The Internal Victory

by Chariji, October 22, 2004, Kolkata, India.

On the day of Vijaya Dashami

[Inaudible] It is not some Durga devi or Kali mata who is fighting for us. It is only an external representation of the internal victory that each one has to achieve over what we can consider negative tendencies in ourselves, by using the good to subdue the bad tendencies, the negative tendencies, and gain victory over ourselves. Babuji Maharaj said the mind is our enemy, but the mind is also the only instrument through which we can gain this victory, and make sure that human birth makes use of this very valuable opportunity on earth to achieve the goal of human birth, which is to gain liberation from it.

So, instead of worshipping outside and looking at Bhasmasura, Narakasura and Ravana and all these things (you know, they are all fairy tales, tales of teaching, instruction), we must understand that it is ourselves that we have to overcome. The enemy is not outside; the enemy is very much within. And we succumb to those internal forces through ignorance, through laziness. Those are supposed to be, according to the Shastras, the two main enemies of human life: ignorance and laziness. Because, through ignorance, we avoid the good; through ignorance of consequences, we accept the evil. Through laziness, we are not able change ourselves. And therefore we have all these lovely temples. They are good for the Archaeological Survey of India, they are good for artists, they are good for sculptors who make their living by it-but they are not good for us.

On this auspicious occasion, we must remember my Master, Babuji's clarion call. He said, "Religions divide." I don't think anybody needs to be convinced of that. It is a well known saying that throughout the history of humanity more people have died because of religion than because of any other single cause. History is testamentary to this. Even today it is happening. India is divided by its religions. Our politics is governed by caste-ism. Our politicians make use of this fact. They divide Kayasth from Brahmin, Brahmin from Muslim, Muslim from Gujarati, Gujarati from Marwari. Even in the recent elections, you know, there was importance given to this so-called Muslim vote. And we are fools, you know, that we are playthings of our politicians, of our sensational moods, and we are being played upon like musical instruments, and they are governing in Delhi, or wherever it is, you see. We get what we deserve. A famous British dictum says, "You get the government that you deserve." This is all that we deserve-Hindutva, caste-ism and Islam-divided votes, hung parliament. We deserve, we get. The Indian must forget his religion, and make it a private affair-which is what it should be: "God is my business."

In Hinduism, we don't take our wives and embellish them with lipstick and powder and show them to the outside world. They are very much a sacred thing and a secret thing-dharmapatni. She is not to be put on show. Show business is elsewhere-on the screens and in the bazaars of our country. In Hindi, the public woman is called the baazaari aurat [street woman]. Aur bhi lafz istemaal kiye jaate hain [people use other words also], but bazaari aurat means something very low (very neech), whereas the grihalakshmi [lady of the house] is unseen. Even at home, when there are visitors, she stands behind the pillar and says, "Suniye" [listen], and the husband must listen to her, go in and listen. She is like the conscience which speaks from inside, from within, with a quiet whisper. We don't listen to it any more. We want all this halla-gulla [hullabaloo], you see-twenty-four hours of tamasha [a spectacle] and hundred-and-twenty decibel noise ruining our sleep, ruining our hearing. Whether it is today in Kolkata, or day after tomorrow in Maharastra, or next year in Tamilnadu, it doesn't matter-the same vulgar display of religion, the same vulgar display of our gods and goddesses, the same eroticism that is used to display our goddesses as in the films.

I remember, I was once in Kanyakumari, you know, the Kanyakumari is a virgin goddess beautifully decked with jewels and everything; and in the temple one of my friends (he is dead, God have mercy on him), he said, "Oh, how I wish she was alive! She would be so wonderful"-in the temple! It is not his fault; it is the fault of the way in which goddesses are portrayed. Instead of inciting you to good and to worship the inside, they incite you to lust. And we worship them; we are kowtowing to them. So, what is this we are doing in our country? Our wonderful people, our educated, our foolish, our men and our women-what are we doing? Are we not ever going to wake up and face boldly my inner voice which says, "Put aside all this rubbish! Once and for all, throw your Durgas and your Ganapathis into the sea or wherever you want to do it, and don't look at them again." Do we have the courage to do it? Of course the Bengali will raise up his arms and say, "Madrasi, chole jaao, baadi chole jaao!" [Madrasi, go back home.] "Aami jaachchi." [I am going.] "What is going to happen to you?" "Aami chole jaabo. Apnaar kee hobe?" [I will go back. What will happen to you?] My fate and my destiny are not at stake, either in Bengal or in Tamilnadu or anywhere else. I am talking about you.

