Question: What can we do when the body always obstructs our spiritual achievement in the outer world, like swimming the English Channel?
Sri Chinmoy: I am not telling you to become a world champion in swimming. I am not telling you to become a world champion in marathon running. I am not asking anybody to swim the English Channel, far from it. Only I am saying if you feel that you have the capacity, try it! You have my blessings. I am certain you will do it. I like these kinds of achievements so much. I do not feel they are something bad. But at the same time, I do not want you to neglect your work at the Centre, and I do not want you to neglect your own aspiration. That I do not approve of.
Sri Chinmoy, Sri Chinmoy answers, part 16, Agni Press, 1999