Recorded on 2 May 2026 with worldwide participants

0:00 Intro
0:13 What it is to have a mental attachment.
3:08 When we imagine about something, do we always build a criteria, like ‘it has to be like this’, or ‘it should not be like this.’
4:10 Should we not be making any criteria in the mind of what will give us happiness?
5:55 Why is it so difficult for us to think that there is something beyond this sight and sound?
7:39 Do we need to let go of all mental attachments to achieve Self Realization?
11:18 This watching process enables us to simply be in ourselves because we are not getting involved?
14:06 How important is the regularity of practicing meditation?
18:54 If one drops the body while holding many mental attachments, what happens?
26:04 The people who don’t practice spirituality at the moment, will they eventually get inspired in some way to practice?
27:57 Could Babaji describe the state of a Yogi? When the judgements that limit us have all disappeared, is that an infinite state?
30:26 To have the mind at peace at all times is mind-boggling for many.
31:16 Is there not a single worry for a Yogi?
32:55 How to be liberated from attachments such as un-requited love and obsessive thinking.
33:50 Is it possible to be reborn on astral planets where conditions are more conducive to spirituality?
34:59 What happens when someone commits suicide? Is there any way we can help that person through prayers?
36:13 How to not be mentally disturbed by pain in the body
38:13 With close family members, if we keep away emotionally, would that be indifference and uncompassionate?
39:26 They say that in particular places like Haridwar or Vrindavan that if you die there you get moksha directly.
41:31 The two aspects of the mind; to think and to watch.
43:00 Please advise how I can truly forgive and let go of anger and resentment.
44:20 If God knows everything inside me, why do I need to pray to God?
45:35 Is killing a cockroach a sin, and are sins the root cause tying you to the samsara?
46:35 Is a sin what plays on the mind, if it doesn’t play on the mind it is not a sin?
47:57 I sometimes fall asleep in meditation unintentionally, what should I do?
48:40 Some spiritual teachers say that those who commit suicide will go to hell, is that true?

Discourse: In Quest of Truth – online Q&A no.272
Mental Attachment and Liberation
YouTube Link: https://youtu.be/fyY_Y2H3d6c
Recorded: 02 May 2026

Start of Questions and Answers

Question:   The topic today is ‘Mental Attachment and Liberation.’  The first question, Babaji.  Could Babaji first talk about what it is to have a mental attachment?

Babaji Maharaj:   See, the imaginations occur in the mind.  And we get attached to those thoughts and visions.  Due to the brain’s effects, all thoughts produced by the mind is shown as a thought process or a visual effect.  Whereas nothing is in the mind actually.  Mind is a pure consciousness.  It remains quiet.  But because this brain has decodified and reflects, that appears on the screen of the mind, which the mind starts considering as the real.  In the same way, this outside world also, universe that is the appearance to the eyes.  In there also, the first attachment comes to the mind with an idea of ‘me’, ‘I’.  As a narrow personality like the physical body, or with a name, with some status, all these things; so many subtle bodies that get built up.  So, that is the first attachment to the ‘I.’ 

Then, anything that ‘belongs to me’, that ‘does not belong to me’, ‘I want’ and ‘I don’t want’, like this the attachment goes on and on and on.  Then the mind gets attached to them as any object matter of the world.  If it thinks that ‘this is mine,’ it will get attached to that one.  Thus starts a stressful time.  Before owning the object, we will be worried and stressed out, anxious that we need to own it.  If at all we own it, then there will be anxiousness that we should not lose that one.  Like this, physical body as the aging process comes, we cling on to an idea that death will come.  We don’t know to whom the death will come, what will happen to us after we die.  Like that people will cling on. 

So, these are all the basic attachment formation, which gives so much of stress and fear, pain, agony; everything happens to the mind.  Thus, the mind binds itself.  Means the pure consciousness, which is totally pure, which is the Self, it binds itself to an imagination of matter of this world and created within its own mind.  All these things, it gets binded up.  Liberation from this is what the liberation is. 

Question:   Thank You, Babaji.  So, Babaji, when we imagine about something, do we always build a criteria, like “It has to be like this, and it should not be like this”?

