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Swami ji said…

With time, society has made tremendous progress in material prosperity. The advent of technology has made it easier for man to live an ultra-luxurious and extremely comfortable life. The physical senses and the mind are very much at ease now – since every comfort is available – just at the click of a button. The moment we are bothered by the heat – we immediately turn on an AC or a cooler. The first sign of boredom and we simply start scrolling through the most expensive gadgets in our hand and the TV of course can be switched on at any time. We are at all times surrounded by conveniences that defy logic, imagination and explanation – but, we are unable to function without a single one of them – as we have become extremely dependent on them now.

A few of us could adopt a slightly cynical attitude towards all the development that we see around us – which according to us could contribute adversely in turning the younger generation into slaves of gadgets and comfort minded. But, changing times demand constant changes – and , thus, man will never give up on testing his intelligence and innovative skills – and he will continue to create the unthinkable.

Consequently, the questions that arise are – At what cost have we acquired these conveniences? Has the environment paid a heavy price for our zeal and over – ambition? To what extent are we hurting nature just to keep ourselves comfortable ? And how will this pan out for us in the future ?
But, all these questions, while important, nonetheless, are of a physical nature. There is one aspect that is ignored by them all –
How have all these comforts impacted us spiritually?

The biggest challenge in leading a life immersed in abundance and comfort is that we forget what it is like to struggle. We forget what it takes to make a concentrated effort towards achieving anything ‘concrete’ as we grow up. We are unable to relate with the feeling of not having something; what it means to sacrifice; to work hard; to lead a disciplined life – which could take us beyond the physical material comforts – and make us realise that a treasure of ‘true’ wealth is hidden within us – in our inner being.

Those on the spiritual journey must always be aware of the dangers of falling into the trap of excessive comfort ; must remain detached from all the physical assets that have been accumulated by them – and at the same time continue with their search for spiritual wealth. It is not that we become physically less resilient with comforts around us. The body can always get used to whatever conditions it is put through – over time. That suffering can still be overcome. Rather, it , is the mind, that becomes soft and full of malaise – while living in excessive comfort. It is when sloth and disinterest takes over it – that there is a distinct possibility that we could give up our spiritual quest entirely. The mind is so fearful of the idea of any kind of discomfort that the thought of any sort of scarcity; the thought of having to sweat it out; to exert oneself not only fills one with panic ,but, one also finds it irksome. This further becomes a hindrance on the path of spirituality, as, this lethargy comes in the way of carrying out actions that often need effort and exertion. The mind sets off in a direction that is exactly opposite to what needs to be done. It procrastinates ; postpones for tomorrow – anything that needs persistence and resilience. Such behaviour is often self-harming. Because just to avoid some pain today, we, choose to invariably suffer more tomorrow.
Not only this. The mind then begins to question why any effort should be made at all ? It asks – Why undergo all this effort and pain ? For what? How does it help ‘me’? We thus become highly selfish in our actions. The thought of taking out time and working for someone else seems out of question. ‘Seva’ becomes an alien concept to us. In such a convoluted state of mind, how can one hope to find any pleasure in service to his brethren? How can one hope to do any good ‘karma’ at all, if , one is so afraid to make an effort.

We must, thus, keep a constant vigil over how we are living. Whether the comforts we provide ourselves are actually doing us any good or not ? We must always ask ourselves – “Am I a slave to the comforts of life?’ ‘What were supposed to enable me to live better, are they now holding me back from pursuing spirituality ? Have we allowed the mind to be completely engulfed by the needs of appeasement and easement?’

We must draw inspiration from the life of Shri Ram. Whether in the Forest, or, in His Kingdom, He was always “Maryada Purushottam”. Whether He had access to the comforts of a King, or , whether He lived sparingly as an ascetic – it did not in any way affect His actions, His principles or His ‘dharma’. He was a ‘true King’ as He had mastered His ‘self’ and did not let it be affected by the external, or , the comfort of the senses. We too must persevere to be in such control and steer ourselves into the light of God.

