Discipline
Discipline involves training oneself to adhere to a specific code of conduct, often requiring dedication and self-control to achieve a particular goal. Spiritual seekers following Sant Mat commit to upholding four vows made at the time of their initiation.
Three foundational vows
The first vow involves adopting a lacto-vegetarian diet. It entails abstaining from meat, fish, poultry, eggs, and animal products like gelatine. Lacto-vegetarianism aligns with a fundamental religious principle that emphasizes the sanctity of life. For example, the New Testament of the Bible asserts “Thou shalt not kill” as a core commandment. Likewise, Hinduism and Buddhism prioritize nonviolence as a cornerstone of ethical living. All major religions teach against causing pain and suffering to others. But why should our compassion be limited to humans when scientists have shown that animals are sentient beings and so experience pain? What right do we have to take their lives?
Maintaining a lacto-vegetarian diet requires discipline and mindfulness. It involves carefully checking our food to ensure it does not include animal derivatives; for example, we may need to check that cheeses are made with vegetarian rennet or that cakes are eggless. By embracing this discipline, we cultivate a deeper awareness of the impact of our dietary decisions. In this way, our diet is not a restriction but a celebration of intentional living.
The second vow involves abstaining from tobacco and all mind-altering substances, including marijuana – even for medicinal purposes. The essence of meditation lies in cultivating a focused mind, and consuming substances that alter our mental state undermines this objective. Additionally, all drugs – whether mind-altering or not – carry the risk of addiction. What may begin as recreational use can swiftly spiral into dependency. When an individual becomes preoccupied with satisfying cravings for substances like cigarettes, alcohol, marijuana, ketamine, LSD, ecstasy and others, they find themselves enslaved to the whims of their desires. This not only erodes self-control, but also severely hinders their ability to achieve mental clarity. By committing to a drug-free lifestyle, we encourage the focused awareness that is essential for our spiritual development.
A disciple cannot simultaneously serve the Lord and succumb to the whims of the mind and the senses. When we follow the mind, we become undisciplined. The third vow calls for leading a pure, moral life while fulfilling our worldly duties. It encompasses honesty in the way we earn our living, in relationships and all interactions. We must account for every action and every breath we take.
In Spiritual Letters, Baba Jaimal Singh emphasizes the significance of living honestly and ethically, urging individuals to rely solely on income earned through their labour and to avoid exploiting others. He explains that the Lord provides each person with what they need. Resorting to deceitful means for acquiring wealth or status leads to negative karmic consequences, trapping individuals in the cycle of birth and death. His teaching highlights that ethical living aligns with divine will and is crucial for the liberation of one’s soul. Meditation cannot offset or compensate for dishonesty; our karmic debts must be settled on the material plane Therefore, he concludes:
Apart from your rightful earnings, you are never to use what belongs to others. This is the first step on the spiritual ladder. Even if you are the king of the whole world, you are still to eat only the rightful fruit of your own labour.
Each spiritual seeker must adhere to the first three vows for at least a year before seeking initiation and practising the fourth: two and a half hours of meditation daily. The Seekers’ Guide emphasizes the seriousness of these commitments, which represent profound internal commitments, transcending verbal promises:
These four vows, taken at the time of initiation, are the most serious commitments you will ever make. They are an internal commitment and not a verbal or outward promise.
The fourth vow: practising meditation
The purpose of meditation is to connect with or become conscious of the Shabd, the sound current within us. To achieve this, spiritual seekers are taught two key practices: simran and bhajan. Simran involves repeating five holy names, which the author of Message Divine describes as “meditation on the object of one’s worship and for identification of oneself with this object.” Simran prepares one for bhajan, attuning oneself to hear the sound current.
Becoming aware of the sound current requires reversing our outward-directed attention inwards and focusing it at the eye centre. Yet, one of our toughest challenges is maintaining an unwavering focus on a single activity. Unconvinced? Try this concentration test: spend the next few minutes reading this article without letting your mind wander. Can you ignore the alerts from your phone or any other sounds? Can you stop thinking about the errands you must run or the tasks waiting for you?
All of us will fail the concentration test because, historically, our attention has been drawn outward through our senses, especially the mouth, eyes, and ears. Speaking involves us in worldly matters while our eyes and ears absorb and imprint in our minds a constant stream of external images and narratives. This is why saints emphasize repetition: it shifts our attention from the external to the inner realm. However, even as we attempt to focus inward, memories of worldly events and experiences resurface, and we soon realize that images of family, friends, hopes and aspirations are virtually indelibly imprinted in our minds. Since these recurring impressions hinder our focus, eliminating them is our first step.
One way we could develop our ability to concentrate during meditation is to practise undertaking worldly activities with a single-minded focus. The more we concentrate on a single activity with intention (instead of being distracted), the further we progress on our spiritual journey. Whether working, listening to music or engaging in other activities, dedicating our attention to one task at a time significantly enhances our capacity for focus and concentration. By channelling our energies into singular actions, we train our minds to cultivate the habit of concentration and create a deeper connection to the present moment.
By immersing ourselves fully in each activity and developing our concentration muscles, our daily routines can indirectly support our spiritual growth. However, as Maharaj Charan Singh states in Spiritual Perspectives, Vol. II, simran alone has the power to counteract the mind’s natural tendency to think:
Be 100 percent in simran, because the mind is in the habit of projecting many things at one time. We do simran and we also start thinking about other things, so that means the mind is not 100 percent in simran. By 100 percent I mean that we should do only simran and nothing else. Nothing in the whole world exists except for the simran.
Engaging in simran during moments that do not demand concentration further supports our spiritual development. Ideally, this practice should become second nature, much like the instinctive act of breathing. Yet, repeating simran constantly is far from easy; it requires a continuous struggle against the distractions of the mind and a steadfast commitment to choose to remember the Master in every hour, every minute, and with every breath.
Without the grace of the Master, dedicating just ten per cent of our day to meditation would be insufficient to address the vast load of karma accumulated over the billions of years our souls have been residing in the material realm. The precious gift of human life bestowed upon us is due entirely to divine grace; there is nothing we have done to deserve it. Adhering to the four vows is the best way to express our gratitude to the Lord.
Each time we sit in meditation, we are given an invaluable opportunity for focused communion with our Master. Let us show that we love him deeply by spending as much time as possible with him inside, for he is always devoted to loving us. In Spiritual Perspectives, Vol. III, Maharaj Charan Singh poignantly stated:
Our relationship with the master is that of love and devotion, of meditation. It is not any worldly relationship; it’s only a spiritual relationship. And the more we are filled with love and devotion for the master, the nearer we feel to him. The master is always near to us; it is we who are away from the master. The more we are filled with love and devotion for the master, the nearer we feel to him and the more we feel that he belongs to us and we belong to him.