Question: Sometimes I really want the life of God and I aspire very intensely and I am very happy. But sometimes my mind makes me think that the spiritual life is just a wild goose chase, and then I feel sad and sort of lost. How can I maintain my aspiration at a high level all the time?

Sri Chinmoy: You know that the divine qualities of peace, light and bliss do exist. Most of you have come here to see a spiritual Master and to be with spiritual people. Only two or three have come out of curiosity. Your souls have brought you by making you feel that peace does exist, light does exist, bliss does exist. It is the victory of your soul's inner urge that has made you come.

Again, it is up to you to maintain this inner urge or to lose it. Your soul is victorious today, but this victory need not last. Tomorrow you may lose your inner cry. If you want to preserve today's inner victory, then you have to meditate again tomorrow and the day after. If you have a Master then try to get inner guidance from him. Every day when the time comes for you to meditate, just think of him for a few minutes and you are bound to get inspiration and aspiration.

To learn, we go to school. For every new endeavour a Master or guide is needed. If you do not have a Master, you should seek one. The sooner you get a Master, the better for your progress. You may feel that the time has not come for you to look for a Master because you are an absolute beginner. You want to lead a better and a higher life, but you are not prepared and you may feel that the Master will demand things from you that are beyond your capacity. In that case try to read spiritual books written by real spiritual Masters, not by mere philosophers or professors. If you read writings of spiritual Masters, their consciousness will enter into you. Then one day you will get inner awakening, and you will discover which path you should follow. Once you get your own realisation you won't need a teacher. At that time you will have all the inner capacities.

If you have to go somewhere far away, either a boat or a train or a plane will have to take you to your destination. If you don't know the way, somebody has to be your pilot. In the spiritual life you also need a guide and a path. Otherwise, today you will be inspired, but you won't know where to go. Today your vital will be stronger than your soul and no-one will be available to encourage you or inspire you. But if you have a guide and you are walking along the right path, then who can prevent you from reaching the goal?

If you do not have a path, your progress is bound to be very slow. One day you may even become totally disgusted and give up. Then you will say that the spiritual life is all useless; there is no goal. But once you have found your path, please stick to it. If you change your path every day or every month you will never reach your goal. Of course, if you have found a path that is not fulfilling you, you have every right to change. You have to be absolutely convinced that the path you are following is the right path for you. If you are in school and you don't like the school that you go to, you can leave and go to some other school. But if you make a habit of changing from school to school, then you will not be able to get a proper education. Once you are satisfied with a school, do not attend other schools out of curiosity. In spirituality you do not have to have ten teachers. God-realisation, Self-discovery, is only one subject: therefore one teacher, one realised Master, is enough to take you to your goal.

From:Sri Chinmoy,The hunger of darkness and the feast of light, part 2, Agni Press, 1974
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