Question: Many years ago, when I was extremely ill, I saw you in a different way. I could not see you as my Guru. I only saw your divine form. My question is, was I having that experience because I was partly in the other world, because I was half alive but also half on my way out?

Sri Chinmoy: It is very interesting. Some disciples know the Master's height. Even when the Master is relaxed, they go beyond the physical. A few disciples, on the other hand, see only the physical. I cannot believe that, in the case of some of my disciples, when I wear my dhoti, my Indian garment, their devotion increases! But in other cases, no matter what I wear or what I do, even when I scold and insult the disciples, they see my highest height and my deepest depth. In the past, spiritual Masters like Ramana Maharshi and others of the highest order even wore loincloths, but their disciples still saw the divinity in them.

It depends on the attitude of each individual, not on what I wear or what I do or say. To those who accept me implicitly, I do not have to prove my divinity — far from it! They see it immediately. They do not see the imperfection of my outer body, that I am lame and so forth. They see that my divinity has completely percolated through my physical body. It depends on the individual capacity.

To see Infinity inside the physical: that is what some poets have written about. Tagore wrote an excellent poem in which he said, "You are so sweet, Lord, because You are inside the finite. You are the Infinite, but You can stay inside the finite."

Again, some people separate the two. For them, the finite is finite, the Infinite is infinite. How can the Infinite be in the finite? Their mind will not allow it. But if you go beyond the mind, then everything is possible. These are merely terms: Infinite and finite.

Inside the Infinite to see the finite is very easy. But inside the finite to see the Infinite is very difficult. As soon as you see the ocean, you are seeing that it is infinite. Then if you want to see a few drops inside the ocean, it is so easy. But for you to see the ocean inside a tiny drop is impossible. You cannot imagine how the finite will hold the Infinite.

But if you go beyond the mind, you will see that everything is possible. One drop is so big that it can easily embody the Infinite. Beyond the mind, everything is possible. Within the mind, it is very limited. Once you go beyond the mind, it becomes a game, like contemplation. One moment God is there and I am here; the next moment I am there and God is here. Together we play hide-and-seek. One moment I am a human being and the next moment God makes me God and He Himself becomes a finite human being. We exchange our roles. Can you believe it? I am a human being. God has created me; He is God. But in real contemplation, there is an interchange. He tells me to play the role of God and then He becomes the human being. Go beyond the mind; it is all possible.