How to balance work and life through spirituality-edited by Aishee Biswas

What is the essence of Life? It is to break free from ignorance, seek enlightenment, transcend our minds, and overcome the myths we have grown up with. What is the purpose of our labor as humans? We learn and earn, only to have others burn what we've gained. Unfortunately, we often fail to realize that our work lacks significance. We toil away without direction, and before we know it, our lives have slipped away.

 

Spirituality provides us with direction, helping us answer the questions, "Who am I, and why am I here?" It is the study of the spirit, which reveals the purpose of life. We should approach life with optimism, following the "ABC Principle" of spirituality: A- Accept life without resistance, as it is the result of our past actions (Prarabdha Karma). B- Do our best in everything we do, so that our current actions (Agami Karma) are positive. C- Surrender our consciousness, where thoughts come and go without disturbing our peace. By working as a Divine Instrument, our life becomes Divine, and we discover that we are not just our bodies, minds, and egos, but also Divine Souls. As long as we are driven by our ego, our minds will create Karma – good or bad – and we will return to earth in a new form.

 

If we seek to balance work and life through spirituality, we must abandon the concept of  "balance"  altogether. Instead, we must devote ourselves to the Supreme Immortal Power, which we call God. We must work and live our lives, but with spiritual awareness. We must live our lives knowing that "nothing is mine, I come alone, I go alone, and nobody is mine."

Our perception of success, driven by our ego, often leads us to believe that achieving material possessions and pleasures will bring us happiness. However, true happiness is not something we can attain through external means. Rather, we must learn the art of being content and fulfilled within ourselves. This is the essence of spirituality – evolving from a focus on achievement to one of contentment and ultimately, enlightenment.

Spirituality leads to liberation from the triple suffering of the body, mind, and ego. This suffering can manifest as physical pain, mental anguish, and emotional turmoil. A spiritual person does not seek to balance work and life, but rather dedicates their life to working as a divine instrument. This is true spiritual enlightenment – transcending the limitations of the body, mind, and ego and living as a divine soul.

In a spiritual life, work and life blend seamlessly into the realization that we are not just our physical bodies, but also divine spirits. By recognizing ourselves as unique sparks of life, or souls, we can live our lives in celebration and dedicate ourselves to serving as instruments of the divine power we call God. In doing so, we release ourselves from the burden of desire and transcend our minds and egos, living in a state of consciousness.

To truly transcend karma, we must realize that all actions are ultimately carried out by the divine. We become karma yogis, understanding that we do not own our karma, but rather serve as a channel through which divine action takes place. By living in this state of oneness with the divine, we cease to have a separate identity and become everything at once.

In blending work and life through spirituality, we do not need to strive for balance. Rather, we move towards our ultimate goal of realizing our true nature as divine souls. Only by becoming enlightened with this truth can we truly blend our work and life and live as spiritual souls. This is the ultimate goal of our lives – to liberate ourselves from ignorance and realize our true nature as divine souls.