The World and God
Saints and scriptures tell us that God has bestowed great material power upon us, but it is only if we are bestowed with good discretion that this power will be used in the proper manner. How profound this wisdom is. History reveals that for the want of good discretion and spirituality, material power is misused.
Wherever we are in the world today, we can see and hear what is happening in other countries. The long distances between nations that were once a barrier have significantly reduced thanks to materialism. The advent of technologies like television, the telephone and the internet have brought families and communities together. However, at the expense of spirituality, all the material advancements in the infinite universes combined will still be beset by many demerits. Consider the fact that many nations today stockpile weapons of mass destruction, capable of annihilating all life on Earth. Governments invest huge sums of money and technical know-how into making them more discreet and powerful. If humanity truly possessed edification between spirituality and materialism, then this would have given us the wisdom to use material advancements for the welfare of humanity, and not for its destruction.
The advancement of spirituality is directed solely at the welfare of humanity. And when it comes to our spiritual development, regardless of the path, practice, or discipline we adopt, materialism is not only good for us but also essential. No soul can attain God without a body, and a body cannot have life without a soul. The relationship between the soul and the body is undeniable. When the harmony between the two is disrupted, when the scales are tilted in favour of materialism, the digression of spiritual principles this causes undoes the progress of materialism. Even if we built a golden world, embedded it with precious gems and diamonds and made it flourish with all good properties, it would still not last long or progress very far in the hands of imprudent materialists. The time taken to progress and prosper can be long, but its destruction takes no time at all. In such a world, spirituality is essential and ultimately inevitable.
Spirituality is the only way to purify the heart and mind. Imbibing spiritual principles in daily life is the only genuine solution to any problem. Only then is sound judgement possible. We must deeply understand that we are a soul and that the subject of any soul is God, and therefore, no soul can ever be satisfied through any purely materialistic endeavour. Our essential nature is spiritual. The soul is spiritual, being a part of God, and so its subject can only be spiritual. The body that the soul inhabits is made of the five material elements. As such, the subject of the body is the material world. Both the soul and the body therefore have different attributes which are not interchangeable. The soul cannot be satisfied with materialism and the body cannot be satisfied with spirituality.
The things of this world have been provided by God for the maintenance of the body so that we can go to Him. If we need to cross a river, we will need the use of a boat. In other words, before attaining God, the body should be kept in good health and for this the world is essential. Use it wisely and not exorbitantly for the benefit of your spiritual development.
We can conclude that the world and God are equally important. Both the soul and the body require their respective subjects to function properly. The spiritualist who ignores the world (the requirements of the body) and the materialist who ignores spirituality (the requirements of the soul) are both wrong. Sustained harmony between materialism and spirituality are essential if you desire to attain the goal of human life.
Kripalu Bhaktiyoga Tattvadarshan — the essence of Vedic wisdom, spirituality and devotion in daily life
