Chapter XII

Initiation

The mind will not allow man to have knowledge of the soul. Its nature is to seek pleasure and its constant fluctuations are difficult to subdue. Attuning one’s self with the Internal Sound Current is the best way to calm the mind and practise concentration. It does not matter what school of thought or society a man may belong to. He has not to convert himself and can remain where he is.

There are no hard and fast rules, no rituals, no ceremonies, no pomp and show, no offering of gifts, not even of flowers. All that a disciple has to do is to enter inside and henceforth consider the body as his laboratory. With regard to the theory, he has to understand the following, which is briefly the pith of what he will hear at Satsangs:

  1. The Master is not the body, he is the Power functioning through the body and uses it to teach and guide man in much the same way as a spirit uses a medium. Only in bodily form will the disciple be able to recognise his Master in the higher regions and here on earth.

  2. The Master is Shabd, Word, Nad, etc., all of which refer to the God-into-Expression-Power of Light and Sound Principle. By having a contact with this Power, man is led back to his True Home.

  3. For the sake of those who are disillusioned with life, and who yearn for permanent happiness and peace away from the world and its worries, the Word assumes a body to afford them solace.

    Christ said,

    Word was made flesh and dwelt amongst us.

    Once a disciple contacts this Word – which is done at the time of initiation by the Master –, the audible form of this Word resides within never leaves him, and even after the end of man’s physical existence on earth. It will go with him and stay with him until he achieves the final goal.

    The Word is also known as the Voice of God or the Sound Current, and is the Life-Impulse given by the Master at the time of initiation. It may be heard as a sound coming from a distance and gradually develops into such sweetness that no music on earth can excel It.

    It is the Water of Life, the Spring of Immortality, the Elixir of Life, the Nectar of Spirituality, etc., that are spoken of in Holy Books.

  4. Man has an Inner Eye with which he can see within himself all the higher regions, when the veil is rent asunder by a Competent Living Master. In this state, he remains perfectly conscious and undergoes amazing experiences. To ascend to the higher regions without a Competent Master is fraught with dangers.