ON DETACHMENT by A. Parthasarathy
“The world fluctuates between fortune and misfortune, pleasure and pain, joy and sorrow, etc. They are an inevitable part of human life. However, a human being is provided with the expertise to maintain intellectual equipoise and mental equanimity in and through the worldly fluctuation and variation. That pose one takes in life is the exalted state of detachment, renunciation. That in truth marks the dignity and prestige of the human race. Unfortunately, this unique distinction of detachment, renunciation is misconstrued, abhorred by the society at large as something repugnant. The magnificence of renunciation has been transformed into an ugly caricature of retirement and resignation. It is envisaged by the general public as escapism from the stark realities of life. And living as a mere recluse. This is far from the truth. In fact, renunciation has to be practiced at home, at work, in the marketplace in every day life. It gives you the energy to work without worry and anxiety and maintain harmony in your relationship with the family. Humanity has failed to understand the virtue of detachment, renunciation. The glorious stance in one’s life which is a human prerogative. A result accruing from his understanding and identifying
“Detachment follows the growth of an
individual into the higher aspect of life. “ with a higher echelon of life. Thus when he is attached to the higher he automatically gets detached from the lower. Detachment follows the growth of an individual into the higher aspect of life. In fact, one cannot detach from anything unless one is attached to something higher. Few realize that detachment is an effect and not a cause. Like
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a person climbing a ladder cannot release his foot from the lower rung until his foot firmly rests on the higher rung. Hence your state of detachment only establishes your escalation to a higher level of your personality. This trend of attachment and detachment is clearly perceptible in your personal growth. When you were a child you were totally engrossed, attached to the toy world. Your life revolved around playthings. There is no way that the child in you could have stayed detached from, renounced those toys and trinkets. No sooner you grew into a teenager you gained a higher level of knowledge and understanding. You enjoyed riding a motorbike. You grew out of the
“your state of detachment only establishes your escalation to a higher level of your personality. “ toy world. In truth you did not give up the toys; the toys gave you up. That is said to be detachment. Thus as you reach higher echelons of life the lower falls up. You cannot give up anything in life. You can only take up something higher. Grow into higher values. As a result the lower gives way. When a flower matures into a fruit the petals of the flower drop.” Excerpt from The Holocaust of Attachment by Swami A. Parthasarathy, pg. 109-111 The text from which this excerpt is taken, is taught by Vedanta Institute LA every Monday evening in the Pacific Palisades. VILA offers ongoing study classes and workshops in Vedanta Philosophy throughout Los Angeles. If you are interested in attending a Vedanta Study Class, please e-mail info@vedantala.org There will be a Vedanta Retreat in Malibu on December 5th. For more information please visit vedantala.org/events/communiown.