Sahaj Marg exists to open blind eyes, to curb emotion and awaken wisdom, and to make you realise that God is within, never outside. It is not that there is no God. I don't want arguments. "Do you mean to say there is no God in this pillar?" I am not here to confront a Hiranyakashipu and kick a pillar, and probably, stub my toe. Today, there is no Narasimha coming out of pillars, or anywhere else.

I want to tell you a joke. I was in Moscow and a young Maharashtrian boy wanted to tell me a joke. He said, "Uncle, Uncle." His father said, "No, no, Master kaho." [Say 'Master'.] He said, "Master, Master, I want to tell you a joke. Three people went in a boat. One was a Hindu, one was a Muslim and one was a Maharashtrian." I said, "Is the Maharashtrian not a Hindu?" He said, "Uncle, don't spoil the joke. One Hindu, one Muslim and one Maharashtrian were in a boat. As they were crossing the river, there was a storm, and a flood. The boatman said, 'Pray to your respective gods if you don't know to swim.' So the Musalmaan prayed to Khuda and he was saved. The Hindu prayed to his god and he was saved. The Maharashtrian drowned." I said, "Why? Did he not pray?" "No, no, Uncle, he prayed. But his God Ganesha came and he said, 'Every year you are drowning me, now this year you drown.' " A boy of five! Out of the mouths of babes and sucklings cometh forth wisdom-that's what an old saying says.

We neither listen to our children nor to our older people. We listen only to our own lust, our viciousness, and our so-called worship. And people are known as being God-fearing, not God-loving. "Saab, he is God-fearing. Roz subah nahate hain, mandir jate hain." [Every morning he bathes and goes to temple.] "Kya karte hain mandir jaake?" [What does he do in the temple?] "Give me more promotions, protect me from my boss, let my savings be safe, let not the UTI go to the dogs and all my life savings gone. My government, which was to protect me in my old age, swallowed my investment, and now they are doling out one percent, one percent, one percent-nine percent senior citizen investment. Great wonderful thing my government is doing for me!" And we are fools, we are beggars; we stretch out our hand for ten rupees, somebody throws ten paise and hum usko dua dete hain [we give them our blessings]: "Jeete rahiye." [May you live long.] We don't even have the intelligence to know what we should ask from our government, leave alone from our gods. We are so stupid.

From your wife you want love; you want your satisfaction to your lust. From your children you want love and affection, and for them to progress in life in a respectful, respectable and honourable way; you only put fire on their ambition already fire-full. "My son will be Collector," says one mother. "My daughter will be like Phoolandevi," [female bandit] says another bechaari [poor woman]. Because she doesn't know who Phoolandevi was. Cinema me dekhte honge. [She must have seen her in movies.]

So, you see, Sahaj Marg gives very wise advice. Its teachings are the only true teachings extant today, because in Sahaj Marg we have no 'God,' we have no 'Goddesses.' Sahaj Marg says, "Look within-antharyamin." [He who resides inside.] He is the only true God; He has no name, He is you yourself as your higher manifestation who will guide you, who will protect you, who will nourish you, who will cherish you, and who will take you to His goal, which is your goal. He is to be liberated, not you. You humans, your fleshly body does not deserve liberation [that is the fleshly body itself can never be liberated]. To liberate Him, for heaven's sake, sit down and meditate-because with His liberation, your liberation follows. He can go through yuga after yuga [aeon after aeon] of smashanabhumis [graveyards]. For Him it doesn't matter. For Him water does not wet, fire does not burn; there is no life, there is no death-you know that sloka from the Gita. Who is suffering? He suffers because, being my guardian angel, my protector, my Divinity, he says, "I cannot let this fellow alone. Because even with Me inside him, if he is behaving like this, if I am not here, what will happen to this stupid ass that sits before Me? What will happen to him?"

One thing Islam says, "Rehman, my God is Rehman and His mercy is for me-not for religion, not for a koum [brotherhood], not for a sanstha [organisation]-He is merciful towards me." He says, "Parthasarathi, wake up! Uttishtatha, jaagratha, praapyavaraan nibodhata." [Arise, awake, having approached the Chosen One, realise your goal.] And I say, "No, no, sir, I wake up every morning at five thirty." Beewi kehti hai, "Haan haan, bahut sun chuke hain." "Chup raho, roz to alarm bajti hai na?" "Alarm zarur bajti hai; aap jagte nahin hain." [Wife says, "I have heard this before." "Shut up! Doesn't the alarm ring everyday?" "The alarm rings, but you don't wake up."]

So, you see, my God, my Self, me in my Divine manifestation, which can be, which one day will be, we are trying to bring up today here in this life-now. This is Sahaj Marg-those who want it, have it, those who don't want, good-bye.