Babaji Maharaj:   Yeah.  So, when we think, a thought appears; watching that thought, the mind forgets that thought is there because of its own imaginations.  But then it builds up further criteria, a character, a story builds up.  “It has to be like this, it should be like this. And we have to go like this, we have to achieve this thing.  If we do not achieve this thing…”  Like this, a story builds up totally.  And a criteria builds up.  Thus, the imagination grows; thought after thought, thought after thought, millions of thoughts are produced unnecessarily.  And we bind; with every thought we bind.  We go on binding ourselves to all the thoughts. 

Question:   Thank You, Babaji.  So, Babaji, we should not really be making a criteria in the mind.  We should not be assuming, “This will give me happiness, and this will not give me happiness”?

Babaji Maharaj:   Yeah, that is the most important thing.  Because if we imagine “Our happiness is in this object,” then we connect our happiness to that object.  So, our happiness will depend on that object.  As long as it is there, there is happiness.  If it is not there, there is unhappiness.  When it is there also, there can be an anxiousness, “What if we lose this one? What if somebody takes it away? What if the body dies? What if this property is taken away by somebody?”  All these types of stress will be there and worries will start for us unnecessarily.  First, there was nothing.  We were at peace.  Then we imagined about ourselves in a narrow personality way.  Then we started imagining as belonging to us.  “This world belongs to us.  This beautiful thing belongs to us.”  Everything we start trying to own it in our own mind.  We build up a criteria.  That’s how the mind clings onto these objects.  Then it becomes stressful.  If it is there, it is stressful.  If it is not there, it is stressful always.  Always, we lose peace.  Unhappiness comes and thus the mind goes into a craving.  With this craving only, we lose all happiness.  Everything starts happening. 

Question:   Thank You, Babaji.  Babaji, why is it so difficult for us to think that there is something beyond this sight and sound?  We are so used to the sight and sound as Babaji mentions. 

Babaji Maharaj:   Mind becomes so used to sight and sound and also becomes totally preoccupied with its own imaginations.  It becomes so preoccupied and it starts considering everything as real.  All its imaginations, all the appearance, everything as a real existence.  That is where I have always told, the entire universe, including our own body has appearance value but not existence value.  But when it considers this to be the real, then it becomes totally attached to it.  In this process, it has no time to know its own real Self, what it is.  Thus, it forgets.  That is how we could say, “You have forgotten yourself.  You need to know yourself.  You have identified yourself with that which you are not that one.”  And then ‘me and mine’ is where the problem starts.  Like that, you have binded.  You have become preoccupied with those bindings.  So thus, you have lost your happiness.  That happiness is lost because you have forgotten about your real Self, how you exist much beyond the birth and death of the physical body, is what we say.  So that is what needs to be realized. 

Question:   Thank You, Babaji.  So, Babaji, the letting go of all of these mental attachments, ultimately we need to do this to achieve liberation?

Babaji Maharaj:   Yeah, this becomes a big challenge, the final battle for a person, for anyone who would have become attached mentally with simply imagination, as “This is mine, I want this as mine” – any such thing, cravings happen in the mind.  We have to let go of these things.  That is the practice of meditation when we tell “Just watch in-between eyebrows”, means don’t get attached to any thoughts or visions.  Don’t try to analyze them.  Don’t make any judgments.  Any judgment means don’t get attached to it, don’t engage with it.  Then slowly those thoughts and visions also disappear, because it was only reflected by the brain.  Nothing is in the mind.  Mind is a pure consciousness.  It is you yourself.  This practice only can help us to give up mental attachment.  And then we can find our peace.  So, that is how things will happen. 

If we need to have peace, mentally we need to let go.  Outside the world, you can own anything.  You can own a business, you can own a family, you can own a property; that is no problem.  But mentally if you can remain detached, means at peace. If it is not there also no problem, it is there also no problem.  Whatever has to happen, it has happened.  Let it happen.  But this is the most difficult thing.  It may not be as easy as we talk. Long time spiritual practices like meditation only can help anyone to remove this bondage.  That is the most important thing.  For that only regularly if you practice. 

Like first you achieve the practice of one hour to keep your mind, yourself quiet; not to go into imagination.  The imagination has become so like a chatterbox, all the twenty-four hours.  You sit somewhere in a corner.  You want to relax on a sofa, on a bed.  But the mind is active.  It keeps wondering, it keeps wondering, “What will happen for this, what will happen.  This will happen, that…”  Like that the mind will be craving.  That craving needs to be stopped.  The practice of meditation can be such a wonderful spiritual exercise to help as a therapy to control the mind, to make the mind quiet.  And then you achieve the quietness. 

