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OCCULT POWERS
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communities in India they have obeyed these rules and have evolved wonderful spiritual powers. Take for instance the monks who travel from place to place and teach the people without charge. In the first place there is no idea or thought of selfishness with them. If even for a short time our mentality is engaged in worldliness, in making money, in trying to beautify the body, in thinking about dress, about eating, or any other pleasures of a worldly nature, to that extent we waste away our spiritual forces, and therefore for a person who does this, a longer time will be necessary to arrive at the spiritual plane, than for a person who avoids worldly thoughts. As our monks have not worldly ideas so far as their service is concerned, as there are no ideas or thoughts with them as to making money and using their powers for mercenary purposes, but only in the one direction of spiritual advancement, they do not forget to observe moral rules because they would naturally live in accordance with them. If persons do not understand what spirituality is, the very acts which they perform on the lower planies wauld act on the other planes also and would keep them for a long time on the lower, that is the emotional and physical planes. That is one reason why in this country the so-called mediums have never been able to rise higher than the emotional plane; there is no individuality with them and therefore even the physical forces will influence them; but the monks in India are so strong that no power can influence them; therefore the mental and inoral acts would strengthen
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