Effective Life Management by Swami Amartyananda

Author:Swami Amartyananda [Amartyananda, Swami]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Mobilism
Publisher: Advaita Ashrama
Published: 2016-01-03T00:00:00+00:00

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Practise! Practise! Practise!

‘The mind naturally tends towards evil deeds. It is lethargic in doing good work… That is why I say that perseverance and tenacity are necessary for success in all good works.’

—Holy Mother Sri Sarada Devi

‘One ounce of practice is worth a thousand pounds of theory.” “Practise makes us what we shall be.’

—Swami Vivekananda

In order to manage our lives, it is important to realize that mere intellectual understanding of the principles enumerated here is not enough. What we need is practice. We can achieve the impossible through practice. Arjuna admits his incapability to control the mind, which is as subtle as wind. Sri Krishna assures him that it is possible to gain control over it by practice and renunciation. We need to implement ideas in order to bring about changes in our life. Mere reading and discussing or dreaming about the various possibilities does not help much. Practice makes a man perfect. Genius is one percent inspiration and ninety nine percent perspiration!

Practice is of Greatest Importance

If we examine the lives of great men—scientists, philosophers or sages—we find that the key to their success is in practice. They dedicate themselves to practising their calling with such sincerity and devotion that success is guaranteed in whatever they take up. Even in daily life, practice is essential to be able to achieve anything. For example, a student must practise his lessons in order to pass the exams. In fact, it is through practice that we have mastered the ability to walk and write, so much so that we do not feel the strain any more.

Repeated action creates a habit. We can cultivate good habits through repeated good acts and give up bad habits by using our will-power. Habits influence our mind and nervous systems in such a way that they become a part of our nature, our character. If you want to know a man, study his habits. Once we have formed undesirable habits, then it is very difficult to get over them or change them. Yet, all is not lost. Difficult activities such as swimming, cycling, and so on become easy after regular practice. Similarly, other acts and habits can be modified with practice, patience and perseverance. Many are not aware of the tremendous power of practice.

In fact, even reason is considered subordinate to practice. Through practice we can develop habits that stay with us even in times of great stress or danger, whereas reason can simply desert us at such times. This is why firefighters can successfully save people from a building on fire, while others simply panic. These firefighters are made to practise the procedure so many times that it becomes habitual and they are able to perform involuntarily even when their lives are at risk.

Since our early childhood, we practise writing and doing most of our jobs with the right hand. Suppose there is an accident and the hand is injured, we start doing all the work with the left hand and it becomes natural to us. A

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