One of the most challenging things for people is to walk away after creating something. When you have invested your life doing something, you naturally become attached to it. We see it in authors becoming attached to their books, actors to their films and fame, politicians to their positions, parents to their kids, and business leaders to their companies.

Today's article is about Bob Iger's attachment to Disney and how that is playing out today. We also learn from Maharishi Ved Vyasa's example and how Sadhana helps you drop attachments.

When Bob Iger finally retired in February 2020, he was considered the most iconic business leader after Steve Jobs. He had led Dinsey's spectacular rise and oversaw the acquisitions of Pixar, Marvel Entertainment, Lucasfilm, and 21st Century Fox. Each acquisition was a masterclass in a win-win negotiation where both parties felt they got a fair deal, which showed in the results. Disney's revenue and stock multiplied as he went on to open Disney World in China - a feat that took more than a decade of negotiations and hard work. You can listen to the inspirational story of Iger's first innings here.

Bob Iger walked away from Disney after handing the reins to Bob Chapek. Most industry insiders saw this as a safe move by Iger to preserve his legacy. Bob Chapek was a conservative leader who did not have Iger's magnetic personality. He excelled in executing existing plans, and Iger thought he had laid the blueprint for Disney's success for the next decade.

Nature had other ideas. The pandemic struck, and Disney went through a period of intense turmoil. Iger refused to detach from the company he had nurtured and grown for the past decade. He continued coaching Bob Chapek from the sidelines by issuing soundbites to newspapers, infuriating the current CEO. He told the New York Times that the pandemic was a crisis of a magnitude that would still require him helping Chapek. A couple of years later, when Bob Chapek got into a feud with Florida governor Ron De Santis, Iger coached Chapek from the sidelines by issuing soundbites to newspapers. While he denied any formal interest in returning to Disney, he continued telling insiders he was worried Chapek would destroy the soul of Disney.

Iger's return as CEO was heralded by almost everyone as a stroke of genius. The children were asked to step aside, and finally, the adults were back to helm the ship. While most of his initial moves were well-received, the news worsened over time. When asked about the actors' and screenwriters' strike, he made the following statement.

This statement plummeted him straight from the hero-to-villain camp with all the creative professionals asking for the right to sustain their living. The situation went from bad to worse over time. The cost of making movies increased substantially. The Marvel franchise keeps producing movies no one cares about, and the television business is struggling badly. People are cutting the cord to move towards streaming platforms, but investor sentiment is changing in this market. Shareholders were no longer comfortable with companies spending billions to acquire customers and reporting quarterly losses. He is now looking to exit some TV businesses and was trying to work on a deal where Apple could acquire Disney. That's proving a tricky proposition, given the current regulatory framework. The parks business is robust but took a big hit in Disney World Florida.

Thus, the second innings for Bob Iger is proving to be a far bigger challenge than before. You almost wonder why he came back. He was in his seventies and had nothing more left to prove. When you read about his life post-Disney, you realize how much of his identity was attached to Disney.

He bought a private jet and a yacht, ruled out running for president, invested in a couple of startups whose valuations tanked, and became an advisor in a private equity firm. According to his Bloomberg article, he missed the stature and the reverence from fans and filmmakers. His iPhone no longer rang, he told friends despondently.

This attachment is what paved the way for his comeback to Disney. We see the same story in business, sports, entertainment, and all other walks of life. How do you deal with attachment? Is getting rid of attachments possible? Should you get rid of attachments at all? We find answers to this in a story narrated by my Guru Om Swami during the immensely powerful Sri Sukhtam Sadhana.

The Story of Maharishi Vyasa's Attachments

Maharishi Ved Vyasa is one of the greatest sages to have walked this planet. He was the son of Maharishi Parashara, and ever since Ved Vyasa could speak, he started enquiring about his father. He heard stories of his father's mission of uniting the Vedas, and a great desire filled every pore of his heart. He wanted to continue and complete his father's task. Thus, at the tender age of six, he soaked in all the knowledge his father offered and asked to become his disciple so he could travel with him. Sage Parashara was reluctant but was finally won over by Ved Vyasa's commitment and devotion. Vyasa did many Sadhanas and spiritual practices with one-pointed attention. He did intense tapas to the divine mother and was blessed with remarkable intuition and intellect. However, having such a glorious purpose, Vedic wisdom, and spiritual realizations, Vyasa walked up to his father, Maharishi Parashar, and confessed that he felt too attached to his sons and grandsons who ruled the kingdom of Hastinapura. The sage admitted that he knew this attachment was not worthy for a sage of his stature, but he could not help it. His father smiled and told Vyasa that it was natural to feel attached to family. He reminded Vyasa that, as his father, he was attached to Vyasa.

