February

2. Irrespective of whether a person seeks fulfillment of various desires or seeks Moksha (liberation) through dispassion, he will get it all through devotion to & worship of the transcendental Supreme being (instead of various smaller deities). (II-3-10)

3. A man has really lived only during those moments of life spent in remembering the God. The rest is all a waste of time. (II-3-17)

4. Verily it is a heart of stone which remains unmoved without a single tear of joy falling from the eye on hearing the names of the Lord. (II-3-24)

5. Repeated salutations to the Lord of illustrious fame, hearing, remembering and singing whose glories will be enough to wash away our sins. (Suka’s Prayers). (II-4-15)

6. Salutations again to that Lord by worshipping whom wise men of discrimination are enabled to overcome their attachment to the sensuous objects of the world and attain the highest bliss. (Suka’s Prayers). (II-4-16)

7/8. Any amount of practice of austerities, charity, yoga or repeated chanting of mantras alone can never lead one to the ultimate goal unless one surrenders the fruits of these sadhanas (practices) to the Supreme Lord. Salutations to that Supreme Being. (Suka’s Prayers). (II-4-17)

9. Never a lie escape out of my mouth, never my mind ever takes a wrong turn and never my senses get lured to the unreal path. This involuntary perfection is all due to my having clung to the Lord’s feet firmly with an anguishing heart. (Brahma’s reminiscences). (II-6-33)

10. How can we ever explain how the Supreme self gets caught in a human body except to attribute it to the inherent deluding power (Maya) of the Lord? It is just like a man dreaming himself in different bodies. (II-9-1)

11. Because of MAYA (deluding power), the Supreme soul shines through various bodies. Delighting in the various objects of the world created by the Self, the Spirit establishes a relationship of possession with these objects claiming “This is mine. This is I myself.” (II-9-2)

12. Both before the start and after the end of the Cycle of Creation, I (God) alone exist, as there is no other existence of the nature of cause and effect apart from me. (Bhagavatam in 4 verses, 37 to 40). (II-9-32)

13. It is my (God’s) divine Power called Maya which projects an unreal universe superimposed on the Self without any substantial reality and leaves no residual trace when it dissolves into the Self. It is just like a reflection projected by an object or the darkness dissolving in the light. (II-9-33)

14/15. I (God) have entered into all the beings created by my power of Maya as their material cause (like the mud in a mud pot) but I exist independent of all these beings. My pristine nature is also not tainted by my association with the creations. (II-9-34)

16. The seeker after truth has to find out that ultimate substance which persists through all its apparent transformations into the object of the universe but suffers no change even when all these objects are dissolved into the causal source. (II-9-35)

17. Whenever any question is asked by anybody, one should reply after remembering and taking God’s name. This is an effective method for constant remembrance of the Lord. (III-2-3)

18. Oh Father and Lord of all! In this world of birth and death, all souls are struggling, being distressed by various types of miseries. They can get relief and experience perennial bliss only if and when they seek shelter in thy Grace. (Prayer of Gods). (III-5-39)

19. Lord! Sages were enabled to take shelter under they Grace only after cleansing their heart with firm faith and intense devotion thus developing the strength of renunciation leading to the highest knowledge. (III-5-41)

20. Oh Lord, though you reside closest within all the beings, still, in practice, you are fartherest from those people who are attached to their body, home and hearth. (III-5-43)

21/22. Some do get God-realization with a lot of effort and difficulty by resorting to intense meditation on the undifferentiated Self and overcoming the obstructing tendencies. But how easily and effortlessly we can get God through love and service to other beings who are all of His forms. (III-5-46)

23. There will be fear on account of wealth, property and friends and one will be subject to grief, greed, and humiliation only till one surrenders oneself completely to the Lord. (Brahma’s Prayer). (III-9-6)

24. Lord, you are alone capable of dispelling all miseries and sufferings. Certainly those people are afflicted by an inexorable evil destiny who turn their face away from you and continue to indulge in sinful actions propelled by greed and lust. (III-9-7)

25. Oh Lord, you reside in the hearts of the devotees purified by Love and devotion as Pure Consciousness. In your Infinite glory, you also manifest in whatever form (Siva, Krishna, etc.) the devotees contemplate on you. (III-9-11)

26. Lord, even a plethora of offerings from gods fails to please you so long as they are motivated by selfish desire. Being the friend and in-dweller in all the beings, you are easily pleased when a devotee extends his compassion to all the fellow beings. (III-9-12)

27. Charities, Vedic sacrifices, severe austerities and observance of disciplines become meaningful and worthwhile only if they are offered as a dedication to the Supreme Lord. (III-9-13)

28/29. So long as people are intent on unethical actions and being blind to their own interests fail to worship the Lord, the latter assuming the form of relentless Time cuts off their powerful longing to live long. (III-9-17)