God Joins In

“When a man is willing and eager, God joins in”
_Aeschylus

On the spiritual journey, we often think of the mind as the enemy, an entity which is to be fought with and won over. However, even the mind is essentially looking for everlasting happiness, just as we all are.

Great Master often said that once the mind turns inwards, there is no better friend than the mind. So, our struggle is to make the mind willing to look for happiness in a direction it is completely unfamiliar with, that is inwards. It is this initial understanding for which we need a Master, or a teacher. To show us that such a direction (or place) indeed exists. Otherwise, for millennia, our attention has wandered and remained outwards, causing us to run after objects and faces of the external worlds.

To terribly complicate our predicament, this mind is always in motion. It has not known how to be still even for a moment. The whole world is engaged in feverish and senseless pursuit after the objects of temporary gratification. We shed plenty of tears for money, relationships, and possessions, and suffer dismay and disappointment at every step. Sardar Bahadur Jagat Singh says:

Life is like an empty dream. There is nothing real about it. Just as a blossom does not last for long, so does not life. As in a dramatic performance the various actors come to play their part as king, queen, villain, etc. and on its conclusion go their own way, forgetting all about the ephemeral relationships, so is the world a big stage where we come to perform the predestined roles and then depart. Like the dramatic performance, our attachments in life are unreal and only for the purpose of carrying out our allotted jobs.
_{Science of the Soul, p.106}

All this is due to the habit of the mind of being in constant motion and jumping from one thing to the next. We again lean on the help and wisdom of the realized souls, the masters, to impart or teach us the proper method of meditation to make the mind motionless.

Once we know the direction and the technique, the next all-important task is to put in the effort. The conundrum is who or what has to be convinced to put in the effort. The mind! Huzur reminded us that the soul is always yearning to go back to the Father, and if it is left to itself, it will instantly go back its source.

This is where we make use of “vivek”, the sense of good and bad, which saints tell is a gift given only to humans. Although it may be generally applied in any context of life, but true vivek is the sense of good and bad for our real self. The ultimate good for our true self, or soul, is its liberation and its merging back into its source. Our willingness to direct every thought, every action, so as to support this noble cause of ultimate freedom is what is pleasing to God and causes him to join in.

Once we have marked up the objective in front of us, where then is room for apathy and complacency! Saints encourage us to take an eager approach in our meditation towards achieving that objective. Given the transitory nature of life, every breath leaving our body is a reminder that time is passing by. A sense of urgency must prevail for this all-important endeavor. And we need not be judgmental about our efforts. A step forward is a step forward. Winston Churchill is quoted as saying,

Success is going from failure to failure without the loss of enthusiasm.

Being eager and enthusiastic about working towards a goal gives us a sense of purpose and meaning. And when the goal is the union with the Lord, it naturally draws us more in harmony with the Divine. Life then takes on a fresh look, full of gratefulness and appreciation for everything. Huzur Maharaj Ji says:

Our approach to meditation should be that of gratitude. The Lord has given us the opportunity of this human form and then the environment in which to attend to meditation. So, we should always approach meditation with gratitude. We owe our very existence, all these privileges, just to the Father. This very human birth is nothing but his grace. So, at every step we must thank him. We must find every excuse to thank him.
_{Spiritual Perspectives, Vol. III, p.401-402}

Let’s be willing and eager to express our gratitude in meditation every day so intensely that He joins in.