How is one to meet Adverse Forces

Sadhak : How is one to meet adverse forces—forces that are invisible and yet quite living and tangible?

Mother : A great deal depends upon the stage of development of your consciousness. At the beginning, if you have no special occult knowledge and power, the best you can do is to keep as quiet and peaceful as possible. If the attack takes the form of adverse suggestions try quietly to push them away, as you would some material object. The quieter you are, the stronger you become. The firm basis of all spiritual power is equanimity. You must not allow anything to disturb your poise: you can then resist every kind of attack. If, besides, you possess sufficient discernment and can see and catch the evil suggestions as they come to you, it becomes all the more easy for you to push them away; but sometimes they come unnoticed, and then it is more difficult to fight them. When that happens, you must sit quiet and call down peace and a deep inner quietness. Hold yourself firm and call with confidence and faith: if your aspiration is pure and steady, you are sure to receive help.

SVS Interpretation of Mothers Answer
Occult = (Ref : Rand Hicks) Hidden of concealed from view, ergo mysterious. Also, pertaining to the knowledge or existence of supernatural and mysterious agencies, realities, and influences capable of impinging upon, but hidden from gross physical nature.
First of all, we need to take into consideration the stage of development of our consciousness. In the initial stages we do not possess any special occult knowledge and power. At this initial stage the best we can do is to keep quiet and peaceful to the extent we can. The attack of adverse forces may take the form of adverse suggestions. Generally we do not notice that the impulses or the thoughts that dwell in our mind are not our own but that which we have got from the sources outside to our person. It is like a virus. The virus has no independent living existence of its own. It becomes live when it ‘latches’ on to the cells of our body and in a way take charge of the cell, causing us the disease. Similarly, the suggestions are like virus. They do not have their own independent living existence. They can NOT cause the effect which it contains. They can cause the effect only through the MEDIUM of human personality. As we are ignorant of these workings of our nature, we mistakenly ‘OWN’ the responsibility for these suggestions, when in fact, we are only ‘BEING USED’ by these suggestions to carry out the effect as desired by them. It is a different subject of discussion about the origin of these suggestions. It is suffice to say that these are generally the ‘adverse forces’ bent on creating the disturbances in our personality.

As a first level of ‘strategy’ in winning the battle against these adverse forces, we need to quietly and without any mental agitation or disturbance REJECT these suggestions. It is similar to putting away the material objects. When it rains and we do not want to get drenched in water, we put on the umbrella and stop the drops from falling on our physical body. While walking on the road when we see a person coming from opposite direction is about to dash against us, we impulsively put our hands out to stop the person and get to the sideways to avoid or minimize the physical impact. This we can do because we can actually see the rain or the person in action. However, in the case of outside suggestions, we do not see it with our physical eye and are therefore oblivious of their inroads into us. That is why we need to be VIGILENT about it and take an instant notice of any impulse of anger, hatred, repulsion, attraction etc arising inside us. It is most likely because of the outside suggestions floating in the atmosphere around us and we ‘catching’ it sub-consciously. Do not give our consent to these suggestions. Just quietly and silently say to yourself that you are NOT accepting the suggestion. Remember that without our CONSENT, these adverse suggestions can have NO impact on us. This thief can enter our house only if we open our doors to him. Close the door and be safe inside the temple of your person.

Being quiet is being STRONG. Equanimity is the key word. It is the firm basis of all spiritual power. If your are successful in keeping your inner poise in a quiet and equanimious manner, then you can resist any kind of attack of the adverse forces. The major weapon in the armory of these adverse forces is the emotions of excitement – either for good or for bad reason. Once we are excited, we are ‘off our balance’ and ‘off our guard’. The enemy will ENGAGE us in our state of excitement and then COMFORTABLY SNEAK inside of our person without any difficulty. To keep us excited is the tactics of our enemy and to keep our poise is our sure defense.

We need to develop the poser of discernment. We should be able to ‘trap’ or ‘filter’ out the evil suggestions as they come to us. It is like the SECURITY CHECK as vital installations. If we are able to develop our ENTRY LEVEL SECURITY CHECK, then we can push back the enemy.

If for any reason, these vital forces still manage to cleverly sneak inside of our person, then we have to apply the SECOND LINE OF DEFENCE. We need to “sit quiet and call down peace and a deep inner quietness.” We need then to call for the outside help of our allies. For this purpose, we need to constantly practice through Sadhana and learn the art of receiving forces of the divine. We need to hold ourselves firm and call with full CONFIDENCE and FAITH. If our aspiration is PURE and STEADY, we are sure to receive help.

Mother : Attacks from adverse forces are inevitable: you have to take them as tests on your way and go courageously through the ordeal. The struggle may be hard, but when you come out of it, you have gained something, you have advanced a step. There is even a necessity for the existence of the hostile forces. They make your determination stronger, your aspiration clearer.

SVS Interpretation of Mothers Answer
We can not stop these adverse forces from attacking us. At the same time, we can turn this problem into an OPPORTUNITY. We can use them as our ‘testing equipment’ to gauge the level of our progress on the Path. If we have this attitude towards this situation, we can fight the battle with courage and without any disturbance or agitation. Even thought it may be a tough battle, but once we are through it, we will notice we have marched further on our Path. We may even say that there is a NECESSITY for the existence of these adverse forces. They result in much stronger determination. Our aspiration become more clear and pure. It is like TRIAL BY FIRE. Finally, the pure gold comes out of the multistage purification process.

