Renunciation, Seeking or Escaping? Part -1

What is renunciation? Its literal meaning is a formal rejection of beliefs, lifestyles, and/or course of action. In religious and spiritual terms, it means renouncing all material lifestyles, relationships, and living life as a renunciate monk. It is very popular in India. It is said that one who has renounced this material world has come on the path to God. 

A renunciate or a "sanyasi" as we call it in India, basically means he/she renunciates all the desires for himself/herself. All their course of action would be either for the attainment of Enlightenment or for the betterment of society or any other selfless motive. So they move out of the material world. They refrain from working for personal gain, or from living with family, or from having any sensual pleasures, from living an ordinary lifestyle. All this is done just to direct their life energies towards the higher goal, Self - Realization.  

Bhagwan Ramana Maharshi says, "Sannyasa is only the renunciation of the ‘I’ thought, and not the rejection of the external objects." The real core idea of renunciation is giving up the worldly ego identity. That's it. That's all, That's why it is a tradition in India, that the master gives a new name and dress to the disciple at the time of initiation. It is done to indicate to the disciple that the old identities, personalities, ideologies, desires, tendencies, backgrounds, religions, ancestries, etc. are done here. Once a person leaves the ego identity, the desires and tendencies associated with it start to fade away, and a profound calmness and bliss start to take over. Buddha said suffering arises from desire. So Buddha says Nirvana is when there are no desires left. Mata Sharadha Devi says, "This world is moving around like a wheel. That indeed is the last birth in which one gets completely rid of all desires." What Buddhists call "Nirvana" Hindus call it "Moksha" and Christians call it "Salvation." So the whole process of renunciation is done to be desireless, at least at the time of death, if didn't get enlightened while being alive by chance :)

But for most people renunciation becomes an opportunity to escape. As J. Krishnamurti says, "To most people, religion, God and immortality are simply a means of escape." They are fed up with their reality and they want to escape from it. So they find renunciation as an escape. They don't renunciate because they want to transcend to the Unknown, they renunciate because they want to get rid of the known. So there is this frustration still left on the unconscious levels of their minds. Even after they renunciate, their mind is still working in the same old ways, nothing really changed. Before they used to act in a clever and political way in the material world, now they act the same in the new spiritual world. Now they play politics between Gods. Before they used to hate their neighbors, now they hate people from other religions, castes, and traditions. But this time this mental disease has become much more severe because God is on their side now. They are dedicated to God and doing God's work. The ego identity has taken a persona of a renunciate now. They are still guided by the desires, tendencies, ideologies, mindsets but this time, these are of a renunciate. There is still the same lack of awareness as it was before, or maybe even more now (because of God's work you see :)

What I think is the biggest reason for this great religious disaster is the lack of Enlightened masters. The masters established the traditions and went. They are there only for those few who could reach them. For most, masters are just historical figures who are mere pictures and statues that they worship now. The master is not there to tell them what went wrong. They keep following rigid rules blindly and keep running from life in order to find God and the master is not there to stop them.

I am not a renunciate nor I will ever be, but I had to discuss the ideas associated with it. As a Kriya Yogi(see I'm also taking up an identity now, ugh, will discuss about identities in a later post maybe), I understand that Spirituality is about taking charge of your system and directing your life energies towards a higher purpose or they are gonna act in their own accord resulted from previous unconscious patterns. And renunciation is the most powerful way to do that. You focus your whole being towards one single purpose, that is God or Enlightenment or whatever you call it. That is the most powerful way of Being. And no spiritual growth is ever possible without renunciation. 

No, I'm not telling you to be a renunciate to grow spiritually. I'll discuss more about renunciation and how it is relevant to every one of us in the next part of this article or it's gonna be too long to read for most people, you can subscribe to my blog for email alerts about future posts :)

All I am saying here is if renunciation is focussed upon the Higher purpose, it is the greatest and most powerful path but if it is unconsciously focussed on escaping life, it is a disaster. The most important thing that a renunciate needs to do is keep questioning themselves, "why have I renounced this world?" Keep asking even after observing the mind's answers. The knowledge of a thousand scriptures read does not even compare to the clarity that comes from even a little bit of sincere self enquiry.

I am absolutely not trying to disgrace the tradition of renunciation and I bow down to the holy tradition. I am just pointing out a major blunder that needs to be addressed in Spirituality at least, or we're gonna ruin it ultimately. 

At last, I would end this post with a story of Mahavatar Babaji's teaching to Yogavatar Lahiri Mahasaya from "The Autobiography of a Yogi."

“The scene was a Kumbha Mela at Allahabad,” Lahiri Mahasaya told his disciples. “I had gone there during a short vacation from my office duties. As I wandered amidst the throng of monks and sadhus who had come from great distances to attend the holy festival, I noticed an ash−smeared ascetic who was holding a begging bowl. The thought arose in my mind that the man was hypocritical, wearing the outward symbols of renunciation without a corresponding inward grace. 

No sooner had I passed the ascetic than my astounded eye fell on Babaji. He was kneeling in front of a matted−haired anchorite. “Guruji!” I hastened to his side. 'Sir, what are you doing here? “I am washing the feet of this renunciate, and then I shall clean his cooking utensils.” Babaji smiled at me like a little child; I knew he was intimating that he wanted me to criticize no one, but to see the Lord as residing equally in all body−temples, whether of superior or inferior men. 

The great guru added, 'By serving wise and ignorant sadhus, I am learning the greatest of virtues, pleasing to God above all others−humility.'”