Radio Ruhaniyat: May 26, 2018

Hello everyone and welcome to another episode of Radio Ruhaniyat!

We’ve all grown up with the popular saying: Honesty is the Best Policy. Even though doing the right thing sometimes becomes difficult, but if we are always inclined towards making the right choice then consequences do not matter. If we truly believe that God is watching us and reading our thoughts at all times, then being dishonest is not an option. Ultimately, we are answerable to God.

A young girl from our local satsang group went to The Lowe’s Home Improvement store with her family. Her name is Babita and they needed to buy some material to renovate one of their bathrooms. They bought products worth more than $ 500.00 but when they were checking out at the register, Babita noticed that the cashier had forgotten to ring a can of paint. She became uncomfortable and wanted to say something but hesitated. When they stepped out of the store, Babita voiced her concern that they had not paid for a can of paint and insisted that she wanted to do the right thing.

She came back in with her mother and told the cashier. The cashier realized that the can of paint was not charged for and told them to go to the customer service desk and pay for it. When they went to the customer service desk, the cashier called the manager and explained what happened. The manager was quite impressed by Babita’s honesty and at the same time, also asked them if they had used any coupons because they had made a rather large purchase. Babita told them that they did not have any coupons and the manager then presented them with a coupon for 20% off and applied it to their purchase. Even though the can of paint must have cost them around $ 20.00, but after the coupon was applied, they ended up saving a lot more money.

This is how God rewards us for our honesty. Any act of righteousness will never ever go in vain. When God sees honesty and a genuine effort for sincerity, He will always create circumstances to reward us and encourage us.

Navodita Mishra from Bangalore in India, had once shared a small incident.

Navodita’s childhood was probably pretty typical of a young girl growing up in the cozy home atmosphere. Her Mom stayed at home with her while her father went to work. Her Dad worked every day except Sundays. Those SUNDAYS were very close to her heart because her Dad taught her so many things, not only through words but through actions as well.

She remembers one incident very well. It's fresh in her memory as ever. It was the time when she was learning to drive a two-wheeler scooter. Back in India, these are very common as the modes of transportation. She wanted to learn it fast so that she could ask her dad to sit behind her. Somehow she wanted him to be proud of her. One day it so happened that he asked her to drop him at someone's office for an important piece of work and Navodita jumped with joy. And then her mom also asked her to get some stuff from the grocery store on the way back home. When she dropped her dad off, he asked her to come at 5pm. “We will go home together” he said, “in the meantime, you finish your shopping."

Navodita got busy with shopping and then met a friend who asked her to join her for a movie and she gladly said yes without realizing that her Dad will be waiting for her. The Movie got over at 5.30 and then she realized that her Dad would have been waiting. She hurried and reached the office by 6pm. He was anxiously waiting for her and asked why she was late? She told him a lie that the two-wheeler was creating some problem so she had to take it to a garage and got the problem fixed. She didn’t realize that they have only one garage where they give their car and two wheelers and he had already called the garage. He looked at her and caught her in the lie. He said: 'There's something wrong in the way I brought you up that didn't give you the confidence to tell me the truth. In order to figure out where I went wrong with you, I'm going to walk home and think about it and correct myself'.

Navodita felt extremely ashamed of herself. She realized that it was so silly to utter that lie. She decided then and there that she was never going to lie again. She often thinks about that episode and wonders, if her dad had punished her the way parents usually punish their children or would have told her mother about it, whether she would have learnt a lesson at all. She says, she doesn’t think so. She probably would have faced the punishment and gone on doing the same thing. But this single action was so powerful that it transformed her completely.

Her father taught her to face situations with full courage and never lie. He still tells her, if you have done something (good or bad), take a responsibility for it. Indeed a very important lesson in her life.

There is a reason why we are told never to lie. There is a reason why we are asked to live our lives right. One lie leads to multiple lies. Those who live their lives with honesty, live their lives with confidence and never have to fear anyone or feel guilty about anything.

Always remember: It takes effort to be honest at all times, but if we can make ourselves go through that initial effort, it soon becomes our subconscious nature.

-Until next time, this is Preet Sahi reminding you to Stay Spiritual!

Radio Ruhaniyat is inspired by thoughts and views from members of the Sant Nirankari Mission, along with Inspirational & Motivational speeches, posts, articles & stories. The Foundation of this program and the message being conveyed is inspired from www.nirankari.org