Ananda Marga Universal Forum: Balance needed: east & west + 4 more

Friday, May 30, 2025

Balance needed: east & west + 4 more

Baba

Balance needed: east & west

Namaskar,

Both 'the East' and 'the West' have their own special strengths and strong points. That is why Baba guides us that the inherent attitudes of both the east and west should be utilised. Unfortunately, nowadays, in the height of this vaeshyan era, a lopsided effect is going on. Money and material wealth have become king and the west is more “wealthy” so the general feeling around the globe is that 'everything of the west is great'. This is the common misperception.
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Everyone is aware that so-called third world countries do not have the material wealth of the west. Many of these eastern nations suffer from economic hardships or are just beginning to get the taste of materialism. In that case, seeing the display of the west, innumerable youths have become attracted and infatuated by everything in the west. They think that the west has what they need. So they blindly accept each and every aspect of western life as top notch. Those unsuspecting youths are willing to do and die to become western. Sadly it becomes the goal of their life as they use all their energy to emulate every sphere of life in the west.

East rushes to grab the trash of the west

Tragically, in the east, many youths and adults have begun filling their lives with western habits and conventions. And the ones they are unable to grab they dream about endlessly. And in that desperate state they soak up whatever they can, which is primarily all the degrading ways of the west.

Aside from material wealth, the materialistic west is full of poor living habits and pseudo-culture. Even then, those eastern youths are rampantly mad for anything western, and they copy all the points: fast food, coca-cola drinks, superficial living style, girlfriend & boyfriend relations, crude love marriages, pre-marital relations, 'night on the town', 'loose dress', less respect for one's parents and elders, western Hollywood movies, open sex-- all of it. These impressionable youths of the east think all these things of the west are the best. Because material wealth is given the highest standing.

So our east is 100% attracted to the west and they are ready to accept each and every thing that is western. Yet the west hardly has anything to offer other than material wealth. And that "material wealth" is usually used in such a way that leads to psychic degeneration. This is the ongoing tragedy nowadays.
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Negative outcomes of western lifestyle

So, unfortunately, what most of the people of the east do not realise is that all these things which they are copying have created huge problems in the west. The large majority of the western population is suffering from depression and countless other psychic diseases. Plus the divorce rate is extremely high and sexually contracted diseases are rampant.

Children are suffering from attention deficit syndrome and various other learning and behavioral problems. Countless citizens are taking harmful medicines on a daily basis to offset their debased living habits. And physical health problems like obesity, cancer and heart disease are commonplace.

These are the hazardous and proven results in the west. And unbeknownst to them the eastern youths are running in this same tragic direction. So our young brothers and sisters in the east should be made aware and not blindly follow those things of the west. And it is an achievable result yet due to their inferiority complex - on the point of finances - it is difficult for people in the east to see the immense drawbacks of modern western living.
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Here it should also be said that the general western society does carry some good qualities. In the west, most of the population is 'hard-working', and there is scientific development as well. And there are other positive tendencies. But in the east, the people are not copying these few positive points. Instead, they are primarily running blindly after all the pseudo-culture, mass media, and diseased ways of western living. So the negative things they are copying but the good things they do not follow. This is the common way things are taking shape.

West rushes to grab dogma of east

At the same time - although to a much lesser degree - the west is also copying our east. But instead of getting that pure and blessed approach of spiritual life, most westerners are falling into various religious dogmas of our east or just emulating cheap spiritual life. Fake yoga is popular these days in our west. But on the whole many western youths and adults just superficially pick and choose which eastern habits they want to incorporate into their western luxurious lifestyle. They are not blindly running after everything of our east.

But in either direction, the result is similar. Both east and west are chasing after each others' negative points, and missing what good things the other has to offer. This is the chief tragedy that is befalling our eastern and western societies. And the ironic thing is that each is thinking that by copying those negative things they are becoming 'progressive'.
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Our eastern youths are wearing jeans, smoking cigarettes, eating McDonalds, and having girlfriends etc. So they see themselves as being modern and progressive. And in our west, people are grabbing their yoga mats and paying high prices to go on dogmatic tiirthas and ritualistic religious trips in search of enlightenment. And by that way they also are seeing themselves as 'progressive'.

So both sides are thinking that they are doing something great. When in fact they are basically missing the boat. And seeing the scene now, it is our eastern brothers and sisters who will suffer more from all this. Since they are more rapidly soaking up the poisons of the west.

Proutistic approach: best of both west & east

Baba's teaching is that there should be proper synthesis of east and west - each borrowing or adopting the other's good points. And that means to incorporate each other’s attitudes-- not to blindly accept and copy each others' dogmas and crude life practices. We should emulate the hard working style and reduce the laziness in the physical realm as in the west. But instead people are just copying the crude art, cinema, and all the pseudo-culture.

