BE POSITIVE—BE HAPPY
You say others insult you without reason and injure you without cause. Even if that is true, do not get agitated. Face the situation calmly. You will find that calmness can be a powerful weapon to overcome complex problems. Shut your eyes to insults. Let others think what they like and say what they want. This is a world of ignorant people. You can be wise. Be humble before everybody. Be humble in every situation. This is possible if you give up the idea of inferiority and superiority and learn to see God in everybody and everything. “God wills it so, so be it.” Say that to yourself and keep quiet in the face of insults. If you put up with insults, you will grow in purity. You will grow spiritually rich.
FORGET AND FORGIVE
Do not develop ill feelings inside your heart for the man who has insulted you or injured you. This is worse than open anger. This is a sort of mental cancer. Do not nourish grievances. Forget and forgive. This is not just an idealistic maxim. This is the only way to retain your peace. The habit of nurturing a grudge is highly detrimental to one’s self. You will lose sleep. You will poison your blood. You will develop blood pressure. After all, the injury or insult was done to you once. Now it is past. It is all over. It is like split milk. Why do you want to perpetuate the misery of that injury or insult by constantly remembering it? Why do you want to feed the dying embers of hatred and ill will? Is it, not high foolishness? The human life span is so short that you cannot afford to waste time and energy on such trifles. Get over the bad habit. The best way to do so is to keep busy with any work that absorbs your interest.
You can gain peace of mind in your profession or hobby which holds your interest. You will then have a sense of fulfilment, of achievement. Remember the proverb—Man does not live by bread alone. If you can afford it, and if you value peace of mind more than money, you would even do well to take to a calling or job which you like but which is monetarily less rewarding than one which you dislike all the time but monetarily more rewarding.
NEVER BE JEALOUS
Jealousy often disturbs the peace of mind. Are you jealous of somebody? Jealousy is cancer. It is incorrect to imagine that ‘A’ has blocked your promotion in office or that ‘B’ has ruined you by competing in the same business. Again and again, remember, no one can make or mar your career. Your previous karma shapes your career and your life. If you are destined to fall, not all the world can help you come up. Each man is governed by his destiny. Each man’s life is independent, though seemingly interdependent with the lives of others. Remember this. I understand this point well. Never again be jealous of others or blame others for your misfortune.
BECOME SELF RELIANT
A prime cause for losing peace of mind is dependence on others, even for basic needs. Dependence is pain. Independence is bliss. Become self-reliant. As far as possible, of course. If you earnestly try, you will discover many areas where you can become self-sufficient. Learn to wash your clothes, sweep your room, cook your food, and type your letters. You need not do them daily, but these minor talents will rescue you in an emergency.
Do not evade responsibilities. Do not forget; you cannot gain peace of mind that way. You will only gather more worries because the thought that you neglect your duties will corrode your mind and take away. Instead, face your responsibilities to the best of your ability. Do not add to your responsibilities daily by taking additional loads on your egoistic initiative. In colloquial terms, this is what is called “purchasing trouble”. Do not purchase trouble. Rather cut down your external activities more and more consistent with your responsibilities. Learn to spend more and more time in an inward life of prayer, introspection and meditation. Perfect peace of mind arises when the mind itself dies down. Mind means thoughts. Thoughts mean restlessness. The lesser the activities, the fewer the thoughts. The fewer the thoughts, the greater the peace of mind. Thoughtlessness is the highest state where perfect harmony reigns.
MEDITATE
Have regular hours of meditation. Meditation calms down the mind. It induces quiescence in the mind; if you meditate earnestly for one hour, even during the remaining twenty-three hours, the tendency introduced by meditation in mind does not oscillate as much as before. Gradually increase the period of daily meditation. This will not interfere with your daily work because meditation increases your various faculties and gives you the capacity to turn out more work in less time.
DO SOMETHING POSITIVE
Always be doing something positive, something worthwhile. Don’t plan to do too much. God does the planning. Be doing something good all the time. Allow no gap in your concrete activity. Do not waste your time. Even a few careless moments can pull you down in your life. Time is life. Value your time and spend it wisely. Even if you are resting physically, do not keep the mind vacant. Occupy yourself in healthy reading or Japa or mental prayer. All havoc starts in the mind. Keep the sources clean. The river of your life will flow as crystal.
