Don’t expect!
Don’t expect!
Give, give and give
If you want to really survive.— Sri Chinmoy
On 9 December 1984, Sri Chinmoy offers a concert and a New Year’s meditation at Washington Irving High School in New York, NY, USA. Ten days later, on 19 December, Sri Chinmoy offers his New Year’s Message while on the Christmas trip at a Peace Concert at Hotel Meliá in Torremolinos, Spain.
The seeker’s confidence-heart
And the seeker’s surrender-life
Shall play together
The complete perfection-game
In God’s Vision-Home.— Sri Chinmoy
Sri Chinmoy offered a New Year’s meditation for the public on December 10, 1983, at Washington Irving High School in Manhattan. At the end of the programme, Sri Chinmoy delivered his message for the New Year.
• Question asked on 31 December 1983, after Sri Chinmoy's talk on the New Year.
Question: If somebody wants to choose one time of the year to make a new start —- such as your birthday, or the anniversary of our joining the Centre, or our own birthday, or the beginning of the New Year — are each of these times equally good?
Sri Chinmoy: My birthday, your own birthday, the anniversary of your becoming a disciple, the day I came to America — all these are most significant days. Every hour cannot be the same. The way you can meditate early in the morning at six o’clock, you will not be able to meditate at twelve noon, unless you are an expert. Early in the morning, it is quite easy. Later in the day, it is not so easy. It is not impossible, but it is not easy.
When we remain here, in the earth-bound life, we cannot say that every day is equally important. No, every day is not equally important. Some days are bound to be more important than other days. That is why we observe anniversaries and birthdays. When a birthday comes, at that time we say to ourselves, “Why did I come here? Have I made any progress since I accepted the spiritual life? In some fields I have made progress; in other fields I have not made progress, or I have gone backwards.”
In your case, you have made so much progress in music. But again, you are losing your spontaneity and childlike consciousness. I am telling you about your progress and backward march for your good. You have made progress in one thing and gone backwards in another. If you had maintained your childlike consciousness, it would have given tremendous joy to your soul. Like this, everybody is a culprit. People have made considerable progress in one thing and in another field they have lost their previous standard and climbed down instead of up.
So you can choose any date you want to make a new start, but once you start, then you have to continue. Otherwise, on your birthday you will try to meditate very soulfully and the day after your birthday you will say, “Yesterday I meditated so soulfully. So today I do not have to meditate.” Our human life is like that. We eat voraciously one day and the following day we do not want to eat. But in the spiritual life, we have to eat every day because our capacity to eat is unlimited. God’s Affection, Love, Blessings, Concern and Compassion are unlimited, so God gives us unlimited receptivity.
Published in Sri Chinmoy answers, part 34
• On New Year’s Day, January 1, 1984, Sri Chinmoy composes a Bengali/English pair of songs about the New Year. The score is displayed below.
Gunjari gunjari
Phukari phukari
Nabina barashe jagichhe
Amar trishita paran
Hauntingly, puissantly
My God-hunger-thirst
In the New Year is growing.
Published in Journey’s Ecstasy, song no. 138
• Early in the new year, Sri Chinmoy set the words of his New Year’s message to music.
The seeker’s confidence-heart,
The seeker’s surrender-life,
Shall play together
The complete perfection-game
In God’s Vision-Home.
Published in Impossibility Bows
The year 1983
Will be the year of the seeker’s glory:
Glory within, glory without,
Glory illumining, glory abiding —
A oneness-glory
Between the self-giving seeker
And his life-transforming God.
— Sri Chinmoy
The New Year’s Meditation for the public was held on December 12, 1982, at Washington Irving High School in Manhattan. At the end of the programme, Sri Chinmoy delivered his message for the New Year.
Sri Chinmoy chooses to begin his 57th volume of Ten Thousand Flower-Flames with seven poems (no. 5601-7) that relate to the year 1983 and the theme of meditation.
This entire year, 1983,
Has a very special significance.
This is the year of meditation.
I most sincerely urge you
To meditate, meditate, meditate!
Alone or with others,
At home or anywhere,
Whenever you are free
Meditate, meditate, meditate!
As God’s choice Hour does not arrive
Every hour, every day, every week,
Every month or even every year,
Who knows, a year of this kind
May not appear again for a long time.
If you want to become God’s choice instrument,
Then avail yourself of the golden opportunity
That this year of meditation offers.
Meditate, meditate, meditate!
Pay more attention to your meditation.
Spend more time in meditation.
Meditate soulfully, prayerfully and devotedly.
If you do not meditate,
Then your heart will remain insecure
And your mind will remain impure.
With an impure mind
And an insecure heart
You will not be able to please
Your Beloved Supreme.
Security, which is confidence,
You badly need.
Purity, which is inner assurance,
You badly need.
