This is how the saints and sages live the life of divine contemplation. The lives of saints also are to be regarded as regular scriptures. One of the thrilling, enthralling, ecstatic pieces of joyous invocation of God as one's own beloved is in Tiruvaymoli, a Tamil poem composed by a mastermind, a Vaishnava saint known as Nammalvar. It is also called Dravida Vedam - a Veda by itself. It is in Tamil, of a tremendously complicated style. But now one great stalwart in Sanskrit as well as Tamil has instituted a body to translate into the Hindi language these wonderful poems of the Alvars - Narayana Prabhandam - some of which have been printed. Of course, the Hindi translation cannot bring the vivacity and the emphasis that you will find in the original language itself. Shakespeare should be read in only Shakespeare's language, Homer in Homer's language, Dante in Dante's language, and Nammalvar in Nammalvar's language. Anyway, this will give you an idea.

So, japa sadhana, mantra japa, is one of the ways. Svadhyaya, study of scripture, is another because when you read a scripture like the Veda, the Upanishad, the Bhagavata Purana or the Bible, you are en rapport with the authors who are great divine beings. Their blessings are upon you.

You must believe that when you think something, it is before for you - in some measure at least, though it may be a modicum; but, if it is intensely summoned, it will be there. The world is rich and abundant in all potentialities everywhere, in every inch and corner of creation, and you can summon them by intense thinking. This is the significance behind mantra japa - the calling of the Name again and again. The Sanskrit mantras, especially, are supposed to have a special power of their own apart from the power of the feeling that is behind the chanting of the mantra, because these mantras are composed in a wonderful way due to which the letters, when they are joined together, produce a kind of interaction among themselves - a chemical action, as it were - and a force is generated, like something suddenly emerging when chemical components of a similar nature are brought together. This is the shakti of the mantra. And attached to it is the shakti of the sadhaka also. Your power of thought is another assisting factor in japa sadhana. The mantra itself is powerful, plus your thought is also powerful and adds to its power. Then your thought of the divinity, the devata shakti, also gets added to it. Repeat the mantra, think deeply in your own mind with devotion, and summon the divinity. So a third factor also comes in, in the mantra japa.

Also, there is the rishi, or the seer of the mantra, whose blessings are also upon you. Whenever you recite the mantra, the rishi, or the seer of the mantra, is remembered, and it is said that you should not recite any mantra without remembering the rishi. The copyright, as it were, must be taken care of. The author is important; his great mind has produced the great work. All these combinations, the blessings, join together in mantra japa. Svadhyaya is study of scripture, where also the thoughts of the great ones are there, and in addition to that, the thought embedded in the scripture from the author himself also is there. Japa, svadhyaya and meditation - these three are the three prongs of the trisule, as it were, of spiritual practice.

Swami Sivanandaji Maharaj's prescription is to keep a spiritual diary. You cannot easily know whether or not you are really progressing. Sometimes there is a dull contemplation, a mechanical recitation and a disinterested practice; you are agitated with something. So a spiritual diary is maintained. A specimen of it is given by Sri Swami Sivanandaji Maharaj, but you can have your own questions and answers. "How have I fared this day? What is my difficulty, and how will I get over it? How far have I succeeded?" and so on. You can put various questions to your own self.

In addition to japa, svadhyaya, meditation and a spiritual diary, there is the company of good people. There are plenty of good people in the world; not all are bad. There are seekers of your type. You can frequent them. If you cannot find them nearby, go to a distant place and attend the satsanga of these great ones, wherever these satsangas are conducted. Sometimes a long pilgrimage is also very helpful. Life is boring, often. You cannot sit in the same place and do the same work always; a change is necessary. You can go on a long yatra to holy places. It not only rejuvenates you from the point of view of physical health, but also blesses you in a spiritual way because these holy places are charged with the presence of certain mighty things - a holy river, or even the sages and saints who lived there. Somebody lived there, in that holy place. Jnaneshwar Maharaj lived in Alandi. Tukaram lived there. Jesus lived there. Rama lived there. Krishna lived there. Ganga is here. Yamuna is there. So, all these places become holy due to the presence and impact of all these great divinities.

