Permanent Detachment from the World

O Learned and Devoted Servants of God,

[Shri Phani asked:- You told that sage Vashistha told that for ordinary people it is better to avoid the association of worldly bonds since detachment from worldly bonds is impossible while staying in the association of worldly bonds. I am trying to practice that.]

Swami replied:- I also told you that the Veda says that staying far from the worldly bonds develops more attachment to worldly bonds, while staying in association of worldly bonds develops negligence and detachment from the worldly bonds (Parokṣapriyā iva hi...). This statement contradicts My first statement. But, both statements are correct when both are applied in different contexts of time for the same person. Initially, the worldly bonds will attract the person developing attachment in that person towards them. This point is from the side of the worldly bonds. After some time, the same worldly bonds are neglected by that person and this point is from the side of the person. Both points are not on the same side and hence, mutual contradiction is avoided. If you argue that in developing the attachment towards the worldly bonds, contribution of the person also exists, even then, the same person exists in two stages of time as the basis of both these concepts separately and hence, there is no mutual contradiction. The same person is attracted to the worldly bonds in the initial time and in a latter time, the same person is detached from worldly bonds due to negligence towards the close associated items.

In the above mentioned such case, the permanent detachment from the worldly bonds becomes impossible if you follow the first concept and avoid the association of worldly bonds by going away to the forest, the second concept will attack you and you will be attracted towards the far existing worldly bonds again! If you go to the far existing worldly bonds based on the second concept (that you will neglect them by association), again the first concept attacks you! Hence, both these concepts are playing with you like two players playing with a common football!

Then, what is the solution? This football play resulted because the problem is attacked from the wrong side for the sake of solution. If you attack the problem from the right side, this football play will disappear. What is wrong side here? The wrong side is that you are aiming for the attachment to God through detachment from the worldly bonds in the beginning itself! If you achieve simply the detachment from worldly bonds and stop there itself, what is its use? Do you think that God will be immensely pleased with you for your detachment from worldly bonds. No. No. No. The God will say “why shall I be pleased for your detachment from worldly bonds? In what way I am linked to your link with worldly bonds? If you have fasted, why shall I be pleased with you for your detachment from food? In what way I am linked with your link to your food. Perhaps, you might have fasted due to some indigestion problem. If you say that you have fasted for My sake, it will be a horrible joke! If you have given Me food, I shall be pleased with you. If you have fasted since the food is exhausted due to My eating, I shall be more impressed with you for your extraordinary love to Me. Even if your food existed, if you still fast by immersing yourself in My service, I will be mostly impressed with your fasting. But, what are you doing? You have eaten the entire food and praising Me with poems and songs saying that I am eternal without hunger! Yes, I am eternal without hunger. You are true. But, I came to you through a medium, which has hunger like your medium.

You prayed for Me to see and talk with Me. I came to you for your sake. Is it not your responsibility to give at least a little food from the food you stored in the refrigerator for the night! Now, you will say that you have prayed for Me to come in My original form and not in this mediated form! You will further say that the concept of mediation of God is wrong! You will again say that the concept of human mediation is totally wrong! You will finally say that if the original form of God is unimaginable, you will worship Me, through representative model (statues and photos), which is never hungry! If I say that those representative models will not clarify your doubts, you will say that you have no doubts at all! I will say that I have not come for your sake since I have come for their sake, who will feed Me at least by giving a little to Me from at least the stored food for future or at least a very little quantity of food from his food in case there is no possibility of stored food. I am telling you one way finally that you give Me that much food, which you will throw away after your eating. Don’t give Me anything from your eaten or stored food. This means that you give Me Gurudakshina from that wasted portion of your wealth. This will serve double purpose since wealth is extracted from waste! I am trying in all the possible ways to help you in guiding you in the right direction. You may say that I can preach you without even a trace of Gurudakshina. Yes. I have no objection from My side because I am not at all in need of your gurudakshina except to find that you have a trace of hunger for the true knowledge-food or not. If you are not prepared even to part a little from your wasted food, you have no trace of hunger for knowledge and no trace of attention towards Me and I shall leave you prostrating to your sacred lotus feet because it is sure that you have no trace of hunger at all and that I have approached a wrong person by mistake and for this mistake I am prostrating to the feet! If you say that you are not willing to part even from the wasted food at least (because you enjoy in wastage), do some service to Me by propagating this spiritual knowledge in the world. Parting food is Karmaphalatyāga and parting service is Karmasaānyāsa. Both are essential for a house holder. For a saint, Karmasaṃnyāsa alone is sufficient since the saint himself is begging for his own food! Both these constitute Karmayoga, which is inevitable proof for your theoretical knowledge and theoretical devotion. The meaning of the proof is just to know that you have real hunger for what you are asking! Sage Vashistha asked Rama to pay Gurudakshina first before hearing spiritual knowledge from him (Dhanamārjaya...– Yogavāśiṣṭam). For the same reason, Shirdi Sai Baba asked everybody for Gurudakshina”.

