Essential requirement

Intuitional practice, sadhana, is everyone's fundamental duty. Yet, very few people perform this duty. Ordinarily, people are afraid of doing sadhana. Fear keeps them from doing intuitional practice. But how far their fear is justified remains to be seen.

They consider giving up worldly life an essential requirement of intuitional practice. According to them, sadhana cannot be reconciled with ordinary life. They regard emancipation as a privilege of ascetics, unattainable by normal worldly people. This is neither necessary nor logical.

An examination of the advantages of adopting this course shows only two: it provides solitude by removing one from contact with society, which should help one's intuitional practice. It also removes one from immediate contact with the world's temptations and troubles, which may help one to destroy Avidyamaya's influence.


Merely leaving the human world and living in a jungle will not set one free. Avidyamaya will go with you to jungles and mountains, and create obstacles in sadhana by replacing the bustling sounds of society with animal howls. It is natural for a person to get used to their environment and not to be disturbed by it. One may find it difficult to practise sadhana in a noisy environment at first, but after getting used to it, it will no longer be difficult.