Hazrat Inayat Khan
The Message Papers
The Message
July 30, 1922
I do not wish to give any particular teaching to my mureeds on the subject of the Message, because it is something which must come from themselves, a realization which must spring from their own heart, that the soul may become convinced from itself, and from within, without outer teaching. Only as my mureeds will grow in the realization of the Truth, so they will realize the importance of the Message, the sacredness of the Message, and their own responsibility in the delivery of the Message of the time.
As parents do not expect from all the children a share of their responsibility, especially when the children are young--only they look after them--so the service of my mureeds is my religion and my life's mission, but I do not expect from every mureed who has not yet realized the importance of the Message that he should trouble about it. I do what I can for their progress in all walks of life, and feel responsible in God for their happiness. It is just like the parents whose happiness it is, whole duty it is, to be serviceable to their children; and there are many parents who do not expect any return for this, not even appreciation.
But one thing I wish to warn, and however many times I may warn it is never enough, and that is to keep in control your appreciation, your enthusiasm, and your sympathy for Murshid, and for the Cause, and always take care so as not to make the Message conspicuous in the eyes of the world. I very well know the feeling of my sincere mureeds, who at the moment of appreciation of the Message, of the blessing, wish that the whole world could share with them. But then sometimes they think that the whole world must share with them in a moment. And that must not be. It will share with them, and it is sharing with them, although unconsciously.
The light of the sun shines in the whole world, not only in Suresnes; the rain falls in all lands. Not only in France is the pouring out of God's Message, if not in words, in the atmosphere, in the air you will find an over. And to think others must know what we know is not necessary. It is neither for the good of the Message nor for the benefit of your Murshid. It is better for many not to know. Their time has not yet come for knowing; they will know. And what is there to be known? There is nothing. There is nothing to be known. It is the Message to glorify the Name of God. If you help, if His Name is known and glorified in the world, that is enough.
Do we wish the whole world to be members of the Sufi Order? What is needed is more capable workers who would forget themselves and consider nothing too great a sacrifice in order to work for God and humanity. If that is done, then everything is on my side, God and the world. It is natural that it is difficult to have workers in a world cause sufficient to provide everywhere there is need. But still this must be understood, that as many workers in the Cause we possess, so more, facility and strength comes to the spreading of the Cause.
Our activity in the line of religion--which is a side activity, considering the esoteric school and esotericism as the main activity--still that activity is the answer to the cry of the whole humanity, not the esoteric school. We call it the Church of All, but by whatever name it is called, it is the same. The name does not matter, it is something given. But remember that human sensibilities are delicate. We cannot expect every person to become most interested in the Cause the first moment it comes to them. It is possible, but not usual. Then it takes time for a person to grow into a thing and break the barriers of limitation. It takes time to rise above certain walls that he has built in life, before he can see the Truth of the Message and be sure of its mission.
Therefore every attempt must be made so as not to make this activity especially conspicuous in any way, neither by giving publicity to the name, by speaking about it to everybody at the first meeting, nor by advertising it too widely. Humankind is not very far from the birds in the wilderness. You might want to give bread to a bird, and the bird may be hungry and would like to have it, but the movement of your hand will frighten it, and make it fly away even though it sees the bread in your hand. It has not yet faith and confidence in itself and in the one who gives. Therefore you will have to hide it, to throw the grain and hide, and then the bird will come and take it. That is our position in the world.
And why do we want the world to know us, Murshid, or the Order? What is necessary is service done for our own satisfaction, that the work is done that has been given to us. Among my sincere and devoted mureeds who wish to serve the Cause, they will give great help who will not only help in the work, but will adopt my way of working in the delivery of the Message. We are not working for success, but success is assured, for Truth is success, and success is Truth.
Free Will and Destiny in the Message
August 2, 1923
The law of nature works in the life of an individual and in the life of the multitude more or less in the same way. When one sees this law and finds out its secret, one admits the truth of both the opposite doctrines, fate and free will. There is such a thing as fate and there is such a thing as free will; sometimes they clash and sometimes they work harmoniously, and sometimes one overpowers the other. Every nation has its destiny, every race has its life designed; also every individual and every Message that has ever come to humanity. The prophets have brought the Divine Message from time to time. It took so many years for them to deliver it to the world, and so many years for it to spread after those who brought it had passed. So many years it took for the people to practice it and to get benefit out of it.
And many more years it took for the same to become corrupted, which has always caused the decline of religions. No doubt that that ended that cycle, and a new cycle began with the same process all over again. History repeats itself, and the wonderful thing in this that is to be noticed is that no sooner was God's Message declared, than even the nearest and dearest friends of the deliverer of that Message became his worst enemies. No doubt he at the same time appealed to the souls standing far off from him, who were drawn much closer to him than his own people, although the difficulty of the prophet remained just the same. As Rumi says, "Many sympathize and become my friends, yet they know not the secret of my pain nor can they understand why they are drawn to me.
"The Sufi Message, besides its philosophical, religious, and mystical aspect, is the Message, His Message Who has always sent His Message to the world whenever it was needed. And the fulfillment of this Message is certain, there is not the slightest doubt about it. Among us who serve this Movement, if there were few or if there were many, the Message will surely spread and answer its purpose. Only when we think of the free will in which we share the part of the Creator then we realize the responsibility of our lives, that by reason of having free will we to a great extent are responsible for its fulfillment.
Besides this, now the question is what must we do in helping the Message towards fulfillment? We can do a great deal if we balance our willingness with wisdom. For it has often happened that, adversaries apart, friends with their good will and devotion may cause difficulties in the furtherance of the Cause, only by lack of prudence. Therefore, besides enthusiasm and willingness to work in the Cause, it is necessary that a wider outlook must be developed; and there is one way of developing it, and that is by forgetting the self. There is only one condition for becoming the real server and that is to forget the self, for it is the thought of the self which blocks one's own path and the way of that movement the fulfillment of which will be a blessing for the whole humanity.
The deeper we think, the more we shall realize that every moment of our life, especially in the work of the world cause, is beyond price, and every next moment that follows becomes more valuable. Once this is realized, we shall not say that, "I will do tomorrow what can be done today," and we shall not say, "I will not do it, for there are many others who can." But we shall consider it our greatest privilege in life to use our life and effort to its best advantage in the service of God and humanity.
What is the Message?
August 6, 1923
What is the Message? Where does it come from? How is it received by the souls who deliver it?" These questions often arise in inquiring minds. And the answer is that the Message is like the rain, and the rain falls where it is needed and when it is needed. But does the rain come from above? It seems to come from above, but it rises from below first, as the vapor, forming into clouds as ideas, and again falling from above as the rain.
There are so many names for the seas and rivers and streams, but they all contain water. And there are various names of religions, but they all contain the Truth, spoken in different forms, and in different ways. There is a lightning, there is a thunder when the rain falls, and there are wars and disasters before the Message comes. Storms are very often warnings of what follows, and so are different kinds of battles and revolutions warnings before the coming of the time of peace.
Often a person says, "If it is the same water, then I have no need of receiving a new Message, I already hold a certain faith or belief. Is it not the same?" The water of last week, which has been in the jug, compared with the fresh water is different, and yet it is water. And one does not reject the water of last week by drinking the fresh water, for it is water all the same.
Every element turns into its own element, and comes again afresh. When the fire is extinguished, it has become absorbed in its own element. It has gone and joined the heat. So is water and earth. So is the air. Every element goes back to its own element in the end and comes again afresh. And such is the law of the Divine Message. Numberless religions have been taught. Various prophets and masters have come to waken humanity, and those of them we know are only a few which we could count on the fingers. But where are the other religions gone? What about all the other teachers? It would be like asking, "Where is all the water that fell? Where has the rain gone?" It has gone nowhere; it has gone to its own source, only to come afresh again with new life, with new magnetism, with new strength and vigor. And yet it is the same water of life, the drinking of which gives souls immortality.
Many intellectual people with their very many ideas differ from one another in their opinions and in their way of looking at things, in their speculations. But do the prophets differ from one another? They cannot differ. The reason is that it is the various minds which differ, not the soul. The one who lives in his mind is conscious of mind. The one who lives in his soul is conscious of the soul.
What does the word "spiritual" mean? It means "soul-conscious" or "spirit-conscious." There is a line of a song, "Night has a thousand eyes, the day has but one." When a person lives in his mind, he is living through the darkness of night. The moment one rises above one's mind and wakens in the light of the soul, one becomes spiritual. And if a thousand spiritual people will speak, they will say the same thing, perhaps in different words, but with one meaning. For they have one sight, the same sight. It is therefore that spiritual realization is called the Truth. There are many facts, but there is one Truth. Facts can be put into words, but not the Truth. For God is Truth, the real self of man is Truth. Truth is unlimited and incomparable. Therefore Truth alone knows, enjoys, and realizes its own existence.
Lecture for Mureeds and Friends
December 17, 1923
I have the great happiness of meeting my friends again in Brussels, and in this house where the Message commenced. It is a great pity that our friend Madama Graeffe is not with us just now owing to her poor health. Nevertheless, we feel her with us in the heart just the same, and we pray from the bottom of our hearts that from this moment that we all pray together for her that she soon will be better and well.
Now coming to the question of the work of the Message. Since I left you I should like to say a few words in what way the work has been done. The Message was given in the different parts of the United States, in New York, in Chicago, in Detroit, in San Francisco. Of course the time was too short for a large place like the United States. In four months I had to finish my visit whereas four months only a city like New York would take. No doubt, after having spread the Message there was a great demand for institutions to be founded in different places for the study of philosophy, and only I was able to do so in a few places like Detroit, New York, Santa Barbara, and Lost Angeles. In San Francisco already a society existed.
Of course my greatest difficulty in the United States was that the response was greater, and to answer that response there is a lack of workers who are trained and ready to answer the great demand of the place. I returned with the hope that soon some of our friends will be ready with enthusiasm and with their study and practice to do what little they can, if not in their own countries, then in the United States. Since then I have met with people, some coming from the United States, who have taken a deeper interest.
In America, no doubt, I found that there is one thing which appeals to an American, whatever be his occupation or position, and that is the idea of brotherhood, it being a place where in this ideal the national constitution has been built. Any other problem might divide the intentions, but in the idea of brotherhood they will unite. There has been a great difficulty between America and Japan; but when the difficulty came in Japan, this disaster, when the President wanted some few millions, twice as much was at once contributed, because the feeling of brotherhood touches the heart of the people.
When we think of this it shows that brotherhood is needed everywhere. No man who has some sense of divine ideal, will deny the fact that brotherhood is the main thing which . . . It is a great pity that religions, whether in the East or West, have their own creeds and Church. When it comes to brotherhood they say, "We have our brotherhood, you have yours." Each thinks, "They have their own brotherhood." Therefore the work of the Sufi Movement is not to create a Sufi Brotherhood. It is not a brotherhood, but a means to create a brotherhood, it is working for a human brotherhood.
There is a necessity of a certain organization. Therefore the organization has not only supplied the need for brotherhood, but also it has helped to support the two activities. The one part is the devotional part; what the world is lacking today is devotional attitude. People study and they want to practice if they can attain some certain power. But they lack is devotion, which means the lack of a fuller life. If there is a trace of God to be found, it is in the heart of man. If it is not open enough, then the natural flow is closed, and the life becomes incomplete. To live a complete life is to live a life of that sympathy and friendliness which pours out on another person; to the one who deserves it in the form of love, to the one who does not deserve it in the form of tolerance.
Therefore if we have any religious work it is the world of recognizing that great spirit, which is called the Christ-spirit, in all different aspects, names, houses of worship. It is not to limit that spirit to a certain community or creed, but to find it as a spiritual . . . and recognizing it as such, that in whatever time or period if there has been a spiritual awakening, a guidance given, it all has been given from one and the same source. It is for us to know it as one; that if there has come enlightenment to people it has come from one source, instead of quarreling about it. Whenever it has come it has come from one life and one source. And if there have been different scriptures and teachers, they have been just veils of one truth. Why dispute over names? The spirit is one, God is one, religion and truth are one.
Now coming to even more important work, that on which the strength of our whole Movement depends. That is the esoteric work in which anybody is received by the initiation. It is not in the ordinary word of initiation. It is a word, there is no word to interpret, Bayat we call it. Initiation is a trust. When the pupil says, "I give you my trust, that whatever you give me I am sure I shall be benefitted," the teacher says, "All I shall give to you, you will keep as your sacred trust." That is the teacher's trust. When the trust is given from both sides, that is an initiation. What is attained by the initiation? One is to acquaint oneself with the deeper side of life. What is the deeper side of life? The education, whatever it is, not completed as long as one is keeping to the outer side of life, and not yet entered into the deeper side of life.
And now the question is how can one attain to the deeper side? It is quite a different meaning. One method is to acquire the knowledge from the life without, and that is going to school and attaining the knowledge in that way. Another method is quite different; it is not going to school or institution and study, but closing the door of one's room, sitting in solitude, closing the eyes, being oneself once again, and trying to put one's mind within, seeking the source within, getting the knowledge which be gotten only from within. Of course, that art has its rules and regulations which are not applicable to each in the same way, like the science is one and the same.
Still, when a physician receives different people, to each he gives a separate prescription, for each condition to get it right. In the same way with the Sufi esoteric work, every person that is initiated does not get the same thing to do, and in a different way. All the same it is one art or science, a science of tuning oneself within. By this a person gets great power over himself. Willpower becomes strengthened, discipline develops, the vision becomes more dear. One develops more control, more magnetism and power not only upon oneself, but upon everything. Upon everything one has a power. I do not mean that one has a power on the weather, but by self-discipline one gets a power of resistance, power of circumstances which upset a person.
Often a fine person has jarring influences from around, from those with whom one comes in contact, one's friends, one's enemies; everywhere one finds life most difficult. If one goes on like this it becomes nothing but a terrible life; one becomes irritated and one becomes a difficult object for others. But by attaining that strength which comes from the deeper side of life one is able to get above things, to overcome the influences which come up and jar one's sensibilities. They are all thrown back, and one can keep oneself in the right tone and rhythm. The purpose of life is to keep oneself in the right tone and rhythm. The nature of life is to put us off the right tone and rhythm. Every moment is that struggle. Even for a saint or sage there is this struggle to meet; from the first moment one gets up in the morning one has to meet with this struggle.
If it is so with the advanced souls, then what with the ordinary people? Therefore there are so many suicides, people unhappy. Very few you will find content. There are those who say they are content, but still no real content you will find. That shows that life is a continual struggle. It is no need to say that it is not struggle; one must develop one's strength to combat with this struggle, and to harmonize, making rhythm and tone to cope with this struggle, creating at the same time harmony and beauty. Therefore Sufism is called the philosophy of love, harmony, and beauty; that means to understand really what it means to create in one's everyday life this which is the seeking of every soul.
Coming to our work in Belgium, I should like to say that we have not yet organized so that the work should go on in a way that it ought to go on; and to let it go like this means that we do not love our work properly. Not to do for the work means that the work which needs spreading now is starving of that help which is necessary. Now that I have come I feel still greater hope than I have ever had. I feel that from now the work will go on by every means possible. And only I ask the help of all those here, their kind thoughts, prayers, actions in whatever way you can do to help this work advance in Belgium. In England there are four branches working just now, in Bournemouth (Harrowgate?), London, Southampton, and Brighton; it will spread still more in America; it is growing in France; it is prospering in Holland. Now I am going to Denmark.
I am sure that my mureeds certainly are my great well-wishers. And when they see me work day after day in spite of all the different difficulties and oppositions, and knocking against the stone walls that are in my way and yet going on patiently and never thinking: this is a place where the work cannot go. Never. In England for six months I was speaking to three people; there was no fourth person to be found. If I would have lost courage, I would have gone to my country. I did not. After six months a fourth person came, and he brought a fifth person, and so it went on. We do not know, we cannot say.
After all this work that I have seen and done and now find that there have been terrible disappointments, gloom, and clouds, and feel: nothing can be done here. But I felt like the Prophet Muhammad in the desert, where men as thick as stones would not listen. He was crying aloud wisdom. They would not listen, they threw him out of his country three times, killed his disciples; he still was going on. And what happened? There was a time when the whole Arabia, Persia, Afghanistan, India, China was benefitted by what he brought. But he had to give in the mountains to those who would not listen.
Difficulties before a practical person seem different. He says, "I must have a result." If I would have been waiting for results, I would have gone mad, or have made a suicide. For years there was no result. In Brussels I have been working for two years now. The result from a practical point of view may seem poor. But I have some valuable mureeds still. One may be more valuable than a thousand. But from now I feel that the work must grow, and a mechanism must be made, and the whole world must know that the Brussels Society must live. And I am sure that by the help of my workers in Brussels there will . . . God Bless You.
Wakening to the Message
June 16, 1925
I wish to speak this evening on the subject of the wakening to the Message. It is a gradual wakening; and this wakening comes to a mureed in its own time. By this I do not mean to say that every mureed enters the Sufi Movement without this wakening. Sometimes before a mureed enters the Movement he is already wakened to the Message. It depends. But often the case is that a mureed wakens to the Message gradually. And it is just as well that a mureed wakens to it gradually.
If a child was born in the world with all the knowledge of the grown-up people the soul of the child would have had no interest whatever in it. It is the gradual progress that a soul makes day after day after coming on earth, it is that progress which wakens the soul to the world's pleasures and pains. The real meaning of initiation is to be reborn; to be born again. The first birth is the birth of the person, the next birth is the birth of the soul. And therefore by initiation it is meant that the soul is born again.
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Now this gradual wakening to the Message at first shows in a deep felt need of knowing something which is different from all the earthly knowledge. It starts with an inclination to understand things pertaining to life better.
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It begins with a desire that I must find my real self somewhere;
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that I must get closer to God;
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that I must build a bridge from here to the other world, that I can secure the continuity of my life;
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that I may be sure of the hereafter, and that I may be able to perceive the sign of life after death;
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that I may be able to live more harmoniously with my fellowmen;
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that I may know and learn to think rightly, to act rightly;
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that I may become stronger to face all that comes in life--this life which is full of responsibilities, full of difficulties, full of pains and troubles.
It is these things that first waken in the heart of the seeker who wishes to follow the guidance of a teacher, in whom he gives his confidence.
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And the second change that comes is that: in what form, in what way I must proceed on the spiritual path.
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And the third development gives a seeker desire to share what he has received, what he considers beautiful and good, with his fellowmen. For the seekers after truth an esoteric school, such as we have in the Sufi Movement, answers the purpose. And with the second development, when a person looks for the way, it is the form in which one worships, it is the form in which one meditates, contemplates; these forms are given as they are given in our movement. But it is the third inclination--how shall I serve my fellowmen, how shall I give them what I consider precious? When this inclination wakens, then follows the need and apprehension of the Sufi Message.
Then he begins to think that it is not only that my life has become better, or that my soul may become elevated, but that I may be useful to others. Then the thought of Message comes to him: what shall I do to spread it among my fellowmen? When this inclination has wakened in a mureed, then you can say that he is wakened to the Message. The day when he begins to think that: I would be pleased if my friends will be helped by the same, if my relations will receive benefit of it. That those that I do not know, if I could get closer to them, that I could give them the benefit of the Message. Then that soul is wakened to the Message.
So long as a soul is not wakened to it he is content with the progress in his life, with the joy and peace he experiences in his soul, with the study of philosophy, of metaphysics, which answer his ever-rising questions. But when once the soul is wakened to the spirit of the Message, the more it is wakened the more it is discontent, it is not satisfied with all the contentment that spiritually he has attained; he is still discontent, not satisfied, if his fellow creatures have not received the same light.
Words are so poor that they can explain very little. If you are grateful, if you are thankful to someone, if you are sincere, you cannot put your feeling into words. It is a feeling, it is a knowledge, it is an understanding which comes by itself. And if I put out the Message in a thousand words, that would not sufficiently explain it. Yes, I can explain how one begins to be inclined to meditate, how one contemplates, in what manner one can do it. It is easy to explain the ways of worship. But when it comes to explain what is the Message, there one cannot answer it, it cannot be explained in words.
The soul of the mureed must answer that question. If everyone else said, "What is the Message," even then the soul which is not wakened to it, which is not ready to understand it, will not be able to understand it. Therefore speaking about it, trying to explain it, will be in vain. But when the soul itself begins to say what is the meaning of the Message, then one does not wish for an explanation. Then one would rather go without an explanation. For it is too deep, too great for words. The less one speaks about it, the better it is. It is to understand within oneself, and allow the soul to speak to us what is the meaning of the Message. That is quite sufficient. Providence has brought us together this season, that we may speak and that we may meet with one another, and that we may think and pray together, and ask the help of the Lord that we may be worthy of serving our fellowmen in the Cause of God and humanity. God Bless You. The soul of the mureed must answer that question. If everyone else said, "What is the Message," even then the soul which is not wakened to it, which is not ready to understand it, will not be able to understand it. Therefore speaking about it, trying to explain it, will be in vain. But when the soul itself begins to say what is the meaning of the Message, then one does not wish for an explanation. Then one would rather go without an explanation. For it is too deep, too great for words. The less one speaks about it, the better it is. It is to understand within oneself, and allow the soul to speak to us what is the meaning of the Message. That is quite sufficient. Providence has brought us together this season, that we may speak and that we may meet with one another, and that we may think and pray together, and ask the help of the Lord that we may be worthy of serving our fellowmen in the Cause of God and humanity. God Bless You.
Aspects of the Sufi Message
June 23, 1925
My Blessed Mureeds,
Today I would like to speak on the subject of the different aspects of the Sufi Message. The Sufi Message, having the character of a prophetic message, has five different aspects of work.
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The first is warning humanity of the coming danger.
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The next aspect is bringing about a friendly understanding between the followers of different religions.
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The third aspect is giving the form of universal worship in which people of all different denominations may offer their prayers to the God of humanity.
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The fourth aspect is interpreting in the terms of the day life's secret to the generality.
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And the fifth aspect of the Message is guiding the seeking souls on the spiritual path.
Since these five different missions the Sufi Movement has to carry out, in order that the Message may reach all people in all parts of the world, naturally the need of helpers is felt every day more and more. When we see how few we are in number, and when we compare our limited actions with the great object we have before us, we cannot for one moment look at the success of our Movement hopefully, except that by our unchanging and everlasting faith. Besides, a few sincere workers can perform miracles, whereas thousands of workers who have not that spirit may not be able to accomplish. Therefore for us there is no need of being disappointed. We must be hopeful. Only we must be conscious of the fact that the work is great, and we are too few. And we must hope that this condition will change. And we must do our best to change it. Besides this, if there are many occupied in the spreading of the Cause, one can say, "Well, I will rest, because my friend is doing." But as we are so few we cannot rest. We must do everything possible for the spreading of the Cause.
But now coming to the question: who must work for the Cause and who need not work for the Cause? and the answer is that we all need not work for the Cause; only those who will work for the Cause must work for the Cause. For the service that a worker will render to the Cause must not be rendered in this spirit that: we return to Murshid, or we render to Murshid a service in return for what we receive from him. Because that will be a business. It will mean Murshid helps his pupils to the light on condition that they will work for the Cause. There must be these two things separate. The idea that we receive a spiritual help on the path of truth is something priceless, that we must never think of returning in any form, for it cannot be returned. And as long as a mureed will not value it to this extent he will not be able to be fully benefitted by it.
Well then, working for the Cause is a separate thing. There are reasons for which you will work for the Cause.
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The first thing is your faith in the Message of God. If you believe it, naturally you feel that the Cause is the first thing. For we believe that here is the Message of God.
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And the second aspect of it is that you are feeling for humanity, for the need of mankind today, and your comprehension of the effect that the Message can make and will make at this present condition of the world.
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And the third aspect is your sympathy with your Murshid, as a pupil, as a friend, as a brother, as a sister.
Your heart can never allow you to see your Murshid carrying some bricks 'on his shoulder, to stand there and look at it, and not take some also yourself to carry this load. Naturally out of your sympathy for your Murshid you feel what little we can do, or as much as we can do, we shall try and do it. Either of these three things or all these three things make a mureed inclined to be a worker. And that is the only way to render one's service to the Cause. I need not say, your own experience in working will tell you how greatly we need workers. But at the same time there are two aspects of workers: one worker will limit himself to so much work, and he will not do further. But the other worker will try and train himself to do besides what he does, that which is needed for the Cause.
You are not ignorant of the fact, but at the same time it is better that I may repeat before you this, that many new places where I have happened to travel and introduce the Message, and where many have become interested in the Cause, owing to the absence of someone to carry out the work, the whole effort I have made in that place by going there, by staying there, by giving my thought and time, by speaking there and creating all interest, it has gone in vain. Only because there was no one to hold that group together, to cultivate that ground, to rear those plants, to water that place where Murshid has sown seeds. Any mureed who has sympathy, devotion for Murshid, for the Cause, will understand this, that how much disappointment it must bring to Murshid, what a soreness of heart, to feel that all this work done there vanished--at least apparently, not really--because there was no one to carry out the work in my absence. Therefore it is necessary that those sincere mureeds who in every way wish to do some good for the Cause will know of the need, our great need, of being able to do everything that is necessary for the spreading of the Message.
God Bless You.
The Message
June 30, 1925
My Blessed Mureeds,
I would like to speak this evening on the subject of the Message. How is a mureed to regard the Sufi Message?
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There is a mureed who regards the Sufi Message as an esoteric school, where to study and to practice meditation, and to understand something of the inner laws of nature, to obtain powers which are latent in man, and to arrive at that inspiration which in the end culminates into a revelation. For this mureed all different esoteric schools are more or less the same. Perhaps the esoteric school of the Sufis appeals to his nature more, perhaps the contact that he feels with Murshid is deeper, and he prefers to continue his spiritual journey through this school.
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There is another mureed who looks upon it as an attempt among many other attempts of furthering the world brotherhood. He recognizes the need and importance of it, and so he joins forces with the Movement, recognizing at the same time that there are several other brotherhood movements besides, preferring at the same time to be in the Sufi Movement, because his friends are in the Movement, he is friends with Murshid, and he feels tied in this brotherhood movement, especially by friendship.
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And there is another mureed who sees the beauty and the vastness and an ideal in the form of Universal Worship. He sees in it his innermost inclination of religion being one. He adheres to it; and he feels in sympathy for such an ideal of different forms of religions being practiced in one form to be world known, that it will in the end bring about the divided sections of humanity by their particular faiths closer together, keeping wars and disasters of all kinds, which very often arise by religious differences, from rising in the world.
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But there is a mureed who sometimes before entering the Sufi Movement or sometimes at the moment of coming into the Sufi Movement, and sometimes after a period of time, gets a glimpse of the idea of the Message. All these three [above] activities are for him incomparable with anything else; for he sees the light of the Message behind them, and therefore he does not compare them with any other activities. He dare not compare them, but sees the light of the Message from behind, kindling these three activities.
Any many there are who ask a question that: "I can understand what an esoteric school means, I can understand a brotherhood movement, I can understand a universal worship, but I cannot perceive the meaning of the Message. Will you explain it to me in two words?" But this is something which is beyond explanation. And if one tries to explain it, one spoils it, because one limits it. One attaches value to something which is invaluable; one gives form to something which is the spirit.
For my mureeds, therefore, it is best to wait, and not trouble about the meaning of the Message; not to try to ask the explanation of the Message in words; till the meaning is revealed in their heart itself . . . only it has its own time. And those who feel the meaning of the Message, for them to make an attempt of explaining it to another who does not understand it will be fatal. Words will never explain it, but words will spoil it. This is the proof of truth, that truth springs itself in the heart of a person. This is true of the Message also. Instead of being spoken in words, it must speak in the heart of those who follow it.
In India and in Persia there is a special name of God, that name is "Khuddha" which means self-revealing. In all the different qualities of God, which are not different from the qualities of man--only the difference is that they are in perfection in God--this quality is beyond all qualities: self-revealing. Truth is something which reveals itself. You do not need to ask anyone. It begins to speak itself when the time comes. And so it is with the Message. The Message of truth must reveal itself; only it has its own time with every person. When the spiritual Message is pleaded by one or defended by one, then it is a human Message. It can only be spiritual when the soul itself begins to plead, when the spirit itself begins to defend. Then no man can deny it.
