"When this unawakened mind comes in contact with a Perfect Master, it is turned spiritually, thus: (here Baba turned the bowl, or mind, so that its back was towards the bottle, or gross world, and its front was towards the box, or Infinite). Then its back is turned towards the gross world and it faces the Infinite Self.

"Suppose this is Rano. The egotistical mind of Rano now turns towards the Infinite. It begins to traverse gradually all the seven stages between the mind and the Infinite Self. When it reaches the seventh stage, it drowns itself in the Infinite, it becomes the Infinite. The two become One."

(Baba said here that it would take ten hours to explain all this clearly in detail. This is merely an outline. He promised that some day he would give a detailed description.)

(The bowl turned back again). "This unawakened mind dwells habitually only on externals. When it begins to turn, yet is not completely turned, (here the bowl, or mind, was turned half-way, facing neither the case, nor the gross body, nor the box, or Infinite Self), there occurs a period of spiritual dullness. It sees neither the external nor the internal, neither the gross world nor the Infinite. It becomes dull, empty. Once it has completely turned, however, (here the bowl, or mind, was turned completely to face the box, or Infinite Self), and sees the Infinite, then it has emerged from its period of dullness. Everything that once engrossed it disappears. The whole of life appears in a new light. There are no doubts, no worries. The soul wants to rest in the Infinite all the time. This experience of seeing the Infinite is illumination. Being one with the Infinite is realization. Then there is no talk about it. There is nothing to explain. It has to be gotten and given. When you grasp something tangible with your hand, you get it; you are sure you have it; then you can give it to others.

"So the unawakened mind cannot be brought to a state of full awakening at once. It must be awakened gradually.

"It is so near, yet so far; so close that we cannot feel it. Once you feel it, it becomes permanently yours; you have it in all your activities; when you are eating, sleeping, working, moving, talking; it is with you all the time, you feel it continuously. This is illumination. But when you become It, and can give it to others, that is Realization."

Baba continued, after some personal remarks:

"Who is it that knows, that sees with the eye, hears with the ear and smells with the nose? Who is it that sees and hears and smells, and does all these things? You hear, talk, walk, eat and sleep, etc. Who is that you?

"It is that which has to be discovered. The soul does not get experience of these things. It is everywhere. It does not move. Then who does it? When that is found, then the mystery of life is solved. You will know . . . but not by reading, listening or meditating. I will explain.

"You all walk, talk, eat, sleep, think, etc. It is all mechanical — e.g., from the little child until you grow into man or woman, you have been doing the same thing over and over daily, as if you were bound to do so. But there is some controlling force over it all, for the same routine to be continued all the time. Once you know, then you live. Then you make use of the body, just as you use a coat. You take it off and put it on again (i.e., you feel quite detached). Then you know you are not the body. Now you don't know. At the most you can form an idea about it. You can tell yourself, 'I am not this body' but you don't feel it, don't know it through experience. Now, when you get up (here Baba got up from his chair), you know that you get up; but then, after this experience, you know it is only your body that gets up, because you are everywhere.