Bothers and sisters, before Bapak does the latihan, Bapak is going to start by giving you some advice, which you need to hear and to understand.

Brothers and sisters, truly the most important thing for you is the latihan kejiwaan, because the truth is that everything you need for your life, you will obtain from the latihan kejiwaan. Even the enterprises - those enterprises that Bapak is always telling you about - also arise from the latihan kejiwaan. How can this be possible? The reason why Bapak can say that the latihan kejiwaan is actually the source of everything you need in your life, is because the one Who guides you, that which acts in the latihan kejiwaan, is the power of Almighty God.

You might say to that, 'How can it be that the power of God makes us do things like that?' Or, 'How can it be that the power of God manifests in that way?' Well, the reason why the power of God manifests in that way, as it does in the latihan, is because God is all-wise and God is all-knowing. God knows that when He trains our being, He has to start from the very bottom, from the lowest stage or lowest level within us and, from there, work upwards.

So, in the same way as when you have a child, a baby, you don't immediately start to force it to walk and to run. If you did that, it would not help your child to develop better. On the contrary, it would harm him. Usually, the development of a baby proceeds according to its own ability. You have to follow what it can do and what its ability develops. And gradually, by itself, the baby will learn to walk and to run and so on.

In the same way, Almighty God knows our ability and He knows that when we are trained we have to do so from the bottom upwards. We have to start very, very simply, with something on the lowest level, and from there, little by little, we can progress through our experience, forwards.

You might say, 'But surely, if we are doing the latihan, then it would be better to train as we do when we learn a sport. In other words, we have a training program.' Actually, that is impossible. If you did it in that way, it would only lead you into confusion. The fact is, brothers and sisters, that anything to do with the mind in Subud is confusing. The moment you try to bring your mind to bear on the latihan or anything in Subud, it brings you to a state of confusion. For example, Bapak frequently talks to you about the roh - the life force of the material, the life force of the vegetable. Those words are actually confusing more often that not, because then you immediately start to think. You think, 'Supposing there is a life force higher than the human life force, what is this' life force actually?' Then you immediately start to try and imagine it.

The power of God will guide you, in accordance with the development of your own ability.

It is not actually fitting for you to try and imagine those life forces higher than the human level - at any rate, not with words and not with the mind. Those life forces will be understood by you, not through your efforts of understanding, but through your own inner development, when it is God's will to bring you that experience and to show you what the nature of those life forces is. So, there is no place in this for an effort of will and an effort of intelligence to try to 'understand'.

So, it is clear that the growth of your jiwa can only take place through the latihan kejiwaan, and in the latihan kejiwaan, the power of God will guide you, in accordance with the development of your own ability. If you want to go beyond that, the moment you try to reach further, or try to understand this or that, then it doesn't lead you to development of your jiwa; but it leads you to a state of confusion. That is what we usually call 'crisis'. We see brothers and sisters who go through crisis and that is generally a result of trying to reach beyond the gradual and step-by-step progress of the jiwa - that is, going from A to B, and from B to C, in a step-wise fashion.

Brothers and sisters, you probably wonder to yourselves sometimes, how come there is never anything new in Bapak's talks. How come it is always the same thing, the same old thing, Bapak keeps repeating the same thing. Well that point of view, or that feeling or that idea is actually out of place because it is a way of looking at something that tries pretends something is very elementary. Or, you look at something as if it was very elementary, which is not true at all. It is the same as saying, 'I already know how to walk, so why do I have to be taught how to walk all over again in the latihan kejiwaan?'

It is as though you don't recognize that what is happening in the latihan kejiwaan is completely different from what you have experienced before. In other words, the walking that you are doing in the latihan kejiwaan is, for the first time, the walk that is not from the will or from the intention or from the working of the heart and mind. So it is an experience - a movement that does not come from the nafsu - whereas all the walking you have done until that point you started the latihan was from the working of the nafsu. So, the new kind of walking that you are experiencing is something completely new and, although it looks simple, elementary, it is actually completely new.