There arises a question in a sincere follower of the Message: "Why does not every person feel it, does not recognize it as I do, I wonder?" The answer is that you need not wonder. Your wonder would make your faith feeble. No matter, if the whole humanity did not recognize it, if you alone recognized it, it is sufficient for yourself. Nevertheless, the Message apart, everything that is real, sincere, earnest, is a living thing, whether one recognizes it or does not recognize it. One's soul certainly feels it, knows it. The mind may stand as a barrier, yet the soul cannot refuse it, cannot deny it. For the innermost of every being is the Being of God. And there truth is known; truth is recognized.
There is no reason for us to be discouraged, however slow the Message spreads in the world. For all things that are stable will spread slowly. For us there is one thing to think of, and that is that the truth is victorious, that the truth will never fail. Human efforts are limited, means are limited. Our power and vision may be limited, but not truth. When there is the flow of truth, trying from within to rise up and spread all around, it is from the unlimited source, and it must culminate into that fulfillment for which it is destined. What we require in our spiritual pursuit is the patient working, with firm faith and belief. There is no reason for us to be discouraged, however slow the Message spreads in the world. For all things that are stable will spread slowly. For us there is one thing to think of, and that is that the truth is victorious, that the truth will never fail. Human efforts are limited, means are limited. Our power and vision may be limited, but not truth. When there is the flow of truth, trying from within to rise up and spread all around, it is from the unlimited source, and it must culminate into that fulfillment for which it is destined. What we require in our spiritual pursuit is the patient working, with firm faith and belief.
Relationship Between Murshid and Mureed
July 7, 1925
My Blessed Mureeds,
The relation that exists between Murshid and mureed is so subtle and so delicate that only a few persons can understand it. It is not a relationship between a professor and a student. It is not a relation between an engineer and apprentice. The one who does not know it, for him it is nothing; and the one who knows it, for him it is everything. The light of the stars and planets which we see is in accordance to the light that it responds to. And since the relation between the Murshid and mureed is connected with light, the nature of this relation is also similar to that of the stars and planets.
No doubt, in the East, often a child learns of that relationship from his parents; and as he grows, he grows up with that idea in his mind. And for him this relation, whenever it may be established, it is not new. In the West there are many souls born with the tendency of a mureed, with the soul of a mureed, the have mureed's inclination, mureed's seeking. But as everything else around them, instead of giving that idea, tries to remove that idea from them, and they have to resist against it, it becomes necessary here for the Murshid to bring this subject before mureeds; whereas in the East no murshid would ever think of bringing this subject, for he knows that: how can it be otherwise?
One sees four different tendencies of mureeds while working in this line.
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One tendency is that: "I am looking for something, I am seeking after something. If I can find it anywhere, I may just as well find it here. But one thing is as good as the other thing. One way leads to the same goal as the other way. " He is quite correct, no one can deny the truth of this idea. Only he is further than where a mureed is expected to be.
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And there is another tendency that is: "I will try and learn and understand what I can learn and what I can understand. And I will try to grasp the ideas that fit in with my (preconceived) ideas; and what does not fit in with my ideas I will overlook it." This is no doubt a tendency of compassion, of tolerance, and of forgiveness. But still he is further than the place from where a mureed ought to start.
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And then there is a third tendency, that tendency is: "I will hurry up and learn all I can. I can spare to give so many weeks, months, or years, which I will try to give, if nothing takes me away from it. I shall have patience, and do all that is asked me to do. But then it depends upon the result. The whole future depends upon what results I get from it; and upon that I shall arrange my future action." He is right also, he has a reason; only he is further than the place from where a mureed begins his work.
These three tendencies which I have just now spoken before you show that the soul has not yet understood the real meaning of a mureed.
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And then there is a fourth tendency. And that tendency is that: "I take my journey in the path of truth; and my first step is trust; fall or rise, I will take what comes. For me it will be rise just the same." His first step is firm, and he promises to go further.
This path of spiritual realization is a path of self-abnegation. And self-abnegation is not only in thinking, but it is in doing, in everything one says or does. The examination of that self-abnegation is given to Murshid. And the price of this self-abnegation comes from God.
If one has not been able to forget oneself, and all one knows and believes, then one is holding something back which is keeping him behind. And the condition of this journey is that one should be free from all that restricts one to a certain belief, to a certain idea, to a certain thought, upon which he has fixed his mind. For then he is nailed on the ground upon which he stands, he cannot walk. In order to walk he must be free. When the Sufis asked the candidates, "Are you free?", this did not mean are you free from any relationship or connection or affairs in the world. That, freedom did not concern.
When a sage asked, "Are you free?" that only meant is your mind free from thoughts and beliefs and feelings that restrict you. If there is a restriction then you are nailed there, then you are not free to come with me. And they used to ask a candidate who wanted to follow the path of truth: "Do you know the way? If you know the way, then you do not need to accompany me. You know it already." Because it must not be that after having walked ten steps with me, you will say: "I know this way. By this way also I can go." Then you may just as well go alone. You do not need to take a guide.
Friends, the whole thing is this: that we all are accustomed to learn and acquire in our worldly life is with an attention to be something. But the condition of this path is different. The condition of this path is to strive to be nothing. And the outcome of it is that by being nothing you become everything. But that comes after. If one has not gone through the gate which makes one nothing, one cannot expect to arrive at that culmination where one is everything. If it was so easy that one would understand it in one sentence, that "all is God and God is all," and by understanding that one arrived at perfection, the spiritual perfection would have been the easiest thing possible; easiest of all things.
But why it is most difficult of all things is this, that intellectual realization does not suffice the purpose. It is not learning that is required; it is "being" that is wanted. And when one says, "I want to be filled," one must first be empty. And when one says, "Why am I not filled?" the very reason is that he is not yet empty. If anything keeps us back, it is nothing else. It is not what we possess, or it is not our friends, or those with whom we have any affair, a business, or profession; it is not that. What keeps us back is our self. And to practice this first makes oneself empty, respondent to Murshid.
And when this rehearsal is done, then performance begins. In the performance the same thing is done with God. The experience that I have had in my work very few esoteric teachers in the East can even imagine. Those who have the idea that every mureed comes prepared, they cannot imagine that the first work is to prepare a soul to be a mureed, and then to train that mureed to the highest knowledge. And mureeds who are not accustomed to these ideas when they accustom themselves to it, no doubt they show a greater response than a mureed would show in the East, who is already trained in that path.
And now there is a question: in what way can one show that response?
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And the answer is that the first step in showing response is trust in Murshid, in the path, in guidance.
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And what is the second step? The second step is perseverance. If one has trust in Murshid, faith in guidance, and no perseverance, then that keeps one back.
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And the third step is patience in the absence of result. One may have faith and trust, and one may persevere, but one may get tired.
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The fourth step in this path is the imitation. A mureed who imitates Murshid in his thoughts and in his way of thinking at things must not necessarily lose his point of view, but can add one more point of view to his own and perhaps he will find that point of view in time more useful. Besides, how Murshid says and acts under different circumstances, the mureed who has the chance of noticing it can acquire a greater spiritual knowledge than by reading many books. Because this is the living way of learning. If a mureed has not insight in Murshid's point of view, how can he attain to the realization of God? Once he has an insight in Murshid's point of view, he naturally will have insight in another person's point of view.
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The next step is self-effacing. And once a person has taken a step in self-effacing he is already close to the altar of God.
In conclusion, what I would like to say is that life is precious; and it becomes more precious when we appreciate our opportunity in life. Anything we can play with, and anything we can profit by. What we play with is lost; what we profit by is gained. And that depends upon our attitude. All the right and wrong done to us by others we can profit by, if we only looked at it from that attitude, from that point of view. When one takes a step in the spiritual path one must know that one's life is more precious than ever before, that the time is more precious than ever before. And to make the best of this opportunity is to profit by it as fully as possible. God Bless You.
In conclusion, what I would like to say is that life is precious; and it becomes more precious when we appreciate our opportunity in life. Anything we can play with, and anything we can profit by. What we play with is lost; what we profit by is gained. And that depends upon our attitude. All the right and wrong done to us by others we can profit by, if we only looked at it from that attitude, from that point of view. When one takes a step in the spiritual path one must know that one's life is more precious than ever before, that the time is more precious than ever before. And to make the best of this opportunity is to profit by it as fully as possible. God Bless You. In conclusion, what I would like to say is that life is precious; and it becomes more precious when we appreciate our opportunity in life. Anything we can play with, and anything we can profit by. What we play with is lost; what we profit by is gained. And that depends upon our attitude. All the right and wrong done to us by others we can profit by, if we only looked at it from that attitude, from that point of view. When one takes a step in the spiritual path one must know that one's life is more precious than ever before, that the time is more precious than ever before. And to make the best of this opportunity is to profit by it as fully as possible. God Bless You. In conclusion, what I would like to say is that life is precious; and it becomes more precious when we appreciate our opportunity in life. Anything we can play with, and anything we can profit by. What we play with is lost; what we profit by is gained. And that depends upon our attitude. All the right and wrong done to us by others we can profit by, if we only looked at it from that attitude, from that point of view. When one takes a step in the spiritual path one must know that one's life is more precious than ever before, that the time is more precious than ever before. And to make the best of this opportunity is to profit by it as fully as possible. God Bless You.
Personalities of the Servants of God
July 14, 1925
My Blessed Mureeds,
I would like to speak on the subject of the personalities of the servants of God on the path of truth. When we think about the great many teachers of humanity, who have even today in this world millions of people following their teachings, continuing for thousands of years back, in spite of the ever-changing quality of human nature, in spite of the love of novelty that man has--to take one thing and to throw another thing for it; in spite of it, their teachings have been handed down to ages and held in reverence and esteem even till now.
Think of the teachings of Zarathustra, that the followers of Zoroastrian religion have left their country and have forgotten their original language for many, many years; and if they have any sign of it, it is in the form, the words of Zarathustra which they still keep. Nothing of their origin they know, except this one thing, the teaching of Zarathustra, which was given to their souls. Brahmans hold their Gayatris of Vedanta and the words of Krishna in reverence, in esteem. And you cannot imagine to what extent they esteem it, that they would build a temple, a shrine, in order to keep that little book of Krishna. Muhammadans, no one can imagine what appeal the words of the Prophet make upon a Muslim.
A Muslim cannot read a Sura of the Qu'ran without shedding tears uncontrollably. He never hears the name of the Prophet without being deeply touched, without being deeply moved. And when we think about it a little more from a neutral point of view, and when we question to ourselves: Is it the teachings which are so valuable, or is it something else that has held them so many thousands of years? From a scientific point of view, from a literary point of view, they lack what a person today expects them to be.
Therefore as a book of poetry, as a book of prose, as a book of scientific, technical theories, as a book of philosophy, one cannot take it to be similar to such books of today. And at the same time many great poets and philosophers and scientists have written their books, and they have disapproved, and their books have disappeared, and they have been a thousand times contradicted, and will be contradicted again and again and again. And if one sees if there was any power behind it, what they have left in the form of a book, of a scripture, it was not only the teaching. It was the magic of their personality that has made an impression on earth which the earth holds and will hold for eternity. Their personality has been projected in the sky, which reflects it continually, even if thousands of years it is that they have passed.
And we on earth, with our limited conception of their lives and of the lives of the others distinguish them as "mine" and "thine;" take one and deny the other. If before a Christian, Buddha was very highly spoken, he will doubt. First of all he will deny, then will ignore if he was very just. And if before a Buddhist the same thing was spoken, he will have the same idea or perhaps more. For they are most devoted. When before a Jewish person you will speak about Muhammad in comparison to Moses, he will be horrified. And do you think a Muslim will stand a comparison of Moses to Muhammad? He will stand with sword: "How dare you say that these two personalities can be one and the same or equal!" The difference for them will be as between false and true. "One is true, the other is false. Mine is right, yours is wrong."
This has been the condition of the world all the time, and this is the condition of the world today. And however much we may think that we can progress without religion, it is impossible. That progress will always prove to be fatal. When there is an outer progress and absence of inner progress, it is not complete progress. We cannot progress without lifting cur religious ideal. And when it comes to lift it, then one says, "Yes, I will lift my religious ideal in my own faith." Well, that they had lifted already in the past, and yet they kept divided.
And they have always fought in the name of religion, abused their faith, and acted wrongly towards one another, being the creatures of the same God. And if we go still deeper we shall find that their teachings do not differ very much, and if there is a difference it i either that difference of terms or the difference of the way people have understood it. They have given guidance for that time and for the time to come till another such Message was to be given. So the difference is not in the teaching. And when we find the difference, it is because we want to find the difference. What we want to find we shall find. When we want to find a fault we can find a fault with the best person, and when we want to find some good we can find some good in the worst person.
And now coming to the personalities. If Solomon was king and Buddha was a beggar, if Moses rode on horseback and Muhammad sat on a camel, that makes little difference. For when a person judges a personality, he judges according to his ideas. Each person having his own ideas, there will be a thousand judgments about one person. And then when you trace back the legends and stories about the lives, sometimes they fit in with your ideas, sometimes they do not fit in with your ideas. Sometimes you hear them from their worst enemies, sometimes from best friends, sometimes it comes in such a poetry that you think there was never such a man, there never can be. And another time, when you hear it from an adversary, you think this was the worst person you can ever think of.
The more we shall widen our ideas, the more we shall see the wide world. The more we shall come to study life the more we shall see this fact: that those high personalities, we cannot take them from what history says. If a person who looks at it favorably says, "This is the best personality in the world; never God could have created another one like this." One says, "This was the son of God." The other says, "This was God Himself." But these differences belong to each individual as they think, as they conceive of it. In reality when we see what is behind it we see a divine magic, a divine personality which struck directly to so many and indirectly to those who were not struck directly.
And those who have come to understand their particular savior, master, teacher thoroughly, they have arrived at forgetting that outward distinction of the teacher, recognizing what is behind it--the divine personality which is One and the Same, whether in the past, present, or future. Be not therefore surprised if a Sufi recognizes that personality and names that personality with the name that may be taught to him, perhaps from his parents, in his family, as the great ideal of religion, and gives to the same personality all other recognized names which other people recognize in the same way. He gives the same personality those names; it is natural.
There was a time when the idealizing of the king was such that they gave the king the title of all the great heroes and kings who existed in history, recognizing in that particular king the greatness which is recognized by other people of their kings. But then you may say it is making our ideal the ideal of others. What does it matter? It all unites you with the others, and others are united with you. If this will go on that millions and millions of people are divided just now as they are, some as followers of one religion, others as followers of other religions, there will never come a real spiritual unity among men. They ought to unite in their ideal. But, you will say, can we not unite in God? Yes, we can unite in God.
But we do not unite in God. God for us is in the abstract; we want a personality in which to unite. And that personality, seen in its reality, is behind the veil of names and forms known to different creeds. If the Sufi Message brings Saum and Salat to be given in the world to Muslim, Christian, Buddhist, and Hindu alike, that they can stand in the congregation shoulder to shoulder in the worship of God and may not miss the name of their teacher, one day they will waken to the truth, they automatically will come to that idea that the personality which is really divine has all these names and more names which are perhaps unknown. Therefore there was an argument once with a mureed who said, "There are some who can stand milk and there are others who can stand wine; and there are some who can read Saum and Salat, and there are others who are perhaps prejudiced against one name or the other.
What may be done for them?" This argument I bring before you because you will have to face this difficulty always, as I have to face this difficulty continually. In the first place by feeling the prejudice of that person you will keep him backward in progressing through the Sufi path. The sole object of this path is unity. But by arguing with him too much you will only antagonize him. Therefore in the case of an individual, as Sufism is freedom of thought, you will leave the choice to that person. Nevertheless, my workers and mureeds will remember that on Saum and Salat the whole building of the Sufi teaching stands. And if it has not that foundation of uniting all different faiths, this building will not stand upon partial and divided ideals. It wants a strong foundation, for this is not a question of a particular theory, a speculation or doctrine. This is a question of uniting the races and nations and people who are divided in their faiths. Nor in moral principle, nor . . . (philosophical basis) . . . nor in truth, only on the point of different personalities as their leaders.
Remember, my mureeds, at the same time, that your task in holding this ideal will be very difficult because of the pioneer work, and a number so small as ours. But has anyone grown without being an infant--man or movement? Everything grows as something small, it develops afterwards to that width and to that height which is destined for it. What is necessary for us is patient trust and a continual work to further the Message.
And now coming to the question of the two points of view which the workers of the Sufi Movement show. Some have a point of view that is: something which is of a sacred nature, of some value and importance, must be kept hidden, and must be brought slowly and thoughtfully and with a very great consideration to humanity. If not, it can be spoiled, it can be broken. And there are others who say, "What we value, what we think is important, must be spread, must be brought before the public. What does it matter if they believe in it; is this not enough?" Now there is some right and some wrong in both of these tendencies. The right is in this tendency that we must bring slowly and quietly before the world, that we can never be enough tactful and considerate in bringing something which is delicate and sacred, and which belongs to the inner truth. But they are wrong in thinking that it will be broken up.
What breaks cannot be true. What is true can never break, so they need not fear that it will be broken. If a thousand times it will be broken, a thousand times it will come right again. It will spring up; it cannot be cut. The tree of truth can never be cut. And therefore courage must be such that: "If everyone was against me, that I shall carry it out. " "I do not fear that it is something fragile, that it will break. No, the nature of this is that if it will break it will be made again. " The symbology of it is the phoenix, that when it is burnt then there is the egg of the phoenix from which it comes again.
Then alone the worker will be able to keep on furthering the Message, when he has that faith. No matter what difficulty comes along and sweeps it away, the Message will not be swept away. It is meant to be given, and will be given. And nothing can destroy it. Only the loss will be on the part of the worker who, in spite of having all his good will, will lose that opportunity when something could have been done for the Message. But fearing that perhaps it will not be the right thing, he loses his opportunity of serving the Cause.
And the wrong about the person who says, "Yes, it must be done," is this: that when he is impatient, when out of his love and devotion for the Cause he thinks that all the spreading and all the completing of the work, and all the finishing of it, must be done today, he does not know--like an enthusiastic child, he is enthusiastic, but he does not know--that it takes time to arrive at a certain result. And this something, the real result of it, is further than the time we may expect it to be, although every day there is a result manifesting in some form or the other.
Therefore we have to be patient with it, to work and never be concerned with results. We must work for the sake of the work. Then, of course, in outer working if a person urged upon his friend and upon his neighbors and his acquaintances, "Come here, listen to it, take it, believe it, follow it," he makes a person mad. For it requires great delicacy, a great tact and finesse. For the very people who today are great workers in the Sufi Movement, if they were not dealt with with due tact and consideration, would not even have come in the Movement. Today they are great workers.
And now there comes a question: "Then what course is it better to follow?" And my answer is: the course that is suited to your individual self. If you feel courage that the work must be spread, you will take that course tactfully; but do not blame the other who has the other inclination. And the one who will say, "I shall go slowly, I shall keep it back," if that person will try and do his best in that way, even that is of some value. If we shall not urge one another's principle on one another, then we can follow our own way of working in the Cause. Only we each must remember when working for the Cause that life is an opportunity. God Bless You.
Our Efforts in Constructing
July 21, 1925
My Blessed Mureeds,
I wish to say a few words on the subject of our efforts in constructing something (The Universel). We have come together, brought together by destiny in friendship, in sympathy, in love, and this must have a special meaning. And that special meaning is that we are constructing something, we are building something in the air. And this building is not a building for a certain time. This building is built for centuries to come. And once we begin to look at it from this point of view, we no longer can call or compare the Sufi Movement with any other intellectual, philanthropical, or spiritual institution. And those of my mureeds who do not see this way do not yet realize the meaning of this building. This is where God's Message will be treasured, a temple in which the future generations will find what they seek.
And how is it designed, and how is it to be constructed? It is designed by the hand of God, and it is to be constructed by our thoughts of harmony, of love, of beauty. It is our thoughts and our feelings which will serve in this temple as stones and bricks and tiles, and it is our feelings which will hold this temple for centuries to come. This opens up a different thought before my mureeds; and at the same time it wakens them to their duty and to that obligation which is attached to it. Every mureed has a contribution to make to this temple, and the best contribution he can make is his devotion, his faith in the Message, his sincere service to the Cause, his sympathy, his friendship with Murshid. Never say, "Murshid has many friends." They can never be many. The laudable object that we have to carry in the world, the difficulties, that requires many more friends. And friends are never sufficient.
But then one begins to think, "Why is it that there is so much talk about a temple to be made on the earth?" The answer is that everything that is to be built on a spiritual plane is finished when it is also built on the physical plane. But then one asks, "If that is the only reason, why must we have a temple; will any little thing not do? Why must we dream of big things and great things?" But any of my sincere mureeds who have deep devotion to the Cause and in whose hearts the dignity of the Message has been wakened--can they ever imagine such a thing, that there could be something too good for the Message of love, harmony, and beauty.
When we stand in the physical world there is dignity to be considered. I am content with anything simple. Give me a hut of straw to speak in; I shall be glad to do so, I shall be quite content. But will your sense of dignity be content to imagine the Message of love, harmony, and beauty given in a garage? It is not at all desired by us that it must be made like a palace of Pharaoh, nor is it necessary. But at the same time we must not spare to contribute, to add to it beauty in whatever form we may be able to give it. For it will remain on the plane of the earth a little souvenir: a souvenir of your devotion for the Cause, a souvenir of that struggle and fight through which you have to go and are going in this pioneer work, that people will see your devotion after centuries, how you worked for it even on the physical plane, proving your devotion by having constructed that building on the spiritual plane also.
Someone asked me, "But why must it be in a place like Suresnes? We do not like it." A friend will not say to his beloved friend, a pupil will not say to his revered teacher, a dutiful son will not say to his venerated father, a devotee will not say to his prophet, "I love you, but I do not like the place you live." Mecca, a place in a most uninteresting desert, which offers no earthly comforts or conveniences--neither is the ground fertile nor the climate desirable--has been the place of pilgrimage of those who went to get the blessing of that place.
Perhaps they came from beautiful gardens, perhaps they lived in beautiful nature, perhaps they stayed in palaces, but when going to Mecca they did not think what kind of place it was. They only thought that it was Mecca, and that was quite sufficient. This is not a story of the past; it is the story of the present also. My mureeds, those who go for a change, a holiday, can go to riversides, they can go to mountains; beautiful places there are, one better than the other. There are many places. But if they sacrifice all that to come to a place which perhaps is not as interesting as the other places, they must find some interest somewhere, and they really are attracted to the Message. The proof is their coming and their sacrifice of all that beauty which is sought.
But then one will say, "Why must we not have beauty? The Message of God is beautiful, and if the place were beautiful also, it would be double beauty." You can double earthly beauty, but not the Message of God. Earthly beauty is limited, and the Message of the Unlimited One, how can one compare it with that beauty?
If Murshid was not a mystic, and if there was a thought of making the Movement popular, Murshid would have been the first to say, "Yes, let us go to a place where thousands of travelers come in the summer. Or perhaps a place where people would come, if not for the Message, at least for a change. In that way we can catch them." There are some who seek beauty in the place; there are others who make the beauty in the place.
My blessed mureeds, when you look at things from a mystical point of view, you will realize the meaning of that verse in the scripture that says, "Not one atom moves without the command of God." When your Murshid was brought here, destiny settled him here. Spirits were moved to take this piece of ground, that a temple be made here. It is not without meaning. Our practical head will say, "No, this is not the right place for this business; this is not commerce."
If there is a beauty, it must create its own beauty. Many may have read in the books of the ancient mystics, of saints, of prophets, that they did not go out to show a miracle, a phenomenon. If there was a phenomenon it was themselves, their being; places flourished where they lived, the sky changed its light, the atmosphere changed. And the centuries changed it continually, the worst places growing into the best places, ordinary places turning into places of pilgrimage.
If the Sufi Message sought from a practical point of view what is best for its earthly progress, certainly we should ignore that mystical significance which is working behind our efforts. Never think that if Murshid was offered the sultan's palace in Constantinople he would change it for his hut in Suresnes. Where a mystic sits, he sits; where he stands, he stands. There is a mystical outlook, there is a mystical significance, there is a mystical point of view which is different from that which we call a practical point of view. Things of great significance are beyond what we call our practical point of view.
And now in conclusion I would like to say that we shall be content with the temple that one day will be built, and that we shall never think that the temple intended to be built can be too good or can be too beautiful for us. God Bless You.
Teaching Given by Murshid to his Mureeds
July 28, 1925
My Blessed Mureeds,
I would like to speak this evening on the subject of the teaching that is given by Murshid to his mureeds. This training can be divided into four classes. And the four classes again divided to two divisions: finer training and grosser training.
The grosser training is the philosophical statements in the form of literature that a Murshid gives, and the teachings in the realm of words spoken, words which Murshid gives. The other aspect of the grosser training is the practices which Murshid prescribes to his mureeds, the way of doing these practices, and the benefit that can be derived from them. That also comes under the heading of the grosser training.
And what is the finer training? Hardly a mureed knows the finer training. For the finer training Murshid becomes subtle; he uses subtlety in training every mureed. And the great skill of Murshid in this is that perhaps the mureed does not realize it for many, many years. This training is given by testing and trying the mureed to the utmost. A teacher may look at one mureed with his eyes, and look at the other mureed with the eyes of his mind. Murshid may listen to what one mureed is saying, and hear the call of another mureed's heart. Murshid may speak to one and teach to another one who you do not see there. Murshid may say a phrase simply, and there may be something more subtle hidden behind it. And if by this subtle way Murshid does not elevate the pupil, then the mureed is not in his right place.
Murshid may only say a thing to a mureed to see its effect at that particular moment which has nothing to do after that. Murshid may act in a certain way which would have an effect at that moment, and has nothing to do afterwards. To one he may offer a sweet syrup, to the other salt water; to one hard nuts to crack under the teeth, and to the other soft sweets. And for each action he has his own reasons, for he knows what is best for his mureed. He may try the patience of the one, and he may regard the impatience of the other.
He may answer one in words, and his answer to the other may be in silence. He may tell you, "You do this," and he may tell the other, "Will you choose what you would like to do?" He may seem strict to one mureed, and to the other not in the least. The other one would never imagine for one moment that Murshid could be strict. To the one he would say plainly, "You have done wrong," and to the other he will say, "I do not approve of it," and to the third he will say, "Have you done so? It is done," and to the fourth--the same thing he has done--Murshid will say nothing.
Mureeds who are not aware of it would feel revolt, would feel discomfort, would feel impatient, would feel troubled in their hearts. And mureeds who see one mureed treated in one manner and another in another manner, would wonder and would be amazed. "Why must it be so? Are they not equal, are they not all equal to their Murshid?" But they do not know. Yes, they are all near to the heart of Murshid in the same way or the other. But the way that Murshid takes with each is like a prescription for that particular person. It is in this way that patience develops in a mureed, tolerance is taught to the mureed, endurance is given to a mureed to practice. He is made thoughtful, he is made considerate, he is made tender. Even if it be by grinding his rough feeling, he is made gentle in time, without him knowing. All those qualities which make the soul noble are drawn out by this finer method of working with mureeds. And yet very few mureeds realize it. Very seldom do they realize that it is so.
What is asked of mureeds is not to become pious or virtuous or most learned or most powerful. The most easy and the most difficult thing is to be able to understand what Murshid expects of them. It is not what Murshid expects of all of them; no, it is what Murshid expects of that particular mureed. And it is from that day that he may be called a mureed. It is from that day that he begins advancement in the spiritual path.
What keeps one back in realizing this--what is expected by Murshid--is the lack of keen observation of the attitude and outlook and the teaching that Murshid gives. Murshid and mureed apart, however much a person be near and dear to you if that person does not feel what you expect of him, he has not arrived to be called your friend. Because there is the proof of sympathy, there is the proof of love, there is the proof of oneness, there is the proof of the link, when one begins to feel what is expected. No sooner the heart of a mureed begins to realize this, it automatically turns into a cup, and a magic cup that becomes larger and larger. And the light and life as a sacrament is filled in it, and there remains always a place to fill.
There is another aspect of the finer teaching. But this aspect is Murshid's sacred responsibility towards his mureeds. And that way is to pray for them, to bless them, and to wish their advancement in all directions of life. And very often what no practices, no studies, no efforts of any kind can give, the blessing of the teacher, which comes from the bottom of his heart, can give. God Bless You.
