In this manner, so many have been trained during all these years so that the Hindus, Mohammedans, Parsis and Christians in all of the mandali have learned to live as one family. Their religious and other social prejudices have been practically destroyed, and they are convinced now that all their weaknesses and prejudices were false and unreal, and that real religion is one of universal brotherhood and love for all alike. This they are taught after years of training and careful tactics observed by me, handling each case separately according to the temperament of each. I know and have tactfully brought them all through the path of prejudices and religious orthodoxy and bigotry to an understanding of a toleration for all religions, and to the true spiritual aim and goal of life, which is my only mission.
But if I were to teach these spiritual truths from the beginning, disregarding your human weaknesses and religious or caste prejudices during the preliminary stage of training, none of you would have stayed with me, much less been trained to the discipline and understanding of life as you are now.
There are so many different kinds and types of persons with hundreds of varieties of weaknesses and prejudices which I have to deal with and handle tactfully and delicately during the first stages, tolerantly overlooking their many faults, even persuading them in spite of their own mistakes and deliberate wrong actions — thereby suffering myself intensely and at times making others also suffer unnecessarily, for which they again blame me, become annoyed or upset. Then I have the additional task of explaining to them again why I do certain things at certain times.
Thus there are always complications in such Universal work as mine, wherewith there arise so many questions and factors concerning and involving hundreds or thousands of people at one time. Consequently, there is always the chance of my actions, words or explanations being misinterpreted and misunderstood in one way or the other.
In trying to please everybody, one pleases nobody! Yet, I have to try to please everybody in turns or, on certain occasions, simultaneously, through different moves, actions and words as required for certain persons at certain places.
My coming here to Mysore was for a certain object and work, and my activities here are in certain directions which none of you understand. For instance, our neighbor, Subrahmanya Iyer: He is a particular type of person with whom I am required to deal with certain tactics, because I want him to help in certain work of mine in the future. Iyer is a pleasant man, well-educated, religious, of good character and honest. But he has certain peculiar weaknesses [orthodoxy] which I know and must overlook at first for the sake of my work.
-www.lordmeher.org, p1714
Apr, 1936; Mysore