The Invisibility Cloak

In recent years the series of popular Harry Potter books have grabbed the imagination of the whole world and been widely read by children and adults alike. They have become what are perhaps some of the best-known fantasies ever written.

Anyone who knows anything about the magic of Harry Potter will tell you that this young wizard has a cloak that he uses – an invisibility cloak. And when he covers himself with it, no one knows he is there. He can observe what people are doing and he can listen to their conversations, but he remains invisible to them.

We too are living our own amazing story: the story of a soul on its way to God-realization. Although our story is one of sublime truth, it also has a definite ring of fantasy about it, because it is about the greatest miracle of all. And in our story there also exists an invisibility cloak.

We know that the Master placed his Radiant Form inside us when we were initiated. We are striving to reach a point in our meditation where we will meet that form, where we will be able to see it. But we ourselves have woven the invisibility cloak which covers the Master’s inner form and hides him from our inner vision. We have woven it from the yarn of karmas of untold lives, a lack of concentration, insufficient dedication and regrettable lapses of commitment.

And now the only way to unravel that cloak is by using the methods the Masters tell us about: constant simran, total dedication to the path, living in his will and commitment to the four principles given to us when the miracle of our initiation happened – with extra-special attention given to the fourth principle: regular and devoted meditation, the one where we are most likely to slip up. The invisibility cloak will not be able to withstand this way of life indefinitely. Sooner or later it must and will dissolve and Master’s Radiant Form will become visible.

In the meantime, let us always remember that he is there, even though we cannot see him. He sees us, every second of every day. He is aware of our acts, he knows our weaknesses and he is even aware of our thoughts – in itself a scary thought! But it is comforting to think that he also knows when we are sincerely trying. He knows of our struggles, and welcomes even our failures.

So let us try to act as we would if we could see him standing next to us – because he is. And let us try to live the kind of life that he expects his disciples to live. Every little effort we make, every time we chase an unworthy thought from our mind with simran, every time we feel love for him, we are coming closer to the day his invisibility cloak will disappear and we will be able to bask in his radiance.

It’s a very strange thing – I can tell you a little from my personal experience also. First, we have no love for the path, we have no love for the Master. The Master forces us to love him, he creates love for the Lord in us.…

And when that love arises in us, when we become a victim of that love, then he conceals himself. Then it’s a game of hide-and-seek.
_{Maharaj Charan Singh, Die to Live}