Diwali Puja (Hindi/Marathi). Pune (India), 1 November 1986.

Ask them to stop bursting the firecrackers, otherwise how can I talk?

[English Translation from Hindi]

On this auspicious occasion of Diwali, we have arrived here at this Punyapatnam (Pune). Since time immemorial, the festival of Diwali has been celebrated in our country. However, the ‘Deepavali’ (arrangement of lamps) of Diwali started with the beginning of Sahaja Yoga. The lamps that were lit during Diwali used to get extinguished in some time. The next year, Diwali would be celebrated by putting oil and a wick in a new lamp. In this manner, every year, new lamps used to be bought. The speciality of the lamp was that at first, it would be put in water and made completely wet and then dried so that the lamp does not absorb the oil in it. It then used to burn for a long time.
But we have been celebrating the Diwali of the heart since Sahaja Yoga started. The heart is the lamp which has the wick and we light it by putting in the oil of love. But before putting in this oil, we have to cleanse the heart completely of all impurities and then decorate it beautifully. When this love is firmly established in our hearts, then the heart does not absorb it. When someone loves you, for example, at first your mother loves you, your father loves you and then some others also love you, you absorb that love within yourself. The love that you get from your husband or your wife, settles down in every pore of your body. However, that love is just restricted to you and others don’t get its light. If a mother loves her child, then her love is restricted only to the mother and her child. Sometimes, the result of this love is contrary to what we expect. If a mother loves her child more than that is necessary then sometimes the child can behave badly. His behaviour may become ‘dry’ or even evil; he can trouble his mother or even insult her. If a child is too attached to his mother then she might possess him and sit on his head. In the same manner, it has been observed that if the love between a husband and wife goes out of balance or if the love is not shared appropriately between the two then the outcome is often ill.
However, when the soft love of Sahaja Yoga is filled in the lamp of the heart, it is no longer restricted to oneself. When it starts burning with the light of the Spirit, it has the ability to light up the entire universe. Such a heart becomes empowered then, to light up the entire universe, to radiate its light throughout the universe, to destroy ignorance in the universe and to spread joy in the whole universe. The same lamp that was broken every year (after Diwali) now becomes an empowered and a special lamp that does not get extinguished at all. This lamp lights up many other lamps and even those lamps burn for all eternity. One can ask then that what material is such a lamp made from that it never dies. But there is no such material in the universe from which a lamp can be made which shines eternally and continues to light others – others, which instead of dying out, shine eternally like a galaxy of stars in the universe.
Many such lamps came in this world but they were isolated. In some places, as you have seen, great saints were born. In this land of Maharashtra also, there were many saints. Isolated, these lamps were shining dimly in some corner of the world but even today, they are shining like a galaxy in the universe. But they were alone, there was no ‘Deepavali’ (a group of lamps), they were alone and used to meet each other rarely. But today, we are a Deepavali. All of you are those lamps whom I am describing, those same beautiful lamps who are now enlightened and are enlightening many other lamps. Each lamp is enlightening a thousand others and this is the only way by which the darkness and ignorance of the universe can come to an end.
But we have to remember one thing – the oil with which we are burning is the oil of love, unconditional love, a love that does not expect anything in return. This love does not stick to anyone, does not have any desire, does not want any reciprocation and continuously keeps the lamp burning in a beautiful manner. The gracious beauty and elegance of such a lamp also reflects upon your lotus faces. These lamps shine through your eyes. If you observe, a Sahaja Yogi’s eyes sparkle like diamonds, diamonds which radiate their own light. Just like these diamonds, the eyes of a Sahaja Yogi shine with their own little, sparkling flames. What a great transformation it is that in a heart of stone, a special kind of lamp has been lit, one that is immortal and infallible and not an earthen one. The heart that was once upset with petty problems, the heart that used to suffer when pained even a little has now become a mighty lamp which neither fears the draughts of happiness and sadness nor concerns itself with comfort and suffering. Its job is to courageously drive away the darkness and it is fully aware that it is a special kind of a lamp in a special form. He knows that he can light lamps of many others with this special lamp that is burning in his heart. Also, if he sees his own defects in the light of this lamp, then he gives them up completely. Gradually, his life too becomes full of light and this light emanates from every part of his body, from every pore of his body, from his eyes and from his face. His entire life gets illuminated and he becomes completely identified with that light. He enjoys surfing the waves of this light. Smiling to himself, he says “how beautiful have I become! How much beauty is flowing through me!” For the first time, a human being gets completely satisfied with himself.
