Table of Contents

May 2025 - Dadavani - English

EDITORIAL

The Generations Change With Time, Who Can Be Blamed for It?

A Contemptuous Attitude Brought About Downfall

It Has Come Down From the Past

The Plight of the Country Under Old Traditions – Who Is to Blame?

Our Country Has Been Ruined by Backbiting

In the Past, Dada’s Kshatriya Blood Would Boil

The Karmic Tubers Dissolve Only Through Satsang

‘Above Normal’ as Well as ‘Below Normal’ Is the Poison

The British Did Us One Favor

Do Not Use the Intellect to Gauge Nature

They Have Received All This Comfort Through Their Merit Karma

With the Changing Times, There’s Friction Between Old and New Generations

Let’s Adjust According to the Times

The Influence of Common Sense

Carry Out Worldly Interactions Without Anger, Pride, Deceit, Greed

Everything Is Good When It Is In Normality

Look for the Positives and Remain Blissful

The Demarcation of the Years 1921 and 1922

The Spiritual Path Is the Quest of Those Who Are ‘Heartily’

The Folks of My Time Were Chaste In the Matter of Sexuality

Who Knows When the Practice of Having a Double Bed Was Adopted?

Which Cooks Faster, a Bottle Gourd Past Its Prime or a Tender One?

If Loud Music Is Being Played Outside, What Is It to Us?

Those Lacking Worldly Substance and Efficacy Will Improve

A Healthy Generation With Healthy Minds

The World Keeps Changing According to the Times

Becoming Modern, Dada Took Adjustments

In Nature’s Flow, Old Becomes New, New Becomes Old

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May 2025 - Dadavani - English

The Generations Change With Time, Who Can Be Blamed for It?

EDITORIAL

In general terms, the ‘generation gap’ refers to the differences that arise between the old and new generations. More specifically, the differences in opinions that arise from factors such as each person’s upbringing, culture, ideology, beliefs, and so on, are referred to as the generation gap. People think that since the arrival of the British in India, the new generation of India has become spoiled. However, absolutely revered Dadashri has a distinct perspective on this matter. According to Him, India has actually developed in this era; signs of improvement can be seen in the current generation. In contrast, the older generation had committed terrible atrocities, held contempt towards, and inflicted insistence upon the lower castes and widows. So, they had become ‘above normal’. ‘Above normal is poison and below normal is poison’; with the arrival of the British, the people of India came towards normality.

The old generation came bearing the karmic tubers of contempt and pride, whereas today’s new generation has come bearing the karmic tubers of moha (illusory attachment). Human nature is such that people believe that children should do exactly what they themselves had experienced in their childhood. But hey! The times have changed! This world will keep changing according to the times. As it changes, it will eventually come back to the same place again. That is why it all seems new. That is why one is able to live; otherwise, one would not be able to live. Is this world headed in the wrong direction or the right one? Does anyone have the power to change this world? In order to create balance, nature changes what is old and brings in a new flow.

Absolutely revered Dadashri says that nevertheless, the older generation of His time was chaste in matters of sexuality. The older generation was not oriented towards the intellect, whereas the younger generation is oriented solely towards the intellect; hence, the older generation does not get along with the younger generation. The intellect does not allow one to remain at ease, whereas the heart does allow one to be at peace. The spiritual path is not the quest of the intellectuals; it is the quest of those who are ‘heartily’ [oriented towards the heart]. Therefore, it was not entirely [negative] like that in the people of Dadashri’s time. There were some good individuals in the past with a lot of practical insight, the likes of whom are not seen even today.

Absolutely revered Dadashri says: I call the generation of this era healthy-minded. They do not have the old ‘diseases’ and hence they can be molded however one wishes. In Kaliyug, when a division occurs between the old generation and the new one, a person who is foolish clings rigidly [to the past]. I became modern right from the beginning. Nature constantly keeps revolving according to the circumstances; even these eras of the time cycle are [collectively] round. It makes the old new, and the new old. Thus, these circles of generations keep revolving according to time; no generation is at fault in this. I just want to make things positive for everyone. It is our heartfelt prayer that we find one positive out of a hundred negatives and move forward with the flow of time, adjusting with the old and the new generations while remaining in bliss.

~ Jai Sat Chit Anand

The Generations Change With Time, Who Can Be Blamed for It?

A Contemptuous Attitude Brought About Downfall

Questioner: When I look at my mother and compare her against my granddaughter, I see such a vast difference between the two, it’s unbelievable! Today’s generation seems to be spoiled.

Dadashri: And in your grandfather’s time, what did your grandfather say about your generation?

Questioner: He used to say the exact same thing I just said.

Dadashri: Suppose you bring home a nice looking bottle gourd from the market. Now, since you intend to cook it, it will have to be cut, won’t it? But when you set out to cut it, then someone might exclaim, “Don’t cut it, its beautiful appearance will be ruined.” But if you want to eat the cooked vegetable dish, then you will have to let go of that appearance. If we talk about India’s development, India is currently developing in an unprecedented way. Previously, these were all completely unrighteous and immoral people; maybe five percent or two percent of them turned out to be good. Otherwise, everyone lived in superstition, and spent the entire day solely in conflict, quarrels, and contempt (tiraskaar). They would express contempt all day long; they would express contempt towards people who were from lower castes, and other people as well. If they ever found a slight deficiency in their own brother’s conduct, they expressed contempt towards him. If they found a slight deficiency in their disciple’s conduct, they expressed contempt towards him. They would express contempt everywhere. This country had deteriorated a lot!

People of the previous generations had committed terrible atrocities towards the lower castes. Their values had completely deteriorated and they had deep contempt for the Harijans [the community of Dalits, formerly known as ‘untouchables’, people who were outside of the traditional Hindu caste hierarchy] and everyone else. If a stray dog were to enter their home, they would not have a problem with that, but a Harijan entering the village would bother them! They would say, “Tie a broom behind his back, because he’s leaving footprints behind!” As he walked, the broom would drag behind him to erase his footprints. Moreover, they would say, “Tie a small earthen bowl [kodiyu, like a spittoon] in front of him.” So, they would tie a small earthen bowl over here, so that if he wanted to spit, he would not spit on the ground. But you fools, what about the cats that are roaming around in your home, roaming around in your kitchen; you’re tolerating that, but you’re not showing tolerance here? Even if a cat had stuck its head in these people’s pot of yogurt, they would still go ahead and eat the yogurt. Despite knowing that the cat had licked it. What kind of people werethey! What kind of justice was that? This leads to utter ruin! If there was someone like me, who would speak up and take a stand, he would give a sharp, scathing answer, saying, “This dog has the liberty to spit and everything else, its footprints are acceptable, but those of this human being are not? What kind of mental behavior is this?” This had gone to an ‘excess’ [extreme].

The immoral behavior had increased to such an extent that it became boundless. In comparison, today’s immoral behavior is better! At least it is open and exposed. The entire country had become like this, and these hardships are a result of that; this country has been plagued by terrible hardships.

With the improvements we see in today’s generation, the level of corruption from the earlier generations is beginning to lessen. The barbarism that they had has gone, and it has been replaced by a new kind of barbarism. The older generation does not like this. In the olden times, there was nothing but contempt. The condition of India had become so deteriorated that it could not be called religious at all. This is because it was devoid of [proper] thought. The entire batch [of people] was not ‘cultured’ at all; it was as if the ladoos (sweet balls) were made by just pressing the ingredients together haphazardly! Yes, they were simply shaped without proper guidance; today’s youth is being properly molded. In today’s youth, apparent flaws are visible, but they are being properly molded. It’s always the case that whenever true development takes place, this sort of thing happens.

It Has Come Down From the Past

When people from the older generation are complaining about the youth, I ask them, “When you were young, what did your father say about you?” They reply, “Our fathers also used to complain.” And when I ask those fathers, “And what about when you were young?” Then they reply, “Our fathers would complain too.” So it has come down from the past.

When I was young, the older folks used to say, “They’ve become spoiled, they’re spoiled!” So in reply, I would ask them, “What did your grandfather say about you?” This is just barbarism; this kind of barbarism has been going on since time immemorial. They claim that we should do exactly as they did; “You have to jump into the same well as we did.” You tell them, “There’s no longer any water in that well, there are only large rocks and snakes. If I were to jump into it now, I’ll die.” Back then, there was water in the well, yet they still insist on jumping into the same well! They tell you to fall into the well of the Vaishnavs or the Jains or some other religious sect. For goodness sake, for how long can we continue to jump into such wells? They keep saying, “We did it, so you must do it too!” But look at yourselves! We do not see any radiance on your faces, and you engage in nothing but kashay (anger, pride, deceit, greed) all day long. And when they go to eat at someone’s house, all they think about is that they got a free meal. When these ‘developed’ people of India dine at someone else’s home, they immediately become conscious of the fact that, ‘Today I am getting a free meal, so I should fill myself up.’ These are all our ‘developed’ old folks! These people were all ‘developed’; moreover, some of them, when invited for a meal, would even remain hungry for a day and a half to two days beforehand, so that they would not use up their own food at home. And when they would sit down to eat at someone else’s place, they would eat so much, filling themselves up completely, that they wouldn’t need to eat for the next two days. They had this mindset, ‘I’m eating for free, free of cost!’ Just imagine the thieving tendencies they would harbor. They invariably suffer the consequences of that.

