Patience During Adversities

Patience During Adversities (49)
Defining “Tu” in the sacred ‘Gayatri Mantra’:
Patience During Adversities

Patience During Adversities
The fifth letter in the sacred ‘Gayatri Mantra’ - “Tu”
teaches us to keep patience during adversities, hardships and
difficulties.
As the Sanskrit verse says: it is our duty to put sincere
efforts during period of crisis. Unlimited importance and glory
are attached to hard work and sincere efforts.
Difficulties, calamities, adversities and damaging
moments of crisis keep on coming into human life. As the time
cycle consists of night and day, comforts and sorrows are two
wheel of this chariot of life. Man has to be prepared for both the
situations - prosperity or damage with due detachment.
Lamenting and wailing in crisis and flying in vanity with
inflated ego during prosperity – both attitudes are wrong. One
should keep calm and need not lose balance during
disappointing circumstances of fear, worry and despair, but
should try to overcome difficulties intelligently with vision,
alertness and patience. One who laughs even in crisis and plays
his role like a character in this drama of life is considered a
wise man.
Bad times come and go, but they leave for us a precious
gift of virtues like tolerance and experience. Difficulties teach
us lessons better than ten teachers put together can. Adversities
bring one more boon for us, they clear and discharge the
obligatory sufferings accumulated as a result of past deeds
(Karma), that one has to compulsorily undergo. Such hardships
and adversities challenge our skills and build up capacity for
putting efforts. One who successfully passes through this test
can only be garlanded with glory and fame.
Therefore, it is our duty to learn from the past, to remain
alert in the present and to be bold and fearless to face the future.
According to the proverb, hope for the best but be prepared for
the worst. Mental balance should never be disturbed during
prosperity or peril. Striving to reach a better and better position

from the present one, is natural for the soul, but looking to its
grace, the fear of difficulties is not normal.
It is futile to be afraid of difficulties:
Sorrows and difficulties have an important place in
human life. The seed of progress is concealed in the blows of
adversities. Surrounded by smooth and comfortable
environment, a man will lose liveliness and will become dull
and lazy, leading to a mental state of grief. This will hamper the
growth and curtail progress, research and ambitions. If one does
not undergo pain in life, he can not truly enjoy the happiness
also. Always a bright sunny day time without an intervening
night can not be a good situation. In absence of the balance of
tastes like salt, chili, bitter, astringent etc. only sweetness will
not have any charm. In the same way, the taste of happiness is
enjoyable only after a pinch of unhappiness. We consider
unhappiness to be bad, but in fact, that is the only nucleus for
growth and progress.
The prestige, fame and name earned by all great people of
the world, are due to their endurance and capacity to resist
adversities. Had the king Harishchandra not been sold by a
lower cast person nobody would have known him. In the same
way, Dadhichi, Shibi, Prahlada, Mayurdhwaja, Seeta,
Draupadee, Damayanti, Kunti – all these great souls are
remembered today due to their endurance while undergoing
severe hardships. Nobody would care to remember them, had
they chosen the life of luxury and comfort. Trees on remote and
hard rocks grow stronger and larger and live long compared to
the short lived orchards that are irrigated daily. Any person,
society or a nation, that works hard and withstands hardships
can only grow and achieve victory. History is witness to the
tribes diminishing into slavery and poverty due to indulgence
into lust and luxury.
Our ancestors were well aware of the benefits of
endurance and hence they attached prime importance to its
practice in their lifestyle. Combating sorrows was a part of their

study of penance and endurance just like a soldier rehearsing
fight before going to actual battlefield. In old days, the children
of kings and wealthy families also used to stay in the
‘Gurukulam’ of Rishies to learn the lessons of life the hard way,
undergoing all atrocities and hardships, which they otherwise
would never realise living under shelter of their parents. The
ardent practitioner of endurance enjoys facing obstacles much
the same way as a swimmer finds a lake to swim across – as an
opportunity to test his skills and strength. On the other hand, a
coward seeking comforts only can easily be crushed by slightest
problems of routine life as he starts crying in tough times as if a
mountain has fallen on him.
Difficulties come into each one’s life - they are
unavoidable and necessary too. Not only to relieve us from
bondage of past deeds (‘Karma-Bandhan’), but also to make us
strong and sharp, purify our mind and put us on a path of rapid
progress. They impart precious experience of facing any rough
situation. This is a gift from almighty God, which destroys
impurities like ignorance, ego, laziness and attachment to the
worldly matters.
To wail, resent, become dumb or blame others on
encountering an adverse situation is totally unjustified. It is
like contempt of God’s great favor. Thus you deny the intended
benefit of making you strong and on the contrary such wailing
will make you coward, helpless and pauper. Being afraid of
hardships, giving up efforts, crying in despair, start worrying –
are all not good traits of a true man. In a way a difficulty is a
divine challenge to arouse the courage and manliness in us. By
accepting it, we attain God’s grace and favor. The veteran
wrestler teaches his student by throwing him in the wrestling
rink and badly beating him down. This provides him a great
lesson for learning all tricks of wrestling. God is also one such
great teacher – who thrashes us to shake off our weaknesses and
to make us strong to fight against any adversity of life.
There is no point in getting afraid of difficulties as they
are a useful part of this universe. No need to get upset, to blame

