mn isxu mnu imlaie sBu jgu jIta . ien ibiW kuslu t[r{ m[r[ mIta .
Merging their minds into the Mind,
they conquer the entire world.
In this way, you too shall find
happiness, O my friend. ---------- 231
In today’s
day and age, people are surrounded with issues affecting the world and not
individual alone.To solve the crisis, people should change themselves to make a
difference in the world. This can only happen when individuals think for the
betterment of society at large.
Today, the
need of the hour is to integrate value education at all levels that will equip
people to live a positive social life.
People
with greater awareness can then contribute to destroying social negative traits
including corruption, bribery and nepotism as part of life.Such enlightened
attitudes can also boost the confidence of socially underprivileged individuals
and encourage them towards a respectful life. This form of embedded knowledge
empowers people to resist greed, selfishness and violence in thought, word and
action.
Simple
living and high thinking
mit
h]wI h]ie ieAaNa . taN h]w[ h]ie intaNa
.
ANh]w[
Aapu v;dae[ . k] A{sa Bgtu swae[ .
If you are wise, be simple; if you are powerful, be weak;
and when there is nothing to share,
then share with others.
How rare is one who is known as such a
devotee. ------ 1384
The world we live in today has become
so fashion conscious, that everyone, be it poor or rich is out there to make a
signature statement. We were taught by our forefathers to live a simple life
and allow others to live in simplicity. Simple way of living was the way for
many cultures in the past, both in the east and west. People used to live in
harmony with nature and its cycles and took from the earth only that which was
absolutely necessary for sustenance. Before we delve into the wisdom of simple
living, it is appropriate to first define an essential factor that hinders our
way to live a simple life. That factor is primarily “wasting”. Waste normally is
defined as something that in excess. We tend to forget that a simple life is
all about learning the true meaning of contentment, humility and
self-confidence. Hence, one must realize whether surplus is really serving my
actual need and adding to my peace and happiness or is it just greed. To have
more than what we need is definitely not better for our life.
Be
Honest to be With Your True Self
b;w[
K]ju iwl hir r]j na iPru pr[sanI maih .
O human
being, search your own heart every day,
and do not wander around in confusion------727
Decades ago, a sign behind the cash
counter of a traditional shop has drawn my attention. It read ‘Honesty Is the
Best Policy’. Does that line really matter to people of this generation? Why is
being honest difficult today? Is it greed, fear or ego or simply the desire for
an easy life that prevents us from being honest?
Young children are never afraid to
speak their mind. We get touched by their innocence because it resonates with
purity of the inner-self we all long for. In fact, honesty is one of our
deepest qualities. Many of us have spent our lives searching for it, only to
find that it resides within us. How did we lose this quality along our journey
to maturity?
To maintain integrity while facing
life’s challenges, we have to be honest with ourselves first. Honestyis
primarily about acknowledging our strengths and weaknesses. We can then build
trust and faith within ourselves and develop quality relationships. Honesty
with others is a sign of respect towards them. It helps people trust us and
that is the greatest reward in life.
Learn
to be benevolent
We have so many wishes for ourselves,
but we don’t bother to harbor good wishes for others, as we do not think there
is a need for it.One does not knows that good wishes for others can work
wonders for us as well. Good wishes are like vitamin injections that energies
one almost instantly, generating vibrations of pure feelings into the
atmosphere and creating instant happiness.
One must feel benevolent towards
everyone. Through the power of benevolent feelings, one can serve the whole
world from anywhere.We must keep in mind that our feelings are created from
thoughts and our thoughts determine our attitude. Hence when we extend pure love
to everyone without any selfish motivation. It is considered an act of
kindness. Similarly, to send good wishes and pure feelings to those who are in
deep sorrow is an act of mercy and compassion, to bless and uplift someone even
as they defame one, is an act of forgiveness, to remain tolerant under a
stressful situation and to extend cooperation even when not appreciated is an
attitude of humility.
