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[Swami Vishwananda @vishwananda]

To have constant gratitude without any negative feelings towards self, others, life, or God.
This is one deep secret of true love. The word gratitude often makes people think that they have to become a doormat that only sees others’ or God’s love and nothing good about oneself. This is not true. Genuine gratitude is the expression of deep love. And when love becomes the only focus of one’s life, then gratitude for every moment becomes a natural outpouring. Like ice naturally melts and flows into drops of water when placed in warm weather. The warm weather is God’s constant presence, the ice is one’s own eternal love, and the drops of water are the expression of both God’s constant presence of love as well as one’s own deep inner nature of love. This is why love and gratitude cannot be separated. They are a natural state of the atma and Paramatma meeting each other. When the two truly come together, then only love exists. And that is why, to put love as the only focus for oneself is the absolute highest expression that life can become.

[Swami Vishwananda @vishwananda]

Haumai, or ego, often leads us to believe we are correct, but Sikhi encourages us to pause and reflect. True strength emerges when we can release our ego and embrace truth, even if we stand alone.

Wanting to be right. This sentiment makes people run around in circles constantly. Whether about something big or an insignificant matter, the mind is constantly looking for ways to prove its narrative. This is because the mind is limited and often wrong. Hence, it needs the external validation of being correct in order to remain calm. But like this, one is just like a leaf in the wind. Floating anywhere and anyhow. No direction. No sense. This is not why one comes into the world. And to force existence to be limited to the needs and wanderings of the mind is severely shortchanging oneself. Why would you accept such a lackluster experience of life when such greater things are available. But that is only when one sets down the ego and transcends the control of the mind. To become the master of the mind is not easy but it is crucial to get there. It is only when flowing with the deeper truth of life that true peace and correctness emerge. A truth that doesn’t need proofs yet is easily felt by the world. Why is it so easy for the SatGuru’s presence to calm down the mind from its normal state and make it resonate to a divine rhythm? Because one automatically feels the difference in His presence. One doesn’t need external proofs, one’s own state is the proof, the knowing transcends the external proof. And that deep conviction flows out in waves impacting everyone into a deeper state of being. When you allow the SatGuru’s adesh to release the ego’s control over you, when you allow Him to let the mind calm down and for your true self to take the reins from within. That state is the emergence of divine qualities. Of love, trust, strength, courage, and all others. Then even if the world stands in opposition to oneself, one won’t fight with the world to be right. One will simply allow the Will, the Hukam of the Divine to takeover and lead all where they have to go. Through Simran, constant loving remembrance of the Divine, one reaches the ability to let go of the ego into the SatGuru’s gentle and kind hands.

[Swami Vishwananda @vishwananda]

When a new mantra appears in this world, it is the birth of a new era.
On the silent mountain tops of the Himalayas, in hidden forests, in small obscure caves, saints throughout the yugas have brought the Divine into the mortal world. Through revelations of yogic practices, through wisdom passed down, so many ways, but the appearance of a mantra is very special. Bhagavan’s Name is Him Himself, fully, nothing held back. The mortal world does not realize it but energetically everything has changed. Changed into radiance. Because He has appeared in another eternal form as an ancient mantra regiven to the world. The SatGuru catching those sacred frequencies, brings various forms of the Divine into the world to raise everyone back to Bhagavan. He refines the cosmic waves of Bhagavan’s most ancient love, and makes it shine anew in complete consciousness today.
When Sri Vitthala Giridhari Parabrahmane Namah was given by Bhagavan Vitthal, no one other than the SatGuru personally witnessed the emergence of the mantra. But through the love, faith, and dedication of the bhaktas, that Mantra is resonating across the world. It will raise the world into new heights of spirituality for a very long time. The life of the SatGuru is marked with many such events. Whether physically close or far from him, learn to flow in the rhythm of His heart. Chant the Mantra constantly. Then the SatGuru is more present beside you than whatever or whoever you are facing in that moment. This is how you anchor his energy in the world more and more. Keep spreading the name of Bhagavan to all. Blessings to everyone.

