Chapter 103Difficulties

Circumstances

CIRCUMSTANCES: RESULTS, NOT CAUSES It is an error or superstition to believe that an external thing or circumstance can be the cause of anything. All things and circumstances are the accompanying results of a Force that acts from behind the veil.

The Force acts and each thing reacts according to its own nature.

* One must not take consequences for causes.

* Never take physical happenings at their face value. They are always a clumsy attempt to express something else, the true thing which escapes your superficial understanding.

* Do not mind the apparent contradictions. There is a truth to be found behind.

*

CIRCUMSTANCES: RESULTS OF PAST ACTIONS

(Someone asked for sympathy regarding his circum-stances at the time.)

I am full of sympathy but unshakably convinced that each one meets in this life the circumstances which he has, inwardly and outwardly, built for himself.

11 July 1939

*

People keep lamenting about their lot and feel that their troubles and their unhappy reactions would go if other people and things were changed. Do you share my doubt about this feeling?

Each one is the artisan of his own miseries.

4 December 1939

* It is always a mistake to complain about the circumstances of our life, for they are the outward expression of what we are ourselves.

28 July 1954

* It is in oneself that there are all the obstacles, it is in oneself that there are all the difficulties, it is in oneself that there are all the darkness and all the ignorance.

16 November 1954

*

Addressed to People of Ill Will The evil you have wilfully done always comes back to you under one form or another.

24 April 1969

* Each one is free to do whatever he likes, but he cannot prevent his acts from bearing their natural consequences. It is only what is done with the Divine and for the Divine that is free from the slavery of consequences.

* There is a Supreme Divinity witness of all our actions and the day of consequence will come soon.

1 March 1971

* Each one brings upon himself the consequences of his acts.

3 March 1971

* About what you say on the last page of your letter. Things are not altogether what you think them to be. For some years already, I have had much to say on the subject. But what is the use? There are certain waters which are best left unstirred. In any case, I would like you never to forget this: What each one meets in life is always exactly in accordance with what he is. Not in the way ignorant human justice understands it, but according to a law that is much more subtle, more deep, more true. Let us never forget that the supreme Lord is behind everything and that it is He who is the master of our destinies.

*

CIRCUMSTANCES AND ONE’S INNER CONDITION Satisfaction does not depend on outer circumstances but on an inner condition.

26 July 1954

* People think that their condition depends on circumstances. But that is all false. If somebody is a “nervous wreck”, he thinks that if circumstances are favourable he will improve. But, actually, even if they are favourable he will remain what he is. All think they are feeling weak and tired because people are not nice to them. This is rubbish. It is not the circumstances that have to be changed: what is required is an inner change.

* If you feel that a change is needed, it can be in the attitude, giving importance to what is to be said and realised and using the past as a preparation for the future. This is not a very difficult thing to do — and I am quite sure that you will easily do it.

* You have this trouble. It is an indication that there is something in you that needs an immediate change. There is something that is refusing to come into the Light. If you can change your consciousness, the trouble will disappear.§

* When one is in need of outward changes, it means that he is not progressing within; for he who progresses within can live always under the same outward conditions: they constantly reveal to him new truths.

All outward change should be the spontaneous and inevitable expression of an inner transformation. Normally, all improvement of the conditions of physical life should be the blossoming to the surface of a progress realised within.

29 March 1958

* There can be no physical life without an order and rhythm. When this order is changed it must be in obedience to an inner growth and not for the sake of external novelty. It is only a certain part of the surface lower vital nature which seeks always external change and novelty for its own sake.

It is by a constant inner growth that one can find a constant newness and unfailing interest in life. There is no other satisfying way.

* By changing house you cannot change character.

If you change your character you need not change your environment.

22 October 1964

*

Divine Mother,

I have had a feeling of wanting to move into a sep-

arate house lately. I do not know whether I am right in this. May I have your divine guidance in this?

Exterior things must be of little importance when one does “sadhana”. The needed inner peace can be established in any surroundings.

With love and blessings.

19 August 1966

*

Mother, I want to ask you why the life we lead is so dependent on material objects.

This need not be; if the consciousness is centred elsewhere, more deeply, physical things lose much of their importance.

