Was there a reason that you decided to adopt the vow of silence in the first place, or was there also no reason?

"There is never any reason, I don't live by reason. I simply allow things to happen. I don't know why I became silent. I don't know why I started to speak again, but I enjoyed being silent and I'm enjoying being out of silence again. I don't know about tomorrow. I may be silent, I may be speaking. I may not be here at all."

When you went before the Immigration Service for a visa as a religious leader, the comment was made by the officials of the service that, how could you be a religious leader if you didn't speak? Did that have any influence on you at all?

"No, nothing influences me. Nor do I want anybody to be influenced by me, because the very fact of being influenced is a kind of mental slavery. I keep myself totally free from influences, and I never influence anybody, never try to convert, convince anybody. I am – for the first time – one who can claim to be religious. The whole past and its religions have been pseudo, false. To me religion has a totally different meaning. There is no God, there is no heaven and hell. All those past religions have exploited man with fear of hell and greed for heaven, and all those religions have kept man retarded, dependent on God – a big daddy somewhere above who is taking care of you. This made man irresponsible, this made man unintelligent. My religion is basically centered around consciousness, silence. Silence has its own way of communication. Just as words speak, but can be misunderstood – they are misunderstood – silence also speaks. It can be misunderstood. To understand silence, the other side, the receiving side, should also be silent. Then there is a meeting of the hearts. Something starts falling into tune, harmony, a kind of synchronicity. Nothing is said, nothing is heard, but everything is understood. Lovers know it; just sitting side by side saying nothing, something goes on moving between them."