It is not necessary to explain in words the joy that I feel in coming and seeing you again. In the initiation we are so linked together that distance in reality is not a distance. Nevertheless, it is also necessary to meet together in this physical plane. Now I wish to explain to you how many things are necessary for a mureed.
The first thing most necessary for a mureed is to try to keep up the spiritual exercises that are given, without any break. If you are tired or if you were occupied too much, if conditions were not favourable, I do not mean that it is urged upon you. I mean that it is for your betterment to keep those exercises without a gap between them.
Would you believe, if I may say so, that the effect of certain practices comes even after ten or twelve years. A person without patience might think, “I did not have immediate results after two or three months,” but they should not think so. If there are seeds that you sow in the ground, they take root and a plant comes; but in order for the plant to be fruitful it might take ten years. This is the spiritual sowing. It might take a much longer time in some cases, while in some cases the next day the result might show. There are some plants which come quicker, others that take time to take root. Still the spiritual sowing has its result, and a sure result. Never, therefore, doubt; never be discouraged; never give up hope; but continue persevering on this path.
Now the second necessity for the mureed is study. It must not be a study only, like reading a book. It must be a study of engraving upon a person’s heart the Gathas, the Gathekas, all the literature that is given. However simple it might seem to grasp it, you will find that it is creative in itself. It is just a phrase now. After six months the same phrase will flourish, there will come branches, flowers and fruits in that phrase. It is a simple phrase, but it is a living phrase. The more you will study and grasp it, the more your heart will be creative. Therefore, do not consider it a study only; it is a meditation even in your studies.
The third important thing in the life of a mureed is to live a life of balance, of regularity; not too much work, nor too much rest, a balance between activity and repose. Because when we put the idea before the world, we shall be responsible to show it in our lives, therefore our lives must be as balanced as possible. Besides that, in eating, in drinking there must be a kind of moderation which I am sure many of us have, and a kind of concentration from the meditative point of view. Because for spiritual growth a certain food may be more recommended than another. Therefore, we, on the spiritual path, cannot always be neglectful of that question.
Now there comes the fourth question, how must our attitude be towards others? Towards the other mureeds, our attitude must be affectionate, sympathetic. Towards non-mureeds our attitude must be tolerant. The best thing in the world is not to force upon others what we understand and what we believe. By forcing upon others, we only spoil them. By discussing, arguing with them, we do not accomplish anything. Besides, it is most advisable that a mureed must keep their conversation limited, and not say things that might seem too occult, too mystical, or too spiritual to others. Our conversation must be like an ordinary conversation. We do not talk about things like spirits and ghosts and elementals, apparitions and all sorts of things. People like to talk about their past and present and next incarnation, what they were and what they will be. We must not commit ourselves in talking about these things. These things are for every individual to find out for themself. By talking we do not do good to ourselves nor good to others. If we can only talk about the simple things of everyday life, there are so many things that we shall have enough subjects to speak about when with others.
Ideas of the air must be left in the air. Standing on the earth we must talk of things of the earth, leaving every individual free for themself as we like to be free ourselves. Besides, the Sufi does not give a definite idea of these things, because Sufism is freedom, freedom of conception, of belief. It does not give people any dogmas. Sufism does not say that you must believe this or that; it does not present before humanity particular dogmas. Very often for this reason, Sufism is accused of being against certain dogmas. But it is not so.
If we do not speak about them, it is not that we are against them, but because we do not like to speak about them. We prefer being silent rather than talking too much about them. These are things for intimate conversation. When a mureed is conversing with their Murshid, or with fellow-mureeds perhaps we talk about it. These are not the things to talk about at the tea table. It would make the inner laws of life and nature ridiculous. When nature, when life itself, covers its laws, then it means that they had best be covered. When we uncover them, we certainly commit a fault against the hidden nature of things. It is for this reason that it is called mysticism. Mysticism means keeping the cover over the hidden laws of nature that are meant to be covered. As soon as we uncover them, it means, in the first place, that we do not know their value. Then we go no further, we cannot go any further. It is the mureed who knows their value who will go further; the person who has no respect for them, who brings them to the market, cannot go any further. They have a setback. When we go further, we shall have to face a great trial. As soon as people know that we are interested in these things, they will ask a lot of questions. They will want us to make a prophecy, want us to say uncommon things that will interest them. We shall be put to the test.
You can quite see it is the path of silence. The more we keep our lips closed, the more the way is open, the more doors are open to us. The attitude itself opens them. We do not need to open them. We only need to expect them. What is not common is not common. When we want to make them common, that means putting heaven down on the earth, instead of raising the earth towards heaven. Our attitude with others therefore must be humble, unpretentious and ordinary.
Now the fifth thing: we must not leave our meditation and prayers just to those fixed times when we do them. That is only the winding of the thing. In our everyday life we ought to bring the sense of it into our action, in everything we do, at home or outside. We must use that latent power and inspiration aroused by our meditations; we should make use of it. By practising to make use of it, we shall benefit ourselves and others by all we are doing.
