as such no activity of life should be seen as a distraction for living a spiritual life. every activity of life can be done with mindfulness or with a detached attitude. but this is true for highly evolved soul. for most people like us who are still on the path, we need to focus intensely in our spiritual practice so that we become more centered inside. once we are centered within then we can easily live a spiritual life in the middle of materialistic world.
when a plant is growing then sometimes we put a stick to support it so that it does not fall and grow straight. after some months, the plant does not need that support as its roots have gone deeper and it has become stronger. same is the case with spiritual aspirants. initially we all need support and right guidance so that we don’t get distracted from the path and practice our sadhana regularly.
7 distractions for living a spiritual life:
1. guru hopping
many spiritual aspirants go from one guru to another. it is a subtle trick of the mind to take you away from them. if you stay long enough with one master then it is much easier to go deeper in your sadhana as well as to surrender. if you know you have found your master then don’t escape from him. stay with him as longer as you can.
another thing which many people do is temple hopping. its best to sit inside one temple and meditate on the deity rather than visiting ten temples in a day and make it a touch and go affair. whatever spiritual practice, guru or temple you choose, give your totality to it. if you keep on changing your practice then its like digging a hole for one month and then move away to a new spot and start digging their again. dig in one place if you want to go deeper. thats why its best to take your time in selecting your meditation practice or guru or ashram and once you know you have found the right guru to guide you then better to stick to him.
2. reading too many spiritual books
the tracks of philosophy and spirituality run side by side. they run parallel but they never meet. the path of philosophy is of mind. whereas the path of spirituality is of surrender, love or no-mind. make sure you don’t repeat the mistake which millions of people have made. don’t become a philosopher, become a spiritual person. read spiritual books to gain insights but don’t just stop there. do practice your sadhana sincerely. its your sadhana which will matter at the end of the day. don’t just know spiritual things intellectually but do your practice to make them a reality in your life.
3. wrong company
sangha makes a lot of difference in your spiritual practice. always choose to spend your time with people who are really interested in sadhana. because in a subtle way, we all influence each other with our ideas and energy. if you plan to get married then go for the person whom you love or the one who is spiritually oriented.
4. changing others
no need to convert people to your opinion. no need to argue that your guru or mantra or spiritual practice is the best. its good to tell your friends or parents once in a while the importance of meditation, yoga, mantra chanting and so on. but don’t force your opinion on them. many times they will not change, no matter how hard you try. but they might change their opinion if they see transformation in you. so the best way to help people around you is by first bringing transformation in your life. people change easily be seeing a living example.
5. postponement or laziness
if spirituality is your top priority in life then you will never postpone or ignore your practice for doing any mundane task. be regular in your spiritual practice and always give it the top most priority in life.
6. entertainment and social media
we don’t realize how much time is wasted in social media or watching TV. they look lucrative but it does not bring any transformation in us. wrong company also push us towards these things. so its always best to connect with like minded people.
7. outward going energy
psychologically speaking, if your energy is going outward then distractions will always be there. your energy or focus should be on growing inwardly. when your energy is going in outward direction then it can take any shape. e.g. you can start pretending to be a guru or start showing your spiritual powers or do things so that you get attention. so always make sure that the opinion of society or other people about you, should not be so important to you. you should be careful that at the end of day you have been true to yourself and to your spiritual practice and you have listened to your inner voice and have not wasted your time in doing things which are not meant for you. if you are true to yourself then no distraction will be able to fool you. sincerity is the key thing in living a spiritual life.
another biggest help in avoiding distractions is to remember that death will come one day. it comes to everybody and one day it will come to you also. everybody time in this life is limited. so make sure you use your time wisely. don’t take your life and time for granted.