Likewise we should adopt the introversive science of the east, but instead people are just following crude dogmas like Hare Krishna type of movements etc. So the entire approach needs to be straightened out. Here Baba warns us that ultimately we should neither rely too heavily on the eastern approach nor too much on the western approach.
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Prout philosophy says, "The East, throughout its development, has maintained a subjective approach, whereas western countries put great stress on objective development. Too much emphasis on either one of these approaches is not conducive to the all-round growth of the society." (1)

By this we can understand that the attitude of the west is toward materialistic development (objective) and the attitude of the east aims at spiritual development (subjective). So this should be synthesized and then a good outcome will result.

Conclusion

Historical backdrop of subjective approach & objective adjustment

To truly understand the meaning of subjective approach and objective adjustment, one has to know the historical context. India was a land dominated by the teachings of Shankaracarya and his teachings of mayavada, or illusion theory. Shankaracarya preached that one should renounce this world and run off to the Himalayas and focus only on the Supreme. This proved to be disastrous for both the individual and the society. And the offshoot of this in the west was the hippy lifestyle that preached the slogan “Turn on [to drugs], tune in, drop out [of society]”. This too had a grossly harmful effect.
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Baba’s special guideline of subjective approach through objective adjustment is based on rationality and gives the aspirant a proper way to advance on the path of spirituality, while still maintaining their worldly existence. The central idea is that one should make their life in such a way that their speed towards Parama Purusa is not hindered. That means the sadhaka has to continually mold and adjust their worldly existence to create a congenial environment for spiritual life. So the adjustment has to occur in the mundane sphere.

For instance, suppose you are sitting next to someone who is smoking a cigarette. Then the answer is not to leave this world and go into the jungle. Rather, one should (a) stay in their locale, (b) arrange their food, living place, and job, and (c) proactively create an atmosphere for leading a dharmic life based on Sixteen Points sadhana etc. That means adjust the material world to your spiritual approach, and not run away. By this practical method, life becomes a perpetual endeavour to create a situation favourable for reaching towards Parama Purusa. That is what is meant by subjective approach through objective adjustment.

Namaskar,
In Him,
Cinmay
Christopher Taylor

~ In-depth study ~

Subjective approach & upavasa

Baba says, "On all other days they are to remain balanced between objective adjustment and subjective approach. On these days of fasting, however, on these days of upavasa, one remains in closer proximity to the Lord than to one's mundane duties." (3)

In Baba’s above teaching He gives us two basic pathways. First, He is guiding us that in our daily life there should be a proper balance between our worldly duties and spiritual life, i.e. subjective approach through objective adjustment. And second, on days of upavasa, Baba’s directive is that one should primarily focus on sadhana, i.e. subjective approach. There is no third approach. That means there are no days where we exclusively focus on worldly dealings, i.e. objective approach. So Baba’s above teaching wholly refutes the notion that one should “adjust” with the mundane world by compromising on one’s spiritual values. There is no scope to ever give up the subjective approach - i.e. God-centered outlook.
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Our way in Ananda Marga

Sadguru Baba says, "Ananda Marga is a revolution. It is not only a spiritual revolution but also an economic, social and mental revolution. The economic system, the social structure, the trend of thinking, and the spiritual practices prescribed in our Ananda Marga are not only new but something quite different from the established ideas and practices in these spheres of life." (4)

Here Baba talks more about the differences and synthesis needed between east and west:

Prout philosophy states, "The West is completely obsessed with physical development. It has made spectacular progress in the fields of politics, economics, science, warfare, etc. In fact, it has made so much material progress that it seems to be the sovereign master of the water, land and air. But for all that, it is not socially content and miserably lacks spiritual wealth. Unlike the East, in the West plenty of wealth has created a crisis. Therefore, it is abundantly clear that no country can progress harmoniously with only one-sided development."
"Therefore, it behooves both the East and the West to accept a synthetic ideology that stands for a happy synthesis between the two. Here, the East can help the west spiritually, whereas the materialistic West can extend its material help to the East. Both will be mutually benefited if they accept this golden policy of give and take." (5)

References
1. Prout in a Nutshell - 18, Talks on Education – Excerpt C
2. Prout in a Nutshell - 18, Talks on Education – Excerpt C
3. Ananda Vacanamrtam - 6, Upavása
4. A Few Problems Solved - 7, Ananda Marga: A Revolution
5. Prout in a Nutshell - 18, Talks on Education – Excerpt C

* * *

The below sections are entirely different topics, unrelated to the above material.
They stand on their own as points of interest.

