What is real renunciation? To me, it is never forced. I can never renunciate something because I am supposed to or because it is good karma or because it is said as a goal to be achieved in cannon. To me, real renunciation comes from understanding - it is like a leaf falling from the tree. When there is no connection left, it falls automatically - without any effort.
The root lies in understanding the reason behind clinging. Every one clings for different reason, even if they are clinging to the same thing. Reasons can vary from conditioning to peer pressure to social status to childhood fantasies. Why there is clinging and why is it important to me - this is the question to ponder. If there is an answer, there is an automatic renunciation. The answer is not easy to find...:)
With metta.
"If there is an answer..." how true! Renunciation can also be tough, sometimes it is more like a cutting Manjushri's sword (with force but not forced) than a falling leaf.
ReplyDeleteThe blog is looking really great, Taru! Congratulations.
There you go Catherine - what a good analogy - Majushri's sword! I did not think about it at the time I was writing, but this is definitely another aspect of renunciation.
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