Ritam - Being in Balance. A Podcast on Wellbeing
Mental wellbeing is an escalating global challenge having serious impact on the quality of life, productivity in workplace etc. Our approach to wellbeing fundamentally depends on our perspective of ourselves. Are we just human beings, not much different from animals or something more? Over thousands of years the Vedic spiritual seekers dived deep within themselves to explore the inner space and they repeatedly verified that we all, without exception, are in essence really spiritual beings having human experiences. Their discoveries form Vedanta philosophy - the 'science of human excellences" - which explain in detail and with much clarity how we have multidimensional physical, mental, emotional and ethical layers of personality covering the fundamental Pure and eternal spiritual being. Along with this, the Vedic seekers developed systematic Yoga techniques to purify our minds and "dis-cover" our true Self.
The Vedantic conception of ourselves and Yogic mind-management techniques offer an alternative approach to address the mental wellbeing challenges. Ramakrishna Vedanta Centre, Auckland has taken up a project to make available these Vedanta-Yoga teachings to empower individuals with the knowledge and skill-sets to better manage their minds, emotions, values etc. to live meaningful, peaceful and productive lives.
Ritam is the Vedic principle responsible for maintaining order, harmony and rhythm both in the macrocosm and the microcosm. Stress, tension, dis-ease etc arise when we lose this balance at different levels of our being and around us. We have limited capacity to influence change outside us but we can definitely integrate our mind to our inner Self to gain greater poise, balance and rhythm in life. Meditation is the art of turning the mind inwards and anchoring it to our eternal, omniscient, blissful and pure Self. The more we are integrated with our inner Self, the greater will be the influence we can cast around us. This is the spiritual way to freedom from the slavery to the eternal world and internal body, senses and mind.
Ritam - Being in Balance is our series of conversations with Swami Tadananda wherein we explore the Vedanta-Yoga teachings and practices to promote our wellbeing.
Ritam - Being in Balance. A Podcast on Wellbeing
24.Wellbeing - Cleansing the Lens of Perception Through Yoga and Meditation
This episode promises to redefine your understanding of relationships, as we examine the influence of personal conditioning on our interactions. From the boardroom to intimate connections, we reveal the transformative potential in acknowledging the diversity of individual perspectives. When we actively engage with the rainbow of viewpoints around us, we not only enrich conversations but also pave the way for collaborative decisions that honor everyone's contributions.
Venture into the realm of mind purification, where yoga and meditation serve as tools to cleanse the lens through which we view existence. As we converse with Swami Tadandanda, we uncover layers of consciousness and the shifting self across states of awareness. Grasping these concepts, we postulate the existence of multiple planes of consciousness, suggesting that our shared experiences could be the harmonious vibrations of an infinite, singular existence. Prepare to be inspired to embark on your own journey towards a clearer, more authentic perception of the tapestry of life.
Finally, we tackle the critical role of empathy and understanding in resolving conflicts with wisdom from the Vedantic tradition. The narrative of 'samskaras', or mental impressions, opens up a new avenue for character reform and conflict resolution, emphasizing the power of positive habits. This episode is not just a conversation; it's an invitation to view every interaction as an opportunity to nurture understanding and grow wiser together. Join us for a compelling dialogue with Swami Tadandanda that will not only shift your perspective but also enrich your approach to life's complexities.
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Namaste Redham listeners. My name is Sunil. I'm with Swami Tadandanda from the Ramakrishna Vedanta Centre of Auckland, new Zealand. How are you, swamiji? I'm very good, sunil, thank you. How are you? I'm great thanks, swamiji. In the last episode we started talking about perspectives and how our perspectives are coloured and conditioned by many things, including our upbringing, etc. Colored and conditioned by many things, including our upbringing, etc.
