Everyone has a ‘best self’ and one way to describe the spiritual journey is to define and develop this best self. Getting there is about scaling your own Everest to reach the peak self and the highest that is within you. It is important to understand that this journey is a return journey and not about becoming someone you have never been. Rajyoga tells us that we begin at our peak of our Everest and as the soul journeys through time, we naturally tend to navigate away from that, so we always seek to return to that higher self. We know what true peace of mind is, what love is, what joy is because that is already fused or contained within ourselves. The current times are indicating that it is the need of the hour to work on ourselves and emerge the best self and live in alignment with that.
The spiritual journey to one’s personal peak is a long marathon, but it is beautiful. There are three main skill sets we learn on the journey to the summit of ourselves. First, how to manage the self, have a good relationship with our mind and keep it moving in the direction of progress. Secondly, we begin to have good relationships with others – we learn how to reach the peak of balance, that is, detached from and loving towards others. This is the main formula for harmony in relationships. Thirdly, we learn how to deal with situations and circumstances that we all have to face. We learn how to handle these situations and maintain our dignity and peace of mind.
In addition to learning there is one other thing we need to do, and it is even more important than learning. We could term it as ‘unlearning’. We must ‘unlearn’ what we have ‘mis-learned’ so that we can learn that which we should have learned.
One of the obstacles to climbing our own mountain is that we bring the past into the present and limit and imprison ourselves. These self-imposed limitations stop us from climbing our Everest. The principle is this – if you do what you have always done, you always receive the same results. If we want new or better outcomes, then we have to change and start new or better actions to achieve them.
The second obstacle is that our mind becomes conditioned by circumstances. If we fail at something and become bitter, then we eventually, by repeatedly reliving the failure, begin to believe we will always fail in endeavours of this kind. This completely blocks us from finding new and creative solutions to solving any difficulties we have to face.
Scaling mountains requires great stamina. Spiritual mountain climbing requires great spiritual stamina. To develop this, we need to start each day and go inward. We need to sit and be with our own truth. On waking, dwell on the fact that I am a spiritual being of light, an eternal soul, and peace is my nature. Then connect with the intelligent source of all virtue, God, the Supreme Being, and download love and blessings. Then go out and connect with life. In the evening, return to the essence of being, to cleanse the mind again. Each day spent in this way takes us closer to the summit of our own Everest.
Yogesh Sharda is the National Coordinator of the Brahma Kumaris’ services in Turkey.