What is life? There are so many goals and pursuits that are prescribed to us to live life fully. They hang over us like baby mobiles, deliberately placed safely out of arm’s reach. However, each to-do checked off reveals itself as temporary, fleeting and empty. That dream job becomes the cause for poor “life satisfaction”. That luxurious car loses value in our eyes with each ride offered. The perfect-new-house excitement gets replaced with been-there-done-that frustration.
There are many life missions shared with us, one of them being, “Study hard so that you get a good job and can buy a nice house and car.” But, is this all that life is about? Money, a house, and a car are important things. They have value and purpose in life. But, could life be something more than achieving these pursuits? We also have statements like, “Embrace each moment.” However, this isn’t easy to do either.
So the question arises, “What is life?” Simply, life is. Everything we do, all that is, is life. There isn’t a moment when life “stops” for us to have to start “living” again. All that is, is life.
There is a concept in Hindu spiritual scriptural texts about the difference between becoming and being. Anything that changes in some way to become what it is now, will at some point become something else. The process of becoming is never ending. However, whatever remains constant and changeless, was, is and will be. Think of it this way, even despite the changes that occur to our bodies, emotions, mind, intellect and personality, there is something that remains constant and unchanging. It is due to this unchanging entity that we are aware of the changes that occur. If we changed with our mind, intellect or personality, we wouldn’t be aware of the changes. Only as a distinct observer, we are aware of the changes that occur in our bodies, emotions, mind, intellect, personality, etc. (According to Hindu spiritual scriptural texts, our true nature, our true self, is this changeless entity.)
This concept is important to understand because all the goals and pursuits that we are introduced to, depend on the idea of becoming. “Once I get that job/ car/ clothes, my life will be perfect/ I’ll be happy.” As a result, life becomes a race. We are only taught to run. But why are we running? Where are we running to? And most importantly, does running get us what we want? All we know is “GO! GO! GO! What you want and are is at the end.” And so we start running. Eventually there comes a time, when we’re on the verge of tears, an ache of confusion and despair pulses through our heart, and inexplicable pain tightens our chest, and we just want to stop running. Nothing seems to make sense. But all that we know is “GO! GO! GO!” and so we start running again, thinking that it’ll get better.
We usually act from a place of running away from how things are now, or running towards what they could be in some other time or place. However, Hindu spiritual scriptural texts say that all that we want and are, is with us right now. We are only “separated” from it by knowledge or awareness of the fact that we are what we’re looking for. We don’t have to get to another place, wait for a future time or become someone else, we have to be present, connect inward and abide with ourselves.
For example, we strive to get a specific job, thinking that it will make our life perfect. However, jobs don’t have the capability to make lives perfect. Jobs have a value and purpose, but when we expect more from jobs than they can provide, we’re the ones who get hurt. (And we blame the job for us feeling miserable). This doesn’t mean that we should become lethargic and indifferent. Or that we shouldn’t pursue our goals and dreams. These spiritual teachings say to pursue your goals, dreams, and ambitions from a place of understanding that it is an opportunity to learn, grow, enjoy and give back. Pursue a job not to run away from feeling miserable or to obtain extra money. Pursue a job because you understand that this job, in this field, will provide you with opportunities to learn about yourself (self-discovery) and grow into all that you can be (self-expression). When we approach life from a place of being, we begin to experience joy in everything. Even when situations don’t go “our way”, we take it as an opportunity. This approach also develops in us a feeling of wholeness, abundance, contentment and serenity, which influences how we connect with and love each other.
So, “What is life?” Life is an opportunity to learn, grow, enjoy and give back. We can have the same goals and dreams as before, but with these spiritual teachings we are able to blossom, now, here.
Proofreader: Kellyn Jeremy
Leave a Reply