AJIT KUMAR BISHNOI says our priorities have to be right if we want to lead a decent life
In life, we strive for many things. Sometimes they run concurrently. Do we consider their priorities in such casesIJ If we do, we will be better off. I will take the case of ourselves, ie what we actually are. We are souls; we have bodies; we have minds; and we have intelligence. A wise person will wish for maximum gain in each case, ie he or she will like to make progress in all four fields. But are we sure, which comes firstIJ
let us see by logic what should come first and what should come last. But before that, we should be clear about the roles of all these elements/faculties. Starting with the soul, as soon as it enters a material body, most of its functions are performed by the material body. It is left with only three functions: Desiring, deciding and enjoying or suffering the consequences of its decisions. Explaining these functions, a human being is forever desiring various things like becoming an engineer. As these desires are many, the soul has to choose between them. Once such a decision is made, the soul must bear its consequences, whether good or bad.
let us take the intelligence next. It is the functioning of the brain. Ideally, by intelligence one should know what is worth doing and what is not; what is to be feared and what is not to be feared; what is attachment and what is relinquishment; and what is bondage and what is liberation. (Bhagavad Gita 18.30)
The mind comes next. Essentially, it performs three functions: Thinking, willing and feeling. Thinking is done by the brain and this phenomenon is known as the mind. It also wills its owner to act. For example, one is thinking about doing an important work. Mind then wills the person to do it. Its other function is to feel, ie pleasures, sadness, happiness, distress, etc. The soul enjoys or suffers through this faculty.
last comes the gross material body; the intelligence and the mind are subtle matters. Through this body, which has 10 senses, ie knowledge gathering ones and working senses, the body performs many functions through these senses. The earlier ones are: Eyes, nose, tongue, skin and ears. The later ones are hands, legs, mouth for speaking, genitals and anus. And we know what functions these perform.
By logic, soul must come first because it is the owner of the body. Intelligence should come next as it helps decide all matters. The mind is next, followed by the body. If this priority is kept, then the following will most likely happen. The person will identify the self as a soul and remember to try to connect with God — the super soul, which will entitle it to all kinds of benefits elaborately described in the Bhagavad Gita.
The intelligence will be spiritual, which will help it check the fickle mind. The mind, which is the leader of the senses, will in turn maintain discipline of the senses, thus avoiding their degradation. This is perfect working of the whole.
If on the other hand, our priorities are flawed, which is mostly the case, we will put the body or the senses first, thereby we will be dictated by them seeking sense objects which could be quite harmful like alcohol. The mind will tamely think of sense objects which will hurt. The intelligence without the spiritual content will be a servant of the mind only. And the soul will be entirely forgotten. Unfortunately, most of the populace lives in this fashion only, and generally suffers.
What, then, is the conclusionIJ If we wish to live a satisfactory life, we must identify ourselves as souls; our intelligence must be empowered by spiritual content; our minds must be controlled by such intelligence; and our senses/bodies must live in a disciplined manner under the able guidance of such intelligence and mind, otherwise we are likely to have a very ordinary life. Our priorities have to be right if we desire a decent life. I welcome your comments.
Bishnoi is a spiritual writer and can be reached at spiritual@ajitbishnoi.com