Neither Suppression, Indulgence, Blame-Shifting Nor Avoidance Solves the Issue of Overcoming the Vital Force of Desire

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When a spring is compressed, it
builds up a tremendous power of

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potential energy, which gets
released when the force that is

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compressing the spring is
released.

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This is essentially how the
vital force of desire operates

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when we try to suppress a drive
through willpower or other forms

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of restraint.
The resultant explosion of the

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force, when it gets a chance to
express itself, sometimes goes

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far beyond what the normal drive
would do if it's simply allowed

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to operate in the normal course.
It is no wonder that attempts to

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control the vital through mental
willpower eventually prove to

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not work.
It is also no wonder that there

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are innumerable instances of
individuals who have taken vows

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of chastity, for instance, who
wind up engaging in pursuits

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that overcome the force of those
vows.

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We try to enforce moral laws or
rules on people, but find that

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somehow the vital Dr. succeeds
in manifesting itself.

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Some individuals attempt to
bring their vital nature under

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control through various forms of
punishment or even torture, such

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as with a hair shirt or the use
of the celise as a way to

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mortify the flesh.
Some try to blame others for

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their failure to control various
vital drives, leading to

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potential beatings, torture,
ritual purifications, or murders

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in the name of some kind of
moral purity.

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Witness the Salem Witch trials
or the burning of Joan of Arc as

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extreme examples of an attempt
to enforce morality on others to

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make up for the individual
failures of the people holding

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the power to solve the Riddle of
the vital drives.

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Some try to simply avoid the
issue entirely by renouncing the

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active life, withdrawing from
social relationships, and

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thereby avoiding much of the
pressure and impulsion of the

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vital nature when it is exposed
to various forms of temptation.

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Unfortunately, this approach
does not actually solve the

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issue, but simply puts off the
issue to a future time, place or

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circumstance.
And in some cases we have

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learned about the renunciate
when suddenly exposed to

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temptation, either through
entering into a societal setting

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where having the issue come
before him where he has his

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retreat, has been shown to lose
control of the vital nature and

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either indulge the desire or
manifest anger that arises due

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to the energy being suppressed
and not otherwise directed or

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dissipated.
Since it is clear that

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suppression does not work, nor
does the use of punishment,

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torture, or any attempt to blame
others for one's own inability

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to manage the vital forces in
one's life, there must be

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another way.
This also has led to various

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attempted solutions.
One of these is the idea that

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one should just let nature take
its course and indulge in these

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vital drives as they arise.
That, of course, turns out to be

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a weak justification for a
failure to address the need for

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development and change of human
nature and winds up distracting

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the individual from focus on the
goal.

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Another, even more radical
method is to indulge the desire

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actively and purposely with the
idea that through satiation it

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will be put to rest.
Unfortunately, history of this

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approach tells us that it is the
very rare individual who finds

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such a solution to actually
succeed.

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And for the most part, the
indulgence increases both the

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power of the drive and in many
cases increases the dosage

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needed to achieve satiation as
time goes on, leading to an ever

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increasing cycle of indulgence
and satiation, but certainly not

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to rejection and a redirection
of the energies to other and

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higher pursuits.
If suppression, shifting of the

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blame, avoidance and indulgence
do not work, we then have to

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find a way that does work.
As Sri Aurobindo has noted,

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there is the separation of the
witness consciousness from the

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external act of nature, which
makes it easier to 1st remove

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any sanction for it and
eventually reject the drive as

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something external that is
trying to invade rather than

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something that is embedded as
part of 1's own life and

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personality.
He also points out that shifting

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the focus of the being to let
the psychic being, the sole

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entity, take charge of the life
and provide its objectives, its

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aspiration for spiritual
fulfillment and a divine life

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changed the direction and focus
of the vital energy.

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Each of these two methods have
shown success in helping

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individuals overcome the force
of desire without the negative

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effects of the other methods
that have been attempted.

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Srioro Bindo notes quote.
It is true that the mere

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suppression or holding down of
desire is not enough, not by

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itself truly effective.
But that does not mean that

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desires are to be indulged.
It means that desires have not

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merely to be suppressed, but to
be rejected from the nature.

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In place of desire there must be
a single minded aspiration

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towards the Divine.
End Quote Reference Sri

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Aurobindo and the Mother Looking
from Within, Chapter 5,

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Attitudes on the Path, pages 153
to 154.