Small steps for change

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Swami Tejomayananda [1]

It is said that if you always do what you always did, then you will always get what you always got. We live our lives the same way every day and complain that nothing has changed. We continue to nurse resentments yet hope for peace and happiness.

How will any change come about unless we transform our way of life? If we truly wish to change our lives, we have to do something about it. We can plan for a year or even a whole life, but we can live only one day at a time. In fact, we live only one moment at a time. That is why our memories consist of moments of our life — moments of intense sorrow or extreme joy, or life-changing moments. If we lose a precious moment, it doesn’t come back. If we wish to transform our lives, we have to begin by transforming this day, this moment.
In the Bhagavad Gita, there is a beautiful shloka which tells us how to change our life for the better: “The vedas (literature), water (nourishment), people, place, time, actions, birth, meditation, mantra and samskara (mental impressions) — these are the 10 factors that determine our personality.” Today we shall look at the first five.
The first is the vedas. In this context, we can call it literature. The kind of books we read or things we listen to will have a major impact on our mind. We have to take care that the inputs through the eyes and ears are good.
The second is water. We can understand this as nourishment. The food and drinks we consume have a marked impact on the body and the mind. We have to regulate our intake very carefully. All of us know it, but we fail to put our knowledge into practice. We have to keep reminding ourselves of these basic things.
The third factor is the people we associate with. We are influenced to a great extent by our family, friends and associates. Even in mundane matters like renting a house, we try to choose good surroundings and avoid troublesome localities. Shouldn’t we then take special care of the kind of friends we choose? Till we become rooted in our ideals, we need to be careful about the people we associate with.
Fourth is the place we frequent. Every place has its own unique aura — a railway station, a hospital or a movie theatre has its distinct associations and ambience. We have the freedom to choose the places we visit. We must take care to choose those that are conducive to the qualities that we wish to cultivate.
Fifth is time. Time is a very important factor in our lives. Yet, we do not know the art of time management. The way we use our time can transform our lives. Most of us spend our time catching up with whatever had to be done yesterday. The secret to proper utilisation of time is to start early and to start immediately.

Swami Tejomayananda, head of Chinmaya Mission Worldwide, is an orator, poet, singer, composer and storyteller. To find out more about Chinmaya Mission and Swamiji