[Swami Vishwananda @vishwananda]

On Hanuman Jayanti let’s take inspiration from his deep devotion and love towards God. The times when Goswami Tulsidasji could not figure out how to write down the Mahima, the glory, of Sri Ram, he would intensely pray to Hanumanji for help. At one such time, Hanumanji was explaining, “Through the grace of the SatGuru, of Sri Ram, one can approach divinity. The SatGuru who comes personally to this world, the one who is always eternally present everywhere, and the Antaryami. That Purna Tattva manifests very rarely. He comes to reverse the flow of creation that naturally tries to move away from God. He is the opposite of what one expects when one is stuck in the limitation of the created world. He is the Whole manifest as a piece to become the size of the other smaller parts. So that He can push the smaller pieces back to where they have originated from. The SatGuru obstructs the path to move away from God. If the smaller pieces only perceived the obstruction but did not see the love, the longing, the humanness, the desire to be reunited, of the big Creator, they would keep trying to move away from the source to find ‘I-dentity’. The movement to individualize is ego. But when faced with the SatGuru, the mind sees that the cosmic laws do not apply to the SatGuru. It cannot understand Him, can never control Him. And it cowers in fear for losing its fiercely held temporary, false identity - the ego. When the cosmic identity of the atma becomes its only identity and the ego is fully dissolved, Viraam, Raam, the end of all limitations is reached. Thus one attains the eternal place at Sri Ram’s, the SatGuru’s, feet. One forever loses the ability to identify oneself as great. Because Ram is all that exists. All that ever was. All that ever will be. Ram is the created world. Ram is the Adi, most ancient one. Ram is the Anth, the end of all things. I lose myself in Ram. When the time comes to serve, I am always a servant of Ram. At all times of solitude, there is no I, only Ram.”
This is the pinnacle of humility that is displayed and given to all by Hanumanji, by the SatGuru, without holding anything back. And this is what makes the SatGuru extraordinary. He can embody the Master and all bhaktas at the same time. Imagine the depth of cosmic forces within him. The pulling apart and pushing together of energy constantly churning within him. Yet he operates with perfect interaction with the world. Eternal Perfection moves through him. And hence the pieces can only surrender and never understand, Sri Ram, Hanuman, the SatGuru. Take inspiration from the great Ram Bhakt Hanuman and become a true bhakta. Much love to you all. Shubh Hanuman Jayanti.

[Swami Vishwananda @vishwananda]

The last three days of Navaratri are the most intense.
True spirituality is very intense, it is very fierce, it consumes everything and makes all itself. Devi Kaalratri, Maha Gauri, and Siddhidatri are the pinnacle of self-offering. Ma Kaalratri looks so different from Maha Gauri and Siddhidatri Ma but observe them closely. Can marriage of the atma and Paramatma happen without a change of the heart from worldly to divine, from scattered in all directions to single-pointed? No. All Dharma manifest in all its glory without conquering all inner shadows? No. The time of Navaratri takes us from quiet inward movement from the mind to the heart, sweetest of bhakti and love, to fierce all-consuming self-transformation. It is a triangle of continuous upward lifting energy. The SatGuru teaches to flow with life yet also put one’s complete energy into taking one’s life to Bhagavan. He shows fierce correction of the ego yet filled with the most heart-rending softness. As the Divine Mother, He shows us the importance of endurance. Enduring through inner change to get to where the atma wants to be. It may not always be easy but it is always simple. Pray that Navaratri brings your mind back to simplicity.