Then you will realize about yourself.  The Self is revealed.  It is there.  It is not a thing to be attained.  It is to be realized that you are that; it is there.  To reach that only you need all exercises, all practices.  Simply you become habitual to go out of your real Self in consciousness, in imagination only; that you have to reverse it.  All imagination needs to be removed.  Then automatically it is revealed what you are.  You are there.  You have to be in yourself.  You don’t even have to know what you are.  You just have to be in yourself.  That is what is the important thing.

Question:   So, Babaji, this watching process in the meditation, that enables us to be simply in ourselves because we are not getting involved.  Is that correct, Babaji?

Babaji Maharaj:   Yeah.  I have always told, mind has two aspects.  One is it can think and imagine.  Another is it can watch.  That is what I tell, “Mind is a combination of consciousness and energy.”  Consciousness means wherever you apply your mind, you can become aware of that.  Like when I am talking, if you all apply your mind on to me, then you will become aware of what I am trying to convey.  So, like that, the mind is capable of understanding, or coming to know, or watching.  You have to watch mentally when Babaji is answering the question.  Then the answer will penetrate your mind.  It will go to your head.  So, that is what is important. 

So, when you are just watching in practice or meditation also, slowly, the mind picks up just watching and gives up its thinking habits, its imagination habits and it becomes quiet.  As it becomes quiet, all the thoughts and visions, reflections of the brain also disappear if it doesn’t hold on to them.  The thoughts and visions are there as long as mind analyzes, recognizes, makes a judgment, “This is good, this is bad.”  Then it absorbs as an imprint also as a habit, acquired habits of the mind.  So, all these need to be removed, means you just watch.  When we tell that you sit for meditation, while sitting it is important that you remain relaxed.  Don’t be in a rush, don’t get agitated, don’t rush.  And don’t lose patience; patience is very, very important.  If you have patience, you will remain cool; like that.  Gently close the eyes and gently, simply watch in front, whatever it is.  Even if you are unable to locate the in between eyebrows also, no problem.  By trying to locate, you can get confused, because the eyeballs move parallelly; easily it may not come into one direction.  But slowly if you just watch like this [Babaji keeps two fingers straight ahead of the eyes], like this you watch, you watch, then slowly down, eyeballs also will come towards in the midst of eyebrows [Babaji shortens the distance between fingers].  And that can hold the mind also strongly.  Then the mind gives up all its habits.  It will realize its purified form of consciousness, and the Self is also revealed like that.  You are there. 

Question:   Could Babaji talk a bit about how important the regularity of the meditation is, to be practicing it every single day? 

Babaji Maharaj:   For this, a dedicated, disciplined approach with enormous patience is very important.  Dedicated approach means you take out time and set a priority.  Whether I am physically in front of you or not, try to feel the Guru in front of you, so that you feel inspired.  You feel that seriousness, “Baba is watching.  I need to be seriously closing.”  So, every time I make you all sit on the Zoom, after that also, quietly I go around the gallery, just to see who are all seriously sitting, who are all simply getting up and going and coming and who are switching off their video sometimes.  Sometimes it could be a technical problem.  Some people don’t want me to see them; they switch off the video.  It could be anything.  I don’t blame anyone particularly until we know the exact reason.  For me, sitting here I cannot know the reason.  Whether there is internet problem, darkness is there for many people and they don’t show themselves.  Then it becomes easy to cheat the Master for them.  They can get up and go here and there.  At the end of meditation they can come and sit there, they are present there.  That means they are actually cheating themselves. 

So, this is what is dedicated sincere approach.  Dedicated.  Every day after this Zoom also; for the next one week until Saturday that we come back on the Zoom, you must be practicing like this one hour everyday at home.  So, then the things will come.  If you are disciplined.  When you regularly practice means you are a disciplined person.  It is not the indiscipline; will not be able to do these things.  People need to be disciplined themselves.  Every day at that particular time.  First bother about one hour.  Some people are in a rush.  “Today I am initiated, tomorrow should I increase fifteen minutes?  Should I increase one hour?”  They wouldn’t have achieved anything in that one hour.  First achieve perfection in this one hour.  Then automatically you will be able to increase.  You feel like [you want to] keep sitting like that one.  In the one-hour achieve quietness.  Just watching; achieve that one.  See that all thoughts and visions disappear.  The mind liberates itself; for one hour it has liberated itself.  That is the real meditation as Swamiji told. 

