We are always predisposed to compliment the divine when things go well for us. But, we are just as inclined to reproach the same power when we confront difficulty, or adversity
KATHMANDU, JANUARY 10
All of us exemplify within and outside of us several - hidden or explicit - blurred, fluid or clear emotions. For some, such inner patterns may lead to imprudent behaviour, anxiety, mood swings, lop-sided habits and detachment from close personal relationships, including affection or affiliations - with oneself, family, friends and associates. When things get far too twisted and reach the acme of conflict, or dislike, one 'blows up a storm' of illogicality, just as well.
This emotional 'detonation' often leads to two possible consequences - one, outburst in the most awful manner possible; two, downscaling one's response, while prompting excessive stress and disquiet. This is best typified by repetitive, commonplace events - because, in every irrational conflict, there is ironically a component of reason pleading for balanced behaviour.
It is always up to us to rationalise, or restructure, our behaviour and actions. The more quickly we assess each event that surfaces in life, relationships or career, the better equipped we would all be to connecting with our emotional self, while increasing our aptitude for sensible thinking and positive behaviour.
The best mode to start is by evaluating our emotional anxieties and working on them with a pragmatic resolve. This is the swiftest option for us to 'rewire' our sense of logic and also common sense. Once this occurs, it enables us to expand our energies to reach our next level of creativity, precision and mindful attentiveness. When such binding threads of our emotions 'clasp' the zenith of our thoughtful processes, it connects us to our deepest levels. Put simply, they become one seamless part of our complete human experience and mindful reflection.
The philosopher Plato regarded virtue and human fulfilment as the key to leading a happy, contended life. He said that wisdom has to do with the intellect just as much, or more, as a wise person uses their mind to understand moral reality and applies them in their daily life. The 'mariner's compass' for the wise individual, as Plato also put it, is guided by rationality in the choices they make. Valour has just as much to do with how we all face hardship - be it in life, profession or relationships.
It is this fundamental attribute that helps us to face and overcome our difficulties, or hardships, with courage, poise, hope and refined grace. The process of overcoming difficulty may, of course, bring out tears, but such tears are not symbolic - they are rather the epitome of our inner strength and resilience.
Tears are therapeutic, too, easing mental and physical distress.
This brings us to yet another facet - to think of our present moment and also the future as one immense and also progressively durable mission. It is this original characteristic that helps us to sustain success and comprehend the timeless idea that, notwithstanding difficulties, our life has a definitive implication and purpose. This also denotes the well-established principles of life - that each of us ought to wade through cascading waters, while crossing the complex valleys, or climbing our mental and physical peaks, that connect us at a deeper level. It celebrates the power within us for palpable change, too - not overnight, but over a period of time.
It also exemplifies the fact that it takes time and patience to turn things around - more so, because focused objectives for the future need to be honed with our aptitude to work hard, while knowing all too well that our every small step and constant determination will lead to continual, positive consequences. This is the personification, or embodiment, of our mindful balance and conscious optimism. It drives our uplifting mindful resources and life-changing occurrences towards spiritual fulfilment.
To state the obvious - we are always predisposed to compliment the divine when things go well for us. At the other end of the spectrum, we are just as inclined to reproach the same power when we confront difficulty, or adversity, including job loss. The reality of it all is as old as civilisation - most of us forget to look at every difficult situation as a learning experience, and not so much when it relates to success, or achievement. This is primarily because learning from understanding is as challenging as assessing success - without the financial element. This holds good for our spiritual experiences - because, wisdom cannot be evaluated with prosperity, or wealth.
It resides between our two ears, just as much as it 'fills' our mind, body and soul. Yet, the caveat is, as Mahatma Gandhi said, "It is unwise to be too sure of one's own wisdom. It is healthy to be reminded that the strongest might weaken and the wisest might err."
Wisdom is a simplistic tool - it is assessed by our competence to love and receive love. What defines our wisdom is our innate talent to view the grandeur of nature around us, just as much as applauding the dexterity of a square-drive from the scintillating willow of Virat Kohli. This is what motivational wisdom is all about - the aptitude to enter a condition of empathetic acceptance and appreciation of life's numerous mysteries and subtleties, including our role, or purpose, in it. Agreed that it takes time for it all to percolate into the vast recesses of our mind, primarily because we are so engrossed, tense and edgy - with what's going to happen next in our life, relationships and career.
The whole vista is but a riddle, too. It signifies a voyage that directs us to meeting difficulties, surmounting them, and living life in the best mode conceivable, what with each of us embracing a synchronous, also amplified mental 'zone', or 'flow' principle - as articulated by the noted Hungarian-American psychologist, Mihalyi Csikszentmihalyi (pronounced, me-high chicksent-me-high-ee) - of our own and in a manner born.
Nidamboor is a wellness physician, independent researcher and author
A version of this article appears in the print on January 11, 2023, of The Himalayan Times.