others or to be unhappy over it. Only thing required is to face
difficulty with sincere efforts, with perseverance and to conquer
it and convert it into a comfortable situation. Such efforts are
our pious duty, avoiding it amounts to deviation from our own
moral path (‘Dharma’). Therefore perseverance and hard work
are the only tools for uplifting our soul, which are sharpened by
the adversity.
Radiance of man’s glory and prosperity occurs due to
efforts and hard work. The true pleasure or bliss of life can be
enjoyed only after boldly facing difficulties and conquering all
adversities.
Spiritual Progress Through Adversities:
Spiritual progress always occurs while undergoing
severe hardships and boldly confronting them. Running away
from difficulties makes a man worthless but challenging them
makes him more capable. Success of a human life depends on
one’s willpower. Stronger your willpower, the more successful
you are; and for increasing willpower, you have to face more
and more adversities in life. A person habituated to struggle,
never gets afraid of any new difficulty but confronts it boldly.
Basically the attitude of cowardice is a root cause of all sorrows,
and such sorrows can be curtailed by a strongly positive
attitude of bravery. Man of a weak mind is usually sulky and
shadowed by horrifying negative imaginations. He can not have
good thoughts as he finds himself surrounded by all sorts of
troubles and distress. To avoid such a situation and to make our
life happy, we have to be always prepared to combat the
hardships and difficulties.
Mind Only Is the Cause of Freedom and Bondage:
Challenges are of two types: external and internal.
Ordinary people usually focus on external challenges only. Very

rare persons have the power to visualize the internal
challenges. In fact the internal ones are the only real challenges,
because the external ones are mere reflections of the internal
ones. Any situation can be either beneficial or harmful – it all
depends upon how a man tackles it. Sometimes the apparently
favorable condition can cause damage and an apparently
adverse condition can result into benefit for us. The situation
which frightens a man is harmful, but if a man is strong enough
not to surrender to the situation, however difficult it may be, at
the end it turns out to be beneficial, as it makes the man
stronger.
The mind gets stronger by internal contemplations. A
man, fully aware of his duty and ready to sacrifice anything, can
never be afraid of any situation. The human mind has a
limitless power. Whatever energy one needs, usually gets it
from within. A man, endangering himself to perform his duty,
reveals unlimited source of energy within himself, which
overcomes any obstacle on his way. As he experiences more
internal energy, his efficiency to tackle adversity also increases
more and more.
When a man finds himself trapped among adversities,
most often he misses to focus on his duty. Such a deviation from
the path of duty, further traps him into external adversities and
a person so perturbed by difficulties, has a totally confused
perception of his duty. If the internal complexities of a person
are resolved, external problems automatically get solved,
because of their mutual inter-dependence. As a man goes on
fighting and conquering the external adversities, he keeps on
gaining self-knowledge, which ultimately gives him more power
to overcome even greater difficulties.
The person, who is easily scared by every small trouble
in life, usually dwells in a state of internal conflict which

prevents his mental energy from channelizing onto a specific
task. Such lack of concentration of mental energy leads to a
weak mind which easily succumbs to any external adversity. A
nation which has become weak due to internal anarchy of riots
and rebels reunites again and prepares itself to fight against any
external threat. In the same way, a person however
disorganized internally, once he faces external adversities and
takes the challenge to combat them, regains the harmony and
unity of his mental faculties. An idle brain is a devil’s
workshop. So keeping the brain busy in resolving external
perplexities automatically solves many difficult problems.
Usually a man should take up any work that comes to his
hands, even if it is more beneficial to others rather than to
himself. No matter, if it takes sacrifice and devotion to
accomplish the work. If he habituates to do such work, he will
acquire spiritual knowledge slowly and steadily. The self-
knowledge, which is not gained through mere philosophical
thinking, is easily gained by combating with tough situations.
This further makes a man calm and composed, which is
impossible in a life of comforts and luxury. The spirit of fighting
and conquering upon difficulty, not only makes us successful,
but also provides inspiration to others. Like bad habits and
vices, the good habits and virtues are also infectious and spread
among people very fast. Many soldiers start running away from
the battle-field when they see some coward doing so. On the
other hand, when they see some brave warrior fighting unto the
last drop of his blood, they also fight fiercely with all their
might. A brave soldier induces courage into others. In fact,
human nature is composed of a mixture of all good and bad
traits. It is the inductive effect of surrounding atmosphere to
bring out a specific nature of a man at a particular time.
Therefore, the good moral character of noble and brave men
always provides inspiration to the society and this is a great gift
of such benevolent men to the society
Difficulties Help In Our Progress

