Ibu Rahayu's Talk

At the Europarque, Oporto, Portugal

Talk Ref: 99 OPO 2

Provisional Translation by Raymond Lee

Thank you for these parting gifts and I hope for nothing less than that after we leave, the groups here will always be harmonious and will grow and that you and your families will be well and prosper.

Brothers and sisters whom I respect, I will continue my explanations, which are of course about the latihan that we always do together. I will not go over again the content of the latihan but what we need is to practice the meaning and content of this spiritual path. We can say that this spiritual training is food for the soul, which is why you need to do latihan regularly and to be sincere when you do it.

Because, if we don't do latihan, then as humans who are always weak, we are easily affected by temptations or trials which often we cannot overcome on our own. It's through the latihan that, without realising it, we create the opportunity for God to help by cleaning us and preparing us so that we are able or capable to do what's needed to conduct our lives.

And these temptations or tests for us are always there because they are tests to show us to what extent, or how far we are able to entrust ourselves to Almighty God. So don't think that as you progress the tests get less. God's tests get bigger for all of us.

Because according to the stories, even the prophets who were already complete human beings still experienced trials that could make (an ordinary) person fail because of the nature of the test. This is why as human beings, we should never feel arrogant, meaning we feel we are clean, we are complete, or we are high, as this feeling can result in our own downfall.

This is because God will help you if you have within you complete patience and complete acceptance. To submit is not to be passive, but to be willing to accept whatever God will give you at that moment. This is because passive submission means you are influenced by the vegetable forces, when in truth, that is not God's will. So don't misinterpret this and think that submission means you don't act.

For example, the testing we did just now was our effort to correct our own selves, to see to what extent we have received the benefit of the training we follow in the latihan; as well as to reawaken your soul which may have gone to sleep as a consequence of your trials; so that it wakes up and comes to life and you can receive the right direction in your daily life.

But don't use a testing session like this for something that will not clean or awaken you, but on the contrary, which will dirty your being. Because perhaps many of you here still mix this spiritual training with healing or with fortune telling practices that are in truth not what is needed for your spiritual growth.

Of course this not only happens here, but in Indonesia, too, where people outside Subud look on Subud as a kind of healing, so that people who join Subud are in general sick or have problems.

This is why they are sometimes surprised to discover that Subud is a form of worship of Almighty God, and that Subud has spread abroad and that it has activities in the social field, in education and in enterprises. In fact, the aim of Subud is not only to bring us happiness in the life after death, but also in this world.

And in order that all Subud members can truly experience this and be happy in their lives, each one of us Subud members must bring ourselves or educate ourselves to have inner harmony.

Once we have brought our own self to a state of harmony, it is simple to bring harmony to a group or in living with someone, such as in a marriage, or in society. It is simple to create harmony between one person and another.

You may be wondering how to create harmony within your being. And this is where the difficulty lies for you, to create inner harmony, because everything is contained within you but you don't know how to organise your own being. And because you cannot organise your own self yet, you sometimes think that what is wrong is right, or that what is right is wrong.

So the latihan, in fact gives meaning to your life. By meaning, I mean that we must know the meaning of everything we do. And once you understand the meaning or content of all your actions, it is simple to check yourself as to which ones are right and which ones are wrong. And this is the guidance from within that God wills for us.

It's because of this, because we face so many complexities in the world, that far in advance, Bapak gave us the advice and understanding we need for this spiritual way.

For example, Bapak with regard to this spiritual way, saw the reality of spiritual development..(part missing due to changing the tape)...is made up of all kinds of things because no two souls are the same. Each soul has its own nature and its own attributes.

This is why Bapak created groups of helpers, starting with local helpers, then regional helpers, national helpers and international helpers. Bapak knew that Bapak would not be here forever, and although I can still help and guide you on this Subud path, it does not mean I will always be here. This is why we need a basis or guidelines that each generation can hold onto. So perhaps there is no harm if I explain again what the duties and responsibilities of each category of helper are.

What we refer to as local or group helpers, are responsible for the state of their group - to give explanations, to open people, and to deal with problems in their group.

All of this cannot be handled by just one or two helpers - it must be dealt with together by the group helpers. This is why you need helpers meetings, where helpers exchange views and resolve problems in the course of their work.

Then there are regional helpers.Here (in Portugal) there are regional helpers, but if there aren't any, there are national helpers. And they too are responsible for the development of groups. Don't think that a national helper (or regional helper) is not responsible for their groups. So national helpers should join in group helpers meetings. Don't think that national helpers can wash their hands and ignore what's happening in their own group. So the local helpers should not feel that this is not a responsibility of a national helper.

On the contrary, the national helpers should organise the work of the group helpers so that they are united in their work. So that if anything is lacking or going awry in the group, it can be dealt with quickly.

This does not mean that national helpers hold power, but national helpers are responsible for what goes on in all the groups and they have to report this to international meetings. This is not a subject we can ignore, if we recall that Subud is more than fifty years old, we need to upgrade ourselves spiritually so that the members truly respect the helpers.

Respect means that the members do not ignore the helpers' advice to them. Respect does not mean the members respect you just because you are a helper. They respect you because you can really help them, you can shelter them, and love them. So the helpers should bring themselves to the point that they are respected and loved by others.

