Becoming Spiritual Warriors

 

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Becoming Spiritual Warriors

To progress spiritually we need to become spiritual warriors who are completely focused on winning the battle of life. How many of us agree to take on this ultimate battle? When you look at inspiring tales, it is always the stories of people who do not give up that inspires us.

There is a simple story which Paramhansa Yoganandaji used to narrate: “A and B were fighting. After a long time, A said to himself, ‘I cannot go on any longer.’ But B thought, ‘Let me give just one more punch,’ and he gave it, and A got knocked out. A spiritual warrior should be like that: give one final try. That is where we are in this birth – our final try for liberation, we have to give it our all.

Use your unconquerable spirit when you feel you cannot go on – that is how one succeeds in life. We have to develop that gumption and grit which is foundational to developing the resilience we need to progress on the spiritual path.

For us to be successful warriors we not only have to fight our external battles as we live in the material world, but also our inner demons. We need to look within and see our faults – Swamiji keeps telling us this. With meditation practice one begins to see one’s own faults and this helps in correcting them. In fact, the cleansing happens automatically as the chakras keep getting purified through meditation.

Whatever needs to be done, do it now, do not put it off till tomorrow. Now, is the only reality we need to know. When we are in a balanced state, whenever emergencies crop up in life, the spiritual warrior in us rises to the occasion under the guidance of the soul to take all appropriate decisions in the now.

When our Masters tell us to be strong inside, they are asking us to develop a solid armour of steel which protects us from all the vagaries of life and helps us in taking balanced decisions. With this protection, one develops the ability to do whatever needs to be done, whenever the need arises without any hesitation.

Look within and ask yourself, ‘What are my weaknesses? How do I become stronger and more spiritual, a person with better qualities?’ Look impartially at what you need to develop, and then take small steps till you reach your goal. That is resilience – the ability to adjust our behaviour or change ourselves constructively – and this is an essential part of spiritual life.