Suppose you are in the transit lounge — do you get jealous of someone because they got a comfortable chair to sit in while you had to stand at the airport? No. You don’t mind, because you know it’s just a matter of a few minutes. You know that, in some time, you will get your seat on the plane. Similarly, time and again, you must remind yourself that, as long as you are alive, you are in a transit lounge. This planet is the transit lounge, and time is flying by very quickly. Interestingly, the New Year is the time when a lot of people stumble on the realisation, “Another year has gone by!” They wonder for a few moments at the current of time that flows by, and then they get busy with the world again.
Realise the Impermanence of Life!
You are on this planet for a few years only. Just look up and see! So many people have been here on this planet. There have been so many great men and women in the past. And the ultimate place for them all was their graves. So even the person whom you are jealous of, or those who bother you, are not here forever. Life, when seen from a bigger perspective, frees you of jealousy, anxiety, hatred, anger, and despair. That is why knowledge and wisdom are essential in life.
We wish freedom from negative qualities like greed, hatred, and jealousy. When the mind holds on to these qualities, it struggles to be happy or peaceful. You are unable to enjoy life then. So begin with seeing that negative emotions have come due to events of the past, and they cannot do anything to you in the present moment. Forgive the past. If you cannot do this, then you will continue to be miserable in the future. Commit to letting go of the past and starting a fresh life.
Success is woven throughout life. For me, every day you spend happily is a successful day. The days when you have an undying smile on your face, no matter what, are successful; days when you are not scared of anything are also successful days. It is keeping your poise even in the most troubling times.
An undying smile and undying enthusiasm are signs of success. Once, Mullah Naseeruddin met with an accident and was in a hospital with bandages all over him. One of his friends came to visit and asked, “Mullah, how are you?” He said, “I am fine. It only hurts when I laugh.” The friend said, “How can you laugh in this condition?” Mullah replied, “If I don’t laugh now, I have never laughed in my life.” To be able to say this, you need a state of mind that is stress-free and tension-proof.
Stress impacts the way you think, feel, and behave, affecting all aspects of your life. The consequences of letting stress rule are nothing short of disastrous and tragic. Today, everyone wants to know how to be successful without paying the heavy price of a stressful life.
For tackling stress, there are techniques of pranayama and meditation, which strengthen your nervous system and mind, release toxins from the body, enhance your performance and overall quality of life, and bring you a smile that nobody can steal from you.
There is a saying in Sanskrit: “kriya siddhi bhavati sattve, mahatam nopakarane” — it says the fruit of any action, your success, comes to you by sattva (purity and awareness) and not just with your skills, creativity, instruments, or the means you possess. When the mind is dominated by Sattva Guna (one of the three fundamental qualities of nature), then it is very alert, sharp, joyful, and enthusiastic.
How do you increase this Sattva in yourself? It’s simple: take care of your food, get proper rest, rise at the right time, be committed to your meditation and sadhana (spiritual practice), and cultivate unwavering faith. When you embrace these practices, you will find things begin to work out faster. Your energy becomes so positive, and it attracts more luck. Many business people say their profits have doubled or tripled after they have started doing their practices, sitting in silence, and meditating regularly. When sattva is high, you get results with much less effort. This is a big secret to success. This does not mean you become feverish for results.
The Importance of Service
If you sit and think only about yourself – “What about me? What about my family?” — you become stressed and start feeling low. Remember, we are here only for a few years, and we are here to contribute to this planet. In return, whatever the world gives us back, we enjoy it.
When you move with a vision and a mission, life fills up with happiness. Having a vision and mission in life destroys stress and depression. Today, when the world is going through tough times and a lot of challenges, be the light of relief, the light of knowledge, and hope.
Success is not something that you achieve someday. Success is also about balancing your time between work and rejuvenation. When you do an act of service or kindness, it brings an immediate feeling of inner rejuvenation, and your present mental state determines your success in the future. So, drop all your cravings and aversions and serve in your spare time.
There is a joy in getting gifts, and there is also a joy in giving. The joy in receiving is an infant joy, but the joy in giving is a mature form of joy. When someone serves, they experience a level of joy that makes their life more meaningful and fulfilling. Just remember how happy your grandparents used to be when you would visit them at their homes. Your grandma would prepare all your favourite dishes. Her joy wasn’t in eating food herself, but in feeding you. We all have to rise to the mature form of joy — the joy we get from giving.
Make service a part of your life. Contribute towards a better society. Just imagine: if everyone wants to take things from others and nobody wants to give, where will we go? How will we survive? But if everyone wants to contribute, then that society becomes an ideal society — a harmonious society, a society with more human values.
An undying smile and undying enthusiasm are signs of success. Click To TweetSee the Vastness of the Universe
There is a saying in Sanskrit: Ati Sarvatra Varjayet, meaning one should refrain from too much of anything. And this applies to ambition, too. Your ambition shouldn’t kill the present moment. I am not saying do not be rich or famous. If you are doing something useful for society, you will be known by all. I am not saying do not be wealthy. But success is a confidence in yourself that you can make money any day.
A certain degree of contentment is needed. You can only get this by seeing life from a broader perspective. If you pay a little attention to the magnitude of the universe and all that is happening here, you don’t just think about failures and successes. You see your life in context to the whole existence. Then you can enjoy life in its totality, and this is what ultimate success looks like!
You can just lie down and watch this vast sky in the late evening or early morning. You would suddenly find yourself very small. We have all done this exercise as kids. When you become aware of the vastness of space, you appear tiny and insignificant in the context of this vastness. This feeling suddenly draws you into a sense of emptiness, a vacuum.
In the same way, look at life in the larger context of time: how long are you going to be here? Do you think you will be here forever? My dear, your garments, your chappals, have more shelf life than your body. You are like a perishable fruit. When you expand your awareness of time, truth dawns; your consciousness, your worries disappear; and your smallness vanishes. Magnanimity dawns in you. When you see that everything in time is perishing, you attain the state of akshaya, or imperishable. This expanded awareness about life is a sign of ultimate success.
Wishing all Successful 2026!