Morality & Spirituality (Concluding Part)

In my opinion, morality and spirituality both work together as well as in stages. Morality comes first and Spirituality later. But they also develop different things in a man, both equally essential. Morality's aim is to develop Conscience (Vivek) in a person. Spirituality's aim is to develop Bliss (Anand).

However, speaking of morality, there are 2 things we need to consider - (1) Keeping track of changing morality, as discussed earlier and (2) Morally ambiguous situations.

The changing nature of morality, in my opinion, is best illustrated in Mahabharat, the eternal saga. There can a whole book written about the fabulous play of morality in Mahabharat, especially with characters like Yudhishtir, Bheeshm Pitamah, Karn and Sri Krishna. Lets take them one-by-one -

a) Yudhishthir - He is called Dharmraj, and he demonstrates why in the yaksh-prashn episode of Mahabharat. It is one of the most enlightening episodes of the epic, one which answers a lot of questions about man and life. His philosophy throughout the Mahabharat war is to have a Dharm-Yuddh. His conduct earns him heaven, and a small infraction in telling the truth is duly rewarded. But his conduct during the Dyut-Kreeda is less than Dhaarmik, and it is obvious that the Mahabharat war could not have been won if he had been at the helm.

b) Bheeshm - The epitome of dedication and how-to-keep-a-pledge. His knowledge is vast and his valour is unmatched. Yet he, tied fatally to the throne of Hastinapur, watches the massacre of his family helplessly. His lapses at so many places, like Chir-Haran and failing to persuade Dhritrashtra & Duryodhan, cost him dear in the end.

c) Karn - One of the most complex and intriguing characters of the epic. So many wrongs are done to him throughout his life that you forget counting them, and the "bad" thing he does is stick by his friend no matter what. Agreed, he participates in Chir-Haran and Abhimanyu-Vadh, but his virtues far outshine his vices. His major fault - not giving good advice to Duryodhan as his friend. But seen purely from the human aspect, he is far greater than almost every other character..

d) Sri Krishna - The Lord himself! His morality is unbounded, unguided and undeniably controversial if valued in the human idea of mortality. But then, the Gita isn't called divine just like that. He employs all means, fair and otherwise, to win the war. He clearly shows that ends are more important than the means, provided that the end is THAT good. His style of functioning is unique because of the simple fact that he does not attach himself to his actions and other worldlinesses. He can be very fond of one thing at one point, and then be completely detached to it at the next. That is the supreme ideal of living, and that is why he is the Lord!

The first 3 have some inherent weaknesses associated with them - some form of ideal, or pledge or value. But Sri Krishna is above all these things. As he says, morality and immorality, good and bad come forth from him, and so for him, these things are nothing. But then, that is possible only when you have attained complete detachment, which is virtually impossible for an ordinary mortal. Hence, Karmanyevaadhikaaraste....one of the most profound philosophies ever! And that is what brings us to spirituality - When one is spiritual, morality seems like basics. A spiritual man can take even big moral decisions with ease, because he has had a realization of himself and he is far more aware of what should be done than a non-spiritual man.

Spiritual here, of course, does not mean a religious man. He could be an atheist in societal terms, but as Swami Vivekanand says - He is not an atheist who does not believe in god, he is an atheist who does not believe in himself.

There are also many morally ambiguous situations in a person's life. A fine example is Lying to save someone's life. Others include issues like Euthanasia, Capital Punishment etc. How does one deal with these? I don't know the answer to this. Of course, if we apply Sri Krishna's philosophy to it, there does not remain a dilemma - Live and act as per your Dharm and surrender the fruits to the Lord. But on a more realistic level, I feel that the real question here is that whatever the decision we make, do we have the courage to live with the consequences? If a man's Vivek really is well-developed, and if he knows the circumstances and the consequences, and then makes a decision fearlessly and boldly, there is no dilemma for him.

The measure of a man's life is not mainly by what he has thought or done; but mainly by the feelings, values and ideals behind his actions, and his ability to live with the outcomes of his actions. It doesn't matter whether you lean more towards morality or spirituality - it matters that you keep moving in life, keep trying to remove desires, keep trying to develop detachment, keep trying to realize your self and the truth of life.....and of course, the eternal 2 - Vivek and Anand....