The striving for greatness is natural to human beings: true greatness is not megalomania but the expansion of the mind toward the Infinite, Brahma, through meditation and service to all beings.
Many people believe that the main obstacle on the spiritual path is the ego, and that it must be restricted and belittled in every way through self-abasement. There is a view that the more you belittle yourself, the better. In this context we need to ask ourselves: is it natural to strive for greatness, or is it unnatural?
Is it natural to abase oneself, or is it unnatural? We are all in a process of evolution. What is evolution? It is development from imperfection to perfection, the transformation of the mind from a crude state to a subtle one. We are all in this unbroken process. And it is a natural process, and what is natural can be considered right.
However, we need to understand what is natural for the human stage of development and what is natural for the animal stage. Usually what is natural for our physical level (our animal nature) lies on the surface. Compared with animals, humans have developed deeper layers of mind. So in order to realize what is proper to a human being specifically, one needs to calm the surface layer of the mind and go deeper.
Every person at heart longs for their life to be splendid, unique, radiant, magical, special and meaningful. So for us the striving for greatness is natural. This thought is natural also because it is in harmony with the thought waves of the Macrocosm.
What is "greatness"?
So what is greatness? In this context one must not confuse delusions of grandeur with greatness.
If a person has no true inner wealth, they may make up for it with some mental construct, a phantom, a distortion of perception, a world of their own, an illusion of their own in which they consider themselves great. Because for us it is natural to strive for greatness.
What is the true ideal of life? The ideal of life is the point of infinity; the ideal is The Supreme, made of Consciousness (Shiva) and its creative energy (Shakti); everything comes from it and returns to it..
No one told us this, and we have been moving blindly for many thousands of years. Yet there are individual people who, thanks to intuition, find greatness in creativity and in science, helping humanity take the next step toward perfection.
To desire the great, to strive for the great, to find refuge in it – this is the The inherent nature of a thing; for a human being, the longing for the Infinite and the effort to reach it. (the essential quality) of every human being. Dharma must be practiced always: every day of one's life one should strive for greatness, not for insignificance. If you think of yourself, "I am bad, I am fallen, I am sinful," in the end you will become what you consider yourself to be, because "as you think, so you become." So the best way to come to purity, to perfection, is to meditate on purity and perfection: "I am pure, I am good, I am a son of that immeasurable, infinite ocean, Brahma; I am a drop of it, gradually moving toward merging with the Father and becoming infinity." You need to cast off all your complexes and take refuge in the Great: "The Great is my final refuge." And this striving for the Great is not an egoistic game; on the contrary, it coincides with the natural flow of the thought waves of the Macrocosm. In every person there is the potential to fulfill this striving, but often it is rejected and distorted, not acknowledged.
Meditation on the infinite
So what is the path to greatness? What is the supreme Consciousness? Who is Brahma? Brahma is that which is great and makes others great. Is this planet great? No. Is this sun great? This solar system? No. Is this galaxy great? Perhaps a cluster of galaxies is great? Or the universe? No. Only that which is infinite, only that which is absolute and not relative, is great.
Infinity… Do not think of it in terms of space, because in the transcendental world there is no space, no time, no person. Think in depth. The Infinite is that which makes others great; coming into contact with it, you yourself begin to expand. This is the essence of Brahma Spiritual practice: the daily effort, above all meditation, to move the mind toward the Infinite., that is, the effort aimed at attaining the great essence. You do Brahma sádhaná, you meditate, because as you think, so you become. You meditate on the infinite… and you will merge with it, like the little doll made of salt that went to measure the ocean. Where did the doll go? No one can say. The doll made of salt dissolved in that ocean and became that ocean. The microcosm, made of consciousness, went to measure the ocean of consciousness. What became of the microcosm? It merged with the Macrocosm and became it. This is the path of evolution. We gradually expand, grow larger, and when not a gram of darkness is left inside, only light – that is greatness. There is one path: ideation on the Supreme. To keep up the ideation, to think of the Supreme, to strive toward the Supreme – that is the dharma of a human being. Turning away from dharma leads to various psychological problems, complexes and suffering. In this way a person creates suffering for themselves but blames others for it.
The problems in society have the same source. Poverty of soul shows itself as greed, and wealth of soul as generosity. You may possess any physical resources and riches you like, but if your soul is poor, those riches will benefit neither you nor society. Rather, those riches will become a cause of suffering, both yours and society's.
The story of the rich man and the saint
A rich man came to a saint and said, "I have some money, and I want to make a donation. A big donation. I'll make the donation, and you bless me so that my business goes even better." The saint replied, "Very well, I accept your donation and I bless you. But you are already quite well off, aren't you?" "Yes," answered the visitor. "And still you want more?" the saint asked again. "Yes," answered the rich man. "Then accept a donation from me, because you need this money more than I do," said the saint.
Which of them is poor and which is rich? The one whose desires are endless becomes a pauper, and the one who has contentment in their soul is rich. Wealth of soul leads to all-round prosperity. It allows material wealth to work for the good of the individual and of society. But poverty of soul leads to destruction on every level.
Growth through the practice of meditation
So we must strive for greatness. And the path to greatness is sádhaná, Brahma sádhaná, meditation on the Great, when you want to become like the Supreme, to become It. And to become like the divine, one must practice the qualities of divinity.
The narrowest outlook is limited to one person; such a person serves only themselves. One whose consciousness expands begins to serve their family. As the mind expands, a person begins to serve the community, the city, the country, the world, the universe, all living beings. That is greatness. It is not megalomania; it is divinity.
So it is very simple to measure the breadth of your mind, to measure your spiritual progress. To do so, you need to answer these questions for yourself:
"How wide is the sphere of my care? Am I ready to dedicate my life to the well-being of other beings? How can I begin to think of something greater? How can I begin to live in harmony with all beings?"
Greatness develops through sádhaná, the effort to become perfect. One must think of the Great and meditate on the Great. The standard of your life depends on this alone. What height do you want to reach in your life? Can you cast off fear and move toward perfection by the path of greatness?
To strive for greatness is a fundamental, natural need of a human being, and that is why we feel blessed on this path. Let us be natural; let us move from imperfection to perfection, from insignificance to greatness!