This article was excerpted from AMMA: Inspiring Experiences with the Divine Mother, by Dayalu (Ted Zeff).
“Bowing down to all of existence is a state of total acceptance. You stop fighting with the situations that arise in your life. You fight and struggle only when you have an ego, only when you are identified with the body. When you shake off the shackles of the ego, no more fighting is possible. You can only accept. “Where there is surrender, there is love and compassion, whereas fear results in hatred and enmity. Surrender means welcoming and accepting everything without the least feeling of sorrow or disappointment.” – Amma
Mother rarely tells devotees about their past lives. It’s very easy to get caught up in the intriguing maya (illusion) of who you were in a past incarnation. Mother has frequently stated that the past is like a canceled check and that what’s most important is to live wisely in the present moment.
Nonetheless, some people ask Amma about their past lives. When one man did so, Mother lovingly patted his back and said, “It is the present that needs to be solved, not the past. What is happening now is far more important than what has happened before. Only by taking care of the present moment will all your questions and problems come to an end.
“It’s meaningless to look back and try to find out about your previous lives. It’s not important. Everything in your present life is the result of the past. Deal with the present, make the very best of each moment, and everything will be all right.
“You’re already carrying a heavy burden. You have a tremendous amount to unload. By learning about your previous lives, you will only add more to your existing burden. Amma could tell you who you were, but she will not do so because it would only harm you. It wouldn’t serve any purpose. Amma would never do or say anything that could harm her children. Her purpose is to help you to grow and to open up, not to close down.
“Suppose Amma were to tell you about your past life, who you were, what you were doing and so on; what if you were to discover that some of the people who are with you now, or someone who is very close to you, harmed you in a previous life? It would cause unnecessary turbulence in your mind.
“Amma knows a woman who was told by a psychic that she had been the cause of her husband’s death in a previous life. The psychic told her that she had accidentally given her husband the wrong medicine, which had suddenly killed him. Having been told this, she suffered terribly and ended up having a nervous breakdown. So, if this is what the past can do to us, why should we know about it? Of course, there have also been many happy events in the past, but people have a tendency to brood on the painful and depressing incidents, rather than the pleasant ones.
“For a human being to be transformed and to transcend all imperfections and limitations, the past has to die. Everyone has the capacity to do this, provided they have the right determination.
Forget who you were or what you may have done in the past. Focus on what you would like to be, and then, while you’re doing whatever is necessary to attain the goal, let go of the future as well. Who or what you may have been until now is of little importance.
“The past can be compared to a graveyard, and it wouldn’t be wise to live in such a place, would it? Forget the past. Remember it only when you really need to, but don’t settle down in it.”
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By Dayalu (Ted Zeff). This article was excerpted from AMMA: Inspiring Experiences with the Divine Mother, by Dayalu (Ted Zeff). Copyright © 2016 by Mata Amritanandamayi Center. |
