Spirituality As A Means Of Soul Perfection

[Ananya 0]

Independence is what we try to achieve in our life. We earn money simply because we need freedom from poverty. We crave for acquiring power because that way we think no one will snatch from us what we have in life. But a big question is do we really remain happy after possessing all we want to possess? In most of the cases in our everyday life we come across with many people who have achieved a great lot of things in their life after a lot of struggling and at the end of day they are really able to establish themselves as a person having achieved everything in terms of money, name & fame. But still craving for more continues on and on. Real happiness and contentment of mind never comes. As a consequence our mind never reaches that state of attaining ultimate peace and tranquility .For instance a famous film actor struggles a lot to get a break in just 1 film. Then all of a sudden his wish gets fulfilled and he manages to get the role he has wished to be in. One day he is encompassed with name, fame & popularity but still if 1 Friday his 1 film gets flopped & then consecutively if he continues this performance for 2 more films he thinks of committing suicide just because his 3 films didn’t work but a day was there when he haven’t even thought of getting appeared as a hero onscreen. So once he used to think he would be happy if he can just appear onscreen and now when everything is there at his doorstep still he isn’t happy. So the real problem lies in our thinking and the way we try to achieve things in our life. We came in this earth to work, we have to work. But the problem is we came to rule but we are being ruled. We came to enjoy but we are being enjoyed. As if the bee came to suck the nectar but its feet is getting entangled in the very nectar it wanted to suck. So the ultimate solution to this never ending search is to seek spiritualization. Spiritualization can only provide what we all want- Freedom, i.e. freedom at its highest level where we don’t have to crave for more, where we don’t have to get ourselves entangled between life and death as life after death and death after life is that vicious circle which has to be transformed into a virtuous one where death never happens and life goes on and on without craving for more.Spiritualization is the ultimate goal of all species of this world as this continuous process of acquiring life after death and death after life is making us tired and slowly we are wearing out. Basically there are 2 categories of people one who has seen the light and one who has felt the heat. The first category belongs to great souls like Jesus Christ, Lord Gautama Buddha and the second one belongs to commoners like us. We will follow this route only when we have withered out completely from our inside. The ultimate soul perfection happens through seeking of spiritualization and it can only bring the peace and tranquility we need. A lot of people think that spiritualization is just meditating but rather it happens when our soul reaches that state where we can completely understand that selfless work without expectation is the only way we can keep ourselves free from craving.

[Bikerman 2]

If your aim in life is to do away with craving, then why live? Why not just die and cease craving entirely?As Albert Camus said - the first question of philosophy is..why not suicide? I see nothing in the above to address, let alone answer that question.

Edited April 30, 2012 by Bikerman (see edit history)

[Ananya 0]

If you want to crave for anything and everything you want to achieve there is no problem in that go on doing that.Because I used to do a lot of craving in the past but now I have myself come to this realization that our focus gets lost when we crave for something again and again.If someones passion is just earning money and comfort through the work his performance will certainly degrade one or the other day.The quality of work done deteriorates after a certain stage of time.Because the day you cease to get rewards for the work done your interest level will certainly drop down. This is truly undesirable as this is not selfless work.Leave selfless work it can't be even called as passionate and dedicated towards the work.

[Bikerman 2]

You go from one extreme to the other. I didn't say I crave everything and anything. I didn't actually say I crave anything at all. I simply pointed out that building a belief system which aims to annihilate craving seems an odd thing to do and doesn't address more important issues such as what life is actually about. Framing it in terms of a negative - avoiding something - doesn't tell us much.

[Ananya 0]

I am just putting this view that if craving makes someone so exhausted that it makes someone come down to a point where his quality of input gets degraded and he becomes deprived of peace and tranquility. Then whats the harm in leaving that way of approach.

[Bikerman 2]

But I thought we were talking about Buddhism ? Sorry, I don't know why I thought that (well, I do, because Buddhism has a similar basic structure, but I realise that you never referred to Buddhism....my bad)

[Ananya 0]

Its not about any religion specifically Buddhism,Hinduism,Christianity or Sufism. Its about our belief system that needs to be changed first. Once you come to this realization then any religion can help you out in attaining that ultimate peace. There was a quote by Ramakrishna Parmahansa in Bengali which if translated in English can be said like As there are different opinions so there are different ways.

[Bikerman 2]

Well, personally I like a bit of strife - that is, to me, what being human is all about. I don't want ultimate peace - I'd get bored. I like unanswered questions because they give my life meaning. Ultimate peace sounds too much like 'RIP' to me....

