"The way things work is totally different from decision making. There have been masters and there have been enlightened people, and there have been other dimensions to enlightenment also: there have been poets, there have been painters, there have been sculptors, there have been singers, dancers. This difference happens because of unique individualities.

"You come to enlightenment without an ego, without a personality but not without an individuality. In fact, once personality and ego are no longer there, only pure, unique individuality is left. Your uniqueness is left. So everyone who becomes enlightened brings his unique individuality to enlightenment.

"If his unique individuality has developed the capacity to be a painter, if he has found his potential in being a painter, then he brings that contribution to his enlightenment. After enlightenment he will paint. Of course, his paintings will be different; before enlightenment and after enlightenment the paintings will be totally different.

"I have told you many times the story of five blind men – it is one of the ancient-most stories – who have come to see an elephant.

"Each one looks at the elephant from a different side, touches the elephant…somebody the leg, somebody the ear, and so on and so forth. And they all argue.

"When the person who is touching the leg of the elephant declares that an elephant is like a pillar you find in the temples, he is not being untrue. He is saying what he is experiencing, but it looks absolutely untrue to anybody who has seen the whole elephant.

"Something essential has to be understood. Whenever you try to make the part the whole, you will be in the same blind situation. The blind man is simply touching a part of the elephant and making that part the whole elephant. Naturally he is going to be in conflict.

"The man who is touching the ear says, 'What you are saying is absolute nonsense.'

"In India before electricity came, the rich people used to have big fans; two servants would be standing by their side, continuously fanning them. And that kind of fan looks like the ear of the elephant.

"So he said, 'It is impossible. An elephant is like a fan."