Lalit Garg
(The writer can be reached at lalitgarg11@gmail.com)
Every living being wants peace. Everyone is affected by sorrows and uneasiness in life. Each and every human being wants peace, but he does not want to follow the right path. How can one reach the destination without following the right path? Without following the path of peace, how can peace be attained? If there are problems in life, there are solutions for them too. There is a need to take steps towards the solution. Try and leave the result to the One who is above all. Those who give a big shape to the problem by sitting and thinking are bound to be disappointed, frustrated and unsuccessful in life. There are many obstacles in the way of success. But these obstacles are not as big as the doubts of the mind. Doubts one after another do not allow us to trust ourselves or others. We are not what we use to be. Rumi has said, ‘Why do you shrink your heart with useless thoughts and whispering doubts? Do you turn this happy world into a narrow prison?’
People who live in narrow thinking and limited circles spend their whole life in unrest. The biggest centre of peace and happiness is the mind. That’s why it is necessary to train the mind and control the mind. Mind is a huge collection; it is a junction of different thoughts. Various thoughts, fantasies, hopes, memories, frustrations etc., live in it. Because of this, the mind remains restless. The mind is where the seeds of unrest first germinate.
A man planted an acacia tree and took care of it very diligently. People saw him working so hard on the thorny plant and said, “What are you doing? You are crazy. Where can mangoes grow on the acacia tree?” But that man did not understand. Every day he used to see it with curiosity, and hoped that now mangoes would grow on it.
Most of the people in the world are like that ignorant person. They sow the seeds of sorrow and think that they will reap the harvest of happiness and peace. This is never possible. This is why there is a proverb - “As you sow, so shall you reap.” The great philosopher saint Acharya Mahapragya has said that when the mind merges with the mind and when the lamp of consciousness is ignited by consciousness, the functional power appears; that is peace of mind.
If the mind is distressed, agitated, fearful and restless, and even if one sleeps on a bed of velvet and flowers, sharp thorns will continue to prick him. As long as the mind is not healthy, calm and meditated, the experience of burning will continue even in an air-conditioned room in every way. Peace is related to the mind. Peace is not in the external comforts, but in the mind within the person. Man has to become aware of the inexhaustible power hidden within him.
Man has money, glory, family, house and many more. Despite all these means of living, there is an atmosphere of unrest all around. All around there is an empire of tension, suffocation, tragedy and violence. Why is it like this? Wealth and glory can provide the minimum requirements of man- bread, cloth and house. Today the problem is not of bread, cloth or house, but of peace. Mere longing for peace will not bring peace. Peace will not descend on earth from the sky. Peace is not a stuff to be sold in the market.
Shakespeare said that wise men never weep for their present sorrows, but prevent their causes. Life has to be given a height, so depth is also necessary. The deeper the foundation, the higher and stronger the house will be. In this way, our personality associated with the superiority of life values itself becomes ideal. Nevertheless, in the journey of life, it is necessary to have unwavering faith in the mind towards our objectives. It is said that a man does not walk, his faith walks. Self-confidence binds all the qualities in one place, that is, in the light of self-confidence, the whole personality and action of a man is revealed and this brings peace in life.
If a person wants to establish peace in life, he has to imbibe human qualities like love, compassion, harmony, tolerance, equality, kindness, simplicity, alertness, sympathy, peace and friendship. We should invest our time, labor and energy in acquiring these qualities. Such efforts are desired which can make a person calm, responsible and socially orientated. In the present way of life, the mutual distance and the difference that has arisen between words and deeds has to be removed. As long as our human life does not give the seeds of our peace, irrigation of affection, sunshine of discipline, air of friendship, skilful protection of selflessness, sustenance on the smiling and blooming fertile land of life, the cultivation of spiritual happiness and peace will not flourish.
If we want real peace, we have to make a resolution that we will develop the power of renunciation. Everyone should remember the incident related to Alexander’s life. When Alexander asked the monk to go to Greece with him, he had refused instantly. At that time Alexander introduced himself to him as a world conqueror. There was a long dialogue between the hermit and Alexander and in the end, the world conqueror Alexander had to accept his defeat in front of that self-conquering hermit. When the defeated Alexander asked for something after being pleased with the sacrifice of the monk, the monk said, “Move to a side and let the sun shine.” Restraint is very important in this materialistic and consumerist time. There is no other way than self-restraint and sacrifice in order to achieve the realm of peace.
Peace begins where ambition and craving end. Colton said that peace is the evening star of the soul, whereas virtue is its sun. These two are never separated from each other. Only through this come spiritual happiness and true peace. Peace is the way to all possibilities of development. Eternal happiness resides in peace. The desire for peace should be the way to happiness.