Ordinary people consider difficulties as matter of
misfortune. People born in wealthy families get upset on every
small inconvenience they face, and also expect that all their
desires be fulfilled in no time and without any trouble on their
part. Moreover such people are considered lucky by others. But
the fact is other way round. Those who do not face hardships of
life remain raw and underdeveloped in many ways. Therefore,
God created sorrows and difficulties at the same place where
happiness and joy are bestowed. A man remains incomplete
without experiencing them both and deprived of apt growth.
Let Us Understand God’s Blessings
God is considered as an ocean of mercy and compassion.
God’s gift to mankind and his benevolence are limitless. We
know that even the trivial animals love their offspring and
creations enormously, whereas the human being is the supreme
creation of almighty God, hence one can never imagine how
much love and care He must be having for man! A painter wants
to see his painting to be in the best condition; in the same way, a
gardener, – his garden; a sculptor, – his idol; a farmer, – his
farm; and a shepherd wants his herd to be in the best condition.
They rejoice the growth and wellbeing of their creations. Then
God, the omnipotent creator, how can He neglect His best
creation – this mankind? Certainly, God wants us to be the
happiest and prosperous. His love and mercy are constantly
showered on us. In spite of all these, we find many people
unhappy and dipped in the sea of sorrows, suffering from many
hardships, fear, pain, torture, injustice and scarcity of basic
amenities. Some people face so harsh and acute emergency that
even onlookers may faint. Sometimes people start doubting the
kindness of God or consider such calamity as divine curse. But
fact is, God can not be merciless for a moment even. The stream
of his love and compassion keeps on flowing perpetually. And
what we consider as difficulty is also one kind of his generosity
only in the broad sense.
Mother’s Harshness is a Blessing In Disguise for the Child

The mother’s love for her kid is unique. She does not spare
any effort to make it happy. Even then, some of her acts are
unpleasant for it. The child wants to eat sweet in harmfully
excessive amount, but mother knows that it can make it sick, so
she allows only required quantity and child does not get any
excess of sweet in spite of many resentful tantrums. Similarly, a
child is guarded against exposure to fire, arms and ammunition
and prevented to play with such dangerous goods even if it
wants to do so. A child is also not allowed to play with wild and
harmful animals, or to lean and peep from high terrace. It is
punished also if it tries to indulge into any act harmful or risky
for its own self. The mother gives it a bitter medicine with only
purpose of making it well during its sickness and she is also
prepared to allow a painful surgery or an injection on the child
with an ultimate aim of giving relief to it.
The child thinks that its mother is cruel as she does not
allow certain activities or does not give it certain things and
does not help it in difficult situations. Being unaware of the
reality, it can even start disparaging or ridiculing its mother
and blame her for being harsh, but surely, its belief is baseless.
Only if the child could see the noble purpose behind this
attitude, it would realize for sure, the true love, compassion and
care. Otherwise how can she tolerate the pain caused by any
process of healing the child and restoring its health during
crisis!
God’s Mercy and Mother’s Love are Similar!
Mother’s love for the child is expressed in two ways: one
that pampers and cossets the child, when it gets sweets to eat,
toys, nice clothes and a ride out for sightseeing etc. The kid
thinks its mother is very kind and considerate. But when she
resorts to the other way, that truly nurtures it, as putting an
ointment in the eye, or sending it to school, or asking to take a
bath, it often gets annoyed and curses the mother. The
immature mind fails to understand the soft and harsh aspects of
the mother’s behavior, but those who know the reality, fully

