14. Love.
I have received your very affectionate letter.
You write that my words ring in your ears;
what I want is for their echo to carry you
into that space where everything is silent, empty.
This is the way from words to emptiness.
There one meets oneself.
I am in bliss.
Take my love.
I have nothing else to offer, it is my only wealth.
The marvel of it is that the more of it you give
the more it becomes.
Real wealth is like that –
it grows as you give it away;
and if it diminishes – it is not wealth at all.
Write again,
for not only do you wait for my letters,
I too wait for yours.
15. Love.
On returning from the meditation camp
I had to leave town again.
I returned only last night but I thought of you all the time.
I cannot forget the thirst for God I saw in your eyes
and the striving for truth in your heart.
This is a blessing because no one can attain
without passing through this anguish.
Remember, thirst is a prerequisite
for the birth of light and love.
Together, light and love are God.
When love has no limits
its flame becomes smokeless and so divine.
I have seen the seeds of this growth within you
and it fills my soul with great joy.
The seed is there, now it has to become a tree.
It could be that the time is at hand.
God-realization cannot happen without meditation
so you must turn towards this now
with courage and perseverance.
I have great hopes – will you fulfill them?
My regards to other friends there.
I wait for your letter.
Remember what I said about the blank paper?
Everything else is fine.
I am in bliss.
16. Love.
I received your letter.
What you say has made me very happy.
Words that come out of the depth and fullness of heart
echo the infinite
just as a tiny flower expresses infinite beauty.
When love breathes life into words
what is expressed is
not what is said
but what wants to be said.
Inside each of us there is a poet,
there is poetry,
but because we live on the surface
these are never born.
Those who go deep
awaken divine love
and this love fills their lives
with music, beauty, peace and poetry –
their very lives become music
and on to this stage truth descends.
Truth will descend where there is music
so life must be turned into a melody.
Only through music can one reach the truth.
You too have to become music,
the entire life, every little act,
has to be turned into music:
this happens through love.
Whatever is – love it.
Feel love for the whole world.
Feeling love for all with every breath
brings the inner music.
Have you ever seen this happen?
See this,
fill yourself with love and see.
Whatever breaks up the inner music –
that alone is irreligious, that alone is sin.
And whatever fills us with music –
that is religion, that alone is religion.
Love is religion
because love is beauty,
love is music.
Love is God
because it is all that is needed to attain him.
Give my love to everybody there
and feel the light of my love beside you.
17. Love.
I have received your letter.
You long for the peace I have within me.
It is yours any time.
It is the deepest possibility in everyone,
it only has to be uncovered.
As springs of water lie hidden under layers of earth
so does bliss lie hidden within us.
The possibility is there for everyone
but only those who dig for it can redeem it.
The excavation of these hidden treasures
lies through religion.
Digging with it one reaches the well of light within.
I have shown you how to dig and what with,
but the digging has to be done by you.
I know your soil is absolutely ready,
with very little effort the infinite streams can be reached.
This state of mind is attained
with the greatest good fortune
so don’t waste it or miss this opportunity.
Fill yourself with determination
and leave the rest to God.
Truth runs alongside will.
Don’t hesitate to write, I have lots of time for you.
I am for those who need me –
nothing in my life is for myself.
18. Love,
so much love.
I received your letter when I got back.
I could feel the ardor of your heart through your words.
I well know the fervor that stirs your soul
and the thirst that turns into tears within you.
I was once there too, I too have suffered it.
I can well understand your heart because I have traveled
those same paths you now have to take in the quest for God.
I too have experienced the longing
that one day turns into a raging fire
in which one has to consume oneself.
But this burning brings the birth of a new life.
The drop can only become the ocean
when it ceases to exist.
Continue your efforts in meditation;
you have to go deeper and deeper into it –
it is the only way.
Through it and it alone can one reach life’s truth.
Remember:
If you become absorbed in sadhana,
fully committed and surrendered,
you are bound to reach the truth.
This is an eternal law.
No step taken towards God is ever wasted.
My regards to all.
19. My respects to you.
Your letters were received.
I have just got back from a camp at Ranakpur.
It was just for friends from Rajasthan,
that’s why you weren’t informed.
It lasted five days and about sixty people participated.
It was a wonderful success
and it was obvious that much happened.
Encouraged by the results
the organizers are planning a camp on an all-India basis.
You must come to that.
I am glad to hear your meditation is progressing.
You have only to be silent.
To be silent is everything.
Silence does not mean absence of speech,
it means absence of thoughts.
When the mind quietens down
it becomes linked to the infinite.
Don’t do anything,
just sit and watch the flow of thoughts, just watch.
This just watching dissolves thought by itself.
The awakening of witnessing
brings freedom from the modifications of the mind.
With thoughts finished, consciousness is.
This is samadhi.
Love to all friends.