Speaker 2:Today can we talk about how this conditioning affects our everyday life? Sure, I think if we can make this knowledge practical in our life, that's a value of it, although it's all a lot of theory. So it's good to have that deep understanding of how our preconditioned mind from our birth, from previous lifetimes, from different experiences, have colored our mind and we see the world. When we see the world, the mind imparts its coloration. We see the world, the mind imparts its coloration. So whatever we observe is the reality or the thing out there. Object Swami Vivekananda in this lecture says the external world is X, unknown and unknowable. X plus the mind is what we perceive. Okay, there is something there, ten people look at it and each one sees differently. The reality is same X, whatever it is but each person imparts his own coloration.
Speaker 2:So imagine you are in office in a boardroom, somebody presents some data, and so many people are there with different levels of experience, some accounting, engineering, whatever I say, each one is interpreting in their own different way, isn't it? Depending on their experience. Somebody might be a very experienced person. He sees one way and nobody sees another way. Somebody sees, maybe a tendency to see only the negative things, you know somebody sees the positive things. So when just being mindful that none of us are seeing the reality as it is, that each one is contributing their piece of mind, and when somebody expresses an opinion or view, they're not talking about the reality. They're talking. What they're sharing is the coloration of their mind with respect to that, and from what we've been discussing, we understand that each one will be different because each one has been his mind has been conditioned differently.
Speaker 2:So why are we having the discussion? Well, maybe to enrich ourselves, because I have my own conditioning and I just can't change the conditioning of my mind to see another person's point of view, but I can learn and listen and learn from another person. How do you say?
Speaker 1:it. So just having that awareness and understanding that if I'm seeing it in a particular way, that's my understanding. But if someone else is seeing it… yeah, equally right, equally, yeah, valid, yeah, exactly. His or her reasoning and understanding needs to be understood by us.
Speaker 2:So then we are open to that mind. We say, okay, let me hear what another person is saying. And then why am I keeping that open mind? Because I want to be enriched with that knowledge. But if we are smug and we think we are the smartest guy there and my understanding alone is right, then the way I will interact with others I am not listening to them. Okay, to hear and to listen are two. Another thing you are hearing them, but you are not listening to them, you are not accepting them. Maybe you are confrontational.
Speaker 2:You go into an argument. We try to enforce your view on the other person. Alright, if not by logic, by authority. I am the boss. I'll tell you that's what you do type of thing, see, and the whole. It creates more tension because you might impose your idea, but it is not his. He'll never have an ownership of it, you know, and he will not run with it. But he will say, okay, the boss is saying I will do this type of thing. See, and that's where, many times, you know, the, the binding thing, loses, you know, and the authorities tell this lower people say, okay, the boss is saying, let me do it if it works out, good if it's not. Doesn't work out, it's not my fault.
Speaker 1:You know they might have a decision, type of thing.
Speaker 2:Yeah, so a smart, smart management would create this, or teach the psychology. Basically, I look, you know, there's no black and white, there's no right and wrong. These are all different perspectives of it. We are together here so that we can share our own perspectives and let us see how we can enlighten each other, enrich each other, and the decision that we'll make will have the lights of different minds shining on it from all different directions, not only one solo type of thing. It will be a much better decision. More chances of success are there and everyone has got an ownership of it, type of thing. So it's a very, very practical thing.
