Please explain the first step of practical spirituality.

[Ms. Bhanu Samykya asked: Swami, kindly make clear if the first step means doing Karma Phala Tyaaga or Sacrifice of fruit of work?]

Swami replied:- You have chosen the highest path of spiritual knowledge (Jnaana Yoga), devotion (Bhakti Yoga) and practice (Karma Yoga). In this path, Karma Yoga is the last step in which service (Karma Samnyaasa) and sacrifice (Karma Phala Tyaaga) are the two sub-divisions. Your present stage is that you are studying a professional course, which is needed for a job or private practice. The job or private practice is very essential in this path of propagation of spiritual knowledge. If you go to your friend’s house and preach spiritual knowledge, they will think that you are preaching for the sake of food since you have no job. Hence, establishment of the foundation of Pravrutti, which is doing a job is very essential for both Pravrutti and Nivrutti.

As a student, you cannot do Karma Phala Tyaaga. You can do only Karma Samnyaasa, the service to propagate spiritual knowledge. For that also, you may not have time because you have to concentrate on your studies. Every student likes some change in his/her studies so that some relaxation becomes possible. In that time of relaxation, the student sees cinemas etc. In that time, if you are having a lot of interest on spiritual knowledge, you can do some propagation work of spiritual knowledge through e-mails and internet forums. Once you get your professional degree and establish yourself in earning, it becomes the settlement of Pravrutti life. That is the proper time for you to carry on the propagation of spiritual knowledge. You can compare yourself with your sister, Ms. Thrylokya. She completed her studies and established herself in a good job. Now, she is concentrating on the propagation of spiritual knowledge. If she were in your place and in your stage, I would have given her the same above advice.

When you compare yourself with others, you must find similarity of the background, which is like foundation for a building. You must develop a good lot of patience so that you will see all angles with utmost care. If you compare yourself with others in the way of hurry burry, the information required for logical analysis will be insufficient. Shankara says that the first requisite for spiritual path is patience (shama).

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