Authentic Sprituality vs. Scholarly Presentation: The Truth can be Unpopular

Authentic spirituality, and especially pure devotional service to God, is not about gathering information from scriptures (authentic or dubious), interpreting it in different ways independently, and presenting the various interpretations in an entertaining or scholarly way. This is what many popular personalities in society do. They speak publicly, write books, and so on. Ignorant fools, no matter how academically educated they are, get impressed by such people.

On the contrary, authentic spirituality is about applying unchanging timeless specific principles that are clearly presented in authentic time tested scriptures; principles that are demonstrated time and again by the pure devotees of God in different circumstances of life. These same specific principles are taught carefully and with precision by pure devotees of God as a service to God and compassion for all. They don't feel the need to present something different in order to be popular amongst ignorant fools. Instead they forcefully present the Truth, sometimes going against populist notions, to enlighten ignorant people about their true benefit.

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Spirituality without God is a waste of time

Spirituality without God is popular today. It's a waste of time. Without accepting God as the one Supreme Person, nothing else has any intrinsic meaning. Everything else, no matter whether so-called material or so-called spiritual, is all material because it's all relative truth. An unbiased thoughtful person will definitely come to the conclusion that the Absolute Truth must be the one Supreme Person who is the ultimate source and controller of all that exists. Spirituality is about reviving one's own and helping others revive their eternal, evermore blissful, loving, reciprocal relationship with him.

The Identity and the Goal

A genuine spiritualist is never impressed by material accomplishments of anyone. Of course, the spiritualist does not despise or envy material accomplishments, just that they are irrelevant for him. They are just ordinary, no matter how extraordinary they are in the eyes of the general public.

Instead a spiritualist is impressed by genuine spiritual advancement of others. He considers such persons extraordinary irrespective of their material aspects like wealth, education, beauty, fame, power, skills, and so on.

Spiritual advancement means recognizing that the body is temporary and the soul is eternal. Due to the influence of ignorance, the soul identifies with the body and things related with it. Then the soul thinks in terms of I and Mine, even though nothing around him, including his body, is under his control. It thinks that to live the way he wants is the best way of life. Due to the influence of ego, it does not think that there can be higher truths than he can currently perceive by his limited senses. And he is proud of this attitude.

The spiritualist tries to reduce his identification with things related to the body. Of course he continues to do his duties responsibly and maintain affectionate relationships with people of this world, but he cultivates the conviction that he is not of this world of temporariness.

The soul belongs to a realm of eternal bliss and knowledge and to attain that realm is the goal of the genuine spiritualist.

https://www.vedabase.com/en/bg/2/69

yā niśā sarva-bhūtānāṁ
tasyāṁ jāgarti saṁyamī
yasyāṁ jāgrati bhūtāni
sā niśā paśyato muneḥ

Translation: 

What is night for all beings is the time of awakening for the self-controlled; and the time of awakening for all beings is night for the introspective sage.

The Happier of the Two; Enjoyment and Satisfaction

Those who think that there is nothing beyond their current lifetime, try to enjoy to the fullest with their senses. They are always striving to make arrangements for enjoying using their senses, because, after all, they believe, there is just one lifetime, live it fully! Eat, drink, enjoy!

On the other hand, those who believe that life is eternal and can perceive the current body as a temporary and troublesome dress for the soul, try to mould their life around spiritual principles. They strive to train their mind to be satisfied with minimum sensual dependencies by engaging it in joyful and satisfying spiritual activities. Note that spiritual activities also engage the senses fully, without being fundamentally dependent on them for enjoyment. Since the senses and body are temporary, what's the point in depending on them direly?

One kind seeks enjoyment, and the other seeks satisfaction. Assuming that both attain what they seek, who will be happier?

https://www.vedabase.com/en/bg/10/9

mac-cittā mad-gata-prāṇā
bodhayantaḥ parasparam
kathayantaś ca māṁ nityaṁ
tuṣyanti ca ramanti ca

Translation: 

The thoughts of My pure devotees dwell in Me, their lives are fully devoted to My service, and they derive great satisfaction and bliss from always enlightening one another and conversing about Me.

Fall In Love, Become the One in a Million

Very few souls take to the path of pure unmotivated loving devotional service to God. This is because the gross or subtle egoistic disposition of the typical soul of this world prevents him/her from whole heartedly serving someone whom he/she considers "someone else". The typical soul wants to serve himself or those closely related to him materially.

This false ego is the fundamental reason for souls being averse to God. Once one understands that God is actually his most intimate relation, the path of pure devotional service to Him opens up. This understanding is the defining characteristic of the true ego, or in other words, the soul's true identify and relationship.

Thus, it is not surprising that most people serve something other than God. They see things as related to themselves, rather than seeing themselves as related to God. So much so, that even other spiritual paths focus on one's own liberation from matter, than on reviving one's relationship with God. This is the extent to which the egoistic disposition denies the soul it's true glory of being a loving servant of God.

