9201. Something Inside Me

My sweet Lord,
Something inside me is making me feel
That You are my journey’s start
And You are my journey’s only Goal.

9202. The Future-Tree

The future-tree is nothing but
The Eternal-Now-Tree,
Which is eternally blossoming
Right in front of you.
You have only to climb up
To satisfy your immortal hunger.

9203. A Special Message

The Supreme has a special message
For you:
“Be happy and remain happy!”

9204. True Happiness

True happiness comes
From your discipline-life
And not from your pleasure-life.

9205. Your Happiness-Gift

Of all the gifts
You have offered to God,
Your happiness-gift
He treasures most.

9206. To Fight Heroically

Do you want to fight heroically
Against the ignorance-giant?
Then be happy!

9207. Work, Pray And Meditate Soulfully

Work, pray and meditate soulfully.
You are bound to remain happy
And make most satisfactory progress.

9208. The Happiness-Flower Blossoms

From the discipline-life-bud
The happiness-flower blossoms
Into immediate progress.

9209. The Best Judge

No one else has to tell you
When you have fallen
In your spiritual life.
Your own conscience
Is the best judge.

9210. When His Sincerity Pinched Him

He could not even fool himself.
When his sincerity pinched him,
He saw what he was
Once upon a time
And what he had now become.

9211. Just Stay In The Boat

To try to cross the ignorance-sea
Without a divine boat
Is an almost impossible task.
Therefore, if you have a boat
And a boatman,
Just stay in the boat
Until you reach the Golden Shore.

9212. A Beautiful, Fresh Flower

Every day feel that you are
A most beautiful, fresh flower
And offer yourself to your Beloved Supreme.
Otherwise, as the years advance,
You will feel you are becoming
A dry, withered flower
That cannot even be placed on the shrine.

9213. To Keep Your Inner Newness

To keep your inner newness
And freshness,
You need only one quality:
Cheerfulness.

9214. Your Cheerfulness-Shield

When they see your cheerfulness-shield,
Frustration, depression, doubt,
Anxiety and worry
Will not dare to attack you.

9215. Obedience Is Salvation

Obedience is salvation.
Salvation is satisfaction.
Satisfaction is nothing other than
God Himself.

9216. A Good Student Of Life

To be a good student of life
You must feel the necessity of going
Not only to the outer school
But also to the inner school.

9217. All Will Be Fulfilled

Right now the spiritual life
Is illumining and fulfilling
Only on the psychic plane.
But I assure you,
Eventually the physical, vital
And mental planes
Will also be illumined and fulfilled.

9218. God Expedites That Hour

Everybody has to realise God
Eventually,
But God Himself expedites
That golden Hour
For His chosen children.

9219. To Realise The Highest Absolute

O seekers of the ultimate Truth,
You are God’s chosen children.
He is giving you the greatest opportunity
In every possible way
To walk, march and run
Along the spiritual road
To realise the Highest Absolute.

9220. A Lover Of All That Lives

If you become
A lover of all that lives
In God’s entire creation,
Then God the Supreme Chooser
Will, without fail, grant you
His Vision’s earth-transforming Voice.

9221. If You Make A Mistake

If you make a mistake
In spite of your best intentions,
Remember this mantra:
“The past is dust”.

9222. You Will Have Another Chance

If your Himalayan blunders
Are torturing you,
Tell yourself,
“I am walking along Eternity’s Road.
Tomorrow I will have another chance
To do the right thing.”

9223. What Have I Done?

I was supposed to be granted
God-Victory’s transcendental Glory.
Alas, what have I done?
I have allowed myself to be pierced
By the poison-arrow of self-doubt.

9224. Surmount Each Obstacle

Courageously surmount each obstacle
On your spiritual journey,
And continue to walk, march and run
Along the sunlit path.

9225. You Are Not A Hopeless Case

Although you make deplorable mistakes
Time and again,
You are not a hopeless case.
You will be given
Opportunity after opportunity
To transcend and illumine your mistakes.

9226. No Longer A Spiritual Infant

Your undivine life
Is a thing of the past.
You are no longer
The same spiritual infant
Who once enjoyed that childish life.
In you wisdom-light
Has finally dawned.

9227. Start Doing The Right Thing!

Start doing the right thing!
Lo, you have made considerable progress
In your human life,
Not to speak of your divine life.

