Shmashan Vairagya — Fake Renunciation
## 📜 SEO Excerpt (160 Characters) **Shmashana Vairagya** (cremation-ground renunciation) is a **temporary detachment** witnessed at funerals. This fleeting realization of impermanence vanishes, continuing the cycle of material attachment.
Shmashana Vairagya (Devanagari: श्मशान वैराग्य; ISO 15919: śmaśāna vairāgya) signifies temporary detachment (literally "cremation-ground renunciation").
Etymology and Context The term is derived from two words: shmashana (cremation ground) and vairagya (detachment). It describes the momentary disinterest in worldly life that arises when one accompanies a deceased person to the cremation ground.
The Moment of Realization In Hindu tradition, while carrying a body to the cremation ground, people chant "Ram Naam Satya Hai" (God's name is the only truth). The implication is profound: other than God, nothing lasts forever. In this somber atmosphere, the mind realizes that material attachments are futile, as their loss is bound to cause grief.
The Return to Ignorance However, this detachment is fleeting. On the way back from the cremation ground, this profound knowledge evaporates. The individual forgets the impermanence they just witnessed and continues to be attached to transient people and objects, expecting eternal bliss from them. Because this detachment fails to last beyond the immediate moment of grief, it is termed Shmashana Vairagya.
Breaking the Cycle This swinging of the mind—like a pendulum between attachment and temporary detachment—has been occurring for lifetimes. If one has truly had their fill of pain and suffering, the first step toward True Detachment (Yukt Vairagya) is to begin the practice of devotion according to the instructions given by Jagadguru Swami Shri Kripalu Ji Maharaj in Sadhana — Daily Devotion.
Further Reading and Reference
- Related Concepts: phalgu vairagya, yukt vairagya, Raag, anuraag, Mithya (Impermanence), Viveka (Discrimination).
- Reference: Bhagavad Bhakti - True Devotion, Ch. 5