A person who lives simply to eat, sleep, satisfy his/her senses, and is of no use to this world, is in fact eating his own sins, say the Vedas categorically.
One must be of some use to the world. How can one live just to eat, sleep, and ‘make merry’ all their lives? Sri Swamiji says, “You eat the food that Bhagavan (God) has provided, breathe the air that Bhagavan has provided, drink the water Bhagavan has provided, live with the body that Bhagavan has given! With all this, if we don’t chant even a few Mahamantras in gratitude, you are not being sincere to the Master who is providing you with a living!”
When our gardener, carpenter, or plumber asks us for payment, do we not first ask him or evaluate what work he has done? Similarly, each night, Bhagavan (our Master) questions us – What useful work did you do today?
We can be useful to the world in many ways.
Being useful and helpful physically is the first step. Enabling intellectual growth or putting our knowledge to use in benefiting the world is the next step. What is the highest help that one can do?
Swami Vivekananda said, “The help which tends to make us spiritually strong is the highest help, next to it comes intellectual help and after that comes physical help.”
Because when we grow in spiritual strength, we eliminate desire itself. Hence spiritual growth (both for ourselves and for others) is the highest help.
How can we grow stronger spiritually and also enable others to?
Sri Swamiji shows a simple way: “Chant the Divine Name at least a few times each day. Listen to Bhagavat guna katha frequently, and when possible, speak of it to others.”
He continues, “We need to contribute somehow to the world. Else what is the purpose of living? You wake up in the morning, then brush, bathe, eat, sleep, watch TV/videos…. then repeat the same thing the next day! Is this any life?
“You don’t need to do anything big. Just chant the Mahamantra a few times daily. Chant it happily and contentedly. You don’t need to read or study this or that. Here, knowledge is not the goal. Love is the goal. Simply chant.. Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare!
“When there is Bhagavatam Katha, go put your body where the katha is going on. Just listen. Even with chanting the Divine Name, our mind can give an excuse that it is sleepy; or for other work, we can say that my arms or feet ache, etc. but when it comes to listening to Katha, our ears never get tired.
“This is how we gain spiritual growth – through Nama kirtan and Katha shravanam. It is the easiest and best way to make our life useful and purposeful.”
Based on the talks of HH Maharanyam Sri Sri Muralidhara Swamiji
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