The Plight of the Country Under Old Traditions – Who Is to Blame?

If a woman became a widow, people would look upon her with deep contempt! Not even an uncivilized person would express such contempt towards a widow; they would think, ‘The poor woman has become a widow, so she has lost all external support. As she’s lost all support, the poor woman is miserable in every way.’ The happiness she once had, tied to her husband, is now gone, so everyone should have compassion for her. Instead, these people would shower terrible contempt even upon her. Moreover, there was deep contempt toward Harijans, something unheard of anywhere else in the world! There was contempt everywhere else, too; they would have contempt even towards their own brother; they expressed terrible contempt. Now, how can you possibly call this a civilized country?

The very people who once tormented widows, today, those same people have ended up having daughters and those daughters get divorced, wreaking so much havoc! These daughters are returning the blows their fathers once delivered. Those very widows have come back as their daughters for repayment! Why haven’t such daughters been born in my home to trouble me? It is because I was not like these people.

Have you ever witnessed contempt towards a widow? Did that not make you shudder? There was extremely intense contempt. And I was a firm opponent of that. Firm and completely opposed to it! I could not stand such contempt! There was so much contempt! A widowed woman is considered to be ‘Gangaswaroop’ (to be revered as the holy Ganges); how can she be disrespected? So what would those people say? They would address those women as ‘Gangaswaroop’. Yet if they happened to come across a widow, they would say, “I have come across a bad omen. I was on my way to complete a very important job, but I have come across a bad omen.” Such uncivilized people! Such uncivilized people ought to be hanged! But the Lord has said, “You should not hang them. Do not take that authority into your hands.”There is a natural law in place; the law of nature says, ‘We inevitably bring such people to justice. That is our law. Do not take that authority into your hands.’And today, these people are undergoing such hardships. The hardships they are undergoing are ones they created themselves. And these are developed people, they are not underdeveloped. Nevertheless, as a parent, one should discuss with his daughter who has come of age about proper conduct, saying, “Daughter, you have come of age now. This world is full of traps. If you want happiness, then you should think very carefully before you take any steps. And if you do take a step forward, at least consult us first. I will not have any objection to your asking. Ask and take it as advice.” Ordinarily, we consult a lawyer for advice so why would a father be any lesser? Shouldn’t one’s father be trusted more than a lawyer?

India was not reformed; it was not worth giving any consideration to. Everything was poisonous, everything was toxic. Just look at the pitiful state of this country! But no one was at fault in that. No person is at fault. The evidences come together, which brings forth circumstances. Now a change has begun to happen.

Our Country Has Been Ruined by Backbiting

When will our country become wealthy? When will it become financially prosperous and happy? It is when both backbiting and contempt come to a stop. When these two come to a stop, there will be money and wealth in this country beyond measure!

In India, backbiting and contempt have begun to decline, while greed has risen. The greed for pleasure has risen and that is why India will become prosperous. I have arrived at this conclusion based on this sign. So what if the illusory attachment (moha) increases slightly, but at least the backbiting and contempt will decrease, won’t they!

Nature is on our side, helping us; that much is certain. That is why this point is really worth understanding. I have discovered why people were unhappy, and at present, why are villagers unhappy? It is because they are still involved in this business of backbiting. Whereas the people of this [younger] generation, if they have nothing else to do, then they remain absorbed in their radios and TV! These people do not get involved in backbiting about anyone. They watch TV or watch something else; that too, they’re just spoiling their own eyes in the process, it’s not as though they are spoiling the eyes of others, are they? It is their own responsibility, isn’t it! Our entire country had become ruined because of backbiting, severe backbiting. The writers of the scriptures had laid down the rule, ‘Definitely give criticism. If you do not give criticism, then human beings will not turn back.’ What happened is that those criticisms became ‘exaggerated’ [excessive] and turned into backbiting! The very thing that was a ‘vitamin’ is what got destroyed!

In the Past, Dada’s Kshatriya Blood Would Boil

If you had seen my dwesh (abhorrence) when I was young, you would have said, “This man can never become a Gnani(Self-realized)!’ Such was the dwesh! If someone had insulted me even slightly, then consider them done for. Just yesterday, Ravjibhai [Dadashri’s cousin] was saying, “If things didn’t go your way, you might have killed someone!”

Questioner: People would say about you, “He’s a bit stubborn.”

Dadashri: They acknowledge today, “Now you have become a saint since the last fifteen years.” But before, there was a lot of dwesh in me. And if someone had insulted me at night, by morning, I would be looking for that person, thinking, ‘When will he come? How can I catch him?’ I would feel like tossing him up into the air [out of fury]. My blood would boil in this way. My blood would boil at the slightest instigation. That does not happen now, even if someone were to slap me a couple of times. In those days, the blood used to boil, even with the slightest insult. The basic nature of a Kshatriya [a member of the second of the four Hindu castes, comprising the warriors] does not go away, does it! I would destroy the person – that was the kind of dweshI had! Terrible dwesh! And now, when I see that the new generation does not harbor such hatred, I am amazed… astonished. I wonder, ‘What kind of people are they! They truly are developed, aren’t they?

Questioner: They are developed.

Dadashri: And seeing no dwesh in them has left an impression on me. I think, ‘Goodness, how did these people, right from birth, without being taught, become free of dwesh?’  Where could such ‘nobility’ come from?

The Karmic Tubers Dissolve Only Through Satsang

This generation has not brought many karmic tubers (gaantho) with them. They primarily have tubers of illusory attachment (moha). They do not have the tuber of greed or other such tubers. You must have observed this in your son?

Questioner: Yes.

Dadashri: There are no other tubers, are there? The present generation does not have all the karmic tubers. The generations before me had significant karmic tubers! They had strong tubers of greed! That is why they would steal, lie, resort to cunning methods, they would do everything. And it was not overt theft, it was not the kind of theft in which one gets caught. Rather, they would trick people by employing their intellect. This kind of theft is considered worse than the overt kind. It’s just that they wouldn’t get caught.

The karmic tubers will dissolve only if one remains in this satsang (company or association of those who promote the attainment of the Self; spiritual discourse with the Gnani). Otherwise, if one does not come to satsang, he will not even be aware of his tubers. If you stay in the environment of satsang, You can See purity taking hold in the relative self, while You remain separate! ‘You’ remain at a great distance and See everything unperturbed. That is why You are able to See all the faults [of the relative self]. In the other case, one tries to see while remaining within the tubers, so the faults are not seen. That is why Krupaludev [Gnani Purush Shrimad Rajchandra] has said, “If my own faults are not Seen, then what other means is there to become free?” (“Deethanahi nijdosh to tariye kon upay?”)

‘Above Normal’ as Well as ‘Below Normal’ Is the Poison

Now India is reaching new heights of development; it is headed towards a remarkable position in the world today! India has come to stand at a remarkable position in the world! How else can there be any talk of moksha (ultimate liberation from all karma, from the physical body, and the worldly cycle of birth and death)? Moksha is not meant to be written about; no one has the right to write about moksha. All these [religious preachers of the past], they had become ‘overwise’ [foolishly over-clever]; there might have been two to five cases that were exceptions! But otherwise, ‘overwise’ means like a deformed brick, one that cannot even be used in construction! One who is ‘overwise’ is like a useless brick. Likewise, if a brick is raw, that is considered to be ‘underwise’.

In the Lord’s view, wisdom is necessary, but only to a certain extent. Instead, everything had become ‘overwise’, and consequently, people’s behavior deteriorated far beyond even that of animals. This is because animals do not have duragrah (undue insistence), kadagrah (stubborn adherence to one’s belief, despite knowing that it is wrong), hathagrah (obstinate insistence). Those certainly shouldn’t exist in humans. And if they do exist, then as long as they are within a certain limit, they are still within the bounds of humanness, because they are ‘developed’ [compared to animals]. Meaning, insistence (aagrah) may be greater in them than in animals, but as long as it remains within a certain limit, it is acceptable; otherwise, they are considered worse than animals. How can such a person be considered human? To hold onto things unduly, to maintain undue insistence, to stubbornly adhere to wrong beliefs, despite knowing that they’re wrong, and to believe in and evaluate religion based solely on one’s own thoughts. What should religion actually be like? One should try to learn even from a small child; one should even try to learn from animals, observing what kinds of qualities they have!

