1101. When I go beyond

When I go beyond myself
I see everything in God,
Everything for God
And, finally,
Everything as God.

1102. Self-reliance

Self-reliance is a
Human pressure,
Divine pleasure
And
Supreme treasure.

1103. I am right

Because I think of God,
I am right.
Because I am right,
I think of man.

1104. Your suffering-world

Do not overvalue
Your suffering-world.
Lo, it will vanish
Even faster
Than you can open your eyes.

1105. The powerfully wise man

The powerfully wise man in me
Sees the world as it is.
The pitifully stupid man in me
Sees the world as it appears.

1106. Towards my new perfection-life

Doubt is a big and poisonous thorn!
Let me cast it aside
While walking along the royal road
Towards my new perfection-life.

1107. Any negative thought

Any negative thought
Can intimidate you.
Any negative feeling
Can destroy you.

1108. Remain cheerful!

Remain cheerful!
I tell you,
A silver sky you will soon see.

Remain soulful!
I tell you,
A golden sun you will soon become.

1109. Willingness to learn

In the outer world
Willingness to learn
Is a good start.

In the inner world
Willingness to learn
Is a splendid victory.

1110. God will come to you

You may not go
As far as you want to go.
You may not dive
As deep as you want to dive.
You may not fly
As high as you want to fly.
But God can and will
Come to you immediately
The moment you soulfully long for Him,
Only Him,
To visit you.

1111. God has given you

God has given you a pure heart
To do good for yourself
And to do good for Him.
God has given you a sure life
To do good for His
Entire creation.

1112. I still care for God

In spite of having many things divine
You still cherish secretly
The pleasure-life.

In spite of having many things undivine
I still care for God
And the complete fulfilment of His Will.

1113. My real nature

My usual nature
May make many, many mistakes.
But my real nature
Cannot and will not
Make any mistakes.

1114. Your humility-life

Your outer pride-life
Is always in danger
And full of accidents.

Your inner humility-life
Knows not danger-frown
Or accident-cry.

1115. The right thing

My mind gets inspiration
Only when I choose
The right thing to do.
My heart gets aspiration
Only when I choose
The right thing to become.
What is the right thing to do?
I shall love and serve God
Unconditionally.
What is the right thing to become?
I shall become God’s
Most perfect instrument.

1116. Each thought

Each thought is hopeless and useless
When I am in my unclear mind.
Each thought is prosperous and generous
When I am in my clear mind.

1117. What is confidence?

What is confidence?
Your love for your real nature.

What is confidence?
The destruction of your negative thoughts.

What is confidence?
The transformation of imagination
Into reality.

1118. Study and give

Do you want to be wise?
Then study the responsibility-subject.
Do you want to be happy?
Then give your life a new chance.

1119. Keep your inner life sacred

Keep your inner life sacred
And not secret.
Keep your outer life soulful
And not powerful.

1120. The art of self-encouragement

Do you want to be always happy?
Then give up fighting
For negativity
And learn the beautiful art
Of self-encouragement.

1121. Since I stopped meditating

Alas, since I stopped meditating
My soul-bird has been crying
On my dead life-tree.

1122. You are bound to suffer

Because your friends
Are sleepless doubts and tireless suspicions,
You are bound to suffer
For centuries
From inner strife.

1123. The heart of luminosity

We see the face
Of liberty
Only when we become
The heart of luminosity.

1124. My God-oneness tells me

My ego tells me
That I can become surprisingly great
If I want to.

My God-oneness tells me
That I am supremely and eternally great
Already.

1125. My life-tree crumbled

My life-tree completely crumbled
Like an old ruin
The day I discontinued my old friendship
With my heart’s aspiration-cry.

1126. Cherish the American way

Cherish, cherish the American way
Of freedom-life.
If not, you will fall
Into the slavery-life
Of incurable frustration.

1127. When I invite

When I invite doubt-volcano,
An indescribable confusion accompanies it.
When I invite faith-flame,
An indescribable illumination accompanies it.

1128. An unfinished creation

Man, because of your merciless ambition,
You will forever remain
An unfinished creation.

1129. No real power

O my discouraging mind,
O my disheartening heart,
I shall never, never attribute
Any real power to you two.
Because you are weak,
You are discouraging me.
Because you are poor,
You are disheartening me.

