ABSTRACT
Swamiji brings out a small cassette recorder which was hidden beneath his robe and plays some songs which a devotee had recorded and sent as a Father’s Day gift. In expressing his appreciation of the spiritual content of the songs, he leads into his theme for the evening’s talk which is also the running theme of his entire teachings and his entire life; in a word: selflessness or dedication. Many different practices can be done in the name of Yoga or spiritual life, but the one common principle and most needed thing is the dedication, the complete surrender of the small individual self into the greater Self. In illustrating this theme, Swamiji uses many stories, parables and examples, many of them from everyday life. He foreshadows yet another of the major themes to be explored during this retreat: the two basic Yogic lifestyles of the family life and the life of a single devotee (or monk).
