Which is more helpful on the spiritual path – intelligence or inclination?
Answer Podcast
Transcript
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Hare Krishna question what helps a sadhaka better on the spiritual journey intelligence or inclination answer the two are not necessarily different by our intelligence our spiritual inclination can be strengthened and by our inclination our spiritual intelligence can be sharpened Krishna says in the Bhagavad Gita in 3.43 in the Bhagavad Gita he states with intelligence knowing that you are spiritual knowing that you are transcendental situate yourself on the spiritual platform so what this means is Krishna is urging us to use our intelligence so now some people may have a spiritual inclination to know what to want to know what is beyond the usual trappings of success wealth and sex and power and prestige is there something more to life such people who have this inclination that is Brahma Jigna inclination for spiritual inquiry they are fortunate and Ramacharya in his commentary to the Vedanta Sutra is the first sutra of the Vedanta Sutra and both Ramacharya and Madhavacharya give elaborate commentaries on this verse and they analyze the various causes why some people have the inclination for Brahma Jigna and others don’t and the essential answer that they come up with is they give variety of answers but various answers they say it’s the lord’s mercy it is what one has cultivated one has practiced spiritual life in a previous life or one is surrounded by people who have spiritual inclination especially in one’s childhood but either way the point is that inclination if we have which makes us look for spirituality that is a sign of fortune but we can’t let our spiritual life rest merely on the inclination because whether we have spiritual inclination or not we have to face material destruction we have to die and we have to we have to continue the cycle of birth and death even if we don’t believe in reincarnation still certainly whatever we achieve materially is going to be destroyed so it is natural for intelligent human beings to think about is there something more to life than something that is anyway going to be rendered futile at the time of death so such inquiry is vital for intelligent people so even if one does not have an inclination one can by using one’s intelligence start inquiring and as we inquire we discover a wealth of wisdom that is available in the spiritual direction through the scriptures of the world and especially Vedic scriptures because they have a vast body of knowledge about the spiritual realm about reincarnation about higher spiritual reality and that is both intellectually and emotionally satisfying and also spiritually uplifting so whether we have intelligence or inclination or whether we have either intelligence or inclination still we need to move onwards in our spiritual life in our spiritual quest now which is better actually inclination is something which is more innate something which is natural whereas intelligence is often something which is more conscious which is more cultivated so we deliberate in a subject and then we decide using our intelligence to do a particular thing whereas when we have inclination naturally spontaneously we move towards that thing so if somebody has an inclination towards spirituality that is fortunate but even such a person who has inclination has to use the intelligence because otherwise even in the name of spirituality there are so many paths that are available today and many of those paths don’t actually lead to spiritual advancement so even with inclination one has to use one’s intelligence to discern the right path and move onwards in that path and so in that sense we could say that one who has the inclination is fortunate but one who has the inclination will also strive to use the intelligence and strengthen the intelligence and even if one does not have an inclination still by using one’s intelligence one can inquire about spirituality and as we inquire more gradually as we taste the peace and the bliss of spirituality as our life becomes enriched with meaning the inclination will also develop so the important point is that yes inclination is in one sense better than intelligence because inclination is internal spontaneous it is not so consciously cultivated but it is more automatic whereas intelligence is more of conscious deliberation and decision but whatever we have we should stake off in the spiritual path and whatever we don’t have will be provided eventually. Thank you.
Hare Krishna.