Ways of Receiving the Message
August 4, 1925
My Blessed Mureeds,
There are two ways of receiving the divine Message: receiving from the heart, and receiving through the head. The Message received through the head will whirl around the head, till the wind of reason rises and blows it off. The Message that is received into the heart will settle in the heart, will remain in the depth of the heart, out of which virtues, morals, merits, and inspirations, besides the strength and power will come. It is easy to perceive the Message through the head. One has only to give a thought to it. And it is difficult to receive the Message into the heart, because one has to prepare the heart first to receive it.
There is a saying of the mystics that spiritual things, the spiritual teachings, can be given from the heart, can be taken into the heart. That is what the sign of the Sufi Movement denotes. It requires a certain preparation to make the heart a receptacle of the Message. By concentration, by contemplation, and by meditation, the heart is purified, enlarged, and made into a receptacle of the Message. Therefore it is that among many thousand mureeds, if you begin to take the real benefit of the Message, although others are benefitted in another way, the full benefit of the Message is received by knowing how to take the Message.
And now coming to the question: what are the principal things that the Message must give to people?
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The first principal thing is to understand the essence of religion and to practice outwardly, by putting in a universal form, which are Universal Worships.
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The next is practicing the love and sympathy which one has cultivated through devotion in one's practical life, regarding pleasure and displeasure of our fellowmen, and being gentle, kind, tolerant, and patient to them, rendering any service we can render. And this idea is represented by our Brotherhood activity.
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To dive deep into the self and to rise as high as the consciousness can rise; to widen one's horizon, making it larger than the universe; to realize the meaning of God: it is this that the Sufi Order, our esoteric school, represents.
If a mureed says, "One activity of the Sufi Message appeals to me and the other does not appeal to me, " he does not yet understand that all these three activities--the Universal Worship, the Brotherhood, and the esoteric school, the Sufi Order--all three help one to perfection.
God Bless You.
The Path of Attainment
August 11, 1925
My Blessed Mureeds,
I would like to speak this evening on the subject of the path of attainment. The path of attainment is likened to a narrow path, to a steep path, that one finds on the mountain, to climb to the top. And therefore the path of attainment is difficult, because it is going uphill. And there is another path which leads to the goal that follows after the attainment. It cannot be very well called downhill, but at the same time the journey on this path is as easy as it is to come down from the top of the mountain.
The path that goes uphill towards attainment requires continual sacrifice. The one who is not ready to sacrifice must stand at the foot of the mountain, or the place he is standing on the way. He cannot go further, because he cannot sacrifice. And the path that is after the attainment requires renunciation to arrive at the goal. But to mix these two words is like confusing the words such as pleasure and happiness, such as intellect and wisdom. These are two different things. The one has not made sacrifice in life, the one who has not yet gone through the path of sacrifice, must not take the name of renunciation, for it is quite a different thing. Everything is good in its own time. When a sacrifice is needed and one makes a renunciation, one goes backwards. When a renunciation is necessary and one makes a sacrifice, he goes backwards, too. For these are two distinct and different things.
Spiritual path apart, even in the things of worldly life such as starting a new business, going in a new profession, making one's career, treading the path of love and friendship, working for name and fame, whatever be the nature or character of the object one wishes to attain, what it asks is a sacrifice, from the beginning to the end. We are apt to forget it, and therefore we each think that our life asks for so many sacrifices. "Look how this professional man is happy, how that businessman is enjoying life, how that man who is making a career in the government is going on in his life!" Only we do not see the sacrifice that each one of them has had to make in order to arrive at that object which he wishes to attain. A lazy man is preferred to a man who is unwilling to make sacrifices. By laziness a man shows that he does not care enough to attain to something. He enjoys his comfort, his convenience; he is quite content in his life. But the man who wishes to attain something and is not willing to make sacrifices, that man will have a difficult time, for he wants to purchase things without coins.
The sacrifice one has to make is of different characters, of different natures according to the object we have in view. The greater the object of attainment, the greater the sacrifice asked for it. But sacrifice must be understood rightly. It is not always that one has to sacrifice what one possesses; but one has to sacrifice what one is. That is a great difficulty. As a miser holds to his last penny, so man, disinclined to sacrifice, holds himself tight. "Anything be stolen, but not myself." It is a natural inclination in man. And what does the spiritual path ask of you? That very thing: "self." Give false self, and get the real self. If the mystery is understood, then attainment is at the next step. But man is not easily inclined to give up himself; anything else, but not himself. What do I mean by this?
One says, "My idea is my idea, my wish is my wish. It is mine. My thought is my thought, my inclination is my inclination, my point of view is my point of view." He makes all these things greater possessions than the possessions he has outwardly, and therefore it becomes easier to give what one possesses than to give up what one thinks and feels. If you say to a person, "But this is a wrong thing to do," he says, "Yes, but I am that way, I think like this. I know that it is wrong. I feel like it, although it is wrong. I cannot do otherwise." In other words, he holds his possessions, thinking that it is himself. But it is not himself. It is his false self. However small be the object of your attainment, it matters little. However great a sacrifice it asks from you, it does not matter. By paying a greater cost if you have attained a small object, even then you have attained something.
And now coming to renunciation. Very often a person sees renunciation in a wrong light. A person thinks that he is not willing to make the sacrifice, therefore he renounces the object of attainment. It is a wrong conception of renunciation. Many renounce object very often in their lives, only because they are unwilling to make enough sacrifices. They value themselves or they value the sacrifice that it asks, more than the object they wish to attain. And because they cannot attain it, they say, "I renounce it."
It is very easy to renounce. The great heroes and the souls who have really done something worthwhile in the world have begun their life with sacrifices. Sacrifice of comfort, sacrifice of convenience, sacrifice of pleasure, of merriment, of joy. There is hardly one among them that you find who did not have to pay a great price to have arrived to that attainment. The higher the attainment the greater the sacrifice it asks. But the one who understands keeps his object always higher than the sacrifice he makes. The one who does not understand wishes to see the object of attainment much less than the sacrifice it asks for. And in it he thinks that it is practical. It is a common sense. No doubt it is practical, and it is a common sense when the object is material to only pay the price of the object.
But the high-minded person who has ideal in him will show that tendency; even if you called him unpractical he does not mind, even in material things. The diamond ring that he likes, he will pay any price for it. Others will mock at him, call him unpractical, but he does not mind. The pleasure he gets out of the thing that he has bought is greater than the money if he had it in the bank. After all, life is but four days. As Sa'adi, the great poet, says, "Who has earned and who has spent, and who has lived is greater than the one who has earned and who has collected at the sacrifice of joy that one gains by sacrifice."
But when it comes to higher things, such as friendship, such as love, such as kindness, there you can never make enough sacrifice. He who had the ideal in his heart, for him always sacrifice is small. What sacrifice he does is always small. It is the one who has no ideal who will weigh and measure and see if it is even or uneven. "What I give is even with what I take, or there is no balance in it." There is his practicality; he calls it wisdom. It is not wisdom, it is cleverness. Wisdom stands higher, above it all. Wisdom does not come by practicality. When a person says, "I will guard my interest against every attempt made by others," he is a different person. That person is greater who trusts, who risks, and who can make sacrifices.
When we come to the spiritual path, it needs a greater sacrifice than anything else. It asks one for one's time, for one's thought; when you are concentrating even it does not allow you to think of anything else. You must think on the object you concentrate on. The further you go, the greater sacrifice is wanted. And the difference between those who go quicker in this path or who go slower is in the capability of sacrifice. Sacrifice teaches renunciation. And there is no other way of self-effacement than sacrifice. The one who knows the path of friendship, the one who knows what real friendship means, he need not be told what sacrifice means; he knows it. For friendship does not mean a good time, a pastime. Friendship means sacrifice. And when once by friendship sacrifice is learned, then one begins to know what sacrifice is necessary on the path of spiritual attainment. God Bless You.
Interest and Indifference
August 18, 1925
I would like to speak this evening on the subject of interest and indifference. Those who move about on the surface of life, for them interest and indifference are like their right hand and their left hand. And souls who have touched the depth of life, for them interest and indifference are just like two poles of the world. One has to turn one's back to the North Pole in order to go to the South Pole, and one has to turn one's back on the South Pole in order to go to the North Pole. Generally man says today, "I am interested in something," and tomorrow he says, "I have lost my interest." Or he says, "I could be interested in something," and before he can be interested in something he has become indifferent. Interest is necessary to tread the path of attainment; indifference is needed to attain the goal of renunciation. If one is deep, if one is sincere, and yet one does not know these opposite poles, in spite of the depth he has and in spite of the sincerity he has, he will be pulled from both sides by interest and by indifference.
Interest may be called life; indifference, death; interest, light; indifference, darkness. And yet through the darkness there is a goal to be reached, as there is something to be attained through the light. A person who is one day interested and the next day indifferent has not depth either to his interest or to his indifference. Neither can he attain something by his interest, nor can he reach something by his indifference. It is the power motive which stands as the greatest power, as a secret behind this creation; and it is the absence of that power which very often gives indifference, stands as a mystery behind that life which is assimilating.
When a person says, "I could not attain the object of my desire," it means he lacked interest; it was caused by indifference. When one says, "I would like to rise above things, but I cannot," it is because he lacks the power of indifference. Renunciation is the ultimate goal of indifference, and attainment is the result of interest. These two things wrongly used bring wrong result, rightly used bring right result. The one who does not give himself heart and soul to the object of his attainment--however small the object may be--till he has attained it, he is not entitled to take the path of indifference, he is not entitled to utter the name of renunciation. He cannot renounce, because he does not know what renunciation means. Renunciation is a great thing, but when? At the end of attainment, not at the beginning. As freedom is a great thing to achieve--but not in the beginning, in the end; one must begin with discipline. One who begins with freedom ends in discipline; one who begins with renunciation ends in interest. But it is a wrong beginning and therefore there is a wrong end.
In Arabian Nights there is a most interesting mystical story that gives us a little idea what the path of attainment means. It is the story of Aladdin, who, on asking for the hand of the princess, was told he should bring the magic lantern first, in order to attain the daughter. And he went. Then the story goes on, telling how many forests, how many rivers he crossed, how he went through the wind and storm, through all troubles and difficulties, over the tops of mountains and to the depth of the earth. He went through the water, through the air, through fire, through all tests and trials, till he reached the end of his ordeal and found at last that lantern, that magic lantern, by which he attained his object. And this is the rule, always to keep in mind that nothing in life can be attained which is of some worth without going through tests and trials and difficulties, persevering through it all with patience and endurance. It is that which in the end brings victory.
The picture of indifference is shown in a story of when Emperor Akbar went to pay a visit to a dervish who lived in the mountains. His grand vizier accompanied him. When he arrived near the rock where the dervish was lying, his legs stretched, the Emperor and vizier bowed before him. And the dervish answered by nodding his head. The vizier could not understand this manner in which the Emperor was received by that dervish--the Emperor, who at every moment was shown proper courtesy by thousands and millions of people. The vizier asked in sarcasm, "How long is it, dervish, that you have stretched your legs?"
The dervish answered, "It is since I have folded my arms." The meaning was that, "If my arms were stretched in meed, I would have given the same courtesy to the Emperor as all others give. Since I have taken back my stretched arms, folded them together, I stretched my legs. What does it matter who comes?" It is such personalities, such souls, who are entitled. Souls with a thousand anxieties, a million worries, and twenty thousand problems before them, when they think of renunciation, when they speak of indifference, they make a mistake. Can one have interest and indifference at the same time? Never. Can one be on the land and in the water at the same time? Never. Neither one thing nor the other.
And now we come to the question of the Sufi Message. There are mureeds who are interested in their own advancement. And there are mureeds who are interested in the furtherance of the Message. Those who are interested in their own advancement, they may just as well have indifference for the furtherance of the Cause. But those who are interested in the Movement, in Murshid, in the furtherance of the Message, they think that they can contribute; and the contribution that can be most valuable is a continued interest without the slightest shadow of indifference.
Those who have the interest of the Message at heart, one day they are enthusiastic, saying, "I would like to do everything in my power, it does not matter how little I can do, but I would like to do all I can," and the other day they say, "What does it matter if I did it or someone else did it? It is the Message of God for humanity; somebody will do it if I do not do it. What am I? I am a poor, humble person; I occupy no position in the Movement. Besides, to do something, it wants great resources which I lack, it wants quality, it wants capability, which I do not know if I have. I have a great desire to work for the Message, but at times I feel, can I really do it?" Looking at the thousand difficulties which discourage one from doing anything. When such a thought rises in the heart of the worker, it comes as a shadow that darkens the path that he wishes to tread.
It is such mureeds and workers who will be able to accomplish something worthwhile who will not mind what position they are placed in, what work they have to do in the Order, small or great; but they wish to do it, without being discouraged, with patience and endurance, in spite of all difficulties. Is there any difficulty that cannot be surmounted? No doubt, those who have every desire to serve the Cause, but at the same time cannot, owing to such difficulties which may seem insurmountable, they may give their thought, and help the Cause by their prayers. But those who have time at their disposal, strength and health granted by God, and opportunity before them, for them it is necessary to know the nature and the power of motive, and to know the danger of the shadow of indifference falling upon it. It is in this way, with united effort, we shall be able to bring that Message before humanity which we are destined to bring. God Bless You.
The Call from Above
August 25, 1925
My Blessed Mureeds,
I should like to speak this evening on the subject, "Call from Above." This subject is no doubt in connection with the Message, but at the same time it can be understood by understanding the nature of everyday life. We read in the Qu'ran that, "Nothing moves, even an atom, without the command of God." In other words, there is only one power that moves things and beings towards a certain purpose, and that power is the source of the different degrees of strength which we see in different persons. And it is by that power that everything that happens is accomplished. Therefore it would not be an exaggeration if I quoted a poet before you who says that, "God speaks to every man, but every man does not listen to the word of God." This deafness of the heart is a natural outcome of our life in the world. If by the help of meditation we raise the heart to a certain pitch, then the word of God becomes manifest.
To have the clear idea of this subject one may study it in the Hebrew scriptures, where it is said in two different ways. It is said that God spoke to Jacob, that God spoke to Abraham, that God spoke to Moses. And in the other form it is said that the angel Gabriel brought the Message of God to Moses. These are two different forms in which it is put. In one form it is said, "God spoke to the prophet." That form is a plain form, that when the heart of the prophet was lifted and was raised to that pitch where it can hear the Word of God, it heard the Word of God. The idea of an angel bringing the Message of God is more symbolical.
It is easier for man to understand an angel bringing the Message than God speaking directly. As soon as one says, "God spoke," then a person says, "Has God lips to speak, has He then a form, is He then like a human being, is He then an entity, separate from our being?" And if these questions were answered, "Yes, it is so," that means that every possibility of a person coming to the understanding of God was covered by a pacifying answer. But if it is said, "An angel brought the Message," then people begin to think, "Yes, it is an entity who brought the Message." The postman could come from God to the earth and bring the Message. It's just like saying a dove brought a letter. One can quite understand that a dove could fly and bring a letter.
Besides, for a mystic, for the prophet, God is not only a person of his belief, nor for him is God an abstract Being, as for a cold philosopher. For a mystic God is everything, God is as much abstract as He is a person. It is in this person of God, which has become a reality to a mystic, that the Message of truth comes. But it is not an easy thing to make a God of imagination and make out of Him a reality. For every person it is like making an idol, a statue, and trying to make the statue live. The other thing is even more difficult than making the statue live. But if ever anyone has reached God, he has not reached by finding God in the abstract, something where nothing is to be found. But he had to make God, and then through that God, which was once made, that God of abstract spoke.
This was the vehicle through which God gave His Message. In other words, electricity is all over, everywhere. In order to bring it to manifestation it was necessary to produce dense material to attract it, and to bring about that light. In order to make the abstract God speak, one has to make first a vehicle; that is the form of God of which the prophets spoke. There is a saying of Sa'adi that, "Everyone is this world is born for a certain purpose, and the light of that purpose is kindled in his soul." Prophetic message therefore is distinct, and it has its definite work to accomplish.
Now the difference between God's Message is as powerful as God Himself, as living as God Himself, as expanding as God Himself, and as fulfilling of its Purpose on earth as God Himself. What the servants of the Sufi Message, who have joined together hand in hand to render service in time of need to humanity, must not for one moment think is, "How could a handful of people be able to fulfill the service for which they are called?" If according to the scriptures as we read, "God commenced the human race with two persons first: Adam and Eve;" if that is possible, this is possible also. We are more than that. If every any Message that was intended for the welfare of humanity has ever grown even as great and as wide as the world, it has begun with one or two or three persons.
It never began with hundreds and thousands. But the number of persons was not to be considered; it was the power that was behind it, that was the mystery behind it all. Our confidence and trust in the Sufi Message must strengthen us to stand firm in the service of God and humanity, and never let ourselves be discouraged by the lack of things that everyone experiences in this limited world, always keeping before us God and His Perfection. He calls us to render our service to our fellowmen, sincerely and earnestly, without doubt, without fear, in the little way we can. It is by this method that we shall be able to do our duty.
And now the question of those who work with us. Sometimes we see their errors, their faults, their limitations. But at the same time we see their merits, their virtues, their goodness. The best thing is to overlook the other part, not be discouraged by it, not be dissatisfied by it, with a hope that in the end all will be well, since it is a service which is intended for humanity at large. We must keep before our view that high ideal, that great ideal, instead of thinking of the little faults and errors of our brothers and sisters in the Movement. For we all have limitations, and since we are human beings we an expect to be tolerated, to be forgiven. We ourselves must do it; when we forgive, then others forgive us.
It is a harmonious cooperation in the work that is needed. And it is in the Sufi Movement that we must practice tolerance and forgiveness towards one another. It is in our Movement that we must practice sympathy and forget antipathy, to throw it away when it comes. When among ourselves we shall make a real brotherhood, naturally we shall be able to give the example to others, not in word but in action. We need not be discouraged, we need not be hopeless, whatever may be the condition. For we must know that we have before us a high ideal, a great ideal to accomplish. And even the least little service that we can render to the Cause will be our satisfaction. God Bless You.
The Message
September 1, 1925
My Blessed Mureeds,
There often arises a question in the mind of a faithful devotee of the Cause. One thinks, "If one would know Murshid better," or, "If one would understand the Message more fully." Is it not enough for my true mureeds to know that Murshid is a servant of God and humanity, whose privilege it is to have sincere friends like you to stand by him in his strife? And in answer to the question of what the Message is, I would say that it is not in particular dogmas which I would call the Message, nor is it certain new doctrines which are given to you which I would call the Message. There are no moral principles preached here to name them as the Message.
The Message should be regarded in two aspects. The one aspect is that, in spite of all culture and progress, humanity is going backwards, and that lacking is the absence of true idealism. It is a shadow of idealism which pulls man down towards the earth. The real idealism is a ladder that helps man to reach that purpose for which the world was created. If in the form of devotion, in the form of philosophy, in the form of mysticism, there is anything given by this Message, it is the ideals which ennoble souls, and which make souls realize their origin, which is divine aristocracy. A man unconscious of that noble spirit which is in him remains poor with all the wealth and position he may have.
The lack of rest and peace which we find in the world today, and which is continued in spite of all different efforts being made to bring about peace, shows what is lacking, what is absent in humanity. It is not necessary that an idealist must be impractical, that an idealist must be dreamy, that an idealist must be imaginative. One can have practical sense, one can have common sense, one can do all things in the world that are necessary and yet be idealistic; that is the lesson to be learned today. The more we study the life of many with wealth and position, with rank, with power, at the end of examination we see them too small for all they have; they are most limited, with closed eyes.
And when one sees with open eyes one will see that they are the ones who are dreamy, who sleep, and whose imaginations are worthless. No one who has seen human nature with the x-ray of his heart will deny the fact that there is some spirit in many people today which is not allowed to mature. And that is the spirit of idealism, a spirit which helps one to go upwards, to rise, a spirit which helps one to express that nobleness which is divine in man. If the Sufi Message takes the form of am esoteric school, through all these forms it has to give one and the same thing: to give the ladder to mankind to climb upwards.
And you will ask, "How shall I define what idealism is?" The ideal is something which one keeps before one's eyes, something which is not easily reached, something which is not easily touched, but which one cam always see and keep before one, and try one day to reach. The person who has the ideal naturally has sentiments, his imaginations are graceful, his thoughts wonderful, his actions beautiful, his atmosphere magnetic. For it is the ideal which makes life worth living. If all that the earth can give one one has, and not the ideal, one will soon be tired of it.
No doubt, this keeps man living, when he thinks, "I have not money," or, "I have not power," or, "I have not something else." And when he is waiting, in that waiting either he is striving or struggling in order to get it, and that makes him live and pass time. But if he dives deep into the secret of life he will find that even such things which one has not got, if they were at one's disposal, even then one would not be satisfied. There is only one way for life to be worth living, and that is that there should be someone to look up to, that there is something before one to attain to, there is something that one can hope to gain or to attain. And in this way, from one thing to another thing, one arrives at the throne of God, the ideal which is worth attaining, which is the only ideal worthwhile.
The sign of life is enthusiasm; the sign of life is aspiration; the sign of life is hope. And if one has not got any of this, life is not worth living. Only hope to realize something which is worthless makes life worthless. Something which is passing makes life mortal. The aspiration of something which is dense turns one to denseness. A higher aspiration ennobles the soul, producing out of it all virtues which belong to man. Take for instance two persons. One person has everything in life to make him happy, and he is without an ideal before him. The other person has nothing in his life to make him happy, but there is an ideal before him. It is this person who is living, and the other person is dead with all he has. That shows that there is a side in man's being--call it spirit--which remains unsatisfied with all that one has attained in one's lifetime. The satisfaction of the spirit, which is the deepest being of man, lies only in the pursuit of the ideal.
With all progress that humanity makes, idealism neglected will show at each step towards progress a great lack, and nothing cam substitute that lack. If there is anything that fills the gap, if there is anything that makes a bridge between God and man, it is the ideal. Naturally optimism comes when there is an ideal. Pessimism vanishes when there is an ideal. A new hope springs, and that hope brings a new life, when there is an ideal. And when there is a hope, willpower naturally develops. There is no hope without desire, and there is no desire without a will. All things change in one's life as soon as one has placed before oneself an ideal. There cannot be a greater ideal than the thought of serving humanity in the path of God, in the path of truth.
It is in this ideal that we all unite in the Sufi Movement, and in working for the Message. It is this ideal that we have to carry out. If it was not for this ideal then it would not be necessary to work for the furtherance of the Cause. One would have taken his practices, would have sat in solitude, would have tried to develop himself. I was often amused to hear from people saying, "I would be very glad to render services to the Cause, as soon as I have attained spirituality." That means in return for the spiritual bliss the individual will give his service to the Cause.
It is a good bargain. In reality, it is through service that we go higher, and it is through service that we attain that bliss which we wish to attain. It is not necessary to wait tin we become spiritual. For what is spiritual? The ordinary meaning of being spiritual is to have spirit within us; we have it. The other meaning of being spiritual is to rise to perfection. That can be accomplished by forgetting one's own spiritual progress, by doing an the service which one can for others; it naturally makes one spiritual.
The person who waits and says, "I will do things when I am spiritual, and once I have become spiritual I shall do wonders," it is just like saying, "I will be generous when my ship comes." But who knows when the ship will come? Who know when he will be spiritual? Spirituality is not attained by saying, "I will be spiritual one day."
One must begin to do all one can for others; it is in this way that one gains spirituality. It is not by thinking that one will be spiritual, it is by forgetting about it that one will arrive at that stage. There is not need for a person to worry about being spiritual; to be spiritual is to be natural. It is unnatural not to be spiritual. How can a spirit not be spiritual? Is man his body, or is he his soul? The man is his soul; then naturally he is spiritual to begin with. He has forgotten it. I have seen many people worrying over it, and they do not know what it is that they worry about. What is that they expect to attain? No doubt, where there is an ideal, naturally the soul is uplifted. The greater the ideal, the greater the power. The higher the ideal, the higher the soul is lifted. The one who has a perfect ideal of God before him, he is always drawn towards perfection. He need not trouble or worry about it. He only has to hold the ideal before him and he will be lifted up. It is this upliftment which is called liberation. God Bless You.
Unlearning
September 8, 1925
My Blessed Mureeds,
I would like to speak a few words on the subject of unlearning. It is always difficult for some mureeds who have once heard from me the necessity of unlearning in the spiritual path. Unlearning is a process by which one rises above what one has learned. It does not mean forgetting what one has learned, it only means rising above what one has learned. What one learns in life is most useful after having attained spiritual realization, in order to express it. But it can only be a hindrance in progression in the spiritual path if one does not know how to unlearn. What does learning mean? Learning means fixing ideas and making them material. When an idea is fixed in mind, it becomes tangible; that knowledge becomes a kind of veil for any other knowledge that can illuminate the path through life.
Now coming to the question, how does one unlearn? Does one forget things? It is not necessary to forget in order to unlearn. Unlearning is looking at things from an opposite point of view. In other words, seeing things from another angle, as clearly as one is able to see from the angle from which one is used to looking at them. It is this experience that leads one to perfection. The knowledge that keeps man narrow is the knowledge which is not unlearned. But once one has unlearned, one sees from two opposite angles everything in life, and that gives one a great mastery.
You will not be surprised, therefore, my mureeds, on having heard from your Murshid--when he ought to have said, "It is wrong"--he perhaps astonished you by saying, "It is all right." Instead of saying, "No," he may have said, "Yes." It is to help you to bring you to that point of view which is a spiritual point of view, looking at a thing from two sides, from both sides. It is just like looking from both eyes, to make a thing complete. Will you therefore be surprised if one said that there is no set belief for a Sufi? Would you be amazed if one said that Sufism is not a particular faith? If a Sufi says, "That religion is beautiful," or "The other religions are bad," he does not mean it in the same sense as the adherents of that particular sect.
He looks at it from both angles. He sees quite well when a person has something to say against a particular religion; he also sees when a person is most devoted to a particular faith. He sees the reason of both things, and therefore to both questions he says, "Yes." Be not surprised therefore, if you hear from a Sufi, when you tell him, "Is it not a horrid thing?", he says, "Yes, but it is a most beautiful thing;" he says, "Certainly it is so." He has seen both points of view. You may be surprised. You will say, "How can he have two opposite views at the same time?" But he sees two opposite views at the same time also.
Unlearning is rising above one's set opinion, one's fixed idea, which makes one narrow. No doubt, it is a sign of perfection, but one goes gradually to it. If one became perfect the first day one went into the spiritual path, one would end in imperfection. Progress must be gradual, and one must know to what extent one must progress. One must not be too frank about his two points of view, or he will offend every person he meets in life. Being wise is not always speaking wisely. One can be wise without speaking wisely. There is always a danger of being too narrow-minded. And therefore the best practice that a mureed can make is to try and look at Murshid's point of view in the teaching that Murshid gives him. If a dhikr is given or a phrase is given so many times, it must be done. At this time it must be repeated, or at that time. One must try and see from Murshid's point of view.
Besides, action, word, imagination and feeling, these four things have much greater power than anyone can imagine. Even a meaningless action, an action which might seem to convey nothing, an automatic movement, even that has a certain result. The mystics of the ancient times had known the great power of movement. It is at the present time that people have lost the secret of the psychological effect of movements. Movements have been always connected with sacred things. Among the old Greeks, among ancient Egyptians, among the Hindus of the ancient time, among Buddhists, there was a science of movements, there was a power in movements; and they knew that science and it produced a certain effect. A mureed unaware of it that easily says, "But the movements tell me nothing; it is a strange thing to me; I would rather sit and meditate." Everyone would like to sit and meditate, and many would rather sleep and meditate. That is still more comfortable.
Besides that, sometimes a person thinks "Why must I repeat a word which is a foreign word, which is a strange word to me? If the word suggests something, why must I not use a word which is in my language, which comes easy for me to repeat?" Now all these things which I have said are reasonable, and those who bring up that argument have also a reason in bringing it. They are right in saying it. Only, they could see from the other point of view also. And they could only see if they would try to see. That is what is called unlearning. In the first place, the great linguists of the day have found that the ancient languages which still exist have some psychological, mystical power in their words. If anyone asks me how I see modern languages, I will humbly say they are the corruptions of the ancient languages.
And I have one thousand proofs to show it. Why do I call them corruptions? Because in the ancient language every word has been derived from a root which has the essence, and which is expressive of the sense which is in that object, the name with which it is identified. In other words, if you take one word of the ancient language, and meditate upon it every day, it will reveal to you deeper and deeper meaning of the same idea that it expresses. It is not an exaggeration that I knew one line of a Persian, an ancient poem; and after fifteen years since I knew that phrase, one day the meaning of that phrase was revealed to me, which was more revealing than the whole book one could read.
