Puja. Barcelona (Spain), 21 May 1988. Beautiful surroundings... the nature is all watching us. The Mother Earth has created such beautiful scenes for us to see. When I was born in Chhindwara, that also has the same kind of surrounding. Now, of course, they have cleared out lot of places. But still, if you go a little further, about say twenty miles, then you find the same kind of big jungles. They are full of tigers, leopards, all kinds of wild animals. And the Goddess is called in India as the Goddess of the mountains, is called as Pahadonwali - meaning "belonging to the mountains"- and She resides on the mountains. As you must have seen that Saptashringi is also placed on a mountain in Nasik, near Nasik. You have been to one year. She represents the Adi Shakti and She represents the half a matra of the AUM. Like three and a half matras are there in the AUM word, meaning the half moon, half circle. Matra means the half circle. So, as you know there are Mahakali, Mahasaraswati, Mahalakshmi, three powers, and above them is the Adi Shakti. So, She is three and a half coils and the last half coil is on the top of all these, representing the highest. So this half matra, Adi Shakti, is the one has got representation in the Saptashringi with the seven... Shringa, means the seven shikharas, means seven peaks- seven peaks. That is, you have to pass through seven hills to reach the last seventh one. So, it represents the six chakras, and the seventh one is that of the Saptishringi - means the Adi Shakti. So, in the nature also, it is very clearly expressed the advent of the Adi Shakti. One may say that, "Wwhy it is in India that we have got all these three and a half Goddesses, why such partiality of God?" It had to be somewhere and wherever you put it, it would have been something a partiality. But somehow, the Indian climate is such that people don't have to worry about the nature so much. You can live in the jungles for twelve months - no snow, no problem of cold, and heat also you can avoid in a jungle. So, it's very balanced. So, the problem of fighting the nature did not arise. Because people had to fight the nature, they became extroverts, more right-sided so the ego developed. And this is the reason that, though in India we have all these great manifestations by the Mother Earth of three and a half Shaktis, people are not egoistical about it. But in the West, you see, people get very egoistical about any thing that they have. It's a crime in India to be an egoist. If some body says too much, "I, I", then it is regarded as sin. So, the situation is different there. When people come to worship those Goddess, these three and a half Goddesses, as they call them, then the Indians feel very happy about it. They adore. Like when you people sing the Indian music, they adore you, they think it's very remarkable. But if the Indians sing the Western music, then the western people start finding faults with it - not the Sahaja Yogis, but otherwise. But this kind of temperament is necessary for Sahaja Yoga, that we appreciate others, not to criticize others. If you are criticizing, then you cannot imbibe any good qualities in you. But to appreciate others also comes through good tradition. In Sahaja Yoga, we have to develop good traditions. We have our Sahaja culture with us, where I would not say that Indians are perfectly all right. They have all the defects of the left side and they have to improve a lot, and they have to learn from you. In the same way, you have to learn from them. As they have to appreciate you, you have to appreciate them. Now, if there's a poet who will sit here, he'll watch the beautiful things what God has given and he'll sing the praise of God. But if there is a modern poet, then he will curse God; his mind will find out some fault somewhere. Modern mind is very good at finding faults, so the sensitivity to appreciation is very dull. On the whole, the sensitivity is less for joy. If the sensitivity is low for joy, then they have to take injections to feel the joy. So, they have to use the music, which is very jarring - should be absolutely shaking the nerves. Otherwise, they are very sensitive to noise. It's difficult to deal with this modern mind because it cannot imbibe the beauty of joy within itself, while the God Almighty is the source of joy. When you see this beautiful nature and the sun playing around with it, you just become thoughtless, and you just get lost into the eternity. But in the modern times, the philosophy has taken place by economics. So we want to see what is the economic value of everything. In that, then we try to develop it in such a way that it is appealing more to the economic value, and that is why the modern man cannot see the beauty, which is beyond economics. He runs from places to places thinking that it has more economic value, but that value cannot give you joy. Up to the point that when it comes to art also people make it an economic