My child, you have been extremely fortunate in getting this human birth. Have intense devotion to God, and commune with him. Kindle the light divine within your heart, and maintain its flame of devotion, through your constant remembrance of the Lord. It is true devotion that counts. It does not matter which deity you worship. The marks of devotion are love, faith, confidence, humility, service. God accepts all forms of prayer and worship through which man expresses his love and devotion for him. Bhakti or devotion is the natural affinity between the devotee and the Lord. As iron that is touched by the touch-stone, turns to gold at once, as the water of the roadway, mixed with that of the Ganga, becomes pure at once, even so the heart of the devotee, though greatly soiled by many great sins, becomes pure if attached with devotion to the Lord. Put your little seed of faith in your heart, water it with love and devotion. Then the great tree of bhava samadhi (the culmination of devotion) will grow.
~ Swami Sivananda ~
