Endeavour to Improve Yourself
To do nothing, not to feel that you are doing something or have something to do is real spiritualism. It has become a habit with us to be doing something physically and mentally. To sit inactively is difficult; to keep the mind inactive is more difficult; and to keep the mind detached, while keeping the body busy in action, is most difficult of all. Really speaking, the mind seeks equanimity, but it can only be acquired by dint of strenuous effort. Mental equilibrium is upset by one of three causes; a happening contrary to one's desire; recollection of the past; and anxiety for the future. As for the first of these, when we consider that everyone in the world wants things to shape after his heart, how can we expect that they take place only after our heart? Things are bound to go against our desires. So, to preserve our mental composure, we should train ourselves to efface all desire, not wish for a particular thing to happen, give up greed and expectation, and ascribe everything to Rama. Such ascription is equivalent to living in constant awareness of God.
How deep our ego has percolated into our thought! How casually we connive at even obvious facts when it suits us to do so! When a man's son goes astray, he blames some other person for enticing or misleading him; he does not want to blame his own son. If a man's son gets spoilt under his own nose, we can imagine the tremendous influence of association. How, then, can we explain why we remain unaffected by the company of the saintly? The plain, obvious reason is that we do not at all attempt to improve ourselves; Not that we do not understand what is good for us, but we lack the urge to improve ourselves. Therefore, born as we are in desire, we also die in desire. The only dependable means to extricate ourselves from the clutches of desire, is to repair to the Lord in utter surrender. Pray to Rama that now you have no other recourse but Him, that you will be content to live as He pleases to keep you, and that you desire nothing but love for Him; and ever maintain His name on your lips. Be sure that He will not fail to shower his bountiful grace on you.
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