well understand that mother can extend only love and care for
the child, which are equally concealed in both the attitudes –
harsh and soft. In the same way, God’s mercy also comes to us
through joys and sorrows – and both situations contain love and
care for us. Lack of knowledge prevents us to realize this, but
when we are awakened to see the truth by grace of God, all
difficulties and hardships disturbing us disappear and make us
free from all fears and unhappiness.
Keep a Balanced view on Joys and Sorrows
Happiness brings many benefits for a man – mind
remains fresh, senses are satisfied, progress seems easy, friend-
circle expands, encouragement increases giving more prestige
and pride. But benefits of sorrows are also not less. The dormant
talent wakes up to activate mind in search of relief from the
troubles. Body acts fast giving up all laziness. The jockey or the
horseman lashes the horse with a whip to teach it a correct gait.
It is trained for fast running through painful whipping and tight
rein, which ultimately help the horse to win the race. The
adversities and sorrows act as a whip to activate and rejuvenate
our slack physical and mental capabilities. They also guide us to
walk on the path of truth and honesty.
Scission of a blister releases stinking pus from the wound;
passing stool clears the intestine of faeces (nightsoil, excreta);
fasting burns the undigested residues in the stomach; in the
same way, sorrows and adversities wash away the accumulated
sins and our conscious comes out purified and bright like pure
gold after exposure to fire which burns the dirt sticking to gold.
Negative thoughts, malice and malevolence in man do not end
until he is confronted by a great trouble or a severe crisis. A big
slap of nature brings him to senses and compels him to trim his
irregular path of life. The knowledge which can not be gained
from lengthy sermons can be quickly obtained from a single dip
in distress. Thus, most often a single stroke of time teaches
more than a thousand teachers.

Beware of Happiness:
Happy days have many advantages, no doubt, but a great
drawback also. Good times often make a man arrogant, greedy
and lazy. He forgets to utilize this opportunity for extending
kindness and compassion to fellow human beings. He spends
most of his time in chasing selfish motives. To rescue him from
this miserable situation, God snatches away his wealth to divert
his attention from selfish means towards benevolence. This is
just like a mother taking away all toys of a child who is deeply
engrossed in playing, neglecting his study and books. Hence
many times the purpose of divine punishment is to teach us the
lesson of “Quit playing around and start studying”.
Endurance of Great Souls:
Many great souls have willingly adopted the hardship of
penance with a sole purpose of benevolence not only for self, but
for the entire world. They attained immortal fame and the
radiance of their worship has enlightened the path of people for
an endless time to come. Harishchandra, Prahlad, Shibi,
Mayurdhwaja, Dadheechi, Pratap. Shivajee, Hakikat Ray,
Banda Vairagi, Bhagirath, Gautam Buddha and Jesus Christ –
all they volunteered to undergo severe hardships which
otherwise they would have easily avoided by little compromise
in their principles. But they knew that gains so achieved were
worthless, so they remained firm on their path of truth. Other
people view this as suffering but in reality, only if we peep in
their inner-self, how pleasant they felt while tolerating these
hardships.
Accelerating Freedom from Birth-Death Bondage
Those kind people who are favored by God are subjected to
greater difficulties and more severe hardships in life as a quick
means of clearing away the suffering destined as a result
(‘Karma-Fala’) of their accumulated past deeds (‘Sanchit
Karma’). In any way, one has to tolerate this to get free from

bondage of birth and death. Once all such due pains are
experienced and none is left, the soul is not forced to take birth
again. On one hand all the accumulated resultant destiny
(Sanchit-Karma) are exhausted and on the other hand the inner
self and mind also get purified in the process. This double edged
sword cuts the bondage of deeds (Karma-Bandhan) faster and so
the soul proceeds rapidly towards ultimate goal of salvation.
This is why great souls willingly and happily invite all sorrows
and adversities on them to accelerate the suffering for finishing
it as fast as possible.
Hardship – A Great Teacher
Normally God forces us through bitter experiences from time to
time to develop many virtues in us. After death of a child,
parents shower more love and affection on other children, as
they understand the pain of losing a dear one. Whose wife dies,
takes better care of his second wife. Usually loss of anything
makes one realize the importance of that thing in one’s life. The
man who lost all his wealth learns how to use money for the
benefit of other less privileged people. Only the sick person
knows the difficulty of another sick and also realizes value of
maintaining good health and controlled diet. Necessity of good
conduct is self-evident to a person whose face is slapped on
abusing someone. The victim of atrocity and torture knows the
pain of a sufferer. When we ourselves are trapped in a gross
tragedy of life and beg for mercy, only then we come to know
how important it is to help others who are in dire need of our
support and compassion.
Patience is an Important Attribute
While dwelling in this world, facing difficulties and
adverse situations is natural. Specifically when we plan some
important work, facing unexpected obstacles is almost
unavoidable. Many people never start any big project just due
to fear of such hurdles. They may escape from difficulties in

