Baba says, ‘don’t forget to follow Shrimat’. Shrimat makes me ‘Shri‘ – elevated. Everything else makes you fall further down, He says.

Baba is my Father, Teacher and Satguru in One. As my Father, He nourishes me, He loves and cares for me. As my Teacher, He teaches me the difference between right and wrong. As my Guru, He guides me at every step, in every situation. Do I listen? Do I follow His instruction?

Many of us listen to Baba every morning with a lot of love. He speaks the sweetest things, He certainly paints a beautiful picture of the new world and my favorite part is His vision of me- an angel who is completely viceless, loves everyone and loved by all, detached from the old world and Baba’s helper in creating the new. It makes me smile and I even visualize myself as that.

Then comes the rest of the day.

I am in that meeting with that ‘special someone’ who knows how to press my buttons. It’s like nothing I do is ever right or they have me help with stuff that they then claim credit for. I mean, yes, Baba says I have to be tolerant and accommodating and forgiving but it certainly can’t be with this person! That would be ridiculous! Then, there is that person on the team who for some reason doesn’t have a sense of accountability. You count on them for something and they don’t deliver….what is the point of having them around?! Those people in my building…do they have to talk so much all the time, it’s like they have nothing better to do. And I wish my own family would appreciate what I do for them a little more…do I have to work and clean up at home…

Clearly, the rules apply selectively, right? Wrong.

It’s easy to be nice to people who I am naturally compatible with. There is nothing great in that, says Baba. Can you be nice to everyone? That’s what an angel is able to do. And they do it not by reminding themselves ‘I have to be kind’, ‘I have to be tolerant’, ‘I have to be forgiving’ etc. They do it by reminding themselves of who they are – a divine soul, a child of God, His helper in the task of world transformation. That awareness evokes different thoughts, feelings and behaviors. I am not influenced by other’s behaviors, I am firmly situated in my own identity. I have made myself powerful enough through knowledge and remembrance such that rather than be the embodiment of the problem, I know to be the embodiment of the solution.

That means that when a situation arises, I don’t react and generate negative feelings or feelings of anxiety. I instead detach from the situation and then step back in with a perspective on what I need to do to resolve. I don’t get into the I vs. the rest of the world or right vs wrong but instead move to work together. If I need to make changes even with say a team member, I do so without judgment or criticism, but rather with respect. I help with finding a different role that might be a better fit for their skill set. It’s not about being passive or meek, it’s being knowledgful and tactful.

‘Don’t listen to the Shrimat and then forget about it. If you do, there is no chance for transformation‘, cautions Baba. Don’t think that this does not apply to me. He also says, there is no one else who can tell you the truth because they don’t know it themselves. There are so many gurus and false gods in the world, there are as many opinions as there are people, He says. But only I am the Satguru (True Guru) who can show the path to liberation-in-life. Follow Me alone, He says.

So the next time, something comes up, let me not waste time discussing it with ‘my best friend’ or ‘my colleague’ or anyone else – I will always find people who will endorse my judgment or my feeling of angst or jealousy. I will always find someone who will ‘understand’. But they are not my reference point, Baba is. Let me only listen to Him and follow His instruction. True, tested and approved.