Question::
How far can Yogis travel on the Spiritual Path, on their own? How does Perfect Masters help Yogis?
(or)
Why Spiritual aspirants, sometimes, are prohibited to meet people? Why is it suggested that the aspirants should cook their own food?
(or)
Who are Masts? How are ‘real Masts’ different from ‘mad persons’?
(or)
Why ‘Masts’ need a Perfect Master? How does these Masters help their onward spiritual progress?
(or)
What is the spiritual status of a Mast? Can Masts help others spiritual progress?
(or)
Does “miracles” performed by some Yogis denote that they are Perfect Beings?
(or)
Why Yogis need a Perfect Master?
Answer::
(Extracted from Meher Baba’s literature, which is a copyright of Avatar Meher Baba Perpetual Public Charitable Trust(©AMBPPCT), Ahmednagar, Maharashtra, Bharat/India)
Some Yogis seek to realize the “Self” by trying to be forgetful of the “gross universe”. Instead of eliminating the binding impressionary dispositions which twist and goad their ‘mind’, they often end by adding new impressionary dispositions of the ‘inner planes’. It is very rare for a Yogi to go beyond the fourth plane, where the greater supernatural powers come and often retard the progress of the spiritual pilgrim.
The Perfect Masters, therefore, effect the undoing of the “impressionary dispositions” by safe stages. In order to avoid the heaping up of an unmanageable “load of impressions”, the Masters generally isolate the disciples, sometimes even prohibiting them to eat at the hands of others. The food that a man eats brings with it the “impressionary tendencies” of the person who gives it. The Master not only stops the further accumulation of ‘binding tendencies’, but changes the entire outlook of his “consciousness” directing it by stages,
- from the ‘gross’ to the ‘subtle’,
- from the ‘subtle’ to the ‘mental’ and
- from ‘mental’ to the ‘Divine’ Sphere of existence.
Some wayfarers on the Path develop on the line of ‘Masts’. The ‘Mast’ or the God-intoxicated person, who loses his gross consciousness of the body or the world, often behaves like a person who is stark mad. He may, like mad persons, throw stones or filth at others or abuse and bite them. Yet, he is essentially different from mad persons, since all that he does has a radically different ‘motivation’ and ‘effect’.
The ‘actions of mad persons’ can be distinguished from the ‘actions of real Masts’ even as they can be distinguished from those of a drunkard. The difference between a ‘drunkard’ and the ‘mad person’ is that while the drunkard always totters while walking, the mad person does not so totter. It is by means of this single movement that a mad person can be easily distinguished from a drunkard.
In the same manner, there are some outward signs by means of which it is possible to distinguish between the “real Masts” and the “mad persons”, though in many respects, the Masts behave like mad persons.
The Mast might sometimes behave like a ‘mad person’ or like a ‘child’ or a ‘ghost’. BUT HIS ACTION IS NEVER MEANINGLESS. It is always charged with some deep spiritual import; and almost always, it hits its target unfailingly and effectively.
But, though the state of the Mast is often very exalted and his powers great, he often gets dazed and LOSES HIS BALANCE. He then needs the “care” and “help” of a Perfect Master, as much as, sometimes, even more than ordinary seekers.
In most Masts, the ‘heart’ is all right filled with ‘divine love’. But the ‘mentality’ is completely undermined with the result that– they are incapable of rendering any useful service to others on the Path. They also get stuck on the Path for lack of any inward steering.
In such cases, the Master fills the Mast with “mentality” rendering him susceptible and responsive to environmental reactions, and thus giving him an opportunity to advance further through discriminative acts of “service” to less advanced persons. He has to come down in order to go higher up; and he could not have come down without the help of the Master.
Some Yogis can perform ‘miracles’ like creating gold out of lead or iron. Others can even shake the whole world if they want it. But they are not necessarily perfect. Such Yogis, though really far from “perfection”, get caught up in their own unmanageable powers. They become like a deer for a real Master to hunt. The ‘Master of perfection’, as it were, hunts them in the woods, in which they roam about missing their way and whiling away their time in ignorant pursuits. And, when the hunted ones pray for the ‘right Path’, the Master shows it to them, thus saving them from rounds and rounds of lives, which they would otherwise require to arrive at the further stages of the inner Path.
The Master can subdue the Yogis into the right course, because His “powers”– unlike the powers of the Yogis– are UNLIMITED, though He seldom uses them. He is interested, not in the exercise of powers but in the imparting of “spiritual knowledge”– which is far more difficult and is the only thing of real value.
There was a Yogi, who acquired great ‘occult powers’. One day, he went to a town and offered food out of a small bowl to the inhabitants.
Thousands and thousands of persons partook of the rice given from his small bowl. But the bowl never got emptied. And those who were amazed at his extraordinary powers began to admire and follow him.
As this Yogi was thus exploiting the people through his miraculous powers, a Perfect Master approached him and begged of food from his well-renowned bowl. Now, the Yogi, according to his practice was determined to give food to this new-comer until he was satisfied. But, as he went on giving food, the Master went on eating, never coming to a stop, until at last the Yogi got tired of giving.
The Yogi then INTUITIVELY KNEW that he was now face-to-face with one who was spiritually much greater than himself. And as soon as he realized this, he was “humbled” and “surrendered” himself to the Master, beseeching him to give him the true spiritual light. It was through his ‘humility’ that he won the redeeming grace of the Master.
– Meher Baba
Source ::
Sparks of the Truth, Pg:: 34-36
© AMBPPCT, Ahmednagar, Maharashtra, India/Bharat
