Dear Ram,

I spoke for a long time with Maureen on the phone the other night and she loves you and you love her and nothing, not anything, could change that. I hope that the same goes for me.

Ram: It definitely does. I loved you from the beginning and I will always love you. One reason I didn’t want to marry you: because you didn’t understand the non-attached, impersonal way I love. And I don’t think you realized that the desire to marry was the desire to wed two estranged parts of yourself… and that marrying a person would not heal that split. Your letter today made me think we’re finally married - or at least engaged. The kind of love you’re expressing sounds suspiciously like pure love…which is how I define marriage.

Irma: And not hearing from you at all has made me sad. I know, I know, attachment. But, even Janice, who is above all of that, would be very sad not hearing from you.

Ram: What about me? Not hearing from you has made me sad. Never mind this kind of attachment. It is good. The mind will always be attached to something. The trick spiritually is to attach it to things that elevate it, not to things and people that bring it down. I’m happy to have you attached to me. Of course I’ll come and visit again. I had intended to come last summer but things didn’t work out.

Irma: It has become so clear to me this summer how heart and soul felt my love for you is. You are the big gift in my life of these past few years. And not hearing from you at all has made me sad.

Ram: Thank you for expressing this. It is important that free people be properly valued because we are vehicles for God. I may have told you about the love affair I had about ten years ago with an attractive and successful woman. She had always had her way with men and, until I came along, nobody ever walked out on her. When I walked out her love turned to hate and she did a very nasty thing to injure me. It backfired, but I never spoke to her again, not because I hated her, but because her actions showed that she did not properly value me.

During the time we were together I frequently spoke with her about spirituality and although she was interested she was not really ready to live the religious life. Because of the way she behaved I assumed that I would never hear from her again but after ten years there was an e-mail in my box saying that she had had a spiritual awakening and she wanted to be back in touch. So you see the effect I had on her was good…even though it took ten years for her to appreciate it.

I always loved you and thought about you often but I figured there was a reason why e-mail wasn’t working. I have been waiting for this message. Before, perhaps I was just one of many events or people competing for your attention. I felt frustrated that I could not give you more than I did. I knew that when your mind got a bit less scattered you would have more time for me. It is really impossible for God to put two people together like He did you and me and it not bear fruit.

Non-attached souls like me can save a person a lot of time on the way home. Because we’ve walked the path all the way to the end we know what is involved and can make suggestions that make the path shorter and more pleasant. And it is only possible to understand my words if you value what I represent. So this statement about how valuable I am is good news. You are in an ideal situation to live the spiritual life: your children are grown, you have no husband to contend with, you are successful in the world and content with your success, and you have a healthy and positive outlook on life. If I can be of further service I’m happy to.

Much love,

Ram