If we appreciate the truths of life, we can intellectually understand the source of true happiness. True happiness comes from knowing our true nature. When we are away from home for a long time we start missing our home. This feeling of missing home can be fulfilled only by returning home. Nothing else can compensate for that. Similarly the reason for emptiness or void within us, despite many other achievements in life, is due to not realising our true nature. Only knowing our true nature can fill this void. So if we want happiness and contentment in life we need to realise our true nature. That is the supreme goal of our life. How to realise our true nature?
The wisdom of spirituality provides us with two tools to realise our true nature. If we meditate regularly using the correct techniques, under the guidance of a qualified guru and do the right work in the right way, our ego nature will disappear and we will realise our true nature.
Tool1 : Meditation
How we got our ego nature? We started identifying ourselves with our body and external world after our consciousness descended down the causal spine. In order to realise our soul nature we need to reverse this i.e. the consciousness needs to move up causal spine again. Also, the Kundalini force resting at coccygeal should move up the astral spine. Meditation is a scientific process that will make this happen. Our body consciousness will expand to soul consciousness. If we continue to meditate, at the highest level of meditation, our consciousness can expand to Cosmic Consciousness. And the koshas covering the soul opens up gradually and we can experience the state of true happiness and contentment.
Meditation gives us many other benefits like concentration, good health, stress relief etc., but we should not get distracted by these short-term outcomes. Our supreme goal is to realise our true nature to be happy.
Tool2: Right Work in the Right Way
We all need to work. We cannot avoid work. There are two reasons why work is necessary for us. The first reason is for our survival. This is very obvious and everyone is already doing it. The second reason is to meet the objective of a human birth. The objective of human birth is to learn through our work and make progress in our eternal life journey. The physical world is compared to a school where we come to learn. If we are working only for survival, it is like coming and returning from school without any real learning. We need to do the Right Work in the Right way so that we progress in our eternal life towards our supreme goal . What is the Right Work and what is the Right way of doing Right Work?
Every person is different and unique. There is a cosmic influence on what we are today. Based on our karmic influence, we live in different parts of the world with different family backgrounds, interests, capabilities and opportunities. Given this, whatever work comes to us that is good for mankind is the Right Work for us. Not everyone is doing the same work. All the work that we do – doctors, engineers, teachers, lawyers, home makers, architects, police, government positions, drivers, cleaners etc. – that contributes to the good of mankind is right work. Anything that is not good for mankind is not right work. We need not worry what is right work for us. The right work will come to us. However it is important to do the right work in the right way to meet the objective of learning and making progress.
For whom do we do the right work? It is for the good of mankind. It is a service. It needs to be selfless. Spiritual wisdom recommends Nishkamya Karma – work for the sake of work without expecting any fruits. If we do the work for ourselves, we will strengthen our ego nature further. That is not our goal. Our goal is to free ourselves from the ego and know our true nature of ever existing consciousness.
It is easier said than done. What is the motivation for us to do selfless work? The motivation is happiness. If we appreciate the fact that real happiness and fulfilment can come only by knowing our true nature, then we will be motivated to do selfless service. In true sense, we are still working for ourselves, but we have transcended our goal from pleasure to true happiness. That is the motivation. This is where meditation can be really helpful. As our consciousness expands through regular practice of meditation, we will get access to our divine qualities that will make selfless service very natural to us.