THE CAUSE AND UTILITY OF DIFFICULTIES The difficulties are always due to a resistance, some part or several parts of the being refusing to receive the force, the consciousness and the light put upon them and revolting against the divine influence. It is rare that somebody can surrender entirely to the Divine’s Will without having to face one or another of these difficulties. But to keep steady one’s aspiration and to look at oneself with an absolute sincerity are the sure means to overcome all obstacles.

* Surely all these troubles come from a resistance somewhere, something that opposes the work of transformation.

* Always circumstances come to reveal the hidden weaknesses that have to be overcome.

* more perfect.

Each time we try to realise something and meet with a resistance or an obstacle or even a failure — what seems to be a failure — we should know, we should never forget that it is exclusively, absolutely, so that the realisation may be more perfect.

So this habit of cringing, of getting discouraged or even of feeling uncomfortable, or of abusing yourself and telling yourself: “There! Again I have made a mistake” — all that is absolute foolishness.

Simply tell yourself: “We don’t know how to do things as they ought to be done; well, they are being done for us, come what may!” And if we could see to what extent all that seems to be, yes, a difficulty, a mistake, a failure, an obstacle — all that is just to help us, so that the realisation may be more perfect.

Once you know that, everything becomes easy.

6 October 1958

* Shocks and trials always come as a divine grace to show us the points in our being where we fall short and the movements in which we turn our back on our soul by listening to the clamour of our mental being and vital being.

If we know how to accept these spiritual blows with due humility, we are sure to cover a great distance at a single bound.

22 February 1965

* Be absolutely convinced that everything that happens, happens in order to give us precisely the lesson we needed, and if we are sincere in the “sadhana”, the lesson should be accepted with joy and gratitude.

For one who aspires to the divine life, what can the actions of a blind and ignorant humanity matter to him?

18 January 1967

* If truly you love the Divine, prove it by remaining quiet and peaceful. All that comes to each one in life, comes from the Divine to teach us a lesson, and if we take it in the right spirit, we make rapid progress.

Try to do so.

13 December 1967

* everything was easy, then it would be a life of nothing. Because Do not be afraid.

22 February 1968

* You can say to X, on my behalf, that he must look at this apparently unhappy circumstance as the proof that the Lord considers that he is ready for spiritual life and that he must no more be attached to any exterior or material thing.

If he takes things that way, he will soon feel that all sorrow is gone away from him.

What I meant was, not to worry about it. Let him take what comes to him without getting upset or sorry, excited or nervous.

* For the aspirant and the “sadhak”, all that comes in his life comes to help him to know the Truth and to live it. Be confident, you will conquer; and it will mean a big step forward.

With love and blessings.

12 September 1969

* The difficulties come always to make us progress. The greater the difficulty, the greater can be the progress.

Be confident and endure. With love and blessings.

November 1969

* The hours preceding Victory are most often the most difficult.

For the individual’s surrender, it is the last resistances, sometimes quite insignificant, that are the most obstinate and difficult to conquer.

But with a greater obstinacy a victorious conclusion of the fight is certain.

*

NEVER COMPLAIN ABOUT DIFFICULTIES He who wants to advance on the path of perfection must never complain about the difficulties on the way, for each is an opportunity for a new progress. To complain is a sign of weakness and insincerity.

* Where the two extremes meet, to complain of anything at all, of oneself, of others or of circumstances, is a weakness and an insincerity towards one’s supreme Self.

The two extremes meet in their effect on the attitude towards the circumstances of life: the total surrender to the Divine Will manifested in all things; and the consciousness of the supreme power that organises all things according to its all-powerful conception. In either case there is no place for complaint: if one is completely surrendered to the Divine, how can one complain about His Will, whatever form it takes? And on the other hand, if one feels the power of organising the world according to the supreme truth of life, how can one complain about the state this life is in, since it depends only on oneself to change it?

* Never grumble. All sorts of forces enter you when you grumble and they pull you down. Keep smiling. I seem always to be joking but it is not mere joking. It is a confidence born from the psychic. A smile expresses the faith that nothing can stand against the Divine and that everything will come out all right in the end.

28 May 1954

* The more you grumble, the more your pains will increase.

