Ladies and gentlemen, tonight Bapak wishes to explain the meaning of worship, or man's worship of God. Why is it really necessary for man to worship the One God as an obligation? It is because it is God's will that man, through his true worship, should open the way for himself, first to be able to be aware and know his life in which he always works in this world, and second, to be able to know and understand that within him is the power of God, which accompanies man in his life, so that he can receive and know the requirement or part which Bapak calls the eternal ( kadim ) attribute, the part of our nature that cannot break and has no limits.

Man's situation on this earth is that, although man is truly an excellent creature, yet for some reason it is God's will that he has to be created on this earth, and this earth is in truth the earth of matter. And man's soul ( jiwa ) is enveloped or wrapped in a form which breaks easily and corresponds to the condition of this earth. If we remember that the soul of man does not correspond to its covering, it becomes clear that man is willed by God to work as well as possible with his covering or this outer physical body, while we should know that this body can serve also as a way or means for man in his efforts to attain the true path.

Also, we need to remember that man's sojourn on this earth, due to the fragile covering of his outer physical body, is only a very short one indeed. In truth, considering man's noble soul, it is a short road for man to travel. Man's life on this earth cannot be for very long. It is necessary, and it has been decreed, that man on this earth must experience death.

Thus, in reality, man's life on this earth does not conform to God's creation of him as an excellent, noble creature. However, if the truth of the situation can be known or received, man's death on this earth is really a true blessing for him. For through death, man can rise up or change in state, so that he goes on until he comes to the place where he should be. But someone who is unable to understand and be aware of the true human life that is in his soul, will meet with darkness in the way of his true destination as willed by the One who creates, that is, the One God.

In truth, it is not God's will for man to be given life and created on this earth only to die and only to meet with darkness, with no true direction from his human soul. It is therefore necessary for man to survey and try somehow to find the true path, his true human state, so that death, which is always appointed for man, will be like the opening of the way for him to continue his true life in the direction willed by God. Clearly, man's death is an opener of the way, or an open gate, for him to be able to continue his life. As the prophets said, Death is a continuation of man's life, or Voorzetten van't leven.

Philosophers and experts give very little attention to these matters. Or perhaps they say that death as the continuation of life is something that cannot be understood by the thinking mind. One really cannot find fault with this view of theirs, because the state of the soul or, as Bapak always says, the growth or awakening of the soul, cannot be worked at or known with the thinking, the desire and the will. For, that which Bapak refers to as the growth and awakening of the soul, is something that is eternal ( kadim ) and unbreakable. Yet man wishes to make use of forms that easily break to work on it. Of course, it cannot be done.

That is why the prophets advised their followers that man should not neglect or forget to worship God. The prophets hoped that through his worship of God, man might suddenly obtain a contact and get something that could be felt and received in his inner feeling. When man worships God, he needs to empty and deny his thinking and desires, and be in a state of calm. In such a state, there is a possibility that he may receive an unexpected contact within his inner feeling. This is how it is and how it is practiced in the various religions. To obtain the reality within one's life, one is required to quieten oneself in the way Bapak just said, and only magnify God's power so that one feels within oneself as if one is something that is weak and powerless. In such a state, it is very possible that one may be able to receive the contact just referred to.

Bapak is not saying that Bapak is among the people who have tried to obtain that contact in a state of peace and calm, in a state where the will and desires have stopped. But it so happens that, by God's will, Bapak was able to receive this, and Bapak is able to channel it to all of you, children.

So, what you receive in the training ( latihan ) is really the contact with God's power, which always envelops you, both outside and inside. It is really this that is sought by seekers and those people who try to find it. Clearly, the receiving cannot be worked on or understood by the ordinary thinking, feelings or will. Bapak says 'ordinary' because ordinarily the thinking mind is only filled or awakened by forces that are around in this world. The ordinary will is the will that is awakened by something in this world also. So, just receive as you now receive, children. It is still not necessary for you to know the truth or the meaning and purpose of what you receive. Just receive, and wait until you reach the level or the time when you are able to have true awareness.

It must feel rather odd to all of you, children, and you must feel somewhat dissatisfied, because you are receiving something without being able to understand its purpose and meaning. But know, children, that the latihan all of you have received are still only the beginning. The latihan has not yet touched all the members of your physical body, that is, the members which Bapak said just now are the covering of your soul. You are still carried away by your physical bodies, which may be filled with forces that are still not so good or perfect. Such a condition requires you to do the latihan and prepare a perfect inner feeling. And this takes time, rather a long time. Whether it goes quickly or not depends on your own self.

Have faith that gradually you will come to the level required, provided you are able to be patient while you wait for something that is uncertain. For the whole inner feeling to be purified, very much is still needed in the awakening of the body, not only in the physical energy, which can be seen, but also in the will, thinking and feelings. The content within the will, feelings and thinking has to be separated according to what is ordinary or worldly, and what is able to receive feelings awakened by the human soul.

This explanation is supplementary to the explanations Bapak gave last time. But last time it was not recorded, so the brothers and sisters who are new and have not yet heard Bapak's previous talks naturally do not find this explanation sufficient. Perhaps there will be another opportunity to give further clarifications. But the time is approaching when Bapak will be leaving London, so do not expect anything until Bapak returns from Germany.

That is all for now. Bapak will now end this explanation.

Translated by Sofyan Brugger