Mr Nice Guy

A few years ago I was facilitating a session at Kings College London entitled 'Why do bad things happen to good people?' I could see someone in the crowd itching to speak. I gave her the opportunity. "I just want to help others and serve humanity - that is my religion” she said. “If I don't believe in God does that mean I can't be a good person?" It was a sticky situation, especially given the emotion with which she expressed her position. I didn't want to come across judgemental, but shared a few simple thoughts with her.

- To be a good person means to do something beneficial for others
- In order to benefit someone, we need to know something about them - we have to understand what they need
- Until we come to the point of understanding the real self, we cannot understand the real needs of a person
- Self realisation necessitates God realisation - since the soul ultimately comes from God, how can we understand the self if we have no concept of its source?

Even though we may have the best motivations in the world, if we lack knowledge we'll be limited in our attempts to help others. I may desire to help people medically, but if I don't take the time to study medicine my best intentions may be a threat to society. Similarly, we may want to alleviate peoples suffering, but until we understand the root cause of the problems, our best efforts will still be frustrated. The greatest need in society is 'good people' - compassionate, knowledgeable & spiritually realised.

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Principles of freedom

One of our guru's was once asked - "what do you have to give up to become a monk?". He immediately replied "just give up suffering!" It really was spot on. The monastic life is a simple, sublime and happy life, free of worry and anxiety.

That’s not to say, however, that there is no strictness. As monks we refrain from intoxication, meat eating, gambling, and maintain vows of celibacy. These principles liberate one from the dictates of the mind and senses, and allow one to function on the level of spiritual inspiration. Far from limiting the person, such principles help the person to develop a higher consciousness and awareness, enabling them to really exercise free will in the consumerist world we live in.

If a man was jumping off a cliff and a friend demanded "DON'T jump!" - that friendly advice (restrictive as it may sound) would significantly affect the man’s ability to exercise free will in the future. Restriction is not opposed to a freedom. Accepting vows of restraint do not obliterate one’s opportunities for happiness, but instead open up a whole new realm to discover.

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Just Be yourself...

Someone I know recently started a new job. "I have to put on such an act with my new colleagues" he complained, "The best time of the day is when I get back home – I can just be myself again!" We all have this experience. We feel happiest with our closest friends and family - where there is no artificiality, no acting, no masks. We can just relax and freely express ourselves.

The foundational teaching of all Vedic philosophy is that our identity goes beyond this physical body and all the designations that go with it. The Bhagavad-gita repeatedly stresses how we are eternal spirit souls entangled in a temporary machine, in a temporary situation. All anxieties, all fears, all dissatisfaction comes because we identify with the temporary machine we are using. Imagine the satisfaction, happiness, and sense of fulfilment we can experience if we realise who we really are... spirit souls. That’s the ultimate in 'being yourself'.

"All the world's a stage, And all the men and women merely players"
- Shakespeare

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Tolerate provocation

In war times the Germans would suspect that English spies had entered their camp and were leaking information. They would use a trick to expose the intruder. The suspect would be manoeuvred into a situation where their finger got jammed in the door. In that excruciating pain they would shout to the heavens... but in their mother tongue! Their real affiliations became immediately apparent.

In the same way, provoking circumstances in life reveal our true character. We see great personalities like Jesus Christ, who, even when mercilessly tortured, begged for the Lords mercy on the perpetrators, humbly submitting "please forgive them - they do not know". In the Vedic scriptures we find the story of Haridas Thakur, a great saintly devotee of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, who was beaten for the practice of his faith, yet remained peaceful, equipoised, and incredibly devoted to God. One's greatness is truly measured by their ability to tolerate provoking circumstances.

The single biggest philosophical argument (and emotional disposition) accounting for atheism, is the problem of evil and the reality of day-to-day suffering. Ancient The Vedas deal with these live issues and provide insight into how such 'suffering' is actually a vital part of one’s character development and spiritual growth. Suffering is viewed from a much broader perspective than the immediate cause and effect, and thus one is able to make a much more mature judgement on it. An easy life may not be the most rewarding life... an easy life may not be the most fulfilling life... and most importantly, an easy life may not be the life where we discover real happiness beyond the temporary illusion.

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A Good Bet

You may have heard of 'Pascals wager'. The French philosopher’s stance doesn't necessarily prove anything, but it’s definitely food for thought. As a philosopher who was surrounded by scepticism and disbelief, he approached the question of God in a slightly different way. Starting with the premise that we can never really be sure of God’s existence, he went on to analyse the various options that stand before us.

