This article was published in Divya Bhaskar, a Gujarati daily. Originally written by Kanti Bhatt.

Baruch Spinoza was a Dutch philosopher. Spinoza's life is full of inspiration for the people of 21st century. Today, I want to discuss the details of his life and thinking. He was boycotted in the whole of Christian and Jew community, for he didn't accept Jesus Christ as the God. Formerly, a Roman philosopher called Bruno, too, was put afire for making a statement as, Nature is God and God is Nature, and that God is there inside every man.


The philosophy of both these men is explained in a few lines of the following poem:

When you with the help of a language

call river a river

do you know that

it is a flower too

or it is a sun too

or entire nature it is

When Spinoza was expelled from many lands due to his atheist-like beliefs about God, and was not getting lecturer ship in any college, he was offered a help of $500 yearly by one of the wealthy men of then. But he did not accept it. At the end of much insistence he said, 'My yearly expense is $50, so only that much I will take. The remaining dollars you give others needing it. To earn more than is needed is an offence towards the mankind. After saving as per one's need one should help others as all are a part of the God. When you help them, God would be happy. So love all as you love God.'

Spinoza was born 374 years ago in a Jew family. At the time when all the Jews were expelled from Spain, he took birth in Amsterdam, Holland, at a successful merchant's place. He was brought up at the place in Europe full of opposition for Jews. He did not want to run a business, earn money. He never digested things as a man condemning a man, or a religion fighting against a religion.

He read Hindu scriptures. At last, he concluded that the God is in the form of Nature. The God does not have a separate body. As he went on reading Christian, Jew, and other scriptures, his faith in the religions kept dwindling and finally vanished. He rebelled the belief of Humans never dying, then being popularized by some Christian priests. Thus he was excommunicated at the age of 24. It is interesting to know the method and the words the fat-headed Christian priests adopted to set an opposition for him.

'Henceforward no one should talk with Spinoza. Or write to him. Or read what has been written by him. No one should offer work to him. No one should stay in a house with him. All should keep a three-feet distance from him. What ever book he does write should not be read.'

Withstanding such contempt the young philosopher went to live alone, but never joined any religious group. His father relinquished him. He could become a Hebrew scholar and a priest, but did not. His sisters did swindle him over inheritance from his family property. Friends went aloof. His heart grew evermore hard towards those trading religions. He said all the monks are thriving on the ignorance of learned wealthy men. They do not know the true element. Or do they know but do not teach the truth to people. Because if they said - man, you are yourself a part of the God, and thus grow your own potential and you will become one with the God - the whole bazaar would no more remain. The monks earn billions of properties and respect being the brokers of the God and religion.

Spinoza's real name was Baruch, which he had to change owing to his boycott to Benedict. A merciful family in Amsterdam gave him a place to stay. He gave tuition to the school children. Then he felt that earning only from teaching religion is a bad business. He said, every scholar should take up some or the other work involving bodily movements. He being an all-rounder took upon the work of making spectacle glasses. By this he hardly earned to keep going. He took tuition fees only if offered. He adopted a sutra:

'Work keeps one virtuous whereas every learned man who fails to acquire a trade will at last turn out rouge.' After teaching philosophy to children, Spinoza lived some years on the income of spectacle glasses. A lady who had given him a room brought Tiffin for him. He ate, but not fully. He kept track of his, though small, income. Gave away to poor children what ever he earned over and above his needs. He wore slovenly, though simple cloths.

His simple advice was concerning 'self preservation.' He denied accepting the advices of Self Control and Suppression then being given by priests. He said, desire is the essence of being a man. What is a man after all? A man is formed out of desires. Sure gratify the desires, sure do enjoy. Pain and grievances will come even if you put control on yourself. But if along with fulfilling your desires if you conserve yourself then there is no harm in enjoying. The world is your father's property, use it to fullest. You have to go to the other side of passion. Instead of condemning the lust, you have to enjoy it, understand its nature, and cross it.

Jews boycotted him. Not only that, he was charged for having rejected the God and disrespected the Jesus, and given 10 year's imprisonment. He wrote his important book. It was only published after his death. He had many against him, but also, many who respected him. One wealthy man of Amsterdam sent him a gift of $1000, but he did not take it. One other did give all his property to Spinoza in his will. Spinoza said to him, 'I do not need it. Your brother needs it more.' Even then, that man left $250 a month after his death to be given to Spinoza. Spinoza did not accept that too. After that, the king of Holland, Louis the 14th offered him a life-time pension, on condition that he submitted his book to the king. He refused.

Do you see a philosopher monk like Spinoza today? When he came to know that he has caught TB due to the particles of the glass he worked with, he did not have enough money even to get it cured. University of Heidelberg offered him professorship. He politely said to the chancellor of the university, 'If I accepted the professorship, you would not allow me to express some of my beliefs.' So he did not accept it too. People asked him the reason for such a foolery. He said, I was separated from wealth and respect at the very time I was boycotted. All for good. Wealth and fame are the only reasons for all the pain of the human kind.

'The love towards a thing eternal and infinite alone feeds a mind with a pleasure secure from all pain. The greatest good is the knowledge of the union which a mind has with the whole nature.'