A lamp that is lit may blow out if the wind is strong. If you want to see it again, you have to relight it. But Self is not like this. It is not a flame that can be blown out by the passing winds of thoughts and desires. It is always bright, always shining, always there. If you are not aware of it, it means that you have put a curtain or a veil in front of it that blocks your view. Self does not hide itself behind a curtain. You are the one who puts the curtain there by believing in ideas that are not true. If the curtain parts and then closes again, it means that you are still believing in wrong ideas. If you have eradicated them completely, they will not reappear. While these ideas are covering up the Self, you still need to do constant sadhana.
The Self does not need to stabilize itself. It is full and
complete in itself. The mind can be stabilized or destabilized, but not the
Self.
By strength of the constant practice of self enquiry this
veil will be removed completely. There will be no further hindrances. You can
go to the top of Arunachala hill, but if you are not alert, if you are not
paying attention, you may slip and end up downhill.
You have to make an enormous effort to realize the Self. It
is very easy to stop on the way and fall back into ignorance. At any moment you
can fall back. You have to make a strong determined effort to remain on the
peak when you first reach it, but eventually a time will come when you are
fully established in the Self. When that happens, you cannot fall. You have
reached your destination and no further efforts are required. Until that moment
comes, constant sadhana is required.
Annamalai Swami