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SPIRITUAL PILGRIMAGE
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the human personality. They have remained words empty of meaning.
A rat and an owl were friends. The rat complained to its friend that a cat had become a menace to it and it did not know how to get rid of the menace. The owl suggested that the rat should become a wild cat to frighten away the cat. The rat became very happy to hear this but it did not know how to become a wild cat and asked its friend to tell it how it could become one. The owl replied, “Do not expect me to do everything for you. I have suggested the way out of your difficulty. That is all I can do for you. It is your job to become a wild cat." Something like this is also happening in the field of religion. Preachers often tell us lightheartedly to do this and to avoid that. It is dejecting to see that they do not suggest the practical means of becoming what they want us to become. The truth is that they simply mislead us. Unless religion tells us the methodology of transforming ourselves into good and ideal beings, we are bound to lose faith in it and to eschew it. That is the reason why people have become atheists and disdain religion. They find preachers preaching all sorts of irresponsible things without the strength of conviction. This situation is a great challenge to those who profess religion much more to those who want to make it popular and convincing. It is expected of religion that it should provide us with a clear-cut plan and method of practice to enable us to transform ourselves in a scientific way. We have to be convinced that religious practice is capable of making us happy, confortable and peaceful. The challenge to religion can be successfully mel in this way oply.
Thirty years ago Ācārya Tulasi made a significant observation : "Thousands of people throng to see and meet us. They come to us from far-off places. They venerate us and feel that there is something in us which can give them peace and self-confidence. Shall we not fail in our duty if we did not give them something positive ? We will be simply exploiting them if we did not give them any returns of the veneration they show to us." The ācārya was very serious when he made this observation. The result was the launching of the
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