Speak
the language of love
ijtu b]ilA{ pit paeIA{ s] b]ilAa prvaNu . iPka b]il ivgucNa suiN mUrK mn AjaN .
Those
words are acceptable, which, when spoken, bring honor.
Harsh
words bring only grief. Listen, O foolish and ignorant mind! ----15
Science has added to our comforts in
innumerable ways, but has also taken away some of the simple, yet fulfilling
pleasures of our lives. One of them is the joy of face-to-face communication.We
have all gotten so addicted to communicating with the tools of modern
technology that we have lost the art of connecting with each other from heart
to heart, of conducting an exchange of feelings.The youngsters of today are
wary of getting into any kind of direct communication. This is because they are
scared of getting hurt or let down by the other person.
Real communication is not superficial;
it can touch another person’s soul and fill it with love and joy. Such
communication is not possible if we keep shrinking away from interaction.In
order to maintain healthy relationships, we need to be aware of how we conduct
ourselves while communicating with someone. If we don’t respect the person we
are talking to, we will unconsciously betray it through our body language, and
the conversation won’t be fruitful. To prevent that, we must challenge those of
our beliefs and attitudes that create obstacles in our ability to create
healthy relationships.
An enlightened soul communicates from
the heart with love and speaks words that can uplift others. So, let us embark
upon a new journey full of positivity and unconditional love.
Help,
don’t censure the weak
Since our childhood, we are taught to
be polite to others. If we want others to be nice to us, our behavior towards
them should be similar. A well-mannered person always wins love and
appreciation.
But if our nice behavior is a façade
to mask our real feelings, the pretense will not win us any goodwill. Hence, it
is very important to harbor genuinely good feelings towards others.When our
feelings are pure, good nice behavior comes naturally. We don’t have to force
ourselves to be nice to someone or suppress negative thoughts when we meet
them.
We usually feel a pure love towards
our near and dear ones. But that is not the case with those outside the circle
of our family and friends.We react differently when the same mistake is made by
a loved one or by someone else. To one we show sympathy and understanding, and
to other we may show irritation and anger. But with just a little effort, we
can try to be nice even to those who consistently made mistakes and annoy us.
The error we fall into is that instead
of being merciful, we immediately judge the person for his mistake and condemn
him.We should keep in mind that the person is succumbing to some inner weakness
and should help him overcome that flaw.
If we make it a habit to look at every
person with compassion, not only will our feelings towards all remain pure, we
will also be able to help weak souls, who are rejected by all, to overcome
their weaknesses and transform their lives.
Learn
to forgive and move on
iKma
ghI bRtu sIl s;t]K; . r]gu n ibAap{ na
jm w]K; .
To
practice forgiveness is the true fast, good conduct and contentment.
Disease does not afflict me, nor does the pain
of death------223
People from all cultures and
traditions consider love and forgiveness as values central to the fabric of
humanity. But is forgiving as easy as it
sounds? The ability to forgive others depends on how honest we are with
ourselves.
All of us commit mistakes. As we
become aware of where we are going wrong, we start the process of making
amends. However, if this process is to progress, we have to forgive others
first. We cannot condemn others and excuse ourselves.
Forgiving removes the indignation we
feel at an injustice. If we do not learn to forgive, resentment will poison us.
Forgiveness means to move forward with what is good, towards what is better.
Our forgiveness, at first, may puzzle others. They may even think of us as
naïve, but eventually they will appreciate our act of kindness. We should also
learn to forgive ourselves, which means not making the same mistakes again, not
inventing ways to excuse ourselves. A person who has hardened his own heart
against others cannot feel God’s forgiveness and love. Hence, if we want to be
forgiven, then we must be willing to forgive first.
Wish
well for all
hir
gun gavt prxupkar int itsu rsna ka m]lu ikCu nahI .
He
continually sings the Glorious Praises of the Lord,
and always
does good for others; his tongue is priceless.-------824
We live in an era that boasts of a
generation, which is much more intellectual and influential. But in spite of
all the developments, we are still a generation looking for peace. Peace has
eluded us in spite our material and intellectual enrichment.
