It is not uncommon to see people who claim to be on the spiritual path becoming non-industrious. They shirk daily chores and are often found living in filth. They are undisciplined, disrespectful and languid, they remain unkempt and unclean. Such people, when forced to do housework or a job, often become aggressive or justify their laziness by spouting some mumbo-jumbo about enlightenment, superior understanding and wisdom- that everything is a dream, and all activities are meaningless.
Such people are selfish and nowhere close to anything spiritual at all. They simply have an aversion to physical effort. Often, they become addicted to narcotics, lying and stealing even from their family and well-wishers.
Laziness is described as one of the biggest pitfalls on the spiritual path. Those who are truly on the spiritual path live a completely different kind of life. They are disciplined, respectful and industrious, living in a clean environment. They have a daily routine and are usually quite energetic. They aren’t averse to working and contribute time and effort selflessly for the welfare of others. Work is their most trustworthy friend.
Basic activities like eating, cleaning oneself, and maintaining proper hygiene require physical focus and work. To neglect these is not a sign of spiritual progress, but of sloth, and leads to weakened body and mind.
Swami Vivekananda championed hard work and being industrious. He has said, “When you are physically fit, you will be more active and your laziness will never stop you. A fit person always feels passionate, and passion is the key to create any success in life. You will look more attractive and authoritative and make a great impression everywhere. When you are physically fit, you start enjoying everything you do. Arise, awake and stop not till the goal is reached”
Spiritually grounded activity is akin to a spinning top which appears completely still, in perfect balance, even though it is spinning at tremendous speed.
Moving inwards does not mean withdrawal from worldly activities at all. If one avoids physical activity and craves solitude and stillness, one is holding on to the idea that stillness is preferable to activity. To the spiritual person, the chaos of the world is exactly the same as reposing in stillness.
Hyakujo, a Zen master, would force himself to trim leaves, clean the floor, and wash dishes even once he had turned eighty. His pupils didn’t want their old teacher to work so hard. But he would not listen to them. So, one day, they hid his tools. That day the master didn’t eat. He refused to give any reason. The next day he didn’t eat as well, nor the next. The pupils quietly returned his tools. The teacher took his tools, worked and ate the same as before as if nothing had happened. That evening Hyakujo instructed the pupils, “No work, no food.”
It is very easy to collect a following in this world. One can become a colourful and flamboyant swami, spouting worthless, non-experienced words of wisdom, to shirk work and responsibilities. People who pompously claim to be spiritual can have a comfortable life by fooling the gullible and the innocent. Such charlatans are lazy rogues, plain and simple, and must be put to hard labour. They should not be indulged at all.
Deepam Chatterjee is the author of The Millennial Yogi. He can be contacted on deepamchatterjee@yahoo.co.in