EE7.5 - Spiritual Discourses

Spiritual Discourses

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The Thoughts of P.R. Sarkar [a compilation]

Notes:

this version: is the printed The Thoughts of PR Sarkar, 1st edition, 3rd printing, version (obvious spelling, punctuation and typographical mistakes only may have been corrected). I.e., this is the most up-to-date version as of the present Electronic Edition. Words in double square brackets [[ ]] are corrections that did not appear in the printed version.

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Life is a movement from imperfection to perfection. When inanimate objects become animate there is progress. There is further progress when animate beings become multicellular metazoic organisms, more and more complicated structures. The human being is the highest being, the being most perfect in structure. The human being is thus a perfected animal. But this is the beginning of progress for humanity. Humans still have to achieve further physical, intellectual and spiritual perfection. Movement towards perfection – God – is a human’s true nature (dharma). Movement towards imperfection is against one’s true nature (adharma). The former is life, the latter is death. Human movement towards animality is therefore not life, it is death.

No movement is free from friction or obstacles. Even when you walk, the force of gravity obstructs you. Movement towards perfection is obstructed by all the forces of imperfection, of evil. The sinful, the crude, the narrow, obstruct all movement for the expansion of the human mind. But perfection being a God-ward movement, do not be afraid – move on. Obstacles will go down the drain, where they belong. You will progress.

The mission of human life is to move towards perfection, towards God. This is one’s duty. In this struggle the forces of evil are bound to be defeated. This has been the case all along, and history will repeat itself. You have no right to rest until you have fulfilled your mission of being perfect, of being divine, of establishing yourself in perfection. Rest is sin as it puts a stop to this movement. Do not rest until you have reached your goal.

From the inanimate to the animate goes the process of evolution. Consider a piece of stone for instance. It has neither the power of action nor the sensation of mind. What is the reason? It is because hitherto there has been no manifestation of mind in the stone at all. Consider the trees and plants that are more animate than the stone. There is activity in them. They grow, draw the vital juice from the earth, maintain their species by creating seeds in their own bodies, and enjoy and suffer pleasure and pain when taken care of or hurt. We see in them the manifestation of consciousness, for mind has awakened in them. Thus progressing on the path of mental development, we see in humanity its greatest manifestation. Just as evolution takes place from the subtle to the crude, similarly the unit entity reverts step by step from the crude to the subtle, towards the same Absolute Consciousness from whence it came. It is just like the waves of the sea, rippling back from whence they have come.

The darkness of evolutionary night began to fade centuries ago when the first ape-like creature deserted his tree-branch kingdom and shambled out into the light of the plain. He was guided by something he could not understand: something un-apelike and impossible for his comrades. Somehow, somewhere in his seething body chemistry, something had changed. In his brain lay the seed of humanity; in his strangely bright eyes, the dark shadow of a hidden dream.

Time passed slowly. The new creatures developed and multiplied. The wonderful changes in their bodies and minds continued; their brains, nerves and glandular systems grew in complexity and specialization. New behaviour patterns evolved and after some time, emotions and feelings unknown and denied to all previous forms of life found their means of expression. The Dawn of Man was reached at that auspicious hour. The waves of thought generated by that first human expression vibrate even to this day in the unconscious mind of every human being. Everyone of us carries within him the hidden memory of that first sunrise, and even beyond it into the darkness of antiquity. We are, by means of this primordial memory, which is part of our human heritage, intimately connected to all forms of life.

Humanity, standing as it does at the top of the evolutionary ladder, may sometimes feel proud and in a weak moment commit an act of meanness. Yet one should always remain vigilant against this. The evolutionary forces have not stopped. The theatre of action has shifted to the psychic level. Evolution is now expressing its power in the daily struggle of men and women everywhere to attain dignity.

You know, there is nothing disorderly in this Universe. Everything moves according to certain rules. In this solar system of ours, the sun is the nucleus, and so many planets are moving around the sun. In this ethereal system, the earth is the nucleus, and the moon is moving around it. Similarly, in the atomic system also there is a nucleus and electrons move around the nucleus. In our cosmological order the Supreme Consciousness is the nucleus and so many animate and inanimate objects are moving around Him, knowingly or unknowingly. Human beings move knowingly and other animals, other less developed living beings, and also inanimate objects – even some human beings – move unknowingly, unconsciously. The radius of those who move unknowingly remains unchanged, or even, due to their mean propensities, their radius may increase. But spiritual aspirants always try to lessen the length of their radius. They come closer and closer to the Supreme, and when they come to the nearest proximity, they become one with the Nucleus, and that is the stage of Salvation.

Now, so many entities, so many individuals are moving around Him; they have so many physical structures – long, short, white, black, learned, illiterate – but the common goal is the Nucleus, the Supreme Consciousness. There should be no shyness, no hatred, no complex in human beings because that Nucleus is the bigger “I” of everybody – that Nucleus is the Supreme Progenitor of all.

In this universe there is nothing beyond the Supreme Consciousness. You always remain within His circle. Imagine that a cow is tied to a peg with a rope. The rope may be short or long, but the cow has to move around the peg. Similarly, human beings are moving around the Cosmic Nucleus. They go round without knowing that they are tied to a peg, without knowing Who is at the centre. They think that they are everything, and that they know so much. They think they are not ordinary creatures; this creates pride in them. Then, while moving, suddenly a question comes in their minds. They ask where they are going, from where is the inspiration to move coming? When this realization, this question arises in their minds, then they know that they are moving around a peg, and that they have to go towards the centre, towards the Supreme Nucleus. The day this realization comes they become spiritual aspirants and the radius starts decreasing. When the radius becomes nil, then they merge into the Supreme Consciousness.

Human beings will have to go on moving as long as they have the feeling that they and the Entity which has created them, the Supreme Consciousness at the Nucleus, are two different entities. When they realize suddenly on reaching close to the peg that they and the Entity which has created them are not different, the distance between the two will disappear and both will become one – they will merge in the nectar of Cosmic Consciousness. This is the ultimate aim of all beings, of plants, of anything which has life. Therefore, the person who comes onto the path of spiritual practice early is wise – and also fortunate.

Now, the Supreme Consciousness is the Supreme Witnessing Entity. Whatever your individual consciousness is seeing or feeling - everything – is being witnessed by the Supreme Entity. Suppose you are imagining a rhinoceros in your mind, and that rhinoceros is moving within your mind – whatever that rhinoceros is doing you are seeing; whatever that rhinoceros is thinking you are hearing. Whatever the rhinoceros does, then and there it is being witnessed by you. No activities, no thought waves of that rhinoceros are a secret for you – you know everything. So whatever is being done in the universe is nothing but a mental creation of the Supreme Consciousness; everything is within His mind. He is the Macrocosm, and everything is microcosm. Each and every person is moving within His mind. Everything is within Him, nothing is without. So whatever is being done, He sees, He knows, He feels. This universe is nothing but a mental projection of that Supreme Consciousness.

Hence, because everything is His mental creation, so everything, everybody is His child. He is not the ruler, He is not the administrator, He is not the boss. He is the creator. He is the generator, He is the operator, He is the destroyer. When He withdraws His thought waves within Himself then nothing will remain. You came from Him, you are moving within His mind, and finally you will become one with Him. That is why I said, He being the generator, is represented by “G”; He being the operator is represented by “O”, and He being the destructor is represented by “D” – “G-O-D.” He is the GOD.

God is the controller of that vital force which keeps the organisms alive. He is our friend Who saves us from the jaws of calamities by His affectionate and tender touch. He exists everywhere. He is present about us sometimes as sound expression, sometimes as thought or emotion, and then again sometimes as individual entities. There is not a place in the universe where His Entity is not manifest. What we apparently take to be a void is also full of His Entity. He is even where the human intellect cannot reach, and where the imagination bounds back, thwarted and baffled. In the planetary world, it is His glory that shines as the sun. The backbone of the nervous system, the praising of the dead ancestors, the truth of the sages, the controller, the friend, the sun – are all these separate entities? No, all is He, all is He, all is He.

There is one moon, but its reflections, falling in countless puddles of water, appear as countless moons. No new moon is born. The same moon is being reflected in many receptacles. Similarly, the one and the same Supreme Consciousness is being manifested as limitless individual entities, in countless mental receptacles, in countless minds.

Is He moving? No, no, He is not. He lies motionless like the stump of a tree. Is He far away? No, no, He is not. He is very close. He is the Life of my life. He is within you, within me. He is within and without all and at all places. When a spiritual aspirant gets adequately acquainted with His Blissful Entity, we say that he is established in the Supreme Consciousness. At that stage both inside and outside attain unity. Mind then remains aloof from the attraction of trifles, and real acquaintance is made with the Supreme Being. While the body remains in the mortal world, the soul is merged in the Supreme Soul.

Any energy is invisible. We see the operation and action of electrical energy through lights, fans, etc. Similarly, no one has ever seen the sun – only its action. It looks round, but from a short distance it is simply something burning. So electricity and the sun are to be felt only. The same is the case with the mind. No one can show his mind, nor can one see one’s own mind. One can only feel. Similarly, the Supreme Consciousness is only to be felt and realized. When the whole mind is filled with the feeling of the Supreme Consciousness you can hardly bear it – nor can you express the bliss. You feel it - you can only enjoy it!

The concept of God and Satan is defective. If we accept the existence of Satan it means that there are two Gods, one God positive, and one God negative, i.e. Satan. And that challenges the authority of the Supreme Consciousness – that cannot be. So there is no Satan. Everywhere there is the rule of the Supreme Consciousness; nowhere is the rule of Satan. Satan is the centrifugal force that drives an aspirant, a human being, away from the Supreme Nucleus.

