If we are contented with whatever we have, we will be happier. Many of the Sages and the Saints, they don’t care much about material things. They also don’t care, they are not attached to them. Whatever they have, they have. And they are happier that way.
“So he said he doesn’t want to go anywhere. But god insisted. He said, ‘Anything you want from here, you can take it with you. Anything that your heart desires, but you have to go.’” I guess god understood. He’s a psychological expert. So he worried that maybe Adam did not want to go because, here has food, has drink, has beautiful scenery and so why should he go anywhere? So god knows that. “He said, ‘Anything you want to take, please take it with you. But you must go.’” Oh my god! I thought god was just asking, but now he forced him to go. All right.
“And then, Adam went with god, and he took him everywhere to go to see some of the most precious treasures in Eden. He allowed him to take anything he wanted and he chose. So Adam looked around, saw everything. He saw all kinds of gardens, beautiful fruit and vegetable gardens, animals and all kinds of palaces, all kinds of beautiful clothes, dresses and many treasures that are full of jewels, like gold, diamonds and all kinds of precious jewels. But he did not take anything.” (Wow.) Mostly men don’t like it. Only women love to have this stuff, like me. I don’t really love them that much, they are just here already for a long time. It happened from last time that I took it with me, because I changed the place and I didn’t leave it there, so I put it in my bag, and today I just saw it, so I just put it on.
“Finally, Adam went to a treasury and to a store full of diamonds. And each diamond was as big as like a watermelon (Wow.) and shining brilliantly. He was thinking to himself, ‘Even with just one big diamond like this, I can live comfortably all my life.’ So he agreed. He took the diamond, then he agreed to go everywhere to have a look in this world, in this immense, physical world. He took the diamond and went out of the gate of Eden. Behind him, there was one angel who accompanied him. When he passed the gate of Eden, Adam turned his head, and looked back. And he saw the sword. The gleaming sword of the seraphim, who are the guardians of the gate. (Oh.) Then he felt very sad suddenly, he felt very sad. He wanted to change his mind, but it’s too late, it’s too late. So he had to continue to keep going until he found a stream of water. A long, big stream. Then he was thinking how he could cross to go to the other side,” because the stream is big, maybe a river. It says “stream” here but it could be river.
“Then he stopped there, thinking, and the angel that accompanied him up to now, asked him: ‘Why are you hesitating?’ He had not finished his question yet, he used his hand to push Adam from the back and said: ‘Cross over the river now, fast, quickly.’ So, Adam was pushed from behind and he lost his balance. Also, the diamond fell into (Oh.) the river. He screamed at the angel, he said: ‘Why? What did you do?’ So, the angel said to him: ‘Why are you questioning? Just put your hand in the water and retrieve your diamond.’ So, Adam went into the water and then he saw in there, oh, thousands, millions of diamonds. (Wow.) Every one of them looked exactly the same (Ooh.) and he didn’t know which one was his diamond, (Wow.) because they looked all the same. The angel who accompanied him asked him: ‘What’s taking you so long? Why don’t you retrieve your diamond?’ Adam said to him: ‘I’m not sure which one is mine.’ So, the angel asked him again: ‘Do you imagine that you are the only one who was kicked out of Eden and took with him one diamond? (Wow.) (OK.) (I see.) Do you know, before you, there were thousands, thousands, thousands, thousands, millions of people who have already been kicked out this way.’” (Oh!)
Oh, and I thought there was only one forefather. So, god has been making a lot of Adams. (Oh.) And a lot of them also had not been any smarter than… none of them were smarter than the others, so, that’s how it is. Ah, man. So what do you think, guys? Suppose, if god asked you to go out again, don’t ever, OK? Because you imagine outside may be better, but it’s not. And if you’re attached to whatever property you have in your hand, it could be taken away anytime. You know it by now. (Yes.)
People know it by now with the pandemic. Many people lost their lives, lost their loved ones, lost their jobs, lost their livelihood, lost many things. (Yes.) “Lost livelihood” means also losing your properties and losing your dignity, your security, everything, maybe losing your marriage, your loved ones, because… alive, because the economic situation doesn’t afford you to keep each other. Or maybe you don’t feel safe to live with each other anymore when there is nothing to hold on to. Sometimes the property holds people together because they feel secure. And when there is nothing anymore, people kind of leave. Because maybe the grass on the other side is greener. Then they left, and they probably feel sorry. We have also many. I have seen many from our group. Then they came back. Mostly came back feeling sorry. So any questions? No? (No, Master.) I also added some calendar into it already, right? (Yes.)
