You know that the Path of Gaotama Buddha was the Path of Abnegation (Nivrtti Márga). To speak the truth, in Nivrtti Marga he was at the peak. As a seeker of the path of emancipation Buddha chose Nivrtti Marga. Although his path was not the path of extreme austerities like Varddhamána Maháviira, yet Nivrtti had a predominant role in his philosophy. As regards Nivrtti, Varddhamána Maháviira considerably deviated from the part of reality. Buddha did not go that far, yet there was no perfect adjustment between Saḿvrtti and Nivrtti, that leads to perfect balance in the spiritual sphere.

Human existence is trifarious – physical, psychic and spiritual. The balanced development in the three spheres brings synthesis in the lives of animate beings. It brings about their existential fulfilment. The physical stratum may be compared to a sweet and lovely radiant bud which is about to blossom into a flower. In the process of metamorphosis from the early stage to a matured stage of bud lies its inherent vitality, its rhythmic and graceful dynamism. The psychic stratum can be compared to a newly blown flower full of charm – the tenderness of its petals, the softness of pollen, the sweetness of honey fill life with the exhuberence of joy and vitality. And the third factor, that is, the spirituality, is simultaneously the witnessing entity, the faculty of witnessing and the guiding entity. All the strata together create the Pramátrikońa or Lokatrikońa of entities.

In the flow of emanation starting from the noumenal cause of Paramá Tattva emerges the Lokatrikońa… based on Pramá. Human beings, goaded by their psychic propensities, begin to strike blow after blow at the triangle of forces and thereby destroy the inherent balance and also Pramátrikońa. Their action destroys its sequential order, the successive stages of its forward movement. In a word, it causes derangement of the main flow of emanation from its actional path. After causing this derangement human beings do not stop. They continue to strike blow after blow.

Lokatrikońa undergoes further deterioration and comes down to the stage of disruption. People wonder why nature is so cruel with them, why Parama Puruśa plays thus with innocent human minds. They don’t care to realize that their very activities have brought about derangement and disruption in Pramátrikońa.

In the next stage of the flow of emanation when there is frustration on all sides – if food is available, there is a shortage of clothes, if clothes are available, there is a shortage of drinking water; if water is available, there is a shortage of fresh air – then existence itself becomes a big burden. If the degree of psychic awareness increases beyond this limit and goes beyond check or control, people take to the path of suicide. They become nihilists or cynics. Otherwise, by becoming as humble as dust, they want to make us realize the ultimate result of senseless egotism. This is the stage of degeneration (Viparyasta Avastha). At this stage the Lokatrikońa is totally unbalanced.

Earlier I told you that the path of Buddha was the path of Nivrtti (abnegation). Even his Sádhaná was based on the spirit of Nivrtti, as, indeed, were his teachings of Samyak Darshana (Right of Vision), Samyak Saḿkalpa (Right Determination), Samyak Vák (Right Speech), Samyak Ájiiva (Right Livelihood), Samyak, Vyáyáma (Right Exercise), Samyak Karmánta (Right Finishing), Samyak Smrit (Right Memory) and Samyak Samádhi (Right Realization). As these teachings do not include Saḿvrti (material acquisition) they lack charm and do not give a good reason for living. This explains perhaps why Buddha never considered the idea of forming a society or outlining a system of social ceremonies such as child-naming, marriage, etc. Nor did he attempt to bring balance to economic activities or harmonize the norms of social obligations. He gave no directions to establish equilibrium in social life, either. Everyone cares for the interests of one’s own group and in a glance draws innumerable pictures of self-interest. One who relishes rasamalai [a type of sweet], likes to get satisfaction by entertaining guests with rasamalai. Buddha wanted to carry humankind on the singular path of Nivrtti. Had he prescribed an adjustment of spirituality with worldly (social, economic, etc.) activities, there would have come into being a beautiful Lokatrikońa, a Mahátrikońa advancing through equilibrium nurtured by Pramá.