* * *

== Section 2: Important Teaching ==

Applying forgiveness

This following teaching has two main parts:
(a) If someone harms you in personal life and their behaviour is rectified and they feel repentant then you should forgive them - highlighted in green.
(b) If some wrongdoer harms the society then you should force them to rectify themselves - highlighted in yellow.

Ananda Marga philosophy guides us, “The faults of others should be excused as far as possible. If you find that the conduct of an individual is antisocial, you should try to reform his or her nature by resorting to whatever severe measures may be necessary. Remember, he or she is not your enemy, but his / her conduct is the enemy of your society.” (1)

Note: In His various teachings, Baba says that it is bad to prematurely forgive someone, i.e. if the wrongdoer’s conduct has not changed. However, if the person is repentant and they have truly transformed themselves then, in our personal life, it is incumbent upon us to forgive them. And that forgiveness should be done in the proper spirit.

In the world, there are two types of forgiveness. One is real and one is pseudo. For instance, suppose there are two teenagers, Rob and John, and they get into an argument. Ultimately, Rob beats John and the police arrest Rob. For this crime, Rob felt repentant, and his personality changed. Seeing this transformation, John said, “I forgive you for beating me.” But if John is just offering forgiveness to ease the hatred and pain in his own mind then that is just pseudo-forgiveness. Forgiveness is not done merely for one’s own comfort and relief. When forgiving anyone, one must have a genuine feeling for the next person’s welfare.

Reference
1. Caryacarya - 2, Society, point #19

== Section: Important Teaching ==

Start of polo

Ananda Marga philosophy says, "The well-known modern game of polo originated in Manipur's Kobe Valley...Originally, only royal princes used to play the horse-riding game of polo. For that a very hard ball was needed. The kind of bamboo that was used used to grow in the eastern portion of Rarh, in slightly salty soil. Still today the best bamboo for making polo balls grows in the Uluberia subdivision of Howrah District and in Midnapore District's Tamluk subdivision." (1)

Reference
1. Shabda Cayanika - 3, Kakubh to Kavaśńa (Discourse 17)

== Section: Important Teaching ==

Olden days of agriculture

This is an English summary of the original Bangla discourse - Ananda Vacanamrtam - 18 (B) ‘80, chapter 11,:

In the primitive age people were not aware how to cultivate the land. Still in present day India there are many tribes who follow those primitive ways. In that pre-historic era they used to burn the forest as a means of preparing the ground for planting. And when those ashes were mixed with the soil then the soil would become more fertile. Afterwards, using pointed stones or some sharp wooden pieces, those primitive people would then scrape the top layer of topsoil and spread the seeds.

After the rains came the seeds would grow and the crops would come. Usually after 3 - 4 years of continuous cultivation, the fertility of the land would decrease. Then those tribes of the prehistoric era would leave that place and go to another part of that forest. And in a similar way they would burn that section of the forest and re-start their process of preparing the land. This type of cultivation is called "jum-cha's'a". When the age of jum-cha's'a finished then the age of the plough came and then people used to cultivate using the plough.

(English summary of Ananda Vacanamrtam - 18 (Bangla) ‘80, chapter 11, MGD, 30 March 80 Kolkata, History of Yajina - 7, p.126)

Note: Here above Baba is revealing the historical facts about how primitive tribes in the jungles used to live thousands of years ago. It was only after the mountain age that tribes started agricultural cultivation. Actually they were under pressure to do something because they had already killed most of the animal livestock of the jungle. So up to that time they were living in the mountains and hunting for the basic needs. But when there was a shortage of animals to eat, they came down to the plains area and started cultivating the land in the aforesaid manner. In that early era, they could not even invent a single simple tool. That is why they were scratching the land with sticks and pointed stones. Those days people also were moving naked and living in the trees making nest-type of houses. Animal skins were only used as the clothes in the winter season.

== Section: Important Teaching ==

Herbal health remedies

Ananda Marga philosophy says, "Antidotes of poison - green turmeric, spinach leaves, basil...mainly black basil and secondly white basil or any kinds of basil." (1)

Ananda Marga philosophy guides us, "If some negative effect is going on due to food poisoning or because of eating poisonous fish, then without any delay a sufficient quantity of spinach leaves should be eaten and by that way the poison will be antidoted." (2)

Note: These above quotes are excepts from a particular discourse in Shabda Cayanika.

Reference
1. Shabda Cayanika - 20 Bangla, disc 156
2. Shabda Cayanika - 20

== Section 3: Links ==

Postings to Read