You being a very busy person does not justify your forgetting God. Devotees on the spiritual path have even more tests than those who follow a material path, so don’t use your worldly obligations as an excuse to ignore God.
You should not neglect God for work, and you should not neglect work for God. You must harmonise both activities. Meditate every day, and be thinking of God as you carry your heavy bag of worldly duties. Feel that you are doing everything to please Him. If you are busy for God, then no matter what tasks you are performing, your mind will be always on Him.
In the difficult struggle to maintain balance between meditation and activity, the greatest safety lies in the consciousness of the Lord. Everything that I do with the consciousness of God becomes meditation. Those who habitually drink can work while they remain under the influence of the alcohol. So, if you are habitually intoxicated with God, you can work without interrupting your inner divine communion. In the state of deep meditation, when your mind has withdrawn from everything and you are one with the consciousness of God, no stray thought will cross the threshold of your memory. You will stand with God behind the strong iron gate of your concentration and devotion, which neither gods nor goblins dare pass through. That is the most wondrous state of victory!
Get away from everyone now and then, just to be with God. See no one. Introspect, study and meditate. Night is the best time for such seclusion. You may think you can’t change your habits and practice this because so many duties occupy your time. But you have the whole night to yourself, so there is no excuse not to seek God. Don’t be afraid you will lose your health if you lose a little sleep. Through deep meditation you will gain greater health.
Extract from the book “Divine Romance” by Sri Sri Paramahansa Yogananda
