WHEN SCIENCE POINTS TO SPIRITUALITY

 

Imagine  a  village  farmer  who  gets  a Mercedes Benz as a gift. The only
vehicle  he  has  seen  till then is a tractor and the only purpose that he
knows  of any vehicle is plowing. So he attaches a yoke to his new Mercedes
and  starts driving it over his field. To his disappointment, he finds that
the  field,  far from being ploughed, is being spoiled. And after sometime,
he  finds  his  car  also  starts  malfunctioning.  And  he becomes totally
frustrated – with himself, his car and his field.

Ridiculous, we might say, that somebody uses a Mercedes for plowing. But
could this be the story of our life? The Vedic scriptures – and, in
principle, the scriptures of all the great religions of the world – state
that human life is meant for achieving, not material enjoyment, but
spiritual fulfillment. The Vedic scriptures further explain that the human
body is a precious vehicle that the soul gets after transmigrating through
8.4 million species. In all subhuman bodies, the soul has access only to
material pleasure - through the fulfillment of the bodily demands of
eating, sleeping, mating and defending, All material pleasure is
troublesome to acquire. Even when acquired, it is unfulfilling because of
the body’s limited capacity to enjoy. And even this paltry pleasure is also
inevitably curtailed by disease and old age, and terminated by death. The
human body alone offers the soul consciousness evolved enough to access a
superior source of pleasure - love of God. The Vedic scriptures explain
that love of God enables the soul to attain eternal happiness in the
spiritual world, his original home. And so they assert that achieving this
love of God is the specific and exclusive purpose for which the soul should
utilize the human body.

Returning to our starting analogy, the subhuman bodies, which offer
flickering bodily pleasures, can be compared to tractors meant for plowing
a field. On the other hand, the human body, which can offer the soul
everlasting happiness, can be compared to a posh Mercedes meant for a
smooth ride. So from the scriptural viewpoint, to use the human body for
sensual pleasures is not much different from using a car for plowing.
Because we moderns see almost everyone around us pursuing material goals –
sex, wealth, luxuries, prestige, power and fame, we assume that to be the
natural purpose of life. But, as the saying goes, "Do not think that you
are on the right road just because it is a well-beaten path." And,
intriguingly enough, not only scriptures, but even modern science seems to
be indicating that human life is not meant for material pursuits.

When  a  Mercedes  is used for plowing, three things happen: the field gets
spoiled, the vehicle gets wrecked and the driver gets frustrated. We modern
humans  have  been  diligently  using our human bodies for seeking material
enjoyment.  Let  us examine scientifically what has been the result of this
on the environment (the field), the human body (the car) and ourselves (the
driver).

Biologist  E  O  Wilson among many other scientists has studied the complex
interdependence among various species in the biosphere. He found that every
species  makes  some  constructive  contribution  – small or great – to the
ecology  of the planet. For example, if the vegetation – grasses and shrubs
–  decrease,  the  herbivores  suffer.  And if the herbivores decrease, the
carnivores  are affected. But he found that one species does not contribute
to  the  ecology  – the human species. If the human species became extinct,
there  would  hardly  be  any  problems  for  any  other species or for the
ecology. In fact, most ecological problems would be solved if humans became
or  were  made  extinct. The human species is arguably the most intelligent
species  on  the  planet. And yet science indicates that human existence is
nothing  but  a  burden  for  the  planet!  Wilson  concludes  his study by
suggesting  that the existence of the human species must be “for some other
purpose”.

As  far  as  the human body is concerned, how is it affected by the various
activities  that  moderns  consider  to  be  enjoyable? Smoking causes lung
disorders,  drinking  leads to liver diseases, eating non-veg and junk food
and  drinks  ruins  digestion and illicit sex – that perpetually over-hyped
carnal pleasure– brings AIDS, an epidemic for which there is no aid. Modern
society,  education  and  media  indoctrinate  – almost brainwash – us into
believing that material enjoyment is the goal of life. But this “enjoyment”
is  the  cause  of  our  worst  suffering!  Could  it  be that we are being
tragically  misled  into abusing the human body for activities, which it is
not designed for?