* If you are not satisfied with what you are, take advantage of the Divine’s help and change yourself. If you haven’t the courage to change, submit to your destiny and keep quiet.

But to constantly complain about the condition you are in, without doing anything to change it, is a waste of your time and energy.

The difficulties can disappear only when the egoistic concentration upon desires and conveniences disappears.

12 March 1958

*

NEVER WORRY ABOUT DIFFICULTIES

[facsimile]

Never worry.

Do with sincerity all you do and leave the results to the Divine’s care.

* Let us live each day without anxiety. Why worry beforehand about something that will probably never happen?

* Anxiety is a lack of confidence in the Divine’s Grace, the unmistakable sign that the consecration is not complete and perfect.

* Don’t foresee difficulties — it does not help to surmount them and helps them to come.

5 August 1932

* It is better not to worry about progress, because worrying only hinders the advance. It is better to open in all trust and simplicity to the divine help and to have faith in the Victory.

* Live in the consciousness of the Eternal and you will have no more worry.

*

FORGET ABOUT DIFFICULTIES

My nature appears childish to me!

One must not attach too much importance to these little things. What is important is always to keep in view the ideal that one wants to realise and always to try one’s best to realise it.

6 April 1934

* Yes, after all, these small superficial things are of very little importance if compared to the mission we have to fulfil upon earth.

29 September 1937

* We must always keep in mind the big ideal and work that is to be achieved so that we should not give too much importance to small details, trifles that must not draw our attention; let them come, let them go like small clouds in the sky, which do not affect the fine weather.

* Do not attach undue importance to unimportant things.

* We must be freed from all care for contingencies, we must be delivered from the ordinary outlook on things.

25 November 1954

* Never think of a difficulty — you give it strength.

14 April 1958

* Do not concentrate on an obstacle; that only strengthens it.

* If you go on thinking of the trouble, it will go on increasing. If you concentrate upon it, it will swell up, it will think that it is being welcomed. But if you don’t pay any attention, it will lose interest in you and go away.§

* The best remedy is to stop thinking of yourself and your defects and difficulties.

Let us think only of the big work to be done, the ideal that Sri Aurobindo has given us to realise. The work and NOT how we do it.

I will help.

5 June 1961

* Forget your difficulties. Think only of being a more and more perfect instrument for the Divine to do His work and the Divine will conquer all your difficulties and transform you.

With love and blessings.

5 March 1968

* Forget your difficulties.

Forget yourself... And the Lord will take care of your progress. With love and blessings.

5 March 1968

*

Divine Mother, I implore you to illumine and put a living faith in this dark area in me.

Do not give any importance to that part and it will lose its strength and little by little even its existence.

My love and blessings are always with you.

*

FACE AND OVERCOME DIFFICULTIES Be grateful for all ordeals, they are the shortest way to the Divine.

* The joy one experiences in living for an ideal is the sure compensation for all the difficulties of the path.

Have faith in your destiny and your road will be lit.

* For each one and for the whole world anything becomes useful if it helps to find the Divine.

* The grace and protection are always with you. When in any inner or outer difficulty or trouble, do not allow it to oppress you; take refuge with the Divine Force that protects.

If you do that always with faith and sincerity, you will find something opening in you which will always remain calm and peaceful in spite of all superficial disturbances.

3 February 1931

* Those who are sincere I can help and turn easily towards the Divine. But where there is insincerity I can do very little. And as I have told you already, we have only to be patient and wait for things to become better. But surely I do not see why you should get disturbed and in what way your disturbance would help things to be better. You know by experience that there is only one way of getting out of confusion and obscurity; it is to remain very quiet and peaceful, firm in equanimity and to let the storm pass away. Rise above these petty quarrels and difficulties and wake up once more in the light and the power of my love which never leaves you.

* All unpleasantness should be faced with the spirit of Samata.

24 November 1932

* It is good to turn a difficulty into an occasion for a new progress.

13 March 1935

* Surely you could not believe that sadhana could be done without facing some difficulties. As your aspiration is sincere, whatever was in the subconscient standing in the way of the Divine Re-alisation, has come to the surface in order to be transformed. There is nothing there to make you sad or depressed — on the contrary you ought to rejoice at these occasions to make progress and never forget to lean for support and help on my love, force and blessings.

