More on Raja yoga route....

. Otherwise things may turn out to be very difficult as it happened to one of my acquaintances……
One person known to me was very active in social life handling something like 12 voluntary organisations. Naturally he went around meeting a lot of people. He used to find out what the other person’s interest is and try to talk about it or try to learn what it is. In due course he met a person who was practising Raja yoga and not knowing much about it, he started discussing it and later asked to be initiated. At first the master refused. Of course what is denied to us has a lot of attraction to us and we make extra efforts to get it. If something is easily available we don’t even give a second look. Our friend went to him repeatedly, pleaded so much and thus prevailed finally. He was asked to close his eyes and relax and the master put his hand on his head and did something. He was a mantra and asked to do japa for so many days, so many times. Of course our friend was satisfied having got what he thought he wanted and so was careless about the practice. A month passed and our friend was having a lot of uneasiness, mental confusion and restlessness. He could not carry out his day to day activities. Doctors could not fathom his problem. Then he suddenly remembered the master and went to him only to get the scolding of his life! The master again put his hand over his head did something and turned him out asking him never to show his face again in those parts!
I mentioned this only to drive home the point that these things are not to be taken lightly. No book can tell you exactly how to do it. Don’t ever get into practice without a proper guidance. This is like walking on the knife edge. A guru is a must for raja yoga.

So what next?