On another occasion, on 4th October 1946, when a devotee named Professor D.S. Sarma asked Him whether there was ever any period of purgation or sadhana in His life,

Sri Bhagavan replied :-
“I know no such period. I never performed any pranayama or japa. I knew no mantras. I had no idea of meditation or contemplation. Even when I came to hear of such things later, I was never attracted by them. Even now my mind refuses to pay any attention to them. Sadhana implies an object to be gained and the means of gaining it. What is there to be gained which we do not already possess? In meditation, concentration and contemplation, what we have to do is only not to think of anything, but to be still! Then we shall be in our natural state. This natural state is given many names – moksha, jnana, atma, etc. There was a time when I used to remain with my eyes closed. That does not mean that I was practising any sadhana then. Even now I sometimes remain with my eyes closed. If people choose to say that I am doing some sadhana at the moment, let them say so. It makes no difference to me. People seem to think that by practising some elaborate sadhana the Self would some day descend upon them as something very big and with tremendous glory and they would then have what is called sakshatkaram (realization). The Self is sakshat (direct), all right, but there is no karam (doing) or kritam (done) about it. The word karam implies one’s doing something. But the Self is realized not by one’s doing something, but by one’s refraining from doing anything – by remaining still and being simply what one really is!”