15 December 1936

* If you keep your faith unshaken and your heart always open to me, then all difficulties, however great, will contribute to the greater perfection of your being.

19 April 1937

* Try to withdraw from your outward circumstances which alone can be upset by such things and find the peace inside which remains always untouched.

14 November 1937

* Always when one faces difficulties and overcomes them it begins a new spiritual opening and victory.

7 December 1937

* When you want to make a progress, the difficulty you wished to conquer increases tenfold in importance and intensity in your consciousness. You have only to persevere. That is all; it will pass away.

*

In spite of all difficulties I go on with the belief that if I hold on, the difficult times will go. If I accept defeat, then I shall go.

This is the right attitude. Stick to it and you shall conquer.

* Sadhana is always difficult and everybody has conflicting ele-ments in his nature and it is difficult to make the vital give up its ingrained habits.

That is no reason for giving up sadhana. One has to keep up the central aspiration which is always sincere and go on steadily in spite of temporary failures; and it is then inevitable that the change will come.

With my love and blessings.

3 May 1939

* What do obstacles matter? We shall always go forward.

* That doesn’t matter! The difficulties are there for the pleasure of surmounting them.

Go forward, keep confident and all will be well.

* I have always the same thing to say: quiet confidence and courage is the only way of getting out of difficulties.

* Perfect mental balance: indispensable for facing the difficulties of life.

* To conquer the difficulties there is more power in a smile than in a sigh.

27 December 1941

* Ordeals are there for everybody. It is the way in which one faces them that makes the difference. Some have a smile, some make a fuss.

* Whenever things become difficult we must remain quiet and silent.

11 April 1954

* Whatever is the difficulty, if we keep truly quiet the solution will come.

8 August 1954

* The errors can become stepping-stones, the blind gropings can be changed into conquests.

8 December 1954

* To keep steady one’s aspiration and to look at oneself with an absolute sincerity are the sure means to overcome all obstacles.

10 May 1955

* All difficulties are there to test the endurance of the faith.

13 June 1956

* Look life in the face from the soul’s inner strength and become master of circumstances.

19 September 1956

*

May the Divine Mother give me the necessary force so that the following prayer of mine may become effective.

As a son of Sri Aurobindo and the Mother, my great-

est interest is in Truth. Let not the mountain of pride hidden in Nature distort in any way the movements of this Truth — the Glorious Sun. Lift me above smallness.

Do not let the view of the part hide the perception of the whole, and the details of one step obstruct the concentration on the Goal.

Blessings.

14 May 1963

*

I would like to pray to the Mother to kindly explain to me the meaning of the dramatising of everything by the vital nature.

What I meant is that life is always full of difficulties, hardships and sufferings; this is a common fact and each one has to face his own lot of them. The only way to face them properly is to endure and to put one’s interest, hope and faith in the inner life and consciousness turned towards the Divine, aspiring for the Divine and capable of receiving the Divine’s Force and Help. But often the vital being or some part of it takes a kind of perverse pleasure in giving a dramatic importance to each and every difficulty and thus cuts the contact with the inner being and the Divine’s Force.

This bad habit which is common to many people must be stopped and then each one can and will feel that he receives very concretely the help he needs to go through the ordeals of life.

2 February 1964

* Our ordeals never exceed our capacity of resistance.

* The difficulties are for the strong, and help to make them stronger.

Persevere and you will conquer. You can be sure that my help, force and blessings are always with you.

With love.

12 July 1966

* The ordeals are for everybody — it is the way of meeting them that differs according to individuals.

With love and blessings.

21 April 1967

* The only way out of your difficulty is to find the psychic being and to live entirely in its consciousness.

Life upon earth as it is now is full of miseries and any sensitive heart is full of sorrow because of that. To get in contact with the Divine Consciousness and to live in its mercy, its strength and its light is the only truly effective way to get out of this difficulty and suffering and by uniting with the psychic we can obtain this condition.

My help and blessings are with you for this purpose.

6 April 1969

* All difficulties are solved by taking rest in the Divine’s arms, for these arms are always opened with love to shelter us.

* When everything goes wrong, one must know how to remember that God is all-powerful.

