Part I — Professor Charles Johnson

PCG 1. Department of English, University of Washington, Seattle, WA; National Book Award winner

Professor Charles Johnson: Why did God create the different races?

Sri Chinmoy: My esteemed Professor, God created and continues to create each individual with a special purpose. Each one He creates in a unique fashion. What He actually wants from His creation is unity in its multiplicity. His creation is His Cosmic Game. In a team, a certain number of players are needed. Each player has a specific position and a role to play. The question of superiority and inferiority does not arise; the sole purpose of the players is to score jointly. Unfortunately, our human mind wants to enjoy division, wants to feel superiority and wants to receive satisfaction in its own limited way.

There are a few distinct races, as we all know. To serve our purpose, let us take only black and white. God the Creator is also God the Supreme Artist. An artist, when he paints a picture, can easily use black and white side by side. The two colours are interdependent, adding visible beauty, contrast and harmony to each other to complete the painting to perfect perfection. In exactly the same way, God the Supreme Artist, God the Dispenser of human destiny, wants each individual and each race to grow and glow together, each playing perfectly its individual role for the betterment and enlightenment of humanity. If the races can be inseparable and interdependent, the division-enjoyment in our human nature can be illumined and divinely and supremely transformed into oneness-fulfilment.

Dear Professor, I had the golden opportunity and privilege of meeting with you in Seattle. Your prayerful, soulful and compassionate eyes have gone far beyond the so-called boundaries of race distinction. You represent a particular race, African, and I represent a particular race, Aryan. Both our races may be distinctive, but our Source is the same: God. And our Goal is the same: perfect perfection. Your own embodiment of light — illumining and fulfilling — can perfectly sing the song of oneness, while preparing itself to sing the song of Infinity, Eternity and Immortality.