For this patience is also needed; overnight it will not come.  It will take some time.  But you don’t give up.  You should have the attitude not to give up.  You just adopt.  Remember the technique – “Baba has asked me just to watch.  The Guru has asked me just to watch.  The Master has instructed me just to watch.”  Remember this point and then just go on watching.  Just watch.  And don’t think anything about anybody; who is sitting, where is sitting, why is sitting, how is sitting – is all irrelevant.  Just watch.  Like that.  So, these are important.  Dedication, discipline and patience are the mantras I have always taught.  These three things are important.  You are dedicated, that’s why you regularly are attending this Zoom class.  Otherwise, you can tell a hundred reasons.  You need to go somewhere else, you have some other important engagement. 

Means which one are you going to set priority – to this or something else?  Do you want to achieve peace?  Do you want to realize yourself as that eternal soul?  Do you want to set priority for this?  Or do you have priorities in the world?  Thus, you will be delaying.  It can be delayed by fifty-five thousand life cycles.  You never know.  Once you lose control.  Do you want to delay?  It’s up to your choice.  The Master says “This is it.  You do it.”  Because you have to do it.  I can give you instructions.  I can answer your questions.  I can give you clue and inspirational things, “Think that you can do it,” but you have to do it.  There, nothing else.  It is your mind, your habits.  You have to overcome your habits, and you have to do it.  So, this is so important.  Dedication, discipline and patience; sincerity makes you to have all these three mantras. 

Question:   Thank You, Babaji.  So, Babaji, if one drops the body while holding many mental attachments, what happens?

Babaji Maharaj:   See, this all depends.  First criteria; when this body is available, if you can make your mind as non-violent as possible.  Non-violent means lesser and lesser thoughts, lesser attachment to this world, as less as possible.  You don’t have the extreme anger, extreme greediness; you just live for your need.  You are not greedy anymore.  That is good.  You are not short-tempered person.  That is good.  Always you can keep yourself cool, at peace.  You are not jealous of anybody.  You don’t have any false pride.  Some people throughout their life we see that they keep boasting, boasting, boasting.  And when the actual thing happens, they don’t do anything, but they keep boasting. 

So, all these things we don’t need.  Just quiet to yourself.  Realizing yourself is so important.  So, you have to try to keep non-violent.  So, when the body drops, the brain dies.  When the brain dies, mind is detached or kicked off the brain’s reflections.  No more reflections there to catch because the brain is dead.  Its job is finished, its work.  Its age is over.  So, in that body, it cannot be replaced so far.  The mind will assume its next birth.  Then at that time, what is in the mind, it depends very much.  If the mind is violent, it can belittle itself into the next birth.  But if it is practicing spirituality, like meditation, remembering God, then if its mind is non-violent, for some reason the body ends, dies, death happens, then it will get a better birth, much more elevated birth. 

In human birth also, every time you are born as a human being, to be having an elevated birth means your understanding capacity, your thinking capacity, your observation capacity tremendously can increase.  It can take you to the level of genius.  Even the best genius people in the world have failed to observe the truth about the Self.  The real genius are those great sages who achieved the Self-realization because that is the foremost important thing.  It is important and very good thing about this world also.  We try to see the truth.  “This is the truth, this is not the truth, this is all the myths,” like this, it’s no problem.  But when this body is available, one good opportunity that you try to know yourself first, how you exist, what it is, what it means being there.  So, like this you have to achieve.  Set a priority and practice for that one regularly.  Then if the body dies, at least even if you have to be born, you will be elevated.  You are born to great wonderful parents who have these spiritual habits, who have the best truth.  So, they can give you all the samskaras, acquired habits to you also.  And you also automatically will absorb the right thing, spiritual truths; you will have the inclination to go towards spiritual truth.  That’s how the birth comes.  This is my experience and my opinion. 

   If the mind is violent, very greedy, very angry, very jealous, unable to forgive and forget, these things, they belittle themselves.  They can be born as animals.  They can be born as anything; not necessarily that soul will see itself being born as a human being.  Though the soul is never born, it is the body which is born, but it will experience in consciousness, in imagination as if it is being born.  It will undergo all the good and bad, happiness and unhappiness in that body.  See?  See the animal world.  One is after another’s life, one is after another’s life.  They depend on each other.  One depends on the other.  Otherwise, what will they eat?  They don’t know anything else.  They cannot think, “No, we should not harm each other.  Let us try to find some other better thing to eat.”  They cannot think like that.  Generation after generation they are learning to hunt their food and eat.  Like that, what happens.  So, imagine. 