If we give a puri (fried flatbread) to this dog just one day, then for the next three days, whenever it sees us, it keeps wagging its tail. The motive in that is greed, it feels, ‘It would be good if he gives some again’; however, it doesn’t forget our kindness, does it! Keeping that kindness in mind, it maintains greed. And as for humans? In any case, today this India has developed; otherwise, would one even get to hear talk of moksha? Hey, even samkit (the right belief of ‘I am pure Soul’) was nowhere to be found! For the past two thousand years, it was nowhere to be found, since the time Lord Mahavir attained ultimate liberation, and even before His time, it wasn’t there. Since the birth of Lord Mahavir, for the span of about 250 years, the light shone twice, once during Lord Parshvanath and once during Lord Mahavir. At that time, only a certain number of people achieved their spiritual work; no one else received any real benefit. People tried many, many methods to diminish Lord Mahavir’s influence (prabhaav). Where Lord Mahavir walked, they would scatter thorns that would stand upright on the path ahead. They would place thorns from a thorny acacia tree, they would place the thorns standing upright like this, but when Lord Mahavir walked through them, the thorns would bend down like this! Despite directly witnessing this, people of other religious sects in India did not accept Lord Mahavir. They would say, “This is magic, it’s some type of esoteric knowledge”; that’s how they explained it away. But they did not accept the truth. They did not accept such an amazing Scientist! They were characterized by extreme barbarism. They had nothing but illusions about the world! They conducted business within religion! Where did they start the business? Right inside religion! So, this kind of old ‘development’ [ideology] was something that needed to be discarded. It is a completely decrepit structure. Let it collapse; a new one is being erected! Otherwise, one wouldn’t even get to hear talk of moksha!

As this society becomes more ‘cultured’ [reformed], people will move those old books out of the way; they will end up in the heap of waste paper. This is because these books have value only as long as people are not ‘developed’. People capable of understanding the Bhagavad Gita and Vedanta [one of the six schools of Hindu philosophy] will emerge now! Now it [India] is undergoing development, and the British have become an instrument (nimit) in this. The British have become an instrument in this positive matter.

Questioner: Were they the instrument in spreading knowledge?

Dadashri: No, not knowledge. But [Indian] people had become ‘abnormal’; [the British influence] provided a ‘backing’ [counterforce], bringing them towards ‘normality’. What did our people say? “These people have come to destroy our religion and our customs.” But it’s because they destroyed that much [abnormality] that things are coming towards ‘normality’. What were our people shouting? “The British will destroy our religion and customs and destroy everything else of ours!” No, they subtracted that much [abnormality]. The level of ‘abnormality’ had reached 85 degrees, and we needed 50 degrees for ‘normality’; so these people came and caused 30-35 degrees to be removed by making people jada. Jada means they taught them to drink alcohol, eat meat... become more fashion conscious and materialistic, they influenced them to become mohi (filled with illusory attachment). So those other bad qualities went away!

Did Lord Mahavir tell us to cause this kind of ‘depression’ [the miserable, rigid state of the past]? What did the vitaraag (absolutely detached) Lord teach? “Above normal is the poison, and below normal is the poison.” In all matters, people had become ‘above normal’. They had nothing but dwesh (abhorrence), and the immoral behavior was boundless too. Consequently, the bad qualities of contempt that existed got eradicated, they got fractured. The British did a very good job in that regard.

The British Did Us One Favor

When the British came and brought their language with them, their parmanu (the smallest, most indivisible and indestructible particle of inanimate matter) came along with it. It’s always the case that each language has its own parmanu. Meaning, the qualities they possessed, their natural qualities, such as punctuality, those natural qualities emerged afresh [here]. These people [in India] had all become selfish. Their only concern was for their own home; if everyone else’s house had caught fire, they would still sleep soundly. They were deceitful, selfish! They were filled with contempt in every way, they had become useless.

The Brahmins [those of the highest social rank in the traditional Hindu caste system] used to say, “We originated from the mouth of God, these Kshatriy as [those of the second social rank in the caste system] from the chest, and all these Vaishyas [those of the third social rank in the caste system] and all these Shudras [those of the fourth and lowest social rank in the caste system], they are from the lower part!” They completely abused their position! The very thing that was meant for beneficial use, they misused. [They would claim,] “We Brahmins are the beautiful face resembling a lotus (mukharvind), therefore you should never raise any objection to whatever we say.” So they used that power, that ‘veto power’, and because of that, they got caught in terrible torment. Whatever is destined to happen to these common people will happen, but because they used that ‘veto’, today those people don’t even get to wear slippers on their feet! Their value is gone, and their slippers are gone, too! Both went away together! Just look at their condition due to their immoral behavior!

This world suffers because people have intense greed. Why should a person have intense greed? Intense greed leads to wretchedness, and once wretchedness enters, one’s humanness is lost.

As soon as girls were born, they would practice female infanticide; they would kill the baby. What was it like in the Rajput community? They had a tradition of paying heavy dowry, which they did not like. And they were all uneducated, illiterate; the women were illiterate and the men were illiterate. Yet they thought so highly of themselves! They inflicted horrible deeds upon others.

The village head (thakor) would exercise such power that his relatives were forbidden to come through his village riding a horse. They had to dismount the horse and walk into the village! If the horse and rider both come in together, what do you have to lose? What great ego of yours is wounded by this? But no, if his relative were to enter on horse, it would lead to fighting and even murder!

How can these people be called Aryaputra (noble sons of India)? Suppose you have low purity gold [gold alloy] and pure gold; if you’re not able to detect the properties of gold in the gold alloy, then what is its value? The fact is, there is infinite energy(shakti) within a person from India, but it is all being wasted in the wrong direction. It is only if one meets a GnaniPurush (One who has realized the Self and is able to do the same for others) that the energyturns in the right direction and becomes useful. How was this energy wasted?Tremendous energy was wasted just for ‘maintenance’! And that too, with kalushitbhaav (intents that harbor anger, pride, deceit, and greed), the energywas squandered terribly! And [upon seeing that] ‘This person is working towards becoming an I.A.S. (Indian Administrative Service) officer,’ I also decide, ‘I must become an I.A.S. officer’; in this way, energywas wasted in trying to imitate others.By trying to imitate others, whatever wealth of inner energies one already had, became completely depleted. People of India should not copy someone just because they write something original. We should not be imitating others; on the contrary, it should be such that foreigners come and copy us. But instead, the foreigners placed a few ‘hippies’ here, and the people here copied them! Even so, nothing is going to be ruined for India because of this; it is only going to improve.

These girls of today are mohi (filled with illusory attachment); upon seeing them, people feel that these girls are mohi, they are moorchhit (in a state of unawareness arising from illusory attachment), but these very same young ladies will give birth to a good generation.

Questioner: What is the reason for that, Dada?

Dadashri: The contemptuous attitude has faded, it has diminished in them, so now it will no longer surface. Once the contempt goes, it brings a person down to [a state of] normality. We, as a people, were already civilized, but we had become completely sabotaged due to contempt; we had become useless. Once the contempt went, our ‘normality’ returned; we became ‘alright’.

Those people used their intellect only for contempt and deception. They misused the intellect; they certainly did not have Gnan (Knowledge of the Self). They had intellect, and they misused that intellect. Why did the intellect increase? They drank ‘Mahavir brain tonic’ and ‘Krishna brain tonic’! By not killing insects and other living beings, the intellect then increases. But while protecting the insects, they would direct their ‘attack’ towards human beings!

Now India is headed towards a very beautiful state. This is the time of dissolution of this culture(sanskruti). Which culture? The ideal culture? No, it is the time of dissolution of the culture that had become distorted (vikrut). Our culture had the Sanskrut [Sanskrit] language; if that becomes very low, deteriorated, then Prakrut [Prakrit; a group of medieval vernacular Indian languages that were derived from Sanskrit] can be tolerated to an extent, but the distorted (vikrut) cannot be tolerated. Having said that, what was the benefit from all this [change]? The distorted sanskaar (cultural values; inculcated values) got ‘washed out’, and now it’s a fresh start, a new matter! New things and everything else will proceed anew, and it will be a marvel of a completely different kind! Peace will prevail as it did in the time of Lord Mahavir! And these very same youngsters who grow their hair long and are called ‘crazy’ today will be called wise at that time. Those who are called weirdos, they will go around having become wise.

Today’s youth, by growing their hair long, have actually made it open, they’ve declared, “Those who cut their hair are people from the mental hospital, and we are outside the mental hospital.” And the people from the mental hospital, in turn, say about them, “These people are mental!” So, India is not going to suffer any loss. These are the blessings of the GnaniPurush.

Do Not Use the Intellect to Gauge Nature

The world is the puzzle; it itself has become puzzled. Amidst this, how could these people possibly measure it? These people keep trying to measure this puzzle. They say, “In 1974, the population is this much, so by 2000 it will become this much!” Hey! You fools, utter fools! [Using linear projection, they calculate] ‘In the first year there was one child, in the third year another one was born, so by the age of 80, will there be 30-40 children?’ What calculation is this? Hey you silly people, are you crazy or what?Such calculations shouldn’t be made for humans. And all these people who sit down to do these mathematics, they are all utter fools. [It’s like saying,] “The boy was 2.25 feet tall when he was five years old, and at sixteen years he is 4.75 feet tall; therefore, by age 80, he will be this tall!” Hey utter fools, why do you keep trying to assess the human beings of India? “By the year 2000, it will be like this, and by the year 3000, it will be this many.” If you claim it will be ‘this many’ in the year 2000, then tell us, how many people were there five thousand years ago from today! If you know how to make this calculation, then tell us how many people there were at that time! They reply to this, “We don’t know that.” Then, hey you silly people! You don’t even know how to be a proper husband to your wife; you might as well go and call your wife ‘mother’! Utter fools, look how ripe [foolish] you’ve become! Call your wife ‘mother,’ and then you’re all set! Your son calls her ‘mother’, and you call her ‘mother’ too; then there’s no need for you to display your relationship as a husband and wife while you’re out in public! Utter fools! They have set out to calculate the population, sitting down to make calculations that ‘By 1980, it will be this much, and by 1990, it will be this much, and by 2000, it will be this much!’ And there isn’t even anyone emerging to challenge them! Even the government accepts this. People who talk like this, whose talk seems like nonsense, they ought to be caught and thrown in jail. Why do they put forth such ideas? The public will be corrupted by it.

