Vairagya is Not Escapism

To understand the difference between Vairagya or Detachment and Escapism, one has to understand two important of aspects of Hindu tradition. One is Purushartha and the other the Ashrama system.

Purushartha deals with the aims or goals a person is expected to have in life. They are Dharma, Artha, Kama and Moksha. Dharma represents both high ethical values and observing specified rituals. Artha represents the means to earn money to fulfill one’s responsibilities in life, Kama represent fulfilling one’s desires and Moksha represents deliverance from the cycle of birth, death and rebirth.

The Ashrama system deals with four stages in a person’s life, namely, Brahmacharya, Gruhasthashrama, Vanaprasthashrama and Sanyasa. Brhamacharya is the stage before adulthood when a person gets educated. Gruhasthashrama is the life of a householder when a person earns money, marries, has children and takes care of them till they are old enough to be independent. Vanaprasthashrama is the stage when one starts contemplating about the transient and uncertain nature of life on earth and tries to find answers regarding the existence of life as a whole.  Sanyasa is the stage when one decides to renounce the external world and seek self-realization and the nature of the soul distinct from one’s body.

The Ashrama system is a very practical system where a person is expected to shoulder his responsibilities in life. There is no question of Vairagya in either Brahmacharya or Gruhasthashrama.

The realization that a person is put into situations where he is not in command and the very nature of Birth, Growth, Decay and Death leads one who is philosophically minded to seek answers to what is life, what is beyond, what is the purpose of life etc.

It is not given everyone to take the philosopher’s mantle. The majority of people go through life without even faintly thinking of philosophical issues. Most have a deep faith in the Almighty who they expect will come to their rescue when in trouble. Many who follow the Charvaka or Materialistic way of life take life as it comes and are Atheists.

It is only a few who have regard for Dharmic values and a propensity towards philosophical thought who are likely to take to Vairagya and Sanyasa. Such persons cannot be accused of being Escapists.