The Key To God's Heart - Chap 14

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Sai Ram Everyone!Consent has been received to continue with the postings for this book, so here it is....DISCIPLINE & DIET(Chapter 14)Discipline

is a set of unwritten rules for society. Every single one of us has a

code of rules by which we live. There are various types of disciplines,

one of which is personal discipline. What is personal discipline? It is

a code of conduct you set yourself, i.e., speaking softly, responding

to others kindly with consideration; your reactions to your

surroundings in a positive manner; the way in which you carry out your

daily duties whether at work or at home. They act as a fence for our

behavior patterns. How we behave not only affects others but gives them

an indication of what we are like inside. If we act politely and speak

sweet always, we are well thought well off. On the other hand, should

we use abusive and aggressive language and actions, then we will

probably be avoided by others. There is a saying 'Never argue with a

fool - bystanders cannot tell the difference'. Our outward behavior

reflects our inner state and we are judged, praised or condemned by it.

Therefore, it is vital to control our speech, actions and habits. In

this respect, it becomes important to set ourselves some goals, some

do's and dont's that will help in forming good habits which in turn

will promote right action and correct speech. Do not forget you live in

a world surrounded by other people and so your behavior should be what

you expect of others. The major factor that contributes to good

behavior is tolerance with a capital 'T'. What is your tolerance level?

How many times a day do you shout, become annoyed or argue? Examine

your code of conduct. Is there room for improvement? Do you pass the

test of good behavior? If not, then list your negative traits and set

yourself a target and time limit to improve. Be determined to succeed

and you will. Why is personal discipline so important and vital to

correct now? Because personal discipline affects social discipline.

Alone you are one, in a society you are many, and therefore, must

behave in such a manner that you do not cause offence, irritation or

annoyance to anyone. What may be acceptable on a personal level may not

be acceptable in a social sense. Unity, love and discipline are of

unprecedented importance. Here the watch word is TOLERANCE. You must

accept that you are a member of society and no one is higher or lower.

All are equal and each person's views are of equal importance. Strive

to become a family. Treat all as your brothers and sisters. This is

very difficult to practice but its importance cannot be stressed too

much. Any lapse in your behavior will result in adverse comments from

others.The

major hindrance to social discipline is people misbehaving and becoming

embroiled in arguments. This is lack of tolerance, offence taking

rather than forgiving. Therefore, it becomes essential to overcome

these faults. One note of warning - we have so far only looked at

behavior. As we now know, good actions and speech are governed by good

THOUGHTS. The power of thoughts is immense. Thoughts create the

atmosphere around you, whether positive or negative. It is of

absolutely no use whatsoever to remain polite whilst harboring bad

thoughts. God is the eternal witness within each and everyone and He is

aware of each thought. Negative thoughts create an atmosphere of

friction and discontent within society. So not only must your outer

behavior be acceptable but also your inner state must be pure and

unfettered by negative thought waves.One

of the most important disciplines that can be practiced is the

discipline of diet. One must always be careful and keep a watch on what

is consumed and even more importantly, who has prepared the food. If

you eat food cooked by others who are susceptible to the negative

emotions, then this will contribute to your state of mind, to your

state of disorder, possibly initiating hatred. Control of the mind,

living in silence, purification, all of this is dictated by the food we

consume, with all our senses. Therefore, diet restriction is vital. Try

an experiment. For one week, eat only food that you or someone you love

has prepared; someone who is calm and balanced. Avoid the media. Avoid

everything and anyone who will disturb your equilibrium and then see

what happens. When you return to your normal routine, you will notice

the difference. Food contains very subtle influences. The effects and

influences in food are transferred to the people who eat it. Try and

prepare meals yourself and eat and observe the difference. You will be

obliged to observe restrictions with regard to processed and

manufactured foods. To be aware that you are easily affected and

influenced by the environment and the vibrations around you. In this

process, the diet and food that is consumed forms an important part of

the disciplines.One

must eat only pure foods, no additives, colors, flavors, etc. Nothing

cooked by another. Pure food is food that you have handled or someone

you can trust to entertain only good and pure thoughts during the

process of cooking. Eating out is not advised because the thoughts of

the cooks and their predilections enter the food and disturb the mind.

