I've lost my job and Spirituality is my Savior

In this episode of The Bearded Mystic Podcast, host Rahul N Singh shares his personal experience of facing job loss and how he used spiritual teachings, especially from the Bhagavad Gita, to navigate through the emotional and mental challenges. Reflecting on feelings of unworthiness, fear, and failure, Rahul emphasizes the importance of living the teachings in day-to-day life. He discusses the value of acceptance, remaining neutral amidst success and failure, and the deeper understanding of oneself beyond material possessions. Join Rahul as he delves into the essence of being an observer and trusting in existence during challenging times.

Watch Swami Tadatmananda ji's video on total acceptance: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bq7aIm1112Y

0:00 I've lost my job and Spirituality is my Savior
00:56 Unworthiness
02:50 Support me through YouTube Membership
04:00 Failure
04:40 Be the non-doer
06:21 Opportunities
06:59 Total Acceptance
09:52 Chase Excellence and success follows
10:56 Why we don't need to stress
12:47 Worrying is not my flex
13:19 Spiritual Practice and Life is the Test
14:24 The Bhagavad Gita
15:57 Critics may claim awareness doesn't solve issues

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Transcript

0:00

Welcome to the Bearded Mystic Podcast where we are waking and growing in oneness and I'm your host, Rahul N Singh. I've been a spiritual seeker for over 20 years with a deep interest in non duality. Thank you for joining today. Spirituality is never about being in bliss or being in prayer and attending retreats left right and center. As much as these can be helpful, it is actually living the teachings in our day to day life that matters the most. Recently, I was told that I was going to be impacted by a layoff at the company where I work. When I was told this was happening to me. My inner voice guided me that this is when you truly practice the teachings that I've been talking about on the podcast for many years. Now let me address the emotions that came up that day when I literally just observed my mind untangle this whole situation. There was feelings of unworthiness and how I possibly didn't provide as much value in my role as I thought I did. To be told out of the blue that you will no longer have a job in two weeks was like a punch in the gut, and mind you, others have had it much worse and are told that their position is eliminated and within 10 minutes all access is removed. It was unexpected for me and I think I was somewhat shocked by it all too. Yet this feeling of unworthiness was met with my mind and my intellect came into work here. It started setting up the motions on why I am not unworthy. Firstly, no job defines who you are and can it even define or quantify your value. Secondly, there are people you worked with who are always thankful to you and enjoyed your presence. I know for a fact a few people trusted me and told me how they felt and they knew that I kept an open mind. So this little enquiry helped me get over these feelings of unworthiness. The next feeling that came up was the fear of not having any income until I found another job. This is daunting in today's market as it is an employer's market and they are dictating everything. Mass layoffs are continuing and that means more people are searching for a job and therefore the competition is much higher. Not having any income will be tough, because I have a family, my wife and 11 month old son. Thankfully my wife is working, but it means that some of our plans may be put on the back burner for a while. But the current job market It may take some time before I find a job, it could be at least 5 6 months, but at the same time, I have an incredible amount of trust in existence where the timeline will be of little concern to me. It would be great if the podcast gave me some level of income, but I've found that people seldom give you anything monetary for wisdom, especially since I do not declare enlightenment, nor do I see myself as a guru. So defining myself has been somewhat challenging, and one that I still struggle with today but if you feel like it you can open yourself to joining my YouTube membership if you feel that my content has given you some value over the past couple of years. Along with that if you want to have a one on one spiritual discussion with me check the link in the video description or the show notes below. Before I get diverted from the topic, I do believe that spirituality and the knowledge you get can be given for free, but our human mind is such that when you pay for something, you give it more value and attention. That is why we may pay a lot of money for a new phone, because we know its value. Again, if we truly understand the value of wisdom that is shared with us, we know it is beyond any price in the world. Now, back to the situation, another emotion that I experienced was failure. And this is rather a projection where I think I had failed my wife and son. Neither of them would ever make me feel that way. In fact, my wife has been really supportive and understanding. The reason that I said it was a projection is because as a kid I remember being told I would fail in life and thankfully, that has not happened. Again through discernment, I realized that this was not the first time I had lost a job and that something always better just came along. I simply have to accept everything that is happening and have no resistance to it. The beauty of the spiritual path, especially when we incorporate the teachings of the Gita, one simply understands that