A TASTE OF THE UNITY OF LIFE

 
And that's the way this world is, everything you see or experience is part of illusion. Now, illusion means what? Illusion means it's in the realm of duality. So no matter what you say, the opposite will also be there. If you have hot, you also have to have cold. It cannot be helped, there is no way out of it, because that's the nature of duality, of illusion. But the truth, the whole truth, is beyond duality. And that is why Baba stressed love. Because love is the experience of unity in the midst of duality.

Do you know that quote of Muhammad's I like to say, are you familiar with it? "Harmony is the imprint of oneness upon multiplicity." Baba once said we should strive for union or real harmony, which is union in diversity.

As long as we try to understand things with our minds, we are dealing in the realm of duality. But when the heart experiences love, we get a taste of the unity of life. Perhaps that is why Baba said understanding has no meaning and love does have meaning. But then you raise the question of obedience because Baba said obedience has most meaning. But what was that obedience Baba wanted? It was to love Him as He should be loved.

So to obey Baba is our attempt to love Him. This is the difference between the two. Real love implies obedience, obedience is part and parcel of it. When your beloved asks you for a favor, do you refuse? Of course not. In fact, when you love someone, you do not even wait for the Beloved to ask, but you anticipate their needs and see to it first. That is what I mean when I say love implies obedience.