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(Prem Rawat) There's a story that I like to tell. And I've told this story before, but I don't think people really understand it.

So, I'll tell it again. The story is, there was once a man who wanted to learn how to be a swordsman. So, he went to the Master and asked, "Would you teach me how to be a swordsman?" The Master replied, "Oh yeah, no problem. I'll teach you how to fight with the sword. Sure."

The man asked, "What do I have to do?" The Master says, "Since you want to learn from me, come and stay at my home. Then you will be there and I can teach you." So, the guy is very excited. "I get to be at the Master's home. He will teach me!"

He moves into the home, he's ready to learn. The Master says, "Since you're staying here, could you clean my kitchen and my living room, and clean the outside? And the guy is like, "Okay, the Master says I must clean, so I will clean."

So he cleans the kitchen and he cleans the living room and he cleans all the areas and he's done. So he says to the Master, "I have finished my chores, I have finished my tasks. What's next?" And the Master says, "Do you know how to cook?" So he says, "Yeah, I can cook a few things." Master says, "Can you please cook for me?" So he starts cooking for him.

And before you know it, everyday, this is the routine. He cleans, he cooks, he washes his clothes. He does everything. And this man who wants to be a swordsman starts to get very frustrated. Because the Master is not teaching him anything. 

Everyday goes by and all he's doing is cleaning, and washing, and cooking. So one day, he gets really upset and he picks up a stick and the Master is looking after the big pot with water boiling, there's a lid on there. And this man goes to the Master and pretends with the stick like it's a sword, and he's going to poke him. And immediately the Master picks up the lid and blocks him.

And in this moment the person understands one simple thing: He wants to learn how to fight with a sword but he does not want to learn how to be a warrior. And a warrior doesn't need a sword. A warrior will take anything, even the lid of a pot and effectively block a blow if need be.

Once you become a warrior, everything becomes a tool. Everything becomes a tool.

This is why I think that this is a wonderful story. Because it shows, do you... Do you want to learn something or do you want to become a student. Which one?

People come, and their objective is,Oh, give me Knowledge." anh-anh Knowledge is like the swordsman, "Teach me how to be a swordsman." But what you really need is to become a student. Then you will learn. And you will learn so much more. If you're not a student then you think just like the rest of the world. "Make it better, make it better, make it better..."

But if you are a true student you don't try to make 'it' better, whatever is happening on the outside. You don't try to make 'it' better. What's happening on the inside, you try to make that better.

You try to better yourself because now you understand.

Prem Rawat

Of all the things you could see, and of all the things you could accept, if you could accept the new.

The newness of this breath. Then you have it. Then you have it. You have it. What is “it”? You have the clarity.

You have the understanding. You have the simplicity. You have the courage. You have the understanding. You have the rhythm, the rhythm of existence. There is no rhythm of sorrow.

There is no rhythm of doubt. There is no rhythm of envy; there is no rhythm of fear. But there is a rhythm of clarity. There is a rhythm of being alive. There is a rhythm of understanding: “Gift, another gift, another gift, another gift.” And then, life begins to transform from darkness to light, light that has always dwelled inside the heart of every single human being. Yes, every single human being. Even if that person did not accept that possibility.

Can a thirsty person go up to a river? Absolutely! Can a thirsty person dip their hand in the river? Absolutely.  And just because the thirsty person went so close to the river, will the thirsty person’s thirst go away?
Okay.

If you are one of those “spiritualists”? This is what they say! “Oh yeah! Just go by the river; that’s all you need to do is if you get close by the river, the river is so powerful, your thirst will be gone.” No, it won’t. No, it won’t. Not until you drink the water.

That’s the difference between believing and knowing. So, do you look at the practicality of things? “One life. It won’t always be there.” What are you going to get out of this existence? Just like everybody else before you, you came. Do you know their names? A few you do, yeah. But there were a lot more than that! Billions and billions and billions!

Do you know who they were? Where are they? Gone. What did they look like? What were their struggles? What did they do? Where are they now? What were their hopes? What were their fears? Gone. Are you in line? Or do you want it to be different? If you want it to be different, you can make a huge difference in this.
You can make a huge difference in this. And the difference you can make is by seeing the obvious. The obvious! The obvious? You’re alive. Obvious?

You exist.

Obvious? That you are filled with joy. Obvious?

That the possibility that will fulfill you is within you. Always will be.

Prem Rawat

You can go out and engage with the world normally and every moment that you engage the world, you can then see the difference of what it is like to be with you and what it is like to be with the rest of the world.

And in my opinion that is a very big distinction you should always remember. Because the world promises you everything and offers you nothing. Promises you everything. The inner wisdom even without promising anything, gives you everything. No promises need to be made. Here it is, here's the gift. Take it. Use it. Avoid the hazards of this world. Be in synch with your existence.

Recognize the divine within you. You giving up is the worst thing you can do. This is where you need to know yourself because you need to know about your courage. This is what the courage is for. In those moments where it seems hopeless courage is needed to find the hope.

And there is hope. There's always hope. Just remember that. Just remember that. Yes, you will be faced against challenges in your life that seem unsurmountable. But your outlook has everything to do with it. If you're already hopeless, if you've already lost everybody will abandon.

Be careful. Take care in being alive. In understanding, in accepting. In embracing. Embrace the right thing and you will have good result.

