B: Blue Eagle, quite often, the events affecting our planet are interpreted by spiritual personalities as a consequence of Man's deeds; thus, natural cataclysms will often be taken as a consequence of the Occidental modern way of life, which mistreats the earth and causes serious breaches in the natural equilibrium. But most of the time, the regions affected most seriously are not the ones of the rich industrialised countries: typhoons, earthquakes and tsunami rather occur in very poor regions, killing hundreds, when not thousands, of people, causing entire populations to be uprooted to other lands, and increasing the misery there. How are we to make sense of all this?

BE: This is not true. Natural disasters happen in California, in New Orleans, in Europe to name but a few events of the recent years. Of course, these countries are better equipped to respond to the need of the people than the 'poor' countries. So we do not feel the same compassion nor do we get the same dramatic images in the media when 'rich' countries suffer these catastrophies. There could also be a deliberate will by the media to exaggerate the destruction in poor countries and play down the events in rich countries. That is part of modern conditionings. As for the pollution and ecological damage, all countries are now suffering from these problems that know no boundaries. Radioactive pollution from Russia was felt by many countries in Europe for example and other similar examples are numerous. 

B: Blue Eagle, I would like to ask you a question about meditation: Matthieu Ricard, in his last book, ‘‘L'Art de méditer’’, proposes to practice meditation with eyes half-closed, looking straight ahead or slightly towards the floor. However, some people find it easier to keep their eyes closed. Does this detail have any important influence on concentration?

BE: The complete technique is to close your eyes if you have an agitated mind, to keep them open if you have a tendency to go snoozing during meditation, and to keep them half-open if you are experimented. When people practice visualization exercises, they usually keep their eyes closed, but then, if they want to increase their concentration, they can keep them half-open, and later, open.

B: How can you describe the mind of a meditating person? Does meditation mean a complete interruption of the thinking process, or rather a continuous concentration on the same object? Is it possible to completely interrupt the thinking process for a while?

BE: True meditation is a state where the thought remains motionless. The most exact wording I could find for this is ''conscious awareness''. Concentrating on an object, visualization or a sound are intermediate exercises to achieve the ability to meditate without any object. And this doesn’t mean to interrupt your thought, but rather to leave it completely quiet, by letting any thought simply pass by. Indeed, thought is different from ''conscious awareness''. The Human Being animates the co-creation of the world with the Divine, and thought is the main instrument of this co-creation. Thus, Man (with the same meaning as used in Vladimir Megre’s books, neither feminine nor masculine, but the one who is created in God’s likeliness, hence the use of a capital “M”), when he enjoys perfect inner harmony, can concentrate on the manifestation of the ideal with active creative thought, and then contemplate the result of his co-creation, namely his life and all that he creates, in a state of beatitude and total rest, which we can name ''conscious awareness''.

B: Does this mean thoughts are still coming up, but we just ignore them? Does it mean it is impossible to experience a state where thoughts are completely absent of our mind? For example, if one concentrates on a sound, can it be considered as a thought?

BE: Yes, there is a state without any thought at all, called ''contemplation'' or ''meditation without object''. Here, the sound is a thought indeed, since there is an object.

B: Now I have a question on the spiritual quest: some people devote their life to get closer to their inner being; for that purpose, they will spend hours every day, for example meditating, or developing a physical practice, or praying ; they can isolate themselves most of the time so as to better connect themselves to their inner source. Some others have no concept of spirituality, but are moved by other people’s destiny, and live a completely altruistic life. I have a friend who devotes her whole free time, including a large part of her nights, and all her money as well, to an association she created to help young delinquents. Some others will voluntarily campaign for the exiled children from Tibet, or any other altruistic cause, etc. Spirituality often teaches us that every individual being is a mere particle of the universe, and that he should seek to retrieve this state of fusion with the wholeness, and to forget about himself as an individual. When I look at those people devoting themselves entirely to others, I have the feeling they are in total harmony with that teaching, even when they don’t want to hear a word about spirituality. And when I strive to have more and more time for meditation, to connect myself to my being, to isolate myself for my practice, even if it doesn’t mean to nourish my ego, I don’t get the impression that I am connected to the universe, or that I’m doing anything for those suffering on the earth. I know this practice can help us to connect to the universe, but in the same time, it appears to me as quite egoistic. How can this paradox be solved?

BE: This question can be solved through the understanding of what Native Americans call ''the original instructions'', or what some other masters describe as being the purpose of a Man’s life. Each ''Man'' should answer this question for himself, as every being has a unique mission. When one accomplishes his inner mission, one is in harmony with the world and in connection to the Divine, be it through activity or meditation. The real question is ''Who am I?'' The real answer, already given since Antiquity by Socrates, is ''Know thyself, and thou shalt know the universe and the gods''.