* The Divine is present among us. When we remember Him always He gives us the strength to face all circumstances with perfect peace and equanimity. Become aware of the Presence and your

7 November 1970

* To live within, in constant aspiration towards the Divine — that renders us capable of regarding life with a smile and remaining in peace whatever the external circumstances.

* Live within, do not be shaken by external circumstances.

26 July 1971

* To live only for the Divine: this means to have overcome all the

* He who lives to serve the Truth is not affected by outward circumstances.

*

[facsimile]

Mistakes

MISTAKES CAN BE EFFACED If errors and mistakes could not be effaced at every moment, there would be no hope of salvation for the world.

* Do not give too much importance to the little incidents of life.

The importance of these incidents lies in the extent to which they have served you to make a progress.

And once the progress has been made, the consequences of past errors, if there are any, disappear through the intervention of the divine Grace.

* For the Supreme Lord, sin does not exist — all defect can be effaced by sincere aspiration and by transformation.

What you feel is the aspiration of your soul that wants to discover the Divine and live Him.

Persevere, be more and more sincere and you will succeed.

24 April 1964

* Sin belongs to the world and not to yoga.

* If you make one mistake in life, then you may have to suffer all your life. It does not mean that everybody suffers like that. There are people who go on making mistakes and yet they do not suffer. But those who are born for a spiritual life have to be very careful.

*

MISTAKES: NO TORMENT, WORRY OR SADNESS If the sense of unworthiness fills you with overflowing gratitude and throws you at Sri Aurobindo’s feet in an ecstasy of joy, then you can know that it comes from a true source; if, on the contrary, it makes you miserable and brings an impulse to hide or to run away, then you can be sure that its origin is hostile. To the first you can open freely; the second must be rejected.

4 February 1933

* One must not torment oneself over errors that one may commit, but one must keep a perfect sincerity in one’s aspiration and in the end everything will be all right.

4 January 1934

* Thinking too much about one’s impurities does not help. It is better to keep the thought fixed on the purity, light and peace that one wants to acquire.

7 February 1934

* It is always our weaknesses that make us sad, and we can easily recover by advancing one step more on the way.

12 May 1934

*

The more I try to become conscious of Your presence within me, the more something in me comes in the way.

You must not worry about these little things — they have no importance in themselves; their value is to show us where unconsciousness still exists in our nature, so that we can bring the light there.

13 July 1934

* It is all right to see the imperfections and deficiencies but only on condition it brings a greater courage for a new progress, an increase of energy in the determination and a stronger certitude of victory and future perfection.

22 January 1935

* These ideas of incapacity are absurd, they are the negation of the truth of progress — what cannot be done today, will be done another day, if the aspiration is there.

6 February 1935

* Even if things are not as they ought to be, worry does not help to make them better. A quiet confidence is the source of strength.

11 November 1936

* Whenever you have made a mistake I always told you very frankly without hiding anything from you. Everybody makes mistakes and everybody has to learn and to progress. Moreover I have given you a big responsibility. I appreciate fully what you have done but there is still much to learn and I am sure that you will be quite glad to acquire knowledge and experience. With my love and blessings.

13 October 1943

* It is quite wrong to go on brooding about the past. The true attitude is to remember that nothing happens but by God’s will and to submit to that will quietly. If you have made mistakes in the past it is by lack of true surrender and the only way to repair the mistakes is to surrender truly.

* But it is not a reason for being upset about it. There is only to remain quite cool and do our best within the limits that the human nature ascribes to us.

After all, the whole, entire responsibility is the Lord’s and nobody else’s. So there is nothing to worry about.

* It is good to recognise your mistakes, but you must not torment yourself.

You must not suffer, you must correct yourself instead.

*

Mother, I am tired because every day some new catastrophe befalls me.

My dear child,

You must not torment yourself about these little mishaps. Keep very calm and these accidents will not happen any more.

My blessings are always with you.

*

The buns did not rise today. We don’t know why. We are afraid that the buns are not good. So at the last minute we prepared a kind of sabl´e [biscuit] which burned too.

Tell us, Mother, why do things go against us?

You must not worry about these little things, and above all do not believe in fatality. These little failures always have a cause that can be avoided with a little more experience, which is sure to come.

