Maharaj: People do not believe me when I tell them that they do not know themselves. You have allowed yourself to be enticed by what is not the truth; by identification with the body you have lost that knowledge.
Questioner: Who is that “you”?
M: Who is asking this question?
Q: Since this individual beingness depends on the body how can one say that the body cannot be given too much importance?
M: We give too much importance to individuality. This consciousness in the body remains only so long as the body lasts. We think that when the body is destroyed the consciousness is also destroyed. It is not destroyed; it becomes one with the universal consciousness.
This beingness, which is our most prized possession and which we want to retain at all costs, preferably for all time to come, is dependent on the body and will only last as long as the time limit for each individual existence.
The subject must be separate from the object which it perceives. The body must disappear, no matter how intensely one may wish otherwise. The Self is separate; it will merge with the Universal Being.
The Self is totally different from what the listener imagines it to be. I address the actual listener, not what the listener thinks he is. There are various kinds of knowledge in this world, but the only true knowledge is knowledge of the Self.
Q: Because of my experiences, I have had visitations and guidance from many Saints. Maharaj says in the book that we receive help from many different persons. What are those persons who give us help?
M: They all arise in your own being, from your own consciousness. They are not separate from you.
Q: So the statement in the book was not complete?
M: That answer was to a particular person, and what I have told you now is the answer for you.
Q: I can shut it all out, or should I be receptive? It is very hard to open the door to the Guru and keep everything else out. Meditation on the Guru is very important.
M: If the guidance of those so-called sages or guides is acceptable to you, accept it; otherwise reject them and ask them to proceed. If you have a vision of a gigantic god whose head is touching the heavens, unless you are its support where is the vision? I am not telling you what you should or should not do. I want you to be your Self, the very support of all. Your seeking advice will depend on your own level, your purpose.
By his teachings my Guru has taken me to the state before there was any conditioning, any experience of any kind. The Yogi who gets absorbed in the silent sound is there before the silent sound. You have reached the state where these things happen, but remember, you are there before.
You are having all these wonderful meditations. If you persist in your association with me you will lose everything.