Sharanagati

Don’t focus on the mistakes or the shortcomings of others, because then it will start to be your topic of meditation.

Do you remember the story of the prostitute and the bramin? There was one very strong, very saintly bramin – a priest by caste. Next door was living a prostitute. Sometimes it happens that the opposite extremes are coming together. So it happened with the bramin. And you know, the prostitute was very cute and very popular. So many people visited her. The bramin was so strong and so deep in his meditation, but nobody was paying any attention on him. All the visitors were going next door. So the bramin was a little upset. He said: “Such a degraded life! Every day she is receiving different guests. They are destroying my meditation. I try to emanate my sattva-guna next door, but this is a blasphemy that they are doing! What can I do!? How can I correct them!? At least I will start to count the visitors. It’s a horrible practice! I have to count how many visitors she is accepting.” So he decided that after every visitor he will place one piece of stone. And the little pile was growing rapidly. Sooner or later in the yard of the bramin a big hill started to manifest. This was his meditation, all the time he was meditating: “Such a degraded woman! And such degraded men!” So he was collecting and collecting the stones.

Meanwhile what was happening next door? Because the prostitute was a pious one, she was also peeping to the yard of the bramin. And she felt so bad: “Such a great saint is living next door! And I have this bad profession. Yet if God has given this earning money, then what can I do? I have to do this. I wish I could be so pure and so elevated like the bramin next door. Just look at him! He is counting his prayers by putting a stone. He is such a great saint! So many prayers!” And she was accepting the visitors, but her meditation was on the hill of the bramin. So sooner or later what happened? A transfer. The qualities of this side were transferred to that side and the qualities of that side were transferred to this side.

So, according to our object, according to our vision, we shall reap the harvest. Take care not to digest the mistakes of others. Because there is not only food for the stomach, but there is food for the soul also. And food for the soul is the divine message. Counting our mantras and not counting the visitors next door.