Positive Thinking

Vivekananda. He invited Swami Ji to his home for a meal. When Swami Ji arrived, he was seated in a room. In that room, there was a table with many religious books stacked one on top of the other. At the bottom of the stack was the Bhagavad Gita, the sacred Hindu scripture, and on top of it were books from other religions. When Swami Ji entered the room, his host said, “Swami Ji, look at this. What is your comment on it?” One possibility was that Swami Ji might have reacted angrily upon seeing it, saying, “By placing my religion’s book at the bottom, you have insulted my religion. Did you invite me here for this humiliation?” This could have led to a quarrel between the guest and the host. However, Swami Ji didn’t react that way. Instead, he smiled at the sight and gently said to his host, “The foundation is very good.” The incident with Swami Vivekananda shows how he turned a negative situation into a positive one. What appeared to be a bad event was made into something good by him. This is the secret to living in today’s world. Here, there are thorns alongside flowers. With good people, there are also bad ones. Therefore, one often has to endure harsh words. One faces hatred and sometimes encounters disrespect from others. In such situations, the key to success in the present world is knowing how to coexist with thorns and flowers, to love even those who harbour hatred, and to find ways in negative comments that can be turned to your advantage. My life experience has taught me that humans are not made of stone. Every person has a tender heart inside their chest, just like anyone else. Every human born into this world is inherently human; no one is born a wolf.