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The path of renunciation has received worldwide recognition, both
contemporarily and historically, as the spiritual path. Perhaps
because most of us are in awe of those persons who give their lives
completely over to God; that is to say the monks, nuns, priests,
religious saints, lamas, popes, gurus, and teachers. (Where we may
struggle to “give up“ even a little of what we have;
they undoubtedly know how much they gain in “giving it all
up“ for God.) They give over their personal possessions, owning
little to nothing. They give over their personal sense of identity
and history; often they’re given spiritual names and sometimes
they give up their families (as we would know family to be). They
give over their personal preferences for diet, activity, schedule,
and occupational pursuits. And they give themselves over to the
service of their teacher, their ashram or monastery, the spiritual
or religious teachings, people less fortunate than themselves, or
God, in whatever form they worship. “In every major religion, the
search for this [God-Consciousness-Awakening] has often led to a
life of withdrawal from the rest of the world. I have profound respect
for this path, but very few of us are capable of or even desire
a cloistered life. We want a way to pursue a spiritual life in the
context of close, personal relationships with family and friends.
We want, in short, what the world’s religions call the Way
of Love*. At Parmarth Ashram, on the banks of the Ganges, H.H. Pujya Swami Chidananda Saraswatiji lives a mission of love and service as well. Here, traditional yoga teachings are practiced daily, from scripture to prayer, asana and pranayama, to meditation and service. The ashram is open to everyone. (There is also a large group of rishikemars, children, already immersed in their study.) Pujya Swamiji has traveled the world as an ambassador of love and yoga in action, right down to contemporary issues of environmental healing, social injustice, and fair trade practices. In October of 2008, Living Yoga offered its first Yoga and Social Justice weekend retreat. We gathered to look deeply at what I called the “pendulum” of yoga. On the one hand, we’re invited to practice a renunciation of sorts…lessen our attachments, soften or surrender the ego, take refuge from the hectic pace of life for a daily period of quiet renewal, study ourselves and our thoughts, actions, feelings, and motivations, try to live more selflessly everyday. And so on. On the other hand, many of us feel inspired to be of service, to actively engage in a life that promotes healing and creates change. Consumed with this, we face burn out, attachment to the results of our actions, and unclear motivations that rise when our systems are out of balance. Prior to departing for India, I was re-reading the Bhagavad Gita, which outlines the struggle faced by us, in the form of Arjuna, in understanding the paths of yoga. Briefly, in Arjuna’s great despondency he engages in a deep and passionate discourse with his teacher, Krishna, representing his higher wisdom, about which path of yoga is best. With each path, Krishna outlines its merits and its challenges. But as he describes them, each one of them sounds like the best path! Eknath Easwaran points out, in his translation, that this is often an area of great confusion for the Western reader. Yet, he suggests we understand that Krishna is describing each path as one might a prism you could walk around to view from all sides. Each one is glorious! My personal resolution of the dilemma presented in reading the BG? Each path is the finest path for our study. What determines at which time a particular path is our greatest strength is a consideration of things such as our personal constitution, our personality tendencies, our phase in life, the time in which we are born, world events, and our maturation and integration process. At one time in my personal yoga path, Jnana yoga, the path of knowledge and inquiry, was the most potent and compelling. I studied my thoughts, inquired with any teacher I could find, read books of poetry, meditation, contemplation and inspiration, and went on retreat with teachers who were leading satsang (gatherings in consideration of our “true nature”). To support my intellect in getting still enough to understand these teachings, Raja yoga (renunciation), the eight-fold path of yama, niyama, asana, pranayama, and so on, became a profound intervention. It was at a time in my life where I owned very little anyway, so there wasn’t much to “give up” in terms of possessions. But I actively pursued the physical practices, which quieted my mind tremendously, and led a life of conscious simplicity. During this time I lived at a retreat center and discovered service (Karma yoga) as a very strong calling. I put my energy into washing dishes, mopping floors, cleaning cabins, and preparing food for up to 200 guests at a time (My parents considered this way beneath my Masters degree training. From their perspective, I was renouncing too much. From my perspective, I was gaining a tremendous amount.) It was also during this time that I found the path of devotion, or Bhakti yoga. At times I “served” so hard (or overworked myself), that the devotional practices came as a soothing balm for my heart. Bhakti is primarily the path of Love and, though I was mostly unaware of it at the time, I needed a deeper understanding of Love for myself, as it was easier to extend such light to others. The four paths clearly weave together. Love supports our hearts to stay open to be of service. Living simply keeps our minds and our vitality clear for contemplation into the depth of existence. When seated there, we continually discover that love is at the essence of everything and everyone. And from that we are magnetically pulled back into service. What prompts our movement from one path to another depends on events, both global and personal, that stir us into new areas of discovery, discomfort (which often precedes discovery), inspiration, or love. Inspiration from Pujya Swamiji: (for me, these writings all reflect the balanced message of the B.G.) “The best way to honor God in our lives is through serving humanity.” “If we want to be torchbearers for peace, we must first become rivers of love, dousing flames of discord in the waters of our own compassion and serenity.” “Just stay focused. Don’t react. Just be a witness and you will see the magic of it.” “A thought leads to an action; an action leads to a habit; a habit to a trait; a trait to a character; a character to a destiny. That is why it is so important to watch your thoughts and actions. They create your destiny.” “Don’t only light the oil lamp in your temple, but the light the lamp in your own heart.”
Namaste,
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