9228. Your Eternal Moon Of Love

O my soul,
If you want to come down,
Then come down with your
Eternal moon of love.

O my body,
If you want to go up,
Then go up with your
Eternal sun of strength.

9229. True Spiritual Service

Work cheerfully, soulfully
And devotedly
With a spirit of oneness.
That is true spiritual service.

9230. A New Opportunity

When each day dawns,
Meditate on what is most difficult
For you to achieve in your spiritual life,
For each day brings
A new opportunity
For you to achieve that very thing.

9231. Choose The Right Medicine

Choose the right medicine:
Doubt-disease
Needs faith-medicine;
Impurity-disease
Needs purity-medicine.

9232. My Two Age-Old Enemies

Alas, my two age-old enemies,
Doubt and impurity,
Are destroying my hope
Of ever achieving conscious oneness
With my Beloved Supreme.

9233. See Yourself

If doubt enters your inner life,
See yourself as a little child
Who is all faith.

If impurity enters your inner life,
See yourself as a beautiful flower
Which is all purity.

9234. You Need Not Wait

In the Universal Consciousness
Of the Supreme,
Everybody has always existed,
Everybody always exists
And everybody will always exist.
Therefore, you need not wait for others
To accept the spiritual life.
Just run the fastest
Towards your destined goal.

9235. A Heart Larger Than The Largest

Because he has a heart
Larger than the largest,
The Supreme has given him
His own God-Wisdom to use.

9236. If You Want To Love God

If you want to love God,
First you have to get that love
From God.
If you want to give joy to God,
First you have to get that joy
From God.

9237. Wait Only For Those

On your inner journey
Wait only for those
Who are just one step behind you.

9238. The Sacred Bridge

Your Master is the sacred bridge
To help you cross the turbulent life-river
And reach your destined goal.

9239. Never Feel, Never Allow

Never feel
That you have received everything
From your inner life.

Never allow
Relaxation to be
Your inner or outer name.

9240. Practise Spirituality Soulfully

Practise spirituality soulfully:
It is your immeasurable inner gain.
Practise spirituality mechanically:
It is your inconceivable inner loss.

9241. Do Not Look Backwards

Do not look backwards
Or even sideways!
You will stumble
And slow your aspiration-pace.
Run forward
With one-pointed concentration
Towards your destined goal.

9242. The Life Of Your Choice

Spirituality is the life
Of your choice.
God-realisation will be the fruit
Of your hard work.

9243. Make Your Choice!

Make your choice!
Choose conscious union with God
Or be forced to face
Cold oblivion-night.

9244. Let Me Be Absolutely Blind

I am a tiny drop.
At last I am ready
To throw myself into the ocean.
But let me not look around!
Let me be absolutely blind
Or I shall immediately see
That other drops are also
Ready to jump.
O my stupid insecurity!

9245. Your Ancient Scars

Do not remember
Your ancient scars.
Otherwise you will continue to meet
With ever-new disasters.

9246. To Fulfil God's Special Purpose

Offer your heart’s gratitude
To the soul of your country.
Not by chance were you born there,
But to fulfil God’s special Purpose.

9247. I Pray To God

Every morning I pray to God
To forgive my doubtful mind.
Every evening I pray to God
To forgive my ungrateful life.

9248. Your Inner Sun

Once your inner sun
Comes to the fore,
Your spiritual life
Will be all sunshine.

9249. Many Suns Inside You

In the sky you see only one sun,
But inside your being there are many suns.
The light from even one of these inner suns
Can easily illumine
The darkness of your lower self.

9250. I Just Keep Silent

My Lord Supreme,
What do You do with those
Who do not please You?
“My son,
As long as they do not
Deliberately displease Me,
I just keep silent.”

9251. Loneliness

Loneliness is not
A sign of greatness.
Loneliness is not
A sign of goodness.
Loneliness is your ignorance-life’s
Self-styled reality.

9252. Try To Become Better

True, you are a good seeker,
But that does not mean
You should not sincerely and soulfully
Try to become better.

9253. Make A Desperate Effort!

Make a desperate effort
To go beyond
What you have already
Received and achieved!

9254. An Unfrequented Path

The path of unconditional surrender
Always remains
Unfrequented.

9255. Deposits And Withdrawals

Although he was an advanced seeker
With much inner wealth,
He regularly withdrew from his heart-bank
Until ultimately he became
Spiritually poverty-stricken.

