You have to remember that because of his profound scholarship, the statements are mixed up.

When he says, If you would free yourself of the sufferings of the six realms, you must learn the direct way to become a buddha, he is for the first time speaking of the direct way, the only one way, the way in.

You don’t have to wander around the world. Just a small turning in is enough, and all that you have longed for, for lives, is suddenly revealed to be your own self. You were searching for yourself, and that was your suffering: you could not find yourself. You could not find yourself in riches, or in power; you could not find your so-called love. You have looked everywhere, you have walked thousands of ways in thousands of lives, but you have never reached to yourself. This is the basic suffering: not to know yourself. Not to be aware of your eternity is the only misery – all miseries are small expressions of it.

But now Basui says there is a direct way. The direct way is simply to close your eyes and turn inwards. Forget the world as if it is a dream. It does not mean that it is a dream, it is just a way to concentrate your whole life energy inwards. Forget the whole world as if it is a dream, as if it does not exist. Only you are – then the whole energy starts flowing towards your center. There is nowhere to go; all doors are closed.

There is a very strange story of the Jaina tirthankara, Mahavira….

He remained for twelve years in absolute silence. He would not even indicate anything, or make any sign, because that is again a language, you are conveying something, some message. He did not convey a message, he did not ask a thing. For twelve years, he remained naked in the deep forest.

One day it happened that he was standing there by the side of the river, and a man who was looking after many cows had brought them to the river to drink water and he found Mahavira.

He asked him again and again, “Are you going to stay here?” But Mahavira would simply look at him and not say anything – no emotion even on his face to show that he had heard.

The man said, “I have to go urgently, I have just been informed that my house is on fire. And I cannot take all these cows, I have to run! So you please take care of my cows. Anyway, you are not doing anything, just standing naked like an idiot – at least you can take care of my cows. I will be coming back soon!”

The man was very much amazed that Mahavira did not show any sign, whether he was deaf or not. He shouted, but there was no effect. He had to run, his house was on fire. So he said, “Okay, whether you say anything or not, I assume that you will look after my cows. But if you don’t, you will find that I am a very evil man!”