“Let me tell you why
you’re here. You’re here because you know something. What you know you can’t
explain, but you feel it. You’ve felt it your entire life, that there’s
something wrong with the world. You don’t know what it is, but it’s there, like
a splinter in your mind …”
~ Morpheus, in ‘The Matrix’
Seeking spirituality is
a fruitless effort these days. With a spate of reports of fake spiritual leaders emerging regularly, spirituality seekers are very confused and are left with little
options.
There is a old saying
that ‘take control of your life or someone else will’. Following blindly any form of movements, be it
spiritual or political or any other groups for that matter is a sure recipe
for disaster. For ages people have blindly followed spiritual gurus seeking
content and liberation. Scores of people have relinquished everything they had
and joined spiritual movements many of those later turned out to be fakes.
Yet people have not learned any lessons and end up like flies being attracted
by bright lights and being torched by the heat emitting from the lights. I have
never been able to figure out the complexities of people’s minds which lead
them to choose those paths.
By and large, no holy
person sets out to become a fake guru. All those self professed spiritual
leaders possess some form of skills such as mastery in religious books from
their very young ages which will enable them to spread the knowledge they have
gained. Coupled with their uncanny ability to convince people with their tender
love and care converting the ordinary men/women to become their disciples is
not an easy task. The question is how many of the gurus can handle their newly
found fame and wealth and use them for humanitarian causes. Do they practice
what they preach? In spite of the claim of celibacy and abstinent living, there
are wide spread reports of sexual abuse, orgies, prostitution, drug abuse and
money laundering. To many disciples, these very people are the closest they can
ever get to god’s presence. How ironic can it be?
Digging a bit deeper
into wikipedia, Hinduism identifies four ways of spiritual practice. First is the way of knowledge, second is the way of devotion, third is the way of works and fourth is the way of contemplation and meditation.
Learning the way of
knowledge is often assisted by a guru. Way of devotion is a path of faith and
devotion to deities; the spiritual path includes chanting, singing and music. The way
of work is the path of one’s work, where diligent practical
work becomes in itself a spiritual practice, and work in daily life is
perfected as a form of spiritual liberation and not for its material rewards.
Lastly, way of contemplation and meditation is the path of cultivating
necessary virtues, self-discipline, meditation, contemplation and
self-reflection sometimes with isolation and renunciation of the world, to a
pinnacle state called samadhi. This state of samādhi has been compared to peak experience.
Indeed the guidance of a
spiritual leader is paramount to learning the ways to these spiritual practices.
Every religion preaches
that spirituality is the constant search for the sacred. It is a pity that the spiritual leaders who are supposed to
teach their disciples attain peak mental health instead manipulate and deceive.
We have to keep in mind
that all truth passes through
three different stages. First, it is ridiculed. Second it is violently opposed
and third it is accepted as being self evident.
Did I say tolerance is another
virtue of human beings?
