Namaste.
In this Bhagavad Gita series talk,
We will be speaking about the concept of grace.
You see,
Grace is a mystery.
Grace is what allows us to drop from the mind to the heart.
As long as we are in the state of the mind,
We do not identify with our higher self.
We limit ourselves to our emotions,
To our anxieties,
Depressions,
Fears and worries about the future.
And our attachments to the past.
And due to this,
We are never free.
We never experience peace,
Bliss in our life.
But when we drop to the heart,
We connect to our higher self.
In that state,
We realize that we are the eternal soul.
And we find deep meaning and peace in whatever we do,
As long as we are connected to that higher self.
So grace is that opportunity that allows us to drop from the mind to the heart.
Grace comes in various forms.
It can come through people,
Through situations in our life.
You see,
Grace is always flowing.
There's never a moment where grace is not accessible to us.
The problem is that we cannot perceive this grace.
We choose to be in the mind.
So how is it that we can perceive and access this grace in our lives?
There's this beautiful story of a disciple that went to his teacher and said,
Teacher,
Please explain to me what is grace.
And the teacher reflects and he says,
Grace cannot be understood with the logic of the mind.
Grace is an experience that must be felt.
But I can try and explain to grace by using the analogy of a river.
Grace has all of the attributes of a river.
The river flows from the mountaintop to the valley.
It flows from up to down.
It never goes from the bottom to the top.
Grace acts in the same way.
It flows from the mountaintop of the ego to the valley of humility.
So the more and more we can learn to be humble,
The more and more we can learn to accept the things that life has given us,
The more and more we can perceive grace in our life all of the time.
But if we choose to identify with the ego,
If we choose to identify with expectations,
Attachments,
Judgments of ourselves and others,
If we choose to see separation rather than connection,
If we choose to see fear over love,
Then we will never be in the valley of humility.
And we will never experience that grace which can ultimately help us to find meaning and purpose in our life.
Sri Krishna says in the Bhagavad Gita,
Chapter 2,
Verse 65,
In a state of serenity all sorrow is overcome,
For that person who has a serene mind,
Realization soon becomes well established.
And in Verse 66 he continues,
There can be no realization and no properly focused mind for one who does not engage in the practice of yoga.
Without such a focused mind there can be no peace,
And without peace how can there be happiness?
So the grace to practice yoga,
The grace to focus the mind,
The grace to have a serene mind,
That all comes when we step into the quality of humility,
When we start to humble ourselves,
When we start to see unity,
And when we start to let the divine guide our lives,
Then we find true meaning and purpose.
So with that I wish that all of you can access the grace of the divine flowing all of the time in our lives.
And through that grace I wish that all of you find peace,
Meaning and purpose in your life.
Much love,
Take care.
