Ladies and gentlemen, as Bapak always explains, the spiritual 'way that all of you receive in the training ( latihan ) is, in reality, worship that is willed by God for all of you. The training you receive, seen from the ordinary human standpoint, does not yet resemble the movements and behavior of people who are worshipping God. Nevertheless, the movements you make are obtained when you are free of the pressure and disturbance of your desires and thinking. Clearly, the power that brings on the movements is not from a force that is still connected with the desires, thinking and wanting of man. It should be clear, then, that what you have received cannot be thought about, and cannot be understood with man's ordinary thinking mind, which still carries traces of worldly matters and worldly pleasures.

It is true that human beings should understand, feel and be able to weigh up everything they receive, wherever it may be from. Indeed, it is willed by God that man should use his mind, his will and his feelings to be able to understand and be aware of everything that relates to his worldly life. But do not forget that the path of God's power, enabling man to be aware of how life will be after death, is entirely the work of God for his creatures, especially for man.

In the life of a creature, or in the life of man, there are two ways, two kinds of action or work. The first is God's work on the self of man, and the second is man's work for worldly matters.

Thus, man is secure in his life in this world, because the difficult things, the things that cannot possibly be known or understood by man just like that, are God's work. And God will always give indications and guidance to man so that he can come to an awareness of how life will be after death. At the same time, it is necessary for man, and an obligation for him, to use his thinking mind, desires and will and feelings for his happiness, and to provide for his worldly life.

Thus, a human being works for this world, for his security and prosperity as long as he is living in this world, and he will also receive from the One God all he needs to enable him to live in the hereafter. For God always guides, always instructs, always watches over and protects the life of his creatures on this earth. In this situation, man is always able to arrange how he lives in society on this earth in a good way, a way that does not violate or deviate from God's will that is decreed for him. As the prophets, the messengers of God, in times long ago, said: God knows and understands more ( than man ) about man's life, both that which is concealed, and that which is revealed.

This is the reality of what the prophets said. It has now become a reality in our training ( latihan ) of Subud. For in the training we are willed to receive from within, that is, from above, really, or from God. And besides receiving whatever we receive from within, it is necessary for us to work for our needs as human beings, so we do not neglect or waste the members and organs we have, which really have to work.

There are many people who come to a dead end on the way to God, or on the way they follow to be able to reach the right path that leads to God. The reason is that in their heart, in their mind, and with their will, they want to understand and they want to know. The truth is, they want to be more clever than the One God. In their efforts to do this, they reach into their inner feeling, they force their mind, and meditate within their inner feeling, and they leave behind all their obligations as human beings living in this world.

As you go on in the training ( latihan ) you sometimes receive unintentionally and unexpectedly; without your wanting to do the training, it arises by itself, in a state where you are conscious, but not expecting anything. This is a sign that God always looks after man, God always guides man, even when he does not want it.

The first requirement for man is that he should know the life contact that is within him. God understands, God is aware of the capacity and strength within all of you, children; God gives to you in a way that is adjusted to the strength that is in you. That is why Bapak always cautions you: do not always want very much to receive quickly and increase your latihans. Such a wish is urged mostly by desire from your will, not from God's will, which is clean and not mixed with the desires, will and mind of man.

God knows that within the self of man there is not just one current that becomes a life force enabling man to move and live the way he lives in this world; there are many kinds of currents within the self of man. And God will look after and arrange everything in the best possible way, so that man can receive without being confused and tempted by the currents that always disturb the progress of his human soul ( jiwa ), but which he himself cannot possibly understand with his mind, his will or his inner feeling.

What is the reason, you may ask, why human beings, with their mind, their will and their feelings, are unable to feel or understand the mistakes that are in their inner feeling? The reason is that the mind or brain of a human being, the feelings or heart, the will and passion or sex urge of a human being, and the physical sensations that are in the body and flesh and blood of a human being, are mere tools of the force or current that fills the person's inner feeling.

Suppose the inner feeling of a human being is controlled by the animal force, by the force of an animal, for example. The animal force, which controls the person's inner feeling, occupies the front, the first place, and from there pours out to the person's brain, inner heart, sex, and flesh and blood. Naturally, all that which is awakened in the inner feeling and the self of that person is aroused, moved and worked by the animal force which is there and sits in residence within the inner heart or inner feeling of that person. As the person is a human being, his or her way of thinking, feeling, wanting and desiring are like those of a human being. However, that which gives strength to the person, the force within the person, is a wrong force, that is to say a force below the human being. Consequently, the way of implementing his thinking, his feelings, his sex, his way of sensing and touching and so on, will be limited to the spirit and nature and reality of existence in the animal world.