1130. A soulful wish

I tell you
The supreme secret:
If you soulfully wish
To see the Face of God,
Your very wish
Will attract God’s Heart.
Just wish!
Lo and behold,
The reward supreme!

1131. A new kind of prayer

From today on
I shall try to have
A new type of success.
My conscious surrender
To the Will of my Beloved Supreme
Will be my only success.

From today on
I shall have
A new kind of prayer.
To gladly accept God’s Proposal
To guide my heart and lead my life
Will be my only prayer.

1132. God-awareness transforms

Self-investigation embodies
Self-newness.
Self-newness embodies
God-awareness.
God-awareness transforms
My yesterday’s total nothingness
Into my today’s complete fulness.

1133. Aspiration-efforts

Aspiration-efforts
Always supply satisfaction-results.
It may take time, at times,
But the results are unmistakably
Sure.

1134. Wisdom-light

Wisdom-light is
Perfection-delight within
And
Protection-might without.

1135. An orderly life

An ascending mind
Is a powerful instrument.
So is an orderly life.

1136. When the heart-plant is changed

When the heart-plant is changed,
The life-tree will change,
And everything around the life-tree
Is bound to change.

1137. Think only of those

My Lord Supreme,
What shall I do with those
Who do not listen to me?

“My child,
Think only of those
Who listen to you cheerfully
And who love you unreservedly.”

1138. When I see the Face of God

When I see the Face of God,
I know what I can do for God.
When I feel the Heart of God,
I clearly see that God has already done
Everything for Himself.
Something more!
He has done everything
For me, too.

1139. To see God in a God-lover

To see God in a God-lover
Is an easy task.
And I have already performed
That task.

To see God in a non-believer
Is the most difficult task.
Alas, I do not know when
I shall dare to accomplish
That task.

1140. My heart sees the Infinite

My heart sees the Infinite
In the finite.
My soul sees the Absolute
In the fulness of the Infinite
And
In the nothingness of the finite.

1141. God cries

I cry for God’s
Compassion-Feet.
God cries for my
Perfection-life.

1142. My heart needs God

My heart needs God
To transport it
Into the higher and inner worlds.

My mind wants God
To support it
In the outer world.

1143. What shall I learn ultimately?

My Lord Supreme,
What shall I learn ultimately
From my prayers?
“My child,
What you will ultimately learn
From your prayers is this:
You will someday possess Me,
My universal and transcendental
Existence-Reality.”

My Lord Supreme,
What shall I learn ultimately
From my meditations?
“My child,
What you will ultimately learn
From your meditations is this:
You are My Eternity’s own,
My Infinity’s own
And my Immortality’s own,
Very own.”

1144. If you do not know

If you do not know
What to do with yourself,
Then try these two simple things
That will give you boundless joy:
Think of the beauty
Of your self-knowledge,
Think of the duty
Of your God-knowledge.

1145. Your heart's desire

Your mind’s confusion
May not change,
But your heart’s desire
Can change and will change
To become the aspiration-mountain.

1146. I shall not try

I shall not try
To save my life any more.
I shall only try
To save my heart-flower
From my life-thorn.

1147. Anything that is right

Anything that is right
Quite often surprises
The human in us.
And if we do not execute it,
We embarrass
The divine in us.

1148. Where is happiness?

Happiness,
Where is happiness?
Nowhere.

Misunderstanding,
Where is misunderstanding?
All-where,
Plus, at every moment.

1149. Do not trust your mind

Do not trust your mind,
Never!
It will be careless
With your life
The way it is careless
With its own thoughts.

1150. God loves me

O my mind,
I see God in a different way.
I see that He loves me
Even when I do not love
His Heart
And do not care for
His Eye.

1151. Do not distort

Do not distort anything.
If you ever distort anything,
Then remember,
You are torturing
Your own universal Reality-breath.

1152. A supreme discovery

Once we master the art
Of going beyond ourselves,
Nothing any longer
Can create any problem.
Indeed, this is a supreme discovery.

1153. An iota of doubt

Do not play
With even an iota of doubt.
It will hit you deliberately
And hurt you badly.

1154. A human being is deceived

A human being is deceived
By many other human beings,
To the same degree as
A divine being is helped
By many other divine beings.

1155. How do you expect to sail?

As long as your self-opinions
Are frail,
How do you expect yourself
To sail
In your life-boat,
Which is longing to take you
To your destination,
Without being capsized?

