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Sri Chinmoy Answers

questions about mountain-climbing

Question: It takes a very long time, a lot of effort and a lot of money to go on mountain-climbing trips. Is it really worth all the time, effort and money, or would it be better to do something else with our resources?

Sri Chinmoy: You have to change your attitude. When you climb a mountain or swim the English Channel, you may call it a silly adventure, but I take it as part of our manifestation. In the world of manifestation, there is an outer history and an inner history. One is in the mind and one is in the heart. The mind's history we will forget the next day, but the history of the heart we will forever remember. We will forever remember that somebody became inseparably one with his Guru's will and achieved something remarkable.

Recently one of our Swiss disciples, after swimming the English Channel, went on to do cycling and running all the way to Paris. If you look at her, who would ever imagine she could do this kind of thing?

We now have at least a solid three thousand disciples. Out of three thousand disciples, only five or six are entering into this mountain-climbing aspect of our manifestation. I am sad; if I had the money, I would be the first person to give you money to meet with your expenses. For everything, money is needed. There are many, many disciples who have enough money. But where are they? They have the money, but they do not have the willingness, the eagerness, the self-giving — which you do have. How many people have the daring capacity to climb? As you know, some people are afraid of climbing up stairs, even. It is too much for them. If there are eight floors, they will wait eight hours for the elevator to come!

Question: I don't think that money is really the problem. It’s just that sometimes I feel miserable when there are other projects that I cannot participate in. Because I'm concentrating on climbing, I don't do some other things.

Sri Chinmoy: True, there are many other activities. But climbing is something that others cannot do. How many people can even imagine climbing up the Himalayas? Will my "best disciple" dare, even if I give him the money?

"Best disciple": Guru, I don't like the cold.

Sri Chinmoy: He does not like the cold, and somebody else will not like something else!

"Best disciple": I'm also scared of heights.

Sri Chinmoy: You have to see how many people are able to do this. Each thing has such significance in life, individually and collectively: swimming, climbing, running. Look at what a wonderful job our Peace Run has done! Thousands and millions of people know about us because of the Peace Run. In the Peace Run you can invite thousands of people to participate, and everyone will be all oneness-enthusiasm. That is one way, the collective way, and it is a tremendous manifestation. But for other types of manifestation, individually some people have to come forward. When it is a matter of climbing, even if some people have oneness, will they dare to make the attempt? Everything that we achieve is recorded in our minds and hearts.

If people are afraid, if they feel they will die, I will be the last person to ask them to take up climbing. I am praying to God that you people who do take up the challenge do not meet with any accident. To climb the Himalayas is extremely difficult; again, it is a great adventure. In an adventure, if you do not meet with immediate success, you have to feel that eventually you will succeed. In the beginning, the idea of swimming the English Channel seemed impossible. Now a number of our girl disciples are doing it, and one older man is defying age and conquering the Channel. So if somebody else fails, you should not give up. Either you will do it, or there will be somebody else to come who will succeed.

Published in Sri Chinmoy Answers, part 12

Message

On the evening of 20 September 1966, the AUM CENTRE, INC., under the direction of its President, Sudha, inaugurates its new quarters at Calle Mayo, numero 264, Santurce, Puerto Rico.

Sri Chinmoy sends the following taped-recorded message to the President, who plays it for the assembled members during the inspired inaugural ceremony which she planned and conducted.

Dear President, Vice-President, Counsellor, Legal Adviser, Secretary, Treasurer, Head of Public Relations, Head of Intellectual and Cultural Activities, Head of Selfless Service, and Members of the Aum Centre:

On this divinely significant day, let us offer our deepest gratitude to the Supreme. No human being is inaugurating the Centre. The Supreme is inaugurating the birth of His own child.

If you think of the Divine child, the Supreme will think of you. If you feed the child with your heart's aspiration, the Supreme will feed your body, mind, heart and soul through Eternity. If you become one with the child, you will see and feel that the Supreme has already become one with you.

Published in AUM – Vol. 2, No. 2, September 27, 1966

The Past, the Present and the Future

A talk by Sri Chinmoy
given in Room 550 at the United Nations in New York

The past is important. The future is more important. The present is most important. The present is infinitely more important than the past and the future put together.

The past is a promise, an unfulfilled promise. The future is a hope, an uncertain hope. The present is necessity’s reality and reality’s necessity. The present is the eternal Now. The “eternal” is God the Name. The “Now” is God the Form. When God the Form enters into God the Name, God the Form becomes the transcendental Vision. When God the Name enters into God the Form, God the Name becomes the universal Reality.

Transcendence and universality, Vision and Reality, are inseparable and invaluable. When we want to become members of the world of Vision-Dream, transcendence is invaluable. When we want to become members of the world of Reality-manifestation, immanence is invaluable. Transcendence is the seed. Immanence is the fruit. A seed is no seed if it does not reveal the fruit. A fruit is no fruit if it does not embody the seed. So the seed and the fruit are at once inseparable and invaluable. In Heaven we are all seeds of God’s Dream. On earth we are all fruits of God’s Reality.

Published in Union-Vision

Sri Chinmoy meets with Mikhail Gorbachev before the inauguration of the Raisa Maximovna Gorbacheva Institute of Paediatric Haematology in St. Petersburg in Russia. The former Soviet President had personally invited Sri Chinmoy to the event, calling him both a personal friend and a long-time friend of the Gorbachev Foundation.

Publoshed in From the Source to the Source

Poem for Amrita-da

by Sri Chinmoy

At eight-thirty a.m. I presented Amrita-da with my poem translated into English by Nolini-da. He was extremely moved. He was speechless and did not want to descend to his usual humorous consciousness. In a high, contemplative mood, he said: "In silence I am telling you what I want to say about this poem."

After a few moments he said: "Chinmoy, today I will give you the best sweets, made by the best sweet-maker. Do you know who she is?"

"How can I know? Please tell me."

"She is our Shibarani, the Ashram's Shibarani, the Mother's Shibarani."

Later, I entered Nolini-da's room to work. He said to me: "Today we must observe Amrita's birthday. Here is a huge cake. Go and give it to him. We shall invite his dear ones to his room."

Then I showed Nolini-da the group picture taken on my birthday. He was very pleased. He said to me: "I need three copies: one for the Mother and two for myself."

Robi-da-also wrote a poem in Bengali about Amrita-da and asked his father to translate it into English. Nolini-da's translation of Robi-da's poem was also extremely beautiful.

Published in A service-flame and a service-sun

Aurora-Flora

Published in AUM – Vol. 6, No. 9, September 1980