[Swami Vishwananda @vishwananda]

Many blessings on Ugadi, Gudi Padva, and Chaitra Navaratri.
The new year has officially started and winter has softly passed by. The cold and subtle dormancy has given birth to a vibrant and new spring. This is the constant rejuvenation of the world. One should learn from this. Let go of old patterns. Leave the past in the past. Welcome the present with an open heart and grateful spirit. Then true joy and peace can manifest. The atma’s relationship with the SatGuru is as old as time itself but also always new. Vibrate in the frequency of ever increasing love. With a heart that finds great peace in simply being devoted to His Lotus Feet. Loving is far more important than being loved in this world. Recognize this truth from the Divine Mother. She is always in the Mudra of giving. Whether as nature, in her form of a worldly mother, or even Her Vigrahas. All are constantly bestowing grace to move closer to Unconditional Love. It is so important to be joyful on the spiritual path. Don’t take things so seriously that you lose your joy. Bhagavan is Ananda, bliss itself. His entire countenance is blissful. Find a reason to be happy every single day. Each day arisen in this world brings joy with it. Whether hidden or overt, direct or indirect. But the love of Bhagavan bestowing His bliss manifests everyday. May He bless all the bhaktas to see these moments of joy in each day. Wish all a wonderful new year and Chaitra Navaratri.

[Swami Vishwananda @vishwananda]

The problem is people are not made aware of eternal and universal values hence they are behaving like being ashamed to show them and express them and share them or simply even if they are there than people take them for granted.Also people are not made aware how to thrive towards wisdom, maturity, multi-abilities .And the saddest of all people are hardly and rarely reminded how glorious their souls are ,how divine and powerful beings they are how creativity is alive communication with their Creator and how the Creator doesn’t long to be their Creator only, or their Lord but recognized just as their Friend, as their Beloved.
People are not educated to observe life through holistic lens and admire countless reflections of the Divinity rather they see just fragments and tend to think that is all in all simply put, people forgot how to look and see the unity of diversity and uniqueness of diversity ,how to complete complementaries, how to marry the opposites and then how to go beyond it. But who knows, maybe majority of people are not even interested into education, learning, exploring, experimenting, experiencing, expressing various dimensions of life itself, maybe they think that they are satisfied in their own sea of misery and limitations ,maybe they need more suffering to generate the strength needed to start spiritual journey.
God is patiently waiting. He explained to Arjun all knowledge, answered his questions, deepen his persepctive and perception, graced him with divine vision to see His cosmic form and yet at the end He didn’t interfere Arjun’s choices, Arjun was free to choose everyone has their own pace and time to do the right thing and to awake

[Swami Vishwananda @vishwananda]

Met with her Holiness Sri Narayani amma of vellore

[Swami Vishwananda @vishwananda]

Visit the house if renown mathematician Srinivasa Ramanujan

[Swami Vishwananda @vishwananda]

Have the great blessing of meeting again Sri Rangacharya of Chidambaram on this auspicious day

[Swami Vishwananda @vishwananda]

