Freedom is either absolute or none at all

There is a thing called partial freedom.

What is called as partial freedom is nothing but slavery. Freedom is either absolute or not at all.

When you say I am free of everything but this one thing, then you probably do not know that you are just declaring your slavery. And we need to be careful, because that’s how we all get caught and sneered. Nobody wants to be full of vices. Nobody wants to be chained at all possible places in his system, in his being!

We are moderate people. We do not cultivate too many vices. We just keep a few vices hidden within ourselves. Don’t we?

So, we say, “you see, ninety percent I’m a good man, a pious man. Nine out of ten times I am a proper fellow, morally upright being. But you know, just one little thing I have, which shows up in the dark corners of my being. Just that one little thing.”

And we feel that the nine things that are alright about us, entitle us somehow to retain that one vice. Isn’t that the common apology we offer to ourselves?

We say, “You see, after all nine out of the ten times I do the right thing. Nine out of ten people I do not get attached to. So, I must get a little reward. A teeny-weeny kind of attachment.”

So, having ignored nine allurements, now I allow myself to fall into this tenth allurement. And I do that with some kind of a feeling of entitlement. See, I left so much, can’t I take even this little thing?

We tell ourselves that a fellow should not be too harsh upon himself. So, we allow ourselves that one little thing and that one little thing leads to our utter ruin and total devastation, and we do not realize that.

Then we complain against fate.

We say, “you see I was such a good man. I did everything alright and yet look at my life. It is full of all rubbish and sorrow. Why did this happen to me? nine out of ten times I was just the right and proper man. Not doing anything disorderly.”

It’s almost like saying, nine out of ten days I take food. Just one odd day, the tenth day, I took some poison. Now, why should I fall ill?

This is injustice!