Re Faith : Here is one , - 3

[Guest guest]

"Men may be divided into four classes: those

bound by the fetters of the world, the seekers after

liberation, the liberated, and the ever-free.<br><br> "Among

the ever-free we may count sages like Narada. They

live in the world for the good of others, to teach men

spiritual truth.<br><br> "Those in bondage are sunk in

worldliness and forgetful of God. Not even by mistake do they

think of God.<br><br> "The seekers after liberation

want to free themselves from attachment to the world.

Some of them succeed and others do not.<br><br> "The

liberated souls, such as the sadhus and mahatmas, are not

entangled in the world, in 'woman and gold'. Their minds

are free from worldliness. Besides, they always

meditate on the Lotus Feet of God.<br><br> "Suppose a net

has been cast into a lake to catch fish. Some fish

are so clever that they are never caught in the net.

They are like the ever-free. But most of the fish are

entangled in the net. Some of them try to free themselves

from it, and they are like those who seek liberation.

But not all the fish that struggle succeed. A very

few do jump out of the net, making a big splash in

the water. Then the fishermen shout, 'Look! There

goes a big one!' But most of the fish caught in the

net cannot escape, nor do they make any effort to get

out. On the contrary, they burrow into the mud with

the net in their mouths and lie there quietly,

thinking, 'We need not fear any more; we are quite safe

here.' But the poor things do not know that the

fishermen will drag them out with the net. These are like

the men bound to the world.<br><br> "The bound souls

are tied to the world by the fetters of 'woman and

gold'. They are bound hand and foot. Thinking that

'woman and gold' will make them happy and given them

security, they do not realize that it will lead them to

annihilation. When a man thus bound to the world is about to

die, his wife asks, 'You are about to go; but what

have you done for me?' Again, such is the attachment

to the things of the world that, when he sees the

lamp burning brightly, he says: 'Dim the light. Too

much oil is being used.' And he is on his

death-bed!<br><br> "The bound souls never think of God. If they get

any leisure they indulge in idle gossip and foolish

talk, or they engage in fruitless work. If you ask one

of them the reason, he answers, 'Oh, I cannot keep

still; so I am making a hedge.' When time hangs heavy on

their hands they perhaps start playing

cards."<br><br>There was deep silence in the room.