1156. When I pretend

When I pretend to be
Other than what I actually am,
I prevent the birth
Of the reality-blossoms in me.

1157. How can you own self-perfection?

How can you own self-perfection
Unless and until you have disowned
Your own self-deceptions?

1158. Why am I always frustrated?

Why am I always frustrated?
I am always frustrated
Because I cannot change my doubtful mind
Into a soulful heart.

1159. The supreme glory

When my mind becomes
The echo of my heart,
I grow into the supreme glory
Of my inner sunshine.

1160. You can be aware of two things

You are tired of one thing:
Self-deception.
That is very good.
You can be aware of two things:
Self-perfection
And
God-Satisfaction.

1161. Your division-illness

Money-power cannot cure
Your division-illness.
Your division-illness needs
The fragrance-rose of oneness-smile.

1162. Stupidity's ultimate height

Your stupidity has reached
Its ultimate height,
For you want to change
Your own outer conditions
Without being inwardly changed
Even for a fleeting second.

1163. I pray to my Lord

In the morning
I pray to my Lord
To grant me newness in life.
In the evening
I pray to my Lord
To grant permanence to my prayer.

1164. What I need

I do not need God.
What I need
Is God’s Compassion-Sea.

I do not need God’s Compassion-Sea.
What I need
Is God’s Forgiveness-Sky.

I do not need God’s Forgiveness-Sky.
What I need
Is God’s Oneness-Sun.

1165. I can find fault

In so many ways I can find fault
With my inner life.
But alas, I have not discovered
Even one way to appreciate
Either the beauty or the purity
Of my inner life.

1166. A tiny negative thought

He is not afraid
Of an atomic bomb,
But a tiny negative thought
Can kill him.
What is that negative thought?
“God does not care for me.”

1167. Your purity-life

If your purity-life
Is glowing,
That means your gratitude-heart
Is growing.

1168. Soulful sincerity

Soulful sincerity is something
That your heart
Does not need
And your vital
Does not accept.

1169. Aspiration-heart, dedication-life

Let your aspiration-heart
Be enduring.
Your dedication-life will automatically
Be assuring.

1170. What is this earth?

What is this earth?
This earth is a place where
Great men are bound
To struggle and suffer
And good men are bound
To fail and perish.

1171. Ask your own heart

Simplicity is a straight road.
Sincerity is a straight and sunlit road.
Purity is a straight, sunlit short-cut.
If you do not believe me,
Ask your own heart.

1172. Because you are soulfully submissive

O my heart, I love you,
Not because you are
Singularly important,
Not because you are
Strikingly impressive,
But because you are
Soulfully submissive
To the Will of my Beloved Supreme.

1173. My realisation-life

My desire-life weakened me.
My aspiration-life is strengthening me.
My realisation-life will satisfy me.

1174. God's God-Gladness

Awareness, awareness!
In awareness is our newness.
Newness, newness!
In newness is our soulfulness.
Soulfulness, soulfulness!
In soulfulness is our fulness.
Fulness, fulness!
In fulness is our God’s
God-Gladness.

1175. Be not discouraged

Be not discouraged
When you feel in your heart
Emptiness-chill.
Change your name into patience-sky.
Before long, fulness-thrill
Will completely fill
Your heart.

1176. Opportunity-delight leads man

Opportunity-delight leads man
To wisdom-light.
Wisdom-light leads man
To Satisfaction-God.

1177. A God-satisfying heart

You are not the doubting mind.
You are not the strangling vital.
You are, indeed,
A God-satisfying heart.

1178. The faultless choice

I can listen
Either to my terrestrial mind
Or to my celestial heart.
God has given me ample time
To make my own choice.
O my Lord Supreme,
Do give me the wisdom-light
To make the faultless choice.

1179. Self-imprisonment begins

Self-imprisonment begins
The day we start playing
With expectation-snare,
And never, never before.

1180. Do you need protection?

Do you need constant protection?
If so, then ask your purity-heart
To lead you
And your sincerity-mind
To follow you.
Most amazingly, they will protect you.

1181. The fantasy-prison

Be careful of the fantasy-prison!
If once you enter there
Out of sheer curiosity,
You may end your life
In life-long imprisonment.

1182. Revelation, revelation!

Revelation, revelation!
Reveal your doubting mind
To your loving heart
For the transformation
Of your mind.
Reveal your loving heart
To your all-knowing soul
For the perfect perfection
Of your heart.

