Few years back I was discussing Mahabharata with my Guru. He told me that actual Mahabharata starts in a seeker when he/she starts raising their consciousness from third eye to crown chakra. It is during that time you will be tested like Arjuna in Mahabharata. Once you are at 3rd eye level, you can easily coast. All aspects of your life health, wealth, joy, happiness, love & peace are close to being balanced.
This is the most tricky stage for all the yogis. It is easy to get distracted. It is easy to develop ego. It is easy to just coast.
This is why this question is very important for any Yogi/Spiritual seeker - “Why you are doing what you are doing? Why have you joined a certain spiritual school or attend certain sat sangs or functions/events?
We are programmed to such a degree that we treat spirituality as a job and become mechanical about it. Focus falls on the technique and mantras. How they need to be practiced and recited, than why are you doing what you are doing? Spirituality is not a rat race. I have noticed a lot of people practice spirituality for these reasons -
- Competition with other initiates to prove you are more worthy
- Fear of losing material/health/mental state
- Seek free advice from your Guru on real estate/business investment
- Run it as business to generate money
- To not feel guilty, as now they are participating in some Godly activities
What should be the focus/goal for someone who wants to walk the path? I like the 3 Goal/purpose System -
1. Immediate purpose
2. Next purpose
3. Ultimate purpose
Immediate purpose:
This is very important as you might not be in a state of balance. This is where things like – job,business, health, relationship issues, family etc. fall. These are all important. Unless these get fulfilled, you will not be able to focus or move to the next goal.
When you are evaluating different spiritual schools/ practices, question them and ask yourself, if those practices can help you attain this goal. Ask if the Guru of that school can help you achieve your immediate purpose of life.
Next purpose:
90% of the people who are following a spiritual path never get to set this goal. It is more like a pipe dream for some. The reason is most of the people follow spiritual practices for Immediate purpose. Once they start getting fulfilled, they want more and goals change and they keep going on this way in a never ending loop, until all logic fails. I will not discuss what I mean by “all logic fails”, this I will discuss in another write up.
So what is your Next purpose? It is the goal you set/activities you perform to achieve the ultimate purpose of life. If you do not know that, do not worry ask your Guru. If your Guru cannot help you with that goal, then you should change your Guru. Achieving these goals will not be easy, you would have to move out from your comfort zone, but rest assured your Guru and Divine will help you on this path. The question is do you have the courage and faith?
Ultimate purpose:
A lot of spiritual and intellectual people know about this. Just like we all know that exercise is good, but not everybody does it. There is only one ultimate purpose of life that every creation should strive for - “Moksha”/Being one with the Divine. A lot of people I have talked about it would either laugh at it and ridicule it because they do not want to come out of the state of “Maya” just like an alcoholic or drug addict who would not like to come out of their temporary state of influence to reality. The truth is, this goal is the reality, the ultimate truth. Some say it is too far fetched and we cannot achieve it in this life, so what why set such a goal.
I read somewhere that when you set a goal, half of the battle to achieve it is already won. The rest your Guru and Divine should be able help you achieve. Just how Arjuna had help from “Krishna”, you also have the same help in your life, it is your Guru. Allow he/she to be your path finder/ ” Marg dakshak“.
It is very important when you are evaluating a spiritual school, ask the Guru what is his / her ultimate purpose of life. The answer should be just one word/ sentence. The Guru should be working towards it just like his/her initiates.
Ultimate purpose is the one that will give you the anchor/answer, to “why you are doing what you are doing?” Then everything that you are doing gets aligned to an ultimate purpose, and when things get aligned then your will becomes the Divine will.....
All the best
Be the Divine
- Rajat