At present, the human beings are suffering at various levels. What is the way out of it? The way to wellness lies in adopting and following The Balanced Lifestyle. To design life in such a way that all the dimensions of human life – material, physical, aesthetic, intellectual, ethical, spiritual, educational, professional and social – are well looked after – is what we mean by this subject – The Balanced Lifestyle.
Life is multidimensional. It is not linear but is exploding in all directions simultaneously. That is why Sri Ramakrishna asks us to be diversely busy. Become just like a flower with the Witnessing Consciousness and Awareness of the Self at the centre, and open multidimensionally in all the possible directions just like its petals. It is only by this opening in all directions, in all the possible ways, along all the aspects of life, – that one can release the fragrance of well-being all around. Life is a well-connected Whole, all aspects of which need to be taken care of in a balanced way. Possess an all-inclusive view and create a beautiful integration in your life. It is 2017. It is the age of synthesis. No aspect of human life needs to be ignored. Let us be reasonable, live in the present, and choose whatsoever can make our lives successful, meaningful and worthwhile. Remember that self-help and intensive activity are a must for an integrated flowering of our personality. The object of life is the complete and harmonious development of Human Personality in all its aspects.
It is the Balanced Lifestyle that leads to an integrated flowering of our personality. The Balanced Lifestyle is the religion of modern man. The original meaning of the word RELIGION is – to bring all the dimensions together to make a human being Whole. Swami Vivekananda says that the religious ideals must embrace all that exits and all that is good and great.
How to be active and calm at the same time? Be calmly active. Have an attitude of worship in all actions. Whenever one sees two things that are contradictory and one wants both, one has just to find a link that transforms them from contradiction into complementaries. There are no contradictions in EXISTENCE, there are only complementaries – but thy look to us like contradictions. It is the Supreme Being who is the efficient as well as the material cause of the universe and its living beings. It is the Supreme Being who has become the Nature and all the human beings. We are the children of the Supreme Being. There is Oneness of Life.
Common sense is nothing but a reasonable spirit. And it is the Reasonable Spirit that asks us to have a balanced lifestyle. G.W.F. Hegel wrote, “It is the Reason that is ruling in the world. Reason is Divine Wisdom. This good, this Reason in its most concrete form, is God. God governs the world.” Reasonableness is the highest and sanest ideal of human culture. A reasonable person is the highest type of cultivated human being. Reasonableness is the essence and the best side of humanity. Though the breeze of the Supreme Being’s grace is blowing day and night, yet a human being meets with destruction through the lack of self-help, the lack of grace of his or her own heart. Both the legs are needed for balance. Similarly, both, God’s grace and self-help are needed for successful and happy living.
The healthiest response to Life is Joy. And Joy comes when we adopt the Balanced Lifestyle, when we incorporate all aspects of human life, in our lives. The soundest individuals have idealism and realism mixed in proper proportions. Wisdom, or the highest type of thinking, consists in toning down our idealism with a good sense of humour, supported by reality itself.
Strength is life. To enjoy a comfortable and meaningful life, one must avoid weakness. Whether one is a student, or a householder, or a retiree, or an old person; one must undertake Daily Self Culture to keep oneself multidimensionally strong. Our development and growth must be continuous and along all the essential dimensions of life. Devote morning and evening hours to physical, aesthetic, intellectual, ethical and spiritual culture. Observe chastity and enjoy a sound sleep at night for eight hours daily. Keeping yourself fit, healthy and strong, pass through all the four stages of life with enthusiasm –
- Life of a student,
- Life of a householder,
- Life of a retiree,
- Life in old age!
Life of a student is meant for learning and that of a householder for earning. And the life of a retiree is meant for service and that of an old person for the silent communion with the Supreme Being – an Eternal Companion of human beings.
The householder is the centre of life. He is the principal earner. Children, parents and other non-earning members of the family depend upon him for their various needs. He is the basis, the prop, of the whole family. If one wants to be well-housed, well-clad and well-nourished, one needs to earn and save. The world is his or her who has money. Poverty demoralizes. The inevitable consequence of poverty is dependence. Poor are denied education and the opportunities to better their lot. A householder needs to defend himself and his family against the wicked persons. For a householder, not defenselessness but self-defense is the way.
When the TIME comes, one must accept death wholeheartedly without any reluctance – not out of any compulsion nut out of understanding. Total acceptance based on a deep and right understanding about LIFE shows that the person is not ordinary but is an awakened and enlightened human being. Before death knocks at the door, one must recognize and realize – The Eternal Presence and one’s own relationship with That Divine Presence. Once one realizes The Supreme Being – one’s Eternal Companion, there is no death. Life has neither beginning nor end. It is continuous.
Life is Eternal and the most important thing for a human being while dwelling in the physical body is to adhere forever to his or her own Dharma. What is Dharma? Dharma comes from the root word ‘dhar’ which means to support, uphold and nourish. It is Dharma which holds a family or society or a nation or he Humanity together. No Dharma, nor order. Where there is adharma, there is chaos, disorder and suffering. Dharma is virtue whereas adharma is vice. Dharma is ethics, morality and unselfishness. Where there is Dharma, there is victory and joy. Dharma is RITA, the Righteousness. It is our Guiding Light. Each one of us, depending upon our station, position, stage and calling in Life – has one’s own Dharma to accept and follow. It is our Duty! And it is sense of duty that smooths Our Path, Our Way, through Life! Regard the duties done as so many bricks contributed to The Temple Of Humanity. Duty is worship. What is duty? To do the actions for which one is accountable, to accomplish the tasks that one must accomplish, to carry out the responsibilities that one must carry out – is one’s duty. And non-indulgence in that – that is prohibited by Laws, – social and national – is one’s duty. And avoiding that – that is forbidden by one’s own Conscience and that is immoral, unethical, anti-social and anti-divine – is one’s duty. Vide The Bhagavadgita, Third Discourse, Shloka 35, Sri Krishna says, “Better is one’s own duty though destitute of merit, than the duty of another, well discharged. Better death in the discharge of one’s own duty, the duty of another is full of danger.” Again vide The Bhagavadgita, Eighteenth Discourse, Shlokas 45 to 48, Lord Krishna says to Arjuna, “A human being reaches perfection by the performance of his or her own duties. Listen how perfection is won? The Supreme Being from whom is the emanation of all beings, by whom all the universe is pervaded, by worshipping That Divine Being, with the performance of one’s own duties, a human being wins perfection. One should never abandon one’s own duties.”
All the great thinkers and guides – Sri Ramakrishna, Swami Vivekananda, Vinobaji, Lala Hardyal, Osho, Lin Yutang and many others favour The Balanced Life-Design for humanity because it is the Whole that is Holy. No person can be holy without wholeness. It is the harmonious and complete development that makes a human being god or goddess!
Thanks for the terrific post!