India will not fall into ruins. How can a land where there is the presence of santpurusho(spiritually elevated beings who have not yet attained Self-realization, but have a pure chit and heart and direct others along the right path), SatPurusho (those with Self-realization) and a manifest GnaniPurush, fall into ruins? Wherever there is the presence of these three, nothing will spoil. On the contrary, whatever has deteriorated will begin to improve. India had undergone terrible degradation; nowhere else in the world did a country deteriorate to the extent that India has, it had undergone terrible degradation. Immoral conduct was accepted as good conduct, and what was actually good conduct was given ‘exile’, it was ‘exported’! Now, that which was ‘exported’ is being ‘imported’. That is why there’s this trend of growing long hair [in young men]! Those who are growing long hair are ‘importing’ [good conduct]! Earlier, they [the older generations] had cut their hair and ‘exported’ [the good conduct].

The entire world has become a mental hospital. Aren’t the youth of today called ‘mental’? What can be done? When the entire hospital itself is mental, then even the GnaniPurushis considered mental externally, right? The entire hospital is mental, that is when the GnaniPurush arrived, didn’t He? The GnaniPurush’s body was also born in this mental era, so He is ‘mental’ too, right? Everything is considered mental. This is indeed a mental hospital! Nevertheless, a transformation is coming our way.

These very youth of today, upon becoming wise and understanding, will one day get their hair cut short; then the ‘mental-ness’ will be gone. And [contrast that with] these people who cut their hair and go around acting all prim and proper, yet consider improper conduct as good conduct! What are these people like? They consider improper conduct to be good conduct; these people have completely twisted the meaning of the language around! Mental! And the entire day, there isn’t a single home that isn’t full of quarrels. Some interference or other is bound to have happened; among the three people in the family, thirty-three differences of opinion will have arisen by evening! That comes out to eleven each, doesn’t it!

By the year 2005, India will have become the center of the entire world! Now [at the time of this speech], thirty-one more years remain. By then, these youth will be 56-60 years old; the ‘mental-ness’ won’t remain in them by that time. This long hair they have, one day the ‘mental-ness’ will leave, they will eventually get it cut. One boy with long hair was sitting in the car in front of me. So I said to him, “My dear boy, why have you grown your hair so long that it flies around and bothers the person sitting behind you?” Mind you, his hair wasn’t actually bothering me, I just made this remark casually. But that boy immediately got his hair cut and came and bowed down to me, and moreover, he made a firm resolve to not grow it out again!

They Have Received All This Comfort Through Their Merit Karma

Questioner: Today’s youth only care about fashion. They are fond of all sorts of clothes and this and that!

Dadashri: They don’t even care about fashion; they are simply mohi! If the tailor makes a mistake in stitching their clothes, they’ll still wear them and walk around like that. So it’s moha that’s at work, not fashion. This is called a generation driven by moha. In this era, tailors have made people dance to their tunes! One time they make tight clothes, and people even wear and walk around in those. Another time, they make them this wide, and people wear and walk around in those too. This is called nonsense, but because they are like this, India is going to benefit. There was a need for such people. The public needed to become like this.

Just look at these boys, why do they keep such long hair? In their opinion, that looks good. And if we tell this gentleman to keep long hair? To him, it looks bad. It is just the sway of opinions. These are opinions based on where one’s intellect believes happiness lies.

Questioner: It’s just so they don’t have to shave their mustaches every day, that’s why they keep them.

Dadashri: There’s no objection to that. There’s no objection to not wanting to keep a mustache either. That is a matter of individual preference, isn’t it! Whether to shave or not is a matter of their preference! Those ascetics keep them this long, don’t they! Is it as though they need to sprinkle water on them [to grow them]?

Those who had gone to the celestial realm (dev gati) during Satyug (the first of the four ages, characterized by virtue, wisdom, happiness, and morality), they enjoyed the celestial realm until now. When their ‘balance’ [of merit karma] finished there, they arrived here again [in the human life-form in Bharat Kshetra, the location in the universe where planet Earth exists]. At the right time, when our time of ‘bankruptcy’ [moral and religious decline] came, they arrived. We became ‘solvent’, didn’t we! Because they arrived, the work has now started, hasn’t it! They are usually good-looking, too; they aren’t that ugly. They walk around with long hair!

The celestial beings have descended straight down [from the celestial realm] and their time to be born here must have already been destined; it would have been destined from that day itself that these people would come only at a certain time. They would come only after Dada arrived. The spiritual work of all these people will get done. This [Gnan] is yet to become widely known, and when it does, all these youngsters will get their spiritual work done.

Now, nothing much remains, but these celestial beings have arrived, haven’t they? They were released from there. They came from that environment full of singing and music, which is why they need singing and music here too.

Questioner: It is only if such living beings come that everything [the Gnan] comes to light, right?

Dadashri: All this has happened only for it to come to light.

There were three or four generations that came in between, in these last eighty or so years, during which the trend of shaving mustaches started. It lasted for about four generations, and now it has ended. Later, something new will come! They will again keep goatees, keep beards, and all sorts of trends will appear! There was a time when nothing but French cuts were seen everywhere. Whenever you would travel in a train, everyone you saw had a French cut! So, everything inevitably keeps changing. This craze for shaving mustaches never existed in our country before. It all seeped in from foreign countries; the Europeans came and this craze entered our people. But our people got reformed, didn’t they! First the Parsis got reformed, then slowly our people also got reformed. Otherwise, in our culture, if someone shaved their mustache, people would ask, “Dear fellow, who has died? Don’t I know about it?” Good heavens! Did this become associated with something bad happening? Yes, our people used to say, “Shave your mustache only when someone dies.” But now, nothing like that remains. Currently, the fashion of growing hair is prevalent.

But these people certainly have a lot of merit karma, don’t they! Just look! Before they arrived, look at the kinds of buildings that have been constructed! How electricity was introduced! What kinds of preparations were made! Otherwise, if a person lived in Dadar [an area in Mumbai], he would be bitten by so many mosquitoes in the evening! In Dadar, there were countless mosquitoes. In Mumbai city, if one happened to stay at an acquaintance’s place in Bhuleshwar, the latrines would stink all day; those chawls [a type of low-cost, multi-family residential building, primarily found in Mumbai] would just keep stinking! You couldn’t go there even by mistake. In comparison, these mosquitoes are better! At most, they will enter your mouth at night! But these youngsters with long hair today, they’ve never had to see anything like this! They don’t even know there were mosquitoes here before. They have only ever seen crowds everywhere [in Mumbai].

With the Changing Times, There’s Friction Between Old and New Generations

Once, I was travelling by train. This was about twenty-five years ago. I went to board the train, and all the young men were sitting with their legs crossed, facing each other, and there was no space to even stand. I was carrying a small bag in my hand. This incident took place before this Gnan had manifested. I used to use the kind of bag that it didn’t matter if it lasted only two or four months, but it was one that I could sit on. I had no problem if that leather bag was to tear, but I liked to sit on it like a chair. So, upon entering the train, I went to put the bag down [to sit on it], when those young men told me, “Uncle, why are you planning to sit on the bag? You won’t be comfortable sitting on the bag. Please sit up here on the seat.” One of the young men then got up, sat down on the floor, and made just enough space for me. It was enough space for me to sit. So I sat down.Then I asked the young men, “Hey, doesn’t this feel crowded to you? How can you like this crowding? You’ve got your legs crossed like this, everyone is sitting shoulder-to-shoulder, in this immense crowd!” They gave an answer which I found noteworthy.They said to me, “Uncle, what do you call crowded?” The young men countered by asking me, “What do you call crowded?” So I replied, “Hey, isn’t this crowded?” They responded, “No, this can’t be called crowded. You call this crowded?” I told them, “Dear fellows, I have seen times when it was spacious, so this feels crowded to me. It seems you haven’t seen spaciousness.” So they said, “No, we’ve seen only this since birth, so we don’t even know what spaciousness is. We just know it’s like this; it’s crowded.” I told them that in my time, when I would come to Mumbai, if I sat in one compartment, I often wouldn’t find anyone else nearby! I’d have to look for someone in another compartment! It was that spacious back then. So the young men started laughing, saying, “Could it really have been like that!” I said, “It was all just like that.” They hadn’t seen anything like that, had they? They had seen only this same thing since birth, traveling while hanging onto the outside of the train. And they haven’t seen anything but queues, queues, and more queues! There are queues for everything, for purchasing sugar, oil, tickets; there are queues upon queues everywhere.So, what’s old keeps changing; the past keeps changing, and the new arrives. New states constantly keep arising in the world. And the friction between the new generation and the old generation goes on continually.

