Rebelling against God leads to a sorry end

Imagine about a young boy from a rich family landing in jail due to a traffic offence. The jailor is sympathic and explains to the boy the Jail Code. There is a provision for early release by serving other prisoners. We, souls, who are ‘sat’ (eternal), ‘chit’ (conscious) and ‘ananda’ (blissful) are in a cycle of birth death in material bodies. However, there is relief available if we follow God’s instructions.

Let us start with childhood. There are lots of fun. Youth follows with many sense pleasures and plentiful energy. A wrong impression forms that life is full of fun. Unfortunately, what follows is not so pleasant; middle age comes followed by old age and, yes, death. No preparation is made for these eventualities. God is not unkind. He is prepared to help, but no connection is made with him when going is good. Stuck? Not really! Become aware of God in childhood with prayers for guidance and help. By the time middle age comes, more spiritual practices should be done. God’s help will become available, especially in old age.

What are these spiritual practices? I will just name one. Buy a large photo of an incarnation of God, like in a large calendar. Watch for the eyes, which should be painted such that they follow you wherever you go. This done, hang it in the room where you spend most of your time; I have hung a large photo of Lord Krishna in my bedroom.

Now this is what has happened with me. Have you see a magnet attracting a piece of iron, and that in turn attracting an iron clip? And if the iron piece is in contact with magnet in a certain way for a period of time, it also develops the quality of a magnet. Do you see the connection? As I spend a lot of time in company of my Lord, knowingly or unknowingly, I am getting more and more attracted to my Lord. Yes, I am increasingly becoming God-conscious. Surely, several spiritual practices are coming into play. ‘Darshan’ (seeing) is one. Prayers for whatever I need is second, in which guidance is also included. As I am very grateful, I thank God a lot for his ‘kripa’ (grace). ‘Naman’ (namaste) is done several times in a day. On his part, my Lord is patiently busy in reforming me. Why, then, rebel against God? The passion of youth turns into darkness of old age. The feeling that I will show the world that I am very special without any help from God leaves us. The choice given by God to make a success of life is squandered. Do all kinds of material successes not leave us as we age? Life spent in chasing mirages comes to a naught. The rebel has lost. I hope the readers of this article will pay attention and not continue to pursue their rebellious ways. As parts of God (The Bhagavad-Geeta 15.7), we must take shelter of God.

The writer is a spiritual teacher and a popular columnist; Views presented are personal.