[Ananya 0]

Now its an innate realization that comes from within.If someone wants to stick to the life of constant striving then its his choice.But whats the harm in seeing things like you pay attention to your work itself keeping aside all other distractions.

[Bikerman 2]

I do that anyway without any need for mysticism. I have no problem with people using techniques like meditation to relax - I do myself. I learned a form of meditation many years ago - nothing fancy, you just slow the breathing and with each exhale you fix your mind on a part of the body. I start with the left toes, work up the calf and leg, down the other leg, back up the right side of the body and arm - then the left, finally the face and head.It usually works for me and I can get very deeply relaxed using it. No problem with that at all, but there is nothing mystical about it, just focussed attention and relaxing muscles.It is one thing to teach a technique for relaxation or focussing concentration. It is quite another to attribute the technique to some woo-woo pseudo-science or some invisible sky-fairy because then you are saying that which it is not possible for you to be sure of, yet not expressing it as a possibility but as a fact. I have a BIG problem with that.So (to go back to Buddhism) I have no problem with the idea of (temporarily) seeking curcease - the calm achieved by letting go of all material wants and urges. But I have a major problem with the notion of Karma and, it goes without saying, the notion of rebirth. That is when technique and explanation give way to speculation and guesswork, things that the Buddhist cannot possibly know for sure, yet teaches as though it were fact.Let me ask you this:If I could teach a technique to pass exams, but the technique involved teaching you something as fact that I KNEW was a lie, would you want to learn? Would it be moral of me to teach it? Does the advantage offered outweigh the immorality of lying?For me it never can. Once we play fast and loose with truth - either pretending we have it when we cannot possibly have it, or ignoring it for other advantage - then we are in trouble.

Edited May 4, 2012 by Bikerman (see edit history)

[Ananya 0]

Well I haven't actually gone through meditation. It sounds nice that you have been through all that.My idea about meditation is that if helps in mind concentration and definitely it refreshes your mind.But it is to be noted here that spiritualization is not just meditating.Although I am not an expert in this but as far as my understanding on this concept is concerned ,I have developed it after reading preachings of many great people,newspapers,magazines.Meditation is being done to help increase concentration and drive away distractions coming your way.But firstly the understanding of detachment from all materialistic happiness has to built up.

[Bikerman 2]

Nope - that is the bit I do not buy. I like being happy - that is sort of the point. Yes, I know it is transitory but I'm fine with that. I believe that I am also transitory so there is no issue with pleasure being so.Of course one can get over attached, or even obsessed, with materialistic possessions. That is, I agree, bad. But my pleasures tend to not be to do with collecting material. One of my greatest pleasures is to read in the bath with a glass of wine and something to smoke. A fairly simple pleasure, and as far as I can see it does me good, in that it puts me in a good mood and relaxes both muscle and mind.As I said earlier, there are some parts of Buddhism that I am fine with. There are other parts that seem to me to be little diferent to the superstitious nonsense found in other faith systems.

[Ananya 0]

Whatever that puts you in a good shape of mind is always a welcome.Like I cope up with any kind of mental pressures I am dealing with by simply listening to music.But the fact to get over attached isn't something that's so easy.We have a lot of attachments apart from the property we own the or house we reside.We also have attachments called our near and dear ones. Now you are fine with Buddhism.Though I am a Hindu but have read a lot of stuff called teachings of Buddha and I find them truly nice and satisfies my logical reasoning and there are really some that I found hard to understand.One of them I would like to specify here is that "Attachment is the near enemy of what we call as love." Its not just Buddha but the same in a different way has been told by Ramakrishna Parmahansa. The people around us whom we think we love are actually are attachments and attachment isn't love.Like I find it hard to bear if my mother stays far away from me.She is my life blood. She is my friend, my guide,my teacher my everything.But to great souls this again is attachment.

[Bikerman 2]

Personally I think that part of Buddhism is simply wrong, but I see what it is getting at. We can easily mistake attachment for love. A good example is my dogs. They are attached to me and one might even say that they 'love' me, but I reject that notion, because 'love' is more than simple attachment. Having said that, since I am a rational person I am quite happy to say that love is probably a myth in the way we use the word. There is infatution, respect, caring - these are real. Love is probably nothing more than a combination of these focussed on one person.

[Ananya 0]

Love is when someone feels happy in someone's happiness and sad when someone's sadness. That's what Buddhism and many other belief systems say.That love is only selfless and knows no words like being possessive,being attached or being attracted.In a college many boys can run after a girl who happens to have a stunning beauty.Many will say the famous 3 letter word 'I love you'. But if unfortunately for some reason her beauty gets spoilt due to some accident or extreme obesity say no one can be found out around her.