Baba says, ‘this is the sacrificial fire of knowledge‘. This has been established by God Himself.

The very first thing God does when He comes is give me the knowledge- of who I am, of Himself and of the beginning, middle and end of the cycle. He tells me about the world when it was new, of how it was then. You were free, He says. Peace was the religion, everyone was happy and respected each other naturally. There was no lack, sorrow was non-existent.

I am here, He says, to transform this world that has now become old back to it’s original glory. Foundational to this task is my transformation. Unless I, the soul, transform and return to my original glory, the world cannot return to it’s.

Half way through the cycle, I slipped into body consciousness. Forgetting that I am a soul, I identified myself as the body and perceived myself and others by gender, nationality, status, title etc. I judged success based on accomplishments, trophies, badges, likes and follows. Baba came and turned it on it’s head – remember you are a soul, a child of God. Your self-respect comes from owning your truth, not from these external things, He said.

You have accumulated a lot of false identities, conditioning, social constructs, religions, beliefs and habits. You have to let these go falsehoods and return to your truth, He says.

Sacrifice everything that is old and impure, everything that is not yours into the great sacrificial fire of knowledge, He says. Even your body has to be sacrificed, He says. That does not mean that I literally give up my body- in fact, the body has nothing to do with it, it is neutral. But let me sacrifice the consciousness of the body, the consciousness of the role, the consciousness of the ego. Let me sacrifice everything that is not true- the labels, the masks, the judgments, the prejudices….

Through the knowledge, I understand true vs. false. In introspection, I realize my truth. In silence, I touch base with my own elevated destiny and with my Father. All of these – the knowledge, my destiny, my Father- are eternal, imperishable, constant and therefore the truth. Everything else is perishable, ever changing and false. Truth is the basis of happiness and contentment, falsehood brings sorrow because it’s promise is false, fleeting. Let me identify my falsehoods and sacrifice them.

In the scriptures, they talk about the saints conducting sacrificial fires into which they offered ingredients such as ghee, milk, grains etc. The ritual was believed to bring peace, remove obstacles. Baba says, “this is the great sacrificial fire of knowledge“. When you sacrifice all your impurities into this fire, you become pure and return home.