JackOfAllTrades 

@Grantx Adyashanti piqued my interest,I was reading some articles in calmdownmind blog & he's also mentioned there. I can't meditate for more than a few minutes at once, probably that's why I was always fascinated by monks. I'll like to know about some introductory materials on Zen & Advaita to be better able to grasp deeper concepts there. I've a concern that if I delve deeper into these,then I may lose my interest in trading/making money & focus more on solely awakening-to me it seems like what the escapist inside me shall want to do. I want to know,how those already in these paths deal with such issues?

I’m not enlightened or anything of the sort so what follows is just my opinion and to be taken with a pinch of salt.

To answer your last question first: I think you’re safe. You are a very long way from the kind of enlightenment where you give up all your earthly possessions, desires and drive to make money. However, when you achieve it please inform me, so that I may beg to be your humble student.

In the meantime you are already on the path. Congratulations. You have taken the first step and now want answers to these burning questions that have arisen. You are in the first cycle of your evolution and have a lot to learn about yourself, like a new trader searching for the holy grail of indicators. There is no holy grail. When you reach the top of the mountain you will only see another mountain to climb.

First step: you must learn to listen. Zen, Buddhism, God, Hinduism, Advaita (I don’t even know what this is), spirituality, enlightenment ... whatever you want to call it, is all the same thing. They all have the same core message and it is for you to discard prejudice, definition and bias, so that your mind is open to receive the message hiding in plain sight, I call it the golden thread. No one can tell you or show you because even though we all have similar goals, we all seek the goal from different directions . Where some find meaning, others find confusion.

So I think in summary, I would suggest you listen more and talk less (in your mind at least, the forum is here for you to express yourself). Don’t become an ‘adherent’ to any one idea. Open yourself to all possibilities and you will receive all possibilities. Then you will discover the golden thread and follow it down the rabbit hole to see where it leads.

Renunciation is a very relative term and it is usually how others perceive, in reality the person who appear to renunciate is working towards a bigger possibility ..

Here is an example : Consider a person who goes to the university for an advanced degree of his choice , spending countless hours in the library doing research and other academic related work each and every day.. For another person who is also in the same University , who is partying every night and appear to enjoy more of school life , the former one appears to renunciate all the fun for books. In reality first one is working towards a bigger goal for himself and giving upp partying every nigt is a petty thing for him.

So renunciate everything is NOT a requirement for spiritual growth, the individual is in pursuit of bigger possibilities and for others he appears to renunciate. This is true for every successful endeavor. Look at Tom Brady, at 40 he is the best QB in NFL but he appears to renunciate on food and drinks and regular party life other NFL players follow. Or consider an athlete who practices 6 to 8 hours a day , seem to miss out on a lot of "regular fun". Again in reality , these individuals doesnt feel like they are renunciating any thing BUT they are working towards a bigger goal.

So as you grow, your goals and priorities will change. When that happens , it is a natural evolution, not giving up anything but working towards bigger possibilities.