Question: Am I correct in saying that the Buddha is one of those who advocated a kind of escape from the world?

Sri Chinmoy: If you say that the Buddha’s philosophy is one of escape, that he consciously wanted to have an escape, that would be wrong; it is a misinterpretation. What the Buddha actually wanted was to put an end to human suffering in the world. Like a divine warrior, he played his part on the world-scene. He did not use the term ‘God’, but he used the terms ‘Truth’ and ‘Light’. He stayed on earth for forty years after his own realisation, trying to elevate the consciousness of humanity. He went here and there, always preaching, preaching. Even though he had such a frail body, he went on giving talks and trying to bring down peace, light and bliss. But he saw that the people he was trying to help were not receiving, and he came to feel that it was almost impossible to end human suffering.

Then he discovered there is something called nirvana, where all desires are extinguished, where all earthly propensities are extinguished, where all limitations are extinguished. There you go beyond the domain of the physical, and all is inner existence. So he said, “Now I am very, very tired. Let me enter into that blissful state and take rest.” He decided to let other divine soldiers come into the world to fight for the full manifestation. Now, if one soldier fights bravely for many years and then takes rest, and if another soldier coming after him decides to keep on fighting until he can manifest the Highest, naturally we feel that this second person is playing his role with more strength, more energy, more stamina. If one wants to manifest after realisation, naturally he is leading humanity one step ahead, because manifestation God also needs.

But to say that the one person did not play his role or wanted to escape is wrong. As an individual, the Buddha did play his role. Realisation the Buddha had. Revelation he had. He also started manifesting, but ultimately he did not want to play a conscious part in the field of manifestation. He did not want to participate in the cosmic Play any more. Some of the Buddha’s followers misunderstood his philosophy and twisted it to their own sweet satisfaction. As an individual, the Buddha never advocated escape or negating the world. What he advocated was prayer and meditation to enter into the everlasting blissful state of consciousness. You can say he opened up another path, or you can call it a house. Those who enter into that particular path or house do not come back into the world after God-realisation, whereas those who enter into some other house do come back to the world.

It is not that if you enter into nirvana you are caught there. No, if you enter into nirvana, usually you do not come back because you do not want to. But there are some Masters who go beyond the state of nirvana and do return to the world. They do not stay in the house. The dynamic urge of the Supreme compels these Masters to come back into the world again even after they have lived one life as a God-realised soul, to work for His manifestation.

From:Sri Chinmoy,The summits of God-Life: Samadhi and Siddhi, Agni Press, 1974
Sourced from https://srichinmoylibrary.com/sgl