drinking of the body-state are paralleled by the absorption and assimilation of energy. The soul, at this level, acquires full control over energy. It is through the use of energy that it seeks fulfillment. But its actions, howsoever energetic, are still within the domain of spiritual limitation. The aspirant can see, hear and smell many things which are inaccessible to him in the body-state; and he can perform many things (e.g., producing light in the dark, or living for thousands of years only on the drinking of energy), which seem to be miracles for those who are in the body-state. But the entire sphere of his existence is comprised of energy; and the round of his life is dominated by energy. All that he can think of or do is in terms of energy and is achieved by the means of energy. The energy-state is the state of the spiritually advanced souls; but, it is far from being the state of perfection, which expresses itself through the Sahaj Samadhi of the Siddha.

The second important step towards Sahaj Samadhi is taken when the soul transcends the domain of energy and enters the domain of the mind. All energy is ultimately an expression of the mind; therefore the transition from the energy-state to the mind-state constitutes a still further advance towards the God-state of Sahaj Samadhi. In the mind-state, consciousness is directly linked up with the mind. Here consciousness is in no way fettered by the domination of the body or energy; but is mind-ridden. The saints who are in the mind-state have full control over the body and energy; they can read and influence the minds of others and even raise the dead. However, the mind-ridden state is still within the domain of duality and illusion; and it has to be transcended before the attainment of union with the Infinite.

The entire advance, from the very beginning, consists in gradually curtailing and transcending the working of the individual mind. The mind is functioning even in the body-state and in the energy-state. But, in the body-state, the mind thinks in terms of the body; in the energy-state, it thinks in terms of energy; and in the mind-state, it thinks in its own terms. it does not yield the knowledge and the realization of the Infinite, because it itself becomes the veil between its thoughts and the Truth. Though the mind may be unencumbered by the life of the body or the life of energy, it is still limited by separative consciousness; and it might be compared to a mirror which is all covered with dust. The mind has, therefore to be completely merged and dissolved in the Infinite, before it is possible to experience the God-State of Sahaj Samadhi. Form is solidified energy; energy is an expression of the mind; the mind is the covered mirror of Eternity; and Eternity is the Truth, which has thrown off the mask of the mind.