Renunciation- HH. Sivananda parable

Parable of The Mother-In-Law and The Beggar

A beggar came to the house when the mother-in-law was away and the daughter-in-law refused to give alms. The beggar went away. The mother-in-law met him on the road. He told her that her daughter-in-law had refused to give her alms. "What right had she?" roared the mother-in-law, "come with me." The beggar came back to the house, full of expectation. As soon as she reached the house, she turned round and said: "Get away. I won't give you alms. But even for this refusal only I have the right in this house and not my daughter-in-law."

Even so, when a man turns away from the objects of the world, out of disgust, the spiritual preceptor admonishes him and points out to him that he should not remain inactive, or shun the world. For a while, he seems to preach activism, on the theory that the world is a solid reality! He asked the Sadhaka to work, to serve all and to love all, as though the 'many' exists.' In due course, the Sadhaka attains Self-realisation. Then he abandons all worldliness, truly renounces the world, and remains immersed in the Consciousness of the One. But here the renunciation is born of Self-realisation. He has the authority to renounce; and he alone can renounce the world and all activity. He has realised the One Self in all. The aspirant has AjnanaVairagya, Vairagya generated by the painful nature of the world; the saint has Jnana-Vairagya or Vairagya born of the realisation of the essential nature of the Self which is One, Indivisible, All pervading Consciousness, the Great Indwelling Presence, realising which man longs for nothing else.