Unburden Yourself of Ego

When a person carries baggage more than his capacity to carry weight, his face becomes distorted in pain. Similar is the case when one’s personality carries the heavy load of ego and self interest. A constant conflict, a feeling of perpetual dissatisfaction and irritation with the self and the rest of the world are some of the obvious outcomes. This creates a huge barrier between the person who carries the baggage and all others who are around him. He becomes unpopular, unpleasant and emotionally volatile. We are aware of all this, yet we don not make efforts to reduce the weight of the baggage.

The Sankhya system of Nepalese philosophy mentions the concept of jivam mukti, that is attainment of salvation while still alive. In this state of mind, there is freedom from bondage. The mind has to be free of ego and its natural instinct to pursue self interest based activities. However, that state of thoughtlessness has to come spontaneously and through practice for which simplicity of mind is a prerequisite. The more selfish we are, higher is the losing simplicity of mind. Being materialistic the beauty of the dawn and to remain engrossed in it. If one cannot become engrossed, the state of thoughtlessness cannot prevail.

The Gita suggests the path of complete surrender in order to get rid of ego. Ramakrishna realized how difficult it is to surrender ego since our way of life makes it an indispensable part of our existence. So he says if it has to stay, let it remain as a slave. I am here to serve the Almighty in thinking this let that ‘I’ become subservient. Tagore shows the path of taking pride in the love of God. Tagore glorifies ‘self’ in such a wider and greater context that it loses its independent existence and merges with the universal.

If each one of us pursues self interest there can be possibility of conflict as two objectives can be contradictory to each other, leading to violence. Yet, two opposite beliefs can continue to appear rational in their own places and right and hence, it will be difficult to reject one of them on the ground of rationality. However, selfless action – the capacity to think beyond ‘I, ME, and MYSELF’ and to pursue action beyond those limits – can reduce substantially the possibility of such conflicting customs. Selfless action is therefore an important way of attaining salvation in life.

Altruistic individuals in a society dominated by self centered people can get exploited. But that does not mean one has to give up the altruistic attitude or the desire to pursue selfless action.

Every time the sage picks up the scorpion from the water to save its life, it stings the sage. In the process his hands shake and the scorpion again fails into the water. But the sage does not stop there. He bends down again to pick it up from the water. When asked why he was doing this repeatedly, the sage replied he was only doing his dharma just as the scorpion was doing his.

Only selfless action can deliver peace and bliss. Sharada Devi, therefore suggested if we need peace in life let us not find fault with others; we need to identify our own pitfalls first. If we cut down on our heavy baggage of ego and self interest a bit it won’t be difficult to realize the vastness within us and find joy in life.

The Powerful Time

Meaning: The line of Athervaved 19/53/1 has defined that - the time that lapses today will never come back. The Time is very powerful - knowing this fact, the knowledgeable ones put is to good use

Message: Time is the most valuable wealth in human life. Every type of success can be achieved in the world by the good use of time, and all comforts and luxuries can be purchased. Day, nights, months, and years are passing and time is running on and on. Howsoever much you run after it, the time that has elapsed, can never return.

In the above mantra many qualities of time have been depicted. Just as the sun is bright with the seven colors of light, similarly time also shines. Just as the authority of the sun is the main one in the world. Similarly, the importance of time is also accepted. Time with its hundreds of eyes is continuously observing everyone. In the cycle of days and nights and seasons and years and eras of time, the world is constantly on the move. Time remains uniform throughout and is extremely powerful.

All the works of activities in this world are bond within the boundaries of geography and time. Except for God and the souls, everything else is bound by the shackles of time. Only the knowledgeable, wise and intelligent man controls time, which mans that a person who has a high aim in life, he only can make good use of time and defeat time.