But at least human beings can think, “We should not harm each other.  This earth is one round globe on which we all are there.  We all need this earth.  This globe belongs to all of us.  We need this to sustain our physical body.  We need water to sustain our physical body.  We need oxygen.  We need so many things to sustain.  We all need to be happy.”  Even that much also humanity doesn’t think.  Imagine about animals.  You cannot blame animals.  But humans can think, but they don’t want to change.  They are so preoccupied in their own ways; harming each other, killing each other, they cannot trust each other.  “If I don’t kill you, you will kill me.  If you don’t kill me, I will kill you.”  Like that. 

That is how I answered, “Luckily, we haven’t found any live species anywhere in the nearest light years distance.  Because if they are strong, they will try to invade us and kill us.  If we are strong, we will invade them, we will kill them because we want to build up colonies.  We are not satisfied with colonies on this earth.  We want other planets also, wherever we go on building, owning the property, “O, that planet belongs to me,” one country will declare.  These things will happen.  That is what is human thinking happening now. 

So, we can overcome all this if everybody practices spirituality – everybody.  If ten people practice, other twenty people don’t practice, that will be difficult again, the situation.  Those twenty people will not allow these ten people to live peacefully.  That is what is happening in human world.  So, just an opinion I am trying to give, this is what is happening; if we don’t practice spirituality, how the births can be determined by our thinking, mental thinking.  Because based on your mental attitude, perception only the world appears to you.  To some it could be a beautiful, to some it could be miserable – ‘one man’s food is another man’s poison’.  So, like this. 

Question:   Thank You, Babaji.  Babaji, so, the people who don’t practice spirituality at the moment, will they eventually get inspired in some way to practice?

Babaji Maharaj:   I think so.  Definitely I have the opinion.  Because when you are pushed to the wall, when you get slapped and slapped and slapped, you want to get out of that bondage.  You want to find a peace.  So many people… when a war happens, apart from the people who are fighting, so many other innocents also get trapped and get killed.  What will be their mental condition?  They want to get out of such a situation.  They want peace.  They are desperate.  They are miserable.  If they have a little bit of spiritual idea, they would be praying to the Supreme Being, to the Ultimate Truth, “Help us to be born in a right place to be peaceful and to realize ourselves.”  Then a Guru will come in their life and will educate them, “There is a necessity that you practice and try to know yourself.  There is a necessity that you try to keep your mind as non-violent as possible.” 

Non-violence is important in this world.  A big challenge for anybody.  The world will not allow anybody to sit peacefully like that.  But we have to accept the challenge.  Outside we do the hissing noise, defend ourselves, take care of our things, and inside we keep ourselves peaceful.  This meditation can be helpful like this.  Outside you might appear – “O, you want to defend yourself, you want to do this one,” but mentally you are at peace.  You are totally non-violent. 

Question:   Thank You, Babaji.  Could Babaji just describe the state of a yogi?  When Babaji says that all of the bondage from the mind has disappeared; the judgment which limits us has all disappeared, is that an infinite state, Babaji?

Babaji Maharaj:   It is an infinite state.  Impossible to exactly give a definition.  Little bit of clue can be given.  See, my consciousness is totally silent, at peace on the time.  Outside whatever little bit necessary, I keep doing.  But I try to keep it as minimum as possible.  Do not go too much active.  Do not get too much involved into the world; little bit.  Like I try to attend to people, give counseling for them.  And pray for them, “May peace descend on them also.”  If anybody is suffering, I become compassionate; try to help them.  I pray for them to the Divinity.  So that they also get peace in this world.  So that they can undertake spiritual practices; they become more devotional.  When they get some experience of Divine’s grace, they will become more devotional.  That is important.  That’s what we keep praying.  Like this, I try to help, and through the Zoom classes we try to guide you all into question and answers, and help you to practice one-hour of meditation, sitting in front of you week after week, week after week.  Whenever it is possible, we do conduct retreats. 

