Subdue the Ego to gain Self-confidence!

“I have done this, I have achieved this goal and I can do any complicated task”. On the face of it, these utterances may depict the ‘optimistic’ mindset of the person. Though self-confidence is a vital quality for achieving any goals, these kind of assertions surely project the “egoistic’ attitude of the individual. Many people have misunderstood the very concept of self-confidence. In the scriptures, the ‘self’ is taken to be the core of the creation and cosmos but man uses the term to denote his physical and mental capabilities. If we look at the life of great achievers like Einstein and Edison, they were from ordinary background and they never considered their inventions as their great achievement. After reaching many goals in Science, both of them maintained low profile only.

In South India, there is a proverb in Tamil which states that ‘only empty vessels will make noise and the vessels filled upto the brim remains silent. This is evidently a rebuke to the people whose ego has grown out of proportion. In fact, humility achieves many things in the world. Take the case of Abraham Lincoln. He was raised up in utter poverty. He had no second pair of cloths to wear in the school and many of his friends ridiculed him for his shabby outfit. Abraham Lincoln felt very much and went to his mother sobbing. His mother encouraged him by saying, ‘do not heed to their words’. Concentrate on your studies, one day you will become great. The mother’s prophesy turned true. Similar is the case of late Dr. Abdul Kalam, ex President of India, who passed away one year back. He too has come up from poor surroundings but he rose to become a ‘rocket scientist’ through sheer hard work and determination. He had the confidence in the Self and not on his body!

The self is the indweller in each body and it is unaffected by the vesture (body), it wears. It remains as a mute witness of all the activities of body propelled by the illusory mind. Though it remains as a witness, at times it sends a subtle caution whenever the mind indulges in evil and bad deeds. But man conveniently avoids such ‘conscious pricks’ to pursue the sensual adventures!

The mind is easily attracted to bad and evil things like the fly often sits on filth and garbage. If you drive the flies to fire place, it will run away. Similarly, the mind never feels comfort in spiritual path and it resists with all its strength. Hence we need to cajole and coax the mind to pursue higher goals instead of reveling in filthy sensual pleasures. Those great souls, who have achieved the greatest never gave in to the senses. They pursued their goals with one pointed focus, braving many obstacles on the path and finally achieved the top slots in society. Why people admire Abraham Lincoln amongst the several Presidents who occupied the Presidency in United States? It is his selfless acts, utter humility and giving respects to all during his course of his Presidency! Sadly, he was assassinated in the midst of his tenure.

We need not aim to climb mountain tops. It is enough if we start somewhere from the periphery at bottom and move forward slowly step by step towards the summit. One day or other we will reach the summit, if we persist in the efforts. Five virtues distinguish man from other species. It is Truth, Righteousness, Peace, selfless love and Non-violence. As a human being, if we pursue any of the above virtues, other noble qualities will come to you automatically in the course of time. If every one possess such noble qualities and rely fully on the Self within, the world will witness Peace and harmony! Let us pursue noble goals and live as a perfect human being on the earth.

From self confidence, arise self satisfaction which will lead to self sacrifice. Yes, Jesus sacrificed his life in the Cross. He rose on the third day to prove the world that He is sent by the Father in Heaven to guide the erring public who are steeped in attachments to wealth and women. The temples have become bargaining places for traders. He drove the petty traders out of the precinct of the temple and restored the temples to its original glory. The high priests could not stomach this. They feared that Jesus will challenge their authorities. Hence they conspired to put an end to this and they had succeeded in punishing him with crucifixion. They were ignorant about the origin of Jesus. He was God sent. They could only torture his body but the soul was in the realm of God. Hence he bore everything without murmur and rose on the third day. It is this sacrifice which brought great change in the mindset of the people and Christianity flourished on his noble sacrifice. Jesus finally understood that he and his father are One!