In our journey towards freedom, when we realise that nothing in the universe is permanent, our mind looks for liberation. Such a liberation from worldly possessions, emotional and physical, comes through a deeper understanding.
The one who realises this truth of impermanence desires to renounce everything, with a clear understanding that nothing belongs to us. Neither body, nor name, nor people, nor any possession. Therefore, renouncing them all is the true freedom from the bondages that emanate from being attached to them. However, such renunciation is inner, not external. It comes from understanding, not action.
For this purpose. One doesn't need to divorce, nor disown children, nor leave home to become a hermit. Because such external renouncement is not required to become free from the attachment we have developed with people and property during our ignorant stage, i.e. when we didn't know the reality of impermanence. But when we realise the universal truth of the temporariness of everything, it would be wise not to be bound by things and relations. Despite knowing that all servitudes and attachments are illusory, people are unable to work towards getting free from them. In that case, we are no different from the monkey whose hand is stuck in a jar, and is not able to release its hand because it has chickpeas held tight in its fist. It doesn't know that only by letting go of the chickpeas and opening its fist, it can gain freedom from that trap. But this monkey trap has worked for ages. No monkey has learnt to attain freedom once chickpeas come into its fist. Similar is the nature of humans. Most of us do not realise that only by letting go of attachments can we attain true freedom.
God Shri Krishna says in Bhagawad Gita, Chapter 6, Verse 4:
यदाहिनेन्द्रियार्थेषुनकर्मस्वनुषज्जते |
सर्वसङ्कल्पसंन्यासीयोगारूढस्तदोच्यते ||
Meaning: When one is neither attached to sense objects nor to actions, such a person is said to be elevated in the science of Yog, having renounced all desires for the fruits of actions.
This is very much relevant to all of us in our daily lives. If we cannot renounce expectations from our people, we cannot become free. If we cling to the results of action, it is attachment. However, it doesn’t mean we don’t need to act. Because true freedom lies not in inaction, but in learning to take detached action, in other words, freedom is a mental state. It can be achieved while living with family, working in a company, and being active in society. It doesn't demand inaction. It doesn't mandate a solitary life without people and possessions. It only stresses that we should not become tangled in people and possessions. Because discarding everything would be similar to escapism. Not working, not taking responsibility, is not the goal. Performing one's own duties, doing destined karma, is very much obligatory in this life. And those karmas, actions, and performance of duties are not inevitably the cause of attachment. It is our ignorance which leads to attachment and becomes a hindrance to renouncement. One needs to live a very balanced life - neither drenched in worldly activities, nor completely devoid of them. Only a controlled detachment is the right path to achieve renunciation.
Elixir:
Renunciation is often misunderstood as discarding all relations and possessions. But it is more an inner understanding than external abandonment.