I tasted the bun — the taste is very good. They did not rise because they are not cooked enough. The oven must have been too hot, the bun burned and the outside began to brown before the inside was cooked.

As for the sabl´es, they are not burnt, they are very good.

My blessings are always with you.

*

MISTAKES: RECOGNISE AND CORRECT THEM When a mistake is made, it must always be used as a means for progress; once the necessary change is realised, the mistake and its cause disappear and there can be no repetition.

6 April 1937

* It is very good that you have become conscious of the mistakes and defects of the nature. Once you are conscious it is always possible to rise out of them and to change the nature.

23 January 1938

* It seems to me, on the contrary, that the best way is to remain where you are and make an effort to discover your own faults — you are bound to have some as everybody has — and try to correct them. To be conscious of one’s own mistakes is the surest way to come out of a difficulty.

* A mistake recognised is a mistake pardoned.

14 October 1939

* A mistake one denies is a mistake one refuses to set right.

* Repentance: the first step towards rectifying mistakes.

* It is no use excusing yourself; you must have the will never to fall back into the faults you have committed.

* Before going to sleep every night, we must pray that the mistakes we may have committed during the day should not be repeated in future.

20 June 1954

* In this last day of the year, let us take the resolution that all our weaknesses and obstinate obscurities will drop from us along with the finishing year.

30 December 1954

* A strong and effective resolution not to commit the same faults any more and a complete trust in the Divine’s Grace are the only remedy.

28 February 1955 Weaknesses

FEAR Fear is always a very bad adviser.

* It is the fear — more or less conscious — which does almost all the mischief.

Without fear nothing can happen.

* Do not fear, keep your confidence, all these troubles will leave you.

With my love and blessings.

* Stop fearing and the bothers will stop also.

A child of mine cannot fear. Blessings.

* My protection is always with you and nothing bad can happen.

But you must take the decision to shake off the fear and then my force can work fully.

27 October 1937

* Do not torment yourself, do not worry; above all try to banish all fear; fear is a dangerous thing which can give importance to something which had none at all. The mere fear of seeing certain symptoms renew themselves is enough to bring about this repetition.

24 July 1945

* This fear comes from weakness of nerves and of the vital. This fear must be got rid of, before any attempt is made to follow the path of Yoga.

9 March 1949

* Yoga and fear do not go together.

* You are frightened because your breathing seems to stop when you try to concentrate. Don’t enter this path if you are so full of fears. Suppose it comes to the worst; then what will happen? You may die — and then? What great harm will be done if you are dead? Our Yoga is not for cowards; if you have no courage, better leave it — your fears will bring disaster.§

* What can he fear who belongs to the Divine? Can he not walk, his soul expanding and his brow illumined, upon the path the Divine traces for him, whatever it may be, even if it is altogether incomprehensible to his limited reason?

14 October 1954

* All fear must be overcome and replaced by a total confidence in the Divine Grace.

6 June 1955

*

On some days of each month, when I sleep at night on my cot, moonlight from the window of my room falls on my face and body. Is there any harm in the moonlight falling on me while I am sleeping? I ask You because someone told me that it might have a bad effect and so it would be better to shut it out. But I love the moon and the moonlight very much for they remind me of Your White Light. Will you please let me know if there is any harm if moonlight falls on me while I sleep?

If you are not frightened, there is no harm — it is not the moon, it is the fear which harms.

9 May 1963

* Nothing can harm you if you do not fear.

So, fear not, be quiet and calm — all will be all right. With love and blessings.

15 October 1966

* The first thing from which you must cure yourself once for ever, is Fear.

It is more dangerous than the worst disease. With love and blessings.

9 October 1967

* There is nothing to fear — all is the Lord — there is nothing else than the Lord; the Lord alone exists and all that tries to frighten us is only a silly and meaningless disguise of the Lord.

Cheer up — the way is open before you, shake off this obsession of illness and bring down the Divine Calm.

Then everything will be all right. With love and blessings.

