Is It Realistic to Expect Instant Transformation of Human Nature?

We live in a time where we expect everything to happen instantly. We want to take a pill and achieve ‘instant enlightenment’. Life is speeding up with enhancements to communications, travel, and devices that make us react faster every day. Life itself seems to have speeded up and days disappear quickly. It is no wonder then that we seem to be more impatient and even when it comes to spiritual practice, we expect immediate results.

We must reckon with the fact that it has taken many millennia of evolution to develop the current state of humanity, our instincts, habits, reactive impulses, etc. If we choose to transform these long-standing predilections rather than simply find a way to abandon life and the human condition, we must appreciate that we are not going to be able to change all these unconscious, subconscious, semi-conscious or reactive responses right away. To accomplish this even in one lifetime would be considered miraculous.

What is then required is a patient and persistent effort, without discouragement, without flagging of energy, to move forward toward the long-term transformation and with concentration, focus and energy address these issues as they arise within us, and at the same time, appreciate the need for time and therefore, endless amounts of patience.

There are those who promise you immediate results. “Take this pill and be enlightened! Follow this path and achieve realisation! Practice this technique and your life will be revolutionized!” Real change, however, does not work this way….

Sri Aurobindo notes: “It is certain that an ardent aspiration for the Divine helps one to progress, but patience is also needed. For it is a very big change that has to be made and, although there can be moments of great rapidity, it is never all the time like that. Old things try to stick as much as possible; the new that come have to develop and the consciousness takes time to assimilate them and make them normal to the nature.”

“The sadhana is a difficult one and time should not be grudged; it is only in the last stages that a very great and constant rapidity of progress can be confidently expected.”

“Determination is needed and a firm patience, not to be discouraged by this or that failure. It is a change in the habit of the physical nature and that needs a long patient work of detail.”

Sri Aurobindo and the Mother, Growing Within: The Psychology of Inner Development, Chapter III Growth of Consciousness Basic Requisites, pp. 56-57