Some seekers are engaged in various kinds of satseva during the day. Even when they are not busy with satseva, they are incessantly thinking about it. Sometimes this creates a lot of doubts in their mind, for example, since their thoughts are constantly on satseva, their chanting* is not happening properly. The wonder whether is it okay from the point of view of their spiritual practice? (that is, would this create obstacles in their path of spiritual practice?) From the perspective of collective spiritual practice, if it is necessary for a seeker to think about satseva then he will get thoughts related to his satseva. Along with this, if he is required to chant then chanting would also happen. Seekers should therefore not get trapped in such doubts but continue their satseva. The only things which they should monitor with vigil, while doing satseva, are if their personality defects and ego are reducing, if their spiritual emotion is getting invoked and if there is a feeling of total surrender. Keep reviewing your progress in this regard.

    There are two types of spiritual emotion: expressed (vyakta) and unexpressed (avyakta). In spiritual practice, a seeker’s journey should advance from expressed to unexpressed spiritual emotion. Expressed means in some incidents, when his spiritual emotion is invoked, the seeker gets tears in his eyes or gets goose pimples or he just feels serene. Unexpressed means doing every act in ‘Sat’ (truth) perfectly. Every act in ‘Sat’ has to be done perfectly for advancing from expressed to unexpressed. Each and every act of God is perfect. In their efforts to invoke spiritual emotion, seekers should give importance to doing satseva faultlessly. Dr. Durgesh Samant, the seeker in charge of spreading Spirituality for the Sanatan organization in India’s Northern region, does every satseva perfectly. This has resulted in invocation of unexpressed spiritual emotion in him.

    In Spirituality, collective spiritual practice is 70% important whereas individual spiritual practice is of 30% importance. Many seekers feel that they should give priority to their individual spiritual practice and then do collective spiritual practice. Here one should realize the importance of collective spiritual practice and try to set right their individual spiritual practice while doing collective spiritual practice. Individual spiritual practice mainly comprises chanting, removal of personality defects and ego, increase in divine qualities and invoking spiritual emotion. All these things can be achieved while doing collective spiritual practice; for example, realizing one’s personality defects and getting an opportunity to reduce ego are possible only when one does satseva. Further, in our efforts for invoking spiritual emotion, doing satseva perfectly is the sign of having unexpressed spiritual emotion. It is easier to inculcate all these things in us during collective spiritual practice. Seekers should not keep themselves away from doing satseva in the pursuit of setting right their individual spiritual practice.

    Distressing energies are attacking various ashrams and service centers of the Sanatan organization as well as photographs of deities, His Holiness (H.H.) Bhaktaraj Maharaj and H.H. Dr. Jayant Athavale, belonging to seekers. These photographs, therefore, get damaged. There have also been incidents of bed sheets getting burnt or bloodstains found on them. Such damaged items may be sent to Shri Ashish Sawant through the concerned District seekers at Ponda service center, Goa, India. Contact the centernearest you or e-mail sanatan@sanatan.org.

    Mantriks (practitioners of mantra) from the 6th and 7th rung of hell (paataal) have started severe attacks on Sanatan organization seekers at various places. Due to these attacks, seekers are facing different types of trouble such as losing the power to speak, hear and see, breathing problems, wringing of throat, manifestation of distressing energies in them and needing eight to 10 seekers to control them, reduction in their pran-shakti (vital life sustaining energy), and falling unconscious. In addition to these troubles, there are worldly/material problems like raised tiles on the flooring of service centers, cracks in the walls, bloody hand-marks on the walls, etc.

Information about such troubles may be sent to nearest office of Daily Sanatan Prabhat, by e-mail or by ordinary post, as it is to be published in our books and Daily. The following points may be noted while sending the information:

1. While writing about experiences, details of the name of the seeker, date and time may be indicated. In case a seeker does not want to disclose his real name, write initials and then the real name in brackets.

2. Send the gist of the incident early and the details can be sent later; for example, In short: Seekers Shri Ajay, Shri Vinay, Miss Geeta and Miss Vanita were lying unconscious for 4 hours from --------- to ------- in the afternoon at Miraj. In detail: Trouble faced by them before becoming unconscious and their condition during unconscious state and later in case of all the seekers may be sent in writing.

3. The information may be sent to only one office. The same information need not be sent to Miraj as well as Goa since seekers at both the ashrams will spend their time in checking the written matter and there could be a waste of time.

4. In the e-mail or on the envelope ‘information regarding distressing energy trouble in subtle’ may be indicated.

    In the Kali yuga (era), members of family come together more for troubling each other rather than to give joy or live happily. Since these family relations are mainly to complete ‘Give and take’ accounts with each other, there is no connection with spiritual practice. Sons, parents, husband-wife, etc., are all relations in worldly life (Maya). A seeker should have the perspective that ‘I am doing spiritual practice to attain God, so why should I worry about my relations (in Maya)?’ A seeker's true family comprises seekers. The first obstacle in spiritual practice is our body as it falls sick and the second obstacle is our family members and relatives. Do not, therefore, insist that they should also start spiritual practice. Even after giving them the right perspective for spiritual practice, if they do not show interest, then look at them with an observer stance and concentrate on your own spiritual practice.

    The use of chemicals in manufacturing incense sticks is unavoidable. Chemicals are used in very little quantity in the incense sticks manufactured by the Sanatan organization. It could be harmful if these chemicals are consumed (through holy ash). Seekers may therefore make use of the holy ash collected by lighting incense sticks for external application and not for consumption.

    The Sanatan organization's metallic emblems were being manufactured for seekers. However, the mold of the emblem has broken and there is a problem in manufacturing it. Seekers and readers who have knowledge about making or repair of molds may inform Shri Ravindra Salokhe at Devad Ashram, Panvel (India) on (952143) 2331121, 233123 or on mobile no. 9422437456, or via e-mail at sanatan@sanatan.org.

    On the occasion of national festivals like Independence Day, Republic Day, Mahatma Gandhi Jayanti, etc., national flags are freely used. It is the duty of every citizen to pay respect to the national flag. The following things therefore, may be kept in mind:

• The national flag may be hoisted at a high place.

• Do not let children play with the flag.

• Do not use the flag for decoration or as buntings.

• Do not let the flag to be trampled and let it not get torn.

• While stitching the pieces of cloth for making flag, let the joints not be seen.

• Do not use plastic flags.

    It is more appropriate to use the word ‘udbatti’ instead of ‘agarbatti’; ‘ud’ is a Sanskrit word whereas ‘agar’ (meaning ‘or else!’) is a Persian word. “Ud’ means to manifest. It implies that the root word is ‘udi’ (incense) as the manifest source of the odor waves emanating. Its slang is ‘udbatti’. In comparison, tantriks (practitioners of tantra) and mantriks (practitioners of mantra) use strong smelling incense to control inferior ghosts with their mantra powers and using the threatening word ‘agar’. Hence, the strong incense used by such mantriks is called ‘agarbatti’ – a scholarly distressing energy.

    Use the word ‘udbatti’ while distributing the Sanatan organization’s pure (sattvik) product, as well as in its advertisement. In future, at the time of printing of packaging covers, we shall be using the word ‘udbatti’.

*If one is not currently doing any spiritual practice, one can begin with the simple, but powerful spiritual practice of chanting or constantly remembering God's Name according to one's religion.

• Seekers in the initial stages of spiritual practice (less than one year) can repeat The Name of the Lord as per their religion (refer to Issue 3 Clarification of Doubts section for details).

• Seekers who have been doing regular spiritual practice for over a year or so can determine the appropriate chant for them from the experiment given in Issue 124, Message to Seekers section.