What is the important enquiry each of us has to do as we approach another New Year? Bhagawan prods us today with His message.

Every year, man has been bidding farewell to the old year and welcoming a new year; this has been going on since the history of man began. But what is the net result? Only despair and distress, anxiety and insane fear! This is an occasion to inquire and discover why it has been so. Everyone seeks and strives to be at peace with oneself and with society. Man has tried to get this peace by accumulating wealth, which gives him power over others and the ability to command conveniences and comforts. He has sought to hoist himself to positions of authority and influence so that he can shape events suited to his aims and fancies. But, he has realised that both these paths are beset with fear and the peace secured thereby is liable to quick and sometimes violent extinction. How then can man achieve peace? Only through Love! Peace is the fruit of the tree of life; without it, the tree is a barren stump. The fruit is encased in a bitter skin so that the sweet juice may be preserved and guarded against marauders; you have to remove the skin before tasting the sweetness within and strengthening yourself. The thick rind is symbolic of the six evil passions that encase the loving heart of man: lust, anger, greed, attachment, pride, and hate. Those who can remove the rind through hard and consistent discipline attain the peace we all desire; that peace is everlasting, unchanging and overwhelming.