Searching Questions And Fulfilling Answers

A child is like a sapling. In the

beginning, as he establishes a

foothold in this world of adults

he spreads his branches out

wide in all directions. He

questions about and everything.

‘Why this?’

‘How does that work?’, ‘What is

over there?’. He does so hoping

to reach the sky which of course,

is the answer to everything.

In his innocence he doesn’t

realise that the sky is still well

beyond his reach. If his questions

are not answered with love and

patience, we make break his

tiny, fragile branches, and his

eagerness to learn about life and

understand ‘Why?’.

With a broken spirit the

child grows up to be a man with

little eagerness in life. He has no

branches, thus disabling him

from reaching out to others, and

most important, he has no shade

to protect the next generation of

saplings from the scorching sun

which is the bad in our society.

Swamishri always has time for

children. Not just to play with

them, but also to guide them

and teach them. His answers

reflect patience and concern.

He takes them seriously

because he takes thefuture

seriously. And so, through his

answers we can see him -

‘Sowing the seeds of our future...’

Dallas Balaks : What is your favourite kirtan?

Swamishri : All are praises of God, so I like all of them. But my favourite is ‘Joi murti manohar tari...’ I often used to sing that.

If you were our age and living in America, how would you keep Satsang?

Swamishri : If we have good qualities we can keep Satsang firm. If we develop such qualities from childhood, we won’t have any problems. At this age, if we can shun bad company, then no matter where we go, we won’t have any problems.

What did you like doing when you were small?

Swamishri : Going to the temple, doing puja, etc. In sports I used to enjoy cricket and a few other games. But mostly I enjoyed doing bhakti. There were two or three temples in my village and I would visit them every day. But most of the time I would spend in the Swaminarayan temple.

What is the best moment in your day?

Swamishri : God is with us 24 hours a day. In the daytime and even at night when we are sleeping, so every moment is great! We remember God in all our activities, even in bathing, walking, eating, etc.

Swami! What is Shriji Maharaj doing right now?

Swamishri : Shriji Maharaj is everywhere. If we have the right type of vision we can see Him. If we have love and affection He’ll even come and play with us, and talk to us and make us happy. God is in Akshardham and He is here too!”

Why don’t you perform miracles or samadhi?

Swamishri : Only because of Shriji Maharaj are we able to do anything. Not because of special powers. We can only be redeemed by following His commands. If we are resolute in following His agna and live by the scriptures, then all our desires are eradicated and our bad characteristics go away. That is a big miracle in itself! Maharaj has made us give up our bad habits and made us good - that’s a real miracle. Today, youths renounce their families and homes and come here, isn’t that also a miracle?

(12 July 1994, Dallas)