Question: Could you speak of the soul of America and England as it relates to the spiritual life in America?

Sri Chinmoy: America and England wanted to receive light from above through the physical, and not through the heart. They felt that if they received light in the physical, then they would take it from the physical to the vital, from the vital to the mind, and from the mind to the heart. But this process is very unhealthy. The real process, the desirable process, is from the soul to come to the heart, from the heart to the mind, from the mind to the vital and from the vital to the body. It is best to always go from the root to the top of the tree, from the place that has most light to the place that has least light. But if you start in the place with the least light, then what will you have to carry to the other places? Nothing, absolutely nothing. The soul has abundant light. Then, after the soul, the place that is most receptive is the heart. Since the heart is much more receptive than the mind, the light from the soul has to come to the heart. And from the heart it has to come to the mind, vital and body.

The soul is the seed. Gradually, gradually, the seed germinates into a plant. Then it becomes a tree and produces leaves, flowers and fruits. When the soul's light passes through the heart, mind, vital and body, it becomes the complete tree with leaves, flowers and fruits. This is the proper way of dealing with light.