The thoughts and vibrations are so strong, they contaminate the food

and your disciplines will go to waste because once the mind is impure

with the subtle presence of riotous thoughts, you cannot succeed in

your aim.It

is not so much how much one eats but it is more a case of what one eats

and who has been involved in the preparation of the food. Every thought

that the cook has is transmitted into the food and hence, it goes into

your system and the subtlest parts enter your mind, and therein hold

sway. Therefore, your mind is not your own, it is conditioned by the

food and the environment. What you think, your thoughts, feelings and

emotions, rarely do they reveal the true you, the true person that you

are because most of your thoughts are colored by the diet you indulge

in, the places you frequent, the environment you live in, the past

times you indulge in and the way you behave. All these determine the

kind of character you have. If once you start to cleanse the mind,

cleanse the soul, cleanse the body, you will be aware of a great

transformation in your attitudes, notions and feelings and your

responses to others. How you react to people, events and how, in turn,

it transforms your character. Then you truly begin to reveal the

divinity that is latent within. At the moment, this divinity is

overlaid by layers and layers of influences. Once these influences are

removed, then the true soul emerges, the shinning purity emerges, the

golden soul. It is what God first gave to us in all its pristine

beauty, innocence and purity is God. You will find that you could not

possibly and, it is not inherent in you to do anything that can be

classed as 'wrong'. The only thing that make us make the wrong

decisions or colors our lives by the way we behave is ego, jealousy,

greed, envy. These arise mostly from our polluted environment and

associations. Though some of them may come from past life associations

and past tendencies, the majority of it in this life comes from how we

are raised and what we become. Once that is reviewed and checked, then

true divinity begins to manifest.For

example, on a gray or dark paper, a smudge may not be noticeable but on

a sheet of white paper, even a tiny speck will be visible. Therefore,

the purer you become, the more susceptible you will be to these

negative influences, from diet, media, and the intake around you, the

'food' from all the senses. This is food that the ear hears, the eyes

see and the tongue tastes all this has to be censored and monitored.

For what you see, hear, touch and speak, this is all classified as

food. The best protection you have is God and the time you spend with

Him and the disciplines you practice in attaining Him. It is essential

to be focused and centered entirely on Him at all times.Decide

on what is important in your life, God, world, you, service, others or

work. List your priorities in order of importance. Then you will need a

plan of action to practice. Formulate one based on the examples given

and adhere to it. In the early stages of devotion, this is important,

as you will not be steady enough to overcome the onslaught of external

forces.You

may argue that it is not practical to be so strict all the time and

that you are obliged to live in the world. What to do at functions,

parties, outings, weddings and so on? Especially when you are

surrounded by an atmosphere of revelry. The answer is that as far as is

possible; it is up to you to control the desire for certain unsuitable

situations. In certain circumstances, it is unavoidable to indulge in

diet that is not suitable. One may be not be able to access one's own

cooking. The practice of this discipline must be a conscious effort,

set regime but one does not need to suffer unnecessarily under

exceptional circumstances. So one needs must balance one's thinking and

ideas. There is no need to be so lax as to make the disciplines and

practices ineffectual. When you are doing so, ensure that your link

with Him is open, converse with Him and nothing will affect you. The

damage occurs when you close off the connection and allow yourself to

become immersed in the worldly activities. All that is required is to

move and act externally whilst remaining engrossed in the Lord

internally.For

the ultimate realization, for the attainment of the ultimate

liberation, discipline is vital. You must adhere to your disciplines as

your life blood. He will provide you with ideal opportunities and His

presence but you yourself must make the effort to detach yourself, to

withdraw yourself from worldly attractions and live only in Him. Once

you become convinced of these precepts and concepts, once you believe

in them utterly as infallible, it makes them an overwhelmingly powerful

force in your favor; nothing can move you from your stand, nothing can

detract from you. You become invincible in the Lord's heart and He in

yours. More than any other form of love, man's first duty should be to

fix his love on the Lord and the Lord alone. From there, love flows to

every one, all of humanity, the animal kingdom and plant life in an

endless stream, a ceaseless ocean. For the Lord is the ocean of love

and it is infinite, and from this you can draw, distribute and shower

this love on all those around you, everyone you come into contact with.

Truly you become Godlike, an image of the Lord Himself.One

must improve to earn His grace to win His love, to earn His

companionship. To be deserving of His high estate. He will show you,

lead you, guide you but you must put into practice His words, His

formulas, His precepts, for only then, can there be success. How can

there be success without practice, without implementation, without

trying, without longing, yearning and desiring Him.(From : THE KEY TO GOD'S HEART by R SAI)Copyright

by the Author. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be

reproduced or transmitted in any form or means without permission of

the Author. Visit : Sai Messages : http://saimessages.blogspot.com/ Sai Divine Inspirations : http://saidivineinspirations.blogspot.com/ Love Is My Form : http://loveismyform.blogspot.com/ (for non-Sai members)

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