ASK MAULANA — Your Questions, Answered

you. You mentioned about your friends talking about suicide. Suicide is not an option. Discover your potential, and you will realise that suicide is akin to underestimating both — yourself and the Creator. I think I have a split personality that is compelling me on like a strict mentor. But pressure to match up to my friends hounds me, and I find that I am unable to concentrate. How do I deal with this? Don’t take your friends as models to emulate. There are thousands of books that discuss the lives of successful persons. You should read these books and try to draw lessons from the lives of such people. Excessive academic stress is telling on my nerves. I sometimes go completely blank, and I am on the verge of a breakdown. I want my family to talk to me more, but they leave me entirely alone, saying that I shouldn’t be disturbed. I am beginning to feel desperate. I have even thought of running away from home. What your family is doing is out of love. In fact, they are giving you more time to discover your capabilities. Then why complain? Take it as an opportunity. Your books are your best companions. Try to live on your own, then you won’t complain about others. The other name for this attitude of yours is ‘underestimation of yourself’. Knowing more about the lives of successful people is more important than contact with family members, as the former gives you guidance for life, while the latter only give you emotional satisfaction. There is a world beyond parents, friends, and school. You should try to increase your learning by knowing about this world. And, be thankful to the person who gives you more time by not coming to meet you! What if I start panicking during my Maths exam? I keep thinking about this and get tense, and this might make me blank out. I am deeply worried about this. This is not a bad sign; it only means that you have some capability other than in Mathematics. You should discover that capability and develop it; and in this way, you may emerge a successful person. There are so many persons in history, in the present and in the past, who were not good in Mathematics but who emerged as heroes in practical life! There are numerous subjects other than Mathematics. The Creator has given different capabilities to different people so that in every field people who can excel emerge. You also have a special quality; discover it and try to make progress in that field. o