However, our endeavors to attain that
peace are limited by certain human constraints, of which the first is the human
body. We neither know about our past lives, nor about our future. The only
thing that we know is what we are in our present life. Hence, we do not
understand the implication of the laws of karma to discipline us in the
present.To ensure peace, we need to understand that peace is a composite
phenomenon.
Hence, one cannot hope to live in
peace without wishing well for others. Our positive actions can generate and sustain
peace.With divine knowledge, the road to spiritual endeavor and attainment of a
peaceful state of mind opens up.Unless we take peace with ourselves, we cannot
be peaceful beings. So, make yourself peaceful to see the world around you
naturally turning calm.
Love yourself to love others
We are
born with our set of likes and dislikes that shape our personality from
childhood. It will not be exaggerating to say that one of the greatest causes
of conflict in our life is the feeling of dislike for others.There is a saying
– a person disliked is a person
remembered. Many of us ponder over the faults and mistakes of others. Why
do we allow ourselves to waste time over such a fruitless experience? We should change our perspective of people
from negative to positive.
When we
are dissatisfied from within, we are inclined to be dissatisfied with everyone
and everything. We do not know the real cause of dissatisfaction. It’s a proven
fact by modern day psychologists, people are generally unhappy with who they
are, which means they do not like themselves. So, if we are not positive from
within, then on what basis can we be positive about others? Therefore, the only
way out of this problem is to ensure that we have a positive visit within us.
GREED IS THE MOST SUBTLE OF ALL VICES
For ages, scriptures and sages
have spoken about the vices; the most dangerous and subtle in nature is greed.
It is said that greed is a kind of hunger that is never satisfied. Hence, it is
this tendency which is created by acquiring wealth that leads to corruption at
all levels.
It does not mean that one should
not recognize the importance of wealth and remain poor for their whole lives.
What is required is a clear picture of wealth and create right perception of
wealth so that people can get a balanced view of it.
The funniest thing about wealth
is that the one who possesses it is always under threat of losing it and the
one who does not possesses it is always yearning for it. Thus, wealth produces
nothing but pain.There is no doubt that wealth and its accumulation is one the
primary needs, but it is also true that this tendency needs to be accompanied
by honesty and self-control, otherwise it leads to havoc.
Hence, there has to be a balance
through self-control, only then the corruption will end and
there would be a lawful and peaceful society in real sense
LIVE IN HARMONY WITH NATURAL ORDER
mnu
tnu ArpI Aapu gvaeI cla sitgur Bae[ .
I offer my
mind and body, and I renounce my selfishness and conceit;
I walk in
Harmony with the Will of the True Guru ---------------68
We live in
a society where everyone pretends to be straight forward. But humans, as a
species, are highly unpredictable. However, humans who are considered to be the
most developed and evolve species of living forms on earth are a class apart.
The most critical faculty that distinguishes us is our intellect.
But a
thorough research conducted over the years shows that in the course of human
journey through interaction with other human beings, the original power and
purity of human intellect gradually diminishes. The slow decay manifests itself
in the form of weakness or vices such as lust, anger, greed and ego. The same
intellect, which exalts us to the status of divine beings, when wrongly used,
can turn us into the most fearsome, terrible and destructive being on this
earth.
So what is
the solution to this mass degradation of human intellect? It is to cure human
nature, without which there cannot be harmony. We all have the seed of all
goodness` and the potential to become pure beings who live and let everything
on this earth exists in it natural order. Returning back to our true identify
of being peaceful, pure and blissful souls playing our part as human nature
will restore everything in this world to its original harmonious order,
bringing enlightenment to humanity.
With all these virtues and a positive
attitude, we empower ourselves and at the same time empower others. So let us
all open a ‘SAVINGS ACCOUNT IN A GOOD
WISHES BANK’ and start depositing good wishes daily to make our future
happy, peaceful and prosperous.
BHUPINDER SINGH KOHLI
