Sivabalayogi janasthami

In the radiance of Babaji; in the light of the gurus; and in the glory of Christ, this evening we have the opportunity of celebrating the birth, or janasthami, of Sivabalayogi Swami. And, also, today we are going to do a unique healing never been done before. It is a continuation of last week's healing. Before that we will do the Muruga abishekam, and while it is being done bhajan will continue. In order for you to heal, there is a very special healing technique. You need to focus on the healing and forget everything else around you. Some of you will have a headache, some of you will have earache. Some will start bleeding through your nose. But this is all in the cleansing process of this healing. Do not be terrified by any of it. Afterwards you'll just feel good.

Somebody sent me some email questions. They reflect on most of us. The message goes like this: 'Namaste Gurudev, a few questions to ponder...' The first one is, 'Why are so many people depressed?' It's a good question. I'm sure, in your daily routine, you've never heard of people just saying 'I am fine'. They always have a depressing story. So, why are we depressed? Many of us are depressed because we think that we don't have enough money. How do you know when you have enough money? You don't know. Have you ever met a rich man who said, 'I have enough money, I'm not working any more'? Everyone has one common problem: they don't know when to stop, when it is enough. That's the first reason we can be depressed.

The second reason is that we might have a problem with our attitude. We might have an attitude that is not becoming, and people tend to stay away from you so you find yourself alone. The right attitude will give you the right altitude. The third reason might be that people are searching for God, and they are depressed because they can't find God. Why? Because they are searching in the wrong places. God is within you. You don't have to go anywhere to look for God. First look within yourself. In the Bhagavad Gita (13.27) Krishna says, 'One who sees the imperishable in the perishable, he sees'. That imperishable is the atma, the soul. The perishable is this physical body. And if you can see that, then you won't be depressed. Man should not look to anybody else for enlightenment. He should look within himself – just by removing the veil of ignorance. Once he removes that, he will find  enlightenment. But we are stuck. So we are depressed for those reasons, no other reasons. Nobody is depressed because they are born, or because they are a human being. You should not be depressed at all.

The second question is: 'How do I show gratitude to all those who help me?' There's only one answer. Give them the correct attitude. If you gave them the correct attitude they don't need you to say thank you a hundred times. Gratitude is not based on giving back what somebody gave you. Gratitude is attitude. And attitude is what gives you altitude. Did you ever see a black man or woman receive something, a slice of bread, or lunch? That's the attitude you must have – they do it with a sign of gratitude. That is how we see the gratitude in the attitude. They don't fling it away and say they won't eat it. They will take it. Whey they talk to you their body is half bent, or they're on their knees. That is the attitude. And that is what gratitude is. They are showing they are thankful for the food.

Last question: 'What obligation do I have to heal the earth?' The first thing we must do is stop eating, okay? The answer to this question is that it's too late, to put it mildly. The cancer has set in, it has eaten up the stomach and the liver, and is now going for the lungs. There's nothing we can do. No matter how much we try we're not going to heal the earth. There aren't enough people doing something about it. Everyone just wants to make money.

Before I conclude I must tell you what I read on a t-shirt today: 'I am an alcoholic but today I drank water and shocked my liver'.

Hari Om.

Crystal healing

Since all of you are all special and I love you so much, today's service is dedicated to healing each one of you. You see all these boxes here? A normal doctor uses a black box, but I have a toolbox and these are my tools. We're going to heal you today with mantra, crystals and the healing bowl. The only thing I need from you is your concentration, and to feel the energy as it goes round and round. Some of you will feel weak, others will want to fall down, cry or laugh. If you feel like talking, shut up. I'm going to walk around, and as I see you I will give some of you a crystal to hold – not to keep – please return them to me. This is what a crystal looks like. You won't see crystals like this anywhere. Some of you will have the opportunity to hold a crystal and help the crystal send the energy around. If I don't give you one don't think that I don't like you. I have to be a millionnaire to have crystals like this for every one of you. I'm not there yet. If you think you're perspiring too much in your palms, just notify Sundrie and she'll take it away from you because if you break it she pays half. Just be careful. Also when you give them back to us this will indicate to us how sick you are. Just by holding one we can tell how sick you are. These are very powerful tools.

