change of heart

Swami Rathanat



"What is really the best use of my time?"

ABOUT REVOLUTIONS AND REVOLTS AND SOCIAL CHANGE

"I was taught that this was a free country.
Turmoil in the US in the 60s - there was no freedom for people of a different colour. That didn't speak our language.
It was a contradiction."

Quoting ML King & Mahatma Gandhi who said "Try to be the change that you want to see in the world."

"And I remember thinking that the people that brought about the greatest social change are those who had spiritual foundation in their lives."

"And I was seeing very clearly that the same things myself and my colleagues were revolting against, we were the same.
Just in different dress. Perhaps with a different cause. Greed, egoism, selfishness, this is what we were revolting against.
Prejudice! But we had the same things. And I came to the conclusion that if I really wanted to make a difference in the world, I have to find a spiritual foundation for myself."

HUNGER OF THE HEART

"At one time in Calcutta I lIved for some time with Mother Teresa. I'll never forget something she told me. She said that the real problem in this world is hunger. Not hunger of a stomack, hunger of the heart. She said we can feed people food and that's good, but I travel the world [...] and I see even in the world's wealthiest most powerful people this hunger of the heart. The only thing that could satisfy it is love. Things can give pleasure to the mind and senses. But only love can give pleasure to the heart."

TRANSFORMATION, SPIRITUALITY

"In everyone's heart there are two dogs. The good dog, and a bad dog. 
The good dog represents humility, compassion, self-control, selfless service, fulfillment, love.
The bad dog - envy, anger, selfish passions, arrogance. And these two dogs are fighting."

"In the world we live today so often we are bombarded by the weapons of mass distraction.
The actual character is to respond to whatever situation in a way that we feed the goodness of our heart, the divinity within our heart."

"What is real wisdom? What is true knowledge? What is actual education? It's not simply about storing masses of data in our brain. An education is to have the wisdom to see every single human being with equal vision. To actually honour, respect, and love the sacradness of life. This is Character. To learn to honour and value life."

SEVA

"To love means to serve." 

"The health of the body is every part of the body is working for the health of every other part.
The supreme occupation, the supreme dharma for every living being is to serve with love.
Such love for God and for all beings must be unmotivated by selfishness and ego, and uninterrupted by temptations and fears that come upon us."

"Using the analogy of the body, let's just think of the service of the heart.
The heart is pumping blood, pumping energy into every single cell in our body.
The heart serves 24 hours a day. If it were to take a vacation? :) Take a lunch break? We would die!
The heart is serving every part of the body 24 hours a day. That's service!
And every part of the body is serving the heart. And each other. Individually we should take this example.
The heart represents light and love. We say - get to the heart of it. The heart is very much the essence.
Why? Because it serves. Unconditionally, and uninterruptedly."

LEADERSHIP

"And from a social perspective the Government is very much like the heart of our countries.
To supply, to facilitate, to encourage and to empower the people to be the best they could be to make positive changes and contributions to the world. Like the heart."

"The future of the world is so much dependent on the example of the leaders - from Gita.
In every field!
As we're speaking today there are demonstrations on Wall Street.
Because the leaders in business instead of serving, they're exploiting." 

"To encourage and to empower people to do good things, and to curtail those selfish elements that exploit and cause harm to any individual in the society. To supply water to the seeds of goodness, and to get rid of the weeds." 

"...after a while I was not impressed by any of it. The only thing that really impressed me was humility. Integrity.
The true sense of love that means seva in sanscrit. The joy of serving."

"Things are meant to be used, and people are meant to be loved.
But unfortunately we get so distracted, that we love things and we use people".

"Money, power and knowlege are great assets when they're used with compassion."
"The power that we have from a spiritual prospective is a gift of God.
The influence that we have, the knowledge that we have, are beautiful tools to be utilised to serve.
Like the heart.
Unconditionally, with love."

"To serve without discrimination. To truly understand the value of everyone, and in my experience in life that really is so much the meaning of spirituality."

"True spirituality is about the transformation of the heart.
Transforming greed into generocity
arrogance into humility
envy into appreciation of others
transforming hate into love.
Transforming darkness into light.
And transforming anxiety and stress into deep fulfillment
...through being an instrument of a grace that is within all of us."

"St Francisc: You should preach all the time. And when it is absolutely necessary, you may say something."