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Sustainability

Sustainability is the capacity for something to be long-lasting and self-supporting.

Modern technology often lacks sustainability, designed for obsolescence to drive endless economic consumption. This creates a "throw-away society" that destroys the environment. Yet, some technological concepts, like telephony, are sustainable in their enduring purpose. True sustainability is found in nature, which maintains itself. The aim is a sustainable humanity, achieving harmony in body, mind, and soul. Spiritual practice requires similar sustainability, avoiding constant change and comparison. Mixing thoughts and desires through comparison weakens spiritual focus and devalues what one already possesses.

"Modern technology is not sustainable. This kind of technology has made humans, in a sense, ill."

"If you want to protect your spirituality and protect your path, then do not try too many things and do not read too many things that will confuse you."

Filming location: Strilky, Czech Republic

The prevalent subject today is called sustainability. All around the world, NGOs, humanitarian workers, and societies use this word. When we consider what sustainability means, it signifies something long-lasting. Modern technology is not sustainable. Computer technology changes nearly every month, every day. A very expensive computer or laptop bought five months ago is already obsolete, forcing you to buy a new one. This modern technology is not focused on sustainability, but rather on developing the economy more and more. This means you give money to buy something, but the seller is not satisfied with that amount. Since you still have money in your pocket, the seller or manufacturer thinks, "How can I get more money out of your pocket?" So they add new features that you don't have, compelling you to buy again. This kind of technology has made humans, in a sense, ill. Increasingly, you are running and working, facing challenges and competitions. However, there are some sustainable developments within technology. A telephone, whether cordless or with a wire—what you call a mobile or cell phone—is sustainable. For how many years has the telephone existed? I think about 80 years, and we have this technology. When I came to Vienna in 1975 and wanted to phone India, I had to call the telephone exchange office in Vienna. They would then call England, and England would call back to tell me when they would connect the call to India, as there was a cable line through the ocean. They told me that in three days, between 12 and 1 o'clock, they would connect me. So after three days, I sat near the telephone the entire time. This was the situation everywhere. In Czechoslovakia, you couldn't phone everywhere, especially internationally. Times change; technology is definitely developing. So the telephone is good. Television is also a sustainable technique. Emails and the internet are sustainable. But other equipment being developed is not sustainable. Similarly, you can create a child, no problem; you will get a child. But we wish for spiritual, healthy, long-lived children. We wish for every child good health, a long life, and to be spiritually healthy and happy. Another understanding of sustainability is that it automatically maintains itself, is self-supporting. Like trees, nature is self-supporting. There is now a concept called sustainable humanity. In every subject, there is sustainability. In music, you have to dance. So we also say Yoga in Daily Life is for sustainable humanity. Sustainable humanity means good health: physical, mental, social, and spiritual health. This is a slogan we have had for 30 years: harmony of body, mind, and soul. All this was created by the ṛṣis and yogīs. Long ago, people built lakes to purify water. That is sustainable. These lakes are 100, 200, 300, and 400 years old. Everyone benefits from this still water; it is sustainable. But if you make plastic water bottles, they are not sustainable. In any case, it is said we should do something which is long-lasting and not limited only to ourselves. If we act sustainably, your economy might go down. You buy a soft drink, open the bottle, consume the liquid, and throw the bottle away. We now exist in what is called a throw-away society. Today, you might buy something to drink, pour one glass from a plastic bottle, and then throw the bottle away. People working for the environment say, "Throw away," but where? That is the point. We are destroying the environment. Then we have to clean it again and spend money again. All these things are not sustainable. If you do not use sustainable things, you are destroying the environment. Therefore, think. The changes are in the human mind. That is illness. Therefore, we must have sustainability. In spirituality as well, if you change your master, change this and that, it means you are not thinking about sustainability. You are living in a throwaway society. This indicates you have not realized what reality is. You do not know the value of what you want, and you are comparing something with someone else. When you begin to compare, you will either lose the value of what you have or gain appreciation for it. Mostly, you will lose the value of what you have. You will lose the feelings inside, and that means your spirituality will decline. Therefore, it is also said that it is not advisable to read too many books on different subjects. If you want to protect your spirituality and protect your path, then do not try too many things and do not read too many things that will confuse you. Read only what will support your path and your spirituality. Once in Vienna, a lady began to tell me something. She was comparing with something, and I said, "Oh, Allāh, oh, God." Then I understood why her spirituality was falling down. Constantly, her spirituality was declining, and she was not able to give up comparing. That's it. So, do not compare. On the day you compare your husband with other men, your married life falls into disharmony. Or if you compare your wife with other ladies, your married life becomes imbalanced. You do not know what will come of it. You may compare different things, but not within that relationship. But why do you compare? If you tell an apple tree about lemon trees, do you think tomorrow the apple tree will bear lemons? Or if you compare cherry trees with melons, do you think tomorrow the melon plants will grow cherries? That's it. Do not compare. This is this. But this world has become crazy. You are always transplanting, crossing apples with pears and pears with other fruits, and so on. That is called manipulation. We have manipulated all kinds of grains, all kinds of trees, fruits, animals, and humans. God Kṛṣṇa spoke very clearly: "Maintain the quality, otherwise we will be Varaṇa Śaṅkara, we will be born." Varaṇa Śaṅkara means not a real race, but mixed—mixed blood, mixed fruits, mixed vegetables. This manipulation has lost the originality, the quality. But we are now like this. When someone is cooking and adds salt, we mix in more salt. Deer and rabbits do not mix salt into their food. It is a habit. In any case, mixing thoughts and mixing feelings will confuse your spirituality. Therefore, decide and then work on it. No comparisons, no challenges, and do not expect miracles. The biggest miracle you have is that you are still normal, and that is the specialty of Yoga in Daily Life: sustainable normality.

This text is transcribed and grammar corrected by AI. If in doubt what was actually said in the recording, use the transcript to double click the desired cue. This will position the recording in most cases just before the sentence is uttered.

The text contains hyperlinks in bold to three authoritative books on yoga, written by humans, to clarify the context of the lecture:

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