How can we regulate our material wants in our spiritual life?

Answer Podcast

Transcript

This is an AI-generated transcript and may contain some errors.
So how do we regulate determine how to regulate our wants, how to balance between pursuing material progress and then focusing on spiritual growth. Usually there is balance that comes organically through experience. That is the balance that lasts.
If somebody else gives me a formula for balance, it doesn’t work. So I have to learn what works best for me and balance also is dynamic. Like if say somebody is riding a bike.
The normal balance state of the bike is the vertical state. Bike is vertical and it is moving on. But if they want to turn right then the vertical state is not the balance state.
At that time they have to be tilted right. Then they move towards the right. But after they have moved towards the right, if they still stay tilted then they will go around in a circle.
So then if now they want to go left, then they have to tilt towards the left. So that means if the vehicle is moving the balance state is not a static balance. It is a dynamic balance.
So when I am going straight, the vertical state is the balance state. When I am going right, the right tilted is the balance state. When I am going left, the left tilted is the balance state.
What is the balance can also change. Now the broad principle is that all of us ultimately have to make an individual choice to move closer to Krishna. And while moving closer to Krishna whatever material things we have different people have maybe have been born with different levels of material comforts.
For example, traditionally it is a simple living, we talk about it. But if somebody decides to go now and live in villages or live in an eco-friendly community or live in a rural setting then we find that simple living is not so simple. To live without technology, to live without comforts, may be very difficult.
So just as there the simple living we may find it very difficult. But when we come to a city and we have some basic level of comforts, basic level of utilities, then we feel comfortable to practice our life. So it’s for every individual to decide themselves you know, how much is the level of material material progress or material growth they can pursue in a harmonious way.
Again this is like eating. Nobody else can tell me how much I should eat. I eat and sometimes it’s too much, sometimes it’s too less.
And then we balance. But usually the chances of eating too less are very less. Most often the tendency is to over eat.
Same applies to the material-spiritual balance. There is a tendency of becoming too austere or becoming too negligent about material life that is quite less. Tendency to overdo material life is more.
But if we consider the various units of our life, I have my job, I have my family, I have my bhakti. How can I pursue all of them properly? In Mahabharata when Narad Muni comes to meet Yudhishthira, so at that time Yudhishthira asks for some instructions. Actually Narad Muni asks questions to Yudhishthira.
What is the question he asks him? That he says you should seek a balance of Dharma, Artha and Kama. Don’t pursue Dharma at the expense of Artha and Kama. Don’t pursue Artha at the expense of Dharma and Kama.
And don’t pursue Kama at the expense of Dharma and Artha. So householder life means all these three are there. Dharma, Artha, Kama have to be balanced.
Kama is not just if the Bhagavad Gita uses the word Kama, it is not just sensual desire. Kama is holistic, is material well-being basically. Krishna also talks, Bhagavatam also talks about sarva-kama-dugha-mahini that the earth is the fulfiller of all desires.
That is, there is desire, Kama is used in terms of material needs. The earth provides for our material needs. So we could say Dharma refers to our bhakti, Artha refers to our job, Kama refers to our family.
Dharma, Artha, Kama, all three need to be balanced. So sometimes in certain situations one may be more. Sometimes our job has a lot of deadlines.
We may increase that more. Sometimes maybe there is a festival in the temple or we go for a yatra. At that time the bhakti becomes more.
At other times we may have some family necessities, there is a pregnancy in the family, there is some health crisis in the family or there are some other needs. So at that time the family aspect may become more. So this will vary.
So if we have a contemporary circumstances that vary, but if we understand that I need to grow in all these three aspects of my life. Now Dharma, Artha, Kama, the wonderful thing about bhakti is that normally Dharma, Artha, Kama and Arthi, three are separate. But bhakti underlies all of them.
Now our Artha is also we don’t just see as Artha, we see that Artha is Lakshmi. This is Lakshmi Devi. She is here and I am going to use the resources that I have in Krishna’s service.
My home is like a temple. And I am using this to decorate the temple, to take care of the temple. Kama, we see my family is not just my family.
These are Krishna’s children. These are Krishna’s family members. They are in my care.
Let me take care of them. So that way we can spiritualize all these three. So if we understand that I need to grow in all these things, not just in one of them.
Then which to focus on at what time, that will vary. And there has to be some basic level of practice of bhakti always. But beyond that, sometimes we can do bhakti more, sometimes we may have to pursue our job or career more.
Sometimes we may have to focus more on family. That is what I meant by dynamic balance. Sometimes I have to tilt left, sometimes I have to tilt right.
So overall, if we periodically look back at our life, after a month, what did I do in the last month? Maybe I did not do adequate bhakti in this life. I got too caught up in this. Then next life I can make some course correction.
Next month I can make some course correction. That way, if we have this broad understanding that these are the three aspects of my life in which I have to move on, then which to focus on more, we can learn through experience. Does that answer your question? Thank you.