The worm also eats, sleeps and procreates, so what is the difference if we merely do the same? Just as we pardon our hand when we poke our eye, we should be able to show compassion and forgive the faults of others. Their joys and sorrows become our own when we see ourselves in them through compassion. That is the essence of spirituality. Knowing we will get burned touching fire, and an electric shock from a live wire, we will also come to understand the nature of the world and its relationships. We will learn to deal with them in the right way and make the correct decision in each and every situation.
Going to a firework show, we wouldn’t be shocked by the explosions, but if we came from a country where bomb blasts were common and hadn’t been warned, we’d be shocked and scared. Similarly, spiritual understanding adequately prepares us to lead a better and happier life.
The various religions are like pointers. Amma has never asked anyone to change their religion. She demonstrates and merely asks us to love everyone as she does. Spirituality is like looking in a mirror. Seeing the blemishes on your own face, you remove them. You will have the maturity to observe what is lacking in yourself and try to improve and correct yourself. Amma is asking us to realize who we truly are, not to change our religion. All scriptures are just a map to guide the driver with ease.
You may learn yoga and meditation, but the principles of Vedanta are universal and are the foundation. If a normal person is like a streetlight, a tapasvi, or spiritual practitioner, is like a transformer that illuminates an entire city. As a river can be held by a dam to make electricity, and sunlight passing through a lens will ignite fire, by focusing our scattered mind we can generate immense power for the welfare of the world. That is the essence of spirituality.
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