I Bless You

[Listen to Asha read this story]

A devotee was about to make an important decision, and spoke with Swamiji about it. After the meeting, Swamiji said, “He asked for my advice, but what he wanted was my approval. I can’t approve, because what he plans won’t bring him happiness. He wants to do the right thing, but he doesn’t have the strength to renounce his desires in this matter. If I asked him to do so, it would just put him in an impossible position, and how would that help him?

“I have to be sincere, however, so when he asked me to bless his decision, I said, ‘I bless you. You always have my blessings.’ That didn’t mean I blessed his decision! Still, I felt I couldn't speak more plainly at the time. I felt I had to leave it to his own intuition.”

Later, the man told his friends, “Swamiji approves of my decision, he gave me his blessing.”

When Swamiji heard this, he did nothing to correct the misunderstanding. “I wanted to spare him needless suffering,” Swamiji said, “but I see he is going to have to live through it.”