On the path of the spiritual life one of the most essential virtues to be cultivated is true detachment in contradistinction to carelessness, negligence and cold indifference of the nature of tamas. In ordinary life, we see the manifold expressions of indifference at all stages and in all circumstances. True detachment is the result of daily and hourly restraint upon oneself, according to the precepts of the holy Scriptures, enabling one to rise above the pairs of opposites. It is the balance point, leading to the success of a spiritual aspirant. True detachment is the cure prescribed by all the doctors of ancient wisdom for many of the ills, physical, mental and moral, to which human beings succumb.

In the Second Discourse of the Bhagavad-Gita Shri Krishna points out to Arjuna how giving way to sense-inclinations is the primary cause of all troubles, leading to passion, anger, loss of memory, loss of discrimination and loss of all. There is nothing wrong with the objective world and objective things; they are necessary for evolution. There is nothing wrong with the senses when used as proper channels and instruments for the work of the soul. The mischief starts only when the senses begin to lead and tempt the mind, and drag it down with its owner, the self-conscious thinker, to a lower level, towards the material pole.

In the Third Discourse of the Bhagavad-Gita, Arjuna wants to know what propels man to commit offences, seemingly against his will and as if constrained by some secret force. And Shri Krishna answers that it is lust which instigates him; it is passion, sprung from the quality of rajas. Man is bound by a hundred chords of desire, for he does not consider what are the necessary actions to be engaged in, what benefit will accrue and to whom. His actions are impulsive and involve him in greater and greater difficulties, from which he does not seem to find a way out.

In the Sixth Discourse, Arjuna raises the difficulty about the wandering mind, restless and turbulent and difficult to control. Shri Krishna prescribes constant practice and detachment as the remedy for the uncontrolled mind. "To whatsoever object the inconstant mind goeth out...subdue it, bring it back, and place it upon the Spirit." So, detaching the mind from sense-inclinations, from lower desires, and placing it upon the Spirit is an excellent remedy for most of the troubles on different planes which afflict human beings today. The great Teachers go to the causal aspect, and point out the way to uproot the evil for ever.

The fourth of the Divine Paramitas given in The Voice of the Silence is: "VIRAGA, indifference to pleasure and to pain, illusion conquered, truth alone perceived." This is true detachment. In order to conquer illusion, to perceive truth, and to rise above the pairs of opposites it is necessary to practise this Divine Paramita, its position being in the middle of the seven. We are not to be indifferent to another's pain or pleasure; there we have to be alert and vigilant to give our very best. Viraga is that higher indifference to our own pleasure or pain; it is the doing away with self-centredness. The Voice of the Silence again instructs us definitely on this point:

Ere thou canst settle in Dhyana-Marga and call it thine, thy soul has to become as the ripe mango fruit: as soft and sweet as its bright golden pulp for others' woes, as hard as that fruit's stone for thine own throes and sorrows, O Conqueror of Weal and Woe.

It is a beautiful image—to be soft and sweet to another's sorrow and suffering, but to forget our own and be firm with ourselves as the hard stone of the mango. This will lead to true detachment.

We are also asked to conquer illusions. What is illusion? To think of that which is real as unreal, and of that which is unreal as real. All that is transitory and perishable is unreal; the physical body to which so much importance is attached, the personal nature which always seeks gratification, are illusionary because they are constantly changing, whereas the immortal, permanent aspect of our constitution is eternal and changeless. But in our modern civilization most people do not give a thought to their permanent nature, and so they live surrounded by illusions, and evaluate things incorrectly. Once we are in search of truth, the ideation must undergo a complete change and a new attitude begin to shape itself. What is the truth to be perceived? It is the reality of each one being a ray of light divine, immortal in essence, therefore one with all other sparks of light. The source being the same, the goal is the same also, and everyone works towards that goal under the selfsame law. This can be perceived intellectually, but to live in accordance with it is the task ahead of each one, and a very difficult one too. Kama, Krodha and Lobha are the three gates of hell. They can be closed for ever through Viraga, true detachment, and through constant attention and vigilance to be in communion with the divine, the Higher Self.

It is our various attachments that cause trouble and create false values. Attachment to one's religion, which one considers to be the highest and the best, creates false pride and conflict with others. The soul is above all so-called religions. It is aware only of unity and harmony, love and truth. People show false patriotism by thinking of their own country as the most important in the world, failing to realize that it is but a part of the whole, and that the common good of all should be the aim of everyone. True detachment will lead one to rise above unnecessary attachments to classes and creeds and social position, and to attend to his own duties, sva-dharma, whole heartedly. The closer the union with one's inner God, "the more serene man's destiny, the less dangerous the external conditions." (Isis Unveiled, II, 593)

When it is said, "Come out from among them, and be ye separate," it is not meant that we should exclude ourselves from all our fellow beings, but rather that we should separate ourselves from false beliefs and adopt for ourselves a new style of thinking and ideation, on the basis of true unity and harmony. So many sadhus and fakirs leave their homes and families and go into seclusion, shirking their own duties and responsibilities, not realizing that this is the path of selfishness. Detachment must lead to dedication to one's duties, which may be performed without any consideration of the results of such actions. It is by living in the world that true detachment must be attained. Love of God and understanding of the Law must show forth in the service of humanity. In H.P.B.'s article, "Chelas and Lay Chelas" (Raja-Yoga or Occultism), the seventh of the qualifications expected in a Chela is given thus:

Calm indifference for, but a just appreciation of everything that constitutes the objective and transitory world, in its relation with, and to, the invisible regions.

In this particular qualification is summed up all the help and guidance one may need for the practice of true detachment. It implies true evaluation of life, the walking of the middle way not the discarding of this objective world, nor the denial of the invisible regions, but the recognition of the correct relationship between the two. The outer, objective world is but a reflection of the inner, and is to be looked upon with calm indifference, knowingly, deliberately, but at the same time appreciating the passing panorama, learning the many lessons it conveys, with neither elation at the joys, nor dejection at the sufferings. True appreciation makes us more alive to the needs of others, and more energetic to be the better able to help others and to teach them the Eternal Verities taught by the Sages and Torchbearers of Truth.

When one has true understanding of religion as a way of life and not merely as the performance of ceremonies and rituals, then necessarily all attachment for the founder of a particular religion also ceases. It is not difficult to comprehend that none of the great teachers and prophets is the only begotten son of God, that they all belong to one fraternity, that they all work with one mind, one will, one feeling for the good of humanity, that they are all engaged, whether in the embodied or the disembodied state, in the spiritual service of the race. Therefore no one is greater or superior to others; all are equally worthy of deep gratitude and reverence from all.

No army can withstand the strength of an idea whose time has come.

—Victor Hugo