Question: Is it necessary to control the mind first in order to receive the divine Light?

Sri Chinmoy: If we want to control the mind with our human will, then it will be like asking a monkey or a fly not to bother us. The very nature of a monkey is to bite and pinch us; the very nature of a fly is to bother us. To try and control the mind directly is just like trying to straighten the tail of a dog; it is impossible.

The mind needs a superior power to keep it quiet. This superior power is the power of the soul. We have to bring to the fore the Light of the soul, which has unlimited power. In the outer world, when somebody is superior in strength or power, he tries to punish the inferior. But in the spiritual world, the Light of the soul will not torture or punish the mind. On the contrary, it will act like a most affectionate mother who feels that the imperfections of her child are her own imperfections. The heart will feel the obscurity, impurity and darkness of the mind as its own imperfections and, at the same time, the heart will be in a position to offer its Light to the mind. In pin-drop silence it will try to transform the nature of the mind.