden days there were so many people who were serving humanity just for service and not for earning money. There were so many people. There is a record in history of a man whose name was Ravi Das. He was a cobbler, a mender of shoes. He was sitting on the roadside and was mending the shoes of those people who offered (them) for this purpose. He was not demanding money from anybody.

      Anybody who asked, "My dear, what should I pay you?" (received) the answer: "As you like. I have served you because you are a child of God. God is in you. In this relation I have served you, (but) not because you are a rich man, you will give me much money, and I will be served by the money."

      When he was going back home, he had enough money (to live from). Where was it coming from? He did not know but he was feeling that, "I am not to get anything which is to be given to me from any man but from God."

      This is the law. Sometimes we keep accounts of give and take or services with each other. In these bargains or businesses we can sometimes cheat or deceive others, and others may be cheated, deceived, and in losses. But the negative power has arranged its own accounts. (If) anybody serves (you), you may not serve that person back who has served you but that negative power with its own arrangements will make you serve that person who has served you.

      If you have given some money to someone as a loan but he hasn't given it back to you and is reluctant and there is death, you will not be deprived of that money which you had given him. If your methods of recovering your money or any arrangements of this world fail, another one (method) is there.

      Maybe in this life or maybe in another life or maybe in some more lives, those records are still there and will not be cancelled till the bargain is repaid.

      So this is the law of nature even. You are not to take revenge on anybody nor react in any hard way for the seed action of the other one. You should have only love and service with you.

      If somebody comes to kill you, first ask him: "Please let me first serve you and help you, and then afterwards you can kill me." Perhaps the action which the other one is doing may be in payment to your karma that you would have done in the past lives. If that person kills you now as a reward to your action, it means the action has been cancelled.

      Then why sow a new action by acting in the same way as the other one has acted? It can also be that you have not done any harm to that person in any past (life) and that person is now doing a new seed karma to you. Let it be his seed karma; you should not sow a bad seed like him.

      The Masters and saints had been acting like this. In the history of Lord Christ you would have found that he also prayed for those people who murdered and executed him: "My dear God, please forgive them because in their innocence they do not know what I am and what they are doing. Please forgive them!" Although he had got some powers to reach God and to ask Him to do anything but it was not coming up in his heart to hurt anybody even through God.

      In the Indian mythology there is another story of a saint. It is the same (saint that) I have already named - Nam Dev. He was living in the kingdom of an atheistic king. That king was really very much annoyed because Nam Dev was preaching about God and he did not like that. So he called Nam Dev (and ordered him) to stop all his activities. Nam Dev replied, "I am working for God. It is my duty and I cannot ignore it."

      Every man has to work for God and not for anybody else. It is like this. As I have told you, if you are to serve anybody, only serve in the name of God. Then that king was very angry (and said), "Where is your God? What power does he have? What can he do?" The saintly person replied, "He is everything. He is all powerful. He can do anything."

      There was a cow that had died just recently. The king took him to the cow (and said), "Okay, if you have a competent God who can do something, give life to this dead cow. Ask your God." That saintly person very respectfully replied to the king, "My dear king, I am to accept the will of God. I am not to order Him. I am only to obey Him. If He likes to kill the cow, how can I ask Him to give life to it?" The king did not accept that and said, "You are just pretending! There is no God and you have no power of God with you."

      He gave that saintly person three hours time and said that, "If you give life to it within three hours, then you are okay. Otherwise you will also be buried with this cow after being killed." The bell was ringing every 24 minutes which is called a "garee" and is a standard time in India.

      After the bell would ring seven times, the time would be over. The bell was ringing after every 24 minutes - the first time, the second, the third, fourth, fifth, sixth, and finally the seventh time. The king was happy that he could kill this person.

      Now nobody in his kingdom would be able to think of God and any power of God, and (he felt) that, "All will follow my atheism."

      The saintly person, Nam Dev, was not disturbed in any way. He was feeling that, "Let God do anything. He knows what to do." He even did not pray to God for his safety or that the king should change his mind. He was only saying to God, "I know your competency. I know you will do everything good.

      Whatever you do, let me accept your will." When the bell had rung for the seventh time, there was a great sound of the sound current. Inside (of him) God appeared and was in great power.

      Then He asked Nam Dev, "What do you want? If you (ask me), I will take the whole earth and will twist it, crush it into powder, and throw it somewhere where it will not be available. Or I may destroy this king with his kingdom and all of his (things so) that he is totally destroyed. What work is this of giving life to this cow? It is nothing for me."

      The saints are very merciful. They are merciful even to their enemy who comes as a killer. (Therefore) Nam Dev prayed to God, "My dear, please forgive this king. However, I don't want this king to remain an atheist and the kingdom to remain atheistic. I want your will to be done. I don't want to pray to you or to ask you for anything.

      However from my heart one voice is coming out that you may please give life to this cow (so) that this king will become a believer of God, a believer of you, and all (the people in) the kingdom will also become believers. Then there will be all goodness from this kingdom which will spread over the whole world."

