Thursday, May 8, 2008
The man, who cannot withstand the pleasant and the unpleasant in his psyche, remains imperfect.
The principle behind the process of change is - tolerance, to endure. The capacity for endurance is very necessary for bringing about a change. Without forbearance a man cannot change. He is ever fearful of what others would say. All progress is thereby stalled. All movement stops when a man is preoccupied with what people, his neighbours and companions, would say. He, who wants to change himself, must stop thinking about what others would say. He is not really concerned with other people's opinions; "What should I do?" is his only consideration. Acharyavar often says that if we were all the time concerned with other people's reactions, we would not be able to accomplish anything. All the progress that has taken place has been there because we never entertained any fears as to what people would say; instead, we concentrated on what should be done. We must develop our capacity for tolerance. Tolerance means - to put up with the cold, to bear the heat. There is the coldness of winter; there is also the coldness of sentiment.
Likewise, there is the heat of summer; there is also the heat of sentiment. The man who cannot withstand the pleasant and the unpleasant in his psyche, remains imperfect. He is unnerved by the slightest difficulty. The immature person is often perplexed, whereas a mature person is not easily disturbed.