Speaker 2:And if you say you sit chair meeting in the board and you lay these rules, so just say, guys, this is how it works, then everyone is very respectful of another person. Okay, that's very important, see, and the other person is feeling I'm being heard respectfully, everyone pays attention to that person, makes an inquiry, can you tell a little bit more? And that person then you know, flowers forth, you know, and says feels more enthusiastic about the whole thing. I've made a contribution, they listen to my view and they also, and then, vice versa, the other person also feels inclined to listen to everyone else's, you don't feel threatened by somebody and you don't feel that something is being imposed upon it, so that just it's all about communication, communication, communication. You know, people are different, minds different. When the whole idea of organization is different, minds will gather together and try to be in sync. In some, some common idea will run through, like different flowers, but a thread will run through and make a beautiful garland. So there is something, the ideal, the, the that binds that people who are working in the organization. But you'll still be different. It's just a mean that everyone has come there. It's a homogeneous group after some time type of thing, you know, and how they will interact with each other, enrich each other and, of course, the organization. Better is to have this understanding each and everyone, right from the boss, to value everyone's input, understanding that nothing is trivial. At the end of the day, the view of the guy on the ground floor who is going to execute there, that is very important because if he doesn't get it, he doesn't have ownership of it, he is not going to execute it properly. No matter how wonderful might be the concept or idea at the top level, management might be the concept or idea at the top level management. So I think that enriches, it brings in harmony, it brings in the rhythm that we're talking about and everyone feels part of it. They're hurt and the differences in the mind become sort of minimized and sometimes we say we are all on the on the same page, okay, let's do it type of thing. But if they don't feel, then they might go away from that meeting not having resolved that internal conflict and if people's behavior have aggravated this. See, we start with some differences anyway, but we can make a bad situation worse or we try to harmonize things.
Speaker 2:There's a beautiful mantra, one of the ancient Vedas samgachadvam samvatadvam samomanansijanatam devabhagam yathapurve sanyanana upasate samanomantra samiti samanam manas sahachittasimisam. So the word samanam samanam, samanam comes Means manasah chitta simi sam. So the word samanam samanam, samanam comes means let there be that harmony and sameness. Let there be harmony in our intention why we have gathered there. Let there be harmony in our minds, in our understanding, so that whatever we do is in harmony. And that is like a beautiful motto that any board organization gave in the boardroom. Different minds have come together, but we'll succeed only when we are united. That's the idea of an organization or any group for that matter.
Speaker 1:But there is like in practical life, you know, there's always people with very strong views, views that have you know, if you're at the senior management level. The reason they probably succeeded is having a very strong view and a very strong slant towards something, and that is why they're there, and so for some it will be quite difficult to accept others' views, right?
Speaker 2:yeah, well, you can be, and such a person is very lonely on the top okay, you have your views.
Speaker 2:You place and give orders. People will follow it because they need the job, all right, but they're not with you. They don't share the failures, they don't share the successes. Also, they're just there because they need the work. It's not that they love the work, it's not that they love the boss and he's not that they love the boss and feel him to be their leader type of thing.
Speaker 2:A leader is one who can hold many minds together. Swami Vivekananda says a characteristic of a leader is one who can hold many minds together along a line of common interest. So he should be able to identify what is common through all of them. It's like that thread that runs through all the flowers and he holds a thread and everyone is with him. If he can't find that common thing, then people will drift off. My boss, you know I'm leaving type of thing, you know.
Speaker 2:So this type of there are some people are there who are very, very inflexible, yeah, stubborn, arrogant, opinionated, you know, and they are the ones too difficult to work with. You know, I don't think they succeed very much in life, because success comes not by having a beautiful idea. It's about implementing the idea and the people will implement it. He can't sit in the big chair and do that. So I think people who some managers and leaders are there who come down to the grassroot level, like they say, come down to the factory floor. Like they say, come down to the factory floor, talk to the people, type of thing immediate response is oh, boss came and asked and how is it going? Can we do this any better? And of course he's doing it every day. Some idea might have come in his head but he never got an opportunity to share. Here's somebody who comes and he, he can tell him because he's doing it knows, if I do it in a different way, I'm going to make it more efficient or something. And the boss receives it. That man gets thinking, well, if I've got another, if I get another idea I'm going to put. But it all adds incrementally to the efficiency of things. You're talking about a workplace. Okay, the same principle applies everywhere.
