Pujya Rakesh Zaveri

Rakesh Jhaveri, also known as Pujya Gurudev Rakeshbhai (born 26 September 1966) is a spiritual leader, mystic, scholar of Jainism, author and orator from India. Spiritually inclined from a young age, he is a follower of Shrimad Rajchandra, a Jain spiritual teacher. He completed doctoral studies on Shrimad's work Atmasiddhi. He founded Shrimad Rajchandra Mission, Dharampur which supports spiritual and social activities across the world.

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How do I differentiate between love and attachment?

The one veiled by delusion can see no distinction between love and attachment. He cannot recognise their distinctly different characteristics. Love is the blossoming of the heart.

How can you not know when the flower of your heart opens up! Even if you want, it cannot remain hidden from yourself or others. Love is a revolution. It is the death of ego. There cannot be a greater revolution than that. Because the end of ego is the dawn of Divinity. When ego vacates the seat in your heart, the Lord occupies it.

Attachment is a kind of relationship. Love is not. It is a state of being and so it flows towards all. Love is like a lit lamp that gives light to all around, with no bias whatsoever. Love is an awakened state of the Self. In attachment, you are asleep, deluded, sad and wish for other’s company to become happy. The most amusing thing is that the one from whom you expect happiness is also searching for happiness. What happens when two beggars or two sad people meet? Naturally, their sadness increases. Both expect from each other, console each other, and become prey to each other’s bait. You enjoy being in delusion until it begins to pain you. When reality dawns, that relationship becomes a burden for you. The deceit of delusion does not last long. A little change in circumstances and the mask comes down, the veil falls, and dreams are shattered. The more you are dependent on the other, the more expectations you will have and greater will be your unhappiness.