1183. Liberate yourself immediately

Liberate yourself immediately
From the snare of fixed ideas,
If you want to make
Most satisfactory progress
In the inner and outer worlds.

1184. Do you want to be perfectly happy?

Do you want to be peacefully happy?
Do you want to be perfectly happy?
Then liberate others
From your constantly commanding autocracy.

1185. What you are

What you are unmistakably
Determines the quantity
Of your real thoughts
And the quality
Of your sure mind.

1186. Do you want to return home?

Do you want to wander
Or do you want to return Home?
If you want to return Home,
Then ask your mind
To conceal its thoughts,
And ask your heart
To reveal its feelings.

1187. The divine always wins

It is said that
Either the animal in us
Or the divine in us
Will ultimately win.
But it happens that
The divine always wins
At the end of our journey’s course.

1188. God blesses me

In the morning God blesses me
With pure motives.
In the afternoon God blesses me
With clear ideas.
In the evening God blesses me
With rare rewards.

1189. Artificiality and sincerity

Artificiality
Can and should be detected.
Sincerity
Can and should be appreciated,
Applauded,
Adored
And manifested.

1190. To rise above ourselves

To rise above ourselves
Is a supreme task
That God secretly performs for us.
But we openly and bravely
Take the credit.

1191. My final goal

Yesterday
Imitation was my goal.
Today
Repetition is my goal.
Tomorrow
Transformation will be
My final goal.

1192. The supreme discovery

You are telling me
That something is wrong with your life,
But you do not know
What it is.
I tell you what you must do now.
Just be happy
And remain happy,
For the supreme discovery
You have already made:
The front door and the side door
Are already kept open.
By whom?
By God Himself.
He is desperately looking
For your return.

1193. I have sincerely prayed

I have sincerely prayed.
Heaven has not given me anything.
I have soulfully prayed.
Heaven has mercilessly deceived me.
I have silently meditated.
God has not given me anything.
I have cheerfully meditated.
God has deliberately ignored me.
Alas, I need Heaven
To smile at me powerfully.
Alas, I need God
To love me sleeplessly.

1194. I do not know

I do not know
How great you are.
But I do know
How good you are.
Your goodness is my life’s
Only salvation-light.

1195. My willingness to love God

My willingness to love God
Begins my love-life with God:
The transformation of my life
And
The satisfaction of my heart.

1196. My self-giving way

I am thinking
Of the joy of loving God
In a totally new way.
It is called
My self-giving way.
I tell you,
O world,
I shall definitely succeed.

1197. Grasp the golden vision

Grasp the golden vision
To succeed.
Clasp the diamond reality
To proceed.

1198. We love our doubtful minds

We love our doubtful minds
Infinitely more
Than we care to cure them
With our faithful, soulful
And powerful hearts.

1199. To change the world

Who wants to change the world
Outwardly?
Everybody, with no exception.

Who wants to change himself
Inwardly?
Nobody,
No hyperbole!

1200. Mine is the way

Mine is not the way
To follow the world.
Mine is not the way
To lead the world.
Mine is the way
To walk along with God.

Editor's introduction to the first edition

This is the twelfth volume in a series of ten thousand “flaming flower-poems” which Sri Chinmoy is placing devotedly, unreservedly and unconditionally at the Compassion-Feet of God, our Beloved Supreme. They stand as a supreme offering from the unfolding beauty of his flower-heart and the flaming heights of his realisation-sun. Indeed, a treasure-tower which will at once be claimed by humanity’s self-ascending cry and Divinity’s God-descending Smile.

Editor's note to cover photo

Fred Lebow, a veteran marathon runner and President of the New York Road Runners Club, presents a New York Marathon Medal to Sri Chinmoy during a reception for world-class runners held at the United Nations on 22 October 1977. Known throughout the world as the father of the New York Marathon, Fred Lebow has turned that race into America’s largest, and one of the world’s most prestigious, road races. Sri Chinmoy has dedicated a most soulful song to Fred Lebow and always speaks extremely highly of him for his extraordinary service not only to the American runners but to all the runners of the world.

Editor's note

Some poems in this first edition were later selected by the author for a special collection of 207 Flower-Flames (FFP). The author also chose to revise some of his original poems for this anthology:

FF-1179: FFP 63 (revised version).