Obedience means God-importance13
Dear ones in Paree’s singing group, I do hope that you mean what you have written at my request about obedience and disobedience. In your life you have to prove it. We have many, many disciples who write very, very well, but do they practise what they have written?When you obey me, you transport me immediately to the highest realm of bliss. The gardener always hopes that there will be some roses! Today I said that God counts only the flowers in my heart-garden, and I measure my boundaries.
I measure my life-boundaries.
My Lord counts only
My heart-garden-flowers.”
Here and there, East, West, North and South, I measure my boundaries, while God only counts the flowers in my heart-garden. In my small heart-garden He expects a few beautiful, most beautiful flowers.
I can talk for hours and hours and hours like a beggar to inspire you and lift up your consciousness so that you will listen to my request. I take you to Heaven with inspiration, encouragement and enthusiasm. Alas, the moment I make a simple request, what happens? Some people cannot fulfil my simple requests. They say, “Oh, if you ask me something more difficult, infinitely more difficult, then I will do it.” At that time they feel that they will be able to show the world their obedience!
Let us say that I ask a disciple to bring me a glass of water, but he says, “You are a spiritual Master. You need flowers. My devotion will increase if I bring you flowers, not if I bring you a glass of water.” If I am thirsty, at that time I do not need the beauty and fragrance of a flower!
Some disobedient disciples make the world feel that they are very, very, very close to me. They try to convince the rest of the world that they are my most obedient disciples. And there are many who believe them. Many, many believe that these people are my best, most obedient disciples.
I talk and talk and talk to some disciples to convince them to do the right thing. But it is like trying to straighten the tail of a dog. You hold it; you straighten it. Then, the moment you release it, it goes back to its original shape. You can hold it for hours and then say, “Now that I have held it for so many hours, it will remain straight.” But alas, it does not.
Once we lose obedience, it is very, very, very, very difficult to get it back. Other things if we lose, we may get them back sooner or later. But once we break our obedience, it is almost impossible to bring it back. It may take years and years to regain obedience. Again, if a disciple is one with the Master’s will, it is easier than the easiest to have obedience.
In every way, when the Master speaks, he can be misunderstood. If the Master asks someone to sweep the floor, and he asks someone else to bring him a beautiful flower, the one that is bringing the flower thinks the Master is being very clever. He thinks, “The Master is teaching the disciple who is sweeping the floor humility, so he will make faster progress. Then I will be behind him.” At the same time, the one who is sweeping thinks, “I am useless. That is why the Master has given me this job, to sweep the floor. That person is so pure and so spiritual. That is why the Master asked him to bring a flower. I am farther than the farthest from the Master. I am lower than the lowest. This is all I can do: sweep.” Again, at the very same time the other person is thinking, “That disciple is making such progress because the Master is giving him the humility-lesson.”
What can you do? Everybody can misinterpret. To interpret means to misinterpret the Master’s way of thinking.
There are some disciples here who have overcome Himalayan obstacles to be with their Master on the Christmas Trip. Some disciples had to borrow money. They begged their relatives to give them money or lend them money, and the relatives were kind. Look at these disciples! They wanted to come here to be with their Master, to spend hours and hours with their Master. They value their Master’s outer presence, while others are enjoying the pleasures of wealth. Perhaps they cannot be here because there is too much light!
A great man once wrote that he is not afraid of darkness; he is afraid of light. Can you imagine that? He said that he is afraid of light, not of darkness. When I read it four or five years ago, I said, “It is so true!” Some people are terribly afraid of light. They are not afraid of darkness because they are already inside darkness, whereas light is something new. They get frightened by light. Something new frightens us, but if something is old, we have long been associated with that old thing, so we do not have to be afraid of it. Others, who are dying to have an iota of light, get frightened when they see darkness. For them it is just the opposite.
I call Paree’s group a children’s group. I take you as children because many of your parents are with us. You are my grandchildren, because your parents are on the path. We had many years ago a question-and-answer book with children who came to the path with their parents. These children were four years old, six years old, eight years old. Alas, alas, some of them have left us. It is very difficult to remain in the light. Again, some disciples have been with me for so many years, but do they have a glimpse of who I am? Perhaps no one will ever have a glimpse of who I am.
Always keep your promises. If you break them, start again to keep them. If you promise to get up at six o’clock, and you do not get up, tomorrow try again. Tomorrow is coming again and again. If you find it difficult today, start again and again and again. Once you give up, the story is finished. The same applies to obedience also. The best thing is to obey, obey. But if you have forgotten to obey, then immediately wake up, wake up, wake up! Do not wait for tomorrow. When you disobey your Master, do not wait for tomorrow. Immediately, immediately, immediately rectify the situation.
