Sat-Sankalpa is the Path for Attaining the Presence

For Maya-constituted beings, there are two Maya gates; the appetite for sex and the appetite of the tongue. These two have to be conquered by every man; so long as they persist, they cause sorrow. All worldly desires are comprehended by these two; so, only those who have mastered these two can be said to have successfully waded through the world. These are the causes of all sins; and, sin is the manure on which Maya thrives. Really speaking, this Maya-prapancha or world has to serve only the purpose of just sustaining the body. Those aspiring for Liberation have to subdue the senses. "Food for guarding the body, dress to ward off the cold", says the Uttara Gita. If Man, however, gets immersed in these pursuits, he will forget the purpose for which he has come and the goal of activity and holy endeavour. Instead, whatever activity a person may be engaged in, he must, as automatically as he takes in breath, be contemplating on these lines and should always be aware of this: "I am born to serve God and to realise my true Self". All acts - wearing, eating, walking, studying, serving, moving - should be performed in the belief that they take one into the Presence. Everything should be done in a spirit of dedication to the Lord.

A farmer clears and levels the land, removes the stones and thorns, ploughs and prepares the field, manures and strengthens the soil, waters and fertilises it, and by sowing, transplanting, weeding, spraying and waiting, he reaps the crop; after winnowing and threshing, he stacks the corn. All these various processes are for the sake of the stomach; so too, one must feel that all the hunger, thirst, joy and sorrow, grief and loss, suffering and anger, food and appetite are but impulses helping us towards attaining the Presence of the Lord. When one has this attitude, sin will never tarnish these activities. The appetites too will vanish, without a vestige of name or form.