Sharanagati

(from a lecture of Swami Tirtha, 11.05.2019 evening, Sofia)

(continues from the previous Monday)

We have got relatively short time on this planet Earth. We should use our time properly. At least 1/3 of this lifetime you sleep, then one other major part you work. Another major part you hang on the internet. Basically this is a waste of time. There is a calculation, how much time is spent in different activities. In a lifetime of, let’s say, eighty years, what do you think, how much time do we dedicate to our studies?
Prem-Prasad: Half.
Swami Tirtha: No… Few months. Few months. Because in general, how much do you think, how much time do you spend in reading? They say 8 hours in a lifetime. And how much time do you spend in searching for your keys? Do you know this feeling? Three months. And on this list there is no mention of praying, or meditation, or spiritual practices – it is so insignificant that you cannot even measure it.
So, my dear brothers and sisters, don’t waste your precious lifetime in searching for your keys. There is a better purpose for the time on this planet Earth. And you have started to correct the time balance of life. Because we are sitting here, right? This is a way to improve our time balance. Dedicate more time to your eternal part. Don’t waste so much time with impermanent things. Because if we have taken birth on this planet Earth, the three qualities, the three gunas will overpower us. You know, one is the tamas – this is the matter, so to say. This is the densest part of your life, most material side of your life – like darkness, like ignorance. The second is energy, like rajas, activity, energy, passion. And the third one is sattva, the light, the knowledge, the bright side of our life.
So, if we separate human existence into two big parts – one is the body and the other is the thought, the consciousness – then what is the proportion of tamas in the consciousness? Small. But the presence of tamas in the body is big, right? Tamas is useful, because it prevents us from perceiving everything in one shot. We couldn’t tolerate it. So, it provides a kind of sequence of experience. Otherwise, if this whole life experience comes in one shot, it just eliminates us. What is the proportion of rajas in body? It is there. And what is the proportion of rajas in consciousness? Same like in the body – it is present. For some with small influence, for others with bigger influence. But let’s check sattva. What is the proportion of sattva in the body? It is small. And what is the chance of sattva in the consciousness? It is big. It is big. Therefore, this presence of sattva in our consciousness provides a chance for spiritual growth. Therefore the qualities, the fruits of sattva – like happiness, knowledge, enlightenment, or close to enlightenment – these are the topics of our practice, due to this presence of sattva in our consciousness.
You see, it is a question of balance, a question of proportions. And this is the same with our lifespan – it is a question of proportions. How much time do you dedicate to the secondary activities of the impermanent part of life? And how much time we dedicate to your spiritual practices, the permanent side? As I look around, a certain period of your time you have wasted already. But from now on, please, be careful.
There is a secret mantra of changing and correcting your time balance. Shall I declare  publicly this secret mantra? It goes like this: ‘My dear Lord, from today on I’m Yours!’ From now on you can decide where is your attention. From now on you can decide the proportion of your life. And it doesn’t matter how much time we have lost, because it is said in the Chaitanya Charitamrita, that “one moment spent in the company of the pure devotees, compensates for unlimited wasted lifetimes”[1]. So, grab the opportunity. Take your time and use your lifespan properly.
I didn’t have the opportunity to associate with my spiritual master for a very long time. I never calculated, but if I have to calculate, I think altogether it is only a few months, that we could spend in physical presence. But I tell you, that was intense enough to determine my life, to help me to commit myself to the bright side, to the spiritual side. One moment is enough. And this intense spiritual association can easily compensate for a much longer period of your lifetime, which you have wasted, unfortunately.
So, take your share. Use your time properly. It is said in the shastras, in the holy scriptures, that you are born from nectar. You belong to the spiritual world. And this nectar of immortality is your birthright. Search for that. Don’t be satisfied with anything less than this. This is the best use of our time. And coming together in a holy elevated atmosphere helps us to perceive these sacred moments. So, I have to express my gratitude to all of you, to help us not only to open the door of the cage – because our soul is like a bird in the cage – but these moments, these mantra-meditations, not only help us to open the door of this cage, but help the soul-bird to fly. Because eternity… It doesn’t matter how many moments we complied together it will never give, never provide eternity, because that’s a totally different dimension.

1. Chaitanya Charitamrita, Madhya, 22.54