Do not differentiate between material life and spiritual life

A father brought his son to Sri Nannagaru. He complained that his son didn't want to marry and wanted to give up his job abroad so that he can spend his full time in meditation.

On hearing this, Sri Nannagaru said:

"Do not differentiate between material life and spiritual life. Even the materialistic work must be considered as spiritual work. In the Vishnu sahasranama (the 1000 names of Lord Vishnu), there is a name called Vishwam meaning the Universe is the Lord, implying that: 'The one who exists in the very form of Universe is me only'. In the Gita, the Lord said: ‘One can attain Self Knowledge only through the effort of several births’. Buddha said: ‘I have attained the state of Nirvana today only due to the endless good deeds done in my previous births’. Therefore Jnana (Knowledge) and Karma (Work) represent the two wings of a bird. A bird needs both the wings to fly. Similarly, we must utilize both aspects of Jnana and Karma and attain liberation.

Most of the people who want to give up their jobs for the sake of spiritual evolution turn out to be escapists. They neither gain materially nor spiritually. Therefore you must not give up your work for at least 20 more years".