Let’s Adjust According to the Times

When these elders enter a [modern] home, they say, “This metal cabinet? This radio? Why is it like this? Why is it like that?” They interfere in this way. Hey, befriend a young person. Times will indeed continue to change. How can they [young people] thrive without this? When they see something new, moha arises. If there is nothing new, then how will they survive? Infinite new things such as these have come and gone, you are not to interfere in that. If it does not suit you, then don’t do it.Ice cream does not tell you, “Run away from me.” If you don’t want to eat it, then don’t eat it. However, the elderly keep getting irritated over this. The divisiveness due to difference of opinion (matbhed) arises as a result of the changing times. These young people act according to the times. Moha means that new things keep arising, and only new things are seen. Since childhood, I had deeply considered using the intellect, whether this world was headed in the wrong direction or the right direction. And I had also understood that no one has any power to change this world. Nevertheless, what ‘we’ are saying is to adjust according to the times. If your son comes home wearing a new hat, you should not say, “Where did you get such a thing?” Instead, make an adjustment and ask him, “Where did you get such a nice hat from? How much did it cost? You have got a good bargain!” You should make an adjustment in this way.

The Influence of Common Sense

When circumstances come together, you should adjust and carry on. Now, as you are the man (purush)of the house, you should not allow divisiveness due to difference of opinion arise.If your wife creates divisiveness due to difference of opinion, even then you should turn it around. Divisiveness due to difference of opinion means clash!

If someone clashes with you but you do not clash with them, if you can prevail in this way, then common sense will arise. However, you should not clash with anyone; otherwise, you will lose your common sense. There should be no friction from your end. Through another person’s friction, common sense arises in you. The energy of the Self is such that it will reveal all the solutions for how to conduct yourself during times of friction. And once it reveals that, that knowledge will never leave you. In this way, common sense will accumulate.I usually do not experience any friction. I have tremendous common sense, so I immediately understand what you are trying to say. Other people may think what is being said is harmful to Dada, but I realize instantly that this harm is not really harm. It is not harmful from the worldly view, nor is it harmful from a religious view, and it is definitely not harmful in relation to the Self. People may think that this person is doing that which is harmful to the Self, but I understand the benefits of it. That is the impact of common sense. Thus, I have given you the definition of common sense, that it is ‘everywhere applicable’. There is no such thing as common sense at all in today’s generation.Common sense has steadily declined with each generation.

Carry Out Worldly Interactions Without Anger, Pride, Deceit, Greed

Don’t these youngsters keep the radio pressed to their ears all day long?It is a newfound interest that has come into these poor children’s lives! This is a new phase in their development. If they were developed [spiritually mature], they would not listen to the radio at all. After seeing it once, they would not touch it again. New things are to be tried once, not to be experienced forever. It’s because the sense organ (indriya) of hearing has recently developed for these youngsters that they listen to the radio the whole day! They are beginning their journey in the human life-form. A person who has passed through the human life-form thousands of times would not do such a thing.

Questioner: Youngsters like to go out a lot.

Dadashri: They are not bound to us; everyone is in his or her own bondage [of karma]. We just have to tell them, “Come home early.” Then, whenever they come, it is vyavasthit (the result of scientific circumstantial evidence). You have to carry out all your worldly duties, but they should be carried out without any kashay (anger, pride, deceit, greed). Worldly interactions without kashay is moksha and worldly interactions with kashay is the worldly life (sansaar).

Questioner: My nephew wakes up at nine o’clock every day. No work
gets done.

Dadashri: Just put a blanket over him and tell him, “Sleep peacefully.” His prakruti (the relative self with inherent characteristic traits) is different, so he wakes up late and does more work. Whereas an unproductive person might be up since four o’clock in the morning, yet still accomplish nothing. I too used to be late for everything.I used to leave home only after hearing the school bell ring, and I constantly listened to my teacher’s complaints! Now, what did the teacher know about what my prakruti is like? Everyone’s Ruston [make of an engine] is different; the ‘piston’ is different for eachperson.

Questioner: But it’s difficult to maintain discipline if one is late, isn’t it?

Dadashri: The fact that you complain because he wakes up late is the absence of discipline. Therefore, stop scolding. Whatever energies you wish to ask for, ask Dada for them one hundred times daily; you will receive them all.

Now, after imparting this understanding to this gentleman, he followed ‘our’ instructions and everyone in his household stopped scolding the nephew.After a week, the result was thatthe nephew started waking up at seven o’clock on his own and began doing better work than anyone else in the home!

Everything Is Good When It Is In Normality

Today’s elderly people do not get along with the youngsters, with this generation. That is why they are constantly suffering beatings. The youngster speaks rudely to them, but the elders tolerate it. Internally, though, endless turmoil goes on, and the thought even arises in their mind, ‘Gosh, it would have been better if he had died sooner.’ Or, ‘It would have been better if I had died.’ They decide on one of the two. Everything is running amidst such turmoil.

Even if the son harasses the mother, she continues to find him endearing. But the father cannot tolerate it; how can the father tolerate it, when the light of the intellect is present? Women have intellect too, but they also have moha, don’t they! So, because of the moha, doesn’t darkness keep falling upon the intellect? Whereas the father puts ‘focus’ on that [using the light of the intellect], so agitation ensues.

In this era, the husband might say, “I am going to the old age home, are you coming or not?” The wife will reply, “No, I will manage fine living with the children; our daughter-in-law is good, isn’t she!” She won’t come; she would never come. This is regarding people out there in the world. I understand the difficulties people out there face!

Now, if I had seven children, and if ever any of them kept acting up or being defiant, then the more rudely they spoke to me, the happier I would feel. [I would think,] ‘Go on, you are foolish, but I am wise, aren’t I!’ But on my face, I would show the opposite. On my face, I would have to show that I am very hurt, while internally, I would be happy that his behavior is immature! When a machine makes a loud noise, we say it’s not yet ready to be run. Likewise, when this ‘machine’ [person] speaks [rudely] to me, I declare, ‘I am mature.’ If he maintains respect, then I know that he is mature. But if he responds with, “You are like this, and you are like that,” then I consider him weak, I recognize his weakness that ‘This poor fellow is weak, he’s worth pitying.’ Are we weak like that?

Not knowing how to deal with one’s children, isn’t that a mistake of ours?

Questioner: Yes, it is a mistake.

Dadashri: Hmm, you have made these same mistakes everywhere, haven’t you?Everywhere you look, it’s the very same mistakes! Out of moha, people say, “My darling!” Mortal one, he’s no darling; just try clashing with him, try confronting him for an hour! You’ll find out whether he’s your darling or not! Everything is good only when it is appropriate [in a state of normality]. Love should be kept undisclosed; love shouldn’t be openly displayed to children; that is called aasakti(excessive affection that leads to attachment). So, we should do everything appropriately [in a state of normality]. We should ensure our own spiritual welfare (kalyan), shouldn’t we! In which lifetime did we not have children? We’ve had children in every lifetime, haven’t we! So why keep so much moha even now? Nevertheless, one should not provoke the children. If they have a need, whatever they require, we should provide it all! When you go to sleep at night, do you pull them into your embrace and sleep? What if they say, “I don’t like this?” Therefore, one should only do as much as is appropriate.

Look for the Positives and Remain Blissful

Questioner: No matter how much we do, if the other person does not improve, what should we do?

Dadashri: One has not improved himself, yet he goes out to improve others. As a result, people have instead become worse. When one tries to improve others, they become worse. If one is spoiled himself, what can happen? To improve ourselves is the easiest thing! If we have not improved ourselves and we set out to improve others, that is meaningless. Until then, even our words will backfire. If you say, “Don’t do this,” then the other person will counter, “Go away, I am going to do just that!” On the contrary, the other person goes even further in the wrong direction!

If you try to get someone to do work by using your ego to intimidate them, then the other person will become worse. Where there is no ego, everyoneis always sincere to that person; there is morality there.

The ego is harmful; the moment one realizes that, everything becomes straightforward. It is not worth protecting the ego. The ego has a way of protecting itself anyway.

You should not have an ego. The ego causes everyone discomfort. Even if you call a small child ‘senseless’, ‘foolish’ or ‘donkey’, he too gets very upset. Conversely, if you tell him, “Child, you are so well-behaved,” he will immediately listen to you.

Questioner: And if I tell him, “You are so well-behaved,” then won’t he become spoiled?

Dadashri: If you call him foolish, even then he will become spoiled, and if you [excessively] tell him that he is so well-behaved, even then he will become spoiled. This is because if you call him well-behaved, then his ego will receive encouragement. Whereas if you call him foolish, the psychological effect [on him] will be negative. If you call a wise person foolish twenty-five to fifty times, then a doubt will arise in his mind, ‘Could I really be foolish?’ Continually thinking like this, he eventually becomes foolish. That is why I keep giving encouragement even to a foolish person by saying, “There is no one in this world as wise as you.” View everything in this world positively; do not go towards negativity. Positivity will lead to a solution.

