Spiritual guru, Adi Shankaracharya used to abhor all kinds of material accumulation. He was free from desires and insecurities of the future.
Think about it, why do we want to save more and more, get more insurances, buy more properties?
Because we are afraid of what might happen in the future. Because we have no faith, no connection with our inner divinity. Our only refuge is material resources.
Those who lack inner resources tend to depend on outer resources. Those who are rich in inner resources are not dependent on outer resources and like a Gautama Buddha or Adi Shankaracharya, they can renounce all outer resources.
There was a dialogue in the Bollywood movie “Singham”: “मेरे ईमान में दम है, क्योंकि मेरी ज़रूरतें कम हैं।” (I have integrity because my necessities are less)
Now, the question is what are the necessities of life?
Clean air and water, food, clothes, a bed to sleep and a roof over your head.
(हवा, पानी, दो वक़्त की रोटी, दो जोड़ी कपड़े, रहने के लिए एक छत और सोने के लिए एक बिस्तर।)
Frankly speaking rest are all desires and insecurities.
Of course, in the current times, this definition of necessities seems harsh.
But then, in the current times, you cannot define necessities, because we know people have sold their blood or body organs just to buy an “I PHONE”.
However sad, but this is the truth of the current state of human life.
Now here again, you see how a person values an outer resource more than his own body. Because, the society and media have made fashion a value. They have made the outer possessions one has, the measurement of his value in the society.
Now, it’s not necessary for you to fall into the society’s trap. The society gives outer things value because they are empty inside. But ask them who is their favourite personality and they would say Mother Teresa or His Holiness the Dalai Lama.
Now, if you start developing yourself, if you start valuing your soul and spirit more than the material things, the people would respect you for that. Yes, right now you cannot imagine that because right now, you yourself value the outer things more than your soul and spirit.
I can tell you from my own experience that I have never faced any disrespect from my wealthy relatives because of my lack of outer resources. In fact, I have always been more respected in my family circle for my lack of respect for outer resources and for my respect for my soul and spirit.
Please understand the pride, the inferiority and superiority, is countered with “Self Respect” आत्म सम्मान .
Now, you feel inferior to others for you yourself value what they have and you don’t more than your own self. You feel superior to others for you yourself value what you have and they don’t have more than your self.
The Hindi word for respect सम्मान gives us the clue here: सम मान, meaning you can only give respect in equal measure as you give to yourself. What does it mean? A person who has no “Self Respect” cannot respect others. Or, if you respect your own self very less even if you would want to give respect सम्मान to others you can only give it as much as you respect your own self – सम मान.
It means respect starts with self respect आत्म सम्मान.
अगर आप अपनी आत्मा का सम्मान नही करते, means you don’t value your own inner divinity more than the things you have, then of course, you will value others also in relation to the things they have, rather than their own self.
For me, I would include in the above list of necessities, one more item: आत्म सम्मान।
Of course, you can object that I’m forgetting one more very important necessity of life: The Sex.
Now in relation to sex, the necessities vs desires can be explained by this differentiator:
Necessity: “एक व्यक्ति अपनी तमाम ज़रूरतें (necessities) एक से पूरी कर लेता है।” One person fulfils all his necessities from one. I.e., To a devoted married person one spouse is enough to fulfil all necessities.
Desire: “दूसरे को अपनी एक ज़रूरत (desire) पूरी करने के लिए कई व्यक्ति भी कम पड़ते हैं।” To the other many falls short to just fulfil one desire. I.e., To a philanderer many sexual partners also do not fulfil his/her sexual desires.
Outer resources never fulfil. That is why the current humanity is always unfulfilled, hungry, thirsty and ever empty.
That is why each year Apple, Samsung and other MNCs can milk them by bringing new models of their “I Phones”, etc.
If you fool yourself into thinking that when I would have enough material resources then I would work on my soul, then you are just wasting your time.
Insecurities do not go away with more outer resources. It’s a known fact that those who have more are much more greedy, corrupt and hungry than the have nots.
Insecurities fuel more insecurities, greed fuels more greed, and so on. Pride fuels more pride. Lust fuels more lust.
So stop fooling yourself that when everything would be to your satisfaction outwardly then you would start working on your soul.
Sorry to bust your wishful thinking, but that day would never come when you would be satisfied with your outward resources.
Because fulfilment is a quality of soul, not the ego. The day you will understand this, you would stop fooling yourself.
So, join GOD YOGA today.
To your fulfilment….