The Supreme Consciousness is the shelter of all entities, the only Entity who requires no shelter for maintaing His existence. This town of Patna is sheltered within the state of Bihar. Bihar is within India. India is within Asia. Asia is within this planet. This planet is within this solar system. This solar system is within Him. So nobody shelters Him. He does not depend on any shelter. His existence does not depend on the compassion of any second entity.

The Supreme Consciousness is there in you as the oil is in the oilseed. Crush the seed through spiritual practice (sádhaná) and you attain Him; separate the mind from Consciousness and you will see that the resplendence of the Supreme Consciousness illuminates your whole inner being. He is there like butter in curd; churn it and He will appear from within. Churn your mind through spiritual practice and God will appear like butter from curd. He is like a subterranean river in you. Remove the sands of mind and you will find the clear, cool waters within.

The Supreme Consciousness has concealed Himself within your mind. He is hidden behind the curtain of your “I-ness”. You need not go to the Himalayan mountains to find out the thing that is concealed in your own “I”. Does one need a mirror to see the bangle on one’s hand? The Supreme, therefore, is within you. There is need only of removing the veil of ego.

We have to wipe out this ego, this “I-hood”. All burdens, all confusion, all considerations of respect or disrespect are connected with this “I”. When someone does not agree with you, you file a suit in the court. Why do you take such trouble? Only to vindicate your ego. All troubles and frustrations are solely due to the unit ego. The fact is that even after surrendering everything to God, the arch enemy “I” remains. You will say, “I have surrendered everything to God.” – I, I, I! My friend, surrender this “I” also to God and then alone your surrender will be complete. All the trouble is due to this “I”.

Now, when does a person feel that he or she should love the Supreme? When one frees oneself from egoistic sentiments. But one will say, “They say God is gracious, but I am an unfortunate fellow. I am not realizing His grace.” There are many persons who talk like this. But you know, my sons, you know, my daughters, there is no partiality in Him. His heavenly shower of Grace is for all. He is for each and every creature, but one feels His Grace while another does not. What is the reason: There is a heavenly shower of grace. But suppose you are holding an umbrella over your head. Will you be drenched by the shower? Oh, no. He who wants to enjoy this shower of grace must remove the umbrella of ego from his head, and he will be drenched by the divine shower. So a spiritual aspirant, a Yogi, must give up all his egoistic sentiments. And in the next moment he will be in the proximity of the Supreme Father.

In simple terms, what we have to do is to return home from where we came. We have all come from the Supreme Entity, the Nucleus of the universe. We have to return to the same destination. The child has played throughout the day away in the fields, and now that evening has come, he returns home. He thinks that his father must have returned home: “Let me return home and sit near him.” When one is tired of this world and worldliness, one yearns to go back to spirituality – one’s home. And what is our permanent abode, our home? The Supreme Consciousness. Spiritual practice (sádhaná), therefore, is the process of returning home. It is a simple task. It requires no scholarship, no knowledge, no intellectual faculty, no long and tedious lecturing.

When a knower of truth merges in the Supreme Being, his petty sense of existence loses itself, and attaining unity with the Supreme Entity, he becomes Supreme himself. Spiritual practice is the means for expansion of the soul, not for its annihilation; so absorption in the Supreme (samadhi) does not mean suicide but self-transcendence. One who has known the Supreme Consciousness becomes Supreme himself, for the individual entity takes on the very form of his object of ideation. One who has the Supreme as his object of ideation, becomes the Supreme himself.

If a salt doll goes to fathom the sea, it will certainly melt and become the sea itself. Similarly, if the knower of the Supreme Consciousness goes to fathom the Supreme, he merges in the sea of Consciousness and becomes Supreme himself. Be constantly absorbed in the thought of the Supreme Consciousness and you too will become Supreme.

The union of a spiritual aspirant with the Supreme Consciousness has been expressed with an excellent example. A river, giving up its name and identity, completely merges in the sea and thereafter cannot maintain its own existence except as the sea. Similarly, a spiritual aspirant, after merging himself in the Supreme Consciousness, can no longer think of himself except as the Supreme. Seeing the Ganges River, we can tell that is the water of the Ganges. We can tell the water of the Yamuna River, or the water of the Sarasvati River; but once they merge in the sea, we cannot separate them, nor can we distinguish the one from the other. Nevertheless they are all there. They all have lost their respective name-entities in the entity of the sea.

For each and every human being there are two “I’s”. The name of a person, say, is Solomon. Then the name of his little “I” is Solomon and the name of his big “I” is that Supreme Entity. The name of the little “I” is Mr. Joseph, but the name of his big “I” is the Supreme Consciousness. The big “I” for all created beings is the same, but the little “I” varies – so many bodies having so many names. The big “I” is one and indivisible: for the entire universe there is one big “I”.

What is Yoga? It is to become one with that Supreme Entity. When you become one with the Supreme you are getting everything, you are losing nothing. You are losing only your little name, the name of your little “I”, and nothing else, and in return you are getting the Supreme “I”. This is Yoga in the spiritual sphere. Some people think that Yoga means a particular exercise. No, no, no. Yoga does not mean exercise; Yoga means unification.

In order to realize the Supreme Perfection, a human being will have to give up his or her “I-ness”; that is to say, s/he will have to merge his or her petty “I-feeling” in the Great “I-feeling”. What is this petty “I”? It is like a pot full of water in a pond. Now if the water of the pot is to be unified with that of the pond – actually, both the waters are intrinsically one – the pot intervening between the two waters has to be removed. After the removal of the pot, there will remain no distinction between the water of the pot and water of the pond – both become one. The cause of this apparent distinction between God and the unit being is this pot – the individual mind. The long and short of the whole thing is that He is infinite. If you want to realize His characteristic Self, you have to earn limitlessness yourself.

Identify your mind with Him and you will realize that even the minutest objects are you. You are the Pacific Ocean. The universe which is the manifestation of the Cosmic Energy will appear as your own manifestation. The universe which is the play of God also gives Him ecstatic Bliss. You meditate on Him and He meditates on you.

Ultimately only one entity exists. That entity may be “I”, that entity may be “He”, but the differentiation between “I” and “He” disappears. “I exist” or “He exists” – the two ideas disappear - merely “exists”. This is the stage of non-attributional consciousness. It is the Supreme Stage of Yogic practice, it is the Supreme Stance for a Yogi. But for this, one requires divine help; and I know further that one is getting divine help. And I know still further, that for infinite time and infinite space, one will be getting this divine help. You are all spiritual aspirants, you will certainly attain the Supreme Stance and enjoy that Divine Blessedness. You are sure to enjoy it, my sons and my daughters.

Spiritual practice is the conversion of the small object into that infinite object. Now, you think that “This small body, this unit consciousness, is mine.” But when you think “That vast universal body is mine,” then you are the Supreme. When this individual body and mind is yours, you know all the secrets of this individual physical body and mind. And when this vast cosmos is your object, you’ll know everything of this cosmos, you’ll know everything of this infinite space. So your spiritual practice is the practice of conversion – conversion of small into big.

This process of conversion makes a person universal. One’s very existence goes beyond the scope of time, place and person. At that time, one becomes omnipotent and also omniscient. One knows everything without going through any book. When an individual wants to acquire any knowledge, one will have to go through practical experiences, books, etc. For the individual, there are so many worries and anxieties, so much optimism and pessimism, so many clashes and cohesions; but in the case of the Supreme there is no complex, no optimism, no pessimism; there is no question of clashes or cohesions, because in the case of the Cosmic, everything is internal – nothing is external. Everything is within and nothing is without. The entire universe is in the range of His mind, so there remains no second entity, no second individual. Thus the question of any clash doesn’t arise.

If one wants to attain peace, what is one to do? One is to convert one’s small objectivity into the infinite objectivity. There is no other alternative. Simply teaching the gospels of peace won’t give you any peace. You have to convert yourself from small into big. Spiritual practice is the practice of increasing one’s own psychic radius. When it becomes bigger and bigger, the range of mind is bigger. And when in this way the radius becomes infinite, the aspirant becomes one with the Supreme. This becoming one with the Supreme, the Supreme Union, is called Salvation or emancipation – liberation of permanent nature. Each and every spiritual aspirant should know this and attain liberation.

There is a common desire in each and every human mind, and that desire differentiates a human from an animal, a human from a plant. What is that difference? It wants to expand. Secondly, it wants to become one with the Cosmic Entity. Thirdly, it wants to do something noble; and fourthly, it wants peace, supreme peace, undisturbed peace. These are the four special qualifications of human beings. So Yoga is the path of progress, the path of development for each and every human being. In individual life we should practice yoga, and in collective life we should encourage others to practice yoga. It is the panacea of all human ailments, in the physical realm, in the psychic realm and also in the spiritual realm.

What is Tantra? The process of transforming animality or latent divinity into the Supreme Divinity is known as Tantra. The spiritual practice which liberates the aspirant from dullness or animality and expands one’s self is Tantrik practice (sádhaná). So, there cannot be any spiritual practice without Tantra. Spiritual practice means a practice for expansion, and this expansion is nothing but a liberation from the bondage of all sorts of dullness. Irrespective of caste, creed or religion, one who aspires for spiritual expansion, or does something concrete, is a Tantrika. Tantra in itself is neither a religion nor an “ism”. It is the fundamental spiritual science.