Dissatisfaction comes into a person when he is not satisfied with himself. You may say, “I am not satisfied today because I don’t have this thing” but when you get something tomorrow, you will still remain dissatisfied. You will remain dissatisfied. When you become satisfied with yourself, you won’t have to search for satisfaction outside. Also, you will never find it outside. Satisfaction can only be obtained within, from the Spirit. We are seeing now that this light has spread to a great extent. This light has spread to a large extent especially in Maharashtra and Poona (Pune) is the heart of Maharashtra. So, when you leave this heart today, take lots of love along with you. This love is such that its light will generate waves after waves of beauty in you for all eternity and it will guide you to such a pedestal of virtues which you could never have imagined as possible for you.
You would have heard about many great and famous personalities but you can do a much greater work than they did. You can easily reach much greater heights than these people did. The only difference is that those people were tired of continually fighting and confronting their desires for importance and you will find your path to be so easy, so secured and so illuminated that you won’t face any obstacle in your way. The only thing to be remembered is that this is the lamp of love. This lamp burns only with love and nothing else. Whatever work you do, do it with love. When you are teaching someone or talking to someone about Sahaja Yoga, you should ask yourself, “Am I explaining Sahaja Yoga to these people because I love them? Do I want them to achieve whatever I have achieved? Or am I explaining because I know something about Sahaja Yoga and I know how to talk well? Am I explaining to them to impress their intellect?” One cannot spread Sahaja Yoga with these thoughts in mind. Your behaviour towards others should be like the moonlight which moves slowly and slowly illuminates the objects in the dark. There should be no form of attack or arrogance in your behaviour.
One thing to note is that we have to take care of this lamp. We have to look at it as if it is an extremely important thing that we have received. If this lamp is now like a child then we have to make it grow gradually. There should be a kind of respect towards it that ‘today we are Sahaja Yogis.’ If we are Sahaja Yogis, we should have special qualities. You should not do Sahaja Yoga with the fear that if we do something wrong, we will face an accident, we will suffer a loss or that God will in some way punish us. But it has to done with joy. It should be an enjoyment that Mother has taught us how to swim and now we won’t drown. We have to know this love without any fear or doubt in our minds. We should try to know how an ocean could fit into this fist-sized heart. It seems strange that an ocean is contained in this small fist-sized heart. How is it possible? A subtler understanding of your heart will reveal a myriad of beautiful emotions within this small heart which is just the size of your fist; emotions, which are so great, so magnanimous that we can emancipate the whole universe by their help.
I am seeing that there are many people now in Sahaja Yoga and many are taking to it and they should do so but every person should have a special form and a special understanding. It should not be like, “Everyone is sitting there so let me also go to Sahaja Yoga.” You are special people and you have a special part to play in Sahaja Yoga. Now see, this mike won’t work if even a small thing gets damaged. Every little part of the instrument is so important. In the same way, any person, man or woman, who comes to Sahaja Yoga, is extremely important. So, everybody should know that they must maintain their health in such a way that the instrument made by God continues to work. We should look at our lives and give up the mistakes that we made and the ways in which we had accumulated the ‘Shadripu’ (the six enemies) one by one. It is very easy because now you can see the snake present within you. When it was dark, you were holding the snake but as soon as there is light, the snake falls down. When you start looking at yourself in this beautiful light, you can see your beauty and your ugliness both. But the ugliness has to be cast away at once. People who say, “We will get rid of it today”, “We will get rid of it tomorrow” or “We will try to get rid of it” are half-baked and cannot really achieve anything.

[English Translation from Marahi]

In Marathi language they say, “Tyala paahije zaatichi” (For that work, you need people of a particular caste). Which caste is this? That of Sahaja Yoga. We have only one caste. Just one. It is said, “Ya devi sarva bhuteshu jaati rupena sansthita” (The Goddess who resides in everyone as ‘jaati’ or caste). Everyone belongs to a particular type of caste. There are many castes which the Devi has created. One caste consists of people who don’t even think of God. That is one caste, alright, no problem. The second one has people who are always going against God. That is one caste, alright, no problem. The third caste has people who want profitable businesses and not God. That is also there, no problem. There are others who are simply doing rituals in the name of God and have been doing it for many births together. They are not able to leave that habit no matter how much you advise them. No problem, let them be. But apart from these, there are people who are genuinely seeking God. Their intelligence is pure and they know very clearly what it means to attain God. Such people belong to our caste. They can come into our caste. It is not possible to explain Sahaja Yoga to every person. You need a special class of people even to understand Sahaja Yoga.
