18. Exit From the Endless Excuses

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“Self-Realization is a separate branch. It should be pursued only if you are ready to renounce everything. We, common people, cannot possibly do such big things. We have so many other responsibilities you see. We have to earn money, secure the future of our families. How can we possibly dedicate time for spiritual practice?”

As an answer to all these baseless arguments, 120 years ago Swami Vivekananda made certain statements and brought our attention on something. Surprisingly, it is relevant even today. Because evidently we are still busy whining and giving excuses. That means we have not changed a bit in a century! Great progress!

(Most of the ideas in the following paragraph are from Vivekananda)

All religions were founded by a few people who realized certain truths. Jesus Christ and his disciples found some truth which they wanted to share with others. Buddha wanted to share his realization of truth with others. Ancient seers (rishis) found some truth and they preached it to others. All of them taught others how to systematically find that truth or realization. Because all of them wanted others also to realize the same truth which they had realized. And these set of teachings slowly became independent religions. But over time, people have grown a very strange opinion – “We should just believe what our founders said. We cannot attain those things. They were divine people with special powers. It is not for common people”. What nonsense! The founders never said that! By saying this we have forgotten the whole purpose of religion. Is the purpose of religion just to criticize other religions, kill others, beat others? This is nothing but hypocrisy. It is better to be an atheist than a dummy religious follower who doesn’t believe in realizing the truth himself. It is better to be an atheist than a hypocrite. This is 100% laziness. I don’t want to put any mental effort to change my ideas and change for the better. I put only physical effort to do some namesake worship and empty rituals. Even that worship is done only to please a Hitler-like God out of fear. Because I do not know what is God. So, I bring God down to the level of a policeman, who is ready to give a ticket if I do something wrong! We act like puppies and hence we want to make God a bigger and powerful dog that is capable of punishing us! And all our drama is to please this big dog! Is any further degradation possible? Are we really an evolved civilization?! Are we really 21^st century’s greatly advanced scientific minds?

There are only two meaningful options:

1.     Atheist - Do not believe in realizing the truth and do not worship God.

2.     Spiritualist - Worship God and ceaselessly try to attain the realization of that truth called God.

If we are neither of this, then we are hypocrites, frauds and lazy i.e. we worship God but do not believe in realizing God ourselves. Then who are we trying to cheat in the name of worship and rituals? Is God such a fool to just look at our physical actions and think that we are big devotees? Is God such a big idiot, like a politician, to get flattered just by looking at our empty rituals? Is he such a dumb God to get pleased with our worship which is filled with selfish and greedy prayers? “Give me this, Give me that”. Can’t this so called God see our mind? If he cannot, what kind of God it is? What should we be more afraid of? Not performing a ritual, or thinking junk in our head?

Next excuse – “It is all very difficult”

Then do not worship as well. As already told, there are only two options. Do not be a hypocrite. Did we join B.E course because it is easy? Did we join M.B.A. because it is easy? Did we look at the syllabus of 4-5 years of course and get discouraged and walk out? Didn’t we slowly and systematically progress and then get a degree? Then why not even open the scriptures and read them? Why not even the effort? Why are we giving up even before beginning the course? And then to cover up our laziness we perform all rituals with empty head and heart! Take one step to learn and then see how help will flow unto us.

Next excuse – “I do not get time to practice all that”

First of all what is practice according to us? Frankly we do not have an answer. So, without knowing what we have to do, without having any idea about the practice we say I do not have time. How irrational! Some may have the notion that practice means twisting and bending the body in the name of Asana or holding the nose in the name of Pranayama. They are techniques alright, but who said that they constitute the whole of practice? Let us consider the routine of a typical city dweller.

Wake up at 6 AM. Freshen up, get ready and have breakfast by 7. Sit in a cab, bus and travel to office. Or travel by own car. Reach office by 8.30. Carry out the duties. Take 2-3 breaks including lunch break. Total duration of break may be 1.5 hours. Start from office at 6 PM. Travel back and reach home by 7.30. Relax for a while, say half an hour. See some news for half an hour – who killed who, who has an affair with who in bollywood etc. Do some miscellaneous activities, have dinner and sleep by 11 PM.

So, 6-7 hours are spent in routine mechanical activities that do not require any attention from our side. How much of focus is required when we take bath? How much of effort is required when we are travelling in a bus? They happen effortlessly. That means we are totally free mentally during these period of time. But then what do we do? Continuously munch some useless, purposeless thoughts. Commenting others, arguing on some meaningless topics etc. So, 6-7 hours everyday we do this! And we say we do not have time? Again, who are we trying to cheat? Us or the so called God?

All seers finally gave only one message – chitta shuddhi. Keep the mind clean, positive, away from all garbage. And that is the first and foremost step. The rest will follow spontaneously. Can’t we then try to regulate every input that we receive into our mind? We think they are insignificant activities and do not influence us. Absolutely wrong. These 6-7 hours of junk talks and thoughts define us completely. Whichever website is viewed more number of times, automatically comes up in the search ratings of Google. And since they are high in ratings, they are most likely to be viewed. So, currently we are in a vicious vortex. Negative and useless thoughts give rise to negative and useless talks. Negative and useless talks give rise to negative and useless actions. Negative and useless actions energize the negative and useless thoughts further. Break this vicious circle. Slowly begin changing the inputs to your mind by regulating all the smaller activities – regulate what you see, what you read, what type of movies you watch, what type of news you hear, what you talk etc. Along with that, also have an eye on what you think when you are idle. If the mind is looping continuously on some useless thoughts, put an effort to cut it again and again.

Isn’t this easy? Isn’t this simple? Can we now say that we do not have time? The very idea is to change the life style. How can we say we do not have time to live? Along with this, practice of some specific techniques like breath control, regulating the food will also greatly help. But primary aim is always to attain calmness and purity of mind, health of the body is only a side effect.

No saint talked about running away into the forest or staying in the world. That is not the point of argument at all. Both are equally good for spiritual practice. Eventually it is only about gaining mental strength and purity. We have to choose what is suitable to us – staying in the world or opting to renounce. Both are equally easy or equally difficult. Family people say “It is very easy to become a Sanyasi and practice spirituality. Real practice should be done in the world being a family man, that is the real challenge”. Oh really? You think renouncing everything is easy? Do you have the guts to leave everything and go? Do you have that immovable faith? Once you renounce all, you won’t have anything guaranteed about the future. Can you take that much of a risk? Tell all these heroic dialogues to innocent kids who cannot see your fearful heart. These are all excuses of the lazy. The truth is, whether a Sanyasi or a family man, both ways it is equally easy or equally difficult. What suits us, only we know. Our focus should be on what is suitable to us, not criticizing other’s paths. What matters is purity and strength of mind to be attained, not the external showoff.

Once the mind begins to get purified, little by little, the changes will be very obvious to you. So many things that were buried deep under the turbid ignorance will flare up. Confidence will blaze up. Because you know you are right in what you are doing, all small activities. Positivity surges to the brim. And then Self-Enquiry is spontaneous. Meditation is automatic. Yoga has become a part of you.

It is told, if we take one step towards God, God takes ten steps towards us. Put a little effort and just see how help will flow unto you. Take one step to learn and then just watch how much of wisdom will pour unto you. It is not a myth, nor am I repeating something from the moth-eaten books. It is real, it is true experience. Do not dream that you will win the first time itself. Nothing happens overnight. No one lifts a hundred k.g. in the gym on the first day itself. Everything has a procedure and its own time. You may fall a thousand times, but the game never ends with you losing. You get another chance. The movie ends only with the hero winning. Negativity can never sustain for long. Time is only patiently waiting for you to rise up and win one day.