There are two kinds of people in the world – the souls under the bondage of
Maya (mayadheen) and the Saints beyond Maya (mayateet). Saints are very few;
mayic souls are more than 99.9% of the total. Whether Saint or soul, whoever
comes into this world, one day must go. A Saint leaves according to his own
will. A Maya-bound soul is a prisoner and is taken away. You don’t remember
from your previous birth how much pain you experienced when you left your body
at the time of death. A person thinks, “Oh! My father! My son! My daughter! My
house! I have to leave all this? And I’m going alone? What is happening to me?!”
This pain can’t be explained. So one must leave this world and this applies to
everyone. Even the time that supreme God descends on this earth is fixed. When
that time arrives, Yamaraj respectfully approaches God and says, “My Lord, Your
time has come. I am only reminding You. If You wish to remain longer, please do
so. I am only doing my job.”
Yamaraj also appears before a Saint at this time and says, “If it is your
wish, please stay longer. I am just reminding you that the time fixed for your
leaving has come.” Saints do not violate God’s laws. We see Jagadguru Shankaracharya left this
world at the age of 32. Chaitanya Mahaprabhu left at the age of 48. Some leave
at the age of 50, some at the age of 80. There is no fixed age for a Saint to
leave. Rather a Saint’s prarabdh or destiny due to his past actions also determines
the time of his leaving. So just as souls are bound to undergo their destiny,
Saints also undergo a destiny. The difference is that if the Saint’s son dies
or all his wealth or property is stolen, he remains ever-blissful, “My Lord,
this is only your desire. Please do as you wish!” We mourn these losses with
great pain, “Oh! My son left this world!” Yes, but everyone knows that whoever
comes in this world must leave this world.
Don’t you also know this?
You may not have studied the Vedas and scriptures, but just have a look at
the world around you. You see a child dying before his father. You see these
things daily – why don’t you accept it? This is the state of our intellect. We
see these things but we don’t accept them. We think, “I’m not going to die. I’m
only 50 years old!” But now you have become 80 years old. “So what! I’m not
going to die now.” If you pretend you are going to wring the neck of a person
who is so elderly he can no longer sit up or a person who is terminally ill,
they will shout, “Hey! What are you doing? I don’t want to die!” If you say,
“But I want to put you out of your misery.” They will say, “So what! Let me
suffer.”
So those who come into this world must leave. Saints leave according to
their own will and souls who leave must return to this world. As long as a soul
hasn’t been liberated from Maya, he must return to this material jail. What
kind of form one receives is a separate point. The one who has practiced
devotion and wholeheartedly rendered service to God and Saint will obtain a
human form. The one who has merely satisfied his senses and wholeheartedly
absorbed himself in the world will go into a lower birth. So whoever comes into
this world must leave – regardless if it is a soul, a Saint, or even supreme
God when He descends. Lord Krishna remained on this earth for 125 years. Lord
Ram remained on this earth for 11,000 years. Lord Narsingh remained for only
ten minutes – but however long anyone remains on this earth, he will have to go
eventually. You should keep remembering this philosophy and be prepared. Don’t
look to your age and think you are still young. Remain alert all the time.
A person is driving in the city. On the road there are also many other
vehicles. He remains extremely alert – what is behind him, what is ahead of
him, what is happening to his left, what is on his right. He also has to
remember the way and his destination. He keeps all this in mind because if he
makes the smallest mistake he will have an accident. Remain ever-vigilant
because you could go at any moment. And what we receive after death is
determined what we are emotionally attached to at the time of our death. If you
have your father in mind at the time of your death, you must go to that father
afterward. If that father is reborn as a dog, that will also be your destiny.
Yanti devavrata devan pitrin yanti pitivratah.
Bhutani yanti bhutejya yanti madyajinopimam. (Gita, 9/25)
In your next birth you will return to the one with whom you were attached
in this birth. In this regard, there are a total of four consequences. If you
are attached to a tamsi person, you will receive a tamsi consequence (narak or
hell). If you are attached to a rajsi person, you will receive a rajsi
consquence and remain on this earth. If you were attached to a sattvik person
or celestial god, then you will receive a sattvik consequence and enter the
celestial abode or swarga for a limited time. If you love God or His Saint, you
will attain Golok, God’s divine abode. Decide what your final goal is and love
accordingly.
We can’t delay the moment of our death for even ten minutes. You may not
even have left your house when this happens – so many people have heart attacks
while sleeping. When we have to go, we must, and no one knows when that time
will be.Therefore, every moment remain vigilant.
गहो रे मन ! श्याम चरण शरणाई ।
अंत समय कोउ काम न अइहैं मात पिता सुत भाई ।
काम क्रोध... अरु लोभ मोह मद इन सों कछु न बसाई ।
यह जग मृग तृष्णा सम दिखत सुख लवलेश न पाई ।
धन यौवन तन छन भंगुर सब ज्यों कपूर उडि जाई ।
बहुरि 'कृपालु' न नर तनु पाइय बिगरी लेहु बनाई ॥
O mind! Take shelter of Shyamsunder's soft Lotus Feet. Ones you call your own: mother, father, brother and son, will not accompany you after death. Moreover, there is no other way of escaping from the clutches of demons like Lust, Anger, Greed, Attachment and Pride. This world is like a mirage, containing not even a trace of happiness.. Wealth, youth and life are temporary, disappearing like camphor. Says Shree ‘Kripalu’, “O mind! You will not be blessed with a human body again and again. Therefore, do not delay in improving your pitiable condition.”
