We give a lot of premium to efforts. We make efforts to get the desired outcome. For example, when we try to lift something against the force of gravity, we have to make efforts. However, the same outcome can be achieved in outer space, where there is no gravity, without any effort, or with very little effort. That means that the need to make an effort arises due to gravity.
In our daily lives, we make efforts to achieve certain outcomes. But why do we have to make efforts? Can't we live life in an effortless mode like the movement of a spaceship? Probably not. Since childhood, we have formed different habit patterns. We are conscious of some of these habit patterns while most of them remain in the unconscious mind. Our belief systems and understanding of life, all have a gravity of their own. Anything we get attached to has a gravity of its own. For example, we get used to living at home and whenever we have to move out of home, to live in a hostel, that's a big effort against the gravity of attachment to home.
Probably, all of us come to this world with the basic understanding of "I don't know, I don't know/have". The baby does not know that he does not know. He is open to all explorations. If the baby is born in China, he will learn Chinese and if he is born in France, he will learn to speak French. The baby has no idea as to how to walk but has a powerful inclination to learn and by observing others, he learns to walk. He learns the culture, traditions, and etiquette. The kids are open to exploration of any kind. That is why kids learn very fast and without much effort. They enjoy learning different languages. They do not get tired of learning to make friends and play with them. They do not get tired of learning to walk.
However, as the kids grow up, they start developing a sense of "I" based on whatever they get in life. This "I" may comprise their religion, community, nation, family, parents, school, friends, relationships, material possessions, name, fame, positions, powers, and knowledge, among other things. With the development of "I," there are two possibilities. This "I" may feel that "I know, I know/have". In that case, it becomes fixated on what it knows and what it has and becomes resistant to growth. It keeps trying to protect what it knows and what it has and slowly becomes fearful of losing what it has because everything is temporary in this world and as time passes, our knowledge and possessions start becoming temporary and fragile resulting giving us chills and fear of losing our identity. Thus, apparently, it seems that there are no efforts to maintain the state of "I know, I know/have" but actually, there is a hell lot of effort to maintain the status quo because the entire world is changing fast. That is what happens with organizations that do not change with time.
The other possibility in that state may be that "I Know that I don't know/have" and we start making efforts to know or get what we know we don't have or know. We definitely grow in the process. However, there is a lot of resistance from the "I" who feels that "I know what I don't know". "I" tries to narrow down the scope of exploration. "I" works as the center of gravity against which we have to make efforts. Every time we find something new to explore, the "I" starts applying the force to prevent us from deviating from what "I know and what I don't know". That is probably one of the reasons why studies require so much of effort. Probably, that is one of the reasons why preparation like civil services is so enjoyable because there is no defined scope of learning and we try to explore almost everything on this earth. In the process, we get to know many things that "I don't know, I know". We keep learning in the process without realizing that we know these things. Suddenly, there comes a moment when we realize that we know these things.
The Divine manifests in the form of living beings so as to explore infinite possibilities. That is why every living being has a unique combination of senses. Some can listen to a large range of sounds, while can can see a wide spectrum of light, some have more intellectual powers. Human beings are blessed to have a very robust mind and body to explore this world. The "I know, I know" mindset is like the Tamas that creates so strong gravity that we stop exploration and keep wasting our life protecting the "I" that anyhow is going to die in due course. It is like not stepping out of our home. It is full of a lot of effort since it is not possible to protect what we have or know because the world is changing continuously. The "I know, I don't know" mindset makes exploration quite limited since we have presumed that we know whatever is worth exploration in this world. It is Rajasik exploration. It is like going to a tourist station with fixed tourist spots as a target. Even in an exploration of the inner world, many people close themselves around whatever they know or they have been taught and that's why to keep hallucinating and imagining rather than observing the reality. That is why belief has a very limited utility in spiritual pursuit. It is quite effortful because we resist any exploration that does not fit into our plans that we made with the understanding that we know what to explore. The real exploration is with the mindset "I don't know, I don't know" which is a Saatvik exploration. It is like exploring a tourist place without any fixed plans to cover the popular tourist spots. It is effortless since while exploring with such a mindset, we just flow with the reality. We are in the present moment fully and that's why it is quite fulfilling.
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