Attitude in Life

Many times, it happens in life that if you are not successful then people scorn you & you feel humiliated in life. If you are earning alot & are a rich person, then people salute you but otherwise people just ignore you. This world in this age is just like that money is saluted & whosoever, is having this money power, is considered successful. As per me this conception is not fully correct, as money can be earned by ill means also but can we call such persons truly successful in society? As per me we should not. Anyway the nature of the many people in society is such that they shall laugh at you if you do not fit well in their way of life & thinking. What should be our attitude in life when people scorn you & you feel humiliated with their such actions. Below is a beautiful story "Donkey in the well" which gives answer to this question.

"Once a donkey owned by a farmer fell down into a well. The donkey cried piteously for hours as the farmer tried to figure out what to do. Finally the farmer thought that as donkey was old so he decided that the well needed to be covered anyway and that it just wasn't worth retrieving the donkey. So he invited all his neighbors to come over and help him.

They all grabbed a shovel and began to shovel dirt into the well. At first, the donkey realized what was happening and cried horribly. Then, to everyone's amazement, he quietened down. A few shovel loads later, the farmer finally looked down the well and was astonished at what he saw. With every shovel of dirt that hit his back, the donkey was doing something amazing. He would shake it off and take a step up. As the farmer's neighbors continued to shovel dirt on top of the animal, he would shake it off and take a step up. Pretty soon, everyone was amazed as the donkey stepped up over the edge of the well and trotted off!"

This story simply gives us a lesson that Life is going to shovel dirt on you, all kinds of dirt. People in society are going to laugh at you many times & throw dirt on you but the trick to getting out of the well is to shake it off and take a step up. We should take a lesson from Bhagwat Gita teachings also that "We should remain same during the praise & ignominy." We should just have faith in God & pray to God only. By doing so & living equanimously, you shall not be bothered much about the people in the society, who do not like you & your way of life. Finally just believe in what Swami Vivekananda said:

"Let people say, whatever they like, stick to your own convictions & rest assured, world will be at your feet."

Boundaries of Mind

Once a frog used to live in a well. He was born in the well & his whole life was spent only in the well. He had never seen the world outside the well, as the well was so deep that he was never able to come out of that well. Boundary of that well was his world. Once another frog from the sea accidentally fell into that well. On seeing a stranger in his well, frog of the well asked the frog of the sea:

Where from have you come from? Frog of the sea told that he has come from the sea or ocean which is very big. How big? asked the well-frog. Sea-frog said that it is so big that I cannot tell you. On hearing this well-frog jumped two steps in the well & asked whether sea is that much big. At this, sea-frog laughed loudly & told, no no, sea is very very big. Again the well-frog was puzzled & again jumped bigger steps in the well & asked whether sea is that much big. At this, once again the sea-frog laughed very loudly & told, no no, sea is very very big, it is so vast & big that I can't explain it to you in words. Now well-frog was unable to comprehend what the sea-frog was talking about. For the well-frog, his world was limited to that well only & so was his mind conditioned to that thinking that there is no world outside that well & nothing can be bigger than that well.

Same is applicable with human mind also. Now you just tell me, how big is this space in which so many stars & universes are there. Now if your mind thinks of a certain figure of distance & number of stars, then your mind is limiting itself to a certain boundary. But this vast existence is beyond the boundaries because beyond the boundary, again starts another sky which is limitless & is having so many stars & universes. So in the flight of the mind skies upon skies are there in this vast space.

"Sitaron Ke Aagey Jahan Aur Bhi Hain"

There are more & more Worlds beyond these Stars.

In fact this whole vast creation is limitless & infinite. It is beyond the conception & boundaries of human mind. As per the Bhagwat Gita, this whole universe, in which Supersoul or Brahmn resides is Limitless (Anant). This whole vastness of this universe or space cannot be comprehended by the limited human mind. Human mind always thinks within the boundaries. This limited thinking of human mind limits itself to think about the true vastness of one's own true self, which is unlimited in potential. One can always attain much more in life than what his/her limited mind thinks of attaining. So do not be content easily in life & always strive to achieve more & more in life. You are capable of doing & achieving much more in life than what your limited mind can imagine. Those who remain content easily in life always remain small in life; small are their joys, small are their happiness, small is their being. If you are one among such content people then this smallness is your own imposition upon your unlimited possibilities, upon your freedom, upon your unlimited potential.