Now, coming to your original problem, the correct side of the problem to be attacked is the attachment to God for which an inevitable consequence is the detachment from the worldly bonds. Detachment from the worldly bonds alone is foolishness and stupidity without attachment to God. Such meaningless detachment from the worldly bonds is also insult to God since you are rejecting this world created by God! Are you not insulting God in this way? Please think patiently. Detachment from the world should be without any trace of effort as a natural consequence of the attachment to God. In this case, the detachment from the world is not wrong because the creator is far greater than the creation. Without reference to the creator, rejecting the creation is certainly insulting the creator. Perhaps, you are rejecting the worldly bonds due to some worldly depression. Perhaps, you are rejecting the worldly bonds to become a false saint to earn your food! Hence, the Gita says that by mere detachment from the world, detachment from the world (Naiṣkarmyam) is not achieved because such detachment will blast you with terrible attachment to the world after sometime (Na karmaṇāmanārambhāt, Naiṣkarmyam...). The Gita says that by mere detachment from the world (Saṃnyāsa), the goal is not achieved since the goal is attachment to God (Na ca saṃnyasanādeva, siddhim...).

Your problem is solved because you attacked the problem from the correct side, which is attachment to God. You are not worried about the detachment from the world. Once you are attached to God, you are spontaneously detached from the world whether you are associated with the worldly bonds or not (Saṅgarato vā saṅgavihīnaḥ...—Shankara).

However, in the initial stage, a little detachment from the worldly bonds is essential by effort so that some peaceful time is available to make the initial effort for development of attachment to God like hearing the spiritual knowledge and doing prayers etc., in peaceful atmosphere away from the worldly bonds. Certainly, after some time, due to the second concept, the far worldly bonds will attract you and you will withdraw from such peaceful divine atmosphere to go to the old worldly bonds. If you are lucky to go to the peaceful atmosphere along with your worldly bonds also, this problem can be avoided for a longer time since several other worldly bonds like your property etc., also exist!

When the devotee achieves the goal perfectly, such a devotee is fulfilled (Siddha) and a beginner shall not imitate him in the beginning stage of his/her spiritual effort (Sādhanā). Sage Gautama says this point in his Sutras (Avaradaurbalyāt). Two friends were going to Vaaranaasi to worship God Shiva. One friend stopped in the way due to his attraction towards a prostitute and the other friend went to Vāraṇāsi and was worshipping God Shiva every day. But, the friend stopped by prostitute was always thinking about his friend in Vāraṇāsi with jealousy. The friend in Vāraṇāsi was also thinking about the enjoyment of his friend with the prostitute due to jealousy on his friend. The second concept of the Veda (that that, which is close is always neglected and that, which is far is always attracting) is promoted further in the strength due to jealousy and this proves that every quality has both good and bad sides. The Vāraṇāsi friend went to severe hell whereas the friend stopped by prostitute went to the abode of God Shiva to a closer place to God. The same jealousy strengthened the good and bad fruits, which means that the same quality has both good and bad sides. The spiritual aspirant should always take the necessary concept applicable to him/her for a specific atmosphere and time keeping aside the unnecessary concept through testing practically in continuous manner. The medicine for allergy is only avoiding the association of an item that is not suitable in a specific season.

Sage Vashishtha stands firm in his advice if you are attached to the worldly bonds since you are born on this earth not like sage Rushyashrunga. In such case, the second concept also becomes irrelevant because there was no opportunity for you to come in contact with the worldly bonds at any time since your birth. But, all of us are not Rushyashrugas and hence, it is better to attack this complicated problem from the correct side, which is trail to attach to God through knowledge and devotion. I think, that God Datta has answered your question in excellent way!

★ ★ ★ ★ ★