Day: October 9, 2021

Swami ji said…

” That “Happiness is a ‘state of mind”, is something we all have heard many times over. A simple yet deep message that somehow does not seem to penetrate into our beliefs and behaviour.”

” Society has created numerous avenues for us to relax in ; for our entertainment. Movie theatres, restaurants, vacations, shopping malls, gyms and social media. There is a never-ending list of things for everyone to do and to ‘be happy’ it appears. Yet, there is anger, frustration, depression to be found all around us. It is tough to find a peaceful, happy soul who goes about the day, with a joyous smile to share.”

“Clearly, there is something amiss. In the pursuit of material wealth, man has forgotten that his happiness does not lie in sitting on a fancy car’s seat ; in a money laden bank account or on the admiration of other people of their beauty and life – style. We should take responsibility of our happiness and not depend on anyone or anything to make us happy. We should never make the mistake of placing our happiness in someone else’s hands.
Happiness simply lies within us and the key to it is in our hands. If we wish to be happy, we just simply have to be happy, come what may !”

” Why, then, does it seem so difficult to be happy? It is because we have ingrained in our mind that our happiness is associated with ‘acknowledgment’, ‘appreciation’ and ‘approval’ of others. And, if we do not get these, our lives seem to be empty ; and we find nothing worth celebrating and no reason to enjoy it. By simply letting these ‘external’ factors control our happiness ; we begin to find solace in the ‘darkness’ of unhappiness, which is able to extinguish the ‘light’ of happiness within us that was clearly visible to all earlier.”

” Yet, we must remember that we are the true masters of our fate. We are the captains of our mind. With reflection, meditative thought and introspection, we can learn to find happiness in all situations.
We must not be affected by what others think of us. If someone says or does something purely to annoy us, to spoil our mood, to make us react in a manner unsavoury, we must learn to simply ignore such antics and move on. We must not let our current situation , or , the results of our endeavours control our emotions, and , affect the state of our mind.We must learn to live in the moment and find a reason to laugh and appreciate life. Other people, material wealth or societal approval must not be the sole factors that have the power to determine our mood and self-worth.”

” Remember – ‘The so called ‘bad’ time, is actually the ‘good’ time, that leads us to the ‘better’ time.’ If we learn and imbibe this ‘mantra’ and make it a part of our life ; if we learn to believe that God has a plan for us and will take care of us, only then can one live life unafraid, filled with joy and wonder. Such a person will neither mope over his past nor have any tension about the future. He will simply seek to live the present day to the fullest, thereby, seeking joy and happiness in the simplest of things; appreciating the smallest of gestures, and, lighting up the mood of people around him with his infectious joyous attitude and endearing smile – as he believes that his happiness is in his own hands.”