Speaker 2:In a family, let us say husband, wife, children, brothers, sisters, extended family, they're all your very own, but each one is a different mind. And, yeah, when the little kids are all angels, but at some point you will see when they become adolescents or teenagers at least. Well, all the samskaras they brought from the previous lifetimes. Now they are beginning to sprout forth and you can see their behavior changes, their opinions change and you try to understand. If you take, if the parents think that, oh, where did they learn this, you? We never gave them any opportunity or this type of exposure, then our understanding of who that person is is not complete. But if we look from the Vedanta perspective, these are incarnating souls. The mind is getting transported from one body to the other.
Speaker 2:In the Bhagavad Gita, sri Krishna says at death we discard. Just like we discard worn out clothes, likewise we discard worn out bodies and we take new ones. But the mind and the samskaras, inherited tendencies continue In a child it's got all that bundle of things. At teenage they begin to express itself. So a vigilant parent is mindful of that and says every behavior, everything the child does, gives me an insight. What is inside the mind, okay. And so he maybe engages more in that conversation just to get a better understanding, you know, asks his views and thoughts and opinions and this and that, and says let me see what's in that mind and how I will interact with that person, what type of career that person should choose. I get some insight. But again here same thing. People have conflicts within families. Differences could be there husband, wife and you see, some things are common. They attract people together. Two minds, some things are there and they get coupled, linked together, and but if you are not careful, that decoupling also happens all right.
Speaker 2:that means they have different minds and, instead of trying to work towards maintaining harmony, things begin to fall apart, drift apart.
Speaker 2:So here, disharmony, yeah, so if you say okay, instead of being judgmental and saying I'm going to force my view or whatever is there, I'm going to try to understand the other person better In the light of Vedanta, suppose we did that. So let us say we have this Vedanta mind, vedantic understanding of the person in front of me and says I will not say to somebody this, make an observation and treat it like a fact. You will say it appears to me. You see, it's not like that, I believe. I believe it seems to me from my perspective. Yeah, see that a little bit. One is to say you know, that is black and white. Or you say that's I'm acknowledging the contribution of my mind. Yeah, but I could be wrong also, most probably I would be wrong, not 100%. Okay, so, and then, if I don't understand, I don't start blaming that other person immediately. I will say okay, you don't open mind, right, I may have a conversation and ask that person to explain to me, yeah, and that person says this is how I saw, this is why I made the decision, this is what's my perspective, this was my need, or this is why there's a reason behind that behavior, and say, ah, now I get it. You know, little thing can make a huge difference and brings this peace and harmony, better relationship. But if you don't have that type of understanding, then it's like two billiard balls bouncing each other of each other and then things can go out of control, spiral out of control.
Speaker 2:So I think it's a very important thing to understand that no observation, no experience is perfectly objective. None of us have got the absolute truth. All of us superimpose our minds on the what we perceive. So what we perceive is X plus the mind, and this mind part we can control, improve upon mind. And this mind part we can Control, improve upon, purify so that it's not like a opaque piece of glass, like very heavily tinted yeah, oh, it's not a red colored grass. Best one is to have a transparent piece of glass that we can see things almost as they are, and yoga is about that only. Yoga means Chitta Shuddhi, purification of the mind.
Speaker 2:How do we make the mind so sattvic, piva, that I can apprehend, perceive things as they are? Take the coloration out. Yeah, take the coloration, it's not so easy. No, okay. So you might say okay, mind has been colored. This could be something we can discuss in more detail, and I know, I know I'm not making the best decisions, my observations are not always right, I'm not making the right comments, my opinions are not always right, I'm not making the right comments, my opinions and things are there. But that's the way I am, that's the way my mind is.
Speaker 2:How do I remove this coloration? What is the method? What are the tools there, and how would meditation and things like that do that? That is actually that's where the spiritual practices come into being and that's how meditation is a very powerful to japa repetition of the mantra. Mantra actually is a very powerful spiritual energy embedded in it, and you use that energy of the mantra, mantra shakti, for the removal of discoloration of the mind, and the mind becomes purer and then you see things closer to the truth, so to say. So we have been discussing about the everyday person's mind. Yeah, the everyday person's mind, yeah, like mind, where it's naturally going out through the five senses, and the external world feeds those energies into us. But it's not necessary that all minds dwell at the same plane, same level, and so if you change that again, your perspective changes.