the life, but at the same time do not make any progress and
their existence is nothing more than small insects.
Agony and ecstasy are inevitable attributes of this gross
physical body. Enjoying happiness forever and escaping from
sorrows is not possible. When joys and sorrows are both so
assured why to be upset with the latter? These are inseparable
parts of the physical body, we have to patiently endure their
cycle of coming and going. Those who understood this secret
and learnt to be patient are really happy in this life. It is the
nature of all animals to get upset under grim and horrifying
calamities, but keeping cool and unperturbed during distress is
a characteristic of a brave man with a lion’s heart. After all,
why we become anxious? The reason is nothing but mental
weakness. It is well known that nobody in this world - right
from almighty Brahma Himself to the smallest insect – is
completely happy and satisfied. All have undergone pain and
discomfort of one or the other kind. Even then, if a man becomes
frustrated under a hopeless situation, it reflects lack of will
power. Physically, great persons and saints are no different
from ordinary man, they do not have horns on their heads.
Their only speciality is they never lose their calm during trying
times. They happily tolerate adversity accepting it as a result of
past deeds. Had the five ‘Pandavas’ obeyed their oppressive
brothers ‘Kauravas’, had king Mordhwaja died of the grief of
losing his son, had king Harishchandra defaulted from his
promise lured by greed of the kingdom, had the king Rama
remained in Ayodhya fearing hardships of a forest life, had king
Shibi surrendered the dove to the hawk being afraid of getting
cut his own body, nobody would remember their names today,
and they too might have vanished from pages of history like all
other ordinary men. But their names are alive in the memory of
people even today, just because of their endurance.

Accepting Realities Provides Patience
We become upset on departure of our beloved ones. But
does it serve any purpose? Will he return? If not, then being sad
is useless and unjustified. He, who is born, will die one day. The
creator of the entire universe, Brahma himself will disappear at
the end of his tenure. He has evolved from the navel of lord
Vishnu so he will annihilate into lord Vishnu. It is a firm and
unavoidable principle that everything that is created at a point
in time, will vanish at the end of its life at some other point in
time. Then why to cry over your beloved’s death? He had to die
one day, tomorrow if not today. He went back to the eternity
from where he came and you are also surely to follow him one
day. Hence, whatever life is remaining with you, pass in
worship and praise of almighty God. Accept the reality of this
gross physical body – a house of many diseases, has to undergo
all pain and difficulties which are destined as a result of past
deeds ‘Karma’.
Be kind and benevolent, worship Lord chanting ‘Naam-
Japa’, medicines for your ailing body – do whatever you can, but
never get anxious even if the desired result remains obscure. As
you never know what remedy will finally give you comfort and
when. Hence put efforts patiently, without losing your calm,
thus you will get relief from your sufferings very easily.
Knowledge and Wisdom: Pillars of Patience
We are disturbed when we do not get essential commodities to
support life. There is not a single spoonful of grains in house to
cook, wife’s clothes have worn out to rags, child is bedridden
with fever and no money to buy medicines, now what to do?
Where to go for help? We may lament for the whole night
brooding over such negative thoughts, but none will solve the
problem. The situation will not improve any more by crying. We
must understand that we are not alone to face such crisis; it is a
common fate for all, at one time or other. Even the most
powerful God - Indra had to conceal himself in darkness to
escape from the sin of ’brahm-hatya’ (killing a brahmin). King

Harishchandra had to serve in the house of a lower caste and his
queen had to beg from door to door seeking financial help for
cremating their dead son. The saintly and the most exemplary
man like king Rama had to stay in a forest for fourteen years
and was deprived of performing last rituals of paying homage to
his dead father king Dasharatha.
There is none who did not face adversity and harshness
in this physical body. This is the law of ‘Karma’. So why to be
disturbed? Our anxiety will make our dependents too unhappy.
We have to be patient and support them. That, what is destined
to happen, will happen. That is all. Here is the main difference
between a wise and a stupid. Aging, disease and death – these
are common to all, but the wise man with discretion tolerates
these accepting as unavoidable reality of life, whereas the
stupid, without a sense of discretion, gets upset and increases
the trouble even more. This is very aptly expressed by St. Kabir
like this: “Death, aging and pain are faced by all, but
knowledgeable wise man endures them with awareness and an
ignorant man faces the same weeping and lamenting”.
Those who do not keep patience become pauper and
helpless, undergoing more and more difficulties. Humiliating
own self as a helpless poor creature, dependent on others,
expecting favors from others, begging for support, is the
greatest insult one undergoes due to undue anxiety. Therefore,
keep your calm under any adversity and strive to remove the
root cause of your sorrows and pain. The energy spent to solve
most of our problems is only half of that being wasted
impatiently in lamenting and crying.
Keep Moving Ahead Under Any Circumstances
Human life is meant for ascent on the spiritual path. A
lion, an elephant, a snake and many such animals existing on
this earth are far stronger than a man, but do they possess the
power of discretion between good and bad? They can not
distinguish between what is beneficial and what is harmful.