What do crystals do? Crystals are God's natural healing tools. Crystal healing started in the East but if you go to the East now it's not done there now, it's all happening in the West: in America and Europe. That's what they're using now, crystals and healing bowls. We have some people here who swear by the healing bowl. It heals you. it took us a long time to accept this because we come from a different culture in South Africa. We must go to the temple get some ashes, blow on everybody's table and then offer samoosas to everybody to eat. That is South African culture. If the temple doesn't give you ashes then there's a problem. But see how much of what is ours is now taken to the West and made theirs. All the stones you are holding now are crystals from Tibet and Nepal – the stones are very unique. And, as I showed you just now, they will open up in your hand if you are sick, and heal you.

As I said to those at pournami: 2014 is not going to be a very good year. I ask all of you, I urge and plead, have one thing in your head, and that is God. Listen to the Gayathri Mantra daily. Play it in your home, consciously or unconsciously, and it will heal you. It is the greatest mantra of all time and it has been proved by many people to work. You will find that you will be blessed during the day. To all those who are doing the Shri Chakra Maha Meru Maha Vidja Luxmi prayer tomorrow, you will receive a yantra that will protect you during these times, especially if you're a businessperson. In 2014 the recession will start in india and filter right through to us, so have God in your mind continuously, and nothing else. I will say my famous line: just as you have such great bhakti for your cellphone, have the same bhakti for God. Most of you have such great bhakti for your cellphone that you don't go anywhere without it. Let God be your companion as well, not just your cellphone. There's no point in saying, 'God is punishing me'. You make up a lot of stories.

You are given this journey in this human life and, on this journey you are also given many opporunities to attain the states of yoga - union with God. It is just that we are caught up so much in our material self, and with the material plane, that the truth, the atma, is neglected in our daily lifestyle. Ask anybody now, they are fasting, doing Kavady here and there, and when Sunday comes and the final Kavady is finished, Monday's Kavady is forgotten and we go back to our normal life 'till next year this time. It shouldn't be like that. We should remember Muruga daily, Ram daily, Gayathri daily, Jesus daily … Every day have a beautiful saying; every day have something to carry you through the day – an affirmation. Every day say: 'In the raidance of Babaji, the light of the gurus, and in the glory of Christ, may this day be a most perfect one'. If you can say that daily, your day will be the most beautiful.

It is not just Hindus who are going to suffer in 2014, it's everybody. We are given the opportunity to change. You might believe that other religions don't believe in bad luck – graha – but the Christians light a candle to burn away negative things that might be affecting them. Every religion has their own way. One of the most important things is 2014 is that it is the year of seven, Sani's year. Some of you are thinking that you pray, pray, pray, but you don't have the time to pray continuously. You are more interested in other things, believing what your mind tells you. It will tell you a lot of rubbish, and you'll believe it. That this is right and that is wrong – because the mind is telling you that. You must listen to the Self; and only by listening to the Self can you attain the state of yoga – union with God. Experience the state of samadhi – union with God, and you will feel really good.

For a moment, when those people were standing in the singing bowl just now, they were attaining the state of samadhi - when you have no control of your body, and you don't even know that you have a body, or that you are standing there. You can all enjoy that state of samadhi. I am going to conclude now. And you are all going to repeat after me: 'In the radiance of Babaji, in the light of our gurus, in the glory of Christ – may we all go through 2014 without any obstacles, without any pain, without any worry, with God in our minds. Om shanti. Amen'.

2014 is not the year

Today is Thaipusam Pournami, the first pournami of the year, and it is generally the most powerful pournami to start with. Tomorrow many of you will be carrying kavady. It is important to know that during this time the only thing that can save us from anything is prayer. We need to pray, pray, and pray. The only reason it's come to this is that when we were kids we were not asked to pray, pray, and pray. But here, now, we are saying pray, pray, pray. It's the same world, universe, and anatomy, so why?  Because during the period from when we were kids to now, we used our intellect to destroy this world, and in that process we forgot God. Each one of us lives in three states: the mental state; the emotional state; and the spiritual state. In the mental state you are either intellectual or not. In the emotional state you are either strong or weak. In the spiritual state you are intellectually strong, you become knowledgeable. Because right now to save us, we need to have some kind of knowledge, and that is not intellect.

