Live with effortless grace

Aug 24, 2010, 12.00am IST
Sheel Vardhan Singh.

It was 9.30 in the morning. From my balcony on the eigth floor, I could see below a stream of shining cars crawling on the roads.

The traffic seemed chaotic, vehicles trying to get past the other, so much like situations we face in our chaotic lives, driven by competition.

A peaceful life is essentially a simple one and hence effortless. The sheer simplicity of peaceful life is a magnet that attracts, for deep within we identify with it. To be simple is not something external; we have to become simple and natural from within, be open to our own 'internal self', and perform actions knowing where they are leading to. One has to consciously bring about this change, as Paramhamsa Swami Niranjananda Saraswati of the Bihar School of Yoga, Munger says, " To change externally is just a cosmetic change, it is feeding the intellect, the real change is internal." Being open to our internal selves connects us to the fantastic inner world wherein in each one of us a `sage' dwells. Once connected to this sage our decisions are taken from deep within and we no longer need approval of others. We stand tall and empowered, yet simple, natural and in harmony with self and others.

However, being at peace does not guarantee freedom. We all have responsibilities that bind us in many ways, creating a web around us in which we feel enmeshed. So how do we experience freedom? Though it may seem contradictory on the face of it but one who is disciplined is the one who experiences real freedom. Freedom, like peace, is an internal concept, we can experience freedom only when we feel freedom within us. A disciplined man is able to organise his life and take care of his responsibilities with aplomb, and thus he is set free. A disciplined man is able to achieve balance in life.

By virtue of our existence we live in a world of relationships with others. The only constant in life is change and that is true of relationships as well. Only relationship that does not change with time is the one between mother and child, where normally affection is unconditional. If we honestly view our relationships we will find that we are constantly `performing' with others. We unleash words and thoughts often couched in terms of 'love' while the intent to have control over others. The moment we are able to stop `performing,' relationships grow without expectations.

Once we simplify life and take decisions from deep within, infuse discipline in our lives and stop enacting dramas in our relationships we are at peace and free. Once at peace and free, happiness happens. Life becomes an expression of divine calmness and flows with effortless grace. One becomes a 'farmer' instead of a 'warrior'. As Paramhamsa Swami Niranjananda Saraswati says, "In life become a farmer instead of a warrior; learn to nurture and take care and begin the process with yourself with your personality and mind. The victory of a warrior is accompanied by destruction while the victory of a farmer is accompanied by creation."
The shrill note of a motorcar's horn from the street below brought me back from my reverie. I saw a `warrior' in a huge shining red car weaving his way aggressively through the traffic before I turned and went inside the apartment.

Bihar School of Yoga, Munger. www.yogavision.net, www.yogamag.net, www.rikhiapeeth.net