The Master's presence
Where your consciousness lies is of paramount importance. No matter where you are, you should feel my presence inside your heart. If you are concentrating on me or on your Inner Pilot, then you will get the utmost benefit. But if your mind is roaming, then even if you are in my physical presence you are getting, nothing.Some of you are afraid of becoming attached to my physical presence, but I wish to say that you are not doing anything wrong if you feel more inspiration in my physical presence. Instead of using the word ‘attachment’ we can use the word ‘devotion’. The devoted feeling that you have when you see that I am physically in front of you is legitimate and correct in every way. The physical has great importance. As I have told you many times, it is the greatest boon when a spiritual Master is in the physical. Then you are getting the spiritual along with the physical. You get more affection, more concern, more compassion because here in the physical world you have easy access to the Master. If you don’t get his message spiritually, you will get it physically. But when you have to get the message spiritually after the Master has left the body, it is really difficult. It is like getting only half of what you got before.
Again, you have to know that the physical is not all. Whether I am physically here or not, I will try to bring your soul to the fore, to bring down Peace, Bliss and divine Power in abundant measure for all the seekers here. A short time ago I was visiting another country, but most of you felt what I did for you during my physical absence. When you meditate you are bound to feel my presence, because at that time you have entered into me and you are establishing your oneness with me. During meditation you can expand your physical consciousness in the same way as you are expanding your soul. At that time you are with me because you are feeling my divine presence. When you are not meditating, often you are in the mind, you are in the vital or you are in the physical, so you do not feel my presence. But if you stay in the soul, you are bound to feel my inner presence because the soul is illumined. If you can bring the light from the soul into the mind, the vital and the physical and illumine them, then in every part of your being you are bound to feel my physical presence with you. If you can establish this kind of constant inner meditation in your life of aspiration, then our inner bond will be very solid, very strong. At that time, even if you are walking along the street, you will feel I am walking beside you.
Physically I meet with the disciples and you can see me, true; but the physical is always at one place whereas the soul is everywhere. It is like the feeling the mother has if, let us say, she is in India and the son is studying in America. The mother feels that the son is inside her heart, and the son will say that his dearest mother is not in India but right inside his heart. Physically, the son is thousands of miles away from the mother; but spiritually, with their inner oneness, with their affection and love, they are in each other’s hearts.
If you have the feeling that I abide twenty-four hours a day inside your heart, then any distance between your home and your Master’s home will be transcended and nullified. Otherwise, I may be right in front of your nose, but if there is no inner communication, then it will be as though I were millions of miles away. The son is studying in college with a professor. Every day he is seeing his professor and listening to him. He has no real connection with his professor; he is just mechanically following the professor’s instructions. But his mother’s mind and his mind are interlaced together. So it is the feeling of inner oneness that lets the son transcend the outer barrier. Once the inner oneness is established, the physical separation, the geographical boundary, can easily be overcome. But if one has not established this inner oneness, the geographical boundaries can never be overcome.
Again, if you are in my presence, then here is the greatest test. If you run in a race and come in last, at that time try to feel your oneness with the winner. I may be appreciating someone else and praising him to the skies, but instead of allowing jealous and envious thoughts to enter into you, try to become one with us. Once you have established your oneness with me and with the winner, then you will feel my love for you as well. To become universally one is very important. Then you will be able to identify with the good things in others. It is especially hard to identify with the good side of people, but it is the inner oneness which makes it possible.
If you are one with me, then there will be no doubt, fear and jealousy. At that time, do not feel that your position is superior. There is great danger in building up your ego. But if your oneness comes forward, then you are safe. If you have established your inner oneness, then when you see me physically it becomes really meaningful. Otherwise, I can come to see you every month or twice a month, but if you are not going to make any progress, what am I going to do? God has a special purpose for keeping you where you are. If the inner oneness has been established, the effect of my physical presence will be like a miracle. And no matter where my physical is, once you have established your inner, inseparable oneness with me, that oneness lasts through Eternity.
