“I Quit Wall Street, Became A Monk & Found The Key To Happiness” | Swami Chidananda

Added: Jul 31, 2024

After reading "Autobiography of a Yogi," Chidananda traveled to India and met his spiritual teacher, Paramahamsa Swami Vishwananda. Feeling a strong desire to become fearless, reach his potential, and experience love, he decided to live with his guru in Germany for almost 8 years. He never returned to the United States during this time, cutting off contact with family and friends. After those 8 years, he came back to New York during the COVID pandemic and began teaching.

Understanding Spirituality

Chidananda defines spirituality as helping us understand who we are and unlock our full potential. He emphasizes that it's about becoming fearless, as fear often leads to confusion and poor decision-making. True spirituality allows for more clarity, enabling better life choices. He notes that enlightenment, love, and other spiritual concepts can seem abstract, but everyone has experienced fear, making it a relatable starting point for discussing spirituality.

The Path to Spirituality

Chidananda explains that there are typically two ways people come to spirituality: through grace or suffering. Most people, he says, come through suffering - experiencing intense moments that drive them to seek change. Grace, on the other hand, is anything that inspires transformation, such as a book, teacher, or podcast. He emphasizes that grace is the preferable path, as it doesn't require going through suffering to initiate change.

Renunciation and Monkhood

Discussing his decision to become a monk, Chidananda stresses that external renunciation isn't necessary for spirituality. He's met many monks who are still very attached to material things, and many householders who are deeply spiritual. The key, he says, is internal renunciation - not allowing external things to control you. He quotes the Bhagavad Gita: "Detachment is not having no things, but no things having you."

Chidananda shares that becoming a monk involves many tests and challenges. He gives an example of his own attachment to his hair, and how his guru helped him realize the futility of such attachments on the spiritual path. He emphasizes the importance of continually returning to one's sincere motivation for pursuing spirituality.

The Three Gunas

Chidananda explains the concept of the three gunas - tamas, rajas, and sattva - which are qualities that influence how we perceive and interact with reality. Tamas is associated with lethargy and darkness, rajas with passion and activity, and sattva with peace and clarity. He uses the analogy of three robbers to illustrate these qualities: the tamasic robber wants to kill, the rajasic robber wants to steal, and the sattvic robber wants to help.

Everything in the material world, Chidananda explains, has an inherent guna. Our interaction with objects can reinforce or change our own gunas. He advises surrounding ourselves with sattvic things to maintain a sattvic state, which is most conducive to spiritual growth.

The Nature of Reality and Enlightenment

Chidananda presents the Vedantic philosophy of reality, describing Ishvara (the divine), atman (individual souls), and prakriti (material nature). He uses the analogy of an ocean (Ishvara) containing fish (atman) to explain the relationship between the divine and individual souls. Maya, he explains, is the illusory energy that makes us forget our true nature and identify with the material world.

Enlightenment, according to Chidananda, is perfect acceptance of the divine will. It involves transcending the three gunas and spiritual ignorance, realizing that all that exists is truth, consciousness, and bliss. He emphasizes that this realization doesn't mean detachment from the world, but rather fully engaging in life with the understanding that it's all part of the divine play.

Challenges on the Spiritual Path

Chidananda discusses the challenges that arise when one decides to pursue spirituality seriously. He uses the analogy of a "cafe on the cliff" to illustrate how people often hesitate to fully commit to spiritual transformation. When faced with the necessity of letting go of their identity to "dive into the ocean of Ishvara," many people create distractions and delays, symbolized by drinking chai and eating croissants at the edge of the cliff.

He emphasizes that real spirituality can be uncomfortable, as it brings suppressed negativity to the surface. This discomfort is necessary for growth, but it can be challenging to face. Chidananda stresses the importance of having a spiritual practice, engaging in selfless service, and being part of a spiritual community to help navigate these challenges.

Spiritual Pride and Ego

Chidananda warns about the danger of spiritual pride, which he considers worse than not being spiritual at all. He shares a personal story of giving a talk on the Bhagavad Gita and feeling proud of his understanding, only to be confronted with his own judgmental reactions to a homeless woman on a train shortly after. This experience taught him the importance of living the teachings, not just speaking about them.

He emphasizes that spiritual growth is about transforming oneself, not just accumulating knowledge. The ego can easily co-opt spiritual concepts to enhance a sense of superiority, which is counterproductive to true spiritual progress.

Divine Encounters and Grace

Chidananda shares two contrasting experiences that illustrate the importance of being open to divine grace. In the first, he missed an opportunity to help someone due to his judgmental attitude. In the second, he had a profound encounter with a homeless man in New York City who seemed to embody divine wisdom and blessing.

These experiences taught him to be more open and less judgmental, recognizing that divine grace can come in unexpected forms. He emphasizes that by cultivating an attitude of acceptance and love, we open ourselves to transformative experiences.

Practical Advice for Spiritual Growth

Chidananda offers three paradoxical pieces of advice for those seeking success on the spiritual path:

1. Be happy when others succeed, as this opens you to receiving similar blessings.

2. Accept and enjoy what you're doing now, rather than always focusing on the future.

3. Help others to succeed, which taps into the abundance of the divine and brings blessings back to you.

He emphasizes that these practices, while challenging, can lead to profound transformation and success in both spiritual and worldly endeavors.

Conclusion

The conversation concludes with Chidananda emphasizing the importance of letting go and embracing the will of the divine. He suggests that this is the essence of the Bhagavad Gita and the key to transforming one's life. The host, Andre Duqum, expresses gratitude for the conversation and the spiritual connection formed.

Both Chidananda and Andre reflect on the power of such conversations to inspire and awaken people, acknowledging the positive potential of technology to spread spiritual wisdom. They encourage listeners to reflect on how the ideas shared resonate with their own spiritual journeys and to trust in the unfolding of their lives.

The overall message is one of encouragement for spiritual seekers, emphasizing the importance of sincere practice, openness to grace, and the transformative power of letting go and aligning with the divine will.