Be Ye As Children

For many years it had been a mystery to me why spiritual development did not occur automatically in human beings in the same way that physical and mental development takes place. Children appeared to develop in a smooth progression through various stages of learning and schooling through childhood and adolescence. After this there seemed to be no direction to development, as young adults were presented with the options of employment, marriage and child raising.

Was this really Nature's plan for our adulthood? It was as if a river that started out so promisingly, moving in one course, sharp and precise, eventually found itself spreading out into meandering channels of purposelessness. As if Nature, which had shown such initial dedication, suddenly lost interest and turned its attention to the next generation.

It was my first experience of fatherhood that prompted me to look more closely at this developmental process. To my surprise, I found that while Nature does play the initial role, we as human beings also have a vital role to play. Each stage of potential development must be met with appropriate role models.

For example, when children are ready to walk, they learn to do so by mimicking the walking ability of people around them. Similarly, a child's potential for speech is met by the linguistic ability of those with whom the child comes into contact. The particular language and dialect are incidental, since a child has the potential to learn any language, as long as there is a role model for it.

But success depends on one more thing as well, namely, our own input into the process. The learner must make considerable effort if his potential is to be realized. In short, there must be dedication to his self-development, no matter what the stage. A closer look at developing children will reveal the tremendous amount of practice they put into perfecting their potential. Once a toddler takes his first faltering steps, he does not cease in his endeavor until mastery is achieved. He will fall down thousands of times but proceeds towards the goal undaunted and with unbending will.

Such a one is unquestionably dedicated to the outcome Nature has ordained. So what of the meandering adult? Well, while Nature provides the potential, the role models must still come from without. My eventual realisation was that if I wanted spiritual development, I needed an appropriate role model, which in this case was a living spiritual master. But how to find one? There are millions of role models for walking and talking. Any one will do, it is not critical. But as we develop further we need exposure to more specialised role models to fully realise our potential. We see this demonstrated by the increasing amount of training required for teachers at primary, secondary and tertiary levels. At the highest levels of education, the really capable teachers are few. I felt that this was the situation facing me in my search for a capable spiritual trainer. Strangely, it was shortly after this realisation that my master, Shri Rajagopalachari, came physically into my life.

I was happy to learn that the master does Nature's work, that he is dedicated to that work for the purpose of human development. I had found my master and the problem was solved. Right? Wrong! Remember the child, how she must work to achieve her potential. How she falls down, always getting up, her unbending will and craving for success. She lets nothing get in her way. She is totally dedicated to her self-development. So too must we be to achieve our spiritual goal.

The role model is vital, but it cannot do the work for us. A master is a catalyst for our development. He can encourage, support, cajole, even chastise, but he cannot walk in our shoes! He has already achieved his own goal and that is why he is the role model. We must do it, and to do it we must be as dedicated to the task as a child is to learning to walk.

We are learning to walk in a spiritual sense. We are fulfilling our potential. There is nowhere else to go! The role model provides the impetus, assistance and direction that we need for the journey. Nature wants it and we, being part of Nature, must also want it. By being like children in our dedication, and remaining in touch with the master (role model), the goal will surely be achieved. We may then create a world filled with spiritual role models.

David Todd is married with two children. He wrote this article for the South African Ashram Inauguration Souvenir, 1997, on the theme "Dedicated Self-Development."

David lives in Wentworth Falls, Australia, and works as a trainer with intellectually disabled youths and adults. He has been a member of the Shri Ram Chandra Mission since 1987.