Who is your nearest person? You try to know so many things, but you should know first of all your nearest object. What is your nearest object? Your hands? Your fingers? No, no, no. Your arms? No, no, no. Your chest? No, no, no. What is the nearest point? Your “I” is your nearest entity. And the distance cannot be measured. First of all you should know all the characteristics of your own “I”. In your books, in your laboratories, you try to learn the characteristics of oxygen, nitrogen, hydrogen monoxide, hydrogen peroxide, and so many elements and compounds, but you don’t know the characteristics of your nearest object. Try to know all the characteristics of your nearest object in your mental laboratory.

Now how to do it? In the laboratory, a theoretician won’t be able to help you in your research. You require a practical demonstrator in the laboratory. In the realm of spirituality, whom to follow? You may or may not follow the scriptures, you may or may not follow the social codes, and you may or may not follow the intellectuals. You are to follow those practical demonstrators; that means you are to follow the Yogis. And certainly, according to His direction, you will attain that Supreme Stance, and you will enjoy that Supreme Beatitude.

There are some people who have the correct desire but do not have correct direction. They know that the Supreme Consciousness is the goal, but they don’t have real direction. It is said that spiritual practice should not be performed by studying from books. For it, a preceptor is essential. If a person starts doing spiritual practice by reading a book or hearing from another, that too is dangeous because in that case a clear conception about the goal is not formed. Hence one does not know where one is going. The boat is sailing but the sailor does not know where the boat is going. In the long run the sailor will become exhausted and have some accident.

Whoever attains the wish to merge into Him, the Supreme Consciousness in the form of Sadguru (the Perfect Master) appears and trains them how to move forward towards the Supreme Consciousness and to merge into Him. All the arts, the rules how to merge in Him, are known to no one except the Supreme. So it is He who teaches the spiritual aspirants in the form of Sadguru. There is no other alternative to this.

Even a gold vessel needs polishing occasionally. Unmaintained, it gathers dust and dirt and loses its lustre. Similarly, even a good person, a spiritual aspirant needs proper maintenance, for in a world of constant change, care must be taken that the change be always towards the better or the higher. Keeping good company is essential for this positive development. While bad company strengthens the bondage of the soul, good company is conducive to liberation and salvation.

When an infant starts walking, the parent first guides him to walk a little. He tries to walk but falls. Then the parent advances and lifts him up in his lap. So also, God. Make the slightest efforts and He will pick you up and place you in His lap.

Human life is a small bubble in the ocean of consciousness. One who rejects the waves of this ocean, can never be successful. However big an ego one has, one day that ego will be shattered, as big rocks are churned to dust. If one wants to move on the path of the Supreme, one will have to dive into the ocean of the Supreme Consciousness. During this movement one will enjoy the sweet beauty of the Divine Play. Those who move towards the Supreme, their vital energy and their mind will flow in the same rhythm as the Cosmic Wave. It is not surprising that they will dance, they will laugh, they will weep – people will say that they are mad.

In Ananda Marga, this wave of the Supreme Consciousness is to be attained in the process of meditation (sádhaná). That is why, in present or future, if anybody does this sádhaná with great determination, they will also dance, sing, laugh and weep, and thus they will move on towards that Supreme. In this way, by moving and moving, establishing themselves in morality, becoming “Sadvipras” (Spiritual moralists), in the true sense of the word, they will become one with that Supreme form of Bliss. Human beings will have to dive into this waveof the Supreme. This is the true success in life. The is the Ánanda Márga (Path of Bliss).

My work is not to look towards the past of anyone. I only see how much one is advancing towards his destiny and I help them. You are to look ahead, you are to look forward. If you look back, if you look behind, you are wasting your valuable time. Fools, not wise people, do like this. The nature of human beings is to think of the so-called “sweet” memories of the past; one thinks more of the past and less of the future. But spiritual aspirants think of the Lord Who is their goal. When they start thinking of the endpoint of life, the very goal of life, the Supreme Consciousness, then the past with all its glory becomes pale. The ordinary person is one who thinks of the past and also of the future. Higher than that is the one who thinks only of the future. But the perfect person is the one who thinks neither of the past nor of the future. S/he thinks only of the Supreme Consciousness – the Lord.

You say so many things, but the major portions of what you say are meaningless. Simply a wastage of time and energy. And not only do you speak aloud, but you speak in your mind also. That is also a waste of energy. Before going to Stockholm you may say within your mind a thousand times, “I have to go to Stockholm, I have to go to Stockholm, I have to go to Stockholm!”… a mere waste of time and energy.

What is thought? Thought means to speak within. Thought is clearly related to soliloquy. Some of your thoughts are of such nature if others hear them, others will say you are insane. So what am I to say within my mind? What am I to speak to myself? I should speak regarding You, the Infinite One, and not this or that, so my time will be properly utilized, and there won’t be any waste of time and energy.

And then comes memory: “Oh, when I went to Alaska, my host served me a very delicious meal.” Or you think of a story of a near and dear one from twenty or twenty-five or thirty years ago. It is a very sweet memory. But what is the use? Memory should be of the actual experience of the mind in the course of meditation (sádhaná), the bliss that you enjoyed during kiirtan (spiritual chanting) – memory should be like this. That is, never should it be centred around yourself. In that case there won’t be any waste of time and energy.

If spiritual aspirants think they will attain occult powers through meditation, they are in illusion. It is possible that they may get some supernatural power, yet they cannot attain the Supreme Consciousness in that way. While sitting in meditation, if they think that the occult forces should come to them, they are simply whiling away their valuable time for nothing. A devoted spiritual aspirant never aspires for these things. Even if the Supreme should come to someone and say, “My child, take these celestial forces,” that person replies, “Supreme Lord, keep these forces with Yourself. I don’t need them. I want You, and You alone. I am restless for You and not for Your forces.” A mother tries to coax and cajole her crying son and offers him some toys to divert his attention. The child stops crying and forgets his mother for the time being. But if he persists in his effort to cling to the breast of his mother and continues crying, “No, Mummy, I want to be on your lap. I will not take those toys,” finally the mother finds no other way than picking up the child and holding him to her breast. A devoted spiritual aspirant is like this latter child. S/he will say, “My most lovely Father, this world that I see all around is a plethora of toys. They are ephemeral and will not remain for ever. Tell me, my Lord, are You giving these to me for all the time to come?” And then the Lord will be answerless, for He never gives these things for ever. He gives them by His left hand and takes them back by His right one.

The process of Cosmic Ideation (Madhuvidyá) teaches you that you can endeavour to attain liberation even while leading a worldly life, provided, of course, that before dealing with any object of gratification, you do so with Cosmic feelings. While feeding your son, you should contemplate that you are not feeding your son, but you are doing your duty to the manifestation of the Supreme Consciousness in the shape of your son. When you plough your land, you ought to contemplate that you are doing the proper action to the manifestation of the Supreme Consciousness in the form of your land. If you properly follow this Cosmic Ideation you can keep yourself aloof from the shackles of actions even though you perform actions. This practice will pervade your exterior and interior with the ecstasy of Cosmic Bliss, and will alleviate permanently all your afflictions. Then the force of ignorance (avidyá) cannot devour you in its ferocious jaws. The glory of the One and only One benign Entity will shine forth to you from one and all objects.

Your every action should be with the Supreme Ideation. Without Him, all your actions are as nothing, no matter how great they may seem. Yet if you do even a little with His ideation, you will have done a great deal. He is like the number one and your actions are like zeros to the One; it is like multiplying by ten with each action. But if that One is not there, your zeros are added to each other, and the net result is only zero.

So go on multiplying; do not let all be zero. You have taken a human form to realize Him: let not your life be wasted.

Both spiritual practice and success are within your easy reach. The result is already secured with me; I shall give it to you at the appropriate time. Do not bother about it. Whether you are sinner or virtuous, those who come to God are all one for Him. He makes no distinctions. All will be liberated.

You are all my beloved sons and daughters. Sometimes I appear harsh to some. But that is for love. If I were indifferent, there would be no need for scolding or punishment. I want to see you all laughing. It gives me great pleasure to see you laughing. Leave all cares unto me. O be blessed.

The Cosmic Father is the Supreme Subjectivity; that is, He sees everything – everything is within His mind. He is the Supreme Subject and everything else is the object. The Seer is the subject and the seen is the object. So how can you accept Him as your object of meditation? During meditation you should remember, “I am the object and He is seeing me.” You can never be the subject and He can never be the object. You must remember the fact that the Supreme Subjectivity, the Supreme Consciousness, is seeing what you are doing. This is the secret of meditation.

And if you are to say anything, you should say only one sentence: “Oh Supreme Father, guide my intellect unto the Path of Bliss. I want nothing else, nothing.”

The Supreme Creator, the Hub of the Universe, is the Supreme Guardian. He knows what is your requirement. A babe of three months doesn’t know its requirement, but its mother knows. The babe is solely dependent on its mother. Similarly, you are also a babe, and He is the Supreme Guardian. He knows your requirement. You need not say, “Oh, God, give me food, give me water, give me this or give me that.” Let Him do His duty. You need not tell Him, “Oh, God, it is your duty. You should have done like this.” He knows His duty. And you are to learn your duty from Him.

Oh tranquil spiritual aspirant! Spiritual practice (sádhaná) is your great bow. Set the arrow of your mind, sharpened with meditation, on this bow. Now, inclining your mind toward Him, pluck and twang the string of the bow and pierce your target - that indestructible Supreme Soul.

There are three categories of human beings. The first category comprises those whose thoughts, words and deeds are the same - which means whatever they think, they speak, and whatever they speak, they do. Such people are A-class people.

