16 May 2014 - QA 2

Gurudev, in the Subhashita (a scripture in Sanskrit containing short wise aphorisms for practical life) it is said, 'Sukharthi tyajate vidhyaam vidhyarthi tyajate sukham. Sukharthinah kuto vidhyaa kuto vidhyarthinah sukham'. (Verse 213)
(Meaning: a sincere student gives up all material comforts in the quest for knowledge).
Can the quest for knowledge and that of material comforts not go hand in hand?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:

The meaning behind this verse is: What need does a sincere student of knowledge have for material comforts? And what use is knowledge to one who is only seeking material comforts?
You know, when you run feverishly after material gains, your attention is no longer directed towards gaining knowledge. Then you cannot learn.

This scripture, Subhashita, was written such a long time ago, yet every word of it is so true even today. When a person indulges in material comforts, his entire attention and brain function gets diverted to the posterior part of the brain.
So when you are enjoying something, the posterior part of the brain is more active and engaged at that time. But when you are studying or listening to knowledge, then the frontal lobe of the brain becomes more active.
So for those who are running behind wealth and material comforts, all their brain activity and energy gets channeled to the posterior part of the brain. They keep looking here and there and their mind is always restless. They do not have focus. That is why knowledge eludes one who is running behind material comforts all the time.
A sincere student, whose mind is engaged in knowledge and studies all the time, will never run behind getting material comforts. All his focus would be directed towards gaining knowledge.

Suppose there is a very important function at home, and all your mind and attention is engaged in it. Then even if someone tells you, 'See we have made such wonderful dishes and savories for the day', you simply put it aside saying, 'Oh that’s fine', and quickly go back to focusing on the task at hand.
Even if you eat some sweet or savory at that time, you will not even know how tasty it is, because all your mind’s attention is diverted towards the function.
For example, suppose you are engrossed in watching the election results on the TV live. If someone comes and interrupts you, you say, 'Oh, don’t disturb me now. I am completely engrossed in watching and learning something'.
When your mind is engrossed in learning something, it directs all its attention away from such distractions and focuses its attention one-pointedly on learning. And the wise ones recorded and wrote about this scientific fact in our scriptures thousands of years back.