Question: You once told us that there was a man who failed to realise God at the last moment because his Guru did not help him overcome his doubt. If the man's Guru had been powerful enough, could the Guru have helped the man at that point?

Sri Chinmoy: The Guru was powerful enough. He was alive at that time, but unfortunately the man had had a quarrel with his Guru. The Guru was angry with him; so the Guru did not help him. But he could have done it. If that seeker had not quarrelled with his Guru, he would definitely have realised God.

Sri Ramakrishna gave everything to Vivekananda, but after the Master had left the body, Vivekananda wanted to go to Pahari Baba so many times for further initiation. Ramakrishna, the great Avatar, had initiated him and given everything to him, and then Vivekananda wanted to go to Pahari Baba to get further initiation. So this is how doubt can assail even a great seeker like Vivekananda. After Sri Ramakrishna’s death, Vivekananda went fifteen or sixteen times to Pahari Baba while making up his mind about getting initiation from him. Then finally Ramakrishna appeared to him with a sorrowful face and said, “Don’t go, don’t go.”

Vivekananda’s disciples will say that he had a big heart and he wanted to work for humanity, but he needed better health. That is why he wanted to go to an occultist like Pahari Baba. But real seekers will simply say that if Ramakrishna had wanted him to work on earth for the earth-consciousness, would not Ramakrishna have cured him of his illness? This kind of sickness is nothing for a spiritual figure like Ramakrishna to cure, if he wants to. Vivekananda’s time had come; he had played his role.

Krishna was a great Avatar. But a hunter’s arrow struck him and killed him. But in the Kurukshetra battle, how many weapons the Kauravas used to try to kill Krishna. He was killing everybody with his Sudarshana, his golden disc. He had the power to avoid death if he wanted to. But Krishna knew that he was just playing a game. When his role was over, he allowed the hunter’s arrow to kill him.

Vivekananda was also a spiritual hero. He had finished his role, but his vital wanted to stay on earth, so he went to Pahari Baba even while Sarada Devi was still alive. Even Vivekananda suffered from tremendous doubt. At the last moment, while Ramakrishna was leaving the body, Vivekananda was still doubting him. Then Ramakrishna had to say, “He who is Rama, he who is Krishna, in one form is Ramakrishna.” At that moment and many previous times also, Ramakrishna gave Vivekananda so many higher experiences. He got everything from Ramakrishna. When Vivekananda’s devotion came to the fore, he said that from a grain of sand Sri Ramakrishna could make thousands of Vivekanandas. If he had maintained that kind of faith he would never have gone to Pahari Baba, who was infinitely inferior to Sri Ramakrishna. But this is what doubt can do. Doubt can capture even a hero like Vivekananda. Doubt has the power to turn a lion into a house cat.