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[8] Freedom from the Chains of Life-After-Life Accounts
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for them. Only then will things be settled. That is why pratikraman is so necessary.
Why Repeated Pratikramans?
Questioner: All these expert ladies have come together and they are being deceitful towards each other. Then they immediately do pratikraman by open confession to each other. The deceit occurs but they immediately recognize that they have done wrong. However, this gentleman says that we should not let such mistakes occur at all.
Dadashri: No, that will not work. (Dada addressing the man) Have you brought a new rule here? Here it is a 'no-law law.' The law here (with Akram Vignan) is that there are no laws whatsoever! (168)
Questioner: If one does true pratikraman, then that mistake should not occur again.
Dadashri: No, you cannot say that. There are some mistakes that have fifty to a hundred layers.
Questioner: Is there not some kind of a strong pratikraman which can destroy all the layers in one go?
Dadashri: No, that cannot occur.
Questioner: Dada, why don't You 'do' Akram pratikraman?
Dadashri: You cannot eat with both your hands. You have to eat with just one hand. Everything is good in proportion. If you have had a fever that lasts a few days, will taking a whole bottle of medicine in one shot work?
Questioner: No, it will not work.
Dadashri: On the contrary, it will make it worse. Everything is good if it is in proportion. Then it will work.
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Pratikraman
The Method for Removing Salt from Milk
Everything will be solved through the grace of 'Dada.' You know that the milk is going to go bad and that you will not be able to make tea with it in the morning, so then you will use your technique to remove the salt from the milk. Whatever salt you put in the milk (whatever atikraman that occurred unintentionally), you should look for ways to remove it. Our science is such that it will get rid of everything. Then later you have to apply cream and bandages in order to fix the wound (the damage). You have to stop the bleeding first. Then if it still goes in the wrong direction, then would you not know that it has not settled down?
Questioner: Yes, I would.
Dadashri: Then you have to let go of it. Thereafter, all you have to do is keep patching it up. Then he will not bleed. And someday he will invite you to his home. And you should go. Then if the bleeding occurs again, you will be able to address it (do pratikraman appropriately) in a timely fashion.
Questioner: This is what occurs. In trying to 'operate (improve)' on the other person, twenty-five other complications arise.
Dadashri: Yes, that has occurred. So you need to exercise caution when you are dealing with such situations. That is called discretion (vivek). Even when you give something real to someone, you should do so with discretion. You cannot give it after slapping him. Even if you are 'feeding' someone 'real food,' you cannot do it after you have 'slapped' him, because here, in this work, everyone has a vote. If this were to take place in a village, you could get away with it. Those people (simple and sincere people) do things 'heartily' and so whatever you do would work, whereas here (with city people) you will not get away with it. Nothing fits in the city.
