To understand this first we need to know what kind of freedom we are talking about?
As far as our birth is concerned we have no freedom of choice and also we are unable to know how and when we are going die so that we can fulfill our desires or the pending tasks that we have on hand.
All of us, starting from the time we are born till our death, have to go through several physical and mental transformations at various stages of our life from a child to an adolescent teenager to come to an adult stage. As per our Karma(vasana) we decide the direction of our journey in this world and if one succeeds and gets established the natural human urge is to get married. Most of us succeed in becoming a parent to go on till we attain an old age.
We get lot of training and advice but then the qualification of becoming a parent is nothing but trial and error in life. Again the success here depends on your past Karma and also the child that comes into your life. Oh' let us not forget our female partner is also a part of our joint venture in the progression of Karma!
The last phase of our life is the most illustrious period because we finally find time to contemplate albeit at a very late stage of our life all that we have done right or wrong in the past.
All of us, starting from the time we are born till our death, have to go through several physical and mental transformations at various stages of our life from a child to an adolescent teenager to come to an adult stage. As per our Karma(vasana) we decide the direction of our journey in this world and if one succeeds and gets established the natural human urge is to get married. Most of us succeed in becoming a parent to go on till we attain an old age.
We get lot of training and advice but then the qualification of becoming a parent is nothing but trial and error in life. Again the success here depends on your past Karma and also the child that comes into your life. Oh' let us not forget our female partner is also a part of our joint venture in the progression of Karma!
The last phase of our life is the most illustrious period because we finally find time to contemplate albeit at a very late stage of our life all that we have done right or wrong in the past.
After we go through all the above phases finally ‘death’ arrives and the human body useful once upon a time has no more value the moment the brain or the heart stops. There are many known cases where people exist but their life has no meaning in spite of their heart and the brain functioning because their conscious ‘mind’ is not operative.
It is also possible that for some old people despite having no major health issues attach no value to their last phase of life because they feel either insecure or feel their life has no further objectives. Either they feel there is nothing further to be done or some feel fully done and some feel too tired and exhausted to get interested to go any further!
It is also possible that for some old people despite having no major health issues attach no value to their last phase of life because they feel either insecure or feel their life has no further objectives. Either they feel there is nothing further to be done or some feel fully done and some feel too tired and exhausted to get interested to go any further!
However one needs to learn to appreciate that life has many transitions from one stage to another new stage during which we experience a lot of things and confront different situations over which we don’t have complete control though we try our best to take control. There are good as well as bad phases.
Every human being has to suffer when passing through a painful situation and feels happy and excited when the situation gives pleasure.
All of us always fear disease though we cannot avoid being sick and at some point or other we lose the near and dear ones which leave a big vacuum in our life.
Every human being has to suffer when passing through a painful situation and feels happy and excited when the situation gives pleasure.
All of us always fear disease though we cannot avoid being sick and at some point or other we lose the near and dear ones which leave a big vacuum in our life.
The only gold medal which we have with us is the ‘knowledge’ which we acquire during our lifetime and through our intellect we could only make the best use of it in order to gain ‘wisdom’. We use our knowledge and experiences to take so many decisions in our life some are good and some are bad and the ultimate outcome of all these cumulative decisions is what we call ‘wisdom’.
We think we are in control of our ‘mind’ but the real fact is, it is the other way around because most of the time we are controlled by the monster mind!
One of the greatest mystery and the craziest thing is ‘mind’ which dominates all the time like a 'dictator'. Unfortunately, we are always driven to either talk or act based on what our mind feels or thinks and sometimes there are wild fluctuations of thoughts and we invariably get stressed or pressed very hard to take certain decisions to fulfill our ‘desires’ that erupt inside this internal monster.
One of the greatest mystery and the craziest thing is ‘mind’ which dominates all the time like a 'dictator'. Unfortunately, we are always driven to either talk or act based on what our mind feels or thinks and sometimes there are wild fluctuations of thoughts and we invariably get stressed or pressed very hard to take certain decisions to fulfill our ‘desires’ that erupt inside this internal monster.
"Desire" is an inherent nature of a human being who has Ego (I) which drives (moves) a person towards fulfilling their ‘needs’ and ‘wants’.
The word ‘emotion’ has been derived by combining the word ‘I’ and ‘motion’ which clearly indicates why ‘desire’ is such a dominating force in our life because it is the ‘ego’ which traumatizes the person because of the constant activity inside the wavering mind which tampers the 'ego' all the time wanting to be one up.
The word ‘emotion’ has been derived by combining the word ‘I’ and ‘motion’ which clearly indicates why ‘desire’ is such a dominating force in our life because it is the ‘ego’ which traumatizes the person because of the constant activity inside the wavering mind which tampers the 'ego' all the time wanting to be one up.
But then 'desires' also has categories because one is ‘primary’ and the other which is ‘secondary’. The simplest example to distinguish between the two is the following example.
"A person is hungry and he needs food to satisfy his hunger and so this desire is basically ‘primary’ because the person is hungry but to satisfy his hunger if he searches for a spicy food, this could be considered as secondary".
