Question: What does it mean when we say that we have destroyed the lower vital?

Sri Chinmoy: We have to be very sincere, brutally sincere, in our spiritual life. We all know our weaknesses, but very often we just ignore them. Or we try to hide our ignorance because we feel that then nobody will know about our ignorance. Yes, nobody knows, but we know. And there is somebody else who also knows, and that is our Inner Pilot.

If we do not look towards the light, then we will always remain in darkness. Let us say that the lower vital is darkness; it is a dark room. We have to come out of this darkness and enter into a room that is illumined. The moment we come out of this unlit, obscure room, the room is no longer part and parcel of our existence. In this sense we destroy the darkness. At that time, the room which is illumined becomes part and parcel of our existence. This room belongs to us and we belong to it.

We become part and parcel of whatever room we are in. When we are in the dark room, we become inseparably one with darkness, ignorance and inconscience. Then, when we come out of the meshes of ignorance, when we come out of ignorance-night and enter into the room which is flooded with light, at that moment the dark room is destroyed for us. At one time we enjoyed that life, but now we feel that that life is not meant for us. A new light has dawned and we have entered into a new room.

From:Sri Chinmoy,Illumination-world, Agni Press, 1977
Sourced from https://srichinmoylibrary.com/iw