Baba says, ‘While moving along, some children make a big mistake by becoming judges of others but lawyers for themselves. You must become your own judge.’

The slogan is: Self ­transformation brings world ­transformation, not the other way around. For half a cycle, I lived an extroverted life, looking at others- either being impressed by them or finding fault and thinking: ‘why are they like this?’, ‘is this the way to behave?’, ‘that’s not right..’. I had an opinion about everyone around me, about the community, about religion, about politicians, about the whole world. Seems like no one knows how to do things right, nothing is working properly, the whole world is a mess. It’s so clear…if only they saw things the way I see…everything would be so much better.

Baba came and helped me out, He made things super simple. He said: ‘Become introverted and look at yourself. You don’t need to look at anyone else.’ I don’t need to fix my kid, my husband, my mother, my neighbor or anyone else. If I simply work on identifying the gaps I have within myself and address them, Baba says, you would have done all you need to do. The rest of the world that you spend your energy and time looking at will automatically transform when you transform. How so? One of two things will happen. Either others will be inspired to transform when I transform or I won’t be bothered anymore because my focus and my perspective changes. I no longer focus on what’s wrong with others, I empathize and have good wishes and pure feelings. I don’t perceive them as ‘someone’, instead, I see them as my brothers, children of the same Father. I have love for them, not contempt. I merge their flaws rather than expose them. I wish them well and look out for them rather than judge them and push them down. Baba says, ‘the soul connection is multi-million times greater than a blood connection.’

But when I don’t develop this new perspective of seeing myself and others as souls, then, I get stuck in their faults and my own progress is stalled. I become busy with justifying to myself, to others and even to Baba why I am right and others are wrong. ‘You become a lawyer for yourself and a judge for others’, He says. I spend a lot of thoughts and words in building up my case, even back it up with evidence and argue it in front of Baba and others. I don’t realize that this is Ravan working through me as he tries to sow division within God’s family, amongst brothers. I inadvertently befriend Ravan and oppose my brother. At the end of this self-inflicted courtroom ordeal, I am physically and spiritually drained, I lose my joy and enthusiasm, I lose my contentment, not to mention, my relationships are damaged. Baba says, ‘rather than make remarks about others, it is better to be a judge of yourself so that you can transform yourself.’

‘You are a world benefactor‘, Baba reminds me, ‘do you have this sense of responsibility?‘ If I do, then rather than be a judge of others and a lawyer for myself, I would reverse that and be a judge for myself and a lawyer for others; I develop a soul-connection with everyone. I don’t go to Baba or others and waste their time by making them hear my case about what so-and-so did to me, instead, I go above and beyond with not only being understanding of the other soul but figuring out what I can do to help them. People in the world, Baba points out, judge others based on their words and deeds i.e. their outward behavior. You, on the other hand, can judge thoughts and motivations. If I can make my intellect so pure and clean that it can decipher the other’s thoughts and underlying motivations, then rather than be dismissive of them or angry which helps no one, I’d actually be more useful because I’d know what they need and be able to give it to them. Is it reassurance they need, is there a fear that is making them behave that way?, is it grief? That would guide my response. This, is taking responsibility of being a world benefactor.

It’s one thing to be co-operative in God’s task and do what I can when everything is convenient i.e. when everyone behaves the way I want, when the circumstances line up etc. but that attitude makes me fall short of being God’s heir and claiming his full inheritance. For that, my attitude is: my Father’s task is my task. I don’t go complaining to him about my own brothers; rather, I unite, I remain cheerful and make others cheerful, I remain content and make others content. I create an atmosphere that’s conducive for my Father’s task. In other words, it’s not just about not being an obstacle myself (which is what I become when I complain and find faults), but it’s about transforming others or the atmosphere that is being an obstacle.

Are you that powerful?, asks Baba. I am unable to use my powers when I don’t have a soul connection because then, I am too entangled in the situation, with the person etc. But when I do have a soul connection rather than a body conscious connection, I am able to remain detached and observe each scene objectively. Then, I stay stable and am able to judge what my next move needs to be. Baba says, ‘it is only by being detached can you make an accurate judgment.’ Come to think of it, it is only when I am detached can I accurately judge my own self too. Else, I see everything others do as wrong and what I do as right. And so Baba says, ‘don’t get off your throne of being a detached observer’.

‘You know’, observes Baba, ‘it is really the judgement of just a second: ask yourself, what would the Father do in this situation? is this the Father’s virtue or not? and then simply do whatever the Father would do. If something isn’t the Father’s virtue, then put it in the waste paper bin. If it is, then use it. You don’t even have to think, you simply have to follow Father. And isn’t that the gift of the confluence age?, asks Baba, to be equal to the Father?