Swami ji said…

Joy or sorrow; relief or anguish, freedom or fear – these emotions and feelings, though complete opposites, have one thing in common. They are all felt by us within. It is the mind that is relieved. It is the mind that is tense. It is the mind that is frantic, and , it is the mind which is at peace. We can be seething hot with anger on a cold winter day and be cool, calm and collected on a sweltering hot day. Clearly, when God made us, He did not intend Nature – around us , outside of us – to dictate our moods and emotions – within us.

But, as time passed by, we have increasingly allowed – the state of our mind to be dictated by that which is outside. A constant want for money, physical comforts, a great physical appearance, approval from others, gratification of the senses, a hunger for power and influence – all these – greatly affect and disturb our peace of mind now. There is no moment when we can simply be and accept our circumstances – without complaining.

If the mind is already a slave to ‘maya’, and its thoughts are borne from the myriad experiences that we have in the illusionary world – then we might not have complete control over our actions, and , thereby on our lives. Yes, we, do have to consider circumstances ; we do have to consider actions of others towards us, but, whether we simply react to them in an unmeasured, uncontrollable manner , or , assess and act in a wise manner is always a function of the state of our mind.Thus, the inner world, must be made independent of the outer world.

But, do we allow that to happen ? Very few of us succeed in doing so. In this short lifetime of ours we do meet quite a many people. People – those who are known to us ; some not very well known and some complete strangers – but , if, we were large hearted enough and appreciated the fact that we could learn a great deal from one another – we would, undoubtedly, benefit tremendously by doing so. Don’t we, at times, recall words of great import that had been said by someone we had met in the past, and, profit greatly by imbibing and making those words a part of our life ? At times, a person’s behavior could have such a lasting impression on us – that it could bring about a transformation in our behavioral pattern – which, but, naturally, would work in our favour from then onwards.

We can , I’m sure, recall the time when we might have met someone – who had come across as the epitome of happiness , positivity and cheer during our entire interaction with him – but , later on – we were left stupefied on learning – about the heart wrenching
personal tragedy that – that very person had undergone and had overcome grief that had tested his limits of endurance – without lamenting or blaming anyone for the painful incidents in his life. On becoming aware of the unfortunate events that had taken place in his life – we are left surprised – that there was not an inflection of pain in his voice ; no sign at all that he was seeking self – pity from anyone ; no visible trace of the anguish and suffering that he had gone through. It is very rare to come across such individuals. Isn’t it ? And, we are left wondering as to how did he manage to steel himself in the face of such melancholy and misery ? When we meet individuals like them – we react by saying – ‘ उनको देख कर ऐसा कोई भी नही कह सकता कि उन्होंने इतना दुख देखा होगा …’ And , we are left wondering as to how did he not raise a hue and cry about the cruel manner in which he had been treated by God. The answer to this is very simple – ” जो मनुष्य सुखी रहना चाहते हैं – वो अपने आतंरिक जगत् को मजबूत बनाते हैँ और वो मनुष्य हमेशा दुखी रहते हैं जो हर बात के लिए बाहरी जगत् को दोषी ठहराते हैं …”

We need to remember that – happy people build their inner world and unhappy people blame their outer world. Thus , we must work steadily to strengthen our inner world with layers of faith and belief in God and happily surrender ourselves to His will.

Swami ji said…

Life, undoubtedly, is demanding. It can be taxing and draining to the very core. What tomorrow brings – no one knows. But, sometimes, it, is certainly not what we want or expect. It can cause us pain and suffering when we least expect it. The discontentment and disenchantment with the unpredictable nature of life – makes us blind to reason – so much so that we refuse to draw strength from any source of inspiration and motivation – to rebuild trust in the vagaries of life. Some of us who might have had the good fortune of being initiated, blessed and accepted by a ‘saccha sant’ ; a self realised ‘guru’ as His own – tend to forget the
divine significance of
the sacred moments – that we had experienced – on receiving the treasure of priceless knowledge from Him. And, instead, it , appears that all the time invested in us by a ‘गुरू’ and the ‘ज्ञान’ that He had shared with us – ‘सब व्यर्थ था ‘ – as we seem to have forgotten every teaching of his ; simply erased every instruction of His from our mind and appear to be as blank as a clean slate – as we continue to remain greatly affected and influenced by all that is happening around us – outside of us – and show no inclination whatsoever to know – who we are.

