In the Samvat year 1876, on the eleventh day of the dark half of the month of Paush in the morning Shreeji Maharaj was seated facing the south on a wooden bedstead laid in the veranda in front of the hall facing the west in the Durbar of Dada Khachar in Gadhada. He had put a white turban on His head and a white upper garment over His shoulder. He had covered His body with a large white double sheet of cotton. Garlands of flowers adorned His neck and tassels of silk threads and flowers were hanging from His turban, and two bunches of flowers adorned His ears. Saints and devotees from various places had gathered before Him in an assembly. Saints were singing devotional songs with the accompaniment of musical instruments.
Then Shreeji Maharaj asked the saints to stop singing and start questions and answers. There upon Brahmanand Swami asked, ‘The supreme Lord is beyond everything and is the abode of perfect bliss. and yet the soul does not concentrate his mind on Him and is attracted towards worthless perishable worldly objects. What is the reason?”
Muktanand Swami tried to give an answer but could not give a satisfactory reply.
There upon Shreeji Maharaj said, ‘Well, I will give the answer to your question. Listen to me. From the very day the Lord created this world. He has so skillfully arranged the machinery of the world that it moves on and on of its own accord without any effort on His part. And it goes on expanding by itself and thus it has been put to constant motion. That is the reason why man is naturally attracted towards a woman and a woman is attracted towards a man, and both are attracted towards their progeny. the result of their union.
This natural attraction itself is called the Maya of the Lord. One who is not carried away by the flow of Maya will be able to fix his mind on the divine image of God. Hence a devotee should look to the worldly matters with aversion and develop the quality of non-attachment. He should know that only God is the fountain of total bliss and should fix his mind on God only. If one does not develop non-attachment towards worldly matters and is drifted away from God. then he is sure to be carried away by the flow of Maya even if he is as powerful as the redeemed souls like Shiv. Brahma Narad and others. If one develops attachment for worldly matters and not for God, his mind is sure to get fixed on worldly matters only. Hence a devotee should not be attracted towards anything except God.”
Thereafter Shreeji Maharaj said that it was then the turn of Muktanand Swami to ask a question. So Muktanand Swami said. “It is very difficult for a soul to realize God. And there is no greater achievement than the realization of God and no pleasure greater than that. Then how is it that the soul makes himself miserable by running after worthless objects and lets go the greatest pleasure? This is my question.”
Then Shreeji Maharaj said, “Let me give the answer to your question. When a person does not act according to the will of God and strays here and there, he meets with distress. If he acts according to His will he will enjoy a bliss comparable to the bliss of God Himself. The more he disobeys the will of God the more miserable he becomes. Hence the renunciate as well as the householder should act according to whatever God wills. They will meet with as much distress as they go against His will. The renunciate should avoid women in all the eight fold ways prescribed for him. Only then his vow of celibacy can be said to have been fulfilled. He will meet with distress to the extent that he violates his vow of celibacy. Celibacy is prescribed for the householder also. He shall not commit adultery. He should not enjoy sex even with his wife on the days of religious fasts. He should enjoy sex with his wile only after the period of menstruation. The renunciate as well as the householder will meet with distress to the extent that he violates the rules prescribed for him.
A person who has turned his face away from God does meet with happiness or distress, but that is according to his destiny. But whatever misery a devotee of God meets with. is because of going against the will of God for the sake of some worthless objects. He will become happy to the extent that he acts according to the will of God.”
