Detachment is different from Renunciation

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Detachment is different from Renunciation

 

In order to be detached, does one have to renounce everything?

 

We often imagine that a person who is detached will be indifferent to

those around him and dislike everything that reminds him of what he has

renounced. This is not true. Detachment is only possible for those who remain

unaffected or undisturbed by every situation in life. Only the person who is

able to maintain equipoise and balance in the face of success and failure, love

and hatred, pain and pleasure, is truly detached.

 

With attachment arises dependence on the object of your attachment and

with dependence comes slavery — you are then controlled by your

attachments. If the object of your attachment is out of your reach, you become

miserable and hanker after it. Then again, if you manage to own it, you are in

constant fear of losing it. Thereby your freedom of expression, behavioural

patterns and outlook on life become limited.

 

With attachment arises the idea of possession, the sense of ownership

— my house, my car, my family, my wealth. This sense of ownership is

an outcome of the lower ego. With each new possession your ego is

reinforced, until finally your possessions begin to dominate and control your

life.

 

Imagine an enormous man who is chained to the ground. There seems to be no

escape. This is how we are chained to the objects of our attachment. Detachment,

on the other hand, develops freedom of thought, word and deed. It frees you from

the fetters which bind you to the ordinary plane of awareness. One who is

detached may enjoy every pleasure of life, acquire wealth and status, raise a

family that he loves, control a vast business, or even an empire. On account of

his detachment, however, he is never dependent on them. He enjoys everything,

but as the master and not the slave. On account of his detachment, he develops

an inner freedom or independence which nothing can conquer. No adversity can

shatter him, because he remains unaffected, and no amount of success can affect

him, for he is established in equanimity. Thereby he becomes the master of

himself in every situation.

 

Detachment, therefore, should be understood as the ability to remain

unaffected in the face of the trials and tribulations of life. With

detachment comes a greater feeling of love and unity with those around

you. Earlier you had loved only because you were attached to or

dependent on the objects of your love for your happiness. So, in fact,

you had ceased to love.

 

However, with detachment you experience love which is not bound or

restricted by personal likes and dislikes, greed or ambition. The love

is devoid of personal motives.

 

The guru is an expression of the universal spirit. Although he loves

each and every one of us alike, he is truly detached or independent of

the external or internal factors which dominate human beings. To the

guru, saint or sinner, rich or poor, learned or stupid, beautiful or

ugly, are all alike.

 

Although detachment is a spontaneous inner development, karma sanyasins can

implement it in their lives by first developing attachment. It is only after you

have developed a universal attachment to everything around you that you will

begin to experience inner detachment.

 

(By Swami Satyasangananda)