Turn hope into action
[2nd President and Spiritual Head: the Ramakrishna Centre of South Africa]
[now a Centre of the international Ramakrishna Math and Ramakrishna Mission]
DAILY READINGS
Day 995
The mind gets hold of us in the form of postponement [procrastination] – putting it off for tomorrow. Some people say, 'Well, I am young, let me enjoy myself. Let's make merry'. Perhaps some middle aged or old people are also thinking that after five or six children they will get into spirituality. Their teeth start loosening and their nose starts bleeding, their back starts aching and the mind goes haywire….then they run to spirituality. It's hopeless – nothing will happen. Just like you had hope before, you are still living with hope. Hope is that hope that kills you slowly. Hope is an evil thing when wrongly adapted.
Even when you are old you say, 'one day something will happen and I'll do japa [meditative repetition of a mantra or one of the many names attributed to God], I'll run to temple, I'll run to churches,'- nothing will happen. Forget it. That's hope again. All these days you lived on hope that one day you'll be a rich man. That fellow is still poor. He lives on hope now. 'One day my body will be alright.' And then death, the great teacher comes, the great Lord comes and snatches you by force, because he gave you so many opportunities to learn – and you have not learnt yet.
The old people, when they say now say, 'I will become very spiritual,' [Swamiji chuckles], 'now', because all the trouble is coming around me…they are like the man who sat quietly and his company asked him to dig a well. He said, 'Don't worry. What is the use of a well? I have tap water – that is enough.' Then one day he finds the house is on fire and he runs to dig a well. By the time he's finished digging the well, he's injured himself plus the house has burned down.
Now this is something for the older people…there is still time for you. There's breath in you. Make haste while the evil worries of the world still have not got hold of you. You think sometimes you do people a favour by worrying about your wife, your children, your husband – you're doing nobody a favour. That's hope, that's hope, that's hope! Hope is a disease that will eat you up. Forget this hope.
1) Care should be taken by the reader to understand and take Swamiji's words in these postings, in context. Every teaching or instruction that he gave was specific to the people who were with Swamiji at the time.
2) Mouse-over the words highlighted in red in the posting for further explanation or links.
There are currently available, 150 different CDs or DVDs with mp3 files, of Swamiji speaking. Please email timhoare@webmail.co.za to order.
For more about the Holy Trinity, and also the founding Swamis of the Ramakrishna Centre of South Africa, please mouse over their names below:
Sri Ramakrishna Sri Sarada Devi Swami Vivekananda
Swami Nischalananda Swami Shivapadananda
The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna - read online
Reference websites – please mouse over the name and click to connect:
Ramakrishna Math and Mission Ramakrishna Centre of South Africa Ramakrishna Dham