Why Is It Called the Direct Path? - 14th September 2017

But suppose that you came with the belief that you're in a prison, you're in a box. There are many different ways which may be prescribed in this world on how to get out of this prison. So, some will say to get out of prison you need a lot of muscle to break the box. So every day what you have to do is push-ups, do this and that, and do your push-ups. Some will say the problem is actually that your mind is not clear and so you're always thinking about the prison. Stop thinking about the prison. I'll give you a replacement, something else to think about. That could be a mantra, something to keep your mind away from the prison. Or let me change the quality of your mind, give you something else to do. And for most of you, in your earnestness, these things seem attractive.

Now, there are some paths which are the direct paths, which tell you that all you have to do is find out whether you actually are in a prison. And because the conditioning is so strong, that much I'm clear about it: 'I am a person.' That much I'm clear about. So there will be: 'What kind of person I need to become?' So the mechanics to escape this is just here. The question is: Are you the prisoner? Is there a prison? Both questions are the same. It might sound different. Are you a prisoner or is there a prison? The same question. Who can accept this question? Only those who come to this point where we learn that the heart is for this discovery: Who is it that I am? Am I the prisoner? Am I the person who wants freedom?

Why is it called the direct path? The Jnana Marga is really the Jnana Marga because once you hear and you have the knowledge from inside, intuitive insight, that you are not this limited one, then what path is needed? So this illumination, this recognition, is this discovery that I am beyond time and space and there is no bondage for me. Once you see this, and if somebody comes and says, 'Oh, I have a nice set of scissors for your ropes,' you see? I'm not putting down any path. I'm not saying that the path will not guide along many times to come to this openness to accept this truth. It can seem like you need to do some spiritual push-ups, like 'I need to get some peace in the mind' or 'I'll get something.' All these are useful along the way because they can bring this sense of openness. Peace of mind can come to the sense of openness of my view.

But if the path is being confused as getting us to something as a limited entity—if I do my hundred spiritual push-ups every day, I will become super, super... it leads to the idea of a limited ego trying to become something special. That is why I tell them all that if you see a snake, but there's a rope, or you feel there is a snake but actually it is a rope, there are no real methods of how to deal with this. Just being reminded: see carefully, it's just a rope. There is nothing to fear. Once you see that it's a rope, then I have a solution that the snake will lose its poison. I already see it's a rope, why do I need to deal with the snake?

The reason why I hear you focus on the recognition of what is truly here, and it is the easiest attitude once there's a little bit of openness, it is easier to deal with the rope as a rope. So this is what you can do. Don't let your mind tell you that oh, because it is that, only if you are attracted to this, therefore it must be because it's very difficult. It's the easiest. If we want to do more difficult, it's because our conditioning is that we have been told, 'Well, if it's already what you want, then it's not valuable because of that.' It's direct because it is already what you are, which is the Self you are looking for. It's like this: Am I in prison? Or whatever prison here? Who needs my bondage?