If the followers of God continue living a life which ultimately makes them happy in this world, then even if it turns out that the God concept is simply a myth, they haven’t lost anything. If the purpose of life was simply to 'have a good time', then they achieved it. However, if God did turn out to be a reality then they did really well! The possibilities for the theist: “No loss” or “Eternal Gain”.

On the other hand, the nonbeliever, according to Pascal, is in a slightly more precarious position. If life was simply a one time show, then there is no extra gain. The theist was happy in his life, and so was the atheist. However, if God was a reality then his existence would surely take a turn for the worse. The possibilities for the atheist: “No gain” or “Eternal Loss”.

Pascal posits that a person should "wager" as though God exists, because so living has everything to gain, and nothing to lose. Not everyone will agree, but it is an interesting position...

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Dead End

“I know that everyone has to die, but I was hoping an exception could be made in my case!” - Leo Tolstoy
Imagine your office building was burning down and while everyone was running to escape, a colleague was sitting at his desk happily checking his emails, sipping a hot coffee and flicking through yesterday’s football news. You'd wonder whether that person was actually tuned into reality.

To think about death is actually a requirement to being considered sane. There are a few REAL problems in this world: situations that NOBODY wants, but situations that EVERYONE will experience: disease, old age, and ultimately death. People in Latin America would hang skulls in their houses to remind themselves. Yogis in India would meditate on the banks of the Ganges where open-pyre funerals were taking place. The Chinese coined the maxim "Life is like a game of chess... the king, the queen or the pawn - they all end up in the box at the end of the game".

A recent study showed that 72% of people who died last year never wrote a will. Maybe they never thought their time was coming, or maybe they just didn’t want to entertain the thought. Thinking about death... maybe we don't do it enough. If we did, it would certainly make us think a bit deeper about life.

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Building castles in the sand

Every week I witness thousands of people come to the temple from faraway places. They stand in front of the temple shrine and with folded hands make their heartfelt prayer to God. I often wonder what they are actually praying for. Good health? Wealth and prosperity? Success in exams and career? Many of us may have made these prayers in our own lives. Many of us still do. However, are these the best things we can petition God for?

A great saintly king from thousands of years ago compared such material benefits to broken glass. Firstly, broken glass is completely useless. Will our material aspirations really bring us the peace, satisfaction and happiness that we are longing for? Nobody can deny the temporary comfort and pleasure they provide us, but in the ultimate sense they fall short. Secondly, broken glass can be extremely dangerous. In the same way, material aspirations can dominate our time, energy and resources. In the frantic pursuit for these goals we are diverted from our real purpose and actual source of happiness.

Can we afford to spend our valuable lives building castles in the sand? Castles that will inevitably be washed away by the indiscriminate waves of time...

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Smiling faces... Crying hearts...

In my youth I remember watching programmes like Children in Need, and seeing the daily suffering of people in this world. Famine, war, disability and disease - they were all heart-wrenching scenes. It had a huge effect on me. A tear would come to my eye, and I would feel quite guilty about the comfort and wealth in my own life. I wanted to do something to help these people... but what could I do? After all I was just a kid.

The ancient scriptures categorise suffering into three divisions: sufferings from nature, sufferings from other living beings and sufferings from one’s own body and mind. As the years have passed, I have now learnt that suffering is not just something that takes place on the other side of the world, but is something which pervades the lives of everyone living in this cruel world. Sometimes its strikingly obvious, and at other times it may be a case of ‘smiling faces, crying hearts.’

Just 5 days ago, I was distributing books in Leicester city centre with my partner for the month, Jigar Shah. It was late in the day and as Jigar turned around he stopped a young man who looked a little scruffy and disillusioned. As they spoke, he revealed his dissatisfaction with life and how he had failed in everything he endeavoured for. He told us he had come to a conclusion... today he wanted to commit suicide. He was convinced that there was nothing left for him in this world. We discussed whether success was simply the achievement of worldly objectives, or whether there was something more to strive for in life. We discussed everything he could be grateful for, and the wonderful opportunities available to him. Seeing some light at the end of the tunnel he happily took a book and walked away with some spiritual inspiration.

Two days later in Nottingham, I met a young university fresher. Although the son of a millionaire, he revealed his life frustrations to me, and the fear of an impending imprisonment for a gun crime. He confided... "I want to commit suicide". Again, we discussed the alternatives, and how there were solutions for all his problems. After an hour of discussion, he also received a transcendental book as a beacon of hope and walked away promising to contact me after reading it. Yes... smiling faces, but crying hearts... maybe we are searching for the right thing in the wrong place...

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