Reflection
Imagine that you have drawn on the board a circle with a certain diameter. The center of the circle, marked with number one, determines the force that created the world. With number two, we mark the circle itself, which is the boundary of the world. Number three represents the diameter, i.e., the force that gave content to the world. And the human being goes through the same numbers: through number one, which created their world; through number two, which has limited the human’s world; and through number three, which gave content and meaning to it.
As students of life, you want to learn, but at the same time you want to become teachers. Today, it is not easy to become a teacher. In the past, to become a teacher, you had to complete at least four or five grades. Even with a first-class education, it used to be possible to be a teacher. Now, to be a primary school teacher, you had to be a high school graduate. To become a high school teacher, you had to be an university graduate. Some people want to become professors. For that, you need to not only be a high school and university graduate, but also to specialize in a particular field of science. Some people want to become powerful, learned people, or to reveal oneself spiritually. How can you become such a person? You have to had worked hard in a certain field and then you would be able to fulfil your desire. In order to achieve a certain position, one must feel love and devotion towards whatever one wants to acquire.
What is the difference between the concepts of love and devotion? By love we mean that which constantly gives and never takes. By devotion we mean that which always takes and never gives. God manifests Himself in people through His attributes: God constantly gives and constantly takes. For some, this is not clear. They cannot imagine how God constantly gives and constantly takes. The fact that some people do not understand certain things does not mean that they do not exist. There are many things that people do not understand, but nevertheless, they would occur. How would you explain, for example, the process of human thought? Even the most learned scientists cannot explain the process of thought precisely, but it flows along a certain path. Whether one understands this process or not, this does not stop the flow of thought. In order to explain how thoughts come and what laws they follow, one must first become the master of their own thoughts.
When we come to the thought composed of the numbers 1, 2, and 3, we say that it is a dynamic thought. Every thought that creates a world around itself, that brings some content into it, is a dynamic one. Every thought that does not create anything, that does not restrict and that does not bring content and meaning to a person, is a weak one. You will argue that you are thinking well. Those who think well, sing well too. And vice versa: those who do not sing well cannot think. The weak person does not think well. Those who are not strong and reasonable, do not think well either. The strong person has good thoughts, good feelings, and good deeds. Someone may say that they have been following the Divine teaching for decades and have not yet become strong and good. How would they know this? Wheat has been planted in the ground for years,, and has seemingly remained the same; it has not changed, but it has served its purpose in the past and still does it today.People live and exist thanks to the water, air, and light. When they open and close their mouths, air enters and and goes out of it. Similarly, they intake water. When they open their eyes, they receive light and benefit from it. Therefore, from the creation of humankind to the present day, they have taken in the same elements to sustain their lives and have outwardly remained a human, but there is a great difference between the primitive and the modern humans.
Today, everyone is looking for the right settlement of social matters. Marriage is one of the social matters. Everyone wants to know what is the right way to settle it. Who should get married? Only those who are intelligent, good, and healthy. They will create a healthy and good generation. If you are not intelligent, good, and healthy, it is better not to get married. There is no reason to get married and create a weak generation. The world needs intelligent, good, and healthy people. Every young woman and every young man who wants to get married should meet these requirements. If so, let them get married. – What is God’s will? – God’s will is clear: only the intelligent, the good, and the healthy should get married. God created the first humans intelligent, good, and healthy, and allowed them to get married. God does not allow those who are not intelligent, good, and healthy to get married. People get married all the time without understanding the meaning of marriage. Every bite of bread that you put in your mouth is nothing but marriage. One would develop strength If they chew the bread properly and their stomach digests it well. In this context, the strength they gain represents the child born from the marriage of the individual to the bread. Only those who are intelligent, good, and healthy would marry the bread and would become strong. This indicates that their mental, respiratory, and digestive systems are well developed. If one of the systems does not function properly, the person would eat, but the bread would not be utilized properly and the necessary strength could not be developed. One would eat, but their digestion would not work properly. What is the point of that eating? It makes sense for a person to get married, i.e., to connect with bread, but to use it well.
Remember: everything is worthwhile when it happens at the right time. Then it is used wisely and gives good results. If you get married, get married at the right time. If you give birth, give birth at the right time. What kind of child will be if born in the first, second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh, or eighth month after conception? What kind of woman is a midwife to a mother who carries her child only one or two months after conception? Do not become the mother of such a child. Do not be a midwife to a prematurely born child. Have the patience to wait until the ninth month. It is not easy to be a midwife to such a mother. It is even more difficult to give birth to such a child. This birth is a result of the old life, which was full of diseases, misunderstandings, contradictions. The old life is a muddy torrent that must flow away. The new life brings clear, crystal water. It springs from God’s Love, which constantly provides. It also springs from the devotion that takes everything. It is said that God gives everything and takes everything, but this is not the case for humans. Humans cannot give everything, neither can they take everything.
