By Sant Kirpal Singh

Today is the day of Independence for the country. This independence was gained after one hundred years, you see. That's all right; people are trying to maintain the independence – some are for, some are against. But we are not very much concerned with these things. We are mainly concerned with our own independence. It is only after a hundred years that we have got outer independence; and we – after aeons of years, ever since the world began, we are still exiled from our home, turned out of the country, you see.

We have not been out of bondage yet. The golden opportunity has been afforded to us from time to time to regain that independence but, unfortunately, for one reason or the other, we did not derive the full benefit of our manbodies. Let the past bury its dead: again God has given you a golden opportunity of the manbody so that you may regain your independence. Now we have to see how far we have gained our independence.

So I was just saying that this bondage started aeons back when we were sent to the world. The first bondage was of the mind. We are subservient to mind. Mind is under the control of the outgoing faculties: sight, audition, taste, smell and touch. Through these indriyas (physical outgoing faculties) we are just stuck fast in the nine doors of the manbody; we cannot disentangle ourselves. We are identified with the body and the world outside, so much so that we cannot extricate ourselves. There's one way up, fortunately, and that is within us. Nine doors are open: two eyes, two ears, two nostrils, one mouth, and two underneath – nine doors. There is one tenth door. That is within you, latent within you, and starts when you go deep down into the darkness of your body: when you enter the foxhole of your brain, you see. Where does that start? Just as at the time of death our soul is withdrawn from outside, then the outgoing faculties, nine doors, are withdrawn, extricated. These physical outgoing faculties leave us. They come to the back of the eyes and there the way to the foxhole of the brain, or the tenth door, starts. That's the door at which you are to knock and which will open to you. On the other side, of course, is where Masterpower is waiting for you. What for? To sup with you! And you are outside!

In the back of the eyes is where it starts. It's all pitch dark. That is the way into the foxhole of the brain. That is the only way in which you can have your independence from first the physical body and physical outgoing faculties, then the astral body and astral outgoing faculties, and then the causal body and the causal outgoing faculties. So these are the three layers by which we are bound. If you could rise above all these three, you would have your independence. For that, we have to rise above the nine doors of the body. That way is within you.

You are man, born as man with the same privileges from God. No high; no low; no east; no west. You are conscious entities environed by mind and matter and outgoing faculties, identified with matter so much so that you cannot differentiate your Self. If you press here (on the arm), you feel it. So you have to withdraw your attention from the body, from the outgoing faculties, the nine doors. How? When you look inside, just look within you into the middle of the darkness lying in front of you. There, when these physical eyes are closed, the inner or single or third eye is open to see the Light within. You can see within. The dense darkness of the body is shaken off. If you cease to hear from all outside, you begin to hear inside – within you. That minstrel, our blessed God, is playing music all the time. Unpaid for. No money required. He is always waiting for you, to make you hear that music which is going on within you. If you don't smell anything outside, that smell within you will have a fragrance that's jasmine-like. That you will have only when you rise above the physical body, not before. When you withdraw from the tongue outside, just try to taste the elixir of Naam within you, the bread and water of life. When you come in contact with the ringing radiance within you (that touch which is God within you), you'll be absolved of physical bondage. But this is not complete independence; it is the first part of independence. The second part will start when you rise above the astral body and the astral outgoing faculties. Then the third part, when you rise above the causal body. Rise above them; then you will really get your independence. Now you're all under bondage. The only difficulty is that which lies within you.