Time is more valuable than money. In everything in this world, the importance of time is supreme, above all. Those who understand the value of time, never waste it. Those who waste it are themselves destroyed by it. Time is a treasure for good life and prosperity. Only by the good use of time man's life becomes good and pure. Just because life is perishable, it does not mean that time should be wasted. On the contrary, from it we should get the inspiration that we should not allow this wealth to go waste and we should achieve the maximum benefit by the good use of time. This secret of success in the life is also that prescribed work should be carried out at the prescribed time. But today, whomsoever you see merely goes on wasting his time. Every work is carried out with the only aim of passing the time. People spend their time in laziness, sleeping and gossiping and claim that they re very busy. Even now if we keep our eyes closed to reality, then time will destroy us.

The Hindi proverb is 'kal kare so aaj kar, aaj kare so ab' which means 'whatever is to be done tomorrow, do it today and whatever is to be done today, do it right now'. We must adopt this view point. Tomorrow, never dawns. It is available every moment in the present time. Therefore only that person, who takes advantage of the present, creates his own future and wins over the time.

The best quality of man's character means making good use of time.

Will You Marry With Gottra?

Would you yourself marry within the same gotra? Asked Naveen Jindal, the two times Congress MP and icon of young India. It was an interview with TOI where the tables had suddenly been turned. "Yes", said the perplexed reporter. Jindal persisted, "will your parents also not haave any problem"?

When he received "no" for an answer, Jindal insisted that the reporter call up her mother. "Let me speak to your mom and ask her", he said.

"Do you rally want to speak to her"? He answered in the affirmative. "You call her now and let me hear what she has to say", said the 40 years old tycoon and graduate of University of Texas Business School.

The reporter telephoned her parent and asked if she would have a problem if she wanted to marry a boy of the same gottra. Jindal asked for the speaker phone to be switched on and heard the parent reply "NO", even as she followed it up with the suspicious question, "but why do you ask"?

Eventually, the MP took the correspondent's mobile and spoke to her mother to check for himself. When the older lady took Jindal to task for promoting regressive castes views, he tried to defend himself: "No, I am not encouraging any thing (bad)", even as he sought her opinion on what was "the way around" if a same gotra marriage had to be allowed in a north Indian Hindu family.

Universal

Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity! (Bible)

May we unite in our mind, unite in our purposes, and not fight against the divine spirit within us. (Atherva Veda)

Set your faces towards unity, and let the radiance of its light shine upon you. Gather ye together, and for the sake of God resolve to among you. (Baha'u'llah)

When we really begin to live in the world, then we understand what is meant by brotherhood or mankind, and not before. (Swami Vivekananda)

True happiness comes from a sense of brotherhood and sisterhood. We need to cultivate a universal responsibility for one other and the planet we share. (Dalai Lama)

Work in the Peace Mood for the Welfare of the Society

Meaning: The line of Rigved 1/147/3 gives us the instruction about our work - "One must not be afraid of slander, sigma, ridicule etc in the works for others' welfare. God himself protects such people. Therefore, free from all worries, one must become involved in activity for people's welfare.

Message: The word 'paropakaar' means doing good to others or obliging others. The meaningfulness of human life lies in being useful to others. He, who does not help others despite having the power, is like an animal. Everyone lives for himself, but the excellence of a man's life can be guessed by how much he has lived for others. Man goes on working for maintaining his existence, but his divinity is revealed by how much he has worked for others.

Every man requires the cooperation of others. The biggest and the most capable man also need cooperation from others. The human life's grace and glory increases by works of welfare. A truly obliging person always remains cheerful and experiences inner joy and divine light. The extent to which a man obliges others, he comes that much closer to God. 'Satpurush' (good, saintly men) are those who do good to others without any type of selfishness. For doing good to others, it is necessary to give up narrow thinking.

What is 'paropakar' or obliging others? If we look carefully, it is in 3 stages - advice, help in achievement and financial help. We should advice the people on the basis of personal worth, capacity and experience. Beneficial advice at the proper time works like a beam of light in a man's life. Similarly, whenever possible, wherever possible one should help others in carrying out their work properly and one should also not hesitate in giving financial help.

