For a hungry man, in the words of Gandhiji, a morsel of food is the most valuable TRUTH. The same truth will be a matter of shame for a self-respecting man if he has to ask for it. The truth in life is the food must be worked for. Spiritually it is far more different. If one is spiritual, he will never suffer for want of food. There is a Spirit in Life which is neither life nor Spirit, but the Spirit evolving in life, as at a first stage mind evolves in life.

Money is in surplus in the West. The deposits in banks get an interest of 3 %, in Japan no interest. House mortgages are on 4 1/2% for 30 years at the end of which it is renewed, which means one need not return the capital but can own his house for 4 1/2% interest which is lower than the market rental value. Gone are the days when Money is to be deferentially approached by the borrower. Accumulated money seeks the productive user for very low interest.

Laws are eternal. They are to be obeyed, never to be disregarded on the score of courtesy, friendship or anything else. When you are on a pleasure tour, you can entertain friends, take them at your expense, but not on a pilgrimage. Going to a sacred place where God lives, one cannot do so at someone else's expense, as it is believed that the punya will go to him who spends on your behalf.

Life contains heaven as well as hell. It is for us to choose. Individuality that is a high endowment can also be used to create opposite results. In the best sense, the concept of Individuality means exclusive concentration of a person on himself so that his endowments will reach an acme. The idea is this Individual will serve the community at his best.

No two individuals carry the same fingerprint; the response to any situation is not the same for any two individuals. Each man is unique in what he is. The personality of the individual is Individuality. In less developed societies, men have more of the common character. In advanced cultures, individuality is better formed. Nothing achieves as Individuality.

Major Grantly was left with five year old Edith when his wife died. He was the rich heir of his father the Archdeacon. Grace was the nineteen year old daughter of a poor clergyman, Mr. Crawley, an austere, dutiful scholar of Oxford. It was a wilful fate that clamped on the devout preacher a false case of theft, a theft of 20 pounds. His daughter Grace had a high education in Greek and Latin. She was eminently a lady by virtue of what she was. Major Grantly loved her and his father the Archdeacon was furious. He was bent upon breaking the engagement, if there was one.

During the seventies and eighties we were analysing every aspect of national life from the point of view of the Spirit. If there is a spiritual view, it must enliven the field and energise work. We came upon innumerable views on agriculture, hire purchase, adult education, GDP, inflation, practical programmes, tourism, traffic on the highway, etc. We meticulously prepared endless articles and published them. One of our findings was, "India is more developed than we are aware of, than our statistics reveal."

Chinmayananda was going round India and delivering lectures on the Bhaghavat Gita. He came to Madras where he delivered thirty lectures. Pious audiences gathered in great numbers and listened with rapt attention. The swami was fluent in English and offered forceful arguments. He punctuated his lectures with lively examples, striking parallels, anecdotes, and analogies.

Spirit in life is a rare power, a fascinating one; one that makes idealism practical. A power realised seeks expression. Its application is universal. Why Hamlet delayed unconscionably the execution of his father's mission is a knotty question in literary criticism. This approach yielded a convincing result. An authority on English literature in South India was approached with these findings. He said, "Perhaps, it may be the solution. I shall approach L.C. Knight as soon as his sight recovers from the cataract operation."

A man whose life ends in a spiritual centre or institution can look back and discover the invisible call of the Spirit for years until he finally arrived. In half the cases, there would have been active or conscious efforts to refuse the call. But the call prevails. Many seek it, respond to the call, and happily end at their destination. As elsewhere, people, rather souls, arrive at their spiritual destiny by all possible routes.