I sat in my silence-corner in the garden, reflecting: so many books have I read, so many lives of saints have I studied. And every morning as I wake up, I recite from the scriptures. But, alas! year after year hath passed by: I am no nearer the Goal. I see no improvement in myself. And I often wonder if I am progressing or regressing.
The Voice
In utter dejection I wept tears of sorrow. And then, it seemed to me, I heard a Voice. It said: “Weep not, my child! But hearken to what I say!”
There was something in the Voice which made me forget my sorrow.
I said, speak that thy servant may listen.
And the Voice said: “To study is not to turn over the pages of a book. To study is to ponder well, is to meditate, is to assimilate the teaching in one’s life. And every morning you read from the scriptures: are you any better than the parrot who recites, again and again, the Name of God?”
The Tyranny Of Ego
The words were true, too true. I felt humbled.
And the Voice said: “Many are the things I fain would tell you. But not all at once. Remember, the one barrier between you and God is ego. Your actions, your thoughts, your flights of imagination but feed the ego, until it has become our master. Break the tyranny of the ego — is my first word to you. Practise this and notice the change that comes upon you!”
(Dada J P Vaswani was a humanitarian, philosopher, educator, acclaimed writer, powerful orator, messiah of ahimsa, and non-sectarian spiritual leader)