The morning or Mangal Aarti celebrates Ardhanarishvar. In this form, the right side of the body is Bhagavan and the left side is Bhagavati. Sri Hari and Mahalakshmi, Shiva and Parvati, the Divine Father and Divine Mother. Before everything came into being, there was only Bhagavan and His eternal Prem which is Devi, Bhagavati, Divine Mother. It was through this endless love which wished to give more and more joy to the Beloved, that everything in Creation was formed. When the SatGuru says that everything is created through divine love, everything is Love itself, He is speaking of a reality that is true on every level of existence. Hence, the simplest statement of the SatGuru is a living scripture. The first Puja on Maha Shivratri worships the Adipurusha and Adishakti. They are beyond the Trimurti (Brahma, Vishnu, Shiva). They are the primary cause of all and it is from them that all originates. The Ardhanarishvar aspect is one of the rarest and hardest forms to meditate on because everything is assimilated within it. Yet the SatGuru can give it as an Ishtadev to the one He finds is truly worthy of worshipping this Divine Form. With this as truth, how simple it is to understand the saints who said that the SatGuru should be revered foremost and above all.
The other forms of Shiva that are worshiped during the Mangal Aarti are Kaleshwar Mahadev, Kameshwar Mahadev, and Aasheshwar Mahadev. Kaleshwar Mahadev is one of the rare Jyotirlingams that is lower than the surface of the earth, signifying Lord Shiva’s deep humility. Kameshwar Mahadev protects Kamyavan, which means ‘the forest of love’. It is situated in Vraj Bhumi. This ‘Kaam’ refers to the love that Mother Yashoda, Nand Baba, the gopis, gopas, even the plants, animals, and sand of that land had for Sri Krishna. It is pure divine love in its finest form. Aasheshwar Mahadev is the form of Lord Shiva that is waiting with infinite hope for a glimpse of baby Sri Krishna’s lotus face. When Lord Shiva first came to Vraj, Maiya Yashoda refused to let him meet baby Krishna because she got scared of his disguise as a wild mendicant. Finally, seeing Lord Shiva’s deep love and eager hope for a single glance of Sri Krishna, Maiya Yashoda’s heart melted. When she let him see Sri Krishna, Lord Shiva put Bhagavan’s tiny feet on his head so that the pure Ganga can reclaim her place at Bhagavan’s feet. The stories of love between Bhagavan and His Beloved Bhakta, Lord Shiva are endless and each gives rise to a drop of Ananya Bhakti that all bhaktas yearn for.

[Swami Vishwananda @vishwananda]

Shubh Maha Shivratri to all.
This is the great celebration of Lord Shiva with so many important occasions taking place on this day. (1) Lord Shiva’s manifestation as an eternal pillar of light, the Jyotirlingam. (2) Lord Shiva’s one complete day of awakening from Samadhi during the year. (3) Lord Shiva saving the three worlds by drinking the Halahal poison that arose on this day from the Samudra Manthan. (4) Lord Shiva and Devi Parvati’s eternal divine marriage. When the atma is forever brought to the realm of Paramatma, towards the realization of SatChitAnanda, the state of understanding the eternal proclamation ‘Satyam Shivam Sundaram’.
SatChitAnanda and Satyam Shivam Sundaram have similar meanings; Truth, Pure Consciousness, Divine Bliss and Beauty. Sri Hari and Lord Shiva; Paramatma and Atma; SatGuru and Bhakta. On Maha Shivratri, the third eye is opened for a single moment for every sincere bhakta by the blessing of the SatGuru. To gain a glimpse of the Divine realm. The place where Bhagavan is always giving Darshan. The state in which no pain remains. The reality where Bhakti is the one truth. Where words, understanding, realizations, all fade away and only His eternal blazing form of Love remains. This blessing, this Amrit, is bestowed one drop at a time by the SatGuru through the Mangal Aarti in the morning and the Ratri Chaar Prahar (four watches of the night) on Maha Shivratri. Even the smallest instance of having one’s third eye opened to truly see Bhagavan is enough to drive the mind to madness. This is why the SatGuru is absolutely vital and one needs to be capable of handling such deep grace. Without the SatGuru’s merciful protection and control of that enormous divine energy, one would not be able to sustain oneself. This is the truth that Lord Shiva repeatedly proclaims, to be in complete surrender to the SatGuru’s lotus feet so that one can be guided through everything, so that one is always in loving communion with Bhagavan. The five forms of Lord Shiva that are worshipped on this day are extraordinarily important.

[Swami Vishwananda @vishwananda]