Like this, connected to spiritual activities only will be my activities, actually.  That is the mission.  I don’t have any other duties to fulfill or any other duties to activate.  To safeguard the institute of my Guru so that it can be helpful for people to come and sit, do spiritual exercises.  That’s how we conduct retreats also – five days, ten days we conduct retreats.  We try to conduct meditation, sit with them, answer their questions.  Encourage them many times; even if it’s the same question repeatedly you ask, so that it can penetrate in your mind.  And you understand it thoroughly, adopt in your life and practice it.  Like this, we try to help.  But my mind is at peace.  The quietness is there. 

Question:   Babaji, it’s quite mind-boggling to understand for any ordinary person to have one’s mind at peace at all times.

Babaji Maharaj:   For many people, it could be awful.  But for the Self it is awesome, amazing; amazing that is.  It is there and it is not there.  You cannot explain, but it is there.  Nirvana, that’s what.  You become that, you attain that.  Means you don’t have to attain, you just realize this is all what it is.  “I needed to be quiet, that’s all.  I had lost my quietness and got involved into imaginations.  Then I got rid of the imaginations and became quiet, at peace.”  The source of peace is the Self. 

Question:   So, Babaji, not a single worry; the mind doesn’t get perturbed in any way whatsoever?

Babaji Maharaj:   Mentally, inside. 

Question:   …mentally, inside…

Babaji Maharaj:   Yeah, I do act that I am perturbed.  I have to.  I have to work it out to inspire others and do the things, but inside there is no perturbance because everything is a Divine play.  It is there.  It will not be there.  One day the earth itself has to go.  The moon, sun, everything will go.  So, as long as it is there, we just need to take care so that we have peace.  Like, as long as this ashram of my Guru is there, we need to take care so that it can give peace to people.  People can come and do sadhana, meditation here and they can sit peacefully, learn something from me about human values.  But in spite of that, here also, when people come, they get involved into these politics, that politics, unnecessarily time-waste.  But instead of that, they dedicate themselves totally into chanting and meditating and listening to me, ask any question they have, I try to help.  So, that is why we would like to protect.  One day when this property has to go, this will go.  When the earth itself will go, it will go.  So, that’s what it is.  But mentally, at peace. 

Question:   Thank You, Babaji.  Those are the questions we have for now. 

Question:   Thank You so much for patiently guiding us in satsangs, Babaji.  I know that You have been a monastic for most of Your life.  But do You have any wisdom about being liberated from mental attachments such as unrequited ‘love’ and obsessive thinking?  

Babaji Maharaj:   The practice, spiritually, like meditation only can help.  It is the blanket remedy, so that the mental attachment can be overcome, which could be making you miserable, giving you unnecessary stress.  So, you can remain…  If it happens, it happens.  If it doesn’t happen, it doesn’t happen.  The Divine is the only worthy thing to love and to remain attached because that is within you.  It will never go away.  Like that if you think, you can overcome.  I will pray for you.  Blessings. 

Question:   Pranaam Babaji, thank You so much for Your guidance.  My question is, You spoke about people who meditate and then die can then be reborn in more elevated situations, I think, on earth; You were talking about getting spiritual parents.  But could they also be reborn in, say, astral planets where the conditions are more conducive to spirituality?  Because I remember reading in Your descriptions of your tapas experiences, You saw people meditating in different sort of astral planets.  

Babaji Maharaj:   You see, in this life when you are practicing meditation, spirituality, that is more important.  At that time, if death happens, it will automatically take you to any such place.  Not necessarily be this earth.  It can be any drishya, any world, anywhere which will be more conducive for spirituality, to remember the Ultimate Truth.  So, you do not have to worry about that.  That is guaranteed. 

Question:   Pranaams Babaji.  A few days ago, Babaji, I have a friend who committed suicide.  And I’m wondering, what happens when someone commits suicide?  And is there any way that we can help, I don’t know, with prayers?  So, are there ways to help the people who pass away by suicide?

Babaji Maharaj:   Ah, it is sad.  Such a thing shouldn’t have happened though.  Because when death happens, the mind’s condition is most important.  If it was very violent, fearful, stressful, then such a thing can take to a belittling type of birth next.  But you can pray for them; with the Divine can be helpful.  You can pray to the Guru.  We will also pray for such a soul that may the Divine bless and may peace descend on them, may they be guided towards the Divinity in their next life, may they get a better birth at least, so that they don’t have to be so violent in action, violent in thinking; that non-violence is more important.  That is all what we can do. 