There is no lack of people in society who, although they may be highly educated, and may have studied deeply what is good human behavior and morals and ethics, still have feelings of envy and hatred towards other people, and still do not like to give in, and always like to be the winner. The reason for this state of affairs is none other than this: such a person may be well educated, but owing to the urging from the low force within his inner heart, that person - whether he wants it or not - still has, within his heart and mind, imaginings and reflections that are not good, and not right, and are not yet in line with God's will for a human being. Although this is the truth of the matter, the person who Bapak just gave as an example will not acknowledge the mistakes that are within him. Certainly, he will claim that what is within him is absolutely right. He may even claim that he is more right than others. This claim comes from the force within him, even though it is a low force, because it has control within him. So, even though he is wrong, he claims he is right.

Perhaps all of you can feel this yourselves. Certainly you would not admit you are wrong, or not as clever as someone else. Even if you are really not as clever as your friend, you always maintain, 'Ah, I am as clever as you are!' Indeed, this is a characteristic of the subhuman forces that always control human beings. This is why in the life of the Prophet Jesus, he gave the example: 'If your right cheek is struck, offer your left. If your right hand is struck, offer your left hand.' The real meaning of this is that someone who really has a human soul should be willing to give in. Being willing to give in does not mean losing; it means being more aware and more clever than someone who is beaten.

Although this kind of behavior is really an obstacle and a terrific disturbance of man's progress in cleaning himself so that he can know and receive a revelation or gift from God, it is impossible for human beings to avoid it. Certainly, if you consider, you cannot possibly give up your belief in yourself and only believe other people. You would not believe the view of others more than your own. Indeed, the true yardstick is within one's own inner self. But, as Bapak said before, it is impossible for the human being, by putting the obstructions aside, to become the content - Bapak illustrates with an example - of the lamp. A lamp lights whether it is filled with kerosene or castor oil. But its light is not as bright when it is filled with castor oil. How can it be changed so that it burns brightly? It has to be cleared out and refilled with kerosene. When it has been refilled with kerosene, the lamp will shine more brightly than it did before.

Such is man's difficulty in trying to change the content of his self. Indeed, it is not a matter of being difficult or not, it is something that is impossible for man to do, as Bapak said before, unless man gets help from the One God. And this help has happened, and is within all of you, and you have received it beyond your understanding, beyond your mind, beyond your feelings, and beyond the wanting of your desires. It cannot be thought about, it cannot be understood, it cannot be searched for, because it comes from beyond our thinking mind and everything that is in us. God knows that if it were not beyond man's inner feeling, he would not be able to receive it. For man's inner being is blocked, and is filled to the brim with wrong subhuman forces, which always carry man in directions he does not want to go in, in his quest to return home to the perfect human world.

So man cannot boast, maintain or confirm that through meditation, by quieting himself, he can clean anything that is wrong within him. This is what he supposes, feels and thinks. But he does not know that the one who is meditating and quieting himself is not the human being, but an outpouring of the wrong powers that are within him. Man does not understand this, because he does not have God's help; he is without the power that penetrates within the deepest parts of man's being, and which encompasses the outermost parts of man's being, and which can awaken man's soul beyond his thinking mind. It is this power that will be able to clean everything within man's self, so that he will really be able to know what God has given him; in other words, the soul of man will return to reoccupy its place as host, as king, as lord within the inner heart. The animal force will no longer be in command there.

This is why, in Subud, or in opening new brothers and sisters, Bapak always says, 'Do not meditate and do not concentrate your thought, but stand free and easy. You only need to surrender to God, putting yourselves in God's hands with sincere submission, that is to say, believe sincerely that God is Omnipotent, and surrender everything to God's will, ( saying: ) I don't know what God wills for me, whether I'll be made into a cupboard, whether I'll be made into butter, whether I'll be made into a stone, or whether I'll be taken to heaven. God is All-powerful.' This is the way to worship God. You need only to surrender. Put yourselves in God's hands and sincerely submit, that is, surrender everything to God.