I want to make everything positive. I don’t want to bring in the negative aspects at all. If someone is good, then I encourage his good attributes. So, the good attributes flourish so much, they occupy so much space that the negatives simply disappear. Up until now, the world has been bombarded with negatives! You should not see anyone’s faults. If you do want to see something, then see their good attributes. It is worth finding one positive out of a hundred negatives and remainingblissful.

The Demarcation of the Years 1921 and 1922

Keep the entire mood blissful. Keep even the one who has made a mistake blissful, and then get work done. And you sit with me every day, so you get to learn something or the other, don’t you! But until you discard the old [your previous ways], the new cannot be adjusted. Here, someone might say, “This [old way] has come to us through inheritance; how can it be given up? (!)”

Questioner: We have seen this attitude in our fathers and grandfathers
in practice.

Dadashri: That might have been valuable in those days; it is not valuable today. What am I saying? The demarcation of the years 1921 and 1922; whatever you want to say to those born before 1921, you can tell them. But don’t say it to those born after 1922.

Questioner: Especially those born during the ‘War Quality’ [during WWI], nothing at all can be said to them.

Dadashri: Absolutely nothing can be said to them. Nothing at all can be said to this ‘War Quality’. But I have noticed something about the year 1922. In those days, two divisions got created, 1921 and 1922. Those born in 1921 wore dhotis (traditional unstitched garment worn by Indian men), one hundred percent of them, and in 1922, trousers entered. From then on, the trend of wearing trousers kept rising… that’s the demarcation between the years 1921 and 1922. If I know someone who wears trousers, I know he is from the year 1922 [or later]. As for the ‘War Quality’ stock, that’s a different matter altogether! I figured out this rule of the years 1921 and 1922. Day by day, mental strength (munobal) is declining in people, along with the entire strength of the antahkaran (the mind, intellect, chit, ego complex)! Having said that, it’s not as though the elders before our time were particularly strong.

Questioner: They must have been straightforward.

Dadashri: That too, they were straightforward because they had less intellect, it was due to having less intellect; as long as the intellect was present, the mortal ones were such that they wouldn’t be straightforward at all. Our people may say whatever they like, such as, “Our elders were very good,” but wherever they’ve gotten the ‘scope’ [opportunity], they haven’t let that ‘scope’ go. So, these people have remained straightforward because of the lack of ‘scope’. Even if you and your brother were quarreling, if a ridge gourd were hanging over your fence, he would pluck it without thinking, ‘I am taking something that belongs to another.’ He would be looking for such opportunities. So the Vaniyas, the Brahmins [people of various castes], and everyone else, they had such intentions. Things are much better now. I had seen all the elders, hadn’t I! Why were they called naïve? They hadn’t seen anything! They hadn’t even seen another village. So what more is there to say about this? Problems would arise if they had seen an asphalt road, isn’t it? In those days, I had been to Mumbai when I was 22-23 years old! After that, when I went back to Bhadran [Dadashri’s hometown], I would see someone who would be pointlessly putting on airs before fifty or seventy-five people! So I would say, “Uncle, go see the latrines in Mumbai, see what the rich merchants there have!” I wouldtell him further, “The value of all your property is the equivalent of one of their latrines…! Hmm?” The mortal one wouldbe pointlessly putting on airs! They wereso wretched, everything was very
wretched. They didn’t even know the ABCs of religion.

If they went to the temple, then their chit (inner component of knowledge and vision) would be on the prasad (food that has been offered to an idol of God). [They would think,] ‘The prasad has been distributed, hasn’t it, the prasad!” Oh mortal one, focused on the prasad…! How much sheero (sweet semolina dish) would be distributed to each person? Just this much, a tiny smear like this, and even that, they would keep licking. Hey, leave it, what are you licking this for? As for today’s youth, even if we offer them a pendo (rich milk-based sweet), they won’t take it. Have you witnessed these things? Have you witnessed our elders behaving this way? Does it seem like that to you, about our elders? What I’m saying is not wrong, is it? Have you witnessed all this? I have witnessed this a lot.

The Vaniyas, the Patidars [various castes], everyone would steal vegetables [from others’ land]. I too had done this! But I had one very good habit from childhood. No matter where they took me in their fields, everyone else would pack up vegetables to take home, but I would not pack them up to take home. I never brought anything home, not even once. Some of my principles were very good. Over there, whatever radishes or beans we ate, that was it; but I would not bring them home. Whereas other people would bundle them up and bring them home.

Still, it was not completely like that. Ten percent of the people were so wonderful that they were worthy of praise. You would not find such people today; ten percent of the people were like that before.

The Spiritual Path Is the Quest of Those Who Are ‘Heartily’

The older generations were not reliant on the intellect; they were centered on the heart. And so, they cannot come to terms with the younger generations, because the younger generations rely solely on the intellect!

The force of the intellect interferes in between. There should be gentleness (mrudu) and simplicity (ruju) and humility. Ruju means straightforwardness (saralata). All such qualities should be present. Surely, things can’t run purely on empty talk? Therefore, come to the heart. When this world stops promoting the intellect and comes to the heart, then everything will become straightforward once again.The entire approach should be ‘heartily’ [from the heart].

The intellect causes harm, it causes trouble; it doesn’t allow happiness to arise within.What comes from the heart helps. What comes from the intellect does not help; [it leads one down] the wrong path altogether. Whereas matters of the heart bring us resolution.

Not a single word of ‘ours’ comes from the intellect. Here, inside all these books [of Dadashri’s], there are no words of the intellect; they are words from the heart. Of all the words spoken here, in all the books published so far, there isn’t a single word of the intellect. Where there is intellect, there is etiquette. All the ‘diseases’ infiltrate, no disease is left out.

The heart allows one to be at peace, whereas the intellect doesn’t let one remain at ease at all. It keeps searching for something or the other. It searches for this, it searches for that; this carries on the entire day. Because it puts one on the wrong track, it doesn’t allow one to become stable. Whereas the heart allows stability, it allows one to be at peace. When it comes from the heart, there is unity. And when it comes from the intellect, interference arises. When the interference of the intellect increases, the heart gets scorched. And when the heart gets scorched, then nothing worthwhile comes of it.

This world is entangled because of the intellect, and the intellect means vikalpo (thoughts creating doubt, options, uncertainty). ‘Not like this, but like this; not like this, but like this’; there is never any peace. And the heart is the means to stop vikalpo. A person who is ‘heartily’ goes to moksha, while those with intellect wander in the worldly life. These are the two laws of nature. The spiritual path is not the quest of those with intellect; it is the quest of those with heart. Thoughts that come from the heart, speech that comes from the heart, conduct that comes from the heart; these make one godly. They are ‘heartily’ [from the heart]!

The Folks of My Time Were Chaste In the Matter of Sexuality

The folks of my time were very good about one thing. They had no thoughts about sexuality. They did not look at any woman with a sexual intent. There were perhaps some, five to seven percent of the men who were like that. They would only pursue widows, not anyone else; [widows] in houses where there was no one else living. They were widowed, meaning it was a house without a husband. Up until we turned fourteen to fifteen years old, whenever we saw a girl, even if she was very distantly related, we would address her as ‘sister’ [in those days in the region where Dadashri lived, the culture was such that all the girls in one’s village were regarded as one’s sister]. The culture was like that.This is because until we were ten or eleven years old, we would roam about sky-clad (digambar)! Even boys who were ten years old would roam about sky-clad. Do you understand what sky-clad means?

Questioner: Yes, yes. I got the gist.

Dadashri: And at that time, his mother would even call out, “Hey you, digambar, put on some clothes.” Digambar means clothes in the form of empty space from all directions. So, a sexual thought would never even arise, therefore, there was no botheration. There was no awareness of sexuality at all.

Questioner: So, was this due to some kind of societal pressure?

Dadashri: No, it was not societal pressure. Rather, it was the attitude of the parents, the values they inculcated! A three-year-old child would not know that his parents have this kind of a [sexual] relationship. The secrecy would be so well-maintained! And if it were to happen, then on that particular day, the children would be sleeping in another room. Those were the moral values of the parents. These days, they [the parents and children] have separate bedrooms. The mother is having a child and her daughter-in-law is also having a child at the same time. The times have changed, haven’t they? They have separate bedrooms with double beds, don’t they?

Whereas in those days, no husband would ever sleep in the same bed as his wife. No one would sleep like that. Back in those days, there was actually a saying that if a husband sleeps with his wife the entire night, then he becomes a woman; the phases of her female nature would affect him. So, no man would do this. This is simply the discovery of some ‘smart’ person, so that double beds continue to sell! That is why there has been a downfall of the public. What was the benefit that came out of this downfall? All the various forms of contempt have gone.And so I actually became glad, thinking, ‘There’s a good side to this downfall.’ Now, it won’t take long to bring up those who are already down. But that contempt and other madness quickly disappeared! People became more noble, nobility arose. There has been a great benefit. It’s a good thing that the British and these people came together, the contempt disappeared.

Who Knows When the Practice of Having a Double Bed Was Adopted?

