The Story of the Soul unconcerned about the External World

“Great art is the outward expression of an inner life in the artist, and this inner life will result in his personal vision of the world”, said Edward Hopper, a prominent American realist painter. The saying might seem to be related to art as it is said by an artist but in reality it relates to all walks of life. Any great deed by an individual always turns out to be the expression of one’s own inner life. That is the reason why great art always walks hand in hand with solace. In the absence of this inner life, people tend to win over the material world with their deeds and thus become a slave to its desires.  It is the presence of the inner life that keeps men stable and unmoved to any fluctuations in the outer world and thus places them in a greater position than the rest.

Human life comprises of two worlds. An outer world to which the individual is a speck in the galaxy and an inner world to which individual is the almighty. All the five senses of the human body work to satisfy the wants of the outer world while the sixth sense which is nothing but the inner life works for the well-being of the inner world. In a hurry to fulfill the responsibilities bestowed by the external world, individuals forget to tend to the needs of the inner one. They toil hard throughout their lives to stand high in the eyes of the outer world. Finally one ends up being a slave to its desires and expectations. In reality if a person concentrates on the wants and desires of the inner life and tries to tend to it, then the outer world falls at the feet of such individuals.  Swami Vivekananda, Rama Krishna Paramahansa, Mother Teresa etc are some of the people who proved that by trying to satisfy one’s inner world, one can easily win over the external world.

To explain this with a better example; A trained dancer may impress the entire world with his dance but he is considered to be a better dancer who dances to the music of the nature lost into the world of contemplation in an attempt to express his emotions. He does not need a platform to showcase his talent nor does he need applause by the external world to congratulate his attempt. All that he needs is a means to fulfill the desire of his heart and in this process he adds beauty to the nature just like a peacock does in the depths of the forest.

People with inner life stay unmoved to the emotions of the external world. For such persons failure and victory are two strange events which don’t exist. It is only the expression of their inner feelings that makes what they are.  On the other hand for a person with no inner life, the fashions and frills of the material world look more attractive and tend to pull them towards the spot light. While victory shoves them as far as the sky, failure drops them to the underworld. Such people act according to the transformation in the circumstances rather than transforming the circumstances according to their needs.

As a child, I heard the story of an emperor who suffers from an incurable disease of mental depression for which his physician advises to wear the shirt of the happiest man in the world. The emperor sends scouts throughout his empire to find the happiest man and get his shirt to the court. The scouts wander through nook and corner of the empire but could not find a single person who does not have sorrow in his life. Tired and lost, they trace their steps back to the court. On the way, they find a beggar whistling in joy. On inquiring the beggar if he has any sort of sorrow in his life, he replies that he is the happiest man in the world. Surprised yet relieved the scouts ask him to hand over his shirt to the emperor to cure his disease. The beggar laughs more contentedly and replies, “I am the happiest man in the world because I don’t even have a shirt to wear”.

The story shows how a beggar with an inner life could live a more contented life than a king who rules the external world. The emperor might have had all the riches in the world but his desire to gain more made him depressed. The love for material life obstructed him from enjoying his inner life. Thus the story emphasized the importance of being contented with what we possess and on the other hand the way in which the material world enslaves individuals.

This semblance can be seen in the contemporary world in many aspects. Right from the childhood individuals are forced to do great deeds but rarely taught to listen to their inner voice. The desire to become someone else makes the individuals lose their original self. Thus in the long process of reflecting the wants and desires of the external world human beings get enslaved to their surroundings. That is the main reason why depression has become a common phrase in today’s medical world and motivational centres have come up to train people in inner contemplation.

In this fast developing world of instant communication, a surge at intra-personal communication is quite essential and this can be done only by exercising the age old practices of yoga and meditation. Only then can individuals manifest their inner self to the outer world and fulfill the true meaning of being alive. In the absence of this inner life passion becomes a synonym for profession and in the long run a substitute for depression rather than being the direct reflection of inner contemplation and compassion.