Question: Would you please talk about the bad side and the good side of occult power?

Sri Chinmoy: In Sri Ramakrishna's day there was somebody who had occult power. He could show light from his back. Sri Ramakrishna took that power away from him. Now people may say, "How bad Sri Ramakrishna was! That occult power was somebody's possession. Why did he take it away? It was his. Why did Sri Ramakrishna grab it? He was so greedy!" But Sri Ramakrishna would say, "I am taking it away for his good. He is showing this power. He has not yet realised God, but he is showing his light. He is only creating a sensation for people, so I am doing him a favour. I took it away, I took it away." From the spiritual point of view, Sri Ramakrishna did the right thing, even though he took away somebody else's possession.

One of Sri Aurobindo's brothers left the Ashram. He also developed a kind of light. There was a dark room with absolutely no light in it. Sri Aurobindo's brother said, "Now take photographs." There was no flash, no light. He said, "For a minute or two I will illumine the room." There was no electric light, nothing; it was pitch black. He said, "Photographer, are you ready?" Then he brought light into the room and the photographer took a picture.

Then a report went to Sri Aurobindo, and Sri Aurobindo said, "Oh, this is what he is doing!" Sri Aurobindo was in Pondicherry, and his brother was in Calcutta. Sri Aurobindo took his brother's occult power away. His brother complained. He said, "What are you doing? You have so much power. Now you have to take away what is mine." Sri Aurobindo replied, "Yes, I have so much power. I am doing this for your good, for your good. I do not need your power, but by doing this kind of thing you are only drawing a crowd. Your God-realisation is still a far cry."

If my disciples develop some occult power, I will do the same. I will take it away from them. I will definitely take it away from them for their good. At one time in one of our Centres we had four or five self-proclaimed "God-realised" souls. One of them wrote to me and asked me to tell him how to use his so-called occult power wisely. He wanted me to advise him. What kind of occult power did he have? Eventually those "God-realised" people all left our path. One by one, all of them left.

Occult power and spiritual power are like the waves and the ocean. Occult power is like very, very huge waves. Spiritual power is like the ocean. Waves may frighten us, but even though the ocean is so vast, it does not frighten us. When huge waves come, then we get frightened.