Section 1

1 Little Do I Know ...

Little do I know

Or care to know

That my bondage-life

Is my self-invention.

2 Prayer-Tears ...

Prayer-tears

Are indeed pure.

Meditation-smiles

Are supremely sure.

3 We Cannot Solve Life's Riddles ...

We cannot solve life's riddles

On our own.

Each riddle of life

Needs a special

Compassion-Smile from God

For its liberation.

4 We Celebrate ...

We celebrate

The supremacy

Of the division-mind,

Which is absurdity itself.

We must celebrate

The satisfaction-ecstasy

Of the oneness-heart.

5 Ego And Fear ...

Ego and fear

Chase each other.

Doubt and faith

Chase each other.

Confidence and insecurity

Chase each other.

6 Forgiveness ...

Forgiveness

Is a matter

Of luminous choice.

Forgiveness

Can enter

And does enter

The heart

Of progress-delight.

7 We Do Not Need A Mind ...

We do not need a mind

Of constant contradiction.

What we need is a heart

Of constant

Heaven-climbing aspiration.

8 Aspiration-Shortage ...

Aspiration-shortage

Is a very old story.

Let us write

A new story:

Aspiration-plenitude.

9 May Each Seeker's Love Of God ...

May each seeker's love of God

And surrender to God's Will

Be a fragrance-flooded

One-way street

With no U-turn.

10 Our World-Attachments ...

Our world-attachments

Will vanish

Only when our minds

Sincerely care for

The world-transforming

Illumination.

11 Alas, ...

Alas,

Long lost are

My God-loving days

And

God-worshipping nights.

12 At Last Wisdom-Light ...

At last wisdom-light

Has dawned in my heart.

No more

Shall I be trapped

In the net

Of unhealthy,

Earth-bound thoughts.

13 The Complexity-Challenges ...

The complexity-challenges

Of life

Are outwardly hurtful

But inwardly fruitful.

14 The Triumphant ...

The triumphant

God-loving hearts

Are happily treasured

By God's Compassion-Eye

And Satisfaction-Heart.

15 Each Seeker-Heart Realises ...

Each seeker-heart realises

That his Master-Saviour

Is an extraordinary member

Of God's immediate Family.

16 Mortal ...

Mortal

Is the life of hope.

Let us try to place

Immortality

Inside the heart-breath

Of hope.

17 Aspiration And Dedication ...

Aspiration and dedication

Are by far

The best instruments

Of the God-manifesting souls.

18 Let Us Abandon ...

Let us abandon

Our yesterday's minds.

Let us deal with

Our today's

God-manifesting hearts.

19 When I Treat Others ...

When I treat others

As God-manifesting

Divinity-souls,

I feel that I am

Safely on my way

To God-manifestation-lands.

20 Try To Live ...

Try to live

According to your heart's

Aspiration-wisdom-dictates.

21 The Man-Made Life ...

The man-made life

Is too weak to climb up

To the highest.

The God-made life

Remains always

At the summit-heights.

22 Be Not Infatuated ...

Be not infatuated

With money-power

Or possession-power,

For their lives

Are extremely short.

Frustration

And

Destruction

Quickly follow them.

23 The Failure ...

The failure

Of desire-life

Is the satisfaction

Of earth's

Aspiration-victory.

24 The Capacities ...

The capacities

Of the inner man

Far transcend

The impossibility-barriers

Of the outer life.

25 Continued Effort ...

Continued effort

Is the open secret

Of success-life.

Continued surrender

Is the open secret

Of progress-heart.

26 My Success-Choice ...

My success-choice

Has made my life

Miserable.

My progress-choice

Will make my heart

Always laudable.

27 O Man, Hide Not ...

O man, hide not

Your earth-bound desires.

Bring them to the fore,

Illumine them

And help them reach

Their destined goal:

Satisfaction divine.

28 Since The Mind-Prison ...

Since the mind-prison

Is never locked,

Insincerity and impurity

Frequently visit there.

29 Blameless People ...

Blameless people

Never dream of blaming

The blighted

Imperfection-world.

30 When I Invite ...

When I invite

God the Voice

To fulfil me,

I reach the heart

Of my own

Perfection-choice.

31 He Who Has ...

He who has

The abundant capacity

To forgive others

Sees that he has

Nobody to forgive.

32 To Forgive ...

To forgive

Is to identify oneself

With

God's God-Satisfaction.

33 Nobody Else ...

Nobody else

Causes my suffering.

My own choices

Are the only cause

Of my suffering.

34 My Mind ...

My mind

Wants to change

The minds of others.

My heart

Does not want to change

Any other heart.

It only wants to become

Part and parcel

Of all hearts.

35 Listen To The Soundless Voice ...

Listen to the soundless voice

To give you the capacity

To make the perfect choice

In your outer life.

36 Mine Is The Choice ...

Mine is the choice

Either to blindly bind

Or to smilingly liberate

The world.

37 Spirituality Is Not Like ...

Spirituality is not like

A scientific experiment.

Spirituality is divinity's

God-fulfilment-experience.

38 He Who Has Faith ...

He who has faith

In abundance

Can never lose

The reality,

For he has already

Become the reality.

39 The Clever Man Does Not Know ...

The clever man does not know

That God is great.

The wise man knows

That God is not only

Divinely great

But also supremely good.

40 The Congregation ...

The congregation

Of aspiring hearts

Is the liberation

Of binding lives.

41 Each Man Must Try ...

Each man must try

Not only to curtail

But actually to end

His self-indulgence

Pleasure-life.

42 To See ...

To see

The perfection-divinity

In a human being

Is the most precious

Opportunity

Of a lifetime.

43 The Mind Is Always Eager ...

The mind is always eager

To export stupidity.

The heart is always eager

To import wisdom.

44 My Life's ...

My life's

Heavenward journey

Is the liberation

Of my mind's

Ignorance-night.

Excerpt from My Bondage-Life Is My Self-Invention by Sri Chinmoy