Question: You explained that the soul needs the body. I understand that the soul is the one that is in union with God. Will we retain individuality or shall we lose individuality when we realise that union with God?

Sri Chinmoy: God does not want us to discard our individuality, but ordinary individuality and real, divine individuality are two different things. God Himself is, at the same time, One and Many. He has produced infinite human beings, human souls. He is One, but in the field of manifestation He has become Many. He has selected each person as His chosen instrument, that is to say, each human soul is His chosen instrument This kind of divine individuality which God has given to us is not the ordinary individuality which is determined by the ego, “I am this, you are that.” God's individuality is a unique manifestation of His Reality. There is no clash, there is no jealousy, there is no battle, no fight. God Himself is manifesting Himself in a unique manner in you, in me and in others. That kind of individuality, different from the individuality of the ego, God retains for humanity. It is a unique expression of the Divine in His multiplicity. Each one is a chosen instrument of God, but without ego, without pride, without vanity. It is just like the petals of the lotus; each petal has its own beauty and its own uniqueness.