Water the plants, not the weeds and you will have a good yield. If you water indiscriminately it doesn't work. Water the plants, not the weeds. Know the difference between `the plant and the weed. This is what it is all about.

People want to control their mind. They've been trying for so long. You know how long? People have been trying to control their mind for thousands of years. Have they been able to do it? Absolutely not. They don't even get the clue that maybe it can't be done.

Recognize. Recognize who you are.

There is something very profound you can do. You can fill yourself with joy. You can fill yourself with clarity. These are things you can do. Can do.

Prem Rawat

The fact of the matter is when you're gone, you're gone.

I know you don't like that. Tell us where we will end up, Tell us we'll come back. And I understand that When you are in a place, even if you go for a vacation, beautiful beaches, beautiful room, beautiful everything. And you have to leave because your vacation is over, there is a desire to want to come back "I'll be back.

Nobody just wants to have ice cream once. Especially if you like it, "I want it again." But believe me, the reality is very sobering. Once you're gone, you're gone. And that's why so many masters, teachers have said, "Be aware of your existence."

This will not happen. This will not happen again and again and again. And again. We do not acknowledge that. Because that scares us. We do not acknowledge that because that doesn't fit into our plan.

We would rather be unconscious. It is better to, or easier to be a couch-potato than to make the effort and be conscious. It is easier to sit there and complain "This isn't right, and that's not right, and this guy did this to me, and that guy did this to me."

And what about what the creator did to you? And what about what the master did to you? Turned... turned your attention to you. Which would not have happened. Because the attention of knowing thyself was not part of your plan. You can go out and engage with the world normally.

And every moment that you engage the world, you can then see the difference of what it is like to be with you and what it is like to be with the rest of the world.

And in my opinion, that's a very big distinction you should always remember. Because the world promises you everything, but offers you nothing. Promises you everything. The inner wisdom even without promising anything gives you everything. No promises need to be made. Here it is, here's the gift.

Take it. Use it. Avoid the hazards of this world. Be in sync with your existence. Recognize the divine within you.

Prem Rawat

So, in being alive what is it that makes you alive? We touched a little bit on this subject and we have in the past too. It is survival versus thriving. So are you thriving? Are you seeing the value of each day for your self? Not somebody telling you, but for yourself?

Today, is the day when I'm going to practice... Practice, clarity. Clarity. Today, I'm going to practice patience. Today, I am going to practice keeping the doubts away. Practice. I didn't say, "You must." If I did, that would be an incredible challenge for you. But I didn't say - you must. All I said was: Practice. Try. Little more. Just like pushing a car that's stuck in mud.

"Umnh, umnh, umnh, umnh...

A little harder, a little harder, a little harder. And then if there's three to four people, all together now, "Umnh" Just try to get over the obstacles in our life. Ignorance is an obstacle. And we need to learn how to go around that obstacle. Which is the worst kind of ignorance?

The worst kind of ignorance is not knowing yourself. Not knowing your self. Not understanding who you are, what you are about. Yes of course it includes knowing your vulnerability that one day you have to go. And your being created to that point, you evolving this is what nature deemed the best.

That is just how it is. Neither good, nor bad. It is just how it is. You have a quest inside of you to be fulfilled. And unless you are, you will feel empty. Neither good, nor bad. Just how it is. You can acquire as much as you want You can gather as much as you want but unless that space inside of you is fulfilled, you will feel empty. And that's an emptiness that nothing else can fulfill.

Except, you knowing you.

(Prem Rawat) Only when you can do good to yourself.

Only when you can do good to yourself, can you do good to others. It doesn't work any other way.

Maybe people say, "That's not true."

It is true. It is realistically true. This is how it works. If you are not enlightened, then forget about enlightening anybody else.

It would be a mistake. If you don't understand, how are you going to make anybody else understand?

It brings us to the point - who are you? What are you? And what are you all about?

This is very important to understand. This has been said, "Let me tell you a story that cannot be spoken. And if you don't understand it you cannot recite it, you cannot tell." What is the story? The story is, that in the human being is a little bit of the infinite.

So, you've heard before that the infinite is in you. Right?

So what's new? What's new? This is what's new: Go, experience it. This is where my message takes a complete different turn. It's not about, "Oh yeah, just believe me that all that good stuff is in you." There are a lot of people who talk about the infinite, but nobody talks about experiencing the infinite.

There are a lot of people who talk about, "Oh just be good, be kind." Nobody says, "Experience that kindness." "Be kind" becomes a thought, not a feeling. I always thought kindness was a feeling. You feel kindness. You feel somebody's kindness. You don't go up to somebody and say, "I'm being kind to you." So what does it feel like to feel kindness? I'm not going to tell you. Because I want you to feel it in your life.

If I say it, and you believe it, of what I say, then I have failed you completely. And I just want to go back and I want to relate to that little part... The untold story. The unspeakable story. The essence of the infinite is in you.

On one hand you being alive should mean everything to you. Everything. And that everyday you accepted as the greatest gift. And what does your heart want? To dance in joy. What does your being want? To bathe in peace.

That's all. To love being here. Being here. Not here, in this hall. Being here. Being. To love being. Exist, to understand, learn about the self.

When you learn about the self, you cannot ignore the infinite. If you try to learn about the infinite, you will forget about the self.

But if you learn about the self you cannot ignore the infinite. Because the infinite is whilst you are alive, encapsulated in the self.