From this walking, you are actually learning for the first time, from your feet. So, what is happening, what you are being trained to do, is learning from your own feet. Of course, if we are talking about walking, then it is very simple. The walk that does not come from the nafsu is a simple movement. But then, you add to that the movement of the hands, which does not come from the nafsu. And then, the movement of your voice, your brain - everything. Gradually, from all that, you begin to understand. You begin to understand a completely new experience, that is, you are led to be able to be able to feel and to know the difference between when you act from the nafsu and when you act not from the nafsu.

The first, the movement from the nafsu, will bring you your livelihood. It will bring you what you need in order to survive in this world. But the other movement, the one which is not from the nafsu, will bring you an understanding of your life before you existed in this world and after you cease to exist in this world. It is God's will that we should know and we should understand both our life in this world and our life beyond this world - before we come into this world and after we leave it.

So dearly, brothers and sisters, what we experience in the latihan, this movement, not from the nafsu, is not aimed at making us rich, is not aimed at bringing us wealth, solving our problems, making us very good at our work, getting us promotion and getting us all sorts of things. That is not the aim of the latihan kejiwaan. Bapak is not saying that you don't need those things, that you should not strive for those - things, or that those things, in some way, are not necessary.

Not at all. Bapak is very happy if you can become rich and if you can strive for all those things, but that is not the purpose of the latihan kejiwaan.

The purpose of the. latihan kejiwaan is the kejiwaan, meaning 'the development and growth of the jiwa', which relates to our life that is beyond this world, that is not in this world. So, don't get the idea that Subud is against science or Subud is against technology, not at all. That is all part and parcel of our life in this world. And it is God's will that we should understand both. God's will is that we should understand the wisdom and the greatness of our life in this world, but we should also be aware of our life that is beyond this world; and that is the purpose of the latihan kejiwaan.

So, brothers and sisters, the purpose of the latihan kejiwaan is the understanding of the origin of each and every one of our movements. In other words, we become able to know and to understand what it is that moves us. And if this ability can reach the mind, then we can become aware of the understanding that comes from study, that comes from books or anyone else, not which arises spontaneously from within ourselves.

This difference is very important for us to know. It frequently happens that there is someone who is very, very brilliant, very, very clever, and then he dies very young or he suddenly drops dead. Well, the reason is that very often, with people who are extremely clever, they don't know how to limit their mind, or where its boundary or capacity lies. So they are always trying to reach beyond the capacity of their minds and that finally ruins their health or brings about their death.

Bapak isn't trying to frighten you, Bapak isn't trying to make you scared, but that is a fact. Therefore it is very important for us to know the boundary, to know the limit of the capacity of the mind and intelligence m that we don't imagine we can go beyond that boundary. Brothers and sisters, it is the same as if you put too much stress on your leg or on your arm. If you try to lift a weight that is too great, or you put too much load on your arm, then the result will be that the bone will break. So it is essential that we know the boundary, that we know the limit of the possibility or its capacity.

The fact is that anybody who truly surrenders to God can receive the latihan kejiwaan

This is the purpose and this is the process of the latihan kejiwaan of Subud. Actually, we should not say 'of Subud'. It makes it sound as if it is only in Subud that you can receive God's grace, or the guidance of God. Or that you can receive the revelations of God, which is not the case. The fact is that anybody who truly surrenders to God with patience, acceptance and sincerity, can receive the latihan kejiwaan. It is not the 'copyright' of Subud. It is very important to be aware of this, nobody can lay claim to God. If we can understand that, it will make us tolerant. It will make us accepting of other people, we won't consider ourselves special, and that is actually the aim of the latihan kejiwaan.

The aim of the latihan kejiwaan is to make us normal and to make us used to the action of God within our being. The people who are not normal, or the people who can be considered to be somehow sped fl, are not the people who do the latihan kejiwaan. The people you can consider to be special are just the other way: they are people who make a special study and a special effort to get deep into their religion, or who go into kebatinan or something like that, with the result that they attain a state which is called, maginoun. The reason or cause of this maginoun - or the people who get into this state m is that they try to precede God. They try to go ahead of God, they try with their brain to go faster than God and be ahead of God's guidance.