they are not the doer of any actions. In fact, I am to surrender the doer completely, by being the non doer and seeing it from the view that Prakriti or existence is doing it all, then I, the knower of the field, is simply witnessing. I can get out of any toxic negative thought patterns that may bring me down. In fact, I don't have to be positive either. It is important for me to remain neutral. As it is said in the Bhagavad Gita, actions are performed in various ways impelled by the gunas of prakriti, the body, mind and senses. Deluded by the I notion, one thinks, I am the doer. And that's in chapter 3, verse 27. If one simply understands this lesson, then life becomes a lot easier, and we are able to live a life where we are not entangled, but in fact free. For example, I have lost my job, but did my actions cause this? No, it was the actions of the company. They will face the karma of what they did. They think of keeping the shareholders happy or the billions of dollars of revenue. If it is a decision made by the business for whatever reason, it is simply prakrti, a whole group of bodies, minds and senses. But since I have no active part in this, I can simply accept it and understand that they have eliminated the position I worked in, and that includes this body and mind. I have to lose the job and leave the company. Did my awareness or consciousness get affected by this? Did the formless self within get affected by this? Absolutely not. I was in a similar situation during COVID 19. I was about to lose my job because my position had been eliminated there when I was working in a different company. I remember not panicking then. But it did change something in me and allowed me to create a situation that would bring so much positivity into my life. It triggered the creation of this very podcast that you're listening to. So corporations, their decisions, shareholders, strategies and jobs are all part of prakriti. None of these things need a me in there. This wonderful journey brings us to total acceptance. In fact, recently, Swami Tadatmananda Ji from the Arsha Bodha YouTube channel did a wonderful video on the word Tattastu, which simply means total acceptance. He also composed a Sanskrit hymn in that video, which I suggest you should check out. I will leave the link to this in the video description or the show notes below. The main idea is that I accept everything that has happened with the fullness of my heart. This way, I keep myself open to new opportunities and most definitely new beginnings. Another part of the Gita's teachings is that I have to be neutral when it comes to success or failure. One is to rise above both of these polarities. In fact, there is a perfect verse from the Bhagavad Gita that highlights this. The one who is happy with whatever comes by chance, who is unaffected by the opposites, free from jealousy and even minded with reference to success and failure, is not bound even though performing an action. Chapter 4, verse 32. See, getting a job is truly by chance. You just happen to be the right person at the right time. The competition today is much bigger, especially with remote work, but it remains, again, something by chance. You have to be free from jealousy, especially when you know that some people still have their positions and their roles have not been eliminated. It is okay. Like we said earlier, if everything is by chance, then why should I stress out? Why should I be jealous? I actually don't have to be. I can be happy and content within myself and be happy for them. Even minded with reference to success and failure. See, this is an important one. Let me expand. Losing a job can make one feel like a failure. But what about when one is applying for jobs? Now, this is such a tough slog, applying every day and not hearing back for a few days, occasionally weeks and sometimes even months, to just get an email saying how you're not going through to the next round. Even say that you get an interview. Nowadays the interview process is long and tiresome, and adding on to this is being ghosted by the recruiters, so, there is a lot that one must go through. But as Sri Krishna says, we must be even minded. If we get the job, we are content. If we don't get the job, we are content. The main thing is not to get depressed if one fails and not get overexcited if one succeeds. Failure and success are simply a part of Prakriti. This reminds me of a great Indian movie called Three Idiots. In this movie, there's a A very beautiful idea is mentioned, we are not to chase success but to chase excellence. If you chase excellence then success will automatically come to you. Most importantly, we should not forget that we are not the performers of actions. The action is happening according to the circumstances with both the world's karma and your karma and everybody else's karma. Therefore, it is not you that is applying for the job. Or it is not you losing a job, it is not you that is being ghosted, it is just the body, mind and intellect that is a part of prakriti that thinks it is affected and harmed by all of this. These very basic yet impactful spiritual teachings have helped me gain confidence and remain composed. Whatever happens in life, I don't have to get personal with it. I can simply allow it to happen and accept it in totality. I do not need to get stressed One I know I am the Atma, therefore this does not label itself to anything nor is it conditioned in any way. The second reason that I do not need to get stressed is because I can give all the worries to my Isht-devta, my Guru, my Deity, to Ishvara, or simply to