"A person is hungry and he needs food to satisfy his hunger and so this desire is basically ‘primary’ because the person is hungry but to satisfy his hunger if he searches for a spicy food, this could be considered as secondary".
It is also interesting to note that ‘desire’ has two pathways, one path is ‘physiological’ because our body has basic needs(primary) like breath, thirst, hunger, excretion of waste, sleep and even sex.
All these are built into us as an ‘automatic’ functions right from our birth over which we have minimum control except doing some preventive maintenance like we take care of our house or car by washing, cleaning, repairing and providing fuel or other kinds of energy to keep it going. Therefore these are basic desires which are primary needs and so cannot be avoided.
All these are built into us as an ‘automatic’ functions right from our birth over which we have minimum control except doing some preventive maintenance like we take care of our house or car by washing, cleaning, repairing and providing fuel or other kinds of energy to keep it going. Therefore these are basic desires which are primary needs and so cannot be avoided.
The second path of ‘desire’ comes up through the ‘mind’ which is a part of the human psyche that could be considered not fully automatic but yet automatic like our dream during our sleepover which we have no control.
Luckily dreams are not real and we do not act upon it. However, we daydream many a time if not most of the time and then the sad part is we act sometimes well directed or guided but other times we do 'foolish' things.
I always admit that I am a big fool because I have done so many big mistakes in life, therefore the other fool thinks he or she is better off and so the other person feels happy because he/she think they are wise comparatively 😔
Coming back to categorizing why this second path is termed 'non-automatic' is because our mind is very powerful and one would normally find that it gallops like a wild horse at an undesirable speed but at the same time we all know it is not impossible for humans to not only reduce the speed but also by giving correct guidance and directions to the mind an unpleasant situation could be avoided. Therefore one could control the wavering mind instead of the mind putting compulsions on us and directing us to head on.
Luckily dreams are not real and we do not act upon it. However, we daydream many a time if not most of the time and then the sad part is we act sometimes well directed or guided but other times we do 'foolish' things.
I always admit that I am a big fool because I have done so many big mistakes in life, therefore the other fool thinks he or she is better off and so the other person feels happy because he/she think they are wise comparatively 😔
Coming back to categorizing why this second path is termed 'non-automatic' is because our mind is very powerful and one would normally find that it gallops like a wild horse at an undesirable speed but at the same time we all know it is not impossible for humans to not only reduce the speed but also by giving correct guidance and directions to the mind an unpleasant situation could be avoided. Therefore one could control the wavering mind instead of the mind putting compulsions on us and directing us to head on.
A lot of people talk about ‘self’ but it is nothing but pure consciousness which is different from the 'ego' and this is the one which one has to realize and re-direct the powerful and speeding mind because despite having instincts like an animal species, as human species is known for its extraordinary 'intelligence’, he or she can act given the "conscious willpower" to overcome the wavering mind which acts as a master of the 'ego' state.
Therefore it is possible for us to apply brakes on the speeding mind provided we step aside from the domain called 'ego' and be watchful of the mind that is playing on us most of the time if not all the time.
Therefore it is possible for us to apply brakes on the speeding mind provided we step aside from the domain called 'ego' and be watchful of the mind that is playing on us most of the time if not all the time.
Again Intelligence is of two kinds one is ‘rational intelligence’ and other is the ‘emotional intelligence’(E.I) and humans will not easily agree but the real fact is it is E.I. which is the most dominating and invariably this overpowers rational intelligence despite all our analytical abilities and experiences.
It is because our ‘emotions’ are connected to a powerful control panel called the ‘mind’ and therefore this master panel always tries to program our schedules on most of the occasions.
It is because our ‘emotions’ are connected to a powerful control panel called the ‘mind’ and therefore this master panel always tries to program our schedules on most of the occasions.
Therefore ‘desire’ that comes up from the panel or domain called the 'mind' not only springs up with different programs automatically all the time but also these ‘desires’ never get satiated and it is a sort of an ever ending process which comes up day after day from one aspect of our life to another without any stoppage in the foreseeable future.
Therefore we try to go from strength to strength or run from pillar to post thinking the sky is the limit to fulfill all our desires or we push ourselves as much as possible trying to overcome all the hurdles to achieve our objectives because we are driven by our emotional intelligence most of the times.
Therefore we try to go from strength to strength or run from pillar to post thinking the sky is the limit to fulfill all our desires or we push ourselves as much as possible trying to overcome all the hurdles to achieve our objectives because we are driven by our emotional intelligence most of the times.
FOR ALL OF US 'EMOTIONS' RUN THE SHOW AND THINGS HAPPEN AT A FAST PACE BUT INVARIABLY WE DO NOT USUALLY FIGURE IT OUT AND WE ALL REALIZE IT A BIT LATE AFTER THINGS HAVE ALREADY HAPPENED............AS OUR MIND BUILDS UP THE LIST OF ‘UNFULFILLED DESIRES’ IT THEN TAKES THE FORM OF A PLANT WITH FEW BRANCHES WITH FLOWERS AND FRUITS. SOME OF THEM REMAIN AS UNRIPENED FRUITS AND MANY FLOWERS WITHER OUT WITH TIME. ....................MOST PARTS OF OUR LIVES ARE SPENT PUTTING EFFORTS TO RIPEN THE FRUITS ONE BY ONE AND THIS BECOMES A CONTINUOUS STORY FOR A PRETTY LONG TIME.
