11 January 1987
KNOWLEDGE FROM READING BOOKS
It is good to read various books on religion and to know the beliefs of others. For achievement of liberation there are various rules, various paths. There is no one fixed rule. These books give us a lot of technical information. What we were before birth, what is going to happen to us after death, is there another world the soul will go to, what is going to happen to our soul after death?
These are very technical questions. Various people have given various explanations. I am not telling you what to do and what not to do. I feel I am obliged to give you a word of caution. We are going to be involved here in a code of conduct. We say that you can only reach God through our fellow sisters and brothers, through service, through love for our fellow sisters and brothers. There are others who have said you can reach God in various other ways.
I am not here to condemn anybody. We don’t want to involve ourselves in any technicalities, but you are free to read and to know what the others have to say. Some of these books are not written by people who know the real thing. Some are not sure whether what they write is the truth or not. Be cautious of what you read. Some of these books will tell you many things, to practise various things and that after that you will achieve this and that. Practise what you want but look for a competent master who knows how to guide you. Otherwise, you can be in difficulties.
I am not trying to scare you. There are people who have obtained powers by reading from books. When they get into trouble, they may not have a competent person to help them out immediately. Sometimes for these things you must have immediate help. Otherwise, it may be dangerous.
Let me give you an example of the out-of-body experience. There are some people who have gone through the books, followed instructions and they have experimented. If you don’t know how to bring the soul back, the soul will not come back to the body. It can result in physical death. There is another one which the Hindu Yogis practise- “kundalini”. This is said to be very powerful. They mediate and pray with all their strength. Every bit of light will meet at a certain point in their body and from there you can push it upwards. You too can do it if you can get that kind of power. But the question is – can you do it without a competent master?
Along the way you may make mistakes, you get burnt and you may be destroyed. It can be either physical death or mental destruction. When we are playing with these forces in us, then you are dealing with God. You are dealing with that power which can go into millions of watts. By all means read all the great books on all those things.
Every religion has its own major book. Christians have the Bible, Muslims the Koran, Hindus the Bhagavad Gita or Ramayana. Read and practise the essence of every religion. Read for enlightenment.
I am sure all of us come here to get closer to God. Ultimately to be one with God. Be good. Do Good. Lead a good clean life, have love. Give love to everybody. There is no power on earth greater than love.
When you give love, it comes back to you multiplied a thousand times. That is God. God is Love. Forget about the technicalities. It is very difficult to do all these things. A lot of people have asked me if they can do the various practices. You have got to experience it for yourself. Experience it for yourself and then decide.
I can lead you but if you don’t follow me the fault is not mine. I am prepared to go as many times as is needed and necessary. If you don’t follow me how will you know what I am saying is right or wrong? We cannot prove a lot of things. What is going to happen after death? I can tell you what I know but can I prove it to you? I can’t. Concentrate on this life. Make the best of it.
At the end of the day, I’d like to repeat what Buddha said, “When your life is over, if there is a life after that enjoy it. If there isn’t life after that, at least you know that you have been a man amongst men” Whichever way you go it is a win-win situation. There is no loss. Our philosophy is very simple, very straightforward. It is very easy to understand and to follow. There are no technicalities involved. It is based on a four-letter word- LOVE. Forget about the technicalities.
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