And what about the effect on ourselves? Scientists are still groping in the
dark  about  who or what the self – the source of consciousness and life in
the  body  –  is.  But  one thing is for sure – the more modern society has
neglected  or  rejected spiritual growth, the more trouble the self has got
into.  This  is evident from the spiraling mental health problems in modern
times.  WHO  has  declared  that  mental  diseases  -  stress,  depression,
addiction and psychosomatic problems- will be the greatest health hazard of
the current century. Worse still, WHO statistics show that over one million
people commit suicide every year. This is more than the total annual deaths
due  to  wars  and  crimes  combined.  And this figure is only the reported
number of suicides. Mental disease in general and suicide in particular has
many causes. But the common origin is frustration in achieving one’s goals,
whatever  they may be. When this frustration rises to an acute and hopeless
degree,  one  feels  one’s very existence to be an agony. And the ending of
one’s  existence  appears to be the only solution to that agony. It is then
that the person commits suicide. Why is it that we modern humans – the most
“intelligent” among all species – are the only species whose members commit
suicide  –  and that too in such alarmingly high numbers? WHO calls suicide
as “a tragic social health problem” and states that there is no proven cure
for it. Could it be that the goals which society sets for us are themselves
intrinsically   incompatible  with  our  selves  and  so  they  invite  the
frustration that leads to mental health problems and ultimately suicide?

And  conversely  what  does  science  say about the effects on the ecology,
human  health  and  the  self  of  channelizing  human energy for spiritual
elevation?

Most   environmental   problems   have  arisen  from  the  materialism  and
consumerism  that  has  accompanied  the  decline  of  spirituality and its
inherent  self-restraint.  Therefore the following quote of Alan Durning of
the  World  Watch  Institute represents what many scientists consider to be
the  only  hope  for  saving  the environment, “In a fragile biosphere, the
ultimate  fate  of humanity may depend on whether we can cultivate a deeper
sense  of  self-restraint,  founded  on  a  widespread  ethic  of  limiting
consumption  and  finding non-material enrichment.” And all the known forms
of  non-material enrichment – prayer, meditation, yoga and chanting of holy
names  – clearly point to a spiritual dimension to life. And this spiritual
dimension is most comprehensively explained in the Vedic scriptures. So, it
is not surprising that the conclusion of E O Wilson’s study – human life is
meant  “for  some other purpose” – is the beginning of the Vedic teachings:
athato  brahma  jijnasa “Therefore (now that you have a human body), devote
yourself to spiritual enquiry” (Vedanta-sutra 1)

The  current  epidemic  of  indulgence-born  diseases  shows that universal
scriptural  injunctions for self-restraint - sobriety (no intoxication) and
continence  (no  illicit  sex),  for example - are sound health advice too.
Herbert  Benson  of the Harvard Medical School, based on extensive research
about the physical and mental benefits of spiritual living, states that the
human  body and mind are “wired for God”. Not only that, a survey published
in  the  Readers  Digest,  Jan  2001  issue,  stated  that,  on an average,
believers in God live eleven years more than nonbelievers.

And  what  about  the  self?  Science  has come up with a precious finding:
spirituality  is  a sure solace for the self. Survey after survey has shown
that  spiritual practices protect people from self-destructive behavior and
habits.  Patrick  Glynn  in  his book God: The Evidence states that surveys
show  that  those who don’t attend spiritual prayer meetings are four times
more  prone  to  suicide  than those who do so. And further the stopping of
attending such meetings has been found to be the best predictor of suicide,
better  even  than  unemployment. These findings indicate that spirituality
provides  inner  joy,  which  frees  people  from  the  uncontrollable  and
insatiable  craving  for  external  pleasures  that leads to addictions and
suicides.  Such  findings  have  inspired  some modern thinkers to echo the
Vedic  conclusion that spirituality is not just a part of our life, but the
essence  of our life, Stephen Covey aptly remarks, “We are not human beings
on a spiritual journey. We are spiritual beings on a human journey.”

Thus  science  is  clearly  showing  that  human  life  spent  for material
enjoyment  is  ecologically,  physically  and spiritually disharmonious and
disastrous.  And  it  is  also  strongly indicating that when we strive for
spiritual happiness, then we benefit our planet and our body too. The Vedic
scriptures offer us a balanced program of material regulation and spiritual
growth   for   achieving     the  highest  potential  of  human  life.  The
Bhagavad-gita  (6.17)  states,  “Regulation  in  eating, sleeping, work and
recreation, coupled with spiritual practices, paves the way to freedom from
all  material  miseries.”  And  the  most  potent  and  practical spiritual
practice  for  the  modern  age  is  the  chanting of the Hare Krishna maha
mantra.  And  by this yoga practice, the Bhagavad-gita (6.22) declares that
we  will achieve a state of happiness which will fully satisfy us and which
will  never  be disturbed by any material upheaval. So, for those of us who
were  till  now  unaware  of  the wisdom of the scriptures and the value of
spirituality,  maybe  its time to stop using the Mercedes for plowing? And,
for those of us who can now see the truth of the scriptural teachings being
discovered  by  science,  its  time  to  put our human vehicle into gear by
chanting ALMIGHTY and to race on the highway of devotional service back
to our long-lost home with ALMIGHTY.

 

 

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