191. Being Spiritual




Krishna says, “Humility, simplicity, harmlessness, forgiveness, uprightness, service of the preceptor, purity, steadfastness, self-control (13.8); dispassion (vairagya) towards sense-objects, absence of ahankaar (I am doer), perception of birth, death, old age and pain as flawed (13.9); non-attachment, non-infatuation with children, spouse or residences, eternal equanimity towards desirable and undesirable circumstances (13.10). Unwavering devotion to Me through yoga of devotion (bhakti), comfortable with self, away from gossip of crowds (13.11); perseverance in self-knowledge, perceiving the absolute truth (tattva jnana)- This is declared to be knowledge, what is opposed to this is ignorance” (13.12).

A point to be noted is that some of these are about the self and the rest are about our relationship with the external world. Secondly, these can be considered as virtues conducive to attaining self-knowledge.

Anyone suffering from the disease of ‘I am superior’, is likely to perceive humility as weakness. But Krishna keeps humility as the beginning point of knowledge. Humility is neither weakness nor helplessness, but a way of aligning with the all-powerful existence. The absence of ahankaar is also nothing but humility.

Being comfortable with oneself is another aspect of knowledge. This happens when we are centred in ourselves where we don’t need the crutches of sensual objects and their pleasures. When dispassion (vairagya) towards sense-objects is attained, one is centred in the self even if one is moving in sense-objects or a crowd of people.

Eternal equanimity towards desirable and undesirable circumstances is another aspect of knowledge. We are happy to have favourable circumstances and get stressed when we encounter undesirable ones. Attaining equanimity is the only way to accept both circumstances as the same where these external situations lose their ability to affect us. Internalisation of these twenty aspects of knowledge is moving from the knowledge of spiritual literature to being spiritual.


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