What is that, that prevents a person from fully fixing his attention in the middle? You say it is the mind, but he cannot still the mind. Is there one faculty behind all this that prevents him from focusing his attention in the middle?

    Mind gets strength from your consciousness, does it not? Where your attention is, there no other outgoing faculty is working. Mind and intellect and outgoing faculties get strength from attention. You follow me? So you are surat, attention. If your attention is fixed, mind cannot
work. Mind works only when your attention is slackened.

So if I don't feed the mind it can't do anything.

    It is you who are feeding the mind. Mind is not conscious. There's a vast difference between the Eastern and the Western definition of mind. East says mind is material; West believes it is conscious. Do you see? Truly speaking, mind is a vehicle. The proof of that is, when you absorb your attention you are absorbed in it, no other thought comes in; mind does not work. So it is the attention which is to be fixed; on anything. When you are absorbed in it, no other thought intervenes.
    These are very delicate points, and they play havoc. Outgoing faculties are like the horses. Soul is like the chariot and mind is controlling the reins. The soul is being dragged. So what you have been on is Surat Yoga, not intellectual Yoga. On surat depends everything. When your whole attention is riveted at a certain point, you see, you are so absorbed in thought that if somebody calls you, you don't hear although your ears are there, sometimes your eyes remain open, but you are so absorbed you cannot recognize anybody. So the main thing is your attention. God is greater than attention, greatest attention. And man is minor attention working. So mind works, or the thoughts intervene, only when attention is slackened. Do you see why, then, so many thoughts will come up?

The ability to focus attention with more firmness; is that a matter of strength or energy or...

    That is a matter of love--the very easy way. Intellectuals will say otherwise, but it is love. No compulsion, nothing of the sort, natural.

How do I get that love?

    God is love and our soul is also love. And the way back to God is also through love. Now how to get it. Love is very innate in our soul. This love is distributed into various things, little here, little there, little here, little there. Take the example of a flute. Have you seen a flute? There are so many holes in it. Or there may be a pipe, with so many holes and water running through it. Drop by drop the water oozes out from those holes. If you shut all the holes except one, the water will shoot forth. Do you follow? That will shoot forth full strength. So when you are concentrated, naturally you feel some love within you. That is the means, but the question remains, how to get it, That's the point. The first way is to come in contact with the Higher Self. God is love, your love will have a boost upon contact. Until you can do that, what to do? If a body is charged and anyone else touches it or comes within the area, field of action, he will also be charged, you see? So the best way to have that love is to come in contact with somebody who is in tune with God. That's the best way. Guru Amar Das says, "So long as we have got no love within us, we cannot reach God." But where to get love. Love is within us. That requires a boost--ignition, you might say. If there are matchboxes, dozens ot matchboxes put into the oven, but will they heat anybody, anything? Will it make your water warm, hot? No. But if you ignite one match, then? So that requires ignition. And the other way is if you want to love someone, or you have got love for someone, what would you do? You have constant remembrance of him. Or, as a corollary, if you want to have love for somebody, remember him. But real love will sprout in the company of a Saint who is overflowing with love. He is overflowing with the love of God and intoxication of God. If you become receptive, that will give you a boost. You will be ignited. This cannot be had from shops nor grow in fields. By reading, by outward observances, your attention is also diverted to one place, but real love sprouts forth only when you come in contact with somebody charged. The very atmosphere is charged by radiation. If a man has got some perfume in his clothes, whenever he passes the others, those who have open noses, will smell that perfume. Those whose noses are closed--that's another matter. So radiation works. Even when those who are just given up to the sensuous life come within the area, field of action, they will also be charged by radiation.
    So love comes when you come in contact with God-into-Expression Power, Naam or Word. Until you have that love within you, come in contact with God into expression power, He Who is Word made Flesh, that's all. All scriptures say those who love can know God, not otherwise. Who do not know love, cannot know God. Tenth Guru proclaims, "Hear ye all, hear ye all." What? "Whoever loves, will meet God. Not otherwise." So love is within you, and when you come in contact with higher love, by concentration, you'll be charged. That is why if you go to a man who sells perfumes, scents, he may not give you anything, but the atmosphere is charged with perfume. You'll have all perfume. If he gives you one small vial, then? So a Godman is overflowing with the love and intoxication of God. Naturally those who come in contact with That, within that field of action, they will have it; a boost for God, love for God. Just like a strong man, a wrestler, who is overflowing with might, strength, when you see him, by seeing him, naturally some desire comes within you to be like him, is it not so? So radiation works, you see. That's the best way. But how can you love him whom you have never met and never enjoyed his presence? If you have met with somebody, and you have give and take by receptivity, naturally you'll have that what he is. As you think, so you become. But we have not seen God, that's the pity. Those who have seen Him in Whom God is manifest, when they become receptive, they will overflow with love, naturally.
    So that is why it is said that if you sit in the Presence of a Master, in a receptive mood, for one hour, the effect will be that which you will not have had from years of penances. There you're directly charged. Now when you're in the Presence, sometimes you will feel that Sound Principle reverberate. Some of you here have heard and have sometimes seen the atmosphere is charged, the room is charged with the music of the spheres. That is by radiation. Once my Master went to a village. The room in which He used to sit was in a newly erected building. So I locked that room. Whoever entered it heard that Music. That is a charging, the radiation working.
    At the back [rear of Master's house in Rajpur], there's one water tank. If you go there and sit you'll hear music. [at the back] I used to sometimes go and sit there in the morning. I have not been there lately, but the atmosphere is charged. The room is charged. With a little receptivity you can hear. So it is by radiation you have a boost, impetus. And when you sit by a Master, it becomes very much easier to see that God is quite at hand. When you go out of that atmosphere, the same problems arise again. That is why the presence of Masters cannot be underrated. From thousands of miles you can have that radiation, but only when you have developed receptivity, not before. So in the physical presence you get a boost, and when you sit attentively or come in contact with the God-into-Expression Power which is Light and Sound, the room resounds. Anyone else?

