I have spent my days attempting to make more money,
Gaining attachment for lumps of clay,
Throwing precious gold away;
I've spent life in this way,
In total self-absorption!
I am proud of my education,
Yet I neglected my devotion,
Forgetting my highest aspirations,
I found cruel shelter in mundane knowledge,
Which keep me bound,
Trying hard to enjoy the fruits of my labor.
My mind is very fickle!
I make bonds with sly people,
Who are clever with words
They become the object of my focus
and I am falling, falling, falling.
By Bhaktivinode Thakura - a great devotee and poet
The Vedic Scriptures of Ancient India state that rotten desires which sit in the heart, driving us daily to try and satisfy urges, are easily cleansed away by a moment's association with a Saint. All lust, ignorance, greed and envy leave the heart, and the mind becomes pure. Karma is terminated and unwanted addictions to inauspicious things are banished!
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I am a fortunate person. I lived a full life in London, England. I worked for many world famous musicians and travelled the world first class. I was very popular and had many wealthy, beautiful high class friends. I gained respect from everyone everywhere I went. I was young and beautiful, and had a high powered job.
But somewhere inside of me, there was a thirst for something that nothing could fill. The higher I would go, the more I would feel the hole inside engulfing me, demanding I give attention to it.
I decided I needed a holy pilgrimage to India to search for a Master, just as Jesus searched out John. It was as if I had an insatiable thirst. I came to Mathura, and met a real Saint. His name is Narayan Maharaja (http://www.purebhakti.com/). Sitting before him reminded me of how it might have felt sitting with Jesus and hearing from him 2,000 years ago. I knew the the minute I crossed the threshold of the doorway into his temple, that there was something here for me, something really special. For there was an energy pervading the airspace around me, not like anything else I had ever experienced. There was a sweetness that was palpable. He does not live in a big fancy house, nor drive expensive cars with chauffeurs, nor does he have Rolex or Cartier watches or diamond rings flashing about as he waves at us. He does not have beautiful women or young boys hiding behind closed doors to satisfy his sexual fantasy, nor does he eat opulent food and stuff himself until he is fat like a ball. It is here that I felt fulfilled, like nothing else in my life would ever be the same. It is true, nothing has ever managed to fill me like sitting there at his feet. That Kingdom which has been described for thousands of years by every great prophet in history, felt close, really close! I could feel the Kingdom in my heart, like an inner awakening, a calling, and when I would pray in his company, I was like my heart melted and become one with his. I would pray deep and sincere prayers, like at no other time in my daily life. My chanting and spiritual practice (sadhana) had fruit, I and I could feel something stirring in my core, as if I was tasting and drinking of the divine. It is there that I am fulfilled in all ways.
The benefit of the Saint...... is unlimited! I can't imagine living this life without such an experience. It is a meaningless existance without him. Saint's have always come to Earth, it is God's mercy to us, for without them, the doors might not be so readily open to us. To gain just one moment in his association, that is the goal, it will change your life forever. The benefit is more than I can write in words. It is an experience that every soul should experience at least once in their lifetime.
If just now a Saint would come, who could show me grace, and grant me one drop of that sea of devotion, then so easily, from these ropes which I have bound myself, I would be set free and could cross far beyond this worldly ocean.
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