It is interesting how in both Eastern and Western spirituality great renounced persons would often perform their prayer and worship in the caves of the mountains. It is in the spirit of simplicity and renunciation—simplicity in that it’s completely natural, it is provided by God Himself. There is no need to pay any rent or to work for accommodation. In fact, the ancient scriptures say, “What is the use of so much effort to build houseswhen there are so many caves in the mountains? What is the use of pillows when you have two arms to put your head on? Why struggle for all kinds of clothes when there’s bark of trees you could wear?”
If we look for happiness in accumulating material wealth or property, then it’s an endless cycle of aspiration and frustration. The more we make our life simple, the more it becomes natural to be God conscious. The idea is, when life becomes very extraneous with efforts for obtaining mundane things, it distracts our attention away from our spiritual pursuits.
So, when great saints and sages would come to these caves, it would be to disassociate themselves from the modes of passion and ignorance, to detach themselves from the passionate world of greed and lust, and in that situation to be able to completely put their full attention into prayer and the chanting of the Holy Names and the study of scriptures.
– Radhanath Swami
Thank you Radhanath swami for your wonderful blog.
I completely agree with an earlier comment made by anna about this genius article by Radhanath swami
What a genius of an idea by the saints of the east and the west. Thank you Radhanath swami for stressing the need to make our lives simple to practice a life centered around GOD
Beautiful experience
Renunciation in the right spirit of serving God and overcoming one’s lower nature is life transforming. Radhanath Swami always teaches us the essence of spirituality.
It takes one to know one. Radhanath Swami himself is a great sage and that’s how he knows the heart of what the real saints feel.
Hare Krsna ! Thank You For Sharing !
Thank you maharaj for sharing this. How often is is that we fail to understand the significance of all these things and all that it requires is a spiritually enforced practical view point. Please give me your blessings that I may also develop such consciousness some day.
YIS
bharat
really wanna visit a cave and experience it.
Thanks for sharing it. I never had an idea that going to caves or wearing tree barks is also related to making life simple.
very nicely described.
Cannot imitate but we can still try to live in that spirit
Very beautiful inspiring articles. Tranad api sunicena Taroor api sahisuna….If we keep on looking for accumulating mundane things we become distracted and chanting pure name would be very difficult
Wonderful message.
wonderful article.
my cherished desire to be there some time…
Thank you for this post.
Radhanath Swami very wonderfully brings out the point that a natural lifestyle is more conducive to God consciousness.
Thank you Radhanath Swami for highlighting the importance of keeping life simple to access God easily.
Very true! Unless we detach ourselves from material things, we cannot progress spiritually.
It is very much true not to struggle hard for unwanted things, anarthas which deviate one from his real purpose of life. All glories to HH Radhanatha Swami Maharaja.
Great article.
Very true. Simplicity makes life more devotional.
Thanks for sharing.
Wonderfully said.
Hare Krishna…Radhanath Swami…
wonderful
thank u for wonderful explanation.
“If we look for happiness in accumulating material wealth or property, then it’s an endless cycle of aspiration and frustration. “- a simple life is very important for a steady practice of spiritual life.
Nice lesson on simplicity
One should be satisfied in any situation that the Lord places us in. Thank you Swamiji.
Nice outlook for being focused.
wonderful explanation of why we should not be overendeavoring
really calm
For the first time I clearly understood the significance of simplicity
“The more we make our life simple, the more it becomes natural to be God conscious.” It is true. Thank you Maharaj for these valuable articles.
Very nicey described ..
its really wonderfull
recently we were in wada and we realize what maharaj has wrote above.
thnkyou very much
good article.
Very nice article
these saints r great…
Thank you for this post.
An inspiring post.
Thank you Radhanath swami for suggesting us to lead a simple life by engaging ourselves in the service of the lord.
Hare Krishna…Radhanath Swami Ki Jai…
Nice article…….
Very true
Wonderful quote
Radhanath Swami has so precisely describe the purpose of meditating in Caves ! Hare Krishna !
wonderful article on inspiration and aspiration
mode of passion and ignorance are great impediment to spiritual path
Nice to know.
yes, to disassociate with modes of passion and ignorance is very much needed in today’s passionate world.
That was the first time i heard about the philosophy behind cave meditation! Thanks to Radhanath Swami for enlightening us on these subtle points.
great
Hare Krishna… Radhanath Swami Ki Jai…
well said.. very true..
Thank you Radhanath Swami for providing a very beautiful insight into the simple lifestyle of the sadhus.
yes, it is an endless aspiration to acquire more and more material wealth. But if we keep our life simple, we can be more satisfied in life and concentrate on higher purpose in life
Indeed its very much close to our own identity to be with Nature and Natural living, which makes us feel very comfortable as well…….But it also requires a great amount of realizations to live in such austere situation.
Nevertheless it should be our aspiration for a higher purpose of realizing God …………….
Sometimes it becomes difficult accept such things but it a fact. We are working hard for something which we have to leave behind in few years and we waste valuable time of self realisation.