New -Age Spirituality

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The word spirituality commonly brings to mind a person of frail appearance who is intensely religious and far removed from the realities of life. There is also an inbuilt connection in the mind between spirituality and old age. The Hindu scriptures have accorded four age based life stages for a human being. The last stage of a person’s life as he reaches old age is “sannayasa”, when a man becomes a complete ascetic after renouncing all worldly ties and transforms into a “spiritual person”. The school of thought thus insinuates that the quality of spirituality has to be attained by a person in his life time. Today, with advances in health care management there is a significant increase in life expectancy. Additionally there is seen an advancement in the quality of life for the older generation. Instead of self banishment to jungles more and more old people are very much an integral part of society , living life to the fullest. So where does that leave “spirituality” today? More importantly, is it necessary at all ? For me the answer is a definite yes. Paradoxically if the young generation have to reap the whole benefit of the material pleasures that they aspire to, they have to develop a spiritual perspective. Simply said, they have to learn to strike the balance. The honourable Chief Minister of Assam , Sarbananda Sonowal who recently assumed his office has said he derives his strength from his spirituality. This is indeed significant. The new government has assumed office promising to fulfill the goal of development. So obviously the chief minister’s spirituality does not distance him from life’s realities. Rather, it is the wind under his wings as he goes forward to discharge his duties. Spirituality is not to be confused with religion. Though people can acquire spirituality from within the teachings of a religion it is not necessary. It is an individual thing, a personal inner growth which completes one’s existence. I believe it provides the necessary focal point which is needed in today’s stress filled world. It is the stress buster for modern life Take the case of hooliganism in a college function. At what point does the fun , excitement and having a good time transform into unruly crowd behavior? And why? This is where I believe there has to be a sense of balance. Students need to know what to do and what not to do. A spiritual perspective will be the deciding factor. Spirituality makes a person grow. A spiritual person has what is known as ‘inner peace’. There is a personal value system ingrained in you. You look within and become confident. Instead of focusing on unimportant things like gossiping and getting caught up in addiction, a person will search for healthy and positive pastimes. Being strong from inside helps in not giving in to peer pressure. It isn’t necessary to have the latest mobile set, sports shoe or music system just because your friend has it. If one can afford it, it is well and good. If not, it doesn’t really matter. Spirituality makes a person positive minded .This also shows up in a person’s attitude towards others. I am sure there have been many instances when a person walked the extra mile to help someone. If someone can do it , why can’t others? Spirituality will also make a person non judgmental. Keeping an open mind in a world that is full of differences is not only advisable but also necessary. More and more young people are moving out not only from the confines of their home state but also their countries for higher studies and jobs. We are now interacting on a global level and to succeed there, we need to accept that there are diverse ways of viewing an issue before trying to resolve it. A spiritual perspective however is not an instant thing that one can acquire. It is based on life experiences , the environment around you , yoga, meditation, eating healthily, enjoying the beauty of nature and strange as it may sound, healthy exercises and games and learning to laugh. Motivation plays a big role. There are plenty of books which can be the magic catalyst . However first of all there has to be acceptance, without it nothing will work. One has to be willing to undertake the journey of self discovery.