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Chapter 5.
On Spiritual Work and
Inner Silence

After the resurrection of my brother, Lazarus, Jesus and His disciples stayed in our house for a long time. Jesus taught all of us and sometimes many others, who came to see Him after hearing about Him.

At that time, Jesus told us a lot about the efforts that a person, who is rising closer to the Creator and who, for this purpose, is striving to cognize the whole of His Kingdom now, can make while there is still a body and while there are powers of the soul which can be directed precisely at comprehending the Divine.

In those days, He taught about the importance of mastering inner silence, that is, the state in which God is really cognizable.

In such cases, Jesus spoke in a special way. He elevated each of those, with whom He spoke, to that height of perception to which they were capable. And the space of love and silence was revealed in the souls of many, who listened to Him. And their understanding of God deepened.

… And this time, it happened to me for the first time too. That wondrous silence happened…

This silence seemed to stun me: my thoughts disappeared, and my mind became quiet… I heard the words of Jesus — with my heart, as a soul resurrected to the spiritual life. The meaning of His words… penetrated to the very depths of the soul. An understanding was born… from the inside! And everything that He spoke about suddenly became — the Great Reality! In great delight, the soul, which yearned for God, had managed to cognize, for a brief moment, the living silence in which the Divine Father was revealed!

But I will tell this in more detail…

* * *

In those days, I had many conversations with the disciple of Jesus, Philip. It is thanks to him that I — for the first time since my first meeting with Jesus — clearly understood that everything that He teaches is also for me, and not only for a few of His chosen disciples. And — that His every word is also addressed to me! And — that it is not enough just to listen! But it is necessary to understand everything and begin to practice it in each day of life, not waiting for the hour of death, and not expecting outside help or miracles. And — that the salvation of myself-soul from those problems, from those torments that keep one enslaved to material, perishable, and suffering-filled things — depends on me alone.

Philip told me a lot about Jesus, about their lives, about his understanding of how to overcome the difficulties that the closest disciples of Jesus also have.

With Andrew, with whom I was a bit in love, I was embarrassed.

My sister Mary was so absorbed in her love for Jesus that everything in the world for her became unimportant, and we rarely talked with her now.

The rest of Jesus’ disciples were as if a little removed from contact with worldly people. They did not answer my questions very willingly, because they treated me as an outsider, in whose house they are just guests…

But Philip — he became my friend from the time when he first set out to help me in the kitchen.

For example, I once asked:

“Tell me, Philip, had you ever before seen something like the miracle of the resurrection of the dead? Is it true that Jesus has authority over the life and death of any person?”

“You are talking about power… But this is something else… Jesus is not looking for power or glory… Yes, He has raised the dead before. But usually it was the return of the souls of children or teenagers to their bodies, if the bodies were not yet buried. Their fathers and mothers mourned — and then Jesus brought the souls back to life in their bodies. And something changed at the same time in the souls and destinies of all those around.

“Usually Jesus would ask us all to be silent about this: because His Teachings are not about such miracles at all.

“Jesus sometimes regrets our excessive trust in Him. Because each person must gain personal experience in spiritual cognition!

“Even if our bodies are always next to Jesus, it is precisely each one of us who must do the work for the ethical transformation of ourselves-souls. And it is a great work that the soul must perform in the worlds of Light, learning to perceive this Light and grow in It!

“Jesus carries around His body a space of Divine Love, Peace, Power, and Light. But even in order to just feel these Divine States, our previous efforts are needed. In particular, it requires a deep cleansing of the soul from all gross thoughts and emotions.

“Sometimes it seems to me that I have already learned to feel that Divine Space, which is always present around the Teacher… But — if I allow myself to have bad thoughts or emotions — then I find myself outside of that Space… And then again and again, I try to fill myself with love so that I can open the entrance to that Divine Light.

“Indeed, it is one thing to know that I should not be offended, angry, or jealous… But it is quite another — to learn how to live that way: so that such thoughts and emotions do not begin to arise and grow. Especially — when a sudden external cause suddenly appears…

“We, His closest disciples, came to Him, being all different.

“For example, even the appearance of your sister, Mary, among us has hurt many.

“For some, this was an opportunity to find envy in oneself — because Jesus began to give her much of His attention. But envy and jealousy due to not receiving the attention of the Teacher — is a very strong vice!

“For others, her appearance was a reason to see in oneself one’s own arrogance in relation to women.

“There were also other external causes that caused the appearance of our vicious thoughts and emotions. For example, Andrew, who had previously been taught for a long time by John-the-Baptist, was the most prepared among us to learn. And some of us, too, were sometimes jealous because of his success.

“Those who are concerned about their own successes or sufferings, also are jealous — they do not often listen to Jesus as they should, and usually do not hear everything or understand everything in His words. But this self, consisting of excessive focus of attention only to oneself: to one’s body, one’s own importance in the eyes of others, etc., must be destroyed — so that the Divine Self of the soul can shine!