When life doesn’t run the way we want it to – we are bound to be unhappy. Since we have decided that all that should matter to us – is the external world around us and all that happens to us, and, around us – not for a moment do we bother to look deep within ourselves – our inner being – our true ‘self’. Isn’t it ironical that we function in a manner that is contrary to the teachings of a ‘सच्चा संत? Why do we behave in such a manner ? “क्या हम ने यह तय किया हुआ है कि हमारा जीवन उन सब चीजों से ही जुड़ा रहेगा जो हमारे ‘बाहर’ है … ये कमज़ोरी हमारे दुखी रहना का सबसे बड़ा कारण है…सुखी रहने के लिए हमें अपने आप को – अपने भीतर, अपने अंदर को जान ना चाहिए…”

Nothing could sadden a ‘guru’ more than to see His ‘bhakts’ – who had received ‘शिक्षा’ , ‘ज्ञान’ , ‘उपदेश’ – from Him – forget every teaching of His – at the first sign of imminent turbulence in their lives ? हम अपने बाहरी परेशानियों में,जीवन की परेशानियों में
इतना डूब जाते हैं कि हम – अपने ‘भीतर’ डूबना भूल जाने हैं…”

It is easy to give up and wallow in self-pity and sadness. We feel it is easier to simply go along with the waves of unhappiness – when life challenges us ; calls upon us to take up arms and wage a war against our fears, our insecurities. At that moment , we choose to cower down and look for sympathy instead. The code, the principles, the routine and rituals we were following – as a path to success, to happiness are abandoned and disregarded – when in fact – it is then that we need them the most …” हम अपने आप को इतना कमजोर क्यूँ होने देते हैं … हम इतनी जल्दी उन सब चीजों से कैसे प्रभावित हो जातें हैं – वो सब जो हमारे बाहर चल रहा है…”

For the spiritual seeker – this is a key lesson. In grief, in difficulties – the mind’s first instinct is to abandon everything ; to just give up – and look for comfort instead.The mind will try to lead him astray – by goading him to give up his spiritual beliefs and practices ; will make him doubt himself by asking – ” What did you gain by embarking on your spiritual journey – if you still have to endure pain and suffering? Why should you abide by any spiritual teachings?” The spiritual seeker has to remain resilient and not let such an attack weaken his faith and belief in his journey. With his ‘guru’s’ directions, guidance and blessings , he should seek to complete his spiritual quest – by knowing God, by seeing Him and merging with Him…” ये कला ‘गुरु’ के अलावा और कोई ना बता सकता है और सिखा सकता है…”

Swami ji said…

Whenever, we reflect on our past experiences – we will realise – that whether it was at the culmination of a personal journey, or , on achieving a personal ambition – the feeling of satisfaction and achievement felt by us – inspite of it being sweet – it is also fleeting. Soon, without an aim, without a decided path to take, we begin to feel bored and restless. Nothing at all – no entertainment or distraction of any kind – can take that feeling away from us. Yet, the idea of being in discomfort again – by placing oneself in the clutches of uncertainty – by giving up the known , easy life – and venturing into unknown pastures – is what causes the heart and mind to be gripped with fear. We fool ourselves by listening to our wayward thoughts – which tell us mischievously – ‘ Tomorrow I will start afresh. Rest and enjoy life for today.’ While we are displeased at being stuck in the doldrum of today’s life – the fear of the storms of tomorrow – doesn’t let us easily step out of our comfort zone – either.

