Sri Annamalai Swami
Bhagavan himself had instructed me, shortly after I moved to Palakottu, 'Don't ask anyone for anything. You should live on whatever God decides to send you, so long as it is sattwik food. Keep aloof from the things that are going on around you. Stay in your own hut as much as possible and don't waste your time visiting other people.'
Bhagavan had once told me a strange story about a group of householder-devotees who lived in ancient times. These people lived with their families in a town but they had very little contact with them. Each morning they would cook and eat some food, go to a nearby forest, and spend most of their day sleeping under the trees. At around sunset they would return to their houses in the town. From sunset till dawn they would sing bhajans (devotional songs) and do other spiritual practices. Because they had enough money to live without working, they were able to repeat this cycle everyday. These householders never mixed with worldly people. Instead they lived in a completely detached way, spending all their time thinking about and worshipping God.
Bhagavan never encouraged extremes of behavior but when he spoke to me about these people, it was obvious that he approved of their lifestyle. I think that he was trying to make me understand that association with worldly people is a hindrance to one's sadhana. When I moved to Palakottu in 1938 I tried to follow his advice by living a detached and reclusive life.
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