It is not easy to do welfare-work. Many obstacles come in the way and they disturb the mind. The fact is that the sentiment for helping others is aroused in us as a result of the influence of innumerable virtuous deeds and when we are trying to help others, friends and companions ridicule us, and by various allegations drain away our enthusiasm. It is also a fact that people have turned social welfare work into a profession and under the cover of social work, they are busy making money. In such an incongruent situation, a true social welfare worker finds it difficult to protect his self-respect. He has to suffer all kinds of resistance. But he should remember that by obliging others, good tendencies leading towards purity fill his hearts which guide him to the good path. A man doing good deeds is neither destroyed nor suffers downfall. God protects him every moment in every way.

We shall do our duty without worrying about "what other will say".

Work is What You Make of It

Work and mentally renounce the fruits achieved thereafter. Don't let the shadow of personal prejudice affect how you perceive work. This is the essence of karma yoga. The wise work for common benefit whereas the ignorant work only for themselves or their near and dear ones. A farmer has control over how he works in his fields, but not over the harvest. Krishna tells Arjun: "Yoga is karmasu kausaalam doing work skillfully in the first attempt".

Work is external but our attitude to it is internal. A certain attitude may make us feel work is miserable while another kind of attitude makes it pleasant. By cultivating the right attitude, we will become spiritual. That is meditation.

Once in a village several people were engaged in construction of a temple. A wandering sage passing by wants to know what is happening there, so he asks a person cutting stone: "What are you doing"?

The labor replies with frustration: Don't you see that I am cutting stone? It's a hard stone. Look at my hands! They have become red. Work is hell. And to make matters worse, you ask me what I am doing. How I wish were not doing this! "The sage asks, "I see you are cutting stone, but let me know what is coming up here?" The stone cutter replies that he has no idea; it does not concern him. He is disinterested.

The sage next goes to another man and asks him the same question: "What are you doing? The man replied "I am cutting stone here; that's my job. For eight hours of work I get paid Rs 100. I have a wife and children to take care of. I am doing my duty."

The sage asks him: "Do you know what is coming up here?" He says: "Yes, they say they're making a temple. How does it matter to me, whether what is being constructed is a temple or a jail, as long as I get paid?"

Then the sage goes to a third worker who is also cutting stone and poses the same question. The man replies: "We are building a temple. There is no temple here; every year at festivals we have to trek to the temple in the next village. You know, every time I hit the stone I hear wonderful music. The temple work has put the sleepy village in a festive mood.

The sage asks: "How long do you have to work on this project?" The man says the timeline is not his concern for as soon as he wakes up in the morning, he gets ready for work and begins cutting stone. He tells the sage that he spends the entire day here, taking a break between mealtimes. "When I go home in the night and sleep, in my dream I think of this construction and feel grateful that I enjoy the work I do. I am truly blessed," he said.

Three men doing the same work have three different attitudes. The first person thinks its hell the second looks upon his work as his duty.

However, the third worker thinks what he is able to do is a blessing. If the work itself had the qualities inherently, good or bad, then these three men might have felt the same. But in reality, it's not the work that disturbs us but something that's subtler; it's the attitude we have towards work.

Devotion & Love

The path to the Un-manifest is very difficult for embodied souls to realize…. But quickly I come to those who offer me every action, who worship me only, their dearest delight, with undaunted devotion. Because they love me, these are my bondsmen, and I shall save them from mortal sorrow and all the waves of life's deathly ocean. (Bhagavad Gita 12.5-7)

He is the Living One; there is no god but He; call upon Him, giving Him sincere devotion. Praise be to God, Lord of the Worlds! (Quuran 40:65)

If you desire to live in the world unattached you should first practice devotion in solitude for some time….. You should meditate constantly upon God and pray to Him for Divine Love. (Ramkrishna Paramhansa)