Question:   There are two conditions where we can get overwhelmed.  One is extreme fear, fear about future.  And the second is the pain in the body.  So, when it is about extreme fear, I watch the emotion fear till it goes down, or it becomes a little less.  But if it is connected to the body, like fever or pain or nagging pain in the joints or the muscles, it is very difficult to take the mind off or not to get affected by it. 

Babaji Maharaj:   I understand.  It is really difficult when the body is in pain.  So, if it is not very painful, in the midst of that only, in that pain also, at least you try to remember the Divine by a name, by something, and you will feel a little bit of relief.  There is pain; “O God,” “O my father,” “O Shiva,” whatever you like.  That is one way to practice like that, so that the pain can go off.  Other things you have to consult the medical expert, whatever they can help you to give the medicine, take and overcome such an illness is important.  Otherwise, that can be troublesome.  Only this is the only way with strong will.  Even in the midst of pain also, even if you need to shout also, you shout with the name of God, with the name of the Divine.  At least by that your mind is remembering something connected to the Divine.  “O father,” “O mother,” “O please, O God, help me.  O God, help me.”  Something like that.  That’s how we all did as children, “Amma, appa,” like that.  So, we’ll pray by you. 

Same Questioner:   There is the second question.  When in interaction with the very close people, and you get involved and you get also get pulled into their lives – very close, like the family members – you do an action, but try to keep away from the emotional part. So, would that be considered as an indifference, or not being very compassionate, or is that a good way to handle those situations?

Babaji Maharaj:   You see, compassion doesn’t mean that you have to take the worries into the mind.  Outside, you can try to help whatever you can.  More than that, mentally, you must not worry.  You must not take it.  And such a thing in the mind is not indifference.  You are trying to keep your mind under your control, so that you can be better helpful to somebody.  Like a doctor, when he is attending to the patient, he needs to keep himself intact.  If he also becomes worried, he won’t be able to attend to the patients.  Like that.  You keep yourself mentally fit and try to help them.  Like that is important. 

Question:   Maharaj, I have heard, I have read, and also listened from Self-realized yogis’ mouths like Premandaj Maharaj, there are other yogis – they say that in our country, like Haridwar, Brindavan, Barsane, and there are other dhams as well, if you die there, I mean if you take your last breath there, you get direct moksha.  Just like in Haridwar or in Brindavan, specifically in our Kashyap Dham, Banaras, they say that Bhagavan Shiva puts Ram Naam in jivatmas’ ear itself.  Can You give some insight on that?

Babaji Maharaj:   You see, going to such a pilgrimage is not a bad idea.  But in the pilgrimage also, your mind is important.  Your mind is expected to be remembering the Divine.  At that time if it happens, then Lord Shiva is in your mind, and you get at least such a good birth or as a devotee, as a spiritually inclined person.  If the mind is somewhere else, even in Haridwar also, then such a moksha will not come.  This is important.  Simply by body dying in a place, like a pilgrimage place, it’s not helpful if the mind is violent and it is roaming somewhere else.  Like Ramakrishna used to tell, “Go, take out your old cloths, have a bath in the river Ganga, come out, again put on the old cloths.”  Like that, if the mind becomes corrupted again, then it will not be helpful.  For that, it is important – spiritual practices.  Going to pilgrimage is a good idea, welcome, so that you remember God, you are in a pilgrimage place.  Always have that idea.  Then that will purify; only such a purified mind will be helpful for you.  That is important. 

Same Questioner:   Thank You. 

Question:   Thank You, I’m so lucky I can talk to You.  You mentioned about human’s mind, we have two kinds of activity, one is imagination and another one is observation.  So, could You talk more about experience of observing and being awareness?  Or do You have a teaching about this?

Babaji Maharaj:   You see, I told that mind has two aspects.  It can think, it can watch.  Observation and watch are same.  If you achieve hundred percent observation, then its thinking decreases automatically if you become busy totally with this one.  That is more important.  That is what is taught in meditation – just watch.  You go on watching like that one.  Slowly the mind will give up its thinking habits.  As it gives up thinking habits, all the thoughts and visions will disappear.  And the quietness of the consciousness is experiencing.  The Self is automatically revealed when your mind becomes totally quiet like that.  When it is watching, it means it is quiet.  It is not thinking.  That is what is the power of observation; important. 

Same Questioner:   Thank You, Babaji.

