Swami Shivapadananda explains frustrations

SWAMI SHIVAPADANANDA

DAILY READINGS

Taken from Mother Radha's notes, written at Swamiji's feet.

Day 399

Devotee [in distress]: We've got such big problems, being evicted from the flat [apartment] etc. I feel like throwing [the Divine] Mother out.

Swamiji: You? Throw my Mother out? How? Where to? When She is everywhere.

Devotee: But what is the meaning of experiences like these, Swamiji?

Swamiji: Well, the guru tells you to do something because he sees which way you must go. He says, 'Child, child, this way.' But we do not listen, and so nature steps in and gives us a good push. And that is what these experiences are.

Devotee: Are they tests of faith, Swamiji?

Swamiji: No, rather say they are steps on the path of evolution.

Devotee: What would it have been like if you had not been there to help me, Swamiji?

Swamiji: That I was there is guru's grace.

Devotee: But how will we ever learn about the Mother, Swamiji?

Swamiji: Just call Her name. Call Her. Call Her like a child, not like an adult.

You get lots of cuts and pricks, but you do not ask then. Why do you wait till you get a chop [i.e. a major blow]?

Devotee: I get so frustrated with set-backs . . .

Swamiji: Why do you let your mind run like that? What happened to your japa [repetition of God's names or a mantra]? Control the mind.

Devotee: Can't, Swamiji.

Swamiji: You can. Say: 'Oh, come on. Not that, this. Not the world, the mantra. Say it again and again and again. Master it.

We must do sadhana [spiritual practice]. Must. We must meditate. Must. People staying here at the Ashram [hermitage, monastery] don't know how lucky they are. If you cannot do meditation, then you must read the scriptures, the religious books. Keep your mind there. It is all Her [the Divine Mother's] lila [play]. It is as though she likes to see Herself in a million mirrors, doing all different things.

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