Should an Ascetic Join Politics?
By Sumit Paul, New Age
Islam
6 June 2024
Ajay Mohan
Singh Bisht alias Yogi Adityanath and his party's shellacking in UP has again
engendered the debate: Whether Yogis,
Sannyasis, monks and ascetics should join politics in the first place?
When Laotse,
the great sage, was surreptitiously leaving the kingdom, as he got
disillusioned with his life in the court of the king, he was caught by the
king's guards. They brought him back to the court. The king was extremely fond
of Laotse and he venerated him. The learned king said, " I won't stop you
from leaving my court and kingdom as I understand that you feel suffocated
here. You can leave but I've a request. Please jot down a few pieces of advice
for me and the people of this kingdom and then go happily." Laotse gave 20
tips for a blissful and hassle-free existence and left the kingdom.
His first
advice was: "Never force a monk to be involved in kingly and worldly
duties. A monk should also refrain from participating in public affairs. "
First of all, it was BJP's serious mistake to engage monks, Sadhus, Sadhvis, Babas, Gurus, godmen
and god-women in political affairs.
These Babas, Yogis and Sadhus should also have declined the requests to join politics. But who doesn't like power? Yogi Adityanath may not have been openly interested in the pelf but he was power-hungry and was ruthless to the bone, an attribute which is unbecoming of an ascetic or a 'saintly' person. He was also rabidly vindictive, whereas an ascetic is always forgiving by nature. Ascetics and monks hardly talk. But our Yogi was inherently motormouth and foul-mouthed. For seven years since 2017, he ruled like a mafia don and ironically declared that he was there to eliminate the mafia! He himself got eliminated! Since BJP refers to Sanatan and its scriptures at the drop of a hat, let's see what the scriptures of Hinduism advise on this count:
First of
all, one who has renounced should not live in his native place. After he has
renounced, he has to start living in another place. How is that possible for a
king and in today's political context, a leader or a politician?
A sage
should leave his native land right after he has renounced. He should live far
away from his own, like a thief just released from jail (Maitreni Upanishad
115)
Secondly,
he has to be on the move always, he is not allowed to stay in a particular
place for around 8 months of a year. Only during the rainy season is he allowed
to stay in a particular place. Obviously, such a lifestyle can't be followed by
a king or a politician.
An ascetic
shall wander alone for eight months;" says the Aruni (8), "he shall
keep a fixed residence during the entire rainy season or during just two months
of it."
Thirdly,
Sannyasi has renounced everything. He can't own anything. Even for securing
food he has to beg. But on the other hand, a king or a politician will own so
many things. He also can't go begging for food.
The things
that a Sannyasi is allowed to carry/own are very few:
A pot, a
drinking cup, a sling, a tripod, a pair of shoes, a patched garment against the
cold, a loincloth, a water strainer, a bathing cloth, and an outer garment: an
ascetic should avoid anything else other than these
Laghu Sannyasa (21)
Let him
sleep on a river bank or in a temple. Let him not afflict his body with
extremes of pleasure or of pain. Let him bathe, drink, and cleanse himself with
water that is purified. When he is praised let him not rejoice, nor curse
others when he is reviled. (But criticise Yogi. You'll face the music very next
moment)
Moreover, a
Sannyasi cannot indulge in several matters which are unavoidable for a king,
for e.g law enforcement etc etc:
"An
ascetic's mind is inevitably perturbed if he behaves with women foolishly in
these four ways. When his mind is perturbed he will perish. "Craving,
anger, falsehood, deceit, greed, delusion, likes and dislikes, fine arts, the
work of interpretation, desire, passion, possessions, egotism, selfishness, the
practice of medicine, law enforcement, atonement, travel abroad, and the use of
mantras, medicines, poisons, and blessings: all these are forbidden to him.
Practising them will cause his downfall.
Narada Parivrajaka. Upanishad.
You cannot
eat the cake and have it too. If you're a monk, live like a monk. Nowadays, too
many 'holy' people are into politics. One hopes that Yogi's downfall will make
other overambitious monks chary of joining politics lest the same deplorable
fate should befall them.
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A regular columnist for New Age Islam, Sumit Paul is a researcher in
comparative religions, with special reference to Islam. He has contributed
articles to the world's premier publications in several languages including
Persian.
URL: https://www.newageislam.com/spiritual-meditations/ascetic-politics-baba-sadhu-yogi/d/132459