Day 86

Consider yourself to be in the second category - losing things one by one. You are not going to die along with your friend, or you are not going to take them to hevaen, even if they don't want to come. Everyone has his own ticket, time and place booked. 

There you cannot make any demands. So, why not be happy now? The strength of your happiness is measured by your adverse situations. If everything is smooth then your big smile is worth nothing. You should smile in any adverse situation. 

You should feel that, even if the world dies and disappears, you are not going to sell your smile and that you are not going to be unhappy. This strength in you is Santosha. This is an attitude to develop. There is another Mullah Nasseruddin story.

Mullah Nasseruddin would grumble all the time. He was a farmer. So, he would grumble that there were no rains because of which no crops were growing. It was all so difficult. However, that year there was very good rainfall and he had good crops on his field. 

People thought that Nasseruddin would not grumble because the crops were good and he would be happy. However, when they went to congratulate him for his good crops, Mullah had his usual long face. He said that, with the good crops he had so much work to do. 

All the previous years he did not have to do anything since there were no crops. But, with the good crops, he would have to go to market to sell them. It was a big headache. So, whether Mullah had crops or not, his grumbling continued.

It is the same in your life. You are unhappy about the things you have and you are unhappy, too, about those that you don't have. Someone who does not have a car is unhappy, because he does not have one. And when he buys one, is unhappy, because he has to maintain it and pay the tax. 

It is all such a big headache. He feels that, earlier, he just needed to take a public transport and go wherever he wanted to. Now he has to have his car serviced regularly. And, when he goes out, he has to hunt around for a parking space for it.

Santosha is developing the habit of being happy. You have to develop it yourself. Nobody else can do it for you. Nothing else can give it to you. If anybody else or anything else gives it, it will only be temporary. You should adopt Santosha as your rule in life.

Shaucha and Santosha - cleanliness and happiness.

Tapah, swadhyaaya, ishwara pranidhana - you need to have some tapas - endurance and patience, Swadhyaaya - self-study and ishwara pranidhana - devotion to God, to the Lord.

These are the five rules.

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When the opposite of these bothers you and when your mind rebels against these principles and rules, then you should bring up the feelings, which are the opposite.

Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankarji 

PATANJALI YOGA SUTRAS