#241 Am I progressing or stagnating on the spiritual path?
Question from a listener – Can you speak about a spiritual lull/ stagnation that sets in many a times. Sometimes there is time and optimal circumstances on hand, but the mind just does not cooperate to sit down to study, or then does not absorb anything. Is this something that other sadhaks too undergo? and how does one deal with it?
Fantastic question. It is possible that the mind is either
1.Bored or
Going through a hibernation like lull or
Distracted or
Not clear about the pursuit
Taking each one by one.
1.What if the mind is bored with Vedanta?
Pujya Swami Dayananda ji said this in the first few days of our residential long term course of 3 and a half years. On day 1, I told you that you are Brahman and on the last day of the course I will tell you the same thing – You are Brahman. Nothing would have changed but everything would have changed. In these profound words lay a pointer to the fact that we were not going to learn anything new and exciting which is what the mind seeks all the time.
It is easy for the mind to feel bored in any pursuit because if the mind is not mastered, it seeks some sort of stimulation all the time to feel alive.
Every morning when we brush our teeth, it seems boring. But we do it for our sake as well as for others. We better do it, even if we feel bored! Every morning a lot of us get ready to start our professional work and also do chores around the house. Is it super exciting, fun and makes you feel on top of the world? Not quite. We still do it because the commitment is to something greater.
Often times in the course of a long term committed relationship, you look at your partner find the same predictable conversations, the same behaviours, the same old habits. In the comfort of the familiar, there is no need to feel excited and enthusiastic all the time. We may feel bored and that is ok.
Boredom is a natural emotional state where one makes room for something new. We do not resist it. We acknowledge it and learn to be comfortable with it.
Modern living does not allow us to be okay with boredom. Earlier when I would travel through villages in the mountains what would amaze me about pahadis, people who live in the mountains, would be how they could gaze at mountains, valleys and plains for hours and hours without much need for conversation. Did they look happy and peaceful? Yes.
Across all pursuits of Dharma, Artha, Kama and Moksha there are phases that one may feel bored and that is not a problem. In any case, Boredom can never be the determining criteria for your continued involvement in anything, except for entertainment. Which is when you switch channels.
Interestingly, the degree to which we feel bored is directly related to the degree to which we need to feel alive.
Is there anything as powerful as being alive to feel alive!
Second possibility –
What to do if the mind feels a lull like hibernation?
The growth patterns of birds, trees, and animals often include periods that may seem like stagnation or hibernation, but these phases are crucial parts of their natural life cycles
During the breeding season, birds may appear less active to an outside observer because they’re nesting and caring for their eggs or chicks. This focused period of nurturing and protection might seem like stagnation, but it’s a critical phase for the growth and continuation of their species.
Deciduous trees go through a period of dormancy during the winter months. To an observer, it might appear as though the tree is not growing or changing at all. However, beneath the surface, the tree is conserving energy and preparing for the upcoming spring when it will burst forth with new leaves, flowers, and growth.
Many animals, especially small mammals like bears undergo hibernation during the colder months. Their metabolic rates drop significantly, and they appear to be inactive or in a state of suspended animation. This period of apparent stagnation is a survival mechanism that helps them conserve energy and endure periods of food scarcity.
Just as these phases are integral to the life cycles of birds, trees, and animals, some moments of apparent stillness and lull are essential for our personal growth and learning.
After a lot of Vedanta study sometimes, the mind may not want to engage with but just sit with the teaching which feels like a lull. And that is fine.
Embracing these periods with patience and understanding can lead to profound insights and eventual progress.
What to do if the mind is distracted?
Modern living and the nature of our work has made all of us distractible. Because we want to feel good all the time, our identity as an experiencer, bhokta becomes an entrenched one.
This orientation comes into Vedanta shravanam too and the mind can go all over including on a world or an inter-galactic tour.
If one is not committed to one thing, one will be distracted by everything
Strangely, when the mind begins to feel safe, a lot of unresolved issues from the unconscious come up, demanding your attention. And here, distraction is a good thing because it is pointing to something that needs attention and dealing with.
Unless trained, most people ‘s minds are dwelling on the past or planning for the future. We can train the mind to be in the present.
The best way to be focused is to be focused.
