Let’s Get Real !

Let’s Get Real !

The wise Sages of India and of the world, seem to forgive and tolerate any kind of human being, but they don’t seem to tolerate fake, phony people. I have read several anecdotes in the lives of such Great ones where they seem to have huge aversion to people who put on airs, or pretend to be humble and saintly. They seem to be kinder even to so-called sinners than to the ones who are pretentious or phony. They shower their Grace on everyone equally, but It seems to reach the simple, humble, and sincere devotees quickly and effectively. The simple reason is, the Enlightened Ones abide in the Real Self. And hypocrisy is a direct contradiction to Reality. They are mutually exclusive.  Phoniness is like covering your eyes with your hands; you cannot expect to see the beautiful scenery in front of you.

To believe or to give the impression to others that we are spiritually elevated just by throwing out some unusual, half-baked cosmic terms and phrases, or wearing a pompous religious attire, is to fool ourselves. Every great religion forbids it.  One of the ten commandments reads: “Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain; for the LORD will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain.“

For example, in “Talks with Ramana Maharshi – Talk 363”, there is a conversation:
Devotee: What is namaskara (prostration)?
Maharshi: Prostration means “subsidence of the ego”. What is “subsidence”? To merge into the source of its origin. God cannot be deceived by outward genuflexions, bowings and prostrations. He sees if the individuality is there or not.

Again, in “Talks with Ramana Maharshi – Talk 549, there is this passage.
Sri Bhagavan often speaks of namaskar (prostration) in the following strain: “This namaskar was originally meant by the ancient sages to serve as a means of surrender to God. The act still prevails but not the spirit behind it. The doer of namaskar intends to deceive the object of worship by his act. It is mostly insincere and deceitful. It is meant to cover up innumerable sins. Can God be deceived? The man thinks that God accepts his namaskar and that he himself is free to continue his old life. They need not come to me. I am not pleased with these namaskars. The people should keep their minds clean; instead of that they bend themselves or lie prostrate before me. I am not deceived by such acts.”
Enlightened Sages are not afraid to tell the truth as they see it.

If we want to seriously find ways of attaining peace of mind, then to talk about Meditation and Spirituality in vain, loosely, as though it is some worldly topic to be discussed, is a waste of time and energy. To be in the influence of concoctions of intoxication and materials of hallucination and thinking that it is spirituality, is to plan our own ruin.

Sincere devotees are never fooled by these things. The only way towards real Happiness and Peace of Mind is to be true to ourselves, behave in the world in a way that is natural to us, but quietly study, learn and practice what we have learnt from the Gurus, Sages or Scriptures that we like. In other words, it is inner improvement to create peace. Not showing off.

Therefore, it is better to be ourselves than to pose as someone we are not.  It may seem fun for the time being.  But it is absolutely worthless and useless. Even in worldly matters, wise people often advise others to be themselves. In their attempt to gain love, friendship or appreciation, when someone tries to behave in a strange way that is normally not their true nature, the benefit gained will not last. Sooner or later, the facade will collapse and lead to problems.

Each one is placed in this world for their own purpose. Every one is special and wonderful in their own way. Other people and situations sometimes hammer wrong notions into our heads and make us feel inferior and inadequate. It takes time to change deeply ingrained thoughts and habits. That is why the Sages urge us to keep in touch with wise teachings as much as possible so that we can become mentally strong and peaceful. Instead, to assume, imagine and pose to be spiritually great is not going to do us any good. Sincere seekers of real happiness and peace of mind should never associate with such practices or such people.  However, we need not interfere in their business, but we must keep away from them.  After all, we should never forget the big picture and our real goal, which is to gain happiness and peace of mind. This can happen only when we know our Real Self. So let’s get Real.