Hey, how can these double beds be considered appropriate for India? What kind of animals (!) are these people? The husband and wife in India are never together in the same room. They always stayed in separate bedrooms. Instead of that, just take a look at what’s going on! Nowadays, the father himself provides [his son] a bedroom with a double bed! So the sons take it for granted that this is the general practice being followed in the world.Did you know that in the past, a husband and wife slept in separate rooms, in separate beds? Did you not know this? I’ve witnessed this. Have you seen the double beds? Huh? What do you have to say?

Questioner: There were no rooms big enough to put the double beds, were there?

Dadashri: Overall, it is good that this younger generation has turned out to be useless! They are a completely defective ‘stock’, an altogether defective ‘stock’! However, if they are told, “Twenty-five of you sleep in this hall,” then they would immediately comply. And if the fathers teach their sons, “Go ahead, purchase a double bed,” then they would learn this too, the poor fellows. They don’t have any preference. Today if it is a double bed, then that is fine, and the next day, it may even be an arrangement in which they sleep alone. They do not have any preference. It is actually the father who is wayward and has no competence, so he leads his son down the wrong path.

Not a single boy who has come into my contact tells lies. They do not lie even when they are scared. Now, when I look at these boys, I feel that in my days, not a single boy told the truth. They did not speak the truth where there was a fear of being scolded; they did not speak the truth if there was the slightest possibility of being insulted. Whereas, these boys do not lie, no matter what happens to them, not even if someone is about to kill them. So, see how good this generation is! The future of India is so bright!

Which Cooks Faster, a Bottle Gourd Past Its Prime or a Tender One?

Let’s compare a young person to a tender bottle gourd, and an older person to a bottle gourd that’s fibrous, past its prime. If we were to cook a vegetable dish (shaak) from those bottle gourds, which one would cook faster?

Questioner: It’s definitely the tender one, isn’t it!

Dadashri: And the fibrous one, the one that’s past its prime?

Questioner: It just won’t cook.

Dadashri: It takes longer for it to cook. The tender bottle gourd cooks rapidly; it softens quickly in the cooking process. Likewise, these young people adapt quickly and are easily moldable.

Whether it is one’s own son, nephew,or anyone else, and he is moving ahead in life, then we should help him.I had decided this from childhood, because I had observed the old folks. If someone got slightly ahead in life, they would push him back. And if someone was trailing behind, they would bring him forward, but they would still keep him behind themselves. These are all wrongdoings, aren’t they! Their development is so lacking! I would get very irritated with such people, I would feel, ‘What kind of people are they!’If a young person is progressing in life, we should be happy about that, shouldn’t we! But now, in this era, people’s minds are better, I have observed that much. They like it when a young person is progressing in life.

Questioner: But in the past, they were less educated, that is why it may have been like that.

Dadashri: No, no. And what do those people [the older generation] say? “You are formally educated, but we have practical wisdom; yet you’re acting superior in front of us? We’re the ones with practical wisdom.” Having said that, those people were not wrong in their practical wisdom; it was correct. It’s just that their [societal, intellectual] development was lacking. It is after the British came that the intellect of our people developed.Because their formal education increased, they became more developed. Undue insistence and baseless conflicts all came to a stop. So, things became very good. Previously, no one would let anyone else get ahead at all. That’s why I’ve told my nephews, “If you become successful with my help, I have no objection to that. And after becoming successful, use your ‘horns’ to come against me and strike me, and when you strike me, only then will I feel that ‘This one is capable.’ But you should become more successful than me.” Whereas our people [of the older mindset] keep looking for ways to set others back. Whereas had I said, “I will help you.” I maintained that stance my entire life.

Just keep having good intentions for the youth! That will bring together all the favorable circumstances. Otherwise, there is not much worldly substance in these youth. They will adapt and get molded, but nature will do this naturally. Today’s generation is the best there has ever been. Young people like these never existed in any past era.

What negative qualities existed [in the past] that make me say young people like these never existed before? They have no contempt of any kind towards anyone, the poor things, nothing like it. They are simply mohi; they just wander around aimlessly to the cinema and other places. Whereas in the past, there was so much contempt that a Brahmin’s child wouldn’t even touch another [from a lower perceived caste]. Does anything like that exist nowadays?

Questioner: There is nothing like that, not in the least.

Dadashri: So, that ‘stock’ has become clear. Nor do they have greed (lobh); no desire for respect (maan). And that previous ‘stock’ was full of bad qualities! Full of pride, anger, greed! Whereas these poor things are just mohi.

If Loud Music Is Being Played Outside, What Is It to Us?

Questioner: Dada, the new generation likes this sort of thing [loud music], so how should we adjust to that?

Dadashri: Someone asked me [something similar] once, in Mama ni Pol [an area in the city of Vadodara, where Dadashri lived]. He said, “This garba [traditional dance event, often with loud music] is happening right across my place, and they play the music on loudspeakers until two o’clock in the morning, so I feel completely exasperated the whole night.” I asked him, “The loudspeaker plays until two o’clock, what about after that?” He replied, “Later, its echoes keep reverberating. Meaning, my whole night is ruined!” Then he came to ask me, “Doesn’t it affect you at all?” I said, “No, for me, my attention isn’t even directed that way! Whether drums are beating outside or instruments are playing or garba is being sung, what have I got to do with it?”

Questioner: That’s true, Dada.

Dadashri: So he said, “Can your attention remain so detached? I think you must be a little hard of hearing.” I told him, “No, it’s not that big of a hearing impairment; I can certainly hear all this.”

Questioner: Yes, a loudspeaker would certainly be heard!

Dadashri: But for a person whose attention is not even directed that way, how can it affect him? That’s why I used to tell them, “Set it up at our place.” The others will all get fed up. Hirabaa wouldn’t fuss over such things; she was easy-going. What would she say? “If it’s playing outside, what is it to us? People can play whatever they like in their own home; how can we object to that?” So she is easy-going. And I am not so easy-going, but for me, my attention just isn’t on this! Otherwise, I too would get worked up! I am not easy-going like Hirabaa. [According to my original nature, I would think,] ‘How can someone play it so loudly even in their own home?’ My thinking would bother me like that! That wouldn’t be tolerable. But the attention isn’t on that side [now]! It no longer holds any value for me. So, there’s no irritation or anything else. Whereas that fellow says, “Until two o’clock in the morning, I can hear it directly, and that just drains the life out of me.” So I told him, “Afterwards, if you rest up and go to sleep comfortably, what’s the problem, just turn yourself over?”

Questioner: Yes.

Dadashri: To this he replied, “Then the whole night its echoes reverberate.” Now, how can one cope with this? So I understood how much the world gets tormented by these external things, by circumstances. It gets tormented, doesn’t it?

Questioner: Yes, it gets tormented by circumstances.

Dadashri: The police officers haven’t even arrived in this scenario. What would happen to him if a circumstance comes to him involving the police? What would happen to him if the police show up with handcuffs?

Those Lacking Worldly Substance and Efficacy Will Improve

Questioner: The youth [of this generation] are a very big problem.

Dadashri: The problem is big, it’s tremendous, but it’s a problem that can be improved. Only in this era are there youth who are completely lacking in barkat (worldly substance, efficacy). And only those who lack barkat can improve. Those with barkat do not improve. Those with barkat are aces at their selfishness; along with that, they have contempt and other negative traits.That is why all of India had deteriorated, hadn’t it! Instead, this ‘stock’ [generation] that lacks barkat is better! They don’t care about pride (maan); they don’t care about anything of the sort.

And today’s people are such that they might call their own mother ‘Aunty’! If their mother is passing by, they might call out to her, “Aunty, aunty!” Hey, this is your mother! Why, some might even see their wife walking away from behind and call out, “Wait baa [mother/elderly woman]. Wait up!” They mistake her for an older woman because of the kind of sari she is wearing, and so they call their own wife ‘Baa’!

So, they are completely lacking in barkat! They are immersed in moha! They have become incredibly mohi(filled with illusory attachment), haven’t they! So, the ‘stock’ that is immersed in moha lacks barkat. They have moha for anything and everything! Today’s youth have no barkat. Say a random person named Suleman were to grab a young man’s sister on the street. Then the young man would merely plead with him, “Hey Suleman, she’s my sister, she’s my sister.” And what would young men of the past do? They were such that they would bite Suleman’s throat. And these people now, the poor things, would merely plead, “She’s my sister, she’s my sister, let her go.” Such a weak response! But because it is weak [mild, lacking substance] it will prove beneficial, as this Gnan will reach everywhere. Our Gnan will reach everywhere. If they weren’t weak, it wouldn’t enter at all, would it!

A Healthy Generation With Healthy Minds

Questioner: If a person receives this Gnan right from childhood, then everything would be clear; all worldly interactions would proceed smoothly.

Dadashri: Yes, a lot of work would get done.

Questioner: As it is now, we have all become rather hardened [set in our ways]. As soon as we leave here, the ‘machine’ [of the mind] starts running again.

Dadashri: Yes, that’s correct; what you’re saying is true. If one has received this [Gnan] in childhood, the work would get done! Look, these youths received it in childhood; see how wise they have become! Otherwise, these young people have no barkat (worldly substance, efficacy)! That sixteen-year-old came, didn’t he? I told him, “You lack barkat; why have you gotten involved here!” This boy right here! So he says to me, “Say whatever you want; I’m now under your charge.”