Master, how can true receptivity be developed?

    I issued one circular on that. Have you read it?

I don't remember at this moment.

    That's the pity, that's the pity. Anyhow, receptivity is developed only when there's no other thought intervening between you and the Master. From thousands of miles you see through television, you hear through radio when you are tuned into those machines. But you cannot hear sounds in an atmosphere during monsoons or very rainy seasons Similarly, in the calm and quiet, with no ripples in the reservoir of mind except the Master having pity on you, then receptivity will develop. A help to receptivity is sweet remembrance, constant. That will develop receptivity.

That complete stillness of mind, is that surrender?

    Surrender is something more. Surrender is dedication, reposing, leaving everything to His beck and call. I'm just defining surrender in different ways. I will give you one example in the worldly way. When a girl is married away to somebody, in India, she changes her name; her name is changed, her caste is changed and she never cares where from she will eat, or get clothes or live. She has wholly surrendered mind, body and soul to her husband. Surrender. Let me give you another example. There are many different kinds of bhakta devotees among wives and Saints too. One kind is, "O God, give me this and that thing." The second, "I don't eat unless I can remember You, not otherwise." There is some condition there. In surrender there is no condition. If a wife asks her husband for something--even if he does not give it she remains devoted. That's the second class of surrender. There's another wife who does not ask for anything. The third class; her clothes are worn out; she has no other amenities of life. If she has surrendered to her husband, (real love is involved in surrender too), she says, "Well look here, my husband loves me, I'm his and he is mine but he never questions me as to what I want. My clothes are torn, I have nothing else." She thinks, "All right, if in this condition, all clothes worn out, half-naked, I am pleasing to him, what more do I want?" That is surrender, complete surrender, you see. So these are different stages of surrender, complete surrender. In previous times slaves were sold. Ibrahim purchased one slave and brought him to his own home. He asked him, "Well, what will you eat?" He said "I am -- bought, there is no question of  mine." "Where will you sit? .... What will you wear?" The replies were the same. There is no question, you see. These are the different degrees of surrender I'm describing to you. So if you surrender to God within you, to Master within you, whether or not He gives you money, whether or not He gives you what you want, even if He gives you nothing to eat or nothing to wear, even then--surrender is there, complete surrender. Now there are so called Saints like that who say, "All right, O Master, O God, give me this and give me that, give me that. If you don't give, I cannot do your penances, you see." His work is only to obey. Complete obedience. With no condition, expecting nothing in return. Complete surrender of heart and soul, no choice left. If surrender is like that . . . a child is there and a lion is coming. The child runs to the mother. Do you think the mother will suffer to let her child be eaten by the lion? She would put herself in the mouth of the lion to save the child. When you surrender to God in man, He protects you, you see...