The Scriptures tell us, “The body is the temple of God.”This text is most abused. Indeed the body is the temple of God, but did that text mean that you should make the temple the all-in-all and forget the God within? The object of the temple was not the same as that of the Roman Catholic temples of to-day. People forget the Divinity within and make the temple the all-in-all.
If this question may be answered in the affirmative, then the question “as to whether a worldly householder can realize Truth perfectly,” can also be answered in the affirmative; it all depends upon the use we make of the sword or of the family ties. We can make the same sword kill or protect us from outside attacks: so a man by the misuse of family ties or family relations can kill himself, or retard his spiritual growth, or by the right use of the family relations he can elevate himself, and realize God within him. Thus the question is similarly answered.
You see that spiritual progress and family life as it stands at present are contradictory to each other; they are conflicting. What is done in the church is undone at the house, more than undone perhaps. It is just like Penelopese. She used to wind the thread all day long and when the night came, she used to unwind everything that was wound up. Similarly, all of you wind up your spiritual progress in the churches, and in your sermons and prayers, and all is undone, unwound at home. If matters go on that way, there is no hope.
While the intellect cannot grasp the Atman, it can get itself merged in the Atman, like the bubbles in the ocean. The bubbles cannot come out of the ocean, but they can burst and become merged in it. So the intellect cannot comprehend the Atman, but it can lose itself in the Atman, and this is in fact the sum and substance of Maya. The intellect cannot ask the Atman or God,”Why, when, and where did you create this world?”It cannot put the question boldly.
‘Whosoever looked for the Brahman-class elsewhere than in the Self, was abandoned by the Brahman-class. Whosoever looked for the Kshatra-class elsewhere than in the Self, was abandoned by the Kshatra-class. Whosoever looked for the worlds elsewhere than in the Self, was abandoned by the worlds. Whosoever looked for the Devas elsewhere than in the Self, was abandoned by the Devas. Whosoever looked for the creatures elsewhere than in the Self, was abandoned by the creatures. Whosoever looked for anything elsewhere than in the Self, was abandoned by everything. This Brahman-class, this Kshatra class, these worlds, these Devas, these creatures, this everything, all is that Self’
A man had a precious, long necklace round his neck, and at one time he forgot everything about it. He was much grieved at not finding the necklace round his neck, and he went groping about in search of it, but could not get it. Someone told him the necklace was with him, and he was very happy. Now, the necklace was not found in the strict sense of the word, for in reality it was there all the time; it was not lost but was forgotten. Similarly, your real Atman, the”I am,”has always been the same yesterday, to-day, and forever; but the mind, the intellect is to over-come ignorance. When the mind believes that the precious necklace is got, in this sense we might say that you regain your freedom. You have found or obtained your lovely necklace which was, strictly speaking, never lost.