We all yearn for a comfortable life – ” एक ऐसा जीवन जो बिताने में बहुत आसान हो … आराम से कट जाए … जिस में हमें कोई भी परेशानी, मुश्किल और मुसीबत का सामना नहीं करना पड़े …जब सब कुछ आरामदायक हो…” In short , wouldn’t it be wonderful, if , life was nothing but a dream run – we tell ourselves? A picture perfect life. A kaleidoscope of bright colours; profusely abundant with joyful moments – where problems, difficulties and issues of any kind – simply do not exist for us.

Unfortunately, so involved are we in visualising a situation so idyllic and serene – that we miss out on the most crucial aspect of life – that ‘growth’ is born out of ‘challenges’…’ हम हमेशा ये भूल जाते हैं कि जब जीवन में सब कुछ आसान रहता है – हम आगे तब नहीं बढ़ते हैँ, बल्कि हम आगे तब बढ़ते हैं , जब हम चुनौतियों और मुश्किलों का सामना करते हैं…”

Can we enjoy having the same meal over and over again – every day of our lives? How many of us can wear clothes of the same colour every day? The thought itself is not too pleasing.Thus , how will we grow and evolve unless new, unexpected situations arise in our life? How will we develop mental toughness to overcome challenges and problems ? How will the mind learn to combat demanding times? How will we ever display the internal strength that God has endowed us with – if we are not faced with hurdles and challenges that we need to overcome?

Living a cushy, comfortable life in which we are unfamiliar with the face of any problem – where everything is available at the snap of our fingers – will naturally make us freeze at the mere sight of any untoward development in our lives. A lifetime that has not witnessed the emergence, handling and closure of a ‘चुनौति’ – would be a life less lived – as it keeps us away from the reality of life, and, far away from any scope of further growth. The mind needs to be challenged – by being put to the test – to think of innovative ways of coming out of a crisis. Our perspective towards life will change, if , we start believing that – ‘ ‘चुनौतियों’ एक तरह से हमारे जीवन के विकास का माध्यम होती हैं…” We must strike at the very heart of the malaise of wanting to live an ‘easy’ life – by understanding that a static life will not empower and enrich us in any way. Rather, it is the other way around. Challenges take out the best from us. Something that even we didn’t know about ourselves.Traits which were hidden in us – but come to the forefront to reveal a new us – during challenging times.

Think of Lord Krishna’s life…” क्या उनका जीवन
आसान था ? उन्होंने अपने जीवन में कौनसी चुनौती का सामना नहीं किया ? हर चुनौती का बलपूर्वक सामना करते हुए वो आगे बढ़ते गए…” Even as a child He was battling demons ; surviving perilous schemes and plots against His life. He was God on Earth, yet, He, did not opt for an ‘easy’ life. He was born to a King and Queen, yet , grew up in the village of herdsmen. He, being Lord Vishnu’s ‘avatar’ – was the King of all Kings, yet , preferred to sit on the seat of a charioteer – during the battle of Kurukshetra – which was fought between the Pandavs and Kauravs. If ‘He’ had not done what ‘He’ had done – would, we, humans, have ever recognised Him as the Presever ? Had He decided to live a life of luxury as any other king – would we have ever remembered Him as ‘God’ – thousands of years later ?
We need to remember that we don’t grow when things are easy ; rather , we grow when we face challenges. Every challenge that comes our way should be used as a stepping stone for our growth and progress.

How would a spiritual seeker even think of embarking on the spiritual path – if he desists from leaving the well known confines and comfort of his home? How would he ever aspire to seek liberation from the cycle of life and death – if he continues to be wary of the obstacles and challenges that most certainly have to be overcome by him – on his new journey ? The mental block that he has allowed to grow in his mind – that he is incapable of fighting and overpowering any challenge – has to be removed at the earliest – and he can do that only by drawing the inner strength that he has in plenty within him , place his faith in his Creator and walk towards Him fearlessly.

