Question: Nowadays you don't answer questions after you give lectures at universities. Is there a particular reason for that?

Sri Chinmoy: Very often it has been happening that someone asks a question and, at the same time, he very nicely gives the answer himself. He doesn’t actually have any question, but he just wants to demonstrate his knowledge to the audience. At the end of his lengthy explanation he will say, “Do you agree with that?” and that is his question. The answer he has given himself, and he only wants me to say, “Yes, I agree.” Or someone wants to show that he can ask a very spiritual question, a very significant question. He wants to prove to others that he has so much depth to ask a very difficult question. The stupid fellow has read the question and even got the answer from a book. Now he does not want to get a new answer. He just wants to be able to tell people that the Guru has answered his question. And he is so happy that he can ask me such a difficult or significant question. It has happened many, many times. It is not to get something new that these people ask questions, it is only to show people how much they know, or how spiritual they are. So in this way people are only taking up time and exploiting my compassion. They are not gaining anything from it. This is the main reason why I do not usually answer questions after my talks anymore.