Doesn’t Vedanta mean giving up worldly life?

The word Vedanta often conjures up images of elderly people or saints who have given up all worldly pleasures. It is thought of as a pursuit suitable for “people of a certain age”. This is not necessarily true. Vedanta is the quest for knowledge. It leads to knowledge about our Self, our Consciousness. And there is no age requirement to seek knowledge. But life as we know, follows its own natural order of things. During childhood and youth, our educational pursuits and friendships take up our time. Then comes the phase of settling down with a good career, finding a suitable partner and starting a family. This phase is a remarkably busy time in life where often we do not find time to even take care of our own health. So, towards late middle age, when the children have flown the nest and retirement looms ahead is when some sort of free time is found. What shall I do with this free time? Once again there is a wide variety of activities to choose from, especially in this day and age. While all this is happening, over the course of these fifty years or so, the person has faced many events in life, some predictable, some unpredictable. A certain, “What does all this mean? What was all this for?” sensation occurs. Even questions about the very purpose of life arise. That is when people turn towards spiritual pursuits to see if answers to these questions might be found there. As described, by now the person has reached their 60s. So, Vedanta is not for “people of a certain age”, it is for people who have had a certain amount of life experience. When the ups and downs of life have been experienced and questions of a non material nature arise, a person turns to Vedanta. It is not the chronological age but rather the experiential age that draws a seeker towards Vedanta. And for most of us, it takes that long to accumulate the wide variety of life experiences that prepares the mind to seek out Vedanta.

Now to the question of renouncing the world or giving up on worldly pleasures. We see many gurus (teachers), who wear saffron color robes and have large crowds of followers. Typically, this person is our understanding of someone who engages in these studies and we may feel that we do not want to become a renunciate quite yet. According to tradition, one who renounces the world is called a sanyasi (we shall learn more about this stage of life in another post) and chooses a life of solitude and contemplation. They cut all ties from their families and do not participate in everyday social norms generally involved in family life. They renounce not just their wealth and worldly possessions but also their roles as husbands, fathers, sons etc. They can choose to teach, and, in that case, they are called gurus or teachers. Now not every seeker of Vedanta has to become a sanyasi. A particularly ardent seeker may in due course choose this path, but it does not have to be the end goal. One can live life as a householder, participate in everyday life and still study and practice the teachings of Vedanta.

Vedanta teaches the seeker about himself and shows him the path to liberation in whichever stage of life he is in. The concepts of dharma and karma are clarified, and he learns how to gain mastery over his body, mind and sense organs. The importance of such a study cannot be denied. However, as I mentioned earlier, there is not enough time to pursue it properly in one’s younger years and through middle age. Therefore, it is only natural that we find people who have matured in life be it in years or through life experiences, attracted to this field of study. In recent years there is certainly a growing interest in Vedanta from the younger generation. The pressures of modern life along with over stimulation of the mind and senses have made many young people recognize the need for something other than the pursuits of the material world. Hence, we now see a varied mix of people of all ages, background and nationalities being drawn towards Vedanta. Since the study of Vedanta demands an open mind, it is only fair that we begin by letting go of preconceived notions about who it is meant for and what kind of renunciation is required. It is meant for anyone who seeks answers to life’s questions and it requires no renunciation except the renunciation of ignorance, which is the goal of all seekers of knowledge.