*

Mother, I feel terribly ill at ease, there are doubts about the Power and all sorts of troublesome things. I feel as if I were suffocating little by little, I have a headache that drifts here and there, it is terrible; I feel bound to something tamasic, inert and dark. I cannot get rid of this. Help me, Mother, I don’t know what to do, everything is dark, dark, dark. I don’t know how long I can hold out against this, a sort of something which gradually drains my energy and wants to draw me into itself. Mother, help me, I really don’t know what to do.

You must not be afraid. Have full trust in the Divine who is Love, Light and Life.

8 March 1972

* Go safely to Siddhapur and do not fear.

It is only fear which hurts, not the “spirits”. When people who have left their body appear in front of you, you must not fear — it is generally because they are restless and lack peace — give them a good thought and wish them to be in peace and it will be over.

In any case you can tell them to go to Mother and they will not bother you any more.

Go to Siddhapur and avoid unpleasant company if there is any, but always remember that it is only fear which harms and that with confident faith in the Divine’s Grace you are safe.

* You can be entirely free from fear only when you have driven out of you all violence.

* Get rid of all violence and you will no longer have any fear.

* Fear is hidden consent. When you are afraid of something, it means that you admit its possibility and thus strengthen its hand. It can be said that it is a subconscient consent. Fear can be overcome in many ways. The ways of courage, faith, knowledge are some of them.§

* Fear is slavery, work is liberty, courage is victory.

*

DOUBT Doubt is not a sport to indulge in with impunity; it is a poison which drop by drop corrodes the soul.

* We must decide to get rid of all doubts, they are among the worst enemies of our progress.

29 July 1954

*

DEPRESSION

How to avoid attacks of depression?

Do not pay attention to the depression and act as if it was not there.

31 March 1934

*

My heart feels arid, sad and gloomy, Mother.

Why don’t you try to read something beautiful and interesting and turn your attention away from yourself? That is the best remedy.

6 September 1935

* Do not indulge in such ridiculous ideas. “Madness” and “hell” and “dark cell” are all in your imagination.

You had better replace them by the sense of my love and blessings.

9 October 1937

* My dear child, I hope your poem is only a poem and that you are not truly suffering from depression. Indeed, depression is the worst of all illnesses and we must reject it with as much energy as we use to get rid of a disease.

With my love and blessings always.

30 January 1946

* It is the devil of depression and despondency that we shall slay tonight — so that all those who have the sincere will to get rid of this disease will receive the necessary help to conquer.

20 October 1950

* A depression is always unreasonable as it leads nowhere. It is the most subtle enemy of the Yoga.

31 May 1955

* I have only one thing to say: Depression is a bad adviser.

My love is always with you. Have faith and you will be all right.

It is the depression that gives you bad health. Blessings.

28 October 1967

* It is the ego that gets depressed.

Do not mind it. Go on quietly with your work and the depression will disappear.

18 August 1971

* At these moments of depression or of revolt, no fresh decision must be taken under the impulse of the wrong movement, but practically one must go on with the usual routine, quiet and undisturbed.

*

* * When you feel unhappy like that, it means that you have a progress to make. You can say that we always need to progress, it is true. But at times our nature gives its consent to the needed change and then everything goes smoothly, even happily. On the contrary sometimes the part that has to progress refuses to move and clings to its old habits through inertia, ignorance, attachment or desire. Then, under the pressure of the perfecting force, the struggle starts translating itself into unhappiness or revolt or both together.

The only remedy is to keep quiet, look within oneself honestly to find out what is wrong and set to work courageously to put it right.

The Divine Consciousness will always be there to help you if your endeavour is sincere; and the more sincere your endeavour the more the Divine Consciousness will help and assist you.

19 May 1952

* Periods of obscuration are frequent and common; generally, it is enough to keep quiet without worrying, knowing that these are spiritual nights which alternate with the full light of the days.

But to be able to remain in peace you must keep in your heart gratitude towards the Divine for all the help He gives. If gratitude also is veiled, the obscure periods last much longer. There is, however, a swift and effective remedy: it is to keep always burning in your heart the flame of purification, the aspiration for progress, the intensity, the ardour of consecration. This flame is kindled in the heart of all who are sincere; you must not let ingratitude cover it up with its ashes.