So, it’s not like a straightforward story. So this is the thing, when we are thinking or relying on material security, we will be in for a big surprise. Many times in life it’s like that. If we are contented with whatever we have, we will be happier. Many of the Sages and the Saints, they don’t care much about material things. They also don’t care, they are not attached to them. Whatever they have, they have. And they are happier that way.
I am happier also when I have not much, like I told you in Rishikesh before? (Yes.) I have only two pairs of Punjabi clothes, cotton. And that is that. Some towel of course, for convenient use. And one samosa per day, the rest I bake chapatti, a couple of chapattis on an open fire myself. I eat with cucumber and peanut butter. I was very happy. I could imagine myself living the same way again and again. I would never regret, I would never miss anything else. But you cannot have everything. So nowadays, I have nothing. I have to leave my birds behind, I have to leave my dogs and I sometimes miss them. But I thought they are OK. Better than millions of people who are in trouble, who are short of everything, and also in danger all the time. So I tell them, “Please, be contented, be happy. Even not happy, just sacrifice for the sake of others, so that I can be more free, to do my work.” And that doesn’t mean you don’t miss them. (Yes.) Or that doesn’t mean they don’t miss me. We just sacrifice.
I thank all of you also, if you sometimes feel sad or homesick or something, but you decided to stay, and work together for the sake of a bigger picture, bigger family. Like the world, the world is our bigger family. (Yes.) Also, actually, without the world, we also cannot exist. (Yes, Master.) We owe them the food that we ate, and eat, the clothes that we wear, and the comfortable things that we have every day. I am very grateful even for the light, for the telephone. I told you, I am grateful for everything. (Yes.) Yes. Truly like that, very grateful. I am grateful to the Sun, the Moon, the stars, I thank them. Often, often, whenever I see them.
All right, we can continue with the Adam story, you want to? (Yes, Master.) (Thank You.) I cross it so I know I’ve done this one. Originally, I opened and there is a story called, “The Gate of the Paradise,” but then I thought, “Oh it’s New Year I should give you a diamond.” (Thank You, Master.) And as saw, we lost it. Our father lost it for us.
This is a story where god wants to tell us that material things are not reliable. If he stayed in the Paradise, he would have had all these diamonds, and he wouldn’t have even needed it. (Right.) But he was not contented. He made a mistake and god gave him a second chance to go back to Eden. Then he forgot it again. He’s tainted with some worldly thinking. He was thinking, “Oh, if I have one big diamond like this, I could live outside easily, comfortably.” And then lost the diamond, maybe lost life also, of course. Take one diamond and lost it, so he is not going to live comfortably again, as the way he imagined he would.
We always imagine that the grass on the other side is greener until we go there. This is the thing with our mind. It tricks us all the time. All right. I think you are over that. Aren’t you? (Yes.) (Yes, Master.) Oh well, maybe all of you, maybe some of you, maybe most of you, who cares. I will know soon enough. Sometimes I thought like that. I am kind of naïve, I trusted everybody until not, until they show me a different story.
Now, we continue with Adam’s story. We have one here. You see, when Adam was kicked out of Eden, when he looked back, he probably hesitated. Probably thinking, going back, but then at that time, all the angels with these blazing swords all over. Nobody can get in. It’s easy to get out, nobody can get in. You can’t even take anything with you. It’s just illusion. He should have said to god, “No, I miss you, I want to be with you. I made once a mistake, I won’t make it again. I want to stay Home.” No!
He thinks with this diamond, big like that, he is going to live comfortably then he would not need god. (Yes.) Because he saw the diamond. If he didn’t see the diamond, probably he wouldn’t have wanted to go. (Yes.) This is our greedy mind, that makes us trouble. Makes us like imagining something that is not happening. And we imagine, we create our own world, and then we think it’s going to be OK, but it will blow up in our face one day or another to tell us that nothing here lasts, except the Love of God, except our True Home.
You see, when he went around everywhere, he saw gold and stuff like that. He saw treasure, he saw other jewels, fruits, gardens and everything. He did not feel the desire for them, but when he saw this big diamond, as big as the watermelon, I wonder how big is that? Some watermelons are about this big. (Yes.) Some are about this big. Like half of my arm length, and thick like that. (Yes.) I saw them. And then, mostly people cannot buy them all, they have to slice it and give to use some part. Except the maybe big company or big restaurant, they buy them, then they can distribute, but for one family, if you buy this big watermelon, it will last forever and it might go bad. (Yes.) You don’t want to eat watermelon every day, that is the thing. Because we have choice, we are spoiled, we are spoiled with choice, that’s why.