Mother : It is true, however, that they exist because you gave them reason to exist. So long as there is something in you which answers to them, their intervention is perfectly legitimate. If nothing in you responded, if they had no hold upon any part of your nature, they would retire and leave you. In any case, they need not stop or hamper your spiritual progress.

SVS Interpretation of Mothers Answer
On the other hand, it is also true that existence of these adverse forces is because we NEED them to exist. It sounds weird but it is true. These forces are draw their legitimacy from our RESPONSIVENESS to them. The electricity need a good CONDUCTING wire to reach its destination. It will be ineffective on non-conducting material like wood. If we stop being responsive to these adverse forces, they will REBOUND back from you, without making any dent on your person. They will then spare you in frustration. At least it is for sure that these forces will then not be able to put obstacles in our spiritual progress.

Mother : The only way to fail in your battle with the hostile forces is not to have a true confidence in the divine help. Sincerity in the aspiration always brings down the required succour. A quiet call, a conviction that in this ascension towards the realisation you are never walking all alone and a faith that whenever help is needed it is there, will lead you through, easily and securely.

SVS Interpretation of Mothers Answer
We are sure to win in this battle if we stick to one cardinal rule : to have a true confidence in the divine help. The divine help is received in direct proportion to the sincerity and purity of our aspiration.
To summarise, we need to keep in mind the following principles in order to succeed in our path :

• A Quiet and Firm Poise without any disturbance or excitement
• A firm conviction that the Divine is with us all along in this ascension towards the realisation.
• A complete Faith the divine help is always available whenever needed and called for and that this help will sail our boat safely to the other shore through the stormy waters.

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5 May 1929, Pg 33-34, Conversations with Mother

Function of Intellect

Function of Intellect..................................Shrikant Soman

Sadhak : What is the proper function of the intellect? Is it a help or a hindrance to Sadhana?

Mother : Whether the intellect is a help or a hindrance depends upon the person and upon the way in which it is used. There is a true movement of the intellect and there is a wrong movement; one helps, the other hinders. The intellect that believes too much in its own importance and wants satisfaction for its own sake, is an obstacle to the higher realisation.

SVS Interpretation of Mothers Answer
We can not attach a fixed ‘label’ to the intellect as either a HELP or a HINDRANCE to Sadhana. It can be a hindrance in one case whereas it may be a help to Sadhana. It is relative to the person who is having and using it and also to the manner in which it is being used. The true movement of the intellect helps in Sadhana and the wrong movement of the intellect hinders Sadhana. As a general rule, any ‘egoistic’ use of the intellect is an obstacle to the higher realisation. This is the intellect which believes too much in its own importance and wants satisfaction for its own sake. It is a selfish manner and therefore not the intellect per se but the selfish manner in which it is being used is a hindrance to the Sadhana.

Mother : But this is true not in any special sense or for the intellect alone, but generally and of other faculties as well. For example, people do not regard an all-engrossing satisfaction of the vital desires or the animal appetites as a virtue; the moral sense is accepted as a mentor to tell one the bounds that one may not transgress. It is only in his intellectual activities that man thinks he can do without any such mentor or censor!

SVS Interpretation of Mothers Answer
We can say that this is a general rule and not just specific to the intellect alone. This rule also applies to the all-engrossing satisfaction of the vital desires or to the animal appetites e.g. sex, money, power, food etc. However, in these matters, we have our ‘moral values’ as a guide and it helps us to decide what is good or helpful for higher realisation and what is bad or harmful on the path. Unfortunately, in the case of intellect, we tend to slip out of this moral sense. We feel that in matters of intellect, morality has nothing to do or that it is outside the scope of moral values. This is the real problem.

Mother : Any part of the being that keeps to its proper place and plays its appointed role is helpful; but directly it steps beyond its sphere, it becomes twisted and perverted and therefore false. A power has the right movement when it is set into activity for the divine’s purpose; it has the wrong movement when it is set into activity for its own satisfaction.

SVS Interpretation of Mothers Answer
To put it differently, as a general theory, all the activities of any part of our being are helpful and conducive to our Sadhana which are within their proper place and play their appointed role. When they step beyond its sphere and become twisted and perverted – they become false. The cardinal test is this : Does the movement is serving the purpose of the divine or it is driven by selfish motive ? It is a right movement when it is set into activity for the divine’s purpose. It is a wrong movement when it is set into activity for its own satisfaction. The one is based on Vidya or true knowledge and the other on Avidya or the ignorance.

Mother : The intellect, in its true nature, is an instrument of expression and action. It is something like an intermediary between the true knowledge, whose seat is in the higher regions above the mind, and realisation here below. The intellect or, generally speaking, the mind gives the form; the vital puts in the dynamism and life-power; the material comes in last and embodies.

SVS Interpretation of Mothers Answer
Let us get to the root function of the intellect. The intellect is an instrument of expression and action. Like any instrument, it does not have any intrinsic label of good or bad. A gun for example, is bad in the hands of a terrorist and good in the hands of a soldier. Intellect acts as a ‘translator and interpreter’ of higher regions above mind to help the lower regions of our being ‘understand’ the messages of true knowledge or Vidya. The intellect, as an instrument of the mind, gives the form to the Vidya. The vital part of our being puts in the dynamism and life power to make it a living entity. The material world which is at the lowest level, gives it a body and solidity. This is the place of intellect in the overall scheme of our being. It is for us to make best use of this scheme for our progress on the path towards higher realisation or go downhill in a roller-coaster ride of selfish and egoistic satisfactions.

..............................................................pg 33, Conversations 1929-1931, 5th May 1929