Brahman and be free from it. I can pray to them and say this is your problem to deal with. In that moment we let go of all of our worries and stresses and carry on with living our life with joy. And this goes the same with our successes in life. It is not that we expect our problems to be solved, but simply the strength to accept whatever is happening. I know this sounds pretty simple, but if we look into our lives, we find that this is something we struggle with. Accepting totally what is happening. In the past, I've always left my problems to Brahman, to the Formless, to Nirankar. I don't expect to get a job right away or that I will get what I want. I do not put any conditions on it. I simply wait and be patient and allow the opportunity to appear infront of me. This patience has got me into trouble, also, in the past, because my family, especially my parents, always want me to show that I care about it more. But the fact is, getting a job is not a passion of mine. These podcasts are. Spirituality is. I love devoting my time to this. Now, a job is for the means, and that is its purpose. I care about it because it gives me a salary, but it doesn't define who I am, or is it something that follows my bliss. This can be hard to explain but I know my parents and my wife know that I do care but I do not necessarily show it or express it. I have found that worrying doesn't suit me. I just don't do well with worrying. It's not that it overwhelms me, it's actually the opposite. I find it underwhelming and rather useless. Worrying only leads to doubts and anger and we all know that this gets us nowhere. And the birth of my son has helped me put things into perspective. So the way I deal with things may be different to you, but please do share in the comments how you deal with situations like this, I'm very intrigued to know. These moments are the true spiritual tests that we have to take, it's not like we have to pass an exam or anything like that, but it is important to see how calm and collected we remain when things aren't going our way. Do we get overwhelmed and end up having stress? This then leads to a path where our mental health is in danger. So do we handle this with confidence that life will look after us? We just have to trust it. It's not some abstract idea. We can witness how life brings it all together. All we must do is Observe. The only true value we have in life is the ultimate realisation of Brahman which leads to Jeevan Mukti. This is the goal of all goals, the purpose of all purposes. Therefore, I hope that if you ever experience such issues, you will remember today's message and to get in touch with me if you feel like it is too much for you. I'm happy to listen and just reflect what you're presenting to me. The Bhagavad Gita has helped me so much in these times. It is a rich source of guidance and it understands the nature of life very well. Sri Krishna's words are all about the battle we have within. We normally just chase desires and lust over many things, but we must strive to watch our thoughts and emotions and keep them in check. We need to assess if our senses are overwhelming us. We must aim to be balanced and stable and to adjust our sails when necessary. It is always best to go with the flow instead of being against it. Life is very beautiful and even though I may not be in the best situation today, I have so much to be thankful for. And this is no toxic positivity, trust me. All I need to do is remember who I am and remain in peace and contentment. Losing a job is just one situation. You can apply these teachings to whatever problem you're facing in life. Because, that's what I go back to. For me, the easiest path is to remain a witness, an observer, and understand that this consciousness is the only thing, and understand that this is truly who I am. I only have a body and mind that has a job, or does not have a job. This awareness is beyond all worldly matters. Some critics may think that awareness does not deal with the problem, but as you see, we have to go through our challenges by simply remembering who we are, just in case we forget and if we have some way to go on the journey. It deals with the problems at the root, not necessarily what is at the surface level. Many spiritual teachers pretend that they are talking about the root of all problems but really, they are only dealing with what is at the surface, like the ego. As we can relate to matters that are at the surface level more, we think they are sharing something profound. But all this does is create an over dependence on the teacher, especially those who claim that you should not depend on them. It creates more dependence. However, those who are always in awareness, who understand that they are awareness, who do not need a reminder, and are forever established in the self, simply see these challenges as waves. They are temporary and they will not last. This knowledge is what gives us peace, a stable mind, a calm mind. And no matter what happens, one sees that the movie of life is playing on the screen of consciousness. If you've experienced a situation like this, how did you deal with it? Let me know in the comments so we can continue this conversation. Having a strong spiritual understanding truly helps us in all aspects of life. It makes us live more intimately and we can have a prosperous life and the best relationship with others, especially our loved ones. I would like to thank you for listening to this episode. Please subscribe to the podcast. I'm your host, Rahul N Singh of The Bearded Mystic Podcast. Until next time, take care and namaste.