Pearls on The Path

IN THE LAST FEW YEARS of his life, great avadhut Bhagavan Nityananda spoke very little. But it is said that a few days before his mahasamadhi, on the occasion of Guru Purnima, he spoke for about forty-five minutes.

His exact words weren't recorded, but the gist of what he said has been passed down: "What sort of grace can be bestowed on someone who, when one desire has been granted, immediately seeks fulfillment of another? Such a person does not need a Guru but a soothsayer."

According to Bhagavan, such people were merely window shopping. "They came to the ocean only to catch a few readily available fish," he said, "not to dive deep for the pearls lying below."

I myself saw that Baba Muktananda, after years of working with people, after twelve years of travelling around the world, was disgusted at some of what he saw happening around him.

People ask me, "How can you call a great being disgusted? A great being lives in a state of equilibrium at all times."

Of course, such a being has great compassion, and that compassion compels him to do the work he does. If this isn't the case, of all fools I am the greatest. Why? Because I have an ashram and I let everybody come. I try to make sure every-body goes home happy and content.

Yet I always remember what Bhagavan said, and how I found Baba at the end of his life. Yes, I'm sure Bhagavan had great contentment, as did Baba, knowing he was able to awaken people from their ignorance. Yet sadness came from the fact that he had pearls, as Bhagavan said, to offer, but everybody was content with the fish on the top.

Just a little bit of peace, a little bit of bliss, a little bit of happiness-that is only the surface. We must dive deeper within ourselves, we must become established in the knowledge of the Truth.

**Contents and Sample Pages**