value. They will buy a painting because it can be resold. They'll put a money in a jewelry which can be resold. The whole thing you can see so clearly that even the gold and silver has got a brand. Everything is branded, standardized. So, I was surprised that in India every house will have some silver, but here the silver has to be some brand, which only very few can buy. Same with the gems, same with gold, everything is branded. But these are very cunning tricks. By too much advertising and too much conditioning they can have a name, some stupid name, has no meaning. And then they can sell it under that name, whatever they want. Like that we have many names in the West. Like, when we came to London we thought of buying some things for the kitchen and they said, "Phillips is a good name." Horrible it was! All Phillips things were. I don't know what sort of an alloy they had used, it was brittle and it would break like a brick; brick would be difficult, I would say it would break like an ordinary biscuit. But the name was so great, you know - Phillips. I was doubtful because the vibrations were not good, and we had a horrible servant by that name in my family. But everybody said, "What a name! What a name!" So we bought. Now, this is what exactly these false gurus are doing. They take big names, difficult ones. Now one fellow, yesterday, his name was Chidvilasanand. Now what does that mean? 'Chit' is the attention, 'vilas' is the luxurious enjoyment, and the joy is the essence of that enjoyment, is the joy. So, it means the one who enjoys the joy of the luxurious joy of the attention. [Shri Mataji laughs] Now for a Western mind, "Oh God, what a great name." They don't also see the face, which is like a mouse, thin like a bean stick and stinking like a pig. To them he's a guru. And another name I heard was Guru Mayi - the mother who is a guru. Now this woman if you see her, she looks like any street woman of India, who has cut her hair like a western woman with very small hair, you know. Once, Indian Sahaja Yogi told me that in America everything is upside down. If you want to make out a woman from a man, is very easy: the one who has a long hair, and a plait sometimes, is a man, and the one who has a crew cut is a woman. So, this Guru Mayi is without any hair, without any beard, or moustaches, and she uses all slangs and funny abuses of American language. But people are very impressed by her. That is what it is, they have picked on this point that- branded. Like Siddha Yoga - big name. So if you see the faces of the Siddhas, they look like dead people. So this kind of branding has really deceived the seekers in the West, and this deception has gone too far because it has also economic value. Like in Boston they asked me, "How many Rolls Royces you have?" Now you have to face these people who have all upside down ideas about the guru and about Divinity. In the modern life, everything is man made. In the same way, in spiritual life they are all self made and they talk like this where, "I have another life that I'm going to the most expensive guru these days," and there's a guru-shopping going on. So, the whole thing is to be seen, properly witnessed as Sahaja Yogis. So, one has to say that reality is not economic activity. Economic activity is a human endeavor. Say for example, there is a stone here and it has no economic value, but if some human being takes it to the city and puts a brand on it, then it has economic value. So the truth cannot be sold and you cannot pay for truth. This point has to be nailed down into the minds of the seekers. Is to be brought round to their heads that you cannot purchase your guru and you cannot pay for your self-realization. It's not that low and also not man made, not through man's effort. But it's spontaneous and living process of God's Love. I think some of you should write articles of this kind without mentioning Sahaja Yoga if you want. Sahaja Yoga is the other way round. For example, I have my own name, which I carry, and the first name - Shri Mataji - is given to me by people in India. The second thing about Sahaja Yoga is that it has to work out. It is the becoming. Here the Guru does not run after the disciples. Because somebody is rich or somebody is very powerful, there is no special attention to such a person. On the contrary, if you do not have that state and you cannot reach a particular state of understanding of Sahaja Yoga, you are asked to quit. Some people complain to me, "Mother, see, why am I thrown out of Sahaja Yoga? After all, I have done so much for Sahaja Yoga, I have done so much for the work of Sahaja Yoga." Now this instrument is doing some work, but actually no work at all - because if I don't speak through it, it is useless. But supposing it starts thinking that, "I am doing the work", then you throw it out of Sahaja Yoga. It will go out of order. So, the proper understanding of Sahaja Yogis - that we are instruments of the Divine