In aloness there are no excuses from the outside

A person can be locked in a room provided with every facility and asked to note down any changes which happen to his mind. When he notes them down, he will find that without any reason sometimes he feels good in that closed room, sometimes he feels bad; sometimes he becomes sad, sometimes he becomes happy; sometimes he feels angry, sometimes he does not feel angry. There are no excuses there, the situation in the room is constantly the same – but what is happening to him? That is why man is so afraid of aloneness – because in aloneness there are no excuses from the outside. One will have to assume all the things are within oneself. Any person kept in isolation cannot remain healthy for more than six months, he will become mad.

A fakir told an Egyptian emperor about this but the emperor did not believe him so the fakir asked him to find the most healthy person in his city and to put him in isolation for six months. The city was searched. A healthy, young man, who was happy in every way – was just married, had a child, was earning well, was very happy – was brought to the emperor. The emperor told him, ”We will not give you any trouble. We are just making an experiment. Your family will be taken care of – food, clothing, and every arrangement will be made for them. It will be a better situation for them than it will be for you. You will have all comforts but for six months you will have to live alone.” He was locked up in a big house. He was given every facility – but it was so lonely! Even the man who was guarding did not know his language so they could not speak to each other. Within only two or three days the man started becoming nervous. He had every comfort, there were no hardships whatsoever: at the right time food was available, at the right time he could go to sleep. Because

it was a royal palace, every facility was available and there were no difficulties whatsoever. Sitting there he could do whatsoever he wanted to do. The only thing was that he could not talk to anybody, he could not meet anybody. Within just two or three days the uneasiness began and after eight days he started shouting, ”Take me out of here! I don’t want to stay here!” What was the problem? The problems had started coming from within. The problems that, until yesterday, he had thought were coming from the outside, he now found, in his aloneness, were coming from the inside. Within six months the man became mad. After six months, when he was taken out, he had gone completely mad. He had started talking to himself. He had started cursing himself. He had started getting angry with himself. He had started loving himself. Now the other

was not present. After six months he was taken out as a mad man. It took six years for him to get cured.

Anyone of you would become mad. Other people give you opportunities hence you do not become mad. You find an excuse: ”This man has abused me, therefore I am filled with anger.” Nobody gets filled with anger by someone abusing him. The anger is present within; the abuse is only an opportunity for it to come out.

A well is full of water. If we drop a bucket in the well and pull it out, water comes out of the well. If there is no water in the well then howsoever many times we drop the bucket in, nothing can come out. The bucket in itself has no power to get water out. First there should be water in the well. If there is water in the well, then a bucket can draw water. If there is no water in the well, then the bucket cannot draw water. If there is no anger within you, if there is no hatred within you, then no power in the world can bring anger or hatred out of you. During these moments in-between, when no one drops a bucket in the well, one can maintain an illusion that there is no water in the well. When someone does drop a bucket into it, water can be drawn; but when the well is not being used we would be mistaken if we think that now there is no water in it. In the same way, if nobody gives us the opportunity then no anger or hate or envy comes out of us. But do not think that there is no water in your well. Water is present in the well and it is waiting for someone to come with a bucket and take it out. But we think these empty, in between moments are moments of love, of peace. This is false.