Mindfulness has become a necessity rather than an optional practice in the prevailing world situation. A lot is happening all at once; from climate change catastrophes to a pandemic, from strategic rivalries to the global economic crisis, from unemployment to poverty and humanitarian crisis; too much to handle for humans right now.
Therefore the need to remain calm and balanced from within and without has increased manifold. There’s no need to become a monk and live on mountains to create inner balance; one can do it amidst the daily life chores and dealings. Just a little bit of conscious effort and consistent practice can bring harmony in the mind and body working which will ultimately affect the practical life in a healthy way.
Here are a few mantras that can be practically adopted to bring that balance into working:
- The greatest wealth is only one; health
Although the pandemic has already taught the world about the importance of health and self-care, it is human nature to forget the lessons as soon as the calamity starts to recede. With a bit of laxity in pandemic restrictions, many are switching to old ways of unhealthy lifestyles, especially the ones who are in dire need of employment. Risking or compromising one’s health for work burden is something that might cost us our lives in the prevailing situations.
The last two years have thus reminded us of how great wealth health is. Adopting a healthy lifestyle with fresh and homemade food, a balanced diet, regular physical exercise, and some meditation or mindfulness practices can bring the much-required inner balance in one’s life.
- Patience and perseverance is the key
The wise have always advised for remaining calm and patient in trying times, unfortunately, this is severely lacking in humans today. Most people don’t understand that patience and perseverance are achieved by practice and have to be made an essential part of human dealing for a balanced life.
Ralph Waldo Emerson has said, “Adopt the pace of nature; her secret is patience”. Patience is trust in the timing of life and the universal wisdom guiding each person and every happening. If a person understands this natural cycle and works of the universal principles, patience comes naturally as the fear of tomorrow vanishes away.
- Not every action requires a reaction
A lot of situations in daily life keep us in the cycle of arguments and repetitive behaviors towards others. But have we ever stopped for a second and thought, “does this behavior really require much attention or my valuable energy as a reaction?” Little things in life need to be ignored and let go of for a balanced mind and inner peace. Once you feel the power hidden in a smile that is given as a response to a wicked comment, you would never want to react to anything negative again.
Learn to engage in healthy conversations rather than useless gossip which can spiral into arguments or disagreements for nothing. Why resent a colleague who holds political views that are contrary to yours? Let him express his/her beliefs and values and just as you would want yours to be heard.
- Small changes attract big achievements
This might sound a bit weird but it is true. We often think of changing our lives in a drastic way to achieve something which might not be necessary. The secret to big achievements in life is to bring small positive changes in daily life as a routine. When small things are set in place, big habits are created and made permanent. You won’t wake up one day and become a rich person all of a sudden; you have to remain in a mindset of a wealthy person and create life habits that attract wealth; as Walt Disney has said, “Whatever you can imagine, you can achieve”.
- Learn the art of silence
The great mystic Rumi has said, “Listen to the silence. It has so much to say”. For such mystics and people of wisdom, silence is the key to understanding the world, God, and one’s inner nature.
Silence creates calmness within a person that regulates the blood flow in the body and generates the flow of balanced vibes in the brain. These make a person content and peaceful from within and without. If accompanied with patience and a lack of reactionary attitude, silence can unfold the secrets of the universe.
Keeping one’s mind and body in alignment with the universal pace and natural phenomena will bring a deep balance in one’s being that can sustain external calamities and adversaries of time. This balance is what humans need the most in these testing times.