As we are very much habituated to watering the 'desire tree' on a regular basis right from our childhood for us to think of stopping the growth of this desire tree for the acquisition of more and more fruits is NOT easy and comfortable though it is not an impossible task but it requires a lot of contemplation and guidance from an evolved person, normally an elderly who has spent a large part of his life have had experienced many things in life.
Let us consider an example of a person who travels long distances and several places across the length and breadth of the country or around the globe meeting different types of people, eating a variety of food, seeing the different architecture and religious followings at different places and finally gets the feeling that he or she has nothing more to yearn for because of the vast reservoir of experiences and the enlightenment he or she gets from observing and understanding such a variety of life. This is just one example of satisfying the ‘desire’ to travel and see places meeting with different types of people and enjoying eating to one's heart content. This person at least will not have the desire to travel or seeking outside for pleasure.
Similarly if one is able to fulfill the ‘self’ with certain aspirations in life and feel happy and satisfied that he or she does not need to pursue unnecessarily for more by inflicting or putting pressure on self to aspire for more, this would be an ideal situation.
However in today’s world of consumerism and the parent’s inability to spend quality time with their children and as parents or guardians(elders) are trying to substitute material instead of spending quality time to satisfy their children’s mind, this is proving to be more of a problem rather than a remedy.
This idea of materialism right from the childhood is only causing plenty of difficult situations when the youngster grows up and their value system towards life and humans, in particular, gets diminished day by day. The reasons could be that the elders are not in touch with children long enough to make the immature ones understand or get enough wisdom during their growing period.
However in today’s world of consumerism and the parent’s inability to spend quality time with their children and as parents or guardians(elders) are trying to substitute material instead of spending quality time to satisfy their children’s mind, this is proving to be more of a problem rather than a remedy.
This idea of materialism right from the childhood is only causing plenty of difficult situations when the youngster grows up and their value system towards life and humans, in particular, gets diminished day by day. The reasons could be that the elders are not in touch with children long enough to make the immature ones understand or get enough wisdom during their growing period.
As life is a continuum even elders are to be blamed because they are always busy in their material world unable to upgrade themselves spiritually due to lack of proper understanding of life’s journey from a some realistic person(spiritual) who has achieved enough wisdom!
In reality today’s problem mainly arises because most of the youngsters do not know what they really need and usually they put themselves through different paths and by the process of elimination or sometimes struggles are able to finally get into their groove but some people are still unsure whether they have achieved what they are capable of or what they really wanted.
During olden times there were not too many opportunities and therefore choices were limited and people used to have some basic or simple objectives in life. In olden days one used to feel happy with what they have done all through life. Only a very few would daringly venture outside their comfort zone (surroundings or existing positions) to fulfill their bigger dreams.
In the current context, however, it is the problem of plenty and wider choices which makes things more difficult. This is like trying to identify a bird where there are too many beautiful birds sitting on the branches and therefore this is not an easy task to make the choice. To add to the problem is that many individuals are unable to decide or focus on what their real objectives are so that in the long run they get satisfied with what they have chosen or what they are currently doing.
Due to these peculiar circumstances people do make quick choices and feel contented but only for a short time and so they are always constantly looking around and so the mind is always restless. The tragedy is people have lost the habit of sitting down and thinking for a greater span of time which is necessary to arrive at a proper or appropriate conclusion and due to this arises the inability to correctly weigh the pros and cons.
Because of the above reason the feeling of discontentment and unhappiness does surface time and again either lamenting about their failures or being unlucky or lack of encouragement or due to the compulsion of other people or due to sacrifices one might have to do for the sake of their near or dear ones because of the half-hearted and hastily taken decisions.
Because of the above reason the feeling of discontentment and unhappiness does surface time and again either lamenting about their failures or being unlucky or lack of encouragement or due to the compulsion of other people or due to sacrifices one might have to do for the sake of their near or dear ones because of the half-hearted and hastily taken decisions.
Therefore the crux lies in the truth of matters concerning one ‘self’ and in no way one could find it easy to cheat the ‘self’.
Thus, one is unable to free himself or herself from this undesirable “internal conflict”. If a person is able to 'free' himself or herself from this internal dissatisfaction(having no further expectations) this will be the first step towards the gradual path toward the final goal that takes one towards achieving ‘Mukti’ but the process of contemplation has to begin right in the preliminary stages and not towards the last part of life's journey.
For more details on spiritual aspects of life please go to
https://www.amazon.com/Jonathans-Journey-Bonding-Science-Spirituality/
OR
https://notionpress.com/read/jonathan-s-journey
For more details on spiritual aspects of life please go to
https://www.amazon.com/Jonathans-Journey-Bonding-Science-Spirituality/
OR
https://notionpress.com/read/jonathan-s-journey
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