Question:

My peaceful experiences are not stable, and I am going up and down in my spiritual path, I feel there is no steady growth in my spiritual path. What should I do?

Answer:

The spiritual path is long, it is unknown, and everybody must walk in the dark. It might seem that the Guru is showing you the path. But actually, the knowledge and the Guru are just pointing you in the correct direction. A Guru through his teachings just points you to the North and tells you to walk north; you have to walk the path yourself. Whatever the scriptures describe is always somebody else’s experience and remember that somebody else’s experience is always just a direction and is not the path.

You will have to start paving your OWN path, and this is the bottom line, there is no easy way out if you are looking for one. 

So what does one do, how does one start walking towards the north? After being guided if still the path seems dark, long and forking into a million roads going to the North; how does one start walking? It’s not going to be easy.

Consistent, ceaseless effort is the only answer. Even if someday’s the meditation/practice/knowledge seems to not work for you, you must still keep trudging!

Dynamics of the path – When you start on the path initially you might have good experiences. But after a while, your experience starts vanishing, all the merits of the meditation [peace] that you were experiencing reduce for a while. Why?

This happens because the merits start going through your Karma Exchange account to your ancestors. Gurudev had spoken at length about how we have to pay back our ancestors through the merits we earn through our meditation.  That is why after a while you don’t have the peaceful experiences. But don’t worry this doesn’t last for long, provided you keep going deeper in spirituality!

To go deeper, just meditation is not enough, just knowledge will not work; but both are required together. Keeping a fine balance between the two will help you pave your own path.

Below are few techniques that will help you pave your path.

1. Recognize, “Tamas” –  Tamas is inertia

If you have a certain way of leading your life, there is momentum in the way you are moving. It becomes your habit pattern. If you are stuck to a tamasic habit pattern, you will find it tough to walk the path. You must make an effort to break out of Tamas and keep moving towards being Satvic.

2. Recognize ‘Pramada’

Sometimes we know what we need to do, we know we must apply the  knowledge and meditate regularly, but we are not doing so, this is called. “PRAMADA.”  Pramada means knowing what is right but still not doing it or Pramada means knowing that something is wrong and shouldn’t be done and still doing it. Check if you have this pattern of “Pramada.”

3. Recognize ‘Maaya’

Knowing what is right where knowledge and meditation are concerned, making yourself believe that you don’t know; this is called “Maaya”. You can be stuck in the valley of Maaya for an exceptionally long time if you do not make efforts to get out of it. One must make exceptional efforts, to swim out of the depths of MAAYA and come to the surface of knowledge. Recognize if Maya is your problem.

4.  Recognize ‘Incorrect prioritization’

Knowing what is important, with respect to knowledge and meditation but being unable to give importance it requires; is incorrect prioritization. Spiritual seeking should be the highest priority then only it comes to you. If spirituality is just a hobby for you, you will not experience much progress. If Spirituality is your number ONE priority, you will find yourself making an effort to apply knowledge with all people, situations and things. Even while vacuuming, cooking, office & outdoor activities, if knowledge is on your mind then you are on the correct path. If Knowledge & Meditation is above friends, family, relationships, career/job, name, fame, etc then you are giving it the correct priority. Do a self-check! Have you given your spiritual growth, number 1 priority?  If it’s number 2, you will not experience much progress.

5. Recognize ‘Symptoms of a weak mind’

If you enjoy being enveloped in ignorance and not wanting to do anything about getting out of Maaya, it is a symptom of a disease called ‘weak mindedness’.  If you consider, all this knowledge and meditation as entertainment,  you will never be able to pull yourself to make a sincere effort in meditation/knowledge. You will not see any growth in the spiritual path.

What to do once you recognize your problem?

You must apply “Zabardast Purusharth”.

Zabardast means, extremely intense and ceaseless Purusharth means effort.

It should be endless, incessant and full of zeal and commitment. If your effort lacks in either of these qualities, you will not make progress. I call it Spiritual Research.

Spiritual means ‘of the spirit’. In detail it means;

– everything related to this body in which I am in this Lifetime and

– everything related to this mind; which has led to birth in this body, and

– everything related to the emotions leading to all the dramas happening in my body-mind complex and

– that which is beyond this body-mind-emotion complex.

Research means to actually go within and know yourself at a very minute level and make extremely intense efforts to apply knowledge and do that which is appropriate, to do that which is right and to do that which doesn’t create any Karma.

Start your Spiritual Research now, this is one thing that no one can do for you! No proxies allowed here 🙂