Do not meditate, and do not concentrate on anything. If you do meditate, the content of that meditation will not yet be the human being. So what you will get is that which is within you. You will not possibly be able to surrender and receive something from God that human beings really need, to be able to go home to their world, namely, what Bapak calls the world of the perfect human being, the insani world, the rohani world.

You may ask, 'By surrendering in a way we do not need to understand, will we not be possessed by forces within us that are not good?' That cannot possibly happen, because ( in our surrender ) we are not preparing a place with our desires, mind and will for low forces that are not good for us. Whereas the low, subhuman forces are able to go in and out of the self of man by way of man's thinking, desire and will. When we receive something in our inner feeling, we are free of our thinking mind, free of our feelings and free of everything that is in us. We really feel something happen beyond our understanding, something that is in reality from the One God, something that is beyond man's thinking mind, and isn't mixed with the low, subhuman forces that run parallel with the desires, mind, feelings and will of man.

So, in this, in the opening, or in the Subud training ( latihan ), it is not necessary to meditate or concentrate. Just receive what God gives to you. For God knows, and only God can change what is not good within man's inner feeling - which is not easy for man to know - so that it becomes good. Such is the nature of what is happening within all of you.

That is why Bapak says that what you are given, or what exists in this Subud, is not a teaching. It is really a receiving from the One God. A receiving or a gift from God to man is not something that comes through man's brain, feelings and heart, so it is not a teaching. Also, God cannot be studied by the mind, nor can He be searched for by the searching of man, because God is the One who created man. Bapak will illustrate this with an example near at hand - one does not have to look far - that of human beings and animals. Even though they are close to one another, all of you can tell the difference between the two. It is not possible for animals to think about humans, but it is very easy for humans to think about animals. This is just an example. God is more able to think about man than man is able to think about God. That is why Bapak says that the way to God, and to know the life after death - that is, after the strength we have as human beings has gone, and after our brain and all we have is decayed and ruined, we can know, and we obtain something so that we can be aware of our life in death - is God's work entirely.

Bapak could describe it like this, to give you a picture: the receiving you receive from God eventually causes the enlargement of your human soul ( jiwa ). And as the human soul enlarges, it becomes wider and bigger than everything that is in us. If our human soul is greater than everything that is in us, it means that our soul is more powerful than I am, more powerful than our whole being. So, our soul is more powerful, and knows more than our brain, our feelings and our will as human beings. And the human soul gets bigger and wider, until it is able to reach and touch places beyond the sphere of man, for example, heaven and other places.

That is how it will be if the soul has widened and become large because it is clean and cleared of everything that oppresses it. But before that can happen, you first have to clean the things that oppress it. You have to clean all that has control in the human heart, brain, sex and inner feeling. All of that has to be cleaned first. But you won't come to what Bapak has been describing, and become wide and big immediately. You start gradually, little by little. As for the way it works within you, children, you have to let go of your thinking, wanting and desires, so that your inner being can work in a way that is not always disturbed, and its work can be quickly and easily completed. In short, just surrender to God whatever is working in this spiritual training ( latihan ). It is God's work, not our work. We only receive.

So, Bapak hopes that, outside the latihan, you will not sit around and keep thinking, 'What was that latihan I just had? I went like this, and I went like that. What does it mean?' Don't trouble yourselves. Outside the latihan, do your work. What work? Work in the office, work as a doctor, as an engineer, or whatever work you do. It is not necessary to keep thinking about what you have received, because when you think about it you disturb the work that is going on within your inner feeling. So you are not yet free. Give your inner feeling the freedom to work directly. Later on, you will receive by yourselves, you will always receive, receive . . . God knows all.

That is how realities are received in the spiritual life, or in man's worship of God. God gives to man when he is in a state of consciousness and when he is not. God can give to man whether he is awake or asleep. God can give to man with this ( body ) and God can give to him without this ( body ). So we humans will be able to have an awareness, even in the night time when we are in a state of forgetting and powerlessness.