Although she was a new seeker
With no inner wealth,
She regularly deposited
Into her heart-bank
Until eventually she became
Spiritually wealthy.

9256. Continue Increasing Your Capacity

However great your inner capacity may be,
Continue increasing it.
The Supreme will be
Much more pleased with you
Than with those who have
Even greater capacity
But are not using it.

9257. Visible Man, Invisible God

Visible man
With Eternity’s hunger.
Invisible God
With Infinity’s Feast.

9258. All-Conquering Compassion-Waves

O concentration-weakening thoughts,
I shall conquer you and your pride
With my Lord’s all-conquering
Compassion-Waves.

9259. If The Supreme Is Confident

If the Supreme is confident
That you will not go back
To your life of doubt, insecurity
And impurity,
Then He will choose you
To come back into the world
To hold aloft His Victory-Banner.

9260. Only To Free Themselves

Those who do not please the Supreme
Will come again and again
Into the world,
Not to manifest Him,
But only to free themselves
From the fetters of ignorance.

9261. My Life Has No Joy

My Lord Supreme,
My life has no joy
Because I am listening
To my earth-bound mind
And not to my Heaven-free heart.

“My child,
Since your heart is so pure
And your mind is so impure,
Why do you care for your mind
More than you care for your heart?”

9262. To See The Birth Of Truth

To train your eye
So that it can see
The birth of Truth,
What you need first
Is God’s Compassion-Eye
Inside His Forgiveness-Heart.

9263. God's Compassion-Magnet

God’s Compassion-Magnet
Is always ready to draw
Both our good qualities
And our bad qualities.

9264. On The Strength Of Our Surrender

On the strength of our surrender
We become happy.
When we are happy,
We become perfect.
This is our self-discovery
And our God-satisfaction.

9265. Ego Is Like A Balloon

Ego is like a balloon.
How easy to burst a balloon!
Just grab it and break it.

Ego is like a firecracker.
It makes a dazzling display,
But how long does it last,
And why do we need it?

9266. God Is Waiting For Us

God is waiting for us.
Either we have to open ourselves
So that He can come in,
Or we have to empty ourselves
So that He can fill us.

9267. God's Devoted And Obedient Dog

A spiritual Master is not God,
But he is trying to be
God’s devoted and obedient dog.

9268. He Who Serves The Supreme

He who cheerfully and devotedly
Serves the Supreme
Instead of meditating
Can receive more inwardly
Than he who outwardly meditates for hours
While inwardly remaining fast asleep
In ignorance-night.

9269. Destined But Delayed

God-realisation and God-manifestation
Are destined, true.
But how often the tempting earth-ignorance
Unnecessarily delays them!

9270. Everyone Has A Good Soul

Everyone has a good soul,
But some souls, like unfortunate parents,
Have mind-children and vital-children
That will not listen to them.

9271. The Most Special Love

Do you know when I get
The most special Love from God?
Not when I have a fearful heart,
Not when I have tearful eyes,
But when I have a self-giving heart
And two smiling eyes.

9272. Life Is A Divine Game

Life is a divine game.
Truth-seekers are the aspiration-team.
Their Captain, none other than
The Supreme Himself.

9273. The Only Real Freedom

Which kind of freedom is desirable?
The freedom that can declare:
“I am God’s
Supremely chosen child.
I am eternally His.
Sleeplessly I shall be
For Him alone.”
No other freedom is real
Save and except this one.

9274. Who Can Dream?

Who can dream?
Who is dreaming?
Who will always dream?
Only the God-lover
In the seeker’s aspiration-heart.

9275. If Your Mind Doubts

If your mind doubts
God’s Compassion-Heart,
Then satisfaction
Will never take birth
Inside your life.

9276. Your Aspiration-Life

Because you are consciously spiritual,
On each of your birthdays
Your soul comes to you to energise you,
Inspire you and give you additional strength
To go forward in your aspiration-life.

9277. The Best Weapon

Indifference is the best weapon
Against cynicism,
For no matter how much
Kindness and forgiveness
You offer to a cynic,
You will not be able to change him.

9278. The Braver You Are

The braver you are
In telling the world
What you are and what you stand for,
The greater will be the world’s
Appreciation for you.

9279. Carry The Inspiration And Light

No matter where you go,
No matter what you do,
You can always carry with you
The inspiration and light you receive
From your inner life.

