Theo. – There are so many aspects to be mastered in our lives that sometimes I don’t know how to deal with it.
The Elder – It all begins with the heart, and it all ends with the heart.
Theo. – That’s a good start! It sounds like a Japanese koan. Once again, you don’t want me to use my intellect for understanding.
The Elder – Right! I want you to grasp directly what I say to you. A specific inner state is required then, otherwise it would just be some sort of gossiping and a waste of time.
This mild rebuke from the Elder has Theo keep quiet.
The Elder continues:
– Listen and allow the words to penetrate:
“God’s immanence makes everything equal,
as does a lack of self-consideration.
That leads to bliss and happiness.
– I’m interested in your conclusion, Theo hazards, but I’d like you to explain further.
The Elder pretends he didn’t hear Theo’s remark and continues with a song from the Bhagavad Gita:
– “He who masters himself is calm.
He dwells within the supreme Self.
His mind is perfectly serene
Amid the pairs of opposites such as
cold and heat, pleasure and pain,
honour and dishonour.”
(Book VI, 7)
Theo. – Are you talking about being balanced under all conditions?
The Elder – I call it equanimity. Meditation is what starts giving us an access to it: it helps our whole body to relax, our senses are turned inward, and our mind is heart-oriented, since the idea of the divine light is what gives us direction. With practice, this heart will less and less go astray.
Theo. – I can master my mind well enough, for meditation, but far too often, I may still lose my temper. Even though I practice regularly, I still depend on my personal reactions.
The Elder – In itself, practice is only for preparedness. Cleaning helps us lighten our useless burdens. Meditation makes us understand how to lead our minds towards a very different dimension of our selves. Prayer is an opening to the Inner Master and to the Source of divine energy. Constant remembrance is a means to be permanently in the Presence. Taken together, all these elements of our practice lead to a better balanced inner state. When we approach the various forms of samadhi we become ‘equanimous’. Actually, equanimity becomes the test. Chariji used to call it the potato test: pick it with a knife and you will know whether it is cooked or not. No one is going to pick us, but the worldly events in our lives and the various trials we have to go through will test us and show our personal abilities to stay calm throughout the turmoil.
Theo. – Do you mean that in our hours of need there shouldn’t be any move within us, and that we should remain steady and well balanced both inside and outside?
The Elder – I like that Chinese saying: “A squall is not a storm, and a storm won’t last for more than three days.”
Theo. – So, if a problem arises, it should not trouble us for more than three days?
The Elder – We are naturally disturbed when taken by surprise, and perturbed if the shock is too strong, but that should not endure.
Theo. – Are you talking about the short time required for recovering one’s balance and for adjusting? It is not that easy if ever the shock was severe. How do you manage it?
The Elder – The more important it is, the less I let it move within myself. If it is enormous, then I become unshakeable.
Theo. (sighing) Just another paradox!
The Elder – I have no choice. The Lord takes over. I am no longer the charioteer, you see?
Theo. – I see, but how do you let Him take over?
The Elder – I do nothing. The Lord occupies my heart. He takes charge of everything and I remain on the sidelines, feeling hardly concerned. The funny part, as far as ordinary daily events are concerned, particularly the family ones, is that I can still be moved and fuss about. I face greater difficulties there.
Theo. (laughing) – Maybe you feel that it is for you to face it then, and that the Lord should not be bothered with it!
The Elder – I just think that it keeps me humble!
Theo. – In such moments, your Inner Master will leave you face your own tendencies and the lot of further progress you still have to achieve…
The Elder – I suppose so. Who knows? I have observed within myself that it all begins with emotions. Whenever it is emotionally moved, my mind becomes unstable and I can’t access my reason.
Theo. – The emotional state has short-circuited your reason and it now prevails.
The Elder – That is when an egotistical tendency may emerge.
Theo. – What do you do then?
The Elder – I falter, and the inner observer within me steps back. Then I realize that I am moved, and I can see ‘me’.
Theo. – Is your ‘observer’ the inner Master, or even the Lord?
