Samnyaasa, the true renunciation

samsaya

Samnyaasa means “renouncing from the world” and it is one of the concepts talked about in the Bhagavad Gita. Basically the question goes like this: If I want to develop my spiritual side, do I have to get away from everything and retire to an ascetic way of living?

Not necessarily. Yoga teaches that our true nature is not separated from the divine and that the outer reality is a projection coming from the inside and it presents the things that we have to learn in this lifetime. Given this truth, why would we run away from our vital circumstances?

Through the years I have met people that decided to leave behind their career, family or city to retire to an ashram or any other spiritual paradise. After a while many realized that they had to go back to the place where they came from and put into practice all what they had learned. Sometimes we need a break, of course, but the retreat that I am talking about here comes from an impulse to escape in order to not deal with our stuff.

True renunciation is an inner attitude: we stop acting out of personal interests (with the intention of fulfilling only our own selfish desires) and start living from a higher consciousness. True renunciation is correct and inspired action.

You can be a Samnyaasi in the world by practicing the following:

- Living with the intention of protecting life in all its forms.
- Treating everyone like a brother or a sister and thinking about their well-being as much as if it was our own.
- Simplicity in your lifestyle (schedules, food, activities, etc.)
- Cultivating positive emotions, thoughts and feelings like love, patience, compassion, cooperation and acceptance.
- Meditating and practicing yoga.

Happy week to all. See you on the mat!!
OM Shanti
Zaira

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The Zunray Spark is a biweekly email with an inspirational message. It also serves as theme for the classes at Zunray
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