Besides, the linguists today find out that the source of all languages is one language, no matter what the historians say about it. Some say Sanskrit was the mother language, another says another name. There is always a tendency to give a new name to an old thing, and there is always a tendency to create a sensation; especially historians always think that to give a new idea is the best thing. Whether that idea is right or wrong, that does not matter. Nevertheless, the ancient words sometimes have a great power; not only in their meaning, but power in their formation, in the vowels, in the letter, in the syllables that are in them they are revealing.
Even to such an extent that if you were to study the words of the dhikr, every single word has a certain action on the physical mechanism, on intuitive centers. An ordinary person will only take it as a word that belongs to a certain language. But such words have belonged to mystics. They never belong to any language. The languages have taken them; people have used them, expressing different things. The mystics have gathered them together just like a chemist would collect herbs an drugs and different things together in order to use them for medicine. Mystics have collected such words, words of great power and revelation, in order to produce desired effects.
This is my own experience. I have experienced it with many people. There are words which, if they are used so many times for six weeks, the whole being of that person is changed, not only the spirit, but even the body is changed. The circulation of the blood is changed, the whole atmosphere of the person is changed. The power of the words is a living phenomenon. And when it is prescribed by the teacher who knows its secret, it is a prescription, it is an instruction. It is something that is most valuable.
And when once learned in this way, when one is able to look at it from the teacher's point of view, one has accustomed oneself to seeing from the point of view of others also. Without trying to be a Sufi one becomes a Sufi. One need not make an effort to become a Sufi; it is a natural development towards the simplicity of the heart. It is the expansion of sympathy. It is looking into the wide horizon that makes one see from the point of view of others. And this is the greatest necessity in the spiritual path, that one must make oneself accustomed to rise above what one has learned. God Bless You.
Spiritual and Religious Movements
June 15, 1926
Blessed Mureeds,
It gives me a great happiness to open the Summer School welcoming you all here, and wishing you every happiness and illumination. Today I have thought that I should speak to you a few words on the subject of my tour, my visit to America.
In the first place I would like to explain to you, how did I find America? I found it much better, perhaps ten or twenty times better, than it has been before. For the reason that I could not recognize New York as I had seen it three years ago. Many new buildings, everything changed; besides at the Custom House not such difficulty as before. For that I am thankful to friends; also I think that things are changing in America to the better.
Now coming to the subject of the spiritual and religious movements. In the first place there are many movements working in America, incomparably greater than anywhere else in the world. But at the same time it seems that Christian Science, that had a great adherence once, does not seem to be making such progress as it did before. Steiner's movement does not seem to be very much spreading. The Theosophical Society is also in great trouble just now. Their new ideal has made a great upset in societies everywhere; therefore some Theosophists asked me in New York to speak on the present problem.
I said the less spoken about it the better it is. There is a Vedanta Movement there, for a long time. But in America there is little discrimination about false and real when it comes to the spiritual movements. And therefore many are disappointed by the spiritual movement, seem to be losing faith in it. I saw a club, they call it an occult club. They have every fortnight a dinner. I was taken to that club, but I must not speak there about my Movement, because they were all disappointed about these things. At the dinner table there was a talk on what everyone did in the way of phenomena. Each one said what wonder he performed except myself.
So I went to the West. Besides different movements there are some individual teachers. On the ground of some prophecies appearing in different modern books, they had proclaimed their authority as representatives of the spiritual hierarchy; many are attracted to them. In this way a kind of chaos is going on, some very agitated against organization. They say, "We must be free," because the main word that every American has, the word that has impressed him most, is "freedom." Therefore he wants to be free of everything except himself. And this one drawback also keeps them backwards in a way.
Besides that mostly it is a kind of intellectual hunger for spirituality. That is much more accentuated than anywhere else in the world, than in any other country, for the reason that many years of materialism have made them feel the want of spiritual progress. At the same time, when they want to get something, they get something else. They cannot discriminate for themselves which is which. Very often a person came to tell me, "I have read this, I have studied this book, perhaps fifty books." And asked, "Have you read the same book as I? I have been to this society or that society, I have gathered up so much." That he counts up as a treasure, as a foundation. On the contrary that is the wrong foundation.
Therefore the position is that every soul seems to be longing for spiritual attainment; at the same time every soul seems to be afraid of it, and craving for it; at the same time it runs away from a spiritual thing. It is quite a peculiar situation. The more you study psychology, the situation of the American mind towards philosophy, the more you see that it is a peculiar situation. In the first place, religion is getting out of favor, as it is everywhere. In America it is most. Then there are some religious fights.
The other day I saw a priest of the Old Orthodox Church; he has a great trouble with the Head Church in Jerusalem. Because America has changed his ideas, now the people in Jerusalem say he is out of caste. Therefore there is a great trouble going on between them. Then I saw Bishop Brown, who has been put out of the Protestant Church, because he does not believe some things of the Bible literally. And when I saw him, he said that, "Now here is someone from India, he will understand my point of view. " He said, "How can I believe in these things literally?" I said, "I can quite sympathize with you, but at the same time you could have just as well not said it." He could not understand why one should not say something which we can say. He could not understand that if you can say without saying, it is just as well.
In this condition of chaos, on one side materialism is holding you, on the other spiritualism is inviting you. Then came along a Faqir from Egypt. This Faqir went to many different places. He performed in the theater lying in a coffin, being closed with no air in the coffin. There he stayed for eight or ten minutes; then he was put on two unsheathed swords, and read people's thoughts; he did wonders no doubt, and did it most wonderfully. It wakens their thoughts that there is something beyond matter, and this man is doing wonderfully, too. He invites people to some on the platform. Forty American scientists, physicians, came on the platform, they see what he is doing, there is no faith in it. The real Faqirs who can perform wonders, they never intend to show it to others.
I had my first lecture at the Waldorf, which was very well-managed and well-attended. But at the same time, at the second, third lecture, I thought everybody believed that one should spend a great deal of money to make things well known in America. In the West there was a great response; Murshida Martin arranged some lectures in San Francisco which were attended very well. At Los Angeles a great response, too. It seems to me that the West of America is a most beautiful and wonderful inspiring country. And for spiritual inspiration a great help. People are most respondent.
After traveling in different places in the West, San Diego and Santa Barbara, I came again to Chicago and gave three public lectures and besides some classes. It was only because they thought the name of special lectures attracted people who are more earnest . . . to give some classes, because I do not believe in six classes a person can be perfect, then run away to something else. It seems a wrong idea to me. Many have introduced that system; although they thought it is their wisdom first to give public lectures and then classes, I never thought it was good to call them classes. I call them special lectures, that they may know that classes cannot be gotten in twelve days' time.
It seems that everything is running there, the elevators and the subway and motorcars, machines. It makes the nervous system of everybody in such a condition that everything must be done at once, they must not wait. Something which wants patience and tests man's patience all his life, that is the spiritual idea. It makes it difficult for them and for the spiritual teacher, because of lack of patience. Would you believe that after my first lecture, my own friends told me for my own good and welfare of the Message, "The last thing you have to say, you must say first." Imagine. What you might wait for six or ten years for the pupils to develop, to reach at, they want it at the first hearing. If you do not do it, you cannot make a success; if you do it, it goes above their heads, things which they cannot understand and that cannot do any good to them just the same.
Now coming back to the work of our Movement. The work of our Movement has become more invigorated, and a greater enthusiasm has come to our Movement in America now. There is a great increase of mureeds in New York, in San Francisco, and in Los Angeles. A new group formed at Chicago and a small group at Denver. A possibility of a new group in other places where new groups will be formed. No doubt in order to develop the Sufi work in America, it is necessary that different workers of the Sufi Movement will go there and start different places where work must be developed, because that is fertile soil for the spiritual work, since every soul is hungering after spirituality.
And now I wish to say some words about the work in the Summer School. We are beginning our work with the help of God, and the first thing we must keep in our minds is to cooperate with one another most heartily. To extend our courtesy to those who newly come here. To be friends with them, to help them, to make them understand the work of the Message. That each one of the members of this order must consider this their responsibility. One must not think, "Because I am not a Cherag I must not do this work, because it is a Cherag's work; or a Murshida must do it, or a Representative. " No, every mureed must do his best to cooperate, to make others feel happy, not to make them feel in a new place, not to make them feel that everybody is exclusive, indifferent. We must show our sympathy and outgoing tendency to everybody that comes, to meet them, talk to them, interest them in the Movement. For the very reason that the Sufi Movement is small we must be more outgoing, because of the smallness of the number of our Movement.
There is a great interest wakened in America and different places for the Summer School. If people do not come this year, they will come next year. But we must begin the manner of making the strangers feel at home here by our sympathy, by our courtesy, by our outgoing tendency. If we shall not prove in our lives the philosophy which we teach and hold as our sacred ideal, then how can we make impression of same on others? Besides this, some mureeds perhaps have less time when they are at home to do practices, they are busy with their families or occupations and work; now that they are here they must think that this is the most necessary thing, to continue their exercises in order to get fullest benefit of their stay here in the Summer School.
One must never think that exercises are only for the beginners. They must know that Paderewski is playing simple scales as a beginner would play on the piano, and he plays them oftener than a beginner would play. Therefore never think that in order to advance spiritually you must have other practices or new practices. That is not necessary. If you continue every day the practices that you have, especially when you are here, it will be of great help. Besides that, there is a certain attitude of mind that is necessary while one is in the Summer School. That attitude of mind is such of friendliness, sympathy, tolerance, forgiveness; an attitude to tolerate, to forgive and forget anybody's faults. We are all limited, we all have our faults and limitations. If another person has a little more, perhaps our faults are hidden. Maybe we have more faults than anybody else.
The best thing is to overlook it. Besides, in the worldly life, all year long there are many chances to say, "That person is not good; that person does not please me; he is wrong; that person I cannot tolerate; that person I hate." These three months that we come away from worldly life it is better to give up absolutely that feeling of malice, intolerance, prejudice; it must be entirely thrown away. If anybody comes and inspires with that feeling, take it differently. As there is a saying of a Sufi at the king's table, the king asked him when he was taking a glass of wine, "It is prohibited in your faith, is it not so?" "Yes, but when it touches my lips it turns into water." The same thing we must do.
There come situations where one feels irritated, disgusted, intolerant, agitated. We have to live in the world, in the midst of all the jarring influences. In order to practice that we must practice. Remember, without practice you cannot do anything: we cannot sing if we do not practice, we cannot even live among people. We have all to live in the world. If not, one person is not like the other person. And every other person has a jarring effect upon the other person. And how much a person seeks association with people, at the same time, when you ask his soul, it wants to run away from it all, each soul. What does it show? It shows that if we went on naturally reacting against every influence that comes in our life, we shall never feel peaceful. The only way of feeling peaceful is only one way, that is to practice how to live in the midst of the world.
It is not two days' practice. Piano one can practice for twelve years, then it is finished, but this practice you have to do all your life. It is strange, people do not think about simple things. Tell them about occult science, mystic things, they are very pleased. But ordinary things of everyday life, how to live and move among our friends, that is such a difficult thing. It seems to be the easiest. The problem of every moment of life we seem to forget. It must be remembered that during the time of the Summer School, if we continue the practices, attending of the silences, trying one's best to keep one's mind pure from all influences which are poison and having our outgoing sympathetic attitude towards one another, then we shall accomplish work successfully. God Bless You.
Peculiarity of the Great Masters
June 22, 1926
Beloved Ones of God, I would like to speak this evening of the peculiarity of the great masters of humanity.
Rama
The life of Rama has been read by Hindus for thousands of years and they are never tired of it. That shows that each time they hear the story of Rama they feel exalted and they derive some benefit from the story. As a young prince, Rama had the education of spiritual and of ethical nature under the teachership of Vashishta, the great spiritual master of that time. So to begin with in his life there was this great influence, and under the influence of Vashishta, Rama grew to be an ideal young man.
Then there was a ceremony arranged, because there was a demand from every side for Sita, the maiden whose hand was asked by all the different maharajahs of that time. And Rama went there. The story is that all of the princes, all of the maharajahs were dressed with jewels and gorgeous dresses, except Rama, because he came directly from Vashishta's school, which was in the forest, so he was living a country life. And with all this Rama won in the end. It was Rama who struck the right note in the heart of Sita, and all the maharajahs who were present, were against.
Then for twelve years, as his father had taken a vow that he must go in the forest and live an ascetic life, a life of thought, before he could be entitled to rule the country, he was sent. And Sita went with Rama. Ravana, the prince who was most opposed to Rama's success as a bridegroom, followed Rama to the forest and seized the opportunity which had presented itself. Rama had gone to bring some fruits and water, and there Sita was left alone; and Ravana lifted Sita against her wishes, and flew away with her.
Now then again there is a test. The one test is for a prince to be outside his country, and the other test is to have lost all he had, that was his bride. But here Rama shows balance again: instead of being discouraged, he still trusts in her love for him, he still has trust in providence. Instead of being disappointed, he went on searching for her. In the end she was found, a captive in the garden palace of Ravana.
And then it is said that to free Sita Rama accepted the help of Hanuman, the king of the monkeys. Well, that also gives us a great key to the science of biology. It was a monkey, but not quite a monkey. Because they cannot find the missing link, therefore they say it was a monkey. It was a new race just sprung from animals, a race which was to develop, to evolve into human beings in the end, a most primitive race, showing every trace of an animal. Darwin passed away disappointed that he could not find an example of that.
This again shows that in order to accomplish, or in order to wage a war against an earthly king, Rama had to seek an earthly help. He did not invite wise men to come and help him at that time. They would not have helped him. They would have said, "Have courage, be wise, have patience, sit down, calm yourself, cool yourself, have sense, be reasonable, she is not there, it is impossible, you are not a ruling prince, you are in the forest, you are alone.
The prince Ravana has taken her away, she would not have gone if she had not been willing." Every sort of reasoning clever people would have brought before him. But the primitive people were ready to give their lives in order to serve the spiritual soul. And at the same time it shows how primitive minds can feel the spiritual soul more easily, more readily, than so-called clever men. They sympathized with him. No one else came except the wild people of the forest.
That shows the wisdom of Rama also, to control this people, who were accustomed to go one to the East, another to the South; one creeping, one walking, another jumping: that was their spirit. To control the army of that kind of people, and then to make a success in the war with a king, that again shows Rama's balance. Then, as he had confidence that Sita was for him, Sita was his bride, he fought, and he got back to his land. And the most interesting part of the story is that they came in an airplane. The monkeys had to jump back, but Rama had the airplane
How little we know of that time! How many civilizations came and how many civilizations went down, and we do not know about it. How far can we trace back the history of the world? Who can deny that there was once a greater evolution in everything--art, science, mechanics--even still more wonderful than we see today. There are a thousand examples to be found in the Mahabharata, the ancient tradition which has been handed down for thousands of years, that Rama came down in Viman, which means in the airplane.
After this ordeal, after trial, when Rama came back he was able to rule his country in an ideal way. Therefore balance is represented by the life of Rama, and all such things as courage, hope, confidence, trust, all these come from balance.
But one might ask, "This story does not tell us anything spiritual. It is only his bride, she was lost; Rama went there, he fought with Ravana; he won, brought her back and then became king. It was all happiness. There were little difficulties, but it was all smooth." But I should say spirituality is not in words, spirituality is in acts. Rama had acted and proved the power of spirituality.
Krishna
And now we come to the peculiarity of Krishna. It is still more wonderful. You have heard the story of Krishna. He danced among gopis, and he teased the milkmaids, and he played in Brindavan as a boy. I should think that it is the most beautiful thing that can exist. He was not a sad, serious, downhearted, depressed young boy. He was life itself. He was born with life, a soul that was to expand throughout the whole universe. And he came with that life and attracted all those that lived in the country, even in his childhood. No doubt there are symbolical stories of Krishna.
Perhaps Krishna was not so bad as they think him to be from the stories. For instance, Krishna did not steal butter, although it is said in tradition, and the Hindus most respectfully hear it. Butter is the essence of milk, and wisdom the essence of life; therefore wisdom is likened to butter. His stealing butter was to churn the experience of life and take out of it its essence. But suppose it was not so symbolical; it was perhaps true. Yet, if you knew what it is in a peasant village to steal a little butter, it is a great joy. It is not like going in a shop and stealing tins of butter. It is a little butter stolen, a wonderful joy.
And then again there was the greatest test that life could give to any prophet, that was given to Krishna, for the reason that he was the Prophet, the Godhead. He was to give the philosophy of love, of kindness, of harmlessness. There he was faced to help a prince whose kingdom was taken away, Arjuna. The most difficult situation for a prophet: to have to stand by someone who must fight, and yet to be destined to give the Message of God--torn from two sides. And how beautifully he has come out by giving the Bhagavad Gita, from the beginning to the end, that you can touch every corner of wisdom. There is kindness, there is bravery, there is courage, there is wisdom, there is intellect, there is philosophy, there is mysticism, there is all. In one book he has given the whole philosophy of life from beginning to end. The more one reads the Bhagavad Gita, the more one finds the truth of that English phrase, "to put it in a nutshell." The whole philosophy of life is put in the most concise form.
One might ask, "What had he to do, such a great soul, to stand with a prince? What did it matter if his kingdom came back or if it did not come back?" If we look at it from a psychological point of view, the kingdom is the divine kingdom, and it is lost by every man, by every soul, when the soul has come in this manifestation. And in order to find this kingdom, he had to learn not only spiritual things but the ways of warfare, how to struggle along, and to persevere in the path of truth. And suppose it was true? Then he gave an example to the world, that you can be the wisest man and yet have all the capabilities that a king, or a prince, or a judge, or a general, or a statesman has. It is showing perfection from all sides.
Shiva
And then we come to the peculiarity of Shiva. Shiva has given an example of vairagya. Do not think it an asceticism. Very often people say, "Vairagya means asceticism." But it is not so. Asceticism is a crude interpretation of vairagya. The word vairagya comes from tyaga; in Sanskrit tyaga means renouncing. And when it is said vairagya, it means success in renouncing. Shiva showed it in his life. For years he did meditations; he stood for hours and for days on his head; for hours and for days he held his breath in; he went without food for days and months. All those things that one can do in order to master matter and life he did.
When one hears Shiva's philosophy, it is all tyaga: give it up, indifference, independence from all things--from food, water, air, breath, sky, from all things--renounce it, renounce it. And do not be surprised, with all that, the best philosophy he gave was to his consort Parvati. She asked him questions, and he answered her gently. Through all this asceticism he never gave a philosophy out, he lived out; he lived it all his life, and by being an example. It was sometimes that he opened his mouth, and Parvati took down what Mahadeva gave.
And there is always in the book, there was a dialogue, between Mahadeva and Parvati. Parvati took it down. That shows again balance. He was ascetic, but he was not despising all that was beautiful and good. He was not ignorant of the devotion given to him. And it was he who told Parvati, when giving the science of yoga, "Never give this science to the unfaithful. Give it to the simple ones, give it to the poor ones, give it to good persons, wherever they may be, but never give it to the unfaithful." It is often that that remark is made.
What is the attitude of the guru? When in a chela there is not the right attitude to the guru, that chela must not have the secret toward life; he does not deserve it. One would think that when the guru had renounced everything, what would it matter whether the chela is faithful or not? He knew that what in faithfulness he will receive, that will do him good; what by unfaithfulness he will receive it will burn him. It was for the good of the chela.
Buddha
Now we come to the peculiarity of Buddha. Buddha showed the great reason, he began with reason. His parents kept him closed, secluded in the palace till he was a grown up young man, and never allowed him to see the misery of life. He was quite unacquainted with life in the world. He only knew his servants, the royal comforts that he experienced in the palace. And there comes one day when the father says, "Now you must go out; how long shall we keep him in captivity?" The first day when he goes out he looks around and says, "What is this?" They said, "He is a blind man, he cannot see." He said, "Yes, and what is this?" "It is a poverty-stricken man, he has no money." "What is this?" "It is old age, which has its trials." "What is this?" They said, "They are the heroes who fought. Now they have become wounded; now for the whole life they are in this condition."
He looked at all and said, "Is there no remedy for it?" They said, "There are remedies, but remedies are limited." It was the first experience of life that gave him a blow. With that blow his soul was wakened, and he began to think, "How can they be relieved of all different kinds of miseries?" The whole life of Buddha went in it; he was devoted to find the remedy to relieve humanity. He thought of things, examined different aspects of life, talked with people, consoled them and served them. Every moment of life of Buddha was devoted to finding the remedy to relieve humanity, whatever way it can be. In this pursuit of relief he found out the same mystery, the mystery which all great prophets and souls have found, and the mystery was self-realization. That was the remedy of all miseries, and nothing else. Give the poor money, he will be poorer still.
After that Buddha had to renounce the comfort and the happiness which God had given him and go out as a physician of the soul, to console humanity. The whole life was passed in it, and those inspired by the glance, by the words, by the presence, by the atmosphere of the master, they spread it still more, till it became the message of the world. Today half the world is benefitted by it, and the whole world is benefitted by it indirectly.
Shankaracharya
And then we come to the life of Shankaracharya, the last prophet of India, the Hindu prophet, who was not really the prophet but who was the representative of Rama, Krishna, Shiva, and Buddha. He had the four different aspects of wisdom gathered in him, because it was his time to give the message to his country. He mixed the four aspects; of this Brahmanism came. Therefore Buddhism went out of India, it only remained in China and Japan, but mixed; and in India again Buddhism came and enriched Brahmanism, which was disapproved by the followers of Rama and Krishna.
Although they remained as the admirers, as those who adhered to the different prophets, but at the same time they had love and devotion for all those . . . they considered all of the avatars the same soul, the same spirit: the Spirit of Guidance. It is in this way that the essence of the four different messages was given in Brahmanism.
God Bless You.
Abraham, Moses and Muhammad
June 29, 1926
Beloved Ones of God,
Abraham is considered by the pious as the father of three great religions: of Christianity, of Judaism, and of Islam.
The Old Testament stands as a backbone behind the New Testament. The Qu'ran is the interpretation of the Hebrew religion, and the Hebrew religion continued the message which was first given by Abraham. And therefore in these three religions there is the influence of this great master, of whom so little is known to the world. His initiation took place in the old school of Egypt; and when coming back from Egypt after his initiation he felt intuitively the place where his message was going to culminate, and was going to be a world message. In that place he put a stone, and that stone was called the Ka'ba. A stone which attracts thousands and millions of people for hundreds of years, where they go and offer their homage. A place which was visited with respect and reverence, with that sacred stone in view by the great prophet of Beni-Israel.
Since this generation has so much to learn from the past traditions, it is not wise to overlook something that has been the foundation of religions. Abraham's great mission was to take away the religion of superstition, and the religion of many gods. Abraham's mission was to remove from the minds of the people the idea of (sun God) some God, and to establish in their minds the idea of the Infinite Being. Abraham was the great prophet; at the same time a teacher of esotericism, a great initiator and a mystic. There is much to be learned in the religion of Abraham about mysticism.
And the symbology of Abraham's story of sacrifice is narrative of Sufi principle. The Sufis of the ancient school, which now exists in different parts of Asia, trace their origin from the time of Abraham, which makes a link of the Sufi school with the ancient school of Egypt. The story is that God asked Abraham, to test his devotion, that he must bring his son a sacrifice to God. And he obeyed, and he brought his son to the altar. And then they saw that instead of his son there was a sheep, and the son was standing on one side. Abraham thanked God for His great mercy, and at the same time passed through that test.
Today many will be very shocked at this story. In the first place they will say, "Why had God such a cruel test for His prophet, for His messenger, for the worker of humanity? To put him to such a terrible test. And what pleasure will God have by the death of His beloved son?" But that is another way of looking at it. To give all one has, even his son. In the path of God apart, have they not given their sons in the battlefield, the most devoted mothers and fathers, and wives and sisters and daughters? How much they have offered. And yet that was the thing to do when the moment came that the occasion demanded a sacrifice; they had to do it. If life asks for such sacrifice, it is not out of place, it is not to be surprised. The one who brings the message of God, one who teaches the path, shows the path of God, if of him great sacrifice is asked, it is not to be surprised.
But the story is one thing and the symbolism is another thing; it is a symbolism. The animal part of man is called Nafs; it is the false ego. And the human part of man is called Ruh; it belongs to the higher spheres. Man has two aspects. He is composed of two things: what he has borrowed from the earth, and what he has got from heaven. What is in him of heaven makes him human; what he has got of the earth is the animal part in man. What was asked of Abraham was to annihilate the Nafs of his son, to make him, to prepare him for the service of God. No one can serve God fully unless that part which is called Nafs, that material part, is crushed.
Therefore this sacrifice is a symbolism, a symbology, expressing the main object there is in developing the Sufi ideal, which is called Fana. Fana means annihilation, the annihilation of the false ego. That is the picture. This story is a lesson to every soul, that after one has annihilated one's own false ego, then those who are devoted to him, those who give themselves in his guidance, to annihilate that part in them, in order that the real life may manifest to its fullness.
The message of Moses was of the greatest importance, especially at the time when it was brought. The people were far away from order and peace. There was avariciousness, there was greediness, there was falsehood, there was great treachery; one killed another, just in a little quarrel. At that time what was most necessary was not only a form of worship or a message of wisdom, what was most necessary was the divine law. And it was a most difficult thing to make people abide by the law. If it was not the prophet's message it would not have been easy to make that law known. Besides, during all different civilizations, the law of Moses has been behind them. Their laws were constructed on the law of Moses, the standard of righteousness was built on the message which Moses gave.
Today there is a tendency to say, "But the law is different; but kindness is different." But there must be a law. If there was only kindness, where would the world end? We cannot only live on water, we need food also. Only kindness cannot suffice the purpose, the law is necessary. If not, today, the world as it is, people would be very glad to have no law at all. But at the same time, what difference is there between the law that a prophet gives and the law that man makes? In America, since the law has been made that people must not drink, they say people drink more than they have ever done before. Paper has given it to them, not the prophet. This makes a difference between the dead law and the living law. And there comes the dead law from the paper; people look at the paper and then shut the book and go on doing whatever they like; they do not care for it.
Now we come to the life of Muhammad. He said to his people, "Never touch liquor." They have obeyed for many centuries. And some who would like to have a glass hide themselves. They do not want to give the example to the others. And next day they say, "Toba, toba," which means, "God forbid." They are very sorry, they are ashamed of themselves. They do not stand and say, "We do not care for the law the Prophet has given." They don't say, "We like to drink." Never. They say, "We are sorry." They will go on drinking perhaps all their life, but at the same time never with that boldness, that "What do I care, let them keep the law in the court." Never. It is the sacred law, and they take it as sacred.
The time when Prophet Muhammad was destined to give God's message, at that time Arabs fought at every little thing. If there was a hot discussion, at once daggers were taken out. One Arab killed another Arab in a moment's time, for nothing; life meant nothing. And if anyone spoke to them against their belief, their religion, that they would never support. In that time the Prophet had to give the new message. People say, "Why did the Prophet make use of the sword?" But who could have lived without a sword at that time? It was not the time of Buddha, nor the people among whom Buddha went. The Arabs were different people. They would never have heard a message of kindness.
They did not know what kindness meant. Besides, all the imagery that the Prophet has given to his people, the people were of that particular evolution. He could not have told them about the soul's greatness and a natural evolution. He had to tell them, when they said, "What is paradise, what is its life?" he had to tell them, streams of honey and fountains and milk they will find in Paradise. Because honey and milk to them was dearer than wisdom. He had to frighten them with the fire of hell; if not, they were ready to fight. But imagine that the words of the Prophet could fight with swords. What can be a greater miracle? It is not true that the Prophet always used his sword. The sword has in the cover. It was the Prophet's personality which won. No one but a soldier would have made impression on those people, who were ready to fight; who showed himself to be one among them, and at the same time God's messenger, together with the courage and bravery and strength and power that the Prophet showed.
The charm of the Prophet's personality was so Feat, his tenderness, his gentleness, the mildness was so great. Once his pupils said to the Prophet, "This man who came here, he always talked against you, Prophet, and he is always working against you. He is not worth anything. Why did you rise when he came?" That consideration, that thoughtfulness, even to his enemies. When the daughter of the Prophet was killed by an accident, but the Arab was brought, the Prophet said, "I forgive you; God may forgive you."