So if you want respect, respect others. If you want love, love others. We must practice all of this in our daily lives. It is not enough to keep doing latihan but not understand the meaning of the latihan.

So through understanding your own self, as I explained earlier, you will be educated and even though you may not realise it, this is an education from within. For example, you help someone, and you don't know all the background to that person's problem, but through your surrender, your surrender to God, without trying you may say something which you don't understand yourself. And even though you don't understand it, yet it helps the person, and what you give to this person is also valuable to you.

Sometimes the latihan will help you to help someone else without, perhaps, you being aware of it. For example, when you massage someone, or give advice to them, what you give them truly helps them.

But don't then jump to the conclusion that what you receive from the latihan in this way is the right work that you hope for. And then you feel you have achieved all you can achieve in Subud, and that you have a gift for healing, and so you don't do latihan anymore because you practice what you received from the latihan.

What you have from the latihan at that point is only a phase. You haven't received the goal of the latihan yet, because this spiritual path goes very far, and what you have achieved in the field of healing is just part of what you can achieve in the world.

For this reason, don't get carried away and use the latihan for personal gain. For example, you join Subud just to find work, or to become wealthy or to become famous. Because, if you do latihan out of self interest and you don't get what you hope for, you will easily forget the purpose of Subud.

It has often happened for example, at first people think Subud will make them rich, but they don't get rich, so they stop doing latihan. This means that when they joined Subud, they didn't understand the true purpose of Subud. In fact, it is the duty of the helpers when they explain about Subud to candidates who want to join, to explain what Subud is and what Subud is for.

And for those of you who have been in Subud a long time, Bapak always hoped that you would be diligent in your latihan so that you will be guided and will eventually witness or be a witness that what we receive in Subud is true.

For Bapak, it is not enough if the goal of the latihan is only achieved or experienced by Bapak. You too should experience it and be a witness. To be a witness means to witness that what you receive is true. Even though you don't receive what Bapak received, you have this experience. . (missing due to tape change.)

.then you are Subud, wherever you go, you are Subud. If you or someone else has this experience, you can share it with new members so that they will be motivated. Because these experiences don't just happen in latihan, they can happen anywhere that God wills. For example, you are about to sleep, or you sit quietly, then sometimes a receiving comes by itself.

You may feel that a part of you leaves your body. But, perhaps most of you are still afraid if this happens, because I have had many letters to that effect. This shows that you are not fully prepared yet. As I have explained, the latihan needs preparation so that when you need to be, you are ready. If you are ready, you will not be afraid to face anything. This is because during the experience your mind is shut off; during the experience you don't remember your husband, you don't remember your wife, because this is God's will. But if, for example, when you leave your body you worry, "Oh, my husband!" of course you won't go on, but you will come back again.

This is just one example. So if God wills that you receive something beyond human thought, just surrender completely to God. God will not cause a person, God's creature, to come to any harm if it is not yet their time (to die).

Many of you in fact have had experiences where, for example, you start to see things and so on. And you want to relate your experience to the helpers but the helpers have not had this experience. On the contrary, they tell you that your receiving is something negative or something to be afraid of.

Brothers and sisters, indeed this spiritual way is not easy. Sometimes members will have experiences which helpers have not been able to. So, as a helper, when you give an explanation, don't cause a member to stop or lose faith in their receiving, when in fact they have made progress in the latihan.

This is why it is necessary for the helpers to read Bapak's talks, because in fact, this is all explained in those talks. It's just that you don't have the time, or don't recognise the value of Bapak's talks.

As for myself, as Bapak's daughter, and the same goes for Bapak's grandchildren, we did not get special training or advice about this spiritual way. It all depends on your own self, because Bapak is the father of every Subud member. There is no difference between Bapak's own children or grandchildren and other members. So what Bapak gave us, the advice Bapak left us, is for all of us. So don't think, "Oh, it's because Ibu Rahayu is Bapak's daughter that she can understand what Bapak experienced." What Bapak experienced was not the same as my experience, and my experience may not be the same as your experience.

In Subud we have different experiences in line with our nature and capacity to provide a space within ourself for God's purposes.

When I had my experience, Bapak was still alive and I asked Bapak whether my receiving was real. Bapak just said "yes". That was it. "Yes, it's real!" Bapak did not tell me what I had to do next. But since that time it is as though I am taught from within. And the proof is that what I give to others helps them and that you are willing to listen to what I have to say to you today. This is not because I want you to . it works by itself.

If I were not helped, if I were not helped by the power of God, I would not be able to talk to you today, because I have been away from home for a month just to come and see you.

This is why in your duties as helpers you should be completely willing and free of self interest. If someone is unhappy with you, it's OK. Don't get upset.

I don't expect you to believe me 100%, either. I just surrender to God.

I hope this will be a foundation for the helpers - both old ones and new ones. Don't work to prove your own "rightness". Our duty is only to God and each of us receives God's power.

I think this is all I have to say tonight and I hope this will strengthen your faith. I hope you will attend to the problems in this group so that there is no disturbance in your work or your latihan. Thank you.

Brothers and sisters, tomorrow I have to travel to Holland which is our final destination, so I would like to say goodbye, and may we pray for each other, so that you pray for our group on our journey and that we arrive safely. And we pray that you who will stay here or in other places will return to your families safely.

And I thank Hamid and his family for looking after us and making everything possible.

Thank you and good bye.