The heart yearns for love, and true love is not found in this world of limits. To escape this fact, other spiritualists seek to reach a state of oneness or nothingness wherein the yearning for love stops. This is akin to the desperate suicide attempt of a heart-broken lover, and is born out of ignorance of the complete nature of spiritual nature.

God is our eternal friend and the worthy object of the heart's yearning for eternal love. Break your internal ego barriers - grossest to the subtlest, and fall in love. Are you the one in a million?

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http://www.vedabase.com/en/bg/7/3

Bg 7.3

manuṣyāṇāṁ sahasreṣu
kaścid yatati siddhaye
yatatām api siddhānāṁ
kaścin māṁ vetti tattvataḥ

Synonyms: 

manuṣyāṇām — of men; sahasreṣu — out of many thousands; kaścit — someone; yatati — endeavors; siddhaye — for perfection; yatatām — of those so endeavoring; api — indeed; siddhānām — of those who have achieved perfection; kaścit — someone; mām — Me; vetti — does know; tattvataḥ — in fact.

Translation: 

Out of many thousands among men, one may endeavor for perfection, and of those who have achieved perfection, hardly one knows Me in truth.

Jobless by Choice

Having a reasonable amount of money at one's disposal is a practical necessity for having a good life. But is having a job too?

Many individuals do not need to have a job for money; either their spouses earn enough, or they are retired with enough money, or they are part of a well-to-do family. Somehow the modern ethos equates working for money to leading a useful life. This is characterized by questions like: "What is the use of your education if you are not earning money?". Or by "Why are you just sitting at home? Get a job!". Or by "What is the use of this degree? It doesn't get you a job."

In most cases, education is like an insurance against joblessness; since one cant predict the future, one takes an education that can reasonably guarantee sustenance for life. Thus, one chooses an education based on it's "relevance" in the job market of the day. But, after growing up it's possible that one might find oneself in a position where doing a job is not necessary.

Yes, a job is one of the most stable ways of earning money. And it can be fulfilling and one can make the world a better place by our job. And in most cases, it's just a glaring necessity. But it's not that people who have a job are more useful or better than those who don't. There is no connection, Those who choose to be jobless can lead very fulfilling lives too, and people with jobs can be the most miserable. In fact, without the rigmarole of a job, people have the opportunity to add tremendous value to the world. They can choose to spend their time on things that are close to their heart; they can lead a more independent life.

Obviously, this is not to advocate joblessness. But we must set right the mentality that one who is jobless is just "sitting at home" leading a "useless life" "wasting one's education". This attitude is very insensitive towards those who feel the pressure of society for being jobless, and sounds very foolish to the wise who can see through the artificial importance given to "having a job".

I know many highly educated individuals who have given up their jobs for a higher calling of service to humanity. At another level I have seen highly educated individuals make family and raising children their priority. I have seen them accepting a less glamorous job to facilitate their other priorities in life. I have even seen people, men and women, who are clear that they definitely don't want to spend their life doing a job - even if they are not sure what else they will do for their sustenance. Many of these people do a job as a necessity, not by choice.

People do have different priorities in life; the society must learn to respect individual preferences and appreciate the courage of those who choose to go against the popular current in order to lead a more joyful, purposeful, meaningful, relaxed, simple, responsible, principled, valuable, holistic life.

Would you ever have the courage to be jobless by choice?

Spiritual Fundamentals

Spiritual Knowledge has to be obtained from a bonafide spiritual master or Guru. A bonafide Guru is one who has his own Guru, and so on. The original Guru is God who is perfect in all respects.

The Bhagavad Gita is a standard text for spiritual knowledge and we must be careful not to bypass it's essential message when talking about spirituality. Bhagavad Gita's essential message is to become a pure devotee of Krishna and get out of the cycle of birth and death that characterizes the material world.

To equate the individual soul with God is a mistake most atheistic spiritualists make. This is an obvious mistake, but due to the power of illusion, the deluded soul is convinced that he can become the supreme or that his powers are unlimited, independent. To take shelter of pure devotees of God is the only way to get out of this dangerous illusion.

My View of the World

My view of Religion changed,

When I came across the thought,

That it is all about Love,

And merely Rituals it is not.

My view of Rituals changed,

When someone made a comment,

They enhance expression of Love,

And are themselves not the end.

My view of Love changed,

When I read this principle deep,

Love for God embraces all,

Without which it is incomplete.

My view of God changed,

When I introspected a lot,

The object of highest Love,

Cannot be impersonal at all.

My view of Myself changed,

When it finally did register,

I cannot think, love, or Live,

If all I am is matter.

My view of Life changed,

When I accepted I am a soul,

Found a new way of life,

With Spirituality as its goal.

My view of Spirituality changed,

When my Spiritual Master taught,

It's not passive negation,

But dynamic Love for God.

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