The Prophet's manner was so gentle with people that one day (every day when he used to go to offer his prayers in the mosque a woman who was very antagonistic wished to throw garbage on the Prophet, every day, and he used to shake the dust off his robe; he never looked back, he never stopped) but one day the dust was not thrown on him. That day he went to the house and knocked at the door, and the man came and said, "Is you wife very well?" The man looked at the Prophet, and said, "She has been so bad and so unkind against you, and called you so many names, how have you come?" "I have never taken any notice of it, only today I thought she has not appeared; is she well?" That was his manner with his enemies.
And there are many disciples of that nature: a hundred times they came to him, a hundred times they ran away. Every time they came again, even after having fought with him, and he received them with open arms, saying, "You are my own."
In the end there was an opportunity given for him to be the king of Hijaz. He was the conqueror, conqueror of his own people. They had none among them so great and good; they all wished, they considered it their greatest privilege and honor, to have of them their sultan. The Prophet refused; the wealth of the earth was nothing to him. His whole life was given to the cause of humanity, to the work of God. The day when he conquered, the enemies were brought, especially those who had killed his relatives, his pupils, his most devoted disciples, those who worked shoulder to shoulder with him and saved his life with many difficulties, who had opposed the Prophet in every way for many years, throwing him out of his country three times in his life, putting out every one of his followers, and giving no opportunity for him to spread his message in his own country.
And in the end he is the conqueror, and those people are brought before him. And when there was a question what to do with them he said, "God forgive them." That is all. "I forgive you, my brothers." The humanity is never too evolved to follow that principle, the principle of forgiveness, to forgive one's bitterest enemies. The Prophet was an example, an example of the art of humanity, the art of personality. Both sides of nature, Jelal and Jemal, equally balanced: ready to handle the sword, ready to defend his country, toil on the land, march like a soldier, take interest in the affairs of the nation; and meditative of such a great, kind, and wonderful capacity that he would go in the forest and live there without food for months and months, meditating and communicating with his Lord, living in the midst of the world, proving not to be of the world.
It is that impression which has conquered the followers of the Prophet. If by the sword they had been converted, today they would have been indifferent to him. There is no influence of the sword just now. It was not the sword, it was charm of personality, kindness of spirit, that even today hundreds and thousands of Muslims, when you mention the name of the Prophet, their eyes bring tears, nothing else in the world then manifests before them than the picture of the Prophet.
This shows that every time when the message of God has been given to the world, there was a certain peculiarity in the way it was presented to the world because every messenger was made fit for his own time, and his message suited to that particular time. But behind it all there is one Truth, and one Divine Wisdom in all religions; and it is to spread that Divine Wisdom throughout the world that the Sufi Message has been destined. God Bless You.
Four Questions
July 6, 1926
Beloved Ones of God,
There are four questions which the thoughtful mureeds wonder about.
- They begin to wonder if our God is a personal God or if He is an abstract God;
- if Sufism teaches asceticism or worldliness;
- if the Sufi ideal is democratic or aristocratic;
- if Sufism is exotericism or esotericism.
And one says one thing, another says another thing. One says, "This is true." The other says, "No, the other thing is true." It is quite possible that one of these questions two mureeds may discuss and say, "No, Sufism does not believe in it. Sufism believes in this particular thing and not in the other." I have very often heard it. They have come to me and said, "Now, Murshid, you do not teach this." It is quite an idea of that person. Perhaps he looks at life from an ascetic point of view, the other person from a worldly point of view. "But you do not like this, Sufism does not teach like this." Because they think Sufism teaches as they think. I do not mean to say that what they say is wrong, but they could have said better.
I had a very amusing experience in San Francisco once. A great Japanese priest came to see me, and I was very glad to receive him. And there came with him a person who had read a great deal and who thought he knew very much about all occult and psychic sciences. So this Buddhist priest was sitting silent. It is a custom in the East. I was waiting for him to speak, and he was waiting for me to say something. But this other person could not wait any longer, he was feeling very uneasy. So I thought, "Perhaps he will feel better also if I make this Buddhist priest speak. "
So I asked the Buddhist priest, "I would very much like to know Buddha's teachings in connection with reincarnation. " So before this priest had taken a breath in and out the other one began to pour out all the knowledge he had absorbed from all the books he had read, and he spoke for and against and in support of the argument. And the Buddhist priest was still sitting there unmoved, quite tranquil, hearing all that this man had to say. When this man seemed to be on the point of finishing, I said to the Buddhist priest, "I would so much like to know from your lips what you have to say about this gentleman's conversation."
And the Buddhist priest smiled and said very gently and slowly and softly, "This is his Buddhism." I thought it was the most wonderful way of taking it. A priest like him who had thousands of disciples in his country could have had the price of his authority and said, "What does he know about it; I am a priest, for generations I have had this knowledge." He could have said, "What does he know about it?" He would never say it. He would not even consider it right to argue with the other. He thought, if that person wants to talk, it is just as well that he talks it out.
Personal or Abstract God
When coming to the question of God, I will repeat what I have always said, that to explain God is to dethrone God. God is an ideal, and any ideal, when you analyze that ideal you destroy it. In the East Majnun and Leila are known as Romeo and Juliet in the West. And in the greatest grief of Majnun, who was separated from Leila, someone came to console him and said, "What is Leila? Is she beautiful? What is she? The world is full of beautiful girls. Leila is not worth thinking about!" And Majnun lifted his head and said to him, "In order to see Leila you must have Majnun's eyes."
Can ideal be explained? Can ideal be discussed? Can ideal be analyzed? God is the highest ideal, as high as one can reach. And one will find the perfect ideal in God. And when one begins to realize if God is personal or whether He is abstract, in defining God one will break the ideal. And at the same time, if you can conceive of anything it must be personal, it must be individual, it must be a separate entity. Our mind is not capable of conceiving of something which is abstract. Our mind is not abstract, our mind is an object. And in any object, all that will reflect and be intelligible to our mind must be limited, must be objective. When people instead of learning "a," "b," "c," will begin to learn "z" first, that is wrong. "A" is the first alphabet to learn, "z" will come the last. When a person wishes to take his first step on the second floor without using a ladder, he must fall. A person who wished to reach God, an abstract God, without first building in his mind the objective God, he will never reach to the throne of God.
The Hindus have learned this idea most wonderfully and practiced it most splendidly. They have begun by molding the God of clay, and have put Him in a shrine and have said, "This is the God of clay we have made with our own hands and worshipped it." That is the symbolism. That is the symbol of the worship of God. If we do not make God of clay, we still must make him, for in order to know God we must make him first. Then God will come in the shrine which He has made. The Hindus make a rehearsal by going in the temple of a stone god. In this age they say, "A personal God! Never we can think about it.
It is the simple ones who are holding that faith in a personal God thousands of years." Men of medicine say that it is a religious mania; any great devotion or a deep concentration is called a religious mania. They do not know what money mania means. Most of all those who call it religious mania, they have money mania. From morning till evening .... If anyone thinks of something higher, greater, deeper, then they say that is a mania. That time has come when there are ninety-nine persons to say that one person is mad, and that one person has to see the ninety-nine as mad.
Life is flowing toward perfection. The greatest perfection is the knowledge of God. And how can one reach to the knowledge of God? By first stepping on and reaching the stepping-stone. And what is the stepping-stone to God's shrine? The personal God. Once a person has put his foot on the stepping-stone, when the objective God has become clear, his next step will be the abstract God. But if he wants that as the first step then he will be the loser. Because if a person does not know what an abstract God will give him, that knowledge will not be of any profit to him, not in the least.
The prophets of Beni-Israel and prophets who came in all ages, their efforts were to make the picture of God intelligible to the man of the day. That does not mean that what picture they had made, that was God. No, it was just a help; to help man to conceive the idea. They said, "God is the Creator, He is the Judge, the Forgiver, He is the Supreme Being, the King of the Day of Judgment." Every attribute that can be given to God and that can be conceivable to those who hear about it they have put there. And what they made of Him, that was their art. They made an ideal of God before them, that they could say the prayers and make that ideal real before them. And the more real that ideal became, the more there was in that ideal. And then in the end God came and took that shrine which was made for Him and made it living.
And now in conclusion of this subject I would like to say, neither is the Sufi's God abstract nor is He personal. It is all a process, through which the Sufi goes from the false to the real self. And before he arrives at the real self, his false self must be made a sacrifice. Before what? Before the ideal God he has made in his own self. When his false self is sacrificed then he goes further. Then it is not a personal God, then it is the abstract God. But where does one begin, and where does one end? One begins from the false self and ends in the real self.
Asceticism or Worldliness
And now coming to the question of asceticism and worldly life. We cannot be thoughtful of the ascetics--who have lived in the forests and who have lived in the caves of mountains and who have fasted and who have lived a pure life of many, many years and have meditated and sacrificed all things of life for the pursuit of truth in their devotion to God--and at the same time say that asceticism is wrong. Although mankind is always ready to form an opinion on everything that seems to be contrary to his idea. How much mankind has learned from their devotion and from their renunciation, and from their sacrifices and from their strict life of discipline.
I do not mean to say that there are no false people. But false people can be in the world as well as among ascetics. A false person will be false everywhere. We are speaking about principles. Besides, great masters, wherever they have been, they had to experience the ascetic life in some form or the other, whether it was seemingly or not seemingly, outward or inward. For a period or their whole life, for a longer or shorter period, they all had that experience in life. And in reality they were born to fight with the tendency of asceticism, and be in the world against their wishes. This constantly has been a fight of the sages and mystics, against ascetic inclinations in order to keep in the world and to serve the world.
But at the same time some of them were destined that they could not guide and serve the world best unless they were ascetics. In that case it was necessary for them to be so. Sufism therefore does not urge asceticism except as a prescription, just as these ten vows have been given. That is a lesson in asceticism in a small way. Each person has to keep a certain principle every day. That is asceticism. One need not go in a cave to be an ascetic. One can live a life of principle; that is asceticism: if not more, less, but still a lesson of asceticism.
But then there is another point of view. If we all left the world and thought that we should reach God without having to do anything with the world, it is a great mistake. Some souls are born to sacrifice their lives for the love and service of humanity. But if every person thought, "This is the best principle, and I must leave the world and live an ascetic life," they will have to come back, because there is much to be done here in the midst of the crowd.
The Sufi therefore says, "No, fulfill your duties, answer your demands in worldly life, consider your obligations toward all those who are connected with you, cultivate your feelings of affection, of devotion, of friendship, of duty. Have regard one for another, those who love you, who depend upon you, who are near you, who wish your help, your service, your protection. And in this way evolve, that you may arrive to that stage where you may be in the world and may not be of the world, a worldly person and an ascetic at the same time." That is the ideal which we all will reach sooner or later, to be in the world and let the world not touch us, just like the drop of oil in the water.
Democratic or Aristocratic
And now coming to the idea of aristocracy or democracy, what does Sufism teach? It is the greatest pity--and every thoughtful person of every nation will realize it, if he would stand to look at life--that the chivalry of the knights and the noble manners, the noble ideals that the ancient people, the aristocratic people had, seem to be finished today. And although they are not realizing it today, there will come a day when we will realize that something which was most beautiful in humanity has been lost. I do not mean to say that we must become today what the world was a hundred years before. It is not necessary, and it cannot be. But at the same time we need not forget and we need not disregard all that was beautiful at that time.
The human tendency is such that when something has gone down or when some idea has become an old idea, or an idea which they despise, they turn their back to it and forget all the good that the idea had. Many live their lives today without ideal, without principle, without a manner, and call it freedom. If that is freedom! That is the wrong meaning of freedom. That freedom cannot spread happiness, cannot produce beauty of manner and spirit. Therefore the work of Sufism is to create the nobleness of the spirit in man, not only occult powers and psychic powers and esoteric things and clairvoyance.
This is the foundation: a person must develop in his soul, cultivate in his spirit the nobleness of the soul. That is aristocracy. And then he will rise to the democracy, and that democracy is to be kind and good and respectful, tolerant and forgiving and friendly to the saint and sinner both. You go and see the Sufis in the world today: wherever you will go, you will find that spirit with a beautiful manner, with humility, with gentleness, meekness, dignity. Another thing is developed, and that is the democratic feeling. Never to despise anyone, never to hate, never to condemn, never to look down upon anyone, but to see the divine expression in all beings.
That is the balance of life. That is the aristocratic spirit of nobleness and the democratic spirit of tolerance that brings about equality, that brings about the balance we should strike in life.
Exotericism or Esotericism
And then there is a question if Sufism is exotericism or esotericism. Very often I was asked by friends and mureeds, "What is the use of the Universal Worship, what is the use of any outer show? Every religion has it, every church has it. What we need, what we come for, what we desire is the inner teaching." But the answer is, "What is the use of the soul without the body?" No doubt the soul is not the soul without body. It is the body that makes the soul and soul. As body is needed for a soul, so exoteric action is needed for the esoteric development. A deep feeling a person has, but he is dumb; a brave heart a person has, but his arms cannot work: what is the use of having it?
The great masters who have come to the world like Buddha, Krishna, Jesus, Christ, Muhammad, Moses, when they gave God's message they did not only tell some souls the deeper understanding but they gave the form of worship to hundreds of thousands, the way of living a life together of harmony, of beauty, of love. That is their mission.
Yes, there have been gurus and teachers, great masters whose work was only to take some pupils, four or five; test them for ten, twenty, fifty years, or perhaps the whole life; and develop them for asceticism or for the higher realization. But that was not a world mission. That was not the work for humanity. That was a help for certain souls. There have always been esoteric schools in the world. But when it comes to God's message--to a world movement uniting different nations and different countries of followers of different religions in one brotherhood, in one religion, helping them collectively forward toward the goal which humanity has to reach--then you cannot only have esoteric guidance. Esotericism is the first thing to build. Exotericism will be the spirit behind to carry it through.
I quite understand that dummies without life are dead. And any religious activity which has no esoteric spirit behind it is as dead too. But the Sufi Message may not be compared with it. It is the Message of the day. The esoteric spirit behind it is the backbone of the Message; the body which is the exoteric work of the Sufi Movement is to touch every part of the world and to spread wider and wider and to be impressed in the world deeper and deeper until the will of God is fulfilled.
God Bless You.
The Spreading of the Message
July 13, 1926
My Mureeds, I would like to speak a few words about the spreading of the Sufi Message.
One's Conception of the Message
The idea of the Sufi Message in the conception of each mureed is different. Naturally it cannot be the same. For according to the point of view that each person has, he thinks about it.
- Perhaps one thinks that it is a message for some individuals who are seeking after truth.
- There is another one who thinks that this is the Message for humanity.
- There is another person who thinks that it is the Message for the most deep and most intelligent and subtle mind.
- And there is another person who thinks that this is the Message for the simple ones.
- There is a person who thinks that this is the Message of wisdom.
- And another person calls it the Message of God.
- There is another person who says, "Murshid's Message."
- There is one person who says, "This is
the Message."
- And another person who says, "This is a message."
But at the same time each has come to drink at this pool of water, whatever they call it; if they call it a lake, or the sea, or the ocean, or a river, or a tank, or a jug full of water, they have come to it looking for the water. The difference is that perhaps one calls it the sea, another the river, the other a well, the other a pool of water, the other calls it a stream.
And now if the one who said, "This is the sea," became cross and annoyed with the one who called it a pool of water, by his annoyance he would spoil the conception of this person still more. First he said, "It is a stream of water." Now he says, "It is a drop." Why? Because you say that it is the sea. The psychology of human nature is very strange. The susceptibility of mankind is so subtle.
Therefore I wish to say that every mureed--whatever conception of the Message he has--is a defender of the Cause, is our collaborator, and is eager to serve in a lesser degree or in a greater degree.
- No doubt, one thinks that, "I can serve the Message best by working at home."
- And another thinks that, "I can serve the Message better by doing my business better."
- Another says, "I can serve the Message best if I do my profession better."
- "I can serve the Message best by doing active work."
- And another thinks, "I can serve the Message best by thinking about it."
- And another one says, "By developing spiritually I can serve the Message."
And each of them has reason, and each one of them says the truth. It is so. Maybe one person can help the Message better by not doing anything, while another person can help the Message better by acting in the Cause. There is another person who can help us by thought, another person who can help us by word. And there is another person whose sympathy can help us more than action. Perhaps his action would spoil the work more, because in order to act one must know how to act. That is another lesson. A person eager enough, who wishes to act before knowing how to act, may himself become disappointed and may disappoint others. Nevertheless, there is a part in the Sufi Order for every mureed. No mureed must for one moment think that because he is not given a particular work, he has nothing to do for the Cause. Each one can do something in his own way, can render some little service to the Cause just the same.
How the Work Is Done
And now, how this work must be done. This work must be done by harmonious cooperation, with appreciation for those who are doing something and with eagerness on one's own part to do one's best. The person who is focused only on the work he is doing, without appreciating the work that others are doing, does not cooperate, although he serves the Cause. Cooperation is very necessary, and that comes by the appreciation of the work of the others in the Cause.
No matter what particular work has been given to certain mureeds, those who have not any work, even they in their turn have a certain duty, have a certain work to do for the Cause, if they only knew it, if they only thought about it. A service that is a world service, a work that is to be done for the whole humanity, has a very vast scope; and it is so vast that if we were one thousand times greater in number, still the scope of our work would be too large for each of us to manage. The wider we look at the work of the Sufi Movement, the more we shall see that for each one of us there is a scope of working. There is no reason for us to think, "Another has got the work; we need not do the work." No, for each there is much to be done for the Cause if he only realized it, if he only knew it. But then one has to make this clear, what one must do.
The first work of the Sufi Message can be done by thinking within oneself and finding in what way one can make oneself a better instrument every day and every hour of the day. And if the work makes one forget that, then no doubt in the end one will find greater and greater difficulty as one goes further. But if one finds within oneself the capability, the scope, the desire of working, and ever-growing enthusiasm and sympathy, then intuitively he will begin. But if he sees inwardly he will see it is a very large scope of work, he will begin to see a wide horizon of work before his eyes, and he will say that, "It is too large a horizon for me to work. " He will never say that it is a small scope of work to do. Even the smallest scope of work--which from outer understanding seems to be small--as soon as we have the inner understanding of the same it will be the largest work.
The work of the Cause must be looked at as a magic work. It is a load. If you don't know what it is and you carry it, it is small, but as soon as you become conscious of it, it is very large. Because then you know your responsibility, your duty in what you say and in what you do and how you act toward it.
It is always the case when you work in this world, whether you work rightly or wrongly, there is always criticism for you and praise at the same time. There will be some who will praise and there will be others who will criticize. Know therefore that those who will criticize your capability probably only have seen the part that is to be criticized, and those who praise have seen the part that is to be praised. You need not be too confident about yourself, nor should you be too discouraged because another one criticizes you. Besides, horseback riders fall many times before they become good riders. And those who work in the world in a great Cause, as they go they make errors, they make mistakes.
It is natural. One should not feel discouraged because one has made a mistake; one should not feel discouraged that one did wrong. One should only think, "There is the whole life for us to learn. If today we do wrong, tomorrow it will be better." There will always be a hope. One must never think, "No, no, I don't know how to do the work. I shall always be doing wrong." Never think about it. Life is a school where one learns a lesson; every day we do wrong, and every day we improve if we care to learn from it. If we only study, we can go forward by doing wrong. But if we lose our hope and enthusiasm and say, "I made a mistake yesterday; I am not fit for the work," that is not right.
And suppose we have done right, we have done the work to our satisfaction, and others don't show appreciation? We have criticism all the same, with wrong--and right--doing. Then also never be discouraged, because the best judge is God Himself. Since you are working in the path of God and you are devoting your time and energy to the Cause of God, God is the Judge. So long as you are sincere in your work and you are doing your best, what does it matter if the whole world says you are doing wrong? You are in the right just the same.
The most needed thing in working for the Movement is not only the work, but good will: a sympathetic attitude toward one another. One must always know that work, no matter what kind of work it is, is intoxicating. It makes one forget many things--it makes one forget oneself, it makes one forget the principle, it makes one forget many different things because life itself intoxicates. And to keep oneself wide awake through it and accomplish one's work and help another with good will--appreciating what each one does in his own way and trying to do one's best and allow another to do his best--is the right attitude to take in the Sufi work.
In my opinion, although it is many years since the Sufi Message began its activity, yet when you look at it from a mystical point of view, in the time that it has to cover in the world's life, it is only an infant. It is in its cradle, it is not known to the world. And if it is known to some few of us, I can't dare say that it is known to all of us; I can only say, to some few of us. And as it is infant work, then those of us who know more or less about the Message must know that we are in the most critical time, for the very reason that it is just beginning. An infant which cannot stand on its feet is in a helpless condition. It is just born, it requires great care.
And who ought to take care? God from above. And we, some few who are brought by Providence closer together to work hand in hand, it is we who are the guardians of this infant on earth. Then imagine how great is our responsibility. Something which should have been guarded by numberless swords, something which should have been guarded by machine gun, by forces, by fortification of rocks, something so important in the life of the world is in our care. And it is our work now to take care of it. Each of us is responsible for it for the coming generation, for humanity, for the world. It will reach as breath into the nations, it will run as electric current through the hearts. But let it stand, it is just born.
And this we can only do to our best by extending our sympathy first to one another, those who are working hand in hand in the Cause. Our sympathy to others is the next step. Our first step is to one another here among ourselves. Some of us have faults, some of us have errors, some of us will make mistakes; but still we are together. If we make mistakes, if we make errors, then we expect the other one to forgive us, to take care of us. For the reason that we make a mistake, the others must help us. It is by this unity that we shall keep strong and will supply the numberless swords and machine guns and forces made of rock: by our sympathy with one another, by our enthusiasm, and by our rock-like faith.
I do not wish to say this to mureeds who have not yet conceived the idea of the Sufi Message; but those who have a little spark in their heart somewhere hidden, they cannot say it in words, they cannot speak about it, and yet they cannot help feeling for it. To them there is my appeal that this is the most critical time for us because we are beginning. It is the same as with a little seedling which has not yet grown into a plant. Birds can come, animals can come, insects can eat it up, or anyone can walk over it and spoil it. But when it turns into a tree, then it supports itself, then its own strength will support it. Our responsibility therefore is to keep this little seedling with such care, to rear it, to water it, to let it have the sun and the air, and to consider it our sacred responsibility to let it grow and spread and bring the fruits and flowers that it has to bring to humanity.
Those who have a little time and those who are blessed by Providence, who can leave their country and go to another country, must consider this: that at this time we need workers of the Cause more than we have ever needed them before. There are so many cities and so many countries where interest is growing, where there is great demand and where there is such a great need for someone to further the Cause. And what is lacking? The person is lacking, the person who should go there and stay and do the work. In the United States there is such a great need of workers. If we had two hundred workers just now to begin in the United States, they could easily have a wide scope of work, each of them. In Germany it has just begun; it requires so much help and so much work to be done. And it is without workers that the work in Munich is suffering. If one of the old workers had stayed in Munich for some time there could have been great progress made. There are places in Switzerland and in Scandinavia where it has just begun. It greatly needs the help of mureeds who can go there and work and further the Cause.
We must therefore become conscious of our need. Our greatly felt need is the workers. Never think for one moment that I have ever had anxiety about the means. When we began there was nothing. At that time I had no anxiety; neither today have I any anxiety about it. If my heart has any anxiety, it is for the workers. All else will come. If we had a business, an industry, it would be different; then I would be thinking about something else. Our work is the service of humanity. If we have no roof to begin with, we shall do it outside the roof; the roof will come next.
If we have no money to advertise, we shall call our friends first. If there are five or ten or twenty gathered together, we shall begin doing it in the park. What is necessary is that enthusiasm, that consciousness of our need in furthering the Cause. And in what way will my friends, my mureeds show their sympathy, their devotion to their teacher? I will always appreciate most their sympathy, their devotion, their love, their friendship in helping me further the Cause, because this is the greatest burden. And if in this burden the mureeds will help in every way they can, that is the help that will be valued and most appreciated. God Bless You.
Jelal-ud-din Rumi
July 20, 1926
Beloved Ones of God,
This evening I would like to speak on the subject of Rumi, one of the greatest poets of Persia and a great educator on the spiritual path. I do not wish to tell about his life from the beginning; I only wish to point out different characteristics and works of Rumi which have endeared him to all the illuminated souls.
In India, Persia, Egypt, Turkey, Bukhara, Afghanistan, and Baluchistan, every educated person has as a foundation of his education Rumi's scripture. The wonderful effect that this scripture produces is that, after a person has studied the Masnavi, his principle work, he begins to show, without being taught, humanity--the most valuable and important quality for the beginning and end of education.
The wide pitch of Rumi's ideas is so vast that once a person becomes interested in his works he begins to feel that all the scriptures of the world are put in one scripture, and that is Rumi's. When the mysticism of Rumi attracted thousands of seeking souls, those who had education, deep thought, influence, and power, many tried to make Rumi claim to be the Prophet. That is the last thing he would do. He said that he was there to interpret the spirit and the soul of the Prophet, and it is his interpretation that attracted them. But he did not want to take the place of the Prophet. He did not want to proclaim himself something which he was not meant to be.
When people asked Hafiz, the most accepted poet of the East, "Is Rumi a prophet?", his answer was subtle, as the mystic's answer is. In the East the one who gives a book is a prophet, and prophet is a direct word. Hafiz said, "Not a prophet, but the giver of a book." When Hafiz, an inspirational poet himself, held Rumi and his work so high, you can imagine what a wonderful work it must be. Do not think that because Rumi was in the country of Muslims he only interpreted the soul of the Prophet Muhammad. If you study Rumi deeply, you will find he has interpreted the soul of Jesus Christ and the soul of Moses.
There are some places where he gives stories in order to explain a certain aspect of life. Stories sometimes explain more than simple words, because a story makes a picture. The other part of his work is direct statement. His work is in verse, and it seems that he never had to stop and think, "What shall I write next?" It seems that the singer sang and his hand moved to write; as he went on singing so he went on writing. The whole book is written in this way. When you read it, you feel that he never stopped for one moment to think about the poetry he was writing. It is a divine song, not mechanical poetry where the effort of the brain is necessary.
Besides this, Rumi's life shows a great phenomenon and a lesson at the same time: that an intellectual could be as devotional as he was. Most often there is intellect and devotion is missing, or there is a devotion and intellect is missing. Very often an intellectual person proudly says, "Well, there is devotion, but among simple ones." But here in the life of Rumi you see the example of intellect and devotion in the same measure. Rumi was one of the most educated persons of his time.
He was a statesman, a politician, a man of law, and a man of letters, and at the same time so simple that when first he saw Shams-i-Tabriz, the one who was to be his murshid, he said, "God, whom I have worshipped all through life, today came before me in the guise of man." That great devotion in an intellectual man! Here a simple dervish comes to him, scantily clad, and the leader of the city, a man of position, with power and authority, listens to him like a simple child, and appreciates him. By his ideal he raised Shams-i-Tabriz to that stage where a really devoted mureed raises his teacher. This shows the ideal and intellect both together.
Now I should like to tell you his teaching about God. His teaching is that God can be best understood not by thinking that He is in heaven, but by recognizing Him in His manifestation. The most prominent manifestation which represents God is the godly. He brings God on earth; in other words, he brings heaven on earth, and he raises earth to heaven. Rumi is the first mystic who does not inflict or impose upon people a forced renunciation or asceticism. He is the first mystic who came forward in the world and said that the essence of spirituality is the quality of heart. No mystic will ever say it as Rumi has: "Whether you love man or whether you love God, at the end of your destiny you will be brought before the King of love." It was most daring, especially at that time in the reign of theology, when one could never say such words. But Rumi had the courage to say it. In addition, for Rumi all cold matter is spirit just the same. He says, "Earth, fire, water, and air, they all are as dead before man; but before God they are living servants, working at His command." A person may think about this phrase of philosophy every day, and every day he will find a new branch springing from this idea. If one thought of this idea for the whole life one would find a new inspiration coming out of it every day. In this way Rumi made God a reality, and God made him Truth.
As to the life and spirit of the prophet, Rumi's explanation is that the soul is a flute of reed. One end of this flute is in the mouth of God, and the other end of this flute is in the lips of the prophet. Therefore what the prophets have said is the word of God.