* You must remember one thing: the dark periods are inevitable. When your psychic is active, you feel a delight without any apparent reason. It continues for some time and again the same mental or vital reactions come in and you go back to the darkness. This will continue. The brighter days will become longer and the dark periods will come after longer intervals and for shorter duration till they finally disappear. Till then you must know that the sun is there behind the clouds and you need not worry. You must have the confidence of a child — a confidence that there is someone who takes care of you and you can entirely depend on him.§

*

SUFFERING My word to you is: Do not cherish suffering and suffering will leave you altogether. Suffering is far from being indispensable to progress. The greatest progress is made through a steady and cheerful equanimity.

10 May 1932

* The world is full of sufferings and sorrows.

One should try never to be the cause of any additional suffering.

10 October 1970

* The only remedy for all human suffering: divine love.

* Turn towards the Divine, all your sufferings will disappear.

* Do not take the sorrows of life for what they seem to be; they are in truth a way to greater achievements.

*

LAZINESS, TIREDNESS, FATIGUE, TAMAS It is a dangerous illness: laziness.

30 July 1936

* Tiredness shows lack of will for progress. When you feel tired or fatigued that is lack of will for progress.

Fire is always burning in you.

* Fatigue comes from doing without interest the things you do.

Whatever you do you can find interest in it, provided you take it as the means of progressing; you must try to do better and better what you are doing, the will for progress must always be there and then you take interest in what you do, whatever it is. The most insignificant occupation can prove interesting if you take it that way.

But even the most attractive and important activity will soon lose all its interest for you if the will for progress towards an ideal perfection is not there while you act.

*

About every ten days I have an attack of fatigue and exhaustion which has a tendency to turn into inertia and discouragement.

Take no notice of it and go on with your programme as usual. It is the quickest way of getting rid of it.

*

If I work I feel all right, but the fatigue comes after that. Why? What to do?

It is because you are receptive to the force when you work and that sustains you. But when you are not under the strain of the work you are less receptive. You must learn to be receptive in all circumstances and always — especially when you take rest — it must not be the “rest” of inertia but a true rest of receptivity.

* The forces behind the cyclone were not hostile but full of transforming power. You did the right thing, and I can assure you that to go inward and to receive the force is more helpful than to throw oneself into an agitated action. Certainly tamas is not good, but it is only through surrender to the Divine Consciousness that tamas can be changed.

*

What are the defects in me that are coming in my way of spiritual as well as material progress?

Tamas and sluggishness.

What am I to do to get rid of these defects of my nature?

Become more and more conscious.

22 October 1964

*

MATERIAL DESIRES Do not expect any satisfaction from physical life and you will no more be tied to it.

* For our passage in the material world, what is indispensable to our life and action is put at our disposal according to the place we should occupy there.

The more we are consciously in contact with our inner being, the more exact are the means we are given.

3 June 1970

* What is truly needed will surely come.

* Things must be asked for only when truly needed.

* What is bad is slavery. Slavery to abstinence as well as slavery to needs. What comes we take but always ready to let it go, if it goes...

*

GREED (FOR FOOD)

Greed for anything concerning physical consciousness, so-called necessities and comfort of whatever nature — this is one of the most serious obstacles to sadhana.

Each little satisfaction you get through greed is one step backward from the goal.

* When you have a desire you are governed by the thing you desire, it takes possession of your mind and your life, and you become a slave. If you have greed for food you are no more the master of food, it is the food that masters you.

* A sadhak must eat to satisfy the needs of his body and not to meet the demands of his greed.

4 April 1937

* If you prefer the pleasures of the palate to the union with the Divine, it is your own look-out and I have nothing to say, except that I do not approve, but each one must be free to choose whether he will rise above his lower nature or sink down in the material pit. My help is always for those who choose the higher path.

* It is an inner attitude of freedom from attachment and from greed for food and desire of the palate that is needed, not undue diminution of the quantity taken or any self-starvation. One must take sufficient food for the maintenance of the body and its strength and health, but without attachment or desire.

27 April 1937

* It would be a hundred times more effective to never waste food than to cut down one meal as a show and to eat more before and after.

A strong, ardent, sincere campaign against the waste of food is essential and full-heartedly I approve of it.

Let the inmates of the Ashram show their goodwill and collaboration in never eating more than they can digest and never ask for more than they can eat.

*