To arrive at the destination of universal love, we must embark on the path of individual love. No single relationship to the Lord is suitable for all devotees, but all can love God in their own way. One person may assume the attitude of a child toward its parent. Another may see god as a companion or close friend. Any positive type of relationship or attitude enables us to draw closer to God. The Lord accepts all forms of devotion when expressed with love.

There are different modes of devotion; that which foolishly weeps for me when I am not physically present: that which surrenders with wild abandon; and that which is steady and strong, ever attached to my will. I accept all these forms of devotion. The choice between one or the other is nor yours, for it is I who rule your feelings, modifying them. If you try to go where I do not will, I will stop you; you can do nothing apart from my will. Be assured of that: this is the highest devotion.

Sanathana Sarathi

Devotion begins with selfish love, but with time and practice, it develops into universal love. When we no longer seek return for love given, we can love all beings as expressions of God’s omnipresence, for God resides in all beings. When we discover God within ourselves, we also find God in all creatures and all things. As our hearts open to God’s love, we become love, and we see the world through the "glasses" of love. Devotion may bud with the adoration of a picture or image in a temple, but it blossoms in the vision of love without limit. That vision confers faith and strength, which speeds us to our goal.

There is only one royal road for the spiritual journey –love, love for all beings as manifestations of the same divinity that is the very core of oneself. This faith alone can ensure the constant presence of God within you and endow you with all the joy and courage you need to fulfill the pilgrimage to God.

Sanathana Sarathi

Devotion is cultivated by slow and steady effort. It must grow strong and certain to support character. A quick rush forward will not help us if we only fall back again when our resolve is tested. Progress must be protected by discrimination, which knows its own strength.

When the tender plant of devotion begins to grow, it must be protected. When a young tree is growing. Various animals will eat it and may kill it. For this reason, a fence is placed around the young tree to protect it. When the tree is grown, it needs no protection. The same animals, who would have first destroyed it, now seek and find shade and shelter beneath its branches. When devotion has grown strong and intense, it will burn all sins.

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