Question: How long would it take the average person who comes to a spiritual path to realise God?

Sri Chinmoy: It depends on the sincerity or the commitment of the disciple-seeker. His meditation must be most sincere, devoted and fulfilling. If one can meditate eight hours or twelve hours a day most devotedly and soulfully, then there is every possibility that that person can realise God in one short span of time, in one life. But if one meditates, say, for five minutes, even if it is most soulful, it may not be possible for that person to realise God in one lifetime. Still, it is more advisable to meditate one minute most sincerely and devotedly, than to meditate insincerely for ten hours.

Again, there is no hard and fast rule. God’s Grace is there. If you get a spiritual Master of the highest calibre, you don’t have to meditate twelve hours or sixteen hours a day. No, you just meditate an hour or two a day most devotedly, and with the Master’s grace, you can make the same progress as you would have done meditating twelve or sixteen hours a day without a Master.