So many of the religious traditions teach about the importance of being unattached:
- “Attachment is the root of suffering” – The Buddha
- “The greatest obstacles to inner peace are disturbing emotions such as anger, attachment, fear and suspicion…” – The Dalai Lama
- “Attachment is the great fabricator of illusions; reality can be attained only by someone who is detached” – Simon Weil (French philosopher/mystic)
- “One who does all work as an offering to the Lord, abandoning attachment to the results, is as untouched by sin [or Karmic reaction] as a lotus leaf is untouched by water.” – Bhagavad-Gita (Hinduism)
- “The one who remains the same towards friend or foe, in honor or disgrace, in heat or cold, in pleasure or pain; who is free from attachment is dear to Me [God].” – Bhagavad-Gita
- “The person whose mind is always free from attachment, who has subdued the mind and senses, and who is free from desires, attains the supreme perfection of freedom from Karma through renunciation.” – Bhagavad-Gita
- “If you purify your soul of attachment to and desire for things, you will understand them spiritually. If you deny your appetite for them, you will enjoy their truth, understanding what is certain in them.” – St John of the Cross
- “Attachment to spiritual things is just as much an attachment as inordinate love of anything else.” – Thomas Merton (Catholic monk/writer/mystic)
However, so many people are confused by what attachment means? They think that the speakers of these quotes are calling for people to follow extreme asceticism or shun all forms of human contact & things.
But, being unattached does not mean we must separate from everything & go lock ourselves in a monastery or convent somewhere. In fact, enlightened beings such as Jesus & the Buddha spent much time associating with & teaching people in their parts of the world. And they showed us by their example that there is nothing wrong with striving for goals in life, making friends, or loving your spouse and children. In fact, it’s often in our love for our friends, family, and children that we come to experience and understand the unconditional love of God more fully.
What non-attachment does mean is that we do not love anything more than we love God; that if we were to lose something we possess we would be unaffected by it; & that whatever action we perform we will remain unattached to any type of result.
Now, two things are necessary to have attachment:
1. Something outside yourself that you’re attaching to
2. The person who’s attaching.
However, in nonattachment there’s a unity between the two. There’s a unity because if we love God above all things, then we can become united to Him, or with the whole universe, and when we do that then there’s nothing outside us; for all are one in God. Therefore, true non-attachment comes from the wisdom that nothing is truly separate.
On the other hand, if we have any attachments to things, then we view things as separate, and in essence, we are showing God that our love isn’t truly for Him alone. And only the person who loves God with their whole heart, mind, and soul, does God bless with the knowledge of Him & a direct experience of Him.
For, why should God give Himself to someone who doesn’t love Him whole-heartedly? And why should God give Himself to someone that only desires Him for His gifts?
Therefore, if our desire is to find eternal happiness and if our ultimate goal is to be one with God then being unattached is of extreme importance. If we desire to be one, then we must make sure that we do not have a love for anything more than God. We must not be so connect to things and possessions that if they are taken from us we become depressed, saddened, or angered by the event.
Love God above all else; desire nothing but Him; and one day you will find yourself absorbed into the greatest bliss & joy you will ever know.
God bless you on your journey & remember to always – Heed the Spirit,
Anthony