I have always avoided all kinds of spiritual gatherings. I was never drawn to collective paths of salvation or enlightenment. Many modern, well-known, and fashionable spiritual authorities evoke no response in me. Avatars, bhagavans, and highly promoted gurus passed by my awareness—I did not even turn my gaze toward them. My path has always been narrow, and I have always known that the Lord and Truth must be sought within, not by exhausting the body through wandering the world in search of spiritual impressions. Everything that is truly necessary must come as the result of inner work and concentration. Often, inner pain and dissatisfaction give rise to a spiritual inquiry that eventually leads to clarity.
When someone close to me invited me to attend a meeting with an Indian Master who had come to Ukraine, I declined for the reasons mentioned above. I thought: why should I walk someone else’s path? I already felt the presence of my Guru and his support—so why create a precedent and disturb the inner energies within myself?
I did not go to that meeting, unlike my friend who, after meeting the Indian Master, received guru-diksha and became his disciple. I was sincerely happy for him. I had heard of this Master and held him in great respect. Later, I even advised some of my close friends who were walking a spiritual path to receive diksha from him, thereby creating favorable conditions for spiritual progress. But personally, I did not intend to receive diksha from this Master, for I trusted my Guru, I trusted the Lord, and I trusted Myself.