A Barometer of Our Spiritual Life
It is well known that Gurudev
wrote over 300 books on all aspects of the spiritual life. Included in his
breadth of interest were books on health, plays, poems, and he used to from
time to time write different versions of spiritual barometers, which normally
took the form of asking questions: "How would you feel if…" And then
he would list a number of outrageous things and conclude, "If none of
these disturb you, then you’re 50% of the way to the goal." In doing this,
he was, in a sense, echoing Lord Krishna in the Gita, especially the end of
Chapter two and Chapter twelve.
To compare our spiritual
progress to the ideals set out by Gurudev and Lord Krishna has the very
salutary effect of making us recognise that we have a long way to go, no matter
how long we have been in the spiritual life or what progress we might have
made. Indeed, they seem to create such a gap that we have a tendency to ignore
them altogether. Actually, we can feel more comfortable with something like
Gurudev’s spiritual diary. At least we can understand when he asks us how much
time did you spend in meditation, how much time for japa, what time did
you get up? This is something that we can relate to and more easily do.
However, is there another
simple question that we could ask ourselves that could act as a barometer of
our spiritual life and at the same time is doable for us? There may be many
simple questions we could ask, but one that surely goes to the heart of our
spiritual life is to ask ourselves, "How much am I prepared to let go of
control of my life?"
This is not normally a
question we ask ourselves. We assume that our life belongs to us, and we resent
it if anyone else tries to control us, especially unless we’re getting
something in return. If we’re getting protection from somebody else, we
recognise we have to give up a certain amount of control. If we’re being paid
by someone else, we recognise that we owe them a certain degree of obedience
and control over our lives. If we’re deeply in love with someone, then that
person has a certain control over our behaviour or we won’t have a relationship
that will last. But other than that, where we perceive that we are getting
something in return for giving up control of our lives, we don’t want to give
up control for nothing in return. "This is my life" is an automatic
assumption.
If we’re on the spiritual path
though, we begin to gradually discover that thinking about ourselves,
controlling our lives, being in charge is a route to unhappiness, confusion,
misery. Letting go, even temporarily, is the path to peace, contentment, and
happiness. In fact, the whole purpose of our spiritual life is to give up this
individual sense of control. Indeed, our whole sadhana ultimately is one
of surrender and trust, letting go and letting God.
Does this mean that we give up
activity? This is a common error. What it means is giving up control and
recognising that we have always belonged to God. We have never belonged to
ourselves as an individual. That practice means that the ego is gradually being
rubbed away. When the ego goes, peace remains. Therefore, one barometer, one
test, of our spiritual life is how much are we prepared to give up control of
our life and acknowledge that our lives now, always have been and always will
be part of God.
Excerpts from:
A Barometer
of Our Spiritual Life by Sri Swami Sivananda
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