Have you ever wondered why Budha, a prince, left his kingdom and went to live life of a seeker or why Mahavir lived naked and put extreme conditions on nature to keep him alive. Yes, Mahavir used to put ridiculus conditions that the entire universe has to fulfill if it wanted Mahavir to live. Why do we have millions of sadhus in India and why are there millions of religious priests, nuns, monks and mullahs in this world.?   The last count I could find for catholic priests from 2005 was 406,411. That is just one group of what I call sanyasis.

Why do people take a life of ‘service to God’? I truly believe that they do a great service in this world. They live a hard life. The path is difficult. Krishna also acknowledges that and that is why he says, “Karma yoga is superior to karma sanyas because it is easier to follow (karma yoga).” All the people I mentioned in the paragraph above are sanyasis according to Krishna. They spend their lives in the service of God. Sometimes it equates to service of people. There is a group, which does both. Mahatma Gandhi was a saint and a leader too.   Mother Theresa to me is also in the same category.

However, just because people go in the sanyasi path does not make them holier than thou. Most of them are similar to us but have chosen the path of karma sanyas. It is brave, it is demanding and they are going to be held to a higher standard as well. Krishna has a word of advice for this group too:

There are those who give up mundane karma

They do not live by cooking

They do not have a partner

They do not work for living

That alone is not enough

They do not really qualify for the

Name of a yogi or sanyasi

Unless the remember that

They ought to continue their work

Without the interest and goals of

What the result is going to be

That is the key

That is what will set them free

//Bhagavd Gita:6-1//

That verse does not need an explanation. It applies well for all the sanyasis today. Greed or desire may muddy their lives too and we all know too well that what it means. Many priests and Swamis come in the news from time to time because they have done something wrong in the influence of their self-interest.

I admire this group of sanyasis for they are willing to do what many of us do not want to or we find it hard to do.