In the olden days, why did the husband and wife get along? It wasn’t that the husbands were particularly clever or understanding! It was because the women were uneducated. They would accept their husband as God. And these educated women of today, would they easily accept this?

In those days, there wasn’t formal education, but there was practical wisdom. Among these educated women, there is absolutely no practical wisdom. But these youngsters also lack practical wisdom. Today’s youngsters are all said to lack barkat. No barkat this way nor that way. But what is the benefit of this? A professor once asked me, “Why are all your Aptaputras (unmarried men who have taken up the resolve to practice life-long celibacy and have surrendered to the GnaniPurush to do work for the world’s salvation) young? Why aren’t there older ones?” I replied, “Those of the older generation were thieves of the mind, the mortal ones. Today’s generation is healthy-minded.” Healthy-minded in what way? They don’t have any mamata (sense of ‘my-ness’). If there is worldly awareness within, then there is mamata! One who has [such] awareness has mamata! These people simply have no mamata. And previously, in my time, if you had accidently dropped a few coins, then even a small five-year-old child would put his foot over them while talking to you [with the intention of taking the coins when you weren’t looking]. They were absolute thieves; in our time, people were absolute thieves. When we were born, people weren’t healthy-minded. When I was born, 78 years ago, it was a generation with a thieving mindset.

The youth of today have absolutely no barkat. Which means they don’t have this [thieving] quality in them either. The mamata itself is gone! That is why I have said, “They are healthy-minded. They need someone to guide them. These youngsters need someone to guide them. If they are molded by our hands, they become alright; they become God.”

Questioner: From which year do you date this era of healthy-minded people? Those born after which year are considered to be healthy-minded?

Dadashri: These youth boys and girls of today, those who are under the age of twenty-five, they are all healthy-minded.

Questioner: If we want to give them a certificate of physical fitness, how would we do that?

Dadashri: They are healthy-minded people living with unhealthy people [unhealthy influences]. So, the poor things wouldn’t have physical fitness!

But their minds are healthy;that is my discovery. If a healthy-minded generation has ever emerged, it has emerged in this era. It has arrived, it is becoming progressively healthier. It seems to have been getting healthier since our time; they [the youth] have no mamataat all.

Questioner: The youngsters these days are not concerned with ‘mine’ and ‘yours’ but rather they are preoccupied with ‘mine’.

Dadashri: It may seem that way, but truly speaking, the poor things aren’t like that.They are not concerned with ‘How bad will this make me look.’ They might even wander around wearing a lungi [a simple garment, implying a lack of concern about one’s appearance]. Meaning, their lack of worldly substance is actually a good thing. It won’t take long for these people to gain worldly substance; it won’t take long for them to imbibe moral and cultural values (sanskaar). They are very healthy-minded. I can recognize them very well.

Why do I call them healthy-minded? It’s because whatever you teach them, they readily accept it! They don’t have any of the old ‘diseases’. They look for food when they’re hungry, nothing else. They don’t have mamata, so if a young man’s father is trying to sell his house, it doesn’t bother him inside. Whereas in the olden days, the young man would tell his father, “I don’t want it sold.” Nowadays, they are healthy-minded, they don’t have mamata. So, they can be molded however one wishes. This is why that professor wrote that this is an amazing discovery! They are healthy-minded!

So, it is a favor of nature that this completely healthy-minded generation has emerged! A healthy-minded generation rarely emerges, and when it does, it brings about the salvation of the world. It just needs someone to provide proper guidance.

The World Keeps Changing According to the Times

However, these elders hold on to their old ways. Hey, act according to the times, otherwise you’ll suffer hardship and perish! Adjustments should be taken according to the times.

The very meaning of sansaar (worldly life) is the path of continuous change (samsaranmarg); meaning, it is constantly undergoing change. The world just keeps changing; it constantly keeps changing. If things remained exactly the same, then people wouldn’t like it at all. And what is human nature like? A person will tell youngsters to do exactly what they themselves had experienced in their childhood, “You have to do it this way.” Hey, leave it be. The times have changed; things have changed. In those days, there were no restaurants or anything like that. Nowadays, there are restaurants; if we don’t partake in the current ways now, then when will we? We should prevail according to the times.This world will keep changing according to the times, and as it changes, it returns to the very same place again.And now they will wear the same kind of chaniyas (traditional Gujarati skirts) and everything again.

Questioner: This has started.

Dadashri: Yes, it happens. They will wear bangles and other things again, just as they did in the past. This fashion of bangles had gone away, hadn’t it? Bangles...

Questioner: Yes, and now it’s come back.

Dadashri: So now it’s started coming back; look, they’ve started coming back. Yes, everything that we had seen before, all of that has started coming back. The things that used to cause irritation; seeing bangles would cause irritation. Now they look stylish. This is because only when something is absent does its value become apparent. And when it is around in abundance, then irritation arises towards that thing; this is the custom of this world!

So, everything inevitably keeps changing according to the times, and that’s why everything feels new and that is why life can be lived. Otherwise, life couldn’t be lived. If something becomes old, would one like it? If the condition remains exactly the same, then people don’t like it.

In my day, even if a boy went to a restaurant, his parents would put him through the wringer once he got home. This is because the parents had never seen a restaurant before. They were raised in a certain era; their ways had become set. They didn’t like this [the new ways and trends], and the youngsters would like it. So, differences of opinion, these demarcations, keep occurring. Since infinite lifetimes; it’s not that this happened only in this lifetime, this same thing has been going on from the very beginning. The demarcation between new and old keeps arising; conflict remains for some time, and then things are good for some time. So, if there were twenty people living in a household, everyone would follow what the grandfather had to say. That lasts for some time. Then comes a time when everyone goes their own way.

Becoming Modern, Dada Took Adjustments

Children are not ready to accept the old ways. That’s why all these problems have arisen for us. I tell the father to become modern, but he doesn’t. How can he? Becoming modern is not an easy thing.

This is because in every era, such a division always forms. When things change in Kaliyug (the current era of the time cycle), a person who is foolish will cling rigidly [to the old ways]. I myself became modern right from the beginning, because the era changes. Recently, the young men have started growing their hair long and keeping goatees and what not; people have started criticizing them. I told them, “Don’t do that.” These young men are not doing this based on their intellect. As a matter of fact, the world is the puzzle itself. It itself has become a puzzle, and it’s a hidden puzzle!

Questioner: Dada, it is indeed your blessed moment that you have gotten to see both kinds of ‘stock’, that of the old days and that of the modern era; the past one and this new one.

Dadashri: Yes, both of them. And the thing is, I am a person with a modern nature! Nowadays, I keep meeting all these people, so I even eat ice cream with them. I don’t scold them if they are eating ice cream; I tell them, “No, go ahead and eat it.” The times have changed, so you are eating it; otherwise, where would you get it from? We had never seen ice cream in the past!

I had figured it out. When I was eighteen years old, I used to despise the older generation, I would say, “You people are like this, with these old ideas, and this and that...” I used to despise them, seeing their way of thinking and everything else. I used to make fun of them and do other things. Based on that itself, I understood that this new generation will say the same things to us.

So, this was my mistake, despising them like that. I shouldn’t have despised them at that time. Instead, we should adjust.

In Nature’s Flow, Old Becomes New, New Becomes Old

So, whatever the new generation has said, I have adjusted to that.

Questioner: Yes, one should move with the flow of time.

Dadashri: Yes, one should go along with it.

Questioner: One simply cannot go against the current! Even if one tries,
he’ll drown.

Dadashri: No, no one can reform it. One isn’t reformed himself; how can one possibly reform anyone else? People say, trying to reform others, “You shouldn’t go to the cinema, you shouldn’t go to the cinema.” Mortal one, you have become old now, so you may not have the moha, but wouldn’t this person have moha?

Questioner: Yes, yes, they would.

Dadashri: You have become old, so would you have moha for the cinema? This is why I tell the youngsters, “Hey, if you feel embarrassed, I will come along with you to watch.” So the youngsters become delighted that, ‘He agrees with our views.’

Questioner: On the contrary, if we tell them they can do something, they do it and become happy. And if we say ‘no’, their face becomes upset, and then ours becomes like that too. Instead, it’s better to let it go! Just adjust!

Dadashri: Those who went against the era, against the current, were all thrown aside. This is a current, a current! This is my discovery, that all those who went against the current were thrown aside. So, if one doesn’t respect the current, one will be struck down.

This is a natural current. It’s not people who are doing all this; it is nature that is doing all this. Nature constantly keeps revolving; it keeps revolving.This is all round [in nature]; even these eras are round [in nature]. It makes one forget the past, and then new things keep arising.It makes the old new, and then makes the new old. It makes the old new. All these temporary states (avastha) have arisen. Because of them, this whole world is visible! All these temporary states are relative, perishable, constantly changing! Thus, these circles [of generations] keep rotating, everything happens according to time; no one at all is at fault in this.

~ Jai Sat Chit Anand