You know, this Mahabharata movie [TV series] has spoiled my imagination of Lord Krishna,
because each time I think of Lord Krishna,
this actor comes in my mind
who played the role of Lord Krishna.
And many times… you know, even Ramayana.
Mother Sita would come in the form of that actress.
Now is that real?
Apparently, there are groups of children today, youth,
some are so focused and
sincere about the truth, the reality.
Why are we?
What are we?
How are we to proceed towards this?
What is the truth behind our existence?
There is some minority of youth who are pursuing this in a very serious way.
We have a lot of youth coming to us with these fundamental questions.
And there is another part of youth,
whom I call a bit lost, however temporarily.
But they will, I think, make their way as they learn their lessons in life.
When they say, when a question arises, “I don't believe in God,” I think it
is fundamentally the right question.
“I don't believe in God because…” As you say, “I don't see it.” But
God is not a thing to be seen.
God can be experienced only.
There is no other way.
Moment you bring God in, bring him into a form,
how do you recognize it?
Someone asked my Guruji, “Can you show me God?” His answer was very profound.
He said, “Suppose if I show you God, how will you know it is God?”
isn't it?
And second thing, you ask any elderly person today - your grandmother or mother -
“Do you believe in God?” and immediately what answer would she give you?
Perhaps she might even slap you, even though you are grown up.
“Why are you asking me such a question?
Don't you think I believe in God?” When you ask such a question,
they think you are attacking them.
But they get angry because they have no answer to why they believe in God.
They really have no profound or real answer behind their belief.
At the most they would say, “I believe because my mother taught me.” “I
believe because my father taught me.” “I believe because our religion says
so, our books, our shastras say so.
So I believe.” So my belief is always on the outside ‘because of…’.
But what about you?
What do you say about it?
Then they keep zero.
One day, I was discussing this thing with my father, one evening some time in 1977.
I asked my father, “You have been doing all this for years
and years, as much as I noticed.
Can you tell me the best experience that you ever had with this worship, that
I can share with your grandchildren?” Of course, at that time I was not
married, but I put the question like that, something that “I’d like to
share from, you know, what you share with me today, I will share with your
grandchildren, your best experience.” He kept on thinking and scratching his head
also and said, “Kamlesh, I don't know.
I just do it.
It makes me feel good, it makes me feel as if I have done my
duty.” I said, “Towards whom?
God is not asking you to do this or that.
Why are you doing this?
Have you felt anything out of it?
Have you become anything after doing all these things?” He said, “No.” I said
then, “Would you like to experience the presence of something very profound in
yourself ?” He said, ”Yes.”I took him to one of the trainers near our village.
He sat in meditation,a simple form of meditation the way you all do.
Close your eyes and be receptive towards this incoming Transmission
with the thought that, “My heart is being illuminated with divine
presence, divine light.” That's all.
And when the work was done on him by the trainer through yogic
Transmission, at the end of meditation he started crying like a child.
I was witness to it and he said, “I wasted my life”.
I said, ”How so?” He said, “Something that I had been wandering to experience,
it has come true today in the very first session.” I said, “Look, you
should not feel bad that you wasted.
You should not feel like you wasted your time.
All those things have prepared you for this moment.” It is
not that religion is bad.
Religion prepares us, but we should always be open for spiritual experience.
All these murtis, nothing wrong with it.
They are aakar.
It gives us a direction that says, “Move in this direction.”
But these aakar are human made.
Like the Mahabharata movie has spoiled my imagination of Lord Krishna, because
each time I think of Lord Krishna, this actor comes in my mind who had
played the role of Lord Krishna.
And many times…, you know, even Ramayana or Mother Sita would
come in the form of that actress.
Now is that real?
No, and we keep on creating images or photographs of these lords - in
the images portrayed by cinema.
Similarly the artist’s imagination through a murti.
But when I encounter godly presence in my heart, it will not be
through any form because divine presence is always beyond form.
They say, “We go beyond aakar into niraakar and still further.
We transcend all these things.
So I think there is beauty behind all these things.
Though religion gives us a direction, we should not stop there.
We should try to go further - venture, as they say, into inner spiritual adventure.