Motor Your Mind Towards Godhead

January 1st, 2003

ALFRED FORD Compare your wealth to the automobile that you drive everyday. When you are at the wheel, you have two options: You can either drive without direction or, you can drive steadily to the temple and derive long-lasting happiness. The decision is yours. So are the effects. You are the master of your destiny. You may choose to amass wealth and use it for inferior means of consumption or decide to use your resources to serve humanity and therefore, Lord Krishna. Amassing wealth is like wanting Lakshmi to be with you always. Lakshmi's natural inclination is to be with Narayana, the Supreme. So, in a way, your wealth wants to be with Narayana. So, we should use our wealth for His service. Industrialists should also know that whatever they are doing to create wealth is temporary by nature. Their activities are not permanent as nothing can be taken out from this material world. But still, many people run after money in the wrong way — being fatally drawn to maya, or the illusory energy that binds us. When I was very young — and idealistic — I was restless; I yearned for peace of mind. However, once I came in contact with Sri Prabhupada, I became a totally different person. My idea about life in general underwent a total transformation and I was reborn as Ambarish Das. Even today, when people ask me what I would like to be known as — given a choice between Alfred and Ambarish — I promptly say that I prefer to be addressed as Ambarish. The reason is simple: Sri Prabhupada had himself given me this name and whatever Sri Prabhu-pada has given me, I hold extremely close to my heart. The Godhead's inferior energy is what we use for the gratification of our senses while the superior energy should actually be the one we concentrate upon for our elevation. Sadly, most of the time this doesn't happen and the result is there for all to see — channelling money for wrong purposes, mis-representation of religion, confused thoughts, arousal of violence, merciless killings... the list goes on. The best example of this is Osama bin Laden.

He himself is part and parcel of God and yet he is hell-bent on destroying other parts and parcels of the same Supreme Force just because of a few wrong ideals in his life. There are other instances as well. Why do you think the richest countries — including some of the richest men — come up with the largest number of suicides? Why is it that the most powerful think they have everything and yet feel a sense of emptiness? People realise that true happiness doesn't come from material satisfaction. They understand that once they gain the 'biggest', the 'largest' and the 'strongest' tags, they are not really the biggest, the largest or the strongest. They gradually understand that as spiritual creatures; their material problems cannot be solved by material solutions. And it is then that they turn towards spirituality to seek solace. It is a route of natural progression that Lord Krishna has laid out for each and every one of us. This route is just the beginning of a journey — a long, continuous one at the end of which we are assured of reaching the Lord himself and fulfilling the very purpose of our lives. In this Kaliyug, when the mind is extremely restless, the best way to continue walking along this route is through Bhakti Yoga. Even Arjun, who was one of the greatest yogis of all times, followed this path and realised the Godhead. For us, mere mortals, Bhakti Yoga is simple to understand and easy to follow. You just need to chant 'Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare, Hare Ram, Hare Ram, Ram Ram, Hare Hare' and you are sure to reach the end of the road. Needless to say, by then you will know who you really are.

(Alfred Ford, an ISKCON member, is a great grandson of Henry Ford. He spoke to Sujoy Bosu in Kolkata)