I have seen that Sahaja Yogis, after taking to Sahaja Yoga, try to tackle all kinds of people. Sometimes, they go to rich people. They say, “Mataji, this person is very rich and wants to meet you.” Then what next? “He says he wants to meet Mataji once.” Then, what does he want? “Nothing, he just wants to meet you.” I say then, “Let him wait for some time longer.” People don’t understand. They think, “How could Mataji say so, that person is so rich!” The reason is that they are not fit for meeting Me. Having money does not mean that you are fit for meeting. Then some others come saying, “He is a very big politician so You meet him.” I say hello from a distance and say that I don’t have time. “But when an ordinary woman comes, Mataji rises to meet her. How is it so?” Now, what seems ordinary to you seems extraordinary to Me. What can I do about it? If My head is like that what can I do about it? Similarly, Sahaja Yogis should have a head like that. Don’t waste your time with hopeless people. Go only to those people who are seeking God and who are ready to surrender themselves at the feet of God at a moment’s notice. Now, you have lit this lamp and all the other lamps. But if you show a lamp to a drunkard or a possessed man, he will run after you to attack. What is the need to show a lamp to him? But there are many people who know clearly that they are in darkness and that they want to meet God. However, there are many others who simply want some material gain out of God.
I must say however that you get material prosperity. There is no doubt about it. The reason for having this Lakshmi Puja here is to defeat the ‘Alakshmi’ (opposite of Lakshmi, in this case it means poverty) in Pune. Unless it is defeated, this Alakshmi won’t leave Pune. So what is the reason for its existence? The main reason why this Alakshmi exists is because of the charlatans sitting in the numerous Hanuman and Ganesha temples in this place. These people have to be thrown out first. These people who make money in the name of God and put kumkum on your foreheads have to be stopped. “But it is such a difficult thing Mataji.” It is. But we have ‘cures’ for these people in Sahaja Yoga, many cures. We have to put these cures into practice and learn them. Such people sit in the temples and attack your Agnya chakra by putting kumkum on your foreheads. They can destroy a Realised Soul by this method. They seem to be very ordinary on the outside and it is to these people that we must pay attention. Those nations which have such people doing their work suffer from poverty. The reason is that they are working out the Pretavidya (knowledge of dead spirits) and Smashanavidya (knowledge of the graveyard). They sit in temples and do this. They don’t have the slightest fear of God. They practice this Pretavidya and Smashanavidya in the temples.
When I went to Calcutta, on seeing the situation there, I was worried whether Sahaja Yoga will spread there or not. Every person who came had some negativity or the other. There is so much poverty in Calcutta that it seems to be a city made of completely ruined villages. So I asked them that how did this happen? Did you go to such a person? They said, “Yes and now we are dikshit (the ones who are initiated).” There they don’t say dikshit, they say dikkhit. All over the place, there were ‘dikkhit’ people. Obviously, there will be ‘dukhi’ (sad) people along with these ‘dikkhits.’ But there was no way I could tell them that this ‘dikkhit’ thing which you are doing is wrong and these people are charlatans. If they had taken only money, it would not have been a problem but the things which they do are extremely cruel and evil. In every religious place, this confusion is present. Whether you go to Jerusalem or whether you go to Mecca or you go to Mahalakshmi’s temple, you will find this confusion. This Alakshmi comes when we get involved with these things in every place.
The thing about Lakshmi is, if a badha (negativity) comes from here, She leaves from there. The second problem is addiction. If someone is addicted to something, Lakshmi will never enter that house. It is said that if the bottle comes from here then Lakshmi leaves in the opposite direction. We have so many addictions apart from alcohol. Now, all kinds of addiction can be gotten rid of through Sahaja Yoga. It is true. You just need to put in a little hardwork. If you have any addiction, then not only will Lakshmi leave but also you will never get success in life. Your success will not be established. If Lakshmi goes away, Rajalakshmi and Gruhalakshmi also leave along with her. No matter what bad desire a man falls prey to, Lakshmi leaves the house. She won’t stay in the house. No matter how many lamps you light, She won’t come inside. You are not able to see what is there in the house but She is and that’s why She remains outside. Then it is of no use doing even a lot of aarti (offering of light) or reading the Sukta many times. On the contrary, you fill the pockets of those people who give lots of ‘advice’ on what to do to improve your situation. Then you become like them.
