DR. J. DAS
LINK COLUMNIST
This story of life consists ofpain and suffering or pleasureand enjoyment. These twoattributes of life are opposed toeach other. Therefore they donot coexist. When there is painand suffering we cannot behappy. We complain about thecause or the perpetrator of ourpain and suffering. On suchoccasions we often turn toprayer and ask God to grant us afavour by relieving our suffering.Such a prayer offers ussome psychological benefitbecause we have submitted tothe Divine Power.However, prayer may not be ofmuch help simply because thelaw of karma is operating. So wecan think of an equation such asthis: you pray to God for afavour. God says you reap whatyou have sown. Your conditionremains unchanged. Prayer didnot help. Perhaps, this is not theway we would like to thinkabout prayers, but it is worthcontemplating, as it is applicableto life.There is another way ofapproaching our life. Kabir statedthat people pray when theyare faced with difficulties, butnot when they are enjoying happiness.If they prayed whenhappy, then why should theysuffer? What this really says isthat if you are aware of God’slaw, then you would live in sucha way that you will not incurnegative karmas.Your life will then be crownedwith positivity and goodness.But living in this way requires anawareness of our thoughts,words and deeds.This is termed mindfulness. Ifwe live mindfully, then we willbe aware if our life is taking anegative direction that will likelycause suffering later on. If werectify our thoughts, words anddeeds as we go through life,then our karma will be positiveand produce good results.There is a saying that as a manthinketh, so he is. Every actionis preceded by a thought.Therefore keep your thoughtspure and your words and actionswill automatically be pure. Theend result of this type of lifewill be one of greater pleasureand enjoyment.How do we ensure that we willhave a happy and enjoyable life?I think that all of us know howto cultivate better living habits inevery sphere of activity. Ourreligions, scriptures and teachersexplain to us how to live a positiveand spiritually meaningfullife.The onus is on us to make useof the teachings in our life. Oneof the best ways of achievingsuch a goal is to practice meditation.In meditation we are connectingour self to God.And during this connection, wereinforce the positive attributeswe want to cultivate. Some ofthese attributes have been outlinedin previous articles.All good attributes that are necessaryfor a happy and enjoyablelife are within our reach. If weearnestly engage in the simplemeditation previously mentioned,a better life will dawn onus. So let us adorn our life withthese attributes and live mindfullyand happily.Dr. J. Das can be reached [email protected].
