'Sanyasa'

 The term 'sanyasa' means taking to a life of renunciation. However, this renunciation has many shades of meaning and, for some, may not mean totally giving up family and social life. Even the persons who seek to live a secluded life in forests or distant hills may come to the village often and collect some essentials and return! Hence, total renunciation is a distant possibility. By the way, what do we mean by living a secluded life? Why should one give up social life and live in seclusion and for what purpose? The answer is simple and direct. Bhagavan Sri Krishna says, "I love a person who sits in solitude and think of Me". 

Ekanta', seclusion, renunciation, living in solitude, is advised for spiritual progress. The social life is full of distractions. The ten sense organs have ten thousand desires! It is impossible to fulfil all desires and ultimately satisfy oneself. The tantalizing objective worldly sensuous life will never bring peace and happiness ultimately. There remains a void, if not vacuum. Then, what is the solution?

  The learned sages have taken to sanyasa, meaning 'sum nyasa', giving up everything! Some advise taking to 'sat nyasa', the right and truthful way. Some say, total renunciation is necessary. However, it must be remembered that these are only the different steps towards attaining peace and tranquility. The secret of attaining happiness is very simple. Happiness is a state of tranquility. One should not rejoice with success or sit morose or remorse in adversities. This is a state of equanimity, samatvam. The state of equanimity is beautifully described by the Blessed Lord in the Gita. It is a state of oneness, where there is no discrimination. It is establishing oneself in a state of non-discrimination. Also, it is establishing oneself in one's own self (Atma-prajnyata). It is a state of withdrawing from 'the other'. 'sthita prajnyata. It is not exactly an averse to social and objective world, but a state of looking at it as a spectator in a drama! A spectator should enjoy the drama, but not jump on the stage to participate? What is sthitaprajnyata and who is a 'sthitaprajnya?. A person established (sthita) in self-consciousness (Atma-Prajnya) is a jnyani, muni.

  Thus, the one who is established in one's Self, atma-nishta, atma-tishta- is a 'sthitaprajnya'. Arjuna asks, Sri Krishna: kimaaseeta sthitaprajnyasya ka bhasha samadhistasya Keshava? sthita dheeh kim prabhasheta kimaaseeta vrajeta kim || The answer is simple. AtmanyevaatmanO tushta sthitaprajnyastod uchayte || sthitadheermunirucyate ! such a person will not rejoice in success, will not show any preferences, likes and dislikes, desist from ill-will, anger, jealous, and greed. This is the sign of a real sanyasi. Such a state of equanimity is difficult to attain as long as one lives in a worldly state of life with desire, greed, hunger and thirst and craving for sensuous life. Such yogins will treat all living creatures as one's own self and show kindness and respect equally.

   A saintly person seems to be on the last leg of the journey on this living Planet Earth. It is as if a journey that culminates with purification by discarding all cravings, desires for sensuous objects. A sense f repulsion arises after one realizes the fact that the sensuous objects are obnoxious. An aversion to worldly life arises and leads to resistance to craving for renunciation, and sanyasa. This paves the way for developing the renunciate life in the next birth. Hence, the present life of a recluse may be a carry over of the past life's desire for liberation, mukti from samsara..