“Yes, we often said to Jesus — in reverence to His Wisdom and Abilities: ‘You are the Great Teacher, the Savior of the world!’. And He, in response, reminded us that it is each of us who must teach ourselves the work of self-development! It must be carried out by each spiritual devotee through daily efforts to improve oneself!

“Once, He told us:

‘Most people around us crave miracles… But this is a false desire! Miracles do not help in any way! Perhaps they only strengthen the faith a little… But such faith is weak! The strong faith is that faith, which, not seeing miracles, knows about the Omnipotence of the Father!

‘Yes, I can embrace the whole Earth with Myself… Yes, my Love for people is great! But this does not mean that I should resurrect all the dead, heal all the sick, and give everyone a clear perception of the Divine!

‘Everyone should learn oneself! I can only help a little, so that people do not wander in search of how to approach spiritual purity, how to gain real achievements on the spiritual Path! And I am not called to save people from all their sufferings! Sufferings are painful lessons for the souls, and they are necessary!

‘I am here to show the Way!

‘Even though I am Consubstantial with the Father Spirit, I am only a tiny spark in the Universal Divine Flame! I am only a small drop in the Endless Ocean of the Perfect Universal United Consciousness: in the Ocean, Which fills the universe with Life! And — at the same time — even such a ‘small drop’ is capable of having all the Power of the Ocean when it expresses His Holy Will!

‘There, in the world that is called the Kingdom of the Father, is another state of being: the Life of the Divine Peace, Bliss, Love, and Power! This state of the Creator is usually not brought here: into the material world. And it’s possible only to open the gates, to show the way to the souls that have rushed towards Him!

‘The endless and omnipotent Kingdom of the Father is so great that only Those Who have disappeared in It can embrace It! Only the One, Who has transformed Oneself-Soul into a Radiant Spiritual Light and has mastered living in this way, can approach this.

‘Each of you is called by Me — to learn this and to bring the Knowledge about God to many people on the Earth!’”

… I listened to Philip, holding my breath. What great love Phillip has for Jesus, conveying the words of the Master! Oh, how I also wanted to experience what, as I felt, had already become largely known by Philip, Andrew, Mary, and, probably, for many of His other disciples!

… At this time, Jesus, along with the disciples and Lazarus, came to the people who had gathered in the courtyard of our house. Philip and I rushed to join in, too, to heed the words of the Master.

* * *

Jesus began:

“I promised many of those who are present here — to tell more about the deeds that a person can begin to do, who also learned that the soul lives in a body on the Earth only for a short time, and the purpose of this life in the body is in self-improvement and approaching the Creator.

“Nothing in the spiritual world happens by itself. Life in the Kingdom of the Father is gained only by great spiritual efforts. These efforts are the daily labor of the soul, and not merely the acceptance of certain knowledge of life in this material world and other worlds.

“You can live in this earthly world, being crushed by a load of problems, by the fuss of an endless string of worldly affairs! Having resolved one earthly problem, a person almost immediately gets captured by another problem. By floundering in the swamp of such worries, diminishing the vital forces of the soul, years and even decades of life are lived almost aimlessly!

“Only before the death of the body, does a person sometimes realize how much time was spent vainly in earthly life, how little love and joy were in it, and how God still remains unattainably far away…

“The death of the body itself does not bring one closer to God! But only a truly accomplished spiritual life, here on the Earth, consisting of unceasing efforts, can bring one closer to the Creator!

“Only after the soul learns namely to feel God, it IS IN the Divine World, and then it is included in this World, becoming Its Inseparable Part. Only then, will the true vision and understanding, the true freedom and happiness be gained!

“This does not mean that a person no longer cares about the earthly house and family, about food for the body, or about the body’s health. But let all this take a small place in the life that is destined for these matters. May God fill with Himself: with His Love and Joy — one’s entire life!

“After all, it is not that the affairs themselves can be denied, but, rather, the concern for them — and let one live with God in every moment!

“To become a Part of the Divine World, thus gaining the Kingdom of God, — this is the meaning of the life of the soul here on the Earth!

“And one should devote time and efforts for this!

“These efforts are not at all regular prayers to the Creator to bestow profit in trade or send luck in the fulfillment of our other desires! But such regular performance of rituals… seems like a ‘great spiritual accomplishment’ to many, and the most important sign of ‘righteousness’!…

“How many empty and wasted efforts people make! How much time they spend on it!

“For most people, the words about the necessity of making spiritual efforts on oneself evoke ideas of hard work, violence against oneself, forcing oneself, or severe restrictions and deprivations…

“But the work for God — with the right attitude of the soul — should be joyful and give one bliss! This is what I would like to teach you today!

“Many of you — thanks to the story about Lazarus’ death and the ‘postmortal’ being of the soul — have, for the first time in your lives, begun to think that the soul remains alive even without a body, and that this inevitably awaits everyone who now lives in a body. Moreover, the transition to the disembodied world can happen much earlier than the person oneself assumes. That is why it is so important right now to begin all possible work on oneself-soul and continue it daily!

“So, how can we start, ones we have realized the need to transform ourselves-souls in order to approach the Creator? And what is needed — for a body not to hold the soul as a prisoner?