Someone who has died, or who is about to die, is not able to think or remember, and is unable to feel. All his powers as a human being are exhausted. If we are already able to receive a content, an awareness that can penetrate us within the shock, then we will have no anxiety whatever. God is All-powerful and is able to make human beings aware, even when they are in a state of complete oblivion. But if, when we are near to death, we still want to understand and try to boost our thinking, things have already begun to fade, and we don't remember any more. Your child comes and says, 'Father, do you know who I am?' but you don't know him. So it is already useless. What we need is to have awareness when we arrive at the moment when we have no power any more. And that is something only God is able to teach. So do not try to learn it. Just surrender to God and work for your life as human beings, in the ordinary way. There is nothing wrong with making a living. Earn a lot of money, if you can. But do not forget to surrender to God, and to worship God.

Indeed, it is true when people say that this Subud training ( latihan ) is beyond reason, and that they cannot understand it. How can one receive something without learning it, or being taught? they ask. Bapak always answers such questions by saying that, indeed, God and God's cleverness and God's power cannot be learned. Only God Himself can teach that. How, then, can we receive it? Only by surrendering. If a person's surrender to God really reaches to within his inner feeling, he is sure to receive. Certain to. If people ask, 'Is one really certain to receive?' Well, more than a thousand brothers and sisters here in London have done it. So Bapak is not talking nonsense. It's not empty talk. It is the reality. Those who ask shake their heads, 'How does one receive? I don't know!' 'Yes, of course you don't know, if you haven't received it yet,' Bapak says.

This is Bapak's explanation, which is necessary for your training ( latihan ). Bapak hopes that this short explanation, which is also Bapak's last explanation before leaving London, can give you all some measure of satisfaction. And Bapak hopes that, in receiving this Subud training, you will have an inner feeling that is patient and which entrusts itself to God and sincerely submits to God. Also, do not easily feel bored because you want to go fast; you cannot. And Bapak also uses this opportunity to take leave of all of you, because shortly, on the twenty-first, Bapak will leave London. This means that Bapak will be leaving all of you to do the latihan here on your own.

May you all always be protected by God, and made happy, and may your way of receiving what God gives you go smoothly, after Bapak has left. And before Bapak ends this meeting, Bapak will give you some testing as a souvenir, so you can more or less feel the truth of what Bapak has been saying. Please receive as you are, sitting. Do not move around or stand up. Be in the state you are in when you do the training ( latihan ); surrender.

( Testing )

If we think of worldly matters, with what do we think? . . . If we think of our human soul ( jiwa ) or God's power, with what do we think?... Finish. Could you receive it? The first one was with the head, or the thinking. The second one was with nothing. It was empty. So, clearly, the power of God cannot be thought about.

Again! If we think of worldly matters with what do we think?... If we think about the power of God or the perfect human life, with what do we think?... Yes. Was it clear?

Again... Before I was made with my whole body, what was there in me?... So, before this existed, what was in the human being, in the life of the human being, was a vibration of life.

Again... Before the human self existed, what was there in the life of the human being?... Were you able to receive?

That is why, in the holy books, in the New Testament, in the Quran, in the Old Testament and the Psalms, it is said that before anything existed there was the Word of God, there was a voice from the unknown, a voice from the One God. It was said to be a booming voice, which was received by the Prophet Abraham, by the Prophet Moses, by the Prophet Jesus, by the Prophet Muhammad, and which awakens the soul, awakens the content of a human being so that the human being feels as if rocked by the vibration or a voice that is felt to be blissful, or zalig in Dutch. A bliss is felt within the self, and within that bliss, without wanting anything, there is a spontaneous remembering, a spontaneous belief, a spontaneous awareness of God's greatness. And then man's body is created, complete, brain, heart and everything.

( Testing )

Again, for a moment . . . In our head there is a brain; where is it situated? . . . If we are thinking, how does the brain go? . . . If we are sleeping, does our brain stop, or does it go? . . . Finish! So, even when we are sleeping, our brain is still active. With this brain, man continues to work ceaselessly. Whereas the growth of the soul requires the brain to stop working.

Again! . . . When we, or all of you, children, are receiving the training ( latihan ), how active is the brain?... It's not very active, but it still pressurizes you. And how should it be?

Please receive: How does the head of a perfect human being, that is, someone who is already good, receive the training ( latihan )? . . . Finish! Open. It does not feel anything except being open.

All of this, you will be able to receive, children. Even if you are not able to receive it yet, you will be able to. And have faith that the soul, once it has awakened, will develop by itself.

This is all Bapak has to say for today, and this may be the last talk. Bapak may not have the opportunity to hold another meeting, because he has to travel around and meet people.

Translated by Sofyan Brugger