Tag: Sannyasins and householders

There is an age old misconception prevailing in India concerning two groups of people: Sannyasins and householders (those who have married). The misconception centers on how they view each other. Sannyasins, who are monks, who have renounced the world and its material comforts, tend to feel spiritually superior and look down upon householders as lesser mortals, who are caught up in the attachments and entanglements of Maya. Householders similarly look down upon Sannyasins, as lazy people, who are not willing to work hard to earn their daily bread, who like to live the easy life off of public funds. Through the enclosed story, Swami Vivekananda has resolved this misconception by bringing forth the truth that each person is great in his own place. Doing his or her duties in the world selflessly, a householder too can attain to Moksha, just as a Sannyasin meditating in the Himalayas can. The emotion (bhavana) of selflessness with which one performs one’s duty is what is of utmost importance. The nature of the duty itself is entirely irrelevant.