Question: There is a saying that the squeaky wheel gets the grease. Is that true in the spiritual life?

Sri Chinmoy: Spirituality is not a matter of pulling and pushing. Those who pull and push are eventually pushed aside and pulled behind. Pushing and pulling is not spirituality. Spirituality is surrender to God’s Will, patience, tolerance, acceptance of the situation for its transformation.

Acceptance of the situation does not mean that you are surrendering to the situation. But you have to accept something in order to transform it. If you do not accept it, how are you going to transform it? If you see some obstruction on the street, some dry wood for example, if you do not pick it up, how are you going to keep the street clean? Spirituality is like that. You accept something, then you transform it.

If somebody tries to come near me by pushing others aside or by pulling them out, then that person can never be close to me. In spirituality there is no pushing, no pulling, but only cheerful acceptance, a cheerful feeling all the time.

Whether you have come late to the meeting and you have to sit at the back, or you come before anyone else and you can sit at the front, be cheerful. Cheerfulness if you have, no matter where you are — right in the front row or at the back — that is how you will receive the utmost.

You have to know that the Master hides. He can be looking at one person, but his heart will be looking at someone else, his heart will be working inside someone else. So try to have that cheerful consciousness no matter where you are; my eyes can be looking at another person, but my heart will be working inside your heart.