Every time your mind gets distracted just gently and firmly bring it back to your sadhana without drama or judgement.
What to do if the mind is not clear about the Vedanta pursuit?
Any spiritual path especially if rooted in tradition clearly articulates what the Sadhya, goal is and what the sadhana, the means is. Hence it is easy to know whether one is progressing or getting stuck.
A question to ask oneself is – Is there clarity in the sadhya and sadhana (goal and the means). In the wealth pursuit, you want 100,000 dollars because you do not have it and you work towards it. The pursuit is apraaptasya praaptih. Praapti – a gain of what you do not have- apraapti. The sadhana is your work and the Sadhya is the money.
If you do not have a partner and are wanting one, again the nature of the pursuit is a sadhana towards the sadhya, the partner. The sadhana may include putting the word out there, being on dating sites and the Sadhya is getting into a long term relationship. The nature of the pursuit is apraaptasya praaptih. Praapti – a gain of what you do not have- apraapti.
In Vedanta, the pursuit is unlike any other. It is praaptasya praaptih meaning, an as though gain of what you already are. Sadhya, the goal is clearly seeing that you were never bound. The primary sadhana is Shravanam, systematic listening to the guru over a length of time about who you really are so that the layers of ignorance peel away.
And so, the old orientation of working towards something external does not apply to Vedanta and hence it may feel like one is stagnating.
You are already the Atma. Nothing you do or not do can change this fact.
Another question to ask oneself is – Do I have adequate adhikaritvam? necessary qualifications for Vedanta – If you want a Ph D you make the effort to cultivate and refine allied skills in research methodology, reviewing books and articles, summarising your findings etc. You cannot say I want a Ph D without doing what is necessary. Likewise, one cannot say that I want the vision of Vedanta without preparing for it.
The qualification to even be able to do Shravanam is Viveka, a discernment of what in your life is changing and what is eternal and a correct diagnosis of the spiritual problem.
One recognises that through all one’s pursuits what one is really seeking is freedom from the restlessness of seeking. To just have viveka is not simple.
Most people in their 20s, 30s and 40s are so busy with education, building their careers and raising families that there is no time nor the leisure to have a value for Atma- vichara. And so, if any such person is introduced to Vedanta as the highest knowledge, the person is puzzled by the pursuit. The person is pulled towards the Vedanta mirror which reveals he is Ananda, fullness when the person is running around trying to extract happiness from all experiences. This totally goes against the person’s life orientation and experiences.
Here is the person striving to be the best version of himself or herself and is told to just relax and listen. What? There are no easy and quick tips for better living. What kind of a spiritual path is this? The person is convinced that happiness lies out there in people and situations or at best in a calm and peaceful mind.
For modern courses on meditation or yoga particularly asana and pranayama, one does not need to qualify. One just shows up for the class or course.
For courses on improving relationships or managing the mind one enrols in them with readiness, no other qualification required.
For chanting shlokas or singing kirtans, one starts where one is.
For doing pujas and prayers for a better life, one does a few simple steps according to one’s knowledge.
For improving overall health and well-being, one adopts clean habits of eating well, sleeping and exercising and reducing stress in one’s life. Again, no prior preparation required.
Practice. Slip in the practice. Rinse. Repeat.
Very few people are able to correctly diagnose the human problem and appreciate the solution which requires viveka, an important qualification and a more or less sorted life. Ofcourse all of us have some viveka, we do know that the washing machine has an expiry date and so does the human body although we are not okay with it.
Other qualities like vairagya, shamadi shatka sampati, mumukshutvam are qualities that are there in all people in small measure. As a part of the study and sadhana these are cultivated. These were covered in episode number 131.
Is there a measuring scale or a test to know how much adhikaritvam is enough? A better question is How much is good enough? We know that the adhikaritvam is good enough when the person gets insights into the vision or rather the vision of Vedanta is clear.
The value for the knowledge is so high that we are willing to do whatever it takes. All the way the journey is pleasant.
Further if we are objective about ourselves we know the areas we need to work on.
So whether the mind is bored or has gone into a hibernation like lull or is distracted or is not clear about the pursuit, there is always a way out including reaching out to a teacher for guidance, like the questioner just did.
However the mind reacts, you are the Atma, the unchanging consciousness that illumines the mind.