A few parts of the SatGuru’s infinite love are revealed by Lord Shiva.
The Guru Gita, Lord Shiva’s great satsang about the SatGuru, is the most valuable jewel the world has received. The Dakshinamurti form of Lord Shiva as the SatGuru represents the SatGuru in His complete divine glory; supreme wisdom, God-realized consciousness, endless love, and the removal of ignorance through spiritual teaching. The Dakshinamurti’s key symbols are:
(1) His name Dakshinamurti, Lord Shiva is facing the South (Dakshin): Firstly, He is looking towards the kingdom of Yamaraj (god of death) as a conqueror watches over the kingdom he has won. The SatGuru is the conqueror of death, He frees everyone from the cycle of birth and death. Secondly, the SatGuru takes all the darkness and poison, and transforms it into Divine Amrit for the disciples. Because when the disciples are turned towards the SatGuru, they face North (Narasimha’s protection), North-East (Radha-Krishna’s eternal Prem and Bhakti), and North-West (Divine Mother’s compassion and acceptance).
(2) Lord Shiva is sitting under the Banyan tree (Vata Vriksha): This is the shelter of knowledge, longevity, and the Trimurti (roots are Brahma, central trunk is Vishnu, and branches are Shiva).
(3) Gyaan Mudra and Abhaya Hasta: The mudra of the index finger touching the thumb as well as raised in blessing. This is the union of the individual soul (jeevatma) with the Supreme Lord (Paramatma) bestowed by the SatGuru.
(4) Fire (Agni): He holds an open flame in one hand, symbolizing enlightenment, illumination, complete control, and being in the present moment.
(5) Japamala, Damru, and Vasuki the snake: Respectively, they represent meditation, the primordial sound from which the universe was born, and mastery over all light and dark forces.
(6) Book/Palm Leaves (all Divine Scriptures): Mastery over all divine and worldly knowledge.
(7) Apasmara (the dwarf demon under Lord Shiva’s feet): The SatGuru crushes ignorance and ego under His foot, signifying the triumph of right knowledge over arrogance.
(8) Sitting on or wearing a tiger skin: This symbolizes the SatGuru’s mastery over all primal instincts as well as His power (Shakti).
(9) Wearing a crown: This is one of the most rare times when Lord Shiva accepts a crown on his head. Because he is representing the SatGuru, who is the King of kings, the Dev of all devas, the Highest of all that is divine.
***Verse from the Guru Gita***
|| nimiṣān nimiṣārdhvād vā yad vākyād vai vimucyate |
svātmānaṁ śivam ālokya tasmai śrī-gurave namaḥ ||
***Meaning***
By listening to the SatGuru’s speech for a moment or even half a moment, one is liberated from bondage and attains a vision of the true self (atma) and Bhagavan Himself. Salutations to such a merciful SatGuru.

[Swami Vishwananda @vishwananda]

Your purpose is what you are supposed to be doing in that moment.
Purpose is the meaning you give to every moment you are here. You have to be aware of every moment. You have to keep your connection to God open at all times because that way you can flow in His plan and stay true to your purpose at all times. There is an ultimate purpose of life, attaining Bhagavan’s Lotus Feet. And that manifests within every moment. Each moment can bring you closer to God, leave you standing still, or push you away from God. It all depends on how you take that moment and use it. When your mind is filled with negativity, you will push yourself away from the awareness of God. His presence will become subtle and dormant for you. But when you make the efforts to remain positive and kind despite every obstacle, you accelerate on the path closer to God. God Himself walks closer to you. Life becomes a virtuous circle. You love Him unconditionally and He pours more of His presence in your life. But you can also make your life a vicious circle. Where you stay stuck in pettiness and God’s voice also becomes more and more obscure in your life. Because of your lack of attention towards Him who is true love.
Your purpose is found and won or lost and obscured in every moment. These moments make a long string of events that are weighed at the end of your life. The lighter and brighter the string, due to constant love and remembrance of God, the faster your atma moves towards Him. The heavier and darker the string, due to constant pettiness and selfishness, the more you remain stuck in dense energies. That’s why you need to take many births to understand that unconditional love is God and God is unconditional love. And it is only to give and experience this deep unconditional love that you have taken birth each time. Accept every moment with joy and spread that innocent love to all. Move forward after completing your work and leave the outcomes to Him. Like this create a beautiful offering of your life to God.