They just live as per their pre-programmed instinct. It is only
the human being so inquisitive to reach new places and occupy
unreachable heights inventing new paths for important
projects. Therefore, those who do not grab the opportunity to
achieve spiritual growth in this precious human life are really
wretched and the most unfortunate persons.
No Excuse For Your Failure
“I would have accomplished great success only if I had
got enough facility” – these are the words of people usually
under a big self-deceit and illusion. It is their futile exercise to
conceal their incapacity under the name of bad luck or god’s
disgrace. The excuse of limited resources as a cause of failure is
unjustifiable. Even if such a person gets all required facilities
and a favorable condition, he may still not perform and look for
yet another set of excuses, like that famous proverb: ‘an
unskilled carpenter blames his tools’. Those who have got
enough of wealth, education and supportive friends – are many
times observed to be totally disorganized and leading an aimless
life. If one does not have a purpose in life, the facilities become a
burden. How dangerous it is if an inexperienced snake-charmer
is surrounded by hundreds of snakes!
A person, who has not mastered the skills of living, may
find life interesting to some extent under scarcity even. But he
will certainly invite trouble by misusing the unduly acquired
wealth. So, no need to be disappointed, if you do not have a
desired thing in your possession today. Start showing your art
and skill through whatever limited gadgets you have. Always
remember the importance of a small earthen oil lamp in
complete darkness. When the biggest lighting implements fail
and become useless while electricity is cut-off, this small lamp
costing less than a rupee, keeps shining and spreading light so
that people can resume their ongoing work. The tiny lamp never

laments like this: “I would have emitted more light, only if I was
bigger in size, or had I got more oil”. It never cares to show any
excuse, unlike those crazy and lazy men crying on their own
fate instead of putting efforts. It only judges its own capacity,
the surrounding situation and starts doing the best whatever it
can, to make life of other people happy and better. This is the
success of a small lamp. From the standpoint of self-satisfaction,
benevolence and efficiency of performing duty, it is nothing less
than that of a sun or a moon, given their size and capacity.
Thus, importance and success of a tiny lamp is well comparable
with that of a moon and the sun.
Scarcity Is Not A Curse – But a Boon !
It is a fact that, the starved people with scanty resources,
grown up under adversities have become great leaders, saints
and successful guides on the path of liberation. The adverse
situation encourages talents and sharpens one’s skills. The
knife rubbed on a rough stone is sharper and more effective in
its performance. In the same way, a rugged person has a better
experience, skills and clarity that helps him in progressing
successfully. Contrary to this, people born in wealthy families
get basic amenities easily, without much struggle and hence
their skills remain undeveloped due to over indulgence and
luxury. Their life becomes unworthy like a rusted knife lying
idle, unused for a long time. Generally it is observed that
children in rich families remain comparatively less successful,
whereas children with poor family background usually turn out
to be bright and more successful due to struggle they have to
undergo in carving their path to survive in adversities. In
ancient times, kings, emperors and rich businessmen used to
send their children to Gurukulam and Rishi-Ashrams (special
types of educational homes headed by sacred teachers, saints
and spiritual leaders), to educate them with severities of life so
as to sharpen their skills and talents.
Here we do not intend to say that wealth is a bad thing or
that people born in rich families can not lead a life of high

morals. In fact people endowed with God’s favor and all
facilities can make spiritual progress even faster, only if they
decide. The carpenter with best quality of wood and sharp tools
will certainly make the most elegant furniture. We only wish to
convey that if one acquires skills of living, no adversity can
interrupt his progress. No doubt, poverty imposes a limitation
of resources and increases hardship, but at the same time, it
also brings out the latent talent more sharply, which wealth can
not. The abundance of equipment most often spoils skills due to
over indulgence and lavishness. Thus, rags or riches both have
their pros and cons, but anyone firmly determined to move on
the path, whether poor or rich, deprived or facilitated, will
surely make his way happily turning any situation into a
favorable one.
Creativity is Within – Not in Tools
Money, education, facilities, cooperation and good health
are essential for leading a happy life, but not necessarily they
only make life happy. To write a good book we need a pen, ink
and papers, but merely a combination of these three would not
automatically produce a book. The main ingredient in a good
book is the talent of a writer. Ink, pen, paper are merely tools,
not very significant. A capable writer will utilize whatever tools
available to him, and lack of them will not hamper his work.
Have you ever heard that an author could not write a book as he
did not have ink? Will you believe a writer telling: “what can I
do? I had no pen, had I got a good pen, I would have surely
written the best book.” This reminds us the well-known
proverb, describing a person who does not know how to dance,
but blames shape of the stage for poor performance. A perfect
dancer is less bothered about such trivial factors. In the same
way, one who has mastered the skills of life has no time to
complain about hardships and difficulties. Proper tools are
necessary, no doubt, but not to the extent that progress may halt
without them.
Convert the Adverse into Favorable

