The rarest of the rare is getting a Uttama Guru. When you have a Guru, you can peacefully rest. Do not let anything that happens to you or around you demoralize you.
Accept whatever happens as the divine grace of the Guru. Every moment of your life should be taken as His gift. Rest assured that every incident that happens is by His grace and happens for your well-being.
Gurus are here to make you happy and mentally sound. So do not lose heart.
answers and beyonds
Is the life of one who has surrendered to a Sadguru governed by His grace or by Karma?
If one had surrendered to the right guru, that will be his last birth. In that case, he will have to live through the rest of his karma in this birth itself. The Guru will schedule this appropriately for him and safely lead him to liberation. One important point to note here is that, if one does a complete surrender to a ‘Uttama Guru’, he comes under the influence of a special divine power that will take care of him.
The phenomenon is better experienced than explained.
How do I identify an enlightened person? Nowadays every other godman claims that he is an enlightened guru!
The very fact that they are claiming themselves to be enlightened, exposes that they are not enlightened! So search for the one who does not claim so!
What are rajasic qualities?
Anger, lust, greed, tendency to indulge in worldly pleasures, resorting to any means to fulfill this end is worldly rajas.
Even in divine life, there are rajasic qualities. Doing divine activities with great pomp and show, hurting the body in form of severe penance, exhibiting and projecting one’s Sadhanas to outer world, etc. are examples.
Why do some people advise against eating meat?
It is best to fill your mind with saatvic thoughts. The food you eat and your mind are directly related. Eating meat products induce ‘rajasic’ qualities in your mind. That may be the reason why some people advise you to abstain from eating meat.
How to strike a balance between living in the spiritual world and the “worldly” world till your duties in the “worldly” world are not done?
The life of a householder is the most blessed one.
Even if one is wealthy and leads a comfortable life, if he fails to chant the Mahamantra, he is certain to suffer in the life after death! If a Sanyasi follows the rigorous austerities laid down for him, he suffers in this birth but is happy in the life beyond. By being a householder, leading a righteous life and chanting the Mahamantra, one can enjoy this life as well as in the life beyond!
Is it not a blessing to be a householder?
So chant the Mahamantra. Chant it with faith, love and patience. Then you will see for yourself that the heaven is at your feet, even while doing your worldly duties.
I am a devotee of Sriman Narayana. I have decided to live a family life and yet be spiritual. Can I see the Lord even though I don’t follow Brahmacharya and am a householder?
Being a householder is not at all a road block to see God face-to-face. History has it that most of the Mahans who have seen God were householders. Continue to chant the Maha Mantra with faith and perseverance. When you incessantly chant the Maha Mantra with patience, you will definitely be able to see Sriman Narayana some day.
If a grihasta is really serious about realizing the Self, and goes through the spiritual process while sustaining the family, then, wouldn’t s/he lose the interest in everything else like family/work etc? How can one continue to lead a normal everyday life, while seeking out to destroy desires?
When we do something, we either do it with attachment or we do it out of duty consciousness.
In office, we carryout the work sincerely because we are bound by duty-consciousness. There is no question of attachment here.
When at home, in family life, we carry out our duties with attachment.
We don’t show as much attachment in our office work as we do in buying a new shirt for Diwali or a new toy for our child at home.
The commitment that is shown in your family life should be limited to that of rendering your familial duties. If you can carry out your affairs at home with the same duty consciousness and no attachment to the activities, then you will be able to progress in spiritual life, while still being in family life.
What are the dharmas prescribed for the Grihasthas (family men)?
The Dharmas for the Grihastas are beautifully described in the 14th chapter of the 7th Canto of Srimad Bhagavatam as a conversation between Yudhishtra and Narada. You can refer the same.
As it is true that the supreme Lord is only one and absolute, why are there different types of religious followers?
If food is meant only to satisfy hunger, then why do we have so many varieties?
If clothes are meant only to cover our body, then why are there so many models and designs of them?
If houses are meant only for shelter, then why are there so many varieties in them?
It is because human beings like varieties to suit their tastes. In the same way, to reach the one supreme Lord, there are different ways and means. One can choose one particular path according to his taste and stick on to it.