The second category comprises those whose thoughts and words are different, but whatever they speak, they do – which means they think one thing and speak another, but they do whatever they speak. Such people are B-class people.

The third category comprises those whose thoughts, words and deeds are different from each other and never the same. Such people think one thing, speak another, and do something altogether different. Such people are C-class people. Most of the leaders of the present-day world fall into this category. You should try to become A-class people. You should speak what you think, and you should do what you speak.

Suppose your boss arrives; you will welcome him and say, “Please come, sit down and have something to eat.” You flatter him but inside you say, “What a trouble has arrived! When will he go?” This is not known to your boss. Thus, two “I’s” are within you; one performs action in the external world, and the other is inside. You are well-acquainted with this inner “I”, but others do not have the correct information about it. Spiritual practice (sádhaná), therefore, is to unify the two, the internal “I” and the external “I”, into one.

Two-ness in one single personality of human beings is their disease. The greater the gap between these two “I’s”, the more you will undergo psychic torment. You must remember that in this second half of the 20th Century there is a great gap between the internal “I” and external “I”. And because of the trouble in adjusting these two “I’s” there is an increase in the number of lunatics. This is the greatest disease of the 20th Century.

Lord Buddha said: Win falsehood by truth, win the miserly with generosity, win anger by non-anger. The intelligent thing for you to do would be never to get angry. Be moral in the midst of immorality and falsehood. If you have this skill, you will triumph in any battle. You will remain unassailed.

In reality, human beings want neither joy nor sorrow. They seek mental peace and quietude. In daily life, a person comes in contact with different kinds of people. At times one even fights with some people. How will one find mental peace?

Those who do injustice will also suffer injustice. The people who do injustice will lose their mental balance in any fight. Those who do no injustice will be able to maintain their mental balance in their fight against injustice. This is the characteristic of a person who has attained mental quietude.

You see now that Ananda Marga’s fame is on the rise. What should we do? We must maintain our mental balance and remain indifferent to both praise and slander, to both joy and sorrow. When I was in jail, I was subjected to a lot of calumny by some people. These very people now praise me. But I was indifferent to all their slander, and now I do not want their adulation.

To understand my nature you must do meditation. I keep no ambiguity, I am clear, concrete, conclusive. My philosophy is a complete philosophy, a complete way of life. I am complete in myself, and I want every person to be complete in themselves. I am like an arrow – clear, pointed.

To attain complete success in life, one must have mental equipose, mental balance. There must not be any complex in the mind – neither superiority nor inferiority complex.

Now, to bring about mental balance, you should behave with every human being in such a way that this superiority complex or inferiority complex develops neither in you nor in those with whom you behave.

Complex of any sort – superiority or inferiority – is a psychic malady, a mental disease. You must maintain a psychic balance. That balanced mind will be able to move towards the Supreme Consciousness. That’s why it has been said, “One should be humbler than the grass.” Usually superiority is found more in humans than inferiority complex. Even those who possess mere knowledge of the alphabet, feel themselves quite superior to those who are totally illiterate.

The one and only Supreme Father of the universe is playing with His innumerable children, remaining Himself with them. This play (Liilá) may appear sorrowful to many and delightful to others. It is a great play in which everybody wants to play a happy part, but some must play sorrowful parts also, otherwise the drama does not become interesting. In this world of His, the Supreme Consciousness is staging a big play. Whenever He wants He will call us nearer to Him – He will make us merge into Him. This is His Drama.

So everyone must remember to play their different parts in His drama. Actually, in happiness or in sorrow, no one is miserable or wretched, no one is blessed. No one is wise, no one is a stupid fool. Everyone has to play their parts and nothing else. Whoever can remember this, will suffer no sorrow and will not be overwhelmed with happiness either.

In short, whatever was created in the past is the original creation (sambhúti) of God. The sum total of all creations is the Cosmic Order (Brahmáńd́a). This includes the sun as well as the small ant which crawls on the earth. Whether it is a dead star or a living star, whether it is a nebula or a milky way or a galaxy – all belong to one universal family. The Milky Way is vast from one end to the other; an ant is a very small creature, but the role of both of them in maintaining the balance of the universe is equal. If one ant meets a premature death, it will disturb the balance of the entire cosmos. Therefore, nothing here is unimportant, not even an ant. Suppose, an ant is sitting on the edge of a rock and it moves even one inch from east to west, and this disturbs the balance of the rock, it may cause a big earthquake – because after all, the ant is also His original creation.

These days we are discovering many fossils from excavations. They show that in the distant past, age after age, huge creatures were created. Similarly, there were innumerable varieties of trees and creepers; all these are not available today. We see their bodies only in the form of fossils. Every age had its own flora and fauna and it disappeared with them. Every tree and every creature of every age and stratum is His creation. None is unimportant. What is happening in the universe is the gradual death of one created being and the gradual emergence of another. Therefore, whatever will come, it will only be God coming in that form. No one is insignificant, no one is small, no one is low. Suppose there is a drunkard, a fallen man. You have no right to hate him. You talk with him, persuade him – if necessary scold him for his regression. All these efforts are alright, but you have no right to hate him. Hating is not a courageous quality or a creditable tendency. When every being is His own creation, how can you hate anyone? How is it possible that you meditate upon one form of the Lord and abuse another?

God has the same care for an ant, a mosquito and a mammoth. There is no special importance to a mammoth because it has a big body. The amount of care that He devotes to an ant is the same which He devotes to the entire cosmos – not less, not more. The entire universe, consisting of all the realms, is so complex and vast, yet it does not require any more headache to God than a white ant. Behind every created being there is a flow of energy from God… So a mammoth cannot move without His Grace, and a blade of grass also cannot move without His approval. Nobody is unimportant, nobody is insignificant. Each and every existence is valuable. So you must not develop the psychology of helplessness or hopelessness, defeatist complex or fear complex, because the Supreme Father is always with you.

The sweetest part of God’s play is that He is hidden in everyone and everyone is searching for Him. He wants His children to go around, and He plays hide-and-seek with them. This gives interest and pleasure to both the Creator and the Created. Thus all things are one. There is no distinction due to sex, age, or anything. Male and female, young and old are all actors playing different roles in the drama of this universe. Their forms differ, but their substance and purpose is one. God is male, female, child, youth and old age.

God has His faces in all directions. No one can hide anything from Him. He sees both our external and internal actions. Do not hate those who are small. You have no right to hate anyone. Do not be afraid of nature either. The thunder and the roar of the oceans hide His sweet music within their apparently frightful sounds. Fear none and hate none. All are One.

This Universal Form of God, unity in all – you will be able to see in this very life. Strive on – go on doing your meditation intensively, you will succeed.

You are never alone or helpless. The force that guides the stars, guides you too.

He appears to you according to your feelings toward Him. If you are subtle, He is nearest to you; if you are crude, He is farthest from you. Do you feel whether the Supreme Consciousness is in India or in America? He is so near as to be in your feelings, and so far as to be in a distant country. When you think He is here, He is nearer than here. He is so near that it is difficult to measure the distance. You go on searching for Him in the caves of the Himalayas and wander here and there, and He is nowhere. But when you attain awareness of Him, you find that He was all along with you in your search. He was seated in your heart.

He is the witness of all the worlds, all the deeds done in this universe. Nothing is secret for Him. You cannot do anything nor think anything without being witnessed by Him. If anyone says, “I am not being witnessed by anybody,” He will be witnessing this utterance. So as the witnessing Entity He is always with you. This is the greatest assurance, because when you know that He is with you, your mental strength will increase a thousand-fold, because He is always with you to help you. The only demerit is that as He is always with you, you cannot do anything secretly, you will be caught red-handed. But the merit is that because He is with you, you are never alone, you are never weak, you are never helpless. So the duty of a perfect human being, the duty of a spiritual aspirant is always to remember this supreme truth – that one is never alone, one is always with Supreme Father. He will always help you, and He will always accelerate the speed of your progress.

Whatever you do, the Supreme Consciousness sees everything. For Him no part of your being is closed or shut. He is the innermost part of your being. “Today I am very busy and have to attend a party so I shall do meditation (sádhaná) for three or four minutes only.” He knows that you are placing a party above sádhaná. He hears both your spoken words as well as the thought words. Actually He hears them first, before they become mental. He is, therefore, in full knowledge of all that goes on within and without and beneath the mind. Don’t try to hide anything from Him – you will not succeed.

He is with you always. You are never alone. Sometimes there arises in the mind a defeatest complex: “Oh, I am defeated in this project! Oh, I am defeated in this struggle for existence!” When your father is the Supreme Father, when your father is the most powerful entity in the entire universe, why should you think that you have been defeated in this struggle for existence? No! A bright future awaits you – your future is glorious, your future is luminous, your future is effulgent.

Now I am leaving this country and I am leaving you physically. I am always with you; I will always be with you. Physically I am leaving you, my sons and daughters, but I can’t forget you, and mentally I will always be with you. I want all of you to be ideal human beings. All of you should attain the pinnacle of human glory. Let your existence be successful. I have nothing more to say. Peace be with you.

My sons and my daughters, I have one more sentence to say. I do not belong to heaven. What I am, I am to express this truth in a single sentence – I am yours.

No power in heaven and earth can separate me from my children. Even if this universe comes to an end, I will be with them in the expressionless Cosmos. My children – be they gentle, be they naughty – they are mine.

