SECRETS TO A SUCCESSFUL LIFE — Qualities Required

In this process of building one's life, one needs to develop the attitude of being realistic; to stay calm and composed and learn to conquer oneself. Let us understand these with the help of the following examples. Realism If you happen to be in an open field when it starts to rain, you hasten to find shelter. This is not cowardice. This is realism. Similarly, when there is an earthquake, you immediately rush out from your home and look for an open space. This, too, is not defeatism, but an acknowledgement of the reality of nature. Where some difficulty arises between man and nature, the solution to the problem lies only in acknowledgment of the issue, and not in confrontation with it. If you want to live your life meaningfully and develop a structure and constitution that is solid and long lasting, you will have to be like the tree — patient and willing to engage in hard work. The system of rains and earthquakes is part of the scheme of God. Man cannot change this. Man only has it in his power to devise strategies to save himself from their harm. The only way to do so is to adopt the principle of avoidance and thereby save yourself from trouble. That is why in heavy rain, you head for a sheltered place, while during an earthquake, you rush into an open space. Patience and avoidance are not signs of cowardice or a defeatist mentality. They are simply realistic approaches. This is necessary because the Creator has given man freedom for the purpose of putting him to the test. Man sometimes makes the right, and sometimes the wrong, use of his freedom. Even if you start fighting everyone, you cannot snatch away their freedom, because this freedom is given to them by the very Creator of the universe. Efforts to deprive others of their freedom are futile and will result only in your own suffering. In such a state of affairs, there is only one possible sensible response. And that is known as patience. That is, even when faced with bitterness and unpleasantness from others, you must continue your life’s journey by avoiding getting embroiled in reaction and conflict. You should never feel that it is only up to others to practice patience