“Be calmly active and actively calm” — Paramahansa Yogananda

Rightful living involves living a balanced and purposeful life. Most of us know that material objects like fancy cars and expensive jewelry do not provide us with lasting joy. We find true happiness within ourselves, when we become the masters of our own minds and not slaves to our erratic desires. It is through tolerance, self-control, calmness, and humility that we will find the true path to ourselves. 

Self-discipline

Without self-control, it’s hard to lead a purposeful life. If we harmonize our will with a guru or free-willed savant, we can direct our energies to the right activities and not to self-defeating habits or blind chance. Will reigns supreme in our functioning; without it we can’t move or think, let alone adhere to the spiritual path toward liberation. Meditation provides the best means for developing our will. 

Physical exercise, eating right, meditation, right attitude…all depend on self-discipline. 

Non-attachment

We don’t necessarily have to give up material things, but selfish attachments to material things. The Bhagavad Gita calls for the renunciation of selfishness in thought, word, and action. When our little ego insists on getting whatever it wants, such selfishness separates us from the rest of life. When we transcend materialism, we break down the barriers that divide us from others. Non-attachment allows us to live freely.

“Don’t define yourself by what you own,” teaches Yogananda. “It is all right to possess, but as soon as we become possessed by our possessions, we give them power to limit us.. The spiritual person can use things without being attached to them, without letting them diminish the universality and freedom of the soul.”

We shouldn’t attach our egos to the people in our lives as well. Expectations and demands of those we love expresses a selfish love that has more to do with fulfilling our personal desires than in truly loving the other person. Letting go is perhaps the greatest act of love, and such an act will actually draw people closer to us.

Finally, we should consider our bodies as very useful instruments that help us to attain our higher purposes in life, but we should not be overly preoccupied or proud of our bodies. We are eternal life, beyond the body, expansive souls without limits.

Proper Behavior Towards Others

We often complain about how others behave and the general state of the world without taking into deep account our own behavior. A little introspection and self-analysis goes a long way in improving the quality of our lives. 

Jesus said, “Thou hypocrite, first cast the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast the mote out of thy brother’s eye.” In other words, before criticizing others, we should repair our own deficiencies of character. 

Are we kind to others? Considerate? Tolerant? Warm and compassionate? The vibrations we send out to others come back to us in myriad ways.

Spiritual Practices

The kingdom of God is within

Some people have highly developed bodies and minds yet are still unhappy. It’s like having a fancy car without an engine: it may be fun to sit in but you aren’t going anywhere. You might think you’re the driver, but you’re not. It is only when you surrender the little ego that you can discover your larger Self connected with all of creation.

Paramahansa Yogananda offers a challenge to those who do not see beyond their separate selves or the physical world around them. Always a proponent of direct experience and intuition, he says don’t take his word for it, nor anybody else’s, but rather find out for yourself. If you sit for 24 hours, he says, in continuous, uninterrupted prayer or deep meditation, the Divine will appear or make Herself known in some way. 

“Seek, and ye shall find,” said Jesus. Buddhism speaks of liberation from the illusion of a separate self. The Quran encourages seekers to observe the natural world as signs of God’s existence and creative power. 

Unfortunately, many have had bad experiences with “Churchianity.” Religious dogma and rigid laws direct people away from seeking a spiritual life, and rightly so. Jesus rebelled greatly against the scribes and Pharisees of his day, calling them hypocrites for showing off their righteousness on the outside, but inside being corrupt, full of robbery and self-indulgence. 

There is no right path to choose as the path to God, other than the path you choose to take through your heart. If your spiritual side is lacking, take time to delve inside, question existence, ponder creation. Read inspirational books or listen to some of the great figures of humanity. The Resources page of this website provides some good places to start looking. If you cry out to God deeply enough and sincerely enough, He will answer.

For those who are already on the spiritual path, keep striving, keep pushing, and then one day…daily introspection and self-analysis offer a quick way to progress in your spiritual development. Finding a community of like-minded souls provides incredible support and friendship. Service to others is a great way of opening your heart. 

Self-realization is the greatest achievement of all. Seek, and ye shall find.     

Post script note: An hour after I finished this entry, this quote came in an email message to me:

“And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.” — Jeremiah

Just another one of those innumerable coincidences…