Question: During the past five months I've experienced two mandalas; the first was a vision of all the people I knew and the second was a vision of a blue lotus. Can you explain the cause of these?

Sri Chinmoy: They are self-explanatory. You have practised the mandalas and so you have had the vision of previous incarnations. Here is the proof that we have previous incarnations. Your soul is bringing to the fore people with whom you are connected.

The blue lotus that you have seen is the blue lotus of consciousness. Water is consciousness. A blue lotus is a sign of infinite Consciousness within us. When the lotus blooms petal by petal, it means that the seeker is entering into the infinite Consciousness. Blue signifies Infinity and a lotus signifies consciousness. The infinite Consciousness is blossoming in the form of a blue lotus.