The Elder – When the case is really serious, it is always the Lord, right away. On a daily basis, it is the observer, the inner Master who has to face the world of duality, my worldly duality.
Theo. – And then the squall won’t last more than an instant, will it?
The Elder (amused) – Sometimes the squall may think it is a storm!
Theo. (laughing) – Then you call out to the Lord!
The Elder smiles and remarks:
– You’d better stop laughing at your old master and listen to this:
“The yogi whose mind is established in Nirguna (the Divine without attributes)
and in Saguna (the Divine with attributes) is devoid of tribulations.
To him, a clod of earth, a piece of stone and gold are the same.
This person is a soul (atman) who has realized God.”
Book VI, verse 8.
“He who is of the same mind
to the good-hearted, friends, enemies, relatives,
to the indifferent, the hateful or the sinful,
is said to have attained the Supreme.”
Book VI, verse 9
– Well! I’m still very far from it, Theo added, as he evoked his outbursts.
The Elder – Not that far, though, provided you let the Lord take control in that moment.
Theo. – But we live in a dualistic world, which makes us feel like fighting, if only for changing it.
The Elder – The Gita teaches that our inner struggle is what we have to start with.
Theo. – How do you want me to do that?
The Elder – Don’t do. Let your inner Master operate. The verses 7, 8 and 9 from that Book VI are dedicated to meditation (dhyana).
Theo. – I’d rather need the verses concerning samadhi, the sahaj-samadhi.
The Elder – I consider that peace, inner calm and serenity will emerge as soon as the Lord has been established within our selves.
Theo. – Provided I have given Him my heart and my gift has been accepted. Then I agree. But how do I do it?
The Elder – Practice will help you get ready for it. The samskaras (complexities) your tendencies feed on will disappear, together with the five mayavic covers (the five koshas), and when “ananda-maya-kosha”, the ultimate cover, takes control, thus making you ready for the coming of the Lord within your heart.
Theo. – This will require a lot of patience, won’t it?
The Elder – Your restlessness may be welcome provided it is oriented toward the Divine (Vikama) and is less and less self-oriented. We for sure have to make a lot of efforts about ourselves when we start our sadhana (practice), but as our soul progresses on the way to the Ultimate, a state of equanimity will progressively takes care of itself. Our heart and the Lord within it are more and more attracting us. Then our joy is beyond words.
Theo. – So much so that we don’t want to leave it!
The Elder – Nevertheless, it remains a voluntary act. I see that too many advanced aspirants just ignore their hearts. That heart is so beautiful. The Master has already worked hard on them, but they lead their daily lives as if he did not exist, hence they suffer without knowing the reason why.
Theo. – I have met many people who are still suffering though they have been practicing for years. They often are irascible, frustrated, lonely, isolated, sad or even depressed. It always surprises me, as meditation is supposed to bring about some more serenity and balance.
The esoteric symbol.
The Elder – We always have to choose between living in the cosmic dimension through the heart (cf. the second star in the esoteric symbol) or living in the dual world of manifestation (first star).
Theo. – You have already evoked that balanced state you call the sattvic state. You said it was to be gained by ruling out the tamastic and rajasic tendencies.
The Elder – Particularly if you maintain the spiritual sattvic state of balance within you, what we call Saguna, or Nirguna, the divine state, depending on the soul’s progress.
Theo. – That means?
The Elder – The Presence in our hearts is there to safeguard and protect us.
Theo. – The heart’s guard?
The Elder – It’s better than that. The heart’s guard is there to protect our hearts from any intrusion, as it is permanently connected to the Presence. Then we can see the Lord and only Him.
Theo. – And sometimes you may slip on a piece of duality!
The Elder – Never mind! You just have to stabilize again and return to the Presence. If you can do it, a balanced state, equanimity, will settle down. Then it shows that the connection has been restored within you.
Theophile the Elder
An excerpt from Dialogs with Theophile the Elder
Theophile the Younger’s Initiation