spirituality at cbrunning.net

Link: http://www.dlshq.org/saints/siva.htm

"You must be very correct, very punctual, very regular. You should discipline yourself rigidly. Otherwise, you cannot attain the highest, the Realisation. It is not an easy task. Happy-go-lucky type easy temperament is no good in spiritual pursuits. Have you noticed how correct, how strict, how disciplined are the soldiers in the army? They have to stand in the parade according to the unit or battalion they belong to. They have to be absolutely spick and span. They do polishing of the shoes and brass by themselves. Even if a single button is dull, the inspecting officer spots the soldier and puts him into quarter-guard, and he will have to do fettling duty. They are always fighting fit, trim and clean, neat and tidy, because they have been drilled into this sort of correctness, precision and training. When an ordinary soldier is required to be so disciplined, so correct, so punctual, so regular, then what to say about you, O aspirant! A spiritual aspirant has to be even ten times more strict, regular, punctual, correct, well-disciplined. A soldier fights to win a battle, whereas an aspirant has to win the kingdom of heaven, win Kaivalya Moksha. Therefore, never give leniency to your mind." ~Sivananda

from "Practised Before Preaching", a chapter of Sri Swami Chidananda's book Swami Sivananda: Saint, Sage and Godman