So, firstly we must give up those thoughts that take us to these kinds of people or those thoughts that take us to Vama marg (the path of evil). Now, you might say, “Mataji, Tukaram did not have any Lakshmi (wealth), how is it so?” You might say that Tukaram was not rich. If you see it superficially, it seems that Tukaram was not rich. He did not have a lot of money like the others, so how could he have any Lakshmi with him. He did not seem to have Lakshmi with him. But to see how rich he was, look at his character. When Shivaji Maharaj came to his door with all the riches, Tukaram said, “I am just a humble farmer, what is the use of all these riches for me? Keep it with you, you are a king so you use it.” So, how rich he was! If you see any rich person of our times and you give him some riches, then will he not want to have it? You show me one rich man who won’t want the riches. Apart from Me. So, the person who has a desire to lay his hands on everything is actually a beggar. He might just seem to be rich. Also, it is the rich people who behave more like beggars. If they leave something worth two paise (Indian currency), then they will come running back to collect it. So, who should decide whether such a person is rich or a beggar? Therefore, those people who are rich from their hearts are the truly rich people in Sahaja Yoga.
There are some people who have nothing in their house and yet when I go there, they say, “Mataji, whatever I have is just this much. We haven’t made anything for You but there is some bhaakri (a form of dried bread (not baked) made in villages.), will you have it?” How rich they seem to be! They offered whatever they had in a house where there was nothing. Their richness expresses itself in the sweetness and love of the food they offer. Whatever they have, they offer all of it. Now, if you go to a rich man’s house, then they won’t even call you inside. Even if they do, they will first ask, “Are you sure you will have tea? If you want, good and if you don’t take, it’s better!” In what way are such people rich? When Shabari offered ‘bor’ (a kind of small berry) to Shri Rama, it is evident from His praise of those fruits, how rich Shabari was. When Shabari came to Him, He ate the berries which were already tasted by her only to respect her richness. This kind of richness is in reality the richness bestowed by Lakshmi. Whether or not a person has money, he can be rich and behave like a king.
But in Sahaja Yoga, you will definitely get the blessings of Lakshmi. You won’t be in the state that Shabari was. You will get Lakshmi (prosperity) in Sahaja Yoga. There is no doubt that everyone will get this. It is not because you are beggars but the world should see it. If the world sees that you became poor after coming to Sahaja Yoga, then nobody will take to Sahaja Yoga. To give them the ‘bait’, you have to be given Lakshmi. (laughter) Unless it is so, these blind people won’t see. That is why, Lakshmi has to be given and you will get it.
You can get Lakshmi when the Nabhi chakra opens. The first place in the Nabhi Chakra is that of Gruhalakshmi (the Lakshmi of the household). We can say that Tukaram’s wife was a very rude woman and if she had been more humble and had respected God, then perhaps Lakshmi would have come to their home. The coming of Lakshmi depends upon the Gruhalakshmi of the household. If she has some negativity and the husband keeps on falling prey to her negativity, then Lakshmi will never come to such a house. But if she has some negativity and the husband says that this negativity of yours has to go away, then Lakshmi can come. Also, if the husband is a drunkard and the wife, showing that she is ‘pativrata’ (devoted to the husband) says, “You want alcohol isn’t it? Then have my jewellery and sell it to drink alcohol.” Then what? She says, “Take my mangalsutra (necklace which is a sign of marriage) and take whatever I have because I am a ‘great pativrata’”! Lakshmi cannot stay in the house of such a woman who pushes her husband into hell in this manner. A Gruhalakshmi should be a scintillating woman. Her life should be such that the husband should feel that there is something tremendous in the house which will not allow me to take to wrong ways. In the old days, men used to call their wives as ‘maalak’ (master or owner) and ‘sahib.’ There used to be great respect for the wife. How was it so? It was not because the wife used to shout but it was because of her brilliance. It was because of her nobility, composure, generosity, devotion, service and love. A woman has a scintillating character because of these qualities. But today, all that is lost and I don’t know with what I should compare the Gruhalakshmis of today. That’s because I can’t understand what goes on in their heads. I accept that the wife should take care of the husband, the children and the in-laws but this does not mean that she should give importance to the bad and stupid things that they do. She should not behave as she likes or follow whichever path she likes just to please those people. Some say, “He is just my husband, Mataji, what’s wrong?” Is it so? Then you and your husband….. (laughter), I am not saying anything but you can understand. The state of a Gruhalakshmi should be exactly like a lotus. The lotus is the abode of Gruhalakshmi. She should be like a lotus that blooms above the water, spreads its fragrance and is the complete support of Shri Lakshmi.
She should also be a Rajalakshmi (the Lakshmi of Kings). She should not go and beg for things from others. Like, “Can you give me your sari today? I want to show it to everyone.” There should not be any kind of false pride or any kind of secretive businesses. A woman who has majesty and a firm character is Rajalakshmi. You might be feeling that Lakshmi Puja means giving a lecture on women, but it is not so.
