‘ Vichlit ‘

Swamiji says …

‘Man gets disturbed and distracted at the drop of a hat. He is plagued with doubts about all that he aspires to achieve in life; is dejected at the first sign of failure – ‘aur jaldi vichlit ho jaata hai!’ ”

“To a certain extent, it is normal and natural for us to be this way, but it would be unforgivable, if we were to submit spinelessly to these negative emotions, repeatedly – time and time again – without putting up a fight – allowing them easy access into our heart and mind.”

“The result …
We’d be another one among those, who succumb to weakening and paralysing thoughts within a matter of seconds, letting themselves be subjugated and ruled over, by debilitating dark thoughts – oscillating helplessly between the deep sea and the shore !”

“Thoughts – thousands of them – rise in our mind every single day. Worthy, morale boosting and confidence building notions are accepted and implemented by us immediately, but do we outrightly reject thoughts that are weak, impractical and self-destructive ! Do we avoid pursuing these vagrant thoughts on realizing their worthlessness? Or do some of us pamper them, as they appear to be intriguing and different, unaware of the dire consequences that we might have to face, for doing so, at a later stage in life?”

“It is when we are able to free ourselves from the tentacles of these unwanted thoughts, that we feel liberated, free and at peace – as life can become a living hell , otherwise – ‘jab baar baar mann vichlit hota hai!’ We cannot just sit and watch negative thoughts embed their roots firmly within us, but must uproot them immediately, ensuring that they’re unable to grow further.”

“We can excuse ourselves by admitting that it is natural for each one of us to experience these emotions sporadically; but, it would be inexcusable to defend ourselves by saying, that we had no time to protect our mind from the gigantic tidal waves of all those thoughts ‘ jis se hum vichlit ho jaate hain ! ‘ – which flood it , leaving us floundering, as we are unable to exercise any control over it and veer it in the right direction!”

“Are we incapable of retaliating in a strong, sensible manner to the threat of an imminent invasion by distracting, distasteful thoughts – ‘bechain karne wale khyaal!’ – or capitulate on being outnumbered, and allow them to germinate, grow in abundance and run amok on our being…and then cry foul by saying weakly – ‘Look , what have I become ? ‘ ”

“We become what we think we are ! The mind is very gullible and feeds on the nourishment that we provide it with. A healthy diet of sunny, uplifting, motivating thoughts will keep it energized, raring to go and far away from pessimism and hopelessness – ‘ aur humey vichlit nahi honay denge ‘…but a poor diet of unfocused, distracting and delusional thoughts can imprison us mentally, and we easily become prisoners of our own morbid, dark thoughts, leading us on a nightmarish journey ‘jisme ghutan hai , paagalpam hai!’ – and nothing can be worse than that !”

“Some individuals are so severely affected by this restlessness – the constant churning and tussle of distressing emotions and discomforting thoughts within them that – ‘ vichlit karne wale bhaav, unn pe haavi ho jaate hai aur unki pareshaani badh jaati hai !” – and they start suffering from depression. Disinterest towards all that life has to offer them, makes them want to turn away from life itself, and nothing can make them get involved and interested in the joy of living – ‘ Unka mann kisi bhi cheez mein nahi lagta hai…’ and it is here where they must put in everything to move their mind away from all those wandering thoughts that make them insecure and dis – oriented.”

“The unrest and constant clamour of chaotic thoughts within their mind makes them so restless that, at times, they are at a loss to understand as to what is that they want to do with themselves – lie down, sit or stand, run and escape ! But then the question arises once again … Run from what? From who? It is not possible for one to run from oneself. Their behaviour leaves others puzzled, as, at times, they are furious either with themselves or, are alternately, enraged with others.Then, there are times when they blame themselves, squarely, for the situation in which they find themselves, and on other occasions, take others around them by surprise, by blaming them for their miserable state.”

” Once in a while, this problem takes such a dangerous turn, that sufferers of this condition, lock themselves in their room – with these ‘vichlit karne wale’ thoughts as their sole companion – intent on committing suicide or, at times, even killing others. Should this be the purpose of anyone’s life? Does anyone have the right to end his life – a life, precious and valuable, gifted to him by God, or take lives of others just because it suits them ! The very room which was their haven at one stage, sadly, starts closing down on them, making them feel claustrophobic, and they run out of this room, looking for an escape – route. But there is none – as they simply can’t escape from their disquieting thoughts ! ”

“To make matters worse and more convoluted for themselves, they look at everything and everyone around them with suspicion, and are scared, wary and fearful of themselves too, as they are unsure of their next action and reaction ! Immediate steps should be taken to overcome an emotional crisis of this kind before it is too late, or else, the uncontrollable mind could turn them into nervous wrecks and destroy them completely.”

“A life that would otherwise have sparkled and shone brightly, begins to fade into oblivion, haunted by unpleasant memories, past regrets and inconsequential worries, that only accelerate his anxiety levels further. Man has to draw strength, the fighting spirit needed, from within himself to overcome these challenging phases with grit, fight against all odds and prove to himself, above all, that he can once again be calm, collected, composed and emerge a winner – by making life joyful, worth living and letting everyone know that happiness, though fleeting in nature, is here to stay with him for good.”