Both purity and security can and will come
Only from your meditation.
Whether you are meditating
In your Master’s physical presence
Or somewhere else is unimportant.
No matter where you are,
If you think of your Master
And meditate soulfully,
You are bound to get his inner guidance.
And this inner guidance,
Which is his inner oneness with you,
Will last forever and forever.
In your early morning meditation
Be regular, be punctual and be sincere.
If you do not meditate regularly and punctually,
The Supreme will forgive you,
Your Master will forgive you,
But you will never be able
To forgive yourself, never!
If you deceive yourself in your meditation,
There will eventually come a time
When you will spontaneously become
Absolutely sincere.
Then it is you who will not be able
To forgive yourself.
Published in Ten Thousand Flower-Flames, part 57
The New Year will be the man-awakening
And the life-illumining God-Hour.
The eyeless will see the Vision-Eye
Of the Absolute Supreme,
And the heartless will feel the Compassion-Heart
Of the Absolute Supreme.— Sri Chinmoy
Sri Chinmoy held his annual New Year’s Meditation on December 15, 1981, at New York’s High School of Art and Design. During the evening, Sri Chinmoy read out his New Year’s Message and a special song he had composed the previous day from the words of the message was performed by his students.
In 1981
The Supreme Lord will utilise
The soul-beauty,
The heart-purity
And the life-sincerity
Of His seeker-children
For the manifestation
Of His perfect Perfection.— Sri Chinmoy
Sri Chinmoy held his annual New Year’s Meditation on December 16, 1980, in New York. The evening included a musical rendition of Sri Chinmoy’s New Year’s Message — performed by a choir of his students — first in English and, then, simultaneously in Spanish, French and German in a round format. (See Sri Chinmoy’s original score below.)
Published in Chandelier, Part 2, song no. 11
For the soulfully sincere seekers
Of the Absolute Supreme,
The year nineteen hundred and eighty
Is the year
Of amazing Harmony,
Astounding Peace
And abiding Oneness.— Sri Chinmoy
Listen to Sri Chinmoy reciting his New Year’s Message...
At his annual New Year’s Meditation and Concert, held on December 16, 1979 (7:30 p.m.), at McMillin Theater, Columbia University in New York, Sri Chinmoy offered his message for the New Year.
Sri Chinmoy set the message to music the previous day and the song was performed that evening.
Published in Chandelier, Part 2, song no. 10
The New Year is the year
Of man and earth’s
Self-giving choice,
And also is the victory-year
Of God’s soundless Voice.— Sri Chinmoy
At the close of his annual New Year’s public meditation, held on December 15, 1978, at Columbia University in New York, Sri Chinmoy delivered his New Year’s Message. Sri Chinmoy also set the message to music and the song was performed that evening.
Published in Chandelier, Part 2, song no. 9
The heart of the year 1978
Belongs to the aspiration-perfection-sky.
The life of the year 1978
Belongs to the dedication-satisfaction-land.
Heart is humanity’s changeless oneness
With God.
Heart is humanity’s changing newness
In God.
Life is humanity’s crying fulness
In God.
Life is humanity’s smiling fulness
For God.— Sri Chinmoy
Listen to Sri Chinmoy reciting his New Year’s Message...
Sri Chinmoy held his annual public meditation for the New Year on December 18, 1977, at Columbia University’s McMillan Theatre in New York. Earlier the same day, Sri Chinmoy cooked 1,000 Indian sweets in Jamaica, Queens, New York. At the conclusion of the evening, after reading out his New Year’s Message, he offered the items individually to the audience as prasad.
by Sri Chinmoy at the United Nations, in New York
O soul of the United Nations, we wish to serve you more soulfully and more devotedly, and for that what we need is more peace. Do tell us where peace is in abundant measure.
"Where is peace? Peace is in joy."
Where is joy?
"Joy? Joy is in love."
Where is love?
"Love? Love is in oneness."
Where is oneness?
"Oneness? Oneness is in vision."
Where is vision?
"Vision? Vision is in aspiration."
Where is aspiration?
"Aspiration? Aspiration is in self-giving. Aspiration is in truth-becoming, in light-becoming, in life-becoming and, finally, in God-becoming."
O soul of the United Nations, from the very dawn of this New Year, we wish to serve you more soulfully, more devotedly and more unconditionally.
Published in The seeker's mind
The New Year will be the year
Of our astounding achievements.
Our inner achievement will be peace.
Our outer achievement will be progress.
Peace is realisation-seed.
Progress is satisfaction-fruit.
— Sri Chinmoy
Sri Chinmoy conducted his annual Meditation for the New Year on December 18, 1976, at Hunter College Auditorium in New York where he delivered his New Year’s Message for 1977. Beginning at 7:30 p.m., the evening featured Sri Chinmoy playing the esraj, as well as several groups performing arrangements of his music, and a Jharna-Kala exhibit.<
Following is an extract from a talk given by Sri Chinmoy on the significance of the New Year.
