The Spiritual Seeker Needs to Live Within His Own Spiritual Atmosphere Not Dependent on Outer Circumstances

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When an individual takes up
spiritual practice, he naturally

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will try to find a space that is
calm and quiet to aid his

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contemplation, aspiration, or
devotion.

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The hustle and bustle of the
external life is distracting to

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the concentration, and all of
the noise and all of the

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pressures of that external life
can make it difficult for the

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seeker to achieve the needed
steady, calm aspiration on a

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consistent basis.
Many seekers believe that they

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cannot make spiritual progress
unless the external environment

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is calm and quiet.
Spirituality cannot be

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conditioned upon any particular
outer circumstances.

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Sri Krishna delivers his
teaching to Arjuna on an actual

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battlefield, which illustrates
the need for the seeker to not

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be affected by the outer
circumstances, but rather to

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create the spiritual readiness,
awaken the aspiration, and

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create the consecration within
himself.

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Regardless of outer
circumstances, few are those

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individuals who have the
opportunity to live a life of

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quiet contemplation, who reside
in a monastery, cloister, or

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ashram, or who have chosen to
live isolated in the mountains

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or the forests or the desert.
Most people are living a life in

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the world with family, friends,
relations, societal needs,

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employment, and all kinds of
pressures from society.

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These individuals may take an
occasional time off through a

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retreat, a workshop or a
vacation of some sort which may

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help to re center the energy if
it has become distressed.

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But the end result must
eventually be that they carry

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their spiritual atmosphere
within themselves and can

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proceed through all the
potential distractions and

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pressures without losing their
inner balance or focus.

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An individual can carry the
spiritual atmosphere around with

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him regardless of outer
conditions.

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In many instances, he can make
conscious choices that help

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create the optimum outer
circumstances.

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For instance, he can choose to
remain home or go to a quiet

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library rather than going out to
a club or large noisy event of

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some sort.
Consciously determining,

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whenever possible, where to be
at any point in time can be an

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aid without making this an
actual determining factor for

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creating one's own inner space
of quiet aspiration and silent

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spiritual focus.
When such venue choices are not

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possible, the individual should
be able to continue on.

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Nevertheless, with the sadhana
Sri Orbindo notes quote, there

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can be an intense but quiet
aspiration which does not

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disturb the harmony of the inner
being.

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Calm, discrimination, detachment
but not indifference are all

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very important, for their
opposites impede very much the

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transforming action.
Intensity of aspiration should

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be there, but it must go along
with these.

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No hurry, no inertia, neither
rajasic overeagerness nor to

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mausic discouragement, a steady
and persistent but quiet call,

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and working to remain quiet
within, firm in the will to go

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through, refusing to be
disturbed or discouraged by

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difficulties or fluctuations.
That is one of the first things

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to be learned in the Path.
To do otherwise is to encourage

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the instability of
consciousness.

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A spiritual atmosphere is more
important than outer conditions.

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If one can get that and also
create one's own spiritual air

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to breathe in and live in it,
that is the true condition of

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progress.
You should realize that while

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quiet surroundings are
desirable, the true quiet is

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within, and no other will give
the condition you want.

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End Quote.
Reference Sri Aurobindo and the

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Mother Looking from Within,
Chapter 5, Attitudes on the

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Path, pages 1:15 to 1:16.