Darshan with Swami Krishnananda during 1996

by Swami Krishnananda

45. Social Work

(Darshan given on September 5th, 1996.)

A visitor: How should I do social work?

Swamiji: Unless you are very clear about the mentality of people, you should not interfere with them. There are tribal people, tribals. They have their own traditions and beliefs. They have got their own gods, and you, as an educated young man, may think that they are stupid people worshiping stones and trees, pebbles and leaves, and all that, so you try to reform them into a better reasoning. Do you know what will happen to you if you do that? You will be finished totally. They will drive you out. They don't want your higher religion. They want the tree only.

There was a swami in a far off, remote village in Uttar Pradesh where only tribals stay. He wanted to do good to them, to reform them, but how do you reform a person who does not want your admonitions? So they killed that man.

Never open your mouth before any person until you know who that person is and what the requirement of that person is. You must speak only on that subject which is the actual requirement of that person in that condition. He may be sick, he may be having injury, he may be hungry, he may be having family problems. Each one is important, but you should not touch something else. You must be wise enough to touch only that subject which is according to their knowledge. Then you will succeed. But if you go too far, to the extreme of information, you will be crucified, as they did to Christ. So don't do too much social work. Be careful.

There are no people in the world who can tolerate everything. Everybody will tolerate something, but nobody can tolerate everything. Do you understand me? So be careful. Everybody has his own or her own prestige, self-respect. If you interfere with the prestige or self-respect of a person, you are done for at that moment. Your intention may be very good, and you may be a very highly qualified person, a great psychologist, psychoanalyst, and you want to improve the person, but that person does not want your interference under that condition.

A doctor should also be a good psychologist, and also he must be a lover of God. You must first be a lover of God and a very good psychologist capable of understanding the minds of people; then you do service. Then people will bless you and God will bless you.

Another visitor: I want liberation.

Swamiji: What is liberation? What do you mean by that? This requires great education. Everybody here is educated, but this is all foolish education. It is enough to help you get your daily meal, get some salary, and so on, but such questions as what you want to do actually, you cannot answer. Not even the most learned man can answer these questions. He will fumble and talk nonsense finally. You said you want to liberate yourself. That means you want to be free from something. Free from what? What is it that is troubling you so that you want to be free from that?

Visitor: Birth.

Swamiji: In what way has birth caused you trouble? How has it caused you trouble? You are living a very happy family life, so how has birth caused trouble to you?

Visitor: That is not a permanent thing.

Swamiji: You want the same life again and again, permanently? Suppose it is assured that in every life you will get the same family. Can you call it permanent? Your ideas must be clear first. Simply you are using some words such as 'permanent', 'freedom', 'bondage', 'liberation', and so on, without knowing the meaning of these words.

You have asked me a question, “What happens after liberation?” This question will stun God Himself. God will be afraid to answer these questions. You are asking, “What happens after you come to me?” You are asking the question, “What happens to me when I reach God?” This is what you are asking, isn't it? According to you, what will happen?

Visitor: I feel that person will not be there at all.

Swamiji: You will not be existing? Then what will happen to your family at that time? It will not exist? Or will it come with you to liberation?

Visitor: I don't know.

Swamiji: You have studied so much, come and seen people like us in the ashram so many times, learned so much. Actually, you are asking a stupid question. How is it possible that such a question arises? The question that you have asked me is stupid because after liberation nothing happens. If you want something to happen even after that, that means you are not liberated, so you are caught by your statement itself. The idea of happening is an idea arising out of the perception of the world. If the world does not exist, the idea of happening will not arise; and if the world is absorbed into God, the question “What happens?” will not arise because happening is an event which takes place in the world of time, which is this world, and when the time process is transcended, there will be no happening. So how the question will come, “What will happen? Where will I be?” These two questions arise because you are seeing the world. When you have gone beyond the world, you will not be somewhere, and you will not be at some place or some time.

If God sees you, what will He tell you? Suppose God sees you one day; what do you expect from Him? What do you want from Him, actually? Suppose God suddenly appears. What will you say? What will you ask Him?

Visitor: I don't want anything.

Swamiji: When you don't want anything, you don't want God also. Or you want nothing except God? Where is God? According to you, where is He?

Visitor: Everywhere.

Swamiji: Then where are you sitting?

Visitor: In His lap.

Swamiji: He has no lap, unfortunately. [laughter]

Visitor: Then I don't know, just as a child doesn't know.

Swamiji: If you say that God is everywhere, then it follows that you are nowhere. It automatically follows. Would you like to be nowhere? Or would you like to be somewhere?

The mind has to get purified still further to understand this question. You have used the word 'I' so many times, which has no meaning, really speaking. About which I are you speaking? Whose I is it? Is it your I, or somebody else's I? Why did you use that word I? Everybody has an I, so which I are you talking about?

It is better not to talk about liberation. You should not use such words. Ideas which are beyond human thought should not be thrust into the mind; otherwise, the mind will go crazy. This is what happens if you are too wise. Too much knowledge also is no good.

When you attain liberation you will be everywhere, and you will be everything, and you will not be there – only That which I cannot express through my words, because anything that is said about it is meaningless. Human language cannot express it. You can be happy that everything will be all right with you. I will give you a simple answer. “After liberation, what will happen to me?” you asked me. My answer is: Everything will be all right with you. You will have no problems.