[Swami Vishwananda @vishwananda]

As the days are leading to Maha Shivratri, let’s learn more about Lord Shiva and why he is so important in the Hari Bhakta Sampradaya.
The first thing we learn about from Lord Shiva is the divine relationship between the SatGuru and the bhakta. This most pure divine relationship reveals itself fully only once in the millions of lifetimes the jeevatma takes. The true SatGuru is only one and His appearance is the most rare of rare occurrences. And for the bhakta to become a true bhakta is also the most rare of rare occurrences. That’s why, for these two things to happen simultaneously; that the true SatGuru is here and the bhakta transforms fully into unconditional love, is the highest divine occurrence. This is what Lord Shiva speaks about in the Guru Gita again and again. As the Dakshinamurti, Lord Shiva is the SatGuru. Instructing everyone on the truth of the SatGuru; who is a truth beyond all others. The SatGuru is a form of divinity that is beyond all other divine forms. He is more human than humans; yet more divine than divine. Unceasingly caring, unconditionally loving, always joyful, eternally innocent, and divinely https://t.co/ApM1uhEILX the Dakshinamurti Stotram composed by Sri Adishankaracharya, the SatGuru is glorified in the form of Lord Shiva. The beautiful verses of the Dakshinamurti Stotram help us to realize ourselves as a particle of dust at the eternal Lotus Feet of Bhagavan. The ways to reach Bhagavan are infinite as He Himself is infinite. Yet the SatGuru makes it very easy for one to find Him, to learn true humility and Sharanagati, to offer oneself fully and live only as unconditional love for Him. Through the grace of the SatGuru and with eternal salutations to His Lotus Feet, we meditate on this verse from the Dakshinamurti Stotram.
***Verse***
|| Vishvam Darpanna-Drshyamaana-Nagarii-Tulyam Nija-Antargatam
Pashyann-Aatmani Maayayaa Bahir-Ivodbhuutam Yathaa Nidrayaa |
Yah Saakssaat-Kurute Prabodha-Samaye Sva-Atmaanam-Eva-Advayam
Tasmai Shrii-Guru-Muurtaye Nama Idam Shrii-Dakssinnaamuurtaye ||1||
***Meaning***
1.1: The entire world is like a city seen within a mirror; the Seen and the Seeing is happening within One's Own Being.
1.2: It is a witnessing of the external world through and within the Atma itself; like a dream cannot exist without the Dreamer yet the Dreamer also exists within the dream.
1.3: One realizes this cosmic play of Bhagavan’s Maya during God-realization; one sees the inner and outer form of Bhagavan within one's own Atma.
1.4: Salutations to Him, the One who is the Inner and Outer Guru. The One who awakens Divine Knowledge through Cosmic Silence. Salutations to the SatGuru as Sri Dakshinamurthy.

[Swami Vishwananda @vishwananda]

On Yashoda Jayanti, we bow to the woman who showed us that motherhood isn't about birth but about love.
Yashoda didn't give birth to Krishna. Devaki did. Yet, it’s only yashoda who is remembered.
Many would not even know that she wasn't His birth mother. That is mother’s love and it does not need biology to make a claim on the heart.

Mahabharata barely touches on Krishna's childhood. But the Harivamsa gives us all his Leelas. Krishna and the gopis, butter, the mischief, the scolding, the adoration. And at the center of it all is Yashoda, the mother.

She loved krishna unconditionally and then let him go towards his destiny. She did not cling, she did not bind him. She had only a love that gives wings to a child.

After Krishna left for Mathura and later Dwarka, little is said of Yashoda and Nanda. A few Puranas mention them, but mostly, they fade from the grand narrative. And yet, does it matter? Her love didn't need a sequel. It was already complete.

Yashoda is the soul of matri-bhava, that quiet, boundless devotion only a mother knows. And before her, even the Lord of the universe became a child again.

Today, we remember the mother who tied the infinite with a thread of affection.

Happy Yashoda Jayanti.