Can a person demand everything from someone who loves them? What have you given them to demand everything from them? Did you give them a mind? Did you give them a heart? Did you give them a child? If you gave them nothing, what right do you have to demand everything from them? The mother and father gave birth to the child, they gave something of themselves, therefore they have the right to want something from them. However, what right do the external people have in relation to them? Someone buried the grain in the ground and considers that they have the right to everything that it produces. The earth is the mother of the grain, and they consider themselves to be its father. In fact, is he its father? A bird can also bury a grain of wheat in the ground without considering itself its father, without having any right to it. And a pig, while digging, can bury a grain of wheat in the ground without being its father. It buries wheat grains, corn, and pine seeds without being called its father.
What do the words father, mother, and son mean? The father gives, the mother takes and processes things, and the son accomplishes. The son brings joy to his father and mother. We should have the same attitude toward God. He is our Father, and we are His sons. God rejoices, and we should rejoice. Rejoicing is God’s right, and joy is man’s right. We should rejoice in God’s works with our minds, hearts, and souls. May we rejoice that the mind studies things and the heart perceives them. May we rejoice in everything that has been given to us, that has been invested in us. “Must we love?” “You will love, of course; and besides, the more beings you love, the better for you.” Who has loved all people, all of humanity, so far? – Only Christ. He came down to earth, loved all people, and paid all their debts with his love. You will say that you too must love all people. To love them, you must die for them and then resurrect for them. To love everyone, you must first be born of God, then die for them, and finally resurrect for them. Everyone is born, but not everyone is ready to die. Why? Because they are not born from God. They are not ready to die, so they cannot resurrect. Many people die out of necessity, so they cannot resurrect, i.e., rise up. They wait for the new light and warmth to come into the world so that they can then resurrect.
Let’s go back to the numbers 1, 2, 3. What do they mean? – Lots of meaning is hidden in them, but only for those who understand their deep significance. These numbers bring wisdom, kindness, and strength to those people. When will the war end? – When you apply the numbers 1, 2, 3 in your life. They are able to settle all issues. The world will improve when love and devotion start working together, . When will we be free from suffering and illness? – When you, your suffering, and your illnesses begin to love God. In love lies both faith and hope. Do not allow illnesses into yourself before they have fallen in love with God. You allow them to fall in love with you and torment you. All illness of the kind represent uninvited guests. How will you love an uninvited guest, and how will it love you? Be watchful of suffering and illness, and until they rectify their relationship with the First Cause, do not accept them into your home. The same is applies of humans. No one has the right to love until they have first come to love God. Love implies an inner perception of things. How can you eat a fruit if you have not been given the right to do so? If you do not have love within yourself, you have no right to eat the fruits of the trees. The first humans ate the forbidden fruit and brought misfortune upon themselves and upon all of humanity. To eat the forbidden fruit means to eat without love.
Therefore, if you want to perceive God’s Love and apply it, follow the path of Christ. He came to Earth and attempted to love all people. He paid dearly for this attempt, but His attempt was successful. This does not mean that Christ will come to Earth a second time to make the same attempt. Should He comes a second time, the same fate awaits Him. Should you desire this? Today, all of humanity must offer a sacrifice for Christ, Who first sacrificed Himself and proved that He loves all people. A person can sacrifice themselves only for the One Who sacrificed Himself for them. A mother who sacrificed herself for her child has the right to demand something from him. However, she has no right to demand anything from other people’s children. Similarly, a person may only demand something from the thoughts that they have generated. But what would they want from thoughts that did not originate in their mind? They have nothing to do with them.
Many people wonder whether God exists or not. Some believe in His existence, others do not, but either of them, do not fear God. They fear people and animals, but not God. They should not be afraid, but they should respect Him and conform to His will. Be careful not to fall into the position of the slanderer—the devil, who constantly blasphemed the name of God, for which he was cast out of heaven. Whoever dares to blaspheme his Creator follows the path of this slanderer and he alone signs his own sentence. Do not speak badly of people whom God cares for as His children. In general, do not give in to slander, criticism, or blasphemy, that you may not lose the place meant for you in heaven.
All people today are required to be alert, knowing what they say and do. When it comes to Divine matters, do not let others do them for you. Each person will do the work that is assigned to them. If they do not do it, they will pay dearly. You must leave God’s work in the hands of those who are able to handle it as their own business. It cannot be traded; you cannot use it to secure your material position. It has to be done voluntarily and with love. Whatever work you undertake, turn first to God to see if He would approve it or not. Whether a person is born, marries, or dies, they must first seek God’s approval. Without God’s approval, his life will turn into hell. Whatever work you do, seek God’s approval. Only with Him can you count on success. Without Him, even good will turn into evil. Along with Him, even evil will turn into good.