The third is Gajalakshmi (the Lakshmi riding on an elephant). Gajalakshmi means, the principal form of Ganapati (He has the head of an elephant) is that He is the sinless One. So, she should be sinless. Despite having a very sharp intellect, an elephant understands what is good and what is bad. The wisdom is of an extremely good quality. Even while walking, the elephant does not run helter – skelter. I have seen many women who don’t walk like women but walk like horses. They are in such a hurry, “grab this, grab that.” Two days ago someone asked me a question that how can children get blood cancer. I said, “Look at his mother, she must be running helter-skelter.” Those women who are always running about cannot have Gajalakshmi with them. But this does not mean that you don’t do anything. All things should be done with grace and beauty. Look at how this big elephant puts a garland around Lakshmi’s neck with such grace that it does even touch Her anywhere! This grace should come into you.
If all these qualities are present in woman but the husband does not respect her, does not respect these qualities, goes after dirty women, goes after women on the street or is afraid of a dominating wife, Lakshmi won’t come to such a man’s house. Lakshmi cannot stay in the house of men who trouble their wives. Men feel that only women should have a respectable character. They feel that they don’t need any respectable character. He feels that however he behaves, he is dharmic (virtuous). He does not feel that he is doing anything adharmic (unrighteous) by looking at others with bad eyes; this is before Realization. After Sahaja Yoga, your eyes turn completely in the opposite direction and even the thought does not come in your head. You don’t get the thoughts of these ‘attractions’, that’s how your eyes turn. When this happens, it means that all these Lakshmis are awakened within you. Wherever you stand, your attention won’t go towards these things. Just as the flame of a lamp always moves upwards, your attention will always be towards God. When this state comes in, Lakshmi will come to your house.
She is in many forms. You might know that Krishna built a house of gold for Sudama in Dwarika, you might be knowing how Shri Krishna protected the modesty of Draupadi when her dress was being pulled off. So, you will be completely immersed in these miraculous events. Your life will be full of great miracles. Every day, you will see new miracles and you will be surprised as to how these miracles happen and bless you. All this is the grace of Shri Lakshmi. All these blessings are by the grace of Shri Lakshmi. There are many kinds of blessings. Day before yesterday, I bought a sari for 3,000 rupees. When I showed it to someone else, he told me that such a sari would cost a minimum of 15,000 rupees. I said that I got it only for 3,000 rupees. So, this is the grace of Lakshmi! Now, another man told me that he had decided to come to Ganpatipule but he did not have any money and the next day itself someone sent him money saying that it was his which he had given some time back. Now this is from the perspective of money but there are many other aspects also. Now, someone was sick and he told me, “Mataji, I am unwell.” The next day he was alright and the doctors refused to believe it saying that it was impossible. This is the grace of Lakshmi. When Shri Krishna said, “Yoga-kshema-vahaamya-ham”, the ‘kshema’ (benevolence) part comes from the grace of Lakshmi. You get all types of benevolence, not only economic. Now if you are unwell, then the doctor will take away all your money. So, She gives all kinds of benevolence and as a result, the Mahalakshmi principle gets awakened in you. This Mahalakshmi principle is nothing but the desire to be one with God. When you get the Mahalakshmi principle you feel, “Mataji, we have got everything and we have understood that God is with us and that we have come into the kingdom of God but yet we feel that something is missing.” What is missing? “We have not yet given anything to someone, we have not shared and eaten, we feel that we have eaten alone.” At that point, the Mahalakshmi principle gets awakened in you and when it gets awakened, if you slowly make your flame taller with balance, not with imbalance, but with balance, then She will sit in your Brahmarandhra and your whole life will get enlightened.
Great people, the likes of whom have not been seen in the world till now, are going to come from you people. Great personalities who have never been known or thought of till now are going to come from you people. But you should not leave your balance. If you are not in balance, then this love will either fall here or there and get destroyed. You have to make this flame taller with balance. When this happens, then all these things get their meaning. All these sounds that you are hearing are announcing the arrival of these things which will sound like thunder in the whole world. Bugles will sound and everyone will know that a new age is dawning in which man won’t face any kind of suffering and the miracles of God’s kingdom will be uncountable and people will just want to keep seeing them and not know how to describe them. Such a beautiful state of mind will prevail. It is in the hope that you will eternally benefit from this joy that I have agreed to have this puja here. It is my greatest hope that after today, people will establish their Lakshmi principle from their hearts and will awaken the new desire of the Mahalakshmi principle and completely understand it, bring it in their behaviour and spread it. May God make this Diwali a joyous occasion for all and infinite, infinite blessings from Me.