That, you may feel, those who are after "Dharma" or the "Adhyaatma" are running away from the reality; they may seem idiotic to you, that they are loosing the very essence of life, of enjoying it to its fullest extent. And moreover, you may feel they are incapable of enjoying what you can enjoy as a human being- all amusements, modern amenities, love, sex, and so on. This is you do, for, you are aware of only worldly things and what your petty little mind can afford to think of. But if you go deep, delve into the question, you will find the "open sesame" is not of that kind anymore.
Do you know contentment is contented in itself, it doesn't ask for any substitute, nor does it accept any! A wise person will always seek for the thing with which he/she can be contented, satisfied. See one example - take any sweet for that matter or any other dish you would like; if you eat it less it doesn't suffice you would be left unsatisfied, if it's more you feel like omitting it out. You can't find a middle way between those two extremes, for, the gap between them is atomic. So are our all pleasures.
With an eyeball check, it seems that the whole world is after pleasure; but is not actually so if you go into its minute details. More or less in every case when we seek pleasure, we look for satisfaction out of it. In that sense, the kind and quantum of pleasure doesn't matter, but contentment does. That's why it is stated, "contentment doesn't ask for any substitute".
To know these subtleties, it needs a total awareness - of our being, of all that we are doing (physically, mentally), of all causes, effects pertaining to our actions and so on. It doesn't mean that you need to renounce things that currently you are after, but in our travel there has to be some awareness of what we are doing, what is it all about, where we are going. Is it not wiser to understand/aware of what we are doing, to question ourselves whether all this we are doing is worth doing or not. If we are aware of all this, do we not follow the right path; how can one commit mistakes being aware. It's simply impossible.
Then the question becomes why should we do right things.We do understand from our course of life which we are living starting from our birth, all this, all the changes, all the struggle of this whole universe, living or non living are seemingly moving towards some goal, knowingly or unknowingly. If we see anything happening we suppose it must have an end or a goal, or an intention, whatsoever may be the cause. That goal unknown (or the known - as some great people claim to know it) is called "liberation" (ಮುಕ್ತಿ).
And righteousness is the only way to attain it. You must be very sincere, brave to accept the life as it is, to accept the truth. And, how can one being true to himself be untrue to others? It's impossible. That is what our ancestors called "Dharma".
And you may wonder - if, I don't want "liberation" (ಮುಕ್ತಿ) at all, then what?
This question arises, for, we cease to understand the whole thing, we blindfold ourselves from seeing it in its completeness. If we understand - all that we are doing knowingly or unknowingly, all that is happening around us, all this journey of the whole is bound to have a goal, may be finite or infinite doesn't matter, where from, "the question of wanting it or not wanting", comes. If all our longing is towards a goal unknown, why not make it known? What is its use? - Any way we are here, we do many things here. If we know our goal, can we not streamline our efforts in a way to attain the ultimate as soon as possible?
Even after all this, you may put your view point- "when we are offered this wonderful life why not enjoy it, why simply waste our life/efforts in searching these abstract things which we are not sure that they are real or not?" Off course we need to enjoy life, life has to be celebrated, it is a gift that we hadn't sought after; but what's wrong to bring some awareness into what we enjoy, which after all gives an inner sense of what we are doing. Generally when we choose not to be aware, we loose completeness of our experience, and thus our happiness also.
Finally, it is just wiser to be aware of what we are doing, its implications, and its worthiness. Indeed, it's an escape from the reality to be unaware. And a person, who is hesitant to be aware, cannot enjoy life, even though he may on the surface claim to do so
--Shashanka G P
ಶಶಾ೦ಕ ಜಿ. ಪಿ.
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