Swami ji’s Sandesh … "आत्मविश्वास"

Swami ji said…

It is rightly said – ‘Half the battles are won – in the mind…’ And, if we were to deliberate on these words, we wouldn’t fail to agree with their resounding truth – as it would be impossible for us to recount the number of times – that rather than winning – we consecutively lose the mental battle that rages in our mind. An imminent
battle when played
out in the mind – only – makes us feel defeated ; a loser ; the vanquished one – even before we’ve made the feeblest of effort to stand up to the issue and challenge – that awaits a valiant response from us.

But, to be honest are we anywhere close to being courageous, confident and combative to stand firm against the deluge of problems which will undoubtedly attack us in the most unexpected way during our lifetime ? Don’t we buckle under the imaginary onslaught of demoralising and weakening thoughts? Where is that self – confidence … ‘आत्मविश्वास’ – that belief in ourselves – of living up at least to our expectations , if , not to that of others ?

In real life – we will be defeated or drubbed, many a times, be it on the sports field or the professional field of our choice. We win some rounds and we lose some. That is the way life goes. But, the context of defeat needs to be understood – ‘मैदान में एक हारा हुआ इंसान फिर से जीत सकता है … लेकीन मन से हारा हुआ इंसान कभी जीत नहीं सकता ‘…It is a curse that one has to live with – as nothing can be worse than lack of self confidence as – ‘ हमारा आत्मविश्वास ही हमारी सर्वश्रेष्ठ पूँजी है…’ We are nothing without it. Low self esteem tends to make us feel insecure , incapable of enduring the struggles of life – as we start believing that we are not equipped and competent enough to cross the twists and turns of every day life. Over confidence can, at times, be the end of a person – but to make new beginnings, breakthroughs and burrows – the only key that can unlock the above – is self – confidence. Rather than getting into a shell – we should welcome the ‘challenges’ that come our way – as they alone can bring about unprecedented ‘changes’ in us – when we grow aware of the need of mustering up confidence from within ourselves – and are pleasantly surprised to see ourselves rise stronger than expected.

We must strive to possess the mental strength that was displayed by Lord Ram at many stages of His life. Although born a prince , He dutifully obeyed the Queen Mother – Kaikeyi’s instruction, to live in exile in the forest for fourteen long years, without asking any questions or putting up any resistance. Armed with self – confidence, not only did He complete His period of exile , but also, vanquished Ravan, the demon king – with a small ‘वानर सेना’. The misconception under which most of us live that only – power, position and golden robes – can instill self – confidence in us needs to be corrected at the earliest. Possessing only an impressive physical appearance – devoid of self – confidence doesn’t help in the long run. It is better to be simple and plain – and , yet , be sure , certain and self – confident.