MIND SHOULD BE COMPOSED EVEN IN DISORDER

Karachi,
12/3/1940.


Dear Bhai,

I came to know that you have interest and liking for the following items ;
     
1) Orderly arrangement in home.
2) Cleanliness.
3) Perseverance and precision -- even in the smallest aspect of life.
4) Keeping accurate account of money at home.
5) Frugality in both, money and time.

There is nothing wrong with these interests. But you should be prepared to carry on, even if you have to live in opposite situations without loosing the composure of your mind. This composure ( quietude ) should be maintained in order and disorder both. Same should be for cleanliness. You should be prepared to maintain this composure of the mind even if you have to live in a filthy place.

                     Need for non-insistence ( absence of stubbornness ) in your nature
                    ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Exactness and accuracy in accounts is good but not to the extent of being a stickler. Keeping account of money and frugality is good. But you should be mindful and should not have any uneasiness in your mind spending some money at times ( even if you think it is not necessary or unwarranted ). Do not insist that things have to be done in certain way. You have to train your mind to keep it's balance and peace, even if at times things happen in a different way.


Pujya Shree Mota
Jivan pagaran ( જીવન પગરણ )
Edition 3; pages 95-96.

DETERMINE THE AIM OF LIFE FIRST

Ashram, Sabarmati,
13 Jan, 1940.

Dear Bhai,

It is my earnest recommendation that if it is feasible, you should postpone the japa-yagna that you have started, at the present time. For now try to understand the whims of the mind with complete mindfulness and also have clearer understanding in your heart regarding life's inclinations and aim. Contemplate continuously regarding this and come to complete understanding  and agreement with your mind. If you have any doubts in your mind then settle the issue with love. Try to understand where does meaning and mystery of life lie. You as a businessman take thoughtful steps, only after considering profit-loss or win-defeat ( although there is nothing like profit- loss or win-defeat in this ).

If you start japa-yagna at the present time, you will not be able to maintain the level of equanimity that you need to throughly contemplate on all these issues. So it is my heartfelt wish that you spend your time in the contemplation of  your aim in life and analyze the thoughts in your mind. Keep churning and repeating the same. Be witness to all these thoughts and emotions that arise in your mind. Then throughly analyze the witnessed ( thoughts and emotions ) and learn to extract the meaning of all this.

                                              Mind is deceiving
                                            -------------------------
Mind does not let us peel its various layers and understand it. You can understand its real nature by going above it and peeling it's layers. You will realize the difficulties and its complicated nature only when you experience it. If some body says : " there is no difficulty or struggle in this process " then I will say : " he has not made enough effort or has not done enough contemplation ". Something must come up in this process of churning of mind and heart. With constant mindfulness we should offer adverse and hostile items at the feet of God and good can be used to develop our life constructively and use it to progress in sadhana. In the end hostile or good, both need to be offered to God and we should always be empty of our burden.


Pujya Shree Mota
Jivan pagaran ( જીવન પગરણ )
Edition 3; pages 21-22.

WAYS TO CONQUER LIFE'S STRUGGLES.

Trichi,
10/21/1946

Life is one kind of constant war. Human beings are always in the state of war, with or without their desire for it. Conflicts will always be there, whether they wish or not. Human life is based on the principle of duality so conflicts are the facts of life. But this war or conflicts are of human nature and are at the level of prakruti ( પ્રકૃતિ ). One can progress in the realm of prakruti with great effort but this progress becomes the cause of ignorance. Every soul experiences various kind of conflicts but the mind is always tied to duality. Because of this, the progress is always at the level of prakruti and duality. For achieving higher level of consciousness, one should not act according to the natural tendencies and whims of mind. One should develop impartiality and consider these conflicts as an invaluable opportunity to train the mind and develop equanimity. Only then the soul progresses to higher level of consciousness. Otherwise one will always be at the level of duality. One will always have ups and downs in one's progress in prakruti  and one will play this game of ups and downs for eternity, without raising the level of consciousness.


Pujya Shree Mota
Jivan pravesh (જીવન પ્રવેશ )
Edition 2; pages 188-189.

ONE WHO LEARNS FROM LIFE'S INCIDENTS IS SADHAK

Kumbhakonam,
29 July, 1952.

Sadhak has to think about the kind of life he wants to live. He must also evaluate the effects of various life's occurrences and incidents, on his ability to live his chosen way of life. This evaluation needs to be done with impartiality, equanimity, peacefully, patiently and with sense of discretion. If sadhak behaves and acts after thorough evaluation of incidents in this way, then these incidents can take the form of " guru ". Life incidents teach us a lot. If the inner eye is open, new understanding of these events take place. It also lays bare our own nature. It shows our mistakes and ways to correct it and also to take first steps towards correcting it. You are also able to differentiate good and bad aspects of mind, prana etc. In this fashion life's  incidents are the first steps and I have considered it a " guru" several times. True sadhak is the one who understands, gets forewarned and learns to open his inner eye from these incidents in real life.

Pujya Shree Mota
Jivan pravesh; ( જીવન પ્રવેશ )
Edition 2, page 96.