Devotion means longing for the Supreme. Now the question arises, is devotion natural or unnatural for living beings? All the conscious or crude things we see in the manifested universe bear attraction for one another, and as a consequence, the continuity of the thought-projection of the Cosmic Mind is maintained. It is on account of the mutual attraction of myriads of heavenly bodies oscillating in the infinite space that balance is maintained in the firmament.

In this attraction, there is effort for self-preservation. The bee flies around and around flowers in quest of honey, just for the sake of preserving its existence. It can be seen that every entity runs toward that abode which is more lasting and secure and which can provide it greater and longer safety. People run after money for the only reason that they believe they can maintain their lives under the shelter of money; that is to say, money alone can save them. But they do not know that money can provide them neither permanent stability nor a securely-founded shelter. Even during the span of their lives, money will come and go several times. At times its glamour will dazzle their eyes, and sometimes it will make them cry, hunger-stricken. Not to speak of money alone, all finite objects have this characteristic. What is not infinite cannot permanently remain the object of your enjoyment. It cannot be your permanent resort, since the existence of all these finite objects is dependent on others, bounded by the limits of time, place and person. If the terrific speed with which the extroverted person runs after finite objects is introverted towards the Supreme Being of his or her life, s/he can attain the Supreme Consciousness, can achieve the Supreme State.

The world is a changing phenomenon. Therefore, it is unwise to be attached to any object in this ever-changing world. The very name and form will undergo changes with the change in time and place. The child changes into youth, the youth into the old, and the old into the corpse. But if wise people take every object of the world as the expression of the one and single Cosmic Consciousness, then on seeing the changes in the name and form of any particular object, they will not be affected by pain or pleasure. Cosmic Consciousness to them would remain Cosmic Consciousness; they would lose nothing.

Now what is devotion? Leaving all the relative things, when mind moves toward the Absolute, that alone is known as Devotion. When the mind moves toward the Supreme Soul, the nearer it comes to Him, there is an unknowing change in it. The caterpillar does not know when it becomes a butterfly. The mind does not know how changes occur in it. Thus, one day it sees that it is no longer an individual being and hence the individualistic feeling disappears. When the mind is free from individualistic feelings, that alone is the Supreme State.

Devotion is that bridge which connects the individual with the Cosmic Consciousness. Before crossing the bridge of devotion, one feels, “You are that Supreme Consciousness”. But while crossing the bridge, one feels, “I am That”.

When a person is established in devotion one becomes able to understand the greatness and magnificence of the Supreme Consciousness The understanding at this moment is born of real experience through taste. Sweet things, mango and sugar, can be distinguished only by taste. One cannot enjoy the flavour of mango by seeing its reflection in water. One will have to climb the tree, pluck the mango and taste it. Similarly, experience in the spiritual realm also can be had only after climbing a step on the tree of devotion. Only then can one understand the brilliance and greatness of the transcendental Cosmic Entity.

The Supreme Consciousness Himself will teach knowledge and the technique of doing the work. It is not the devotees’ headache. Surrender everything to the Lord. If one requires something from God, one must ask only for absolute devotion. When devotion is attained, God is attained. If God is attained, everything is attained. What remains unattained?

Therefore, from ancient times learned people have been accepting that the wisest person in the world is the devotee. The devotee is not bereft of intellect. On the contrary, s/he is the wisest. If you want to remain in the world, remain like a devotee. As long as devotion is absent, one’s heart is like a desert; and when devotion is attained, an oasis appears in the desert.

In this cosmic cycle, everyone has their individual and particular desire, and everyone is running after it. Those who have several desires run after all of them and become exhausted; and in the long run they receive none. If one desires to drink milk and smoke at the same time, it cannot be done. A person can do only one or the other. But those who have only one desire fulfil it very easily. Hence the desire should be for the Supreme and nothing else; the desire for other objects has to be channelized towards the Supreme.

If a person wants to become a devotee of the Lord, but if deep in his mind he thinks that God will make him pass in his examination – here the desire is not one but two. When something is demanded from God, the desire becomes two, and the time will be completely wasted. Where this desire is towards the Supreme Consciousness alone, there it is known as devotion: “I want the Supreme Consciousness and from Him I want nothing.”

Those who have taken the shelter of the Supreme Consciousness, He will think for their welfare, and those who think for their own welfare, the Supreme will not help them, saying that they are taking care of themselves. But those who have left themselves entirely on the Supreme, the Supreme has special responsibility for them. Therefore, it is said that for devotees, the Supreme Consciousness has special responsibility. It is the duty of the Supreme to save the prestige of the devotee, and the duty of the devotee is to leave everything on Him. Whatever energy is working in the universal flow, or in the material flow, is under Him. Therefore, when once you have made love with Him you are not weak, not helpless and not alone. Victory is with you. Remember Him and march ahead – victory will be yours. You have not to be afraid of my worldly forces. Those who enjoy the highest force of the Supreme are sure to succeed. Victory will surely be theirs. Victory to you all.

Does the Supreme Consciousness lack anything? Does He want name, fame, money, etc? He has no such want, because the entire universe is within His mind; all the properties of the universe are His. But the true devotee says, “Oh, Supreme Consciousness, there are so many great devotees and I am an ordinary devotee, but Lord, your great devotees have stolen away Your mind.” Because the Supreme Consciousness loves His devotees very much, His mind has been stolen by His devotees. So He has one shortage, one want. His Mind has been taken by His devotees. The devotee says, “So you have lost your mind. Oh Lord, take my mind, I offer my mind to you. Accept it.” Devotees are very intelligent; they are more intelligent than intellectuals, more intelligent than people of action.

The devotee says, “Oh, my Lord, I love you because in loving You, I get pleasure. I want nothing from You. I want to love You because I get pleasure.” But this is not the highest form of devotion. In the highest form of devotion, the devotee says, “Oh Lord, I love You. I want to love You. And why do I want to love You? Because I want that my love should give You pleasure. I don’t want any pleasure. I love you not to get pleasure, but to give You pleasure.” And by means of this type of devotion, the Yogi comes in closest contact with the Supreme Self and becomes one with Him. When one’s love is to give pleasure to the Lord and not to enjoy the pleasure for oneself, one’s mind gets metamorphosed into the mind of the Lord. By this devotion, the Yogi gets established into the stance of Supreme Beatitude. The person and his God become One.

Train yourself in the ideal of the lily, which blossoms in the mud and has to keep itself engaged in the struggle for existence day in and day out, parrying, bracing and fighting the shocks of muddy water and storms and squalls and sundry other vicissitudes of fortune, and yet it does not forget the moon above. It keeps its love for the moon constantly alive. It seems, however, but a most ordinary flower. There is nothing extraordinary about it. Still, this most ordinary flower has a romantic tie with the great moon. Similarly, you may be an ordinary creature – you may have to pass your days in the ups and downs of your worldly existence – still do not forget that Supreme One. Keep all your desires inclined towards Him. Always keep yourselves merged in His thought. Go deep into the mood of that Infinite Love.

In the field of spirituality there must not be any complex - neither fear complex nor shyness complex nor any other complex. The scriptures say, “If you do not do this or that you will go to hell.” Due to this, the scriptures are the worst enemy of human society; because in this way, scriptures create fear complex in the human mind, and that fear complex creates disparity in the human society. This human society is one – it is a singular entity. It cannot be divided, it must not be divided. And we won’t allow any such persons to create any divisive tendencies in this human society. Whatever people do in their spiritual life, they have to do – why? Because they are in love with the Supreme Entity. Love is the first word – Love is the starting-point, and Love is the last point. Scriptures have no moral right to create fear complex in the human mind.

Now, this meditation (sádhaná) for complete merger, for unification, starts with fearful love. Love must be there. Unless and until there is love, there cannot be unification. So love must be there, but it starts with fearful love and ends in fearless love; and the space between fearful love and fearless love is the space of sádhaná. What is sádhaná? Sádhaná is the transformation of fearful love into fearless love.

The life of a person becomes mechanical if one remains overwhelmed with the sentiment that one must do such acts, one must perform such service, one must rise in this manner and sit in this manner and get up in this manner, and so on. Happiness disappears there. For this reason, such ritualism cannot be called real karma (right action). To serve others at one’s own sacrifice is called penance. In the absence of love, service rendered and penance undergone for show only are fruitless. All ritualistic devotion, sham penance, counting of beads, etc. are meant only for public show. True love and the Supreme Goal are lost sight of. The Supreme cannot be attained through any show actions, because in ritualistic thoughts, the sweetness of happiness is lacking. Divine Bliss is easily available only to those who base their spiritual practice (sádhaná) on love.

That which makes the mind soft and strong and strenuous, so it may keep itself in a balanced state even in the condition of pain – that which perpetually creates a pleasant feeling within, is called love. Devotion is identical with love. The moment devotion is aroused, the love of God comes.

Another point to remember is that God is realized only by those whom He graces with compassion. You should not feel that you have done so much and that God must shower His Grace on you. Rather you should feel that it is up to the Lord to grace you or not. “This body of mine will work like a machine until You grace me with love” – this should be your feeling. If you are proud of your actions, this pride will remain in the end and the Grace of God will not come.

It is unwise to leave the world, to leave service to humanity and to go to the Himalayas to attain the Supreme Consciousness. Well! This universe itself is the Supreme Consciousness – where will you go by leaving it? In the world someone thinks that he is not able to concentrate his mind because of the din and bustle; but in the cave of the Himalayas he thinks that he cannot get sweet fruit in a particular jungle, and hence tomorrow he will be going to pick ripe plums two or three miles away in a different forest. In either of the places he is not free. If the Supreme Consciousness does not want you to know Him, then you will not be able to attain Him in either place. If He wishes you to achieve Him, you can get Him here and now. What He sees is your aspiration for Him. Remember it – that at every step of your life He is testing whether you have been able to arouse love for Him in your mind. He is testing whether you want Him or worldly objects.

