Posted on: 23 Oct 2023
1. a) Should we ask for money that people owe us, even though it is a very little amount?
[Smt. Priyanka asked: Padanamaskaram Swami, Is expecting the return of a small amount of money that is owed to us a sign of miserliness or justified? Below is the detailed question - Swami, Please guide me as to what is the right thing to do in the following Pravrutti situation. Recently when I was outside the house, I was going to a cafeteria to buy something to eat. I was tutoring one student at that time and asked her if she wanted something since I was going to the cafe anyway. She asked me to bring her one slice of pizza. I got it for her but she didn't pay me back for it.
a) Even though it was a very small amount, in such situations, is it right of me to expect that the student should pay me back or should I leave it?]
Swami replied:- You must be clear to the other person and you must ask money before itself. Your way of dealing with the other person does not seem to be proper.
b) Shall I pay my part of the expenses when I go out with relatives/friends immediately or compensate some other time?
[c) Sometimes, family members or friends insist that I don't have to pay them for small things and to take it easy. When I insist that they accept the money from me, sometimes they say that the next time we meet outside, I can pay for the other things as payback. Is it right to agree to such conditions or should I pay them off As Soon As Possible (ASAP)?]
Swami replied:- It is better to be harsh in the beginning than in the end.
c) Shall we need to maintain accounts with immediate family members or not?
[d) Some immediate family members and friends say that we should not keep accounts between us like who owes how much to whom and to let go. Is this correct? At Your divine lotus feet, Priyanka]
Swami replied:- Maintaining the accounts will avoid all types of misunderstandings at any time.
2. a) Is it selfish to aspire to live with the contemporary human incarnation of God?
[Padanamaskaram Swami, If a devotee lives far from the contemporary human incarnation of God (You) and feels pained about it and has the desire to meet You at least sometimes, does that mean that the devotee is selfish? Is the desire to meet You and spend some time with You a selfish desire because meeting You satisfies us only as a soul and gives pleasure/bliss to self only, sometimes even at the cost of Your discomfort to sit with us and engage with us?]
Swami replied:- It is certainly not a selfish desire. The Sadguru will never feel any inconvenience in spiritual discussion.
b) In what way can selfishness be used in Nivrutti?
[b) A tangential thought & a question arises here: Souls are inherently selfish in nature. Only God is truly selfless. Souls can only try to be as selfless as possible without having business devotion to God. So, since there is some level of selfishness in every soul, is there a place for it towards God, since any quality can be turned towards God to make it positive? In what way can selfishness be used in Nivrutti is my question. At Your divine lotus feet, Priyanka]
Swami replied:- Selfishness brings incompleteness in the true love to God. True love is always developed in the total absence of selfishness only. You can turn selfishness as good quality by turning it towards its good face by thinking in the following manner:- I am very fortunate in developing complete true love towards God.
3. a) Is Krishna more pleased with the devotion of Radha, even though she broke her marriage promise with Ayanaghosha?
[Padanamaskaram Swami, I have a doubt regarding the answer You have given to Shri Hrishikesh garu on question number 8 in this link –
You have said that God will be furious if one does not keep his/her promise made on God during marriage rituals to follow Gruhasta-ashrama. But, I remember You mentioning that God Krishna was very pleased with the extreme devotion of Radha because she gave more importance to God Himself than the promise she made to God (during her marriage to Ayanaghosha). Is it correct to think that the context is completely different in both cases? Please remove my confusion in case I am doing a wrong correlation.]
Swami replied:- Radha was a child when her marriage took place with Ayanaghosha. Moreover, for the sake of God in Nivrutti, you have to vote for God against even justice. Ayanaghosha was also not a good person working in the court of Kamsa and was following all the bad actions of Kamsa. There are points of distinction between these two cases.
b) Is it correct to say that God will not be furious with those who leave everything and everybody for the sake of God?
[b) Also, there were other past devotees of God (from past stories), who have left their families after having children depending on the situation. This means that they also broke the promise made to God to follow Gruhasta Ashrama. But, those were the cases in which the bond with their families broke off naturally with sole attachment only to God. You had once said that when such a state of madness for God arises, even if God Himself discourages the soul, the devotee will not think of right and wrong, what is a sin or not, whether it will go to hell or not, and simply take a decision to leave everything for God with strong Tamas. That soul will not regret any decision to leave or think twice before doing it. When that happens, is it correct to say that God will not be furious with them? Is it only in such cases that prove that they valued God more than the promise they made to God? At Your divine lotus feet, Priyanka]
Swami replied:- Such devotees who left their families for the sake of God were the incarnations of God Himself. For example, Ramanuja and Madhva were the incarnations of God Vishnu. You cannot compare such examples with the case of Hrushikesh just because the meaning of the word Hrushikesh is also God Vishnu! You must see the inherent status of the personality of the incarnation compared with an ordinary soul, who is just budding in the spiritual field. Moreover, I told that unlike ancient times, in these times one can propagate spiritual knowledge sitting in the house using a computer and this will completely satisfy the duties of saint. In ancient times, when conveyance was not developed, the saint had to leave his house for the propagation of spiritual knowledge. In view of this difference also, one need not leave the house to propagate spiritual knowledge. This is the concept of work from home. It is better to do better work from home than doing no work in the office.