Question:   Please advise how I can truly forgive and let go of anger and resentment.

Babaji Maharaj:   You see, it is important; a certain person has done injustice or wrong to you, but if you allow it to play on your mind, your mind is the first casualty.  You must remember that because of that anger, you are hurting yourself every moment.  You lose your peace.  You can be losing your physical health also.  And all these things are very important.  That is why you need to let go.  At least don’t let such a thing to play on the mind.  Move on in the life.  You develop yourself.  Then you would have automatically answered the other person who would have done injustice or given annoyance to you; if you go on developing.  That’s how my Guru used to tell, “Reply through your karma. No need to waste your mental energies by talking nonsense in the mouth.”  If you develop, if you progress very well, move on, then automatically they get defeated.  They will salute you.  Don’t allow the things to play on your mind so that you have peace.  That is important. 

Question:   There is a God is watching from inside me.  Everything He knows, then why should I pray and beg Him to come and help me, rescue me when He is already watching what I am doing?  I am consciously working.  … 

Babaji Maharaj:   But He wants you to pray.  You pray to God so that mentally you won’t allow negative things to play in your mind; is very important.  Give your time to your children.  Try to give them good samskaram.  All these things are important.  Look after your mind.  Don’t allow any such thing to play on your mind.  Physically nobody should harm you.  Whether it is husband or anybody.  Ask them to stay away from that one.  “If you physically harm me, I will inform the authorities.”  Like that threaten him.  Ask him to stay away.  So, be with your children.  And God will definitely help you.

Same Questioner:   They are grown now and onto spirituality also, deeply into spirituality.  So, I am very happy for that one.

Babaji Maharaj:   You pray, you pray to God.  God will help you.

Question:   I wanted to know what is sin, and is killing a cockroach considered a sin, and are sins tying you to the samsara even more, are they the root cause?  

Babaji Maharaj:   You see, if you have some harm from some creature or anybody in the world, you have a right to defend.  But always don’t keep thinking about it.  Pray for that soul of the cockroach so that it can attain better life, better elevated life.  Pray for them so that your mind also becomes purified; this is very important.  So, it should not be a play and a game for you to kill, but you kill only to defend yourself.  So, that is what is important.  At that time, it is not a sin.  You don’t allow it to play on your mind.  Pray for the welfare of the soul that is departed, and just forget about it and move on. 

Same Questioner:   Baba, if the degree of the sin is worse or very high…  So, a sin is what plays on the mind, that is it?  If it doesn’t play on the mind, it is not a sin?

Babaji Maharaj:   You see, even in the court of justice also, whether it is planned, conceived long time and then killed a person, that becomes a murder.  Otherwise, they will call it as a manslaughter, lower, lower, lower, like that one; punishment will also be accordingly only.  So, you don’t have to worry if accidentally you had to kill.  You did not plan.  It is not a play game for you.  So, you don’t have to worry about it.  Forget and keep moving on.  Sin means, spiritually, if you allow it to play on the mind, that becomes a sin.  In the mind, the mind should not be working.  If the mind can become quiet or remember the Divine, you can overcome all sins and you can achieve the Self-realization eventually. 

Same Questioner:   Thank You, Swami. 

Question:   I sometimes fall asleep during meditation unintentionally.  What should I do?

Babaji Maharaj:   When you sit for meditation, you should have taken sufficient rest and the stomach also should not be heavy.  If you have taken a meal, you need to give one or two hours so to digest it; take lighter meals at a time and take sufficient rest also.  If necessary, get up and wash your face and then again come and sit back, then you will be able to continue better.  It is important not to fall asleep.  If the brain goes to sleep, then the mind doesn’t get purified of its habits. 

Question:   The next question is about suicide, Babaji.  Some priests and even spiritual teachers warn that they would go to hell, but is that true?  

Babaji Maharaj:   You see, as long as you don’t have any imagination, there need not be any truth.  It is important that the mind is not violent.  If the mind is violent, then they can belittle themselves, who commit suicide.  It is a sad thing.  It must not happen.  This is very important.  So, consider this.  If your mind is non-violent, then there is no harm.  It all depends on the mind.  So, for the departed soul, if you are still alive in this world, you can pray for that soul so that your mind also becomes purified.  And if the prayer reaches the Divine, the Divine’s grace can be helpful to such a departed soul. 

Same Questioner:   Thank You, Babaji, those are all the questions.

End of Session