Continuous practice, without remission of effort, every day - even if it be for a specific period of time only - is important. You should not cut off the practice. If you find there is no time due to some occupation, then reduce it to a few minutes only, but let it be there in the memory. Do not forget it. Lives of Saints written by Sri Swami Sivanandaji Maharaj is a big book, and it is available here. You can go through it. And there is another wonderful Tamil book, called Periapuranam, which gives the life story of the Nayanars, some parts of which have been translated into English, but not the whole thing. You can find the lives of saints published in different places, and study them. Choose a particular saint for your purpose.

Have you anything to ask me? I have been unilaterally pouring something on you. Are you receiving it?

Student: Swamiji, what is the best way to court realisation?

Swamiji: You are a wonderful student. [laughter] And you are a good student, also. You are a wonderful student because you have asked a question on the very same thing which I have been telling you for so many days. [laughter] But you are a very good student because you are honest in your question.

What is the best way of reaching God? The best way of reaching God is wanting God. Tell God: "I want You!" Like a child, you cry. "Almighty God, I want You!" Get up in the morning and tell this: "Almighty God, I want You! Please come! I WANT YOU! COME!" If your heart is open, it will take place. Some miracle will take place in your life. It is very difficult to understand the mystery of these lives. That's why I said to read the lives of saints. Lives of Saints. When the heart is pure, it comes. Impure hearts cannot bring anything.

There was a schoolmaster. In villages, the schoolmaster wants his birthday to be observed by the students. He asks, "What will you give me? What will you give me?" And the children are simpletons. They go and tell the parent, "My teacher's birthday is tomorrow. What shall I give?" They bring something - a cucumber, a kilo of rice, or something, whatever it is - as a token.

There was one child, from a poor house. He asked, "Mummy, tomorrow I have to give something."

"What can you give? I have nothing to give," his mother replied. "Go ask Gopal Baba. He will give you something."

"Where is Gopal Baba?" asked the child.

"He is in the forest. Call him," his mother said.

The simple child, with honest feelings, went to the forest on the way to the school and cried out, "Gopal Baba, give me something for my teacher!"

A boy came and gave him a little kheer in a mud pot. "Give it to your teacher," he said.

The child went and gave it. People laughed. All the children were laughing at the mud pot. Even the teacher was smiling in contempt.

"Oh, this boy has brought some mud pot. Put it there," the teacher said. But the child insisted. "Please taste, please taste!"

The teacher tasted it. It was so wonderful. So delicious! "From where have you brought it?" he asked.

"Oh, Gopal Bhaiya gave it to me," the boy replied.

"Gopal Bhaiya? Who is that Gopal Bhaiya?" asked the teacher.

"He is a friend. He is in the forest," replied the boy.

"Let me see who has given such a wonderful thing. Take me there," said the teacher.

"I'll take you there," said the boy.

When they reached the forest, the boy called, "Gopal Bhaiya, my teacher wants to see you."

And he came, and the boy was seeing Gopal Bhaiya. "Here he is," he said.

But the teacher saw nothing. "Hey, stupid," he said. "You are playing jokes with me. Don't talk nonsense."

"No, no. He is here," said the boy.

The teacher thrashed him. Immediately a voice came. "Foolish man, don't thrash this boy. Your evil nature will not permit you to see me in this birth."

There was a potter saint. He was not a learned man. When Jnandev, Ekanath and all these people went for a religious congregation, this simple man used to tap the head of each person with his stick to see whether or not the pot was ripe. For one of them, he said it was not ripe fully. I think it was either Ekanath or Jnandev.

So, read the lives of saints. Read the life of Swami Sivanandaji Maharaj. There is a little book, written by some devotee. And there is something called Atmakatha, or Autobiography of Swami Sivananda. But nothing will describe to you what he really was. Only those who have seen him personally can know what he was. He was a giant. Physically also he looked like a giant, and he was a big personality and a veritable incarnation of generosity, goodness, divinity. There is a book available here: Man to God-man. Read that book. It is a compilation by one of the devotees in the ashram. It gives you a succinct picture of the great life of the Master, Swami Sivananda. There are also many other books. Read the lives of saints! Read the lives of saints! Read the lives of saints! God bless you!