The Tenth Man

 The Tenth Man

Those that are spiritual or philosophical in the least would know that in every philosophical aspect, a lot of emphasis is being put on the Self, and the power of the Self. Usually, all of this is with regards to a divine connotation, where gradually the seeds of spirituality is so deep-rooted in a person that he begins to see everything else as divine. 

 

Now, here is the anecdote of a group of ten people that have been travelling together, and when the person that counts everywhere, he finds that there are only a group of nine people present. Everyone around gazes in amazement and none knows where’s the tenth one is, when a person from the group says that he himself is the tenth person and that he forgot to count himself. 

Many texts reveal so, stating that while chasing pleasure and happiness outside, we often forget that there is an inner being that is to be cherished too. It’s complete, full, peace and joy itself - one after the other. Our problem is that we are able to identify ourselves with our true nature. Experts state that once we do, there’s no coming back from it. 

While these concepts seem really exciting and enticing to hear, more often than not, it gets me thinking whether or not it’s applicable in real life, and if at all it is, how do we reach there? By shutting down from the world altogether? By restricting ourselves indoors? Well, the Yoga philosophy states that one needs to sever themselves from worldly activities at least once in a while, clear their minds and then set off to a big start. 

But the question is, even if we do get the opportunity, are we really utilising it to our fullest potential? 

Another school of thought, the Advaita Vedanta states that one doesn’t need to shut down from the world, neither does one need to abandon all responsibilities, he can keep on experiencing the world as it is, realising that everything happening around him is divine…

Now, is that easier said than done? Perhaps. Impossible? Not quite. It might actually become a living reality after realising what is real and what’s false. A lot of times, we intensify pain to the zenith. Suppose someone at work said something offensive to us. We’d be writhing in mental agony over the same. That individual said it to us once, and we keep repeating it to ourselves for 10 times if not less. 

Perhaps, it’s here where we need to take a pause. To stop and think to ourself if we really did get wrong, if we did then we could correct, and if we didn’t then there’s no need to correct anything. In that case, perhaps we need to acknowledge that we are the tenth person!

Image courtesy: Ivanogood on Pixabay