9280. The Very Nature Of Kindness

The very nature of kindness
Is to spread.
If you are kind to others,
Today they will be kind to you,
And tomorrow to somebody else.

9281. Two Questions Have Stung Me

Two questions have stung me:
Why have I not told God
The entire truth?
Is there anything
That I have learnt
Which it would not be better
If I unlearnt?

9282. A Single Blessingful Smile

A single blessingful Smile
From his Beloved Supreme
Can make a sincere truth-seeker feel
That he has finally reached Heaven.

9283. Inspire And Be Inspired

There is not a single seeker
Who cannot inspire others.
There is not a single seeker
Who cannot be inspired by others.

9284. The Supreme Is All Gratitude

Your Beloved Supreme
Is all gratitude to you
Because you have the courage
To show your inner faith
To the outer world.

9285. His Aggression-Vital

His aggression-vital came to the fore
To challenge the world.
But, alas, when the world
Accepted his challenge,
His coward-vital was frightened to death.

9286. Torch-Bearer Of A New Creation

It is not such a difficult task
To be the torch-bearer
Of a new creation.
Start right from this very moment
By intensifying your aspiration-life.

9287. Not In Vain

Not in vain
Did you enter the Boat
Of the Supreme.

Not in vain
Have you stayed in His Boat
For so many years.

Not in vain
Are you going to stay in His Boat
For all Eternity.

9288. Who Can Prevent You?

If you really want to continue
Walking along Eternity’s Road,
Who can prevent you?

If you really want to make
The fastest progress,
Who can prevent you?

9289. He Is Always Successful

He is always successful
Because beauty-blooms and purity-blooms
Have soulfully and powerfully starred
His aspiration-dedication-path.

9290. Your Real Disgrace

Increase, always increase
Your aspiration-cry.
If you allow your aspiration
To decrease,
It will be your real disgrace.

9291. An Unavoidable Necessity

An unavoidable necessity
Can quite often be
An unexpected opportunity.

9292. If You Do Not Value

If you do not value
Your spiritual life,
How can you expect
To get much benefit from it?

9293. The Longer He Followed

The longer he followed
The spiritual life,
The weaker became his aspiration
And the stronger became the disappointment
Of his Beloved Supreme.

9294. This Is All Deception

You feel you are always pleasing God
No matter what you do or say,
But this is all deception —
Not God-deception but self-deception.

9295. Friendly Neighbours

The heart and the soul
Are friendly neighbours.
Whenever the heart wants
To become one with God’s Light,
It just knocks at the soul’s door
And enters.

9296. I Will Continue Pleasing You

The prayer of a conditional seeker:
“My Lord Supreme,
I have pleased You
For quite a few years.
Is it not time
For You to please me?”

The prayer of an unconditional seeker:
“My Lord Supreme,
Through Your boundless Grace
I have been able to please You
For so many years.
If such is Your Will,
I will continue pleasing You forever.”

9297. He Chose To Descend

When he ascended, he did not feel
Immediate satisfaction
According to his expectation.
Therefore, deliberately and vehemently
He chose to descend.

9298. His Inner Pilot Repeatedly Asked Him

His Inner Pilot repeatedly asked him
To pray more intensely,
To meditate more soulfully
And to serve more unconditionally.
Finally he listened
And became the perfect instrument
Of his Pilot’s choice.

9299. Now He Is Running Fast

He started his inner journey
With no love,
No devotion,
No surrender —
Only sheer curiosity.
But now, years later,
He is running fast
Along his inner road
Of love, devotion and surrender.

9300. A Tiny Island

God alone knows
When the Kingdom of Heaven
Will finally descend on earth.
In the meantime,
God is begging His aspiring children
To try to create
At least a tiny island
Which He can call Heaven on earth.

Editor's introduction to the first edition

This is the ninety-third volume in a series of ten thousand “flaming flower-poems” which Sri Chinmoy is placing devotedly, unreservedly and unconditionally at the Compassion-Feet of God, our Beloved Supreme. They stand as a supreme offering from the unfolding beauty of his flower-heart and the flaming heights of his realisation-sun. Indeed, a treasure-tower which will at once be claimed by humanity’s self-ascending cry and Divinity’s God-descending Smile.

Editor's note to cover photo

Sri Chinmoy dedicates this book to his beloved sister Lily, whose picture appears on the cover. The photograph of the poet has been superimposed alongside it.