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according to other people's methods and practices. We come first and win but then we even come last too. I understood that all this is nothing but betrayal indeed. I too had joined others in the competition by entering the racecourse; I ran very hard and after coming first, I then came in last. That is when I felt, 'What kind of madness is this? It is all a trap!' You never know when some unscrupulous person will destroy you. Do people not do such things? One day you may be number one and the next day such a person will come and make you puff and pant in the race to no end. 'We' realized that a person can lose everything from being number one and that one should not enter into such horse races (competition).
'We' used to live very peacefully and in ease. Before the roads used to be crooked; full of winding curves so inner calculations would arise, as to which road was the shortest. 'We' never followed the paths everyone else followed. 'We' would try to look for short cuts. 'Our' method and practice was different. 'We' never did anything just because other people did it or because it was the traditional thing to do so. 'Our' method and practice was completely different. I never painted the wall in my house, if the wall were to get the paint on its own, then so be it.
'We' say just one thing and that is, 'there is no competency (barkat) left in 'us". 'We' have seen the face of competence! 'We' ran a lot! 'We' ran to no end! 'We' are telling you from 'our' experiences of life after life, that all the running of countless lives has been a failure and completely worthless! I have run so hard, hard enough to be sitting on the top but I have also suffered miserably in the process. Instead why not run away form this racecourse! Let us discover our true domain...it is, oh my...gigantic"!
So even if the devas (celestial beings) were to come down and tell you, 'We are giving you the first place in this
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horse race', you can tell them, 'No, Dada has been there and I believe him when he tells us about what he saw there and his experiences. Thank you very much. I do not want such a race.'
A relative of mine, while talking about money, tells me, 'You have done well, you have made good money in the business. 'I told him, I really do not have any such thing; it is you who has done very well. You have factories etc. How can I compare myself to where you are at! I do not have the skills you have; you have been able to accumulate so much wealth. I do not know anything about this. I only know about the other things (Self realization)." There was nothing left to discuss any further when I said that. There was nothing to compete, was there? There was no relation left. Why would I want to enter into competition (spardha) with them?
People are always competing in this way, but how can I run with them? Let them win the prize. You just observe them. What happens when you compete against them? You end up hurting yourself so that is not for you.
The prize goes to the winner, the rest die panting
If I am invited to a wedding of an acquaintance and I sit in the middle, they will ask me to move and make room for some 'Jaichandbhai' or other that comes along and then some doctor or someone else will come along. I would get tired of being moved around in this manner and end up sitting in the back. So I stopped sitting in the front row altogether. I said to myself, I cannot afford to do this. I do not want to compete (for a seat) with anyone. Only the winner takes the prize, others do not.' So then the host would come to me and tell me, 'We have kept a seat for you in the middle because you are the uncle. Why did you not sit there? Why do you move around and stand in the back? It does not look good for the order and pomp of