Clever men can turn even adversities into their favor. They
make nectar out of poison. Experts in ‘Ayurveda’ (the ancient
Indian medical science), possess skills of making life-saving
drugs from deadly poisonous seeds, toxic metals and seemingly
harmful chemicals. People can extract silver from sand, convert
coal into diamond, fetch pearls from the bottom of the sea, get
gushing flow of cold water by piercing hard and dry crust of the
earth. The anti-venom vaccine which is an effective remedy for
a snake-bite is prepared with the help of deadly poison of a
cobra. There is no shortage of such examples, where seemingly
the worst thing is put to the best use in favor of the mankind.
There are uncountable number of artists and experts around us
performing great tasks and making valuable things from trivial
and apparently useless materials. There is no dearth of brave
men who cut through any tough situation and emerge out as
winners like Goddess Seeta who came out unhurt through the
fire test. If you are also a person of a strong will, you can easily
convert your difficulties, grievances, worries and helplessness
into facilities, satisfaction, capabilities, optimism and
ultimately – grand success.
Do not worry about difficulties:
Many people are so much frightened by difficulties that
their lives are gripped by worry of innumerable imaginary
difficulties. By any logic, it is futile to lament over past - which
has already gone, and over future which has yet not come. But
these people, instead of living in the present, usually cry on
events of past or bother too much about imaginary harms of
future events. This shows foolishness and cowardice. Past or
future, worrying about any difficulty is detrimental and drains
our energy, making us incapable to face the real problems of the
present situation.
Worry is a Mental Disorder
Worry is the worst mental disorder emerging from
unpleasant memories of past and fear of unknown future. Worry
destroys our mental, physical and spiritual energy. Once

gripped by this disease, man can hardly ever escape, because it
becomes deep-rooted in the subconscious mind as a complex,
controlling our activities. Once worry becomes a habit, it
induces a permanent pessimism and the person loses interest in
life, devoid of enthusiasm, inviting overall failure. Worry, like a
contagious disease, makes all people pessimistic who come into
contact with a person infected with worries. We hear many
people saying that they are fed up of life and have become totally
useless and better that God may call them back. They also blame
their ill fate, curse the situation and lament that their efforts are
all in vain and with no outcome of any type. But they are not
aware that by crying this way, they destroy their own fortune
and cover their own life under darkness.
Always Live in the Present
A famous wise man has said that our subconscious mind
is filled up with bitter memories of past buried deep, related to
painful experience, bad treatment from others, our own foolish
behavior and absurdity. We have to shut the door of our mind
behind such painful memories so as to isolate our present
moment from their black shadow. Let us firmly decide that past
is past, dead and buried. Let us also close tightly the chamber
containing imaginary fear of the future. This will relieve our
mind from all doubts, anxieties, disappointments and haunting
imaginations of the future. After shutting off the past and the
future, now we are left with only the present - this very moment
- a wonderful treasure of joy! Only the present moment is with
you, under your control, at your service! Make the best use of
this present moment - only this can ensure a bright and happy
future and also can relieve you from pains of the past. Live the
present moment whole heartedly with full concentration and
you will never need to worry for the future nor lament for the
past. This is the secret of the happiest and the most successful
life.
The purpose of this statement is not to forbid the
thinking or planning about future, no, not at all. It only suggests
that undue worry about future will not serve any purpose. We
have only to focus on the work presently on our hand, and strive

to complete it with the highest efficiency, with total attention,
care and expertise. Then you do not need at all to worry for the
future. This is the only sure way to create bright future.
Today’s Prayer for Today Only
In a prayer to lord Jesus, it is said, “O God, Give us this
day our daily bread.” Let us keep it in mind that the prayer is
for obtaining food, happiness, prosperity - all for today. There is
no greed or fear for the future, or no complain for the past. It
emphasizes the importance of the present moment. If we live the
present moment ideally with full awareness, joy and satisfaction
with whatever we do, then progress and prosperity of the future
is automatically secured. We need not worry about that.
Hundreds of years ago a philosopher moving around the
mountain regions, where earning a daily bread was full of
hardships, once addressed all residents, “O Poor souls!
Surrounded by worries of future, why do you destroy the golden
moments of today with fear and worries of tomorrow?” If you
focus on today’s work with the best efficiency and efforts, then
almighty God himself will take care of your tomorrow!
Lord Jesus has said, ‘Never worry for tomorrow’. Very
few people understand its meaning. Most of the people will say,
‘why should we not worry for future? after all we have a family,
and we are surrounded by complex problems of children’s
education, marriage, employment, food, clothes, housing, social
status, old age, health insurance and what not.’ For the sake of
argument, yes, these are OK. Such thoughts are normal. What
we suggest is, plan for the future, make all preparations, get
good social support, but never worry. Advance planning with
foresight to mitigate any future emergency is one thing and to
worry for the future is quite another. In fact lack of planning
leads to worry and anxiety. Worry is a process of negative
thinking that paints everything black and destroys our energy
throwing our mind out of balance. It blunts our natural
capability and endurance hidden in everybody already created
by almighty God.

