Nothing stays forever. Good as well as bad times go away
Buddha Purnima is celebrated every year and we pay obeisance to Lord Buddha’s robust thoughts and breathing and meditation techniques. Our lexicon today is once again brimful of words such as CoronaVirus, Covid-19, O2(oxygen), ventilator, masks etc., as the lethal virus resurfaces once again accompanied by the painful memories of the misery we all went through. But we fought back with resilience. When our mind is distraught our prana/chi/energy levels get enfeebled and in such a state our motivational levels diminish.
Aeons ago, during the times of Buddha, A king had several elephants, but one elephant was very powerful and brawny, exceedingly obedient, sensible and skilful in everything, especially his fighting skills. In different wars, the pachyderm was sent to the battlefield and used to return only after ensuring victory for the king. Therefore, he became the most loved mastodon of the king.
Time flew by and there came a time when the mammoth started getting old. Now the elephant was not able to perform as in earlier times. Therefore, now the king did not even send his prized possession to the battlefield but it remained as a part of the king’s team and retinue. One day the elephant went to a lake to quench its thirst, but unfortunately, the animal’s feet got stuck in the mud there and the pachyderm kept on sinking. The mammoth tusker attempted a lot, but it could not extricate itself from the mud.
People came to know from the sound of the elephant’s screams that the animal was in dire straits. The news of the trapped elephant also reached the king. All the people of the kingdom including the king gathered around the elephant and made valiant efforts to disencumber it. But alas, despite attempting for a long time, there appeared to be no solution in sight.
At that very time, Gautama Buddha was passing by. Gautam Buddha, the Sakya Muni stopped and inspected the site of the incident and then suggested to the king that battle drums should be played around the lake. The listeners were amazed at the seemingly bizarre suggestion. How could the trapped elephant come out by playing the battle drums? But they could not say anything to the enlightened one and commenced playing the drums. As soon as the drums of war started ringing, there was a change in the gestures, behaviour and determination of the troubled elephant.
At first, the pachyderm slowly stood up and then gradually used its force and intelligence and before long, came out of the mud on his own, shocking everyone. Gautama Buddha merely smiled and uttered softly, “There was no lack of physical ability in the elephant, but only the need to infuse enthusiasm, motivation and will.
To maintain enthusiasm in life, it is necessary that humans maintain purposeful thinking and do not let despair dominate their minds and thoughts. During desperate and rough times, we all need to enthuse ourselves and the people around us with hope and enthusiasm by playing, if need be, the ‘battle drums’. These drums will metamorphose our thought process so that we relive the abundance of jollity, health and happiness. The ‘battle drums’ can invigorate and raise our motivational levels and take the form of yoga, pranayama, breathing exercises like Sudarshan Kriya meditation, service to society and appreciating the nature of impermanence. “Nothing stays forever. Good as well as bad times go away. Be Happy,” says spiritual master, Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar.
(The writer is the CEO of Chhattisgarh East Railway Ltd and East West Railway Ltd is a faculty of the Art of Living)