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will see the three layers, the three sheaths of your personality -- the body, the breath and the soul. The body is the shell; the breath is the bridge, the connecting link; the soul, the self, is the foundation.
The role of the breath on the path to self-realization is a most important one because breathing is the central point. On one side we have the body; on the other, the soul. We already exist on the physical level but what we yearn for is to be within the realm of the soul. But before this can be done it is essential to move onto the plateau of prana, of the breath. Only then can one enter the kingdom of the spirit.
Watching at the level of the breath, one can look both ways. From here, the paths leading to the body and to the soul become clear. Although the road is one and the same, the two directions stand out clearly. And the result is that a step towards the inner, towards the realm of the soul, becomes more of a possibility. I hope you now understand why I stress breathing so much.
Question 7
THE SEVENTH QUESTION: WHY DO YOU SAY THAT DHYANA, MEDITATION, IS NO-ACTION? IS IT NOT AN ACT AS WELL?
Look here, please. My fist is closed. To close my fist I must make a positive action. Closing is an action. But when I wish to open it, what must I do? I don't have to do anything to open it. If I simply drop the effort of closing the fist it will open automatically and the hand will return to its natural and normal state. Therefore I won't call opening one's fist an action. It is no-action, or if you like you can call it negative action. But that makes no difference; it is the same thing. I won't argue with words. Please understand what I am telling you. Please understand the real significance of it.
By calling meditation "no-action", I wish to indicate that you should not regard meditation as a task or an activity. Meditation is free from such occupations. It is a natural state and you cannot change it into any kind of mental tension. If meditation becomes a mental tension it will neither lead you to your natural state nor to mental peace. Tension is a sort of restlessness and if one wants to attain peace one should start
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