Positive Vs. Negative Thinking
How to differentiate between worry and positive
thinking? It is very simple. The thought process in which any
difficult situation or an adversity is evaluated logically against
its cause and effect with a focus on our future goal and selection
of the best way learning from our past mistakes and finally
arriving at a solution. This is positive thinking for problem
solving, contrary to worrying, which does not follow any logical
path. Positive thinking is highly creative, energizing to face
any problem head on, it encourages to achieve success, not by
running away from duty but by resolving the complexities of the
life. This is quite opposite to the negative thought process
emanating from fear and confusion.
Most of the sick in mental hospitals and in lunatic
asylums are observed to be victims of mental imbalance caused
by overburden of worries. Their minds are disturbed by painful
memories of past. Events like separation from the beloved ones,
loss of financial assets, social insult, atrocity by government
authorities and other sufferings of many types have made them
so rigidly pessimistic that source of any joy or inspiration has
totally dried up. The first outcome of distorted feelings of fear
and insecurity is worry, and if this is suppressed for a long time,
it strongly emerges out as a mental disorder. The harmful
energy of such negative emotions has to be released by
expressing feelings and channelizing our thoughts towards act
of humanity.
Few Golden Rules to Conquer Adversity
Never get upset while facing hardship. Though it is a
bitter experience, but remember, the medicines that cure fever
and purify our body are also bitter in taste.
Never get disappointed by hardships, remember that the
dark black clouds shower rains to produce good harvest in the
farm.

Difficulties usually harass those people more, who are
afraid of them. People with firm mind, fearless, and having faith
in God, usually enjoy adversities like a bed of flowers and easily
tackle them.
Difficulty, like a mountain on the way, looks frightening
from a distance. The traveler may worry about how to overcome
the mountain looking from a distance, but as he approaches
near, he finds a way to cross over through a zigzag path. In the
same way, adversity also, however frightening it may appear in
imagination, actually turns out to be trivial when confronted
face to face and broken into small steps at a time.
A stone has to undergo painful carving and hammering
before it turns into a beautiful statue. Difficulty is that sculptor
for a man’s personality doing overall development and
beautification.
Adversity is a test for relationship and love. It teaches
you to be compassionate and caring for your near and dear ones
who are put to hardships. Similarly it tries and tests your
friends and relatives also when you are in trouble. Hence,
adversity has so many positive and useful aspects we have to
use them in our favor instead of worrying about it.
Adversity: A Natural Beneficial Remedy
The darkest clouds have silver lining, joy after pain, hope
after dismay, and spring after autumn are all according to the
rules of the nature. In a continuous phase of happiness, a stroke
of severe grief is required to teach us the reality of life. Consider
these five points when you find yourself deeply down in extreme
harshness or adversity:
1: It is a result of your own past deeds (Karmafala), so tolerate it
and get relieved from the bondage.
2: It is a test of your faith in God. If you are frightened and upset,
you will not get His favor.

3: Consider an adversity as a boon sent by God and rest assured
that it will be beneficial ultimately.
4: Accept it as a pre-destined thing that had to happen to you,
and calmly endure it.
5: You are afraid of difficulties because you identify yourself
with the gross physical body which has some name and form
and which is subject of all sufferings while playing various
roles. But in reality you are consciousness - a part of that
“Brahman” - which is ‘Sat - Chit - Ananda’ which is not a subject
of any attribute. The name and form are merely
superimposition on real thing or ‘Atman’. Experiencing joy and
pain is a function of the physical body and you have no
connection with it at the spiritual level, therefore, being afraid
of a difficulty is foolishness.
Like other roles of human life, adversities also come and
go as a natural routine, considering them good or bad, more
depends upon one’s attitude. Most of the adversities are meant
for correcting our mistakes and to put us on a right path. Hence,
under whatever hardship or difficulties, we should perform our
duty, keeping our patience and focusing on our goals. Only then,
the adversity will do us a great favor instead of doing any harm.
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Patience During Adversities

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