The very nature of material pleasure drives the mind outward. The senses indulge in objects, the mind returns to them again and again, and gradually, the individual begins to believe that this is the essence of life. Wealth, comfort, relationships, and prestige—all these together weave a beautiful web. This web is as soft as silk, so the feeling of bondage is not immediately felt.
A person laughs, enjoys, makes plans, and time passes quietly. By the time consciousness returns, a large part of life has already passed.
Even if love is not spiritual but based only on attachment and infatuation, it becomes an obstacle to spiritual practice. The nature of attachment is to hold on, not to let go. It strongly emphasizes the sense of "mine" and "yours." The path of the seeker is the opposite—there is surrender, renunciation, and comprehensiveness. When the mind becomes attached to a person, object, or pleasure, its energy continues to flow in that direction.
For spiritual practice, that same energy must be directed inward, toward the purification of the mind and the elevation of consciousness.
Material pleasures and engrossed love have another effect: they make a person inattentive to time. A mind immersed in pleasure perceives death as a distant thing. It feels there is still a long way to go. But the truth of life is that life is diminishing every moment. The seeker never forgets this truth. He lives with death in mind, and therefore, every day is precious.
He invests his moments in spiritual practice, chanting, meditation, and introspection.
It is important to understand here that the seeker does not hate the world. He does not oppose material things, but remains detached from them. If happiness comes, he does not become a slave to it; if love comes, he sees it as a glimpse of the divine, not with a sense of ownership. The seeker knows that anything changeable cannot become a permanent foundation.
The path of spiritual practice is subtle. It requires attention to the subtlest tendencies of the mind. Where there is attachment, there will also be fear—the fear of loss. Where there is fear, there can be no complete freedom. And where there is no freedom, the door to liberation does not open.
That is why the seeker maintains a distance from material pleasures and attachment-induced love. He does not run away, but neither does he become immersed in them. He remains detached from the world even while living in it.
For him, the purpose of life is not merely to enjoy, but to understand the true nature of the soul. When this goal becomes clear, he understands that time is extremely precious and cannot be wasted on fleeting pleasures.
Read more : - The Merchant of Vices
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