Now with these words I close my conversation and would like you to ask me any questions that you may desire in connection with your work.
Q. In religion we are taught generally of the God outside, not quite outside but outside of us, and still we have God inside too. Now, perhaps a person who does not believe in God outside, and only in the God inside, will show no confidence and no character, because they develop everything from themself. The attitude that one has been taught in religion is to be dependent and that does not give real confidence.
A. Those who think that God is not outside but inside are as wrong as those who believe that God is not inside but outside. Really speaking, God is inside and outside both. But in the beginning, it is most necessary to begin by believing in the God outside, because from our childhood we have learned everything from the outside. By looking at the eyes of others we say that is what an eye is. So, everything that we learn from outside we see in ourselves, but we have already learned outside. So even to learn to see God we must begin to see God outside, the Creator, the Judge, the Knower of all things, the Forgiver; and when we have understood God better, then the next stage is to see the God we find within. This completes the worshipping because the God that we have seen outside, we have found inside. If we have only found God outside, then we are the worshippers, but we are separate from Him, and there is no communion. The purpose is the communion.
Q. “In an Eastern Rose Garden” we read, “The will of man is the will of God.” But our will is not always pure!
A. When we go deeper in the search of the hidden law of life, we shall find that there is only One Will which is acting behind it all. There are not many wills. We cannot call God all-powerful if there is another one also who is powerful, even to a small degree, besides God. There is one power, life, will, existence, that is God. When we go over to that deeper idea, we will find that there is one will that is the Will of God. That is a metaphysical, philosophical idea, not for the common person. The ordinary person will not understand this. How can it be, this person will doubt? It is not good for them to know it. But for us it is right to know that there is one life, that is the Life of God. There is one being, that is the Being of God. As the prophets of old have said, not one atom moves without the will of God. Rumi, in the Masnavi says, “The earth and water and fire which seem to us as dead things, before God they are living beings, obedient to His Will.”
Therefore, behind it all there is only One Will. However, in order to realize it, we must first be responsible for our own action; we must forgive and tolerate the action of another. In this way we progress. Very often we are too ready to form an opinion about other peoples’ actions and forget our own errors. Therefore, the best thing is to take ourselves to task. In this way we improve.
Q. But are there things that are really wrong, that a person cannot be tolerant of?
A. The wrongdoer has their own wrong as their worst enemy. Besides our being hard on them, their own wrong is their enemy. They are themselves in trouble; they are their own enemy. The conditions, the circumstances, the people they will meet, from every side they will receive hate sooner or later.
We may be making a mistake. We do not know what is hidden behind a person’s action. Therefore, be tolerant, forgive. Very often a seeming wrong has a hidden right, and very often a seeming right has a hidden wrong. Besides we cannot always judge very well. In order for us to judge, consider in the first place that we have no right to judge unless we have become spectators. Then only can we begin to learn how to judge. When we are in the middle of the struggle we cannot judge.
Q. Is there really no fault, no guilt, but simply a responsibility? Whenever an individual has acted, they have been compelled by circumstances, or these circumstances have compelled the individual to act as they did. I thought an individual really can be guilty. Or does it only show that the person was not as wise as we had expected them to be, according to their spiritual evolution?
A. Your explanation of it is very good, quite right.
Q. What should the attitude of a Sufi be towards Catholics in general? There are a lot of Catholics who are very pious, mystical to a high degree. Do they sympathize with Sufism? It would benefit them to hear of Sufism in general.
A. Sufism is for human beings, whether they are Catholics or Protestants, because it brings to humanity no cult of a Church. It brings to humanity the cult of humanity, the culture of humankind. It then does not keep them back. The Sufi says, “You are free to do your Catholic practices or your Protestant practices, as are the Hindu, the Jew, the Buddhist.” If the Catholic says, “You must not go to the Sufis,” then the Sufi is not responsible for that. This is a culture for all humanity. It only gives you a stimulus which is the spirit of all religion, which is the essence of all religion. It is truth itself.
My experience in Italy has been of great value to me. I have now visited Italy twice: Florence and Rome. One might think that Rome is a place where there is a great Catholic influence, and that it might be very difficult to make the people understand; but it is not so. I have found there some souls who are most interested in the deeper ideals, most open to it. Yes, there are outward difficulties, but there are no inward difficulties. That is a great encouragement to me. If there were inward difficulties, that takes possibility away from me, that gives me no scope. Outward difficulties are difficulties for me, but still they give me courage. I can at least talk to souls who understand. I am very pleased they at least understood it. The one who understands values it; then you have found something very satisfactory. The one who does not understand may be very willing to follow you, but that is a difficulty for me. I had three open meetings at the University of Rome. There were crowded audiences; the rector presided. There was another open meeting, at a countess’s house, where the cultured classes were, and the response was wonderful.
Our strength is in the Truth; that is our strength. We shall bring truth before humanity; we shall lay it in their presence. Those who neglect it, that is their responsibility; we have done our work.
May 22, 1924
CW 1924 Vol. I pp. 235-243.
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