EVERY DAY BEGINS A NEW YEAR

Mahaprabhuji says in His Golden Teachings: “Past is past. Present is here. Future is not here. Your future will be like your present. So pay attention.” Do something good for the future. But as you do not know the future, work for the future now, in the present. Every day is ‘New Year’ day. Every morning a new year begins and it’s time to think: I am a human. What does it mean for me to be a human? What are the qualities which make me a human?

GO SLOWLY
Do not hurry. Think three times before taking action. And ask yourself if your are acting with humbleness and kindness, or out of selfishness, pride, or ambition. Are you not harming others? Think over, be aware! Always asking yourself how you can help others. This is the message for the new year.

PROTECT THE ENVIRONMENT
Make a sankalpa (resolve) to create less pollution and waste. A small sample: We use so many plastics and papers to wrap gifts for Christmas or birthday. Wrapping paper is expensive, it needs a lot of wood, and contains a lot of chemicals and plastic; and actually it has no use – we immediately just tear it and throw it. If only this one point you would follow, we can better protect the environment. We do this for the trees, the forests, the water. To be a human means to be a protector, not a destroyer!

PRAY
Every day when saying our prayers, we shall offer part of our prayer for those people and animals who are suffering. We pray that God may help them. Praying is very powerful. There is immense power in human consciousness, and – guided with the energy of our heart – definitely this positive energy will go towards the poor and suffering.

THINK POSITIVELY
Only positive thinking will lead to positive fruits and results. Be always aware of this! Harmony, peace, understanding, forgiveness, kindness, mercy, compassion – this is what we need. Positive thinking, and positive statements, words, imagination, definitely have a healthy influence on our body, mind and consciousness. Negative behavior harms ourselves and others. And positive thinking creates benefit for ourselves and others. The choice is yours. Think positive!

FORGIVE
Positive thinking also means forgiveness. Jesus said: Forgive even your enemies. Sometimes forgiveness is not easy. Maybe you forgive, but you don’t forget. On the day when you can forgive and forget, you are already on the list of saints!

DON'T BE JEALOUS, ANGRY, GREEDY...
Do not be jealous of each other. In Hindi we say jalan, that means to burn in the fire. Greed, jealousy, anger, cruelty, etc. are burning our good qualities and good energy. Just tell to these qualities to “sleep”, and wake up to the positive. Let us always lead our inner self with good thinking.

WAKE UP
Holy Guruji said in one bhājan “Wake up! Oh brothers, wake up! Don’t sleep in the sleep of ignorance.” Do not live unconscious, otherwise you will die like a spider stuck in its own net. Through worldly desires and greed, we are knitting a sticky net of attachment. Free yourself from material attachments and turn to the spiritual path.

DO GOOD
Let us make a sankalpa to do good things in this world. A resolve to give up eating meat, and consuming drugs and alcohol, so that our life becomes healthy, happy and harmonious and we can achieve our goal – to become one with our ātma, our true Self.

BLESSING
In the name of OM Sri Alakhpuriji Siddha Peeth Parampara I bless you and wish you a very happy, healthy, harmonious, peaceful and prosperous year.

OM
SHANTIH
SHANTIH
SHANTIH
Yours, Vishwaguruji Maheshwarananda