Speaker 1:What do you mean by that?
Speaker 2:So for this we have to understand. But I have another sort of a deep understanding of how we are constituted. We are a physical body, we are a mind in which ideas, thoughts, and there is another dimension of us which is more subtle, which is intelligence, and ultimately this, the highest dimension of what we are, is pure consciousness. So the eye sense of the location, of eye sense where I am at a particular moment, it moves when what we call the waking state is when we are aware of ourselves as a body, function through the senses, mind activates.
Speaker 2:But look, you know, when you go to sleep in a dream, well, are you aware of your body? Do you use your eyes, ears, nose and all the five senses? No, but you do have a sense of identity, the dreamer. You have a personality, you are doing things, you are hearing things, you are eating things, you are tasting things. It's a perfectly real existence for you, so long you are dreaming. Okay, what's the difference between the waking normal guy and the one who is dreaming? Both are real in their plane of existence. Yeah, okay.
Speaker 1:Yeah, for both people it's the experiencing. Whatever they're experiencing, it seems quite real to them.
Speaker 2:Yeah, while they're in that state and when they wake up, then they compare the waking state and the dream state and they relegate the dream state as it was a dream. It's not real, yeah, and they give reality to this waking state. But what guarantees this waking state, too, is not real? And they give reality to this waking state, but what guarantee is there this waking state, too, is not a dream when it's compared from another plane? Yes, okay. And so the sages say that the mind can access another dimension from which it will compare this waking state and relegate this whole life, whatever the waking state, from childhood to wherever we are, in the same way. This is just unreal, as the dream that I had last night type of thing, see grounded in another reality. So what we can say is there are different points of perception, levels of consciousness or different frequencies that the mind can existed. It's variable. It's, like you know, tv station. We talk about that. Yes, so many channels are there. You tune to a particular frequency in a particular show appears. All right, that means. But how many channels are there? Oh, so many, but we can receive one at a time and what we see depends on the channel that we are tuned to. So imagine, here and now, there are so many planes of existence. You and I are seeing the same thing, this mic, because both of us are at the same plane of consciousness and so we can have a conversation. If you go to sleep now, I can't have a conversation with you because your mind has changed to another frequency. Your world has changed also.
Speaker 2:So when you try to understand the teaching of saints and sages, when they describe their spiritual experiences, we have to understand that first their mind shifted to a spiritual level and from that point of view they are seeing that same X, but the experience is different. It appears to be different. There's a beautiful lecture, swami Vivekananda, in volume 3, I think, of Complete Works, one existence appearing as many, volume 3, I think of Complete Works, one existence appearing as many. So the sages say whatever is the supreme, pure consciousness, brahman, but there are all these planes of consciousness, the seven planes of existence. They say you know, guru, guru, all that. And they are different dimensions. So if you are at a particular dimension, your experience is different. We all human beings dwell in more or less in the same bandwidth, so we can have a common experience and we can communicate. How do you? What is the truth? Well, they're all appearances.
Speaker 2:Just to understand that Shabba said none of us have got the truth absolutely really all are having a dealing with an appearance and the mind is the most common element that is imparting its color. So if you want to know the truth as it is, the mind has to become no mind. Yeah, discolored, discolored, totally discolored. Then it is uh, chitta vritti nirodha, all the thoughts and ideas vrittis in the mind cease absolutely still. Then the reality is experienced as it is. So that gives a little bit of insight about what happens in a spiritual experience.
Speaker 2:But coming back to the everyday life, applying this because it's very, very important, a lot of things we do, the way we react to everything, whatever we see, our minds get colored by all the things that we absorb. What news channel are you watching, okay? What type of information you are feeding into the mind? So there are people who are, you know, who believe in all types of what do they call Fake news. Yeah, and there's so much doubt about everything. Okay, but they feel, from the perspective, they are absolutely right you know whether I should take a vaccine or not depends on what they have been listening to.
