Chapter 16

[NOTE: This discourse will be in the book "India Coming Back Home", which has not been published, as of August 1992.

Interview by ATV and Calcutta Telegraph

The very word 'Himalayas' makes my heart beat faster. To me it is not just something physical, it carries the whole heritage of spirituality for centuries.

From the days of Upanishads till today, Himalaya has produced more enlightened people than any other piece of land in the whole world.

I have never said that I am the guru of the rich. News media go on creating their own ideas.

It is certainly true that the rich come to me - educated, cultured people have come to me, for the simple reason that what I am saying can be understood only by them. The uneducated, conventional, orthodox, cannot understand my approach.

And I am nobody's guru; I am a simple man - at the most I can say I am a friend who has known some space inside himself which gives eternal joy and the feeling of immortality. In other words, which gives you the taste of godliness.

So those who are interested in tasting godliness have come to me, but those who want bread have not come.

The poor have not come for the simple reason that poverty prevents them from becoming religious. They have gone to Gandhi and Mother Teresa because these are the people who go on giving them hope. Gandhi calls them "children of God." That is so absurd. If the poor are the children of God, then poverty should not be destroyed - then you are destroying children of God. So poverty should be increased so that there are more of God's children on the earth, so that the whole world is full of God's children.

And if the rich are not the children of God then they should be destroyed and everything that creates richness should be prevented because it is taking you away from God. This is the simple, logical conclusion.

But Gandhi was a politician, not a religious man.

This country consists of poor people. You have to give them hope to get their vote, and the best and cheapest hope is that, after life, paradise is yours.

Jesus says, "Blessed are the poor for they shall inherit the kingdom of God."

Naturally the poor are interested in Jesus because he is giving such great hope.

Poverty is the only qualification.

To me poverty is a curse, not a blessing.

So it is not that I am the guru of the rich; I am nobody's guru. I am simply a man who has an insight, and I am available to help anybody who feels in tune with me.