Baba says, ‘recognize and tell me your symptoms and I will give you a cure’. Baba is the eternal Doctor and Surgeon and He comes to cure us of our ills. But for Him to cure us, we have to first admit to ourselves and to Him that we are in fact ill and talk to Him about our symptoms. Only then can the Doctor recommend a regiment or can the Surgeon operate to remove the tumor.

More often than not, we either are unaware that we have a problem or we know but are in denial about it. Maybe its greed- we have to have everything and more than our friends. We have to be the richest or most popular and we’ll do anything to get there even if it means leaving a few dead bodies in the wake. Or maybe its anger- we have to have everything our way and when someone does not meet expectations, we lose it. Maybe its ego – I either suffer from arrogance or from feeling inferior – both are false images of myself and therefore a facet of my ego. Maybe its lust- for the body, for material possessions, for fame etc.

Then there are all the other vices like jealousy or paranoia or comparison etc. Many of use suffer from over thinking, analyzing, criticizing the self and others, too much philosophizing without the courage to actually do, fear of living up to our values etc. Vices come in all forms – some more obvious and other subtle. They all share an intimate relationship with each other, when one comes, the others quickly follow.

But we go about our lives as if nothing’s wrong. When someone asks us how we are, pat comes the reply, ‘I am fine’. We say it to ourselves too – ‘this is just the way it is, I am fine’, ‘tension is normal, everyone is stressed’, ‘everyone has to cut a few corners to make it in this world’.

I lie to myself and I lie to God.

God says, I can help you but you have to first realize and tell me what’s wrong with an honest heart. Until you do, I cannot help you. If I don’t realize I have a fever, I will not take any pill the doctor gives me. I will ignore it convinced I don’t need it. And so the first step is realization. The second step is admitting it to myself and to The Supreme Doctor. The final step is to be a good patient and follow the Doctor’s orders. If I realize but don’t tell Him and continue with my life, the illness will grow and become harder to cure. Its like a cancer- you have to catch it early. If you ignore the symptoms, it spreads, gets very painful and might be too late.

We all know when something is wrong or off course because we’ve gone against our authentic qualities of the soul and our conscience which is that still voice inside will protest. We don’t admit it to ourselves because its too hard or we feel ashamed that we feel the way we feel and we certainly cannot bring ourselves to tell God, it can feel hard to face Him.

But as they say, never lie to your doctor. And in this case, my Doctor is also my Father. He loves me unconditionally, He does not judge. He already knows I am broken, that’s why He is here. He wants to help. Let me help Him help me. If I don’t take His help, I will get sicker and spread the symptoms to my children who look up to me, my team members who follow my lead, to others who are in search of inspiration.

I owe it to myself and to this world to be honest with myself and to God.

Often people ask, ‘what do I have to do to win God’s love?’ Its not what I have to do but rather who I have to be- and that is honest. When I tell Him honestly about what is going on and where I need help, He will show me how to course correct. In some cases, He will give His electric current, perform laser surgery so to speak, to relieve the child of its cancer. Trust Him and be honest with Him.

So today, let me take a few moments to pause and reflect on how things are- not in the world out there but within me. Are there things that are uncomfortable? Do I wish things were different? If so, tell the Doctor. He’s just a thought away and He’s the BEST in the business.