Amma's Devi Bhava talk in Santa Fe, June 29

[Guest guest]

Namah Shivaya,

Below is a talk of Amma's Devi Bhava Santa Fe talk on June 29th as shared with

me courtesy Divya.

 

 

 

 

Sivane, Siva, Siva.

 

Amma bows down to all Her Children who are Pure Love and Supreme Consciousness.

 

Almost every one of us has countless problems in our lives. Let us remain in an

attitude

of acceptance and self surrender so we can fully benefit from this puja.

 

We think that our problem is that our prayers and desires are not fulfilled.

However,

what would happen if everyone had their desires fulfilled?

 

Harmony would cease to exist. No one wants to be ill, but hospitals would be

without

patients. Contrary wishes would have to be fulfilled at the same time. What

kind of

world would it be?

 

Would a lawyer ever want to be caught up in a lawsuit? Amma’s Children who are

doctors and lawyers are not included in this. Amma’s Children who are doctors

and

lawyers often come to Amma for blessings for their clients and patients.

 

The world would be nothing but problems if everything were for personal benefit.

All

desires cannot be fulfilled at the same time. Karma, the actions of this

lifetime and the

previous life, affect the results.

 

A coffin maker wants a lot of business, but no one wants to die.

 

Selfish desires lead to nothing but suffering for ourselves and others. Why do

we get

sick? This is in part due to chemicals. All the great wars were due to the

great egos of

individuals.

 

Parabda karma can manifest in three ways:

 

1. Karma that can be alleviated fully by performing good action. This is like a

curable disease that can be treated.

2. Karma that can be alleviated through penance or remedial actions. This is

like a

cancerous tumor than can grow back.

3. We have no choice but to endure it. This is like a completely incurable form

of

cancer. All we can do is endure and pray.

 

Amma sincerely prays that none of Her Children have to go through the third kind

of

karma.

 

Fulfillment of our desires depends on these factors: self-effort; past actions;

devotion; the

intensity of our prayers; and the result of actions in the present.

 

You can drive your car safely, but you can still get in an accident if the other

driver is

careless or sleepy.

 

Two escaped convicts are on a deserted island lamenting their plight. They find

a bottle

washed up on shore. They open the bottle and a genie pops out. The genie says

he will

grant each convict one wish.

 

The first convict wants to go home to see his family, and so he is granted this

wish. The

second convict doesn’t have any loved ones. He is lonely, so he says, “Just

return my

friend to me.”

 

Realization of our desires and the karma of our actions depend on others also.

There are

countless factors. Pray constantly. Have total acceptance and surrender to

allow Grace

to flow so we can completely come out of our problems.

 

Have patience. We always expect others to be patient, but don’t act accordingly

ourselves. When a person is stuck in a traffic jam, he may honk the horn and

yell at the

fellow in front of him. However, when the man behind him yells, the person

yells back

for the man to be patient. This is a hypocritical attitude.

 

If we are patient towards others, we will surely bring about a change in them.

If we

impartially observe experiences, we see that the way we evaluate experiences is

too

childish and immature.

 

Two friends are talking. One says that the other, “You told me that the next

time you and

your wife get into a fight, you would stand up to her. So, what happened the

last time

your wife scolded you?”

 

The other man replies that his wife came to him crawling on her hands and knees.

The

friend wants to know how that happened. The first man replies, “She got down on

her

hands and knees and said, ‘Come out from under the bed, you gutless wretch’.”

 

Amma often reminds us that the past is like a cancelled check. It has no value

in the

present. Our life is like a clean slate. We can write on it bad words, good

words, or a

beautiful song.

 

The mind is a storehouse of past impressions. It is like a kitchen storeroom.

Some items

may be good, and some items may be spoiled, just as the mind may be full of both

good

thoughts and bad thoughts. We can choose to dwell on the good thoughts.

 

The storeroom can never be the bedroom. If we go to the storage room, we can be

there

for some time, but don’t stay there. Come out. The present alone is true.

 

Compassion: One time a boy goes to an ice cream parlor. He asks the waitress,

“How

much is an ice cream cone?” The waitress says that it depends on what size it

is.

 

After counting his coins, the boy orders a medium cone for $1.50. The waitress

asks him

what flavor he wants. He counts his coins again. The waitress gets very

impatient with

the boy.

 

The boy asks how much a small cone is. The waitress says that it is $1.25. The

boy

orders a small, vanilla cone. After the boy leaves, the waitress finds that the

boy

purposely ordered the smaller cone so that he could leave a $.25 tip. The woman

feels

bad for being so impatient and decides that she wants to be more patient with

others in

the future.

 

If we too have such a caring and thoughtful attitude, we can transform others.

***

 

Usually we chant “Om Shanti, Shanti, Shanti” at the end of a puja or bhajans.

We always

chant “Shanti” three times. We are praying for peace from three basic sources:

1. Natural forces (tornados, floods, earthquakes, etc.). This is beyond our

control.

2. Our surroundings (neighbors, the dog next door, pollution, etc.). We can

make

some change here.

3. Our own mind (anger, jealousy, greed, ego). This we can control.

 

Without peace of mind, we will never be able to enjoy life or be joyful. The

third type

alone is enough to ruin our peace of mind. If we can overcome the third type,

we can

have peace of mind with the other types.

 

Anger is like a knife that is sharp at both ends, with no handle.

 

Bad things happen in strange ways (i.e., all the sons in a family die at a young

age; all the

daughters become widowed at a young age; a father is ill in the hospital and the

son who

goes to see him dies in an accident, etc.).

 

Be careful in every action, look, thought, or touch. Only through spiritual

practices and

with God’s Grace can we overcome the hardships of life.

 

Life is like an examination hall. As soon as the bell rings we have to get up

and leave the

hall. We can’t make excuses or ask for more time.

 

Animals don’t die of starvation. These days some people have enough wealth for

several

generations. At this rate, animals will soon be starving. We are cutting down

trees at a

fast rate.

 

Our duty is to help the poor and suffering people. This will make us fit to

receive God’s

Grace.

 

Amma Devi Bhava Talk, Santa Fe, NM

Friday, June 29, 2001