Beyond Psychic Powers (Part 9)

So here's a chance for the so-called gurus to relieve themselves of the burden of their "spiritual mastership" business. They can become humble servants of the Supreme and live for His enjoyment. In this way, we can save them from hell. They are already in hell but they do not realize it. Hell is when you've forgotten the Supreme Person and you're thinking, "I am God."

QUESTION: So what if a person is intelligent enough to realize the foolishness of the I-am-God" philosophy, and desires to be a lover of God, But says, "If I love God, I'll try to develop more psychic powers and thereby be able to serve or glorify Him?"

JAGAD GURU: The answer is here in the story of Lord Rama and the spider and Hanuman. In my book, Are Mystic Powers Perfection? this story is told:

A nice example in this connection is seen in the story of Lord Ramachandra's building of a great bridge from India to Sri Lanka (Ceylon). Lord Rama's servant was a big monkey named Hanuman, who, with great mystic powers, was throwing huge boulders into the water for the bridge. As Hanuman tossed a big rock into the sea, he happened to glance down and saw a small spider kicking dust with his tiny legs into the water. Hanuman scorned the small creature and said, "Out of my way. You're not helping any!" But Lord Rama chastised His servant Hanuman, and said that the spider was doing as much as he was, for if any person works with all his power, which he was given by the Lord, in the Lord's service—then perfection of the same level is attained. This path of devotional service to the Supreme Lord is called the topmost yoga system, karma yoga or bhakti yoga.

You don't need to cultivate or develop these psychic powers to serve the Supreme more. Work according to your ability in His service. That is bhakti yoga. This is spiritual perfection.

QUESTION: You are saying that perfection of life is not the degree of power but how one actually uses power?

JAGAD GURU: Yes, because spiritual perfection is being in harmony or in tune with Reality. The first thing we must understand is Reality: the reality of my identity and there-fore my position and natural function.

How much a person can see things as they really are is what determines spiritual advancement. For example, if I think that I am the material body, I am spiritually blind. After all, even material scientists know that the material body a person had on ten years ago is dead and gone—all the cells have been replaced. However, the person who existed ten years ago still exists, but in a different body. The baby body is gone and is now an adult's body. So to identify myself as the material body conflicts with the reality of the situation. The first step in self-realization or spiritual perfection, then, is to know that I am not the material body. I am the spirit soul within the body.