Follow these rules in your life: eat clean food, drink clean water, breathe clean air, live in a healthy house. Wash your feet and hands before going to bed. Never go to bed with unwashed hands and feet. If you feel unwell, do not look for the reason outside yourself, but do something to relieve yourself. Wash your face, hands, and feet with warm water. If you still feel unwell, take a bath and go for a walk in the fresh air. Do not criticize each other, saying that this person is no good, that person is no good. There are no bad people among those who seek God, there are rather people who are in the process of maturing. While ripening, fruit goes through many phases: such as a bud, a flower, a green, sour, or tart fruit. It takes some time for it to ripen and become sweet and ready to eat. Being so, be glad that there are conditions for the fruit to ripen and for you to enjoy it. Be glad that there are conditions for you to become intelligent, good, and strong. Who makes people intelligent?- God. Then you should expect Him to give you the conditions to acquire what you need. Open your hearts to the Lord without fear or hesitation. – We are not ready yet. – It is up to you to be ready. Clean and get some fresh air in your house. He will visit inside and give you his blessing. Accept God’s Love into your home so that you may benefit from its goodness. It brings precious things – food, light, warmth, and air. It makes people intelligent, kind, and strong. It gives meaning to life and brings people together. It removes the barriers and contradictions between them. Without love, nothing can be achieved. If love is far from you, no matter how hard you try, your life would turn to hell. To step into paradise, into the realm of immortality, you should open yourself to love so that you may.
Many people want to be good without having acquired the right way of thinking. This is impossible. First, a person must be able to think. Their thoughts must pass through their brain, then through their heart, and finally through their body. When their thoughts encompass the body as strength, we say that they bear light in their mind. Accept love in your mind, devotion in your heart, and strength in your soul, so that you may be wise, good, and strong. Apply your reason, goodness, and strength to help yourself and your fellows. If you know that some of your fellows is sick, do not treat them with medicine, but let a dozen people visit them, and let each one send them a thought that they will recover. If they perceive your thought and got to believe in it, they will get out of bed. Thought is a powerful force which heals and uplifts people.
A person needs several things: beauty, kindness, and mercy; bread, water, air, and light. To acquire these qualities, he must be able to think. Whether he wants to or not, he should think. By thinking in a correct way, he will become both good and strong. This is demanded from all people. Those who do not get smart, good, and strong, they would suffer. Now is the time for all of us to be smart, good, and strong. There is no better time than now. Everyone will strive for themselves to get smart, good, and strong. Everyone shouldl do the work that is assigned to them. A share of God’s land is given to all and everyone should work, think, and do their work well. No power in the world is able to hinder your work. If you have had obstacles so far, the reason lies in your weakness. No one is able to hinder the strong one.
One day, the spiders heard that the elephant was going to pass through their kingdom and decided to stop him, not to let him pass among them and disturb them. They began to spin webs on his path to trip him up. All the spiders in the kingdom gathered and began to weave their webs. They wove day and night, and when their barricade was ready, the elephant arrived. He passed unimpeded through the spider fortress. When asked what he felt, he calmly waved his tail and said, “I felt nothing.”
The elephant comes into the world; it will pass through the kingdom of spiders and nothing will remain of the cobwebs. All the spiders will ask the elephant what he felt, but he would calmly reply: ‘I felt nothing’. The elephant represents love. Love comes into the world. It will pass through all obstacles, but it will feel nothing.
You should instill love in your mind, devotion in your heart, and strength in your body so that you may enjoy the blessings of life. Strive to manifest the strength, goodness, and wisdom that God has instilled in you. This applies only to those who are ready to be of service to love. Those who are not ready to be of service to love should stick to their old way of life. Those who have embraced love, devotion, and strength within themselves should get to work right away. No one should ask how to work. Do you need to tell an artist how to work? Once he has a canvas, paints, and brushes, he knows how to work. Start painting without asking how to paint. Times are hard; there is no time for much theory.
Let everyone try to compose a melody to the following words: “You should love, should be good! You should be devoted, you should be strong!” Love and devotion give the impulse in life.
Sing the words:
I can love, I can be good.
I can be devoted, I can be strong.
Whoever wants to acquire love, let them try to compose a melody to the text above, let them close the old notebook of his life, and open a new one. Let them write in the new notebook the words: “I can love, I can be good. I can be devoted, I can be strong.” Then let everyone say to themselves: “Lord, I am ready to do anything for You, because You have loved me.”
This is eternal life, to know You, the One True God, and Christ, whom You have sent.
17th lecture by the Master, held on August 12, 1942, 5:00 a.m., Sofia – Izgrev
Source: Силните