The highest treasure of human beings, distinct from other creatures, is their intellectual superiority. Had there been no intelligence in humans, they would hardly be different from other animals. This philosophical consciousness will lead humanity to greater intellectuality. And this constant pursuit of intellectuality leads one to its furthest limit, where intuition begins. Hence in the realm of intuitional practice it is tremendously helpful. This path of spiritual practice is not devoid of intellect or intuition, rather it is based on intuition. It has no scope for superstition or blind faith. It will facilitate the most all-round progress of humanity and manifest the highest human excellence.

[[ People started understanding that in the human world it is not physical power that wins but intellectual power. Suppose there are some large elephants. The physical strength of the elephants is very great, but small elephant drivers goad them with their intellectual powers. This happens in every field in this world. So when humans entered the inner world they found that their real wealth lay in increasing their psychic strength and gradually, as their psychic strength increased, it came in contact with spirituality. People discovered that behind psychic power there is another power working and it is this power which provides psychic strength. Human beings then invented dharma sádhaná.

[[ Then humans understood that the Great is everything and that Prakrti is Shaktih Sá Shivasya shaktih. . . . The thought occurred in the human mind[[, As]] my intellect comes from Parama Puruśa He must possess so much more intellect than me. So I have to think about Him. Ideation on Him will increase my intellect. This thought enabled human beings to evolve on the psychic level. Then Paramátmá became the object of human ideation –- Paramátmá hovered in the human mind as humanity moved away from animality. Gradually primitive people became human beings and they started ideating upon God –- Paramátmá. They realized that nature worship was not a good thing after all since the mind becomes the entity of worship. They understood that if they worship soil they become soil.

When those who are guided by their own intellect and are experiencing the ups and downs of the world, realize that their intellect is very small and is unfit for performing greater actions, they then find no alternative but to merge their minds into the Mind of the Great. Then their minds will be converted into Cosmic Mind, and whatever actions they perform will be correct actions. Therefore, those who are wise will try to merge their minds into the Supreme Mind. That alone will be the symbol of their wisdom. When one is not sufficiently advanced one feels to perform actions with one’s own intellect; but when one is much advanced one begins thinking that one’s intellect is not sufficient for the performance of any action. This is the law of the world: that those who possess sufficient intellect say that they have none, but those who have none boast that they have a great deal. The means to have much knowledge is to understand that one has no knowledge.

One will not be able to know anything unless one develops the psychology of “I know not.” It is the fundamental spirit of a true aspirant.

When intuition is developed, you become one with the Supreme Consciousness; you become omniscient, all-knowing – even you do not require any physical body. You need not go through so many books – the universe is within you, you are all-knowing. You will know the history of Spain without going through books. When your existence comes in close proximity to the existence of the Supreme Consciousness, when both the nuclei coincide, you get what you want, and that is called Salvation.

Be one with Him and know everything. If you want to know all, try to know One. If you try to know all, you won’t be able to know anything.

When you are blessed with this human structure, be one hundred percent human. Even the greatest philosophers and thinkers, for instance, Tagore, used only 1% of their potential. You can develop your entire potential through spiritual practice (sádhaná). You should use all your capacities – physical, intellectual, and spiritual. You must convert physical energy into intellectual energy and this into spiritual energy. Intellectual energy is more powerful than physical energy, and spiritual energy is the most powerful. Today it is the intellectuals who are misguiding the society because they haven’t developed spiritually. All the world’s problems are caused by this intellectual extravaganza.

Behind all the strife, cruelty and mistrust within humanity, there is misguided intellect. That is, intellect is not moving on the right path – it is not connected to the collective welfare. Until changes are effected in the human mind, no permanent world solution is possible.

Whatever is done only to please the Supreme Consciousness is called devotion. One has to serve the universe with this ideation. In the beginning there is a feeling of doership, but gradually one starts realizing the source of one’s energies and capabilities. Are they really one’s own possessions or creations? Even the strongest of wrestlers becomes frail and is unable to speak if he does not have food for a few days. The scholarship of a scholar vanishes in thin air if you keep him without food for a week. Thus all your knowledge, intellect, capacity and valour are dependent on Him. That is why there is nothing for a person to be proud of. The moment one understands this, one is ensconced in devotion and then alone one will be able to realize that one is working according to the wish of the Supreme with one’s intellect and capacities. This is the sign and feeling of a staunch devotee.

Learning or knowledge or any other asset is not necessary except only two things – implicit faith and sincerity. Arouse these two things through your willpower and victory is yours.

To become self-purified one has to make some effort. This effort is known as sádhaná (spiritual practice). The greatest sádhaná is that which comprises devotion, action and knowledge. The middling sádhaná is that which comprises devotion and action; and lowest sádhaná is that which comprises only tall talks. Knowledge cannot exist without action and devotion – that which does exist is the junk or garbage of knowledge! The ability of a spiritual aspirant is not assessed on the basis of one’s common or worldly knowledge. It is assessed on the basis of the firmness or steadiness of one’s knowledge, devotion and action. By steadiness I mean unflinching intensity of zeal or earnestness.

Suppose there is a big garden of mangoes and both the intellectuals and devotees arrive there at the same time. The devotees climb up the trees and begin eating mangoes to their heart’s content. But the intellectuals only watch from a distance and start analysing how many branches the tree has, how many sub-branches, and so on. They engage themselves in counting, and later they find that there are no mangoes left - all have been eaten by the devotees!

He makes you do spiritual practice, furnishes you with intellect and strength – surrender yourself to His will. Off with your load of self-conceit. Lighten the burden of your life and let yourself drift on the course of His will. It is He who is teaching you sádhaná (spiritual practice) in the guise of a Guru. You are plundering His mercy through everything, day and night. Go on working selflessly like a machine, leaving the doership to Him. How little can your small intellect comprehend His inscrutable Liila (cosmic play)! How little can it be analysed! So, instead of analysing His play, only keep the bearing of that inscrutable Juggler ever aglow before your eyes.

You know, when you exchange a thing for a thing, when it is mutual, it is known as business. But when you give but do not take in return, it is termed as service. This is the fundamental difference between service and business. In many newspapers you will notice advertisements stating that a particular company has been rendering service to the people from a such and such a year. This is a wrong statement – it is not service, it is business.

When the entire Cosmos is of God, is His offspring, serving them means serving the Supreme. Wherever you are, as a householder or as a renunciate, you must render service to all created beings with the ideation of the Supreme on all the individual entities. Guarding yourself against egoism you must think in your mind that taking a particular shape the Supreme has given you this chance to serve Him. It is to His credit that in the form of a diseased, a helpless person, or a beggar, He is accepting service and making you grateful. Had He not come in this form, you would not have been blessed with this good fortune.

In meditation there must always be the feeling that you want to serve Him. If this is the feeling, immediately the mind gets concentrated. If in meditation there is the culmination of service, everything will be achieved. Even through the preliminary lessons of meditation (Náma Mantra), a spiritual aspirant can get salvation, but even one practicing higher meditation (Vishesh Yoga) cannot attain it if there is no feeling for service, and meditation is done just for the sake of exhibition of one’s heroism. When internal service is not done properly, the external one also is not done properly; therefore it is said, “Liberation of self and service to humanity.” In “liberation of self” there is internal service; and in “service to humanity” there is external service. Both are needed. By external service the mind is purified and with the purified mind, internal service can be done by everyone.

Avoid the jugglery of words and establish yourself in the glory of action. (Calcutta, 1981)

It is action that makes the person great. Be great by your sádhaná (spiritual practice), by your service, and by your sacrifice.

When you render service to anyone, you must mentally address Him with sincere devotion, “O Lord, O God! Oblige me by accepting my services. You are merciful to me, and for this reason you have appeared before me as a living being to offer me this very precious opportunity of rendering services to You.” By maintaining such sentiments, conceit will not arise in you, nor will the reactions of your actions bind you.

The principal cause for the bondage of the fruits of action is conceit or yearning for fame. Suppose a certain man donates a sum of 10,000 rupees to a particular institution. The next day he looks anxiously for his name in the newspaper. If his name does not appear in the paper, with an air of conceit he brags amongst his relatives, “I donated a thousand rupees, but I do not desire to earn fame and therefore I have not published my name in the paper.” The desire for fame is hidden in that man’s mind. Surely, he did not make the donation with the spirit of service. But when you perform actions by transplanting the idea of God on the person served, there will be no possibility of any arrogance or any idea of earning fame growing in your mind. Then you will realize that through the grace of God you have the opportunity of serving Him. Our hands and feet are not ours, they are His, and serving Himself with those hands and feet He sports with Himself.

When you help someone, if you help him a great deal, then that fellow will become an invalid. So if you want to help someone, you should help him a little bit at first, then perhaps later a little more, from time to time, not all at once. Your policy should be that you will help a person in accordance with his needs, not too much, not totally helping – otherwise he will not try for his own development. You help him a little, then let him stand on his own, and he will automatically take up activities in his own spirit and with his own ideas.