What mattered was being aware of them and using them to do good for the world. He then gave Vyasa a verse from the potent Sri Sukhtam Sadhana that he had to energize so that the world could benefit from chanting the mantras and doing the Sadhana. Maharishi Ved Vyasa went on to become one of the first sages to complete the entire Sri Vidya Upasana. Sanatana Dharma credits the feminine energy or Devi as the fountain of all creativity and motion. She is the energy that powers Shiva to create and destroy. She is Ma Laxmi, whose constant flow helps Lord Vishnu sustain the world. My guru says that one of the classic signs of awakening and grace of Devi is the continuous flow of creativity. Maharishi Ved Vyasa wrote the Mahabharata and the Puranas after consolidating the Vedas. My guru Om Swami has written over a dozen books, founded the Black Lotus and Vedic Sadhana apps, written 300-plus articles, and narrated multiple audible offerings.

This story is beautiful because it teaches all spiritual seekers to be gentle with themselves. We often are our own harshest judges. My guru started learning Vedas and doing Sadhanas before he was a teenager. He ran multi-billion dollar businesses before giving it all up to meditate in the Himalayas. He received the blessings from both the divine mother and Lord Vishnu. He returned to set up an ashram, wrote books, and founded the black lotus and Vedic Sadhana app. He always tells you what is good for you rather than what you want to hear. He never asks for anything and radiates bliss and unconditional love. When you have such a perfect guru, you often feel unworthy because you know you are not doing enough work on yourself. Vyasa's story reminds us to keep walking the path and be gentle with ourselves.

However, Indic knowledge systems are beautiful because they don't leave you hanging. The question we asked was, can we eliminate attachments? The answer lies in a beautiful explanation my guru Om Swami gave when he explained the esoteric meaning of the churning of the ocean to gain the nectar of immortality.https://omswami.com/https://omswami.com/

The Power of Vedic Sadhana

The Sumeru mountain represents your spinal cord, which is erect and straight. The serpent Vasuki represents your Kundalini energy. If you have to energize the Kundalini, you unify and work with positive and negative emotions to work together. The daityas representing the negative emotions in our minds are closest to Vasuki. When you do Sadhana, these are the first ones to be shaken from their stupor and will gradually lose hold. However, that's enough. Just like Lord Vishnu becomes a tortoise and holds the mount Sumeru, you must sit patiently like a tortoise as you do Sadhana and not lose hope or focus. You will face many obstacles when you gain focus and intensify your Sadhana. You will feel pain but need Lord Vishnu to bless you with detachment. As you continue accelerating, you will start losing stability. You will again need Lord Vishnu to bless you with stability like he stabilized Sumeru as a tortoise. As you continue, Sadhana, before you get the final realization, all the negative tendencies in your body will manifest.

You need the energy of Shiva and have to become like a Yogi. You cannot swallow or let it get to your head. When you cross that stage, you will manifest your desires, symbolized by the divine cow Kamdhenu. If you become attached to this, your spirtual evoltion stops here. If you continue the path of Sadhana, you get Uchchaihshravas- the divine horse that symbolizes speed. You can do tasks at 10 times the speed of others around you. Again, if you get attached to this, then your progress stops. If you continue with Sadhana, you get Airavata, the elephant symbolizing wisdom and memory. If you don't get attached, you will start resembling Vishnu himself. Your whole being will light up like a rare gemstone, and everyone around you knows this is an extraordinary being. Again, your progress will be stalled if you become too attached to this state. If you continue, you will experience untold peace and bliss. If you continue, you gain the wisdom not to become attached to pleasures. Again, if you continue, you will get Sri or goddess Laxmi herself. You will rise to a stature where you can give refuge to others without worrying about your well-being. You can choose to get attached to this, or if you have enough detachment, you can tell the divine mother that you don't need all this wealth or fame. You only need to merge into her and experience her true magnificence. When my guru walked away from all the wealth and fame he acquired in his early twenties, he chose this route. He already had all the rewards mentioned above, and he decided to leave it all behind and just go and experience divinity in its absolute majesty by meditating for 22 hours a day in the Himalayas.

That's when you get the final liberation, which is the answer to rising above the human condition.