Many of us think we go to school, study, get seven or nine As, and we are intellectuals. We are not, we just have the ability to remember, that's all. An intellectual person who is put on the spot, who has never had the opportunity before, can give you a solution to that problem. I spent the whole day today trying to make a chart for each of you to keep at home, but I just finished when Tejanananda came and called me form my room, so I had no chance to make copies. I did a very special chart for all of you of which we will make copies. According to your Sun sign, during that time, where the planets will be placed in your star, on what date. The only thing I didn't put there is time, which I am going to do later tonight, and copies will be given to those who come on Friday. This is what it looks like. You won't understand it. This is the way the planets are going to be in each one of your Sun signs. The reason I did this is that every one of you can Google. Many of you have Google on your PC or laptop. Many of you walk with somebody who is a Google. You don't have to go anywhere – no matter what subject, he has the answer – not that Google.

Here, for example, if I said Cancer (I like working with that, I know somebody with that Sun sign), it says here on the 19th of the 6th month that Jupiter will be in Cancer. You go to Google and look for Jupiter in Cancer and you'll get everything that will happen to you at that time. I made it easy for you. So why did I do this? After I went through the predictions for 2014, my limbs just collapsed on me. We are going to be surrounded by so much pain and grief. Everybody's nakshaktra is unfavourable. There's none, not even mine, that's favourable. Why? Because it comes out as the year of Sani – number seven. That is why we did the pournami pooja today in this fashion, where we sang to the Mother, 'Please, these people are making their offering to Agni the best they can, protect them'. So, I will try my best. I have to do it handwritten because if I give it to my typist, Jupiter might be in Scorpio and then it will be wrong and you'll say I gave it to you wrong. I write faster than I type. That's' my problem. I type with one finger, A-C-C, okay?

So here we are, and I expected a much larger crowd being the first pournami of the year, but I think we missed the point. Even – and I've mentioned this before – the Christian calendar is set with Ganesha as the first month, Ganes, which we call January. The Greeks and Romans took Ganes and made it Janus, January. Do you understand? Even they thought that we need to start the calendar with that month. And here we are doing this very powerful pournami for all of you in 2014. I met some people for the first time today and insisted they come and join us because I know the importance of this pournami. All we do is put this on the computer. Those with email can download it. You'll get the website address where you can download this from. I won't see you next pournami because you won't come. You've finished your quota for the year today. If you don't have it, it is your downfall. It is very important that you should know what time things will change in your life. Next year I'll make it even easier for you. We'll produce diaries next year and all this will be at the top of your diary – everything, the complete panchang, day by day. In the diary most of the time it's about what you draw not what you write – there are many blank pages.

So please, people, 2014 is not the year. 'Till this hour that I sit here, whatever I read against my star, my nakshaktra, has happened. So I know that it's accurate and its working. We're also producing a five-year panchang, and next year we'll produce another one. Within the next five years I want to produce a twenty-five year panchang so you will all have it when I'm gone. I won't be here, but at least my panchang will be here. So it's not a very good time. Also I see some educators here. To all you educators, I really wish you well … you can take it from there. You're not going to have it good and easy. It's going to be very tough.

Also during 2014, we're going to have three great, serious natural disasters. One of them will affect us, so you need to worry about that as well. If you do your prayer, believe me, God will put armour around you. Ask those people who have gurus – they'll tell you. You know, before I conclude, Radhika sitting there is one of my witnesses, Greg is, and Ravi – when I met Ram Bodha at the Chinmaya Mission Hanuman temple in Sri Lanka. It is the most powerful Hanuman temple in the world. I've had experiences there that I could not stop. It is seven hours from Colombo. I go all the way there just to do abishekam. Whenever I am there I pray for each one of you and those of you whose numbers I have, I tell you to fast on the day of the abishekam. But I do it for all of you. I don't miss out anybody. And that is one of the places where we can nullify the effects of these natural consequences, samsaras, that come our way – these are also our past impressions affecting us. So please, people, in 2014 I can only pray for you. I can cook the food and leave it in front of you, what happens after that is your business. I can only pray for you.