And then he distinguished the prophetic personality. He did not say they perform miracles; he did not say recognize them by their wonders. He said the prophet is a miracle and a wonder himself. He did not say that prophets give light in their words, he said that the prophet was the flame itself. The presence of the prophet for the individual and for the multitude is a source of illumination without words. It is not true that the prophet brings the word of God, but the prophet is the word of God. Rumi says that the personality and the presence of the prophet is the answer to every question.
Question cannot exist, because the answer is present. Furthermore, Rumi said that the prophet was a messenger. He did his work, he went away; the One Who was responsible was God. The prophet had nothing to do with the world: his work was to direct the world to God. Rumi said that men know the law that they make, but the prophet knows the hidden law of life. It is not that wisdom which comes to him, but it is the interpretation of that wisdom which has come to him that he gives in human tongue.
Rumi says the prophet is not only the inspirer but the inspiration of humanity; that the prophet is not the maker of peace, but peace itself. He said that the prophet, whether he is understood by the world or not, will be able to perform his duty just the same; and whether helped by the world or not will be able to fulfill his message, whether directly or indirectly. Because the Message that comes by the prophet is living, it must spread.
When Rumi speaks about the annihilation of the false ego, that is the most uplifting philosophy that one could hear. He first says that your heart is like a mirror. What generally happens is that this mirror becomes dusty. You have to wipe it to take the dust off it. In the esoteric or mystic path, the teacher shows his pupils the way of wiping this mirror so that the reflection may fall more clearly. Then he says that your worst enemy is hiding within yourself, and that enemy is your nafs or false ego. It is very difficult to explain the meaning of the word "false ego. " The best I can do is to say that every inclination which springs from disregard of love, harmony, and beauty and which is concerned with oneself and unconcerned with all others is the false ego.
Now I shall explain to you this idea: a thief is thinking of robbing the person with whom he is travelling. That inclination makes him concerned with his own benefit and indifferent to the benefit and the feeling of the other. That inclination is coming from the spirit which the Sufis have called Nafs. I will give you another amusing example: if there are four or five persons at the table, one of them fixes his eyes on the best cake. It is a very mild inclination, but it comes from nafs.
This enemy, Rumi says, develops. The more it is fed, the stronger it becomes to fight with you; and the stronger it becomes, the more it dominates your better self. There comes a day when man is the slave of this enemy which is hidden within himself. The worst position is to have an enemy which one does not know. It is better to have a thousand known enemies before one than to have one within one and not to know it.
There are many meanings ascribed to the custom of the sages in India to have snakes around their necks. One of those meanings is: "I have the enemy which was within outside on my neck." In other words, "I have got it. It is still living, but now I know that it is there and it is my ornament."
What does this enemy breathe? This enemy breathes "I." Its breath is always calling out "I, separate from you, separate from others, separate from everybody. My interest is mine; it has nothing to do with others. The interest of others is others' interest; it is not mine. I am a separate being." Remember that no man is without it. If man was without it, he would never have said "I," because it is this enemy hiding within him which is saying "I." The day this enemy is found and erased, or shed and crucified, that day the real "I" is found. But this "I" is a different "I." This "I" means you and I and everybody; it is all "I."
To conclude, I will tell you a little story of a madzhub (A madzhub is a person who shows himself a simpleton in order to keep the crowd away and who is one with the whole universe. His is a cosmic consciousness.) One day this madzhub was moving in the city in the middle of the night, when no one is allowed to move about. A policeman asked, "Who are you?" He smiled and enjoyed the question. He did not know what he was, because that "I" was not strongly attached to his own body. Nafs was not there. So he did not answer. The policeman asked, "Are you a thief?" "Yes," he said, because the ego was empty and any name that was given was accepted there. A so-called [false] saint would be very offended to think that he was a thief.
They took him in the police station and he sat there for the whole night, quite happy; as happy as he was in the road, walking about. He felt no insult because he was an empty cup. He put in that empty cup "thief," so he was quite glad to receive that title. In the morning the officer came, and he recognized that this man was a highly developed spiritual man. He said, "I am surprised to find him here. Many respect him." The policeman said, "He himself said that he was a thief." "But you must have called him a thief. " The policeman said, "Yes. " The officer said, "That is their consciousness. That 'I' which holds everything to oneself is crushed and effaced and thrown away. That 'I' is no longer there. And therefore all names are his name, all forms are his form, and the whole cosmos is his own being."
God Bless You.
Peculiarities of the Six Great Religions
July 27, 1926
Beloved Ones of God,
I would like to speak this evening on the subject of the peculiarities of the six great religions.
Buddhism
The Buddhist religion has taught to humanity the sense of compassion for life in every form and in all forms. The central theme of Buddha's teaching was ahimsa parmo dharmaha. That was Buddha's watchword, and it means harmlessness is the essence of religion. And it is wonderful to see that, though mankind has lived for centuries on animal food, the first principle of those who followed Buddha's message was to leave animal food, to live on a vegetarian diet. But, one might ask, "Is that all? Is Buddha's teaching to become vegetarian?" No, vegetarianism is a principle for becoming harmless.
The first step in becoming harmless is to become harmless to the one who stands next to us, to human beings. Very often you can be a vegetarian and you can be harmful too. It is recognition of brotherhood, even with the lowest creation. It does not mean that Buddha did not know the point of view of other great teachers, who did not make a remark on this subject. No, his mission was to create compassion in the heart of man. Buddha's belief was that the only remedy for all the harm that comes to man is harmlessness. And if you study all philosophy and ethics, in the end you will find this as the essence of the whole philosophy, that all pain comes by having no regard for the pain of another. It is automatic.
No doubt it is grosser to say, "Do not have animal food and live on a vegetarian diet." A fine teaching on the same principle would be to be conscientious every moment of your life, realizing that, by a thought or by a word, by a glance or frown, by the tone of voice, by atmosphere, by thought or feeling, you might hurt someone. And when we look at it with this principle, life becomes so deep and so wide and so full of sense and beauty that in every direction of life we find much to be done without thinking of occult things and psychic mysteries.
Life begins to unfold its mystery as soon as compassion is created in the heart, as soon as one's deepest feeling is wakened for all that is living, with regard for everyone one meets, for all that lives: deserving and undeserving, evolved and unevolved, foolish and wise. Then the outlook on life changes. And the result is that the soul attains that peace which is so difficult to attain in this life of woes. That statue of Buddha therefore is the example to look at: a man who has striven through life to become compassionate, as much as man can be, and to attain that peace which is most difficult to attain in this world.
There is an interesting and wonderful custom in Buddhist countries. That custom is that when a priest or a teacher dies they inaugurate wonderful celebrations. And the meaning is that people may see that the one who has devoted his life to God and truth and lived in compassion has been relieved of the woes of this world and has risen to the stage which is better still. It is as if the reward of his whole life's trial was not given to him through death. When one looks at it from this point of view it is a very beautiful custom.
Buddha also taught meditation, and his statue is the example of the posture of meditation which he taught: the meditation of peace. The other day in New York, I heard that some students of eastern thought proposed that there should be a public statue of Buddha erected in New York. Then I heard that there was great opposition to it, so it could not be erected. So I thought, "Imagine, hundreds of generals who have fought in wars have their statues in every place, suggesting wars and disasters, murdering and killing. If in order to balance it all there were one statue representing peace as a man who lived for humanity, not for this race or that race, a man who taught peace to the world, ind who attained peace, if there were one example, it would be worth having."
Hinduism
And when we come to the Hindu religion, it is most wonderful to see what religion has appealed to Hindus: a religion that can be taught to children, and which children can be most interested in, a religion which could be taught to the souls who lived ten thousand years ago and which they could enjoy at the same time. It is the pitch of the religion that is so vast that it can fit in-with men of every stage of evolution. There are Sudras, workmen: it fits in very well with their conception. And then there are Kshatriyas, the warriors and the brave and courageous ones: it fits in very well with their idea.
There are Vaisyas, who are head to foot in business: it fits in very well with their intelligence. And there are Brahmans, so deep in thinking and such meditative people: the religion fits in very well with their conception. It is just like a piano made of one thousand octaves: you can go as low as you can, and you can go as high as you can. In the temple of the Hindus, Krishna's statue is put in the cradle, women are singing. That is the service. Men come and join their palms in respect; from the pariah to the Brahman, everyone takes part in that worship.
Therefore naturally it gives those who wish to criticize the Brahman religion a scope to make it as savage as possible, and also it gives a scope to those who appreciate it and see in it a religion that can be as refined as possible. There is philosophy there, there is drama, there is ethics, there is art, there is music, there is beauty. Nothing that is good and beautiful and nothing that is valuable and worthwhile is left out from the religion. If you ask a Hindu, an intelligent Hindu, "If we let you have your religion and give you no literature, no art, no science, no social life, will you be satisfied?" He will say, "Certainly, because in the religion there is everything--there is art, there is literature, there is philosophy, there is wisdom, there is play, there is thought, there is meditation--everything."
Zoroastrianism
And when we come to the Zoroastrian religion, it is a religion of purity, purity by affirmations, and it is a religion which shows how to make a God for oneself first, which is the first step in the path of God. The scripture of Zarathustra always says, "These beautiful flowers, where have they come from? Is it not that You have made the delicious fruits, the sweet fruits, where do they come from? Have they not been made by You? This running water, where does it come from? Is it not from the same source? Where does it go? It goes to You."
By taking every action of life that comes through the plant, through the water, through the sun, through the wind, everything that one looks at and marvels at in nature, Zarathustra teaches one to think of that marvel connected with God, and in this way one can make God living. The whole scripture of Zarathustra is connected with it. If one goes through the affirmations of Zarathustra, it means that one wishes to make God living, to see His manifestation with open eyes, to have communication with God Himself through nature; it is a wonderful thing.
When the Zoroastrian stands up so many times during the day, either before the water or before the sun or before the wind or if he is not in nature, then before fire, and says the holy words of Zarathustra, he tries to exalt his soul, tries to come closer to his God, tries to make the God who is only a conception a living God by connecting and identifying the spirit of God with all that is living and moving on earth. It is a wonderful meditation. A man may meditate with his eyes closed for ten years and may not attain to that bliss which the one with open eyes will receive from communicating with nature, recognizing God in it, identifying his Lord with everything and all things.
Judaism
When we come to the Message of Moses, we find that no nation will ever be able to make an improvement upon the divine law Moses once gave. And whenever there is any attempt at improving it, there will always be a mistake. Why? Because it is natural law, it is not man-made law, it is God-made law. The different civilizations at different times have built a law on the ground of Moses. They may forget it, they may deny it, but at the same time this is the central theme. The mission of the master was to make the corrupted world abide by the law of harmony. It is all right for a free thinker to think he will act this way or that way, but it will not do for the collectivity. For the collectivity there must be a law of harmony. And is it an easy thing to give a law? When men give a law, that law never proves to be the right law in the end, unless it is the natural law. When the law is given by God through his prophet, that has a power, that has life in it, and it is accepted; people abide by it.
I should say today that even at this time when people have gone far from the ancient law, if that ancient law of Moses was regarded, the world would become much better. If one can open one's eyes and look into life, it seems that the world is going from bad to worse every day. They call it freedom not to abide by law. But that freedom does not lead them to anything. On the contrary, they are restless, they are dissatisfied, they are grudging, they are grumbling, they are never contented.
Besides that, there was a mysticism give by Moses known to very few, which indicated the rhythm of the universe. And it is from the rhythm of the universe that the law of numbers, the science of numbers comes. So now you can connect the divine inspiration on one side, and deep perception in the hidden law on the other side, which brought the master to give to the world the law that was necessary, and the law that was to become the foundation of the future race. Many say that they know something about the mystery of numbers, but this mystery remains hidden: it is mysticism. The mystics have called this science Zafar, and this science is a key to the hidden law of nature. Imagine that at that time there was a prophet who knew the science to such an extent that he knew the figures of the rhythm of everything: of fire, of earth, of water, of air, and of ether. If he had not had the perception of the rhythm of the cosmos, he would not have been able to give that law, that science.
Christianity
And when we come to Jesus Christ, it was pure mysticism, a mysticism of love: to judge no one, to forgive everyone, to develop that quality in oneself that all without being commanded come to you; to get above what one calls the worldly knowledge and come to that knowledge which instead of making you clever makes you innocent. The master was not only innocent in his thought and word and in his atmosphere, but those inspired by him also reached that stage of innocence which is the sign of the saintly spirit.
Self-sacrifice was the central theme. And if you read the Beatitudes from beginning to end and you begin to practice any of them or all of them, you will find it is nothing but self-sacrifice, self-denial, erasing the self, while cultivating the thought of gentleness, the thought of meekness, the thought of mildness. All this shows to us that his mission was to melt the hearts from grossness, from denseness, from hardness, to soften them, to make them refined, to have them enlightened, to liberate them. His coming and going was the example that a soul is brought here to do something and then is called back. His lesson was not the lesson of mystery, yet in his lesson there was every mystery, all mystery.
The lesson which he gave was, "Seek ye first the kingdom of God and all will be added unto you."
This shows that by studying this, and by studying that, and by striving for this, and by striving for that, you get nowhere. There is only one thing and that is the first thing, the principal thing, and the last thing, and that is God.
And in his simple statement he has said the final word, and that was, "Be ye perfect as your Father in heaven is perfect."
That is the last word. Nothing more can be said in metaphysics or philosophy than this: that the aim is perfection and that you can reach that perfection which is the perfection of the Father in heaven if you attempt it, if you try for it.
Jesus Christ taught the theory of dependence on God by giving the example of the lilies. Make God living and depend upon Him for all you need and He will provide your needs. Mankind has forgotten that lesson in its earthly strife. But at the same time, whenever man comes to that lesson he will begin to find the phenomena of life: that no sooner do we give over our responsibility to God than God begins to feel responsible for us.
It is this hint of the master that Sa'adi has interpreted in The Rose Garden, where he says, "Karsaze kare man man", ("The Creator is busy doing what I wish, but my anxiety about it is my natural illness, I cannot help it").
Sa'adi was humorous, and he has interpreted most of the wonderful sayings of the master in a most beautiful language.
"Yes," people very often ask, "What Jesus Christ has taught leads one to spirituality no doubt, but how can we follow it and live it in this material world?" There is a natural leaning one has towards the world, it should not be taught. We should not be taught how to be practical, we are already practical. We need not be told how to be clever, we are already clever. We need not be instructed or advised to fight with our enemy, we are already inclined to it. If Jesus Christ did not teach it, it was only in order to make a balance. We should hear something else, think of something else, feel something else than what we are naturally inclined to, in order to provide a balance.
Islam
And when we come to the message of the Prophet Muhammad, the central theme of the message is unity. He said, "The sultan and the slave, when they come in the Ka'aba, there is no distinction for them: they must stand shoulder to shoulder. " That was fifteen hundred years ago, and we have not learned that lesson. We are inclined to say, "He is from another race, he must keep away, he must not come to our restaurant; he is of a different class, he must stay in his place." Fifteen hundred years ago a man came and united his people, who were daggers-drawn against one another, divided by family feuds, saying, "My family is greater," and each family having its own gods.
He brought them all before one God and made them stand shoulder to shoulder, sultan and slave, with all their family distinctions, sects, genealogical records and traditions. And he said Kullo muslim in akhwanon ("All Muslims are brothers"). And do you think that brotherhood was only called a brotherhood? No, it was taught, it was lived as brotherhood; and if you wish to see the example of it fifteen hundred years afterwards, you can see it today. Bedouins, who are the most savage people living in the desert, are always inclined to fight with their knives: if there is a little cross word there are knives taken against one another. But if a third person comes and says Salu all' an nabi ("Friends, think of your Prophet, respect your Prophet"), that is enough. Neither of them will dare go forward; they will throw their knives away at once and take one another's hands, say the name of the Prophet and kiss them.
Besides that, the teaching of the Prophet was, "Know your relation": your relation to your mother, to your father, to your brother, to your children, to the helpless, the poor and the orphans in the city, to the one who is of higher rank than you, and to the one of lower rank than you. Now you must consider, "Is it not something which needs to be studied?" It is never enough. And we can never understand fully how much there is to be learned in acting in connection with those whom we meet in everyday life. The teaching of the Prophet was simple and at the same time deep. One might think that it is too exaggerated. But at the same time there is beauty in it. I shall give you an example of a family I went to see, a Muslim family who lived the typical Muslim life.
The middle brother was very fond of music and entertainments. But when his elder brother came to visit he would not have entertainment in the house, and when the younger brother came he would not have entertainment. The reason was that he was too respectful to have entertainment, gaiety before his elder brother. And he was too conscientious to give the example of his gaiety to his younger brother. It is in that way that brothers have regard for each other. When there is such a regard between brothers, then what regard must there not be between the mother, father, children, sister, and relations in the home? If one thinks about it, one can begin to feel that it is a civilization that can always be appreciated, once it is studied and known. And the central theme of it is what? Unity.
We cannot unite with another if we have not the sense of respect, the sense of understanding the ideal. Today, when brothers grow up fighting with one another and not respecting one another, it is quite different. Brothers apart, even that relation that should be between parents and children is not to be found. Every day it is worse and worse and worse. A friend of mine told a rich man how one should regard one's parents, that it is part of one's honor to have regard for the parents. And this rich man, on hearing that his father was out of work, sent a letter to him, a letter of good advice, and said there was a place vacant in his office. Does the world not need instruction on that point? It always needs it.
Besides, the Prophet's teaching was to give the spirit, the spirit that is needed for every person. For every individual a certain spirit is necessary. The teaching of the Prophet was that that spirit must be wakened in each person. The way the Prophet treated his own daughter shows the nobleness of the spirit. He gave an example to the world: he taught his children to respect their parents by respecting children himself.
The Message
And now, in conclusion, coming to the task and to the services we are destined to render to the world. "What is the work of the Sufi Message, its characteristic, its peculiarity?" Its peculiarity is truth. It is to bring to the world, to give to the world, to spread to the world that truth which is the essence of all religions. First the truth must be searched after, next the truth must be realized, third the truth must be lived. And it is by doing this that the Sufi will attain to that purpose which has brought him to the Sufi Movement, and that we all will attain to that purpose for which we are meant and which we are intended to accomplish.
And now the question is, what are we to do in order to do our best? We must search for truth not only in books, but in life; we must realize truth not only intellectually, but by our personal experience, through meditation; and we must live truth by not taking truth as something separate, but by realizing that it is our own being. It is by these three things we shall be able to become Sufis.
And now in spreading the Cause, what we must do is to understand the psychology of human nature, to understand the need of the time, and to understand the best way of going forward. We must not waste time and we must not dispute with the authorities of other religions. We must give our whole thought to this purpose, which is given to us from God. Contemplate upon it, and meditate on it, and ask all blessing: that will help us to carry our work into the world. God Bless You.
Belief and Faith
Belief and Faith
August 3, 1926
Beloved Ones of God,
This evening I would like to speak on the question of belief and faith. Very often we confuse the word belief with faith. Belief is a settled thought; as long as thought is wavering, it is not belief. When a person says, "I wonder, is it so or is it not so?", that does not mean belief. He may appear to believe but he does not believe. Belief means the thought has settled in the mind and it is difficult to root it out. And yet belief is not necessarily faith, because faith is the culmination of belief. Faith is that belief which is no longer settled thought, but is in the very being of the person. Although we use the words faith and belief for the same thing in our everyday life, when we come to analyze and understand them from the metaphysical point of view, belief and faith are quite different.
People have used the word faith for a person's religion, but that is another thing. It is very good to say that one has a Christian faith, another a Muslim faith, and another a Jewish faith. If a Christian has a Christian faith, if a Muslim has a Muslim faith, if a Jew has a Jewish faith, what more do you want? Because faith is no longer Christian or Muslim or Jewish; once a person has reached faith, he no longer needs a faith, he is above all religions. In the Eastern languages, in the Hindustani language, they separate the word faith which is used in everyday language from the other word, which is used in connection with one's spiritual evolution. That faith is called iman. Yaqin is a settled belief; iman is the culmination of faith. When you say, "It is so," that means belief. But when you say, "It cannot be otherwise," that means faith. And when you say, "I wonder," it is imagination.
Stages Between Belief and Faith
There are four stages of iman, which means four stages between belief and faith.
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The first stage is called by Sufis iman mujmal, which means faith of the crowd. Where there are ten persons standing, the eleventh person goes and stands with them also, and if there are fifty persons waiting for an airplane, waiting to come from the South, there may be nothing in that airplane, but because there are fifty persons standing, there will be a hundred in fifty minutes' time. They only have to make up their mind: there is something coming and we should wait for it, and then you will see a thousand persons standing by their side, not knowing whether it is coming or not coming. But because there are fifty persons standing looking at the sky, that is quite enough. That is the psychology of the crowd, and so the crowd is attracted and so the crowd is led.
And when it comes to spiritual things, it is therefore that success before the crowd is not always the sign of spiritual progress. Besides, what is approved by the crowd as something beautiful is not necessarily beautiful. What is approved by the crowd to be something valuable, may not be so valuable. If it is considered by the crowd that it is something good, it may not be good. Or what is considered great by the crowd, it may not be great and yet it has the appearance of being great, because the crowd calls it great; but what the crowd holds does not remain longer.
Remember that day when Kaiser was esteemed high. Can you imagine the belief of the people that day? Numberless souls were ready to give their lives for him. Before the Tsar was dethroned, every shop in Russia had Tsar and Tsarina's picture. And the day when he went away, they made a crown and hammered it in the street and people looked at it and laughed. What was President Wilson one day in America? It did not take long for everyone to turn their backs to him.
What was once praised was blamed at the other time. That is the crowd. It does not take them long to raise a person, it does not take them time to throw a person. Because it is not faith. They call it faith in the church, but the faith of the crowd is not faith.
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And then there is a second step. The second step in belief is belief in authority. They do not say, "Because this person says this, and that person says that, therefore I believe it;" or, "Some scripture in which I have trust, in that scripture it is written and therefore I believe it." Among these people there has come a division. There is one kind of people who will believe anything that history, geography, mathematics, or any book in the library of the university tells them. But they will not believe anything that tradition tells them, that religion tells them, that a priest tells them, that a prophet has told. They do not see the reason in one thing and they do see the reason in the other. This shows that today the authority has changed. The material authority is considered to be something, but a spiritual authority is not recognized by the intelligent.
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And now coming to the third stage of belief. That belief is that it is not because someone says so, nor is it because the crowd says so, but, "I think so, that is why I believe it." That is a wonderful belief. But if a person who is simple and unevolved thinks that what he believes or what he reasons is the right thing, and does not believe in the authority or in the crowd, instead of going upwards he will be going downwards. And very often it happens that a simple one is more fixed in his ideas than a person who is reasoning.
Very often a simple person has no reason, and he is fixed on his idea; and you may bring before him any reason, and yet he will not listen to it. He says, "That is what I believe; what the crowd believes, I do not care. If it is written in the scriptures, in history, if professors, doctors, scientists, priests, or clergy say it, I do not believe it." That becomes a kind of illusion, a kind of madness, because a person who believes in his reason independently of the crowd and of the authorities must be ready to understand the reason of another and must be simple enough to give up his reasoning when another person's reasoning appeals to him. <.p>
Very often reasoning becomes rigid in the case of the simpleton, because he covers the reasoning with his personality. He calls his reason his own reason and the reason of another is another person's reason, and there is no relation between another person and himself. He thinks another person's reason is his property, his own reason is his property, and therefore he is not ready to understand.
And then we come to reason. Reason is as a cover, a cover behind which there is another cover. And if we go on penetrating one cover after another, there are numberless covers we can penetrate, and yet there will be another reason behind it.
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And now coming to the fourth belief, which is called inul iman, the perfect belief. This belief is as good as if one has seen something with one's eyes and one cannot deny it. When someone sees that this is a table, he cannot say, "This is not a table." And when he begins to see the truth from the inner eye, he cannot deny it; he sees it. But even that iman, that belief, culminates into a belief where you do not have to hold a belief; you yourself become truth. Truth becomes your being. Your belief is no longer your idea, your belief is your own self. That is the perfection of belief. It is that which is called faith and it is those who have reached that stage who are called faithful in the spiritual sense of the word.
Attitude Toward Clergy, Teacher & Prophet
Now I would like to speak about what attitude one has to have towards the teacher on the spiritual path, towards the clergy on the spiritual path, and towards the prophet on the spiritual path. Because there are these three directions: the priest is one direction, the initiator is another direction, and the prophet is another direction. And towards these three the attitude must be distinct, peculiar, and different.
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Towards the priest there ought to be an attitude of respect, not only respecting the person, but respecting what is taught, the direction that is given by the priest. By this I do not mean to say the priest of this particular religion or that particular religion. I am especially telling you of these three different persons who come into one's life. One is the authority of religion, the other is the authority of esotericism, and the third is the prophet.
Only, when on the spiritual path what one has to be careful of is this, that too much conventionality and rule and direction may bury a soul. Very often when people regard the rigid rules and conventionalities they become so narrow and so external that everything must be just like this, and if it is not like this then it is a sin. Hands must be washed at a certain time, feet must be washed at a certain time, clothes must be in this way, one must stand in that way, look in that way, act in a certain way. And if it is not done, then it is not right, it is a sin. And in all parts of the world you will see the minister with his whip raised when a person has not done things that he ought to do rightly in his life.
But when there is an insolence and a contempt and a prejudice towards a religious authority, it means that this person is not respecting that which is something spiritual. It is a step higher. And if one has no respect for it, it only means the person is going downhill. The soul who is guided from within will always find instinctively a desire to respect a religious man, no matter what religion he belongs to, be he a rabbi, a Catholic priest, or a clergyman from the Protestant Church. No matter what religion he is, you cannot but feel respect towards that person when intuitively there is a leaning towards religion. And if we have to criticize them, of course there are many faults, but have we not great faults ourselves? Can a human being be perfect?
God alone is perfect. If we look at their faults we gain nothing, except the fruits which we have looked at, we collect them. But we can just as well look at the good side of it. Besides, in respecting a religious man, it need not be that we are respecting every belief or dogma or idea he has to teach. Is it not enough to think of religion as something sacred, and have a respectful attitude towards every person who is doing the work of religion? It is also necessary to think of those in our Sufi Movement who are made Cherags and Sirajs. If we ourselves will not respect them and will not appreciate their devotion to the Cause and their service towards it, we are just like a child who is not inclined to respect the elder ones in his own family. It is for the dignity of the Cause, it is for the honor of the Message, of the Movement, that those who are ordained as Cherags and those who are made Sirajs be given due consideration. There is no pleasure in not doing it, but in doing it there is a great pleasure.
I will tell you my own experiences of childhood. In the different kingdoms of India, the Orientals especially have more conventionality, more bowing and bending and greeting. And with new ideas in my head, I thought, "Is it necessary?" It was a question. But at the same time one cannot help it; where there is a conventionality so much spread one cannot keep from it. But the moment I began to greet people in that conventional way I began to enjoy it. The more I did it the more I enjoyed it, because it brought joy to another, but to yourself just the same. For by the very fact that you give joy to another, you get it back ten times. It is automatic. That proudness, that conceit, that hardness, that rigidness of "Oh no, I shall not respect him, I shall not bow or bend before anyone," only makes him as a brick: he is turned into a rock, more rigid every time.
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And now coming to the question of what attitude one must have towards one's initiator. If a person will not stand like a child before his initiator, he will not derive benefit out of his teaching. The one who comes before his initiator with a thought that, "I have brought before him certain knowledge which I already had, and now I want more to be added," is wrong; it should be thrown away. The one who comes to his initiator with the thought that he must find out if it is right or wrong or he must find out what will happen, he is wasting his time and fooling himself; he will never gain by it. He could just as well have gone and done some business and got some money.
What the initiator gives as an instruction, as an exercise, must be taken just like the prescription of the doctor. And if one says, "No, I will not do it today, I am tired now and I do not know how it can do me any good," one's mind is not in the right place. One should not have taken the trouble of going to the initiator and having given him the trouble. And if a person does the practices and has no faith in them, nor in the initiator, then he will not receive benefit just the same. It is very easy to say, "I know this," but it is very difficult to say, "I know nothing." And the moment one says, "I know nothing," that is the moment one begins to learn and to know what is worth knowing. Never go to your initiator therefore with knowledge. No matter how much knowledge you have, it is of no use, it is not wanted there. It is not the path that requires knowledge to be taken to the initiator. The best thing is to keep it away and go like an empty cup that may be filled. The cup that is already full with something will not be filled.