Now the result of that is that they lose their grip on where they are and who they are. The difference with the latihan kejiwaan or the difference with people who are ordinary, is that they simply follow, like the worshipper who does his solar behind the immam. That is called ma'mum - that you just follow. The one who leads your worship, that is the immam, is Almighty God. So it is this, the essence of the latihan kejiwaan, the awareness of the relationship between the immara and the one who follows. The reality therefore, of the latihan kejiwaan, is that it is strange. But that is real. Bapak is taking this description from a popular TV program nowadays, which is called, 'It Is Strange, But It Is Real' or 'It Is Strange, But It Really Happened.'

So the latihan kejiwaan is like that. It is peculiar but it is really like that. Bapak told a little story at that point about a man who was the leader of the Communist party in Semarang, a man called Alimin. It seems that this Alimin Wanted to meet Bapak very much and three times, Bapak made an appointment to meet him and he never turned up. So each time they made another appointment and again he never turned up. It seems that what happened was that he got scared. He got scared because he had a friend of his who was also a Communist, who was called Patmo. Apparently Patmo told him, 'You don't need to go there, you don't need to become a Subud member, because if you become a Subud member, you will experience what I experienced. You will get into crisis. So it is better for you to stay as you are, and don't bother with Subud."

Apparently, what happened to this Patmo was, when he was opened, he eventually got into crisis. Before he was opened he did not believe in God, after he was opened, he was made to worship idols. He was forced by the latihan to go to Jakarta then to go to Jogia and to Borobudur and to go everywhere. Then he would sit and pray in front of all the stone carvings in Borobudur. This was his punishment for not believing in God. It was as if to say, 'OK, you didn't believe in God, so now you'll believe in the statues, in the idols; just in things of stone.' So Patmo said, 'The same thing will just happen to you, Alimin. You'd better not go.'

So, brothers and sister, that is all fine; but rather than thinking about other people, think about ourselves. The nature of the latihan kejiwaan is to show us our origin. It is to show us where we have come from, where we have descended from, or what is our inner content. It will show us whether inside us we have an elephant or a cow or a goat - or whatever it is. These are all real things; if it is something like an elephant or a goat, this is fine because at least you can see it. But, supposing you are a mosquito, it means that there is no reality in your experience. So, brothers and sisters, it is really true that there is such a thing as reincarnation - that you go from the material to the vegetable to the animal to the human. This is what is really important - now that you are on a human level, try not to go back again, to being a cow or a goat. Try to stay where you are, at least, if not go forward.

For that, it is very important to become aware in the latihan kejiwaan. Bapak has often experienced this. In Bali, Bapak opened somebody, and the moment they were opened, they started moving like a monkey. You can see a lot of them in the latihan - people who jump up and down like a monkey, or some people who go 'beh' like a goat. It is better if you can become aware of it, if you can see for yourself what is there, and then go on from there, not go backwards.

For that, it is very important to become aware in the latihan. Bapak will tell you another story now. Not so long ago, Bapak was travelling and he met a doctor. This doctor told Bapak, 'I am really not too sure that I understand what the latihan is even though I have done the latihan for ten years.' So Bapak said, 'How come? Are you moving in the latihan?' He said, 'Oh yes, I am moving in the latihan because I didn't want to stick out like a sore thumb. So ever since I have been opened I have tried to move like the other people move, so I'd be one of the gang, as it were'. So Bapak said, 'OK, stand up.' Then Bapak said, just as he does to you, 'Allahu akbar'. Immediately this guy started to shake, then he fell over and he started to roll on the floor and finally he burst into tears. So Bapak said, 'Finish' and the man said, 'What was that?' Do you mean to say that that was the latihan kejiwaan?' And Bapak said, 'Sure, that was the latihan kejiwaan'. So this guy had been doing the latihan kejiwaan for ten years and never really understood what it was.

Brothers and sisters, Bapak again goes back to the reality of the latihan kejiwaan. It is strange, but it is real. In other words, if you tell other people, who have not experienced it, about it, they'll say, 'You don't say. Do you really mean to say that that is how it is?' Do you want to try? All you have to do is stand up here in front of me and surrender with patience, acceptance and submission. That's all and then you will see for yourself. It is very simple; do you want to try it or not? It is strange but real. Bapak is going to do latihan with you now and a kind of testing, meaning Bapak wants to see how your latihan is, after you have done the fast for 22 days. Bapak is going to reverse it this time, and start with the men, and then the ladies. The ladies had better go out first. Everyone help to move the chairs out of the way, so that everybody can do the latihan at the same time.

