Our influence is felt and remains in those places where we live, where we sit, where we walk. A person's influence is felt in the room, in which he has been, in the chair in which he has sat, even in his belongings, his coat, his shoes, in all his things. Our influence on our belongings is not absolute. If it were, the Prophets would not have had all the difficulties they had in life. But it is very great. A person's influence is felt by all his surroundings. People's dogs and cats, even become like them. In the families where there is always a quarrel going on, the dogs and cats are quarrelsome.

There was a sage who said: "A person's character shows in every object belonging to him."

I have myself always been very sensitive to people's influence. After learning mysticism, I could by the spiritual practices throw off every impression, so that no one's influence affected me at all, but before, as a musician, I felt the thought of every person in the audience, who liked my music, who did not, if anyone was antagonistic, and if there was anyone present who was hostile, the whole program was spoiled.

The influence of others acts even upon the great sages. A sage was sitting in concentration. He said, "There must be some person from outside in the room." The disciples looked, but they could see no one. They saw only the familiar faces, there was no stranger among them. The sage said, "Look again, there is some disturbing element in the room." They looked, and found a stick that had been left there by a visitor, a person who was hostile. Even his stick had the power to disturb and prevent the concentration.

The wider a person's influence extends, the greater is his power. One person's influence may be only over his family, another may be over the persons in his employment, another may have power over his whole country, his whole race.

I have seen myself that if in a family there is one spiritual, one very good person, the whole family will feel his influence. I have seen in a family of fifty or sixty persons living in one house, there was one very spiritual person, and every young person in that family, every thoughtless person, at a moment when he was inclined to be led astray, would feel something like a rein holding him back. And when this person was gone, in this family, which for forty years had been growing in every way, increasing in reputation in goodness, first drunkenness was introduced. It spread from one person to many; and then all in the family were at variance, one against the other.

By association with a good person the bad may, once in a hundred times, do good actions, and by association with an evil person even the good may once in a hundred times, become bad.

There is a Gujerati saying, "By the virtue of one, thousands may be saved, liberated; by the vice of one, thousands may be lost."

This is what is meant when it is said that Christ saves his followers from their sins. By the goodness of one, thousands may be benefitted and by the evil of one a whole land, nation, may be ruined.

But we should not depend upon another to save us. Our soul is the same as the soul of the Prophet, of the Pir, of the Murshid. We must not say, "I cannot be as they." Our soul is the same. And why, having the beautiful essence within us, should we not be loved? We should think that there is in our soul the same power, that our influence extends to others. If we have not a family, we have friends, if we have not friends, we have acquaintances, if we have not these, there are the people about us, who may be influenced by us. This is a great responsibility, and very few people think of it. A father rarely thinks: "My child may be influenced by my feeling, my thought," a mother seldom thinks of this. Only man has the sense of responsibility. It is not the dog, the cat, or the horse that has it.

There are four ways that people follow.

One is when a person enjoys all by himself, taking no heed of others.
The second way is to enjoy oneself and share with others.
The third way is that a person renounces his own benefit and advantage for others.
The fourth way is that a person returns good for evil, kindness for ill-usage, friendliness for insults. By this way he becomes saintly and prepares himself for the spiritual path.

God bless you.