And one might ask, "Are they not all initiated in the Sufi Order, whoever comes? Are they examined, are they tested, are they tried before their coming, that they come without anything?" It must be known that the method of the Sufi Order is different. The method of the Sufi Order is that the first initiation is to welcome, to admit. But after that every step one takes is examined more. One does not know it, but it is so Besides that, it must be understood that what you can take from the initiator by sympathy you cannot take by discussion. It is your sympathy which draws out the sympathy of your initiator, and what comes through that is the real knowledge.
The spiritual knowledge is never taught. Even the initiator cannot teach it in words; it is imparted, and that comes without words. It comes by a current of sympathy from the teacher to the pupil. Those who understand the real meaning of esoteric teaching, the initiator and the pupil, know that this is the most blessed friendship that there is. A friendship in the path of God, in the path of light, in the path of truth. And besides that, every worldly point of view must be kept away in connection with your initiator. One must know that what comes to one from the initiator cannot be valued, it cannot be priced, it cannot be made limited. And therefore there must not be a thought of reckoning, of give and take.
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And there is an attitude that one can have towards the prophet. The attitude towards the prophet must be so sacred that you cannot put it into words, an idea which you cannot express before another person. As soon as you express your idea before another person and put it into words, you only limit it. For instance, a Buddhist who, in order to convince a Hindu says, "Lord Buddha was the World Teacher,"--do you think he is raising Buddha? No, he is pulling him down. What is the world?
The universe is greater than the world. One cannot raise the prophet high enough. And as soon as one makes efforts by words--if a Muslim says that Muhammad was one of the many great prophets, only he was a little greater than the others--he brings him lower in the listener's estimation. Why compare? Comparison is not necessary. Our mouth is too small to compare the Great Ones. We are not entitled to fix them as so and so, saying that there are four masters coming, or ten masters coming, or eight masters in the world, and that to each master we assign an area on the map of the world. It is all insolence.
At all times, whenever the Message was given, the thoughtful have always refrained from limiting their prophet by words. And if there ever came a question of comparison of one teacher with another, they have always said, "Is it not one Soul, not one Spirit, the Spirit of Guidance?" No matter in how many names and in how many forms the Spirit of Guidance comes, it is the same. Why compare the outward appearances? And what are we to compare with our limited knowledge? Those who happen to live in the time when the prophetic message is given and those who are brought into the presence of the prophet to listen to the living words, if they will not seal their lips, who should seal them? Hafiz says, "Think of the shell in the sea. No sooner the dewdrop from Heaven falls into it, then it closes its lips. And what comes out of it after a time? A pearl, which is most valuable!"
God Bless You.
"Superhuman" and Hierarchy
August 10, 1926
Beloved Ones of God,
I will speak this evening on the subject of what is called "superhuman." The difference between human and superhuman is not the difference of their nature, it is the difference of man's conception. That which man cannot comprehend appears to him superhuman. It is human, but because he cannot comprehend it, he calls it superhuman. It is the same thing as saying, "the other world." A world which is around him, which is within him, which surrounds him and in which he moves and makes his life and yet he is not aware of it, that world he calls "the other world." It is this very world, but because he cannot comprehend it he calls it he calls it the other world.
It is the same thing with heaven, that which is within man in the form of different planes, different spheres, the spheres which his consciousness touches knowingly or unknowingly so often in twenty-four hours. And yet he calls them heaven, something that he cannot approach, something that he does not know. In reality it is within him, it surrounds him, it is around him, he is in heaven and heaven is in him. It is the same thing with the word "superhuman. " We call it superhuman because that part of a human being is beyond man's comprehension. Man looks for mystery, and he is himself a mystery.
And now we come to the question of hierarchy. The notion of a spiritual hierarchy has existed in all different religions and has been believed by all mystical and esoteric institutions of all ages. And today humanity is so far away from that ideal. Yet they cannot form any institution, whatever it may be, without a certain hierarchy. Even the kitchen and dining room cannot be managed without a chef. Nor can a factory be managed without a supervisor. Nor can an army exist without a commander and generals and colonels.
No doubt, man is against this idea, but at the same time he cannot change it. He will change names, names of different ranks, and names of offices; but he cannot change the inner principle of hierarchy. It is impossible to change it. And why is man rebelling against it today? Is it because he has become wiser? No. It is because he has become more proud. The wiser he becomes, the more he will understand that it is natural.
And when we look at nature--and especially that nature which shines in heaven and which is the sign of the whole construction of the entire world, of the universe--that gives us the proof of this fact, that all the planets are not the same. There is a hierarchy among the stars and planets, and there are influences of stars and planets upon one another, and in this way the whole cosmic system is built. The Creator has made it so, and man can never change it. What he can change is the names, which he is readily doing, which he is interested in doing every day.
As it is necessary in worldly things, so in spiritual things it is necessary also. And on that basis the religions--whether the Christian religion or the Jewish religion or the Muslim religion or the Hindu religion--on that hierarchical basis the religions have been built. And not only the religions but the esoteric schools, where from beginning to end there is the thought of equality, where there is the thought of raising the consciousness of each man to the highest degree of the perfectly democratic institution, even there to begin with there is hierarchy. But then there is a hierarchy of initiations and of initiators, a hierarchy which is intended, which is made to do its work. And all such dispositions as that of the saint and of the master and of the prophet belong to that hierarchy of the initiates.
Now this hierarchy can be seen in traditions in two different forms: the Hindu and Buddhist form, and the form which belonged to Jerusalem, that of Christianity, of Judaism, and of Islam. There are two divisions of the Hindu form. One division is the claim of godhead; for instance, Mahadeva, Shiva, claimed to be the godhead. And so it was with Rama, and the same with Krishna. And then there was another division, that of Buddha. Buddha did not claim to be the godhead. His claim was that he found the key to the mystery of life, that he found the road to perfection, that he found the remedy to the disease of the soul; that was his claim. No doubt, it was most democratic is its essence. He showed to every person that the key is in himself, that the mystery is in himself, that the road he can find within if he will look for it. And Buddha was destined to serve the world in this manner.
And when we come to the prophets of the Near East, we find that Christ, Moses, and Muhammad, and besides these three all other prophets who came time after time, did not claim to be godheads. Their claim was that they represented the spiritual hierarchy. Even that was not the claim, that was the interpretation. The claim was that of service to God's message. No doubt, it is the church and it is the religion of afterwards which made different interpretations of Jesus Christ's words. For instance, in calling upon God as the father, he was interpreted as being the son, but especially different from other children of God.
The son was separated from other children of God, claiming that the son was different. But in the words of Jesus Christ you will not see this. You will see it in the words of those who have interpreted it in this form. But if it had not been done in this way the church would not have been built, because mankind would not have understood the depth of the Master's mission. Therefore the claim was necessary, distinction was necessary. If the world had been ripe to understand the Master's mission, distinction would not have been necessary. They would have raised the Master to the top of their heads. But even that special distinction people did not understand. What did they do in the end with the Master?
Nevertheless, all the prophets of the Beni-Israel claimed themselves only to be the prophet, someone who brought the message of God. Either it was brought to the king, or to the people, or to a community, whether a large community or a small community. And you can see in the message distinctly where he says, "I am His servant, who is engaged to bring His message to humanity." He never spoke about godhead. Besides, in the words of Jesus Christ, as well as of other prophets, you will always see the idea of God raised high, and they themselves always kept back.
But by this I do not wish to say that this was a good manner, or the other way of the Hindus was better or worse. I only wish to say that, because the people of India were of that nature and character and temperament, if that claim were not held before them by the master they would not have believed him, they would not have listened to him. They did not want at that time a servant of God. They wanted God Himself standing before them, that they could see Him. Perhaps the same claim, if it was made in Jerusalem, would have a hard time. There the claim was different, and not, "I am the servant of God," but, "I am the prophet of God." That was the claim there. Because the people there were in that condition, in that particular stage of evolution, the message was given in that way. But the spirit of the message was the same, the central theme of the message was the same. There was no difference.
The world changes from its infancy to childhood, from childhood to youth, from youth to middle age, and from middle age to old age. Naturally, therefore, the manner, the method by which the message is given changes also. The manner of this time is no claim, but the Message. As it was prophesied by the Prophet Muhammad, "After me there will not be a claim, but the message itself will be the proof, not the claim." And therefore those who have risen after the time of Muhammad and claimed to be prophets have had a bad time. They had a bad time for the very reason that the real message was not allowed to be given in that form. It was not meant that it should be given in that form, with claims. The message should prove itself to be the message, and need no claim.
And now many today are apt to understand the message of God to be transmitted in the same way as the message of the mediums. And there are some who understand the message in the same way as they understand an obsession: that a man who is obsessed by a philosopher begins to speak a philosophy, and when his obsession has gone, then he cannot speak about it. And it is true, too. There are persons who will speak most intelligently on philosophy, on metaphysics, at the time when they are obsessed. And when the obsession has gone, they are left just like a horse without a rider, because when they speak they are not themselves.
I have known of a girl in Bombay, who never learned Persian in her life, nor Arabic, but there used to come a condition upon her when she would speak in Arabic and Persian. And the parents were so surprised that they brought learned men who understood Persian and Arabic, and she discussed with them on philosophical and metaphysical subjects for hours, and so wonderfully that very often she defeated them in the debate. And yet when that influence went from her, she could not even understand one word of Persian.
That has nothing to do with the prophetic message. God does not take hold of a certain body and obsess a certain body in order to give His message to the world. These two things are quite different; an obsessed person is quite different from the message of the prophet. This must be distinctly understood.
And then there is another point, that of the medium who tunes himself into a negative state, where any soul can take hold of his body for a moment and begin to speak through him. Sometimes the medium says right, sometimes the medium says wrong, sometimes true things and sometimes things which are false. But it has nothing to do with the prophetic message; it is the abuse of the name of the prophetic message. When the medium uses it there is a mediumistic message, and when an obsessed person uses it there is a message of obsession. But now one might ask, "What is the nature of God's message?" As many souls as God has created, so many methods God can use to deliver His message.
And for man to say that in this manner or in that manner the message comes, or for man to analyze that the message must come in this form or in that form, is the greatest mistake. I do not mean to say that the prophets did not hear the Voice of God, for God can talk louder than thunder. I do not mean to say that the prophet did not talk with God, as Moses did on Mount Sinai, because the personality of God can be more concrete in the eyes of the prophet than any other person existing in the world when once he is in communion with God. As you will read in the Gayan, "Make God a reality, and God will make you the truth."
But the words that have come from the depth of the heart of the prophets, they were words of God just the same. The prophets did not have to hear the word of God through their physical ears in order to say, "This is the word of God." The prophet is the mouthpiece of God. The depth of his heart is the throne of God, and therefore every word that is spoken in the prophetic mission by prophets of any age is a living word, and it is the message.
But then again there comes a question. In the sacred books of the Muslims there are two kinds, one called the Qu'ran and the other called the Hadith. The Qu'ran is supposed to be the word of God, and the Hadith is supposed to be the word of the Prophet. And one might ask, "What is the reason of it?" The reason is one of consciousness. At one moment the consciousness of the Prophet has reached to such a height that the word that comes from the mouth of the Prophet cannot be the word of the Prophet, it can only be the word of God. But then there are other moments when the consciousness has come down, just as the thermometer goes up and down. That is the condition.
One might say, "Why must there be such a condition, why can it not be still?" Nothing living can be still. Can water be still? If it is still it is no more water. The water must rise and fall. Can air be still? If the air be still the end of the world will come. Can fire be still? If fire be still, it would be extinguished. Even the earth does not stand still, it allows the plants and trees to grow. Therefore the soul of the prophet, which must be life itself, cannot be in a still position. The consciousness must go higher, as high as possible, and then come down. And therefore this moving action will make the prophet say the word of God one moment and his own words the next. It is therefore that Muhammad knew the time when he was saying the word of God. And there were other times when he felt quite a human being, one like everybody, and what he said were words of wisdom, but he called them, "the words of the Prophet." And in this way the Hadith was distinguished from the Qu'ran.
Then one finds the same thing in the ancient Hindu scriptures: there are the Puranas and there are the Vedas. Both are sacred scriptures, but one scripture, the Vedas, are called the words of God, and the Puranas are considered the sacred words given by the Master Valmiki. And therefore in all ages it is distinguished. And it gives us a key to the prophetic mission. That key is that the prophet is not obsessed, the prophet is not mediumistic; the prophet is a human being. And yet the consciousness of the prophet may rise to that height from where it brings the sense which is put into words through which the mystery of life is interpreted. God Bless You.
Faith and Doubt
August 17, 1926
Beloved Ones of God,
Faith and doubt are as the light and the darkness. The moments of faith are like the moments of the day, and the moments of doubt are like the moments of the night. And as day and night both come in life, so the hours of faith and hours of darkness also come. And yet it is the seeking of the soul to reach that stage where it feels faith, and it is the nature of the soul to gather around itself doubts. Therefore the soul attracts both faith and doubt. If it happens to attract doubts more, then more doubts will be gathered. If it attracts faith, then more and more faith will come.
Doubts are likened to the clouds. If there is one cloud, it will attract more clouds; and if there are clouds gathered together, still more clouds will be attracted to join them. And if there is one current of the sun shooting through the clouds it will scatter them. Once they are scattered, they will be scattered more and more, and more and more light will manifest to view. Doubts cover faith, but faith breaks doubts. Therefore faith is more dependable, and doubts only come and go.
It would not be an exaggeration if I said that doubt is a disease, a disease which takes away faith. It would be more appropriate to say that doubt is the rust that eats the iron-like faith. It is very easy to allow doubts to work, and it is difficult to keep faith. However much a person may be evolved, there comes a time when doubts take hold of him. And the moments when the person is in doubt the light of intelligence disappears. Therefore there is a constant conflict between doubt and faith. If there was not this enemy who always fought with faith, man could have done great things, wonderful things; every man would have done miracles, every man would have been perfect. But that shows that the greater your faith, the greater a person you are; the more deeply rooted your faith, the higher you reach.
One might ask: is it possible to develop faith? Is it possible to find faith? Yes. In every person there is a spark of faith somewhere hidden. But sometimes it is so covered and clouded and buried that it needs digging out. And what is it buried with? With the sand of doubts. As soon as the sand is removed, then faith, like water, springs up.
One can study this principle in a child; a child is born with faith. When you say, "This is water; this is bread; this is father; this is mother," the child does not refuse, the child does not say, "This is not so." The child at once takes it that it is so. It is afterwards that doubts begin to come, when the infant is grown up and hears a story and says, "But is it real?" Then doubts begin. Very often worldly knowledge gives more and more doubts; the experiences of worldly life make one doubt more and more. And when doubt becomes predominant in a person's nature, then he doubts everything and everyone.
He doubts those who should not be doubted and he doubts those who can be doubted: there is always a doubt before his eyes. No sooner does he cast his glance upon a person than the cloud of doubt stands between them. In this way inspiration is lost, power is lost, personality is lost; man has become a machine, a feelings are, what your being is, how much you are evolved, how deeply you feel, what your principles are, what your thoughts are. What he is concerned with is if you will sign the paper, if you will stamp that paper at once, and if there are two witnesses who see it at the same time!
It does not matter what you are, who you are, as long as the paper is perfect. We are coming to mechanical perfection. Worldly, earthly perfection is what we seek after. Five hundred years ago (this shows how gradually the world has changed) a Hindustani poet wrote, "Those days have passed when there was a value attached to man's personality." And that is so. It has been going downwards for some centuries. It seems that man has no trust, no faith in another man. What he trusts is the written word.
In the Greek story of Orpheus and Eurydice there is a beautiful teaching on this subject. The first part of the story is that Orpheus loved Eurydice, who was among the degenerated people. This shows that love even tried to raise a soul thrown down so deep in the depth of the earth. And then Orpheus knew that Eurydice was taken to the other world, and he began to sing a song by the power of which he won the gods of the lower worlds. And that shows us what power the word has, what power sound has, and how it appeals to cosmic forces.
The gods of the lower world were the cosmic forces, planetary influences, the conditions which were destined, the spirits, the powers that held in their hands the rein of the destiny. Orpheus in Arabic means "the knower," "the one who has the knowledge of life." In Arabic the knowledge of life is called "Arifat," and the knower is called "Arif." This also shows us that the real knowledge is the knowledge of sound, the knowledge of rhythm, the knowledge of word and of note. It is this knowledge which gives mastery in the higher or mystical or psychological music. As Wagner says, "Who has the knowledge of sound knows everything." Orpheus pleased the gods of the lower world, and they gave him the promise, "Eurydice will follow you, she follows you. The condition is that you will not look back."
Now this is the point which is concerned with the subject: that faith should be continued to the end. And there is another point: that one may have faith when climbing a hundred steps. One may go with faith ninety-five steps, and one may lose it at that time. With four steps still to be climbed one may lose faith, doubt may come, and the whole journey may be spoiled. And it very often happens in the lives of so many people that they are face to face with their success, and yet they fail. They have just approached what they wanted and then they lose.
In nearly every person's life you see it, and the greater the person the more you see this. Because the greater the person the more powerful his faith, and therefore he is able to see the value of faith. And at the same time it is just like sending a kite so far, and before it reached further it drops. And that enemy which causes this is doubt. As Orpheus went by the power of faith, Eurydice was drawn; his faith was drawing Eurydice. As he went forward in faith, so Eurydice was coming, following him. He could have gone to the other side of the world and Eurydice would have followed him. As much faith he had, so far Eurydice followed him. And there came doubt, the worst enemy of man, and said, "Look if she is really there." As soon as he turned back Mercury was there to lift her up and take her away.
One might do something for his whole life and accomplish it to a great extent. And by the lack of a little more faith one would lose it, and all that was done might be spoiled in a moment's time. How long does it take for a house to be built, and how long does it take to destroy it? How long does it take to make a business really prosperous, and how long does it take to fail? One moment. When one learns this principle and thinks on it, one begins to see that the whole world, with all that we hear and see and touch and feel, all this is illusion in the face of faith. Faith alone is reality; and compared with faith all else is unreal. But since we do not see faith with our own eyes, it is very difficult to call faith real and all else unreal. Because we don't see faith, our eyes cannot see it and we don't know where it is.
And now a question: how can one find faith in oneself, how can one develop faith? One can find faith by practicing self-confidence as the first thing, having self confidence even in the smallest thing. And today most of us have the habit, especially here, to say with everything, "perhaps. " It seems that a new word has come, and in French it is most used. For everything they say "perhaps," "perhaps it will happen." It is a kind of polite word, or a word of refined people, to show themselves pessimistic. I can see their reason, because they think that it is fanatic. And it is presumptuous and it is simple to say, "It will be," or, "It will come," or, "It will be accomplished," or, "It will be fulfilled." But to say "perhaps" makes us free from responsibility, of having committed ourselves. The more pessimistic a person, the more "perhapses" he uses. And this "perhaps" has gone so deep in souls today that they cannot find faith.
And after one's self-confidence is developed, the second thing is to trust another with closed eyes. And one might think that this is not always practical, and one might think that it might lead one to great loss. But at the same time, even that loss will be a gain, and even a thousand gains compared with the loss of faith will be as nothing. A person is richer if he has trusted someone and lost something that if he had not trusted someone and had something preserved that will one day be taken away from him. He could just as well have given it up. But you might say that every person who is simple is inclined to trust another. Yes.
But the difference between the wise person who trusts bravely and the simple person who trusts readily is a great difference. The wise person who trusts, if he is influenced by another person saying, "You may not or you must not trust a certain person," or even if he had a certain proof, even then that habit of trusting would remain with him. But that simple person, as soon as you say, "Oh, but what are you doing? You are trusting somebody who is not trustworthy," his trust will change. That is the difference between the wise person and the foolish person. The foolish person trusts because he does not know better; the wise person trusts because he knows that to trust is the best.
And the third step toward the development of faith is trust in the unseen which is called trust in God, that when you do not see before you any sign of something that should happen and yet you think, "Yes, it must happen, it will happen, it certainly must happen," and you have no doubt, then you trust is in God.
The first principle of the Sufi Message is faith. It is not occult study only, it is not scientific analysis, nor is it psychic phenomena. The first lesson of the Message is faith. And it is with faith that the Message will be spread. And we shall each work in our own way in serving, in spreading the Message. And it is with faith that the Message of God will be fulfilled. God Bless You.
Divine Guidance
August 24, 1926
Beloved Ones of God,
I will speak this evening on the subject of divine guidance. Since man seeks complexity in life, he always turns simple things into complex things. And the less simple man becomes, the more complex life becomes. It is because man himself becomes complex that the life becomes complex before him. All such beliefs as that in a guardian angel leading a person on life's path, or a spirit guide helping one along life's path, these are complex beliefs and they take one to complexity. One has already seen that the divine guidance appeared in one's infancy in the form of one's mother, in the form of one's father, in the form of those who have taken care of one in life, and yet one does not believe in divine guidance unless it be pictured in a complex manner.
If instead of telling you this I were speaking about attracting spirit guides, there would be thousands of persons listening to this lecture. But because God's message comes in simple words and it makes all difficult that is easy, and all complex things simple, it is therefore that the seekers after complexity keep away. If it can easily be achieved they do not think that it is truth; they think that truth must be realized by hard working. But if they want to work hard, there are many factories, there are so many industries where they can work hard. For seeking divine truth the less you work the better it is, the more peaceful you become and the more easily it comes.
Divine guidance can be recognized in five different aspects.
Intuition
One aspect and the principal aspect is intuition. It comes to the lower creation in the form of instinct, and to the human race it comes in the form of intuition. Be it inspiration, be it vision, be it revelation, it is one and the same. It is intuition, developed in different degrees. From childhood intuitively a child begins to see what is wrong for it and what is right for it. And only when the child becomes so obstinate that it does not feel even the intuition, at that time the child begins to grow.
But children apart, we see the same element, the same current of divine guidance, coming in the form of instinct in the lower creation. One sees that the animals and birds will not touch anything that will make them ill or that will bring death. They know their enemy's voice, even when they are young. The sound of the lion is known by a little rabbit. They say that the physicians of the ancient times learned so much from the bear, the bear who under different conditions, when it was ill, found different herbs to cure itself. And those who used to study nature in ancient times found the effects of different herbs in the forest by the help of these animals. The monkey is supposed to know so much about medicines that even when it is not well and when it is necessary that it must fast, it fasts. Man is afraid to fast for three days, but a monkey does. And I myself have seen a dog that fasted on Thursday every week. We used to call that dog Brahman.
Intuition disappears when a person has no confidence in his intuition. When a person does not hear the voice that comes from within, then intuition begins to retire from there. It not, it belongs to the heart of man; it is natural for man to be intuitive. It is not necessary that some persons have intuition and others have not. No one can exist without a soul, and intuition is the nature of the soul. Therefore those who do not feel intuition have only lost that faculty, that faculty has become buried. It does not mean that they never had the intuitive faculty.
Examples
And now the other aspect of knowing, of seeing the divine guidance, is in the form of examples. The one whose faculty of intuition becomes blunted, the next thing he can do is to observe such examples as will be of use, of guidance in his life, as they are sent before him. He is sent to such places and brought to such people or put in such conditions that the example that he may take will be a source of guidance for him. For instance, a person who has some little inclination of gambling, when he is brought to Monte Carlo and sees those who have lost every penny that they had, he has there an example for himself.
The divine guidance has sent him that example. And yet what generally happens? He does not see them; he does not look at those who have lost, he looks at those who have gained. In that way he builds his hope. Do you think that a person who loves to drink would look at a person who has become drunken, who has fallen in the street? He never looks at him. One might think, "Perhaps he is ashamed of himself." No, it is not so. He does not want to remind himself that he will have such a condition to meet, such an experience to meet. He turns his head and goes away from there. But what he would like to see is four persons sitting comfortably at a table, drinking and enjoying themselves nicely. A good example of the same he would like to see. But what does divine guidance do? It sends bad examples before him. He is brought often and often before bad examples, that he may see and learn from them. And yet man does not learn from them very often.
Spoken
And when the keen observation is also blunted, so that he can no longer keenly observe life, then he turns his back to examples shown before him. Then the third aspect of divine guidance is to speak. It may speak in the words of a child, it may speak in the words of a foolish person, it may speak in the words of a servant, it may speak in the words of a neighbor, it may speak in the words of a friend, it may speak in the words of a foe. And when the eyes are closed and when the ears are closed also, then even the third way of divine guidance also becomes fruitless.
I have heard a friend say, "Each time my groom told me not to go riding, if I went I had an accident." That groom was not a wise man, but what came from him was the voice of the spirit of guidance. He was innocent, he said it innocently. It is automatic that a person may say something to you, and that is the voice of God. Very often friends take the place of divine guidance, and they tell you something. That is the best, when friends tell you. When strangers take the place of divine guidance and tell you, that is worse. And what is still worse is when your enemies tell you.
Reward
Besides these three ways, there is the fourth way, and that is the way of temptation, in other words the way of reward. For all the good one does, all that one does that is right, there comes a reward in some form or other, in the form of wealth, in the form of fame, in the form of success, in the form of popularity, in some form or other. In the form of sympathy, friendship, love, comfort: in some form or the other, reward comes. And that reward teaches you to keep on that path and not to go astray from there. But at that time reward is most blinding.
As soon as one thinks, "I am rich," one becomes intoxicated. And then it is quicksilver, it runs away quickly. And when one thinks, "I should have learned my lesson before," it is too late. In the same way one becomes intoxicated by friendship, love, sympathy, that is given to one one abuses it, one does not value it, one does not appreciate it. The end is that it disappears, and then one begins to realize, "I had wealth, more than wealth, and then I lost it." And then it is too late.
Health is the same way. As long as one enjoys good health one never thinks what a privilege, what a blessing it is. It is afterwards, when it no longer exists, that one begins to realize, "What have I lost!" Life, as Omar Khayyam says, is a wine press, and every good thing that comes, comes just like a wine. It is a reward; but this reward may intoxicate a person, and a person may forget to appreciate it and to be grateful for it. With the mere fact of his forgetting that privilege, the reward is taken away from him, and then he begins to value it and appreciate it, when he is empty-handed.
Punishment
The fifth way of divine guidance is the way of punishment, in the form of a loss in business, in the form of a loss of friendship, in the form of a loss of health and strength, in the form of a loss of happiness and joy. Then a lesson is taught, and that becomes very difficult. Very often a person says, "How cruel God can be." But one does not know that four methods were used first, and when all those four methods were not understood by man then the fifth method was used. It is most kind of God, it is the greatest compassion, that four opportunities were given, if one would learn, if one would understand.
And when one has lost the four opportunities, then the fifth opportunity is given. It is an opportunity, too. No matter in what form a punishment comes, as Tagore says, "It is the tuning of the string; the string of the violin is tuned." And while tuning the string stretches, but it is brought to its proper tone. The punishment in one's life is the same. No matter what its form, when it comes it comes to raise man's consciousness. There are many punishments which we can see and recognize, and there are many punishments which we cannot see and recognize; and there are many punishments which are in the form of reward, and yet they are worse punishments. And no one recognizes it. But at the same time what is the punishment? The punishment of the God of compassion is a reward too. God Bless You.
The Prophetic Life
September 7, 1926
Beloved Ones of God,
I will speak this evening on the subject of the prophetic life. There have been many great teachers who have been sent on earth to serve God and help humanity, and their lives are different from one another. Yet behind their lives there is a plan, a plan which is quite similar in the life of them all. For instance, God's plan was carried out in the nursery. It was quite unusual for the kings of India to have their crown princes kept in the house, in the palace, till they were young men, and not to bring them in touch with the world. It has never happened before nor has it happened afterwards.
It was God's plan that was working through the mind of Buddha's father, prescribing for Buddha this solitude. This way of purification, which went on for a long time, from his early childhood to the age when he was a grown-up man, was because the spirit that was going to find the remedy for the freedom of the soul needed that rest, that solitude, and that silence for his great heart to mature. One might think it would be cruel on the part of the parents to even think of such a thing, but it proved to be most kind on the part of the parents. It was because it was meant that it should be so.
Then we come to the life of Rama. Young Rama came from the abode of Vashista, his teacher. He lived with him in the forest, in the solitude, and saw little of the palace life of his father. No sooner was he married, according to the custom of Hindus to marry early in their lives, then he was sent to vanuasa; which means "the sacred exile" of twelve years, away from home. In the tradition of the Hindus we do not read of such a thing happening before or afterwards. It was only in the case of Rama. It is not true that there was a custom of the Hindus and especially of the kings that the prince should be sent to vanuasa for twelve years.
