Sri Sai Baba`S:Charters And Sayings

'FOURTH TALK 63

listen to any words of wisdom which he may drop.
But, as I tell you, it is always recognised that it is <
not so much \\4iat he teaches them which helps their
development, as the influence of his presence.

Of course that is entirely scientific. You see, his
aura—that is, his higher vehicles generally—is keyed
up to a somewhat higher rate of vibration than those
of his pupils. He is living presumably an entirely
unworldly life (I am speaking of a man who is a real
teacher), while they have come more recently than
he out of the worldly life, so that their vibrations
are still at a somewhat lower level. His mere
proximity, therefore, acts upon their vehicles and
helps them to vibrate at a rate similar to his own.

Yet the presence of a teacher cannot carry a man
the whole way. To change the character is a very
slow and tedious business, and yet it is a thing which
must be done by every one who wishes to enter the
Path, and every one must, in the last resort, do it
for himself. He must take himself in hand. He
must realise his faults and resolve to get rid of
them ; and he must also develop certain virtues. In
both these tasks, however, he can be immensely
assisted by being in constant contact with someone
who has developed these virtues or who has
extinguished those vices. By living always in the
aura of a less worldly man the pupils themselves
become less worldly than they otherwise could. The
pressure of the higher vibration is quite constant.