The entities of Creation act in such a manner as to preserve a balance in Nature. All entities, except man, have no choice in the manner they act. The inanimate objects [e.g., the Sun, the Moon, etc.,] are said to follow the "Law of Nature". By extensive observation, scientists have discovered many such laws. The animate objects, namely the living beings [like the tiger, for example], are said to follow their instincts. In modern language, these instincts have been "hard-wired" i.e., encoded via their DNA.

In spirituality, we do not use words like law of Nature or instinct. Instead we say that all entities follow their respective Dharma, as ordained by Divinity.

What about man? Does he have no Dharma to follow? Of course he has. In fact, the Dharma prescribed for man is quite elaborate and also exalted. But he has been given a choice by God, and that is, man can either follow his Dharma or violate it.

Now why on earth has God done this? Ah, that is part of God's Cosmic Drama! For man, life on earth is really a test or an examination. The test is whether or not he follows the Dharma as laid down by God Himself. If he follows his Dharma, then God would declare man as having passed; otherwise it means that man has flunked!

In other words, man is the only agent who can consciously unsettle the delicate balance in Nature.

The concept of balance is closely related to four words that Baba sometimes uses. They are: KNOWLEDGE, SKILL, BALANCE and INSIGHT

In today's world, man acquires strives hard and acquires knowledge from the external world. Based on this knowledge, he develops special skills. For example, a person could become an expert surgeon.

However, a person anchored solely in the external world would lack spiritual or inner balance.

The external forces that produce compulsions in man are: Peer pressure, competition, job insecurity, etc.

Inner balance is a must for wholesome living. They counter the unsettling nature of external forces and contribute to equanimity, composure, equipoise, etc. They help in no small measure in countering mental stress.

Imbalance implies that senses are holding sway and are dominant. Balance, on the other hand, means that there is counter-check from within.

Sense control is the real key to balance. Baba sometimes the word Indriya Nigraha. Watch out for these words in His Discourses, and flag those passages!

Discipline is of two kinds - externally imposed and self-generated.

In the spiritual world, one wants discipline that springs from the Source within, rather than imposition by external force.

Self discipline is often dismissed as being impossible. Not true. It all depends on one's resolution. Discipline often flows easily when Love is the basis. Thus, a devotee who otherwise might flinch at self-control might be quite ready to practice it as a token of his love for Swami.

Self-control is vital for vanquishing internal enemies. Desire is a leading enemy, and it can be kept at bay only through self-regulation.

External vision and bias tends to produce imbalance. Vision directed Inwards helps in the restoration of the balance.

Closely connected with judgement leading to imbalance and balance is the faculty of [spiritual] Discrimination. This Discrimination is often referred to as Buddhi. If Buddhi is absent, then imbalance is inevitable. But if Buddhi prevails, then balance is achievable.

Why is self-discipline so important? Because, without it, many of the social evils cannot be eradicated easily. AIDS is being talked about extensively. All sorts of attempts are being made to arrest the spread of AIDS. Fair enough. However, hardly any thought is being to stop AIDS at source via the inculcation of moral values amongst people. There is almost a fatalistic feeling that morality will not work.

Morality is today considered a non-starter because God has been put on the back-burner so to speak. Moral force will prevail when people love God. Thus it is that Baba says: DEVELOP LOVE FOR GOD. THAT WOULD PROMOTE FEAR OF SIN. ONCE PEOPLE FEAR SIN, THERE WOULD AUTOMATICALLY BE MORALITY PRESENT IN SOCIETY. This is what happened in ancient societies.

Some people argue that the clock cannot be put back. Is this really true? It is all a matter of will and determination. Today's priorities are: Rights first and then may be responsibility. But this is the prescription for pure disaster. If mankind is able to see the writing on the wall, then it would realise that the priorities ought to be changed to: Responsibility first and then may be a claim to rights.

In the animal kingdom, survival is through competition. In other words, evolution occurs through the principle of the survival of the fittest. Mankind, on the other hand, evolved through co-operation. But today, crass consumerism is slowly converting mankind to believe in the survival of the fittest policy. No doubt the idea is cleverly sugar-coated and disseminated via slick marketing, but the hard truth is that consumerist economy thrives on greed, promotion of unwanted and even base desires, and cut-throat competition, often of the dog-eat-dog variety. Can this be called progress? Is this a balanced state for mankind? Will this not lead to a sharp and disastrous divide?