The year of frustration has totally ended. We have gone through unbearable frustration, but this experience must leave us. We shall not make friends with wrong forces; we shall not cherish attachment, bondage and other undivine things in the year to come. This year let us make friends with the real in us. We have gone through the life of desire and the consequences have been frustration and destruction. This year let us not repeat the same story. A new experience must dawn in us, in our devoted lives.
The old year has ended; the New Year has started. The New Year means new hope, new promise, new light, new life. Let the New Year be the year of God-Satisfaction in us. Just cast aside the old year like a nightmare. For us, only the future exists. Tomorrow has already started in us. Please, please, please, for one year let us live without fear, without doubt, without wrong forces. If we succeed for one year, then we will have the strength to continue, for once you do something, you know you can do it again.
The New Year has started. Forget about all the unhappy experiences that you have given and received. Think only of how you can give joy to others and thus make yourself happy. I will also do my best to make you happy. But in my case, my happiness entirely depends on the Supreme’s Happiness. I have to make you happy in a deeper way, according to the Will of the Supreme. The best thing is to allow me to please you in the Supreme’s own way. That is the only way I am accustomed to. And you also can try to please me in the way of the Supreme. That can be done when you follow the dictates of your soul.
Published in AUM – Vol. 3, No.12, December 27, 1976
On December 31st, during a bus trip back from a New Year’s parade in Miami, Florida, Sri Chinmoy gave the following message:
“I shall not accept defeat no matter how strong the forces of ignorance are here on earth.”
Shortly before midnight, Sri Chinmoy began the New Year’s Meditation.
The New Year’s Meditation for 1976 was held at Hunter College in New York on Friday evening, December 19, 1975, where recited the New Year’s message.
At the end of the meditation, Sri Chinmoy handed out gold cardboard boxes to the seekers and disciples present. Each box contained an orange and a card with the New Year’s message, a painting by CKG and a calendar printed on it.
The New Year will be the year of destruction,
Frustration and satisfaction.
The animal in us will unimaginably be destroyed.
The human in us will unreservedly be frustrated.
The divine in us will supremely be satisfied.
The animal in us is self-doubt.
The human in us is self-indulgence.
The divine in us is self-offering.— Sri Chinmoy
On December 18, the day before the public meditation, Sri Chinmoy read out the New Year’s Message at a meeting of his New York Centre and then made a few remarks. Read more...
Sri Chinmoy was also asked whether his New Year’s Message applied to the world at large? Read more...
After holding a New Year’s Eve Meditation in Aguas Buenas, a secluded mountain retreat in Puerto Rico, Sri Chinmoy commented further on his New Year’s Message. Read more...
On January 8, 1976, Sri Chinmoy gave a talk, entitled ‘1976: The New Year, New Opportunities, New Challenges’, at the United Nations in New York. Read more...
A month prior to the New Year’s Meditation, on November 22, 1975, Sri Chinmoy composes two Bengali songs related to the New Year.
Naba naba rupe dekha dao tumi
Dadash maser sheshe
He amar naba barsha atithi
Mor prane bhalobese
O New Year,
At the end of twelve months
You come and stand before me.
For me, you are a divine guest.
You come to me with Love divine.
I call you my own.
The moment you appear before me
In you I feel my ever-growing newness
And ever-fulfilling oneness.
Published in Pole-Star Promise-Light, Part 1, song no. 38
Bipul harashe nabin barashe
Jagiche moder pran
Banglar pran ek hok aji
Subishal sumahan
Khandita nahe janani Banga
Antare raje bishwa priti
Gupta danab bhrukuti moder
Parane jagai bhranta bhiti
Tamasi rajani haye jabe bhor
Udibe tapan purbachale
Sonar Bangla amar Bangla
Jagibe abar amita bale
Naba barasher hriday gabhire
Rayeche gopane mukti asha
Chira adrita arjya rishir
Phire pabo mora mauna bhasha
With great joy in the New Year
Our hearts are awakening.
Let the hearts of all the Bengalis
Become one, great and vast.
Bengal is not two, Bengal is not divided;
In one Bengal, let the world-love abide.
The torture of the undivine hostile forces
Creates false fear in the heart of Bengal.
A tenebrous night will blossom into beauty’s day.
The sun of wisdom-light will dawn.
The golden Bengal, the immortal Bengal,
Will once more see the Light of the Infinite.
In the heart of the New Year
The liberation-hope will feed us,
We shall once more receive the silence-language
Of Immortality
From the Aryan sages of the hoary past.
Published in Pole-Star Promise-Light, Part 4, song no. 32
