Secret of LIVING

SECRET OF LIVING

Disease is not a condition that ought to frighten you. It is not brought about by agencies outside yourself. Disease is the result of the kickings of life. Health alone exists. It is life alone that makes a man live. Disease is only a sign of health. It is the reaction of life to the entry of foreign matter into the system.

Life's cleansing process is called disease. There is only one disease and that is dis-ease, or no-ease. This means it is the struggle of life to get rid of foreign matter. This disease ought not to be suppressed with toxic drugs. Leave nature to get rid of it in her own way.

The first and foremost aid is fasting. Digestion of food is one of the greatest charges on the vital economy. If you put food into the stomach during disease, the vital power - which is in the process of cleansing the system of foreign matter - is diverted from its function and is made to digest the food!

The only result is a worsening of the condition.

Food does not maintain life. Life eats the food and produces the energy necessary for its digestion and elimination. That is all. Life lives by itself. Food is necessary only for life to build and repair the body.

Satvic (pure) food such as fruits, vegetables, whole cereals, nuts, green leafy vegetables and milk, nourishes the body and helps life. It does not need to be eaten with appetisers, which act as aeroplanes to carry the food to the stomach, since such food is not demanded by the life-fire within.

This life-fire is God Himself. Man should wait for the appearance of this God within and only then offer Him some food. But nowadays people mistake the cravings of the palate for hunger. Perhaps hunger is a joy they have never experienced.

Real hunger, as it is in the form of the Lord Himself, is indescribable in its nature, even as God Himself is. To know this one has to experience it. One cannot be told by another.

By SIVANANDA

Understanding "LOVE"

LOVE ALL -- by SIVANANDA Love is happiness. Love is life. Love is energy. Love is immortality. Love is wisdom. Love never fails. Love is success. Love is victory. Love is eternal sunshine. Love alone creates and unites. Love is the moving principle of all forms of fellowship. When you realise your oneness with a man, you can really love him whole- heartedly. The world can only be united for common welfare through unselfish, pure, divine love. Love dissolves hatred and animosity. Love promotes understanding. To love all as one loves oneself, is the succinct statement of dharma. Universal love is the mark of saintliness. Without love there is no life. God resides in all creatures. God is immanent in all forms. Therefore love all. Be compassionate to all creatures. This gives the greatest joy to God. Love all in the one love divine. Modern civilisation is complicated and artificial. Simple folk live in a world of love and peace. Let no one hate another or harm another. Look not at the defects of your neighbours. Look at your own shortcomings and imperfections. Love one another. When these principles govern an individual's life, then man is happy, peaceful and joyful. Love is the basis of all real and permanent happiness, of all real and permanent peace. Love is the supreme gift; it is the greatest thing in the world. Love never fails. Perfect love casts out fear. Love lends impetus and incentive to life. It makes one daring, courageous and strong. Love makes one generous, unselfish, patient, merciful and forgiving. Love discloses the sublimest meaning and purpose of life. Love makes one have good-will towards his neighbour, loyalty towards his friends, and it gives compassion for the enemy. To love is to suffer. Love and suffering always go together.