[Swami Vishwananda @vishwananda]

Your atma remembers God.
People often wonder what is maya and how one can forget God if the atma is an eternal part of Him? It’s true, the atma always knows and remembers God. It is never separate from Him. The atma never wants anything other than Him. But maya is the veil between the atma and the mind. As long as this veil exists for the jeeva, one has to choose which to operate from - the mind or the atma. When one gives foremost importance to the mind, God is easily forgotten. His existence is doubted. One feels disconnected from Him, nature, everything. One even feels a great distance from one’s own true inner self. But when one gives foremost importance to the atma, God is easily remembered. He is easily found. And all separation dissolves in His immense love. His voice, His name, His face, His form, one’s eternal relationship with Him, everything becomes crystal clear. And the more one keeps swimming against the current to reach the atma, the more the veil of maya is pierced. When the SatGuru sees the tremendous effort of the jeeva to remove any separation of the mind and atma, He helps one to also pierce through the veil of maya. Finally, at the perfect time of God-realization, the SatGuru completely tears apart the veil of maya and reveals the Antaryami, Paramatma, Bhagavan, Sri Hari, in all His forms. He reveals His complete eternal self and brings one to Himself fully. One can never truly forget God because the atma remembers Him, how can one forget. It is impossible. But in this world one has to make the effort to remember Him, so that the realization of Him becomes inseparable from oneself no matter where, how, or in what situation one is. Then on other side, after death, the same realization can remain for eternity. Otherwise the cycle of life and death continues.

[Swami Vishwananda @vishwananda]

Three months ago, my teenage son totaled our car. It was his fault—texting. Thank God no one was hurt, but the repair estimate was brutal: $4,200. Our insurance deductible alone was $2,500. I was furious and terrified. We didn’t have that kind of money. I work two jobs. My husband is disabled. Some months, we were already choosing between electricity and groceries.

The body shop suggested a place on the south side. “Cheaper,” they said. “Cash only.”

I pulled up to what looked like a junkyard. Rusted cars everywhere. Weeds pushing through cracked concrete. A faded sign barely hanging on. I almost drove away.

Then an elderly man shuffled out. He had to be seventy-five, maybe older. Grease-stained coveralls. Hands trembling slightly. A thick accent I couldn’t quite place.

“You need fix?” he asked.

I explained the situation. He looked at the car, grunted, and disappeared into the garage. A few minutes later, he returned with a clipboard.

“I fix for $800.”

I blinked. “But the estimate said—”

“They charge new parts, fancy paint,” he said. “I use good parts. Make it safe. $800.”

“And… when do I pay?”

“You pay $50 now. Rest when you can. No hurry.”

I just stood there. “Why would you trust me?”

He looked at me with eyes that had seen a lifetime. “During war, stranger hid my family in barn. Six months. Never asked for money. Only said, ‘When you can, help someone else.’ I never could hide someone. But I can fix cars.”

I cried right there in that cluttered lot.

He fixed the car in three days. Perfect. Safe. When I came to pick it up, an elderly woman was there, arguing with him in the same language, crying and waving her hands at her battered sedan.

He just nodded, patted her shoulder, and took her keys.

“Another charity case?” I asked quietly.

He shrugged. “Her husband died. Pension not here yet. Car is how she sees granddaughter. I fix.”

Over the next two months, I paid him in $50 and $100 installments. Every time I stopped by, someone else was there—a single dad, a laid-off factory worker, an immigrant family. All driving cars that should have been scrap, all kept alive by this old man who charged what people could afford, or nothing at all.

When I made my final payment, I asked him, “How do you stay in business?”

He smiled, gentle and tired. “*Some people pay full. They keep lights on. Some pay little. They keep heart on. Balance*.”

Last week, I drove past his shop. It was closed. A “For Sale” sign stood out front. I panicked and called the number on his card.

A woman answered—his daughter.

“My father passed away Tuesday,” she said softly. “Heart attack. In the shop.”

I couldn’t breathe.

