The first stage is called by Sufis iman mujmal, which means "faith of the crowd." Where there are ten persons standing, the eleventh person goes and stands with them also. And if there are fifty persons waiting for an airplane to come from the south, there may be nothing in that airplane, but because there are fifty persons standing, there will be a hundred in fifteen minutes' time. They have only to make up their mind, "There is something coming and we should wait for it," and then you will see a thousand persons standing by their side, not knowing whether it is coming or not coming, but because there are fifty persons standing, looking at the sky, that is quite enough. That is the psychology of the crowd, and so the crowd is attracted and so the crowd is led.

And when it comes to spiritual things, it is therefore that success before the crowd is not always the sign of spiritual progress. Besides, what is approved by the crowd to be something beautiful is not necessarily beautiful. What is approved by the crowd to be something most valuable may not be so valuable. If it is considered by the crowd that it is something good, it may not be good. Or what is considered great by the crowd, it may not be great, and yet it has the appearance of being great, because the crowd calls it great. But what the crowd holds does not remain long. Remember the day when the Kaiser was esteemed high. Can you imagine the belief of the people that day? Numberless souls were ready to give their lives for him.

Before the Czar was dethroned, every shop in Russia had the Czar and Czarina's picture; and the day when he went away, they made a crown and hammered it in the street and people looked at it and laughed. What was President Wilson one day in America? It did not take long for everyone to turn their backs to him. What was once praised was blamed at another time. That is the crowd. It does not take them long to raise a person, it does not take them time to throw a person down. Because it is not faith. They call it faith in the church, but the faith of the crowd is not faith. It is a fixed idea which can be unfixed. In connection with religion the faith of the crowd is won more rapidly.

The religion that appeals to the crowd, there is no end to the followers of that religion. It may not be deep, it may not be wonderful, it may not have philosophy, it may have no wisdom; as long as it appeals to the crowd, there will be numberless followers of it. But at the same time, it does not take long for them to go away. Prophet Muhammed had most wonderful experiences about it. When he began to be successful hundreds and thousands came and followed him. And one day they quarreled with somebody and they thought that everything was wrong, that it was a delusion, and they went away. It does not take one moment for them to come and it does not take one moment for them to go. And yet, that is one step, that is the first step. One rises step by step. If one did not take the belief of the crowd, then one might stay away from it. At the same time what I say tells us what it means, the belief of the crowd.