and that we have to keep ourselves properly tuned for the good work. We should get our machine cleaned out, properly maintained and respected so that the work of God can flourish through us. And it's very easy; you have to just meditate every day sincerely and understandingly, not mechanically. You have no idea how much knowledge you have got. Yesterday, those people who came to me from 'Siddha Yoga' told me that they had to pay a lot for this mantra, "Om Namaha Shivaya. Om Namaha Shivaya." And this mantra was told to them in secret, you see, very great secret, individually. And they had to pay quite a lot money to begin with, and they had to pass through seven people and at every step there were boxes kept, you see, for receiving money. Then this horrible Chidvilasanand was sitting somewhere in the dark because his face is horrid, and this lady looks like a man. So in the darkness they just tell them in the ears this great mantra. Now you all Sahaja Yogis know what does this mean. You have tremendous knowledge about the Kundalini, which nobody had. You can raise the Kundalini with your fingertips. You can give a bandhan to the sun, to the moon, to everyone around. You can stop the time. You can stop the rain. You can start the rain. You control so many things. Only one important thing is to get rid of your backdated ideas and your egos and conditionings through meditation, that's all. There was a fisherman who was an ordinary fisherman. He got his realization but he was aware of his powers, and he had to go to another island for Sahaja Yoga work, and he went to the shore and he found a big storm ahead. He looked at the storm and said, "Now you don't misbehave. I am going for my Mother's work and will you behave yourself till I come back?" So the- all the clouds disappeared. (He) went to that village, did the work of Sahaja Yoga and came back; and when he went home and was sleeping then it started raining this very time. Today, I have to tell you that you have to be aware of it. You have to be aware of your powers. You have to be aware of My powers also. They're unlimited, so I can't say you can be aware of all the powers, I know that. It's not easy. But whatever you know about Me, you should be aware of it. There are so many ways by which you can know about Me - that My photographs appear in the sky; that you saw all the Deities sitting round Me in a photograph; that you all had light on your heads is a certificate that you are realized souls. Despite whatever problems you had on your Kundalini, still you are realized souls. Only thing you have to do is now is to keep yourself clean. So mainly your attention has to be all right. Attention has to be concentrated upon your Spirit. Then you become the best instrument, your attention very powerful. It's not... nothing outside. Like, you may think that if you develop a big beard and a moustache and long hair and sit down like Guru Nanaka, you don't become Guru Nanaka. It is not outside; it's the inside state. The inside state has to be perfected. I know I am Mahamaya, but you are very lucky people because I always remind you I am Mahamaya first of all. And the another point is that you have somebody with you to tell you and guide you which none of the saints had, none of the Incarnations had, none of the Prophets had - so please take full advantage. Have full advantage of being My children and bringing more and more seekers to Sahaja Yoga. So today, I would like you to have your awareness of your powers. You are sitting on top of a mountain, and you are sitting on top of the evolution now. In knowledge, you are the greatest yogis; in power, you are the greatest yogis. You can become the greatest saints in righteousness and dharma. Where you lack is the dedication and devotion, the pure desire. Like, these yogis used to go in the jungles, live there with the wild animals and used to practice meditation to achieve self-realization, years after years, lives after lives, because they had a pure desire so strong within them. But in Sahaja Yoga you move one step and you get blessings, you move another step you get another blessing; it is nothing but blessings all the time. You are blessed every moment. But sometimes also must know, because of Mahamaya character of your Mother, these blessings are temptations. So be aware of it and try to keep, with humility, yourself in the center. It's like ego, you see, because like this air you go up; and like these balloons, any fashion comes in you all go in the same direction anywhere it can take you. But thank God, there is a string which is tied. So, we have to be solid pillars of Sahaja Yoga creating the roof for all the seekers of the world, for the emancipation of humanity. Of course, pujas, you know that you go deep. You go very deep into pujas, you touch very great depths. But that is My doing. What is your doing is to seek out that depth, keep up the enjoyment of that doing. May God bless you all.