“We’re going through his records,” she continued. “He had $847 in the bank. But his ledger… seventy-three people still owed him money. Some for years. Over $30,000 total.” She paused. “His note says, ‘Forgiven. They needed wheels more than I needed money.’”

The funeral was yesterday.

Seventy-three people showed up. Every single name from that ledger. Strangers bound together by one man’s refusal to let us stay broken. We pooled money, paid off the shop’s debts, and gave the rest to his daughter.

Later, my son asked me, “Mom, why are you crying? You didn’t even know him that well.”

“Because,” I told him, “that man taught me something your generation needs to learn. Every day, you see people—really see them. Their broken cars. Their broken hearts. Their empty wallets. And you decide: am I someone who fixes things, or someone who walks away?”

My son understood. Last month, he started volunteering at a food pantry. He doesn’t talk about it. He just goes.

The shop is still for sale. The sign still says “Cash Only.”

But seventy-three of us know what it truly meant:

Pay what you can.
When you can.
If you can.

Because some debts aren’t about money. They’re about remembering that once—when we were broken—someone fixed us anyway.

[Swami Vishwananda @vishwananda]

To love Bhagavan is to love all.
The Saints loved only one person with all their heart. The entire focus of their mind was given to only one person. Their whole life, all their efforts, were made for only one person. Only Bhagavan. And no other. Because the Saints, they realized with all their being that Bhagavan is a person. He has a form, name, personality. He comes to personally be with the one who loves Him dearly. He isn’t a concept of the mind or an imagination of the heart. He is real. He is the eternal companion. Yet the Saints could accommodate the entire world in their hearts. They could love all, protect all, and lead all back to Bhagavan. Because to love Bhagavan is to love everyone. Because He is the only true reality. He comes in every form and every situation. There is no one other than Him. This is the example of single-pointed focus that one has to follow. Because if you try to love everyone individually without seeing them as a part of the One Beloved. If you try to love every form, every situation, without knowing that it is all the same Lord within. To love that way it is very difficult. Next to impossible. The easiest way to free oneself from all misery is to love Bhagavan within the core of every being’s heart, within the essence of every situation. This way, in loving Him, one loves each one unconditionally and freely. The focus is always Him but the acceptance is for all.

[Swami Vishwananda @vishwananda]

The mark of true saints is their endless love for God. Their ability to see Him in everything. To know that He only loves deeply and even the most difficult problems are actually His special blessing. God never puts troubles in the life of those who cannot handle them. Remember this lesson well. It is what Guru Ravidas Ji continuously taught everyone. He was a simple cobbler, looked down upon in society, no food nor a proper home. But his life created enormous blessings for everyone around him. Sant Meerabai, Raja Ratan Singh of Merta (Meerabai’s father), Raja Nagarmal, Raja Pipa, the Brahmins of Kashi, among many others, became humble devotees of this great saint. Guru Ravidas proved time and time again that love and divinity have nothing to do with one’s outer circumstances. Bhagavad Prem flows through every atom of God’s creation. Whether in the Ektara and Japa Mala that he gave to Meerabai. Or, the water washed out from the leather he used to make shoes. Each item given in blessing by the SatGuru has the ability to bring one to Completeness. He gave Giridhar Gopal’s Darshan to Sant Meerabai. Bestowed liberation on a humble washerwoman who tasted the Prasad given by the Guru, which was the divine Amrit itself. Proved his simple cobblers’ stone to be as sacred as a true Shaligram that could float in the river when he threw it in. But the Shaligrams worshiped by the arrogant priests sank to the bottom. God resides in the humble. In the compassionate. In hearts that are continuously thinking about others’ wellbeing. Service, humility, joy, love, and constant remembrance of God. Every bhakta should keep these qualities at the forefront of their life always. Wish everyone a blessed day. May Guru Ravidas’s life inspire all to offer their sincere and heartfelt love to Bhagavan through every challenging and joyful time.