How to attain God-Realization?

Question: How to attain God-Realization?  

Swamiji: When there is a deep longing for God Realization, then everything else will drop off. Without having an intense longing for God Realization, nothing can happen. You have everything at your disposal - this human body has been received, you have received Gita and Ramayan, you have received good satsang, you have visited Gangaji, what more can there be?

Have only one desire, let there be only one (God) that you trust, only one dependency (God), only one longing (God). Just like the chattak bird, that drinks water only directly from the rain showers. Even though it is dying of thirst, and is at the banks of Gangaji, yet the chaatak bird will only wait for the rains. Let our exclusivity and intense longing for that One be like the chaatak bird.

Human life is successful, only on realizing God. We must realize God. "Tere bhaave jo karo bhalo buro sansaar," Do not worry about what others are doing, what they are thinking of us etc. Simply engage in only one thing (God), and everything else will follow suit. Everything else will become super simple, super easy. If there is one intense longing, all else will fall off.

No one is too young or too old to get started. But they all must have only one desire. Friends, such an opportunity will not be available in the future. If you do not have such intensity or deep longing for God, then it will only be self-betrayal. Simply speaking - we must realize God, no matter what others want, whether others want God or not.

And frankly, what other work do you really have?

Source: From a Discourse by Swami Ramsukhdasji in Hindi on Aug 19, 2002 at 3:30 pm  

Question: Gita 4:9 says - Those who know the reality (True Essence) are not reborn after death, they attain only God. (Gita 4:9). Is there any proof that such people attain only God?  

Swamiji: Gita clearly states - Yes, Completely rid of passion, fear and anger, wholly absorbed only in God, depending on God alone, purified by knowledge of divinity of God’s activities, many have become one with God. (Gita 4:10)

Source: From "Gita Madhurya" in Hindi by Swami Ramsukhdasji

Question: If you say God Realization is so easy, then what are the obstacles that are preventing us from realizing God?

 

Swamiji: There are many obstacles, such as:

 
1) Attraction to enjoyment and gratification from worldly pleasures and attachment to accumulation of material goods

2) Lack of intense longing and desire for inquiry into God Realization.

3) Being satisfied with our present state

4) Believing God Realization to be similar to acquiring of any other objects. Because of this belief, immense importance is given to kriya (doing actions) and less importance is given to our discriminative powers and our inner disposition - our natural state

5) Great Souls and Mahatmas who understand the essence (tattva) well, are rare to find and meet

6) Just with a little bit of knowledge and some practice, we become proud

7) Other self imposed limitations are - not found the right guide, I am not qualified, I am not deserving, times are such, my fate is such, I have to do something to realize God.

 
Such (samskaars) impressions and ideas are obstacles that prevent us from realizing God.

Source: From "Prashno-uttarmanimala" by Swami Ramsukhdasji