The first major thing to recognize is that we are human beings and thus feeling-beings. Every experience is a feeling. Consciousness itself is feeling. We go from pure feeling expressed as ‘I know I exist’ to overwhelming emotional feelings.

Feelings follow a wide spectrum - from subtle knowing to crude emotional attachments. When you are feeling joy and peace, that’s a pure feeling because there are no attachments, no worldly desires and no time consciousness at the moment. In other words, you are being your true self. These pure feelings come from the heart.

When we have worldly desires and attachments and get caught in time, then that becomes a mind-feeling. Thoughts are mental feelings.

Now, the second major thing to recognize is that how we feel is up to us. We are not victims. We create our environment; we create our feelings because of how we feel about ourselves. If we stopped to look at the truth of feeling we will find we are pure beings. This purity is who we really are.

We are not our thoughts. Thoughts are impressions we have come to adopt through the past experience we have become attached to. To see this truth is to take responsibility for your feelings.

When thoughts are identified with they become crude controlling emotions such as depression, anger, self-pity, self-hate, loneliness, restlessness and a myriad of negative feelings. So, how do we snap out of these feelings that control our life?

This is where devotion comes in. Sai Baba said, “When the mind is cleaned of all sediment or impurity and noble feelings are cultivated, then Wisdom’s Vision can come out and Creation is perceived in all its splendor.”

What is devotion? It is the willingness to submit to who you really are - your subtle feelings. When feelings are subtle we can look at the world around us and see beauty. It is a magnificent universe we live in. Miracles are all around us.

When the thoughts take over, we contract, we lose sight of who we are and what it is all about. We become small, frightened creatures incapable of loving or being loved. How do we submit to subtle feelings? It is by being devoted to the highest in you.

At this point one might protest and say, “but I don’t know who I really am?” That doesnÕt matter. All that is necessary is to have an inkling that something greater exists beyond boredom or unhappiness.

Then, become curious about this feeling called boredom - What does it feel like physically? What does it taste and look like? Sit with the feeling and get in touch with its feeling in the body. It can become so subtle that soon you will be transported into another, higher feeling.

Such repeated practices will yield such wonderful results that you will become devoted to your higher state. This devotion to your higher Self will become love. This love is all that’s necessary to take you all the way towards the ultimate truth.

I find that when I am caught in an emotional state I have no control over it. We are our feelings because we are feeling-beings. When you feel fear, you are all fear from head to toe.

In a state of contraction (negative feelings) we have very little energy to do anything, much less control our feeling. So, do absolutely nothing and be aware of how caught you are, feel it in your body, feel how much you just want to think about it, how you want to feel sorry for yourself.

It is this willingness to do absolutely nothing but be aware that will awaken devotion. Without devotion oneÕs life is a waste. But most people live without devotion! That is why we need to wake up from our painful sleep. The average person knows nothing about devotion.

The key point is this - do not be concerned about other people and how they live. Be focused only on your devotion to your own being. Then, when you awaken that devotion, you will feel such love and inner peace that you will be a blessing to others.