No person in this world is powerless. Whoever has come on this earth has been graced with some amount of power. We are walking, talking, condemning, gossiping – we are wasting our time. When the time for work comes, some people say they do not have the capacity to perform the work. But when doing unworthy actions, they demonstrate much power. Whatever power you have, you must utilize it to the utmost. Rest assured that if you apply your power to good works and there is still need for more, the Lord will give you what you need. All powers come from God, whether physical, mental or spiritual. The Lord grants these powers to those who are engaged in working for the welfare of others and performing benevolent deeds. You will not have to ask for powers. You should leave this to the Lord.

Whenever considering doing good works, do not hesitate – do them immediately. Whenever contemplating doing bad works, linger and delay, so that the thought of performing them will wither away from the mind.

The devotee will not only sing spiritual songs and chants (bhajan and kiirtan). They are not seasoned devotees! Those spiritual aspirants who move speedily on the path of evolution towards the Supreme Consciousness will never be blind to the sufferings of countless people around them due to the lack of a solid social system, solid economic system and human feeling. If anyone is blind to the ill-management of the social system, they have not been able to understand the Supreme Consciousness fully. If they do so, they will have a subjective approach but not objective adjustment. But when devotees will move towards the Supreme, their approach will be “salvation for self and service to humanity.” They go on moving toward the Supreme Consciousness while serving humanity. When humanity is neglected, “salvation for self” is also destroyed. Hence the devotee must be ready to serve humanity. The spiritual aspirants who do not render social service do not have real devotion. In their devotion lies selfishness. The devotees who are selfish do not attain God. Those who are devotees are workers. They will never be afraid of work. They will do maximum work.

After millions of animal lives, created beings attain human forms. That is why all the scriptures speak of the rarity of human life. The wise make proper utilization of all objects - this utilization alone makes the existence of the object worthy. You have achieved human frame – you must make it meaningful by your sádhaná (spiritual practice), service and sacrifice. Engage yourself in such useful pursuits that even the worst of your enemies hardly has any chance to despise you; utilize yourself in such a manner so as to have satisfaction in your mind also, that you never wasted your time uselessly on this earth.

What is sádhaná (spiritual practice)? Sádhaná means an effort. Effort for what? It is an endless effort to become one with the Supreme Nucleus. It is a ceaseless effort to obtain perfection from imperfection. Now, no movement in this universe is possible without encountering opposition. Wherever there is movement, there is opposition also. The result of struggle against this opposition is termed progress. The more one desires to proceed vigorously to the goal, the more one is to struggle against the opposition. Thus those who are adverse to struggle can never progress. They lag far behind, what to speak of progress. That’s why struggle is the essence of life. Those who abhor struggle, who misconstrue struggle as violence, have no place in the world.

One who wants to attain the goal must not be too concerned with obstacles on the way. If one thinks of the obstacles, they will themselves become the goal and not the Supreme. That is why, in the field of spiritual sádhaná, one must always think of the Supreme, not anything else. While thinking of this goal, if some opposite feeling comes in the mind of the aspirant, s/he should not think of this. “From where are the obstacles coming?” This should not be the topic of discussion. “What we have to reach” - this should be the topic of discussion.

To establish the heavenly kingdom in this world, those with tireless cosmic ideation have to fight within themselves the devil of their own weaknesses and defects. But remember this “devil” is not your goal, so you are not to think of it. Whatever the obstacle in this march to the Great – there will be no compromise with it. That is why I say, this is the path of bravery, this is not the path of crudeness – and there is no place in it for cowardice. The aspirant will have to go on fighting endlessly, without pause.

Difficulties can never be greater than your capacity to solve them. (Supreme Expression I, 11)

The main characteristic of Tantra (spiritual expansion) is that it represents manly vigour. It represents a pactless fight. Where there is no fight there is no sádhaná. It is an impossibility to conquer a crude idea and to replace it by a subtle idea without a fight. It is not at all possible without spiritual practice. Hence, Tantra is not only a fight, it is an all-round fight. It is not only an external or an internal fight, it is simultaneously both.

Can we achieve honour, status and other things that we want in this material world without a stuggle? And when we consider our aspiration for development and advancement in the mental world, that also cannot be brought about without a struggle. That is why, everywhere, whether in crude or subtle sphere, struggle is the essence of life. Thus Tantra is an asset not only in the spiritual world but even in the most material and crude spheres of life. Those who sparkle and arouse their vigour in the physical and mental realm by staging a struggle against crude trends, become superhuman in their human frames. The personalities earned with vigour and vitality get ovations everywhere.

The Tántrikas, (those who practice Tantra) are to stage a fight against all crude forces, a pauseless struggle against inequality and cowardliness. The establishment of equality is possible only by the Tántrikas and not by non-Tántrikas. Of course, not only in the mental and spiritual arena but in the material sphere too, complete one hundred percent equality is an impossibility. And so the Tántrikas have to continue their fight indefinitely. Where is the opportunity for them to have rest?

Don’t compare life to a pool of muddy, stagnant water. Life resembles an ever-flowing spring. Pushing aside the stones of obstruction and difficulties, marching on with vigorous speed is its nature. Hence it is clear that one who wants to keep away from obstacles has lost the Dharma (essence) of life; verily, he is dead – the graveyard, not the society, should be his abode.

In individual and collective life, obstacles are created by the force of ignorance (Avidya). During the struggle against ignorance, if the feeling of the Supreme be kept in the mind constantly, continuously, then the ignorance will be overcome. There are different effects of this force of ignorance:

1) Lack of discrimination: When people are blinded by the desire for wordly objects and lose their discrimination, they forget the infinite and start busying themselves with the limited world. At that time they start thinking relative to be absolute and become confused. They start misutilizing their energy. They forget that nothing has come into this world forever. This greediness, this narrowness, this confusion of taking pain for pleasure, is nothing but the play of ignorance. For example, a dog takes a bone and chews on it. From his gums comes blood and, thinking that the blood is from the bone, he thinks the bone is more delicious and so he chews even harder – the more blood, the more he thinks he is getting pleasure.

If human beings think some created thing to be their own, it is nothing but ignorance. Someone thinks “my” money, “my” son, “my” house, etc. – they think they will become infinite by accumulating all these things. In actual fact one day everything will go far, far away from them. There will be nothing left which they can call their own. To remember this fact, to understand this effect of the force of ignorance correctly, they will have to do spiritual practices, otherwise they will be unable to escape from the grip of this dangerous force of ignorance.

2) Ego of doership: This means to take the entire responsibility of an action on oneself. Whatever one does with the help of the motor organs, the action does not belong to the organs – without the witnessing Soul, the entire energy of the organs will be nowhere. If the eyes of a dead man look at an elephant, still he will not see, because the action of seeing has not been witnessed by the Soul. But human beings, due to their ego, think that they are the doers and get confused. The spiritual aspirant will have to remember that the light of the Infinite is reflected on his or her mind – due to this, their organs are able to function.

3) Desire for worldly pleasure: Due to the influence of the force of ignorance, people think that by eating something they will feel comfort, by wearing something they will feel comfort, by acting in a certain way they will feel comfort. Through many different objects, they desire and hope for pleasure. Humans live to achieve Bliss and that is why they run after different objects. They do not want to understand that, except the infinite Supreme Consciousness, no object can give them endless bliss.

4) Aversion: This is the opposite of attachment. Whenever people find an object painful, they try to substitute it with another. Many fights in the world are due to this cause.

5) Lack of determination: One day a man, knowing that drinking is a very bad habit, made a promise that he would stop drinking and live his life in a very self-controlled manner. That day he also went, as he had been accustomed before, to the bar. With great determination, he passed the pub and then he told his mind, “Oh, mind, you are so great! I will now give you a good prize. I will drink up to the neck!”

War is the black spot of human character. In individual or collective life one can struggle, but war is based on hatred and on divisive tendencies. Is it not black?

Struggle and war are not synonymous. While war springs from hatred, struggle is a part and parcel of life. War blackens everything; it darkens the future. Let life be bright both individually and collectively. Let us fight these divisive tendencies which want to make our life dark. Light is beautiful because it is luminous. When there was no creation, there was only one colour – black. Lack of life is black. After creation we see this beautiful play of colours. Why shall we be lost in darkness? All human beings want light. One individual human is more luminous and more throbbing than that universal darkness. So human beings should always be optimistic. The cimmerian darkness cannot retard your progress, cannot cover the light of the human heart. The spirit of your heart must move on and on against obstacles. Kick away your obstacles like pebbles from your feet – you are stronger than your obstacles.

There are three categories of people: lower, middle and highest. The lower category of people are those who do not undertake any work. They think that they are ordinary people and cannot do any work. They are always afraid of the probable obstacles they might encounter in their work, so they do not undertake any work.

The middle category of people are those who undertake some work but throw up their hands when any problem crops up. They presume that any obstacle that comes in their way is a Himalayan obstacle, and hence they give up their work. They think they will not be able to tackle the problem they face. They are not confident of their abilities.

The highest category of people are those who take up a task and are determined to fulfil it. They go on struggling against all odds till they achieve their goal. No problem can defy solution. No difficulty can be greater than their capacity to solve it. They go on fighting against all obstacles. They can face any challenge and meet any predicament. They are determined to achieve their objective, come what may.

I want you to be persons of the highest category. You must always think of the goal. Always look to your ideal. By spiritual ideation you can get inspiration to adhere to your principles.

The firmness of a person’s resolve makes one great. However lowly a person may be, one can become great by one’s determination. If you have a firm resolve to realize your goal, you shall become great. Without a firm resoution, you cannot achieve anything.

