Wednesday, March 17, 2010
Sutapa das
Ever been in a dilemma? Making decisions can be a painstaking process. In the first chapter of the Bhagavad-gita, Arjuna makes the decision not to fight the battle. His line of thinking is as follows. He fears that if he kills elders, the family tradition will be vanquished. This will cause a rise in irreligion and in particular a neglectful attitude towards the protection of women. The subsequent promiscuity will result in ‘unplanned’ children being born into unstable family situations without proper care and support. These children will unfortunately create disturbances in society, which will perpetuate the situation and gradually lead to social degredation and mayhem. When I read that I thought ‘wow!’ I don’t think I've ever considered the ramifications of any life-decision that deeply and thoroughly!Arjuna doesn’t simply think about what will happen in his time, but what will happen for thousands of years after he is gone. He doesn’t simply think abut how it will affect the happiness of his own family, but considers the ramifications for the entire society. He doesn’t simply think about the economic and social ramifications of his decision, but considers the spiritual ramifications on himself and others. Arjuna was definitely a deep thinker.
This is the incredible consideration that goes into the decisions of a spiritualist. They don’t act in a whimsical and self-centred way. Decisions are taken with great consideration and reflection. As the poet Dunn once said – no man is a social island. All of our actions and decisions affect others. The spiritualist knows the art of making the right life decisions so as to have the most positive impact on the world, as well as his own progressive spiritual journey. Decision-making requires great clarity, and such clarity comes from discussion and contemplation. As the French moralist Joubert remarked, “It’s better to debate a question without settling it than to settle a question without debating it”
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