By this I wish to explain to you how destiny has from the beginning taken in hand souls who were going to be the servants of God. One can imagine: a child who was a son of a king and who was sent first to the holy man Vashista in his simple abode in solitude, where he lived the most simple life till he was grown up. In his early youth, no sooner was he married than he was sent to the forest. The difficulties of forest life were not enough. To add to those difficulties Sita was sent with him and then was taken away by Ravana to make the trouble complete, that there should not remain one little possibility of pain that he did not experience. For a prince it would have been quite enough to be in the forest, to live on leaves and flowers and fruits and to wander about without a roof over his head in the sun and storm and rain. But it was meant that the test should be complete.
Then we come to the life of Krishna. From his early childhood he was given into the hands of Yashoda, a milkmaid; he was brought up in the house of a peasant, with his princely soul and kingly spirit. And there again we see how with that unique spirit that was born in Krishna he moved about and played and was friendly with the girls and boys of the peasants living in Brindavan, how they became attracted to him, how they were most devoted to him, how they loved him in his childhood. Krishna became in that peasant life and that frame the light and life of Brindavan. He had not given a message at that time, nor had he spoken of philosophies. On the contrary, there are many stories, sometimes even exaggerated, of his playfulness, which proved him to be more playful that the little boys of Brindavan. But that did not make any difference. The light was there, the life was there, the spirit that was going to shine was proving its origin from that time.
For the poetry and for the music of Hindus, Krishna is the central theme. Krishna is the beloved character upon whom are built many songs, songs of love and quarrel and conflict and doubt. And all these songs are sung by singers and heard by people with love and adoration and admiration. Not one person judges the different little shades, the light and shade of words and of meaning, expressed by poets in connection with Krishna's life, with his virtuous principles. The poems, the songs of Krishna's life are so beautiful and so charming, so winning, that most righteous and virtuous people forget for one moment their high principles and begin to hear and enjoy the love lyrics of young Krishna.
And then we come to the Near East, beginning with Moses found in the water and taken by the princess. That in itself shows an unusual life and an unusual plan that destiny had made. Moses showed spirit and will as he grew, and through all difficulties he maintained his conviction till it became fruitful.
And we come to the life of Jesus Christ, born in the wilderness and opposed from birth by the king, whose opposition continued. We see how, before he could speak, his movements, his glance inspired and blessed those who came in contact with the master. At an early age he spoke with the religious people and they lost their word.
Now we come to the Prophet Muhammad. His father, Abdullah, had died before the birth of the Prophet. He did not see his son, and the child was left with the mother. And even the mother had to be taken away soon in his life in order to make him understand what the life of an orphan is. He was being prepared to sympathize when he grew up to be the Prophet, so that from his childhood he must experience the absence of the father and then absence of the mother. It shows how the masters were made lame first, in order to take heavenly feet; their earthly feet were taken away and heavenly feet were given to them so they could stand on earth again, and stand more firmly. Because their struggle was great, their task was great, and the opposition and tests that they had to go through were great. If they had not heavenly feet they could not stand against all the difficulties of life.
Now we come to the manner of inspiration, how it came. In that also one has a resemblance to the other. The inspiration of Buddha came at that moment when he was sent into the world and looked at the world with his matured spirit. The first glance of Buddha falling upon the woes of the world took away his interest from the palace and grandeur and earthly success and earthly gain. Everywhere, wherever he looked, he saw pain. He saw pain behind pleasure, he saw pain covered by joy, he saw pain hiding behind what is called happiness. He looked at pain that was uncovered, he looked at pain that was hiding itself from the eyes of everyone, and he saw where all this pain comes from.
It comes from man's limitations. And there he saw that no matter what you give him--wealth, power, position, all manner of pleasure and happiness--still man will remain in pain, in trouble; still he will have sorrow. If there is a way of coming out of it, it is only one way, and that way is the way of perfection. Therefore, instead of finding thousands of ways of helping humanity, he stuck to one way: to help man towards spiritual perfection, to help man find his power, his inspiration, his happiness, his peace, not outside, but within himself.
And then we come to Rama. All that he had gone through was a lesson for him. Now he acted through different situations and showed practical philosophy. The way of war and the way of peace, the way of ruling his people justly, the way of sympathizing with them, the way of serving them, the way of lifting them up, the way of raising humanity, all these different ways of Rama have been an example for ages. One who studies the Ramayana will see that the legend of Rama, all how he went through, how he took it, and how he reacted, is all a lesson. Not a lesson only for a king or a chief; it is a lesson for every man, because every man has a kingdom of his own. However insignificant a man may be, he has his own kingdom in this world, and he has his duty, his responsibility towards his kingdom. And the way Rama went through test and warfare all shows the manner to use with one's own kingdom.
And when we come to Krishna, in spite of all the love and lyric that is connected with his life, in spite of all the beauty and joy and color that his life gives, making a -beautiful picture of his youth, he had to face a tremendous problem. And that was to defend the five brothers, the Pandavas, who were exiled from their kingdom. One might ask what had a mystic, a prophet, a teacher, to do with this problem? But this problem was a means, a means to bring out the message that was meant for Krishna to give. And this message was an all-sided philosophy. It is not the philosophy of one particular pitch, but it is a philosophy which contains all the notes of the music of life. If one reads that little book, the Bhagavad Gita, one finds that it is a phenomenon, that everything is dealt with: pride and honor and bravery and courage and fight and harmony and peace and love and surrender. Imagine!
It shows how everything in life has its meaning and its place, if you can only know how to use it for its best advantage. Krishna has shown that war has its meaning and peace has its meaning and power has its meaning and resignation has its meaning. It is not wise to consider a few things of life of no use and the things which one considers of great importance as the only useful things. One must see life as a whole, and that everything that is in life has its meaning. And if one can utilize everything of life towards its own purpose, then the purpose of life is fulfilled.
When we come to Moses we hear of the communication that Moses received from God on Mount Sinai. This gives us the lesson that Mount Sinai means the highest point the consciousness can reach. And it is by the consciousness touching the highest point that one receives the message of God. Climbing on Mount Sinai means climbing that height that bridges the distance between the imperfect and the perfect one. Imperfection is at the bottom of the mountain of life; perfection is at the top of it. The one who can climb this mountain and reach the top, for him it is easy to communicate with God. It only means that the heart that can reach the plane of the Absolute Being and still have individual consciousness will be able to communicate from there. There is one teaching of Moses which is known as the Kabbala, which is known only to mystics. The mystic teaching of Moses was handed down for ages to mystics, and they named it Ilme Zafar ("science of Zafar"). And then we come to the life of Christ. You read in the Bible every answer that the Master gave to his disciples. Some came with their doubts, some with their reasons, some with their confusions, some with perplexity, some with faith and without sense, some with sense but without faith, some with devotion only, and others with curiosity. All asked questions to examine, sometimes to be wise before the Master, sometimes for curiosity, sometimes to learn. You can see the compassion of the Master with all of them, the same with friends and foes. And in simple words such answers were given that one may remember them for his whole life, and each word will prove to be a torch on the path. If it was not for the life of Christ, if we did not have all the legends with their mystery and their meaning, we could not have gotten this wisdom. Besides, the birth of Christ, the crucifixion and resurrection, all have a meaning. And that meaning shows the way.
When we come to the story of the Prophet Muhammad--who was three times exiled by the people--nothing could take away his faith and conviction in the mission for which he was sent. He faced insolence and mockery from all sides; even his relatives would not join him. His uncle, who was the nearest relative, only stood for him because he was his nephew, but not because of his teachings. Under all these conditions he kept giving the message. And as Moses received the message on the Mount Sinai, the Prophet went on the Mount of Hira. In the same way as Buddha had the problem of finding the remedy for humanity, there was a problem for the Prophet: before him the ignorance of humanity was standing like a rocky mountain. It was to break that mountain, to remove that mountain, that the strength and power of a soldier were given to the Prophet.
And the moment that the Prophet began to receive the message of God, do you think that it came only from one side? It came from everywhere! The voice from within was so strong that the Prophet heard its resonance in the wind, in the fluttering of the leaves, in the running of the water, in the sky, and on the ground. The whole atmosphere was full of the resonance of words that came to the Prophet from within. It seemed as if the absolute was speaking, as if the moon was speaking, as if the air was speaking, as if there was nothing in space except the living word that began to come, that he began to hear. No doubt if he had been an ordinary man he would have been bewildered. But Muhammad saw that he could not for one moment have been able to withstand the strain on his nerves, on his mentality, on his spirit. Only the spirit of the Prophet was meant to hear the voice of God that he heard.
And what was the consequence? The consequence was that everything went wrong, and yet the faith stood right. Everything in life--circumstances, consequences--would push him back, and he alone would push himself forward. In this way the prophet has advanced through life. That shows what power the message of God has behind it, that it is in itself love and wisdom and blessing and beauty and harmony and peace, and at the same time the power of the Almighty. God Bless You.
There are two Kinds Among the Souls
There are two kinds among the souls who belong to the spiritual hierarchy, God-man and man-God. The former is the God enveloped in man, and the latter man veiled by God. That is really speaking the difference between the two Biblical terms the "son of God" and the "son of man." For in one there is a descent of God from Heaven to the earth, in the other there is ascent of man, from earth to heaven.
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[man-God] In the former God directly comes on the earth in the time of need in the form of man. In this case from infancy the soul shows God-hood, which no doubt develops with years.
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[God-man] In the latter man rises toward divine perfection more strongly drawn by it, and attracts to himself others also to raise them upwards; he is the guide. He may be a guru, a teacher, a master, or even a prophet. But the God-man, who in India is called Ishwara Awatara, the incarnation of God, or the Godhead, begins as a healer of souls and culminates in a savior. May he appear as a king, as a beggar, as a preacher, as a wanderer, as a priest, as a teacher, as a poet, as a warner, he begins his life as a Nabi, even in a small way, which culminates in Rasul, whose influence spreads throughout the world.
The Messenger
The souls who believe in a Messenger in any age because of his miraculous powers or by seeing the belief of his adherents, are the followers; but the souls to whom the presence of the Messenger is the evidence and to whom his words are a proof, and whose own belief is their conviction, they are the foundation of the world's new Temple.
The disciples of the Teacher are as all objects of heaven and earth are to the sun. Some are respondent to the light of the sun, become hot and cold, some grow and thrive and bring out their color and fragrance. Some close their eyes and become blind in the light of the sun. In the heart of some arises cheerfulness with the rising of the sun. Some begin their life's activities as the sun rises, some await the rising of the sun during dark depressing night, in pain and suffering. Some look forward to the clearing of the clouds and to see the smiles of the sun.
But the stars and planets in heaven are still more respondent and are connected with the special current of the sun, their greatness is in their nearness to the sun. So are the disciples who are close to the Spirit of the Teacher; they are his special planets. They give out the light of the sun that is reflected in their heart.
The Messenger has five aspects to his being. The first the Divine, the second the Ideal, the third the Prophet, the fourth the Message-Bearer, the fifth the Teacher. Four of these aspects have been terminated so that they may not be distinguished except one, the fifth, which is the Teacher. The absence of the ideal makes it easier for the idealistic devotee to make his ideal greater, but the presence of the ideal most often hinders the devotee in strengthening his ideal, for the ideal that grows and expands in the imagination of the devotee will always excel the ideal personality who is living on earth the life of limitations.
The Message is the answer to the cry of the individual and collective souls.
The Message Which has Come in all Ages
The Message which has come in all ages and has been called and known by different names, this very Message is now the Sufi Message, and therefore the work that this Message has to accomplish is not only with a section of the world, but with the whole humanity.
The Message has two aspects, as has been the case in all times, the esoteric aspect and the exoteric. In the exoteric Message it has all that is necessary for that aspect, and yet it cannot very well be compared with many other religions, for the reason that we have in our devotional service in the Church of All, the Universal Worship, a form, and yet the form is taken from the form of all the different religions. We have scriptures, the scriptures of all religions.
We adhere to the Teacher, but to the Teachers of all religions. And thus it shows from the democratic aspect that it is the Message of the day. That idea that every other religion has held is of holding one's particular Teacher in high esteem and disregarding the other Teachers, considering one's own scripture the only scripture and the others of no worth. Therefore this form introduced in our service proves by its nature two things: its democratic tone and at the same time its being the message of the time.
And as in all times there is need of the esoteric side; that need remains and will always remain. This aspect has been taught in the ancient schools and so it is today the same truth which was ever taught in schools of Sufis; it cannot be different. The only difference is the difference of the form in which it is presented with the consideration of the psychology of the time and the people to whom it is given.
In this great work which has been the destiny of our Movement, the only thing that gives me strength, courage, and consolation, in spite of difficulties and troubles, is to find some sincere mureeds around me whose earnestness I feel and in whose faith I have not the slightest doubt. And having some few who are sincere in their faith and belief, and standing firm and steady with their Murshid in the strife, to them I would like to speak to our needs and wants. Today what we greatly need is the field-workers in the Cause, those who would be willing to travel if they were needed, and those who cannot travel, that they may work in the place where they are; the workers who will make, I am sure, a phenomenon owing to their belief in the Message and what it is to bring to humanity.
They must remember that no message, great or small, has been accepted by all and rejected by none; where there is praise there is blame. Neither do we care for praise nor blame; our ears are closed to both, praise and blame. We do not need to think whether it will be a success or not; if so, we do not know what the Message is or whose it is. We need not let that question enter our minds for one moment, for the success belongs to the One Whose Message it is, Who is the Owner of all success. We are the workers and we must work.
During my tour through America I have felt more than ever this great need of field-workers. If one thinks he is not capable, he will be incapable and with all good intention not able to help; but the one who has trust and confidence in Murshid will see the reason behind Murshid's suggestions.
The true teacher is the true pupil and the true pupil the true teacher. The path of teachership is from beginning to end pupil-ship, and the path of the true pupil is all along a teachership whose heart becomes reflected by a Teacher, so that all he says and does is what the teacher himself would say and do. And therefore every one of my mureeds, sincere and (in) earnest, must know he is the channel of the Message, and must await patiently the call, and answer it without doubt or hesitation, with courage and hope.
The other need just now is the need of a Temple for the Universal Worship. There is no doubt that one day this will be accomplished; it is even possible that it will be before one can imagine. But now that destiny has made your Murshid settle here in Suresnes, not very far from here, in this vicinity a miniature Temple may be erected; and on such a model, however small, that it may be copied in the different countries. There are many ideas for this question, but when the outline is engraved in our hearts the rest will follow. So I hope all mureeds, with their devotion and sympathy, will think of this whenever they can.
Besides this is the consideration of the Message which is noted on paper by now. My earnest mureeds are the trustees of what is given and will be given; to collect it, to guard it, to protect it, and preserve it for future generations. Some may be published and given to humanity, and some of it must be preserved for a time, or perhaps forever; that must be kept with great care. They must be discreet, considerate, and careful about it; and the best way of serving the Message is to make one's whole life that Message, that one may become an example of the Message. The more conscious we become of our responsibility, the more we shall be enabled to accomplish our life's purpose successfully.
The Sufi Message
In all periods of the world-history and all ancient traditions one finds traces of a call from above given to communities, nations, races, and the world at large. In the Qu'ran it is said: We have sent our Messenger in all parts of the earth that people may not say they were not warned in time. All traditions hold that a Messenger is given to the world at the time of the world's need. No doubt people have given unnecessary and greater importance to the personality of the Messenger instead of to the Message. And this is the great error that humanity made at every age. While taking the Messenger instead of recognizing the Message they regarded the pen that wrote the letter instead of the letter's contents. The letter and the writer are important, the pen is only the instrument. Thus differences came in religion. The Message had always been given in periods when it was more needed loudly given, when it was less needed gently.
Christ has said: I am the Alpha and the Omega. This means that He is first and last and thus is ever there, not that He is absent in between times. The prophecy of Muhammad was: Now that the world has received a Message through a man who is subject to all limitations and conditions of human life, the Message will in the future be given without the claim.
The Message
The Sufi Movement is an embodiment, a body, which is being composed to deliver that Message which is the Message of God. Therefore my mureeds are the particles of that body, the organs; and the more they will realize that, the more they will know their responsibility.
But so long as they will not realize they will stand apart, in spite of all devotion, thinking that the Message is the work of the Murshid.
But in fact it is not so: the Message is the Message of God, and you all, including Murshid, make the Embodiment.
It is the Embodiment, that is to give the Message.
You all--including Murshid--are the servants of this Message. Our hearts have been connected in the link of initiation in the Sufi Movement; they are as one heart, and as one heart (is) offered to God, the perfection of love, harmony, and beauty, that it may become His shrine, and the need of the living God in the world today may be answered.
The more you will think, the more you will see the importance of the humble little work we are doing.
However small our number, still the power behind is great, and trusting in that might, we are working. We do not fear, because of lack of material means. Our hope is in Him Whose Cause it is, and we shall work upon that hope. The wealth for us is God Himself.
Questions Concerning the Message
"What is, in brief, the Message of the Sufi Order?"
There is only one Message which comes at every period of time, whenever it is necessary, as a reminder of the same Truth which has been given again and again. It is therefore that the Sufi Order does not give any doctrines as special to Sufism. Doctrines do not belong to the Message, they belong to the Church. Every time in the world's history, whenever the Message was given, it struck a particular note.
The central theme of this Message is to produce in man the consciousness of the divinity of the human soul, it is towards this end the teaching of the Order is given.
"By what means does Sufism make alive the hearts of men?"
The more you are acquainted with the Sufi Message, the more you will feel convinced that it is not only given in words; but that behind the words there is life--a life which is divine life, which is eternal life, a life which would make the dead alive. At this moment when the heart of the world is dead, it is the Call, a Divine Call, which is awakening the heart of humanity. His will must be done.
The Inner School
(The Hague, June 6, 1924)
The inner school is for the few who seek for truth earnestly, steadily and with patience, who are awake to the voice of truth and will have patience all along the journey. The inner school is not something man follows, a form, a dogma, or a belief. The inner school has not got a dogma, neither a a belief; the work of the inner school is to tune the soul, to raise the individual from the plane where he stands, to uplift the soul.
This is a school where one learns to know himself, where one comes to understand life.
It is as the picture is given in diwan in a poetry: once a lion was wandering in the woods and found among the sheep a cub of lion. He gave it a great surprise by saying to it, "Cub of lion"; but it also ran away with the sheep. The lion followed the cub and when he approached, it was much frightened. "Why?" the lion said, "You are a lion too". "No, no", was the answer. "I am a sheep; I am no lion, I am frightened, I tremble". But the lion said: "I will not let you go among the sheep, you are a lion". The cub was very much frightened but followed the lion. They came near a pool of water; the sun was clear, the water still. The lion said: "While you drink this water, see your reflection and look at me". And it saw for itself: "I am the same as this lion. Why do I run among the sheep? Let the sheep go and I'll do the works of lion".
That is the work of the inner school. Initiation which Murshid gives to the mureed is as the call of the lion. The lake is the heart. When in the heart one begins to seek, one finds self, the secret of which one had not known fully.
Therefore know that you have to expect nothing by initiation, that it does not give a new power, a great power or visions. No, this school does not pretend to give things of that sort. It is a school of tradition of thousands of years, to which belonged saints and sages whose names are found in manuscripts of the past, whose names are not imaginary names, whose lives can be found in the history of the past. Therefore know that behind us is a backbone of tradition of masters, prophets, wise men, and sages who have proved to have understood the secret of life.
Knowing this, we shall be conscious of the dignity of the path of initiation in the school of the Sufi Movement. How can this dignity be observed? First by closing the lips. It is the light-hearted who throw all out what is given to them, who speak of spiritual matters to anyone. This should not be your manner. You must show the lion's heritage, keeping the lips closed on sacred matters. Mind not if another has a different belief, a different conception. The Sufi is above the differences of opinions. The whole secret of this path is to journey with the lips closed. No discussion, no argument, not too much talking on the subject of the soul which is too sacred to be talked about with everyone. Besides, if you disagree, if you feel contempt for another custom, another manner, it shows your limitation. By tolerance, by understanding, by forgiving one shows that the heart is large enough to assimilate all things. The ordinary mentality respects certain things and other things it does not like. The more one becomes spiritual, the more one is assimilating, understanding. The higher one is spiritually evolved, the greater is the willingness, the readiness to forgive. "To know all is to understand all."
One might ask: Through the school of initiation, what does one learn? No principle? What principle has one to adopt? And I say: There is only one principle and that is the largeness of your heart. And who will judge it? You yourself. Every thought, word and feeling you must weigh, you must find out whether it is large or small, or whether it shows lack of evolution, imperfection. Success in this school depends upon the unfoldment of those who belong to it.
Man has an earthly body but a heavenly soul. His earthly parentage is apparent; his real parentage is God's parentage. The more aristocratic and noble, the more conscious, the more there is the expression of the divine. Then whatever one thinks or feels or does, one expresses the divine. This is the right principle. There is no need for Murshid to tell you what is small or large. As the eyes can discriminate, the heart can discriminate whether what we think, say or do is small or large. A person may be in a high rank or position, he may have a great wealth; if his heart is small, he is a small person. Whatever he does is small. Another may be void of all that belongs to the world and yet if his heart is large, he is great. In this way, by struggling with the self one will find nobility, which is a divine heritage. Thus life will become harmonious, an expression of the divine.
Besides, there is another thing and that is meditation. By that is not meant to pray on Sunday, or every evening, or to close the eyes for a few minutes. That is the beginning. That is not what I mean. But our whole life we must be in meditation, with everything we do; not one single moment should pass without. By this one accomplishes a task which is the only yearning of the soul: to seek perfection.
Remember in which boat you are traveling - in the boat of responsibility. Keep before you the dignity of your ideal. And by persevering faithfully, you can be sure of the desired result, without doubt.
God bless you.
The Duty of Happiness
(From a transcript of his lecture in 1922 in Brighton) "Mureed" refers to a dedicated student, while "murshid" refers to a master teacher. Hazrat Inayat Khan uses the male pronoun exclusively, in keeping with the custom of his time, with the assumption that the male pronoun refers to all people.
I wish to bring to the notice of my mureeds two great duties which every one of them must consider it most important to perform. The first duty is towards himself, the second is towards God and humanity.
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The first and most important is towards himself. It must be known and understood that your murshid does not give particular principles, tenets, or doctrines; nor does he impose any particular belief. He keeps you free to make your lives really happy, that others may share your happiness. This happiness can be attained by thoroughly studying the nature of happiness, finding out what it is that gives true happiness, for so often in seeking happiness the soul is deceived and deluded and so remains without happiness.
The mureeds must take care that their bodies are strong, healthy, vigorous, and ready to work, that their minds are balanced, sound and clear. Then they can have happiness and give it to those around them. If in this time of great distress every mureed would realize that he is a volunteer in an army, working for the peace of souls, a great work would be done.
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The second duty, towards God and humanity is to show their devotion to the Cause, to Murshid, and to God, by some service. You ask, what service can you do for the Cause? You can create an interest in the Message in those around you, in your friends. You may for instance bring your friends to this centre, where sometimes there are readings, and so you will help the movement, and by so doing, you may help humanity and the Cause of God.
Remember, it is a world movement, the responsibility of which is too great for words to express. If anything can give you an idea of its greatness, you will show it by sympathy for Murshid and appreciation for the teachings which are given to you. Words say little. And the service must not be done in order to oblige Murshid; it must be done for God and for humanity. You must consider it as your most sacred task, given by God, therefore most important to fulfill, and the main purpose of your life.
Five Things Necessary for a Student
My Students, It is not necessary to explain in words the joy that I feel in coming and seeing you again. For in the initiation we are so linked together that distance in reality is not a distance. Nevertheless, in this physical plane to meet together is also necessary.
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Practices
And now I wish to explain how many things are necessary for a student. The first thing most necessary for a student is to try to keep up the spiritual exercises which are given, without any break. If you are tired, if you were occupied too much, if conditions were not favorable, I do not mean that it is urged upon you, but I mean that it is for your betterment to keep those exercises without a gap between them.
Would you believe, if I may say so, that the effect of certain practices comes even after ten years or twelve years? A person without patience might think, "I did not have immediate results after two, three months." But he may not think so. If they are seeds which you sow in the ground, they take root and a plant comes. But in order for the plant to be fruitful it takes ten years. This is the spiritual sowing. It might take a much longer time in some cases. In some cases the next day the result might show. There are some plants which come quicker, others which take time to bear fruit. But still the spiritual sowing has its result, and a sure result. Never therefore to doubt, to be discouraged, to give up hope; but to continue, persevering in this path.
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Study
Now the second necessity for the student is the study part. It must not be a study only as the reading of a book: it must be a study of engraving upon one's heart the Gathas, Gathekas, all the literature that is given, however simple it might seem to grasp it. Because you will find that it is creative in itself. It is a phrase just now; after six months the same phrase will flourish, there will come branches, flowers, and fruits in that phrase. It is a simple phrase, but it is a living phrase. The more you study and grasp it, the more your hear will be creative. Therefore do not consider it a study only, but a meditation, even in your studies.
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Balance
The third important thing in the life of a student is to live a life of balance between activity and repose, of regularity. Not too much work, nor too much rest: a balance between activity and repose. Because when we put the idea before the world we shall be responsible to show it in our lives. Therefore our lives must be as balanced as possible. Besides that, in eating, in drinking, there must be a kind of moderation, which I am sure many of us have. And a kind of consideration from the meditative point of view. Because for the spiritual growth a certain food is more recommended than another. Therefore we in the spiritual path cannot always be neglectful of that question.
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Attitude
And now there comes the fourth question, how must our attitude be towards others? Towards the students our attitude must be affectionate sympathy. Towards non-students our attitude must be tolerant sympathy.
The best thing in the world is not to force upon others what we understand and what we believe. By forcing it upon others we only spoil them. By discussing, arguing with them, we do not accomplish anything.
Besides, for a student it is most advisable that he must keep his conversation limited so as not to say things which might seem to the others too occult, too mystical, too spiritual. Our conversation must be like an ordinary conversation. Things about spirits and ghosts and elementals, apparitions and all sorts of things--people like to talk about their past and present and next incarnation, what they were and what they will be. We must not commit ourselves in talking about these things. These things are for every individual to find out for himself. By talking we neither do good to ourselves nor good to the others.
If we can only talk about simple things of everyday life, there are so many things that we shall have enough subjects to speak over with others. Ideas of the air must be left in the air. Standing on the earth we must talk of everyday life, leaving every individual free for himself as we like to be left free ourselves.
Besides, the Sufi does not give a definite idea of these things because Sufism is freedom, freedom of conception, of belief. It does not give people any dogmas: that you must believe this or that. It does not present before humanity particular dogmas, and very often for the same reason Sufism is accused of being against certain dogmas. But it is not so. If we do not speak about them it is not that we are against them, but because we do not like to speak about them. We prefer being silent to talking too much about them.
These are things of intimate conversation. When a student is conversing with his teacher, with his fellow student, perhaps one talks about it. These are not the things to talk about at the tea table. It would make the inner laws of life and nature ridiculous. When nature, when life itself covers its laws, then it means that they are best covered. When we uncover them we certainly commit a fault against the hidden nature of things. It is therefore it is called Sufism. By the word Sufism is meant keeping the cover over the hidden laws of nature which are meant to be covered. As soon as one uncovers them it means in the first place one does not know their value. Then he goes no further; he cannot go any further. It is the one who knows their value who will go further. Who has no respect for them, who brings them to the market, cannot go any further; he has a setback.
As we go further we shall have to face a great trial. As soon as people know that we are interested in these things, they will ask us a lot of questions. They will want us to make a prophecy, want us to say uncommon things that will interest them. We shall be put to test. So you can quite see that it is the path of silence. The more we keep our lips closed the more the way is open, the more doors are open for us. The attitude itself opens them. We do not need to open them. We only need to expect them. What is not common, is not common. When you want to make them common that means putting down Heaven on the earth, instead of raising the earth towards Heaven.
Our attitude with others must therefore be humble, unpretentious, and ordinary.
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Application
Now the fifth thing. We must not leave our meditation and prayers just to those fixed times when we do, because that is only the winding of the thing. But in our everyday life we ought to bring the sense of it into our action, in everything we do at home or outside. We must use that latent power and inspiration aroused by our meditations; we should make use of it. By practicing to make use of it we shall benefit ourselves and others by all we are doing.
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