Doing things gives self-confidence. It does not matter if you fail the first time. You can rectify your mistakes and succeed the next time. Sitting back in the chair and worrying will lead to nothing. It will only make you a total pessimist. Some people get upset when they attempt to do something good, and obstacles arise. It is natural for obstacles to crop up in the way of any good work. They come to test the mettle of the performer of the good work. They come to test his sincerity, his patience, and his faith. You will experience that the stronger you resolve to do something worthwhile, the more influential the opposing forces. Do not feel frustrated. Do not give up. Do not yield. Overcome the obstacles by faith in God and faith in yourself. You cannot win laurels in any field without undergoing tests and tribulations. It is unfair to expect a degree while unwilling to undergo a qualifying examination.
MAKE OTHERS HAPPY
Are you utterly selfish, or do you think of others at least sometimes? A greedy man can have no peace of mind. On the other hand, if you are selfless and serve others without motive, you will feel great peace at once. Motiveless service yields pure joy and makes others happy. You will begin to delight in their happiness. This is open to everyone to experience. Serve others in a small or big way as is given to you but without thought of reward or recognition. Service at every turn, whenever opportunity offers itself.
Almost twenty years ago, I was out on my evening walk in a big city late in the evening. I was stopped by a girl in a quiet corner, in an imploring tone: “Bhai Saheb, Dar Lagtha Hai,” In a moment, I sensed the situation. In the lonely place, she was being pursued by a Tongawala. In her fright, the girl had lost all senses of direction and was searching for her house. I reassured her, and we discovered the house she wanted wh, ich, was well within a furlong of where we stood. I escorted them to her place and went my way. A trifling good turn that cost me nothing. But the fullness and joy I felt that day lingers fresh in my memory. One can help others at little or no cost in many ways. Only a pure heart is required.
REDUCE YOUR WANTS
Do not multiply your wants and then feel like a beggar. Reduce your desires and think like a king. Why should you enter a cloth shop and see many varieties presented before your eyes when you have enough clothing at home? Either you will buy unnecessary things or feel sad. “Oh I don’t have this. Ah, how I wish I could buy that.”
Peace of mind and material greed are incompatible. They do not go together. Make your choice. Reduce your wants to the bare minimum, consistent with your general external activities; the fewer desires and possessions, the more significant the peace of mind. Most of us suffer, not for lack of the proper knowledge or wisdom, but for lack of exercise of that wisdom in our daily life. If you want peace of mind, stop doing all the things you know you should not do. And, equally important, start doing all the things you know you should do. This will set you on the right track, and when you are on the right path, God’s grace will flow into your life and make it more and more sublime. You will gain peace of mind and radiate peace all around you.
Faith has to be exercised. Love has to be exercised. Selflessness has to be exercised. Charity has to be practised. Devotion has to be cultivated. These qualities, these virtues, do not arise in you overnight. They must be assiduously cultivated before becoming a natural and habitual integral part of your being.
PRAY TO GOD
Each day you get up in the morning, pray to God for just two minutes. Surely you can afford that much time for your Creator every day. “O lord, use me today to work out your will however you deem fit. I make myself hollow and lay myself at your disposal.” If you say that and remember your prayer to the lord throughout the day, you will think twice before indulging in the wrong act or taking a false step. Instead, you will like to fill the day with as many good deeds as possible so that there may be more flowers in the garland you offer to the lord at the day’s end.
Accept every experience in life as it comes. Do not grumble. Do not grudge. Do not feel sad. Do not feel fled either. If you boast about something, you are inviting trouble. There is always action and reaction on the relative plane. If you laugh now, you will have to weep later. There is no mound without a pit, no smile without a tear. So remain level always.
DO NOT DISTURB THE PEACE OF OTHERS
If you hate others, if you injure others, if you abuse your servants, if you taunt your children, if you ill-treat your wife at home and a subordinate in the office, if you cheat people in business—if you do all these and much more and still expect peace of mind, you are asking for the impossible. Also, you do not deserve it. A man who disturbs the peace of others has no right to expect peace of mind for himself. So mend yourself.
Peace of mind arises out of spiritual growth. Spiritual growth is an inward process, and the spiritual life is an inward life. But it is equally valid that such growth is greatly aided by external support and marred by external incompatibles. Hence, they prescribe the Satvik diet, Satvik dress, Satvik reading, Satvik company, Satvik environment, Satvik habits in general prayer and pilgrimage, Svadhyaya, Satsanga, fasts company, and festivals. Do not give up these powerful external aids. Instead of resorting to them purposefully for quicker evolution when you have advanced enough, they will drop off themselves.