Swami ji said…

‘Will everything work out fine in the end ?’ ‘क्या सब कुछ ठीक रहेगा?’ ‘Will I be successful?’ ‘Will I be rewarded for my efforts?’
The future can be a conundrum to deal with. The future cannot be seen. It can only be imagined. And man’s imagination – is adept at painting rather grim pictures of his future. All of a sudden everything that he has today seems to be inadequate , insufficient for tomorrow. The people who support and love us today, will they be there tomorrow to stand by our side – we worry ? How will we manage without them? These questions can leave one weary and suspect of the future. Thus, one must not let worry for the future steal the joy of today – and change his way of thinking.

When we read a book of our liking – we devour the pages voraciously – eager to know more – as the plot unfolds before us. And, at times, unable to bear the mystery any longer – we flip to the last page of the book to know the end of the story – and, once our curiosity is laid to rest – we resume reading from where we had left. None of us can say that we haven’t ever done anything like this. We are made that way! Impatient, excited and keen to know – How will the book end ? At times, our involvement with the book is so complete – that we emote with the book – laugh, cry and are even inspired while reading it. But, happy we are while reading a book and look forward to our ‘reading time’.

Would we be wrong in saying that our lives too are much like story books – the author of which – is the ‘Almighty’. And, with each passing moment of our life – just as we do while reading a book page by page –
we too keep on discovering what the Grand Author has decided for us on a daily basis.The only difference being that as far as the ‘Book of our Life’ is concerned – we cannot skip to the last page of this book – to know how will it end – as the end will always remain unknown to us – till our last breath.

Thus , we must start ‘believing’ in the life that is being lived by us and enjoy ‘living’ it ; as it is – with the right attitude. For those who seek – there is plenty to look for and gain happiness from. Yes , this is easier said than done, but , it must be done. We must consciously restrict ourselves from worrying, all the time, about the future. We must have confidence in the action that is being taken by us in following our dreams. Just like in any tale, where even the hero does not know whether he will succeed in achieving what he has set out to accomplish –
yet , he , always acts in a manner that is in line with his dream – by changing his attitude – to further his means. Similarly , we too must seek to behave like this and keep on changing our attitude – till we achieve our goal. We must enjoy the opportunities that God gives us to realise our dreams. There will be days that will be tough – but we must celebrate the fact that we were able to endure them and came through victorious. We must refresh the mind with thoughts that better times are evidently ahead. And, on the good days – we must not let the mind fear the return of tougher times ; instead, we must be optimistic, hopeful, thankful to God and rejuvenate our spirit and mind – by thinking in a new and different manner.

” जीवन के प्रति बुरा रुख रख कर हम कभी भी आगे नहीं बढ़ सकेंगे…हमें अपने जीवन के रुख को बदलना चाहिए और आगे बढ़ना चाहिए …जब हमरा रुख, जीवन के प्रति उत्साहित रहेगा , positive रहेगा…हम तभी उस बदलाव से आगे बढ़ सकेंगे…” We can advance further in life only by changing our attitude.

Problems – big or small – we will always come across.That is certain. It is impossible to lead a life devoid of problems. We must master the skill of overcoming challenges with a fierce determination. That solely should be our attitude. One must not keep thinking about – ‘ how this is interfering with our goal or how it is causing an inconvenience for us !’ During such moments – God wants us to find a way through the problem – that He has planted in front of us. And, only after seeing our attitude and approach towards it does He remove it. That in itself is how God wants us to live. How we emerge at the end of any situation that He puts us in – are the achievements of our life.

One must strive to develop an attitude that is fearless and positive – irrespective of the severity of the challenge that is faced by us. No hindrance, big or small, should take the smile off our face. It is only when we focus on maintaining such a frame of mind and such a temperament – willing to change with changing situations – that we will find ‘tomorrow’ to be better than we had expected or hoped for it to be , and , that the fears we had for the future – were only there in our mind.