“Even during the life of the body, the soul can become free from the shackles of flesh and begin to cognize the Divine Worlds!

“What efforts — on our Path of approaching God — are necessary?

“We have already spoken much about repentance, but this is only the first necessary step, the first conscious cleansing of the soul.

“The next effort is to begin to pacify the mind.

“Understand that conversations about trifles are very pleasant for the idle mind! And how often thoughts are ‘asking out’ to justify ourselves or to demonstrate the power of one’s own mind and one’s own superiority over others!

“In talking about something irrelevant, in telling each other that someone had said something to someone, or how someone had done something like that, — people lose so much precious time!

“How to calm such a mind?

“To begin with, a person can direct the attention of the soul to God.

“Yes, we can learn to choose what is right to think about. For example, we will allow thoughts about God, about good, joy, and beauty. But we will not allow thoughts with condemnation, anger, aspiration to command, resentment, envy, longing, and despondency.

“The mind is usually directed towards the future or goes through the events of the past. The mind does not like silence! But it should be taught calm! How? By filling the soul with heartfelt love and immersing the mind in the caressing peace of the spiritual heart!

“Peace is not usually intrinsic to the mind. But it can be subordinated to the wisdom of the spiritual heart, which always feels reality and the present — and discards the superfluous and unnecessary.

“In this way, the mind, immersed in the spiritual heart, finds silence. It becomes able to observe and make decisions, but at the same time to remain quiet and calm.

“It is necessary to master it!

“To gain this silence, devotees often went to the mountains or to the deserts… But everything is much easier!

“The Basis and Essence of the entire universe is the Creator. He is omnipresent!

“He becomes clear in the silence! This silence is present in the subtleties of that which is invisible under all that we are able to see with the eyes of the bodies and hear with bodily hearing.

“Let’s try to inhale, as if the air is His Love, Which gives life to our bodies!

“Feel how the spiritual heart expands being filled with the Divine Light!

“After all, it is our choice: to live in this transparent silence — or in the chaos of disturbing and fussy thoughts.

“For this, you only need to learn to dive into the abode of the heart — the abode of silence! In this silence, God’s Light is revealed to us! And God’s Voice in it can be heard by us!

“Now — by My Strength — I will help you to cognize that this space of delicate transparent silence really exists. Having experienced this immersion once, it will be easier for you to enter such silence again and again. When the mind is at rest, and the heart is filled with love for the Creator, then it is easy!

“John-the-Baptist immersed initiates into water. Let us feel now that we, too, are now immersed in a special space of the transparent silence. Let it now be like motionless cool air or the purest transparency of water. It exists everywhere and always in the world, not visible through the eyes of bodies. But it can become apparent to souls who are ready to cognize it with their spiritual hearts.

“We can immerse ourselves in this silence just as the bodies are usually immersed for ablution in the caressing water of a clean reservoir. It is like a calm sea. We enter — and dissolve…”

… A special silence descended… It was as if we were covered by a huge wave of the transparent shining Light…

Jesus spoke — and His voice smoothly reached my hearing, as if from within me:

“Listen to this silent peace!

“The endless silence is dissolving everything, the bliss is filling us…

“In this silence, it is easy to begin to feel the Presence of God…

“Now it seems that the space, where the Creator always dwells, is open…

“It is enough to fill this silence of the soul with a deep emotion of love for God — and the union of the human soul with the Infinity of the Divine Love takes place.”

… I remembered how, in my youth, on the shore of the Sea of Galilee, I was admiring the spaciousness and clarity of the water, and then I was slowly plunging into it with my head…

Like this, the silence gripped and swallowed me.

Even if the wind blows, and if there will be ripples or waves — then I will remain silent! For now, there is only silence in me!

And there is no longer an insignificant and weak former individuality! I am a Part of the Unity and of His Love!

… In this way, I first disappeared in the silence, where there is only God! I wanted to remain in this state always, but Jesus completed the lesson.

Then He continued to say:

“It’s possible for a person: to learn to live, constantly feeling the Presence of God, His Care, Help, and hearing His Advices!

“Each of you can start learning this!

“One can master a life in the constant perception of the Divine Presence. This Presence fills the soul from within.

“It is only the spiritual heart that has the ability to unite and merge with God! Such a connection favors man in both the material life and in spiritual perfecting.

“Thus, the life of a person in God and the life of God in such a person — can begin: in his or her spiritual heart filled with love! This is exactly what makes life worth living on the Earth!

“Thus, the Beauty and Bliss of the spiritual world are revealed, where the Light of the Spirit shines and fills us!

“Even in a dungeon, even with all sorts of external difficulties — you can keep this Oneness with the Divine World!

“The power of Divine Love, connecting with the Soul, Which no longer feels Itself separated from God for even a moment, transforms Its whole life!

“Yesterday you marveled at the miracle of the resurrection of a body, but there is another incomparably more significant resurrection: the resurrection to life in Purity, in Truth, and in Divine Love! Such a resurrection marks the unity with the Father and the Freedom from all that was necessary to study in the material world.”

… Jesus was silent…

His look was special… He saw what was still hidden from us…