|| Shri Hari ||

Prison -  A School

(A discourse given in the Nagpur Prison)

continued.....

On enjoying worldly pleasures,  the merits are exhausted,  and our nature is spoilt,  and with it, the seeds of sin are sown.   But there is gain and only gain in unfavourable situations and circumstances,  there is no loss at all.   The unfavourable times, sorrows,  difficulties that one faces,  has the capability of destroying old sins, and it alerts one of future sins.   

The king is the mother and father of his subjects.  He wishes for the supreme welfare of his people.   It is for your good that you have been enrolled here (prison),  whereby no flaws remain in your life, and you become free of any faults.   You all must not misunderstand that you have become bound, due to being imprisoned.   Understand this place to be only a school.   Here activity based education and training is provided.   It is not a polluted place.  Lord Krishna took birth over here.  Therefore everyone calls the prison ‘birth place of Lord Krishna’.  Even on incarnating in a prison,  Lord Krishna became so great !  His teachings ‘Srimad Bhagavad Gita’  are revered even by foreigners.   If there is any learned person out there,  he will surely honour and respect the Gita.  

Here (in prison) you can progress immensely.   While living here, you must do good work,  conduct yourself properly.   Have the sentiments of serving everyone,  respect all,  try to make others happy.   Here you might be learning various other work-trade.   With that too,  you can benefit immensely.   With the education, knowledge and training, received here,  you can develop a particular skill,  and earn a livelihood in the future.   I am not familiar with the rules over here,  but I had visited another place on some work.   In Bikaner prison I had seen that there are many great things they make - blankets, bed-spreads,  rugs etc.  Such beautiful things they make,  which are even sent to foreign countries.    When Gangasingh was the king of Bikaner,   once he had visited England.   He has spent a lot of money to purchase a rug.  When he returned back to Bikaner,  he showed  the prison officer the rug and said that ‘See this rug,  see if you can have a similar one made over here.  I brought this rug back from England.’    On seeing the rug,  the officer said,  ‘O’  Providence,   this rug was made by this prison,  on going overseas,  it became very expensive.  See the emblem of our prison here.’     

Working here you may feel that you are in subordination and doing this work;  but if you learn these skills then this art, this knowledge, will make you skillful.   Wherever you go and live,  with this art and talent,  you can do some work.   You all come together, collaborate and tell the various wealthy businessmen, that we know how to do such and such work, then with their help,  you can really make this country progress and flourish.   

‒From the book in Hindi ‘Vaastavik Sukh ’  by Swami Ramsukhdasji