Also we have a problem where we start to get into this state of bad attitude, high and mighty attitude, and then something rolls over our eyes and we can't see people. The thing that affects me most is disrespect. And some of us seated here have a great sense of disrespect. I don't need to be respected as a guru, or for you to prostrate at my feet. But I need you to say 'namaste'. In the olden days whether you were young or old, we would put our palms together and say 'Ram-Ram', but we've lost all of that, our respect for elders. We need to somehow gain that respect. I don't need your prostrations. When you prostrate at my feet it doesn't make me happy or sad. I will still sit here, and when I wake up from here I go to my room – every time the same thing. But when you see somebody older than you, forget the spirituality, show some respect. The right attitude will give you the right altitude. If your attitude is wrong you'll lose your altitude. Anywhere: at work, your  relationships, marriage, friendships, social life, your attitude gives you your altitude.
Hari om.

Take your dream and make it your aim

This spiritual journey that we follow is generally the most confusing one. In the sense that you might have a hundred phrases or opportunities of excellent divine spiritual experiences, and among those you might have just one that didn't satisfy you. You will take that one experience, or the hundred experiences. This is the nature of the mind. We must understand that all actions generate from a thought, and all thoughts come from the mind. And the mind is one of the most confusing entities of the body. It can take anything and make it look right or wrong. This is the mind. And if you read our Facebook page today it says: 'To find a truly evolved being you must look at your true divine nature'. Don't look for an evolved being in somebody else. Look for your own true divine nature and you'll find it there.

In recent times I've been saying many things. Many things have happened, and many things are going to happen in the future – both difficulties and progresses, and in both we must be able to find the divinity. And I think sometimes we think within ourselves that we have it all – most of the time we do think that, but we don't need it. As I sit here I still need spiritual guidance. When I sit here ten years from now I will still need spiritual guidance – even fifty years from now. I want you all to know that.

Spiritual guidance is one of the most powerful tools of living in this material plane. If you have spiritual guidance you can go to bed, place your head on the pillow, and get up the next morning. That is spiritual guidance. I have come to a stage right now where I'm seeking the last bit of my spiritual guidance, and sometimes it makes me mad – I become mental within myself, but I spend most of my time quietly alone in my room. I try  not to interact with everybody, even in my home. Because life used to be one leg in the grave. It's now one-and-a-half legs in the grave. When you know that you're sixty years old, you must understand that you are now vintage – you can break at any time. There's no  guarantee. And we need spiritual guidance all the time – I'm seeking it right now through my masters Agasthiar, Bhogar Maharishi, Kriya Babaji, Shivabalayogi, Murugesu Swami.

Every day of my life I'm asking: 'What next?' But I'm not empty of energy. Even now I can go to India, come back, and four days later leave for India again. I've done that before. I have all the energy. But what I don't have right now is somebody who can stand up and say to me, 'Really, I am seeking spiritual guidance myself'. But we are not asking, because as you leave these gates it seems like those two lamp poles at the gate is where you deposit all your light, and go back into your darkness, your ignorance, and in that you find unique joy. And why? Because you have a mind.

All of you sitting here are dreamers. And as I said to you the other day, don't take your aim and make it your dream. Take your dream and make it your aim. Once you can do that then you've got your light. Just be dreamers and let the dream carry on – don't make it your aim. But take your dream and make it your aim. Don't take your aim and make it your dream. You'll only dream and dream, and the car will still be standing, going nowhere. On the spiritual journey it is very important to understand this: take this dream that you have, convert that to your aim. Then there's nothing to do on this journey. You don't have to wake up in the morning, get dressed, go to work, and come back.

So 2014 will be a good year and a bad year. We have to take both in the same light. If we can't take both in the same light, then die now. Don't let it come your way, just die. But if you're ready to take both in the same light, you're a good spiritual seeker. Enjoy this life. Whatever you have, enjoy it to the fullest, to the 'mostest' – if there is such a word – and leave everything else to the Divine Mother.
Hari Om. God bless you.