5 Myths Spiritually People Have To Deal With

Say the word Spirituality and mental images of babas or gurus with ashrams in exotic
locations and an army of loyal followers pop-up. Thanks to mass media propaganda,
most peoples idea of spiritually people is that babas or monks, who force you to turn
vegetarian, leave alcohol and smoking, and practice yoga and meditation daily (Sounds
more like my gym trainer!).
This is why its very difficult for most people to imagine spirituality as something so
simple and yet so practical that it can be implemented in daily living. Whats more, most
people who dont practice any spiritual disciplines end up having a lot of misconceptions
about people who do.
Here are some real-life examples
The agnostic friend: "Oye saale tu spiritual hoke daaru pe raha hai! (Only Old Monk!)
The new office colleague: Oh so you are a spiritual person..Thats so cool aap toh
sex mein nahi believe karte hoge? (Yes, I never let a girl go below my chastity belt!)
The non-spiritual parent: Saara din meditation karne se life sort out nahi hogi. Kuch
kaam bhi karlo! (Replace meditation with any other verb!)
So to help my fellow less evolved beings (pun intended :P) understand some practical
aspects of spirituality, heres a list of the 5 most common myths that people have about
Spiritual People and their reality:
Myth #1: Spiritual People Don't Get Angry
Myth: As a spiritual person I am not supposed to get angry or sad, I am supposed to be
calm and relaxed all the time. How can I get angry and yet be spiritual? (Wheres that
poker face you spiritual person?).
Reality: Spirituality isnt about the absence of emotions; its about not identifying or
holding onto them. So if you angry - you dont stay in a perpetual state of anger, you feel
the emotion completely, disassociate from it, let go and move on.
Myth #2: Being Spiritual Means I Cant Smoke or Drink Anymore
Myth: If you are a spiritual person, you dont eat non-veg, drink alcohol, smoke or even
date. (Yes I am just going to go and meditate in my cave now!)
Reality: Spiritual people drink, smoke, make merry, and even eat non-veg. Yes certain
spiritual disciplines like sadhus and monks do advocate abstinence from these things,
however for most of us we dont have to leave anything. Thats because spirituality is
about detachment not renunciation.
In simpler terms, it means have fun drinking, but dont identify yourself with it, if you
need to reduce it/or give it for your benefit or someone elses benefit, you can.
Myth #3: Spiritual People Are Very Religious
Myth: If you are spiritual, you must be a very religious, and you must follow a lot of
religious rituals. (Yes I have my own moonlight cult!)
Reality: I am spiritual but I am not religious. I dont follow any particular religious
practices. I eat fish on Tuesdays. Get haircuts on Saturdays, and the only reason I will
feed a dog or a cow some food is because I love animals, not because my Rahu or Ketu is
imbalanced.

Unlike, religion which has a certain set of religious beliefs and practices, spirituality is
individualistic. You can chant and be spiritual, you can make love and be spiritual
(Tantra), you can follow reiki practices and be spiritual. You can be Hindu, Muslim, Sikh,
and Christian and be spiritual. In fact traces of spirituality exist in every religion. In Islam,
the Sufism sect is the spiritual sect most sufi songs and practice are sang in praise of
God as the divine energy (Think Khwaja Mere Khwaja). Similarly, the Indian Ocean song
Kandisa is another spiritual song which praises God as the divine from the Syrian Aramaic
Church in Kerala.
Myth#4: Spiritual People Haven To Believe In Karma and Reincarnation
Myth: You need to believe in karma, past lives, and aura, etc. spiritual mumbo jumbo to
be spiritual.
Reality: You honestly dont need to believe or know your past lives, in aura energy
fields, etc. to be spiritual. If you are living in the moment and enjoying life, you are being
spiritual. If you are living with the intent to do whats best for yourself and others, you
are being spiritual. Its just that simple!
Myth#5: Spiritual People Need To Meditate Daily
Myth: I cant be spiritual because unlike you I cant meditate or chant daily.
Reality: People mistake meditation with spirituality, thinking closing your eyes and
focusing on your breath so that you dont have thoughts, is what spirituality is all about.
Thats not true - Meditation is just one of the techniques to help you calm your mind so
that you can focus and achieve a state of total focus and immersion. Its a means to an
end, but not the end in itself.
So whats the end? Spirituality is, in its simplest form, being present in the moment. Its
about being so focused and so immersed in what you are doing (with full intent and
concentration) that you experience the feeling of bliss which you get from doing what
you love doing. So when you watch your favourite TV show and are oblivious to your
screaming mother you are meditating. When you are dancing on stage and complete
immersed in it you are meditating. When you are lost in your lovers eyes and oblivious
to the world you are meditating.
One of the best mythical examples of being in this meditative state is Lord Shiva. In his
Shiva form, he is conventionally meditating and completely immersed in it. In his Rudra
form, he is fighting demons and completely immersed in it. In his Shankar form, he is
attending to his family and completely immersed in it. And in his Nataraj form, he is
dancing and completely immersed in it
Thats the beauty of Spirituality I guess we all have done at some point of time in our
lives, just we were never aware of it.
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