Speaker 2:Yes, all right, and they are very, very some of them are very educated people. Some are even doctors you see, we had. But they got absolutely, absolutely convinced or their mind got colored by the information that was being feed, fed into it. And now they are reacting in that way, okay, influencing other people and whether they are going to take the vaccine or not. Basically, you saw that type of things. So you see, now this is the situation.
Speaker 2:If we did not understand that person in this way, then you might think he's a bad person. Deliberately, he's trying to do that. We want to blame him, punish him, whatever is there? Okay, that he didn't take this vaccine. He lost his job, whatever is there. Okay, uh, that you didn't take this vaccine, you lose a job, whatever is there.
Speaker 2:But if you understood this from a Vedanta point of view and say how can I help that person and it is not just by enforcing some law and that you or threat or something, that if you don't do this, then then, uh, there are consequences, as they say. With this understanding comes a lot more empathy and we'll have a more enlightened way of reaching out to these people. You might just simply sit down with that person and say, let me hear you out. Why do you say this? Okay, nothing happening, you're trying to understand what is in his mind, whatever views and ideas. Then, if you have heard him and say, hey, let me share with you. You know, vice versa and that person says there's a condition, we'll have this conversation. He said, okay, and you have an opportunity to share In that sharing, having that conversation, what you are doing is you are beginning to discolor the color that you want to impart. Okay, so that he begins to see your point of view, yeah, and then he says, ah, I get that point and I will no, I will agree, follow that.
Speaker 2:So I think, the more we understand this, whether we're dealing with people that are very close to us, like children, you know, a parent is looking upon the child as a mind and he says how do I prepare this person? That mind is beautifully colored, so to say, okay, not distorted and wrongly influenced. And when you see some behavior that is not right, then you try to see that person. What is in that mind that made this decision or behavior happen? Okay, just by forcing a behavioral change, like okay, time's up time or whatever they call it. You know, you go and sit down there for two minutes and come back. That's not making any change to the mind of the child, you know. Or somebody has committed a crime and you put him in the prison for some time, two years. Are we making any change to the mind itself? No, if that is not done, that person comes back into this world, maybe more hardened because he's influenced by that similar minds there, and creates, does the same thing, thing again, and before you know, he's in front of the, with the police, in front of the judge, and goes in there again.
Speaker 2:So in reformation, swami Vivekananda explains it beautifully in Karma Yoga, how character is formed. So the sum total of all the impressions that we have in the mind say some are good, positive, some are not good, negative, but overall, if it's positive, we say that person is good. So sum total of impressions of the mind determines the nature of the person, the character of the person, and that's how we find some people say he's a good guy. Okay, it doesn't mean that bad impressions are not there, but overall resultant, net resultant, is in that direction.
Speaker 2:Now and, if you want so, how did the samskaras form? You do something, it leaves an impression. You do it again. It leaves, reinforces that impression. That's why we do revision and all those things. So if some samskaras have formed and it's hardened and now it's become a habit, so repeated samskaras repeatedly. We do something, habits, reinforce and that becomes natural, easy. Okay, now we say we've trained them. Training here means forming similar samskaras again by doing something again and again to change the samskaras. You want to change the person, to make a better person. Yeah, you can't go and delete all the samskaras, no, okay, what would be the way to do it then?
Speaker 1:You have to provide them the alternative, right the opposite, the opposite.
Speaker 2:Yeah, that means we will try to create more of the good samskaras. Yeah, all right, and at some point then it will swing over to the positive direction.
Speaker 1:Okay, take a while. There's so much to undo almost.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yes, it's not an easy thing that you just, you know, shout at somebody or punish somebody or lock somebody up or whatever. Is there that some internal change in the mind? Is there, only the external behavior gets controlled. So repeated habits create samskaras and forms character. And to reform a character, the same method applies, because now we've understood how the mind is formed and how can the mind be reformed.
