Question: Sometimes I feel that running a marathon is like the struggle of life.

Sri Chinmoy: You are absolutely right. When one runs a marathon or any long distance, one knows what life is: a struggle from the beginning to the end. We expect at every moment that the members of our inner family — the body, vital, mind and heart — will cooperate. But after a few miles the problem starts; they all revolt. They all say, "Give up! Get off the course!" We beg the body to carry us to the finish line, but the body is not listening. The vital also is not listening and the mind is constantly rejecting the idea. Then we lose all determination. So the marathon gives us a prime example of the struggle of human life.