This world is the biggest distractor. It distracts us from our objective of nirvana, of mukhta, of being liberated, of being free.
This world, the drama of Lord Rama, of maya, of samasara, the illusion that God has manifested is so amazing that it becomes a big trickster. It tricks us into losing our focus, because the moment the mind is without thought and the focus is on the realization of the truth, we attain liberation, a challenge that is not supposed to come to us so easily. And because we are not supposed to be liberated so easily, we are pulled by the world, we are distracted by the world. The world uses its sense pleasures to attract us so that the mind is distracted and eventually we lose focus; our focus shifts away from God.
With a strong intellect, a very strong will power; with the grace of God, our good actions - karma, it is possible to stop the mind from being a distractor and live in moments of stillness, calmness, silence through meditation, introspection - contemplating on the facts of existence: who am I and why am I here?
Our mind then uses all its energy to love God, seek God, aspire for God, away from the falsehood of being human – this body, this mind, this ego. Therefore, the biggest challenge is to stop the mind, the distractor, from distracting us from achieving the true goal and purpose of life.
You arise in this world for me and seem to be a distractor from thing and people and activities I love. You think there is one path, one way of being that we all want, really deep down. But actually the dry, still, sattvic life you want is not the one I want or others want. You view this choice as if you know what all beings really want and need.
Why do you view it this way? Because you read books and have decided that you have reached the guru stage. You want that dynamic with others. You have the truths and you spout them to others. This makes you feel spiritually advanced, when in fact it is problematic even in your own tradition. Further it is rudely presuming things you simply do not know.
Often people, when they find an expert or a book they use as an authority gets a number of things right, presumed that their chosen book or guru is right about everything. One of the common spiritual errors is that everyone is the same, deep down and wants the same kind of existence or non-existence in your case.
Compared to people your age you have always wanted control. You have had an easier time suppressing your emotions. The social world is not so easy for you. You do not like the loss of upper chakra control involved in sex. So you found a path that fits your needs and desires.
Fine.
But don’t assume that all beings need or want or will every after however many lives the way of being that you want.
If you want to be an anonymous space where things happen with no self, fine. REally. Do that. Perhaps that is best not just for you but for us all.
But leave the watered down, I read some stuff from the East and I meditated some and I am going to share my hallmark, sound bite versions of the East to teachers who actually know what they are doing and who do not run out to proselytize because it makes them feel like they are in control.
Paraphrase from Nietzsche’s Zarathustra–May those who long for some for some after (Other) world, simply go there and leave the business of this world to those who care about it.
This is the world in which I was born–the Earth, with all of its warts and wisdoms. It is a base for all other considerations, not a detractor from any so-called spiritual knowledge.