Speaker 2:That's why Swami Vivekananda says to be good, to do good. That's the whole of religion. But behind that is this deep philosophy that by doing good, by being good, we are constantly creating these new impressions and at some point it becomes the very nature of that person to be good in spite of themselves. They will just do the right thing because the character has been formed.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and so here you get a deep insight about how parents will, you know, look at the mind of the child and do the parenting, how the teachers will teach, and why we should give the best environment so that the best samskaras are formed and the best samskaras that are in the mind, they're already there, they are called forth and the undesirable ones are sort of held back until the person develops their own willpower buddhi, held back until the person develops their own willpower, buddhi, to make to, to give expression to to the good ones and desist from the undesirable ones. So this is a very simple idea, but it has you know how, how nicely, beautifully it can make us do what we're doing better Parenting, teaching at workplace, dealing with people. Learn the secret to look upon people as minds.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and to have an open mind, right, an open mind yourself, so that other perspectives can be understood. Yeah, and you don't have to actually. It's not saying that you have to accept others totally, but at least you're aware of yeah, and you don't have to actually. It's not saying that you have to accept others totally, but at least you're aware of yeah, you know how to deal with that person, how to deal with that person Respectfully.
Speaker 2:Yeah, respectfully, and when that person seems to be inflexible or not getting what you're trying to say, then you say he doesn't have those required samskaras which I have because of my training experience, whatever. So I'm trying to forcefully put something in there of course he's not going to get my point of view.
Speaker 2:I should not get angry with that person if anything. If I want to help, let me patiently work, maybe sending for some training like this hey, get him trained. Now he comes and says I get it, type of thing. So it's very. This is how in the everyday life I think it's very useful.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it's very powerful right. Avoid a lot of conflicts.
Speaker 2:Conflict resolution. Conflicts are with the minds. Minds have different minds out there and they're not going to match and it can have very little consequences. Sometimes little disagreement, but we can live with each other. But sometimes it can have very little consequences. Sometimes little disagreement, but we can live with each other. But sometimes it can have major consequences, like we see.
Speaker 2:You know, people with a lot of power make decisions and they have implications and consequences. So, yeah, it's an idea that one needs to think deeply and check oneself out. So do not react, do not react immediately. Swami Vivekananda says in the Complete Works, three words are in Do not react. That means jump into conclusions and watch, listen, understand that person and most of the time you will find a better way to respond if you get to know what is happening.
Speaker 2:Why is happening inside that mind of the person just having a conversation outside, during sports or whatever, is there. It gives you deep insight. Good leaders, leaders, good managers do that one-to-one doesn't. When you are having a serious conversation, then people are maybe defensive and guarded. They might not say very casual sports or this and that, and then they lose their guards down and they don't feel threatened and they open up and share things and I think if you want to have success in life wherever, the more natural person we get, not the one advertising one. Advertising one is the guy who turns up at the interview. He's going to tell you exactly what you want to listen, all right. Advertising is when you meet the person for somebody first time who wants to impress you.
Speaker 1:Okay, so it's all dress behavior everything is there, good stuff comes out.
Speaker 2:Yeah, okay, but the real things are still there and you get that later on. So the more we can get the natural person, the more free they feel with us and people resonate. If we are free with them, open with them, they will respond. But if we are guarded, protected, then they also will hold their shield.
Speaker 1:It will be hard to be vulnerable and create the trust.
Speaker 2:The study of the mind is amazing, but the study of the self at a deeper level is even more amazing.
Speaker 1:Good, that's very good, swamiji. Thank you very much for your time today. Thank you, we'll carry on talking about perspectives again in the next episode.
Speaker 2:Yes, We'll look at what we call point of view. People say, what's your point of view? You know a little bit. This is a very good topic and very practical topic in our everyday life. Yes, let's have another session on this. Excellent thank you, thank you.
