Is Spirituality Crippling You?
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I have known Mrs. Roy for quite a long time. I think it was 5 years ago when I first saw her at a spiritual discourse session in Shimla. The memory of her first sight is still afresh in my mind. Her charisma would easily take away anyone’s attention even from a distant. A lady in her early 40s with a glow of a mother and a command of an army officer. She seemed to be the manager of the entire event. It was amazing to see the gentleness with which she welcomed the guests to the discourse and the precision with which she kept an eye on every detail.
Since then, she has been my guiding light on the spiritual path. A mother of two and a businesswoman, she is a highly active meditation and yoga teacher. Her weekends are spent in teaching meditation to people of all ages, conducting counseling sessions for teenagers, and relationship advice to married couples. I fell in love with her for obvious reasons. The then young me in the third year of my college degree was looking out for someone who can help me handle exam failure depressions, future anxieties, and answer my all sorts of weird questions on the planet. For the young, knowledgeable, intellectual, and ambitious me, she was wise, mature, and full of wisdom.
I remember how eager I was to learn meditation, for I wanted to reach enlightenment and grab it all. I used to ask her about the special techniques that can invoke great power and knowledge in me. But she knew how to handle a kid like me. She not only initiated me into this path but took great care that I maintained a good balance between my career and spiritual path. I always argued with her about the need of career and money when one is already on the path. And every time I had this question, she used to teach me a new meditation technique and ask me to practice it for next 15 days. With a regular practice of these techniques, the aggression in me had taken a back seat and clarity took the driver’s seat. But the path of spirituality is also dangerous as much as it is charming. And that is what Mrs. Roy had always told me-Radhika, have a big goal in your life and keep working towards that. While I always had the mindset of an achiever, I started feeling it was futile to work hard when everything is temporary. At times, when your goal seems tough to achieve, you begin using spiritual knowledge as a weapon to shield yourself. I began organizing spiritual workshops and started reaching out to people in need. This continued till six months after my graduation.
My parents were, of course, unhappy to find me spending all my time and energy in spiritual workshops. But Mrs. Roy again knew how to get me back on the track. Undoubtedly, meditation is a beautiful way to honor the entire creation, worship the creator, and handle your mind. But the lack of proper guidance can cripple you on this path.
One day while arguing about the use of career and money for life, Mrs. Roy came up with these questions to me-What will you do even after you have achieved enlightenment and all the knowledge on the path? What will you do with all the good energy you carry after your meditation? Even if you intend to become a spiritual teacher, where will you bring all the resources from without a good career? When you already know the techniques, why don’t you use it to do all the best things possible on the planet?
I was totally clueless about the answers. Although she used some harsh words, there was not even a slight change in the tone of her voice and expression of her face.
Why the hell on earth does she need to teach me all these meditation practices and then one day ask me to do all those things which other people are doing? Money, career, and job-This wasn’t the purpose of spending two years into meditation.
After this, half-heartedly, I moved to a new city and started working with a startup firm. My meditation practices hadn’t left me. But I had developed a distance with Mrs. Roy. However, she maintained the communication between us and ensured I was doing well in my job.
The year 2006 turned out to be horrific for Mrs. Roy. She witnessed the death of her husband and huge losses in her business. I was there with her in all that time helping her with whatever I could. There were people who sympathized with her and there were others who simply threw tantrums at her for the business losses. But this lady didn’t fire back at anybody instead met them all with the same serenity and calmness she always had. Amidst of a huge storm in her life, she continued with her daily spiritual practices, looked after her daughters properly, and also handled the business with great enthusiasm. It took her not more than 3 months to get her life back on track. This incident turned to be an eye-opener for me too.
Once at a dinner party, she said,”Radhika, hope you have found answers to all your questions which you troubled me with five years ago”. I was surprised that she remembered them all.
She said, “It is the power of meditation and my faith that helped me sail across during such a tough time. I cannot simply give up my business and only teach these meditation programs for I have to bring up my daughters. Also, I cannot be so much indulged into my business that I don’t pay attention to my home at all”.
She continued, “This is what the purpose of prayers and practices is,” they give you all the strength to bear the trouble yet outshine in your life. Lord Krishna was a great yogi and could foresee everything yet he traveled, fought, took charge of a great empire, and lived like a king. And that’s why people take inspiration from HIS life today”.
“Everything in the world will change, transform, and end one day. But that doesn’t stop the nature from creating new things. Don’t let the path of spirituality cripple you and the life of all others around you. Let it help you to blossom from inside-out so that you can uplift things around you. This is how nature works. Everything in the universe moves from one level of perfection to another. If you cease to grow beyond your comfort zones and present situations, the world shall cease for you to exist”.
How can she dress up and move in the society like that after the death of her husband, this was the comment we heard from a group of ladies in the back of her conversation. And Mrs. Roy added with a big smile, “meditation can definitely save your mind from such things”.
Today, Mrs. Roy has successfully expanded her gems and jewelry business to 5 more cities. She continues to teach meditation and has opened a new center as well. Her elder daughter is an English professor at a reputed University and the younger one is pursuing Law.
With her inspiration and the right guidance, I continued to work for three years along with which I completed my Masters in English, and now work as a professional blogger. I continue to look for new opportunities to learn and grow in my career. And yes, I continue to meditate and use my energy for achieving my career and other goals. The immature Radhika has now grown into a sensible, mature woman who knows how to walk the path of spirituality for the benefit of herself and others.
PS: This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, locales, and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.
PPS: Based on a true story!
Originally published at Srishti Moudgil’s personal blog.
