We cannot simply skirt around the edges of life; we must honor the spirit of life in all things, even in the most practical or seemingly mundane aspects. The grayness of the gray flannel life is the lack of creative spiritual involvement. Working for security, status, and consumer items is simply not enough to uplift us spiritually and psychologically. Modern man is a prisoner of time, so involved in his doings that he is loosing touch with his inner self.

Fads of fashion, media, TV, science, and popular culture are unfortunately constantly shaping our views. We often 'know' more about who we are and what we are by what trash we read or see on TV or from someone else, than from a deep experience of ourselves. We lack a clear impartial vision of our own social conditioning. Our self-knowledge is usually derived from the outer world of well-known experts, books, films, TV, magazines, rather than from the Masters of Wisdom. Looking into nature, we catch a glimpse of a higher spiritual order, patterns within a leaf, rings on a tree, cycles of seasons, migration of birds, and these glimpses hinting at an incomprehensible Divine power in the Universe. Our task is to tap into the eternal ocean of bliss and somehow express that energy in the world of forms and time, the art of creative spiritual living.

However, the power of these external cultural influences can be understood by careful observation of the cyclical and often-contradictory scientific and psychological theories on Life. Worldly cleverness is not wisdom. The intellect which man often confuses is only an illusion of it. Wisdom is that which is learned from within. The source of wisdom is above and the source of intellect is below. As a society, we have chosen to ignore the great spiritual Traditions who understood the Universe, The Divine and its role in personal transformation and spiritual evolution.

The fragmented and distorted knowledge we have comes from the institutionalized world. The poet, the sage, the mystic, the ancient scriptures suggest that life is not a rational problem to be solved, but a wonderful mystery to be revealed. Our whole effort is to gain and hold, acquire and defend materialistic things. We fear to let go. Greater economic growth, more and better technological solutions. On the personal individual level, more knowledge, more money, more fame, recognition, admiration, etc. Our view becomes distorted and repressed, thereby creating a variety of personal and social pathologies.

We search in vain with whatever the psychoanalytic may have as a full representative of human potential. We search western psychology to find the practical disciples we need in order to harmonize our internal conflict. The imbalance becomes a disruptive process, generating conflict, and division in our lives.