      Now you can well imagine that Nam Dev did not ask for his own safety or for anything for himself or anything against the cruel king. He also did not believe in prayers because God is already merciful and already helping everybody.

      We are not to pray to our father or mother. We ask them if we feel that due to our own ignorance they have no love or vigilance for us and they do not like to help us. Then we may ask (something) from them. The child is totally innocent. He doesn't know through what he will be benefited and what will hurt him. The child is not to ask for anything from the mother. She already knows that the winter season is coming, and two or three months in advance she will begin to arrange (something) for the child for the coming winter season.

      Each moment she is managing the best accommodation for the child; the child may or may not be knowing what he needs for himself. The child is only to be with his mother. The mother will love him, and the child will also be able to love the mother. This is the only (thing) the child has to do himself - to be near to the mother in love.

      So Nam Dev did not pray for or request anything except one thing: the atheism of the king should be taken away. Then all (the people of) this world who were suffering due to the atheism of the king would become believers of God.

      When this cow will find life, everyone will feel that there is the power of God that can do everything. In the scriptures it is written that the cow was alive. Then the saint milked the cow and presented the bucket full of milk to the audience.

      All those atheists, even the king, had to say, "Hail to you and hail to your great God! We now thank you that this misunderstanding which had conquered our hearts up till today has been raised up with your grace.

      After having (known) your connection with God and having found the powers of God, we are really bowing down our head to you and to your great God." Now it is also the same case all over the world (that) suchlike situation as atheism is prevailing.

      Everywhere in the world (there are) all these armies and armaments, all weapons, and killing and killing is going on flourishing and (getting) more and more, more and more. What will happen? So many innocent souls of the birds, the worms, or the animals will be killed. What have they done? Why are they suffering? Why have they been killed?

      There is a sympathizer for them also. If you kill the child of a king, will he forgive you? If you kill another child of the king, he will also take care of that child and will really take revenge on you. All the species of life - may it be worms, living beings of water, or (living beings) of air - are all made by God, and God is the father of all (of them).

      If we are elderly children of Father God and are much more privileged than the other ones, they also have a relation to God, and we will have to account for all suchlike actions which we do to the innocent animals just in ignorance (because we think) there is no court of law to judge us for the bad actions done to them. If you cannot give life to anybody, you are also not entitled to take it.

      God is life, and He has given His own life to everybody. If we kill somebody, it is killing some part of God.

      From whom did man learn these killing, disturbing, or torturing actions? Is it from God, the Masters, or saints? That can never be. It is the evil mind which is having its own kinds of negative creations. It is okay, no doubt, that you can go on living the life and enjoying at the level of body, mind, and intellect but it is so dangerous because man's actions are dependent upon the control of thoughts.

      If these are from God, man will be like an angel or just like another God. But if God is not there, then the evil is really controlling (us) and we are horrible, horrible, and horrible. No doubt, it is really hard to kill any living being but to kill a human being is the hardest and most heinous sin. So we can never be forgiven for this great sin.

      How great it is to give life to somebody! What is "giving life"? To awaken the soul of somebody. So what is our duty? Not to kill nor disturb anybody but to be an agency to give life to all those who are lying in dead bodies. With "dead body" I mean those bodies which are like graves (and) in which there is no light, there is no sound, there is no life. Inside (of them there) is only the death system. Only the body is moving, acting, and living.

      The life we are enjoying at the level of body, mind, and intellect - I'm sorry to say that, I don't want to say it but I have to tell you the reality - is all from the evil. No one is allowed to live this kind of life. If someone lives this kind of life, it will be really horrible.

      The Masters come and give life to all those dead. Then they begin to live and God begins to act in them. That has been given to you.

      You are really lucky ones, you are really great ones, you are really wonderful ones, but (as) yet you are too small. Get out of the body and expand in all the horizons. The body will still remain yours. Whenever you like, you can take care of your body but you are to enjoy your greatness.

      Will the world ever learn this lesson of light and life? I am not to answer this question. This is a question to you. This is your duty. You are to begin to live in that great light and life. This seed has been sown in you which you are to serve so that you become what you ask from the seed. Go on acting also in this way of life that is available to all those who come in contact to you or (whom) you feel like contacting.

      You may give food, money, or some clothing to a person (but) that will only last for some months. But if you supply (that person with) God and all this light and sound of God, the creator life principle of God, they will enjoy and live forever.

      We have not understood this greatness of light, sound, and life. We have only found the greatness of gold, silver, or (some) other things of this world (to) which we have given some cost or price but God has given them nil price.

      So my dear, your light should not be just enclosed in you; it should spread as sunlight.

      Wherever you go, the people (should) find that there is something in you and may follow you and their hearts will accept you. We are already too late!

      Please be quick and take up the work given to you all the twenty-four hours. I hope you will follow all my instructions or requests, and that will be the greatness of you.