You must not develop the psychology of inferiority complex – “I am illiterate. I am a fool.” Complexes like this make a person weak – mentally weak. Suppose you want to do something and you say, “I will try to do it.” If you grant this slackness to yourself, you will never be successful. Don’t say, “I’ll try!” Say, “I will do!” If you say, “I will try”, it may take more than a thousand years to develop the proper psychology to reach the required standard. So there is no question of trying. The question is of being. To be, not to try.

Marching ahead is life. Crushing the pebbles of hindrances and obstacles with a stroke of your feet, disdaining the frowns of winds, tornadoes, meteors and roaring thunder, and rendering all superstitions to ashes without any second thought – march on and on. The Supreme Consciousness is with you. Victory is yours.

We should always respect our ideology if we are to become true human beings. The ideologist is a person who always acts according to one’s ideology. If by following an ideology, I die and die again, let it be. I will not care. I will stick to my ideology.

Fight for your ideology. Be one with your ideology. Live for your ideology. Die for your ideology.

The meaning of spiritual practice is to look upon every human being, every object of this universe as one integral entity. To jeopardize the unity of the human race by creating factions is not the purpose of spirituality (dharma). Those who encourage vested interests survive on the mental weakness of humanity and its dissensions, and that is why they become afraid at the wide spread of the ideals of spirituality and oppose it by all immoral means, such as abuse, wrong propaganda and falsehood. Humanity must not be cowed down by this; it has to march ahead. It is to be borne in mind that hindrances are numerous in the path of righteousness and to continue the fight against them is spiritual practice.

Superstitions of any kind – social, psychic or spiritual - influence the mind to such an extent that the mind, due to its anxiety, leads a person into harmful actions. Spiritual superstitions of hell and heaven and fear of God make people lose their mental balance. In our Ananda Marga, spiritual practices are scientific and systematic and based on rationality. Fear and superstition have no part in it.

Heaven is the state of mind of a person engaged in virtuous acts, and a sinner’s mind, racing about in wild frenzy, is hell.

Satan does not have the attributes of the Absolute; he is nothing but the human mind propelled by depraving tendencies. If these tendencies are diverted properly, they no longer exist. It is within your power to kill that Satan.

There are many who resort to rituals, offer sacrifices, seek the advice of astrologers and try to mitigate what they believe to be the evil influence of the planets on their destiny, or wear various kinds of stones for that purpose. Such persons are blinded by ignorance and superstition. Their belief is fallacious because no agency, human or extra-human, can change the laws of nature and stop the course of action and reaction.

Prayer is also a mockery of the Ultimate Being or God. Prayer is a solemn petition addressed to the Supreme Being for certain benefits. On rational thinking, does not one’s attempt to rouse the wish of God to fulfil one’s needs appear to be a reminder to God to give one something which God had deprived one of? This, in fact, casts aspersion on Him and His law and His sense of distribution of His gifts and blessings. It is an insinuation, asking Him to reverse His law, to stop the process of reaction to one’s action, which must have kept one deprived of what one now wants. God’s law is unchangeable and praying to Him to change it, is a waste of one’s time.

Hymns in praise of God fall in the same category. They are equally ineffective and are a mere waste of time. Eulogy of God is tantamount to flattery, and prayer to begging.

Devotion to God falls in a different category altogether. It is contemplation of the omnipresent Cosmic Consciousness, and helps the devotee in the attainment of liberation from bondage and merger with the Ultimate Reality. The purpose of devotion is to condition the mind to think that it is subtle and not crude, that it is a reflection of the Cosmic Consciousness. Those who have read psychoanalysis and understand the efficacy of auto-suggestion will appreciate the inner motivation and efficacy of contemplation. The true devotees do not flatter the Supreme Being; they do not ask for any favours. The devotees’ tendency is merely to remind their minds of the ultimate goal so that their whole body, mind and soul strive for emancipation from the degrading influences which surround them.

The best prayer is, therefore, “O Lord! Do whatever you think fit and best for me. I do not know in which way lies my good - You know.” There was once a demon who prayed that he would die neither during the day nor at night. God granted the prayer and he was killed at sunset! Do not be foolish like this. As long as you pray, you are not surrendering, for you are requesting something for yourself – you are looking after yourself.

High or low, upgraded or degraded, all are equal for Him because the heaven is His creation, the hell is His creation. If we say that He is only in heaven, it will not be a correct utterance, because He is in hell also. His sons, His daughters, are never alone; He is with you even in hell.

What should you do? You should always remember that you are the child of a Great Father. You must not think that you are a sinner, that you are a degraded person. If you think that you are a sinner, it means you are meditating on sin. And when sin becomes the object of your meditation, actually you will become a sinner, because a person becomes just like one’s object of ideation, object of meditation. If you always meditate on sin, “I am a sinner… I am a sinner…” actually you will become a sinner. The psychological approach is to forget it, even if you are a sinner.

You should think, “I am the child of a Great Father.” And thus you are meditating on the Great Father. And a day is sure to come when you will become one with your Great Father. You should say, “I am your child… I am Your child… Oh, Father, take me on Your lap, I am Your child… I am your child…” This should be the approach. You should forget what you do not want.

Virtue and vice are temporal entities. These things have nothing to do with a person’s relationship with the Supreme Father. Suppose several boys are moving along a road and a boy falls into the drain. His clothes and his body become dirty. Other people, passers-by, will laugh at him but when the father sees his boy in that condition, what will he do? Will he laugh at his own son? No, no, no. What will he do? He himself will go there into the drain and take his boy in his own lap and clean his clothes, clean his body, and after that, he will say, “My boy, you should walk carefully.” Sinners are just like that boy in the drain. Clear?

Now, the Supreme Consciousness has two imperfections. One is, He cannot create a second Supreme Consciousness: the Supreme is always one. The second imperfection is that He cannot hate anybody. Suppose you dislike a person; you will say, “I don’t want to see your face, I hate you! Get out, get out!” But the Supreme Consciousness cannot hate anybody. Suppose He hates you – if He says, “Get out!” then you will challenge Him, “O Supreme Consciousness, You are everywhere and You order me to get out - where will I go? Everything is within You, and when You say get out, where am I to go? So either You change Your name or withdraw Your order”. So the Supreme Consciousness cannot hate even a bad person, as all are His creations.

Suppose in your mind you have created a drunkard, a bad man, can you hate that man? As he is within your mind, you cannot hate him. So the Supreme cannot hate.

What is dogma? Dogma is an idea with a rigid boundary line, which won’t allow you to go beyond the periphery of that boundary line. Thus dogma goes against the fundamental spirit of the human mind. The human mind won’t tolerate anything rigid. It wants movement – not only movement, but accelerated movement. So you should be vocal in fighting the influence of dogmas.

It is due to these dogmas that human society could not progress properly. Now, although there has been intellectual progress, there is a crisis of civilization. Why? Because human existence has been endangered by dogmas. Humans want unbarred psychic progress, intellectual progress, without obstacles. But certain dogmas are trying to devour them. Communism is one such dogma. It won’t allow you to think beyond its periphery. So it is the duty of all intellectuals to make people conscious of the all-devouring influence of dogma.

The real knowledge is knowing one’s self. You know, there are certain defective philosophies in the world which maintain that the material world, matter, is everything. When matter is everything, then matter becomes the goal of life. And human existence, human consciousness, will become like earth and stone. Karl Marx preached that defective philosophy. You should keep your mind free from the bindings and fetters of such a defective philosophy because it is anti-human, morally anti-human. It is most detrimental to human existence and human development.

Spirituality is not a utopian ideal but a practical philosophy which can be practiced and realized in everyday life. Spirituality stands for evolution and elevation, not for superstitions or pessimism. All divisive tendencies and group and clan philosophies which create shackles of narrow-mindedness are not connected with spirituality and should be discouraged. Only that which leads to broadness of vision should be accepted. Spirituality does not recognize any unnatural distinctions and differentiations made between human beings; it stands for universality.

Spirituality knows no occupational barriers. It is universal. It is transcendental. It is not reserved for black people or white people or rich or poor. It is the divine gift of God to all of His children. Spirituality (dharma) is all-embracing. It is the birth-right of all people.

As long as you exist, you have to perform service. The moment you stop, you will fall into an abyss. You should not do this! It is your nature to carry yourself from narrowness to vastness, from greatness to divinity. It is against your nature to allow yourself to fall into an abyss. You long for eternal bliss, you endeavour for eternal life, and you are fused with that very unending life in the circulation of your blood and in the rhythmic vibrations of the contractions of your heart. You have been listening day and night to the voice of eternal youth. In the state of Supreme Attainment and Supreme Realization, you will be infused with boundless knowledge. O human being! Be established in the radiance of godliness, in manliness, because yours is a path of a revolution. Yours is not a path of extra caution and hesitant movement. You are travellers on a difficult path. You have to march ahead, with head held high and with your chest forward. You have not a moment to stagger or look behind.

O human beings! You are fortunate. The clarion call of the Universal has reached you. That very call is vibrating in every cell of your body. Will you now lie inert in the corner of your house? Will you now waste your time clutching ancient skeletons to your breast and moaning over them? The Supreme Being is calling you in the roar of the ocean, in the thunder of the clouds, in the speed of the lightning, in the meteor’s flaming fires. Nothing will come of remaining idle. Get up and awaken the clouded chivalry of your dormant youth. The path may not be strewn with flowers – an inferiority complex may seek to hold back your every advancing footstep, but even then you have to proceed onward, tearing the shroud of darkness. You will soon rend the thick darkness of despair on the way to the attainment of the Supreme State, and advance onwards in the swift-moving chariot, radiant with the sun’s brilliance.