You will not hurt each other if you surrender completely: the jiwa knows best.

Bapak would like you to be very free when you do the latihan because your jiwa knows better than your heart and mind, so that you will not run into each other. You will not hurt each other if you surrender completely; the jiwa knows best. Bapak doesn't know if you have enough room, but there is no place bigger than this one, so we'll have to make do with the place you're in now.

The latihan is something you can do anywhere and in any position. You can do the latihan lying down, you can do the latihan sitting up, and when you receive God's grace, that tells you what you have to do. You know exactly how to do it. You don't have to think about it. Allahu Akbar.

( Latihan )

Brothers, Bapak has witnessed what you have received and what you have received can never be in line with your heart, because your heart wants to quickly 'be good' - wants to quickly reach the goal. But the heart doesn't understand that a jiwa cannot receive according to the wishes of the heart. And the one that makes the jiwa dirty is the heart and mind. So it is precisely the wish of the heart that makes the jiwa dirty and keeps it from being able to receive. That is Bapak's advice to you regarding your receiving, in the midst of your fast, which you have been doing, which Bapak hopes you will continue with, to the thirtieth day, so that you do a complete fast. And Bapak prays that that which you hope for, that which you hope to achieve, you do achieve, that you will be blessed by Almighty God.

What I left out earlier was that Bapak said that apart from what you receive in the latihan kejiwaan, do not forget to make full use of your heart and mind for your life in this world. That will not be confused, that will not be disturbed by the fact that you have received the latihan kejiwaan. For the effect of the latihan kejiwaan is to separate the chaos that is within you m that which is wrong from that which is right. None can separate the chaos that is within you except the power of Almighty God. It is only the power of God who can put a screen within your being and separate out that which is wrong and give you a clue and a clarity and an inner light.

Brothers, it is truly only the power of God that precedes and which ends everything, that has the capacity to cleanse what is wrong in your being. Even though that is so, human beings remain human beings; therefore, we cannot determine that we will succeed in being purified, or that in the end we will become pure. For, as human beings, error and sin or dirt is always there within us. We can't escape it. On the other hand, to dwell on this, and to become morbid about it will not make us cleaner. On the contrary, it will be an obstacle to the cleaning process. So, all we can do is to surrender completely to the power of Almighty God. And, apart from that, use our hearts and minds to fulfill our needs in this world, as long as in what we do in this world, we do not deviate from what has been advised to mankind by the messengers of God and what is laid down by our respective religions.

That is all and Bapak ends with a prayer in which he hopes you will receive God's grace and achieve what you hope for. Thank you, goodnight.

Now Bapak would like the ladies to come out and practice your surrender to the greatness of Almighty God. Allahu Akbar'.

( Latihan )

Sisters, Bapak has witnessed your latihan, but to hope to become good and to achieve our goal in one bound is impossible. We are human beings and we forget the good way and the good actions and we are much closer to actions which are wrong. So that is our human condition and for that very reason, it is essential that we always ask for God's forgiveness five times a day. We have to ask for God's forgiveness all the time - all day and all night. That is what we can do with the latihan kejiwaan. With the latihan kejiwaan, we can ask for God's forgiveness as we speak, as we sleep, as we eat, throughout the day and throughout the night.

Through this, through our surrender to the power of God, what is bad, what is dirty within us, can gradually be reduced. But this cannot happen overnight and it cannot happen totally because man is weak and man is affected by many things around and we can't avoid that. But even though we can't avoid it, it is better to act rightly than to face all these things in a state of confusion and carelessness. If we act rightly, if we behave well, if we love one another rather than criticize and dislike one another, then the effect or the traces of what is wrong within us will be cleansed. These good actions will cleanse what is wrong within us and will gradually lead us to an inner feeling which is clear and clean. That's what Bapak's advice to you is, tonight, and Bapak would like to close with a prayer that you may receive God's grace, so that which you pray for, that which you hope for, may come true, may become real for you.

Amin, Amin. Praise be to God. Thank you.